The Soul of a Hero

Chapter 9

Now I can write the fight and not feel constrained by the other people who could get hurt. Also this will get the rest of the MHA world up to speed on the threat of the Witches and the other world. So on with the show

(No POV)

Charybdis looked from the spot where Johari was and back to Jon. "I see. That attack and speech were to distract me. But do you really think this is a good idea? Do you really think you can defeat me?"

"Thinking, knowing, and doing are very different things. And all of them point to your defeat." Jon says while brandishing Ming. The witch looks at him in confusion before being startled by his sudden attack.

While she was trying to figure out what he was talking about, Jon rushed at her with a slash from Ming. "Shit! Going for a chatty distraction eh?! Well I won't fall for it twice!" Charybdis shouts before lashing out with her familiar.

The creature first spits out some of it's teeth before trying to chop down on Jon. He deflects the ranged attack before spearing the nose of the beast with Ming. It pushes him back a bit but when he plants his feet firm, the eel stops. Then with his right hand he slams down on the top of the beast.

It's head impacts hard on the concrete floor, but the attack isn't done. "Soul force!" Jon calls out before letting a blast of his soul wavelength through the creature. Which travels through it's body and ends up hurting Charybdis herself.

As she is screaming Jon moves in to attack her once more. "You really didn't think things through when you fused your familiar with yourself! Did you really think I couldn't take advantage of your link to hurt you?!"

"Geh! Admittedly, I haven't had to worry about it until now! But that doesn't mean I don't have ways to make it work for me!" Charybdis says in a panic as Jon is slashing down. Only to surprise him by separating from her familiar. Like a snake splitting off it's tail.

Jon is surprised by this and the follow up attack from the witch. "Tidal Rush!" she shouts as she gestures with her left hand. A cluster of watery eels launch out and impact on her former test subject. He doesn't take a lethal hit, but it does knock him backwards.

Charybdis reconnects with her familiar and they try to make a break for an escape tunnel. Only to find it caved in. "I told you. I'm not letting you get away this time. That's why I took so long. I was looking for all of your escape passages and making sure you couldn't use them."

The witch turns back and sees the glowering look of Jon and also sees how his soul had started to rise in power. She grit her teeth before forming one of her eels into a dagger. While also having her main familiar come out as well.

Jon flourishes Ming again and the two stare down. Waiting for each to make a move. They move at roughly the same time and come together in a powerful clash that sends tremors through the sewer system. With the familiar coming down try and bite him as well. Causing even more shaking.

This tremor is felt across Japan, especially with Johari, Muwali, and the zombie they pulled away. "Whoa! Guess the major isn't pulling punches!" Johari says with a slightly scared chuckle. As parts of the sewer come down around them, Muwali asks that they get out quickly.

"I can't use my wind in human form yet! And I don't want to be buried alive!" Johari agrees but tells him they are going to the tunnel from before. "It's a safer way to the surface and there might still be officers we can hand this guy off to."

While they were making their way to the warehouse, Tetsuo was telling the police and his own men to head back to the surface. "This isn't an earthquake that the system was built to withstand! Everyone out now!" Tetsuo shouts as he grabs a few who were injured by debris and jets them to the surface.

Back with the witch, the two are trading blows at a rapid pace. During one of clashes, it shows that both have injured the other. Blood was coming from Charybdis' head, and John had a slash across his chest.

But neither were giving in or slowing down. With the Familiar being sliced again and having to regrow. Or Jon having to spin out of a strong blast of water that sent him flying. He adjusts his hold on Ming before thrusting her forward at a rapid pace.

The witch having to use her familiar again to protect herself before using a water shield spell to deflect and redirect the attacks. She takes a moment to try and gather herself while Jon watches the way the water moves from her spell.

'Well?! Anything?' she thinks annoyedly to her familiar. And the beast reports some more favorable conditions were not far away. "I see. She's using the centrifugal force of the shield to disrupt your attack." Ming notes from her soul space.

"Yeah. But even a magic shield like this….. has a weak point and focus for all the energy!" Jon says while stretching out with his senses. And finding the watery glyph needed to disrupts the magic and strike the witch.

Once he does, Charybdis has a startled look on her face. And it grows as he slashes her once again. Sending her flying toward a wall of the sewer. And the tremors start once again. "We might be overdoing it Jon. Who knows how many are down here now?"

Jon hums for a second before his eyes widen. "That's not from the impact! She's trying to run!" Jon shouts while running to where Charybdis impacted. Sure enough, right above them is a chewed-out tunnel. Courtesy of the familiar.

"Ming! Right!" The pair shout as Jon drops Ming to the ground to ride her. The dragon inside flaring up and thrusting them up through the ground. They come upon Charybdis as she is still burrowing, and Jon can see the scared look in her eyes.

But it doesn't stop him as he pulls both hands back before snarling and impacting her in the center of her body. "Two Palm Soul Force: Twin Spears!" he shouts and unleashed his wavelength. The resulting shocks causes Charybdis to cough up blood while being launched upward.

The resulting blast unfortunately breaks apart the street where plenty of civilians can see what is happening. As Jon kicks off of Ming, catches her in mid air, and takes his stance again.

"Whoa isn't that the guy who fought All Might?! What the heck was he doing underground? I want to know how he cause that whole explosion! Someone call the heroes and police!" the civilians call out and start calling said authorities.

When the smoke clears though, they see that the one he is facing down appears to be a little girl. Who was bleeding from his attacks. Some of the civilians start calling him a monster, villain, or similar.

But he ignores it all, even when Charybdis laughs a bit. "Back in our world you are a hero who fights for peace and justice. While I am an agent of chaos. But here they are so idiotic to be caught up in appearances that they see me as the victim and you as the greatest evil. It's no wonder it was easy to capture these fools to experiment on."

When some start throwing trash at Jon, he just bats it back with a backhand. Smacking the arrogant idiot in the face with his own attack. "Do you think I give a damn what these stupid fools thinks? I'm here for one thing. To put you down."

He sweeps the blade to the side before pointing at her. His soul flaring and pushing back a few more pieces of trash that were thrown at him. And smacking people around him again. As much as Charybdis would like to play into her innocent child appearance, she knows her old victim couldn't care less about knocking out some bystanders.

So she flares her own soul as he familiar comes out. "Whoa! Think that's her quirk? Kinda cool and impressive! It reminds me of my cousin's. Yeah, but his is a shadow thing. That is a big… eel? Wonder if it tastes good?"

Jon and Charybdis charge again with the eel biting down on Ming's blade. Jon goes to use a soul force attack again, but the witch intercepts the attack with her dagger. Stabbing into Jon's hand. He winces at the pain, but he forces his hand down further to grab her hand.

This surprises Charybdis and she can't get away from him. Especially when Jon leans back and headbutts the witch. Four times. The last two hits impacting her eye and making it swell, and then Jon surprising her with a new technique. "Thunderhead strike!" Jon shouts as he channels his wavelength to his head and blasts the witch and familiar.

She gets knocked back and coughs some blood up again. She growls before looking around for a way to get away. She builds up her magic and sends a mental command to her familiar. Attacks are fired from both sides toward the civilians with a twisted smile on her face.

Jon sees it happen and is stuck with knowing he would have to choose one of the sides to save. As he can't save both or only go after Charybdis. He grits his teeth as he looks to both sides.

Only to be happily surprised when many of the civilians are saved by heroes. Tetsuo jetting in and running off with a few that were about to be hit with magic. On the other side, some cement walls are raised by Cementoss standing a distance away.

"Take her down Star! End her terror!" Tetsuo shouts as he is running by. Jon smirks while thinking, 'maybe these heroes aren't so pointless and idiotic after all.' Charybdis had already started to take off into the air and now she was doing it in a panicked frenzy.

Jon tosses Ming toward the ground before telling her to start up a resonance. Both take up into the sky with the familiar shooting back at him with it's teeth. Jon and Ming evade in the air. Or sometimes he swats the attacks away with his soul force.

"You about ready?!" Jon says while wincing at the pain in his hand. Ming can feel the power channeling and resonating within her and the dragon within. She opens her eyes within her soul space before shouting, "it's time! Do it now!"

Jon nods before adjusting his stance on the staff. The resonance is then forced into the blade and it becomes a booster sending them rocketing toward Charybdis. 'We couldn't do this last time because we had Izuku along and Da Ji is much faster. Now though….. time to die witch!' Jon shouts in his mind before kicking up Ming.

The force of the wavelength is temporarily shifted to the staff and keeps rocketing him skyward. Charybdis turns to try and attack one last time to throw her enemy off. But it is too late. Jon is within a perfect range for a new form of Dragon Wave.

"Dragon Wave! Third stance!" Jon shouts as he thrusts the blade forward towards her chest. The blade itself growing as it impacts. Slicing the witch in half. As she is thinking she can try to get away like Medusa, Charybdis sees something around her that douses those ideas.

A giant green dragon maw forms around her. "Dragon devour." Jon says before adjusting the blade. In an instant Charybdis's entire body is crushed along with her familiar. Leaving nothing but the floating witch soul remaining.

Jon sets Ming down under his feet again to fly over and gather the witch's soul. "You did it. You finally killed one of the ones who captured and tortured you. Not to mention others. Jon? You okay?"

Jon looks down at his partner and at the soul in his hands. He grips it tightly as if wishing to crush it into oblivion. But he calms himself before talking to Ming. "Yes and no. I'm glad that I put an end to at least one of them. But I know there are more of them out there. And who knows how many others will be their victims."

Ming nods within her soul space as she sees what he meant. He then notes that the matter is a bit bittersweet. "After all… well you get to be a Death Scythe. Not much point to sticking with me."

"Hey! I'm not going anywhere. We're partners. Through everything." Ming says as they start to fly down to the city. Both sharing a smile of solidarity.

When they land, the civilians are looking around in confusion and concern at what just happened. Not to mention the fact that the heroes seemed to be supporting someone who they all viewed as a villain.

Tetsuo was one of the first to speak to Jon and a recently transformed Ming. "So that is what you look like miss. Is that all that remains of the one who… killed Tensei?" Jon nods with Ming confirming it as well.

The old hero takes a breath before bowing to the weapon and meister. Shocking everyone around. "Thank you for avenging my son and so many others. As well as stopping that mad woman's terror."

"It's only begun though. For multiple reasons. One of which is back now." Ming says as a police car pulls up. With Johari, Muwali, and the zombie in the back. Jon narrows his eye to get a closer look at the zombie as the teens are let out.

Muwali though was intrigued to see what a witch's soul looked like. "That's one down. But who knows if there are more? Da Ji had quite a few allies after all." Johari says while congratulating her elder meister.

"I know. There are eight more who are at least as dangerous as Charybdis is. Let alone the small handful of other witches that were with them to be their own kind of free." Jon says with a sigh.

Tetsuo hums to the side until his eyes are drawn to the zombie in the police car. "Wait. Is that… No. It can't be," the old hero says with a mixture of grief and relief. And it is Johari who confirms it. "Yeah. I think….. that is your son sir."

This makes the hero break down in tears at what had happened to his son. With the other heroes and police shocked and some distraught at the fate of Ingenium. While the meisters and weapons were stoic the entire time.

The zombie that was formerly Tensei groans a bit as Jon looks him over. None of the heroes know what to do and start questioning what other horrors could be unleashed by the same people who did this.

Jon catches Cementoss and asks him to bring Tensei to UA. "There might be things we can learn from him. But we'll need to take a closer look at him to be sure." The hero is a bit put off as he was certain that the Ida patriarch would want to take his son back. But the look from Jon told the hero that he might be able to do something.

The press are dealt with by the police, as Tetsuo rides along to UA to see what Jon had in mind for his son. Not to mention telling his younger son what had happened to his brother. "Muwali. Could you call El or Melissa? We'll need her for this." Ming says to the younger weapon.

He nods and pulls out his phone to make the call. Tetsuo doing the same to call his son and ask him to come to UA. "I think I know why you want her. You need a different soul perception for this right? Mine is better for tracking after all." Johari says before saying good night and peeling off from the group.

Not long after they make it to the nurses office, All Might arrives with his nieces. Upon seeing Tensei, El's eyes are wide in sadness and pity. "He's… suffered quite a bit. From the destruction of his arms and new ones being attached. To all the metal and other pieces forced into his body to make him stronger. Or easier to control."

As El finishes signing this, all those who could understand looked down in pity. Jon took a breath before lifting up his eyepatch. He looked over the remains and could tell it was similar to what Professor Stein had done to Sid.

'But this one has so much magic running through him. I don't think there are any traps but I'll keep looking. Though now it is clear. Charybdis did this alone. She's not working with the others.' Jon thinks while analyzing the physical makeup.

"TENSEI! BROTHER!" they all hear at the door as Tenya had arrived and saw the state his brother was in. Tetsuo wasn't much better as his own tears started again. After both Idas' cried for a bit, the youngest asked if there was a way to help him. With Recovery Girl suggesting that they find a way to let Tensei rest in peace. Nezu nodding in sadness to the side.

"The problem is that I have no idea where to begin with this!" Recovery Girl says while shaking her head. And cursing the person who did this to the hero. Ming hums for a moment before asking for some privacy.

She has Jon, Melissa, and El stay though. As what she has in mind they could help with. "Ming? What are you up to?" Jon says with a suspicious glance. After she locked the door, she went to the window and wrote in the number for the Death Room

When it was answered, she was happy to note Dr. Stein was there too. "This is perfect. Professor? We need your help." Ming says before giving him the basics of Tensei's condition. Stein hums and notes that it could be interesting to work on and undo some of the process. "But there is a little problem of the dimensional boundaries that comes into play."

"That's fine. We don't need you here. We just need your knowledge. Because Jon can perform the surgery!" Jon is wide eyed and annoyed she said that and yells at her for revealing a secret of his.

The fact that his hands were not his own. At one point in his life, Zong Xing and Charybdis had worked together to force a different pair of hands onto his body. The cut off his old ones before using hands taken from a pair of surgeons.

Zong had used her magic and her penchant for mixing to interweave the skills and knowledge that came from the two doctors into the limbs. Granting Jon the potential to act as a secondary or surrogate surgeon for the witches. Often against his will.

"Jon you are the only one who could possibly hope to help him. To give Tensei… even if it's minor, a chance at life again." Ming says while taking his hands. She feels the palms and tells him that she believes in him. "I put my faith in your hands every time we fight. So please. Use your hands to help other lives."

The weapon can see her meister is still mad at her. But she can also see the conflict running through his mind at the idea of using what the witches did to him again. "Jon. You may not have asked for what they did to you. But it is a chance to do some greater good outside of fighting. This is your chance to turn what they did against them."

The one saying this was Stein. The man taking his glasses off and looking at him with a mix of pity and acknowledgement that it wasn't easy to accept a darker part of yourself. A fact the greatest meister of the DWMA struggled with daily.

Jon looked down at his hands again. Taking note of the scars from being cut open and then the muscles attached in various ways to make him more of a weapon and tool for the witches to use. His memories going back to what he suffered through.

But as he tightens them, he thinks of all those who helped him since he was freed. And how they gave him other skills to fight back against the witches and other evils in the world. He lets out a sigh before asking Melissa to help him move Tensei.

Stein smiles before noting that Ming had a witch's soul in her pocket. "I'll wait until there is a proper time to absorb it. I don't know for sure if we've got the 99 other souls." Ming says with a look to the side. But Lord Death confirms that she does. And that once the matter with Tensei was done she could absorb it at any time.

While they had been talking, Jon ordered Melissa to use some gas to knock the zombie out while he stripped out of his dirty battle clothes. He then borrowed some surgeon's scrubs and a few tools from Recovery Girl.

"El I'll need your help. I can use my left eye to untangle the magic they wove on him. But I need you to tell me if the soul starts to weaken more." Jon says while putting on a mask as Tensei passes out on the table. And also taking off his eyepatch to constantly check the body. He then takes a breath before asking Stein to walk him through the procedure.

And Stein does just that. Complimenting how steady Jon's hands were even as he opened up Tensei's head and undid the magic on his brain. "The two they built my hands from were….. well they were both top surgeons in their fields. One neurosurgeon, the other cardiac. Neither one failed operation. Which was all the reason that the witches needed to kill them."

All those conscious or listening sent up quiet prayers for the two who were taken so fewer would live. El keeps watch on Tensei's state and makes sure he stays unconscious with Melissa. While Ming hands Jon tools and helps him to cool down while he's working.

As they had been in there for over an hour, Recovery Girl started to knock and ask what was going on in her office. With the Ida's questioning the same. After another ten minutes passed, All Might was about to break down the door. At least until he got a message from Melissa. Asking him and the rest to wait.

Their wait isn't long though. After another twenty minutes, Ming unlocks the door and lets them back in. Tenya bursts in first and can see his brother looking closer to his true self. Something that all of the adults in the room were shocked to see.

Jon and El had removed all of the plating and other pieces that Charybdis had forced into the body. They also removed the pieces that made him into more of a weapon or tool for the witches to control. His skin was still a sickly purple color though.

Tetsuo closes his eyes before saying, "I see. You were trying to return him to some measure of normal for a funeral. Thank you for that. Now we need to-" Before Tetsuo can finish his sentence, the zombie form of Tensei groans a bit. He sits up and looks around for a moment.

"Dad? Tenya? Wait, All Might and Recovery Girl!? What is going on?!" Tensei says in his old voice. Not the groans and moans he had been speaking for most of the time they had known him. "Brother? How are you?"

"Well the operation was a success. If you do come back here at some point Jon I'll be happy to teach you more regarding that." Stein says from the window with Lord Death next to him. Before they hang up though, all of the heroes ask what happened.

Jon rolls his wrists before saying, "I…. well I gave Tensei here back a bit of his humanity. He's still a zombie but he's at least he can live for himself again." The heroes look at him in shock and confusion.

"That's impossible! You can't bring or….. I don't even know where to begin!" Recovery Girl says before having to sit to try and understand what all happened. All Might is equally confused while looking to his nieces. They shrugged and Melissa just said they helped to keep Tensei sedated and the removal of metal.

Tenya though isn't sure what to think. On one hand, he had his brother back and he apparently could talk and act like a normal person. On the other, he was now an undead person with strange arms. Not the ones he used to have.

"It's not such a strange thing for us. After all I'm a zombie," another person in the mirror says. The person who steps forward is Sid Barrett. With Jon, El, and Ming calling him teacher. "Wait. So one of your teachers was a zombie?!" All Might asks in shock.

The three from the world of souls just look at him with a shrug and a simple yes. "Our world has….. a variety of unusual things. I know it will take some getting used to mister Tensei. But when you feel you are ready, I can teach you what you can do now." Sid says with a smile on his strange face.

Tensei gulps before nodding. Tetsuo is unsure of the matter period but he does say one thing. "I'm not sure on everything….. but you did save my son. Right?" Tensei is the one who speaks up this time to talk to both his relatives.

"Yeah dad. They did. Same with that other girl. She broke the control that little psycho girl had on me. Though this will take some getting used to." With that done, the window fades out and Jon excuses himself.

Nezu hums after listening to everything and asks that Tensei stay at UA for observation. Recovery Girl agrees with a sigh. "I wonder what other insane things could happen?" Recovery Girl asks with All Might chuckling to the side.

The next day, reports are running rampant about the battle that took place and who the victims were of the strange villain. Not to mention millions were questioning what the strange girl's quirk was, let alone Jon's and his other skills.

"We can't keep avoiding this." Nezu says with a look to All Might (skeletal form) and Jon. The latter grumbles but does see his point. "If nothing else…. Your world should know more about who it is that is a threat to the world. Though I gotta wonder how many would believe it."

"I agree, but we may still hold off on certain things. We don't need to bring the younger meisters into the spotlight. But you should be at the front. I'll go with you to try and explain a few things." All Might says with a look to Jon.

The meister just shrugs and mentions that he'll bring Ming along. What follows is a few days of dealing with the Hero's Public Safety Commission, a few governments around the world, and then a press conference later. And having to give the same explanation and show the world of heroes the Death Room.

But with the conference Lord Death notes something with Ming. "You still haven't consumed the witch's soul?" Ming gulps at this and tries to dodge the question. But a look from Jon breaks her down and she admits she is scared.

"If I do become a Death Scythe… well what if the dragon inside is too much? What if it rampages and… and hurts someone again?" Jon lets out a breath before taking her hands and reminding her what she said before Tensei's surgery. "I may wield you with my hands, but you put your faith in them while I'm wielding you. So trust that what is in your soul can save other lives."

While there are plenty who note the rather romantic undertones of the way they were speaking, more were curious on what could happen next. Ming grips Jon's hands tight before thanking him. She transforms into her normal state to ask him to remember it.

Her staff is green with a golden dragon wrapped around it. The blade sitting in her the dragon's mouth. The blade itself has a steel color with a glowing green dragon along the flat of the blade.

She turns back into her human form and takes out the witch's soul. She looks at it once more before holding it close to her body. She absorbs the soul the light from it causes a change in her body and she feels the dragon within swell in power.

As she faces it down though, she feels Jon's hand on her shoulder. And even with the dragon changing and becoming more powerful, Jon's soul refuses to flinch. When it pushes against his, he pushes back and helps her to reign in the beast within.

"Well. The way that thing looks now could be interesting for us going forward. What do you say partner? You ready?" Jon says with a smile. Ming nods as she transforms again. Her weapon form has changed with a larger blade and longer staff. But Jon can still wield her in one hand with little issue.

Her blade now has a gold inlay along it with the green dragon etched in jade on the flat. The staff is a solid piece of metal with a dragon head at the top and bottom of it. "I'll back up a little bit. But I can feel the change and it could knock a few people down."

Jon steps away from the microphones and table and makes his soul flare up. His soul is once again three times his height, but when he starts to resonate with Ming it grows larger far faster than before. And goes beyond his usual five times to his soul appearing eight times larger than his body.

This shocks the whole world watching. Especially when they see something starting to form around his body with the expansion of his soul. But it isn't finished as the pair let up their resonance. "That'll take some getting used to."

"Yes. But now that world has a stronger defend from the forces of chaos. Guan Ming. The first Death Scythe in the world of Heroes!" Lord Death announces before the transmission fades out and cameras flash and questions are asked.

In a different part of the world a few other witches were watching the conference and saw this as an unsettling problem. In a different part of Japan though, a certain witch was looking on at the conference with delighted intrigue. "So that little toy has created Death Scythe. And is apparently working with the heroes. I might need to prod Rikiya to either move ahead or slow down," the witch says from her penthouse while swirling a glass of wine.

And done. Hopefully you all like where I've set things. I won't deny I'm jumping ahead a bit, but this is a different set of paths I put in motion. Though one won't come into play right away, it will be instrumental for a major character I'll shift back to. Please review!