"It's time."
I took a deep breath, preparing myself. I drained the last of my tea and turned to my Shadow Clones, watching them swirl an orb of water in their palms. It was the closest thing to a Rasengan I could manage with the time given to me, and an exercise I'd managed to turn into a water chakra control training technique.
"Dispel," I commanded. The orbs destabilized and splashed to the ground, the clones clapped their hands together and vanished into smoke. The excess chakra filled my network up to the brim, then foamed a bit above the rim.
Everything was set. The Nine slightly altered their timeframe in the wake of my actions, but their plan remained the same. I know when Bonesaw will attack, where to ambush Cherish, and where to find Jack immediately afterward. Two captures, one execution. A simple plan that accomplishes everything I want.
Also, the first time justified lethal force is an option. Very exciting. Very exciting. I've been itching to scrub the scum out of this pond.
Only one thing left to do. What do I tell Taylor? She won't be happy to be left out of the loop, but I simply can't risk any interference.
I want to see what I should tell Taylor to keep her allied to me and satiate her need to be involved.
A message was typed into my screen. It read, "There is an abandoned house on the corner of Ninth Street and Cherry Lane with a basement. Hide in the basement and lock the door. Bring your swarm. Remove all glass from the room, including anything in your costume. Trust me. I need to stay hidden."
I typed it in and hit send. Believe in the me who believes in my eyes!
I didn't bother with hopping between buildings. I sprinted down the streets, jumped over cars, and abused my ability to walk on walls to avoid any obstacles that might delay me, working my way toward the house I knew Bonesaw would be making her introduction to Panacea.
The Dallons lived in a residential area. A few people walked around the neighborhood, occasionally getting a glimpse of me as I blurred by. As I approached the Dallons' house even fewer people could be found, and the few people I could find had tendrils of power influencing them to leave.
I watched a line of power reach out to me, seeping into my mind and trying to twist my emotions. I barely had to flare my chakra. The best part? It gave me a direct target toward Cherish.
I continued to run, spotting my target scrambling over a fence, clearly trying to move toward my original destination. Few her distinctive tattoos were visible, covered by sweatpants and a hoodie. The red streak in her black hair was the only real defining characteristic.
She sensed me and was trying to reach Bonesaw before I arrived for a unified front. I couldn't use Genjutsu, she didn't bother to look at me when she could just sense me through her powers. As I continued to approach, she opened her mouth to scream for help.
She was so... slow. I grabbed her by her hair, my nails scraping into her scalp, and I shoved her face forward. Her jaw clacked closed against her sternum and she bent forward, trying to scream through teeth forced shut, a bruised jaw, and a rattled brain.
She ran out of breath, then I yanked her head back, forcing her to bend backward and look up into my eyes.
"Sleep."
Her dark eyes, almost identical to Alec's, rolled into the back of her head. I let go of her hair and she fell limply to the ground. Quickly, I flashed the hand seals I needed to create a Shadow Clone, only devoting a pittance of chakra to it. Barely put me below my maximum.
My Clone didn't need instruction, quickly scooping up Cherish and sprinting back the way I came. He's taking her back to our home, where she will be locked up in a room that nobody but myself has the authorization to unlock. Ironically, she's the only one able to be defeated through Genjutsu. Damn artificial neurons.
Wasting no time, I darted to the Dallons' and peered through the window. Bonesaw cornered Panacea and Flashbang, the tiny blond metaphorically towering over the cowering Father and Daughter in their living room. Behind Bonesaw was a stapled-together imitation of a Mickey Mouse creepypasta, a flesh centaur, and a man covered in scar tissue attached to a metal skeleton. Murder Rat, Pagoda, and Hatchet Face
Shit, I've got a bad angle of attack here. Would cruise right by Hatchet Face, and I don't want to test his power negation.
I darted over to another window in the blink of an eye, hopping backward before charging forward. I leaped and kicked at the glass with both of my feet, flying forward in a drop-kick that continued to soar forward into the living room.
Murder Rat moved and tried to carve a chunk out of me, but a tossed knife had her blade careening off target. I sent out another knife with my other arm, and with it I targeted Hatchet Face. By tracing his power network and targeting the largest concentration in his skull, and then aligning it with his eyesocket, I had the perfect kill. My knife sunk through his eye with the force of a cannonball, punching into his brain and obliterating the source of his power.
My feet landed on Bonesaw's back and sent her flying like a punted football. She hit the wall next to Panacea, her upper body punching through the drywall and wood framing, leaving the girl embedded halfway through the wall.
I twisted in the air and landed in a crouch, my eyes meeting Amelia Dallon's shocked face. I regained six tomoe. "Pacify her," I commanded, forcing her arm to slap onto the exposed leg of Bonesaw.
I leaped over Bonesaw's entourage and attached myself to the ceiling as the remnants tried to dogpile me, landing behind them. A grin split my face.
The agony began. My Susanoo crackled into existence once again, forming two deadly skeletal arms around a protective ribcage, where I was safe from harm.
I clapped my hands.
The abominations crunched under my Susanoo's arms, flesh and metal warping together irreparably. I dropped my Susanoo, and the flattened sheet of bloody bone and steel hit the ground, and I turned back to the Dallons.
Unfortunately, I don't think they're going to like this part. Unfortunate, but my safety is my priority.
"Sleep," I commanded Flashbang with a look into his eyes, forcing him into unconsciousness. I turned to Panacea, who looked at me in sudden confusion. Bonesaw's mechanical spiders rushed at me, but a few well-placed knives fixed that issue in a flash, and I looked back into Panacea's eyes.
"Remove all of the alterations she's made to her body and replace it with standard human biology," I ordered, forcing Panacea to begin altering Bonesaw. "Even the ones in her brain."
I felt a sudden rebellion from Panacea, trying to stop me from forcing her to violate her principles. I clamped down on her will, sparked fear, and crushed rebellion.
"Don't be an idiot. Trying to fully stay away from brains is pointless. I understand trying to stay under the radar, but upholding a principle like that in a situation like this is pointless. She's not exactly all there to begin with, and there's far worse things than that." I waited for a moment, and then felt her give in, and began working anew on Bonesaw.
Unfortunately for her, giving into an illusion isn't exactly a good way to prevent it from being reinforced.
"For example," I continued once she finished. "I command you to master Bonesaw to my will, as well as implement safeguards preventing her from removing this compulsion to follow my instructions through tinkering."
Sshe growled through gritted teeth. Panacea desperately tried to claw her way out from under my control. She failed.
"It's a necessary precaution. I see a dangerous fugitive being turned towards a positive goal. Reform. I'm not even asking you to change her personality, just ensure she has a guaranteed safeguard to prevent her from going out and creating more of... these," I gestured toward the squashed remains of the biocyborgs.
"You see that there?" I pointed at what vaguely resembled Murder Rat. "That is what a monster does. She took Mouse Protector and Ravager and fused them into a single bloody being. She took something good and turned it evil. That is a monster."
Panacea continued to work, occasionally glaring up at me.
"Don't get so uppity. Think of it this way: You now have a frame of reference for what it feels like to be Mastered. To be forced to do something you don't want against your will. You now understand exactly what your powers can do to someone."
"And how the fuck does that help me?" She sneered, as I let her speak.
"Because now you'll understand exactly what it would be like for your sister if you ever gave in to your urges to change her into your little love puppet."
She froze mentally, her body automatically continuing to work on Bonesaw. "You—You—What—" she stuttered, trying to come up with a response.
"Stop blustering. Anyone slightly able to read expressions can see how you look at her, and I've got better eyes than most. Don't feel too bad about yourself, though. It's likely a combination of constant exposure to an aura that induces adoration and your power trying to influence you through that weakness to provide it with more interesting data and usage. You'd probably be better off if you did something other than spamming Cura all the time. Or figure out a way to stop the incest aura from altering your cognition." I shrugged. "Or maybe you'd go insane and go full Nilbog. I doubt it, but if you feel like that may be an outcome, go get some fucking help and try and negate the active risk you pose to people."
Panacea refused to speak anymore, so I didn't try to start the conversation up again. After a few moments, her hand left Bonesaw, signifying her finishing the modification. I walked forward, plucked Bonesaw from the wall, and tossed the girl over my shoulders.
"Thanks, Amy," I told the girl as I left. "It may not seem this way to you, but I don't dislike you. Quite the opposite, you're pretty selfless, it's admirable. It's only your naivety and blatant disregard for self-care that I take issue with. Also the incest stuff, but that's more me finding incest weird than a personal judgment against you."
I left through the front door. The moment I was out of sight I created another Shadow Clone, sending me down to half my reserves. I handed Bonesaw to my clone and we darted off in separate directions. He'll give her a summary of her new living situation.
Jack Slash was halfway across the city. It took me an Omoikane use to know exactly where to go, but I had plenty of time to recharge my chakra as I ran through Brockton Bay.
I landed on a roof in Dolltown, scanning through the small crowd of people, looking for pathways of power in people.
There.
I dropped into the crowd and threw out the weakest use of the Coercion Genjutsu I could to everyone within eye contact, causing people to start screaming and running. The crowd thinned out, leaving only the man I identified as Jack Slash standing and smiling at me. As fast as I possibly could, I grabbed a knife covered in no less than ten explosive tags, activated the timers, and threw it.
Jack Slash began to speak. "Pain! There you are! I'd like to formally invite you to join the—" My knife slammed into his shoulder with supernatural force, lightly jostling him back and embedding a few inches into the skin. He didn't flinch or even stop speaking.
"—The Slaughterhouse Nine!" he continued. "I've gotta say, you have the right spirit! With that 'look at me and despair' gimmick, and the name! You'd fit right in! Even got me a new knife to celebrate our first meeting. You know, I've been looking for a new one for a while, but I think I'll put this one work if you join up! Maybe take out those eyes of yours with it, to—"
The timer ran out, and I closed my eyes. I felt the shockwave and heat wash over me, close enough to feel it but far enough to not take any damage. All that was left was a crater, and a few small chunks of flesh where the vaporized man once known as Jack Slash once stood.
Nobody was left in the area, everyone who hadn't fled from me had fled when they recognized Jack Slash. Good thing, too. Any glass in the area was shattered by the shockwave and chunks of the street fell like rain to the earth.
Then, I heard sudden footsteps to my left.
I turned and ducked as a naked zebra woman leaped over me, ripping a clawed hand through the spot my head used to be in. Siberian. The unstoppable force and immovable object: an invulnerable projection.
A woman with cigarette burns on her cheeks appeared in a burst of flame where Siberan came from, forcing me to roll out of the way as she blasted a stream of flame from her hands at me. Burnscar.
Siberian and Burnscar are fucking dangerous, and shit just got really rocky, but I think I can manage this. They're not the first members I've fought today. Still, I'd rather not fight them alone, and certainly not while they gang up on me. I didn't plan well enough.
I leaped up to the rooftops, Siberian scrambling up to follow me. Burnscar blasted a ball of fire up onto a roof, setting it ablaze and using it to teleport herself up. Siberian did her best to tear my into shreds as I ducked and weaved precisely around her savage, and therefore imprecise fury. Burnscar started to cackle in the background as she continued to build up more and more flame around herself, using the increased power to launch flames further and faster, building up her effective movement speed as she scorched nearly a block's worth roofs. It quickly became apparent that these were not people I could outrun forever. I have to fight them.
Siberian is who I'm most worried about. She's the primary threat to my life, so I'll finish her first.
Burnscar and Siberian continued to chase me from building to building. I began weaving hand seals, slowly producing Water Clones as I ran and dodged the unrelenting attacks of Siberian, which I had to actively use my Mangekyo Sharingan to predict and avoid immediate death. Burnscar tried to box me in with walls of fire, only unable to do so due to the harassment and noble sacrifice of my Water Clones.
My clones worked in two ways: both attacking Burnscar to keep her distracted and throwing themselves into the flames to make openings for me. Either way, they inevitably all turned to steam.
Siberian's projector was further than I thought, enough to start to wear me down. Water Clones aren't particularly costly, but using so many is enough to cut through my chakra regeneration and then some, leaving me about half-empty by the time I made it. Siberian grew more and more frantic as we approached, finally realizing why I was running in this direction.
Just before arrival, I created a Shadow Clone instructed to spam as many Water Clones as he could before being destroyed. A distraction.
I arrived in a large parking lot, mostly empty aside from a few small groups of vehicles. I landed on a car gracefully as I dropped from the rooftops, heading towards the van where I could see the tether end. I leaped forward. Siberian slammed down onto the car I just left, obliterating it under the force of her subsequent jump as she followed behind me.
I dodged as she soared past me, placing herself between me and my goal. I darted to the side, planning to go around her. She moved to intercept.
My feet slammed into the ground and I jumped high and fast. Siberian jumped and swiped, missing her strike by inches, then dropping back to the ground and leaping after me. I fell right next to an excessively lifted truck, latching onto the step up to the door and using it to swing myself under and back at the van.
I got to see Siberian's face twist in shock as I flew under her back at the van. She tore the truck in half when she charged through it, leaving me unimpeded on my way back to my target.
My most recent Shadow Clone imparted the memories of throwing out a few dozen Water Clones until his chakra ran out, leaving me with only memories of a pyromaniac leaving to come after me. Burnscar caught up as I landed on the van's hood, staring through the windshield at William Manton, the projector of the Siberian.
I conjured my Susanoo ribs and an arm and punched down on the hood of the car, deeply denting the metal where my fist hit. My ethereal arm punched down through the top of the car and down into the earth, turning Manton into a smear. I saw The Siberian vanish midway through her charge back at me, gone forever, right before my ribs were engulfed in flame.
I didn't burn even as the flames engulfed the entirety of my ribcage, but the Susanoo didn't stop convection and smoke. Burnscar is out of my reach with my arm, so I let it drop to reduce the chakra drain. I'm almost out of chakra, but the moment I drop my Susanoo I'll be incinerated.
A sudden burst of memories hit me, the Shadow Clone that transported Bonesaw willingly dispelled itself. She was up, informed about the mastering, and my promise to provide plenty of equipment and funding so long as I got to veto any true crimes against humanity. More importantly, it returned a half-tank of chakra, in the time I needed it most. I started to flash through hand seals. This was the strongest Water Release I could muster, requiring an uncomfortably complex set of 37 hand seals to pull off.
"Yeah, turtle up in there!" Burnscar cackled. "Have fun getting cooked! I love my meat smoked!"
She wasn't wrong. The air within my Susanoo was unbearably hot by the time I completed my jutsu, smoke burning my lungs and eyes. My body was heading up too, and I felt sweat beading up all over my forehead.
The final seal: a sharp contrast from the sporadic patterns of the rest of the seals. It was simply slapping my hands flat against each other, and maintaining raw concentration on my power and jutsu. I held them together with all my might, and a torrent of water poured from my arms and swirled around me. My Whirlpool Jutsu sprayed from my arms, the most powerful water-style Justu I'd imagined and created through Omoikane: designed to draw in and drown my opponents, dashing them against my Susanoo ribcage like a boat dashed against a rocky shore.
An ocean of water burst from my arm and swirled around me, spreading out further with every rotation around my body, snuffing out the fires surrounding me. The approaching wave towered over Burnscar, prepared to sweep her away.
"No!" Burnscar screamed as my water crashed into the inferno. Enormous amounts of steam burst from the clash of fire and water, which was equally unpleasant. I coughed uncontrollably as the steam reached my Susanoo and passed through my ribcage unabated. My smoked lungs were now steamed, the combined agony of maintaining Susanoo and the feeling of fire in my lungs nearly overwhelming.
My control over my whirlpool wavered for a moment, but it did not fail. I hardened my resolve through the pain, focusing on obliterating this psycho. I'm not dying now, not when I've done so much. The combined cost of the powerful jutsu and the Susanoo tore through my reserves, but I can do this. I know it.
Burnscar's inferno vanished, gathering into a single point between her hands. She met my eyes, grinning insanely as the waves came toward her. She pointed the ball of fire at me.
A beam of white-hot fire tore through the whirlpool surrounding me and crashed against my Susanoo, cracking the ribs on impact and forcing me backward. My whirlpool crashed to the ground and flooded the lot up to ankle height, leaving me to let the last of my chakra drain away into my Susano as she continued to try and burn a hole through my ribcage with her makeshift blowtorch.
I glared as more and more cracks formed in my ribcage, spreading from the point of contact with the beam of white fire.
No. I fucking refuse. I can't fail, not again. I'm not losing to some god-damn fire. Nothing about this is what I want.
Burnscar laughed again. I growled at her through fried vocal cords. Raw hate coursed through my veins.
My Susanoo erupted in size, fueled by the desire to turn Burnscar into a smear. My Mangekyo Sharingan matured, my chakra grew thicker, and my Susanoo erupted in size. A head sprouted from the towing torso, and suddenly I was the one about to enjoy killing someone.
My Susanoo stood tall as a building, an entire ethereal torso and head. The detailing remained the same, still covered in barnacles, seaweed, and all manner of skeletal sea life. A skeleton of a starfish attached itself to my Susanoo's right cheek, the empty skeletal eyesocket on that side of its face peering through the gap between the starfish's limbs.
Burnscar recalled her beam of fire back into her hands and flared her arms to the side, sending two snakes of fire out to curve around me into a towering colosseum of blue and red. With her ring of fire complete, she began to teleport randomly around me, spewing great clouds of smoke and flame.
The sensation of smoke cooking my lungs felt like a comfortable bath compared to wielding the second stage of Susanoo. The pain doubled, perhaps even tripled, igniting my whole body as I swung my arms around. I tried to squash Burnscar whenever she would appear from her ring of flame, only to miss by mere moments as she teleported to yet another point of the circle.
I want to see where she will teleport next.
A ray of sunshine appeared in my sight, shining gloriously down on a single point of the ring to my left. My right hand swung down in a clenched fist, and right before hit reached Burnscar, I suddenly swung my left hand in a backhanded slap at the shimmering spot.
Burnscar vanished into the flames and appeared in front of my swinging left arm. Her body launched from the impact and she flew. With a crunch, she was embedded into a car, hitting it with enough force to shift to the side and dent the car beside it.
I grabbed another knife covered in explosive tags and tossed it at her, hearing a gurgle as it slammed into her guts. The timer ran out. The bomb went off, ripping Burnscar into two pieces.
The last bits of my chakra drained away and I collapsed to my knees. My Susanoo fizzled out, leaving me to gasp for air with roasted lungs, now fully aware of the damage to my body without the distraction of full-body agony.
I don't know how long I kneeled there, just gasping for air. I was met with the cold reality that it was not going to heal anytime soon.
I opened my eyes, noticing people around the parking lot. They watched from afar or recorded, muttering in confusion or suspicion.
I reached into a pocket with a shaky arm, retrieving a bloody handkerchief. Such heavy use of Mangekyo left thick lines of blood dripping down my ash-covered cheeks, which I wiped away with my shaky rag. In a burst of will, I forced myself to stand, placed the bloody rag back into my pocket, and staggered off.
I made it out of sight, stumbling down an empty road. I slunk into a corner out of sight and sat down, gulping down air my lungs struggled to process. Slowly, I flashed one, two, and then three hand seals. This made an equally burnt but more functional Shadow Clone, who quickly scooped me up.
My eyes closed and I was no longer awake.
I woke with a pained cough.
"You're fine," my voice assured me, my Shadow Clone placed his hand on my shoulder. "We're back at base. You've been out for an hour. You're alive and functioning, mostly. Got Bonesaw to help with the burns and make sure you could keep breathing on your own, but it'll take a bit to fully heal."
Good. I can handle a bit of discomfort. It's time to take stock. I stood up, wearily exiting the infirmary while my Shadow Clone dispelled behind me, giving me the knowledge that Bonesaw was waiting just outside the door right as I opened it. Well, time to meet her in person.
"Uhh… Hello?" Bonesaw tried to smile. "I'm Bonesaw! Nice to meet you!"
"Hello, Bonesaw. Do you know who I am?" I rasped out.
"Yeah! You're Pain! You're—well, that's a surprise!"
"Is it that Jack Slash wanted to recruit me?"
Bonesaw froze. "You know about that?"
"He tried to recruit me before I killed him."
Bonesaw blinked, uncomprehending. "Are you sure?"
"Absolutely. Not even a brain left. Hit him with enough explosives to leave a crater and a few chunks of him left."
"Oh." Bonesaw furrowed her brow. "So, are you the new leader of the family now? Since you killed Jack and all."
"No. I have my group, after all. I've killed Siberian and Burnscar, too. You're mostly a victim of circumstance, so I was hoping to try and help you adapt to a less psychotic lifestyle."
Her eyes widened, and a sudden grin split across her face. "Is that why you mastered me? It's a little obvious, at least with my experience. Do you want me to join your family!?"
"...Sure," I decided to agree. "I'd be honored if you'd join our family. If you don't have any problem with it, of course."
"Nope!" Bonesaw smiled. "As long as I get to work on art and have a family, I'll be happy! If... Uncle Jack is gone, I'll need a new family!"
"I'd rather you not practice your… art, on living people without their or my consent. Otherwise, I'd love for you to do some biotinkering. I've been given a ringing endorsement from Panacea that 'my biology is fascinating,' and my comrade controls bugs. If you could create some modified insects for her or study me and help me improve my body, I would greatly appreciate it."
Bonesaw beamed up at me. "Ok, big brother! What are you going to do about the rest of the Nine, though?"
"I've got Cherish locked up here, too. Follow me, we're going to go see her."
Bonesaw's faux-innocent smile dropped slightly in my peripheral when she thought I wasn't looking, though Cherish's name distracted her. "Oh, Cherish? So, that's why she didn't warn you. Say, do you have any tests for joining your family?"
"Nope," I paused. "Well, I do have one requirement. If I recruit someone, I prefer people with high-level powers over a plethora of weaker ones. Information security is important, and the less people involved is better, so the more effective our members have to be to compensate. Congratulations, you're the first S-class threat in the Akatsuki! My powers can continue to grow stronger and more versatile, so eventually I'll be on that level. Taylor's here because I trust her and she's an incredibly effective spy. Oh—Shit, forgot to tell you about our other member."
"Hive is named Taylor, huh?" Bonesaw considered. "Oh, and no swearing! Don't you know that's bad!"
"My apologies. And yes."
"Is she a big sister or an auntie?" Bonesaw asked curiously.
I paused. "I'm not sure. Probably a big sister or cousin. I'll be honest with you, I'm not sure how she's going to take having you on board, much less the family aspect."
"Hmm… It doesn't matter! I'll win her over eventually! I always do!" Bonesaw smiled sinisterly. "So do you go by your real names or your other names?"
"Either one," I shrugged. "Usually real in private, fake in public. I'm Indra, by the way, if you prefer real names."
Bonesaw followed behind me. I listened to her mutter under her breath. "Big brother Indra or big brother Pain? Which sounds better? Does he like one or the other more? Hive will probably want to be called Hive until she likes me…"
We arrived at Cherish's room. She still slept, kept under the control of my Genjutsu. I turned her head to look into my eyes, reaching out with my Sharingan and dispelling my hold over the woman. Her eyes fluttered and her vision focused.
She immediately backed away from me. "What do you want?" She immediately demanded once she hit the wall.
"You're Cherish. One of Heartbreaker's kids." I glared at her. "I don't suppose you'd be in town looking for one of your siblings?"
"How—"
"I know many things." I hit her with fear, forcing her to shrink in terror. "Particularly, I know that your brother has been a decent friend and an excellent help to me in utilizing my powers."
"What do you want from me?" She repeated, impressively coherent.
I waited for a moment. "I think I'll let your brother decide what will happen to you."
I put her back to sleep, and then I flashed through the hand seals for the Shadow Clone jutsu. A clone popped into existence and grabbed Cherish, taking her off to Lisa's place. Bonesaw looked on in amazement.
"You can make clones? That's so cool! I wanted to grab Oni Lee for that, but you already gave him to the PRT!" Bonesaw pouted. "What else can you do? I bet you can do a lot... If you're so confident that you could kill Uncle Jack."
"I'm afraid I can't tell you everything, but I can tell you some. The things you'll be most interested in are my eyes and bioenergy system, I'll let you run some tests later."
The small blonde looked genuinely interested in the idea, excited to look into some cool new biology. She seems easy enough to get along with. Just be nice, don't curse, play the family angle, and feed her nerdy biology habits. I can manage that.
A door hissed open, not of my action. I turned my head, spotting Taylor, still in costume and followed by a horde of insects she shunted her emotions to, entering the same hallway Bonesaw and I walked down.
"Hello, Hive!" Bonesaw cheerfully waved. "I'm Bonesaw! It's nice to meet you! Big Brother Pain invited me to join your group! I'd love to help make cool new bugs for you!"
Taylor froze, staring at Bonesaw. Her swarm began to buzz around randomly, Taylor offloading a great deal of bafflement. Then, she turned to me.
"We ate Shatterbird. She was distracted while fighting Stormtiger. I'm going to bed now."
Taylor shuffled off silently to her room. Hm. Maybe I should consider the consequences of my eye-based plans more thoroughly.
"I think that went well!" Bonesaw cheered, optimistic.
"Something like that," I agreed. "Now come on, lil sis. This is my message to all beings of flesh: eat, sleep, and stay hydrated."
"Wise words," Bonesaw nodded sagely. "Although, I can make the 'need for sleep' thingy for people go away. Well, mostly. The last person I completely removed sleep from started eating people and screaming incoherently after a few weeks. I'd probably need to implement a noctis cape Gemma or make some auto-resting functions in the brain to make it stable."
"Hm," I grunted at the imagery she provided, as a few remaining insects squirmed. "Might refrain from mentioning previous human experimentation around Taylor. It's not exactly good for the new leaf angle I'm trying to go for."
"Ok! I've got some good ideas for her. Hopefully, that'll cheer her up! Hear me out: Spiders that give you spider powers when they bite you!"
I paused. "Go on..."
"Yeah! Like extra arms, a web butt, and more eyes!"
"...How about we refine that idea a bit?" And by refining, I meant moving away from the idea entirely. What the hell have I signed up for?
Interlude - Cauldron
"The Siberian and Jack Slash are dead," Contessa informed Doctor Mother, The Number Man, Eidolon, and Alexandria.
"You handed out the notes, didn't you?" Eidolon asked.
"I did," Contessa nodded. "All Cauldron-associated capes were warned. I believe you already know the person responsible, and are trying to avoid sounding like you may have been incorrect in your assessment."
Eidolon glared.
Alexandria sighed. "So Pain's turned out to be a loose cannon after all?"
"Indeed," Contessa confirmed. "The PRT received a report from Panacea that Bonesaw had shown up in her home to give her an invitation to the Nine. Midway through the confrontation, Pain busted through. She then described him kicking Bonesaw into a wall and mastering her to pacify and remove all biological alterations from the girl, backflipped over the Bonesaw creations that tried to attack him, conjured a pair of, and I quote, "green, transparent, fucking goth-magical-mermaid-ass, giant skeleton arms," and used them to crush all three opponents with a clap, before running away with Bonesaw without a word."
"What?" Doctor Mother concisely and tersely responded.
"That is Panacea's report. Here's the transcript of the phone call," Contessa responded, handing out the paper in question. "Upon receiving that report I began to search through the surveillance network I've established, finding identifying Pain's movement through the city and tracking him. I arrived on the scene as Jack Slash was struck by a throwing knife that subsequently detonated."
"Detonated?" Alexandria asked curiously.
Number Man interjected. "Based on the footage, I'd estimate it to be equivalent to eighteen kilograms of TNT, allowing for fluctuations between a single digit. Best I can do with the footage I have, the only worthwhile portion was shot from a distance. Oh, and please note that the explosions originated from the paper strips resembling a stylized Japanese talisman, not the knife itself."
"Indeed. The Siberian and Burnscar followed after him. I ceased attempting to tail him in person after that, as now he was already on guard and I could not guarantee preventing any further interference. Due to the public and open nature of the location the confrontation took place in, obtaining a recording of the fight was simple."
Contessa grabbed a remote from the meeting table, turned the TV on, and pressed the play button in three swift movements. The video began.
"Where's Burnscar?" Doctor Mother asked.
"She'll show up in a moment."
Alexandria blinked as the van was punched by the Susanoo, destroying The Siberian. "Manton was in there? How did he know that?"
"Contessa and I suspect he can detect parahumans with his eyes, considering he recognized Jack Slash from behind," The Number Man informed. "Extrapolating from this would be that he has some method to trace a projection."
The whirlpool clashed with the inferno.
"He's a water manipulator on par with Burnscar?" Eidolon frowned, hints of jealousy radiating from him. "What can't he do?"
The full skeletal Susanoo erupted after the whirlpool was destroyed by the flames. Eidolon sulked. Pain killed Burnscar, fell to his knees, and the video ended.
"He's not on par with Burnscar," Contessa disagreed. "He had to put more effort into his conjured skeleton to survive, an act that seemed to cause him an intense amount of fatigue and sudden hyphema. However, you are right. He has an unusual amount of abilities and an unusual amount of power."
"We have a working theory on his power from the information we have at our disposal. That is why we invited you to this meeting. We tested this theory against Contessa's simulation of Pain and it came up as a very possible theory. Firstly, Pain is a self-proclaimed supernatural ninja, perhaps explaining the Japanese iconography such as the tomoe in his eyes and the stylized kanji on his explosive talismans, as well as his precognition blindspot and Master abilities being very stealth-focused," Number Man explained in detail.
"Regardless, it is clear that whatever power it is, it grows. I say we reclassify Pain as a high-tier trump capable of gaining a wide variety of ninja-themed abilities. That may not be a perfectly accurate assessment, but that's the projection his power most closely matches. If we consider a second trigger during Leviathan's attack, it was likely an increase in how fast he can grow his power, as well as granting a projection. The projection seems to have some connection to whatever Agent Leviathan has, considering the appearance and visual theme.".
His strength, speed, and prediction capabilities have grown since the Leviathan footage, his Master abilities grew from capturing Hookwolf to capturing an entire crowd, his skeleton projection grew in the middle of the fight, and I expect we will see his power over water and explosives grow stronger in the future."
"A powerful Trump blindspot," Alexandria muttered. "Is this another expression of the same power Eidolon has?"
"Perhaps," Doctor Mother considered. "I don't know if natural triggers are truly comparable to Cauldron Vials, but something like that is often seen in vials with matching formulae. He doesn't seem to have the ability to switch out powers, though, only gaining new ones."
"I wonder if he has the same disadvantage," Eidolon frowned.
"Perhaps, though he seems to show no sign of slowing down. Perhaps he has found a counter," Number Man theorized, drawing a slightly greedy look from Eidolon.
Doctor Mother interjected, "Kurt, stop trying to sneak in a better case for your client."
"I apologize," The Number Man nodded. "I contacted him about assisting him in claiming the bounties for The Nine earlier, which he accepted. I couldn't help myself."
Alexandria rolled her eyes. "That brings us to the most important question: what are we going to do? I'm willing to go with the Trump theory."
Doctor Mother stroked her chin. "First, how has Jack's death impacted the fate of the world?"
"It's stabilized between twenty and thirty years, no longer going down into the single digits," Contessa responded.
Alexandria sighed. "Damn. The Jack Slash plan fell through, but that just means we're in for the long haul. The other pressing matter is that he captured Bonesaw, correct?"
"Correct," Contessa responded. "His intentions aren't completely unknown, I suspect he'll utilize her to augment himself."
Doctor Mother frowned. "Bonesaw is an unstoppable plague waiting to happen, and we can't guarantee that she won't do so with a blindspot preventing her from being monitored."
"I agree," Contessa smoothly spoke, "I propose we bring them under our thumb, directly or indirectly. They've hidden themselves where precognitives can't track, so we need to draw them out. Their group has already developed tension with the local PRT. We exacerbate that conflict and use it to draw them out, at the very least for more information."
The table all nodded. Alexandria's phone suddenly buzzed.
"It's Legend, an emergency call," Alexandria frowned, answering the call and placing it on speaker phone. "What is it?"
"S-class threat," Legend coughed out with a strained voice. "New York. Evil clones of me."
"On it." Alexandra hung up. "Contessa, Path to Victory this. Minimize the information leak."
Interlude - Parahumans Online
Welcome to the Parahumans Online message boards.
You are currently logged in, Akatsuki
You are viewing:
• Threads you have followed
• Thread OP is displayed.
• Ten posts per page
• Threads and private messages are ordered chronologically.
You have no infractions and no warnings.
Topic: Slaughterhouse Nine in Brockton Bay
In: Boards ► News ► Events ►America
Bagrat (Original Poster) (Veteran Member) (The Guy in the Know):
It seems like God looked down on Brockton Bay and decided their faith in him has yet to be tested enough.
Pain of Akatsuki has captured Bonesaw and killed Jack Slash, The Siberian, and Burnscar. The other member of Akatsuki, Hive, interfered in a massive fight between gales of wind and clouds of glass between Stormclaw and The Siberian near civilians by sending more bugs than I've ever seen in one place to pick her to the bone, killing her.
As for Pain, I have some videos of the fight between The Siberian and Burnscar right here: [Link] [Link] [Link]. Be warned, gore. Obviously. If you're wondering how he beat Jack Slash, just imagine the Burnscar finisher times ten during his evil monologue. I'm told he's already accepted the bounties for them.
Crawler tore through ABB territory a few hours later, terrorizing people until he got into a fight with a pre-transformed Lung. No footage due to the widespread damage, but reports say Lung tore Crawler apart, growing faster than Crawler could evolve until he hit his maximum and Crawler kept regenerating.
After a while and because Lung only has a few ways to attack, Crawler's fire immunity, physical resistance, speed, and damage output eventually became enough to completely outmatch him. Lung flew away with his giant dragon wings, and Crawler is still going through the city with some significant evolutionary buffs.
The Empire, one of the local Neo-Nazi gangs, has chosen to collaborate with the PRT under the recently announced leadership of Purity. Containment efforts are underway and the PRT claims to have a plan to counter this situation.
Mannequin went after Armsmaster before any of that happened, and the former Tinker Jesus struck down Tinker Satan. No details have been revealed, unfortunately. Tinkers will be free from the specter of Sphere from now on, at least.
And… The Slaughterhouse Nine are essentially gone. I don't know what to tell you. That's all I got.
AllSeeingEye (The Gal in the Know):
Armsmaster has heavily modified himself with an unrevealed cybernetics second trigger. Killed him with his bare hands. Video is on my site.
PRT has been keeping it quiet because it makes Armsmaster an even heavier hitter.
Bagrat (Original Poster) (Veteran Member) (The Guy in the Know):
Still trying to one-up me, huh?
Big Mike:
Who got the skeleoton
Peenor:
rest in piss S9
suck my hairy balls
vomit_mouse:
Just gone like that? Crawler's still alive ig but damn. What do they put in the water there?
DuckyPoPo:
Lol nvm fucking Miss Militia killed Crawler with leftover tinker bombs from Bakuda
Comfy_In_Yellow:
Today is an incredible day for the vs. battle thread. Today we discovered that Pain was sandbagging this whole fucking time and Miss Militia beat Crawler, who beat Lung. Gonna have to make a whole new category for 'Miss Militia with Bakuda Bombs' for the matchups.
PissDiamond:
and now we've got another S-class threat hitting New York
what the hell is wrong with today?
someone said they saw a bunch of copies of Legend in shitty Nazi outfits
XxVoid_CowboyxX:
Craziest place on earth. Only a matter of time until Pain starts going around mind-controlling people while smacking them with his giant skeleton arms. At least he got rid of the 9
End of Page: 1
Welcome to the Parahumans Online message boards.
You are currently logged in, SpecificProtagonist
You are viewing:
• Threads you have followed
• Thread OP is displayed.
• Ten posts per page
• Threads and private messages are ordered chronologically.
You have no infractions and no warnings.
Topic: The Jack Slashfic
Boards ► Fiction ► Cape Fiction ► NSFW Cape Fanfiction
SpecificProtagonist:
In memory of potentially the worst man alive, a shitty slashfic to send him to hell. Featuring 'Pain'al and other things Jack Slash deserved. [Link].
SlipperySloppery:
I think Pain tearing Jack apart with his massive skeleton dong is the best way to explain his death
StopNDrop:
Mmmm two evil bad boys. If anyone deserves an unexpected whirlpool enema, it's Jack Slash.
Insight_Outsight:
What a terrible day for eyes to exist. Or in Jack's case, to no longer exist, post-penetraion.
wicked_fly_bunt:
For some reason, the petplay was weird for me. I know he can body control people but that felt weird. Must be all the irl Heartbreaker stories coming up in the news lately
Winged_One:
Add a clone gangbang. Could potentially be canonically accurate.
BallsSlapped:
Mmm overstimulation of pleasure and pain. Haven't seen that before. Pain would be a crazy fuck.
Slommy:
SpecificProtagonist displaying her blatant mind control fetish once again. The castration part was weird, please never cook again
Smashed_Mouth:
plz do one but shatterbrid plz
Hot_Pocket_Pocket_Pussy:
You people know he visits this website right?
End of Page: 1
A/N: I love reviews!