Taro felt nothing. He was an empty husk, practically a walking corpse. His mind and thoughts were empty. He was empty.
Occasionally, a spark of life would flicker through. He would remember something, feel something. Maybe it was his sense of justice. Or his fight or flight instincts. Or just a desperate cry for help.
But those feelings vanished as quickly as they came, and he was back to being the puppet of a yandere.
The small - the oh so small - part of him that was still alive wondered. It wondered if Raibaru was still alive. It wondered about the S Class heroes. It wondered about Osana and Hanako…
And then it went back to nothing once again. Mindless nothing.
"And what's a sweet young man like you doing down here?"
Taro didn't respond. The S Class hero Puri Puri Prisoner stared him down, almost lustfully.
"You look so tired," Puri Puri Prisoner told him. "I can't leave you down here, now, can I, sweet boy?"
He reached out to grab Taro's arm. As usual, Taro didn't react, or even make a vague expression.
"My, you almost look dead," Puri Puri Prisoner commented, creasing his brow. "Once we get out of here, we're going to the doctor's, you poor thing…"
Taro suddenly pulled his arm away. He could sense her.
"What's wrong?" Puri Puri Prisoner asked.
She was calling for him. He began to walk away, following her voice.
"Where are you going, sweetie?" Puri Puri Prisoner asked.
Taro ignored him, blindly headed forward. And then he felt the ground rumble beneath his feet. Great power was rushing underneath him. For a second, he felt… dread. Overwhelming fear.
The end was approaching sooner than he thought.
Raibaru clenched her fists. Blood foamed around her mouth. She coughed weakly, defending a blow from Ayano.
"You're sick," she hissed. "Budo cared about you. He was your friend!"
Ayano's expression conveyed no emotion as she slashed her chainsaw.
"That doesn't matter to you, does it?" Raibaru asked, tears streaming down her face. She laughed, bowing her head. "And to think you were ever my friend."
She cried out, lunging towards Ayano. But her moves were all over the place, and she couldn't stop coughing horrendously. Every blow that she managed to defend sent her back. Her arms were burning like fire. She was a complete and utter mess.
Raibaru thought of Garou again. The first person she'd ever called a friend. Was he in alignment with Ayano Aishi? If he was agreeing to work alongside that monster… then Raibaru had officially lost all hope in him.
She stared back at Budo's corpse, narrowing her eyes.
He died for me, she thought. Budo, your death is not going to be in vain. I promise.
She took another step towards Ayano. Just as she did, the ground began to rumble. Raibaru held out her arms, looking left and right.
What's going on?! she thought.
Then Ayano was zooming towards her once again, faster than ever. Raibaru gasped, barely dodging the attack.
She's gotten stronger, Raibaru scowled. Dammit.. I need to get stronger too.
Ayano's eyes went red. She looked left and right, then stood back, arms down, as if she were surrendering.
Raibaru tilted her head. What's she doing?
She approached Ayano, holding up her arms. Just as she was about to attack, someone began yelling.
"Hey! What's going on here?"
Raibaru stopped. The S Class hero Superalloy Darkshine was towering there, watching the fight. His shiny, muscular arms were folded, and his eyes were narrowed.
"She was attacking me," Ayano proclaimed, leaning against the wall. Blood dripped down her mouth.
Darkshine turned to Raibaru with a scowl. "Were you?"
Raibaru narrowed her brows. "No! She was attacking me! She's a mur-"
"Mr. Darkshine, thank you for saving me," Ayano said, sweetly. "Can I ask how the other S Class heroes are going?"
Raibaru clenched her fists. "I have proof! She murdered…" She trailed off once she looked back.
Budo's body is gone?! she thought. Not even a speck of blood was left behind. No way… how did she move it without me noticing?!
"Not sure," Darkshine frowned. "Haven't checked with them for a while… but I'm sure they're fine. Pretty sure Tornado is responsible for the earthquakes."
Raibaru opened her mouth, but nothing came out. Her heart sank. Ayano was too strong, too powerful, too manipulative. How could she possibly win?
"I see," Ayano nodded.
"What are you two doing here, anyway?" Darkshine asked. He stared at Raibaru. "And why were you attacking her?"
Raibaru whimpered, falling to her knees. Her heart… was broken. She was empty. She felt nothing but hopelessness, a worthless pit of despair. Her eyes turned to a lifeless orange.
"I'm sure she has her reasons," Ayano said, in her sweet tone. "But it's okay. I forgive her." She stood up. "We're searching for a friend."
"Who's your friend?" Darkshine asked, titling his head. "Not a good idea for you two to be down here, you know. You could get seriously hurt."
"I appreciate the concern, but we'll be fine, Mr. Darkshine," Ayano replied. "As for our friend… well, only we know where he is. We need to find him alone."
Darkshine looked skeptical, judging by his furrowed brow.
"Well, alright," he said, crossing his arms. "If you say so. I'm gonna go and find that Hero Hunter guy. Stay safe, you two!"
He walked away, leaving the girls alone. Raibaru coughed up blood, staring up at Ayano.
"You're a monster…" she whispered. "You…"
She couldn't even bring herself to say anymore. Her lip trembled. She clenched her fists. One last surge of energy raced through her.
"I'll kill you," she breathed. "Dammit all… I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU!"
She stood up using the last of her fight. She raced towards Ayano, tears flying down her cheeks.
SLAM!
She was shoved into the wall like a worthless puppet. Blood trickled down her forehead. A chainsaw was whirring, ready to slice her body open.
No… she thought, her tears slipping down her cheeks. I'm not… strong enough…
Budo… Osana… Garou…
I'm sorry…
… but she still wasn't dead. A demonic hand had appeared, wrapped around the chainsaw. It crushed the weapon like a can.
Oka was standing there, her hand raised. In her other hand was her favourite occult book. Dark bangs covered her face.
"So it was you…" she said, staring at Ayano. "You're the one we've all been looking for… it's not Garou or any of the monsters… it was you…"
"OKA, NO!" Raibaru cried out. "RUN AWAY!"
Ayano pulled out a knife, facing Oka.
"I knew this day would come…" Oka said, hugging her book. "But just so you know…" She glared at Ayano. "I won't go down without a fight."
She raised her hands as Ayano approached.
"... I usually don't pay much attention to the weather…" Oka said. "... But I couldn't help but notice it's a beautiful day today…" She looked up. "On days like this, schoolgirls like us…" Her eyes went white. "SHOULD BE STUDYING THE OCCULT."
From every direction, demonic hands reached out for Ayano. Ayano zoomed away from them, receiving a gash on her side. She landed on her feet, covering her wound. She stared at Oka, and took a step back.
"Well… you can't blame me for trying, can you…?" Oka asked, hugging her book tighter.
Ayano held up her knife. She slashed it through the air, but missed Oka by a large degree.
"You know… when we first year students…" Oka said, waving her hands, "... you reminded me of myself. Shy… quiet… no friends…"
Ayano dodged the demonic hands. They were swarming around her, almost ripping her hair out. She slashed them away, turning back to Oka. The fight reminded her of another meaningless battle with… who was it, Melzargard?
"I wondered if we had any similar interests…" Oka continued. "I wondered if you'd join the club I wanted to start…"
Ayano jumped into the air, only for her leg to get grabbed by a demonic hand. It dragged her down to the ground with a sudden crash! She slammed into the solid ground, something snapping. Her vision had become blurry and red.
"I wondered if, one day, we might be able to become friends…" Oka said, sadly. "I tried talking with you, but you were always cold and distant…"
Ayano recalled meaningless events. She vaguely remembered Oka asking her about the Occult Club. Ayano had politely refused. She didn't care about occult nonsense. Nothing mattered to her. Nothing except becoming the strongest.
She slashed at Oka, ignoring her burning injuries. Once again, she missed.
"I asked you to join my club, but you weren't interested…" Oka said. "I started to feel worried that I'd be alone forever…"
Ayano wanted her to stop talking. She wanted her to stop resisting and just give in to her own demise. But she continued to dodge.
"But then I met the others…" Oka recalled. "Shin… Chojo… Daku… Kokuma… Supana… and then, the Blizzard Group as well…"
Those names meant nothing to Ayano. She did not care. All that mattered was the kill. Every attack she dodged, the closer she got to the end.
"I learned the world isn't such a dark and scary place after all…" Oka said, with a small smile. "I learned that people like us don't have to be sad… we don't have to be alone…"
Ayano gripped her knife tightly. She was getting impatient. She slashed her knife multiple times, but missed every turn.
"You're not listening, are you…?" Oka asked, sadly. "... please… put down your weapon for a minute… hear me out…"
She breathed in. "... listen… I know you didn't ever want to talk before, but… somewhere in there, I can feel it… inside of you… there is a lonely girl who just wants to have friends… someone who just wants to live a normal life… someone who knows that everything you're doing right now is… wrong…" She weakly smiled. "... Come on, please… I know you can't be all bad… please… if you're in there… if you're listening… let's forget all this, okay? Lay down your weapon, and… let's be friends."
Ayano stared at Oka. No one had actually tried to talk to her before. She almost felt… nothing. Still nothing. It was all meaningless blabber.
She stared at her hands. Her strings glitched, changing from black, to white, to red. Then ahead of her, she saw a disfigured figure. A girl with chalk-white skin and hair. Black veins covered her exposed flesh. Her eyes had been reduced to pools of dark, flowing liquid. She wore something resembling Ayano's school uniform, but much darker.
The girl smiled at her. "YOUR IDEA OF "FUN" SEEMS VERY... INTERESTING."
Ayano snapped back to reality, seeing her hands glitching. Who was the figure she had just seen?
She turned back to Oka, and held up her knife. There was no time for mercy. She slashed once again.
Oka dodged it. Then she began to laugh. "... well, it was worth a shot, right? … I guess we really can't end this peacefully… I really didn't want to have to do this… but you left me no choice…" Her eyes went white. "REATU, BARADA, NIRTHO."
A pool of white energy surrounded her. She held out her arms, her body covered in white energy.
"WITNESS THE TRUE POWER OF THE OCCULT," Oka boomed.
The real battle had begun.
Fubuki perked up, gripping her dress in a fist. "I can sense it…"
"What?" Fureddo asked.
"Oka's power," Fubuki whispered.
Tatsumaki grimaced, feeling the wave of psychic power as well.
It's coming from somewhere deep down, she thought. Another esper is here?
Psykos could feel it too.
That other esper girl is fighting Ayano Aishi, she thought. Hopefully Ayano is strong enough to handle herself… I need her alive for this.
Hands were coming from every direction. They reached out, grabbing Ayano and pulling her to the ground. She was stuck and couldn't move.
"WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?" Oka asked. "IS IT FOR HAPPINESS?"
… happiness.
The hands slammed Ayano into the wall, cracking her skull. Blood pooled down, forming a puddle on the ground.
"ARE YOU DOING IT BECAUSE YOU HAVE A SICK SENSE OF JUSTICE?" Oka asked. "ARE YOU DOING IT TO IMPRESS SOMEONE?"
… justice…
Ayano forced herself to stand up, sliding away from the hands. One grabbed her leg, twisting it. Ayano slipped, landing painfully onto her side. Her body twitched, like a broken robot.
"ARE YOU DOING IT FOR LOVE?" Oka asked. "ARE YOU DOING IT BECAUSE YOU FEEL YOU HAVE TO?"
… have to…
Oka reached out, grabbing Ayano with her dark purple psychokinesis. She slammed her into the ground, again and again. The ground cracked. Ayano's vision went blurry. She was losing herself.
"ARE YOU DOING IT BECAUSE SOMEONE TOLD YOU TO?" Oka asked. "OR ARE YOU DOING JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE A PSYCHOPATH?"
… told me to…
The demonic hands wrapped around Ayano, squeezing the life out of her.
"WHATEVER THE REASON…" Oka clenched her fists. "... I WON'T LET YOU CONTINUE."
… shut up.
That's right… you are God's saviour… you will destroy this world…
She can't survive much longer.
Ayano's strings surrounded her. They wrapped around the demon hands, dissipating them with a flash of red. She stumbled backwards, leaning on the wall. She grabbed her broken leg, and slipped it back into place. Her body continued to heal itself. She stood up, her head twitching from side to side.
"I UNDERSTAND WHAT THE FLAME DEMON WAS TALKING ABOUT NOW…" Oka boomed. "YOU ARE THE TRUE DEMON I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR…"
Ayano tightened her grip on her knife, zooming towards Oka. Oka held up her demonic hands, swiping Ayano aside. Oka's form trembled.
"THIS FEEBLE BODY WEAKENS…" she uttered. "THIS ATTACK MUST BE THE LAST."
She raised her hands, grabbing Ayano in her dark purple psychokinesis once more. She slammed her into the ground again and again. A demonic hand appeared from out of nowhere, stabbing through Ayano's entire body lightning-fast. The red nails were long, deadly daggers, tearing her innards apart.
"I WILL KILL YOU…" Oka promised. "I WON'T LET MISS BLIZZARD DOWN… I WON'T LET ANY OF THEM DOWN…"
She slammed her fists together, causing Ayano's form to snap in two. Her body fell to the ground, surrounded by a pool of blood.
HEARTBROKEN
Ayano realised… she was dead. The fight was over. She had failed.
Then she saw a figure in front of her. A figure whose body was made out of wind and ash. They were glitching, going in and out of her view.
"You have died," it told her. "But I can revive you to become even stronger, Ayano Aishi. You see, to become truly powerful, you must experience death multiple times and revive yourself… until you become fully immune."
Ayano reached out.
"As a Yandere, you are my creation," the figure explained. "I created you to be far more powerful than any human or monster. You see, you are my secret weapon. You will strike once the monsters have made everyone vulnerable. And you are progressing well so far. It will not be long before you strike."
Its form glitched. "I will not let you die so easily."
RESET
Time reversed, healing Ayano's wounds. She was alive once again.
Oka went pale, noticing Ayano sitting back up.
"NO…" she roared. "I KILLED YOU!"
She summoned her demon hands, but Ayano sliced them away like they were nothing. Oka screamed with desperation, grabbing Ayano with psychokinesis. She slammed her into the wall, tears trickling down her white eyes.
But Ayano simply got up and continued walking like a mindless puppet.
Oka slumped, staring at her hands in defeat. "... my power… it's gone… I can't…"
She can no longer defend herself.
Ayano stared down at Oka, raising her knife.
SLASH
Oka fell to her knees, clutching the bloody wound across her chest.
"This wound…" she coughed. "... I won't survive… I guess… I guess this is it for me…" Her expression darkened. "No… no, this isn't over… not by a long shot…"
She laughed, tilting her head. "... heh heh… you see, one day, we're going to meet again… yes, that's right… when you get to Hell… I'll be there, waiting for you…" Her face melted. "... and we'll pick up where we left off."
She fell over, her eyes clouded over. Ayano breathed in. She noticed Raibaru had gone unconscious.
She approached the girl, raising her strings.
Time to finish you off.
Fubuki put a hand on her chest. She breathed out heavily.
"What is it this time?" Genos asked, staring at her.
"Oka Ruto is dead," she uttered.