As always, a big thank you to All Men of Mountain for translating the chapter. I'm still looking for a beta reader, so as always, I apologize in advance for any issues that may arise with pronouns and maybe some grammatical issues.
GNR-000 GN Sefer.
It is a drone commanded by Jarvis or Veda as the case may be, predecessor of the GNR-001 still in the final stages of its development, and in the future of the GNR-010 O-Riser, created for the sole purpose of supporting Gundams on earth and in the future, with luck, also in space when and if needed.
Powered by GN Condensers, GN Sefer consists of four parts: Pod GN (removable or movable drone head for easy attachment to the assigned unit), the Central Block (the body unit), and two pairs of GN-Bits much larger than those mounted on the various generations of Astrea, the size of shields that look almost like wings. It basically mounts weapons powered by GN particles and has its own propulsion system, which when mounted on a Gundam improves and stabilizes its aerial performance.
After the creation of the first two GN-drives (Astrea F1/2 and command core), I tried to recreate the Twin drive system as well, partly with the help of the damaged data from Aeolia that Veda had taken back following the installation of the new system, allowing me and other Celestial Being engineers to test it on the GNY-004 Gundam Pluton. The failure of that test nearly destroyed Pluton, so I had decided to fall back temporarily on outside help, repurposing one of the eight Sefer to use a GN-drive instead of a GN-condenser, equipping it with a GN Drive control system to ensure a stable supply of GN particles from two GN-Drives when engaging with a Gundam, stabilizing the two furnaces.
Now, the fact that I was able to do this so far in advance will certainly benefit in the future, but I currently do not have an armor that can handle two GN-drives. The amount of power that would go through the GN-power lines would melt them down to their current state; therefore, the only thing I can use the Twine drive system for is to recharge the main furnace after the trans-am to avoid the temporary drop in performance and the Sefer Sword, the equivalent of the Raiser Sword, since the huge cluster of particles does not go through the Astrea but through the outer drive.
"More toys? You really don't know when to give up, do you?"
I ignored All for One's teasing when the unit arrived just a minute after my order, automatically attaching itself to Astrea F2's back. I did not respond and launched myself directly at him without wasting any time.
The criminal's condescending smirk fades slightly when he sees the sudden spike in speed and fires again with the air cannon without hesitation, which I smoothly avoid by passing underneath it, and entering his personal space by swinging the proto-Buster sword to tear him to pieces.
"Wha-?!"
It wasn't exactly a surprise that even so All for One was able to handle the sudden increase in performance, what shocked me was that he responding with a broadsword, actually hurled me away, almost causing me to crash into the ground below us.
"Did you really think that only some of the quirks received a spike in enhancement? Even the physical ones are no exception," gloats All for One, before charging in with the sword. I send more particles to the GN power lines and intercept the incoming blow, but once again, I am slowly pushed back. I grit my teeth when the energy used is not enough, but I am not in time to do anything else as I get kicked away "You're slow!"
All for one fires another blast from the air cannon, but a quick thrust of the thrusters allows me to easily avoid it.
"Trans-am!"
The Astrea glows red, and this time I hurl myself at him at full speed, breaking even the sound barrier, taking him by surprise. We were only a little over a hundred meters apart, so he barely made it in time to dodge when the blade of my sword leaves a big gash in his chest, just enough to keep him from getting cut in half.
"Why you-!"
He tries to shoot at me again, but with another burst I fly away quickly, enough to get almost behind him before All for One turns around again alarmed. I half interrupt my action to move in behind him again, but not having time to charge the air cannon, dozens of spikes extend from his arm, jagged, pointed tendrils that emit that pesky radiation, forcing me to interrupt my charge a second time because unfortunately they would go past the GN field of the Astrea and pierce the frame as I inside.
I again move behind All for One, and he again reacts by anticipating me and firing the air cannon for the umpteenth time. To give me no room to move, he also again stretches out a sharp pile of things in the possible directions I could have avoided; so rather than break off the assault I continue the charge, zig-zagging away from all incoming hazards that hit the air or residual images I leave behind.
I manage to move to his right side and strike, slicing through his limb and sinking my sword into his side. Before I could finish the movement, black tendrils peeked out from the severed bone and reconnected with the severed arm, before a distress signal sounded in my interface when there was a dangerous surge of energy from All for One's right arm, forcing me to stop what I was doing.
"Koujin!"
Pointing his severed arm at me, I don't know what mixture of quirk he intended to strike with this time, but I wasted no time in getting out of the way.
The flash of light, followed by a very violent explosion more than strong enough to destroy a medium-sized city shakes the empty and desolate area around us.
With even that attack failed, All for One turns toward me, but I hit him in the chest with a GN Burst, despite trying to defend himself, causing him to crash to the ground with several burns from the high heat in addition to a new large gash starting from his right shoulder and reaching his left hip.
I switch my weapon from sword to rifle, while the bit-staves that had detached from the armor in the process attach themselves to my weapon, glowing red in turn.
"Die," I say coldly.
A great pillar of pinkish light shone in the night and crashed down on All for One, piercing the earth as I pushed all the GN particles the power lines could bear from the furnace to the handle from the proto-buster sword, in addition to all those already carried by the bit-staves. The Prot-Buster sword's anti-fortress attack fell relentlessly on my enemy until I had to stop to avoid damaging the Astrea with the excessive internal heat. It was literally the last thing I needed if All for One survives this.
Everything happened in less than a minute.
I open some of the air vents of the outer armor to dissipate heat as the trans-am goes off, in an attempt to cool the power lines faster, without taking my eyes off the hole I had left in the ground, the bottom of which I could not see. Because of the immense heat, the lowering dust and at the depth, I could not tell exactly whether the organic presence on the bottom was alive or dead, since it was not moving for the moment. I preferred to make the most of even the few seconds I had between lulls, since I had no certainty in how soon the next possibility would present itself to me, even if only briefly.
"35%? Of course it's wasteful..." I mutter to myself, seeing how for the first time since the raid began the main furnace's energy had actually dropped. Until sefer replenished it you mean.
The drones detached themselves from my weapon to return to their footholds on Astrea and recharge, having used almost all their range to give my last attack an extra charge.
It didn't matter either way, since All for One didn't seem to have the intention of getting me back on camera.
A blue laser that I quickly recognized as a 'navel laser,' definitely much more powerful than the traitor of the future 1-A could even dream of equaling, flies toward me surely enhanced with various amplification quirks, also supported during launch by various physical enhancements to cancel or mitigate the recoil and achieve maximum firepower.
He would surely have instantly vaporized a high-class devil with that, most likely significantly debilitated even a supreme-class one, which in itself would be impressive if the user were not All for one.
Was he trying to overheat Astrea?
I raised the proto-buster sword above my head as I brought its sharpness to maximum with GN particles, then lowered the blade, cutting the blue stream coming from below in half.
A dark humanoid blob tried to slip away using the dust around the area from which the laser came out, but I didn't give him the chance. Reactivating the Trans-am I launched myself at him as fast as I could, zeroing the distance between us in just a little over a second.
I crashed into him at such a speed that I forced him out of his cover, revealing his body. He is practically charred. The heat melted skin and several muscles, even going so far as to scorch his bones, which in some cases like his jaw or the right side of his skull were now practically visible and blackened, even though he was regenerating somewhat slowly. He had even regrown the arm that I had cut off earlier, although it was not fully formed, or at any rate was heavily compromised by the anti-strength attack.
He still managed to parry my broadsword with his deformed, organic blades, while preparing a second one with surely the intent to counterattack now that I am in range. Not that I let him have the chance.
I let go of the grip of my weapon with my left hand and pulled a GN beam saber from Astrea's belt, using it to stab the only eye that was left to All for One, blinding him again. He had managed to move his head to prevent me from piercing his skull, but he still made a choked sound from his throat still not fully reformed from the pain. Not enough to stop him since as in his previous condition he has several quirks to compensate for the lack of vision among other things, enhanced by the serum he had injected himself with, it still gave me that instant to inflict more damage in his vulnerable state.
I broke the stalemate, cutting off part of his right arm with the proto-buster sword, turn on myself to move to the side to avoid a counterattack with All for One's other weapon and build momentum of my own, cutting off his other deformed limb as well. Next, I hit him in the solar plexus with enough force to break his unhealed ribs, sending him flying and crashing into the ground.
But I didn't give him a break.
Sheathing my lightsaber again, I launched myself at All for One, who had hurried to get back on his feet after smashing to the ground, but by then I was on him, hitting him with a second kick to the temple to stun him.
He is thrown off again, but once again, I chased after him and avoiding the blow from his air cannon with questionable aim because of the head injury, I moved behind him and with a slash the blade of my broadsword embeds on his back, striking his spine.
Hundreds of spikes, studs and black tendrils erupt from his body emitting the annoying anti-metal radiation forcing me to stop my attack and move away, lest he use me as a pincushion.
"As if I would give you time to recover!" I growl, as the proto-buster sword is swallowed up again by GN particles.
All for One gets covered in several layers of...organic stuff, as if it were a multi-layered cocoon more like a vault, but it didn't matter. I hit him with a full-power GN Burst blast destroying whatever gets between me and him, managing to open a gash in the blob of flesh.
Japan's oldest criminal stares in my direction, still with empty eye sockets, as I hurl myself at him with sword in hand ready to strike him and emits a choked sound full of frustration and anger as he tries to shoot at me with his air cannon in an attempt to push me away, unsuccessfully because my still particle-laden GN weapon cuts smoothly through it. He still tries to impale me with Ruvet Stab but I grab the sharp, jagged tendrils pointing at vital areas and tear them off, ignoring all the remnants that pass through the Astrea's thin layer of GN field, leaving scratches dug into the outer adamantium plating, though not to reach the frame.
I stab him in the stomach with the proto-buster sword and release a second GN burst that allows me to break through All for One's defensive cocoon from the inside out and maim him further. We end up coming out like a bullet from the barrel of a rifle, shot outward at great speed.
I throw the now unrecognizable body of All for One, practically reduced to a pile of almost shapeless, charred flesh against the ground. The lower part of his body had been reduced from the navel in already to a pile of chopped and blackened flesh.
I turn off the trans-am again and cautiously watch the terrified enemy with distrust, ready to react to whatever he might suddenly bring up.
Not that I had had to wait long.
The body of All for One is engulfed in flames for a few moments, from which then dozens of tendrils come out again and try to impale me.
I shrugged and watched impassively as the body of Japan's oldest criminal had completely reformed, without a single scar.
"You...are much more annoying than I had originally thought," says All for one in a deadly calm voice, though it is evident that he is seething inside at the humiliating defeat avoided only by a phoenix tear that he kept hidden who knows where.
"I could say the same about you" equally annoyed by the persistence of the parasite in front of my eyes. I grip the hilt of the proto-buster sword tighter as it is engulfed by GN particles.
All for One grits his teeth as the veins on his body contract and then ... explodes.
"SMASH!"
All Might's fist collides with the corrupt giant's face, burying his body in half in the ground of the devastated city that was once Sagamihara.
Unfortunately, having wasted time arguing with Tsukauchi and Jack, Gigantomachia had managed to get rid of any kind of resistance, practically leveling even the city beneath their feet. He could still sense a certain amount of life force, but it was an extremely small number compared to what should be there considering the size of Sagamihara. He had seen from a distance as he rushed to the spot the last of the heroes' resistance fall with Ryukyu, Best Jeanist, Edge Shot, and Mirko, but by then it was already late. There was literally no one left to fight the mad giant. It was also hard to find a building that had not been affected in one way or another by collateral damage.
Even so, he was almost tempted to turn back halfway.
He had felt the huge spike in power and the appearance of something so wrong that it made his skin crawl even from miles away. It was not stable, but All for One had suddenly become much stronger than its previous peak. The only reason it didn't was the second peak, smaller than the first, that had been there in Sagamihara.
He had to trust that Jack would survive long enough for him to get to him, because if Gigantomachia comes from All for One, All Might is not sure he can face them together, not anymore. He had to hurry and hope that his godson would stand up to his arch-enemy until he arrived.
The only godsend in that evening's fiasco was that Jack's AIs had sent vehicles and drones to evacuate the survivors as Gigantomachia rampaged before his arrival, so while he dealt with the giant the machines took heroes and civilians away, taking at least some of the thoughts and burdens that would surely have hindered him, making his task much less troublesome and difficult.
Gigantomachia rears back up, her jaw practically crumbling, growling as a blackish muddy liquid pouring from her mouth and wounds set her back on her feet. Greenhouse her as she growls deeper with the red veins on her body pulsing.
"..." the sight of that creature that can no longer even be called 'sentient' or with 'free will' sickens All Might. He is sure that if he still had a stomach he would surely turn it upside down in disgust "Don't worry, I will put you out of your misery as fast as I can."
The blond man could do nothing but feel pity in spite of everything for Gigantomachia, whose body was now completely invaded by the divine curses that had spread through Shizuoka almost twelve years earlier. No one deserved to have his body devoured like that by that...mud, if such a simple term could describe that agglomeration of curses that he could not even count or distinguish.
The maddened beast launches itself again at the peace symbol, which moves much faster than he does, and with one punch mutilates his jaw again, dislodging it completely, and then hits him again in the temple hard enough to bury him halfway in the ground.
With a heavy heart, All Might does not stop his assault and hits Gigantomachia with United State of Smash, crushing his sternum and ribs. The shattered bones and the force of his punch rip his internal organs to shreds, sending geysers of blood flying from the point of impact and from the behemoth's mouth, which emits a choked scream due to the crimson liquid that clogged his airways and pressurized out of what remained of his mouth.
The body of All For One's most loyal follower is shaken by spasms as the sludge desperately tried to put back together bones and the shredded flesh that was once the heart, lungs, liver, spleen and stomach, causing only agony in the behemoth as its innards were devoured and modified to function under the skin again.
All Might stares with a stone gaze at the body of his enemy being forcibly kept alive as he screams in convulsions caused by the process of recovery and adaptation.
He lowers his bloody fist again with full force on Gigantomachia, shaking the earth like an earthquake because of the enormous power contained in One for All.
Also.
Also.
Also.
He continued to strike as many times as necessary, until Gigantomachia's torn limbs flew to the four winds and he stopped screaming.
Mud clearly could not put back together a body dismembered to the point that it was no longer recognizable even as a 'humanoid.'
The only thing left are the sickening smell of the cursed mud puddle spreading like blood and the silence in the dead city beneath the feet of the symbol of peace.
At least until a chilling howl shakes heaven and earth, making All Might shudder.
Looking in the direction of Yokohama, he sees a hundred-meter-tall behemoth rise from the ground and hit the air, only to be swept away by an equally large lightsaber.
"Shonen!"
I continued to avoid incoming attacks in mid-air at great speed. There was nothing left for me to worry about in the vicinity, and the bounded field erected by Nezu is still intact despite the damage to inflicted on Yokohama; therefore, as long as I keep him busy All for One can't escape, but since his attacks can pass through it anyway I try to direct them into the air.
The bit-staves and GN-bits positioned themselves in front of me to disperse air cannons and laser attacks. All other physical strikes I had to avoid.
I have no idea what the fuck had happened to All for One, but at some point it changed, again. A side effect of the serum being tested? Had using the phoenix tear destabilized his biology in some way? Had Lilith's blood reacted badly to the Phoenix DNA contained in the tear? Had her quirks not adapted as she had hoped? Or had the serum never been stable from the beginning?
The Astrea's sensors picked up the use of demonic power by Japan's oldest criminal, but I couldn't figure out what he used it for during the two hours we fought. Until now, at least. His metamorphosis was triggered when his demonic power got out of control; so perhaps he employed it to stabilize his previous form? If so, when he used the serio, did he not have the confidence that it would work? What the fuck was he thinking? I knew he had long since hit rock bottom with his bullshit, but apparently I had underestimated the lows he could reach...
At one point All for One turned into a kind of formless mass, from which emerged the form of a humanoid torso. On that rotting body infested with curses, there at least a hundred deformed faces, probably belonging to all the victims whose quirks it stole because of the plus alpha element that keeps track of fragments of its users.
Everyone was screaming in agony, although I could not understand anything they were saying amidst the deformed, inhuman screams.
I back away at great speed when it tries to grab me, increasing basic performance with reinforcement instead of trans-am to resist the radiation emitted by that monstrosity.
It seems that all, or at least most, of its quirks are now constantly in use, instead of creating different combinations for each attack. The deformed behemoth then emits that pesky radiation that loosens the bonds of the iron atoms, damaging the Astrea every time it gets close by making the metal soft. I use magecraft to try to prevent the deformation of the molecular structure by strengthening the bonds that are weakened. This allows my armor to remain intact in the presence of the thing if it is not touched, but a direct hit equals instant death.
Even if for some reason I were not killed by the blow I received, I still would not be going to check whether or not Avalon is able to heal the damage it received at the molecular level. I may not have the world's greatest instinct for self-preservation, but even I know there is a limit to recklessness. More or less.
[Complete]
A notice appears on the loading icon of the two furnaces when the loading of the compressed particles is finally finished.
"Trans-am sefer"
The Astrea glows red again, I point the proto-Buster sword and GN-bits reattached to sefer on my back against All for One and fire.
A huge pillar of plasma pierces the earth, passing through the putrefied behemoth. His flesh burns in seconds, vaporizing the arm he had stretched toward me along with his upper torso. I grit my teeth and despite how tense my body was from the recoil despite being dampened by the Gundam's exoskeleton, I lower my aim and the huge blade of plasma comes down with it, burning the giant body down to almost its base.
The particles run out after almost a minute, dispersing my attack and also the trans-am. I watch impassively as the two halves of the behemoth slump. The heat from that attack would have charred even Scathach to the bone, though it wouldn't have been enough to kill her outright, probably destroying a good 60 percent of her body with sheer firepower alone.
If it were not for the overly long charge time compared to the proto-buster sword's anti-strength attack, which requires nearly five minutes of particle condensation, making the Trans-am sefer impossible to use against the warrior queen, once the technology in question was developed more it would have reached the point where it would be sufficient to kill her permanently. It currently has the firepower comparable to Excalibur with eight restrictions removed and a maximum range of just over 500 kilometers.
Yet, from what was left of All For One's body begins to spasm and contract as blob upon blob of flesh form on his remains, which eventually burst releasing strange...blood? Or at least a glowing muddy material as his body rebuilds itself, towering back to earth as if nothing had happened.
The slit that splits his face in half, which perhaps serves as both an airway/mouth and a visual organ judging by the three eyes poking out of it, stares at me and howls loudly enough to sweep away the dust surrounding the crater.
"It sure looks like your appearance finally matches your soul, doesn't it, scum?" I ask indifferently, knowing that no answer would come.
Emitting an inorganic growl, the thing that was once All for One extends its arm and several tendrils fly toward me.
Bit-stave and GN-bit come off my armor and fire, riddling anything that comes near me with bullets.
However, this is a problem. I currently do not have any weapons created by me that are capable of killing him with his regeneration. Does that heap of curses regenerate or is it an unforeseen effect? Honestly, it matters little. I can't use the proto-buster sword's anti-fortress attack repeatedly without melting the GN power lines, while the Seref sword takes too long to fire. Should I rain noble phantasm down on him? Despite the violence of the confrontation there are still suicidal lunatics at high altitude broadcasting live what is happening. Should I interrupt the broadcast or tamper the press helicopters with some breakdown? No, maybe that's a little too extreme.
If I could open my reality marble I could have solved all my problems in no time, but I have no idea how it works or how to summon it, and there are not exactly manuals about it that could help me around. Even Ajuka doesn't have anything close at hand. The closest things she might have on file are records on Dimension Lost or Innovate Clear, but they're not exactly the same thing, and considering that Longino holders are usually affiliated with other factions or keep themselves isolated from the rest of the world made exceptions for those who get involved, I don't think she'll have much to work with anyway.
Making a detour from the hero faction and extracting information from the guy who has dimension lost though is maybe something to do in the future. I will add it to the things to do.
Going back to the previous problem-Excalibur with eight or more restrictions removed? Surely it would also neutralize curses, but I couldn't hide the sacred aura it emanates or the residual one then, and considering how fanatical the church people or angels usually are, needless to say it would give me a whole host of definitely avoidable problems, so better not to use it if possible.
Should I use the proto-buster sword as a kind of broken phantasm? Breaking the vibranium bonds would release such high energy that the anti-fortress attack would look like a faulty firecracker in comparison, but since I can't control what will happen if I do that what will happen to Japan-no, to the rest of Asia? Too risky. Probably most of the continent, if not all of it, would be flattened in seconds.
An explosion of GN Burst erases a good part of the limb trying to grab me, even making me let out a sigh since I couldn't figure out how to stop that thing. There are so many curses accumulated in a body that I cannot distinguish one from the other.
"What a nuisance, I should have been faster and not let him transform-" I move the Bit staves in front of me to deflect the incoming lasers "-No, I should have killed him right away rather than let him pique my curiosity, damn it."
"Shonen!"
I blink as when I hear All Might's voice, but not where it came from, plus the baga feeling that it is far away, like an echo. I glance at the radar as well, but nothing, it just left Sagamihara and if is approaching with dizzying speed.
"Hasn't the medical unit arrived yet? Ryukyu urgently needs treatment!"
"Tsukauchi?" once again, I hear the echo of a familiar voice, but as before, there are no channels open with me inside.
"-Get the evacuated civilians to the base camps! Medical units are already rescuing the first wave-"
This time it was Nezu's turn. I heard the echo from his voice, but as he spoke I was getting a vague idea of where the echo was coming from without even needing to rely on the systems of my armor or Veda. He was to my eye about ten kilometers away from me currently, and as I tried to clarify his location, I was also beginning to feel other presences that I could somehow relate back to the people I interacted with most closely like precisely Ryukyu, Mirko or All Might.
"SHONEN!"
It was the latter's cry that made me gasp and bring me back to reality.
I also heard the Astrea alarms and my instincts screaming, which brought my attention to my peripheral vision. For some reason, hearing those voices completely disconnected me from reality and I didn't even react to the impending danger, although thanks to Scathach's training I sometimes end up reacting to attacks on instinct before I can think of a counteroffensive.
This time, although the giant cursed being was in front of me instead...it's as if I had shut down for a few moments and rebooted only now. Now, All for One's giant limb was swinging in my direction, and All Might, realizing that I was stuck, as soon as it touched the edge of the crater where we were fighting launched itself at full speed toward me.
The fundamental problems here were two: he would not be able to move me in time, getting hit along with me; and without a suit to shield him from radiation he would be dead within minutes, since the touki or my costume were not designed to withstand anti-metal properties that would melt iron into his bones, at the very least.
'...is it happening again?
I...for a moment I could only watch, almost stunned, the whole thing move in slow motion. I could practically see how All Might's body would melt before my eyes if he came closer to me. Currently it was as if he was suspended in midair, with one hand outstretched toward me and the most agitated and desperate expression I had seen him make since I had known him.
Would my distraction really have killed someone dear to me again? Just as I had failed to notice Shizuku's illness? Despite everything I had built, resources and all the preparations I had made over the years would it end like this? Again!
'Move...move!' I sent the impulse to activate the trans-am, but it was too late. The arm, slow yet too fast, was coming up behind the peace symbol. I tried, in spite of everything, to move forward those milliseconds that seemed like seemingly endless hours "MOVE!"
I saw a red flash pass through my eyes as Astrea's biometric scanners suddenly activated.
[TRANS-AM BURST]
Due to the sudden order of a system that I had never put my hand to in person, and which theoretically was not even supposed to be on the Astrea, the incomplete twin drive system disproportionately increases the production of GN particles, to the point that they quickly begin to overflow from my armor with extreme violence, flooding the surrounding area in seconds with a rainbow light due to the very high density of the particles.
"Gaah!?"
"-"
Like a very violent shock wave, everything around me is swept away. All Might, because of the unknown and unexpected event, is thrown back to the edge of the crater, while All for One falls making the earth shake violently because of its enormous size.
"With this you should be OK, right?"
"!"
Once again, I hear a ghostly voice speaking, but this time I didn't recognize it and it was referring to me specifically. It sounded...childlike? Or rather, extremely young, as if it were the voice of a child despite sounding almost inorganic, but I don't remember ever hearing it in my life.
"First things first. Now you can fight back," he warns me, almost admonishing me for being distracted by his sudden appearance "Do what you have to"
When I blinked, the place I was in had changed. Everything around me was shrouded in a fog so dark and dense that it would be difficult to breathe in, as well as harmful. The place looked like a rotting valley, as if it had been infested with something that had rotted away everything that was once alive, leaving only bones of a variety of different sizes, decaying organisms and a feeling of death permeating the worn air.
Not that I could see much because of the thick fog, but I guess it fits the environment.
"You..."
I turn around and see a man in his forties so pale and worn out that he looked as if he were going to die at any moment, with white hair and familiar red eyes, and I immediately recognize him as All for One post-first transformation, even though his entire body was as if rotting, and he was covered with reddish-black veins that pulsed intermittently, causing him to contract every time it happens.
"Well, is this unexpected? I didn't think you could enter a quirk singularity without owning one," I admit confused by what I was observing. Noticing my surroundings in more detail, I notice that the ground looks like blood mixed with cursed mud, just like the body of the behemoth outside "No, I didn't just enter a singularity...maybe it's the quantum effect? In Aeolia's notes there were speculations about it, but no data that could help me to-"
"ARE YOU MAKING FUN OF ME?" roars All for One, convulsing "DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT YOU HAVE DONE?"
The abomination that can no longer be called 'human' catches my attention again.
"Oh, that's right, you're there too," I say hearing his angry shouting, making him realize how much his presence mattered to me at the moment "Can you just stand there quietly for a while'? I'm thinking."
I look curiously back at myself ignoring it and notice that my body is...spectral, for lack of a better term, made of something very reminiscent of GN particles. I look curiously at my hands, now armorless and almost transparent, then lower my gaze observing my feet with curiosity. The viscous liquid reaching my ankles changed color, taking on a hue similar to GN particles and very slowly, they were beginning to propagate, disintegrating everything they touched.
I tried to touch a kind of rib that seemed to belong to living being at least fifteen meters tall, causing it to disintegrate at my touch when the particles my body is made of come into contact with it.
An agonized cry of outrage comes from All for One, too loud for me to simply ignore it.
"G-GO AWAY, YOU DAMN DEFECTIVE INSECT!"
The old criminal's angry howl is followed by a very violent gust of wind that shakes the whole place, but does not repel me at all for some reason.
"You can't touch me because I'm not physically here? If this is the quantum effect then my consciousness has only been projected here and my body is out there, with no direct connection to this place," I murmur, ignoring All for One's railing.
I almost feel like I'm replaying the moment when Shigaraki/All for One tried to steal One for All the first time from Midoriya, unsuccessfully because of Yoichi and Nana's intervention, only unlike that moment, since I don't have a quirk factor in this place I look like a real ghost, with no ability to interact with my surroundings except for the GN particles that are contaminating the place.
I turn my gaze toward All for One, who was shouting things I don't pay attention to, and watch as dozens of humanoid figures, also contaminated and putrefied to the point of being unrecognizable climb over the secular man, crawling and agonizing toward me, trying to get closer to where the non-pure GN particles were devouring this place, since if not properly treated they have effects similar to a poison that decomposes anything it touches.
"...please..."
"It hurts!"
"Help!"
"...Somebody-!"
"-Liberate us!"
Beyond those were dozens and dozens of voices begging and praying for salvation before my eyes, as All for One began to look around observing the remnants of the quirk factors he stole come forward one after another.
"W-what are you doing?!" stammered slightly astonished I league boss "I had subdued you! I made you my own! I am your master now! You are just remnants that have not even completed the first stage of evolution, stay in your place!"
Everyone has ignored the ranting of Japan's oldest criminal despite the pressure he exudes, in a vain attempt to hold back the stolen quirk factors in an almost desperate manner, but they continue to crawl toward the light.
I step forward, leaving a large patch on the freshly pounded ground consuming the putrid area. I hear All for One gasp. I watch him, seeing all the emotions running like flashes in his eyes. Anger, hatred, outrage, panic, helplessness, pain, frustration, and more.
So I start walking. With each the agony of All for One becomes more and more obvious but when I touch one of the hands reaching toward me?
Screams.
He screams as he slumps to the ground and begins to struggle, agonizing.
So I kept tearing that place apart, tearing it quirk by quirk as GN particles begin to propagate in that desolate place, consuming it from top to bottom.
I blink as I watch the GN particle storm subside, definitely very disoriented by my first conscious out-of-body experience.
Is it even possible to call it that? I don't think there have ever been any reported cases where an individual's consciousness has extended that way and acted that way. Not to my knowledge at least. What the fuck happened to Astrea anyway? The Trans-am Burst is a function related to the Twin drive system, which is still under development though, the current generation of Gundam shouldn't be able to use it, even with an extra GN-drive run by Sefer. Who did that? I would know perfectly well if Miyu or one of the engineers with the credentials to get their hands on my armor had done something. Even if they had tried it secretly, one of my AIs would have told me, especially Veda. there was simply no way someone could do it behind my back, I would have noticed as soon as I connected one of my armors with the Alaya-Vijnana...
Adding to my paranoia (and confusion) is the fact that I can no longer even hear the voice that spoke to me (and perhaps tampered with my armor in some way, or worse, accessed the most confidential information about my projects).
"SHONEN! DO YOU HEAR ME!?"
"I...yes?" I reply, not too sure how to feel at the moment, as I turn in the direction of my guardian at the crater rim.
"Well, then explain to me what the fuck is going on!" yells All Might in my ear "I started hearing screams for a couple of minutes when you started shining, but then everything went silent all of a sudden! What's going on with that armor!? What's your status!?"
"That...will take some time to explain, let's put it off until later, but other than a slight sense of nausea I'm relatively fine...I think," I inform him, returning my focus to my surroundings "Rather, All for One is-"
A very heavy thud draws my attention and I see the cursed behemoth trying and failing to get up. Unlike before, the rotting mass is full of greenish-white cracks and seems to be falling apart.
"That giant is All for One? What happened while I was gone?" asks seriously confused All Might, finally calming down "When that strange phenomenon started that thing also started screaming and convulsing, then it started getting weaker and weaker as the voices disappeared. Even the curses are so muffled that it almost doesn't sound like the monster I sensed from afar anymore."
"GN particles definitely have something to do with it then," I murmur as I fly closer to the edge of the crater that was once Kamino, sending a command to the Bit-staves that break away from the Astrea to join the proto-buster sword in "Trans-am" rifle mode
Several alarms go off when multiple particles run through GN power line and capacitors damaged due to overload due to Trans-am Burst, but I ignored it and fired anyway.
The anti-fortress attack overwhelms All for One, consuming its giant form. The giant plasma blade lights up the night as it opens another small canyon carved into the ground by the intense heat, though it lasts for only fifteen seconds because eventually my armor becomes overloaded and can no longer effectively power the attack.
Several vents open to let out excessive heat along with particles overflowing from the GN power lines, which eventually tear due to the excessive abuse they have been subjected to.
"So it's over?" asks All Might, observing the glowing earth, focusing on a single humanoid body now virtually unrecognizable.
"Apparently," I confirm with a sigh when I detect no more vital signs from the charred body of All for One "It would be really great if nothing else happened now..."
Some sixteen hours after the disastrous battle that shook Japan to its foundations, not only the island of the rising sun but also the rest of the world was still in turmoil over the events that had occurred in the last crazy 24 hours.
Given the internal and external pressure on the HPSC from outside and inside Japan, which by this time could no longer handle (cover-up) anything efficiently, they were eventually forced to release all the facts in detail about what had happened, if only to calm citizens in revolt in every corner of the nation over the lack of immediate answers about the disaster that had just occurred. It didn't help that someone (everyone thinks of Jack, but it had actually been Veda's doing) had leaked sensitive data about it, exposing a battle that had been going on behind the scenes for almost a century now, against a single villan that the HPSC couldn't get rid of despite the under-the-table operations, assassinations, and everything else that had come out in the last few months, which had led to nothing but a very long and mostly unnecessary bloodshed, since All for One was just playing along with them.
Needless to say, by now even the Japanese government itself was being forced to remedy the problems it had tried to sweep under the rug by pretending nothing had happened, and to take serious action because international relations were beginning to suffer.
By now, newspapers, official channels and social media all over the world were talking about nothing else.
A small faction of criminals emerged and attacked UA during the early years retreat for training on quirks.
The heroes accompanied by the Villan League target raided against them, which ended in a bloodbath on the levels of Bloody Valentaine.
The existence of the bioengineered Noumu soldiers and their creator, Kyudai Garaki, was made known along with the data collected on All for One and its most loyal servant, Gigantomachia, who had razed several cities during the clashes, killing hundreds of thousands of people, making no distinction whatsoever.
All Might, during the post-crash press conference held after he finished rescuing the remaining injured, revealed his actual health condition due to the injury he received from All for One years earlier, along with his official retirement and the news that he would be in the next period at UA as a teacher. In the meantime, he would try Jack's experimental therapy to recover.
The absurd firepower of the Astrea type F2 and the light explosion that had knocked out communications in most of Asia for a few hours, as well as the dangerous energy levels emitted during the fight and what other creations the hero-in-training was hiding from the world.
"All the same," grumbles Miyu, turning off the television with an irritated sigh, seeing that on almost every single news channel nothing else was being talked about other than one or more of the topics listed above, complete with all kinds of speculation and theories one more conspiratorial and/or fatalistic than the other.
"Still no news from onii-chan?" asks Kuro from the dining room/living room table of the Kurogane residence, his head resting reefily on books.
Given the absence of Nezu and other professors from school as a result of recent events, UA would be closed for a few days; therefore, the magic trio had nothing to do other than finish the homework they had for the following week or extra training.
"Not yet," replied the magical girl in training, "No update from the teams that conducted the survey. Veda has no news to report either, which is strange in itself..."
The reason for their anxiety is very simple: Jack is missing.
It happened a few hours ago, after he had finished helping with relief efforts. He and All Might had just reunited with Nezu to decide what to do, but a few minutes later he disappeared and Veda lost the Astrea's signal, which should not even be possible since it is connected to the gundams' operating system to offer tactical support and monitor them h24. The only way to lose track is to destroy the controlled unit, but considering what it was made of and who uses it was a tall order for most beings in the world.
Needless to say, searches began immediately, but no one found a shred of a clue as to where he might have ended up. Some speculate that they centered on the remains of the league, others third parties, but there was not even a lead to follow; therefore, Ereser head along with other underground heroes immediately began investigating, while the Celestial Being did research on their own.
[The thing might be worse than we had originally thought, so...] Sapphire began, but at the dirty look her contractor gave her, she did not dare continue, and kept her remarks to herself. Not that she hadn't conveyed the message anyway.
"Is the...the fact that Veda doesn't find it so bad?" asked Illya naively.
"Ugly is rather reductive," Miyu replied biting her lip, frustrated that she could do nothing to find Jack or help him if he was in trouble, again "Because of his use of an advanced quantum communication system, distance is mostly irrelevant to Veda; therefore, even if he was on the other side of the galaxy we could contact him without any problems. Whoever got Jack must have had countermeasures to block him, because he would be able to reach him even in places like the Underworld or the dimensional gate. E-"
"And even if it was something to do with the supernatural, we still don't know who did what and how," Kuro continued without his usual liveliness, scratching his belly annoyed at the visceral feeling that left an uncomfortable pit in his stomach "Shishou inspected the place and the places of the clashes for clues, but even she didn't find anything, and we all know how meticulous she is."
[Sniff...]
Everyone ignored Ruby, who was sobbing in the corner of the room with her face against the wall, still grounded from her outing with Murphy. The only thing she received when she tried to turn around was the equivalent of a dirty look from Sapphire, which made it clear that her presence was not at all welcome at the moment; therefore, she went back to whimpering in her corner mostly in silence.
"W-who would have expected that All Might-san was actually Yagi-san! I would never have made the connection!" in a desperate attempt to lighten the mood a bit and not think the worst, Illya tries to divert attention to something else.
"Mn...indeed, he was able to make his presence unrecognizable even to senjutsu detection," commented Kuro, trying to give his sister some rope, at least to relieve the tension that was eroding her nerves "Even with my natural talent, I couldn't notice anything. Should I ask him to teach me some tricks? Shishou doesn't know much about the subject after all, and a few more skills to use might come in handy in the future, considering how we always end up in strange situations..."
"Yes..." agrees Miyu, clenching her fists on her legs.
She was grateful to her friends for trying to distract her and keep her from thinking too much, but straining her analytical mind could not avoid making assumptions about how everything could go wrong while they knew nothing about Jack's current state or whereabouts. O...whether he was actually still alive to begin with...
An arm encircles Miyu's shoulders, surprising her as she is pulled toward the possessor's side. The younger girl stares at Liz, the silent guardian trying to comfort him, and soon finds himself clutching her as if she were his lifeline, trying desperately not to think of the worst-case scenarios that came to mind.
Soon Illya and Kuro also joined on that couch in search of emotional support.
Sapphire floats above them, in case they need her for any reason, fervently hoping that whatever attacked Jack, the boy in armor would handle it and return to them alive, one way or another, as soon as possible.
Omake
Celestial Being: new constructions: day 1
Uraraka Ochako looked around rather intimidated and nervous sitting on the most comfortable and luxurious couch she had ever seen, waiting for her parents to finish talking with Kurogane Jack and Sumeragi Lee Noriega about the latest things regarding the new buildings to be erected on the land owned by the protégé of All Might. He had been kind enough to let him use his hundred-inch television and whatever else he needed to pass the time in the living room/kitchen, filled with all kinds of state-of-the-art things operated by the house AI because he had no idea where to put his hands. There was even a drone to prepare food for him when needed.
When her parents had sold their business and decided to move to Musutafu for their new job she was shocked. He had always tried to never be pretentious about anything and avoid wastefulness in order to put less of a burden on his parents' tight resources; therefore, learning of their decision to secure him an education and a more affluent life had left a bitter taste in his mouth. Of course, it had then been explained to him that it was not his fault at all, but apparently Celestial Being were gathering staff to build various plants; therefore, they also acquired their business, keeping all the employees with much better working conditions than they had when they were under his parents' management, but it did not change the fact that he still wanted to help them out of that crisis rather than sell.
As an added bonus, they covered in full the costs of moving, her education until graduation if she also chose not to become a hero. Since the head of the organization had apparently learned that she wanted to become a rescue heroine, he also offered to prepare equipment and camps for training, as well as a custom costume and support items for when she entered the hero class.
Was she both flattered and deeply uncomfortable that a possible senpai (unknown but absurdly influential and famous) would invest so much in her casually? Absolutely. But on the flip side, she was even more determined to become a successful heroine to repay her parents' kindness, so she was okay with it and chose to accept all the help offered to do so.
"Hmm? A guest?"
'Wow, she almost looks like a doll...'
Ochako is a straight girl, but she had to admit that the young girl who had just entered the room, if she had been wearing a yukata, could have been the literal description of 'Japanese beauty' for how pretty she is even in a school uniform.
"H-hi, I'm Uraraka Ochako," the brunette stands up and gives a short formal bow.
"Uraraka? Ah, Jack told me that Uraraka Haruto-san and his wife were coming to finalize the details of their arrangement, but I didn't know you were there, too," admits the smaller girl, then takes a small bow herself "My name is Kurogane Miyu. Jack has assigned me to take care of your quirk training and prepare you for the UA entrance exam. Nice to meet you."
"I-the pleasure is mine," replied Uraraka, surprised "Emh...s-sorry to ask, but your last name...?"
"Jack and I live with the same guardian, but I took his last name since I didn't have one," he explains briefly without further details, with a mostly expressionless face "That said, I usually treat quirks together with Jack, but you will be the first case I handle alone. I thank you in advance for your cooperation."
"I...understand, then I'll be under your care" she does a little bow again, now that she knows Miyu is practically her new tutor "Emh...just to know sensei, how old are you?"
"I will be fourteen in July," Miyu informs her without any particular problem, catching Ochako off guard.
"We're the same age!?"
"Yes, maybe even future classmates," Miyu confirms, "By the way, I am the vice-representative of my class. The principal will probably put you in my section since he will also know about your arrival."
"I-the principal? How...?" she asks completely lost.
"He is often in close contact with Jack. Surely he must have asked him to put you in my vicinity to make my job easier" shrugs the magical girl "Don't worry about it too much. They often do favors like that, it's quite normal for them."
'...What exactly have I gotten myself into?" wonders Ochako a little nervously, seeing Miyu's intense gaze as she examines her.
"Since we have time, let's start with counseling," Miyu orders, "We have a lot to discuss."