Night Two Hundred And Sixty One
Oleander City...
The Lab...
Loud red sirens blared out as a group of men could be seen running from something in their lab coats all of them seemingly scared of something.
"S... Shit... This Project should have been shut down! What are those freaks doing here!" A man in a lab coat screamed in horror.
At the top of a metal railing two people could be seen. One was short and the other was tall. "Five..." The tall one said in a familiar voice.
"Yeah Big bro?"
"How many seconds do you think it will take for me to sever all their heads?"
"I don't know big bro? How many?"
"Don't blink. We're about to find out..." He chuckled stepping off the railing. His left leg glowed and began to shift as he dropped down towards all the men. "Let me hear you all scream!"
***
Age 1991
Gladiolus City...
The Arena...
Davi burst forward flashing in front of Max as he pressed two fingers to Max's forehead. "Sadly. It's the Good ones that go first."
Max's body burst in a wave of lava as he entered his level two state and slammed his hand forward smashing his fist into Davis the two attacks sending out a massive shock wave between each other and ripping everything around them to pieces as they began to really lay into each other both boys punching back and forth with the intent to kill neither holding anything back as Lava, and blue energy met colliding head on with massive bursts of force, heat, and plasma, loud crackling sounds blasting out in all directions from the many, many attacks...
However that wasn't really the focus...
Up in the stands Aka looked on with a bored look.
"Ms. Empress?" A voice commented getting Aka and Katrina to turn. Newt Hyde, the Ninth Squad Captain, and the man who was running the Anima Project, the newest scummy project to create weapons, gave a bow. "I finally finished my scans."
"Really?" Aka asked. "Good. And the results."
"Well... A bit concerning but not as bad as I thought..." Newt admitted giving a sheepish chuckle.
Katrina frowned at this giving the two suspicious looks. "What the hell are the two of you talking about..." She asked raising an eyebrow.
"Can I tell her?" Newt asked. Aka nodded making him grin as he gave another bow. "Well my busty blue haired Captain."
"Call me that ever again and I swear to God I'll-"
"The Empress had me run some scans... You see... People in the village here have been acting strange. All people who don't have Equations or Anima DNA, began to act weirdly... They also all gained the same kind of markings... The reason these Games have still been going on despite everything was because of this. Normally we'd have canceled them the moment Master Storm had to be locked away but we need to scan everyone here. For whatever reason they all come back here and by keeping them here with the games it would be easy to scan them without our enemy noticing."
"Enemy? So you think everyone here is being affected by an Equation?" Katrina asked.
"Not an Equation... A Crest..." Newt smirked. "One of the Twenty Six items God made and passed down to his loyal followers, the only people he made himself, the Dragon Clan, beings modeled after the Angels. My scans suggest that the one that did this was the 'M' Crest." Newt announced. "As well as the fact that we can drop the game of pretend."
"What do you mean?" Katrina frowned.
"As far as I can tell everyone will be fine. The Crest will wear off and they'll all go back to normal and be just fine." Newt said.
"Then... I don't get it... Whats the point of it..." Aka questioned folding her arms.
"Thats... The worrying part. You see... Everyone is fine but a tiny amount of energy has been drained. Nothing a good bit of sleep wont recover. So small it isn't even noticed... The issue... It came from everyone... As in every person who was infected with it... Meaning all that power..." Newt gave a worried look as he twiddled his thumbs. "It makes me wonder... Just what is the Organization powering that needed that much energy..."
"Oh no..." Katrina frowned.
Aka stood up. "Well then. I've seen and heard enough."
"Uh... What?" Katrina asked.
"We're packing up." Aka said flatly. "The Games are over. Just go ahead and pass everyone, or fail everyone. I don't care. End it. We're heading back. The Enforcers will need everyone."
"Y... You mean..." Katrina said with wide eyes.
Aka gave a scary grin for a moment. "That's right. Its time. The trial of Row Storm, Hero Law, and Ken Red, will begin when we're all back..."
"Wait what do you mean its over?" Davi asked only to be thrown back by Max who slammed his fist into the boys face.
***
Oleander City...
A Lab...
"I'm sorry little guy..." A sad voice said in a dark room. "But I got no choice. Big Bro says we need to get the testing done. We're going to need to use you. I hope you won't mind..."
Within a small white room several things could be seen...
The first was the many dead scientists that lined the walls of the room their blood sprayed out in all directions. Also in the room was a small glass box with a small rabbit in it. Standing in the room was a young boy... He wasn't very old. Only Twelve or thirteen at most. He was young. Really young. He wore a a simple black body suit despite his young age. One that a solider would wear. He also had on a skin tight black mask that looked almost like a gas mask. He stood in front of the rabbits box staring down at it.
"Six." A voice said making the boy jump. Stepping out of the darkness was a second person. He was dressed in the same skin tight black suit and gas mask. He was older though. Sixteen, or seventeen at most. "Enough playing around. We'll be heading out. He's hurt right?"
"Of course he is..." A third voice sighed. "I do wish your kind would trust me more you know... I was in quiet the shock when I returned to the scene of the crime and found you all after all." He wasn't in a crazy outfit like the two boys. Rather he was in a simple black business suit, and wore a simple black helmet that had green mist seeping out of it as he walked into the room with his hands behind his back. Master of the Organization. The man who was in charge of this group... The man who simply goes by The Mystery... "I do hope you two will put on a good show you know." The man commented.
"Of course we will." The oldest one said crossing his arms. "Six and I are going to take him down for sure."
"Y... Yeah. Four and I are the best when we are teamed up." Six announced nodding his head.
"Besides that..." The apparently named Four said stepping forward and tilting his head at Mystery. "You said that he was injured correct?"
"That's right." The Mysteries nodded. He checked his pocket watch. "I did... That boy has been through the ringer. Even failures like you shouldn't be able to lose."
"What was that."
"I jest. I jest..." The Mystery let out a laugh for a moment as he unfolded his arms from behind his back and tossed something over to Four who caught it. It was a bone knife. "I used that to harm him last time I fought him... That one is tough still, even in his bad state. Plus he no doubt had some time to heal. Careful. Though it will be a nice chance for me to see 'it' in action... After all he never had a chance to do 'it' to Reaper, and he refuses to do it to Vil."
"We'll beat him no matter what." Four sighed turning around and flipping the knife into the air. "When I'm done with him... I'll start on God next!"
The two boys left the room leaving Mystery who let out a sigh. Then... He began to laugh. A very crazed laugh his composure breaking. "Hahahahaha! Can you see me old man. Thanks to me I'll kill God Master Storm. I'm about to do what you and that idiot Mr. Hyde couldn't. I'm going to activate project God Slayer. Like a finely honed blade he will be the thing that strikes down the damn fool who rests at the top. I'm going to be the one who kills God himself and I'll take the throne. Everyone will know my name. I'll be the Mystery Man who rose up from nothing. I'll be even better than you. Hahahahahahaha... Hahahaha. Ha... Ha... Ha..."
***
Meanwhile...
Hero rested in his bed his legs crossed as he had his eyes closed not moving an inch. His hands were held out in front of him as a small puff of wind began to slowly swirl around his hand. The wind began to slowly light up with small puffs of flames for a moment and even bits of lightning and a strange shadow like energy.
"I'm getting better at it." Hero smirked. "I'm not anywhere near as good as control as Max, Ken, Kitsune, Irene, or... Well I guess anyone really... But now I don't just have to throw around power." He announced. "Plus... If I can manage that tiny amount in my normal state I wonder what I can do in my transformed state." He announced.
Hero suddenly went silent his ruby red eyes gaining a suspicious look for a moment as he began to look around. He didn't see anyone making him give a small smirk. The room was empty. It would seem Athena stepped out.
It had been hard getting alone time. The woman almost watched him every step of the way to make sure he didn't do anything that would leave his body in an even worse state. She even slept in a bed across from him in the room they were in and hand cuffed him to his bed when he slept. Only time he got privacy was in the bathroom or the rare moments she had to go help another in dire patient.
"This might be my only chance." Hero nodded sitting back down and entering a cross legged state. "It's getting easier to move... My body is still no where near healed but I'm recovering fast despite trying to push it to its limits... It's getting easier to move under her sludge layer now too... This is the best chance I'll have to try it..." He closed his eyes as his chest began to glow the scar on it lighting up.
'Is the use of your Crest one more time the bad thing, or the use of your power?'
Hero held his left hand out as a small green spark began to form. He gritted his teeth biting down on his lip as the spark got bigger. Seconds later a small rubber ball appeared in his hands.
"I'm getting better at the creation aspect..." Hero noted tossing the ball up into the air a few times. A few moments passed and he rested it on a counter. The ball began to slowly age and crack. "Though... I can't seem to make things last longer than a few seconds at most... Still. Better than nothing... Plus... Doing it hasn't made me lose my sense of self... Row hasn't also come to smugly tell me he's getting stronger... I'll need to Master This Crest if I want to have a hope when I fight Otoko... Not just the Crest though... I'll need... I'll need to be able to use 'that' thing... Thats for sure."
Hero closed his eyes once more as his right arm glowed and shifted into his clawed like form. He held his palm out as it began to glow and slowly a mix of wind, flame, lightning, shadow, and green energy, began to all slowly twist and bend around each other hissing out and bouncing away like trying to mix fire and water...
Hero gritted his teeth and kept at it. He did the thing Athena told him not to... Even worse. She told him how bad three energies merged together could be, condensed and formed into that powerful attack. She made him promise not to do it. And he did. He wasn't mixing three. He was mixing five... Technically he never lied.
"Just... A... Little bit..." Hero growled as they began to slowly twist and form the shadows wrapping around all the energies. Hero winced and nearly slipped up as his right arm began to crack and blood started to seep out of his wounds and his arm shook getting worse and worse. "Almost... Got... It... I can... Form it-"
"WHAT THE F##K!"
"Oh shit-"
Hero felt a powerful fist to the back of his head as the energy instantly went out and his right arm reverted into a badly melted and broken limb hanging down at his side.
Athena grabbed him roughly by the front of his jacket shaking him. "What the actual hell is wrong with you! You know that if you slipped up even a single bit you'd have blown not just yourself up but the whole God damn hospital! Hell maybe even the God damn city! Are you just an idiot."
"If slipping up was so dangerous than why the hell did you hit me you crazy woman! That could have caused me to slip up as well you know!"
"Shut up!" Athena hit him again.
"Ow..."
She sighed taking his right arm and began to spit her goop all over it. "Thank God the wound is recent... It's easier for me to heal wounds based on time, not severity. Though of course severity also plays a big role in it." She sighed as his arm began to absorb the pink goo and it began to heal. It was still red and covered in cuts but it was a lot better now. Hero yanked it out of her arms rubbing it a sour look on his face. "Don't give me that look. I told you not to do that."
"No... You said don't do it with three..."
"That... Wasn't three."
"No."
"...How many..."
"...I don't want to answer that again you'll hit me-"
"How. Many."
"...Five-"
'Bam!'
Athena slapped Hero upside the head again. "YOU ARE ACTUALLY INSANE!"
"I knew what I was doing-"
"YOU ARM BEGS TO DIFFER!"
"Why are you screaming?"
"OH AND I ALMOST FORGOT! I GOT YOU THOSE SWEETS YOU LIKE!"
Hero rolled his eyes. "Yeah well-" He suddenly went silent his red eyes glowing slightly. "What?"
Hero fired forward slamming himself into Athena and throwing herself and him to the floor.
"Hero? Wait you said you can't come in contact with women-"
The entire hospital room exploded as a hail of bullets entered it lining over everything and ripping it all apart. Hero and Athena were both silent and slowly stood up when the gun fired ended. As they stood up they stared out of the shattered window the bullets had came from. Neither said a word as they stared at the two people... Both in skin tight black suits with gas masks on.
The oldest one slowly raised a hand up squeezing his palm down when he saw Hero.
"Hello. Row."