A/N: Alright, so I've decided I'm going to be updating this weekly unless recommended otherwise. I'm glad you guys enjoyed Bad vs. Melzargard, I had a lot of fun writing it. A bit of manga copy this chapter. Hope you like it!
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Bad spat out the shards of marble still in his mouth.
He may have stood victorious, but he sure didn't feel like a winner. He was completely slouched and couldn't feel his legs. Blood dripped from his hair before his eyes, running down his face and invading his mouth.
"Bitter..." he mumbled.
"Metal Bat!" Iaian's voice rose above the ringing in his brain. "Amazing! I was awestruck the whole time!"
Bad turned his head this way and that in an effort to scan his surroundings. Everything was tinted red. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Atomic Samurai had begun to sit up.
"Finally..." the swordmaster muttered and wiped some dust off his robe. "How embarrassing."
Puri Puri Prisoner opened his light-blue eyes with long feminine eyelashes and gradually stood up, rubbing his head.
A shirtless Silver Fang waited atop a makeshift rubble platform, his arms behind his back, seemingly having returned from where he was launched an indeterminate amount of time prior.
"Well done, Metal Bat," he said quietly and nodded. How long had the geezer been standing there for?
Puri Puri Prisoner's gaze locked onto the one who stood in the middle of the heroes. He sprinted toward Bad and picked him up in a giant bear hug, smothering him. The 33 year old's stubbly, cleft chin, large lips, and ridiculous bushy black hair dug into the back of Bad's bloody head.
"You killed that ugly thing all on your own?! What a man!" he hooted. "I'm keeping my eye on you from now on!"
Bad pried himself away from the naked prisoner as best he could. This hold certainly wasn't helping his back.
"No, you ain't," he growled. "Not in a million years."
The crazy rank 17 hero laughed and let the teen go.
"It's still not over, anyway," Bad continued. "What if King can't bring it down?"
S-Class' Rank 11 Superalloy Darkshine and the Demon Cyborg arrived at where the others were waiting. Tornado floated high above them, looking at the battered ship.
"Took you long enough," Bad growled.
He took a shaky breath. The damage from his wounds was slowly catching up to him.
"My apologies, Metal Bat," said the cyborg. "I assume you have managed to dispose of the threat down here?"
"Yeah, no thanks to you two," Bad said ignorantly.
Demon Cyborg's pupils dilated for a split second, when suddenly, the ship above them began to tilt.
"Whoa!" Darkshine exclaimed.
He was a very tall and muscular man, wearing only a speedo, with a dark complexion that gave off a lustrous shine, hence his Hero Name. With his bald head, full lips, dark eyes, and thick eyebrows, he vaguely resembled a naked clown. Seeing him surprised made him look that much more ridiculous.
"It's falling?!" Bad shouted.
"It's working!" the shiny man smiled. "You're amazing, Terrible Tornado!"
No way, man, that's gotta be King... Bad wondered.
The green-haired psychic continued gazing at the ship.
The ground began to shake as energy could be seen pulsating from the top of the falling vessel.
"Is it crashing?" Darkshine shouted above the rumbling.
The ship erupted into a brilliant light.
"Oh... it exploded," muttered Tornado.
"Yes! It's falling!" yelled Darkshine enthusiastically.
The destroyed ship started making its way to the surface.
"It's falling..." Iaian nervously pointed out again.
"Hunh?" Bad grunted. "Hey, isn't it... dangerous here?" Well, it was better late than never that he realized this.
"Danger!" Silver Fang shouted. "Run for headquarters!"
The eight heroes made a mad dash for the Association's HQ, Bad mustering an ounce of stamina left that carried him towards the safe area.
"ANGEL DASH!!" cried Puri Puri Prisoner as the group desperately sprinted.
"We're not gonna make it!" Bad wheezed. "Hey Prisoner! Outta the way!"
"ANGEL DAAAASH!"
"Don't just say it, do it!"
"Master! Do you need help?" Iaian called out.
"No, Iai! I'm all right now!" Atomic Samurai answered.
"Argh! Why is Silver Fang so fast?!" Bad growled.
"This is no time for infighting!" the old man exclaimed, yards ahead of the rest.
Finally, the ship fell, violently shaking the ground that it touched. The heroes he managed to retreat to an acceptable distance away.
"It fell," concluded the Demon Cyborg. "Shall we go too?"
Finally... Bad exhaled. I can go home and see Zenko...
"...Explain this... Metal Bat." A new voice filled his ears.
"Hunh?" the tired teen turned around.
"Help me understand this," the soft voice continued.
Amai Mask, otherwise known as Handsome Kamen, the A-Class Rank 1 hero, had appeared. The long blue-haired and yellow-eyed 24 year old sat above the heroes on a pile of rubble. Known for being an allegedly pleasant sight (Bad didn't see it), he wore a white jacket over his gray shirt with a green circle necklace and black trousers.
"Handsome Kamen..." Bad started. "Where'd you come from?"
"I was filming a drama in the next town," the model explained. "I heard rumbling to come find City A in ruins."
"Monsters on a big ship did this with cannons." Bad replied. He raised his bat and put his other hand in his pocket. "But it's over now."
"It's over... you say?" Amai Mask glared. Bad noticed a tinge of hostility welling up in the man's tone.
"You call this victory?" Handsome Kamen laughed. "Your incompetence amazes me!"
The hell's up with this guy... Bad furrowed his brow.
"Hey, you pickin' a fight?" he called. "You show up late but cop an attitude?"
"Sure, I was late. But you were here... and you didn't protect the city!" Amai Mask accused.
Bad's eye twitched.
Atomic Samurai stepped forth. "We were in a meeting at headquarters," he explained. "We came out within seconds..."
Maybe not seconds... Bad remembered casually waiting in the elevator of the Hero Association HQ.
"...but the city was already destroyed."
"So what?" the blue-haired man retorted. "You want protection from the media?"
"Are you going to spread slander?" Puri Puri Prisoner queried. "Whose side are you on? We did our best!"
"I'm on the side of JUSTICE!" Amai Mask shouted. "You S-Class heroes are a disgrace!"
Only hatred could be felt in the man's voice now. He slid down from his rubble throne.
"If you can't be of any use, then quit!" He struck a damning pose, completing his argument.
Iaian piped up.
"If I may, Metal Bat actually saved the lives of a lot of heroes today, including mine!"
Amai Mask glanced sideways at the knight.
"You may be one Rank below me, do you really know anything at all? What good are heroes if the cities they must protect are destroyed? We would have no purpose! Stop your selfishness and start thinking!"
A vein appeared on Bad's forehead.
"Hey..."
He strolled over to the blue-haired man.
"While you were livin' it up as a goddamn movie star, we were out here bustin' our asses! That thing would've ground you to a pulp, I bet!"
Bad shoved his face closer to Amai Mask's.
"So dial it down, man! I don't mind bustin' an idol's head!"
Amai Mask only scowled at Bad.
"Do you know why I'm not in Class-S? I protect Class-A, Rank 1 so no more losers like YOU move up!"
That was the last straw. After all the work Bad put in, after putting his body through unimaginable pain, for this asshole to arrive late and insult him and the other heroes like this...
KLONK!
A metal pod landed behind Amai Mask.
Everyone turned in curiosity. It opened, and a robot walked out, detaching itself from the wires in the pod.
"Metal Knight?!" exclaimed Amai Mask. "Weren't you at the meeting?! Now you show up?! Disgusting..."
The robot stared at the destroyed ship, ignoring the idol.
"Outstanding..." it muttered.
Demon Cyborg called out the robot, but Bad kept glowering at Amai Mask's back.
Some hero this guy is... Bad scrutinized. If he doesn't like the way we do things, then he should quit!
He felt something vibrating in his pocket.
Hunh?
He pulled a smartphone out.
Sturdy little bastard... Bad mused.
He answered the phone.
"Big bro!"
Bad couldn't believe how great it was to hear Zenko's voice again. It was like a breath a fresh air for him, and suddenly the pain in his body had subsided. He thought back to the dream he had while he was out cold.
"What's takin' you so long?! My recital ended an hour ago!"
Bad cracked a smile.
"Sorry, li'l sis. I'm all done with work now. I'll be back soon."
"...Strong weapons are necessary... for peace," the robot had finished a speech.
Demon Cyborg tightened his gaze on the robot, but didn't respond.
"You HAVE strong weapons, but look around you," Amai Mask smirked.
Suddenly the pain was back as Bad's eye twitched again. "You n' me'll settle this later!" he threatened.
"Wait! Was that Amai Mask I just heard?!"
Zenko was still on the other line.
"Yea..." Bad grumbled.
"You had better get his autograph for me!" she ordered.
"Eh? But I don't even got a pen on me!" Bad complained. "Plus, he's kinda an ass."
"Don't care! Get it or I'm not letting you back in the house." She ended the call.
Bad rolled his eyes and returned the phone to his pocket.
"Hey! I found alien survivors!" Superalloy Darkshine called out.
Everyone walked (while Bad limped) over to where the aliens were being held, Amai Mask in the lead. Immediately upon reaching them, he slashed them all to pieces in one move, extraterrestrial blood splattering everywhere.
"What the?!" Darkshine exclaimed. "Amai Mask!!! Why did you-"
"They must not live. They are evil," he simply stated. "So I quickly delivered justice."
Sicko, Bad brooded.
BAM!
Another loud noise, this time from the ship. A large peace of the grounded vessel went flying and revealed a hole.
A familiar bald man waddled out, his clothes looking bent out of shape.
"Cool. I got out," he remarked.
"Something came out! Are you that Class-B guy who was drinking tea earlier?!" Darkshine observed, alluding back to when the baldie asked for some during the S-Class meeting.
"What were you doing in the spaceship?" Terrible Tornado floated over to the egghead and demanded.
The baldie blankly stared at her.
"MASTER! ARE YOU ALL RIGHT?!" came a voice from a ways away. Demon Cyborg appeared again, running towards Baldie.
"Hey, Genos," the man said. "This is over, so let's go."
Bad was confused. As he watched Tornado scold the guys for ignoring her, he pondered.
Hunh? Master? But he's S-Class, and the egg is nowhere near that... does everyone have a master these days? Who is that guy?
"...Listen, you poopy brat. Shut up and scram..." the cyborg threatened, striking a cool pose. "or I will pulverize you."
"Nice! That was good!" Baldie cheered.
Genos was immediately sent flying into a concrete wall, leaving the bald man surprised.
"How dare you call me a brat!" the brat cried. "I'm older than you!"
Bad started cackling. Wow, that was rich. First time he'd laughed like that in a while. Plus, it was tough to remember Tornado was way older than him when she looked and acted the way she did. He clutched his stomach and moaned. Laughing hurt now.
Tornado was glaring at him.
"Do you want to be next?"
She lifted her hand. At the same time, Bad began levitating several meters above the ground.
Whoops. This might kill me. A drop of blood fell from his nose, his eyes wide.
"Let it go, Tornado." Silver Fang ordered, arriving just in time. "Is that how a Class-S, Rank 2 hero behaves?"
The girl gasped lightly.
"Hmf! Fine!" She crossed her arms and Bad landed on his butt. Seemed she had respect for at least one person.
"Dammit..." he moaned as he rubbed his tailbone.
A red glove reached down to him.
"Hey dude, you're not looking too great," Baldie said nonchalantly.
Bad took the guy's hand.
"I'll be alright," he answered. "Hopefully."
Then he remembered.
"Wait a sec... where's King at?"
"Eh? Who's that?" the guy asked.
Bad stared at him.
"King, the Rank 7, S-Class hero. Ya know, the 'Strongest Man on Earth'? Coulda sworn he went on the ship...?"
"Kind of a showy nickname, don't you think? And as far as I could tell, I was the only human in that ship," Baldie said.
"Wait... so don't tell me..." Bad raised his voice. "You took down that whole ship on your own?!"
He looked around to see Tornado and Silver Fang's reactions. Unfortunately, they had both left undetected. The only other hero nearby, Demon Cyborg, was unfazed.
"Yup, pretty much," the guy mused. Looked like he wasn't a freeloader after all...
"Who the hell are you, man?" Bad asked.
"Everyone wants to know, huh..." Baldie sighed in mild annoyance. "The name's Saitama! I'm a hero like you."
That raised more questions than answers, but Bad was speechless.
"Well then, Bat Man!" Baldie continued. "I guess I'll see you around!"
He waved and ran off.
"C'mon, Genos, let's get outta here! There's something in my boot and it's starting to annoy me."
Bad watched as the two departed. All the other heroes were gone, except Atomic Samurai, Iaian, and Metal Knight, the latter still analyzing the ship.
"Guess I should get home too..." he muttered and limped off, completely forgetting what Zenko had asked of him.
"Master, are you sure you're all right? That bastard alien was tough," Iaian asked again.
"Yes, Iai. Thank you. It had been a while since I fought an opponent of that caliber, so I underestimated it. I should've disposed of the thing the moment I saw what it did to your arm," the man answered. "And how are you holding up?"
"Don't worry about me."
Atomic Samurai smiled. "...Iai, where's my sword?
Iaian remembered what he had done. He unsheathed his master's Wakizashi and knelt, offering it up to him.
"I apologize, master. I felt that with your weapon, I would be given the strength to carry on until you woke up."
"Stand up, Iai, there's no need for that," Atomic Samurai chuckled as Iai obliged and gave his master the blade. He patted his disciple on the back with proud eyes.
"If only Amai Mask wasn't ranked first in Class A. Real shame, that is," he remarked. "Let's leave this place, shall we?"
"Yes, master." Iaian stood and followed his master, keeping a smile to hide how he really felt.
After stopping Tornado's little tantrum and making sure everything was fairly peaceful before leaving, Silver Fang walked back into the Hero Association Headquarters. He was looking for an Association worker. However, a loud noise caught his ears first.
RMBL RMBL RMBL RMBL
That sound... the old man thought. The King Engine?
He looked around, and eventually spotted the tall blond sitting down in a chair, clutching his head. Perhaps he knew where to find a worker.
The old man walked over.
"Excuse me, King..." Silver Fang began.
The blond shot up.
"I-I'm sorry! This is so stupid! I-"
He turned around and saw Bang standing there. Quickly, King cleared his throat.
"Yes, Silver Fang? Seeing you here, I assume the battle is over," he calmly worded.
What a mysterious man... Silver Fang mused.
"I was just looking for an Association worker. Do you know where I could find one? I have a few words to say."
King quietly breathed a sigh of relief. "No, I'm sorry to say I don't."
"Very well. However, may I ask... what is it that you were up to in here? The fight could have gone much smoother if you were out there." Bang asked.
King started sweating. Shoot... he just had to ask, huh?
"W-well, you see..." he fumbled. "I would have made it down to the surface, but while I was searching for an exit, due to the magnitude of this building's shaking, many workers had fallen and injured themselves. I took it upon myself to help them, and by the time I finally made it down here, the spaceship had fallen to the ground."
Please buy it... King thought. He can never know that once everyone had left and was busy I almost pissed my pants in here! Helping the workers?! What kind of stupid excuse was that?! Oh shit, please buy it, Silver Fang!
Fang stared at the man.
"I see. Well, that's very admirable of you, King."
The old man turned and waved a hand.
"Until next time, then."
He walked away.
King slumped back into his chair.
I'm such a pathetic loser... he thought.
Finally, a bespectacled man with parted light brown hair came out of an elevator. He noticed the old hero.
"Ah, Silver Fang. The Association knows what happened. Well done."
Bang turned towards the man, hands behind his back.
"Yes, about that... I have something to say about Metal Bat..."
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A/N: And with that, the Alien Conquerors Arc is done. I think this is the start of a nice friendship for Bad and Saitama, right? I mean, that's up to Bad... Anyways, I'll see you guys next week (again, unless recommended otherwise).
