Chapter 68 - With or Without Perfection
[Mount Fuji, Riis Perfected Battlegrounds]
Snow blew into Jin's face, swivelling behind cover from Drevis's attack. Despite the dwindling numbers on the Fallen side, Drevis remained their most grievous threat. A deadly assassin who stalked the ridge, any would-be attacker laid out with the corpses of Splicers. The heroes could do nothing, their Quirks ineffective against her raw talents.
"|Hehehe...|!" Despite the foreign tone, Jin couldn't mistake that for anything other than a gruff chuckle.
Her hair stood up, a tingling sensation in the air. Peering above the trench, her eyes widened upon sighting the storm clouds hanging incredibly close to the ground. Many soldiers freaked out, and the heroes stood on guard for whatever Drevis found so amusing. From within the static, steams of cubic code manifested, leaving behind the materialised forms of... Splicers!?
Their bodies rose, handling their weapons with care while scattering for cover, roaring amongst their comrades while opening the first line of fire upon Jin's side. "Did Dren teleport more to aid Drevis? What can't these Splicers accomplish?" Jin was out of her league here, but when wasn't she? Closing her eyes, she focused solely on breathing. "Relax, Sensei warned you about losing your nerve; We can find an opening if we only look in the right direction..."
Lives were on the line, her friend and the students were missing, and if their part of this raid fell apart it could lead to disastrous consequences for the others against Overhaul. Dren may have an army, but Jin... she had her opening. The others were too busy keeping the floating machines from approaching so that gave Jin ample time to focus.
Atop the ridge, Drevis almost cleaned the head off another human had a man with hair made of steel not taken the bolt for them. She gave the humans credit, they weren't cowards, though that ninja one unnerved her greatly. Whatever it was, something about the woman's burning eyes infuriated Drevis, making her skin itch with rage.
"Then there was one," Said a woman in red armour as she turned slowly to Drevis, herself slowly stepping back while the red one raised her arms angrily. "Nowhere to run this time, no tricks, nothing."
If not for Her, Drevis wouldn't need to rely on the Devils to save her from death. She would make the woman pay, her whole team will die by her claws. She will focus her strength on undoing her undead life! Then her scope realized something... the ninja had vanished.
Down on the battlegrounds, the Fallen marched on the trenches, the first, a Vandal, drew his swords forward to lead the charge only for something invisible to take his head clean off his shoulders. The others recoiled in fright before two Dregs saw their chests burst open with blue nanites and fluid. A Vandal was kicked over a barricade, its partner's arm twisted behind its back, something opening a hole through its nape, twisting to spray it with fluid before it too joined its comrade.
"What is this? Something - Someone is shredding my soldiers like paper!?" Drevis felt her claws scrape down the length of her rifle, attempting to use thermal vision; Nothing. What about vibrations? Silence. Her eyes widened, lowering her rifle in exchange for two cutlasses overcharged with arc energy.
Drevis was silent, keeping her feet steady as her breathing, whatever it was made sure to carve a bloodstained line in her direction. It was coming for her - Drevis growled, managing to roll forward before the kunai could dig any deeper into her back, splitting her barding like a hot knife.
Jin appeared before her eyes, wiping sweat from her brow to rush the Wolf.
"Jin Hiro"
"Quirk: Myriad"
She can conceal herself from all her enemy's senses, becoming completely invisible. The more targets she affects, the shorter her timeframe becomes. Her maximum is ten minutes making her the greatest stealth hero!
Drevis howled as she brought her swords down on the snow. Jin kicked back as Drevis spun around, swiping the air while two kunai parried the twin blades, thrusting through the gap to slice at Drevis's barding.
Drevis swept low, forcing Jin to leap into a set of arms that latched to her leg, throwing her against a tree while leaving her exposed for a twin plunge of steel. She surprised the revived Wolf with a one-handed stand, twirling her feet down to plunge the Fallen into the snow.
Enraged, Drevis thrashed through the snow, her sword caught by a hand as it was plucked from her hold, a knee brought high against her jaw, followed by a palm-heel strike to the gut as the kunai drew blood, startling Drevis as the woman remained composed, holding her arms close to guard her vitals.
"Just like last time..." Drevis hated it, she knew how to combat Guardians but fell to her own kind, now humans with various powers could do more than what she imagined. Her loss would be great. "Not... this time." Her voice seethed, kicking the snow into Jin's face.
In reaction her kunai pierced the veil, plunging through Drevis's lower right arm, leaving it limp by her side while she hid behind her cloak, obscured in mere moments. Jin approached the other side carefully, sadly, only the disturbed snow leading deeper into the forest could be seen.
Unfortunately, Jin pivoted to toss another throwing knife, embedding it through a Vandal's neck as it sprawled beside her. More storm clouds emerged from the ether, spawning more Splicers to replace those lost. She wanted to relax but couldn't allow their foothold to fall. "Please, Akame, hurry!" She withdrew her sword this time, rushing the Fallen with haste. "Hyrah!"
[Riis Perfected, Final Rite]
Yuki's cries of pain lessened to grunts and moans of weariness, feeling her body weaken considerably, eyes almost rolling back into her skull in exhaustion. One by one; pieces of SIVA faded like stars from the sky, her body was fine but she felt sickly in her own skin, blue bolts discharging from her twitching limbs as the barrier surrounding her and Rayla was divided, effectively leaving Yuki alone in her own bubble.
"No... dammit, haven't you had enough!?" Rayla slammed her fist into the hardlight again, panting from her own attempts to help Yuki to no avail.
Dren wasn't listening, the vitals on the screen displayed for Aksis were all he cared for. Everything was stabilizing, it felt like a dream in all reality. All this time, failing with copies and memories formed from copied data would surmount to fruit. "Vosik, Kovik, every one of my Kin, I won't fail you, your sacrifices will mean something," He felt guilty for sending copies of them through time to attack the invaders above, but he had to buy time.
Yuki felt her body struggle to hold itself up, the light in her eyes faded. "Siva... where are you?" She whimpered into her empty subconscious.
Clenching his fist on the console. "Please, Aksiskel, please work!" He bowed his head. "I have to make their sacrifices mean something..."
"I can't... do this without you," Yuki finally admitted it, her tear evaporated by the heat expelled from her body, the warmth of her nanomachines gone, left to shiver in distress. "I'm worthless..."
The cuffs of the device let Yuki go not a moment later with a hiss, the barrier for her failing from feedback that caused a surge in several pieces of equipment. Yuki slumped against the floor, feeling lifeless before Dren.
She lifted her fingers to her eye, snapping them once; nothing.
...
Again; empty.
...
A third time; an echo.
...
Yuki... was Quirkless again.
"I-I-I did it! His vitals are stabilizing!" Dren laughed in jubilation. "He's still regaining consciousness, that's fine, okay, I-I can't believe it...!" A weight like no other fell from the Splicer's shoulders, his Archon was... no, his Kell was alive.
Yuki's hand curled into a fist. Everything felt so light, her head was pounding but...
"Kovik won't believe this, he never did like fantasies," Dren shook his head, clicking his fingers. "Now, how to deal with a Guardian that can't die, and a Wolf without a House to call home?"
She struggled to push her legs under her, gritting her teeth until blood leaked from her lips. Even so she...
Shaking his head, Dren turned to the girl fallen from her cage. "Well, the generators for your barrier are down so I'll have to - gah!" A large sheet of metal struck his forearms, when it fell away, a fist struck his arm, though with his armour it didn't do much in the grand scheme of things.
Yuki stumbled back with her fists raised for a fight, panting between her madded bangs to give the Splicer a frightening visage, her aura set ablaze in her hazy eyes. "I... may not... have power," One foot forward. "I... am weak without... S-Siva..." Each laboured breath was as heavy as her feet. "But I... I will still..." "Izuku, SIVA, I'm not giving up," She rushed Dren with a right hook. "I will still SAVE EVERYONE!"
"W-what are you - stop!" Dren ducked away from her punch, the girl stumbling toward him like a zombie, rushing without remorse. He hopped onto the stairway, hand raised forward in defence. "This much strain on your body can kill you!"
"I don't care..." She seethed. Once close she grabbed his arm, twisting herself to place her back against his chest, using his higher ground to hoist and throw the rather light Eliksni over her shoulder, despite the pull in her muscles from the weight. Dren tumbled across the floor, scampering away to keep his distance. "He never... gave up... on me..."
The Splicer finally snapped, grabbing her fist to toss the girl into the side of Tekres's barrier, the Wolf flinching at the hand curled against the hardlight, lifting Yuki to evade Dren's backhand, her leg sweeping Dren's to send him headfirst into the barrier with a grunt. She pulled one of the loose blue wires from a node, seeing it spark as she tossed it into Dren's side, the Fallen spasming in pain from the slight shock that recoiled, flinging him down his own lab.
"Okay, I'm warning you, girl!" Dren manifested from the blue nanites a large weapon with four teeth attached to the muzzle, leaking molten metal. "Goodbye, Azuru."
Dren raised his sawed-off shotgun towards her, four massive blasts of slugs melting the wall behind her to slag. She pushed with my elbows, throwing her body into a roll from the open area behind a console. She didn't waste time, curling her fingers around the top of the console, she ran over the side, flying over Dren's head as he was unable to lift his weapon high enough to stop her from landing a solid snap kick to his helmet, knocking him down. Without his weapon he was forced to activate a small hard light barrier, burning Yuki's knuckle to land a kick on her stomach.
Rayla couldn't believe her eyes; in this world, humans like her own relied on those with power to protect them, and yet... this one young girl fought with the ferocity of a Fallen and the heart of a Guardian. "She's just like us... even without SIVA or Light." It was honestly breathtaking to see her let out a scream, facing against a creature with an impervious defence. The Guardian smirked.
"Yuki, you once asked me if you could become a hero, because you see yourself as a monster, right?" He asked, seeing her feet flinch, her hand clutching her heart with tears breaking at the corners of her eyes. "You can, you can become a finer hero, one that will walk beside many more blossoming heroes with a smile on your face."
"Akame, my friend, I believe that Yuki is the one to inherit a new Symbol someday, one that will stand by those who have nothing, who are without a guiding hand," His left, piercing sapphire eye struck Yuki who stared flabbergasted, unable to move. "Yes, I believe you are to become a Symbol of Salvation, that is a future I know will come to pass."
"All Might, you gave everything for us, for me, I won't let you down!" If she had taken One For All, would things be different? Would SIVA still be a piece of her? Would she have ever fallen for Izuku? What about her friends? Her enemies? No matter the 'what ifs' she wouldn't regret any of it for the world. Her right arm folded, burnt and her wrist was broken from constant assaults.
Dren erected another shield, glaring against the girl's stupid defiance. Of all people, she should live, so why, why was she throwing her life away so recklessly? "What are you fighting for!?"
"I'm fighting to survive!" She screamed in protest, coming within an inch of the shield again.
"Enough."
Everything froze in place. Yuki's arm seemingly lost the strength it carried, collapsing to her knees before Dren's barrier, the blue particles dancing through her locks. The pair turned the unsealed cryo-pod, through the cooling mist, a dark hand clasped the edge of the pod. Rayla's eyes shook in terror, mirroring Tekres's. Neither had seen the Archon that decimated the Cosmodrome. The leader of the Devil Splicers. Aksis, Archon Prime.
"Aksiskel..." Dren stepped forward. "Ah, s-sir, you shouldn't move so soon, y-you've been asleep for so long-!"
His hand rose to stop his woes, pulling himself forward. "Yes, I was... asleep, drifting in a void of memories," Aksis hummed, revealing his true height. Standing as tall as Vosik, his barding bore the Devils insignia though the red colouration was white, the seal deep blue to match the variant of SIVA. "I am fine, I... haven't felt this in... so long, my thoughts are strange?"
"Ye-yes, there might be a few gaps in your memory," Dren rushed to help him stand upright from the pod, feet slammed into the floor while his jagged helmet shook with a grunt. "Give it time, once you've adjusted to this body like Kovik I'm certain it'll feel as good as the old one!"
"You have... improved," Aksis placed a hand on the Captain's shoulder. "I am proud of your work, I never doubted you."
"I... thank you, Aksiskel." Dren bowed his head.
"And I am no Kell, only Archon," He would not stoop so low as to steal a title he never earned. Taking in his surroundings, Aksis felt like a hatchling learning to walk again, treading the chamber carefully. He paid no mind to the slack-jawed Guardian or the Wolf. Instead, his ice-cold eyes landed on the girl unable to stand anymore.
Not a cluster remained attached to her body, leaving her with only a tank top, cargo pants and boots. Her armour crumbled to pieces long ago while his thoughts travelled in limbo. And now he was free to think and act of his own accord, though that was incorrect, it just became much less noisy. "So, this is what you've become? Diminished without my presence."
Yuki felt an empty laugh leave her. "Yeah; how does it feel?"
"Clear," Aksis replied, holding out his arm to stop Dren. "No, I was tethered to her, I will handle this through until the end."
She didn't fight, her energy spent, and to fight an Archon was beyond her capabilities, he knew her every trick now. Lowering her head, she saw the spear materialize before her, this... was it. Why didn't she feel afraid? Maybe because it was Aksis who would end it? No, she was scared but something just made it all feel so weightless, did she really want this in the end? If she died then so many would suffer; but what could she do now?
"Stop, will ya!?" Rayla slammed her arm against the veil, glaring at the intimidating shadow cast over the Archon, his body was so much darker than before, but his eyes were bright and radiant. "You were a part of her and this is how you'll thank her!? By killing the person who cares about you!? If that's the case then you're even lower than a Fallen, you're just some parasite!"
"It's okay, Rayla," Yuki smiled apologetically. "I can see you're a really nice person, I hope you survive, my friends would really like you," She closed her eyes, this only made the Guardian punch the barrier further. "Thanks, for trying to help me through this."
Looking up at Aksis in all his glory, Yuki only felt happy for him, no anger could be mustered up with all her might. "Siva... Aksis, I know changing a person's way of life isn't something done through words alone, it takes conviction and actions to prove a sense of gravity to their argument, I know that better than most my age,"
She never once took her eyes off his silent mask. "Even if it's not much," The girl's bright smile never wavered. "Thank you... for helping a stupid little girl save her sister."
A silence brewed between them, the hum of machines the only source of sound. Eventually, words left Aksis. "I have spent years in your mind, I have witnessed the darkest sides of human nature; Observing your highs and lows with my own eyes, your memories, connections, triumphs and defeats for days on end," He clutched his staff tightly. "Not a day I have forgotten since I first mended your broken, mangled body."
Not a sound was made. His arm pulled back.
Rayla and Tekres turned away.
Dren stared on passively, wincing.
Yuki's smile stitched to her cheeks.
"I had made my choice long ago." Blood flew out Yuki's back, the spear's head hissing once it extended through her stomach with a squelch. Whatever breath she had snagged in her throat, jaws wide in silence; her hands trembling before the polearm caked in her blood.
To Be Continued...
Cliffhanger~! I am horrible. Aksis is reborn, and Yuki's closest ally turned against her. I hope you enjoyed, appreciate the support as always; seeya in the next chapter, Heroes!
Next Chapter: My Hero Perfected
Aksis: This is the end.
Aksis: My choice is made.
Aksis: I am reborn.
Aksis: Coming soon, My Hero Perfected.
Aksis: Rise Up and Fight On.