Najenda separated from their group almost immediately, heading for one of the side gates to meet up with the commanders. Meanwhile, the rest of Night Raid made their way through the city as quickly as they could. The second parting was much more painful for Haru as Leone pulled up one of the manhole covers to the sewers. She dropped down first, followed by Tatsumi after he gave Mine a reassuring smile. Finally, it was Akame's turn, and she turned to Haru one last time. "Good luck," he said, smiling. "You too," she replied, returning the smile before dropping down into the hole.
After replacing the cover, his group started to make their way to the upper districts. But after they walked a few blocks, it became clear that Mine's injuries were still bothering her. Sighing in frustration, Haru moved in front of her before kneeling down and offering his back. "Just what do you think you're doing, matchstick?" she asked, trying to sound normal. "You're still hurt," he replied simply, "We need to get to the meeting point quickly, and we'd move faster this way." Before she could try to protest, Chelsea walked up behind her and slid Pumpkin's case from her shoulder before giving her a slight shove. "Come on, tiny, we need to make up some time," she said, smiling sweetly when Mine glared at her.
Huffing in annoyance, she accepted the offer and wrapped her arms around Haru's neck. With his hands under her knees, he stood back up and they were on their way. "I want you to know that I only agreed so I wouldn't slow you down," she mumbled, trying to salvage some of her pride. "Relax, Mine," he replied, chuckling, "I'm well aware of how much spunk you have. I'm sure it gives Tatsumi plenty to think about." "And what's that supposed to mean?" "Don't think I didn't notice you kissing his cheek," he said, glancing at her and smiling when she blushed, "We'll get through this, Mine, don't worry." "I'm not worried," she replied, smiling softly, "Tatsumi's never let me down before, and he won't now."
Finally, they made it to their rally point; an old, run-down church with a large bell tower. Standing guard by the doors were two rebels dressed in plain clothes and cloaks, one of which was familiar to Haru. It couldn't be… he thought as he set Mine down. But sure enough, the second she was off his back one of the guards charged him and knocked him onto his back. "Haru! It's been so long!" the guard cried, the voice clearly from a woman. "I forgot you're a fan of the hug-tackle," he mumbled, hoping she hadn't cracked a rib, "Could you please get off of me, June?"
"Huh? Oh, right, sorry," she said, standing up before offering her hand, "It's just been so long since you last wrote, I was starting to get anxious." "What can I say? Things happen," he replied as he hauled himself to his feet. He didn't miss the suspicious looks from Mine and Chelsea, and he mentally flinched when he remembered that he hadn't told them about June. "So, they sent you?" he asked, trying to act casual. "Well, not exactly," she replied, lowering her hood as she led them into the church, "They were looking for volunteers to infiltrate the capital to give you guys support." "And naturally you signed up," Haru finished, knowing how she was. "Yep," she said, smiling, "It's good to see you again, Haru. I'm…sorry about how we parted."
"Ancient history," he said immediately, waving his hand, "So, what's our plan?" "I'm going to send some of my guys up into the tower with your sniper," she said, turning serious as she gestured to a nearby table. On it was a rather detailed map of the main palace gate, and they gathered around the table as she continued, "The rest of us will split into three groups to support you and your other two fighters. I understand you also have someone specialized in infiltration?" "That'd be me," Chelsea said, raising her hand, "Don't worry about sending guards with me. I'll be able to slip into their lines easily." "Imperial Arms?" June asked, receiving a nod in response, "Well, then I think we have a real shot here."
"Okay, there's just one problem with this plan," Haru said, looking her straight in the eye, "Onest still has two Imperial Arms at his personal disposal that we know of. I'm not so concerned about one of them, considering what we have. But if Esdeath shows up, you all need to clear out and let me handle her." "You want to take the Ice Queen on your own?" June asked, sounding shocked, "Are you crazy?" "No, I don't want to, and I probably am," he replied, smiling coldly, "But she wields a pure element, and so do I. I've seen how she fights, and I can say with certainty that none of the other Imperial Arms we have here can match her except mine."
"Well, thanks for the vote of confidence," Lubbock said, smacking his shoulder. However, he wasn't about to argue with his friend, even though he wanted to. But June wasn't so willing to let it go. "You're all really okay with letting him take that…woman on alone?" she asked, looking at them all. She had heard stories about Night Raid's achievements; to some, they were like a force of nature, while to others they were just a band of criminals working under the Revolution's banner. She had thought they were better than that, but if they were willing to offer up Haru to buy time then she would have to rethink her opinion about them.
"It doesn't matter if we're okay with it or not," Mine said, scowling at the map, "The matchstick is right; he's the only one that could stand a chance against her, and we'd just get in the way. Control isn't his strong suit." That last part she said with a smirk, and Haru just snorted in response. June watched this whole thing and smiled while shaking her head. "Still the same crazy bastard that I knew," she said, looking up, "Some things never change." "And it never will," he replied, returning the smile.
The planning from there was rather straight-forward. They would try to draw the fight out as long as possible to make sure they drew enough of the guards to them. But, if it looked like they could break into the palace with ease, than they would. Privately, Haru hoped that this second situation would be the case. He didn't relish the idea of Akame going up against the elite guards in the throne room, even if she had Leone and Tatsumi with her. As they prepared to move out, Mine pulled him to the side and whispered, "Okay, matchstick, what's with you and the girl?"
"We were a thing when I was part of the army," he said simply, "We parted on good terms. I'm not sure why it matters." "It matter because you and Akame are a thing now," she hissed, trying to sound serious. "I know that, and so does she," he replied, causing her to splutter, "June's a lot like me, and she understands that I'm with someone else. She's not about to try to make a move on me; she doesn't have the tact for it, anyway." "I can hear you, 'matchstick,'" June said, smiling when both he and Mine flinched.
After a few more preparations were made, Mine and her three bodyguards made their way up the bell tower while the rest of them exited the building and split up. June and three of her men would be assisting Haru, and he felt better knowing she had his back. It took almost half an hour to reach their target, and when they finally arrived they could hear the sounds of distant battles. The Rebels had begun their assault on the outer defenses, and that meant that it was now their turn. Looking at June and her men, he saw looks of determination. Even June had lost her usually cheerful and playful demeanor, her eyes serious as she clutched at the pair of swords in her hands.
"Give me a minute out there alone," Haru said suddenly, unsheathing his sword, "When they rush me, feel free to back me up." Rather than question him, June just nodded and waved her men back as he stepped out from the alleyway. Looking over to where Lubbock was at his right, he subtly gestured for them to stay back. He did the same for Sheele's group to his left as he walked up to the gate. There were only four guards present, but he knew there would be a lot more waiting in the guardhouses that flanked the gate, as well as on the other side. Bringing his sword up, he said, "Zündung," and sent a wave of fire crashing into the gate just over their heads, causing the guards to duck and look around in shock. His attack didn't do much more than singe the metal, but it had the intended affect.
"I will give you all one chance!" he shouted, drawing their attention as he lowered his hood, "Lay down your weapons and walk away now, or you won't live long enough to regret it!" They looked at each other, and Haru could feel the indecision. They weren't stupid enough to think they had a chance against someone with an Imperial Arms; at least, he hoped they weren't. But, instead of running away they grabbed their weapons while one of them brought up a whistle and blew. The alarm had been raised, and the fight had begun.
Crying, "now!" Haru took a two-handed grip on his sword and met the first two guards head-on. His support came rushing out a moment later, and Haru saw a flicker to his right as Lubbock started to spin his wires and send them flying out to various anchor points. Blocking the first guard's sword, Haru turned it aside just as the second one took a swipe at him with a spear. He side-stepped it and brought his sword down on the shaft, breaking the wood before kicking the man aside as the first one came at him again. Blocking the blade again, Haru watched as June appeared behind the man. Before he could react, her swords were in motion and he was in two pieces at their feet. Turning back to the spearman, who had drawn his own sword, Haru grabbed a knife, charged it and threw it as he moved further into the battle. The knife impacted the man's chest, and before he could remove it the metal failed and it exploded.
"Thanks," he said to June as they moved into the fray, blocking another swipe as more guards came out to stop them. "That knife thing," she said as she cut through another man's arm, "That's just showing off." "That's nothing," Haru replied, smirking, "Watch this." Pointing at one of the guard houses, he said, "Thýella!" and created a massive fireball in front of him. With a flick of his wrist, it went crashing into the building. The front exploded inward, showering anyone still inside with flaming shrapnel. If anyone lived through that, they didn't survive much longer as the fire spread and engulfed the building.
June just smirked at his display as she turned aside another spear. It was going well, until they heard a crack and saw one of their soldiers go down. Looking up at the wall, Haru saw several more guards armed with rifles taking aim at them. "Scatter!" he said before he was forced to defend himself again. But it was no good; even with Sheele cutting through the guards that stood in their way and Lubbock's various traps and attacks, they were still outnumbered and fairly well pinned down. We can't move fast enough like this he thought as he watched another rebel go down, they'll just pick us off. Come on, Mine, where's that support?
As if summoned by his thoughts, a beam suddenly flew over their heads and impacted the wall, blowing chunks out of it and sending three riflemen flying. They heard the crack of the shot less than a second later, but by then the other riflemen were trying to take cover and figure out where the shot had come from. "Bought damn time, pipsqueak!" Haru shouted as he looked back at the bell tower. Less than a second later another shot came screaming in, sending another two men plummeting to their death from the wall. Stabbing his current opponent in the chest, Haru used the corpse as a shield as his buddy came in with a spear. The blade embedded itself in the body, and Haru used it to pull the spear from the man's hands before lunging forward and taking his head off.
As the battle raged on, the rebels began to gain the upper hand as the number of guards dwindled. Hearing a sudden CRACK, Haru watched in surprise as the guard he had been fighting dropped with half his head missing. Looking up, he saw another guard leaning over the wall with a rifle. He had Haru dead to rights, and they both knew it as he stood there. But instead of taking the shot, the guard smiled as he took aim at one of the guard captains. Another CRACK and the man went down, and it was at that point that Haru noticed the small stick in the rifleman's mouth. Chelsea had managed to get up onto the wall in her disguise, and she was providing them with more cover fire. That is, until one of the real riflemen noticed her and fired at her. He watched the bullet hit her shoulder, spinning her around and causing her to fall back behind cover.
"Chelsea!" he cried, hoping to get to the wall as he pushed his way through the fight. He was stopped by another three guards, and he had no choice but to fight and hope she was still alive. Taking the first guard head-on, Haru parried his blade before grabbing one of his last two knives and embedding it in the man's skull. As his body dropped, the other two came at him from either side. Rather than take one and leave himself open, Haru stepped back and sent a wide arc of flame out. While the man to his left managed to duck under it, the other one was too slow and went down writhing in pain as he burned alive. Locking blades with the last guard, Haru tried to steady his breathing as he felt the strain of using his Imperial Arms taking its toll.
Their battle was cut short when they felt something under their feet stir. The ground shook, and Haru had to push himself away from the guard so he could properly focus on keeping his footing. They all felt it, and everyone stopped as they wondered just what was going on. A loud crashing caught their attention, and Haru looked up the hill towards the palace in dread. An Imperial Arms capable of creating this kind of reaction was going to be serious trouble, and he wasn't wrong. Not soon after they turned their attention to the palace, the building began to crumble. And from its ruins emerged a Titan; there wasn't any other word Haru could think of to describe what he was seeing. It was a massive suit or armor, and it slowly stood upright before looking out at the sections of the city under attack.
Haru realized what it was planning a moment too late as the crystal on its forehead lit up. A split second later a laser fired out, and they saw a massive flash as it wiped out an entire section of the city. They all practically felt the blast as the shockwave washed over them, and Haru had to grab June's arm to keep her from going down from it. "You need to get your men out of here!" he said as the guards began to flee. "What? We're not running away now!" she replied, looking offended. "Not running, evacuating!" he fired back, "That thing will kill lots of people unless we get them out of here. You need to guide as many of them to safety as you can."
"Fine, I can do that," she said, nodding, "But what about you?" "I need to check on the people we sent into the palace," he said, "If I know them, they're definitely going to fight that thing. I can't just leave them hanging." "Then you be careful, Haru," June told him before kissing his cheek quickly. He squeezed her shoulder briefly before they separated. Bringing his sword up, he sent another wave of fire at the gates. This time, it was much stronger and was aimed at the gap between the doors, which served to blast them inwards. The sound of them impacting the ground was muffled by a second explosion as the giant armor fired again. It was at this point that Haru looked up and saw a white streak leaping up to chest level.
Tatsumi, you idiot, that's too obvious Haru thought as the armor used one of its massive hands to swat him away. Tatsumi didn't even have time to dodge as it hit, and he went sailing into the nearby buildings. Hoping he could at least do some damage, Haru took a firm grip on his sword and rushed towards the ruins of the palace. He didn't know where the others from his group had gone, but he trusted they would be smart in whatever they decided to do. By this point, the giant had decided to start moving, as well as speaking.
"This is retribution for all of the chaos you have caused, Night Raid!" yelled a rather young voice. Haru recognized it as the Emperor's, and he had to marvel at the strength it took to wield something that big. As he got closer to the ruins of the palace, Haru noticed that someone was still fighting in the rubble. Akame parried a large sword before using it as a springboard to jump clear of her opponents. They were three men in large suits of armor, and they clearly weren't push-overs.
Before he could move to help her, she waved him off. "I'm fine! You go help Tatsumi!" she yelled as she charged at them. Haru hesitated for a moment, torn between helping Akame and helping Tatsumi. His decision was made in the next moment as the giant lifted one of its arms and fired several beams at once. The destruction was worse this time, but it wasn't nearly as concerning to Haru as seeing one of them hit Tatsumi dead center. Rushing to where he had landed from that attack, Haru prayed that he was still alive.
As he reached the collapsed building, he saw that Tatsumi had been caught by someone and shielded from most of the impact; someone in blue armor. Tatsumi picked himself up before helping Wave to his feet, and Haru could tell from his posture that Tatsumi was a little on edge. "Wave, what the hell are you doing here?" Haru shouted as he jogged over. "What did you expect me to do when I saw parts of the city exploding?" he fired back. "So you decided to leave Kurome alone to come fight the Emperor?" Haru asked, stopping before them, "That's all kinds of stupid."
"It doesn't matter now," Tatsumi said as he turned to face the giant. Luckily for them, its attention had turned to the battles still raging in the city. "How do we take something like that down?" he asked, looking to them for help. "Aside from beating it to death?" Haru asked, smiling dryly at them, "It's got to have a weakness. We just need to find it." "I hope you have a plan for that," Wave said as he summoned his spear. "I do, but you're not going to like it," he said as he relaxed his stance, "You two are the only ones that can actually attack that thing. You probe it for weak spots while I stay here and try to spot them."
"That's it? That's the plan?" Wave asked, looking at him with what Haru assumed would be a scowl. "I can't move the way you two do with those suits," Haru pointed out, scowling back, "So unless you want to carry me up there and constantly have to keep me from falling; yes, that's the plan." Before Wave could protest further, Tatsumi leaped up onto a nearby building before summoning his spear and leaping up at the giant again. Wave heaved a sigh before following, and Haru resigned himself to a support role as he sheathed his sword. Hopefully, they would find a weakness before it destroyed the entire city.
But after watching them attacking various parts of the armor with no result, his hopes began to fade rather quickly. As he watched Wave get shot down, Haru started to prepare himself to use his trump card. It'll probably kill me, and I may not take it with me, but we've got to do something he thought as he gripped his sword handle and prepared to charge. But then Tatsumi hit the armor around the stomach, and they both saw the giant flinch and step back. Haru almost thought he heard a crack, but the sound was covered up as the giant smacked Tatsumi away.
Before he could fall to the ground, it reached out and grabbed him before slamming him into the ground. The shockwave from that was enough to knock Haru off his feet, but he was too stunned from what he had just seen to feel it as he landed on his tail bone. As the armor stood back up and prepared to stomp on the kid, Haru saw a flash and heard the faint cry of "Incursio!" "He lived through that," Haru muttered as he stood back up. It got even better when a golden streak shot up from the rubble.
Tatsumi wasn't wearing the normal armor anymore; this suit was golden, had a pair of dragon wings and practically radiated power. As he charged the giant Imperial Arms, the Emperor cried out and opened fire with all of the armor's weapons, painting the sky with lasers as he tried to shoot the Night Raid assassin down. But Tatsumi kept coming, dodging all of the shots as he soared in and struck the weak armor section again. This time, the impact was loud and clear, and Haru watched in amazement as Tatsumi struggled to pierce the metal. At one point, he even started to lift it off the ground before a series of cracks could be heard.
And then, in one moment, it was over. The armor shattered and Tatsumi rammed through the entire chest plate, emerging just below the giant's chin before flying clear. It was over, they had won.
Except that it wasn't.
Swaying a bit, the massive Imperial Arms began to fall towards the city, and Haru felt his stomach drop out as he began to run. The number of people that were likely in the way of that thing was high, and they needed to stop it from killing them all. Haru saw Tatsumi start to dash at its head, and in an instant he had a plan. "Tatsumi, down here!" he shouted as he bent over and picked up a spear, "Give me a lift!" To his credit, he trusted that Haru had a plan as he broke off from his charge. Using his fire to boost himself up onto a roof, Haru kept running as Tatsumi swept down level with him. Without even asking, Haru jumped and landed on Tatsumi's back before directing him to get higher.
"I need a clear shot at its head!" he told Tatsumi as he tried to steady himself. As they climbed and lined up, the giant continued to fall. Not enough time Haru thought as they got higher. Focusing everything he had into the spear, he shifted his hand and brought it back as he prepared to throw it. "There, hold it there!" he commanded as the shot lined up. If he could apply enough force, he could send it tumbling to the side. The area it would then land in was one that had been hit by one of the blasts, and he knew it would be clear by now.
As the armor continued to fall, Haru realized it was now or never. Hurling it with everything he had left, Haru tried not to fall off as he watched the spear fly. Thankfully, his aim held true and it impacted the thing's temple before exploding in a massive fireball. While some of the armor was blown off, the important part was that he had shifted its weight. Grinning in triumph, Haru watched as the giant suit began to fall where they wanted it too. It was glorious, right up to the point where Tatsumi began to waver.
"Sorry, Haru…" he managed, sounding tired, "I think… I'm at…my…limi…" He didn't even get a chance to finish speaking as he passed out. They were still a long way up, and Haru knew he didn't have the strength to save them both from the fall. As they began to plummet, he found that he wasn't as calm as he thought he would be. He had a reason to live beyond this fight, and that reason was screaming at him to live, live damnit!
As they continued to fall, Tatsumi's armor disappeared. Grabbing Incursio's blade so it wouldn't be lost, Haru used his other arm to pull Tatsumi in closer as he tried to come up with a plan. If he could get one of his boosters out, he might be able to use his fire to slow their decent. But as his hand brushed one of the syringes, he felt a pair of arms wrap around him from behind. "Hold tight," Wave said as he got a firm grip on Haru and Tatsumi, "This is going to hurt."
Figuring he could trust the ex-soldier, Haru braced himself for impact as best as he could. But it still freaking hurt. They hit the roof of one of the few buildings still standing and slid a ways across its surface before they hit open air again. About two seconds later and they had reunited with the ground as Wave slid a ways on his back, grunting from the force of the impact. Even through his armor, he had to have felt that. When they finally came to a stop, Haru rolled to one side and tried to keep his head from spinning. Wave let his armor dissipate, groaning as he tried to feel something besides pain. But they had survived the fall, and that was definitely something. As Haru checked Tatsumi's pulse he found that the kid was still alive, but the strain of the new form Incursio had taken was obviously much more than the last one.
Pulling the syringe that he had grabbed out of his pouch, he flipped the cap off before shooting it into Tatsumi's leg to try and keep him stable. Looking over to Wave, he saw that the guy was also still in one piece as he sat up before wincing. "Nice catch," Haru said, smiling. "Do me a favor," Wave said, the pain clear in his voice, "Don't ever make me do that again. Ever." "Deal," he replied, his smile growing broader before he froze up. Just over Wave's shoulder, in the distance but closing on them, was a familiar figure with long, blue hair.