Chapter 5: Those Who Fight the Monsters
The beach was rather enjoyable to Kira.
He wasn't wearing his usual blue business suit and pants, but instead wore a white linen shirt with brown linen pants; he also had on a pair of black sandals. The buttons that lined up his shirt were neatly fastened, but the muscles beneath his clothing were still evident.
He was sitting on top of a dark purple towel that rested on the hot sand of the coast. He did not sit near the water, opting to rest a good two dozen feet away and to stay closer inland than most. He preferred this location since most of the people on the beach were swimming in the ocean; there were only a few people setting up their own towels a long distance from Kira and the only interactions he had with anyone was with the occasional passerby waving at him as he waved back with a small smile.
It was not very sunny today, large clouds were suspended high in the air and partially blocking out the sun. It had been progressively getting cloudier as the day went on, and if Kira had to guess he was sure it would rain later, but he could be wrong.
In his hands was The Road, a novel by Cormac McCarthy, and he had just finished another page as he moved onto the next. Today he had decided to read his book out in the open sea, and seeing that the sky was getting cloudier by the hour, Kira had decided to go now rather than later while the sun was at least partially out.
Reading next to the ocean is surprisingly pleasant, he thought as he felt the cool sea breeze brush against his skin and made the page corners of his book sway. The way he could smell the sea salt from the breeze, the sound of the waves cracking as they crashed against the shore, it was honestly quite relaxing as a small smile crossed his expression. He could now see why so many people enjoyed coming to a beach. It had a calming effect, able to ease one's mind away from any stress or irritation rising inside their bodies.
And he would be lying if he said he hadn't been feeling just the tiniest bit annoyed at how so many people were trying to ruin his tranquil life.
His thoughts went back to Josuke, and how Let Me Live failed to kill the troublesome Stand User. His eyes narrowed, and his expression now held a hint of annoyance.
It had been two weeks since he had gained Let Me Live's memories, and in that time the master of Crazy Diamond had yet to come to Beach City. This did not surprise Kira, as he already figured Josuke would need to rest after his fight with his mobile sentry version of Killer Queen. But the fact that Josuke as still alive and heading towards him for another fight greatly bothered him. Even though Josuke had seen first hand his new powers, the young Stand User was still determined to stop him from living his life. The fool still believed he could stop him.
Kira wondered how some people could be both incredibly brave and also astonishingly stupid. Josuke Higashikata seemed to walk that line perfectly, the teenager always fighting for his righteous beliefs even though he knew how outclassed he was.
Yet somehow, Josuke constantly managed to defeat him. Somehow, he had outsmarted so many Stand Users and had always come out on top. Somehow, this teen always defied the odds and made Kira's life so much more difficult than it had to be.
But he won't beat me, not this time, Kira thought as he raised his arm. A dark purple aura surrounded the appendage as he slowly and periodically clenched his fist. If he lives through my other trap, I shall just kill him myself. It will no doubt cause me great stress, but at least after I finish him I shall never again have to worry about a teenager ruining my peace.
Yes, if Josuke were his only problem, he might not be feeling so exasperated. In his evolved state Josuke might be able to slightly harm him, but other than that the serial killer would easily annihilate the idiotic teenager.
The issue was that Josuke wasn't the only problem he had to deal with. He also had to think about what to do regarding a prepubescent child and the aliens he lived with.
Ever since he blew up that little pizzeria, he noticed the people seemed a little less cheery. If he had to guess, it was most likely because most of them knew the owners of that little shop, and hearing that they were caught up in a particularly nasty explosion probably frightened them. And if they knew what he was doing to certain people with delicate hands, their fears would probably smother them as the cruel and terrifying reality set into their hearts.
But luckily for those fools, they would never learn about what was happening in their city. He would make sure of that.
He had heard that the ones caught up in the blast ended up going to the hospital; he could not remember their names, but he was absolutely certain one of them had to do with a Hayao Miyazaki film in some way. He heard the only reasons they were in the hospital was because of internal bleeding.
And nothing else.
That was the one detail he made sure to etch into his mind. Killer Queen's explosions, whether big or small, could kill any normal person even slightly caught in the blast radius with a single motion of its thumb. Yet somehow two regular citizens had escaped relatively unharmed? No deep, boiling burn marks that would leave anyone wailing in pain? No scars that would forever remind them of a horrible and traumatizing night? No need for any family members to bury an empty coffin because their loved ones' bodies were now nothing more than dust?
It was good that they hadn't died, their deaths would only bring forth more trouble. But as a murderer who had honed his skills to perfection, he felt this was an insult to his pride.
He had thought back to that night, and remembered the events that followed after seeing the bright pink portal in the air. He knew for a fact that he hit the building the two were working in with Killer Queen's first bomb, and even if they had by some miracle avoided a majority of the detonation, they should still be far more injured then what they were now.
So that meant one thing. The chubby boy had somehow managed to save them.
He did not know every one of the Diamon-no, the Gem's powers, but he did know some things which he had written down in a small notebook in his home. He had asked several people in the town who were some form of acquaintance of the Gems, under the guise of him wanting to know more of the city and the people who lived here, and they had told him details about the aliens that might seem insignificant to others, but for him, was valuable information.
Even though most of the alien women's "friends" did not know everything about them, which was a trend he had begun to notice as he asked more people as it was clear they were more secretive than most realized, he did learn the basics of their abilities. They all had superhuman strength, especially the one known as "Garnet," had the ability to shapeshift their bodies at will, specifically the purple one he had seen on that night was the one that used that ability the most, and the one fact that seemed the most interesting was that each alien had weapons hidden in their foreheads. Apparently, they each carried a different and unique weapon tailored to their skill sets, and even the boy had one; a pink shield if he recalled correctly.
The other citizens of Beach City had also told him that Universe had the ability to heal seemingly any injury.
That little tidbit of information Kira had made sure to not forget, and when he had first heard about the survival of the two workers, he realized that the boy had to have healed them.
And it was at that moment he realized how big of a potential nuisance the child could be.
Kira had no idea what were the extents of the boy's healing abilities, but obviously if he could heal two people who were most likely severely injured to stable states, they must be rather powerful.
If he did have to fight that boy, he would have to make sure he killed him before he got a chance to use those abilities. Otherwise, he'd be in for a long and dragged out fight when he should have won within minutes.
And ever since that night, the "warriors" who protected this town for so long had begun a manhunt. It might not be noticeable to the regular idiots of this town, but to him, the alien women might as well had been waving pitchforks and torches. He had noticed the purple one wandering the boardwalk and the roads around it in seemingly random patterns at random times of the day, but it was clear to Kira she was patrolling the area in case whatever caused the explosion returned. He saw the one with the cube-shaped afro hopping from building to building at night, eyes hidden behind a visor as she scanned the neighboring streets and stores for anything out of the ordinary. And then there was the one with the sharp nose, who walked along several busy streets along with Universe, asking everyone they encountered if they had seen any "strange creatures" or witnessed anything "out of the ordinary."
The ironic part was the "creature" they were searching for had been right in front of them. While the Gems themselves never noticed him, he did in fact pass by them several times, always watching them try and find the elusive monster that had been hurting their town. It was clear to Kira now that they had realized something was happening to the people of this town, and now they were trying to stop it. But they never once even bothered to question him whenever he walked home with his groceries. They never spared him a glance, even when he was walking alone out in the night with a lovely companion in his pocket. They never noticed anything special about the blonde-haired man with a neat business suit.
And that was just the way he wanted it. Being seen as nothing but an average businessman was a technique he performed flawlessly, and it was good to know that these people, and aliens, never noticed the demon living beneath the surface of Kira Yoshikage.
But while they had yet to find any clues as to what exactly was hurting their town, they still searched for whatever was responsible.
Such adamancy to do good always angered Kira. Why did people have to be so hell-bent on ruining other people's lives just because they did something that was frowned upon by society's moral standards?
It was his life. And no one would tell him how to live it.
But no matter, they still had yet to actually come close to finding him
If magical aliens can't find me, I must be doing a better job than I thought. He was tempted to smirk, but his next thought stopped him from doing so. Josuke, on the other hand, will probably find me with little to no problems.
And if he arrived in Beach City and learned about the protectors of this town, he would probably tell them what he was and then join them in an effort to take him down.
Good God, Kira was sure that if Josuke did "team up" with the Gems in order to fight him in some clichéd final battle, it would be the most troublesome outcome possible.
Why does fate want me to get involved with futile battles against more fools? It was like he was destined to constantly get into battles he wanted no part of. But just because he might be forced to fight, did not mean he would lose. Not with his new powers, not with Killer Queen by his side.
He was worrying too much about this matter. He would come up with a plan to deal with Josuke should he arrive here. He would develop a strategy that would take care of the aliens and Stand user without having to exert his powers too much. He had plenty of time to come up with a tactic that would only require him to do a tiny amount of fighting, that way he would be spared the migraines.
So, for now, he would relax.
He would enjoy the beach, he would finish his novel, and then, he would go back home. He would not let another thought spoil his lovely day.
His eyes went back to his book. He found himself quickly engrossed with McCarthy's words, imagining the barren wasteland of the world in his mind.
But then something caught his eye.
He glanced away from his book, and he saw a woman walking along with her boyfriend a few dozen feet away from him. He did not notice any of the woman's physical features, except for her large yet delightful hands.
Immediately, he felt his urges rise to the surface. He felt the familiar whispers coming from the shadows that lurked within him. He found his lips unconsciously tugging into a small smile, and his hand clenched into a fist, fingernails digging into his palm in anticipation for what was to come.
But he put those desires to the side.
He wanted to finish his book, and the ocean only a short distance away from him made reading all the more pleasant. Killing that woman would no doubt be enjoyable, but he could kill her or anyone for that matter at any time he pleased. He could do it later or even tomorrow, it wasn't like there was anyone to stop him.
He was near invincible now.
So he pushed aside his more violent needs and instead focused on his book. The man and his boy had just encountered an elderly man walking along the apocalyptic streets.
He was back here again.
He was back in the snow. Alone. Walking on a desolate street and pitch black night.
And once again, Josuke Higashikata was freezing his ass off.
Not this crap again.
Once again, the Stand User found himself in his high school uniform, but it was damaged in so many places that it barely resembled the once pristine clothing. His metallic emblems were cracked, pieces of them were now missing and his undershirt was torn and ripped in several places. And with the barrage of snow hitting him, his ruined clothing did little to nothing to help defend himself against the cold.
At first, he thought he was having another dream, that he was just experiencing another hallucination due to all the blood loss from his last fight.
But this time Josuke had a feeling this wasn't a dream.
Because unlike before, Josuke felt a scorching pain shoot up his spine. Unlike before, where his injuries had been healed, he now found himself bleeding profusely. His body was in a horrible agony as he found himself struggling to stand up. He felt the gashes adorning his body leaking blood, could feel the pain increasing with each breath he took as he tried not to lose consciousness. The subzero temperatures around him only made his condition even worse, his limbs trembling both from pain and the frigid air as his blood began to turn to red ice and stick to his body. Some of the blood dripping from his face got into his right eye, and he found it now impossible to open the pupil; his blood periodically dripped onto the snowy ground and turned the frozen water into a sick shade of red.
This was not a dream. Somehow he had been transported to some blizzard-ridden streets after beating Let Me Live. A barrage of questions flooded his mind, but right now he was shivering too much to answer any of them. He had to get to someplace warm, and fast.
So as his body continued to grow colder, he used his one useful eye in an attempt to see through the blizzard and darkness.
How in the hell did I end up here again? He thought as he desperately tried to think of any attempts to stay warm. He reached inside himself, pulling on the power that rippled inside his soul as a purple aura shrouded his body. Maybe this time he could call upon his Stand; maybe this time he would be able to use Crazy Diamond to help him get out of whatever frozen hell this place was.
But like his last visit to this frozen wasteland, Crazy Diamond did not appear.
Fuck, he thought, his vision slowly becoming blurry as he held out an arm in front of him in an attempt to block the snow from pelting his eyes and exposed blood.
Why the hell couldn't he summon Crazy Diamond? Why was it he could call upon the familiar purple color of his aura but not his Stand. Crazy Diamond was a part of his will, and so long as he was alive and had enough power left inside him, he should be able to call upon the pink-skinned warrior. It was incredibly disturbing not to be able to summon his Stand and left a hollowness inside Josuke, as without Crazy Diamond Josuke's soul might as well have been removed from within him.
He hated feeling so vulnerable.
And how in the hell do I keep getting transported to the God damn Tundra! He thought that the first time he saw this place it was a dream, but the pain he was feeling right now screamed at him that he was wide awake. The agony he was feeling was all too familiar and all too real to be a dream, so that left him wondering what mysterious force kept bringing him here? And what were the images he saw last time, like the tornado and light from within the blizzard? And what the hell did they mean?
He did not have long to think, though, as the numbness spreading throughout his body made him realize he had to get the hell out of this storm now. It was getting colder, and if he did not get out of this weather soon, he knew he would not live for much longer.
It was even harder to move in the snow this time than before. His legs were as heavy, almost impossible to move as if all the bones in the limb were shattered; and considering the painful fight he had just been in, that might be the actual case. His arms were just as difficult to move, quivering from both the cold and the pain as he wanted to do nothing more but drop his limbs to his sides to stop this horrible torture. Each step made his breaths come out quicker, he found himself already out of breath after only moving a few feet as his heart began to hammer against his chest.
But he would not stop. Not now or ever.
Even though his body convulsed in nerve burning agony, even though it would be so easy to stop and let the frostbite slowly eating away at him finish him off, he would not die in this storm. He would cut off his own appendages, rip out his own eyeballs or even scalp his hair before he stopped.
He was not going to die until the bastard serial killer had gotten a face full of Crazy Diamond's punches. So if whatever kept bringing him here was trying to kill him, it would not succeed. His blood was as cold as the ice raining from above, but he would get out of here like before and continue to Beach City. He would find some form of shelter, heal his injuries and then find some way to the town where the demon of a man was hiding in.
He had to kill Kira Yoshikage. He had to avenge all the people who had died at the murderer's hands, both the victims from his world and this one. He had to get revenge for what that bastard did to his home and friends.
And it was with that thought he heard a voice amidst the raging whirlwind of frozen water.
"Josuke."
He stopped dead in his tracks. Suddenly the cold was the last thing on his mind as his breath hitched in his throat. The piercing and burning pain running rampant on his body was forgotten. His one unfrozen eye widened in disbelief as his mind went blank, unable to think for a moment. Even though he continued to bleed heavily, and a deep, frosty chill was rising inside his body, he pushed his own survival to the side as his head turned slowly from side to side in order to find that voice.
Because he recognized it.
"Shi…Shigechi?" Josuke said, voice barely audible as the storm seemed to grow stronger, the icy winds whirling around him. "Shigechi!" He screamed, and he prayed to whatever God was up there that he was not hearing things. "Shigechi! Are you out there!"
And then he heard the voice again.
"Josuke."
There was no mistaking it. The familiar nasally and almost completely congested voice was without a doubt Shingechi's.
"Shigechi!" He screamed, letting out a sneeze as he felt his blood drop in temperature. Damn it, he needed to get out of here quickly. But, the voice…if it really was Shigechi then he needed to find the small teen. "Shigechi! Is that really you!?" He shouted into the night as his eyes tried to see through the darkness and snow. The logical part of his mind told him that it couldn't be his friend, that Remi had seen him pass on after being blown up by Kira.
But another part, a desperate and insanely hopeful part, wanted it to be his friend. If Shigechi was alive, then knowing that his friend was still breathing would greatly ease Josuke's conscious. Knowing that Kira had failed to kill at least one of Morioh's innocent civilians despite every mistake Josuke made.
"Yeah… It's me, Josuke."
Hearing that should have made Josuke smile, it should have made him practically leap in joy… but when he heard those four words, he noticed that Shigechi's voice held no emotion. The Stand master of Harvest was always extremely emotional, Josuke and Okuyasu could always tell what Shigechi was thinking based off of either his words or expression.
But this was the first time Josuke had ever heard Shigechi's voice sound so empty. It sounded like the voice of a man who was on the verge of death, barely clinging to life.
A sudden sense of foreboding grew within his stomach. The snow continued to whirl around him.
"Shigechi?" Josuke said, his voice not nearly as loud as before as his eyebrows furrowed together.
"I'm here, Josuke… But I'm still dead. I'm still just a bunch of ashes."
He was not surprised to hear that, but Shigechi's statement only made him more confused he let out a cough. The cold was seeping into his very core and his vision became a little blurrier as the minutes passed.
But he needed answers.
"How the hell am I talking to you if you're not alive, Shigechi!? Where are you!? Do you have any idea what this place is?!" He screamed, but Shigechi did not answer him. For several seconds the only noise Josuke heard were the gales of the violent blizzard. The blood dripping from his wounds was now red ice as the temperature had frozen it solid.
"It really hurt you know…" Shigechi seemed to ignore his questions, and hearing those words only made Josuke feel more apprehensive about the situation he was currently in. Just what in the hell was going on?
"Dying, I mean," he continued, and Josuke felt his heart dip into a pool just as icy as the snow around him. "When Kira blew me up… It really hurt…and what made it worse was that I was all alone… Like no one even cared that I was dying."
Shigechi's words were painful to listen too as Josuke's single, nonfrozen eye filled with cold sorrow. "Shigechi, I'm sorry, but we did care about you, me and Okuyasu and every one of your friends miss you." A fire ignited in Josuke as his lips moved into a snarl. "What Kira did won't go unpunished, and the moment I find him he will pay with his damn blood."
"If you cared about me… Then how come you let me die when you could have saved me?"
Those words pierced Josuke's heart as he looked down. They were right of course; he should have saved his little friend. But he failed to do so.
"I was killed, and you weren't there...right when I needed help the most, you had abandoned me and let that man kill me…and now look at me, I'm nothing but the voice of a dead man.."
Josuke did not know what to say. There no words to say that could make his friend alive again.
"I'm sorry." He finally spoke, and his voice was weak and pathetic, but right now he did not care. His tone was perfect for a man who could not save his own friend.
"Sorry ain't gonna bring me back…" there was no anger in Shigechi's voice, he simply phrased his words like he was reading a definition from a dictionary. And that made it so much worse. Josuke would have preferred Shigechi be furious at him than be so empty and unfeeling.
"My Harvest let you know about Kira and what he was doing… And even after discovering him, you still have yet to kill him… it's not like you haven't had the chance, so how come you haven't killed him when you could have done it so many times before?"
Josuke clenched his fist as he gritted his teeth. He couldn't find any good explanation as to why Kira was still breathing, and having no answer to that question made him angry. Even though Josuke had beaten Kira more than once, and even when he had pummeled the bastard with Crazy Diamond, he still had yet to kill the murderer.
The thought made him furious… but most of that rage was directed at himself.
"Josuke…you let me die …you let Aya die…And you even let the people of this world die because of your mistakes…
"I know…" Josuke said as his body fell to his knees, barely even noticing the snow as he looked up into the night. Everything Shigechi had said was true, there was no point in denying any of it. He was just a useless Stand User who let so many people die from a sick and depraved psychopath.
"I don't think you do though… I mean…can you even hear them?"
"Hear what?" Josuke said as the misery swirling within him only grew as he continued to listen to the spirit of his friend.
"The voices… of the others."
Before Josuke could ask what Shigechi meant, he heard it
He heard them all.
From seemingly everywhere, Josuke heard a plethora of voices screaming through the blizzard. He heard the voices of men, women, and even some children that he did not recognize shouting in pure agony. He heard screeches so loud he was sure his ears would start bleeding from the volume of the shouts.
But Josuke did not cover his ears, because he instantly knew whose voices these were.
They were the voices of Kira's victims.
"It hurts!"
"Help me!"
"Please, the pain is too much!"
"I don't want to be dead!"
Every one of the hundreds of voices that Josuke could hear were shouting similar statements. Each word they painfully wailed struck the young Stand User right at his core. He had never heard such agony from so many human beings, and he found himself quickly overwhelmed in an all-consuming wave of despair. To hear so much raw pain, to physically feel all the misery and suffering they experienced through their words was too much for any human being to handle.
"These voices… There of all the people who have died by that monster's hands…" Shigechi stated as Josuke fell forward, his hands digging into the snow as the pain in his body soon became too much for him. "Both from this world and ours… And the number is only growing with each day."
He knew now why Shigechi was doing this to him. To show him the consequences of his failure in physical form.
"And because of you… Kira will continue to kill more people…and it's all your fault, Josuke Higashikata…"
This was hell. What he was going through right now was torture.
"My body is still burning!"
"God, please make it stop!"
"I just want the suffering to end!"
As the voices continued to shout from the darkness, Josuke said nothing and choose to listen to the agony of the dead. He knew he had failed so many times before, and recently he had just failed saving more lives right before he fought Let Me Live. Shigechi was right, it was all his fault that so many people were suffering because of him, but seeing the pain the dead were going through right in front of his eyes made a deep pain spread throughout his body. It was far worse than any wounds that had ever been inflicted to his body up until now. Worse than the deadly chill that enveloped every inch of his body.
Because the guilt he felt from failing so many people could not possibly be matched by anything else.
I'm more of a failure than I thought. Slowly, the voices began to cease their shouting, disappearing and returning to wherever they came from.
"Josuke, at this point, it might be better if you just sit here and freeze to death…" Those words cut worse than Josuke expected, and he was surprised that it was possible to feel even more sorrow drowning his heart. "At least that way the others won't be constantly disappointed in you the next time you fail to stop Kira."
And those were the last words Josuke heard from Shigechi, and he was left alone in the storm.
Even as his wounds began to freeze and his skin started to change color, even as his conscience slowly faded away, and even though he knew the blizzard would kill him soon if he did nothing, Josuke could not focus on anything except all the pain and misery he had just witnessed.
Hearing not only Shigechi, but the voices of every one of Kira's victims blame him for their deaths absolutely shattered Josuke. It was his fault that so many people were now dead because of one monster, Josuke always seemed to be outsmarted by Kira just as it looked like he was finally about to end that monster. He thought back to all the times Kira had been able to escape him at the last second, he thought about his and Kira's fight in the light tunnel and how he was sure the murderer had to be dead now.
Only to be proven wrong almost immediately after he'd woken up in that hospital.
God damn it…how could he call himself a man if he was so awful at stopping one bastard from hurting so many people?
Maybe Shigechi's right…maybe I should just sit here and freeze, he thought as he realized just how stiff his body was becoming. He found himself swallowed by fresh anguish, and right now, freezing to death seemed like the perfect way to end a miserable failure like himself.
But… then what would happen? Just how many more people would die if Josuke chose to let it end here? How many more innocents would fall victim to that monster if he succumbed to his grief?
Because if he died here, then there would be no one to stop Kira. If he were to die here, then he just be condemning more people to their deaths by that psychopath. If Josuke chose to end himself, he would be an appalling human being who had willingly allowed others to die just because he wanted to take the easy way out.
He was a miserable, guilt-ridden shell of a man who had already let who knows how many people die…but if he gave up now and didn't even bother to try and stop Kira, then he would be an absolute piece of crap.
He had a duty as the only other Stand user in this dimension to kill the Kira Yoshikage, and while he had failed so many people, if he did nothing then there would be mountains of corpses all caused by one man who no one could oppose.
Josuke looked inside himself, and amidst the sea of sorrow and regret, he found something that could help him take his mind away from all the immeasurable guilt that was crushing him.
For deep within himself, Josuke found the small fires of determination welling up within his soul. He had a job, to kill a murderer and finally avenge all those the bastard had killed and send him straight to hell. Josuke fanned the flames of his resolve as he slowly stood up, pushing past the coldness growing in him and the pain that should have killed him five times over. He shoved away all feelings of despair and anguish as the determination kept rising and burning within him, getting even stronger with each moment.
He would not die, even though he wished he was dead instead of friends and all the others Kira killed, he could not die just yet. When the murderer was finally stopped, he would deal with the consequences of his actions later.
Just focus on stopping that bastard Josuke, he thought as he began to walk forward against the blizzard. The winds were so intense by now that the gales almost pushed Josuke back down to the ground, but he still continued to march forward as his conviction refused to waver. Each step he took was more painful than the last, his body exhausted and begging him to collapse. He was not sure for how long he wandered, but he knew that with every second that passed, darkness would grow in the corners of his eye.
But suddenly, Josuke was hit with a bright beam of light. Josuke had to bring his arm up in front of him to block out the rays. Somehow, he had ended up ten feet away from some object emitting the intense lights in the middle of the blizzard; and something told him that this was probably the same object he saw last time. He could partially make out the outline, but unless he stepped closer he could not clearly see whatever it was he was looking at.
With shoes filled to the brim with snow and frozen blood clinging to his skin, Josuke slowly limped towards the object. He was incredibly anxious, wondering if the large object in front of him would be anything like his encounters with Shigechi's spirit. Were it not for the fact that he could not find or see anything else amidst the gales of snow and darkness, he might have considered not venturing any closer.
But because he was getting a severe case of frostbite and because the last time he saw this mysterious object he had escaped this place, he decided this was probably his only chance of leaving the frozen wasteland.
After several painful strides, Josuke could now clearly make out the object as he moved closer. It was a car, a green somewhat bulky mini-van that appeared to be stuck in the snow. Josuke could see the tires desperately trying to escape the slushy portion of road, but they could not gain any friction. From inside the car, he was sure he could hear a woman's voice shouting curses at the top of her lungs.
This looks kinda….familiar. He could not tell why, but for some reason, he was sure he had seen this scene play out before. Not when he had first entered this new world, but long before that, he was sure he had encountered something eerily similar to this situation. There was a memory within his mind that was close to surfacing, but for some reason, Josuke could not quite see it.
He was now standing in front of the rear of the car, the falling snow covered the back window so Josuke could not see inside the van. He brought his hands up to the window as he wiped as much snow off as possible, the car's wheels still trying desperately to move. Having cleared off enough snow, Josuke leaned forward and peeked inside the van.
Within the bulky car, he could see a woman furiously stepping on the accelerator, still shouting curses as she slammed her hands against the steering wheel. He could not see her face since she was looking forward, but Josuke could still see her shoulder-length purple hair and petite figure from behind the driver's seat.
He was unsure if he should try speaking to the woman, wondering if she also was a part of the specters he had just spoken with. But his thoughts were quickly interrupted when he heard the sound of coughing coming from the passenger seat. Turning his head slightly to the left, he saw the pale brown seat was leaned back as far as it would go, and that resting against on top of it was a small child. The boy was wrapped in a thick blanket, a small towel on his forehead and his eyes half closed looking in Josuke's general direction; and even from outside the car, Josuke could see the boy's face was bright red. It took him a second to realize that the kid most likely had a fever.
Why the hell would some lady take a sick kid out in… the middle...of a blizzard.
When he finished his thoughts, he suddenly found his one good eye unable to look away from the small boy. He looked at the boy's blue pupils, and he found himself staring at an incredibly recognizable face. This situation was more than just familiar to Josuke, and he was sure that he had the answer as to why. Josuke was sure that he had seen this child before, but for some reason, he could not figure out where. The whirlwind of snow from the blizzard seemed to rise in intensity as Josuke felt more like a block of ice then he did a human being. But even with the cold eating away at his very soul, he needed to figure out why this entire situation seemed so familiar. It was painful for him to be so close to realizing the answer yet still unable to connect the dots. Why was this child causing his head to whirl with confusion and frustration?
Motherfucker, where have I seen this kid before!? Why the hell does everything about this scene make my head hurt!?
And it was then he noticed something about the kid. Before he thought the boy was looking in his general direction, but now it was obvious the kid was looking right at him. Well, almost right at him, since the kid's vision was aimed a bit high; instead of his face, the kid seemed to be looking at his hair.
Then it clicked.
And Josuke found his one remaining eye widening and practically bulging out of his socket. His mouth hung open, his body felt numb, not from the cold but because the answer to his question was beyond shocking.
He remembered why the boy seemed so familiar; he remembered why the car and this whole situation was familiar. For the boy he was currently looking at was…him.
Holy shit.
There was no mistaking it now. The eyes, the short hair and the frail body was what he looked like when he was a child. He forgot about the pain flooding his body, he forgot about the God-awful situation he was currently in as his focus was now completely on the boy. This place...whatever the hell it was, for some reason, it was showing him a moment from the worst day of his life. The mind-shattering questions that filled his head were enough to make Josuke break out into a cold sweat, which was then made worse by the blizzard.
But, if that's me… Then that means…
Slowly, he turned his gaze away from the boy and looked at the woman who still had yet to notice him. It might have been an illusion, it might not really be her, but still, even if it was a fake, seeing her face again would warm Josuke's soul; if only for a second.
"…Mom?" He said, and the woman in the car somehow heard his voice over the raging blizzard as she moved away from her seat and turned her head towards Josuke.
But what he saw was not his mother.
Not. Even. Close.
It had all the right features, from its choice of clothing to its style of hair, it had almost copied his mother's form flawlessly.
Except for its face.
In the place of his mom's vibrant and serene brown eyes were two, empty voids of white. There was not a single hint of life anywhere in its sockets, the soulless pupils stared at Josuke and gazed right into his eyes.
But its face was what truly terrified Josuke.
Instead of pale skin, black static colored the face of the thing sitting in the car. It was like looking at a malfunctioning TV, watching as it fruitlessly tried to load the proper images but instead constantly blurring and darkening the screen. The only difference here was that underneath static covering the thing's body was the distorted and warped mouth. The constantly buzzing and flickering static made its lifeless husk of eyes all the more threatening as Josuke felt his heart stop beating.
What the hell!
And then the thing that was almost Tomoko Higashikata spoke.
"Help us…" Its voice was so horrible; it was like the last gasps of a dead man mixed with the high pitched wailing sound of a static-ridden computer.
"Please." And from its lifeless voids, dark red blood dripped in thick streaks down to the car seat.
And before Josuke got the chance to scream, the blizzard around him began to whirl like a hurricane, the winds becoming incredibly strong and pushing Josuke back a few feet. His vision was quickly covered by the rapidly falling flakes; so much so that he could no longer see the car.
The snow continued to whip violently around Josuke, the winds becoming so intense they caused large cuts to appear on Josuke's already battered body.
"Damn it!" Josuke shouted, the storm around him continuing to whirl as he found himself struggling to even stand against the intense gales. And then, from high above him in the darkened sky, Josuke was hit with a bright yellow light that easily pierced through thick winds of snow. The light continued to grow, soon Josuke could no longer see anything but the bright light as he found his entire body swallowed by the glow.
Josuke let out a scream as he awoke, eyes widening as shot up from whatever he had been laying on. His breaths came out in raspy coughs as his throat felt like he had swallowed sandpaper. He slammed a fist against his chest multiple times in an attempt to regulate his breathing, and surprisingly it worked as Josuke's breaths were now somewhat labored but his cough was now gone.
"Shit!" He said with a deep frown as sweat ran down his forehead. "What the hell was that!?" The images of the blizzard, the voices of Shigechi and the spirits, the car with a young him inside, and the sight of the thing with his mother's features ran through his mind.
Twice. He had been transported to some frozen wonderland twice. The first time he thought it was a dream, but now it was clear that what he had experienced both times were very real.
But…what exactly was it had he just saw? What was causing him to see a land eerily resembling the blizzard he almost died in so many years ago.
There were so many questions, but he had no answers for any of them.
"God damn it Josuke, what the hell kind of mess are you in now?" In addition to being in a new world and learning the monster he knew and hated was still killing people, he now had to worry about some frozen wasteland that seemed to take him whenever he was knocked out. And he had no idea if some new form of torture might be waiting for him the next time he went to that place.
There has to be some kind of explanation as to what I keep seeing. Channeling on the power flowing through him, Josuke summoned Crazy Diamond, who floated about two feet in front of Josuke.
"For some reason, I can't summon you in that place. But how is that possible? It would take some kind of insanely powerful Stand to do that, and I'm sure there are no other Stand User's in this world except for me and Kira."
Josuke had not exactly gone out of his way to find other Stand User's, but his gut told him that there would be no other people who could manifest their fighting spirit. Stand Users were naturally drawn towards other Stand User's, and he had yet to encounter any despite being unconscious in this world for who knows how long. And when he was researching events of this world's past, he found no mention of the golden arrow's that bestowed people the gift of Stands.
And if there was another Stand User, Josuke was sure they would have killed him after sucking him into that strange place by now.
"So what the hell is going on?" Josuke muttered, looking at his partner with eyes full of confusion.
Crazy Diamond did not answer verbally, instead simply shaking its head from side to side.
"I figured you say that," Josuke let out a sigh as he ceased using the power rippling within him and Crazy Diamond faded from reality. He turned his head and looked around, taking in his surroundings. He was sitting on a bench underneath a large tree. Around him, there was a stone path that twisted and led between several small hills where people were talking or walking their dogs. There were dozens of trees planted throughout the are, and Josuke saw the sun was shining down on him through the dark green leaves.
"Looks like I'm in some kind of park." He said before his eyes flew open as his head whipped in every direction. "Wait, a park? How the hell did I get here?" He was nowhere near a park during his fight with Let Me Live, and he knew he had collapsed just outside the flaming streets. He ran a hand through his now messy hair and wondered what the hell happened after he had collapsed. He absentmindedly noticed that he really needed to buy some damn hair products quickly or else-
Wait a minute.
He turned his head towards his arm. The same arm that had gotten hit by one of Let Me Live's explosion, the same arm that had been in nerve burning pain…was now not only fine to move, but it also seemed to be void of any injuries.
"What the…" Josuke looked at his body and he could hardly believe what he saw. Through his ripped and singed clothing, he saw that most of his wounds were healed. While there were some somewhat large burns and bruises still present, most of his more severe injuries had been completely fixed.
"I'm… Healed." Josuke said, slowly moving away from the bench as he stood up. Pained welled up in his body as he stood, but it was not nearly as bad as he expected. His legs that had been shattered in his last fight were now both fine; his body was still incredibly sore though, as he stood he found himself fighting back against a searing pain slowly growing within him, but he could still stand. He jumped from his spot, and when he landed a burning agony spread throughout his body. He let out a grunt as he sat back down on the bench. He then once again began to look over his body.
"Looks like somehow most of my injuries have been healed. Still can't move all that well, but at least nothing's broken anymore." But that only raised even more questions. He was grateful to still be alive, but the fact he wasn't dead even though he hadn't received any sort of medical help immediately raised several red flags within his mind. Why the hell was it that every other minute he was in this world, he was forced to deal with some new mystery that could have dire consequences later on?
But as he continued to get lost in the storm of questions, he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. He turned and saw and peeking out from underneath the bench was a newspaper, and his eyes were honed in at the text. He reached underneath the bench and picked it up, wiping away the mud and dirt that had accumulated on the paper before reading it.
Near the top of the paper, the words "Bombing Investigation Still Continues" were written in bold black text, underneath it were images of the same streets he and Let Me Live had fought on. Reading the passages below the title, Josuke found out that the local police and even members of the FBI had been investigating what they believed to be a series of bombings done by some unknown terrorist group. While Josuke felt a little bad upon causing so much damage, he was relieved that aside from the people who were on the bus with him, no one else had gotten hurt or had died that night.
And then he realized something very important.
The paper said that the investigation was still ongoing…not that it had just begun. Which meant that the authorities had been investigating the aftermath of his fight for some time now. But that was impossible, how could the police move so fast when the fight was just last night?
Unless…
Josuke eyes traveled down near the bottom of the paper. Written there was the date, September 23, 2016…which was a full two weeks after he had first woken up from the hospital!
"Oh, you have got to be kidding me!" Josuke shouted, jumping from the bench and drawing the attention of several people walking through the park, but he paid no mind to them; he didn't even pay any attention to the fresh pain rising in his legs. Right now, a sickening and cold wave had swept over him as a single thought ran through his psyche.
He had been asleep for two weeks, and in those weeks Kira had most likely killed who knows how many people.
Low growls came from his mouth, his eyes glaring at the paper with nothing but hatred as he crumpled it into a ball and chucked it into a nearby trashcan. All of the questions going through his mind were immediately forgotten as his anger exploded within his soul.
Because of that bastard's bomb, he had been knocked out for far too long and now other people were suffering because of it. Josuke now had to double his efforts to make it to Beach City, no matter what kind of traps or plans Kira had in store for him.
He needed to stop him, otherwise more and more people would die alone and in a fiery explosion.
Josuke bit his lip so hard it drew blood.
Without wasting another moment, Josuke ran down the stone path, his expression coursing with violent rage—almost like an inferno.
And while he ran, Josuke could once again hear the grief and agony-ridden voices of Kira's past victims shouting in his head. And the screams only grew louder by the second.
Using the Warp Pad to travel always left Steven with a slight dizziness. It was nowhere near as bad as when he first started to activate the Pads by himself, but it was still present even after using the alien transportation device so many times. Thankfully, the shaky sensation clogging his mind only lasted for a second and would immediately go away afterward. Though, feeling that sensation was always just a tiny bit frustrating to Steven.
But being able to use the Warp Pads was still amazing and incredible since it allowed to travel anywhere he wanted almost instantly. The Warp Pads allowed him to visit his friends in a matter of seconds.
Which was the reason as to why Steven was using them today.
The bright and pulsing blue light faded away along with the dizziness and Steven found himself standing in a large open field of grass. A lone tree was located about a dozen feet away from Steven, and the leaves of the tree were shifting from vibrant green to autumn's signature yellow and orange color. Steven jumped from the Warp Pad and began to run up a small hill, the shape of a building soon peaking above the slope as he continued to ascend. After a minute of running, Steven stood a good distance away from a barn. It was large and old; every inch was painted a light shade of red while the roof of the barn was black. On the right side of the barn, an enormous water tank protruded from the wall at an angle, somehow not falling and able to keep itself firmly lodged inside the wood.
Above the entrance of the barn, a sliding door that was currently covered with a white tarp, and high in the air was the back half of a pickup truck planted deeply into the building. On the truck's cargo area were a small black TV and a pink and light blue umbrella embedded in the taillight.
And currently sitting in front of the TV was the person Steven had come to visit.
"Lapis! Are you home?!" Steven shouted, a wide and joyful smile on his lips as the woman on the truck stood up suddenly before walking to the edge of the car.
"Steven? Oh, hold on a second." The woman spun her fingers in a circle, and from a nearby puddle, water was lifted into the air. The body of water floated upwards, being pulled by some unseen force before converging on the woman's back. The liquid began to take shape, forming a pair of deep blue wings of water so transparent Steven could see right through them.
The woman then jumped off the truck, but instead of plummeting to the ground her wings flapped gently, creating strong gusts of wind that slowed her descent. In a few seconds, she had reached the ground and was giving a small smile to the youngest Crystal Gem, her wings melting back into drops of water.
"It's great to see you again, Steven." The water manipulating woman said, black eyes staring at Steven's. She had cyan skin and blue chin length hair arranged in bangs. A knee-length blue skirt was wrapped around her slim figure and she also had on an equally blue backless top. On her back was a blue ribbon and a dark blue gemstone in the shape of a tear.
This was Lapis Lazuli, a Gem that had been trapped in a mirror for thousands of years before Steven finally freed her. And he was also one of the few people she would call a friend.
"Are the others…not coming today?" She asked, and Steven did not miss the faint hint of happiness in her voice or the lack of disappointment on her expression.
And considering what she went through, he could not exactly blame her for having this reaction. It was a little upsetting, but Steven had expected this since it was obvious Lapis did not like the other Gems as much as he did.
"Nope, not today," Steven replied without missing a beat, his smile just as wide and energetic. Lapis grin grew a little and excitement flashed in her eyes for a second before he continued. "Pearl, Amethyst and Garnet are out traveling to other Warp Pad locations to see if…" He trailed off for a moment, the joy in his expression vanishing as a troubled frown spread across his face. "They can find some kind of clue as to what type of Gem Monster's hiding in town."
Lapis frowned at seeing Steven's joy be replaced by gloom. "Oh, right. That thing that almost blew up your friends is still out there." She said, as if she was just talking about her favorite show and not something that was so distressing.
Steven's face grew more anxious at Lapis' words, and he had trouble keeping eye contact and not looking at the floor. She didn't mean to sound so cold, she was just rather blunt about stating the things on her mind without really…considering how much her words could damage someone even if she didn't mean it.
She was a nice person, but she could still be incredibly insensitive at times. Kind of like Peridot.
"Yep, we're still trying to find that rogue Gem." He said, adding in a few short laughs that sounded incredibly forced.
Lapis quickly noticed Steven's mood dip even further, and her eyes widened just a bit in realization. "Wait, my bad, I didn't mean to...I was just trying too… I mean I thought…" She said, scrambling to find some way to explain herself. Her eyes shifted from right to left before she looked back at Steven. He saw her expression now held a hint of regret. "Sorry, I shouldn't have said that. I didn't want too-."
"It's okay Lapis, I get it." He interrupted, and he really did. Lapis carried herself in nonchalant and almost uncaring demeanor, but underneath that was a girl who had been damaged by something truly horrific and just wanted to move on. And that was why sometimes she could be a bit cruel and perhaps spiteful, but she was still a good person despite her flaws. And the last thing Steven watned was to upset his close friend.
They stood in awkward silence for a few moments before Lapis spoke again.
"Are they okay now?" She asked, trying to sound more caring than before.
"Yeah, they're fine. I used my powers to heal them, but I couldn't heal all of their injuries so right now they're still at the hospital." Seeing Lapis' expression grow in confusion, Steven elaborated. "A hospital's a place humans go to if they get hurt badly."
"Oh, okay." She said, as another wave of uncomfortable silence washed over the two.
While Kofi and Kiki were fine, the former apparently well enough to scream at the staff to let him out and get back to work if what Jenny told him about her constant visits were true, he was still worried. Not just for Kofi and Kiki, but for the rest of the people of Beach City.
It had been two weeks since the explosion of Fish Stew Pizza, and Steven began to notice an unusual quiet enveloping his town. When he went out to meet with Connie, the locals who walked the streets were nervous, so much so that some even flinching from the sudden loud noise of a car before they realized it was nothing. Apparently, a lot of people had been close to the area where the explosion happened, and they were still fearful of another event like that happening again. When he went to Beach Citywalk Fries he saw that only Peedee and Ronaldo were working there. Fryman apparently was busy making sure his business rival was okay, going to the hospital almost every day as Ronaldo had told him.
But what really caught Steven's attention was the smothering silence spreading throughout within the food shack. The only real sound that emitted from the hollow atmosphere of the shack was the deep fryer cooking the fries. It was clear to Steven that the fact that their friends and business competitors had gotten injured made them sorrowful, making work rather difficult now. Ronaldo didn't even ask him if he or the Gems had made contact with any snake people.
The nearly tangible feeling of dread and worry was something that clung to a majority of his friends nowadays.
Especially to Onion and the rest of his family.
Vidalia and the rest of the missing women had still not been found yet. He and the rest of the Gems had stepped up in protecting their town and looking for the mysterious creature with an intense resolve, actively patrolling Beach City for even the slightest hint of trouble. But despite their efforts, they had come up with nothing, so whatever kind of Corrupted Gem was lurking beneath the city was clearly very stealthy and had to possess some form of intelligence. To make matters worse, Mayor Dewey had said that the number of people disappearing was actually increasing. They had no way of knowing the total amount of people being taken, but the fact that more people were suffering because of their failure to stop one Gem was painful to Steven.
It didn't help that sometimes…his mind was consumed by images of him failing to convince Bismuth to not use the Breaking Point. The shocked and grief-ridden face Bismuth had on right after Steven stabbed her would at times haunt him.
Remember what Connie said, Steven quickly focused on the memory of him and Connie training. He remembered the kind and insightful words she told him, how he had to acknowledge how bad it felt to remember Bismuth instead of just bubbling it away in order to move on. And he had, maybe not completely but he had at least made progress. He no longer heard Bismuth's voice, and even though the news of the missing women only seemed to be getting worse, he was still able to remain upbeat and positive. He was still able to not let his worries and grief take over his body, and instead focus on the good things around him.
He was still able to be himself.
And it was then he realized that neither he nor Lapis had said anything for who knows how long, the water manipulating Gem looking incredibly uncomfortable as she gazed at anywhere but Steven.
Crud.
Realizing he had to act now since Lapis most likely believed the uncomfortable silence was her fault, Steven coughed into his fist to draw her attention back to him.
"Hehe, sorry about that, I kind of got lost in my thoughts." Steven said, offering Lapis an inviting and warm smile.
"Do all humans creepily stare at others and not talk when they're lost in thought?" She asked giving Steven her usual blank and somewhat wry gaze. Though unlike usual, there was a small grin on her face. His smile grew a little, glad she was quick to rebound after that little bit of discomfort.
"Sometimes," He answered, and Lapis let out a small giggle. It was nice and very pretty, and Steven really wished she would laugh more often. But he knew she would eventually.
"So, why did you come to visit me?" She said, and Steven remembered the exact reason why he came to the barn today.
"Because," he said, reaching into his back pocket and pulling out a small, crumpled up flyer. The entire front was dyed a dark blue, the rest of the paper had several paragraphs written in neon-green font that went all the way to the bottom. "Of this!" He shouted, excitement glinting in his eyes as he handed the paper to Lapis.
The blue Gem's eyes were locked near the top of the paper. "The End of Summer Fireworks Spectacular?" She said, raising a brow as it became clear she did not understand what Steven was showing her.
"It's this big event where Mr. Smiley, one of my human friends, sets up a bunch of fireworks to declare that summer is officially over." While it was sad that summer had gone by so quickly, to Steven this event was a way to remind him that he could still have fun with his friends long after summer passed.
"And "fireworks" are…?"
"There these super awesome explosions in the sky that have all sorts of colors! When they explode, they can change into amazing creatures or other things like a star or something even cooler than a star. And the best part is, after the fireworks finish exploding, the lights from the blast fall down slowly back to the earth and it's like the sky is being painted right in front of your eyes."
Lapis eyes were welling up with curiosity, her face now held a tinge of faint yet still bright joy. That level of happiness wasn't enough for Steven's taste, so he added a clincher that he knew grab Lapis' attention.
"It's like hundreds of Meep Morps being created in the sky!"
That made her eyes widen slightly, if Steven hadn't been looking directly into her pupils he would have missed it, but he saw it and also witnessed a small, joyful smile crossing her face. "Wow, that does sound kinda cool." She said, before her expression tightened and her lips moved into a thin line. "But are the others, you know, going to be able to make it." She asked.
"Well, they would but like I said they're checking the Warp Pads. Like, they're gonna spend the whole day checking each and every Warp Pad location." He explained, and he saw Lapis raise a tiny brow at his words.
"Every single one?" She asked.
"Yeah, see, we don't really know what kind of Gem we're up against, but Garnet thought it would be best if we checked every location to see if there be some kind of trail the monster used to get into town." It was doubtful they find anything, but still each and every member of the Crystal Gems would leave no stone unturned in their attempts to find the creature. "We're pretty sure that the Gem somehow used the Warp Pad, maybe by accident or on purpose we don't know, to teleport to a nearby area, and then snuck in through the woods." That was Garnet and Pearl's explanation anyway, and to him and Amethyst it sounded possible. "And maybe once they find the trail, we can figure out what type of Corrupted Gem we're dealing with." The three older Crystal Gems were going to split up and venture to each Warp Pad location by themselves in order to cover more ground. And this was why they didn't want Steven coming with them. They had no idea how powerful the Gem was, and did not want to take the chance of Steven coming into contact with it by himself.
Which was a reasonable and perfectly acceptable explanation, he was not even the slightest bit bitter about it...he was just a tad…disappointed, that was all.
"But it's no big deal," Steven quickly added, not wanting another surge of sullen silence to sweep over them. Or for Lapis to think she had brought up more bad memories, if the current somewhat stoic but still worried expression her face was any indication. "After all, I can still watch the fireworks with you and Peridot. If you want to watch them, of course."
She gave him a small smile, "Yeah, I think I'd like that."
While he would have liked it if every member of his family could go see the fireworks, it was probably for the best this time that they all couldn't. He knew Lapis, and he highly doubted she would have agreed to watch fireworks with him if the other Gems came with him. So, with them currently out, he realized this could be the perfect chance to bond with his friend. With no one else besides Peridot, Lapis would be comfortable and hopefully happy as they watch the fireworks from the barn. There would be nothing to stress or bother her, so Steven was sure that she would have a good time as they relaxed in her home where she was perfectly comfortable at.
Lapis still held onto the paper, her eyes narrowed as she continued to read the lines. "Wait… Will we be able to see the "fireworks" from here? It says here that they're launching them from your town."
"Oh don't worry, we'll totally be able to see them," Steven assured her, though his eyes glance to the side for one second as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, mostly be able to."
"Mostly?" Lapis asked.
"Well, we'll be able to see them, but it might be just a little blurry or maybe a bit obscured." He explained. "We're really far away from the town, so we're not in the best spot to view them, but we'll still be able to watch them and have lots of fun."
Lapis eyes were still on the paper, an emotionless expression on her face. He had gotten somewhat good at reading her apathetic expressions, so he could partially tell what she was thinking about.
"If you're worried about not being able to see them, worst case me and Peridot just hop on your back and you fly us to the sky and we watch from there." He said, giving a short laugh, but Lapis did not respond or even look up from the paper. That made him quirk an eyebrow, but he still continued with a smile. "But if the two of us are too heavy for you I can just jump up and float for with my powers while you carry Peridot, and if you get tired we could-"
"Um, Steven," Lapis interrupted, eyes moving away from the paper in her hands and to Steven. Her face held a touch of discomfort, but why Steve had no idea. "Where would… Where would be the best place to watch the firework?"
Oh... Steven was not expecting that question.
"Well, um…" He trailed off, before hesitantly continuing. "The best place would have to be at…Funland." He finished as he watched Lapis' face contort into with an unreadable emotion. One of the reasons Steven did not suggest going to the amusement park was because he figured Lapis would not have fun is she was surrounded by unknown people and in a strange, new environment. The blue Gem was one of the strongest people he knew, but she was still a tad fragile when it came to exploring new things. She still held so much anguish and trauma from her past; so the last thing he wanted to do was freak her out by accidentally causing the Lapis to relive her horrible memories. Or introduce her to something unpleasant that might make her a little...stressed, to put it lightly. Which was why he was sure the last thing she wanted was to go-.
"Can we go there?"
"What?" Lapis words made his eyes widen in shock as he stared at the taller Gem.
"Can we go there?" She repeated, and Steven was having trouble keeping himself from squealing in joy. He had always wanted to bring Lapis to his town, to show her around all the wonderful places Beach City had to offer, to show her all his other friends. But he always stopped himself from asking because he knew that Lapis would have to be the one who asked, not him.
"Are you sure you wanna go? We don't have to if you don't want too." He quickly said, wanting to make sure Lapis was absolutely comfortable with the idea of going to the amusement park. He always figured it would take the blue Gem a good deal of time before she was ever ready to explore areas full of people. If she truly desired to come visit the city he grew up in, even if it was only for a couple of hours, this day would go from great to awesome!
"Yeah, I'm sure." Lapis answered, giving Steven a reassuring smile. "These "fireworks" really sound cool and… Maybe you can show me around "Funland" before then?" And that was all Steven needed to hear before he jumped up, his pupils turning to bright, white stars as the biggest smile imaginable spread across his face.
"That's great!" He shouted before hugging the Gem with all his strength. "The fireworks don't start until it gets dark, but before that there's so much to do in Funland. There are so many awesome games, Mister Smiley is one of the coolest guys I know, and maybe you can meet some of my friends there too. Of course, that's only if you want too, because if you don't-."
"Steven," Lapis voice interrupted the youngest Gem's rapid-fire rant.
"Yeah?" He said, looking up at Lapis.
"You're crushing me." She said in an extremely deadpan tone, her eyes once again blank. Apparently, Steven had been a little too forceful and was quite literally crushing her under his tiny yet powerful arms that could easily lift three times his weight.
"Sorry!" Steven quickly let go of Lapis. "I forget about my own strength sometimes."
"You were splitting me in half." She said, still giving Steven her apathetic stare.
He laughed shakily at that before Lapis spoke again. "Hey, I should've asked earlier, but where exactly is Peridot? She left the barn in such a big rush she didn't tell me where she was going."
"Oh, well when the others told us they were gonna be out for the whole day, Peridot said she wanted help out too. So me and Pearl decided to send her to town with a list of things to do.
"… Has she destroyed anything yet?" Lapis asked, raising an eyebrow as it was clear she was legitimately curious and not at all sarcastic.
"No, she hasn't," Steven answered with a grin. "And I don't think she will, this time anyway." He muttered those last three words under his breath before he grabbed Lapis' hands and began to once again jump. "I'm so happy you want to go to Funland! We should leave in like a couple of hours, and I can't wait to show you some of the rides there like-!"
As Steven continued to list of the large number of rides and attractions the amusement park held, Lapis couldn't help but let out a big smile of her own as she looked back at the barn and then towards the bundle of ecstasy and care that was Steven.
"You're gonna have a blast!" Steven shouted, and he meant it. He would make sure she would.
Or else his name wasn't Steven Universe.
Peridot had learned quite a lot about human culture in the past few hours.
Specifically, how poor and dense a human's brain could really be.
Oh, little girl, I'm sorry, I didn't see you there.
Hey there short stuff, where are your parents?
I'm terribly sorry kiddo, I didn't see you there cause you're so small.
Why was it that every other human on this planet seemed so clueless to the most obvious facts that even non-sentient creatures would grasp? She was not a "child," she was not a "kid," and she most certainly was not small. She was an Era Two Peridot, her shape and size were perfect by Homeworld standards. Yet for some reason, only a select few humans, Steven being one of them, ever realized that her height was in fact fine.
She was not small. She was, in Amethyst's words, fun-sized…whatever that meant.
And every time a human who made the same grave error, she would explain to them exactly why and how they were wrong.
By screaming as loudly as possible, getting right in their faces, and enjoying the looks of terror mixed with surprise that were quickly etched onto their features.
They were just lucky she had only partially hissed at them.
How do the others put up with the humans with such little intelligence? She thought, rolling her eyes as she continued to pull a small black wagon full of brown paper bags around the same height as her.
Currently, she was walking on the curb of a street and heading towards her next destination. When Amethyst and the others announced they would be spending all day checking Warp Pads for clues as to the whereabouts of the unknown Corrupted Gem, she was a little upset at being left out. It was obvious to her that the other Gems were worried about the mysterious creature wreaking havoc on the town. She also noticed that Steven was especially worried, while the happy and joyful human child she had grown to care for still smiled his traditionally big and charming smiles, there were times where she could see sadness in his eyes; and such a look on Steven was...wrong. It was clear that not catching the creature that had hurt his human friends, even after two weeks of extensive patrols and heightened security measures, was dismaying for the human child.
Which was why she wanted to help in any way she could. While she did not harbor the same levels of emotional attachment the original four Crystal Gems held for Beach City, she was still concerned about Steven and the other Gems. If they were bothered by something, she wanted to help them out. Especially to the boy who had given her a second chance.
But Pearl had said that they couldn't come with them. She explained that it was too dangerous this time since they were splitting up to track down the unknown enemy and did want to risk Steven of herself encountering the Gem. They did not know how powerful it was, and for all they knew the rouge Gem might be expecting them to find its trail. After all, it was clearly had some form of intelligence if it had avoided getting caught for so long.
While she agreed with that analysis, she still felt a bit resentful for being left out of something that she wanted to be a part of. Steven must have picked up on her feelings, the gem-hybrid was incredibly adept at picking up on one's emotional state, and suggested she do something called "shopping." Pearl was a tad hesitant, but after much prompting from Steven, and even herself who thought shopping was something at least somewhat important, she agreed. After explaining what exactly "shopping" was, which was essentially restocking of assorted goods for Steven, she went out with a list currently held in her right hand and "money" stored in the wagon they gave her.
And so far, she was discovering "shopping" was incredibly tedious and frustrating. Waiting in lines, picking out the "snacks" written on the list that were on ridiculously high shelves, and the comments on her physical stature was absolutely maddening.
But…there had been some good moments. One of the reasons Steven encouraged her to "shop" was so that way she could see more of Beach City. And some of the places she went too were…interesting, she would admit. She went to a "hardware store" and found a plethora of tools that, while not the most advanced objects she had ever seen, were still valuable and ones she could use them later for future mechanical endeavors. She was glad Steven had given her extra strips of the green paper and ink in case she wanted to buy something.
Suddenly, she heard a ding coming from behind her. She stopped walking and turned around to look at the wagon full of bags. She walked towards the wagon and reached a hand into one of the bags and pulled out a tablet. Bringing it to her face, she saw that she had received a text message from Steven.
Lapis said yes! Currently at Gem Temple getting all the supplies we'll need! The message read
It did not take long for Peridot to figure out he was talking about the "fireworks" show. Steven had shown her the flyer, and she was instantly attracted to this event and quickly decided to watch it with him. Peridot was also happy that Lapis had agreed, since watching this new and amazing earth custom would not be the same without her. All that was left was to establish when Steven should come over to the barn, and then they would set up and-
Her thoughts were interrupted by another ding as she looked down at the tablet and read another message.
She also said she was willing to go to Funland to see the fireworks!
Now that surprised her. She was not expecting her hydrokinetic friend to be willing to go to such a heavily populated, and quite frankly weird, place like Beach City. She had assumed Lapis would prefer to stay in the barn, considering her personality and how she was still dealing with her past…issues.
But hearing, or reading in this case, that she was wanted to go to the "amusement land," she was a little unsure if that was the correct term, made her happy. And now that Lapis was wanted to go to "Funland," she could not wait to show her friend where she won that big headed, adorable doll full of cotton. It was one of her finest moments.
THAT'S GREAT! She wrote, quickly typing away at the tablet. WILL MEET UP WITH YOU GUYS AS SOON AS I FINISH THE "SHOPPING." When she finished writing that sentence, she looked back at the list in her hands and saw she only had a few more places to go too. SHOULD BE DONE SOON! She pressed the send button, and not even a second later Steven responded.
Okay! See you soon!
She was excited to see these "fireworks." After Steven had explained the basic concept to her, at first she thought they were missiles being launched into the sky to exterminate invisible foes, but after Steven told her that wasn't the case, Steven searched online with her tablet to show her what "fireworks" were. And she saw thousands of pictures of a variety of colorful explosions and was immediately captivated; she instantly could not wait to see them in real life. Maybe she could take one home and experiment on it to see if the device can produce more volatile explosions.
It would be fun.
She began to pull the wagon again, carefully placing her tablet back into one of the paper bags, and began to walk again. After several minutes, she reached a small building painted in a light blue color. Near the roof of the building, the words "Quick Shop" were written in big, white bold letters. However, what caught her attention was the door that led inside the store.
Because there was a sign with the words "Closed" hanging from the doorknob in red letters.
"…Okay, I see the door is "Closed," I don't understand why you have to put a sign up to indicate that fact." She said, before pushing the door open and entering the store.
Inside the store were several rows of packaged food in colorful bags. Near the shelves located in the back were several fridges which held several frosty human foods, "Ice Cream" if her memory served right. Near the front of the store was a counter that held several types of candies in small boxes and a small cash register.
However, something was odd about the store. For one, there were no other people here while in every other store she had been to today there had been at least five maybe six other people at minimum.
And then there was…the silence. The only sounds she heard were from the fluorescent lights above constantly flickering. The silence around her was...hollow, for lack of a better word, and she felt herself awkwardly shifting and fidgeting for no real reason. The quiet seemed to wrap around her like an uncomfortable article of clothing, and no matter how hard she tried to ignore it, she couldn't. It felt unnatural, and worry began to build up in her chest.
She shook her head, realizing she was being stupid. There was nothing to fear here, and she had to complete the list Pearl and Steven gave her.
So, she pulled the wagon and began to walk down the aisles as she attempted to find the items that were stated to be here. After a few minutes, she found the different types of "snacks" on the list and put them in her wagon.
She walked back to the counter, but there was no one there.
Annoyed, Peridot climbed onto the counter, struggling a little as she did so but was still able to get on top.
"Humans, I have come to purchase your goods!" She shouted, but received no answer, so she tried again. "Hello! Did you not hear me!" She shouted even louder this time, but once again received no response. She let out a little growl at this. Honestly, what kind of fools would ignore a customer like her. She was just about to shout again, when she felt her foot step in something wet.
Looking down, she found her left foot was resting on a small puddle of red liquid. Her eyes narrowed as she crouched down and dabbed her fingers in the unknown liquid. She brought her fingers up to her eyes, the red liquid now dripping down her digits. The liquid was familiar; it wasn't paint nor was it some form of juice, but she knew she had seen a liquid like this before. But where-?
Then it hit her.
Blood. Peridot thought, her eyes widening. Steven had once cut himself by accident when he was handling a pair of scissors, and Peridot had asked him what that stuff leaking down his hand was. Steven had explained to her that humans had a liquid inside them known as blood, and it essentially was what kept them functioning and healthy. He also told her that if a human lost to much blood, then their lives may be in danger.
So seeing blood outside of human's body immediately set off several alarms in her mind. She was now a member of the Crystal Gems, so if a human was in trouble, it was now her responsibility to help them.
"Human! Do you require help!" She shouted, and this time she heard something. Being a Gem, she had above average hearing when compared to humans, so she was able to hear the faint noise of something opening and then quickly shutting. Looking around, she saw there was a door located a short distance away from the counter. She hopped off the counter down to other side before running to the door and quickly opening it. She was now in a small, confined storage area. Several boxes were stacked in multiple columns and there was a small desk with a computer located next to the wall. Peridot saw a small trail of blood drops on the floor and she quickly followed the path of red liquid. She navigated around the boxes and eventually found herself in front of another door.
She pushed the door open and found herself back on the streets, now on the far-right side of the building; her eyes scanned the buildings around her in an attempt to find the injured human.
And she did. With her enhance eyesight, she saw was able to spot a small amount of blood on the wrist of a human's clothes dozens of feet away. She was about to call out to the human, run to their side to aid them and help, but she stopped herself.
Because when she saw the human's face, she found herself unable to move. Her eyes were unable to look away from the human located diagonally across from her on one of the street curbs.
Because to Peridot, the human about three dozen feet away disturbed her right to her core, even if she could only see the left side of his body from where she was standing. The blue suit and blue pants were average human clothing, and blonde hair was nothing out of the ordinary. But the human's face…while not very distinctive from other human males, laying in his eyes was a cluster of menace and despair. The way he carried himself spoke of a being who believed they were superior to anyone, and he could back up that claim if need be. The arrogance in his very walk was palpable to Peridot, even from so far away, and the amount of disdain for those around him was evident in every step he took. From within his frown poured waterfalls worth of contempt that flooded the streets the green Gem stood on.
Never had a human reminded her so much of Yellow Diamond. She had never seen another being who perfectly matched the hatred and scorn only a Diamond could wield, a being whose confidence in their abilities was as large as the fear they aroused from those foolish enough to stand in their way.
And what shocked who most of all was the fact that nobody was actively bowing, that no one was getting annihilated by this being for the stupidity they were displaying. This person who was clearly a being who hunted and killed anyone who dared annoy them, for some reason, was simply walking down the streets like he was just another human and not a terror-inducing emperor who held no love or joy; whose only thoughts were how best to control the plebeians around him.
And for one horrifying moment, Peridot was sure the man glared at her from the corner of his eye. And then she was back on Homeworld, Limb Enhancers reattached to her body as she received one of the Diamond's Gem piercing gazes. Every part of her trembled, her very body felt like it was crumbling to pieces as she desperately tried to keep herself from falling apart, but her efforts were useless. Her mind could not process anything other than the all-consuming terror turning her world pitch black with darkness.
And just like that, the fear was gone. Sweat poured down her face and glided across her visor as she found her body was still in one piece. The man she had just been staring at was gone, and she found herself able to move again. She looked down, eyes wide with a haunting fear, and saw her entire body was trembling.
What…What was that? She thought, her body still shaking no matter how desperately she wanted it to stop. Who was that…human?
Was that really a human? He looked human, nothing had screamed Gem or any other alien species. But the amount of panic and dread he was able to cause her was something she had only experienced from the Diamonds. The weight she had felt crushing her only moments before was something that could only come from beings of extreme power and immense hatred.
So how could a human make her feel such things?
And it was then she remembered the blood from the store. Even though the…person's clothes had the red liquid on them, she knew that he was not the one who got injured. There was no way a being that malevolent could be hurt so easily
Which meant that the blood belonged to a human. And that the person she had just seen was most likely responsible for hurting said human.
And she had to find out what had happened and where the human was.
She ran back into the store, rushing past the boxes and opening doors as quickly as possible, and jumping over the counter before reaching the wagon. She reached for one of the brown paper bags and pulled out her tablet, intent on sending a message to Steven about-.
About…
She did not type a single letter, to wrapped up in her thoughts now. What exactly was she supposed to write? Yes, a human had been hurt, but by what she did not exactly know. The "what" part was very important, because fighting an enemy without knowing their capabilities was suicidal. The horrifying emotions she had just lived through…could they actually be caused by a human? There was a slim possibility that her mind had over-exaggerated the sensations and fears her body went through due to all the turmoil of trying to find the unknown Rogue Gem. If so, then she should be able to handle this, as she did not want to look like a fool in front of the other Gems. If this was just a human, then she could handle him with ease.
But if the person she saw wasn't human, then what?
She was not sure what type of alien the man could be, since the only thing she could say with one hundred percent certainty was his gender, or even if he was in fact not of this world. The most obvious answer if he was an alien was a Gem, as they were the only alien species remotely close enough to visit Earth. But the man she had seen was not like any Gem species of Homeworld, so that was quickly ruled out. And why would an obviously deadly creature like him not mercilessly kill anything and everything that irritated it? It was clear from the contempt radiating from every stride the being took it loathed every human around it, harboring zero feelings of happiness or sympathy. The animosity beneath his cold eyes was proof of this fact. And if Peridot's fears were in fact accurate and he was as dangerous as she believed, then if she contacted Steven and Lapis, she would be putting them in a hopeless situation that would end with their deaths.
She would not do that to her friends. She would not throw away all of their lives to that…monster.
There were too many unknowns. Not knowing how strong or what abilities the man held. Or what species the seemingly human looking yet hate ridden being was.
She needed answers. She needed them right now or else everyone she loved might die.
I have to follow him, the thought made her entire body shiver as a deadly cold seemed to wrap itself around her figure. The fear from that one thought spreading throughout her very core was mind-numbing, but she still pressed on. I have to surveil him and find out everything I can.
It was very risky and very stupid…but she had to do it. Information on the unknown entity could quite literally save lives. If it got too dangerous then in a worst case scenario, she'd call the others for back up and hope they could defeat this man. He, whether human or not, was a threat, and she needed to figure out what he was planning to do.
She would not fight him under any circumstances. She would just observe him and report her findings back to her friends. They would then deliberate on what to do about this man.
But right now, she did not have any more time to waste because the man was getting farther and farther away from her. So, she began to type on her table yet again.
STEVEN, I MIGHT BE A LITTLE LATE. I'M INVESTIGATING SOMETHING IMPORTANT.
She wanted to say more, but she did not want to worry either of her friends now. If she did tell them, they might try to convince her not to go. But she had too.
She had seen a creature so horrifying that words could not describe. Steven and Lapis had not seen what she'd seen, so only she knew how dangerous the man was. If she waited for them, there was a very high chance she would never see this being ever again. And she had to figure out where the injured human was.
If the obviously powerful monster was not hurting the humans walking around him, there might be a chance that whatever human was in the store might be alive.
She grabbed her tablet against her chest, letting out a shaky breath as she steeled herself.
Don't mess up Peridot, and with that thought, she ran out of the store.
Had the circumstances been different, Josuke might have thought New Jersey as a nice place to live in. Unfortunately, right now he was busy cursing the city and all of its people.
He had been running for at least an hour, having to ask several people for directions to the bus he needed to get on. Josuke had only memorized parts of the map that stated the routes to get to Beach City, and since he lost his map in his fight against Let Me Live, he had no clue where to go now.
How was it that every single moment he was in this world, things only seemed to grow worse and worse? The anger within him was growing, and he was having trouble at not shouting to some of the ruder people he asked for help. There was a fire in his chest that became hotter with each passing second, and he realized at some point he had clenched his hands into fists.
And while most of his fury was directed at the murderer he hated with every fiber of his soul, a part of it was aimed at himself. He could still hear the voices of Shigechi and the spirits, and now their words stung worse than the first time he heard them.
Running down an alley, Josuke tried to push those thoughts away; and as he ran, he saw two people standing on the walls of the alley. They saw Josuke running and pushed off the wall and then blocked his path, Josuke now forced to stop running as he stared at the two men. One was a rather bulky brown-haired man, taller than Josuke and wearing a leather jacket that was a size too small along with a white shirt underneath and blue jeans; the man's muscles were bulging from underneath his tight clothes. The other had fewer muscles and was about Josuke's height, but was lean and had on a black t-shit and brown cargo pants.
And both were openly sneering at Josuke, eyes narrowed and full of contempt.
"You lost, boy?" The bulky one asked in English, still glaring, and Josuke returned it with his own heated stare.
"I don't want any trouble," The purple-haired teenager replied.
"Heh, what do you know, he speaks our language. With his looks, I thought he was just another piece of shit bastard who can't speak even a little English." The one in the black shirt said, now giving Josuke a cruel smirk. Neither man moved out of Josuke's path. It took all his self-control not to explode on the man. He began to walk forward.
"Let me pass." It was not a request, and so help him if they refused.
"Yeah, I don't think so, this is our turf, and you best go back from where you came from. Unless of course, you'd be willing to empty your pockets." The bigger man replied, also walking towards Josuke along with his friend until each man was only a few feet away.
"You do not want to piss me off today." Josuke's voice was dangerously low, but the other two men actually laughed when the words left his mouth.
"Oh, and what are you gonna do about, you son of a bitch? Cry back to your mama?" The smaller asshole said.
And that was when Josuke felt the fire within him triple in size. He channeled the energy rushing through him, and Crazy Diamond materialized right next to its master, rapidly traveling forward through the air as it pulled its fist back. Not that these two fuckers saw it.
"DORA!" His Stand twirled in the air before delivering a right hook that moved so fast it blurred. Its fist landed right on the smaller asshole's cheek, and his expression morphed from one of smug confidence to pain and pants-shitting terror. The impact of Crazy Diamond's fist caused his right eye to bulge out of his socket, teeth flying out of his mouth like bullets as the sound of bones breaking echoed like the boom from a jet engine.
And the man was sent flying to the side, his body taking off like a rocket as it crashed into the black brick walls of the alley, his body rebounding off the bricks and crashing head first into the hood of a dumpster. His body then bounced off the lid of the dumpster and crashed onto the cold ground with his back, his disfigured and bloody face now looking up at the sky as tears mixed with his own blood.
This all happened in a matter of seconds.
The other thug jaw dropped at seeing his friend's bones seemingly implode by themselves. "What the fuc-?!"
He never finished as Josuke slammed his own fist into the roided out punk's gut. Even with all his muscles, the purple haired teen's fist caused the man to buckle over, blood and spittle flying out his mouth. Josuke wasn't done as he launched a sharp cross that hit the punk right in the center of his face, blood erupting from his ugly face as Josuke felt his nose snap like a twig. The man was sent careening through the air until he too hit the dumpster, and landing right on top of his friend who let out an anguish-filled scream.
Josuke once again began to walk down the alley, a disturbing an eerie calm enveloping the teenager as he hopped over the two men with even sparing them a glance.
"Let this be a warning to you two shitheads," Josuke said, his voice unusually cold as his expression was completely apathetic. Crazy Diamond faded from this world as Josuke no longer needed it. "Next time think twice before acting like complete idiots." He turned his head back to the two bleeding and thugs, giving them a glare with eyes that promised death and torture should they try anything like this again. Were he not so angry from his recent experiences, he might have held back a little.
But right now, he did not care, and it felt good to let out his anger, even if he did get a tad carried away.
The bulky one, by this point the only one conscious, gave a shaky and fearful nod of his head, still not moving off his friend's bleeding and unconscious body. He turned away from the thugs and continued to walk down the alley, almost at the end now, when he heard a voice.
"Look over here, you fucking piece of shit."
Somehow the fury within in him got even bigger, he turned around as his expression now held a blazing rage. "What was that!?" He growled out.
The bulky one physically recoiled at Josuke's murderous features, quickly shaking his head. "Tha-that wasn't me!"
Before Josuke could even say anything, he heard it.
It was faint, and had it not been so quiet he would have never heard it, but thankfully he did. The sound was like the ticking noise of an alarm clock, but more metallic and harsh. Craning his neck, Josuke saw what was making the noise.
Down near the mouth of the alley were Josuke came from was a small, sphere-shaped object that was only slightly bigger than a softball. On its feet were two pairs of tank treads, and on the top of its head was a round, brown knob. The knob, as well as the rest of its body, was covered in teal armor plates, and at its face was a grey, cat like-skull with an open jaw and pointy yet tiny nose.
Josuke instantly recognized what that small car like object was. Killer Queen's second bomb.
Sheer Heart Attack.
Before he could call Crazy Diamond back into existence, Sheer Heart Attack charged forward, moving through the alley with the speed of a race car. Josuke's eyes could barely keep track of it, to him it looked like the spherical machine of death was blurring out of existence. Josuke's eyes widened as before he knew it, Sheer Heart Attack was on top of the bulky thug's face, its tracks right on top of the man's eyes.
"Wha-What the hell's going on!?" The thug shouted, hands clawing at the invisible object on his face. "Something's on me! What the fuck is-!?"
Before the punk could finish, Sheer Heart Attack's tank treads came to life. The treads moved at great speed, and the man's eyeballs were crushed in a matter of seconds. The fluid of his eyes along with his blood shot into the air, the man's eyeballs now destroyed. The tracks continued to move at even higher speeds, this time crushing the flesh of the man's face as more bits and pieces of skin were flung to the alley walls.
And the thug screamed an anguished and horrible scream, desperately clawing at the invisible thing on his face.
And the Sheer Heart Attack exploded.
It was a far bigger explosion than its previous explosions, even though Josuke was at least ten feet away from the thug, he was still swallowed by intense plumes of fire. His already burnt clothes were once again singed as the shockwaves of the explosion sent him careening right out of the alley all the way to the streets at the other side.
Josuke's back slid across the hard road until he eventually stopped. His back now felt like it had all of its skin removed as the rest of his body was now burning from the scorching flames that it just came into contact with.
He quickly got up, taking in his surroundings. He was in one of the main, large roads of the city, several buildings and different types of vehicles surrounded the busy streets. People were screaming as they ran for their lives; they had seen the explosion, which was hard to miss as the flames now extended out of the alley and towards the sky, he saw the walls of the building now on fire. Like any normal person, most were getting the hell out of the area, some of them calling 911, the equivalent of 119 back in Japan.
But Josuke did not run. Instead, he stared at the alley he just flew out of, Crazy Diamond floating right next to its master.
Out from the columns of flames, Sheer Heart Attack slowly rolled out of the alley and into the road. Both Stand User and the second bomb of Killer Queen now stood on opposite curbs.
"Josuke Higashiakta, I hope you ready to die." Sheer Heart Attacks voice echoed, even amongst the screams of so many people.
Josuke glared at the tiny machine. "I was about to say the same to you."
Kira had been careless.
It was strange to say that about himself. He always took precautions and was not a man who would normally take risks, but he would admit that in his latest kill he had been too hasty. Perhaps he did not have as much control over his impulses as he would have liked.
And now a tiny green alien was following him because of his desires.
He had just returned home from his trip to the beach, and a few hours later he had decided to do some shopping since he was running a little low on food.
But all thoughts on food were stopped when he saw the clerk's hands.
They were astounding, a pair that seemed to shine with an otherworldly beauty. Kira had seen other hands like this before, rare hands that were in his eyes were as close to perfect as possible. Each line of her delicate fingers, excellent size, and exquisite warm palms reminded him so much of Mona Lisa.
He had to ask her to be his companion.
So when she placed an "On Break" sign on the counter before walking into the employees only room, Kira flipped the sign on the outside of the door to "closed" and quickly entered the back room. And before she could even get a word in, he blew her to ashes. With the exception of one single, gorgeous hand. He did not have to worry about cameras, because Kira had found out after previous visits that this store did not own even a single camera. The other employees here were incredibly foolish.
He then walked out of the back room, blood now dripping down the only remains of the woman and onto the counter. He imagined all of the fun ways to spend time with his new girlfriend when he heard footsteps from outside. Looking to the right towards the entrance door, he saw the shadow of someone standing right outside.
In less than a second, he ran and entered the back room, just before he heard the door open. Gazing through a small crack in the door, he at first saw no one at all. But he heard movement throughout the store none the less, and stayed in his position, wanting to make sure he did not have anyone following him. He might have been paranoid, but for all the serial killer knew this person might be acquaintances with the woman he just killed. And Kira did not want to leave any loose ends this time, so he waited. For several minutes, he had footsteps and the sound of wheels turning before he saw a tiny woman with incredibly pointy hair climb onto the counter.
And judging by the gem on her forehead and green skin, he knew instantly this woman must have been a Crystal Gem. But unfortunately, she was one of the Gems who he knew little about, and that included her powers.
Hearing her scream at someone to assist her, he quickly determined that she was not an acquaintance of the clerk he just murdered, and he doubted she caught even a glimpse of him before he retreated to the back room. So, he was about to leave, when his eyes caught something on the counter.
A small puddle of blood.
He looked down at his companion's hand and realized it was still bleeding, droplets of blood now forming on the floor. He mentally cursed at himself, he should have made Killer Queen completely cauterize the hand so not even a single drop of blood escaped. But he didn't, because he thought the hand would look so much better with fresh blood covering it.
And now, that decision might just lead to a rather troublesome situation.
Not wanting to fight anyone, he quickly put away the right hand in his right pocket, wrapping it in a handkerchief so it wouldn't bleed through the soft material of his coat. He then left through another door that led outside, just as she heard the small Gem shout to see if anyone needed her aide.
He needed to hurry up, now.
He went into a light jog, not too fast and not to slow so he didn't draw anyone's eyes to him, and was now on an opposing street curb calmly walking away from the scene of a crime. His expression showed nothing but the blank look of a businessman, and he was prepared to go home and relax with his new darling.
Until he felt a pair of eyes gazing right at him.
Kira's instincts were fine-tuned, after years of committing murders, he always knew when someone was looking at him. And those instincts had gotten an upgrade ever since he had been hunted by other Stand Users back in Morioh; so he knew that if a tiny voice in his mind told him someone was watching him, someone most definitely was.
He spared a glance in the general direction of the store and saw something that surprised him greatly.
It was the little green Gem, but what got his attention was the fact she was trembling. Not shaking from the slight cold breeze, but actively quivering with fear as though she had just seen a demon rise from the depths of hell. Even from though he was far away from her, he could practically feel the dread and nightmarish terror swirling in her eyes.
Kira would have smirked if he wasn't currently analyzing this situation, and for the first time in a long time worry rose in his chest. The pure horror and shock the tiny woman was displaying while staring right at him could only mean one thing.
She saw him. Not as a regular person who had the same worries and dreams as any other human being, but as a monster that loved to hurt and kill.
He couldn't believe it, and his body acted on its own as he continued to walk away with the same reserved expression, while in his mind he was in a bit of a panic. How? How could someone possibly figure out what he was with but a glance? He had spent years of maintaining a perfectly average exterior, and no one noticed, not even Josuke or his friends until he accidentally revealed himself, and yet somehow one girl was able to figure it out in an instant.
He stopped walking, eye narrowing as his fingers grabbed the corpse hand in his pocket. He could not let her live, not when she knew who he was now. Killing her would definitely raise more questions, especially those that belonged to the other Crystal Gems, but he couldn't let that annoyance go and tell her friends. If he was careful, no one should notice she was gone for at least a day.
So just as he was about to go back to the store, form the corner of his eye, he saw her. Crouching behind a mailbox at the end of the street curb. He instantly wondered what she was doing, and the answer came almost immediately.
She was following him.
For whatever reason, instead of running back to her friends, she was following him even though she had seen what he truly was. He had no idea why, maybe it was out of pride, but the point was he didn't have to go after her.
Instead, she would follow him of her own volition.
So, he adjusted his suit and continued to walk. An hour passed, the sun setting as the bright colors of the day began to turn to twilight. He arrived near the edge of town, the woods not far away as the tiny women still followed him. Around this area no one really passed by because there weren't too many houses or stores.
Eventually he arrived at his desired location. A butcher shop with the a for sale sign taped to the glass window. The owner had to sell his shop because business wasn't that good, which was sad because Kira enjoyed the ribs here.
He arrived at the front door, unsurprisingly it was locked, but Kira summoned the arm of Killer Queen. The arm of his stand overlaid with his own, and to him, it was like Killer Queen's arm had become his. He brought his hand up to the lock, touched it, and then raised his left thumb before bringing it down. There was a tiny spark, and then a small sizzling sound as from the interior of the lock, smoke began to filter out and swirl into the air in front of Kira. He opened the now unlocked door and entered the building.
Several glass display cases that once held different cuts of meat were now barren, the lights long since turned off as he continued to walk. He ventured further into the back of the store, now standing in front of a large metallic door. Once again, he brought his hand to the lock, and once again he exploded the inner working of the device as more smoke plumed into existence.
He opened the door and entered the meat locker of the store. It was large; it could have passed as a small parking lot, the meat and everything else was taken out of the room already except for the metallic hooks that hung from girders on the ceiling.
He then walked behind the back of the door and waited.
And the little green woman walked into the room, eyes searching for Kira.
He slammed the door as hard as he could. The Gem gave a terrified squeak, jumping a good twenty feet away as Kira calmly stared down at her.
He noticed she was shaking. And the freezer for the meat locker had long since been turned off.
"Hello," he said, giving her a courteous smile as she clutched something against her chest. It looked like a tablet, maybe an IPad.
"Don't "hello" me!" She growled, trying to sound intimidating, but she was spectacularly failing with her squeaky voice and tiny frame. She was just so adorable, thinking she could scare him. "What are your plans?! What have you've been doing in Beach City?! What…?!"
Kira was quickly learning that the Gem in front of him loved to talk. A seemingly never-ending stream of question flew out of her mouth. The tiny girl showed no signs of stopping, and he wondered if she needed to breathe because she seemed to be talking without taking any breaths in-between words.
Then one question caught his ear.
"What have you done to the human in the store you visited?!"
His smile grew wider, teeth peeking out from his mouth as he instantly grabbed the hand from his pocket and held it out.
That got her to stop, her eyes widening as she took a step back. Sweat was beginning to drip down her forehead; he saw despair and horror welling in her expression. He savored it, because why shouldn't he enjoy the terror of a girl who had actually made him panic? The girl who dared to make him worry, even if it was for only a second.
Then, without warning, his smile vanished as his serious and apathetic features returned. He gently threw the hand at the tiny women, and she dodged it as the corpse hand quickly landed right next to her.
"My name is Kira Yoshikage," He began, eyes now void of any emotion.
"Tha…That answers one of my questions." The tiny girl said in a voice that reeked of fear.
"I am 33 years old, and have been living in Beach City for three months now." He continued, his mouth now a deep frown.
"I did not ask wha-."
"Currently, I'm unemployed, but money right now is not a problem. I live in the abandoned house located just outside the edge of the woods." He interrupted, walking in front of the door as the tiny girl took a step back. The fear radiating off her was almost tangible by this point.
"After a week of living in this town, I went to the beach. It was the first time I have ever been to the ocean, and the sand felt nice between my toes as I walked along the shore."
"What are-."
"I like to cut my fingernails; I believe my luck revolves around the size of my nails, so I put them in jars and write down their length as I feel it's always wise to keep track of one's luck." He took a single step forward and the little girl actually let out a shriek as she jumped back again. Her entire body was trembling, so badly that Kira noted she was having trouble standing.
"Why are you-."
"Until recently, I have been having trouble falling asleep. Though thankfully now, I sleep like a baby who had a glass of warm milk. Even from my house, I can hear the waves cracking against the ocean, and I believe the calmness of the sea is one of the reasons why I can sleep so much better now." Though, it was far from the main reason as to why.
The alien girl in front of him now looked like a poor, defenseless animal cornered by an alpha predator.
"STOP!" She shouted, taking a few more steps back
"I have grown rather fond of this town. Though there are some things that I dislike about it. You see, I want to live a quiet life, but aliens and other supernatural incidents happen here on a near daily basis, and all that excitement and hostility is a bit cumbersome when one is trying to live as quietly as I. Though, this town is still excellent in all other regards." He took another step forward, this time releasing a bit of his killing intent that was begging to be released by now. The Gem reacted instantly, now dropping to the floor as her body quivered and trembled even worse than before.
"Yes, I just want to live a tranquil life…and if someone were to dare try and take that life away from me, well…" His eyes gleamed with so much bloodlust he could almost physically see it. The Gem's eyes grew wider, the fear only increasing and reaching heights no human could ever hope to match.
"That would make me rather cross." He unleashed all the killing intent welling within his very soul, a dark purple aura surrounding him. The alien on the floor could no longer look at him; instead, choosing to stare at the floor as she raised her arm as if to block some kind of blow. She was trembling so badly that her visor had slipped off.
"Why… Why are you telling me this?" She asked in a voice that was deathly quiet. So unlike all the loud shouting and boasting from before.
Kira let out a tiny, almost caring smile.
"Because you aren't going to live long enough to tell anyone."
And at that moment, the little alien on the floor had reminded him so much of Shigechi.
To Be Continued~
And that's a wrap! I know this chapter had a lot of talking in it, but it had to be done in order to set up the next one. And the next one will definitely be action packed! Josuke Vs Sheer Heart Attack while Kira faces off against the Space Dorit- I mean Peridot. Yeah, that's what I meant!
And since the anime adaptation of Diamond is Unbreakable just ended a few days ago, I just like to say thank you to David Production for giving us fans another awesome adaptation of JoJo! Can't wait for part 5!
Also, I like to give a big shout out to a TV Trooper who goes by the name of Silentghost, a person who recommended this fic on the JoJo fanfic page! If you're reading this right now Silentghost know that I really appreciate what you did! Now, all that's left is for this fanfic to get its own page on TV Troops!
Also, I know this chapter was late getting out, but unfortunately I got really sick and then life got in my way. I'll definitely try my best to update faster next time, but no promises.
For anyone wondering where this chapter takes place in the Steven Universe canon, it's after "Last one Out of Beach City," but before "Onion Gang."
As always, if anyone has any thoughts, suggestions, or predictions as to where the hell this story is going, don't be afraid to say so in the reviews. I hope everyone has a very great New Years and some very Happy Holidays. This is the Black Mage of Phantasm signing off. Peace!
