Azure vs Black
[ACSRT: Now, Let The Experiment Begin]
The man, the scientist with an artificial ability, stepped forward.
"Yes, I can feel it. My senses sharpening to fine points."
Yumiya looked terrified for a moment but she stood firm as the man continued.
"In our pursuit of a divine miracle, we discovered that all miracles are brought about by human hands. The human will can surpass gods."
With his comment done, his eyes opened wide and the room once again filled with his "black" lightning.
He made his declaration, his challenge.
"Yuuri Senya is up above. If you wish to save her, prove your will is worthy of being called a miracle."
Even as Hokaze got ready to fight, GV raised his hand "Let me deal with this. You two can go on ahead to get your friend."
Hokaze shook her head though "This is my burden. If I hadn't-"
"That doesn't matter." GV cut her words short "What matters is now. You'll get to your friend faster if I stay here."
With a moment of pause, Hokaze ran off. Yumiya quickly followed after her.
The man did nothing to try and stop them as they passed him. He was only looking at GV.
"She won't be able to get over it." The man said once they were out of earshot "Not like that. Not with what is just 'the smartest option'. The guilt will continue to eat at her."
GV tilted his head "So? She has friends. Let them soothe her pain. You don't need to fight to make up for past mistakes."
He had joined QUILL to repay Asimov. He had saved Joule from Sumeragi because he had been saved. He had gone to save Joule when she was kidnapped by Sumeragi because she was his friend and like a sister to him.
GV was not burdened with guilt. And he didn't think anyone needed to be. The mistakes you made were made. The question became "What are you going to do now?"
He didn't know what Hokaze had done and he didn't care. She had made the choice to rescue a friend and as far as he knew, none of that was about guilt.
"She doesn't need to fight you." he concluded.
The scientist nodded and the lightning burned around him.
"Then let's do this boy. Dispel the darkness with your will and create a miracle!"
"Naturally, those such thing won't really be a miracle to me! Oversurge!"
[ASG1: Phosphorescent Hysteria]
"Azure striker! Break apart this dark reflection in a flash of lightning!"
The man sprung towards him, lightning crackling as he threw a punch.
GV dodged back and pulled out his pistol. He only had nine bullets that he'd properly prepared with his hair. He wasn't even sure if that would work in this state though.
The man was fast, as fast as the strongest adepts he'd fought in the past. This was his Black Tuxedo, his power that allowed him to push his body to the absolute limit.
As Gunvolt pulled the trigger, the man simply stepped out of the way.
Even though the gun was mere inches from the man's body, he could dodge its bullets.
No point in it then. He could have holstered it but that would take too much time. GV dodged away again, stepping off air to get a moment of peace as he tossed the gun away and replaced it with one of his knives in each hand.
His hairs were stuck to it, if he got a clean hit it would still tag him.
And even then the scientist was faster. The only opening GV could see was a moment before each attack. Only he couldn't exploit it. The man's attacks could ignore his prevasion and getting hit in anywhere vital would put him down.
He'd just have to hold out for now. He had a way to close this gap but Lumen would need to get here first.
And so they danced. The man closing in and GV dodging and trying to land a hit with the knives as he did so.
As they fought around the room though, GV had an idea. An attack against a wider area. It would even give him the opening to land a proper tag on him.
"Lightning that flickers, Like a star, and purges all, That violate its realm!"
Electricity burned the air. He gathered it all into one spot: The air directly around himself.
He dashed towads the scientist as he let off the skill.
"Astrasphere!"
The blast of lightning caught the scientist but the man's own abilities allowed him to soften the blow. Even so, it forced him to be still.
GV moved through the field he had created.
"You're wide open!"
The knife found the man's side and GV felt the connection. A way past his electrical powers.
But he was tired having just unleashed Astrasphere, he couldn't just go all out again!
"Let this joyous song, Ring forth as a dragon's roar, And grant the spark's gift!"
He had been practicing though. A way to convert his "skill stamina" into energy for him to throw around.
"Septimal Surge!"
Power flooded him and he drove all of that power into the scientist through the knife still in his side.
The power broke apart the man's dark lightning and he let out a scream.
And then-
The man fell to his knees.
[ACSRT: Little by Little]
GV breathed, power flooding out of his legs and into the ground. A skill untested in combat being used for-
His legs gave out too and he stumbled. He caught himself as he fell on a wall.
The dark lightning had entirely vanished by now, fading away back into the ether.
"That was fast." The man muttered from his place on the floor "Your power prevented Black Tuxedo from being able to heal me."
"Lightning isn't good at dealing with itself." GV remarked as he let himself slide down the wall "Had your ability dealt more with directly controlling it, what I just did would have been worse than useless."
"True." The man remarked "If I may ask- no, it's not important."
"What... is this?" Standing at one of the other doors was a girl in a school uniform. GV didn't think he had ever seen her before.
The scientist glanced back at him in that moment "If you don't mind, could I ask a favour?"
"What?" GV asked. He bore the man no real ill will. Not now that he'd given up.
"Can you get us," he refered to the girl "away from here?"
End of chapter.
And here we are, the final chapter of Astral Buddy. And yes, GV has now stolen Sogiita's role in a plot for a second time.
We only need to wrap this up and then we can get back onto the main bits of the poker card arc.
Also, we're nearly at the 200th chapter.