If you're here, thanks for reading this far! In case anyone wants to know, I plan for this to be a long-term thing — I won't just suddenly stop after I finish writing my take on what would be episode 12 in the anime. I plan for there to be some juicy character development in the future. I'm just a little busy at the moment, so hopefully I can update soon!
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Fiery pieces of rock splattered the walls around the throne room, leaving the surfaces scorched black. In the middle of the room was a charred-orange spiral that smoldered with heat. At its center, the ground was liquid, bubbling and popping like lava.
The firestorm was enough to melt buildings in mere seconds; it was safe to say that regular creatures caught within it would come out as a pile of ashen dust. But Tatsumaki's eyes remained glued to an especially wide pillar of smoke at the center of the spiral.
An incandescent figure rose from the smoke like a devil from hell. The alien survived that attack, but it was obvious now that he had taken damage. Boros' cape had burnt to cinders, and what little remained of his armor was glowing white-hot. The alien's light blue skin was burned and blistered from the molten storm, and had now turned into an ugly hue of purplish-red.
Tatsumaki scowled. The cyclops was abnormally resilient. If he was still able to fight after that attack, then she would have to go all-out, putting everyone beneath the ship in danger — and that included any survivors still trapped in the rubble below. Despite her demeanor, the esper didn't want any innocent blood on her hands.
A voice boomed in front of her, cutting off her train of thought.
"What is your name?"
The alien's tone was different now. The words were delivered with the authority of the being that had crushed entire populations under his feet. The Dominator of the Universe asked her a question, and demanded an answer.
"Tatsumaki." The esper said slowly. Her mind was reeling from the being in front of her. That attack was not something one simply stood up from — regular Dragon-Level creatures were not an exception.
She let out a deep breath. There was no other choice then. Those S-Class heroes under the ship would need to prove their worth very, very soon. Silently, she cursed herself for not bringing a transmitter before going on board.
"Tatsumaki," the alien spoke once more. "You have impressed me. When I defeat you, join the Dark Matter Pirates. Seeing as Geryuganshoop has been killed, I may need another subordinate very soon."
"Sorry, one-eye," Tatsumaki replied, stifling her rage. "I'm not interested."
The alien's smile didn't waver. "I expected as much. A warrior like you would rather die than submit to anyone, no matter how badly things turned out."
"Damn right," the girl said. An idea was slowly forming in her head, but it wasn't quite complete. Thankfully, the alien seemed to really like to talk, so Tatsumaki humored him. "Say, one-eye — why'd you come here in the first place?"
"I am here searching for someone," the alien said. "Your world's strongest fighter."
That caught the esper's attention.
"There exists a prophecy, you see," Boros continued. "It states that on this planet, I will encounter a warrior that is my match. That very warrior is currently aboard this ship. He has decimated my troops and will arrive here shortly, as causality wills."
Tatsumaki's eyes widened for a moment, trying to put the pieces together. A City had just been destroyed in an instant. A hero had gotten on the ship before her and utterly destroyed the enemies in a single blow. Surely it had to be him… right?
A small spark of hope rose within her as she came to a conclusion, but she snuffed it out, shaking her head.
"It doesn't matter who this 'man of prophecy' is," the esper said. "Because I'll beat you myself."
Boros grinned. It was a shame that the esper had refused his offer. With this much strength and willpower, she would have made a marvelous second-in-command.
"Then," the alien began. "Let us — eh?"
The ground was shaking. The orb atop the alien's throne keeping the ship afloat began to glow and flicker.
The esper's eyes were an incandescent green. Veins were visible around her temple as she strained against the sphere that kept the ship afloat.
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The city-sized spacecraft was probably the most difficult thing Tatsumaki had ever tried to control. Unlike a regular city, which was relatively easy to mold to her will, the ship was resisting her powers. The damn thing was barely moving! There was some sort of energy keeping the ship buoyant; she could sense it.
Her eyes were drawn toward the orb atop the throne room — it grew brighter as she tried to push it down. She felt surges of energy trying to keep the ship buoyant against her efforts.
The ship shook violently and once-more molten debris flew around the room, blocking the alien's view. Boros was stunned at the esper's power. His body felt like it was turning to stone. It was as if he was back on his home planet — an alien child trying to survive the hellish wasteland he was born into. The Dominator of the Universe felt his legs buckle underneath him.
"Astounding," the alien muttered, a grin spreading wider across his face despite the chaos swirling around him. "Of all the creatures I've faced, you are the first to bring me to my knees!"
The alien leader revelled in the feeling of powerlessness. This planet was, quite assuredly, the most interesting little one he had ever visited. He was not only about to face his greatest opponent, but he was also fighting a close second as far as he could tell. And what a fight this was! Maybe twenty years in space had dulled Boros' instincts a little, but the alien kind of wanted to see what the little esper had under her sleeves.
The power sphere in the throne room was dangerously fluctuating in energy, however — a power sphere of which they had no replacements aboard and whose destruction would cause the ship to crash, setting off all the weaponry underneath. The alien smiled. Her plan was clever, but had one major flaw: it didn't consider for him.
"RAGH!"
Boros leapt into the air, emitting a sonic boom that cracked the throne room's floor. The debris whirling around the esper seared the alien's flesh, but that was of little consequence to him. In an instant he was face-to-face with the esper, pulling his left arm back for a blow that would end the fight, just as it did with nearly every enemy he'd faced thus far.
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His fist blew completely off as he punched at the esper, exploding into bits as psychic energy forced him to a stop. The Dominator of the Universe was then sent flying backwards at breakneck speeds, heading towards the power sphere.
In the milliseconds it took to reach the orb, Boros had come to a conclusion. It seemed there was absolutely no nuance with the esper's plan. She may have been powerful, but her tactical skills were much too blunt. That, combined with her stubborn, overconfident attitude, and suddenly the path to Boros' victory was clear.
The alien stifled the impact on the power sphere with his legs and felt the esper begin to pull him back to try again — this time, he could tell, she would try a little bit harder. Boros let out a roar, expelling his own energy, and the psychic's hold on him broke. The alien landed on his feet with a crash, and a harsh purple light surrounded him in a sphere.
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Boros' conquest around the galaxy left him with unrivalled combat experience. He had fought thousands of opponents, and he had beaten each one of them using a combination of both sheer power and tactical superiority. Of these opponents, he found those with long-range attacks to be the most difficult to handle. It took Boros a while, but as with all hurdles the alien faced in his conquest, even entire esper civilizations were eventually crushed under his feet.
Head injury. Overwhelming speed. The enemy's willpower. These three things were key in defeating those with extrasensory powers, and had to be considered whenever fighting one. All this ran through the alien's mind in less than a second as he felt power swelling within him, painfully pushing inside his flesh like a volcano about to erupt. Boros knew he had only a few moments before his energy propelled him forward…
So he aimed straight for the esper's head.
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"METEORIC BURST!"
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Tatsumaki crashed into a wall opposite the throne, utterly unable to react to the alien's blitz. She gasped as she impacted the hard surface; her breath felt hot.
The esper's vision was distorted, and as she tried to stand, she felt a dizzying sensation that nearly caused her to retch. Not that she could have stood up, anyway; Boros kicked her down the moment she tried.
His leg, pulsing with white energy, felt like a ton of bricks smashing against her stomach. The esper winced in pain — it took all she could not to scream as his leg pushed against her ribs. Grimacing, she sent a psychic wave to push the alien off. Her hands glowed faintly, and despite her injuries, the alien was sent back several meters with considerable force. But it came at a cost.
Tatsumaki's head felt like it was splitting open — as if a knife was being jammed in between her eyes. The glow surrounding her hands disappeared, and she coughed blood. What had this creature done to her?!
Boros's deep laugh echoed around the chamber.
"To think you were able to put up a barrier, even at that speed! Magnificent!"
The esper gritted her teeth through the pain, trying to form some sort of plan. The situation was getting impossible.
If she called out for help, she would die. If she let her injuries stop her from moving, she would die. She wasn't even sure if she could push him away with her powers. And in her state, what could she do after that? In the end, his fist would eventually strike true. She would be killed.
And if that happened, nothing would stop him from killing everyone else underneath the ship.
"You were strong, Tatsumaki," the alien boomed, raising the fist that would end her life.
She didn't close her eyes.
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Dully, the esper heard the sound of wind and the impact of Boros's attack soon after. It was distant, though; her surroundings had changed right before the attack. In her addled state of mind, Tatsumaki took a few seconds to notice. The green-haired girl was being carried in someone's arms.
A white cape fluttered, and she felt a pang of déjà vu.
'Blast…?' The esper tried to speak.
'I don't need your help,' she wanted to say. 'I can handle this.'
"I was late again, huh?" the stranger muttered to himself. The voice wasn't Blast's. It was calm, almost relaxed — just like the top-ranked hero. But there was an edge of anger to it. He took a deep breath to calm himself down and spoke once more. "Nice fight, kid. You can leave the rest to me."
'Did he just say kid?!' If the esper could move, she would have punted him to the sky. Wait… Tatsumaki recognized him now. This was the hero she saw during the meeting, wasn't it? He was a B-Class nobody! And he thought he could take on the alien by himself?!
"Don't be stupid…" Despite her injuries, she forced herself to speak. "I'll… beat him… myself…"
Saitama laid her down on the ground.
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"You have defeated my subordinates most splendidly!" Boros smiled, teeth sharp as blades. His white form flickered out, and his skin was back to its regular navy hue. It seemed he had all but forgotten about the green-haired esper; his attention was now fixed solely on what he believed to be his greatest challenger yet. "Before we fight, tell me your name."
"I'm a hero for fu— I mean, ehrm, I'm the professional hero Saitama," the caped baldy began. His expression was neutral, but his tone was a smidge darker. "I don't know what you want, but you wrecked City A, didn't you?"
"Indeed. As for what I want…" A shadow spread across Boros's face. "You see, there exists a prophecy…"
The sound of their speaking droned on in Tatsumaki's ear. She grunted in pain as she felt her broken ribs creak against themselves. Using what remained of her psychic powers, she aligned them, resigning herself to the searing headache that hit her afterward. This B-Class hero was just stalling for time, she knew. She had to be able to fight as soon as possible.
"… So come! Give stimulation to my existence!"
BAM!
Boros flew into what remained of a pillar, reducing the already pathetic-looking column into dust. He looked completely taken off-guard.
"Are you stupid?" Saitama asked, fist smoking. "You can't go around conquering planets just because you're bored. Even fanfiction authors wouldn't do that." He thought about it for a bit. "Well, actually—"
Tatsumaki could hear an audible "Oh?" of surprise from Saitama as Boros picked himself off the rubble.
"I see," Boros said, deep in thought. "It seems I have to go all-out from the start. You shall now bear witness to my immeasurable, irresistible power."
It was Saitama's turn to look thoughtful.
"Ok."