Chapter 03 - Trinity United
…
Waves lapped against the shore. Gulls cried as they wheeled overhead. His chest rose and fell as he breathed slowly, and deeply.
In … and out.
"SPIRIT GUN!"
Ren sighed as gale-force winds ripped at his clothes, mountains of metal squealing and clanging wildly.
"I swear I used to be good at this," he muttered to himself, trying to find his meditative center over the sound of Yusuke cursing.
"Good at what? Sitting? Yeah, that's a skill to be proud of."
Looking up, he glared balefully at Jolyne, who grinned cheekily at him in response. Director Makima had been good to her word. In what seemed like no time at all, he had been handed a freshly printed ID–with his proper name, he was sad to say–and Jolyne had been set free of the prison. "Remanded into the director's care," he believed they'd put it, not that they'd seen hide nor hair of the redhead since. In the week that had followed, though, he, Jolyne, and Yusuke had met up regularly at the same trash-riddled beach where Yusuke had once been unceremoniously dumped. Being unoccupied and filled with things no one would mind being destroyed, it had seemed an ideal place to work on their quirks in preparation for this mysterious entrance exam to SA.
Of course, some of them were making a bit more headway than others.
"You know, there's a bit more to meditation than just 'sitting'," Ren argued.
"You mean like 'slacking'?"
Her words might have carried more weight if she wasn't lounging on a hammock as she said them, but that was just his personal opinion. Jealousy certainly had nothing to do with it, that was sure.
"Hey, if you have some better advice for how to manifest a Stand, I'm all ears," he retorted.
With a soft thud, she landed in the sand next to him, her glowing blue hammock unraveling into threads that disappeared into one of her fingers. Since coming here, she'd made an astonishing amount of progress in harnessing her own Stand. Apparently, Stands were a bit different from Personas after all in that Stands all had some particular and, in some cases, rather bizarre ability they conferred to their users. In Jolyne's case, she could convert her body mass into threads that she could use for any number of things.
Such as snarking at people from her own personal hammock.
"You know, I'm still a little fuzzy on just why you're so sure you have a Stand," Jolyne admitted, frowning at him curiously.
"It's a family talent," he lied smoothly. Apparently, quirks were strongly genetic, and from what little he'd heard about Jolyne's family, that fact held true for Stands as well. "I guess I'm just gambling on being a late bloomer. If I'm not …"
He didn't need to finish the thought. Without using so many words, Makima had made it fairly clear what would happen to him if he didn't have a power that could be useful to her.
"SPIRIT GUN!"
The distant rumble of mass destruction barely drew their attention.
"Hmmm." She tapped her green-painted lips as she considered him. "Well, if sitting and doing nothing hasn't helped, then I'm not sure whatever could."
"Less sass, more help, please," he begged. "I mean, it's only my life on the line here."
"Yeah, yeah, no need to be such a drama queen," she told him, rather unjustly. "But I'm not sure how much help I'm gonna be. It's not like I was given a manual for this stuff either."
"Yeah, but at least you've done it," Ren countered. "That's gotta give you some kinda insight into what it's like."
"I guess." Her frown spoke of more than a little doubt, but to her credit, she soldiered on. "I think … it comes from the gut."
"The gut," he repeated doubtfully.
"Yeah. You just … gotta feel it, you know?"
"I do not, in fact, know," he informed her. "Could you be a little more specific? Like … at all?"
She scoffed at him. "Boy, you sure don't make it easy to help you, do you?"
"I know. I'm the worst," he admitted dryly. "Your patience with me is greatly appreciated."
"It freaking better be," she replied, her lips twitching in the beginning of an amused smile. "Alright … 'more specific', he says … then I guess … it's all about summoning your 'fuck you!' attitude. That make sense?"
"I … think so?"
"C'mon! You know what I mean," she insisted, crossing her legs and leaning closer to him, an intense look in her eyes. "You gotta summon your fighting spirit! That's what Stands really are, after all."
Right on cue, Stone Ocean materialized behind her, arms folded and glaring down at him imperiously.
"You gotta take whatever bullshit life's heaped on you and just say, 'Fuck you! No more!' You gotta push back even when everything else says you can't, or you shouldn't. You gotta fight it! Fight all of it, and win! That's how you summon a Stand!" Folding her own arms, she smiled proudly at him. "... I think," she added as an afterthought.
"SPIRIT GUN!"
By the distant clamor, it sounded like another mountain of rubbish had collapsed. Rubbing his chin in thought, he looked from Jolyne to her Stand and back, mulling over her words.
Frankly, it all sounded a lot like how he and his friends manifested their Personas in the Metaverse. The only difference was, for them, it was all about rebelling. Rebelling against weakness, or injustice, or whatever else was trying to dominate their destiny and force them down. In fact, it astonished him how similar it sounded to what she described. She focused more on fighting spirit, but in the end, it was all about defying the world around them and finding their own will to stand strong, and free.
"Thanks, Jolyne," he said finally. "That … really helps, actually."
"Oh?" She sounded as surprised as he was, but she recovered faster. "Well, good!" Grinning fiercely, she stood and brushed sand from her pants. "Only one way to prove it, though! C'mon, on your feet and put up your dukes!"
"Ummm," he muttered so very articulately. Jolyne's Stand seemed to be adopting a fighting stance, and after seeing it decimate a junked car with a barrage of machine-gun-like punches, the thought of fighting that thing made cold sweat start trickling down his collar. "Maybe I should just reflect on everything we've said first?"
"Oh, no no no," she rebutted, grin deepening as thread shot out and wrapped around his torso, bodily dragging him to his feet. "I think you've napped enough for one day. Time to learn by doing!"
Gulping heavily, he steadied his feet as she released him from her thread. "Okay, but … can I even hurt her?" Stone Ocean seemed almost to be smirking as her fists clenched. "I mean, don't you need a Stand to be able to interact with another Sta-"
Before he could finish speaking, Jolyne moved, and suddenly, sand and sky seemed to be spinning around him. Breath rushed from him in a mighty "Oof!" as his back hit the ground.
"Now, who said you'd be fighting my Stand?" Jolyne's face appeared over him, smirking down at him in a perfect mirror to her spirit. "Prove you can hang with me, and maybe–maybe!–you'll be worthy to face Stone Ocean." Her Stand's expression conveyed nothing but the greatest doubt.
"Lucky me," he groaned, accepting her hand and letting her help him clamber to his feet. "How did I ever make it before this without such violent frien-"
Once again, she moved before he finished speaking, and as before, his back met sand with a mighty thump.
"Less talking, more fighting," Jolyne demanded, her grin turning smug. "I mean, how many times are you gonna let me put you on your ass? Aren't you gonna get mad and hit back at some point?"
"I'm working on it," he grunted as soon as his breath returned. "I'm just setting up for a surprise 'come from behind' victory."
"Uh-huh," she replied, snorting in amusement.
This time, he wasted no time squaring off against her. No way was he letting her just dump him into the sand again without even fighting bac-
Once more, sand violently greeted his spine.
"Oh, come on!"
"You know, this is starting to feel like bullying," she said, still with her almighty smirk. "If you don't start fighting back, I think I'm gonna have to start taking your lunch money."
"SPIRIT GUUuuu …"
Looking at each other in surprise, they both hurried to the nearest mound of junk, Ren slightly behind her due to the need to recover his breath and his pride first.
Reaching the top, they shielded their eyes from the late afternoon sun as they scanned the chaotic wasteland that was Dagobah Beach.
"There he is," Ren announced, spotting Yusuke lying prone surrounded by smoldering valleys of glassed sand and nearly vaporized refuse.
"Looks like he passed out again," Jolyne noted, watching his chest rise and fall. "He's fine."
"Yeah, that's the word for it," Ren commented dryly. "I'm sure any doctor worth his salt would say the same. 'Oh, he knocked himself out overusing his quirk, you say? For the third time today? Of course he's fine! Just make sure he breathes in deep lungfulls of sand, and if you can mix in a healthy dose of plastic microparticles, why, he'll be right as rain in a jiffy! That'll be 800,000 yen, please.'"
For a long moment, Jolyne just stared at him blankly.
"Has anyone ever told you that you talk too much?"
"Not really, no."
Rolling her eyes, Jolyne began to climb back down. "Alright, c'mon, Chatty. We've still got work to do if you're not gonna just be dead weight in the exam."
"Yeah, but what about Yusuke? He clearly needs our help! Maybe I should just go see to him really quick," Ren countered, speed talking as he began climbing over the peak of the trash mound.
"Yeah, nice try!" Threads wrapped around his legs tightly, making him collapse onto his chest. "C'mon! Back to it!"
"Nooooooo!"
His fingers carved desperate furrows in the refuse, but she heaved him back nonetheless, cackling all the while.
… … …
Baking in the sun on a distant rooftop, a woman sighed and wiped sweat from her brow.
"Waste of my time," she growled, settling back into place. The waiting wasn't the issue. Frankly, patience came hand in hand with her profession. It was that she knew her talents were being wasted here.
Suppressing a start, she fished her vibrating phone out of her pocket, her breathing shifting uncontrollably when she saw who was calling.
"Speak of the devil," she muttered, brushing her hair back and taking a deep breath to settle her nerves before answering.
"Director," she greeted, voice perfectly steady.
"How goes your assignment?"
"As well as can be expected, I guess," she replied, doing her best to keep bitterness from her voice. "Your little trio are green as summer."
"As expected," Director Makima agreed. "Any surprises?"
"Not exactly. The Urameshi kid has a hell of a lot of kick behind his quirk, but he seems to be trying to tone it down. I think. It's a bit hard to say. At the very least, he seems to be managing at least a few shots before collapsing now, anyway."
"Certainly an improvement," Makima replied, a hint of humor in her voice. "And the Joestar?"
"By all accounts, she's the farthest along of the three," she reported. "She looks like she can manifest her Stand consistently, and she seems to be getting a decent handle on the secondary power it's given her."
"No surprise there. There's a great deal of talent in her blood," the director responded. "And the third?"
"Waste of space," she answered immediately. "I don't know what you see in him, but he still doesn't seem to have any kind of quirk. The exam will chew him up and spit him out. If he's lucky."
"Oh? That's rather disappointing," Makima replied, still in her usual cool, even tone. "I suspect he may have a few surprises for us come examination time, but if not, it's no great loss. There's more than one way to serve the greater good of humanity."
"Of course," she responded, ignoring the chill in her blood. "Anything else, Director?"
"Just one," Makima replied. "I want you to know that your efforts here are greatly appreciated. I have no illusions about how frustrating this sort of assignment must be for someone of your caliber, and I'd hate for you to think your talents were being squandered or, worse, taken for granted."
"N-not at all, Director Makima!" Her finger began twirling her hair nervously. "I'm always happy to be under you! I mea- … I …" Taking another deep breath, she forced herself under control with long years of discipline. "That is to say, I'm always honored to be of service to the department."
"And I am delighted to hear it." Was her voice warmer than usual? "I count myself deeply fortunate to have such a loyal and capable agent on my side. Thank you, Lady Nagant."
Swallowing heavily, she forced her voice steady once more. "You're welcome … Miss Makima."
Her hand shook as she tucked her phone away. It shook! How long since that had happened? Years?
"Damn heat," she muttered, feeling her cheeks flush. Shaking herself, she returned her eye to the scope of her rifle, continuing to track the three teens' progress.
Her mind, though, remained rather firmly elsewhere, and a small smile passed across her lips.
… … …
Yusuke let out a long, low whistle as he stared up at the utterly massive wall rising up before them.
"You know, this stuff's probably really good for the economy," Ren mused.
"What? What the hell're you talking about?" Yusuke asked distractedly.
"Think about it. They have how many of these fake cities for these tests? And each year, they get completely trashed by candidates trying out their quirks. Which means they have to keep getting rebuilt, again and again, year after year." Ren chuckled as he gazed at the wall. "Construction companies have to be making a freaking mint with this system!"
"Ren?"
"Yes, Jolyne?"
Grabbing his cheeks, she nearly cracked his neck forcing him to face her. "Shut up … and focus!" This time, his neck did pop as she forcibly redirected him to the enormous gate awaiting them.
"Helpful as always," he groaned, rubbing his neck. She didn't respond, though, and he didn't push her further. They had quite a bit on the line here, after all, and a few weeks sweating on a trash-filled beach didn't exactly make them feel as prepared as they might have liked.
"Man! I'm gonna kick so much ass," Yusuke gloated, stretching his shoulders.
So apparently not all of them were quite as nervous as he had thought.
"Oh yeah? We'll see who kicks more ass, Mr. Quickshot," Jolyne smirked, bumping fists with Stone Ocean.
Dammit! Was he the only one feeling nervous here?!
"Hey, don't sweat it, quirkless! You're gonna do great," Yusuke insisted, draping his arm over Ren's shoulders.
"Damn right you are!" Jolyne draped her own arm across his shoulders as well. "I mean, worse case scenario, you die, sure, but what if you don't? Yeah, you'll fail, and Makima'll probably toss you in normie-jail or something, but even that's gotta be better than death, right? So you see, you've got nowhere to go but up! Ain't that great?"
Ren glared at one beaming face, then the other.
"Thanks, you two, for your brilliant words of wisdom," Ren said in a completely flat voice. "I feel so much better now."
"Aww, now he's sulking!" Jolyne declared, catching him in a sudden headlock and tousling his hair furiously. "Is someone feeling a bit pouty?"
After a mighty struggle, he managed to extract himself, glaring at her with all the righteous dignity he could muster. An effort not helped at all by her and Yusuke guffawing loudly, let alone by his now wild, frizzy hair.
"You guys're freaking weird," another examinee observed, sidling away with all the others.
"You're telling me," Ren agreed, trying to pat down his hair even a little.
It didn't really help.
"Greetings, young learners!"
Startled, they all found their attention suddenly pulled to the top of the towering wall in front of them. There, beaming brilliantly down at them all, a man stood proudly. His coat billowed in the wind, revealing an ornate sword belted at his waist.
"You have all done well to make it this far! Bravo!" The man's bold tone was jovial and enthused, but as he spoke, Ren noticed that his broad grin never changed, and his golden eyes never moved from the empty space in front of him.
"Is he … alright?" Ren couldn't help but ask.
"Shh! That's Rengoku, the Flame Hashira!" Yusuke hissed, an eager glint in his eyes. "He's such a badass!"
Both Ren and Jolyne stared at him sideways.
Is he … a fanboy?!
"That said, you must all gird yourselves for the trials still to come! Let your blood run hot with passion, and you will continue to do well! Or you will die!"
Ren's eyebrows rose at that proclamation, and at the boisterous laugh the man gave afterwards.
All without changing his expression even a hair.
"Yeah … I'm pretty sure he's nuts," Jolyne aptly commented. "Sweet hair, though."
Ren begrudgingly agreed. Like her, he also bore bitonal hair–golden blond with spiky red tips, the whole thing flowing like a living flame.
"But now, you must turn your attention to SA's student council president for your final words of inspiration!"
As the exuberant man stepped to the side, Ren expected things to tone down a bit.
How utterly foolish he was.
Surrounded by a sudden chorus of shocked cries and muffled curses, he held his hands up to shield his eyes from the blinding glow of kaleidoscopic spotlights. Blinking tears out of his eyes, he was just barely able to make out a girl's figure marching boldly to the vacated spot atop the wall. Slamming the butt of her sheathed sword into the wall in front of her, she folded her hands across its pommel and sneered down at the prospective students.
He was sure it was a sneer. Even shrouded by a raucous spray of lights as she was, her posture all but screamed contempt, if not outright disgust.
"FEAR IS FREEDOM!" The girl's sudden bellow made them jump more than the sudden flashbang-spotlights. "SUBJUGATION IS LIBERATION! CONTRADICTION IS TRUTH!"
He and Jolyne gaped at each other. Was everyone in this school freaking nuts?!
"THOSE ARE THE FACTS OF THIS WORLD, AND YOU WILL ABIDE BY THEM, YOU PIGS IN HUMAN CLOTHING!"
Her long, black hair whipped in the wind as she roared, the dazzling lights making her seem an almighty monarch staring down at absolute filth.
"YOU WHO CHOOSE TO SUBMIT YOURSELVES TO THIS SCHOOL, GO FORTH! THE VICTORIOUS SHALL FIND A PLACE AMONG US! THE DEAD SHALL BECOME STEPPING STONES FOR THE GLORY OF OTHERS! DECIDE YOUR FATE NOW, OR IT WILL BE DECIDED FOR YOU! BEGIN!"
Ren frowned. Wait … the dead? People die in this exam?!
Slamming the butt of her sword down on the wall once more, the enormous gates slowly swung open before them.
Almost immediately, the three of them were battered on all sides by a flood of students roaring towards the opening. Ren, though, found himself pausing. The sun was high in the sky, so by all rights, he should be seeing a well-lit city street through those yawning gates.
What he saw instead, though, was nothing but an inky blackness.
"C'mon, c'mon, c'mon! If you don't haul your asses, there's not gonna be anything left for us!"
Yusuke's shout was followed by his scarred fist seizing the front of Ren's shirt and dragging him along behind him. Alarmed, Ren made a desperate grab for Jolyne's hand, yanking her along with him no matter how much she stumbled and cursed.
"Dammit, Yusuke, slow down! We have no idea what we're running into!"
Yusuke's bloodthirsty laughter was his only reply as all three of them disappeared through the ebony wall, leaving nothing but an empty courtyard behind them.
… … …
The observation room bustled with eager conversation as the exam started.
"Hey, anyone else got eyes on EV402? You're in for a treat!"
"Ooh. Poor showing. Pity, that. Their quirk seems useful."
"Wow. CL118 is starting to seem like an obvious choice."
"Hey, exam's not over yet!"
"MH613 has been pulled out. Medics dispatched. Have I mentioned I hate how brutal this exam is?"
"Better to weed them out now than to wait until lives depend on them."
"Even so, there has to b-!"
Conversation ground to a sudden halt as a guest made an unexpected appearance.
"Director Makima," one of the teachers greeted her, rising from his seat and giving her a jerky bow. "What brings you here? Not that you're not welcome, of course!"
"Why, thank you," she responded, voice cool and gentle as ever. "I happened to find myself with an opening in my schedule and thought I'd pay a visit. The future of our world will be shaped by those young people below, after all. They deserve our support."
"I quite agree," a surprisingly youthful voice chimed in. "It's good to see that even someone of your position can hold such interest in our young people, Director."
"I am glad to hear that, Headmaster," she replied, eyes twinkling with something unreadable as she met the diminutive principal's gaze. "I'd hate to think my presence was unwelcome."
"How could it be? I believe a number of our candidates have you to thank for their inclusion in this exam. It would be a shame if you couldn't even check on their performance."
"Well said," she replied, her smile unchanging. Even so, a number of professors shifted uncomfortably as they picked up on the growing tension of the moment.
"Hmm. Candidates JO405, YU302, and PR508 seem to be operating as a team," another teacher spoke up, completely oblivious to the verbal fencing going on behind him.
"Risky choice," another teacher commented. "Working as a group keeps you more secure, but leaves you less opportunity to show off your skills. They might find themselves winning the battle, but losing the war, so to speak."
"Well put," the principal chimed in. "Maybe we should nudge more opponents in their direction, then. Just to make sure they get a fair chance to shine. What do you think, Director?"
"I have the utmost faith in your judgment, Headmaster," Makima replied, seating herself in an unoccupied station and crossing her legs. "I'm sure you will find your way to the proper course of action, as always."
"I'm pleased to hear you say that, especially given how invested you are in the candidates in question," the principal responded, voice bland. "Now then, let us see what the coming generation has in store for us, shall we?"
"Yes, sir!" the teachers chorused.
Makima paid them no mind, letting her eyes linger on the figures in her monitor.
"What parts will you play in the grand design?" she whispered, tracing a finger delicately along the screen. "Let us find out together."
… … …
Ren wasn't quite sure what he expected when they passed through the shadowy barrier, but finding himself in freefall most certainly wasn't on the list.
"Shiii-!"
Pavement broke his fall abruptly, driving the wind out of him with an almighty "oof!"
Then he did the same for the others.
"Motherf-!"
"God-ah! Dammit! What the hell?!"
Groaning, Yusuke and Jolyne untangled themselves, cradling bruises and glaring at no one.
"Alright, whoever set this up has one hell of an asskicking on deck," Yusuke growled.
"Get in line," Jolyne snarled, popping her back. "What abou- Ren, what the hell are you doing? You can't sleep here!"
Ignoring his feeble protests, they dragged him to his feet and held him swaying between them.
"So … now what?"
"Well … we fight! … I guess?"
Neither sounded particularly confident, and as the world stopped spinning around him, Ren couldn't say he blamed them.
All around them sprawled an empty city, its vastness seemingly heightened by its sheer emptiness. Add in a perpetual, uncanny twilight, and the whole place made their skin crawl incessantly.
"Wait … where's the gate? And the other examinees?"
An apt question, and one that only made the prickling between their shoulder blades grow stronger.
"That's just great," Yusuke huffed.
"What? Isn't this a good thing? At least now we don't have to fight a swarm of other examinees to score some points," Jolyne pointed out.
"But now I have no idea where everyone else is! How the hell am I supposed to use my Spirit Gun?! Anywhere I fire, I might end up blowing some idiots away three streets over! Dammit!"
"We're not alone," Ren muttered suddenly.
"What? Where?" Jolyne demanded, eyes darting from one shadowy nook to the next.
"Not sure," he answered, subtly scanning the empty storefronts. "But they're there. I guarantee it."
There was no mistaking that feeling. That creeping feel of eyes on his back, like a hand just a breath away from touching him … he'd felt it all countless times before in the Metaverse.
Yusuke's patronizing look said he had his doubts, but to her credit, Jolyne just took one look at his face and nodded. "Then I guess we better welcome our guests."
Kneeling suddenly, she placed her hand against the pavement and closed her eyes in concentration. His own eyes widening in realization at her plan, he rounded on Yusuke suddenly.
"So what's this whole exam about, anyways? They didn't exactly give us a lot of details. What are we supposed to be fighting? Robots or something?"
Yusuke gaped at him, so astonished that he didn't even question Ren's slightly raised voice.
"You're kidding, right?"
Ren shrugged. "I think they expected us to already know about the exam by the time we got this far, and they didn't count on people like us getting pushed to the front of the pack out of nowhere. Why? Do you know what we're up against?"
Before Yusuke could answer, Jolyne grinned in sudden triumph.
"Got 'em!"
With that, she yanked hard on one of the threads she'd been subtly spreading across the ground thanks to their distraction. A startled shriek answered, and a shadowy, humanoid figure came tumbling out of a nearby alley.
Snarling in fury, the figure swiped at the thread with what looked like strangely long, curved fingers. Crying out in pain, Jolyne stumbled back, clutching her bleeding arm as her thread hastily withdrew.
"Fresh," the shadowy figure hissed, its voice quivering with delight. "After so long … finally, fresh blood!" Cackling wildly, the being leaped out of the shadows.
Ren stepped back, eyes widening as he took in the being's gray, bulging skin; its drooling, fang-filled mouth; its eyes, twisted and ravenously yellow.
It looked like a Shadow.
Flexing curved blades for fingers, the being reached for a wide-eyed Jolyne … and Yusuke's fist crashed into its temple.
The being cried out as it tumbled end over end before suddenly rolling onto all fours like a cat. Spittle flew from its maw as it glared murderously at Yusuke, its claws digging furrows in the asphalt as it reflexively clenched and unclenched its fists.
Yusuke, meanwhile, stood with his chin raised, cracking his knuckles and staring down at the thing like a wolf eyeing a deer with a broken leg.
The creature's face grew a bit uncertain at spotting that, but if it was rethinking its approach, it was doing so far too late. Between one heartbeat and the next, Yusuke was on the thing, cursing and punching in equally violent measure.
Ren almost felt bad for the creature.
"Fucking demons," Jolyne spat, clearly feeling no such sympathy as she watched Yusuke curb-stomp the howling creature.
Demons, huh? Ren rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Interesting.
His musings were interrupted as his feet were suddenly jerked out from under him, just in time for a massive, scaly fist to appear right where his chest was a moment ago.
"Aww! I almost had you!"
Ren had no idea how the thing managed to speak with heavy mandibles sprouting from its face, but somehow, the thing made it work, much to his disgust.
Bracing himself with his hands on the gritty asphalt, he sprung into a heavy kick at the thing's broad sternum.
… and felt his entire spine shudder with the kickback.
What's this thing made of?!
Catching the look in the thing's eye, he used its unbelievably sturdy torso as a springboard to launch himself backwards a bare instant before its clawed fingers squeezed him into pulp.
And the sudden opening revealed Stone Ocean in all her menacing glory.
"Ora!"
The thing's head snapped back with the force of her blow, but she wasn't even close to done yet.
"Oraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraora!"
The speed of the Stand's blows made the air swirl around them violently, sending Jolyne's hair whipping about, but her fury never wavered, and the fire in her eyes refused to dim.
"ORA!"
With the final blow, the howling demon was sent flying, blood spewing from its cratered flesh. The body buried itself in the steel shutters of a nearby storefront, all but ripping the things from the stone facade before it finally stopped. The creature's eyes bulged madly, either too shocked or in too much pain to process what had just happened to it. Luckily, it didn't have long to consider it. With a final spasm, blood spewed between its mandibles, and it went limp.
Ren let out a long, low whistle. This was the first time he'd seen her quirk used on a person–so to speak–and it was … well, just about as brutally terrifying as he'd expected.
"Heads up. This party's just getting started," Yusuke announced, smirking as he wiped blood from his face.
Not his own blood, of course.
A chorus of clicks, squeals, and howls followed his announcement, drawing all eyes to a bulging mass of shadows pouring from another alley.
"About time! That wasn't nearly enough to warm me up!" Jolyne's cocky grin was perfectly mirrored by her Stand and almost a perfect match for Yusuke's.
"This would be so much easier if I had a quirk," Ren sighed, joining the lineup and bracing himself for the oncoming horde.
Moments later, it crashed upon them like a bestial wave … or it tried to. Mere steps away from them, the creatures in front suddenly started tumbling to the ground with startled shouts, with their fellows behind them getting tangled up in the mess as well. At least, those who weren't large enough to simply march over the lot of them, oblivious or indifferent to their squeals of pain as they were ground into the pavement beneath their feet.
"Never underestimate the threads!" Jolyne shouted with fierce glee, untangling her strings from the jumbled mess and stepping forward with her Stand.
"Or my fists!" Yusuke roared, literally hurling himself into the fray.
Now, there was a healthy dose of fear in the demons' cries. Not to mention pain.
Of course, not all the demons decided to engage the two emerald brawlers. Some, whether cowardly or wise, opted instead to target the only one hanging back from the melee.
"Oh no. What will I do? I'm so defenseless and alone," Ren called out, his voice entirely bland and dry.
Apparently ignorant of the nuances of sarcasm, the demons chittered with glee as they launched themselves at him with reckless blood thirst.
Then he moved.
The first blinked in confusion as it clutched its throat, seemingly at a loss for why blood was streaming through its claws. The second found itself in much the same boat, staring uncomprehendingly at the bloody stumps at the end of its arms.
The third was less fortunate, collapsing bonelessly in front of Ren, its face still snarling with ravenous hunger.
The other demons drew up short as he wrenched his dagger from the demon's skull, letting it fall to the ground at last.
"Those crazy, bloodthirsty kids," Ren muttered fondly, watching Jolyne and Yusuke grin and laugh as they tore into the mass of demons. "Maybe they're on to something after all."
The creatures around him backed away a step at the look that came across his face, dripping with blood and grinning malice fit for any demon.
"Let's get this show started, shall we?"
… … …
Makima's smile grew distinctly amused as she watched the boy on the screen dance a bloody tango with the mass of demons. Expecting an easy meal, the creatures were clearly unprepared for the sudden laughing carnage, and like all predators who found themselves turned into prey, they panicked, which of course only made things worse. Demons turned to run and found their hamstrings brutally cut by a grinning teenager. Terrified monsters took desperate swings at the boy and found him somehow bounding onto their shoulders and slitting their throats with uncanny grace.
All still without any evidence of quirk usage.
"Someone likes to play hard to get," she noted, chuckling slightly. She couldn't exactly blame him for playing his cards so close to his chest. In fact, she applauded his wisdom in doing so. It was always better not to tip one's hand until one knew exactly who one's enemies were, and better yet, how to destroy them.
Even so, she would not abide a potential wild card in her plans. She could feel the boy's power bubbling beneath the surface in their last meeting. Something fierce and strange, thrumming with untameable currents that stretched down into depths unknown.
And that, above all else, demanded her attention. After all, what could there be that could escape her notice? What skeins of power might she, of all beings, remain oblivious to?
Removing her phone, she typed a single, predetermined message.
'Release him.'
A bare heartbeat passed before her phone chimed with confirmation, but she had already returned her attention to the screens before her.
"Now then … let us see what waits behind your mask, young Amamiya."
Those who didn't know her would have called her smile eager, but the look in her eyes spoke of something far less pleasant.
[End of Chapter 03]
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Currently featured crossovers:
My Hero Academia
Persona 5 Royal/Strikers
YuYu Hakusho
Chainsaw Man
Demon Slayer
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure
Kill la Kill