CHAPTER 03: Judgment and Punishment
It was two minutes later when four of the mercenaries patrolling the eastern upper floors rendezvoused with another two stationed on the ground floor. They could see that the one who radioed them, Koichiro, looked incredibly agitated and wondered if Bishou had called for them.
"Why'd you call us all down here?" asked one of them, a man named Tanaka.
"Something's wrong. Unit B isn't responding and..." Koichiro trailed off and then realized something when he did a quick head count.
"Wait, where's Yabe, Kamiya and Fujio?"
The rest of the terrorists looked around and noticed that they were three people short of their designated team. Another of the gunmen, Nogami spoke up.
"Last I saw, they were patrolling the third floor. Could've sworn I heard them coming down after you called us."
Koichiro's partner, a man simply known as Baba, grunted in anger. He was a man who took his work more seriously and always wanted to please Bishou which normally resulted in him being outraged at anything he considered 'disorderly behavior'
"Those idiots!" he spat as he marched forward towards the escalator.
"They're probably off somewhere having a smoke! When I get my hands on them, I'm gonna-"
But when Baba reached one of the corridors that led to the exit and restrooms, something blindsided and tackled him into the other pathway. The remaining five terrorists screamed, jumped back, startled and held their guns rigid. It happened so fast for them that all they saw of the thing in that darkness was that it was a large black wraith-like figure with a long membranous cloak that had pointed ends like tendrils.
"HOLY SHIT! WHAT WAS THAT THING!?" exclaimed Tanaka.
Nogami took a step back and began to quiver.
"N-Nobusuma...Nobusuma!" he said with terror.
They had indeed heard of the incidents around Tokyo surrounding the dreaded urban legend but most weren't sure if it was real or just some internet fable. Koichiro tried to snap some sense into the group.
"Get a hold of yourselves! That's just a story!"
But the fourth Rebellion member argued with a sense of panic.
"Nah man, it's real! My cousin from Ikebukuro saw it when it attacked his whole gang!"
"They say it can smell your sins...and now it's in here with us..." Nogami mumbled as the weapon trembled in his hands.
Having heard enough, the fifth terrorist turned towards his comrades and began to back away, planning to make a run for it.
"I don't know about you guys but I'm not sticking around and have that thing-"
Before he could finish, a grappling wire wrapped around his foot and was yanked hard, sending him to floor on his stomach. He screamed as he was dragged away and in his panic he squeezed his gun's trigger which unleashed a volley of gunfire. Most of the other terrorists swerved out of the way but unfortunately for Nogami, he was tagged in his knee and fell to the floor.
Once Koichiro and Tanaka regained their senses, they quickly scrambled to their injured comrade while the fourth terrorist stood on his guard.
"Nogami, you okay man?" asked Koichiro.
Nogami yelped in fright which prompted Koichiro and Tanaka to turn around to see the wraith-like figure swoop down on the fourth terrorist, engulf him with its wing-like cloak and flew up. They opened fire but it again disappeared in the darkness.
Koichiro and Tanaka strained their vision and hearing to detect where it had vanished to but were unsuccessful. Koichiro never believed in the Nobusuma legend before but was beginning to reconsider. When it took off with his comrade, he caught a clear glimpse of it and he wasn't going to forget those glowing white eyes and long pointed ears for a long time.
"Where did it go!? Tanaka, do you see it!?" he called out.
But there was no response. He looked around and it was confirmed to him that Tanaka is now missing.
"Shit!" he swore as fear began to prick at him and the gun in his hand trembled.
He frantically looked everywhere but his paranoia made him believe that there were sounds of movement around him and every dark corner looked like those membranous wings. The hairs on the back of his neck stood as he noticed a pointy eared shadow cast over his own and felt a presence behind him.
It was too late for him as he turned around as Batman grabbed the muzzle of the gun and delivered a hard elbow to his face, knocking him out.
But it wasn't over yet, the sound of a gun being held alerted Batman to the single remaining gunman. Nogami held his assault rifle up shakily but he was still bleeding from his wound and he looked absolutely terrified. Batman simply stood there, the white slits for eyes narrowed dangerously and the shadows cloaked the lighter parts of his armor. Neither made a move until, whether it was from the blood loss or his fear, Nogami finally passed out.
Batman sighed as he went to inspect the gunman's wound. He then tore pieces of cloth from the man's clothing to make a makeshift bandage, hoping it would stop the bleeding till the authorities arrive. He didn't revel in his victory this time; in fact, he was disappointed in himself for creating such a racket.
"This wasn't as quiet as I hoped. I'd better get to the center court." he thought.
He didn't waste any time and used his grapple line to quickly reach his destination where he perched himself on one of the rafters supporting the overhead skylight. He had a good view of the center court below where the hostages were gathered in a semicircle and already he noticed a commotion where two gunmen were arguing with each other.
"You heard that, right!?" exclaimed a man with a red Mohawk named Yakin. "There was gunfire. Something's happened to Unit B and C, you think the Special Assault Team managed to get in?"
"That's not possible, we have people stationed at every entrance." replied another Rebellion soldier with him.
"But they aren't responding either! I don't like this!"
In his agitation, Yakin suddenly grabbed one of the hostages, a young woman, roughly by her hair. She cried out in pain as he hoisted her up like a rag doll.
"I say we use one of 'em as a human shield, that way they'll know we mean business!" he stated.
"Leave my mom alone!"
The voice belonged to a small boy who was sitting next to the woman. With anger, the child threw his ice cream cone at Yakin and splattered white cream all over the mercenary. The Rebellion soldier was stunned for a moment and then his face twisted in rage as he roughly kicked the boy.
"You little SHIT!"
"Shinji!" cried out the woman as his ran to her son's side.
Still furious, Yakin then pointed the muzzle of his rifle towards the woman and her child. The other Rebellion soldier widened his eyes at this.
"What are you doing!? Bishou-san said..."
He tried to protest but Yakin was having none of it.
"To hell with that! This little punk needs to learn some manners!"
Up above, Batman immediately tensed up and gritted his teeth as he witnessed Yakin's actions.
"Dammit! I need to make a move now!" he thought.
But there was one problem: from where he was perched, Batman counted five other armed guards standing very close to the hostages. As much he wanted to jump in at that moment, doing so might make the situation worse. But he wasn't going to let that punk kill a woman and her child! His mind raced and the only solution that was available to him was to create a distraction. He fished out a spherical sticky-bomb from his utility belt, it was unfortunately the only one he had as he wasn't able to restock his inventory since waking up in this world. His plan of action was risky but it was the only way to save the woman and child. However before he could enact it, something unexpected happened.
"Empress Dress!"
The voice came from Stella Vermillion who jumped in front of the intended victims. She had activated one of her Nobel Arts which created a fiery field around her body. Her presence immediately alarmed both Yakin and as well as the other Rebellion soldiers.
Batman's eyes also widened at her sudden appearance.
"It's that princess from the airport, what's she doing here?" he wondered.
"What the hell!? A Blazer!?"
"Shoot her!" commanded Yakin.
Yakin and two other soldiers immediately opened fire at her but the flames from her Empress Dress scorched the bullets into cinders, acting like a perfect shield. She positioned herself in a way to shield the mother and her son from danger but the gunfire terrified the other hostages and they hunched over and covered their ears as they screamed.
"Enough of this! Where's your boss hiding? I wanna talk to him!" demanded Stella.
"You ain't in position to make demands, girlie!" Yakin retorted as he continued firing.
"HOLD YOUR FIRE, ALL OF YOU!"
A voice rang out and seemed to hold enough authority to make the Rebellion soldiers stop what they were doing and go rigid. The person it belonged to emerged from the dark with two other terrorists beside him, he was wearing a black robe with a hood that obscured his face and it seemed that his presence brought a sense of fear to the armed goons.
"B-Bishou-san!" one of them gasped.
From his perch, Batman narrowed his eyes at the leader and person responsible for this whole attack.
"So this is 'Bishou'...their so called Apostle." he mused.
He repocketed his sticky bomb while deciding to hold off on his plan and watch to see how things play out. Bishou peered at the red-haired princess for a moment and then laughed while giving a regal yet mocking bow.
"Well, well, if it isn't the second princess of the Vermillion Empire! It is an honor to meet you, your highness."
"Then I guess you must be the leader of these clowns?" asked Stella.
Bishou pushed up his hood to reveal a face that was adorned with tribal-style tattoos that seemed to morph with his sly grin.
"You guessed right, my dear. Allow me to introduce myself: I am Bishou. We have much to talk about but first, please excuse me for just one moment."
With that, he suddenly rounded on Yakin and the other gunmen.
"You numskulls! What part of 'don't harm the hostages' do you not understand!?"
"But Bishou-san, we heard a commotion and..."
"Do you not think I'm aware of the situation!? Why did you open fire!?" Bishou snapped.
Yakin sweated bullets and his nervous state, he tried to think of some excuse or something that would help him escape his leader's harsh scrutiny. His eyes landed on the woman and child he tried to shoot earlier and pointed an accusing finger at them.
"I-It's-It's that stupid kid's fault! He threw an ice cream cone at me!"
Bishou glared at Yakin, unable to believe that he caused such a ruckus just over something so trivial but then an idea came to his mind and his lips stretched into a toothy grin.
"Hmm, Is that right?"
With a sigh, the Apostle moved closer and sympathetically patted Yakin on the shoulders.
"Oh Yakin, I am so sorry you've been dealt this great injustice."
Yakin blinked, confused and wary about his leader's sudden change in behavior.
"You...you are?"
Bishou nodded as he approached the mother and her son.
"Indeed. But you can't fault a child for the failure of his parents, can you?"
In a move that surprised Stella, he suddenly pulled out a handgun a pointed it towards the woman. The mother clutched her son futile protection and sobbed, knowing this was the end for her.
"What are you doing!?" Stella exclaimed. "You said you wouldn't harm the hostages!"
"The situation has changed, my dear. This woman has been negligent in disciplining her child. Penance for sin, forgiveness for penance, that's my motto."
Batman tensed up seeing this development but he held himself back. He noticed that something was odd about Bishou's behavior and body language, wondering what could the terrorist leader be up to. He would get his answer soon as Stella leapt into action and summoned her sword.
"Serve my will, Laevateinn!"
Stella jumped up as the flaming golden ornate sword materialized in her hands and brought it down hard against her foe. Anyone would jump out of the way but in a surprising move, Bishou holstered his gun and raised his left hand towards her while grinning wildly. In that moment, Batman's eyes widened in realization of what the Apostle was doing this whole time.
"He was baiting her!"
"Judgement Rings!"
A small barrier formed around Bishou's open palm which not only blocked Stella attack but also, to the surprise of the Vermillion princess, held her sword in place and seemed to be absorbing its flames.
"So you ARE as fast and strong as the rumors say." Bishou chuckled. "But alas, a sheltered brat like you is unaware of how wide and terrifying this world can be!"
After saying that, Bishou clinched his glowing right hand into a fist and punched Stella hard in the gut. The princess screamed in pain as she was sent tumbling away, Laevateinn slipping from her grasp and clanged on the floor before dissipating. Stella was at the verge of fainting and tried to force herself off the floor. She couldn't believe that her mana defense had been completely shattered and wondered how could his device be capable of such power.
"Those...those rings..." she struggled out weakly.
"Yes, this is my device." said the Apostle, proudly displaying his hands. "It works like the concept of 'judgment' and 'punishment'. The left absorbs all magical attacks towards me, while the right returns it upon my enemy. This is how I ascended the ranks among the apostles and why no matter how powerful you are, you will never beat me."
"So he used her own power against her." Batman mused.
It was through his research that Bruce learnt that when Blazers dueled one another, they normally seek to break their opponent's magical defense with equal or more power.
The terrorist leader wasn't done talking, another idea formed in his mind on how he can further manipulate the princess.
"But you surprise me, princess. A golden goose such as yourself shouldn't be risking her neck for these chickens and now you've made their situation even worse. I heard that my men elsewhere have encountered a spot of trouble so I may have to start killing these folk one by one so the police know we mean business!"
The hostages began to panic at this declaration but Bishou raised his hands to calm them.
"BUT if you so badly want to play hero, I'll give you the chance to save them."
Stella managed to stand on her wobbly legs as she asked him.
"How?"
The Apostle's lips stretched into a sick smile.
"It's simple. You may take this vile woman's place and beg for forgiveness...After removing all your clothes!"
He laughed manically as his fellow terrorists hooted and yowled in excitement. Stella's skin immediately crawled and she felt a lead weight in her stomach, such a request made Stella sick to her core but she also knew she would feel worse if something bad happened to these people. She swallowed the dryness in her throat before speaking again.
"If...if I do this? Will you spare the hostages?"
"But of course, I'm a man of my word. But, we'd also like the ransom money and our successful escape, you understand."
After a moment of silence, Stella nodded with a look of discomfort and this elicited cheers from the other terrorists. But unfortunately for them, Bishou had other plans.
"Now that that's decided, Yakin! Take three others and investigate the commotion at the East Wing!"
Yakin immediately deflated at this.
"Aww, I thought we'd get to watch." he whined.
"Do as I say, you ingrate! Consider this punishment for going against my orders, or would you prefer something much harsher?"
Bishou threatened while flashing his rings and Yakin gulped, pretty much getting the message.
Batman continued to watch the events unfold. With four of the terrorists leaving the area, the remaining formed an outer perimeter around the hostages while Bishou and Stella were at the center. Rather than being aware of their surroundings, the gunmen were busy ogling and whistling as Stella began to slowly undress with a miserable expression. As much as he was disgusted with what they were making her go through, this was actually a perfect opportunity for him to act.
"Their attention is fixed on the girl. I can work with this." he thought.
With a new plan of action in mind, he dropped down from the rafters and spread his cape into its glide-mode to silently float downwards while also making sure to use the darkness for concealment.
Shizuku sat within rounded group of scared civilians and sighed in irritation that not only had Stella exposed herself but she managed to get herself in an even deeper mess. But the youngest Kurogane stayed calm and already formulated a plan in mind: she would use one of her Noble Arts, Shouha Suiren, to put up a water barrier to separate the terrorists away from the hostages. Hopefully, this would buy them some time before Ikki and Alice arrives, where ever they were. But there were two drawbacks; one was that Shouha Suiren takes quite some time to activate and second, Bishou would still be inside the barrier and it would be up to her to take him down.
She was very confident in her skills, she may not be an A Rank like Stella but she was second to none when it came to magic control, capable of using quarter mana what most Blazers would need. The trouble was, after seeing what Bishou's rings were capable of, even she was beginning to doubt if she could take him on while maintaining the barrier.
She glanced towards one of the guards to make sure they were still distracted but what she saw made her almost gasp in shock.
The guard was grabbed from behind in a chokehold and a gloved hand clamped hard over his mouth to muffle his cries, the vice grip cut off his air supply until he finally fell unconscious. With the silent takedown complete, Batman was about drag the guard to a hiding spot and take down the remaining when his eyes noticed a shell-shocked Shizuku staring agape at him. He quickly signaled to her by pressing his index finger against his lips and luckily, she got the message and nodded silently.
Shizuku forced her gaze downwards, trying not to attract any attention as she noticed through the corner of her eye another guard being taken down. She fidgeted a little as her mind was abuzz with so many thoughts and questions. It would seem that her plan to use Shouha Suiren would no longer be necessary and was relieved that help had arrived. Only question was...Who was it that was helping them?
Needless to say, it surprised Ikki and Nagi when they first found the knocked out guards in the parking level. They didn't know what to make of it and briefly wondered if this meant that the police had managed to get in. But Nagi immediately shot down that idea, explaining that he has a good idea how the police or the special forces operates and that this didn't look anything like that.
To be on the safe side, they had scoured the area to be sure there no other active guards before Shadow Walking to the West wing where they found two unconscious bodies on the second floor, another two on the first and three on the ground floor.
And when they arrived at the East wing, they were greeted with the same kind of scene that they came across before. Some unconscious bodies were on the floor, others were hidden in the corners and some were held with some kind of cable.
By then the two boys figured that there was probably a third party involved but they couldn't be sure if the person(s) in question was friend or foe. Ikki personally felt relieved that the guards were taken down because that meant they could go straight to where Stella was but he also felt very curious about what happened.
Arisuin appeared to feel the same but Ikki noticed that he seemed slightly agitated for some reason, which seemed uncharacteristic for someone like him.
"Well, well. It looks like our mystery person managed to beat us to the punch here as well. Honestly, at this point I'm beginning to feel insulted." he muttered.
Ikki knelt in front of Nogami and inspected the makeshift bandage on his leg.
"Still, who could've done this? Do you think maybe there's another student from the Academy who managed to sneak inside?"
The tall effeminate boy shook his head at Ikki's theory.
"Perhaps but I doubt it. The guards in the parking area were incapacitated before you and I started. So if he was from Hagun, Director Shinguuji would've mentioned something."
Ikki noticed that although Nogami was unconscious, the man was murmuring something as if he was having a dream. Ikki put his ear closer to the man to make out what he was saying.
"...nobu-...nobusuma..."
"What?"
But before Ikki could even process what the man said, Nagi interrupted with a "Shh". With a finger to his lips and his other palm open, Arisuin signaled Ikki to remain still while he strained his hearing. With a nod of confirmation, he turned towards Ikki and whispered.
"We're about to have company."
There was nothing more that needed to be said. The two boys quickly found a spot within the corridors to hide themselves from the incoming group. They held still as the voice grew near.
"...still, I don't get why we had to be roped in just because of your stupid mistakes, Yakin."
"Yeah, yeah. Get off my ass already! At least I lured that Vermillion princess out."
Ikki's eyes grew wide and his pulse began to quicken at the mention of the certain princess.
"Stella?"
He held his breath as the group of four terrorists walked past him and Nagi, continuing their conversation.
"Heh, it was pretty sweet watching Bishou-san put that bitch in her place."
"Yeah but it's not fair that we don't get to see her strip naked! I mean, did you see the size of those boobs? I gonna be so pissed if the other guys aren't taking pictures!"
Ikki's heart immediately began to race as he feared the worst. His fists and jaws clenched tightly as searing anger washed over him. Nagi noticed the rage emanating from his companion and noted that for someone who seemed to have a gentle nature, Ikki can look pretty scary when angry.
The four armed men halted when they spotted the unconscious bodies.
"Whoa! Is that Koichiro and Nogami over there?"
"Shit! What happened to them?"
Seeing that all four of them had their attention fixed, Nagi's lips slightly curled as an idea began to form in his mind.
"I have a plan. Wait for my signal." Nagi whispered to Ikki as he patted his shoulder.
Then, to Ikki's surprise, Nagi walked towards the five terrorists and positioned himself a short distance behind them.
"What? Alice, what are you...?"
Ikki tried whispering after him but it was too late and Ikki resigned himself to trust Arisuin's plan. The only confusing thing was that Nagi didn't tell him what was the "signal" or what Ikki was supposed to do. In any case, he figured that he'd best hang back and be ready for anything. But then Nagi did something that surprised Ikki even further: he called out to the terrorists.
"Good evening, Gentleman."
The four gunmen immediately whirled around trained their weapons on the interloper. Nagi put his hands up but he didn't seem fazed by all the guns pointing at him. In fact, he pretended to be lax as he yawned and spoke with a sleepy expression.
"Oh my, I seemed to have dozed off while shopping at Mattresses World. Their memory foam pillows was like sleeping on a piece of cloud. Has anything happened while I was asleep?"
"Shut it! Don't move a damn muscle!"
Yakin barked while he and the other three leveled their guns towards their lavender-haired target.
"How rude. Is that any way to treat a lady?" Nagi pouted.
It was at that moment when Ikki noticed Nagi shooting him a sideways glance. He identified it as the signal and briefly wondered what Nagi was expecting him to do. But when he peered at the terrorists, the way the barrels of their guns were outstretched, it clicked in his mind and he understood.
Wasting to time, he sprung into action; charging forward while calling forth his device, a Japanese katana with blackened steel.
"Come to me, Intetsu!"
The slashes and slices from the sword were precise and too fast for the armed men to react, leaving them dumbfounded and unable to process what happened as Ikki stood next to Nagi with his sword drawn. A second later, the sliced off barrels and upper receivers from their guns fell to the ground and rendered their weapons useless. It was only then when they recoiled in shock.
"What the hell happened to my gun!?"
"That kid, is he ANOTHER Blazer!?"
While the three of them were flabbergasted, Yakin recovered from his stupor and growled in frustration as he pulled out a combat knife.
"Who cares!? He can't fight us all!" he yelled.
Yakin would never find out if the five of them could take on Ikki without their guns because try as he might, he wasn't able to take another step.
"What the...!? I can't move!"
The other four terrorists also found themselves unable to advance, as if something was holding them back. They looked behind them to see what was tethering them was their own shadows impaled to the ground by copies of Nagi's Darkness Hermit.
This was one of Nagi's Noble Arts called "Shadow Bind".
"That's right." Arisuin tittered. "Don't you know they have leash laws for cute little doggies like you?"
With a wave of his own Darkness Hermit, a large black puddle formed in front of the feminine boy and from it emerged what looked like a shadowy construct in the shape of a rhinoceros.
"But unfortunately for you all, I forgot to leash mine. Silly me!" he said coyly with a hand to his mouth.
It was another of his Noble Arts which was called "Shadow Beast".
The trapped men yelped as the beast charged towards them and were unable escape from being knocked out like bowling pins. The impact that knocked them out also dispelled both Nagi's arts and he dusted his hands after the deed was done.
"That was fun but if what they said about Miss Stella was true then we should probably get..."
But when Nagi turned towards his companion, he found that Ikki had already began to run towards the center court with Intetsu in hand.
"...going."
Being left in the dust, Nagi gave a small exasperated sigh.
"We could've just Shadow Walked over there." he muttered.
With nothing else left to do, the tall boy also decided to hoof it, figuring that he'd better catch up to Ikki before he did anything too reckless.
By the time Stella finished unbuttoning her blouse, her face was fully red from the shame and humiliation. Her hands trembled as she slowly pulled it open and slipped it over her shoulders. It fell to the floor, joining the other articles of clothing and she was now only clad in her bra and panties. Tears were threatening to spill from her eyes but she held it back through sheer will, she refused to give the scum before her that kind of satisfaction.
But Bishou was thoroughly enjoying the ordeal he put her through and wanted to keep goading her.
"Did I tell you to stop? Go on, take them all off! I haven't got all day!"
Stella shakily tried raising her hands to complete the deed but she couldn't bring herself to do it and froze on the spot. This brought a sadistic grin to Bishou's face.
"What's wrong? Do you perhaps need some assistance?" he said with a sneer and with confidence, he began to approach her.
"If that is what you want then I'll gladly tear them of-"
Bishou's advancing had been halted when something spun in the air and struck the floor at his feet, making him and Stella jump back sightly. In confusion, both Bishou and Stella looked at the black, bat-shaped projectile that embedded itself on the floor with one of its bladed "wings".
"What in the..."
But before Bishou could express his confusion, the heel of a boot slammed against the side of his face and sent him tumbling back.
Stella's eyes were like saucers and her jaw dropped. Out of nowhere, someone attacked Bishou with a flying kick and this someone's appearance was so unusual that she had to blink to confirm that she wasn't dreaming. He was decked in a grey body armor with a cape that had scalloped edges and kind of mask that left his lower face exposed. The masked stranger kept himself in between her and the terrorist leader and glanced back at her. She took a step back nervously but then he did something unexpected: he unfastened his cape and draped it around her before turning his attention and approaching Bishou. She felt confused as she instinctively held on the material that covered her. Despite the stranger's scary appearance, Stella couldn't help but stare at him in awe.
Bishou recovered from the impact, spun towards his assailant but then reeled back seeing his intimidating visage.
"Wh-where the hell did you come from!? What are you? Some kind of cosplayer!?"
The tattooed apostle was about to signal his men to open fire on either this new interloper or the hostages but to his shock, he realized that the five gunmen who were previously with the hostages are now gone.
"My guards! Where are my guards!?" he exclaimed.
Batman only answered with a right hook to his jaw.
"Can't hide behind your followers anymore. It's just you and me now, 'Apostle'."
His voice was masked with a modulator and he spoke the last bit with disdain as he followed up his attacks with another punch, a knee to his ribs, an elbow strike and then a straight to his face that managed to break the tattooed man's nose. Each hit that Batman landed was channeled with anger; he had no intention to efficiently take down Bishou, he was going to to take his time and put as much fear and pain into the man for what he did and what he was going to do today.
Stella watched as the stranger whaled on Bishou. She wasn't sure what she should do and wondered if she should put a stop to this. On the other hand, she'd be lying if she said that she didn't feel incredibly satisfied seeing Bishou get his comeuppance.
Bishou staggered back but recovered and snarled at his sudden opponent as blood leaked from his nose.
"You wretch! I'll show you who exactly you're dealing with!"
Stella knew immediately what was coming and tried calling out to the costumed person to warn him.
"Look out!"
"Judgement Ri-"
Batman reacted quickly by throwing a smoke pellet at their feet. The sudden billowing smoke impaired Bishou's vision and halted his action, the terrorist Blazer coughed and swatted at the thick cloud until it dissipated. Seeing that the Dark Knight vanished from sight, Bishou swerved around only to his wrist caught and pulled to have his arm twisted before a powerful blow to his elbow snapped his arm at the joint.
Bishou screamed as he stumbled back, wanting to cradle his dangling arm but was deterred by the pain.
"Bastard! You broke my arm!" he spat.
Usually Bruce would try to avoid the possibility of permanently crippling his foes but he wasn't worried this time. From his research, he had learnt that the medical advancements in this world far exceeded his own to the point of even repairing dismembered limbs.
"You'll live. But when I'm through with you, you'll wish you didn't." Batman stated, the shadows obscuring his face as the glowing white eyes narrowed.
The Apostle gulped as he began to backtrack nervously. He realized that the arm that was broken was his right one, the one he used to deal magical attacks. That meant the only arm he could use was his left, the one that absorbed magical attacks, but this oddly dressed person didn't seem to exhibit any magical abilities what so ever. Did that mean he was a Non-Blazer? A Non-Blazer besting a Blazer was preposterous! Especially one that defeated other Blazers who were highly ranked!
An unfortunate truth that occurred to Bishou was that he was only able to ascend the ranks due to his underhanded tactics and also because his abilities were tailored to counter the abilities of other Blazers, particularly those who relied on powerful offensive attacks. The only reason he had so many Adherents under his thrall was simply because of his acts of intimidation, being able to defeat such powerful Blazers were enough for them to fear him. The fact was that he has no defense against what a Non-Blazer could do and he certainly never faced a Non-Blazer like his current opponent.
In desperation, he quickly grabbed his handgun with his working hand and pointed it towards Batman.
"I may not have my ring but I still have THIS!"
A searing hot slash cleaved the weapon in two and melted the edges of the metal. Bishou yelped, dropping his half of the gun from the burning heat he felt.
"You were saying?"
Bishou turned towards the voice to see Princess Stella Vermillion armed with her Laevateinn. It seemed that she discarded the cape and had quickly redressed in her blouse and skirt. She stood alongside Batman as she pointed her sword towards the disarmed terrorist in a challenging matter.
"Ready to give up now, tough guy? Or are you up to taking on the both of us?" she taunted with a confident grin.
For the first time in a long while, fear began to prick at Bishou and he sweated. With only his left ring available to him, he could try to keep Stella's attacks at bay but she would be ready for his tactics this time and with that costumed weirdo backing her up, he doubted his chances. As he slowly backed away, he tripped on his robes and was sent on his rear, leaving him to frantically crawl backwards with his good arm.
Stella rolled her eyes at the pathetic display but before she could put an end to the fight a loud voice rang out.
"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE! BOTH OF YOU!"
Batman and Stella spun towards the voice to see a woman wearing civilian clothing holding on to a middle-aged woman while pressing a gun against her temple.
"Shit! There was one of them among the hostages! How could I miss that!?" Batman thought angrily.
Bishou was momentarily silent as he panted, the short breaths quickly evolved into a laughter that sounded like a mixture or relief and scorn.
"Hah, hah, ah-hahaha, That's right! You rats aren't the only ones who can hide among the rabble!"
"You coward!" Stella growled.
The Crimson Princess attempted to charge at the disguised terrorist but Batman stopped her by putting an arm in front of her.
"Don't." he said.
"But..."
Stella wanted to protest but seeing the situation in front of her made her aware that the was no way she could approach without the hostage being killed. The female terrorist smirked triumphantly.
"It seems the costumed freak is the smarter one. One move from either of you and I'll blow her head off!" she threatened.
Bishou laughed again as he tried to stand, wincing as he cradled his broken arm.
"How the tables have turned! If you don't mind your highness, we'll be taking the lady with us to ensure our escape."
He then addressed Batman with venom and hatred in his voice.
"As for you Mister pointy-ears, I don't know who are but let me tell you: you have messed with wrong organization and the wrong man! Your sins are far too grievous for simple atonement or penance. No, you must suffer! And when we find you, you WILL suffer!"
The terrorist leader's words didn't seem to affect the masked vigilante as he just stood without any change in his expression.
"You're right about one thing." he said.
The Apostle raised a brow and to the surprise of everyone, the edges of Batman's lips curled slightly upwards into a smirk.
"We aren't the only ones who can hide among the crowd."
Both Bishou and the female terrorist blinked in confusion, not knowing what he was talking about but then came a voice.
"Suirodan!"
A large water orb-like projectile suddenly struck the side of the disguised terrorist's head. The watery mass engulfed her entire head, making her feel like she drowning in submerged water. This made her let go of the hostage and her gun as she tired to frantically to remove her head from its prison. Try as she might, her hands only went through the levitated watery globe which stayed in its place.
Relief finally came to her when the floating mass of water finally lost its shape and splashed over her body, leaving her to cough and desperately replenish her oxygen. Unfortunately for her, Stella had taken advantage of her momentary struggle and rushed at her before knocking her out with the flat side of Laevateinn.
Stella shifted her gaze towards Shizuku who was now armed with own device, a Tanto called Yoishigure which she used to launch her Suirodan. The two girls seemed to exchange a silent "thank you" and then looked towards Batman who gave them both an affirmative nod and then turned his attention towards Bishou.
"No, wait! Mercy! I give!" the Apostle spluttered with panic.
Batman immediately seized him by the throat and hoisted him up effortlessly, his legs and broken arm dangled and his hood fell back fully revealing his face that was stretched in fright. The Dark Knight's white eyes narrowed as he spoke with a growl.
"You and your men will NEVER harm or endanger anyone ever again. As for your organization, they're welcome to try and find me because I'll be waiting!"
And with that, Batman knocked Bishou out with a hard fist to his head. With the terrorist leader down for the count, Batman pulled a long cord from his belt and began to tie him up.
"STELLA!"
Stella and Shizuku turned to see Ikki, followed closely by Nagi, running towards them.
"I-Ikki?"
Before she knew it, Stella was tackled into a tight hug. She blushed madly, almost to the point where the color of her cheeks matched her hair.
"You're alright. Thank goodness." Ikki breathed out.
Ikki didn't care how it looked, no matter how many times Nagi tried to stop him, he was willing to rush in and cut down anyone who got in his way despite the director telling him not to. Seeing her safe and holding her like this put his mind completely at ease. Stella could only smile warmly and slowly return the hug.
The moment was halted when Ikki looked from her shoulders and saw the pointy-eared figure knelt at the downed terrorist leader. He immediately tensed up and was about to summon Intetsu again but Stella held him back.
"Ikki, wait! It's okay. He helped us."
Batman stood up and turned. His eyes slightly widened as he found himself being gawked by everyone in the room. Ikki looked absolutely gobsmacked while Nagi looked on as if he was in careful thought. The hostages whispered among themselves and some of the younger shoppers wondered if he was indeed the Nobusuma internet legend that had been going around lately. All this attention was making Batman feel uncomfortable and out of place.
Stella noticed the cape that she had discarded lying on the floor, HIS cape which he used to cover her. The thought made her blush slightly as she walked towards the large cloak and then picked it up before bringing it to him.
"Um, This belongs to you." she said feeling a little nervous.
He remained quiet and didn't seem to acknowledge the cape in her arms until he soundlessly picked the thick material from her and reattached it to his suit.
"W-who ARE you?" Stella asked.
Batman looked at her and then swept his eyes across everyone in the room but just as he opened his mouth to say something the radio receiver inside his cowl suddenly buzzed to life. He winced as the static and feedback screeched in his ear but soon the noise cleared up and he could hear a distinct radio communication.
"...Area is secure, Squad leader. Proceeding to ground floor."
"...Copy. Everyone fan out! Red Squad secure the first floor, Blue Squad..."
He surmised that it was probably the Special Assault Team deciding to finally make an appearance after noticing that the guards at the entrances were taken care of. He sighed to himself in exasperation, annoyed that they took their sweet time.
"Great. The cavalry is here. I can't stay." he thought.
He quickly pulled out his grapple gun and fired a line to attach to one of the upper railings before being rapidly pulled towards that direction.
"Wait!" called out Stella.
But Batman had already disappeared into the darkness. After touching down on one of the upper floors, he quickly worked out a route towards the exit where he could change out of his suit but unfortunately for him, his planned route was cut off by a squad of SAT troopers who shone their lights on him.
"Halt! Don't move!" They called out with their weapons ready.
He sprung away from them and they opened fire. He dodged the gunfire and used his grapple line to haul himself to the third floor and escape their sight. But from there he could see that he was slowly being surrounded. There were SAT troopers combing the whole mall, the beams of their flashlights waving around. And to make matters worse: he could hear from the chatter of their radio that since spotting him, they were now actively looking for him.
"Dammit! They're everywhere!" he thought with agitation.
He looked behind him and noticed that he was standing in front of a large tinted window pane that had a view of the outside. The pane was obviously plexiglass and there was no way he'd be able to shatter it quickly. Unless...
Batman took out the sticky-bomb he had considered using earlier. Since it was the only one he had, he had hoped to save it for a more appropriate situation but then again, what's more appropriate than now?
He flung the spherical object against the large window where it stuck thanks to the adhesive gel as the timer rapidly counted down, he then held up his cape to shield himself as it exploded. It definitely caught the attention of all the SAT squad members but by then, he had already flung himself over the opening he created and fired a line that attached itself to the side of a tall building.
The crowd below including police and reporters gazed up in astonishment as he swung over them with his cape billowing out like wings. The TV and phone cameras had already filmed him by the time he disappeared. It something Bruce wanted to avoid but it was bound to happen and was something he had to deal with in the coming days. He was now exposed.
Inside an office sat a man by his desk with a woman standing next to him, both their gazes were fixed on the news broadcast on the overhead screen in front of them. The man was tall with a slender build and had long brown, yet whitening, hair tied into a ponytail. Despite his age, he had a rather youthful and attractive face that was complimented by a pair of circular rimmed glasses.
"Astonishing...simply astonishing." he breathed out.
The woman, who had neck length dark blue hair that fanned out, pointed when the camera footage zoomed into the figure that swung with the grapple line.
"Professor, that uniform and emblem; it seems to match..."
The man interrupted with a nod.
"It matches Nishimori's description exactly. Yes, I've noticed. How fascinating. To think he'd find himself here of all places. But the question is, did he bring it with him?"
"How should we proceed?" the woman asked.
The man rested his chin upon his interlocked hands with his elbows on his desk as his brow crinkled with heavy thought.
"He can't be far from the area." he finally said. "Alert our field agents and instruct them to find him but only to observe from a distance. And also outfit them with our best Data-cams so they can stream it to our workstations."
"The Data-cams, sir?"
"It might be unnecessary but based on what Nishimori told us, I have a theory. Well, more like a hunch considering the low probability. It's best we be prepared for anything."
"Understood, professor."
The woman was about to depart when the professor suddenly called to her.
"Once more thing Maya, can you contact Kyomon Academy and let them know I'll be canceling my lecture?"
Maya turned and nodded with a small smile.
"Of course. But if I may Sir, what should we do about Kazamatsuri-sama? He has been asking a lot of questions lately."
The professor "hmmed" and pondered for a moment before giving a warm smile.
"There's no need to fret. Kazamatsuri-san and I have known each other for a long time. You let me handle him."
The sun was close to setting and although the skies were getting darker, it was still vibrant with hues of orange and pink. It would seem that things were winding down at the entrance to the shopping mall as the police finished taking statements from Ikki and the other three Mage-knights in training. The four of them later discussed, filled-in some blanks, and concluded that it was the mysterious caped crusader that took down most of Bishou's men.
"Very Interesting." mused Nagi. "At first I thought maybe he was part of another organization but it seems as though he was acting completely on his own."
Stella, now redressed completely, rubbed her shoulders a little.
"Frankly, he kinda gives me the creeps but still..."
She thought back to when he draped her with his cape and his last words to Bishou. He acted noble and heroic, there was no way he had any sinister intentions, right?
"I just wonder who's under that mask anyway. You think maybe he was a Blazer?"
Shizuku shook her head.
"Doubtful, I didn't sense any magic from him, although..."
"Although what?" asked Stella.
Shizuku's adeptness over magic didn't stop at her incredible mana control, it even extended to being able sense the tiniest magic output so her opponents wouldn't be able to surprise her. But she certainly was surprised about the man in the strange outfit. It was fleeting but when Batman battled Bishou, she sensed a sudden spike in magic but just like that it was gone the next second. She wasn't sure if she imagined it.
"Never mind. It's nothing." she finally said.
Ikki had been quiet the whole time and was instead looking towards the direction where the media lost sight of the masked man.
"Whoever he was, I wish I had the chance to thank him."
Stella moved next to him, looked in the same direction and smiled.
"Yeah, me too."
Shizuku frowned seeing the two of them close, miffed that she didn't get a hug like Stella. But then she smirked as an idea popped in her head.
"Be honest, Stella-san. I think you're planning on giving him more than just your thanks."
Stella spun towards Shizuku, flabbergasted with a slight blush on her cheeks.
"Wa-what?"
Shizuku grinned, feeling like she had her on the ropes.
"Ooh, setting your sights on someone else are you? Then I suppose this means I get to have Onii-sama all to myself then."
Stella immediately rounded on Shizuku, blush still remaining on her cheeks.
"Give me a break! It's nothing like that! And just because you saved the day with that excellent technique doesn't mean I'm backing off any time soon!"
"And just because you looked so cool protecting those people doesn't mean you're not impulsive, reckless and unworthy of my brother's affections!"
"Mop-top goblin!"
"Big-boobed harpy!"
Ikki sweated and scratched the side of his head nervously.
"I'm confused. It sounded like they were complimenting each other for a moment." he said with a grimace.
"Some things never change." Nagi sighed with a shrug.
Stella and Shizuku continued to bicker until a voice sounded off.
"Is that you, Kurogane? Never thought I'd see you become this popular with the ladies."
The four of them paused and turned towards the voice. Approaching them was a boy trailed by a group of young girls. Unlike his three companions, Ikki recognized him instantly.
"Kirihara..." he breathed.
TBC