Ragnarok
By: Aviantei
18
Ragnarok
Karellen did her best to keep up with Shizuo and stay out of the way of the resulting architectural carnage. Considering that she wasn't anywhere near as fast as Shizuo, that was somewhat easy, but his overall destructive radius was great, so there was plenty of shrapnel that could easily take her out. She'd gotten some Alter permissions to keep herself from getting decimated, but there was still an instinctual fear of very dangerous pieces of broken walls flying at her face that Karellen just couldn't shake.
Still, Shizuo destroying obstacles in their path was helping much more than dealing with the absolute maze they'd been trapped in underneath the CMA's headquarters. Who even built this shitty thing? This isn't some dumb RPG where they need to trap people under here. In everything I saw, the CMA has been good at not pulling any enemies down on themselves, so why even bother?
Except, as Karellen focused, she could feel the faintest traces of an Alter having been executed here, but it wasn't from Jarret or Coleen. It felt similar to the sensation that had knocked her out when they'd arrived at the Headquarters, which meant that the maze they'd been trapped in hadn't been built for just anyone wandering in.
It was built for us.
Karellen swallowed, still jogging after Shizuo. She would have called out to him about the possibility of a trap, but he was too far ahead and too deep in destructive mode to call him back to his senses. And, well, if anyone could handle a trap, it would be Heiwajima-hecking-Shizuo.
Except there was the ripple of an Alter from Karellen's left, and she yelped as that wall collapsed right next to her as well. Karellen fell on her ass—10/10, great job, Kar—and Shizuo shouted her name as he rushed over. While it seemed that he still doubted her, he was a good person in the end, and he didn't want to see people hurt if they didn't deserve it.
And Karellen would have been ecstatic about the fact if she weren't in the middle of panicking over the possibility of getting attacked by some other person with an unknown Reality Alter.
"Come on out, asshole!" Shizuo said, already ready to fight, and Karellen tried to shake off her nerves and stand up, but she didn't have much luck. "If you want to fight, let's go. I've had way too much time running around, and I don't feel like putting off going home any longer than usual."
Yeah, Karellen thought, Shizuo just wants to go home, too. She couldn't blame him for, after so long, just losing his patience for the sake of going back to where he wanted to be.
"Easy, easy, easy!" Colleen's voice called from the rubble, and Karellen gasped. Shizuo loosened up a bit, but he didn't get out of his combat stance until the shape of their missing group member emerged through the fresh opening in the wall. "It's just me, Shizuo! I thought Kar was over here, too—oh, there you are!"
Not even caring that she had a recently upset Shizuo in the way, Colleen rushed forward and glomped Karellen without remorse, knocking her over. Karellen didn't care, though, too busy focusing on the fact that Colleen was okay to think much about what else. "How did you get here? When you didn't contact us, we thought you were captured!"
Colleen laughed. "Yeah, funny story," she said, which Karellen knew to understand that she wouldn't think it was very funny at all. "I did get caught, but, you wouldn't believe it! The person who came after me was the mentee of that one Commander lady who helped us out before, so I convinced him to help us out!"
"You did what?" Shizuo asked, sounding just as confused as Karellen, but perhaps with a bit more anger than she would have used. Even worse, Karellen couldn't quite blame him. He snatched Colleen up by the back of her shirt, lifting her off the floor but not doing anything to harm her. Colleen looked amused, at the very least. "We're neck deep in enemy territory, and you wanna make friends with someone? That's just asking to be backstabbed."
Karellen resisted the urge to point out that Shizuo had once taken on an apprentice who had once tried to kill him, since it didn't seem like it would help. "Let's slow down here," she said, trying to keep things in order. "You managed to find Kaluhiokalani's mentee? Where has this person been the whole time?"
"Funny question to ask, considering that you knocked me out a day ago."
Of all fucking people, Oliver Grewal came through the hole in the wall, and Karellen wouldn't have even recognized him if his face wasn't visible. In comparison to his casual, blending-in otaku getup from the con hall, he was decked out in a pile of CMA gear that Karellen didn't like the look of at all. If Colleen hadn't been walking around, seemingly unharmed, Karellen would've been much more worried and maybe even urged Shizuo to go on the offensive.
As it was, the Strongest Man in Ikebukuro looked over the newest arrival to the conversation and asked, "Huh? Who the hell are you?"
Colleen (still hanging from Shizuo's grip) burst out into laughter. "S-sorry, Oli, I can't—"
Karellen at last stood up, dusting off her pants. "This guy was part of your unit for the last Mission, you know," she said, holding back a sigh. "He's the guy I knocked out whenever you two came to try and Neutralize me." Even if she hadn't made the connection to Kaluhiokalani, Karellen at least recognized Oliver from that incident.
Shizuo looked over Oliver again, though there didn't seem to be much recognition in his expression. "Huh. I guess so." At Karellen's look of disbelief, Shizuo scowled. "Come on, names and stuff are way more of the Flea's thing then they are mine!"
"Is any of this even important?" Oliver asked, which was good point. "The longer we stand around here, the longer we're giving the High Commander to figure out that we're here."
"Yeah, considering that we got knocked out and split up from Jarret and Izaya, I'm pretty sure that that High Commander already knows we're here." Oliver mouthed a few words, and Karellen sighed. "Come on, you're Kaluhiokalani's mentee, right? Does it surprise you that there are people in the higher ups that have Reality Alters?" Because how else could they pull people like Shizuo and Izaya across dimensions without some sort of ability?
Because what else would be the purpose of collecting so much imagination energy from other people if you couldn't use it yourself?
Oliver seemed to follow the thought well enough, based on his distressed expression. Colleen, who'd known all this from the previous research that she, Karellen, and Jarret had completed before, patted Oliver's arm in comfort. "You…" he said after a moment, "You knew Kaluhiokalani for a while, right? Was she happy helping you out?"
"I could rewrite this, you don't have to—"
"Yes, but then there won't be anything to distract from the data breach you made. It's fine."
Karellen looked down, unable to meet his gaze. "I don't know." As far as she was concerned, when she'd almost gotten caught, she would have wanted a different overall outcome, and she'd offered to make one. Kaluhiokalani had chosen to take the fall, even when Karellen could upend reality, just to give her and the others a shot at a regular life. "But I do know that whatever choice she made, I wasn't going to be able to change her mind."
Oliver sighed. "Yeah. That sounds like her."
"Well, I dunno if I get all this shit that's going on," Shizuo said, punching a fist into his other, waiting and open palm. "But it sounds to be like we just need to kick this High Commander's ass. I never really liked running around and doing the CMA's dirty work anyways. So let's take advantage of this big-ass Chaos reserves and get home." Colleen cheered, while Oliver looked determined. Karellen fidgeted with the clip on her bag, wondering what she could do to help if things got dicey. "Hey, kid," Shizuo added, patting her on the head. "I'm gonna go ahead and take off the limit on your powers. You don't need permission from us anymore if you're gonna send us home."
Karellen opened her mouth, but it was too dry for her to speak. Shizuo had already relaxed around her, but taking the limiter off her Alter was as sure of a sign of trust as she could get. Already, she could feel the pressure on her powers fade, and she could breathe easy. "Heiwajima-san—"
"Goodness, you all seem to be having fun."
Karellen tensed at the voice from before broadcasting over the speakers. Shizuo scowled, and Oliver looked much paler than he had before.
"Well, if you want to come challenge me, I'll allow it, but it's not like there's anything I can see you all getting away with. But, yes, let's all come and put this story to an end will we? After all—
"I already have your missing party members captured."
Izaya came to awareness at the smell of cigarette smoke, which wasn't his preferred way to come to awareness. It was just another reminder that he was stuck in cohabitation with Shizu-chan most of the time, which was something he'd been tolerating over the last year, but he didn't like thinking about. Yes, this world was fun, but was putting up with the goddamn protozoan all that worth it?
Except, he realized as he came more and more to awareness, this smoke was too bitter for Shizu-chan's preferred brand—but it wasn't all that unfamiliar to him, either. It took a few moments, as well as a look at the woman smoking it to understand.
"High Commander Chandra Singh," he said, checking his surroundings. While the red décor was indicative that it was most likely the same as the basement level they'd been in before, this was a much different room, the height at least covering three stories. Singh glanced back over her shoulder at Izaya, her lips forming a smile. "I didn't realize that you had such a convenient Reality Alter."
"Did you really expect me to just confirm whatever you think about my powers like that?" she asked, not taking the bait. Well, Izaya could assume enough from context clues: after all, the binds he was tied up with were nebulous, and the smell of smoke was stronger than ever. Jarret, still unconscious, was also tied up next to him. While Karellen and her little group of friends had more obvious creative connections in their powers, it seemed Singh's was connected to her less than appealing habit. "But I don't mind that you know I have an Alter. It's not like it's that hard to figure out anyways." Having smoked it down to the filter, Singh put out her current cigarette and walked over to Izaya. "Though I didn't think you of all people would have gone rogue like that. Then again, I suppose you like interesting things, so maybe that was a motivation?"
No stranger to being at the disadvantage (even if he hadn't planned this kidnapping, it wasn't like he hadn't gotten himself in trouble back in his early days), Izaya gave Singh one of his signature smiles. "Now, now, you can't expect me to go ahead and just give you all the answers when you won't even share."
"It's not like it matters, since we're not going to be around for all that much longer. But I suppose I could let you know that I'm the one that dragged you and Heiwajima over here to our side. Do with that what you will."
Singh put on a pretty smile and walked back across the room, to where there was a computer console that looked a bit like something out of a stereotypical sci-fi movie, but that was the Agency's usual standard of technology. No, what mattered most was that it was Chandra Singh who'd pulled Izaya and Shizuo to this world, thanks to her Reality Alter. And, according to what Karellen had said, that had been with the purpose of further distorting the world, which had just a few potential outcomes.
And the CMA told us what all that Chaos could do. It's all about the possibility of ripping everything apart. So if you're gathering all this power and you have a Reality Alter to go with it, what else are you going to try to do?
Not caring in the slightest that he was still tied up, Izaya laughed.
Singh glanced over to him, but Izaya didn't mind. So many things had happened in the past year, which had been interesting enough. And, well, Izaya was able to amuse himself no matter where he was, so long as there were people around. But something like this was rare and hard to find in this world, especially when in comparison to the Ikebukuro he knew, which was an undeniable treasure trove of fascination.
A good minute later, Izaya had reduced himself from full-blown belly laughter to a series of chortles. "You don't care about anything else, do you?" he asked, not waiting for an answer. "You just want to destroy everything because you can, huh? It's so simple, but that's what makes it so amazing." Because there were people who didn't want to bother with things like reason and instead wanted to go ahead and use their abilities to the fullest, even to the detriment of everyone else. And that—
"Most people wouldn't find the upcoming destruction of the world funny," Singh said, "but I suppose you've always been that type of person, haven't you?"
"Of course. Because seeing things like this is enough to remind me how much I love humans." It almost made the past year worth it. "Still, I'm afraid as much as I enjoy your plan as a concept and a reflection of how amusing you are, I think I'll have to stop you. If you destroy everything right now, I won't get to enjoy humans to the fullest." He didn't even have the opportunity to test his hypothesis with Celty's head and see if she were a Valkyrie.
Ragnarok without reward and proper human turmoil wasn't all that appealing.
"You got that right." Jarret had woken up, though he still sounded groggy. "We've got Alters, too. We can go ahead and put a stop to you right here. I'm sure Kar and Col won't mind tearing you and this whole organization down."
Singh snorted, continuing to tap away at the computer. "Well, I don't think I'll allow you to ruin my plans. We've been collecting plenty of Chaos all this time, and with all three of you BUN targets will give me plenty of backup to set everything off. You two are the bait for everyone else, and then I'll set off the big bang." Finished with whatever she was working on, Singh turned to face Izaya and Jarret, reaching into her suit jacket. Izaya expected a pack of cigarettes, but instead she pulled out a small mp3 player that was notable for a couple of reasons.
One, Izaya was certain it was Jarret's.
Two, it was broken into pieces.
Jarret paled, stricken. Izaya didn't need to know the specifics to tell it was important to Jarret. Maybe even had some sort of sentimental value. But at the end of it all, music was how his Alter worked, and taking away his ready arsenal to counter this whole mess. They were going down on options, and Singh just seemed delighted by the whole thing.
"You need this, right?" she asked, though the answer was more than obvious. She dropped the music player, crushing it under foot for good measure. Izaya was almost looking forward to that outburst of emotion that had compelled Jarret to try and punch him earlier, but there wasn't anything—the kid, it seemed, was a bit more fragile than expected. A bit disappointing, but everyone had a breaking point. "Don't you worry, though. I'll let you make use of your power to help out, just under my terms."
Now, when Singh reached into her pockets, she did pull out a cigarette, complete with a lighter. She clicked the top a few times before flicking it open all the way, lighting the cig and taking a long drag. When she exhaled, the smoke formed a perfect ring, and several more followed it, before the shapes warped, turning into a larger cloud of mist. When it headed towards Jarret, he struggled, though it wasn't long before the smoke had slipped in through his nose and mouth, causing him to erupt in a fit of coughs.
Singh didn't bother to explain, but based on the tremble that shook the ground, Izaya had an idea. The Chaos reserves were here or close to make them easier to manipulate, and Singh was in the middle of using her Alter to pull things ever faster towards the tipping point. Her smoke might have been parasitic or something similar, adding Jarret's power to the larger manipulation that was threatening to tear the world and maybe even the multiverse apart.
She plans to use Karellen and Colleen the same way, and Shizu-chan and I are extra fuel on the fire. It might not be so bad if the others got away, but none of them are practical enough to pull that off. They're going to come in here, guns blazing, and everything's going to get blown up. Most frustrating was that, unlike normal restraints, Singh's smoke ropes couldn't just get cut to let him do something to stop it.
The shaking of the ground intensified.
Singh blew several more smoke rings into the air, preparing her next Alter.
Shizu-chan kicked down the wall, bringing the rest of their little posse with him.
Something that might have been the very universe itself screamed.
And Chandra Singh spread out her arms, looking beyond gleeful as she spoke:
"Welcome to Ragnarok."
[Author's Notes]
There it is, they said the thing -
Happy October, y'all. One more til the end.
Next Time: 19 - "Imagine." Please look forward to it!
[10.02.2021]