Bearticguy7: Daft Punk! Nice!
Jpx0999: You might be onto something, my friend!
Kosaku Valentine: How do you always manage to brighten up my day?
Guest: I actually have not. I'm not too familiar with the Persona series quite yet, although it sounds fun! I had no idea that Ulric was similar to him at all! Also, he doesn't need the water for Elysium...but rather for Mustafu...
Also, he isn't sucking up the buildings.
Also, Mothman is definitely going to be a running gag.
Syrian Ken: That is something I can confirm...in a way. It'll be a bit more bittersweet.
Death Omen Star: Oh no, I've still got most of Season Five to get through. Also, the war is going to be entirely different...and All For One might not be the biggest threat.
In fact, I'm fully prepared for our heroes to enter their second year. Granted, I don't think I'll continue the story for too much longer after MHA's canonical ending, but they will be Class 2A by the time the story ends.
Kyeo307: After having the last Big Bad be a douchebag, I wanted one that you couldn't help but like, you sympathize with the poor guy, and his ending will be satisfying...but sad.
Momo perked up upon hearing the familiar tapping of a cane. She was currently sitting in the middle of a cafe...
Somehow, she had a feeling he would show up.
"Don't worry Dr. Stewart, there is no one but me."
Ulric sat across from her, setting his cane aside. His doctor's mask was off, and his admittedly handsome features were on full display. His face was frozen in a deadpan, as always.
"You cannot blame me for being cautious. I did make a mistake quite recently."
"And I know that you didn't intend to cause me more grief than necessary. Besides-"
"Zeppeli got out. I observed him walking you here. Your whole group continues to find ways to surprise me." Ulric complimented. "I had thought something like that to be impossible. It's probably safe to assume he cannot be captured without consent."
"The same goes for JoJo. Their Stands are...unique."
"I see. I will prepare accordingly." A set of drinks were placed on front of them, and Ulric took off his hat. "I ordered you a drink, I hope you don't mind."
"That's polite of you." Momo said, appreciative. "Now...as for Uraraka..."
"You want to negotiate her release...I'm afraid I have to disappoint you. I can send people to Elysium...but I cannot remove them once they are there. I know you care for your friend...but the only logical way to see her again is to be sent there yourself."
"There's nothing you can do?"
"I can give her your regards, but that's it, I am sorry." Ulric replied, his face grim. Momo knew that her adversary's apology was genuine.
"Then my only option is to attempt a rescue."
"Of course."
The two sat in silence, not sure what could be said to one another. Finally, Ulric spoke up.
"So...how are you?"
"An enemy showing concern?"
"I wish I could explain it, but for once I don't really have a theory other than I've taken a liking to you.*
"Really?" Momo asked, crossing her legs. "I'm surprised, considering we are currently on a warpath towards each other."
"It's true...a confrontation is inevitable at this point. We are going to fight, and only one of us can come out on top. It's far too late to talk our way out of this...but you have so much talent, so much potential, and it truly is a shame that it has to come to this."
"To be honest...I don't really want to fight you either, Doctor. However, my friends are my top priority."
"I understand, completely. Conflict is truly on the horizon, and neither of us can stop it. If you would permit me asking...how exactly did you cover up Uraraka's disappearance? It hasn't appeared on the news."
"We made it seem as though she's undercover with Mr. Joestar."
"So Joseph Joestar has gone dark to add credibility to the coverup. Simple, but effective. I was worried that the public would make a bit of a stink...considering that's the second student that would've been abducted from the school."
Momo shifted in her seat, a bit uncomfortable. "Yeah...what we are doing is...illegal, not reporting her as missing...but it's a necessary evil. Besides...she isn't a missing person if we know where she is...still, to think we would have to resort to lies and secrecy, to our own classmates too."
"Sometimes, in the pursuit of our goals...we have to do things we aren't proud of." Ulric replied, sipping his tea. "It did me no pleasure to trick that poor girl into thinking I was going after Midoriya...and I was afraid of the damage her disappearance would cause...but you seem to have it under control."
"That's because we're going to rescue her before anyone suspects it may be a lie."
Ulric's brown eyes narrowed in suspicion. "It almost sounds as though...you have a plan."
"I do."
The two adversaries stared at each other for a while, but the tension that Momo used to feel around the doctor was gone. She was no longer afraid of him, because through her investigation she had come to a stunning realization:
Dr. Ulric Stewart was a hollow shell of what was once a good man.
Still is, in my opinion. He's just a good man who was lost to tragedy, someone who has lost all hope for the world, and yet still doing his best to help people. He has to be stopped, not just for the sake of humanity, but for his own sake.
Ulric actually gave her a smile, something she had not seen on the man quite yet. His face was always frozen in a neutral position, so to see him smile was actually disarming.
In a good way.
"Good, you're learning. I look forward to seeing how this plan of yours will play out."
Ulric meant every word. The fact that Momo seemed to be developing to defeat him gave him a weird sense of pride. Even if she succeeded and he suffered a setback, he would be just as impressed as he would be disappointed.
"I have to keep up with you somehow." Momo responded.
"I have faith that you will."
Ulric's wrist was adorned with a gold watch, which buzzed. The doctor looked down and frowned. "Damn...I'm sorry to cut our meeting so short, Yaoyorozu, but I may have to perform a blood transfusion on a dying gangster. I bid you farewell."
"Hope it goes well."
"Yes, me too...one more thing..."
"Yes?"
Ulric turned around, his gaze intense.
"What do you believe in?"
Momo stayed silent for a while, before responding.
"I'm still not entirely sure, but I'm getting closer."
Ulric sighed. "Tell me when you figure it out."
"I will."
The two enemies parted ways, and Momo uncrossed her legs, deep in thought.
Kyoka was strumming her guitar. Music always seemed to calm her down when she was stressed, but what Momo had just texted her...
I just don't like the guy...I know he kinda destroyed a book of pure evil, and he had been helping us ever since the Steel Ball Run concluded...but...
Sitting on the sidelines like some weepy damsel, while the President of the United States hunted down the guy she was crushing on, it just left a bad taste in her mouth. She was a hero by blood, and thus she was driven to help in any way she could.
The sidelines were quite literally the worst place she could ever be, especially when the man she loved was in danger.
Funny Valentine only reminded her of how utterly helpless she felt during that race.
And now the man himself was sitting in the middle of the treehouse, observing the place with the gaze of a hawk.
Or would it be a bald eagle?
I suppose it makes sense that he's looking around, the treehouse was still getting built when he left...
But do I really have to be alone with him?!
Where the hell was everyone else?! Why did she have to be alone with a man she didn't want anything to do with?
"I have to admit, this place has a lot more charm to it than the dorms." Valentine said. His hair was still pretty much the same, falling just below his shoulders, with the ends curled immaculately.
However, he was now wearing a white dress shirt with a pink vest over it. Two straps held a set of handguns at his sides, and his tie had the same pink checkerboard pattern.
He looked like a flamboyant secret agent.
"Yeah." The purplette replied coldy.
Valentine chuckled, pissing Kyoka off even further. "I take it you still aren't a fan of me."
"Yep."
"I don't blame you, we never got the chance to interact that much. To you, my redemption pretty much came out of the blue."
"Well, Johnny and Gyro were telling me about it."
"That's not the same as seeing it."
"That's fair."
Valentine looked over at Johnny's desk and saw Mountain Tim's revolver, and frowned. Kyoka watched him out of the corner of her eye as he picked up the gun.
"I sent Blackmore to kill them...Tim's blood is on my hands."
"Yeah, it is."
Valentine could feel a chill coming from where Kyoka was sitting, it was like he had just walked straight into a blizzard.
Looks like I have to befriend this Jiro too, although this one might actually be harder. Valentine thought to himself. This one is mine. I was able to befriend the other one because she had a worse version of me...but this one just hates me.
"Another one of my many regrets..." Valentine put the revolver down. "This...doctor...he seems to be just as determined in his ways as I was. We may have to kill him."
"Momo doesn't want that to happen."
"But it could be the only option."
Kyoka sighed. "Look Valentine, I know you turned over a new leaf...but I just don't think I will ever like you. We may be allies, but we are not friends...got it?"
"I do."
"I was against Johnny when it came to you, I hope you know that. I didn't want him to forgive you, because frankly I still don't believe you deserve it. I appreciate what you've done to help us...but forgiving you is out of the question."
"I brought you grief and distress, I understand. I'm not looking for forgiveness, only atonement. I want to make up for my transgressions through actions, not words. That's why I'm here."
Kyoka gave Valentine a look, and rested her head on her chin.
I swear to God, I don't care that this man can access different universes, or that he's key to Momo's plan...I really don't want to spend another minute with him alone.
"Well, out of all the places to track down a criminal, our target had to pick the most cliche." Johnny stated, glancing around the casino.
"Try not to look too out of place, Johnny." Gyro instructed.
"...we're teenagers, we aren't legally allowed in here. Not to mention a flamboyant Italian in a wide-brimmed hat is bound to get a few looks." Johnny remarked with an amused smirk, and Gyro shot him an annoyed look.
"Says the guy with a fucking horseshoe on his head."
"A symbol of luck, something that every gambler strives for."
"Yeah...well, with the grills I could pass off as a pimp! Just get me a pink fluffy scarf and Momo in a bikini!"
"You just want to see her in a bikini."
"I just want to see her in a bikini...look, Johnny. Just...lay low."
"How does this guy have connections to Dr. Stewart anyway? The Doctor isn't exactly the type to hang around scum." Johnny asked, his eyes shifting through the crowd.
"I think this guy owes him. From what we know about our enemy, he tries to save everyone who comes to him for help, whether they be hero or villain. Chances are, he saved this scumbag's life."
"What kind of a name is Shadow Moth? It sounds weirdly familiar..."
"It's a villain from a kid's cartoon. You know Miraculous Ladybug?"
"...Gyro, I might end up killing this guy."
"For emulating a cheesy superhero show?"
"The entire show is just two fucking idiots pining for each other in and out of costume for far too long. This is an adult man we're dealing with?"
"...yes, I believe he is best defined as: a cosplayer that's a little bit too into it."
"We should introduce this guy to Mothman."
Gyro chuckled. "I'd say they'd get along swimmingly. It's been a while since it was just you and me, huh?"
"Yeah, I guess it has...but to be fair, it's not like we're alone in the middle of the desert anymore."
"And you have legs."
Johnny snorted. "Yes Gyro, I have legs...is that the guy?"
A man in a business suit was near the slot machines, and was continuously putting his money inside, coming out with nothing every single time. He looked to be middle aged, and fairly wealthy by the way he was dressed...which was about as close to the stereotypical Italian mobster you can get.
"Come on, really? Not every gangster wears a fucking tweed suit. How suspicious can one guy look?" Gyro asked, shaking his head.
"You're right, some have boob windows and ladybug brooches." Johnny said with a smirk, and a slight dig at his uncle.
"Right? As a pure blood Italian, I am legitimately offended."
"Says the guy who often leans into stereotypes himself."
"Yeah, but when I do it...it's in good taste, no?"
"Well...sure...where are you going?" Johnny asked, his brow furrowed in confusion as his best friend strutted directly towards their enemy. While Gyro was known to make some pretty odd decisions, immediately confronting their enemy seemed uncharacteristically reckless.
"To the slots."
"...we're underage." Johnny reminded his partner.
"We've done illegal shit before, pretty sure assassinating a world leader is high up there."
"Do you really think this guy won't recognize us? If he's really associated with the doctor, he was probably given a list of people to watch out for." Johnny said, when he decided to put himself in Gyro's mindset. "Unless...of course, you're setting him off on purpose..."
"Bingo."
Johnny rolled his eyes, but followed Gyro towards the slot machines. While Gyro could often be vague about whatever the hell was going on inside the pizza wheel he called a brain, he knew better than to doubt the Italian's intuition. Gyro's nonsensical but insanely practical ideas have saved his life more than once.
Gyro walked up to their quarry and inserted a coin into the slot next to him. "Shadow Moth" paid him no mind, he was only focused on trying to cut off his losing streak.
"Hmmmm...I'm feeling lucky today!" The Italian said, loudly. He then took a coin out of his pocket and inserted it into the machine. "Oh boy, I can feel the jackpot coming!"
"Shut up..." Their adversary muttered, still not paying attention.
Johnny fought back a smile, knowing full well what his partner was doing. The coin in Gyro's hand was spinning when he put it into the machine. He's going to influence the wheels on the slots and force a jackpot, just to get on this guy's nerves.
Sure enough...
DING!
DING!
DING
"JACKPOT!"
The gangster turned a round in shock, which soon became fear when he saw that it was in fact Gyro Zeppeli who had gotten such a "lucky" spin. The Italian had a playful smile, but his eyes held an intensity that pierced through the gangster's soul and rooted him to the spot.
They were going to get their friend back, by any means necessary.
"What do you make of it, Mr. Valentine?" Momo asked. Unlike Kyoka, who had made it perfectly clear that she did not like the former president, Momo was making an attempt to become friendly with him.
Izuku was just peering over the edge of the dam, frowing. It was painfully clear to the group that he was blaming himself for Ochako's kidnapping.
Valentine observed the Mustafu Dam with a keen eye. "On the outside of the structure, it seems perfectly normal...but on the inside..."
"That's my theory as well."
Shizuka Joestar leaned on the railing of the dam's catwalk, passively chewing gum as she gave the former president a mirthful look. Her father had told her about the Steel Ball Run, and she shared Kyoka's resentment.
Speaking of Kyoka...
"So...while those two are busy being nerds...what do you like about Johnny?" The adopted Joestar asked. Kyoka, who was watching the tile of cement the robot came out of like a hawk, turned her head.
"I owe everything to him. I wouldn't be nearly as strong as I am today without him...hell, I probably wouldn't even be alive. Why do you ask?"
"You even got to know Jonathan Joestar before me...it kind of hurts." Shizuka admitted, and the normally easygoing girl's demeanor changed to something a little sadder. "I grew up with him, I...saw his pain firsthand, he often used to wake up begging Susan to leave him alone. Now, some girl finally puts some end to that and becomes his goddamn soulmate, and I had no idea? I should've been one of the first people to know..."
"God...I fucking hate that bitch..." Kyoka muttered, and Shizuka took note of the visible pain on the purplette's face. "I wish I could kill her twice for what she did to him."
Shizuka nodded affirmingly. She definitely loves him, of that there is little doubt. Good to know...
The sound of Johnny crying out in terror in the middle of the night was burned into her brain. Cries such as: "Mommy, stop!", or " I didn't do it!", all of which she remembered flawlessly. How could she forget them? She was a four-year old girl...
Seeing someone who loved her nephew/big brother figure with all their heart, someone who soothed his pain...it gave her a warm feeling in her heart.
"Why the hell are they here?!" Katsuki suddenly interrupted Shizuka's train of thought, and she turned to see he had Denki Kaminari by the shirt.
"Well, for starters, Kaminari is a walking EMP, he will prevent any new robot attacks." Kyoka explained.
"Plus, Dr. Stewart is prepared for us, but not our other classmates...at least that's what we think." Momo finished. "Having them help gives us an advantage."
"C'mon Bakubro, is it really that bad that we're here?" Kirishima patted his friend on the back.
"...no...I'm just wondering why."
"Wow, did you actually just admit that?" Kaminari said, smiling.
"Shut up, Dunce Face."
"After the whole D'arby incident, it didn't take much for us to put two and two together." Todoroki entered the conversation, stoic as always, with the slightest bit of worry in his heterochromatic eyes. "Uraraka clearly isn't undercover, this is another case of something being kept under wraps."
"I'm more confused about why the missing President of the United States is here." Kaminari said, glancing at Valentine. "From what I heard, there was a lot of stuff going on in America because you went dark...and now you're suddenly helping a bunch of teenagers find their friend?"
Valentine shrugged. "It's a long and complicated story, one that I don't really feel like explaining...let's just say I had a duty to perform that took priority over the presidency."
Todoroki sighed, and peered over the edge of the dam. It's safe to say they're still keeping secrets from us, big ones. A random villain taking Uraraka doesn't make much sense, and Midoriya has been awfully quiet...
I don't want to pry where I'm not welcome, but it's just further proof that more has happened at this school than we realized...
A secret treehouse? Hero missions kept under wraps? A world leader that went missing is suddenly a call away? DIO, The Necromancer, whoever trashed the dorms? This group has a lot more going on than just one secret mission...and for some reason, I can't help but think that it points back to Midoriya...
His friend's silence was speaking louder than words. Todoroki had been watching the group for a while. Initially, it really did seem like it was just some sort of click forming...but then members of the friend group kept getting into fights with villains, and whenever he would look at them in passing, each of the members had a sense of...maturity in their eyes.
Plus, while his question of: "Are you All Might's secret love child or something?" , may have been a theory based on their similar quirks, but now he was really thinking about it...
Izuku had looked even more nervous than usual when he asked that question.
Plus, when Johnny had left the school due to his seemingly permanent injury, Kyoka Jiro of all people had attached herself to Izuku like glue. She had never really interacted with their green-haired classmate before that point...
Upon glancing at the purplette, he saw that her eyes would briefly flicker towards Izuku. She was checking on him...and not just to make sure he was okay, but it also seemed like she was making sure he was still there.
Midoriya...is the real target. Todoroki realized. Uraraka was just in this guy's way...that's why he looks so guilty...
What is really going on?
"Well, I should've know you fools would be after me eventually, the Docto-"
"Gave you a list?" Gyro responded with a smirk, and Shadow Moth took a step back.
"Y-yes...look, I should warn you, I'm a dangerous man."
"Who watches kid's cartoons..." Johnny muttered. "And not even good ones..."
"Everyone has different tastes, Johnny." Gyro muttered back, before turning to their enemy. "And what do you think we are?"
"A couple of kids in over their heads. I will do anything to ensure that the Doctor's plan will not fail. You see, I believe quirks are a disease-"
"Is he already monolouging?"
"Yep."
"-diseases will be eliminated once the Doctor is finished, and with that the Quirk Singularity will never come to pass-"
"He...does know that the theory is bullshit right? If Quirks were a disease, they wouldn't carry over into Elysium, and he specifically wants Izuku for his quirk...so..."
"Plus, there's still plenty of weak quirks out there. It's complete bullshit."
"They're basically just Flat-Earthers. Believing something that is easily proven wrong."
"There were strong quirks back then too, All For One was one of the first."
"-and then, he can bring my wife back to life! No more of this painful world!"
"You...do know that stands can't bring people back to life, right? Even the Necromancer couldn't, all of his zombies were just meat puppets." Gyro interrupted the villain.
"SHUT UP!" Shadow Moth snapped, putting on a grey cowl. "My wife died because of her harmful quirk, and-"
"Is...any of this actually real? I just looked at the Miraculous wiki...and it sounds like you're copying and pasting the villain's origin story." Johnny interrupted. "If you're going to bullshit us so you can feel justified in believing a crackpot theory, at least make it origina-"
"My wife is actually dead! You call yourselves heroes?!"
"It sounds like you're gaslighting us."
"Yeah, who the hell would marry you?"
Shadow Moth tapped a cane on the ground in an attempt to silence them in an intimidating way, but all it did was cause the duo to snicker.
"Listen...the Doctor is a good man, one who would never think about doing anything dirty unless he absolutely had to. I...on the other hand, do not share his sentiment. If you think I wasn't prepared for you, you are sorely mistaken."
He tapped his cane on the ground again, and a man walked through. The whole casino grew quiet as the man walked towards them, a modified pistol in his hand.
"Now that guy's scary..." Gyro remarked. "You should take some pointers from him, Shadow Bug."
"Shadow Moth."
"Shadow Fuck."
"HE'S HERE TO KILL YOU! HE'S A HIRED ASSASSIN!" Shadow Moth snapped.
The man had a wide brimmed hat and a green poncho. The hat gave off a shadow, one that hid his eyes as he continued to approach. There was a chill in the air, one that Johnny and Gyro knew all too well...
This was an experienced killer.
"You hear his footsteps, Gyro?" Johnny whispered.
"It sounds like he's taking multiple steps every time he takes one..." Gyro replied.
What little hair was visible looked as though it was made of newspaper print, and when he turned his head to look around at the silent patrons, he appeared to have a porcelain mask on the back of his head.
"This, is Mr. Eleven." Shadow Moth introduced the assassin with an extravagant bow.
"Why do villains these days have numbers as their names?" Johnny wondered aloud.
"We have a reason for that name." Mr. Eleven responded.
"We?"
"Yes, we." Multiple voices responded, and Mr. Eleven suddenly separated into eleven different men, each holding a gun and about to fire, not wasting any time on conversation.
"Ah...we..." Gyro replied shakily.
"There are lights down in the water." Valentine pointed at the submerged side of the dam. "Something is down there, in the depths..."
Momo created a waterproof camera and threw it into the water, and handed a monitor to Kyoka. "What do you see down there?"
"...machinery, tons of it. A bunch of little robots building something huge." Kyoka said, her eyes wide. "What the hell is he-"
The camera suddenly went dark.
Momo looked over the edge, only to find the outline of Paradise City holding what appeared to be the smashed camera in it's hand. Without exchanging a single word, a mechanical arm extended out of the water and dropped the smashed device at Momo's feet.
"Figures...he knew we'd take a peek, and had his stand ready to stop us."
"Why don't we just attack him now?! We could stop whatever he's planning, now that we know the dam is his base." Kaminari said. "We could get Gang Orca on it or something-"
"Retrieving Uraraka is our top priority...the Doctor's plan is a threat, but if she isn't out of his grasp, and soon...stopping him would be near impossible." Momo explained. "The school barely managed to recover from one kidnapping...if we don't get her back soon..."
"The public will find out." Valentine finished. "And chances are UA won't survive the controversy."
"Dr. Kujo and Mr. Aizawa put their necks out, not reporting this immediately, providing us with a cover-up." Kyoka said, her face grim. "We can't keep up that cover-up forever, after a while people will get suspicious...if word gets out that Ochako is missing, and the teachers lied about it, it would be over for them."
Over for all of us...
The purplette winced at the thought. UA shutting down would be a disaster for pretty much everyone, and the Joestar family would come under scrutiny for assisting in a coverup...
They could even be arrested.
If that's the case...I'm going to jail with them. Kyoka decided. But we're going to get Ochako back before that happens.
That's a promise.
Momo sighed, and turned to see that Paradise City was crawling up to meet them. "Valentine...it's up to you."
"Not yet...if he sees me now, the plan I have in mind is ruined. I'm afraid this is where I leave you for the time being."
The group turned around, only to find a discarded American flag blowing away into the wind.
"Fuck you too, Valentine." Kyoka muttered.
"Wait, where did he-"
Kyoka clamped her hand over Kaminari's mouth just as Paradise City reached the top, it's triangular head blocking bout part of the sun, covering it in a menacing silhouette.
"I honestly didn't expect the two of you to return...and to bring some of the classmates I'm unfamiliar with, a smart play...I hope you created that camera, it looked quite expensive."
"And I should've known you'd be monitoring the dam since our last visit. I assume the curator is in on your plan, since I don't believe you'd be able to build anything here without their permission..." Momo responded, her eyes narrowing.
"She has a good reason to be. Please don't hold her accountable for my actions."
This was the first time Kyoka had actually seen Paradise City, and she immediately noticed something that Momo forgot to mention in her description of it:
It was fucking huge.
"Not cool man, taking our classmates!" Kirishima pointed at Paradise City in anger. "That's not manly at all!"
"...I am not familiar with the red one...I must do more research."
"Like you did research on YaoMomo?" Kyoka replied, glaring daggers at their opponent.
"And you, Kyoka Jiro. Birthday: August 1st, born in the Shizuoka prefecture to Kyotoku and Mika Jiro, sharing the same birthplace as Izuku Midoriya, believe it or not. Blood type: A, and a crippling fear of ghosts.
You also have an adversion to nudity, although you often fantasize about Jonathan Kujo wearing a-"
"NO! NO I DON'T! HE IS A LIAR, A LIAR AND A FIEND!" Kyoka screamed over the stand, covering her face with her hands while her earphone jacks wiggled around in embarrassment.
"Wait, we were born in the same place?" Izuku asked, blinking. "How have we never met before UA?"
"What do you fantasize JoJo wearing?" Todoroki asked, equally as confused, but more so on the fact that Kyoka was fantasizing about his friend at all.
"Nope! Nuh uh!" Kyoka shook her head.
Paradise City shook it's head, letting out a dry chuckle, before leaning over the entire group. More than ever, it was painfully obvious that the spider-like stand was much bigger than they thought, towering over them at a whopping 243 centimeters. (8ft)
"I must ask that you do not bring people into this willy nilly. I do not want any more enemies than necessary, for I would have to take them, and that would ruin your cover-up if even more students went missing. I do not wish to cause more harm than necessary, but I will be forced to if your friends do not back off."
"You took Uraraka!" Todoroki retorted. "Do you really expect us to sit back and let the others do this on their own?!"
"...so be it."
Paradise City turned around to look at Momo. She could feel Ulric's frown through the stand.
"You do realize that by involving them in this..."
"They are heroes, just like us. They figured it out on their own, and I couldn't convince them to abandon this if I tried...so I accepted their help. I wouldn't be surprised if our whole class went after you to get Uraraka back, should they find out."
Paradise City nodded it's head, accepting Momo's explanation, and turned to the heroes. "Good luck then, all of you...because I won't be holding back."
The stand backflipped the water, and it's spider legs extended and began spinning like a propeller, whirring back towards the unknown contraption like a submarine.
"Great, now he's a good swimmer on top of everything else..." Kyoka muttered.
"Look at how fast he's going..." Shizuka pointed into the water, noting how fast the stand had disappeared from sight. "Koichi said the thing was fast on land, but it's lighting quick in the water..."
The dam...it's speed in the water... Momo thought to herself, her brain immediately forming a connection. The dam is meant to augment Paradise City's speed in some way...
Momo and Kyoka both shared a look, and Kyoka slowly pulled out her phone, dialing Johnny.
They had a new lead on Ulric's plan.
Johnny deadpanned as his phone buzzed, and pulled it out to see that his girlfriend was the caller.
Of all the times, Kyoka. The brown-haired teen though to himself as a bullet whizzed by his head. He knew that his girlfriend would get worried if he didn't answer, and she would probably run all the way to the casino to make sure he was alive...
So he answered it...in the middle of a shootout.
"Hey Kyoka, what's up?" Johnny said as he dodged another bullet.
"...do I hear gunshots?"
"Maybe."
"Are you okay?"
"At the moment, yes."
Kyoka gave an audible sigh of exasperation over the phone, he could almost hear her rolling her eyes. "You always have to find a way to make me worry about you, don't you?"
"Sorry."
"It sounds like multiple opponents judging from the rate of gunfire, do I need to come over there?"
"No, Gyro and I are good at the moment." Johnny said, flipping over a volley of bullets and returning fire.
"It'll take us a while to get there, are you sure? If you need backup, you should ask for it now."
"It's only eleven guys."
"ELEVEN?! THERE'S ONLY TWO OF...well, you and Gyro are almost unstoppable together, so I guess that balances out. Just...be careful..."
"I will be, I love you."
"I love you too...when you come back, we have a new lead to discuss...and a few of our classmates are in on the situation."
"Alright, I'll see you then."
"Bye Jouta."
"Bye Ky-FUCK!"
"*snicker*"
Kyoka hung up before he could yell at her further, so he took his frustration out on two of the Eleven Men, shooting both of them in the shoulder and leg respectively.
"FUCKIIIIING EEEEEGGGGGS!" Johnny screamed as he did so.
Gyro grinned. "She just can't resist messing with you, can she?"
"God, she's lucky I love her."
"These guys are fusing into each other to dodge our attacks!" Gyro yelled as he flung a steel ball at one of the Eleven Men, who fused into one of his comrades to easily avoid the projectile. "And it isn't like they're clones either, they're all different people!"
"Eleven people sharing one stand." Johnny correctly assumed.
"I knew about transferable stands...but shareable ones?!" The Italian cried out in disbelief, barely ducking out of the way as three of the Eleven Men sidestepped around the pool table he was using as cover, and opening fire. "That's something I didn't think was possible!"
"It's the first I've heard of it too, but what we're seeing is no lie! They're dangerous...which means..."
"We might have to kill them." Gyro responded. "Or at the very least injure them so that they can't move anymore. Eleven guys attacking as one...focusing on retiring them would lead to us getting hurt pretty bad...or worse."
"Agreed, we need to put an end to this, and quickly." Johnny said, and fired a nail bullet at the one that appeared to be the leader.
Only to be left staring in disbelief as the man in question suddenly produced one of his comrades, the one that Johnny had shot in the shoulder earlier, and used him as a human shield. The nail bullet slammed into the victim's chest, and he collapsed to the ground, dead.
"They don't even care about each other." Johnny realized as he stared at the corpse oozing blood on the ground. "All of these fuckers are just looking out for themselves!"
"He was injured, he wasn't as useful as the others." Gyro commented. "These guys are stone cold killers alright...willing to sacrifice each other, all for their cut of the pay."
"What an ass..."
Shadow Moth was standing as elegant as possible, clearly trying to stay in character. "Fly away...my little akuma, feed their evil..."
A small butterfly thing landed on one of the patrons noses, and next thing they knew, he had rocket launchers for hands, and the ammo...
"BABIES?!"
The man turned towards the duo and opened fire, grinning sadistically as he launched a screaming infant from into the middle of the gunfight. Tusk shot out and caught the child, batting away the bullets in an effort to protect it.
"WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING?!" Johnny screamed.
"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH THAT GUY, HOW DID HE EVEN GET BABIES?!" Gyro responded, his eyes wide.
"My stand, of course." Shadow Moth said, grinning devilishly. "Darkest Desire-"
"Isn't that a Dawko song?" Johnny asked.
"...yes."
"Great, another stand user ripping off FNAF, and a shitty cartoon on top of it."
"MIRACULOUS IS A GOOD SHOW!" Shadow Moth snapped, before calming himself. "It allows me to give someone an ability based on their darkest, deepest hidden desires, their most twisted of fantasies."
Tusk caught another baby as Shadow Moth continued to monologue to himself, ignoring the villain as it proceeded to punch one of the Eleven Men in the face, instantly breaking the man's jaw.
Meanwhile, Gyro was wrestling with their newest foe, The Baby Mangler, who had suddenly became the greater threat.
"Gyro, what the hell do I do with these babies?!" Johnny yelled, dodging another bullet from the Eleven Men.
"Uh...give them love and raise them right?" Gyro said, punching the Baby Mangler in the face. He ducked under the maniac's arm and jammed a steel ball into his elbow, breaking the man's arm and disabling one of the baby launchers. He then threw the screaming man over his shoulder, slamming him onto the ground and knocking him out.
Shadow Moth activated another akuma, grinning. "You may be taking out the Eleven Men, but I'll make sure the number of enemies you have stays the same. Sooner or later, even the unstoppable team of Kujo and Zeppeli will be overwhelmed!"
A steel ball swatted the purple moth out of the air, and Tusk aggressively stomped on it, grinding it's heel into it as it looked Shadow Moth straight in the eye.
"Fuck you and your little butterflies, touch some grass." Johnny said through his stand while he continued trading shots with the Eleven...now Nine Men.
"My...my akuma...how could you?" Shadow Moth asked, a tear going down his cheek.
Gyro stomped on another akuma with Ball Breaker. "Nyo ho! Looks like the exterminator has arrived! Turns out your weakness was a good ol' fashioned stomp! By the way, about our eleven friends..."
*RATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATAT!*
Shadow Moth's face fell as the other patrons in the club drew guns and began firing back at the Eleven Men, taking multiple members of the assassin squad out.
"WHAT?!"
Gyro grinned. "You aren't the only guy who can hire assassins, I promised them all a cut of the jackpot I just won, did you think I did that just to piss you off?! No, that was insurance, in case you tried anything!"
"HUH?!"
One by one, the Eleven Men fell to both the duo and the other gangsters, until only one was still alive. The last of the assassins began backing away, nothing but pure terror in his eyes.
Tattoo You! and it's ability made us invincible! We were the perfect killers, the ultimate eleven man army! Why am I the last?! Why were we beaten by a couple of teenagers?!
Tusk suddenly emerged in front of the guy, and grabbed him by the head, lifting him clear off his feet, and slowly began to squeeze.
"Dead or alive, your choice." Johnny said coldly as his stand applied more pressure.
"A-a-a-alive, please." The last assassin choked out, terrified. Tusk dropped him, and clobbered him over the head to knock him out for good measure.
Shadow Moth dropped his cane as every gun, steel ball, and finger in the room was pointed towards him.
"You mind coming with us? We'd like to ask you a few questions. Or you could try to see this through till the end..." Gyro said, still grinning.
"We recommend you choose the first option, might get a bit messy if you don't." Johnny said, sharing his best friend's smirk. "And don't bother running...Tusk will catch you."
Shadow Moth slowly got on his knees.
To think, not even my akuma could bring those two down...not even my ultimate power...
The Doctor had absolved me of the disease known as Quirks by giving me a dose of the stand arrow...and I gained a stand, a holy power...one that I could use to emulate my favorite villain...Gabriel Agreste...from Miraculous Ladybug...and I would use his persona to help rid the world of this disease, so that doomsday would never come to pass...
Despite attaining the ultimate power of the akuma...I lost to a couple teenagers.
Was he really just a cosplayer living out this fantasies? Would all his efforts be in vain? Would he ever avenge his real and not fabricated wife?
Would he ever live up to the legacy of the best villain of all time? From the best show that ever existed?
Yes, he would.
Shadow Moth stood back up, with villainous flair, ignoring a faux puke from Johnny, and simply said: "You have won for now, my enemies, but Shadow Moth will return, with more akumatized minions!"
"Dude...how delusional are you?"
"SMOKE BOMB!"
Shadow Moth threw a smoke bomb, but it was snatched by Tusk.
"..."
"Here's a tip: don't tell us what you're going to do before you do it."
The villain opted to just sprint out of the casino, and Johnny rolled his eyes in exasperation. "What did I tell him about running away?"
Tusk shot towards the enemy stand user, palm outstreched, but soon backed off.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA! UNTIL NEXT TIM-"
*THUMP!*
Everyone deadpanned as Shadow Moth was hit by a bus. He had run right out into oncoming traffic.
"So...this guy was an idiot?" Kyoka asked.
"Kind of? He seemed smart, he just didn't plan to lose." Johnny responded, shrugging. "We called an ambulance anonymously...and apparently he was still in good enough condition to escape from the back while they were driving."
"So...he's an idiot who denied himself medical attention after he was hit by a bus?"
"...yes, that checks out."
Kyoka sighed. "And...the babies?"
"Taken from a local hospital, warped there by the Baby Mangler's ability. Gyro and I managed to track down their parents."
"Why do I have the feeling we're going to see that guy again?" Gyro asked.
"Because he wants to be the main villain or something, I don't know."
"And here I thought we had the most excitement...why didn't you two tell me Paradise City was so big?" Kyoka demanded. "That thing could crush me with a pinky!"
"We were too busy beating the shit out of it to notice." Johnny responded.
Kyoka pressed her lips together, and threw her arms around her boyfriend, managing a smile. "Well JoJo, Gyro...I'm glad you two wiped the floor with him. I think YaoMomo's plan is gonna work..."
Johnny flicked her on the nose.
"OW!"
"That's for using the name while I was fighting."
"It gave you more ferocity, did it not?!" Kyoka retorted, rubbing her nose.
"You didn't mean it that way, and you know it. By the way...what outfit do I have to buy? I heard you want to see me in a certa-"
"NOOOOOO!"
"I...I made it..." A bloody Shadow Moth entered Ulric's lab.
"WHAT ON GOD'S EARTH HAPPENED TO YOU?!" Ulric grabbed his associate by the shoulders and laid him on the operating table, snatching his doctor's mask in a panic.
"Kujo...and Zeppeli...they caught me off guard..."
"They did this to you?!"
"Well...no...I got into an...accident...trying to outrun them. I had them on the ropes...Doctor..."
You clearly didn't, if their track record is anything to go by. Ulricthought to himself, but knew better than to question Shadow Moth's delusions. He was smart enough to avoid opening that can of worms.
"Yeah...they tried to...take me to the hospital...but I knew it meant I would be arrested...so I escaped, and travelled all the way here with my injuries..."
"...I have connections to almost every hospital in Japan...I would've been notified immediately. I would've treated you regardless..."
"..."
"Where do you think I get all of my equipment?! I told you...we're under the hospital right now, you would've come here anyway!"
"..."
"The only thing you did was prolong your suffering!"
"..."
"Did you really drag yourself all the way here when going to the hospital in the ambulance would've been perfectly safe?! It doesn't take a genius level intellect to see that was obvious!"
"...can you knock me out already?"
Credit for Darkest Desire goes to Bearticguy7
