It had been hell trying to keep the kids safe, but somehow Ryukyu knew it was almost over. Hiding out in the abandoned hotel's top floor, Ryukyu could see the jets flying by outside. She could hear the constant explosions that now rocked the city. Ryukyu could even see the mass of villains scrambling on the ground. Full fleets of trucks were in retreat, as every villain tried running.
But Ryukyu knew her job wasn't done. Turning to look at the rest of the room she'd holed up in, her eyes fell on the kids quietly huddled around. Each one looked hungry, having eaten little in the past few days. What food had been found in the room had been devoured. The only reason they had food now, was because Ryukyu left the room to scavenge. When she did this, she'd occasionally she'd run into the corpses of guests who couldn't escape.
Whether anyone else was alive in the hotel, Ryukyu didn't know. Hearing one of the kid's stomachs grumble, Ryukyu knew it was time to leave. With a deep breath, the hero walked up to the room's door, which had been barricaded with a large red couch, before turning to face the kids.
"Ito," she quietly called out, watching as the oldest of the kids, a young girl, quickly stood up and rushed over.
"I'll be back in a few minutes, you know the drill," Ryukyu told her, while slowly pushing the couch out of the way. Once it was done she turned to a nearby table and grabbed an empty pillowcase.
"Keep the door covered and don't open it unless it's you," Ito replied, earning a smile from Ryukyu.
"Good," Ryukyu replied, before peeking out the room's door. Seeing nothing on the other side, she stepped through and closed the door behind her. Seconds later the sound of Ito pushing the couch, the girl having a slight strength-enhancing quirk, followed after. With the door barricaded up again, Ryukyu quickly took off down the hall, heading towards the hotel's service stairs.
Reaching them, Ryukyu peered down the dozens of floors she had to climb. For an annoying reason, the hotel's only restaurant was on the bottom floor. Not wasting time Ryukyu quickly rushed down the stairs at a fast but ultimately calm pace. She didn't know if any villains had entered the hotel, so she remained careful. After a while of climbing Ryukyu found herself on the bottom floor.
Looking around she walked through a small hallway, before reaching the main lobby. Quietly Ryukyu peeked around the corner, spotting the large windows showing the outside. In front of the hotel was a large fountain, surrounded by abandoned vehicles. For a moment, the coast seemed clear, but then Ryukyu saw a villain run by the door. Then another, then a third darted by. Soon dozens were running quickly, followed by an unseen fool.
It confused Ryukyu for a moment before her eyes widened, and some of the villains ran toward the hotel. Three crashed through the hotel's glass door, running into the lobby. Ryukyu prepared herself for a fight, only for the villains to turn around and look outside. Other villains ran in after the first three, and none of them noticed Ryukyu.
"How could this have happened!?" one of the villains yelled in a panic, as more villains entered the lobby.
"It doesn't matter how it's happened! We can't let the nonbelievers stop us!" a second one shouted.
"They already have! I don't have enough ammo for another firefight, and the truck ran out of gas an hour ago!" a third villain countered loudly, as Ryukyu slowly backed up into the hallway.
"Then we'll hide out here, let these mercenaries come to us," the second villain ordered while passing the third an extra magazine, "Tell the others, we'll make them fight for every square meter of this building."
Ryukyu mentally swore at the notion, continuing to back into the hallway. When she thought she was far enough she began booking it back to the stairs. Her quirk was strong, but in this condensed area, she was trapped. If she went outside she'd be overwhelmed by the villains' numbers. Sprinting back up the stairs now Ryukyu turned to see some of the villains following.
They were a step behind unable to see her, but coming in fast.
"Got a mortar team arriving in a few minutes, the prophet says they'll set up on the top one of the top floor's balconies," one of the villains behind her muttered, causing Ryukyu to again mentally swear.
"Think the mortar will be enough?" a second villain asked, while Ryukyu continued running up the stairs.
"Hell if I know," the first villain replied, "You saw the gear the nonbelievers brought."
That comment confused Ryukyu for a moment, the hero thinking it over. Who were the villains afraid of? Someone had them in retreat, and it was someone well-armed apparently. Ryukyu wanted to believe it was other heroes coming in quickly, but her mind flashed back to the previous few days. Who could have… they said mercenaries… only one band of mercenaries came to Ryukyu's mind.
And she didn't know how to feel about it. The MSF was in Musutafu, and by the sound of it advancing fast. But why? Ryukyu didn't know if she should be glad, or worried. Finally reaching the top floor Ryukyu darted toward the room the kids hid in. Looking over her shoulder she could hear the villains getting closer by the second. Quickly Ryukyu knocked on the door a few times, giving Ito a code.
Seconds later the girl began moving the couch, narrowly removing it from the door in time. The second the door opened Ryukyu charged in, and closed the door. Looking at the kids her eyes darted to a nearby bedroom separated from the rest of the room.
"All of you, in the bedroom, now," Ryukyu calmly ordered, before locking the door and moving the couch back into place.
"W-whats going on?" Ito asked, only for Ryukyu to motion for her to go.
"No time, go and keep quiet," Ryukyu replied quickly. At the same time, footsteps arrived from outside the room. The crack of wood followed as the villains began breaking into rooms. They cleared them out one by one, as Ryukyu found them getting closer to their door. Pushing Ryukyu forward for a moment, the hero then turned and grabbed the nearest object she could find. Which turned out to be a lamp, which she held up carefully.
Seconds later the villains began pounding on the door, attempting to break it open like the others. However, the couch kept it in place, causing the villains to grumble annoyed outside.
"The hell?" one of them muttered, again trying to force the door open.
"Barricaded… Kobayashi!" a different villain loudly ordered.
"Yeah yeah," Kobayashi replied annoyed, as Ryukyu stared at the door again. Lamp held up she waited for the inevitable. The door was launched back, the villain on the other side sending the slab of wood and couch flying. The furniture crashed into a nearby wall, covering the area in dust for a second. Using this to her advantage Ryukyu rushed forward, just as the first villain walked in.
Before the villain could see Ryukyu she smashed the lamp against his face. The villain slumped to the ground, as Ryukyu chucked the broken lamp at the next villain who walked through the door. Not letting up Ryukyu darted to the side as a third villain fired into the room. She charged forward then, getting in close as the third villain tried to enter the room. Just as he peeked through the doorway Ryukyu punched him in the gut.
Knocking the wind out of him, she wasted little time spotting the villain who broke down the door. He stood taller than the rest, and while Ryukyu knew she could take him in her dragon form, she was out of her league here. So she switched tactics. Spotting a grenade on the third villain's waist, Ryukyu reached out and pulled its pin. Once it was done she darted back into the room and dropped to the floor.
"Damn bitch!" the third villain wheezed out before the grenade on his waist exploded. Shrapnel peppered the villains outside, as Ryukyu heard more scrambling outside. This couldn't go on for long, she thought coldly. Standing up Ryukyu ran and grabbed one of the villain's guns off the floor. She detested the idea of using the weapon, but she was getting more desperate by the second.
Just as she picked the assault rifle up a fifth villain ran up to the door. Sloppily Ryukyu raised the rifle and pulled the trigger. She held it down for a few seconds, firing six rounds at the villain. But unfortunately missed the majority of them. The bullets that did hit, grazed the villain's right arm.
"Fuck!" the villain called out, ducking behind the doorway again. It gave Ryukyu enough time to fall back, now running toward the kids' bedroom. The door closed Ryukyu knocked the usual code she gave Ito. In seconds the door swung open and Ryukyu charged in. Once inside she grabbed whatever furniture she could find and shoved it against the door with Ito's help.
Once done Ryukyu stood off to the door's side, waiting. After a few seconds, she heard the villains run up to the door outside. They slammed against the door, trying to break it down like the first. But the barricade held this time, and it didn't seem like they had anyone strong enough to break it down this time. Soon the banging stopped, and Ryukyu heard loud grumbling on the other side.
"We know you're in there heretic! Come out quietly, and we promise you a merciful demise!" a villain suddenly ordered, the words making Ryukyu's blood boil. She got the "merciful" death, but what did these kids get, she thought coldly. Like hell, she was gonna accept that offer. Instead, Ryukyu said nothing, causing the villain to grumble again.
"You're choice, blow it open!" the villain outside yelled, causing Ryukyu to pale slightly. The villains stepped forward, most likely setting up explosives. That was until one of them spoke up.
"Wait! Wait!" a villain called out, "She's Ryukyu!"
"The Dragon hero? So what!?" the first villain asked, voicing Ryukyu's confusion.
"She intercepted one of the trucks carrying kids remember! She's got them in there with her!" the second villain replied, leaving Ryukyu quiet for a moment.
"...Fuck!" the first villain called out, leaving Ryukyu surprised. Seconds later the villains began stepping back, loudly. Ryukyu sighed in relief at the action but was also left confused. Outside the villains began murmuring, as Ryukyu thought up her next move. Just as she began to do this though, she heard a new sound arrive. An odd chopping sound getting slowly closer. The villains outside seemed to have noticed it too, as they all went silent for a moment.
The chopping got very close then like it was right outside the building, but above them a floor. A villain cried out in shock though, just as gunfire started up again. Windows shattered as the buzz of a minigun rang out. Bullets struck the walls outside as Ryukyu flinched, half expecting one zip by her. The villains tried to fire back outside but were overwhelmed quickly. Soon the gunfire stopped, and the chopping noise remained.
"[Go! Go!]" someone called out in English, as something hit the floor outside. Footsteps came back again as people entered the hotel room from somewhere. After a few minutes, Ryukyu walked toward the bedroom's door. She didn't move to shift the barricade, but she stopped to listen for a second.
"Hello? It's safe to come out now," a voice from outside called out, before knocking on the door lightly. Ryukyu took a deep breath while holding her rifle ready.
"Who are you?" Ryukyu asked, the man on the other side taking a second to reply.
"Sergeant Narwhal ma'am," the man replied, leaving Ryukyu in thought.
"You're MSF, aren't you?" Ryukyu asked cautiously.
"We are," the man on the other side replied. The answer didn't provide her much comfort, but Ryukyu slowly lowered her rifle. If they wanted her dead, they would have shot her like the villains, Ryukyu tried to rationalize. Though she didn't believe it fully. Quietly Ryukyu motioned for Ito to come help her. There the two moved the barricade slightly, and Ryukyu opened the door. Peeking out, she saw a squad of soldiers standing around.
Two kept guard of the exit, while two others looked over the dead. Sergeant Narwhal meanwhile stood near Ryukyu's door, before Ryukyu noticed someone else. Standing a bit far off was a teen girl in a dark blue and cyan costume. The teen's hair was a pale blue, and her eyes quickly fell on Ryukyu.
"Ryukyu?" Hado asked shocked, before quickly rushing over.
"Hado?" Ryukyu called out surprised, the girl coming to a stop in front of her. Hado smiled widely, a few tears forming in her eyes.
"You're alive! Oh, I got so worried when nobody could reach you! But I just kept telling myself you'd be fine! Are you fine though? Have you had any food? How long have you been here? Do you need a medic?" Hado asked, mumbling off a few more questions. Ryukyu lightly chuckled at the action, slowly setting the rifle she held to the side.
"I'm fine, not yet, a few days, and no," Ryukyu replied calmly, before stepping to the side. There Hado was able to look into the room and saw the kids inside.
"They, however, might need one," Ryukyu told her, watching as Hado turned away.
"Doc!" Hado called out, Ryukyu now spotting a soldier with a large bag run over.
"Coming!" doc replied, shuffling past Ryukyu for a second, before yelling, "Oh shi- crap! Got kids here sergeant!"
"Take 'em to the roof, chopper will evac them," Narwhal replied, watching as Ryukyu leaned into the room and motioned the kids forward. Slowly they filed out of the bedroom hesitantly. They eyed the soldiers fearfully. However, that fear didn't last as Doc pulled out a box of candy he'd had on him. It was a heartwarming sight, as a few soldiers led the kids away.
Oguro ducked as the nonbelievers shot at him, their bullets striking the brick wall he hid behind. Taking a moment he fired back, managing to strike one of Reaper's enemies in the chest. Yet the moment he did his rifle clicked empty.
"Fuck!" Oguro swore, tossing the thing aside as he unholstered his pistol. How had it come to this? They were on the cusp of victory! The world's suffering was supposed to end! But… they… he… failed Reaper. His will was to be ensured, and instead, he'd failed him. Angrily Oguro fired out into the street, not hitting anything, but simply trying to take his rage out on something.
"Save your ammunition brother! This day is not yet lost!" one of the other acolytes told him, though Oguro didn't care to listen.
"Fool! Can't you see the heretics overwhelm us!? We have failed Reaper," a different acolyte counted angrily, only to be shot by the enemy seconds later. Oguro didn't like it, but he began to agree with the second acolyte. Ever since these mercenaries got involved they'd been on the backfoot. The skies were taken from them, their artillery was destroyed. Now what remained of their ammo and fuel was drying up.
Hiding behind cover again, Oguro looked around quietly. There had to be an answer. Some kind of solution to get everything back on track. He found it in the Prophet, the man stepping forward and ruffling through a bag.
"Prophet, what are we to do?" Oguro asked, flinching as a bullet struck the wall behind him. The Prophet looked over Oguro quietly for a moment, before sitting down on the floor.
"There is nothing more we can do," the Prophet replied, leaving the first acolyte dumbstruck.
"But… we are to ensure Reaper's will!" the acolyte yelled confused, the Prophet nodding.
"We are," the Prophet replied, "And we have. Our part to play in his will is over. Our role is done."
"We… we failed him though?" Oguro pointed out confused. The heretics were pushing back by the hour. The mad scientist's goals hadn't been reached. The Symbol of Lies was still alive for crying out loud!
"Have we? Thousands have been freed from suffering. We may not have achieved all of the heretic's goals, but we've achieved Reaper's," the Prophet replied calmly, before ruffling through his bag again. To Oguro's shock, the Prophet pulled out a Minebea P9.
"It is time we join them," the Prophet told them, "Only in death…"
"Do we find peace," Oguro finished, realizing what the Prophet was saying.
"It is his will," the first acolyte stated before they all collectively raised their guns and placed them on their temples. For just a second, Oguro felt the cold steel of his gun, right as he pulled the trigger.
"I assure you Capitan Dupont, this is all completely unnecessary," the base's commander stated, trying to keep pace with the captain as they walked through the base's halls. Behind them a dozen other military policemen followed quietly.
"Command disagrees," Dupont replied, the man going over the base's manifest in front of him. He was a captain of the French military police, sent to inspect some of the country's military bases. His position had always been a thankless job since the rise of heroes. Not holding much glory or prestige. But with current events, it quickly became a necessary one.
"Command is overreacting, everything is here and accounted for," the commander told him, a slightly nervous tone in his voice.
"The JSDF said the same thing for decades, and now their tanks are gunning down civilians," Dupont countered, "The Russians said the same, and yet we find villains in Japan armed with DHsKs. The Americans said the same, now we find one of their aircraft carriers in the hands of mercenaries."
For all Dupont and his superiors knew, it didn't end there. Three separate nations had their weapons in foreign hands they never sold to. Reports of armories plundered with weapons came flying in from overseas by the day. Even with that knowledge, some nations in Europe had already written off the possibility that the same thing could or had happened to them. France was not one of them.
When the French government saw the MSF's Ford Class carrier, it sent everyone into a panic. For a ship to be so easily stolen from the USA of all countries was worrying. It quickly became a dreaded possibility that something similar could have happened to them. And while Dupont didn't have access to the investigation into the French Navy, from rumors he could gather things were bad.
While they thankfully still had their sole aircraft carrier, the Charles De Gaulle, they were missing thirty other ships. Support ships, frigates, submarines, helicopter carriers, and even patrol boats were gone.
"I don't doubt that share the same fate," Dupont continued, barely looking up from the manifest.
"We don't know that," the commander retorted, "Just because it happened to the US and Japan, does not mean it happened to us as well."
"Perhaps, but better to be safe than sorry, no?" Dupont inquired, annoyed by the commander's words. Looking up from the manifest, Dupont found himself right next to the base's storage area. Standing guard was a pair of bored-looking soldiers, one of which had his uniform poorly dressed with wrinkles, and the other was slowly trying to hide a bottle of wine. How was this what the French army had come to, Dupont wondered.
"Now then, your manifest says this base holds ten thousand FAMAS rifles. I'd like to start the inspection there," Dupont stated, snapping his fingers and motioning toward the door. The military policemen behind him stepped forward, quickly opening the door. The base commander gulped as he looked into the room.
"R-right, follow me," the commander muttered, leading the way quietly. After a minute of walking Dupont found himself standing next to a large set of shelves filled with crates. Looking up at the crates, Dupont couldn't help but hear one of the military policemen behind him mutter.
"Are we really going to count ten thousand rifles, sir?" the military policeman asked, looking over each crate annoyed.
"France's livelihood could very well be at stake. Possibly Europe's as well. If stopping a massive attack from happening here means counting each rifle one by one, then that's what we'll do," Dupont replied, before motioning for him to bring up the first crate. They complied quietly and dragged the first crate off the shelf.
"Open it," Dupont ordered, looking over the manifest one last time. Ten thousand rifles, all stacked into crates, with at least one hundred rifles in a crate. With a loud crack the military police opened the crate, and Dupont looked inside. Quietly he began counting up rifles, while other policemen did the same.
"All accounted for," Dupont commented, counting the hundredth rifle in the crate.
"See?" the commander replied confidently, watching as the policemen moved the crate away.
"That was just the first crate commander, there are still ninety-nine to go," Dupont told him, motioning for his men to grab the next crate.
"I'm sure we can handle it from here then," the commander replied quickly, "Don't want to waste all your time."
Dupont simply said nothing, instead waiting for the next crate to be brought forward. He didn't notice the commander slowly pale, as he realized Dupont would count everything. Time be damned.
"Open the next crate," Dupont ordered, another loud crack signifying the crate had been opened. Looking in Dupont could see a difference between this crate and the first. The first had rifles stacked up to the top, practically next to the crate's lid. This crate barely had enough rifles to reach the halfway point.
"Fifty-five… fifty-six… only fifty-six rifles here, sir," one of the policemen told him, with Dupont grumbling to himself.
"Oh?" Dupont inquired, slowly glancing toward the base commander.
"I-I'm sure there's a logical explanation. Equipment does tend to break down after a while, we might have just thrown it out years ago," the commander rationalized, while Dupont raised his brow.
"Then I'm sure there's documentation to back up your claim?" Dupont asked, with the commander replying a bit too quickly.
"There should be," the commander answered, a bead of sweat trickling down his face.
"Hmm… next crate gentlemen," Dupont ordered, knowing he'd have to pay a visit to the base's records room. Assuming it even had records still, he thought coldly. They moved on to the next crate though, counting each weapon one by one. Some crates were full to the top, others were missing some weapons, and many were entirely empty. It took hours, but soon Dupont looked at the last crate, staring at it worriedly.
"Six thousand, four hundred, and fifty-two rifles," Dupont muttered, mentally swearing at the number they counted. Three thousand, five hundred and forty-eight rifles were missing. Almost a third of the entire base's stockpile.
"Still saying they all broke down?" a military policeman commented, noticing the base commander sweating up a storm.
"They were very old rifles," the commander replied, as Dupont looked over the manifest again. Tiredly he moved onto the next piece of equipment listed, and the next. They went through machine guns, sniper rifles, pistols, grenade launchers, shotguns, and whatever else they could find. It took twelve full hours to document everything that was missing, and they had barely scratched the surface.
This became ever clear to Dupont as he counted the number of Leclerc MBTs being stored, and noticed the frequent gaps between tanks. Small sections where a tank should have been parked, and instead had nothing.
"Forty Leclercs… it says you should have a hundred," Dupont grumbled aloud, running the calculations through his mind. In total, the base was missing forty percent of its equipment. The number staggered Dupont, while the officers next to him looked back at the commander.
"Same as the rifles?" a military policeman asked sarcastically.
"Y-yes," the base commander replied nervously. At the same time, Dupont glared at the commander quietly.
"Reports say the tanks were transferred to you a week ago," Dupont pointed out, "Sixty of these tanks broke down in a week?"
"They did," the commander replied, electing to ignore Dupont's glare. The captain remained quiet for a moment, before sighing to himself.
"I've already seen enough. Pierre, if you would?" Dupont ordered, the officer nodding as he pulled out a pair of handcuffs. Quickly Pierre walked toward the base commander, while other officers moved to block the commander from escaping.
"Sir put your hands behind your back," Pierre ordered, the commander looking around panicked for a moment.
"W-wait! I'm sure this is all a big misunderstanding! L-lets just talk this out," the commander protested, stepping back as he saw Pierre get closer. Of course, the other officers kept him from fleeing, as Pierre quickly cuffed the commander. Dupont grumbled at the sight, while the base commander continued to protest his arrest. Even attempted to bribe Pierre, claiming he could give everyone there whatever they wanted.
Dupont knew it wouldn't work though. No amount of money could convince any of them to let him go free. Not when the entire country… no, the entire continent, was at risk because of him.