We ran to the bathroom door, but it was locked. I tried pulling on the handle, pulled a little bit too hard, and the handle broke off. Ambrosia quickly took control of the locking mechanism with her mind and unlocked the door. Then, she opened it, and we saw Mayumi, Cyprus, and Yui tied together with rags over their mouths. They had been completely immobilized.
I ran over to them, and untied the rope which bound the three of them together, and removed the rags. Yui was terrified, running over to hug me immediately after I freed her. Mayumi and Cyprus too were in fear, shuddering.
"What the hell happened to you guys? What did Henka do?"
"Who's Henka? Grandmaster came in, batshit crazy, and attacked us!" said Mayumi.
Henka, still in Grandmaster's form, infiltrated our hotel room, fooling the three into thinking he was an ally, and then he attacked them... he took the form of Mayumi, and waited for me to arrive.
"Mayumi, that wasn't Grandmaster, it was a man named Henka Katachi, who can take the form of others around him!"
"WHAT? Is he another one of those Zodiac people?"
"Unfortunately, he is... he infiltrated our meeting, taking the form of Hiroki, and then a few other heroes, before leaving. It seems he came here afterwards..."
"How did he manage to tie you three up? What exactly did he do, how did he fight?" I asked, Cyprus answered, his voice still wavy out of anxiety...
"W-when we least expected it, he jabbed our pressure points, knocking us to the ground, unable to move. Then he tied us up, and threw us in the bathroom, closing and locking the door. It all happened in less than a minute."
"Did you have any chance to fight back, at all?" I asked. If Henka had managed to take them down that fast, then I doubt I would have any chance of beating him in my current state...
"Not at all. Our bodies were rendered useless. A few quick hits here and there, and we were out..."
Henka made himself out to be a problem. Not only could he take the form of beings around him, but he was also quick and agile. We wouldn't be taking him down any time soon, at least, not until we had a plan.
"Yukio, what was your encounter like? We heard everything from here, some loud crashing, what happened?"
"When we walked in, he had taken the form of Mayumi and tricked us into thinking he was her. Ambrosia attacked him, but he took my form in an attempt to bring me down with him. I tossed him out of the window, and he took the form of a bird before flying away…"
"These Patriarchs, they're no match for Ambrosia in terms of an actual battle, but they sure as hell know how to get out of one. They're masters of evasion…"
Cyprus looked defeated. A new situation had appeared before us, and we had no idea how to go about handling it. If the other patriarchs were anything like these two, then we would be in for a long battle.
"Damn it all. We need to think of something before we run into another one of these monster people... I don't feel safe sleeping, knowing those two are on the prowl..."
It was nearing 9:30 PM, Ambrosia and I hadn't done an energy infusion yet today, and nobody could sleep. We were forced into a situation that we couldn't get out of. I tried to reassure everyone that it would be okay--
--but then, simultaneously, everyone's RCD began going off… it was an urgent message from the administration building... something was wrong.
"ALERT, an unknown high-level monster has been sighted outside Camp Alpha, threat level estimated to be 6, calling level 6 heroes to apprehend it! Moving north at a high speed toward the southern gate."
"What? A level 6 monster near Alpha? What's happening?" asked Mayumi.
"Of all times too, what if it's The Zodiac?" asked Yui.
A monster, this late at night? Yui could be right, what if it was the zodiac? Ambrosia immediately stepped into action, warning us to stay behind. She wanted to check this out for herself.
"Shit, you three, stay back and protect yourselves, Yukio, come with me. I'll keep you safe, don't worry."
We heeded her words and stayed back. However, she asked me to come with her, for some reason. She assured my safety, were anything to go wrong.
"Are you sure about this? It seems dangerous for a level 2 like me to go after a level 6 monster."
"I need to test something, and this is the perfect opportunity. Please, come on!"
"Well, I mean-, okay! Just lead the way."
Ambrosia then grabbed my hands, and infused her energy with me. We both started glowing, and then levitating. I was flying for the first time, and it felt really odd. Then, under Ambrosia's guidance, we flew out of the building, and towards the southern gate. Mayumi spoke to herself, with a pensive expression.
"Be careful, Emiko…don't die out there."
While we were flying, I saw other heroes moving in the same direction as us, some were running, others were travelling by different means, such as parkour or personal vehicle. We arrived at the gate and saw the monster, but something was wrong... very wrong...
"...what the hell is that!?" called out a random hero in the crowd.
The monster in the distance was unlike any we had ever seen before. It wasn't an animal, it looked like a person… It was a giant, standing nearly 40 feet tall, with green and white skin, fanged teeth, six red eyes, a long pointy nose, and dragonfly wings. It looked like a giant bug but in human form.
The other level 6 heroes caught up with us, Emiko was there, holding her adamantite bat. There were other heroes around her, some were wielding swords, others had guns, and some even had weapons I had never seen before. I could hear the worried chatter rumbling through the crowd.
"What the heck is that thing?" "Dear God, it looks like a person!" "It's HUGE!" "I've never seen anything like that before!" cried out numerous heroes, shocked at what was in front of them.
But then, one man emerged from the crowd of heroes. He was wielding a lance, probably 7 feet long. It forked into two points at the end. He had yellow hair, black eyes, and wore a rubber outfit. He turned around and spoke to the crowd.
"Listen up! Don't let the fact that we've never seen this type of monster before distract you. Fight on, and bring it down! Those are the administration's orders!"
I caught a glimpse of the badge this man was wearing. Level 6, Rank 1… he was the first seat of the level 6 heroes. The man then turned back around, and pointed his lance at the monster.
"I cannot let you come any further into the city. You will be eliminated on the spot!"
Then, a purple and white ball of electricity began to form between the spikes of the lance. In the distance, I could see a man standing on the monster's shoulder. It was Marius. He was laughing, watching us panic.
The monster he was standing on moved his arms around and analyzed his own body. Then, he spoke to Marius, in a deep, eldritch voice.
"So, this is what it feels like to hold power, it's delightful…who knew consuming the heart of a Mega Mantis would have such effects..."
"Don't get ahead of yourself, Boruto, underestimating them will only lead to your demise."
"Look at me, Marius! I'm huge! They're no match for me! Watch as I crush them all to death!"
Boruto gazed at the group of heroes with his six eyes, and spoke to them, in an attempt to intimidate them. Marius remained on his shoulder, smiling down at the crowd.
"Attention heroes, are you able to understand what I'm saying?" asked Boruto. Emiko, standing next to us, gasped.
"I-it can talk? What the hell is that thing?"
"Look at me, and remember this body. It's the last thing you'll ever see. The new world order has begun. Humanity will be saved, but first, you all must be annihilated..."
"Is that what you think? Just because you can talk, doesn't mean we're afraid of you!" called out the man with the lance.
Then, he aimed his lance at Boruto's head, and spoke a few words, as if he were casting a spell. Marius saw this taking place, and immediately hopped off Boruto's shoulder, running away from him. Boruto was left confused,
"Marius? Where are you going?" asked Boruto. The lancer then spoke,
"With the static surrounding the air, I channel thee through my lance and summon a lightning bolt!" Then, a bolt of lightning shot out of his lance, hitting Boruto, electrocuting him, leaving burn marks on his body.
* Z A P *
"AHHH, What the hell was that!? That's it, no more playing around, you need to go!" said Boruto. Marius then spoke,
"Boruto, you've already lost. Your first mistake was wasting time talking when you could be killing them. I'm sorry, but there's no going back now."
"Huh? What are you-"
Boruto then turned to look at the crowd, and immediately, a swarm of heroes moved in, viciously attacking him from all directions. Swords slashing at his feet and legs, spears being thrown into his body, gunfire erupting upon him, and lightning striking him.
"AHHHHH, I DIDN'T SIGN UP FOR THIS! WHAT THE HELL? MARIUS, DAMN YOU!"
"I told you not to underestimate them... dumbass..."
In less than 2 minutes, Boruto perished. His body was reduced to shambles by the swarm of level 6 heroes. It was a 15 on 1 fight, leaving Boruto powerless. However, this was only the beginning. Marius, standing a few feet away, spoke once more.
"Boruto, what a waste of a monster heart. I hope the rest of you guys don't fail me. COME FORTH, MY DISCIPLES!"
The heroes turned toward Marius, paralyzed. In the distance, they could see a group of people running their way. There were at least 30 people in this group, all holding monster hearts. Marius then shouted a single word, and all hell broke loose.
"COMMENCE!"
The people in the crowd simultaneously ate their monster hearts, and began to transform. Foxes, Frogs, Eagles, Lions, Bugs, tons of monsters appeared suddenly, in humanoid form. The entirety of level 6 was motionless.
The lancer grew pale, and fell to the ground, fainting. Emiko rushed over to aid him. The other level 6 heroes were growing pale as well. They were paralyzed with fear. Marius then started laughing.
"Leopold! Are you okay? Get up, we need you to lead us!" The man's name was Leopold, first seat in level 6. He had fainted upon seeing the swarm of 30 humanoid monsters appear before the crowd.
The monsters started walking toward the group of heroes. Without Leopold to lead the charge, the responsibility laid on Emiko. Time was slowing down around me as the monsters approached us.
Their faces, smiling with malice. Their appearances, abominations of human/animal fusions. These were all regular people, brainwashed into eating monster guts, turning themselves into monsters. The ground violently rumbled as they approached.
This was a demonstration of power… Marius and Henka had infiltrated the city, and recruited thirty individuals into their organization, in order to intimidate us. It was situations like these, that brought out the true horror of the monster race.
Marius, standing in the field, was pointing his finger at the crowd of heroes. The monsters ran toward him, and were approaching us at full speed. The entirety of level 6 began RCDing for backup, calling SOS…
Then, the heroes retreated. Despite there being 15 level 6 heroes on the scene, there was simply too much traffic for their fighting to be effective. There were twice as many monsters, each easily above threat level 4, as there were heroes. The tables had turned so suddenly, and now we were the powerless ones...
I turned to my left, and gazed at Ambrosia. She turned her head, and looked into my eyes. Time was moving in slow motion, and then everything went silent… Ambrosia stared at me for a good ten seconds, her eyes glistening...
"...Ambrosia? Are you oka--"
Then, slowly, she started smiling. Her mouth opened, and she broke into a maniacal smile. She started giggling to herself, which then turned into insane laughter. What had gotten into her? It was then, that I noticed her eyes begin to glow blood red.
"HAAHAA, MY oh MY! What a hellish situation we've found ourselves in! Watch out Yuki!"
Suddenly, she sharply turned to her left, and raised her hands into the air. She shouted, and instantly, all 30 monsters in the crowd came to a dead stop, their bodies glowing yellow. Ambrosia had seized control of every single one of them... she was like a goddess...
"AMBROSIA, WHAT THE-"
"Yukio…"
"Wha-?"
"Yuki Yuki Yuki, I can't hold them for long. I need you to shoo them away, or at least try to. Use that power of yours!"
Ambrosia was using nearly all of her energy to maintain control of the thirty monsters. Her body was shaking, on the verge of losing control. I quickly snapped out of my amazement and focused on the task at hand.
I gazed into the crowd of monsters and raised my hand. Suddenly, I felt an insane amount of weight apply itself to my shoulders. I fell to my knees, barely able to hold my hand into the air. The monsters were all gazing at my hand. I moved it to the right slightly, and the monsters moved with it. Marius was amazed,
"...dear god... Capricorn, YOU'RE AMAZING! YES, BLESS THESE MONSTERS WITH YOUR AUTHORITY! YOU COMMAND THEM!"
"ah..ambrosia..I can't...eugh~"
...but I couldn't command them. My arm fell, and so did I. Under the sheer weight of it all, I collapsed, losing control of the monsters. Ambrosia noticed this and grimaced. She knew things weren't going to work out too well.
"Shit! Ugh, hold on Yukio, we're going to get out of here!"
Ambrosia ceased her control of the monsters and attempted to lift me up, but the rumbling was too violent, and she stumbled to the ground. We couldn't get back up...
As we both lay motionless on the grass, I could feel the rumbling approaching... was I about to die? Was this it? There were 30 monsters approaching us, and both I and Ambrosia had exhausted our power... But then-
"Ms. Esper Witch! Scarlet! Don't worry, we're here to help!"
I glanced up from the ground, and in front of us, running our way, were the top ten... the level 6 heroes had RCD'd into the camp, calling SOS, and in return, they sent the entirely of the top ten to our location...
"...help us... please..."