Just saw Pokemon Direct. I made an offhanded joke last night that they'd skip over Unova and go to Kalos.
…did not expect that to be real, I was sorta looking forward to revisiting Unova
Oh well
I'll be buying in 2025
Anyways, here's your chapter. Here's the Discord: /cgFmXz3qJ5
Mogana was taking a small break, resting her voice after a day of practice. She huffed, massaging her throat.
"Good work today!" Yuna said. "You've been in top shape as of late."
"Just because I'm getting spoiled by the free stuff gives me no excuse to stagnate." Mogana replied.
"Spoiled by the free stuff? Heh. Still, I get your point."
Mogana smiled. "I wonder how Medaka's doing...maybe I should go check on her."
"And risk getting blown away by her Super Move again? No way!" Yuna said.
"Have you noticed anything, though?"
"Um, nothing out of the ordinary, no. Why?"
"Exactly. Shouldn't we have heard at least one 'boom' from her training?"
"...now that you mention it, yeah." Yuna said. "Maybe they're still walking."
"Who's still walking?" Someone asked. Mogana looked over to see Zenkichi, Hana and Inasa walking over.
"Oh, hey. How'd your training go?" Mogana asked.
"I've learned a lot of people hate me or Medaka." Zenkichi huffed.
"Really?" Yuna asked, totally unaware of that, "Why would people hate both of you?"
"Association WITH Medaka." Zenkichi said.
"I dunno why people hate him! He's GREAT!" Inasa laughed, throwing his arm around Zenkichi.
"Dude, I'm still sore-" Zenkichi huffed.
"Oh, sorry," Inasa nervously chuckled.
"Just don't do it again." Zenkichi said. "So, where's Medaka?"
"She went her own way to work on her own super move." Mogana said. "But we haven't heard anything...which worries us."
"She's still developing the Phantom, huh..." Zenkichi said, pursing his lips together. Mogana tilted her head.
"You know of it?"
"She's been working on it since we were kids."
"Since you were kids?" Yuna repeated.
"Yeahhh." Zenkichi nodded. "Medaka's had her on and off phases, as much as any other kid throughout their life. The most recurring one is her attempts to be original."
"And...has she made any progress over all that time?" Mogana asked.
"If that was true, she wouldn't be practicing so much. Believe me, it was worse back then." Zenkichi said. "I don't even want to talk about that one incident with all the windows at her mansion-"
"Why do people always say that? Say you're not going to mention the incident but give enough details to hook people?" Yuna asked.
"It's a cool thing to do..." Zenkichi said, cooly.
"Kinda lame!" Inasa quipped. Zenkichi shot him a look, which shut him up.
"Please." Another voice scoffed. "You're as cool as a wilted iceberg..." Zenkichi rolled his eyes.
"This is what I mean when I say people don't like me." Zenkichi said, turning around. Akune was there, with Camie and Seiji following behind him.
"Likeeee, heyyy! Howzit to ya?" Camie asked.
"Oh! Hey Camie!" Yuna waved.
"What are you doing here?" Zenkichi asked, ignoring the other two upperclassmen. His focus was on Akune.
"I overheard you say Medaka's struggling..." Akune said. "Are you that much of a failure to her progress?"
"You're blaming me for that too?"
"No one else I could, now is there?"
"You're still holding a grudge?" Mogana sighed.
"Listen, her struggles are VERY different from any other struggles. This isn't teaching someone how to draw or how to sing- it's something both you and I will never understand."
"Funny. That sounds like something I said not long ago. Thought no one could understand something about me, Mogana said, "and yet she did. I think we can return the favor."
"If you're ready to take that challenge." Zenkichi said.
"Of course I am!" Mogana insisted. "I-" Mogana paused. She was looking at something...behind Zenkichi.
In the forest.
"Having doubts, are we?" Akune taunted, "As expected, honestly."
"Shush." Zenkichi said. "...do you guys feel that?"
"Feel what?"
"That feeling...we're being watched." Zenkichi said.
"You're probably just overreacting," Akune scoffed, shaking off their concerns.
"Akune, shut up-" Zenkichi warned, and he was right to do so. Something was approaching from the forest.
Akune rolled his eyes. "Ooooh, probably some student playing pranks." He said. "Come on out! It's pointless, you know. We have nerves of-"
That bravery quickly crumbled when the actual intruder walked out of the forest, shoving aside a whole tree as he left the treeline.
"-steel," Akune finished meekly.
"What the hell!? Is that a villain!?" Mogana yelled, standing up.
"It came from where Medaka and Kumagawa were headed!" Yuna gasped.
"You don't think..."
"But Medaka would've been able to handle a villain!" Akune countered.
King said nothing, but raised his hand. He motioned for the kids to come forward, as if issuing a writ of challenge.
"W-we should...probably get a teacher," Yuna shivered.
"You should." Seiji said, stepping forward. His flesh melted off from his arms, forming into fingers that floated around him. "Leave this to the upperclassmen-!"
King just tilted his head at the bravado. Despite his incarceration, he recognized the uniform as Shiketsu's. One of the top two most famous Hero schools in Japan, and yet only one had the courage to face him. A little disappointing if he had to be honest.
Seiji's fingers flew like missiles, colliding with King's flesh. It smashed him against a tree, immobilizing him.
"A hero's first objective is to restrain!" Seiji declared. "And my quirk is best for a situation..."
"And mine is great for evasion~!" Camie added, using her Glamour quirk to create a veil between them.
King struggled against the flesh binding him to the tree, but not like he was really trying to get out. It was more like he was just testing it, gauging the strength. Not quite as strong as he thought a student of the famed Shiketsu would be capable of.
"Go! Get a teacher!" Seiji demanded, his voice low. "We'll keep restraining him."
"A-alright!" Zenkichi said, before shooting a glance at King. He wanted to give them a quick heads up on his next move, as thanks for the backup. With a quick activation of Parasite Seeing, he gazed into the King's mind-
And was horrified.
"Oh my god," Zenkichi muttered.
"What?" Akune asked.
"You can't hold this guy back-" Zenkichi said. "You just- you just can't!"
"Of course we can! He's complete-!" Seiji countered, before the wound of flesh being torn and wood being splintered reached his ears. When he and the other students turned back, they saw that, not only had the villain broken free of the fleshy bindings with a flex of his arms, but he'd also destroyed the tree he was bound to.
Akune blinked in disbelief. "How often does THAT happen?"
"Not...often..." Seiji sounded more shaken than he looked. His flesh reconstituted, but he remained undeterred. "Just RUN!"
The villain rolled his shoulders and just kept walking towards them, seemingly undisturbed. His eyes suddenly shimmered, gaining an appearance similar to an oil puddle with light being reflected across their surface as rainbow lights. Normal eyes would be fooled by Camie's glamours, but thanks to his Quirk, King Crimson should see right through them. What's more, he knew about a flesh manipulator in the students' number. A secondary adaptation was put into play as his body changed into something else. Seiji saw him approaching and thought he could the villain in his tracks so, morphing his flesh into a hand, he tried to trap the villain in the rather disgusting prison of a human meatball.
His aim couldn't have been more spot-on, but when the flesh-hand actually made contact with the villain, it just splattered.
"What...but...but I touched him! His body can't resist my po-" Seiji began before he saw a glint of light reflect off the villain's body. King Crimson's body was no longer made of flesh. Through the adaptiveness of his Quirk, his body was now made of bronze, complete with rivets dotting his arms and legs. Seiji thought that maybe he would be able to keep the villain's attention. After all, to him, Camie's glamour was still holding strong.
What tipped him off was that the villain turned his head away from the flesh-user and locked right onto the fleeing students.
"Wha- CAMIE! HE CAN SEE YOU!" Seiji yelled.
"He can?!" Camie gasped.
"Hang on, lemme-GAH!" Zenkichi yelled. He tried to use his Quirk to at least confirm he could, but something stopped him. Something was stopping him from accessing the villain's eyes, some barrier he'd never encountered before. The barrier even pushed back, like someone just set off a flashbang behind his eyes.
Zenkichi swiveled his head away, and his sight returned. This guy...he's a living counter for everything we throw at him! Need to get the teachers...now!
"Hmm," King Crimson hummed as he watched the students before thinking, That's it. Get your teachers. Get HER.
Seiji and Camie tried everything in their arsenal to delay the inevitable, but it was more like trying to stop a truck with your bare hands. King walked forward, slowly...bit threateningly.
He held out his hand, and formed a staff. No wasting blades on them. Blunt objects would take them down just as fast.
In an instant, King rushed forward, smashing his staff into Camie's waist, almost instantly knocking the wind out of her. Camie stumbled backward, struggling to regain her composure as King Crimson advanced further.
"Shit-!" Seiji cursed. n. Seiji quickly morphed his flesh into a defensive barrier, creating a 'flesh shield' to block King's incoming attack. Surprisingly, King Crimson was unable to break through the grotesque yet effective defense. Sure, the attack hurt...but it didn't hurt as much as he thought it would.
Seiji didn't question it; he needed to hold his ground. With a swift motion, Seiji shifted his quirk. Two of his flesh missiles dug into the ground beneath King Crimson and shot up with incredible force, targeting the villain's lower body.
The unexpected attack caught King off guard, and the force of the flesh missiles knocked him off balance. Seiji seized this moment, pushing against the villain with his 'flesh shield.' King stumbled backward, disoriented by the unexpected assault.
Indirect attacks seem to be most effective...and so does defending. Seiji frowned. But purely supportive and defensive quirks can be broken almost instantly. Seiji glanced over to see Camie, struggling to get up.
"Camie, come on! You can get up!" Yuna encouraged, doing her best to help the illusionist up.
"My...my chest..." Camie coughed violently.
"Run." Seiji demanded. "And if he attacks...attack the environment around him, not HIM! Understood!?"
"W-what?" Zenkichi asked.
"DO IT!"
"S-seiji..." Camie rasped, as she tried getting air back into her lungs.
"GO! NOW!" Seiji ordered.
King shot back up, and rushed towards Seiji. Seiji's fingers shot out again, snaking into the ground to sneak around their attacker. The younger students rushed off, with Akune helping Camie hobble away.
The villain had clearly gotten wise to the strategy, dodging out of the way of the first subterranean attack while the second still found its mark. The second strike managed to throw King's balance off, but he was quickly able to recover. He balled his hand into a fist and tried to rush down Seiji, get in close and beat him down with a flurry of strikes.
Seiji once again formed a shield, confident it would hold-
But King's fist burst through his shield like a hole puncher. Seiji YELLED in pain- not much could break through his skin, but when it did, it HURT.
He ripped his fist out of the shield before grabbing hold of the opening he'd made in the shield and, as easily as one would rip apart paper, he pulled the shield apart. Seiji screamed in pain as, even as fast as the wound was, that was still part of him. King just tilted his head to the side. It was near impossible to read the emotion on his face. Apathy? Sadistic glee? Curiosity? Who knew?
King just punched through him again. Seiji dropped to the ground, and King walked past him. Seiji held back tears, as rolled around in pain.
Damn it-! Seiji thought. Run, you idiots! I retract my statement about fighting back!
King only spared Seiji a single glance before leaving him behind. He could admit it was a good effort, even if it was still useless.
King just continued down the beach, staff dragging in the sand.
Jaune and Pyrrha were cleaning up on the beach while everything else was going on. "So, how was your day?" Jaune asked his beloved wife.
"All in all, pretty good. Kumagawa was his usual self. He did a good job of making it seem like he missed bullseye, but I've thrown enough javelins to know when you miss on purpose. Medaka wanted to work on a super move of her own away from the others since just her practice was able to blow all of us away," Pyrrha answered.
"Kumagawa doesn't surprise me. The Medaka part kinda does honestly."
"And you?"
"Ahhh. Did the circle thing. Brings me back to Beacon, honestly..." Jaune reflected.
"Something happened. I've been with you long enough to see when you're trying to reflect," Pyrrha chuckled.
"How many times have you pulled that?"
"More than a few."
"Just wanted to give Zenkichi some reassurance." Jaune said.
"Not exactly the most confident? Or is it something else?"
"No, I think he needed the pick me up. A lot of unfriendly glances in the crowd." Jaune said.
"Ah, that. More enemies than friends," Pyrrha sighed.
"I wouldn't say outright enemies but point stands."
"I know you had a lot of enemies..." Pyrrha teased.
"B-by accident!" Jaune frowned.
"Mm, true. Though I do remember you ended said enemies rather quickly. Something about tree sap, rapier wasps and an angry Ursa that was swiftly dispatched," Pyrrha reminisced.
"Allll by myself." Jaune joked. "With no outside help."
"Exactly."
"No weird magnetic outline around my weapon at all."
"And Cardin never messed with you again," Pyrha smirked.
"Yeahh...crazy stuff." Jaune smirked, leaning in to tease Pyrrha further.
"Oh, stop~" Pyrrha grinned...
"H-HEY!" Zenkichi's voice yelled. "MR. ARC! MRS. NIKOS!"
"Zenkichi! Just talking about...you...what's wrong?" Jaune asked.
The kids all looked panicked...and that was reason enough for them to drop their cutesy couple act. Jaune's brow furrowed, as his eyes focused on Camie.
"Give her here." Jaune motioned.
"What happened?" Pyrrha asked.
"S-someone showed up, marched out of the woods. A villain!" Yuna panicked.
Jaune started to use his Semblance on Camie, healing her wounds. "A villain? Here?" He asked.
"Yeah! He had a black cape! Red visor...real sith energy..." Inasa frowned.
"Sith...energy." Pyrrha mumbled, eyes widened. "Oh, no..."
"W-why, do you know who it is?" Yuna asked.
"Get back. And one of you, find Star and Stripe." Pyrrha said, pulling out her weapon. "Do NOT intervene."
"I'll go!" Mogana said. "I don't feel like being caught in the crossfire!"
"Mogana, listen carefully. I need you to run." Jaune demanded. "Run like everything depends on it!"
"O-okay!" Mogana nodded. She was taken aback by Jaune's intensity- he had never shown this sort of worry before. Actually, no adult she knew had ever shown fear like this. Mogana then quickly and sprinted away from the beach, disappearing into the distance.
Ms. Star has to be at the hotel, still! Mogana thought. I just hope the teachers can hold off that guy for long enough!
Pyrrha addressed the other kids with a firm and urgent tone. "Run, all of you! Head to safety, and don't even THINK of come back. We'll handle this!"
"You heard her! Come on!" Zenkichi urged the other kids, taking Camie from Jaune as he finished healing her. The children hurriedly retreated from the beach, leaving Jaune and Pyrrha to confront the approaching danger.
"I'm really, really thankful those kids are good listeners." Jaune frowned, as they turned around. There, standing menacingly before them, was King. His presence was ominous, and his appearance nearly made Jaune and Pyrrha jump. The air crackled with tension as the couple faced the formidable villain.
"The Living Counter...in the flesh," Pyrrha frowned, her hand tightening around Miló and Akoúo̱ as she pulled them out.
"Here for Star? So she can put you away again?" Jaune snarked, equipping himself with Crocea Mors. The banter, however, seemed to fall on deaf ears as King, with an unsettling focus, stared past them at the retreating kids.
King took a step forward, his intentions clear. Without a moment's hesitation, Jaune and Pyrrha initiated a coordinated attack, double-teaming King from different angles. Jaune swung Crocea Mors with precision, aiming for strategic strikes, while Pyrrha utilized her unmatched skills with Miló and Akoúo̱ to create a barrage of attacks.
Sensing an opportunity to amplify Pyrrha's abilities, Jaune activated his Semblance, boosting her Polarity semblance. Pyrrha's attacks became even more potent as magnetic forces enhanced her strikes. King, momentarily caught off guard by the unexpected ferocity of the dual onslaught, attempted to defend himself. However, Jaune and Pyrrha's synchronized attacks continued, creating a whirlwind of strikes that pushed the living counter back.
King took a moment, and slammed his chest. He was mocking them. Pyrrha narrowed her brow.
"He's getting cocky. He's activating his quirk..." Pyrrha declared, her eyes focused on King. She swiftly loaded a round of Ice Dust into Miló's automatic rifle mode. "Change of plans, then."
She aimed at King and fired several rounds, each containing the freezing power of Ice Dust. The projectiles struck King, encasing parts of his body in ice. The temporary freeze wasn't a long-term solution, but it was enough to slow him down.
"And while he's adapting to that-!" Jaune yelled, as he deployed one of his Dust Grenades. This particular one projected a Hard Light Dust shield—a barrier with enhanced durability. Jaune strategically placed the shield, creating a makeshift barricade around King. The combination of Pyrrha's Ice Dust rounds and Jaune's Hard Light Dust shield momentarily restricted King's movements.
Star told us about the last time she fought Crimson King- she said there was a lag in his powers. As long as we keep mixing up our approach, he gets slowed down more and more. Pyrrha thought. The villain, now partially frozen and confined within the luminous barrier, struggled to break free.
"That should hold him." Jaune frowned. "I don't know if this is supposed to be AS easy as it is...and that's what scares me."
"It is obnoxiously simple." Pyrrha said. "He could be playing mind games with us." Pyrrha looked back, a worried expression on her face.
"What's wrong?" Jaune asked.
"The kids...where were Medaka and Kumagawa?" Pyrrha asked.
Jaune's eyes widened- before he could process it, a sudden disturbance interrupted their conversation. King broke free from the partially frozen state and shattered through Jaune's Hard Light Dust shield.
"Oh, shit-!" Jaune yelled, as King rushed forward at breakneck speeds. His body moved with newfound agility, making him difficult to followHe began by running circles around the duo, creating a whirlwind of motion that left Jaune and Pyrrha disoriented.
In a burst of speed, King closed the distance and unleashed a punch rush on Pyrrha's shield, Akoúo̱. The impact was powerful, leaving notable dents in the otherwise resilient shield. Pyrrha winced in pain.
A few more hits and he MIGHT break my shield! Pyrrha thought. Channeling her Polarity abilities, she gathered the magnetic energy around her shield. With a swift motion, she unleashed a magnetic pulse, creating a repulsive force that pushed King away. He staggered backward, momentarily thrown off balance.
"You okay?" Jaune asked.
"A little rattled, but...I'm fine." Pyrrha reassured him.
The moment of respite was short-lived as King, undeterred, rushed forward again with relentless determination. Pyrrha attempted the same pulse attack, but this time, to her surprise, it had no effect on the Living Counter. His adaptability seemed to have reached a new level.
As King closed in, Pyrrha raised her shield in a desperate attempt to defend. However, King's attack was too powerful. The force shattered Akoúo̱, breaking through Pyrrha's defense. The shards of the shield scattered around them.
"PYRRHA!" Jaune yelled.
"I'm fine!" Pyrrha quickly tried to magnetize the bits of her shield, but to her shock, the attempt failed. W-what happened? My attack was working fine just a moment ago!
Her eyes darted up at King- she couldn't see it, but behind that mask, he was grinning. Pyrrha frowned. When he broke my shield, he must have adapted to it somehow- if I had to guess, he turned his body into a living degausser. That bastard...
Before Pyrrha could react, King exploited the opening. With incredible speed, he slammed into her with a body blow, sending her crashing into Jaune. The impact was powerful, leaving both of them momentarily stunned. The impact sent the two rolling across the beach, their auras significantly damaged from the brutal assault.
"Never...been hit that hard before..." Jaune mumbled, stunned.
"Never felt my bones rattle before either..." Pyrrha frowned, trying to get back up. King was approaching, and he was ready to play executioner with his opponents.
...though, none of them noticed someone watching from the thicket nearby. Someone who had no idea what was going on...
Satou.
Satou had never really been in the mindset of being a hero lately, especially after the deconstruction from Kumagawa that started all of this. Although, putting it like makes it sound like he wanted to be a hero in the first place. He'd skipped out on class after class, only attending when it was absolutely mandatory like the exams or that personal interview or here. And now, he was cowing behind some bushes, praying to god King Crimson didn't see him. Despite not wanting to be a hero, he'd heard of a few villains, either from the news, directly from his dad, or from some files that would get left out from time to time. King Crimson was a walking nightmare of a villain, making so many of the other new contenders look like kids playing pretend. Any sane person would run away at the mere insinuation that King Crimson was approaching.
Now, Satou considered himself sane, but he was starting to have second thoughts about that. Why? Because he was still here. Every primal instinct he had told him to run, to get away from what was clearly the villain equivalent of an apex predator. So why was he frozen in place? Why, despite all of the mental alarm bells, did he stay exactly where he was?
King looked down at his opponents as he approached them, going over different options in his head. They weren't Star, so most of them would just end up killing them too quickly. That was the problem with being as strong as they were. Even when someone was considered strong by others, like these two, when you compare them to King and Star, they might as well be considered greenhorns. But he'd been imprisoned for so long that part of him wanted to make his return just a little flashier.
Pieces of his armored gauntlet shifted around, opening up a small hatch at the back of his elbow that allowed two small thrusters to poke out. Light began to emanate from inside the miniature thrusters, flames starting to ignite as the Living Counter reared back his fist. Not the flashiest finisher he had, but hey, it'd work. His body preemptively adapted to protect itself from the incoming impact by turning into something a lot stronger than flesh, some kind of volcanic stone. He should thank these two for letting him use even this special move after being locked up for so long, but he didn't want to waste words on the soon to be deceased. Besides, he was saving all those words for Star.
The thrusters roared to life as he began to thrust his fist forward for the finisher he dubbed Fallen Angel. He grinned behind his mask, waiting for the resulting explosion that would snuff out both Pros in an instant. But he never connected. Which shouldn't be possible considering he could feel his arm still moving, just at a much slower pace. That's when he realized something, no someone, was touching him on the back.
I'msodeadwhenheturnsaround I'msodeadwhenheturnsaround I'msodeadwhenheturnsaround I'msodeadwhenheturnsaround I'msodeadwhenheturnsaround, Satou mentally panicked before he backed away from King.
"Satou?!" Pyrrha gasped, "What are you doing?!"
"Asking myself the same thing right now!" Satou chuckled nervously, "We should probably be going now!"
Jaune helped Pyrrha up, before Satou rushed past them. For such a 'lazy bones', the kid could run.
"If we weren't in life threatening danger, I would be REALLY proud of you finally taking initiative!" Jaune yelled.
"Don't lecture me now! RUN!" Satou yelled.
"Fair enough! How long does that slow down of yours last again?"
"I-I touched him for as long as I could!" Satou never sounded so emotionally distraught. "I wasn't keeping time! Can't you call for help!?"
"Sadly not- no signal here. Everything by word of mouth!" Pyrrha explained. "Where are the other teachers?"
"I think Star's in the hotel still. No clue where Gasmask is!"
"He must have heard the battle though! No way he didn't! And if by some miracle he hasn't, then when King makes impact, he will!" Jaune said.
"J-just point me to where students should be hiding and I'll let YOU guys deal with this! I'm essentially a civilian in this mess!" Satou admitted.
Jaune smirked. "You BETTER be in classes after this, sir!"
"I SAID SAVE THE LECTURES FOR LATER!"
"Forgive him! Making light is how we cope with the danger!" Pyrrha added.
"THAT'S A TERRIBLE WAY TO COPE!" Satou yelled.
Suddenly, the sound of something exploding in the background went off- and Satou started to run faster and faster.
"...seriously, where was this kid!?" Jaune said.
King narrowed his eyes at the crater he'd just left behind from the punch, seemingly disappointed there were no bodies to fill it. He looked in the direction of where his would-be victims ran and gave chase.
Jaune looked behind them, and chucked another disc grenade. Unlike the other ones, this grenade was a fire variant. The second he threw it down, a giant burst of flames spread out, slowing their attacker down a bit.
Should slow him down. His power needs to adapt to it! Jaune thought.
King just raised both arms in front of his face as he rushed towards the flame. Like he hadn't adapted to fire before when fighting Star.
Jaune could hear King getting closer and closer, but he wasn't targeting the adults.
King hated being caught off guard.
That child needed to die first.
"He's aiming for- PYRRHA GET HIM OUT OF HERE!" Jaune yelled, turning and tossing several more Dust grenades at the approaching villain, resulting in a cacophony of colorful explosions and elemental effects.
Pyrrha suddenly scooped up Satou, and extended her hand out to Jaune. One quick slap later, and Pyrrha's aura was boosted tenfold- and so was her speed. Pyrrha and Satou took off running down the beach, leaving a trail of dust in their wake.
"M-Mr. Arc!" Satou yelled.
"Don't worry! He's more resilient than he looks!" Pyrrha reassured him...but in truth, she was more reassuring herself.
Jaune threw out a few more grenades, hoping to slow down King. It wasn't really that strong of a delaying tactic, but it was better than nothing. Any second now, Jaune figured that King would emerge from the smoke and try to break through his shield, just like what he did with Pyrrha. Let him. He only needed to tank a few hits and then he'd switch things up. Been a while since he used this mode, but better late than never here.
King rushed out of the smoke, unharmed. Jaune held his shield high, with his sword at the ready. Before he could even swing it...
Smoke suddenly dragged King high into the sky, catching him once again off guard. Jaune gave a sigh of relief. "Good timing..." He muttered.
"So...this is how U.A. feels when a villain decides to randomly show up," Gasmask sighed, "And right as I was making progress."
Jaune huffed. "UA dealt with one Nomu and a bunch of F tiers. I doubt all of them put together equals to King's strength."
"Still...we're ready." Gasmask said, motioning to the backup. Multiple teachers, third years and even a few second years.
All secretly affiliated with the MLA.
"I mean, I appreciate that they want to help, but I don't think we should be bringing any students to fight King," Jaune countered.
"Do you not think they're ready?" Gasmask asked.
"Like I pointed out, this isn't a Nomu and some F-tiers, this is King Crimson. I think I'm justified here."
"Sorry to argue with Mr. Arc!" one of the third years stepped up. She was pretty short, around Neo's height if not just a foot smaller. She sported grey eyes and her hair was thick and wispy, tied into buns that often disconnected from her head and disappeared into the air like smoke, or rather steam.
"Buuuut I think we are!" the steam student grinned.
"I believe so as well," another third year stepped up. Not much of his physical appearance was visible, covered up by his almost retro costume. The torso and boots were shinning silver but blocky, almost giving off the appearance of Wash of all people. His arms were covered in black sleeves that ended in large rectangular gauntlets that seemed more for channeling whatever his Quirk was than for fine manipulation. As for his face, it was obscured entirely by a circular helmet with mesh on the front facing portions and a single spike jutting out from the top.
"Are you sure you wanna take these kids into this sort of battle?" Jaune asked.
"They're more ready than you think." Gasmask defended them.
"Yeah! So quit your bitchin'!" A black haired student yelled. He wore a metallic, three-piece mask that covered his mouth and nose, perfectly concealing his features. His crimson ensemble consisted of a torn, red cape that flowed elegantly behind him, with a high and wide collar.
"Easy, Kazuki." Katsuragi said, walking forward. Her costume She donned a sleek, form-fitting bodysuit in vibrant hues of blue and red, accentuating her athletic physique. Multiple stars adorned her body. "Don't get too full of yourself now..."
"Shut it." Kazuki smirked, as he activated his quirk. Two red blades suddenly formed around his hands.
"See?" Gasmask smirked.
"I can't talk you down can I?" Jaune asked.
"Nope," the steam student grinned.
"In that case...SCATTER NOW!"
While they were all talking, King's gauntlet had reconfigured to reveal the thrusters again. He narrowed his eyes and fired up the engines, rearing his arm back and readying for a bigger Fallen Angel. The crater he left behind when he missed Pyrrha and Jaune was the type an RPG would behind. With this distance and gravity working in his favor, the impact here would be akin to a tank shell going off in the middle of them all.
Gasmask provided a deep cover, allowing for the students to all scatter more easily. King's eyes had adjusted to the smog, however. Such a display was easy for him to see through...
But that was the point.
As soon as he came close to the ground, in those precious few seconds before impact, a scalding blast of steam slammed into him from the side. The student responsible for the sudden steam assault smirked as she fired off more jets from her feet and raced towards the disoriented King. Taking advantage of his staggered state, she used her steam-jets to dance around and attack him with kicks of all kinds.
Third Year at Shiketsu: Haruki Kikansha! Quirk: Steam Surge! Her's body like a living steam engine, producing a continuous amount that contributes to her energetic personality! The stream she generates can be channeled into jets for offense and defense, clouds for obscuring vision, and even for enhancing her speed by utilizing the pressure!
Just as Haruki continued her assault, another student joined the fray. With a swift motion, he overwhelmed King with a flurry of attacks, each strike fueled by the vibrant red energy he commanded.
Second Year at Shiketsu: Kazuki Akai! Quirk: Red Lord! Kazuki can manipulate and control red-colored energy with incredible precision. He can shape this energy into various forms, such as solid constructs, projectiles, or defensive barriers, using it to attack or defend as needed.
Surprisingly, one of Kazuki's slashes managed to breach King's defenses, drawing blood. The red energy left a visible mark on the adversary, making Kazuki grin with satisfaction.
"Whoops." Kazuki smirked.
King's eyes actually went wide in genuine surprise, but that quickly changed to satisfaction. This was the Shiketsu he wanted to see, the one he'd heard so much about. He must've just gotten unlucky earlier, probably first year students if he had to guess. This lot showed much more control over their evolved Quirks. Excellent. He quickly recovered, his gauntlets shifting to fire off a small burst of power to right himself after being slashed by Kazuki. Another short blast of power from his other gauntlet kept him aloft long enough to land a kick to Haruki's face. He reared back his fist and was about ready to punch Kazuki with all he had, wondering if the student had as much defensive training as offensive.
"Oh, won't you be a lamb and not punch my student?" someone politely asked. King wanted to scoff at the idea. Someone who sounded old enough to be his grandmother asking him to stop his assault sounded more like a joke each passing second. So then why did he listen? His fist was just stuck reared back, shaking with all the momentum he was ready to put into the hit. He looked at his shaking arm and then towards the woman responsible.
"Thank you so much, dearie," one of the Shiketsu faculty chuckled as she stepped forward. She was an older woman with her dark purple hair tied up in a bun, clad in a very simple outfit consisting of a white button up shirt, dark blue pants and blue and white striped suspenders. She just tilted her head and smiled.
Second Year Teacher at Shiketsu: Mrs. Cherry! Q̴̽͝ǘ̸̃ì̴̓r̶̛̽k̵̀̑: Manners! When she speaks a certain phrase like 'be a lamb' or 'be a dear,' she can change how people behave. The limits to that change are defined by what she considers to be good manners! The most basic of which is what you see here, stopping someone from throwing a punch!
"Doesn't apply to us I hope!" Haruki fired off two jets of stream from her hands to get herself back up.
"Of course not, dearie. As energetic as you are, you're always so well behaved!" Cherry beamed.
"Excellent," Kazuki chuckled before he leapt into the fray with a war cry. Fists flew and struck King again and again, unable to bring up a proper defense. Kazuki was one of the students Cherry had some issues with, given his more rough and, if you asked her, downright delinquent behavior. But she couldn't deny the exceptional physical power he had. While the affect of Manners wouldn't hold forever, at the most a few minutes, that would be more than enough for one of the physically strongest students to deal quite a great deal of damage. And she was right. Strike after strike connected with King's form, much to the villain's chagrin. One final uppercut slammed into him before Kauzki leapt away. King's eyes widened when he saw why the assault had stopped.
The retro sci-fi-costumed student had taken aim with both of his rectangular gauntlets, energy gathering at the barrels as he charged up.
"Target locked. Energy at full," the student droned, "Fire."
A massive blast of orange energy fired out from his gauntlets, the force of them enough to make him push back a bit.
Third Year Student: Michiko Shunkan! Quirk: Quantum Drive! One of the strongest Quirks of his class, Michiko is capable of manipulating the very particles of reality, specifically quarks. Reshaping, reconstructing, manipulating, and molding are just a few ways he can control them. Like here, where he's able to reshape and restructure a collection of quarks into a super-heated plasma blast.
King stood, stunned by the attack. Too many stimuli. So much to adjust to. What was the common denominator of their powers?
With stars tracing her path, Katsuragi rushed up. The president amassed energy in her fist before delivering a swift blow directly into King's torso. She then proceeded to charge her star power and then swung forward, knocking King's face in with a massive energy fist.
Pain. King realized. They all hurt.
No more hurting...
The next energy fist that slammed into King still connected, but he didn't feel it. The pain receptors, the nerves, they'd all been turned off, similar to how the brute of a certain ancient witch's ability worked. Katsuragi continued to beat down on the villain, hit after hit landing but not a single one registering with the villain. But she was too focused on her assault to notice that Manners was starting to lose its hold. King could feel control coming back to his arm and he smirked. Just a few more seconds and-
Manners' grip was released and he could move again. He turned and threw a powerful punch the star-student's way, but she was able to duck under it. With the opening from that first hit, Kazuki leapt back in and slashed into the villain's shoulder, making him stagger a bit. King spun to try and land a backhand strike on the student, but Kazuki jumped out of the way again. An assault of steam bullets and energy blasts pelted him from both sides, courtesy of Haruki and Michiko. With such a distraction, Katsuragi charged back in for a star-powered upper-cut. She reared back her fist and readied for the strike, but then King Crimson lashed out and grabbed her by the mouth. Haruki and Michiko stopped their barrages for fear of hitting Katsuragi.
He's adapting faster than I thought. Gasmask frowned, as he sent some clouds of gas underneath his feet. I'm remaining in the back for now...Just in case.
King looked down and smirked, tightening his grip on Katsuragi. If he was gonna be sent flying, so would she.
Gasmask's eyes narrowed. Katsuragi gave him a look, and nodded. She trusted him...especially now. With some flick of his wrist, the two were sent flying up in the air. King's grip remained tight on Katsuragi, but she smirked.
Evasive maneuver... Katsuragi thought, as two stars appeared beneath her feet.
King looked to see the stars and he raised a brow. What's she planning?
The stars suddenly propelled her further up, at such a speed that King couldn't keep his grasp on her. Before King could respond, a strange device appeared on Katsuragi's arms.
"Star Power converter, courtesy of Deternat!" Star yelled. "You can't get hurt by physical attacks...but what about sound!?"
She didn't give him the chance to respond. Her star energy flowed into the device before a massive soundwave fired out towards him. The blast enveloped him and forced him to cover his ears, the attack on par with one from Echo-Echo. King tried to keep his focus, adapt against the volume of the attack.
"Take that as a no!" Katsuragi grinned.
The attack sent King flying into the ground, leaving a massive crater. Jaune smirked a bit. Even though the bastard couldn't probably feel it, it was still satisfying to see him fall from such a height.
King grimaced as the soundwaves started to get to him, before he quickly adapted to counter the sonic assault. While he could still hear, it was more like everything was muted, muffled. He quickly stomped into the ground and launched a chunk of stone up for him to grab, before chucking it right at Katsuragi.
Red energy suddenly shot out, destroying the chunk instantly. Kazuki smirked. "We've got him pinned now!"
"Agreed." Michiko said. "Perhaps Star and Stripe will not be needed."
"We need him to be unconscious before we can take a deep breath, now." Mrs. Cherry said. "It's a shame we can't put him to sleep right now, though...he must have adapted to that sonic blast."
"Easy fix then. Suffocation. Can't adapt to a lack of oxygen," Gasmask said as he already began working on the plan.
"Suffocate? Don't you think that's a bit much?" Jaune asked.
"Relax. We're not killing him. Just taking enough air away from him to knock him out."
"I do agree with Mr. Arc about the severity, but given the circumstances, I think we can call it a necessity," Mrs. Cherry chimed in.
"Fine," Jaune sighed, "Just make sure you're accurate with it."
"Doubting me? Now? How reassuring," Gasmask rolled his eyes.
Gasmask sent his clouds forward- the way he commanded it made Jaune think he'd done this kind of thing before. The clouds restrained the King's arms and legs, before a larger, denser one floated over to his faceplate.
"Slumber for now." Gasmask said coldly.
King looked at the cloud with a raised brow and at first, he looked concerned, but quickly shifted to amusement. In fact, he started laughing. Gasmask and the others shared looks of concerns before the Living Counter just inhaled the cloud in front of him.
"Wait, what're you-?!" Gasmask yelled. The only answer he got was King breaking free of the cloudy restraints and completely unphased by the gas.
"It...didn't work?" Haruki asked, "But I thought..."
King smirked underneath his mask, as he deployed two weapons from his armor- two blasters. They looked small and simple, but Gasmask knew not to underestimate them. King pointed one of his weapons at Gasmask, and pulled the trigger. Gasmask put up a few gaseous barriers in between them, but...
The blast traveled through them instantly, and sent him flying.
"How the hell?!" Gasmask yelled after he thudded to the ground.
"Be a lamb and put those-" Mrs. Cherry was about to say, but King was quicker on the draw. Another pull of the trigger fired off what was basically some kind of upgraded duct tape that slammed over the teacher's mouth. The rest of her command was muffled, unable to take effect over him. He changed targets and then fired off three more shots, one at Kazuki and two at Michiko. The energy-user was getting ready to fire off his arm-guns, but two chunks of clay blocked up the barrels, causing them to backfire and launch him off his feet. As for Kazuki, the bullet slammed into the slashing-student's chest but it didn't seem to do much. It'd probably bruise, but that looked to be all. He was about to rush in for a third assault, until he noticed his blades began to flicker before fading away completely.
"My energy!" Kazuki called out.
"His guns can counter Quirks too?!" Haruki realized.
"Ah. Well," Katsuragi sighed, "Just have to lean into the brand, don't you?"
King shrugged casually before taking aim at the star and steam students and pulling the triggers.
Medaka, meanwhile, was still struggling against whatever paralytic her assailant had injected her with. She could hear the sounds of combat from here and she knew she had to get over there. Her fellow students needed her help! There had to be a way to beat this irritating poison.
Youka continued taking notes. "Subject is a bit rusty...it seems more stimuli can weaken him. Strange, though- I swear he could adapt more quickly..."
Youka was so busy she wasn't really paying attention to Medaka. Medaka's eyes darted around the boat, searching for something of use. Lots of tech. Computer for communication, if needed. Files detail how to take care of King Crimson efficiently-
Medaka suddenly felt her finger twitch.
It's...wearing off? Medaka wondered, But she wouldn't have given me something so temporary. Would she? Grabbed the wrong vial in haste?
She thought it over, trying to figure out just what exactly was pumped into her bloodstream. So many different chemicals and venoms came to mind, but most of them lasted longer. Was it something Quirk-based? Wait...Quirk based, blood. That was what she needed! Oh of course! It wasn't a normal paralytic she'd been hit with! Whatever it was must have been based on a blood-paralyzing Quirk! Like Stain's! And if it was based off of Stain's, that meant its effectiveness varied by blood type! She read the reports on the Hero-Killer extensively.
Medaka slowly and quietly got up. I'm O type blood, so...I'm the fastest. Medaka thought. She crept over to a computer, and quickly moved to some communication app the girl had.
Maybe I can send a signal to a ship, get some attention. I have a feeling an evacuation is needed... Medaka thought, as she furiously typed something in morse code.
As she typed that morse code, sending it through, she noticed something minimized on the screen. Confident that that code had been sent out and someone would hear it, putting it on a loop just in case, she changed her attention to that. She grabbed the mouse and clicked on the file, full screening it. It was a report on the Kamino incident.
"Kamino?" Medaka whispered, "Why do you have...?"
Before she could read through it properly, scroll down for more information, the screen froze up.
"No, no, no, no, not now," Medaka hissed.
"It's rude to read through a girl's notes, you know," Youka spat. "Very rude."
Medaka furrowed her brow. "So...that's your power. Ice manipulation. Handy for keeping bodies fresh, isn't it?"
"Cute. You just think it's THAT." Youka said, as her other side lit up with blue flames. Medaka's eyes widened, before Youka sent a massive wave of flames towards her- the Shiketsu girl rolled out of the way, letting the flames singe the boat, melting some of it.
Fire and ice- is she like Endeavor's kid? Medaka wondered. She activated The End, and clenched her fist. A roaring blue flame with a rainbow-y haze appeared, and some ice on the other side...but there was something else. Medaka could just feel it.
"Interesting...your quirk responds to them as if they were natural. Good to know." Youka hummed.
"As if they were...? O-of course, they're natural! Your Quirk...maybe it's like mine? A copy ability?" Medaka wondered.
"For a girl so brilliant, your mind is so, so narrow." Youka said, suddenly launching a blizzard at Medaka. Medaka's body heated up, letting her melt the snow before it hit her body.
Medaka felt the snowstorm stop, and lowered her guard. In a second, Youka was in front of her, and grabbed her face. "Remodel." She muttered, before slamming Medaka's head into a wall.
Her view of the world shook when her head slammed against the metal wall, but she managed to recover quickly enough. She brought up her leg and kicked Youka away, sending the criminal doctor into one of the tables nearby. The impact shook some more delicate equipment off the table and sent it down to the ground to be shattered.
"Great...now I need to replace those," Youka grumbled as her flames reignited.
Medaka reignited her own flames to copy, but something felt off with them. That didn't make sense. Remodel, Remodel...what did that mean?
Medaka felt the flames on her body...they felt more sweltering than before. Medaka wobbled a bit, leaning against a wall for support.
Don't tell me...she has two quirks? No, three! Medaka thought. The fire one, the ice one...and whatever this remodel is.
"Look at you, mind racing to try and figure me out. But you can't, can you? Everything you think up just doesn't make sense does it?" Youka asked.
Medaka grunted. "Everything...makes perfect sense." Medaka huffed. "Remodel is your base quirk. The two other quirks are auxiliary- you managed to copy the quirk factors of them into your body. That's some interesting genetic work."
Youka huffed. "You get an A for effort...and for annoying. Endeavor spent years trying to perfect his 'model'- it just took me a few skin samples, locating, and a few hours spent trying to locate the 'link'...and viola."
"His model? You're talking about a person like they're the newest brand of car?"
"Just my way of things. Subject, model, all the same to me," Youka shrugged.
"So that's why you have so much info on King. You want a skin sample." Medaka said. "So you can steal that-"
"Not for me. For someone MUCH more important..." Youka huffed. "But I don't feel like expounding upon that." Her hands suddenly touched both of her thighs, and began to remodel them.
"Boost." She muttered, tripling the muscles in her legs.
"Remodel...you can change your body at will," Medaka realized, before trying to throw a fireball at her. Not only was Youka now fast enough to dodge out of the way with incredible speed, but the fireball itself seemed more untamed, volatile. The blast tore a hole through the hull and flew out into the water, the fireball boiling the water on impact. Medaka quickly extinguished her flames and began to give chase, though Youka had such a significant advantage in speed now.
I cut off her escape, which is good. Medaka thought. I'm dealing with someone who can enhance her body at will- with no discernable drawbacks. I'd use the power on myself, but I don't want the recoil it could possess...
Medaka still felt woozy- and she remembered. When she slammed my head into the wall, she remodeled me...did she make me more sensitive to heat? Medaka thought. She hesitated- before grabbing her head. "Remodel..." She muttered, and reverted the changes back. She produced another fireball- this one felt normal.
"Good enough for me." Medaka thought, as she chased after Youka. She boosted her speed by using the ice quirk for some added mobility.
Youka was expecting Medaka to follow, but she was surprised it took her so long. Such a star student like her should've been on her trail immediately. She allowed herself a small smirk as she exchanged her flames for something else. What kind of chase would this be if there weren't traps along the way? Her flames burned hotter for a moment before simmering down. As she ran, she flung several of the embers into the air, letting them just hang there.
Hope you're a fan of fireworks Youka smugly thought.
Medaka rushed towards the embers, before jumping up. Using the ice side of her body, she quickly boosted herself over the flames. They detonated- but Medaka used the momentum to boost herself FURTHER and slam a knee into Youka's face.
Youka stumbled back, as Medaka landed. "Good thing you can heal that." She said.
Youka just groaned in annoyance before her icy side reacted violently, straightening into a collection of spikes. She waved her arm in an arc in front of her and fired off the ice spikes like missiles. Medaka just slammed her flaming arm into the ground and summoned a wall of fire to melt the missiles on impact. She smirked, but it seemed Youka wanted that. With her enhanced speed, she quickly outflanked the wielder of the End and took aim with her own fire. Two streams of fire blasted out and swirled together, but Medaka quickly made a second barrier to defend herself, one made of ice this time.
We're at a stalemate right now. Medaka thought. She can boost her physical side, but not the quirks. Our quirks are just cover for stalling...
Medaka looked over. I could lure her over to King's area, so I can copy more quirks...but I doubt she'll fall for that.
"Trying to figure out how to beat me?" Youka chuckled.
Medaka didn't respond. "You spoke of me, like you knew who I was- am I supposed to be THAT big of a deal?"
"More than you realize." Youka frowned, as she made an ice sword.
"Why then? Because this feels like more than just your usual brand of 'science.'"
"Quirk singularity." Youka frowned. "And the child who embodies it...you are fascinating."
"Oh, well thank you," Medaka said sarcastically before summoning up her own ice sword.
"Old fashioned duel then? Fine."
Not...exactly. Medaka thought, switching the sword over to her fire side. She began to heat the sword up, before throwing it on the ground. The supercooling created a large layer of fog, coating the entire area.
Youka growled before taking a few wild slashes in the fog, hoping that one of them would hit the concealed singularity student. But by now, Medak had leapt out of the steam and landed on a tree branch. She quickly jumped off it and made a break for it. The steam screen should give her the headstart she needed.
Youka huffed. "Damn...she's better than I thought she'd be." She didn't feel like giving chase. Better to let her die with her friends.
But, she should still probably watch the carnage for research's sake.
Youka rubbed her nose. Damn brat DOES hit hard, though. Ow...