A/N: Important! I posted a video on my channel iHateFridays called 'One Punch Simulator seasons 1-2 in a nutshell' and it's a very serious video and definitely not a shitpost so check it out (also it took ages to make so)
"BIRDLIME SHOTGUN!" Child Emperor shouted, unleashing an energy blast towards the now upgraded Phoenix Man. The bird flapped his enormous wings, sending the blast back with a wave of heat.
"Get down!" Child Emperor ordered. He went pale. The bird monster was stronger than he initially anticipated. He forced himself to shake it off. He, Waganma, and the teenangers hid behind his umbrella shield.
"That material is heat resistant," he told Waganma. "Stay put!" He turned to Ayano and Taro. "You're only an A Class hero, Yan-chan. You and your friend should stay back too!"
"Can you handle this by yourself?" Ayano asked.
Child Emperor grimaced. "I don't have a choice."
He raced forward, putting up five shields in front of himself. His back-pack deployed its weapons. He didn't notice Ayano taking a bucket from his backpack.
Let's see you break through these, Child Emperor thought, scowling.
"Beak attack!" Phoenix Man yelled charging forward. To Child Emperor's horror, he shattered through each of the five shields. The young hero was slammed into the wall.
"Indeed," Phoenix Man chortled. "I've grown stronger." He held out his wings. "This feeling of omnipotence! Everything in my field of vision is shining so brightly!"
"Child Emperor, no way…" Waganma trembled. "He's an S Class hero, so he'll be fine, right?"
Ayano stood up, grabbing Taro's arm.
"No, don't…" Child Emperor held out an arm. Tears were streaming down his face.
Stop crying, he told himself. Goddess always said crying was for failures. He sniffled. But... I'm so frustrated with myself… and now those two are going to die as well.
"As of this moment, I've become the strongest of them all!" Phoenix Man declared. He stared at Ayano and Taro. "Oh, you're this Yan-chan, right? I've been hearing all about you. You're quite the hero killer, aren't you? I'll be taking you in for sure."
Wait, hero killer? Child Emperor thought with alarm, sitting up.
"Oh, you didn't know, Child Emperor?" Phoenix Man asked, an evil smirk on his face. "This girl is-"
He was interrupted by the slash of a katana. He stared at the small wound on his clawed foot.
"Is that it?" he chuckled. "Is that all the all-powerful Yandere has to offer?"
While he was distracted by the cut, Ayano threw a bucket of liquid on him.
Phoenix Man sniffed himself. "Hang on, is this… gasoline?"
Child Emperor's eyes went wide. No way, she's not gonna…
The boy handed Ayano a lit match. As quick as a flash, she threw the match at the monster. Just as expected, he went up with a roar of orange flames.
"AUGHHH!" he screamed, burning alive. Charred feathers and smoke rose into the air.
"Oh my God…" Child Emperor breathed.
"AHHHH!" Waganma screamed, shielding his eyes.
"We should go," Ayano told Child Emperor.
Child Emperor was in disbelief. All it took… was to set him on fire? No, something about this feels… really wrong.
"No, no," he shook his head. "That can't be enough to kill him. And even if it does… won't he revive into something stronger?"
"Do you want to stick around to find out?" Ayano asked, offering a hand.
She's right, the S Class hero thought. We should get away while he's distracted. At least, before Waganma gets put in danger.
He stood up, ignoring Ayano's hand. "Come on, Waganma, let's-"
"FOOL!" Phoenix Man roared, spreading his flaming wings. "DID YOU REALLY THINK THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH TO DEFEAT ME?!"
He folded his wings in, then out again, sending the fire back like a wave.
"TAKE COVER!" Child Emperor yelled.
Everyone took cover behind his umbrella shield. Waganma screamed, his eyes watering.
"Damn it…" Child Emperor cursed, the tears returning. "None of this is good enough…"
"What should we do?" Ayano asked.
"Do me a favour," Child Emperor said, pulling out a remote. "I'll keep this guy distracted. You take Waganma to safety."
Ayano narrowed her eyes, and turned on her Yan-vision. There was something embedded in the walls, but it wasn't a monster. It was something else entirely.
She grabbed Taro and Waganma, bringing them back. Child Emperor held his arms in an X formation.
"COME, BRAVE GIANT!" he yelled.
Ayano felt the walls shaking. The floor rumbled, like there was an earthquake. Five things were coming towards their location at an immense speed, barrelling through everything in their path.
Child Emperor held his arms out, as robot parts burst out of the walls. They surrounded him, placing him in a ginormous robot. Smoke and dust hid his silhouette. A giant, robotic hand slapped Phoenix Man through the walls, sending him flying.
Phoenix Man stood up, facing the enormous mecha robot known as 'Brave Giant'. It towered above him, covered in shining lights.
"I had a feeling something like this would happen," Child Emperor declared. "So I had the parts waiting on standby in advance, buried in the surrounding earth."
"Heh!" Phoenix Man dusted off his shoulder. "Nothing but a cheap toy."
"Geez, don't scare me like that!" Waganma cried, still hiding behind the shield. "If you had an ultimate weapon, you should've just used it from the start!"
"Indeed," Phoenix Man agreed, thoughtfully. "It would've saved a lot of effort… which means, you've got a time limit on its usage, am I correct?"
Damn, Child Emperor thought. There's only two minutes and thirty-eight seconds of activity remaining! There's no time… I need to settle this in one go!
A time limit on its usage… Ayano thought, ignoring Waganma clinging onto her like a baby. If Phoenix Man doesn't kill him during that time, can I take him out after the fight is finished? But that means I will also have to deal with Phoenix Man...
She turned to her phone, ignoring the fight going on for the meantime. She decided to text Info-chan for advice. To her intrigue, Info-chan got back to her almost immediately.
Info-chan:
So Child Emperor is inside that Brave Giant robot…
Ayano:
He is.
Info-chan:
I see… I have an idea about how to take out both Child Emperor and Phoenix Man, at the same time.
Ayano:
What is this idea?
Info-chan:
I will hack Brave Giant to self destruct.
Ayano:
How will you do that?
Info-chan:
I have my ways. I'll need you to send me some information so I can successfully hack Brave Giant.
"Hey, uh, Miss Yan-chan," Waganma tugged on Ayano's shirt. "Shouldn't we be leaving?!"
Ayano stared at her phone again. She had forgotten about the child.
"Take him away from here," she told Taro.
"Wait, what about you?!" Wagana whimpered, clinging onto Ayano's arm.
Ayano gave him a sweet smile. "Don't worry about me, sweetie. I'll be okay. I just have to… take care of something."
Waganma blushed. She called me sweetie...
Still, at the same time, he didn't want to run off with some random boy.
"Is he your boyfriend, Yan-chan?" Waganma asked, pointing to Taro.
"Yes," Ayano replied. "He is also my disciple."
Waganma's face fell. "Oh…"
Taro led a saddened Waganma away as Ayano continued texting on her phone. Waganma glanced back at her. She didn't even seem bothered he left. Rage pricked his skin.
"Who even are you, anyway?" Waganma asked, glaring at Taro.
Taro didn't respond.
"Are you deaf?" Waganma asked, snapping his fingers. "Hey!"
Taro glanced over his shoulder, seeing Brave Giant's silhouette.
Help… help… help…
Info-chan smirked to herself, staring at her monitors. It was finally time to get the revenge she had been waiting so long for.
It was worth helping the psychopathic killer Ayano Aishi. This was her spit in the face at the Hero Association. They took everything from her, so now she was taking everything from them.
She sighed, leaning her head back into the chair. She stared at the many monitors before her. She had everyone's information at her fingertips. In a way, she was omnipotent. She was powerful. She was a goddess.
She smirked, glasses glowing. What can stop me now?
A while ago, I had a dream. A misty figure spoke to me. It told me if I formed a villain's association, I would get everything I could ever ask for. Information. Power. Money. I wanted information more than anything, so I decided to listen to its advice.
I spoke with a man who claimed to be the leader of the yakuza. He was able to get me in contact with multiple criminals. I brought them all together, forming the Villain Association. With all these villains under my command, I could see what that figure meant. Suddenly I had power, dominance, information, everything at my disposal.
I felt… on top of the world.
I decided it was time to take action against the Hero Association. I would take down their systems, take all their information, and control them for myself.
I attempted to hack it, and I was going well… until I was stopped by Child Emperor. A mere child managed to keep me out, and not only that, delete every scrap of information I had so far. Took everything I had.
He ruined everything.
The Villain Association rejected me, since to them, I had become useless. I was left with nothing. I did not know what to do. I had no one.
I had a dream once again. The misty figure was there.
"What do I do?" I asked.
"P̵̙̩̟̕a̵̡͙̖̭̽̀t̷͕̤͚̬͕̄̓ī̷̘̺̬̹̗̐͒͛̓e̴̢͇̲̙͙̎̿͌́n̸̙̺̺̽̔̃͛̒c̵̡̛̲̎́e̷̠̟̭͊ͅ,̵̜̈́̊͋́̅" it told me. "Ö̸̧̤́n̴̦̹͋e̴̖͑ ̵̥͗̅d̵̟́̄ȁ̴͎ỵ̸̝̊̌,̷̟̾ ̵͖͖̐y̸̗͗ȏ̷̤̽u̷̖̅ ̸͕͊͝ẘ̷͕i̷͎͗͠l̵̬̞̽̑l̵̡̯͒ ̴͚̟̓̓m̶͑ͅé̵̙̿é̷͖̮ţ̵̀͂ ̶̛̫́s̷̛̺͠ỏ̸̢͂m̶̮̰̊e̶͉̩͐o̶̙̓n̶̛̬̞͋ḛ̷̿̚ ̶̺̈́̏w̶̩͛̄͜h̵̰̯͂̂ỏ̷̖͔̽ ̵̡͙̌c̵̺̽à̶̧̱n̴̦͝ͅ ̷̝͖͗ḩ̵̺̕ė̵̲̓l̷̯̦̓p̸͕̀͠ ̶̙̩̅̍ÿ̸͍͜o̶̳̎͘u̷̩̔̃ ̸̪͓͐̉t̵̘̓͝ä̶̗́̄k̷̛̝̽ȅ̶̮̱ ̵̧̽r̶̘̪͑͒e̵̡̕̚v̸̝̟̕ḛ̵̘̄n̶̩̟̉͆g̵̳̞̐͝e̷̫̓̉ ̶̗̼̋a̵̲̒g̸̺͍͐̚ǎ̷̜͌ī̵̞ń̸̫̩̾s̷͎̆ţ̷̆͠ ̸̜͝ṭ̷̤̆h̸͔͗ͅe̶̼͐m̶̥̃̐.̴̩̩̽ ̷̼̆̌"
And it was right. I met her… Ayano Aishi. My ticket to revenge against the Hero Association. And now… now I will kill the one who took everything from me.
Child Emperor scowled, Brave Giant clashing with Phoenix Man. He sent missiles flying towards the monster, who dodged them surprisingly well. Brave Giant slashed the air multiple times, missing Phoenix Man by a few millimeters.
"Your movements are all over the place!" Phoenix Man told the young hero. "You're not synced up with your suit!"
As Phoenix Man was surrounded by light, he glared down at Child Emperor. He had transformed into Phoenix Falcon Mode, and sported a black, falcon-like cape over his original body.
"I'LL SHOW YOU JUST HOW WELL THIS BIRDBRAIN COSTUME FITS ME!" he yelled. "WE ARE ONE IN BODY AND SOUL! BEHOLD OUR INTERWOVEN ENSEMBLE!"
He zoomed toward Brave Giant, even faster than before.
He's speeding up?! Child Emperor thought, going pale. So he's able to change his abilities on the fly?
He glowered, staring at Brave Giant's monitors. A red light was in the corner of the screens.
What is that? He thought, glancing at it. He shrieked when Phoenix Man caught his attention by swooping and scratching Brave Giant, tearing off some of its metallic coating.
"What's the matter?" Phoenix Man taunted. "You'll never become a first-rate suit actor if that's all you can do!"
Child Emperor glowered. "SHUT IT!" He pressed a button, summoning a barrage of miniature versions of Brave Giant. "GO GET 'EM, LITTLE BRAVES!"
While Phoenix Man dodged the Little Braves, Child Emperor glanced at the red on his screen.
What is that? He thought, scowling. Wait, it can't be…
Suddenly, to his surprise, Phoenix Man consumed the fire from the Little Braves. It coated him in a fiery, orange light.
"Ah," he grinned. "I was able to feed on some nice energy."
"WHAT?!" Child Emperor stammered. "He… absorbed it?!"
"Allow me to return the favour!" Phoenix Man shouted. The fire raged around him. The ground shook as the fire zoomed towards Child Emperor.
Hurry, I need to defeat him quickly, Child Emperor thought. Before-
His screens were flashing a deep red.
No, no, he thought. What's happening?
SELF-DESTRUCTION IMMINENT. BEGINNING COUNT-DOWN.
Self-destruction?! He thought. What the Hell?! I have to turn this off!
He's rushing to finish the battle, it seems, Phoenix Man thought, cackling. He seems rather panicked. As I thought, he can't continue this for much longer!
Ayano waited from the rubble. She glanced at her phone.
Info-chan: Should be exploding in 25 seconds…
"PHOENIX HOMING FEATHER ATTACK!" Phoenix Man yelled, summoning balls of energy. They went flying towards Brave Giant.
Crap, Child Emperor thought, dodging them. I need to turn this self-destruction command off, but he keeps distracting me!
25, 24, 23…
Why won't it turn off?! Child Emperor thought, pressing the buttons on his monitor.
A message in black writing appeared on the monitor.
You remember me, don't you?
It's her, Child Emperor realised, feeling a sickness to his stomach.
Of course you do. But it's over for you, Child Emperor. You fell into my trap. You should've stayed far away from Akademi.
20, 19, 18…
No, no, stop it, turn it off, he thought, but there was nothing he could do. He scowled, dodging another blow from Phoenix Man.
Look on the bright side. This explosion will take you and that monster out.
"DAMMIT!" he yelled, feeling the tears building up again.
Once I'm done with you, the rest of the Association is next. You've already lost.
"Sad about dying?" Phoenix Man taunted. "Don't worry, it'll be over soon!"
13, 12, 11…
I don't have a choice, Child Emperor thought. I have to get out of here!
He reached for the escape pad, but it was locked.
"NO!" he shouted, banging on the door. He slumped to his knees. Everything he had… was going to be taken from him. There was no way he could get out.
He was going to die.
Don't think you can escape. You're stuck in here until the end.
"What's wrong?" Phoenix Man cackled. "You're not moving anymore!"
"No…" he whispered. "Please…"
6, 7, 5…
He pulled out a device, his last hope. He hated to rely on others, but he was desperate.
"Flashy Flash, please," he begged. "Screw it, anyone, help me!"
3… 2… 1…
Child Emperor shut his eyes. And then he heard it.
BOOM!
The Earth shattered. Everything went white. The walls were falling apart.
Was this it? Was… he dead?
No, he wasn't. Someone… had saved him. He opened his eyes, blinking out the brightness. He had no idea where he was anymore. A dislocated, dark room covered in rubble.
There was someone next to him. Child Emperor gasped. It was the boy that was with Yan-chan!
"You…" Child Emperor breathed.
Taro grabbed the young hero's hand, his body trembling. "L-Look, you have to get out of here. She thinks you're dead. You want her to think you're dead, or she'll come after you."
"Yan-chan - she - wants to kill me," Child Emperor said cautiously.
Taro nodded, dark bangs covering his pale face. He was shaking. Child Emperor had never seen anyone so scared.
"But what about you?" Child Emperor asked.
"Forget about me," Taro pleaded. "Just leave. I can't let another hero die. Please. Help… please…" He looked like he was losing control of himself.
"Another hero die?" Child Emperor asked. "She's responsible for everything?"
"Please…" Taro breathed. "Just… run…"
Then his expression went blank, and he began to walk away, like a robot.
I should listen to his advice, Child Emperor thought. I'm getting out of here… he clenched his fist. And I'm gonna figure out a new plan.