AN: I had hopes to wrap things up with this story arc with this chapter, but it was running way too long. Next time, probably. Nice to see that people are enjoying this story, it's been something of a pet project for, and it's been a lot of fun to work on.
bennet001: You are a man of taste. I believe right now, nearly every kamen rider and super sentai series has been fansubbed by somebody, and are readily available on the internet if you search for them. Ultraman's a bit rarer of a find, but I know Crunchyroll has several Ultras series under their Dramas section, which are not only free to watch, but also completely legal. Hopefully they'll pick up kamen riders at some point.
DBro: Your second idea is actually pretty close to what I have planned. Not the magical girl war thing, though that would certainly make for a cool story all its own. Keep on reading, though, hopefully you'll find something you like.
Fiona's mind had concocted a great many, terrible things that could potentially have been waiting for her upon her return to the lair of the eldritch space horror she was technically working for. And yet, she still managed to be surprised by what she found.
As she passed through vortex, an event which was becoming strangely routine for her, she once again encountered the familiar office space from her previous trip. However, things were different now. The pervasive sense of wrongness that permeated the area was significantly lessened. The boundaries of the room, previously malleable only insofar as to convey a false sense of security upon her were oddly stable now. As she entered, she noted that even the door remained in place as it closed behind her.
However, what greeted her upon her arrival was most surprising of all. Darkness, long time cosmic menace and personal destroyer of untold civilizations, sitting at his desk. Surrounded by piles, and piles of paperwork. And somehow managing to look haggard, despite the fact that his existence was more conceptual than physical.
"...Do you know what I've been thorough?"He intoned, his voice devoid of even the slightest shred of emotion.
Fiona paused to consider the scene before her.
"No." She said at last. "I'm literally incapable of conceiving of any scenario that could lead to..." She gestured at the procedural battlefield before her, "...this."
"I promised you...payment." He spat the last word, as if it was particularly distasteful.
"Yeah, and what was so hard about that?"
"EVERYTHING!"He suddenly roared, startling her. Emotions were back, and in full force.
"I have scoured galaxies! Coerced the services of multitudes of short sighted beings, such as yourself!"
Now he stood up and began pacing back and forth. Slowly at first, but with increasing intensity as her fervor grew.
"It's always so easy! A pile of semi-precious stones and metals, and they'll do whatever you ask! I adore that part! When their avarice finally proves stronger than whatever sense of morals they might have been hanging onto! It's delightful to see the resignation in their eyes!"
Now he turned his eyes(?) upon her.
"I was planning on making it special for you. I was going to reveal your ill gotten gains, and then, as you sat there, drooling like the neanderthal that you are...I was going to hit you in the face with it!"
Fiona opened her mouth, then quickly shut it. Unsure as to how to respond to it.
"You would have cried, your kind always cry. And bled! There's no way you wouldn't have bled, you have so much blood! And then I was going to laugh. LAUGH AT YOUR PAIN! It would have amused me. It would have SUSTAINED ME! And then, I'd taunt you! 'EVERYBODY LAUGH AT THE CRYING, BLEEDING HUMAN!', I'd say!"
Fiona flinched as a chorus of jeers and mockery resounded throughout the room, despite the fact that they were still the only two occupants.
"SEE? Just like that! It would have been GLORIOUS!"
Fiona had began to weigh the pros and cons of staying with the increasingly manic creature, versus spinning around and attempting to sprint out the door. The latter option seemed almost guaranteed to incur his ire, but it was looking more and more attractive by the second.
Fortunately, the situation resolved itself, as the creature's posture began to flag. He shuffled back to his desk, and sank down into his comfy looking chair, energy spent.
"But, apparently, that's not how things work on this backwards mud hole. There are...tax codes. Banking regulations. So much procedural lunacy!"
"...So what did you do?" Fiona asked, genuine curiosity now outweighing her fear of the clearly unstable creature.
Darkness gestured to the window behind him. It was then that she noticed lettering on the window, which had not been there previously. Darkness Inc., it read in neat, precise script.
"I had to incorporate." He rasped, chuckling humorlessly. "And I thought I was evil. Your secretary of state is...truly something else."
"I'll have to take your word for it." Fiona replied neutrally, still trying to process this turn of events. Seeing that her life no longer appeared to be in imminent danger, she gingerly took her seat.
"Now, about your end of the bargain."
Darkness reached for a small device, and gestured with it at the far end of the room. Much to Fiona's surprise, a rather nice television, which she had failed to notice upon her arrival, hummed to life. She glanced at him, questioningly.
"The office needs renovating to be brought up to code. Apparently OSHA doesn't consider null-space to be..." he briefly adopted a comically high-pitched falsetto, "a 'work environment conducive to an employee's continued well being'.".
"And the TV?"
"The city won't sign off until I install actual foundation, plumbing, electrical wiring, and so forth. I figured, why not? Be careful if you decide to use the rest rooms, by the way, they're in the middle of a hard hat zone."
"...Right."
"Now, as to the topic at hand..."
Darkness gestured to the TV and Fiona swallowed nervously. Apparently her handiwork had made the news.
"I believe I impressed upon you that this was to be done with discretion." He scowled, and Fiona idly noticed that her employer was becoming easier to look at. She wondered if it was possible to grow accustomed to observing the unobservable.
"It wasn't my fault!" She protested. "You didn't tell me how to work the stupid thing! How was I supposed to know it could blow up?"
"Apparently I had too much faith in your abilities. A child could have worked that device."
"How? It was a friggin sphere!"
"It had a metaconceptual interface, you dolt!"
Fiona stared back at the creature, genuinely perplexed. "A...what?"
He sighed, deeply. "All you needed to do was engage your ninth and eleventh senses. Then, it was just a simple matter of...what? Why are you looking at me like that"
She shook her head, uncomprehending. The being halted his tirade, and simply observed her.
"Human..." He asked at last, "How does your kind typically operate...tools and the like?"
Fiona raised her hands and wiggled her fingers demonstratively.
"Are you telling me those appendages are...not, decorative?"
She shook her head.
"I see."
Darkness leaned back in his chair.
"Well then. It appears mistakes were made."
"You think?" She deadpanned.
"Don't press me, Human." He growled. "It is not my fault nature dealt your species an especially cruel handicap."
He leaned forward, folding his apparently decorative hands.
"In light of the circumstances, I am willing to give you one more chance. This time, I will take your...limitations into consideration."
Fiona held out her hand instinctively, and a familiar shape dropped into her grasp. A second sphere, nearly identical to its predecessor, but with one notable difference. An extremely large, red button located on one side. Closer examination revealed that the words "Press Me", were prominently displayed upon its surface.
She rolled her eyes. "Can I at least be sure this one won't blow up?"
"That depends. Can you follow the instructions?"
Fiona sighed. "Fair enough. I'll be back." She began standing up.
"One more thing." Darkness said, motioning for her to sit back down.
"I must once again stress, that this is to be done discretely. With no unnecessary attention drawn to our operations."
She opened her mouth to protest, but the creature motioned for her to keep silent.
"That said, I understand that after your earlier...boondoggle, it is entirely likely that our enemies will be on the lookout for such activities. Thus, I am willing to provide you with a contingency."
Darkness reached out and deposited a small object on desk end closest to her. Fiona began to reach out for it, but then stopped, hesitating. She looked to her employer for his approval, and upon receiving a nod of affirmation, picked it up.
The object was roughly the size of her fingertip, shaped like an oval, and jet black from end to end. Her examination completed, she looked to Darkness, assuming further explanation was forthcoming.
"What you are holding is an infinitesimally small fragment of my essence. I call it a Dark Seed."
"How do I use it?" She asked, the lips upturned, forming the barest hint of a smirk.
"Do what you do best. Smash it."Came his dry response.
"And that will..?" Fiona prompted, motioning for him to continue.
"Crushing the seed will release the energies contained within. In theory, you will then be able to harness them for your own use, for a time."
Fiona examined the seed one more with renewed interest.
"So this'll like, give me super powers or something?"
"Of a sort, I suppose."
That definitely sounded interesting. Then Fiona frowned, one particular part of that statement now coming to mind.
"Wait. In theory?"
"Normally I would simply irradiate you with my dark energies until it drove you mad, then let you loose upon the world. I presumed you would find this method preferable, experimental or not."
Fiona winced as memories came unbidden. "Yeah, that doesn't sound particularly fun. Alright, I'll try it your way."
"Good."
Once again Fiona made to stand up.
"Oh human, one more thing."
She glanced in his direction, intending to ask what that one thing was, when–
"Ouch!"
–A small wad of paper smacked her in the face, surprisingly painfully. Fiona growled in irritation, then bent over to pick up the improvised missile. It was a check. Made out to one, "Fiona Human."
"See? You didn't bleed or cry. That wasn't the least bit funny."
Lori Loud stared, mildly nauseated at the sight before her. Her rescue at the hands of Leni, of all people (something she was still trying to wrap her mind around) had taken a considerable amount of time. Though her size and strength had greatly accelerated the rescue efforts, there had been a lot of rubble to sift through. However, her efforts had been rewarded. No deaths, and no major injuries to anyone involved. Truly miraculous, given the circumstances. Though Lori suspected that the firm's legal team would be singing an entirely different tune when it came time to present their claims against the city.
Fleeing the scene and finding a place where Leni could discretely abandon her hero form took even more time, and when they had finally accomplished that, the first thing her siblings did was collapse to the ground, weak with hunger. Seeing as her day was shot, and she wasn't quite ready to return to the tearful, smothering embrace of her family, Lori had suggested they make their way to the mall and get some food.
Which lead to their current situation: Lincoln and Leni collectively devouring an enormous pile of greasy mall food, while Lori watched, mouth agape. It was alien, the way they tore into the banquet with abandon. Leni especially, since the younger girl was among the most health conscious of the Louds.
The process of initiating and maintaining Ms. Leni's transformed state consumes a considerable amount of calories. It is only natural that she and Lincoln would need to replenish themselves.
Right. So aside from finding out that her little sister was some kind of giant superhero, there was also the whole deal with Lincoln's...friend.
"Right. Thank you...uh, Seven, was it?"
There was an emphatic nod of affirmation from Leni, the younger girl's mouth currently too full of pizza, spaghetti and french fries to permit speech.
With a truly Herculean effort, Leni managed to swallow the entire mouth full of food, and let out a small sigh of contentment.
"He's Linky's robot friend!" She chirped.
"Friends is a little much." Murmured Lincoln.
It would be more accurate to describe my function as combat advisor.
"Best friends!" Leni proclaimed
Lori giggled at the girl's antics. It felt nice to laugh. Unfortunately, it couldn't last.
Lori leaned forward and motioned for her siblings to do the same.
"I think its time you guys clued me in on what's going on here. Why is Leni a giant?"
"Only sometimes." Leni corrected her.
"Fine." Lori rolled her eyes, but ceded the point. "Why is Leni sometimes a giant? And whats with those other girls who've been attacking the city?"
I hate to interrupt, Ms. Lori, but there are more pressing issues to deal with.
Lori glanced around, conspiratorially. Nothing seemed amiss.
"Like what?" She inquired.
At the site of the of accident, I detected faint traces of a very distinct type of energy.
"That dark stuff, right?" Lincoln guessed. "The stuff that drove those other girls crazy?"
The very same.
"So why's that important?" Lori asked, trying to follow the conversation.
Two reasons. First, because it implies that the accident was anything but. The destruction of that building was a deliberate attack on the part of our enemies, though I can't say for certain as to what purpose it served.
"And the other?" Leni prompted, eyes wide with worry.
Is that I'm detecting the very same energy at our current location. Our enemy is here.
Lincoln let out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. This was bad.
"Um, question?" Leni asked, needlessly raising her hand. "How come nothing's getting smashed?"
Lincoln saw the confusion evident on Lori's face.
"I think what Leni's getting at," He elaborated, "Is that up until now attacks have just sort of happened, and then we respond to them. We've never had a situation where we know something's going on, and haven't immediately been able to spot the crazy giant lady responsible for it."
Indeed. And this concerns me, it suggests the enemy may be adapting.
"Great." Lori muttered, "The last thing I needed was for this to get even more complicated."
Though he didn't voice it, Lincoln was in full agreement. It was bad enough knowing that an attack could happen at any time. The implication that there was something more intelligent at work, didn't bode well for them.
"So what should we do?" Leni pressed, glancing around worriedly. "Should I...you know." She flung out her hands to illustrate her point. A curious passerby might assume she was relating a story about a large fish she had caught.
"I think you should probably hold off, Leni." Lincoln suggested, looking down at his wrist for confirmation.
Agreed. Our foes may not be aware of our presence. It would be foolhardy to surrender the advantage of surprise.
"Then what?" Leni asked, chewing her lip nervously. Lincoln knew she wasn't afraid for herself, but for the people who were likely to get hurt in the crossfire.
"I think Leni should scout out the area." He suggested
"But Linky!" She protested. "I need you for the...uh." Suddenly her face reddened. "Y-you know..."
"Y-Yes, Leni" He quickly responded, seeing the curious look on Lori's face. "But you can cover the most ground out of all of us, with or without me. Take a lap around the mall and see what you can see. Lori and I can look around on our own since we'd just slow you down." He glanced at his eldest sister. "Right?"
"I already feel pretty involved in this, might as well see it through." Lori said with a small sigh.
Then she smiled. "Besides, what kind of sister would I be if I let you two handle this by yourselves?"
Lincoln felt strangely heartened by the knowledge that his older sister would be there to support them. Maybe it was a mistake to keep her in the dark for as long as he had.
"Lincoln and I can head towards Reininger's." Lori continued, "There's a decent stretch of mall between here and there that we can cover on foot. And it's pretty centrally located, so you should be able to get there pretty quickly from no matter where you are. If we see anything, we'll call you. Otherwise, we'll wait for you there, and then figure out how to proceed once we meet up."
I concur. You have a keen strategic mind, Ms. Lori.
Lincoln smirked at the way Lori preened from the compliment, but he couldn't deny that her plan was solid.
"Alright." Leni agreed, though she was clearly reluctant to do so. "Just..."
Lincoln and Lori began gasping for air, as they suddenly found themselves wrapped up in one of Leni's patented, bone-crushing Leni Hugs.
"Both of you stay safe. Okay?" She pleaded.
"We'll be fine, Leni." He wheezed, and she finally released her grip.
"We promise." Lori agreed, giving her little sister a reassuring smile.
And that was that. Leni spared her family one last, furtive glance, before dashing off.
"Well that was surprisingly dull." Lori opined as she and Lincoln rounded the last stretch of mall on their route.
"Were you hoping it wouldn't be?" Lincoln asked, one eyebrow raised in confusion.
"Of course not. I'm just..."
"Worried about Leni?" He supplied.
"How could I not be?" Lori complained. "I know she's a big girl...sometimes more literally than others, but she's still my little sister. She shouldn't have to be dealing with this stuff." She shot him a meaningful glance. "Neither of you should."
Lincoln gave her a noncommittal shrug. She wasn't wrong.
"It is what it is." He said at last
"Well it shouldn't be!" Lori snapped angrily, throwing her hands up in exasperation.
Lincoln took a calming breath to steady himself. She wasn't mad at them, she was mad at the situation. At her own perceived helplessness. It was a feeling that he himself had become well acquainted with as of late.
"Look, Lori..." Lincoln began, turning to his sister. He had been hoping to say something profound, or at the very least reassuring, but nothing was readily forthcoming. He struggled, trying to find something of value to say.
"Lori." He began again, "I think..."
WHAM
He didn't get a chance to finish his thought, as his continued inattention finally caused him to collide with something...
"Eek!
...Check that, someone, sending the pair toppling to the ground.
The ground was soft. Extremely, almost excessively so. And warm. It was actually a rather pleasant sensation. In spite of this, a part of Lincoln's mind was screaming very loudly at him that he had to get up, right now! He sighed, almost certain he knew what awaited him beyond the softness, but resigned himself to his fate. He glanced up, and, looking past the extremely shapely landscape upon which he currently resided, saw a very angry, and very female face, literally shaking with barely contained rage.
"It figures." He thought to himself.
The woman opened her mouth, presumably intending to give him the tongue lashing of a lifetime, then froze, her face contorting into an expression of extreme panic.
"No..." She gasped.
Lincoln winced in pain as his head slammed against the extremely hard and cold ground.
"No no no no!"
Lincoln felt a strong pair of arms wrap around him, gently pulling him to his feet, and he breathed a small sigh of relief through through the pain currently reverberating throughout his skull.
"You okay, little brother?" Lori asked worriedly as she looked him over, presumably looking for visible signs of injury. Suddenly her eyes narrowed and she looked past him.
"Hey! What the hell is your problem!"
Lincoln followed her gaze and saw the young woman from before. Now on her knees a short distance away, cradling something in her hands.
Presumably in response to Lori's call, the girl looked their way, eyes full of fury.
"That little idiot is my problem!" She snarled "Do you know what he almost made me do?"
Then the blood drained from the girl's face, the light of recognition entering her eyes. Lincoln, for the life of him, couldn't figure out why.
Lincoln! It's her! She's the source of the energy! We need to get out of here, now!
"Oh shit..." Fiona murmured.
Of all the people she could have run into, she had to run into Lincoln and Lori Loud. Leni's siblings. Which meant Leni had to be here, somewhere. She glanced around fearfully, almost certain that a giant Leni hand was about to descend from the sky and snatch her up.
"...Problem!?"
Fiona snapped out of her fear-induced reverie, and focused on the glowering (but thankfully normal sized) blonde in front of her. Maybe she could still salvage this.
"I asked you what your problem was!" Lori snapped. Then she paused, a thoughtful look making its way upon her face. "Wait, aren't you one of Leni's friends?"
...Okay, so they knew who she was. Still not the end of the world, there was probably still time for her to–
"Lori!" Lincoln called out, tugging on the older girl's arm. Now he was looking straight at her, a strangely serious expression on his young face. That didn't bode well.
"Lori. She's the one we're looking for. We need to call Leni."
And there it was. The ship had been sunk.
Lincoln hadn't intended to voice his concerns so loudly, and seeing the girl react to his words, immediately regretted doing so.
Her whole demaenor changed, going from panicked to strangely calm.
"I didn't think you'd find me out so soon." She said, eyes narrowing.
"A-Actually," Lincoln interjected, hoping to diffuse the situation, "This is sort of a misunderstanding."
"The only thing I'm understanding, is that you're planning on calling the Jolly Green Leni on me. So the way I see it..."
She reached into the purse at her side, searching for something.
"...is that I just have to whatever it takes to stop that from happening. Ah, found it."
She produced a small black object. Not an especially threatening weapon.
Lincoln! I can't ascertain the specific function of that object, but it's absolutely brimming with dark energy! You need to stop her from activating it before it's–
"Here goes nothing..." She murmured, and made a fist, crushing the object between her fingers.
–too late!
Fiona had been completely unprepared for what the activation of the dark seed actually entailed. It was a rush, no too ways about it. Dark energy coursed through every fiber of her being, making her feel more alive than ever before.
"Ooooh, wow!" She laughed giddily as the euphoria worked its way through her system.
As the energy finished enveloping her, she noticed the changes being effected upon her. Her clothes faded away, her typical, unassuming sweater and jeans combo now being replaced by form fitting, jet black spandex, which clung to her shapely frame like a second skin. She found herself idly wondering if Darkness had deliberately designed the seed to do that, of if was simply a matter of her subconsciously using the seeds power. Regardless, she took a moment to admire how fetching she looked in her new apparel, wishing she had a mirror on hand to see the full effect. She glanced around in the vain hope that she could find some kind of reflective surface to serve as a substitute, and that was when she noticed the far more prominent effect of the seed's power upon her. She was growing.
The mall dwindled around her as her body rapidly expanded in all directions. It felt amazing. There was a brief moment of panic when she found herself pressed against the ceiling of the mall, her frame having apparently grown too titanic for her surroundings. She pushed instinctively, and smiled as she felt the combination of stone and glass pressing against her start to give way. One last push and the deed was done, she let out a cry of delight and triumph as her gargantuan frame crashed through the last vestiges of the structure's resistance.
Now free from her confinement, Fiona admired the destruction she had inadvertently caused, her gaze finally settling on the tiny Louds at her feet.
"Well..." She announced, chuckling darkly. "Isn't this an interesting turn of events."
"Lori!" Lincoln yelled, desperately trying to get his sister's attention, "We need to get out of here right–"
He didn't get to finish his sentence. The girl's enormous foot crashed down distressingly close to them, the resulting blast of force sending the pair flying.
For the second time in the span of only a few minutes, Lincoln found himself lying pron, head throbbing from blunt induced trauma.
"Lori?" He called out, trying to push through the intense vertigo he was feeling, and climb to his feet.
A groan of pain came in response to his call, and though his footsteps faltered, he followed it as best he could, finally coming across his errant sister. Much to his relief, Lori appeared to be alive and well, albeit buried under a smattering of debris.
"Why do I keep getting buried today?" She whined, as Lincoln pulled her to her feet.
That crisis dealt with, he looked around for the more immediate threat.
It appears the enemy is distracted. We should take advantage of this.
Lincoln could see what he meant. Rather than pursuing them, as he had expected her to, the giantess had busied herself with the continued destruction of a nearby shop.
"FIRE ME WILL YOU! WHO'S LAZY AND INCOMPETENT NOW!"
Lincoln winced as a disturbingly delighted cackle split the air. The girl was enjoying herself way too much. However, he knew Seven was right, it was only a matter of time before she came after them again.
"Lori!" He snapped, "Call Leni!"
"Can't." She wheezed, a haggard look upon her face. "Phone's busted." She held up what remained of the device, which turned out to be a vaguely-phone shaped mishmash of plastic and electrical components.
Okay, Plan B.
"Seven?" He called out desperately.
The sheer quantity of dark energy being emitted by that girl is disrupting my communications. At this distance, I am unable to locate, nor contact Ms. Leni
Lincoln threw up his hands in exasperation. "Great, so we're minutes away, at most, from having an angry giantess come down on us, and we can't get hold of the one person who can stop her!"
There is one option available to us, Lincoln, though I am loathe to suggest it.
"Seven, what are you...talking...about?" Lincoln asked, his speech slowing as he began to realize what the alien device was suggesting. He glanced at Lori, then back down to the device at his wrist.
"No." He said firmly
"What?" Lori asked
Lincoln...
"No! Seven! It's already bad enough that Leni's been wrapped up in this!"
We have no other options at this time. If we flee, she will surely catch us.
"What?" Lori asked again, this time more emphatically.
Lincoln glanced again at his big sister, hesitating.
"Would it even work?"
Theoretically, the process will work with any compatible female. They merely need to possess a strong enough bond with you for the transfer to be initiated.
Lincoln was about to protest again when he felt Lori's arms around him, pulling him into a warm embrace.
"Linky..." She murmurerd, "Tell me what I can do to help, and I'll do it. I swear."
He glanced up at her, fearfully. Not for himself, but for Lori.
"It'll be dangerous." He said, his words stilted with worry.
"More dangerous than being chased by giant, angry lady with a grudge?" She asked playfully, and the pair managed a short, desperate laugh, in spite of the circumstances.
"HOPE YOU ENJOYED ALL THAT OVERTIME YOU STIFFED ME ON! BECAUSE NOW I'M OVER YOU!"
The ground quaked again, reminding them of the urgency of the situation.
"A-alright." Lincoln finally agreed, with one last despondent sigh. "Just...just be careful, okay Lori?"
"I promise, little bro." Lori said, giving him one more reassuring squeeze. "Just tell me what you need me to do."
"I-I need you to promise you won't hate me for this." Lincoln said, blushing as he mentally prepared himself for what would come next.
"...Sure?" Lori agreed, perplexed at the request.
"And also..." Lincoln took one last breath to steady himself, "I need you to kick her ass."
Lincoln pressed his lips against Lori's, feeling the familiar sensation of energy beginning to pour out of his body.
Energy transfer initiated
Fiona sighed in satisfaction, the sensation of reducing Reininger's to rubble with her own two hands proving strangely cathartic . She would have liked to inflict additional revenge on a few specific individuals, but they were nowhere to be found, her transformation having presumably given the mall inhabitants plenty of time to get away. Ah well, that would have to wait for another time. Now it was time to finish what she'd started.
Fiona turned around, ready to pick things up again with Leni's meddlesome family, when suddenly a blinding flash of light erupted from nearby.
There now stood another titan, equal in stature to herself. There was a brief moment of panic when Fiona initially thought that Leni had finally caught up with her, but a moment of reflection revealed distinctions between the two. While she bore the distinct form fitting spandex and vaguely superfluous visor of her counterpart, this giantess had adopted a bright blue color scheme, and wore a snazzy white scarf wrapped around her neck, currently flapping in the wind dramatically. Clearly, she was dealing with an entirely new Gigant.
"Literally...WHAT?" Screeched the giantess, confirming her thoughts.