Hello readers.

Well, I think it's time to address the elephant in the room.

Following the release of chapter 21, I was surprised to see that my readers were...divided. Some thought it was fantastic, others had some criticisms. However, they did have valid points so I announced a rewrite of one or two sections of the chapter. And then things got very ugly, VERY quickly. I was bombarded with angry reviewers telling me not to rewrite it, many of them calling me a coward and spewing hateful accusations every chance they could. Then came other pretentious jerks who were acting like they were reviewing a novel for the New York Times. It was nothing but pure insanity. All I got was more angry reviews, more complainers, and more self-entitled demands, it never stopped.

Thankfully, I did get some positive feedback for the rewrite.

I had always laughed off the notion of a "Toxic Fanbase", seeing it as tall tales or an exaggeration at best. Boy was I in for a nasty surprise. I was so shocked that I got so much anger from other people that I was beginning to wonder if making this story was a bad idea. I was so depressed over the backlash that I honestly considered deleting this story. But I could not go through with it because if I did, there was no going back. So I took a breather from making my next chapter and got my act together.

I'm back but now I am putting my foot down and taking a "Zero Tolerance" stance towards people giving me trouble in the reviews section as well as moderating guest reviews. It is supposed to be where you can offer opinions, advice, or just leave some friendly comments, it's not a Twitter message board. I had to delete over 90% of the guest reviews and block several users after the shitshow in the comments.

If you have a constructive, civil critique that you'd like to share, I will read it and I will consider it. If you have any friendly, helpful suggestions, I'd be more than happy to use them in my chapter. But do NOT demand, berate, intimidate or bully me into making a rewrite just because it wasn't up to your expectations. From now on, when I release a chapter, it's final. I may do some minor edits but no more rewrites.

Anyone who acts salty, toxic, belligerent, unhelpful, trolling, starting arguments, hounding me to resume my other stories, or just being a complete idiot will be ignored or blocked. If you are a guest, don't bother leaving behind a hurtful or insulting comment, it will just be deleted. You do not hold any sway over how I write anymore, it is my decision alone. It is MY story, not yours. If you don't like my story, then don't read it. No one is forcing you to, there's no reason to leave behind hurtful, hostile condemnations in the review section. You are welcome to your own opinions but don't act like a dick about it. Lastly, to the canon purists who keep yammering on and on about the Slayer's strength, how the lore is supposed to be, or how this and that wouldn't fit, give it a rest. I'm doing my spin on the Doomslayer and I am tired of repeating myself over and over.

I am NOT going through this bullshit again. With that being said, enjoy the new chapter and arc.

DOOM, My Hero Academia, and Darksiders belong to their respective owners. I do not own either of them.

Beta read by Zeroth17.

Chapter 22

Bloody Aftermath

SHORES OF JAPAN-PUBLIC BEACH

The sounds of the waves lapping lightly against the shore were drowned out by the emergency vehicle sirens as they raced down the street near the boardwalk. The beach was closed today and therefore entirely vacant. A seagull soared through the air until it landed on its perch: a dead Steel Saber that washed up on shore. The gull pecked the corpse on its bare arm, eventually drawing blood. The sound of something emerging from the water behind the seagull scared it away as well as the other birds in the area. The Doomslayer emerged from the sea, marching his way up towards the beach as the seawater dribbled off his armor.

He glanced over his shoulder at I-Island in the distance; multiple pillars of smoke emerging from the floating research base. The Slayer stared for a few more seconds before looking down at his chest plate and tracing his fingers along the fist indentation he received from All Might.

/Conducting internal scans...Praetor Suit operating efficiency at 100%. Negligible, superficial damage received./

The Slayer's mouth formed a thin line. The Wretch truly did pull out all the stops on the Praetor Suit.

Resuming his trek up the beach and up to the boardwalk, he passed the unoccupied concession stands until he came to the main street area. Just like the beach, it was largely abandoned with broken glass from shattered windows littering the streets and sidewalks. He guessed that the explosion from the sub must've been the cause of this. He spotted a manhole up the street and walked over to it so he could return to his hideout. That is until he heard maniacal cackling over to his right. The laughter was coming from a jewelry store with its windows smashed along with the sounds of glass being shattered. The Slayer marched towards the store and stood in front of the broken window to see eight men breaking apart the displays with bats, crowbars, and metal pipes as they snatched up diamond rings and necklaces.

They were all wearing matching leather jackets and pants; VEGA scanned them and brought up police reports of them in his HUD. Each of the men was involved in armed robberies while three of them were wanted for murder. The Doomslayer glared at them hatefully.

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" The leader of the gang laughed. "Take it all, boys! We're fuckin rich!"

The gang grabbed everything that wasn't nailed down and stuffed it into their pockets. They were startled when they heard heavy steel boots crushing glass underfoot. They turned around to watch a man covered in green-colored armor walk toward them threateningly. Some of them started laughing as they approached him while brandishing their weapons and Quirks.

"Lookie here, guys! We got ourselves a wannabe Hero." The leader mocked as a large, burly thug resembling a bipedal elephant slung his arm over the Slayer's shoulder. The other goons crowded around the Slayer while laughing insidiously as the leader turned his hand into a buzzsaw and held the rotating blade underneath the Doomslayer's chin.

"You think you wanna be here, numbnuts?"

Two Heroes, Toitoi and Jack Attack patrolled the empty streets. They were on the lookout for anyone who might have been hurt by broken glass following the explosion as well as keeping an eye out for looters.

"Well, this area's clear. Let's go see if the Burning Sidekickers need some extra hands." Jack Attack said to his partner.

"Right." Toitoi nodded as she tiptoed around the shards of glass. "Hey, do you think this whole siege is over? Did the Heroes stop...him?"

Jack Attack gulped. He and probably everyone in Japan saw the Sabers televise their demands only to be hacked apart by an armored man with a chainsaw. What happened next was the most horrific acts of violence ever unleashed as the madman tore apart the Steel Sabers before throwing a severed head at the camera. A massive explosion from I-Island threw the whole coastline of Japan into chaos; the Heroes and law enforcement struggled to maintain order. It was nothing but pure, exhausting madness for hours and hours. Once the Heroes and authorities managed to gain some semblance of sanity amongst the public, several teams fanned out around the city to search for injured civilians or criminals taking advantage of the chaos.

"Well, communications are still jammed so we can't get in touch with the police, the HPSC, or anyone else so-" Jack Attack summarized before he heard loud screaming coming from up the block. They instantly ran toward the noises to investigate the disturbance but as they drew closer, they could hear more screaming and several loud shotgun blasts. They were coming up to the end of the intersection when a bloodied man with a neon green mohawk, facial piercings, and leather clothes stumbled around the corner and fell to the ground. He currently was covered in blood and missing an arm.

"A civilian!" Toitoi gasped. She was about to run over and help the man when Jack Attack held her back.

"No, that's a Villain! I saw him in a police report." He informed. The Villain lifted his head to the Heroes standing a few feet away and quickly bolted towards them with tears in his eyes; clutching the bleeding stump that used to be his arm.

"HELP ME! YOU GOTTA HELP ME! IT'S A FUCKING MONSTER-!"

Before the two Heroes could even blink, the brick wall next to the criminal exploded and a large shape grabbed the goon by the head; smashing him into a fire hydrant face-first! His head burst apart from the impact, causing the Heroes to recoil in horror. But then the smoke from the destroyed wall cleared to reveal none other than the Vigilante himself: covered in blood and gripping a sawed-off in his hand. The Slayer dropped the dead Villain and glared at the two frightened Heroes behind him. One was a short girl wearing a pink, poofy poodle costume while the man next to her wore green, black, and white spandex, a yellow cape and a metal banda with the initials JA imprinted on them.

Even though they were scared shitless, it didn't stop them from taking their fighting stances. The pink fur around Toitoi's hands enlarged until they resembled boxing gloves while Jack Attack summoned jacks in his palms and held them between his fingers like they were shurikens. The Doomslayer raised an eyebrow. They were really scraping the bottom of the barrel here.

"Put your hands in the air! You're under-!"

The Doomslayer threw his Super Shotgun at Jack Attack, smacking the Hero right in the face, followed up by running towards him and slugging him in the stomach. He caught the falling double barrel and smashed it across Toitoi's head while she was stunned by the sudden action. As the unconscious Hero crumpled to the ground next to her partner, the Doomslayer stashed his weapon into his hammerspace backpack and walked away from his would-be dispensers of justice. Making his way back to the manhole cover, popped it off with his bare hands and entered the sewer while closing the hatch on the way. With no interference, for the time being, VEGA restored city-wide communications for the JSDF and HPSC.

/Once we have rendezvoused back at our base, we should dispose the bodies of the Steel Sabers you terminated earlier. The scent of the deceased will no doubt draw unwanted attention from the subway several miles above our base of operations. Once we have resolved that dilemma, we will begin the modifications on the Support Items we have procured./

The Doomslayer nodded as he navigated his way through the sewers, following the waypoint on his HUD. All the while feeling very interested in the modifications VEGA was talking about.

I-ISLAND

SEVERAL HOURS LATER

The midday sun shone brightly in the cloudless sky, the sea reflecting off its rays to give it a calming aura. Shame that I-Island didn't capture that sense of serenity.

With their electronics restored, the HPSC and JSDF launched a full-scale, all-hands-on-deck reclamation of I-Island. Nearly every soldier, law enforcement officer, Hero, and Sidekick in the greater Tokyo area were called upon for this endeavor, and not a single one of them got cold feet. They were all more than ready to put an end to the siege and piled into any military boat and chopper to I-Island. Once they landed, they secured the airport and ventured deeper into the island.

Only then did they truly regret their choices.

None of them were prepared for the utter bloodbath that waited for them. All across the island were scenes of death, carnage, destruction, and gore. The most feared mercenaries in the world, infamous for killing hundreds of Heroes, had all been reduced to literal human salsa. It just kept stretching on and it kept getting worse as they explored the corpse-strewn streets. Then came another shocking sight: dozens of Pro Heroes sprawled out on the ground unconscious and beaten within an inch of their lives. These were famous Pro Heroes in Japan or were top-ranked Heroes in other countries that could hold their own against Villains of all shapes and sizes. But here they were, lying face down in rubble and covered in bruises and wounds like they had gone fifty rounds with All Might. Speaking of which, where was All Might? Was he among the defeated? Did he stop the Vigilante?

It soon dawned upon everybody that one man was the sole perpetrator of these unspeakable acts. One man.

But the bloody carnage all around them would soon become far worse for everyone on the island. The amount of blood coating the walls and streets would soon pose a potential biohazard threat due to bloodborne pathogens. The JSDF called in every HAZMAT Unit available to I-Island. It was proving to be a near-impossible task for the biohazardous cleanup detail because there were thousands of bodies everywhere and soon enough, scavengers descended upon I-Island. Hundreds of crows circled above the island like harbingers of death while rats that managed to sneak aboard the research base feasted on the bodies of the Steel Sabers. But the worst was the flies. Dozens of the insects formed thick clouds of pestilence as they consumed bits of flesh off the sidewalk and laid their maggoty brood inside the corpses of the mercs. If the incessant cacophony of buzzing didn't drive anybody insane yet, then the smell certainly did.

The stench from the rotting bodies and decaying organs created a repulsive odor so strong it was enough to knock them down. Many soldiers and Heroes passed out from the stink, forcing the recovery efforts to be stalled as the HAZMAT teams scrambled to deliver gas masks for every single person and had to call in for more once they ran out of stock. It was a slow, grueling, morale-shattering slog for everyone and it only served to hammer in the chilling realization that again, this was all because of one Vigilante.

One. Fucking. Man.

After a while, an HPSC helicopter landed at the airport. Sayaka Grant and Mera Yokumiru stepped out of the chopper as a JSDF Colonel wearing a gas mask was already there to meet them.

"Director Grant, Agent Mera." He saluted.

"Don't keep us in suspense, Colonel" Mera sighed, in no mood for pleasantries. "What can you tell us?"

The Colonel gulped. "I think it's best if you all see for yourselves. You might want to wear these when we leave the airport." He held up two gas masks for them to wear.

Glancing at each other, the pair took the masks and followed the colonel into the main airport the Colonel past large groups of JSDF soldiers taking care of or aiding the civilians who all stood outside. Entering the airport, the first thing the HPSC officials saw were dozens of Pro Heroes on stretchers and in great pain. Sayaka's eyes widened as she observed every Hero being attended to by paramedics. Every one of them was unconscious but occasionally winced and groaned. Mera blinked several times in response to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. His focus on the Heroes eventually shifted to five Heroes standing near the stretchers. Slidin' Go, Wash, Kesagiri Man, Uwabami, and Air Jet all had expressions of disbelief on their faces while the Medusa Heroine was on the verge of tears.

"Can you believe this?" The Colonel asked them, never taking his eyes off from the downed Heroes. "I've seen these brave men and women charge headlong into danger and always came out on top when facing a Villain. To see dozens of them in this state...it's pretty damn frightening when you think about it. Even more so when you take into consideration that some of them are the Number 1 Pro Heros of their respective country. Who the hell is this guy?"

Sayaka and Mera knew he was talking about the Vigilante. "We're still trying to figure that out." Mera responded as he ran his fingers through his unkempt hair. Once the other countries heard about what happened to their respective Heroes, it wouldn't take them long to start pointing fingers and placing the blame on Japan." How did the Heroes get here anyway? "

"From what we've been told, they got tired of listening to the chaos over here and mounted a rescue mission. Those five over there were the only ones who stayed behind to guard the hostages. We found them all looking like they had been to hell and back when we came here." The Colonel explained. "They took a pretty big, if not a foolish risk."

"On the contrary, I commend them for their bravery and initiative." Sayaka corrected. The colonel, not wanting to get into a heated discussion with the HPSC chairwoman, continued to lead them through the airport until they came upon the destroyed main entrance.

A horrid scent assaulted their nostrils and they stopped in their tracks, scrambling to put their masks on. They walked past the destroyed remains of a prototype construction mech and outside of the airport. Sayaka and Mera felt their throats go dry as they looked at the piles of bodies around them and the blood and guts covering the ground. Heroes and soldiers were moving the corpses into bodybags as the coroners took them away. Sayaka was finding it very difficult to maintain her professional composure, she had never seen anything like this in her entire life and neither did the Heroes she walked by. She could see the anxiety and trauma in their eyes, how else would they all react to a massacre of this magnitude? It was the same for the soldiers as well. They had all seen very few tours of duty and the only time they were ever called in was to aid in the capture efforts of an extremely powerful Villain or backup for Heroes. This incident was the mother of all wake-up calls.

"This is...oh God. This will bankrupt the world." Mera shook his head as the implications of I-Island's destruction started to weigh heavily on his shoulders. "Wall Street's gonna go up in flames over this."

"One nightmare scenario at a time, Mera." Sayaka tried to remain focused. Treading past the errant body parts on the way to the central tower, they crossed the bridge while walking past the remains of an entire tank battalion. Mera closely inspected the melted husks of the war machines and took note of how there were large holes drilled through them. Sayaka felt her throat constrict when she saw several blackened skeletons amidst the warped metal. They made it to the tower after walking past more piles of bodies, more displays of carnage, and more Heroes with thousand-yard stares.

Sayaka paused for a minute when she looked up at the billowing pillar of smoke coming from the west side of the island. It was where the enormous explosion came from earlier. "There's been no radioactivity?" She asked the Colonel.

"The HAZMAT teams have detected no contaminants from the explosion. It's driving them nuts. They've also given us a grim assessment of the damage sustained to the facility." The Colonel debriefed. "On an unrelated note, our eyes in the sky have shown us the entire island is covered in red." He motioned his head up towards the choppers above.

Walking up the steps, the trio entered the lobby area of the central tower and watched as two coroners inspected the dead body of Nine. Sayaka and Mera's expressions remained neutral as they regarded the dead mercenary leader. They would've rather preferred him to be locked up for the rest of his life in Tartarus. The colonel then led them over to what was probably the most chilling thing they saw today besides all of the dead bodies and gore. Scrawled upon the wall was a symbol the likes of which none of them recognized. Four smaller symbols were dotted around it and the two of them realized that it was all written in blood. They then focused on the message below.

RIP AND TEAR

"Jesus Christ..." Sayaka muttered as a bead of sweat dribbled down her forehead.

"I think it's safe to say he's sitting this out." Mera commented without a hint of dry wit.

Sayaka's phone buzzed and she pulled it out of her pocket, flipping it open. It was a text from Yagi.

I'm at the airport security office. Some people saw my real identity but I know them and I've already informed them. I need you here ASAP.

Sayaka pinched the bridge of her nose and texted back. Mera, who was looking over her shoulder, sighed as the two of them exited the building.

"One massive shitshow after another." He bemoaned.

To be continued...

Well, not much to say about this chapter other than I'm sorry that it was short. But fun fact, the two Heroes the Slayer beat up were the same ones who were booing Bakugou in his fight against Uraraka at the Sports Festival. Jack Attack and his Quirk are a fan idea of mine. I don't know much about economics but I'm guessing that since I-Island was the cornerstone of Support Item production and research, its destruction would have a pretty big impact on the financial world.

So, onto another elephant addressing.

As you all already know, I have canceled some of my stories and I think you all deserve an explanation. I have always loved making stories but it's taken me too long to realize that I can't do dozens of stories at once. Back when I made Ultrabots and Kaiju Warfare, it was easy for me to do two at once. I could easily flip-flop between making chapters for both of them, it was totally doable and one of my best strengths. But then I dug my own grave by adding Gun Sonata, Emerald Goliath, and Unchained Predator on top of those. I was not aware of my limitations back then and I screwed myself. I ended up deleting Emerald Goliath a long time ago because, in my opinion, it sucked. The less said about that story the better.

For my other stories, I had to take a couple of steps back and ask myself, "Can I realistically finish four full-length stories at a time?" The short answer? No.

Another reason was that my interest in those stories had begun to wane over the years and Unchained Predator has been my biggest successful story, one that I'm going to focus a majority of my work on.

Therefore I made the incredibly hard decision to cancel some of my stories. This hurt me a lot because Kaiju Warfare and Ultrabots were the very first stories I worked on back when I joined Fanfiction in 2016. It's a regret I will have to live with for the rest of my life. But if there is some silver lining, it's that my best friend Zeroth17 has agreed to adopt Ultrabots and continue the story I was unable to finish.

But that's not to say this has been a learning experience for me. Sometimes you have to fail before you succeed. I am still going to pour my heart and soul into Unchained Predator but after recently watching an exemplary anime(that doesn't rhyme with Smedgehunner) I'm thinking about making a little side project. But fret not, this will not be a repeat of my earlier cancellations. I already explained that working on two stories at a time was easy and I'm still dedicated to Unchained Predator. Hopefully, you guys can understand what I'm going through, it's been a rough couple of months for me.

Don't forget to review but PLEASE don't flame.

Stay healthy and stay safe.