Welcome back everybody, have I mentioned just how much fun it is writing for a psychopathic character? This holiday period has allowed me to do a little bit more than I would normally do, though with tests coming up, I doubt I'll be able to write as much in the future. i say that, but I've also said that in the past and continued on normally, but just a warning. Anyway, let's go!
Super hero time!
Issei: Kamen ride: decade! Umber, welcome back!
Umber: New hair, same clothes, ooh! New hat! This passing through Kamen rider's ready for anything!
Issei: The powers of the Heisei riders... is it bad to be a little jealous?
Umber: Take a photo, it'll last longer kid!
I + U: Phone up the future! Here we go!
"I can't see her anymore… she was so clear, and bright and bloody, but the poisons dance in my veins, builds a palace from her flesh and wears my broken soul as a crown!" the psychopath muttered, grabbing his head with a strength that would crush a lesser man into a pulp. "I'll never forget the way her holes cried... The way she screamed in agony as she pushed the knife slowly into my sternum... the puppet cries and the master whips it for more! Cheese, CHEESE, smile for the CAMERA! Dance to the drum beat of the ballistic, fetishistic, sadistic piss-stick! I'm the one who eats the stardom! I'm the hero of all the villains! You can't swallow my morality like a lollipop pill! I'll run around your mind and set the world record with my meat sleeves!"
Or at least… that's what he said out loud to those who were unable to properly understand them. Issei couldn't fault them; if it hadn't have been for the power of Alice, he too would be left with the nonsense screaming madman who was trying his best to bash in his forehead with his own weapon. Fortunately, the young girl's powers were in his hand and the brunette learnt of another voice piercing through the utter insanity.
"…Out of all of the experimenters of Generation, she was the kindest I knew, but then she died… she was so beautiful and smart, until they cut her life short." The voice, the true voice of the poor monster left before them, spoke as if what was coming out of his actual mouth were the same words and it was taking all of Issei's strength and concentration to listen to the mental speech rather than the mess that was leaving the psychopath's lips. "She could only do what she was told by her superiors, but she was crying through her experiments on me. She didn't want to do it, but the only choice was death or dancing to her superiors' tune. Out of all of the survivors, I was the only one who managed to escape the facility alive, only because I ended up in this form."
Issei was trying his best to convey what the psychopath was truly saying out loud, the others left in shocked silence. While the Gremory peerage knew nothing of Generation and their goals, it didn't require extensive knowledge to understand that a person had been put through incredible amounts of torture at the hands of someone who didn't want to, but was forced to. Rider's fist clenched tighter when she heard the young boy's translation, her eyes burning with fury as her voice became cold.
"So this is the extent that Generation went to…" the technomancer muttered, Issei shivering slightly. Normally, the girl's fury would be better off described as nothing less than comical, yet right here, it was a frosty aura that Issei had never seen before from the girl. "When the people in charge changed the organisation from something research based to a militant operation, they also decided to chuck out any morals. People deemed unnecessary were either killed or turned into experiment guinea pigs… and this guy is one of the lucky ones who managed to succeed."
"There has to be a way to help him." Issei's determination could be heard through his voice, brandishing the megaphone held in his hands like a weapon. "This wasn't his fault and there're still semblances of sanity left in his mind. We have to be able to help him out!"
"Issei, this isn't just something you can undo – anyone can tell you that." Rias quickly interjected, her hand already glowing a vicious crimson as she turned her attention back to where the psychopath stood, heavily panting with his weapon bloodied by too vigorous an attack on his own body. "A fractured mind is no different to shards of a toy; there's only so far you can go in trying to fix it. All of the time he remains like this is time where he could start attacking innocent people again.
"Then I'll just tell him to stop and we can keep going!" Issei insisted, only to look to the megaphone in his hands as it faded away, a sleepy echoing yawn entering his ears as a gasp involuntarily escaped him.
"I'm sorry, but I'm getting kind of tired… I know you can do it though!" Alice's voice weakly cheered; Issei had been left without his strongest weapon against this enemy. Without the girl's abilities at his beck and call anymore, the boy could only watch as his hold over the monstrous being shattered like waking up from a dream, the man taking hesitant steps forward as a low laughter filled the air. Demonic in sound, it only grew in intensity as the psychopath realised his freedom once more, weapons raised ready to burn him down to the ground. Only issue was, their attacks had struggled to succeed before, the battle would be gruelling if it was allowed to happen.
But then something very strange happened.
Thunder was flung in the psychopath's direction, barely a disturbance until it suddenly gained in strength, a sadistic smile appearing upon Akeno's face as she put her all into the attack. Temporarily paralysed as his muscles reacted even through the incredible defences their opponent held, it allowed Kiba to form a series of different weapons to form, each of the elements wrapping around them as the blond launched them upwards to where Koneko could catch them mid jump. This wasn't a job for Kiba's incredible speed and fitness, for his weaker attacks, no matter how plentiful, had already proven to be not enough. Even if the paralysis brought forth by Akeno's thunder was only temporary, it was still enough time for the tiny white haired girl to place all her might behind her swings, the two swords in her hands preparing for the brute force attack they would need to perform in order to be effective.
In that moment, time seemed to freeze. Issei quickly took in the situation with the smallest hint of despair, even if it was a necessary evil. The psychopath was unable to move, trapped by his own biology with Akeno giggling like a love struck school girl. Kiba was quickly approaching with two more swords as Koneko was about to hit with the first two, Starway Rider preparing a laser weapon as Onihime rushed forward, ace in hand and claws bared. Kunou too was preparing a blast of fire from her mouth right beside Ophis; the only reason the black haired dragon girl wasn't preparing an attack of her own was because she was blandly cheering on Kunou in her attack. If Issei didn't think about what to do in the next moment, then there would be no stopping what was about to happen.
"I'm gonna kill you all, I'm gonna kill your friends and your family, I'm gonna track down your grandparents and turn them inside-out, nobody can stop the blood train that will turn your loved ones into a red splatter across the tracks of humanity! Someone pull the lever!" the psychopath screamed out wildly, nothing seeming to phase the utter insanity locked into his voice. Even without the powers of Alice though, Issei heard something completely different from the mad words, something far more determined and sane than could ever come through the psychopath.
His true self spoke to Issei, saying the exact thing that he wanted the psychopath to say, yet was unable to force it through an insane mouth.
"If I stay like this, then nothing will be able to hold me from killing everyone you love. If you really think you're strong enough… stop me!"
CALL!
NUMBER ZERO –ErRoR!
CALL TO ARMS!
CALL!
NUMBER ONE – DRAGON!
CALL TO ARMOUR!
It was the fastest he had ever used his phone and thank god it was, for if it weren't for Issei's speedy fingers, he never would've been able to block the four swords that tried to break through his defences. The sheer power behind them was worthy of the name rook, for while Kiba was easily fended off due to his more hit and run style tactics, Koneko was completely unmoving save the smallest widening of her eyes. Almost immediately, all weapons yet to be used were lowered, only a low sigh escaping Onihime as Rias moved forward shocked. Well, that and Starway Rider quickly trying to help Kunou who had decided that the best way to cut off her fire was to swallow it and was running around screaming about her mouth burning.
"What do you think you're doing Issei!? We have to put him out of his misery, now!" Rias called out, but Issei's only response was to throw his arms out, Koneko's lack of footing and Kiba's lighter frame meaning the two were thrown to the side with only Akeno's thunder keeping the psychopath in place, though not for long because in little time, the thunder broke apart as the black haired girl's focus was broken and the psychopath was free to rampage once more.
"Just leave this to me! I can handle this!" Issei replied, turning around to where the psychopath had already begun to charge in his direction, his crude weapon whirring and grinding as it charged up. Against the might of an armour formed by a dragon however, it was barely anything, Issei giving a small grunt as the spinning blades impacted his protection. While the actual attack may not have hurt him, the sheer force behind it was still enough to push him back a fair amount and the armour itself was formed of Ophis; he didn't want to subject her to any more damage than was necessary. An incredibly detailed black chainmail armour had formed over Issei's body, an immense power flowing through his veins as with a mighty push, the psychopath was thrown back, Issei eagerly chasing after it.
"He'll get himself killed!" Rias spat out, charging up her blast again, only to flinch back when a green laser only barely passed by her face. The frustrated devil turned her eyes to where Rider was standing, lowering her rifle with a cute little smile on her face. It was a far cry from the more sombre moments of before, only serving to further add to the redhead's frustration as Rider stuck out her tongue. "You can see he'll get himself killed right!?"
"…I think he has a plan. I want see where this plan goes." Was the technomancer's reply, Rias lost for words as she saw Issei punch the psychopath right in the chin, eliciting barely more than a grunt from the rampaging man. Even if he put his all into it and the armour was strong enough to withstand any of the attacks that came his way, Issei couldn't do anything to permanently stop the attacks… right? "He's managed to do alright so far, I don't see how he could fail now when he's this determined!"
"Oh look at your face. You still don't believe in him, do you?" Onihime sighed, gently picking off her metallic claws. From the looks of things, it wasn't as if they were going to be needed. "After all he's done for you, you really can't hold that much faith in him? I'd almost consider it a sin."
"Watch him, fighting over there." Issei roared, a huge amount of sweat building up on his forehead as he tried to keep the psychopath at bay. The others were watching eagle eyed, ready to jump in when it was necessary, yet the looks from their leader, though reluctant, said not to join. "He's expending an incredible amount of energy on a form of fighting that's proving itself to be fairly redundant? Have you ever wondered why he would do such a thing?"
Issei's luck failed him; the power required to keep Ophis in her armoured form was too much for the boy to handle, Ophis forming without a word beside him as Issei fell to his knees, armour exploding off him. Cradling him within his arms, the dragon girl gave a small glare towards the psychopath, the man completely uncaring as he lifted his weapon high in the air.
"Prepare the baby steaks!" he uttered deliriously, swinging downwards towards Issei with reckless abandon, all viewing turning their eyes away to avoid watching the blood fly. When they saw that Kunou was watching on without a care, even cheering however, they cast their eyes back onto the fight, unbelieving as the translucent barrier exploded outwards and knocked his weapon away. "My food fights back, a thousand forks to eat it!"
"Okay, not exactly how I planned for this to work, but it did… kinda…" the brunette muttered, whipping out his phone with a bloody smile. All he needed to do now was wait for the masterpiece to be complete, the psychopath too absorbed in the idea of trying to break through Ophis' shield no matter how foolish a task it was.
CALL!
NUMBER SIX – SPIRIT SCRIPTER!
CALL TO ARMS!
"Ready!"
"Be, still." Suddenly, the barrier that formed around Issei dissipated, the psychopath forced back by the power held within it as Ophis backed away. Issei gradually got to his feet, holding out his hands as the paintbrush he had been wielding before returned to his hand, the end practically glowing with power. An indiscriminate noise escaped the psychopath as he tried to rush forward during the perceived moment of weakness, only for a strange choking noise to escape him. Ophis' eyes glowed as she continued to strangle the man, letting Issei slowly approach.
"Let's get to work Kai. Give me all you got!" Was the only thing he said out loud before Issei got to work, Rias and her peerage stunned into silence. The speed at which the boy moved, even as injured as he was by other-using his powers with Ophis, was far greater than anything Rias would've expected him to be able to achieve, each stroke of the paintbrush seemingly perfect.
"If only he joined the peerage… perhaps that would be another knight by our side with his agility." Kiba praised with wide eyes. Those eyes quickly narrowed though when he got a proper look at Issei's moving form. "However, he's pushing himself even further, it's a risky move. You can see the stress in his eyes and the amount of blood escaping his mouth is unhealthy."
"You say that as if he doesn't know." Onihime scoffed, twirling one of her twin tails around her finger. "If he manages to pull this off, then his luck truly is of the best quality. Considering what I've learnt of him before… well, I have no reason to doubt it now."
"So far, I've learnt Issei's the kind of guy that gets sorta scared. He must be terrified facing someone like that." Rider casually commented. "But if there's one thing for certain, it's that he has enough guts to go through with what is necessary, even if he does need some kind of push. That's what we're here for."
"Plus, he's super cool! If he and Phis are working together, they'll beat anyone!" Kunou declared in addition, punching the air with all the enthusiasm a child of her age could have. "Besides, he works for mama; if he ends up getting beaten, it'll look bad on mama and you don't want to upset mama…"
"You hear that? Those friends of mine… are rooting for me!" Issei roared, a bestial lion facing off against a monster of a man. His movement's never slowed, even as tears pricked his eyes and the metallic taste of blood stained the entirety of his mouth. "If I fall now, I won't… be able to face them! Therefore you… you need to do what you're meant to… and…"
CONTROL YOUR INSANITY
CONTROL YOUR INSANITY
CONTROL YOUR INSANITY
CONTROL YOUR INSANITY
CONTROL YOUR INSANITY
"Control your insanity!" with the final flourish, the ethereal ink Issei's brush produced began to glow, revealing the words scribed all over the man's bare body. There was a brief moment of resistance from the psychopath, trying his best to break free from the mental hold Kai's powers held, only for him to fall to the floor, the weapon in his hand repeatedly bashing against his head.
"There is no me, there is no you! There is only the never ending spit and bile of combat! The twenty-four hour murder spree of shining metal! I drink the blood and eat the soul and breathe the bacon, because the voices said 'empty, hollow and thud'. The voices said 'empty, hollow and thud'. THE VOICES SAID 'EMPTY, HOLLOW AND THUD'!" the psychopath screamed with as much energetic fervour it held before, his eyes growing bloodshot as his head wound grew bigger and bigger. Issei collapsed to the ground, electricity coursing through his body as the paintbrush disappeared, Kai returning to wherever he had been summoned to as the horrific sight continued. If this carried on, Issei's actions would've been all for nothing. "STOP SCREAMING! OPEN YOUR VEINS! Nobody kills me but ME, I LOOKED INTO THE HEART OF DARKNESS, AND I ATE IT ALL! Somebody open me up and put out the fire in my belly... Put it out with knives and bullets and strangling, or I will eat your nephews, you think this is the end... It will never end. The blood, the screaming, and the teeth, it will start again and again and again, forever because I! AM! A MONSTER! NOW AND FOREVER!"
His arms grew limp, the heavy buzzsaw-axe falling to the ground as the psychopath reached for the mask upon his face. In one fell swoop, he ripped it off, blood and skin falling around him as a low chuckle escaped. It wasn't like what it was before though however, a much calmer tone passing the lips of the man as he smiled a mutilated smile in their direction.
"But maybe… I can stop being a monster for a little while."
Well that was a fun little trip. Please, tell me what you think about it; I've been trying to clean up my profile, get rid of some of the older stories I don't feel i can do anything with and spruce up some of the ones I think still hold potential. Any advice people can give me will be incredibly appreciated!
1 - Dragon (Ophis: scale slicer)
2 - Kitsune (Kunou: Kit o' nine tails)
3 - Technomancer (Starway Rider: .EXE(but!)cuter)
4 - Demon (Onihime: Royal straight crush)
5 - Dreamer (Alice: Psychic shouter)
6 - Spirit Scripter (Kai: Super Ultra Painter of Power deluxe EX of Doom)
7 - ?
8 - ?
9 - ?
0 - ErRoR (woman: ErRoR)
Super hero time! See you next time!