The sky was red. The ground was black. Uncertainty crawled through the air. Dust and ashes rose.
Civilians lined the streets, gazing left and right in confusion. Something was… off.
And then she appeared.
Completely still, eyes blood red. Human-ish, but there was no expression on her face.
"Hey," a civilian said, gazing at her. "Isn't that the S Class hero Yan-chan?"
"What's wrong with her eyes?" another asked. "She looks…"
A knife appeared in Ayano's hand.
All these people… all of them are threats to my strength…
W̺̹͇͊̈́͘Ï͖̫̯̅̄PE̦͞ T̟̯̬̳̀̊͐͞H̟̳̱́̈́͗E̺̥͐̾M̱̮͉͂̈́̀ ̫͇̾̎A̯̔L̡̩̻̘̥͐̇͑̆͗L̹̖͂͒ ̟͍̳̣͐̓̉͊Ơ̳̣̺̔̽U͕͐Ṱ̏̏ͅ
A man stepped back as she approached. "Wait, what are you-"
He screamed out as she dug her knife into his stomach, tearing his organs out.
Panic arose and spread fast. But Ayano was not done. She grabbed a woman, bashing her head into the wall. Blood spilled out like a waterfall. Ayano glitched, appearing beside a man running away.
"No…" he stammered. "Get away from me!"
Ayano decapitated him without another word. She stood up, her sailor uniform doused in blood. She teleported towards another person.
Of course, she was only just beginning.
"This can't be happening…"
The members of the Hero Association gathered around a large screen in their office. The screen displayed City D, which was littered with corpses. Buildings were missing chunks, and the sky was blood red. All signs of life were gone.
"What the Hell is going on?!" one man shouted.
Sitch went pale. "It's her…"
The screen then showed Ayano Aishi, doll-like, doused in blood, eyes lifeless.
"It was her all along," Sitch trembled. "She's been behind it all. The murders, everything happening at Akademi… it was all her."
"What are we supposed to do about her?" a woman asked him.
Sitch clenched his fists. "We have to send Goddess after her."
"We can't, sir," a different man shook his head. "Goddess… is dead."
"What?!" Sitch cried.
"She was killed by her…" the man shook.
"No…" Sitch breathed. "That's impossible… we've never faced a monster this strong before…"
"Wait, sir," the woman took a step back. "Are you saying…"
"That's right," Sitch grimaced. "We're dealing with threat level God."
The Association workers gasped.
"We need to send out everything we've got," Sitch put a hand on his chest. "Every hero, every weapon, everything. We need to stop her, no matter what."
"Even Blast?" the woman asked.
"This is a dire situation," Sitch replied. "Blast will show himself. I'm sure of it."
Blue grimaced, gazing down from his spot on top of the building. His hero group was standing behind him. Below them was none other than the Yandere girl, the serial killer, the monster, the liar.
"She's really strong," Superalloy Darkshine commented. "Even with all of our strength combined, will we really be able to beat her?"
"Of course we will," Blue responded, holding up his fist. "I have the power of the strings."
"He's right," Raibaru crossed her arms. "She's strong, but we're strong too. We can defeat her!"
"Didn't she kill, y'know, Megami Saikou?" Inkyu asked, raising her brow. "What if she kills us too?"
"She won't," Fureddo said. "We're heroes. The good guys always win."
"Don't worry, dear sister," Sakyu placed a hand on Inkyu's shoulder. "I will protect you."
Suiryu grimaced. This is my debut as a hero… I'll show them all what I'm made of.
"You know what to do," Blue narrowed his eyes. "Accel, go!"
Accel leaped off the building, zooming towards Ayano Aishi. He bent his knees and held out his arms.
This kick will knock her back, he thought. This thing can-
SLASH
Ayano had stuck her knife into his stomach. He collapsed into a ball, blood pooling around him.
"He's dead already?!" Raibaru shouted, covering her mouth.
Itachi growled. "Dammit, that dofus. I'm gonna have to put some gusto into my punches."
"Blue, what now?" Darkshine turned to face the leader of the Neo Heroes.
Blue tch-ed. "Forget the plan. All of you, attack her at once!"
The entire band of heroes glanced at each other, then went soaring towards Ayano.
"Sister, let's show her what we can do," said Sakyu, smirking.
"Okay!" Inkyu beamed.
The two sisters linked arms, before they began to transform. Sakyu's eyes went bright yellow, and two horns emerged from their head. Inkyu's skin went completely white, and two fangs emerged from her mouth. Both of the girls hissed.
Wait… Fureddo narrowed his eyes at the girls. The rumours about them being monsters is true?!
Fureddo turned to Itachi, his fellow Akademi student, but he didn't seem to care. He was holding out his fists, glaring at Ayano. Raibaru was too focused on Ayano to seem to care either. Fureddo forced himself to focus. He stood alongside Raibaru, teeth gritted.
All the people you killed… Raibaru bared her teeth at Ayano. Their lives won't be in vain.
The Basu sisters raced towards Ayano.
"It's been so tiresome having to keep this side of ourselves under wraps for so long, hasn't it, sister?" Sakyu asked her younger sister.
"Yeah, it has!" Inkyu nodded with a grin, licking her lips. "I've been so thirsty for blood."
"Well, it looks like we've got a meal on our hands…" Sakyu tapped her fingers together. She turned to Ayano, blinking seductively. "You don't really want to kill us, do you, Miss Aishi?"
Ayano made no reaction.
"A tough customer," Sakyu chuckled. "Oh well, your death won't be nearly as tough."
Sakyu approached her from behind, raising her sharpened claws. Ayano grabbed her arm, dragging her down to the ground. She cried out in pain.
"Sister!" Inkyu cried.
"Ah, that look in your eyes, Miss Aishi…" Sakyu put a hand over her face, chuckling. "And I thought I was a monster. But you? You are something even worse."
She was about to slip away, but Ayano grabbed her throat. Sakyu choked.
"No!" Inkyu screamed, racing towards them. "Get away from her!"
But it was too late. Ayano quickly disposed of the succubus with a squeeze of her neck. The monster's dead eyes pierced her sister's soul.
"You…" Inkyu's eyes went black. "You'll regret that!"
She zoomed towards Ayano, fangs bared… only to have her head sliced off as soon as she grew close.
"No…" Darkshine covered his eyes, standing nearby Raibaru. "I can't watch anymore of this…"
Ryumon put his face back together, bones reforming. Raiden stood beside him. They nodded at each other, before coming at Ayano from different directions. But they never stood a chance. As soon as they got close, she simply took them both out with a single slash.
"We need to take a different approach," Webigaza put her hands together. A pair of wings sprouted from her back. Tendrils of lightning danced across her body.
Unlike that idiot Sweet Mask, I didn't resort to monsterhood, she thought. Instead… I became a cyborg.
She floated in the air, her power increasing. She won't reach me up here.
Then she detected a presence behind her. Her eyes narrowed at the Yandere girl waiting behind her.
No, that's impossible...
"WEBIGAZA!" Raibaru shouted.
A knife went through Webigaza's power core. She flailed in the air, before crashing into the ground. Electricity trickled down her arms.
"Idiot…" she muttered. "Do you really think you can kill me that easily?!"
She summoned tendrils of lightning once again, baring her teeth. Her body glowed with an aura of power.
"Is that really a good idea…?" Darkshine whimpered.
"DIE!" Webigaza screamed, turning to face Ayano.
But then Ayano was behind her again. And with utter ease, she ripped Webigaza's head off. Wires spilled out from her neck. Her body collapsed. Everyone stopped, unable to move.
"Oh for fuck's sake," Itachi held up his fists. "I've seen enough of this shit! Raibaru, Darkshine, Suiryu, let's finish this damn-"
But before he could even finish his sentence, his entire body had been ripped in half. His torso fell onto the ground, eyes rolling back into his head. The sky seemed to grow darker.
"MAKE IT STOP!" Darkshine pleaded, covering his eyes.
Fureddo took a good few steps back, breathing heavily.
Suiryu's expression darkened. "I… I don't know if we can…" He looked around. "Where's Blue gone?"
"Please don't let him be dead too…" Darkshine sobbed.
Raibaru gritted her teeth. "I'm sick of this. Come on, guys, let's finish this once and for all. All of us, together!"
"It's impossible," Suiryu cried. "She's too strong!"
"That's not true!" Raibaru argued. "We can-"
Then she stopped. She fell to her knees. Ayano had torn her apart. She had done it so effortlessly, so quickly. The former Indestructible Rival… was dead. Her body was lying on the ground, eyes greyed out.
Not again…
"RAIBARU!" Fureddo shouted.
How is this happening? He thought. We're the good guys, we're supposed to win…
He couldn't bear to open his eyes again. He couldn't bring himself to watch Ayano kill anymore of his friends. He could only hear their screams of pain.
"BLUE!" he cried out, with all his heart. "DO SOMETHING!"
Ayano turned to him. Time seemed to slow down.
Is this it? Fureddo clenched his fists. Is this how it's all going to end?
He suddenly felt a safe presence. Blue appeared in front of him, shielding him. Red strings appeared around his body. He held out his arms, eyes narrowed.
"Congratulations," he turned his gaze to Ayano. "You managed to get quite strong. But this is where it ends. You've come face to face with the hero of the prophecy. I will be the one to defeat you."
His strings flowed around his body. He bared his teeth, power steadily increasing. Ayano made no reaction.
Blue… Fureddo stood up.
"Get out of here," Blue told Fureddo, voice cold and harsh. "I can handle this."
The look in Blue's eyes was hard to read. Was he scared? Angry? Sad? Whatever it was, it was a strong emotion that Fureddo knew he couldn't ignore. So he turned and ran, clutching onto his new camera.
Blue's strings made their way towards Ayano.
This is my destiny, he thought. I'll be the greatest hero of all time.
The strings wrapped around Ayano's body. She did not stop moving. She didn't even look slightly affected.
Why aren't they doing anything?! Blue thought. I have the means to defeat her…
You fool… do you really think your strings are real…?
Blue pulled his hands through his hair, ignoring the booming voice. His throat choked up. For a brief moment, his father appeared before him, towering and intimidating. The man wasn't even looking at him. Instead, Blast was staring at his son's cousin, Megami Saikou. His true pride and joy.
Father… Blue gritted his teeth. Fine. I don't need your approval. I'll become an ever better hero than you and my good-for-nothing mother.
He had to outperform his father, no matter what. But his father was the strongest hero to ever live, except for his mother of course. He needed more power. He needed a power that would allow him to get even stronger.
Then the strings appeared.
One day, they came out of nowhere. Blue wasn't sure where, but he soon realised… they were the power he had been searching for. It all came to fruition when he received the prophecy as well.
He glanced at his string-covered palm, forcing himself to keep standing. Yes… this is the power I'll use to overtake my father.
Don't you get it, you worthless fool? You're nothing.
Shut up, Blue scowled. This is my power, my strings, my strength.
You so badly want to be stronger than your father, the desire has turned you into a monster. You're no hero. You're a liar.
No, it's not true, God… Blue thought. I'm a hero.
He flashed back to the present, facing Ayano. His strings grew brighter. Sweat poured down his face; his body was shaking.
"This is real," he growled. "Your life is OVER!"
Ayano raced towards him, slashing upwards.
This is real… I'm a hero…
Blue fell over, a lifeless corpse. He blinked slowly, before he was gone. Ayano walked on by him, somehow even more lifeless than before. Her eyes trailed ahead, focused on nothing.
Father… could I ever be good enough for you?
The Neo Heroes were dead.
A tall, muscular man with spiky black hair, and a long flowing cape walked by the scene of the Neo Heroes' end. A grim expression was on his weathered face. He gazed down at the corpse of Blue.
Threat Level God has finally come, he thought. At last, Traveller… it's time for the battle we've been waiting for.
"EVACUATE THE AREA IMMEDIATELY! SHE'S COMING!"
People ran for their lives, but many of them weren't fast enough. As soon as they saw her coming, they fell to their knees, trapped in their own despair. It was like even their own biology they couldn't escape. No matter how far they ran, she would find them and kill them.
"Please…" one woman pleaded. "Spare my children… please…"
But Ayano did not care. She killed both the woman and her children. She continued to move, slaughtering more and more people. The city streets were lined with corpses.
"YOU WON'T GO ANY FURTHER!" a group of C and B Class heroes appeared, flying towards Ayano. She killed them all in one fell swoop. The panic of the denizens grew louder. Some continued to run, while some fell, accepting their own death.
"Bah, that girl's not even a monster!" a monster whined.
"Yeah, why's she taking all the kills from us?" another agreed. "HEY, YOU HUMAN BASTARD! YOU CAN'T TAKE OUR KILLS!"
They raced over to her, however, backed off when they saw the look in her eyes.
"Nevermind…" they muttered. "That's a monster, alright."
The remaining A Class heroes, aside from the Student Council, also appeared.
Blue Fire scowled. Are we really ready to sacrifice our lives for this…?
Some of the heroes seemed eager. Others seemed… somewhat hesitant.
Blue Fire shook his head. No. We're heroes. This is our job! We'll fight for the protection of humanity!
But of course, like everyone else before, the heroes were all killed. Not a single person had even a slither of hope to win against the Yandere girl.
"No… this isn't real…"
Aoi's whole body was trembling. Tears formed in her eye.
"There's no way Meg is dead!" she shouted. "She's Goddess, for fuck's sake! She can't die! She's the greatest hero in the world!"
"Oh, Megami darling…" Akane bowed her head, sighing deeply.
Shiromi stayed quiet, but her expression had darkened.
"We need to get out there and fight, for Goddess' sake!" Mumen Rider stood up, putting a hand on his heart. "It's what she would want!"
Atomic Samurai gritted his teeth. Tatsumaki had her arms folded across her chest. Zenko was clinging onto her brother, whimpering. Zombieman furiously chewed on his cigarette. Umeji hid his face behind his jacket. Kuu simply trembled. Child Emperor stood up.
"He's right," he declared. "We need to go out and-"
"... she lied to you." Taro suddenly spoke up, his form bent over.
"Huh?" Child Emperor stared down at him.
"About the prophecy," Taro said, looking up at him with messy bangs, and tired grey eyes. "Megami lied to you. She wasn't the hero in the prophecy like she said she was."
Everyone gasped.
"She's… not?" Child Emperor asked. "Who else could it be?"
Taro's form began to shake. And then he giggled. Giggling that soon evolved into roaring laughter. He laughed and laughed, throwing his head back. Tears were streaming down his cheeks.
"Are you okay…?" Child Emperor asked.
"Am I okay?" Taro heaved, turning to him with a pained smile. "AM I OKAY?! Have you been around for these past few months? The world's gone to Hell. We're all going to die. Our lives are OVER. Ah, screw it." He pulled his hands through his hair. "My life's been over ever since I met her. That simple first day, when we were on the rooftops at school, cleaning. We just innocently said hello to each other. That was when Osana was still alive, before we were even dating. My sister was at a different school, still alive. And her friend Midori was alive too. We were all alive. But it was only the beginning. That's when it would all start going downhill. That's when my life would fall to pieces. Because soon after that, I lost Osana. She died all of the sudden. But Ayano was there. I thought she was helping me. I thought she was my friend.
"But it was all just lies, lies, lies. I began falling in love with her, but more people around me started dying. Asu, Amai, heroes everywhere. I was so scared, but she made me feel better. And then my little sister began attending the school. But soon she died too. Suicide, in fact. Everything crashed around me. My life was never going to recover from that point. And Ayano used me. She used me as a slave to help her murder heroes. And there was no one to save me from her. Until Megami arrived. Megami saved me from myself. She helped me see the light of life. I finally began to believe in myself again. I thought things would finally get better. But then guess what happened."
He was on the floor at this point, sobbing uncontrollably. Child Emperor reached out to comfort him, but Shiromi stopped him, to his surprise.
"She took another person from me, because Megami wanted to protect me," Taro sobbed. "Because I'm a coward. Megami should've been the hero of the prophecy. She's everything you could ask for in a hero. But instead… you're stuck with me." He held out his hands, strings surrounding them.
"It was you all along?!" Child Emperor demanded, stepping back. "Goddess lied about it… to protect you?"
"She wanted to be the hero everyone adored, honestly," Akane chuckled, bemused. "She wanted the prophecy to be about her… she always was selfish like that."
"SHUT UP YOU DAMN BITCH!" Aoi roared, charging towards Akane. The red-haired girl simply moved out of the way.
"You can't deny the truth, dear," she giggled.
Aoi was about to charge for her again, but Shiromi held her back.
Taro trembled. "I'm sick of this shit. I'm sick of it. I'm sick of people trying to protect me. This time… I'm going to protect myself." He stood up, red strings flowing around him.
His body trembled with rage. "I will kill Ayano Aishi."
