Chapter 132: A Night of Horror
It should be noted that Razak never liked Santos. The man had never been anything more than an annoyance on the best of days. And the kindest words Razak could find to describe the Corsair were power-hungry, egotistical, and asshole. He only respected strength and power, which meant all his orders had to be issued from Mirana, and Mirana only. The Corsairs themselves barely tolerated him, considering that Santos continually pissed off all his superiors.
Truthfully, he was nothing but a major pain to deal with. But the Empire never got rid of him for one sole reason: Santos' quirk. For as annoying as he was, Santos had the power to back up his ego. The man was a walking WMD, capable of ripping warships out of the ocean and crushing them into a marble. He could part the sea like Moses or throw a building with the flick of his wrist.
With that sheer level of power, the empire found him more useful than worrisome. It's why Razak was… to put simply, worried.
"He lost?" Razak questioned in disbelief, the emperor leaning over his hardwood desk. The Corsairs in front of him slowly nodded their heads in response. Currently, Razak, Captain Levy, and two other Corsairs stood in a small office located inside the palace grounds' Royal Training Facility. Said office had a large window spanning from wall to wall and overlooked the large training grounds below.
Being so close by, Razak could hear Mirana going through her normal workout regimen, what with the loud clanging of metal and the roar of hydraulics.
"Yes, my lord," one Corsair, Sergeant Mathez if Razak remembered correctly, began to say, "From the reports we've gotten, Santos has been subdued."
That elicited a pause from Razak, as he took in what he'd heard.
"We sent him to Outer Heaven yesterday," Razak grumbled tiredly. Santos had been beaten the same day he arrived on the frontline. It was unfathomable.
"Did he at least do well?" Razak questioned hopefully. Santos' deployment was for one reason only: revenge. So long as he managed to fuck up the MSF badly enough, then that would be a win in Razak's book. And surely he did. Surely, the MSF had to deploy an entire army group to stop him. They had to throw wave after wave of men at Santos. Several legions worth of bombers were used, surely.
"He supposedly advanced four miles in one hour, killing an estimated one thousand, two hundred, and seventy-three MSF personnel," Mathez replied. More than a thousand dead… that was good, an entire battalion had been annihilated. And it more than likely meant thousands more troops were wounded… but that felt too low.
"Not the overwhelming casualties I was hoping for," Razak muttered to himself, before bringing a hand to his face. The MSF suffered twice the number of casualties back in the Battle of Mutengene. And that didn't involve any massively powerful quirks, just cramped house-to-house warfare. This barely qualified as revenge. The MSF was supposed to pay in blood for attacking his empire and ruining Aveline's birthday.
Instead, all he got was a thousand dead. Groaning, Razak removed his hand from his face.
"This doesn't make any sense. FOXHOUND should still be up north, dealing with what remains of Hammerhead," Razak commented, while rubbing his chin in thought, "None of their heavy hitters should have been far south enough to do anything."
Don't get him wrong, he knew that Santos wouldn't get far for long. After five years of war, it would have been naive to think the MSF didn't have an answer to quirk threats. But it still would have taken hours for anyone powerful enough to reach the Southeastern front.
"Well, my lord, we have heard rumors that it wasn't the MSF who beat Santos," Mathez explained, causing Razak to raise a brow.
"What?" Razak questioned, "Not the MSF?"
"No, my lord," Captain Levy then confirmed, the man carefully stepping forward. Wasn't the MSF? Weren't they the ones responsible for Santos' loss? It was surprising to hear, but it only made Razak more confused.
"Who then?" Razak demanded, "Did the Poles finally send down their Hussars?"
It was the most logical thing to do. When fighting a war, you call in allies. And the MSF had plenty to choose from, with many willing to help out, if only for very needed combat experience. So it would have been no surprise if it were indeed the Hussars. However, Mathez had begun to shake his head.
"No. From what we've heard, rumors suggest that Santos was beaten by All Might," Mathez explained, making Razak go wide-eyed. It was as if all the sound had been sucked out of the room.
"A-All Might?" Razak asked, the man having gone pale. All Might, of all people? It couldn't have been. H-he was in Japan! Dealing with that cult, the MSF was fighting! Why would he come back down to Africa, after all these years!? T-this wasn't happening, it wasn't! He and Mirana had barely escaped from him the last time… oh fuck! Mirana!
"Yes, my lord. Eye witness reports suggest that All Might-" Mathez began to say, and Razak quickly interrupted him.
"Shh! Quiet! Don't say his name!" Razak desperately ordered, his eyes still wide as he motioned for Mathez to shut up. Shocked by the sudden fear in Razak's eyes, Mathez glanced back at him and Captain Levy, confused.
"W-why, my lord?" Mathez asked, confused, though thankfully, he didn't utter All Might's name again. It was fine. Everything was fine. He and Mirana were separated by an entire room, and she was busy working out. She was by no means quiet either, so there was in no way that she could have heard them talking… Why is it so quiet, Razak mentally questioned.
The clanging of metal that normally accompanied Mirana's workouts was gone. Cautiously, Razak turned to his right, while mentally telling himself everything was fine. He looked out the window, pleading to be right, and found his wife was nowhere to be seen.
"...Fuck," Razak muttered, before turning back around. Sure enough, he found the double doors to his office shooting open, and Mirana stormed into the room.
"What's this about All Might?" she quickly demanded, while Razak put up a nervous smile. Razak didn't know how Mirana did it, but she could always tell when someone was talking about All Might. It was a weird, uncanny ability that made no sense to anyone who heard about it. Why? Because it had nothing to do with her quirk. She just knew somehow. Desperately, Razak attempted to think up a good enough lie.
"Nothing, Mira. One of the Corsairs was just discussing the… almighty. God and all that," Razak replied, while mentally yelling at himself for his idiocy. That was the worst lie he could have ever come up with. Quietly, he glanced toward Captain Levy and Mathez for support. Neither seemed to know what to do, but the ever loyal Levy cleared his throat.
"Y-yes. T-the palace cathedral was… having mass again," Levy added cautiously, his gaze flipping to Razak and Mirana. Fuck, we both suck at lying, Razak thought to himself. He still kept up his nervous smile, pretending nothing was amiss. Mirana remained unconvinced, and the Empress looked at everyone in the room suspiciously. Eventually, her eyes settled on Razak, and she walked toward him slowly.
"Razi," she said, before crossing her arms together, "Don't lie to me."
There was no fury behind her eyes, only suspicion and… disappointment… fuck! Don't break you, fool! You are doing this for her own good! She cannot know he is here! So whatever you do, don't tell her! Do not break, Razak told himself. Yet, for all his defiance, Razak felt himself begin to falter. Mirana didn't need to say a word. Her eyes just dug into his soul, quietly pleading to know what was wrong.
He just… damn it, he just couldn't keep lying. Worriedly, he took a deep breath and grabbed Mirana's hand.
"...All Might is… possibly on the continent… and aligned with the MSF," Razak slowly explained, his eyes watching Mirana for a reaction. Almost instantly, he saw her go rigid. Her hand tightened around his, and Mirana's expression went from one of suspicion to a look of determination.
"Where?" Mirana demanded with a slight eagerness in her words. There was a giant mix of emotions all in that single word. Razak heard anger, worry, fear, anxiousness, but most frighteningly of all, he heard joy.
"Mira, darling, let's not do anything hasty now," Razak quickly told her, while Mirana looked up at him in shock.
"All Might is here! What do you mean, let's not do anything hasty!?" Mirana exclaimed, before letting go of Razak's hand and throwing her arms up into the air.
"Don't you remember the last time he was here!? And what he did!?" Mirana loudly questioned, with Razak shaking his head rapidly.
"No, no! I could never forget that," Razak replied, while running a hand through his hair. It had been a… very memorable event to say the least. Originally, Mirana was the strongest person in the empire. Not once had she ever lost a fight. But then they ran into All Might. Mirana had hit All Might with practically everything she had, and he didn't so much as flinch. All Might, by contrast, hit Mirana one time.
The difference in power was simply overwhelming. After the fight, Razak had found Mirana in an emotional slump. For days, she'd wallowed in self-doubt, terror, and embarrassment. Mirana had been utterly humiliated, and for that, they both wanted All Might to pay.
"But now isn't the time to rush off in search of a brawl," Razak reasoned, causing Mirana to again look at him, shocked.
"I have been gunning for a rematch for twenty-five years! Now he is finally here after all this time!" Mirana angrily told him, before gesturing toward the window, "I didn't spend all those weeks toiling in this facility, just to have him leave before our fight!"
"Maybe you could spend a few more hours here. Improve your strength a little more," Razak pleaded, hoping she would agree. At the same time, his gaze flicked over to the training floor below. Mentally, Razak couldn't help but recall the construction of the training facility. Wanting to help his wife regain her confidence, along with helping her prepare for her rematch, he'd commissioned the construction of a new quirk training facility on palace grounds.
The entire thing was kept hidden as a surprise, with the official story being that the palace was under renovation. And with the capital that year being in Mozambique, Razak had managed to keep Mirana from learning about the facility's construction. She only discovered it on their anniversary, when construction had finally finished. The facility itself was the size of a college campus, which sounded ludicrously large.
However, the training facility's size was due to Mirana's equipment being enormous. Right outside his office, for example, was what the engineers had dubbed the Strength Chamber. A twenty-four-story-tall hydraulic press, designed to exert thousands of tons of force. It cost a fortune to build and required a small army's worth of privateers to continually steal the needed materials, specialized support gear, and high-density weights.
But in his mind, it had all been worth it, yet he was unsure if it was enough. Mirana clearly thought otherwise, as Razak felt her hand on his cheek.
"Razi, I can do this," she told him, pulling his gaze back over to face her, "He has been losing strength for weeks. I am going to win this time. I am strong enough to do this."
Razak looked back at her reluctantly and was unsure.
"I don't doubt your strength, Mira," Razak replied with a sigh, "I'm just afraid we're underestimating him."
Her quirk was powerful, massively powerful. But it had only become so powerful because of continuous training. Even then, her quirk wasn't strength-based; it was water-based. Mirana's mother had been born with a hydrokinesis quirk that worked by manipulating water within a hundred meters of her. Her father, King Hery Rakoto, had a different water quirk. That being the ability to breath under water.
It didn't seem all too powerful; however, Hery's quirk had a small secondary ability. The ability to breathe underwater didn't mean one could survive the pressure of being thirty thousand feet under the sea. And yet, Hery could continually swim around the ocean floor with no issue. To survive the crushing depths, Hery's quirk had made him far stronger than he looked. At his strongest, King Hery was capable of lifting nearly eighteen thousand, eight hundred metric tons.
Mirana, meanwhile, got a combination of the two quirks. She didn't get her father's water breathing, but for whatever reason, she got his secondary strength. That, combined with her mother's hydrokinesis, forms Mirana's quirk, Atlantean. Now, with Atlantean, Mirana was also capable of lifting the same weight her father did. The key difference between them, though, was that Hery was at the peak of his strength.
For Mirana, eighteen thousand and eight hundred tons was her weakest. Quirks, including their secondary aspects, got stronger after all. A better way of putting it was that Mirana was starting at the level of someone who'd never worked out or really done anything physical. While leagues stronger, she was equivalent to someone who struggles to lift twenty pounds. In the plainest sense, there was room to grow. There was a peak she hadn't reached yet. And Mirana had climbed towards it for years. All Might did not. All Might, as far as anyone knew, was just naturally that strong.
There was no climbing; he was just at the top to begin with. He was the mountain that no one had come close to reaching the top of. Even with all her training, Razak was unsure if Mirana could match All Might. For a moment, Mirana thought over his words. He could see her pondering the possibility that they were indeed underestimating All Might. But she shook her head.
"I'm not letting him get away," Mirana replied defiantly.
"If he's truly aligned himself with the MSF, then there will be other times to fight him. It doesn't have to be today!" Razak protested loudly while he tried to think up a counterargument, "Besides, what about the empire?"
There were countless meetings with the council they had to attend, dozens of ceremonies that required their presence, and military inspections before troops were sent back to Outer Heaven. There was work to be done!
"It'll still have your brains at the helm while I'm gone," Mirana countered, calmly, before stepping away from Razak.
"The Corsairs then," Razak said, his arm pointing toward Captain Levy and Mathez. The Corsairs were her pride and joy. A force that had trained her when she was young. Now she helped train them and their recruits. They'd be losing a major amount of experience if she left.
"I am not their only commanding officer," Mirana replied, making Razak mentally swear. Other arguments came to his mind as he desperately tried to find a reason to keep her from going. Almost all failed. And yet, there was still the nuclear option, one Razak knew would work.
"And… What about Aveline?" Razak asked, watching as Mirana froze. The nuclear option always worked.
"Am I supposed to tell our daughter that her mother is gone? That she ran off to challenge a man that, as far as anyone knows, has never lost a fight?" Razak continued to say, while Mirana quietly thought over his words. Carefully, he grabbed her hands and looked down into her eyes.
"I don't want Aveline to grow up without her mother," Razak told her warily, "And I… I don't want to lose you."
He couldn't imagine what would happen if she lost. All Might would likely try to subdue her non-lethally, so that meant Mirana would be captured alive. But the number of crimes they'd both committed on the high seas was innumerable. There was the possibility that the MSF would imprison her in Outer Heaven, but it was also just as likely that Mirana would be extradited somewhere else.
The best-case scenario was that she was sent to Australia, as every other nation surrounding the Indian Ocean had the death penalty as an option. Regardless of where they sent Mirana, the Empire could try a breakout attempt with the corsairs, but that relied entirely on dozens of factors that Razak simply was not comfortable with. It was just too risky.
"So… you ask me to sit by, and do nothing?" Mirana questioned, looking up at Razak with a quiet fury.
"I'm not saying you shouldn't fight him. Just that now isn't the right time," Razak reasoned, "You'll get another chance, and we'll do everything needed to prepare for it."
Mirana still didn't seem pleased by the idea, but she looked far more reluctant to leave. Razak considered that a small win, mentally sighing in relief.
"We could lure him into a trap, maybe have some of the slaves act as bait-" Razak began to tell her, a plan coming to his mind. Right up until Mirana cut him off.
"Oh, Razi, you know how I feel about traps," Mirana muttered, pouting, "I just want a clean fight. Just me and him beating the crap out of each other."
Razak chuckled slightly. Mirana had always been fond of the more direct approach when it came to combat, not that he could blame her.
"I'd prefer a plan, something a bit more organized. We should think things out a little," Razak replied, while letting go of Mirana's hand.
"I'd rather think with my fists," Mirana replied with a smug grin, before punching her palm. Razak simply chuckled and leaned in close.
"Well, you were always the best at it," Razak complimented, while smiling back at her. Sometimes it did pay to just use one's fists. And with all the fights Razak remembered over the years, he believed no one was better at thinking with their fists than Mirana. So quietly, while still leaning forward, he wrapped his arms around her and placed a kiss on Mirana's lips. One, she quickly returned. When they parted, Razak heard Mirana huffing to herself.
"...I won't go," Mirana relented, making Razak sigh in relief. At the same time, Mirana grabbed his shirt and pulled him in close again.
"But Razi, the next chance we get, he's mine," Mirana told him, before kissing him again. Razak simply chuckled.
"And he will be, my love," Razak replied, "That I can promise you."
It had taken some time, but Endeavor was slowly beginning to realize that this case was far larger than first thought. With more than two-thirds of his agency going over old case files, they'd more or less uncovered the name Night Owl hundreds of times. A quick control F of their databases found the name being mentioned nearly five thousand times. Issue being that the majority of these instances were unrelated to the case at hand. Most of the time, the name Night Owl was used as a different, unrelated villain's name.
Or it was a code word, a password, a file name, a project name, a support gear name, an operation name, or even just the name of a crime scene, like the Night Owl Cafe. Needless to say, this was a very large case. But with the very nation in the balance, Endeavor knew there was little time to spare. Which meant he needed help. So, standing next to his office's desk surrounded by papers, tablets, and cups of coffee, Endeavor looked up from his latest report and turned to his right.
Sitting off to the side, with a cup of coffee in one hand and a tablet in the other, was Sir Nighteye. Endeavor had called him hours ago, requesting his assistance with the case. Criminal investigations, after all, were the Nighteye Agency's bread and butter. There was no better investigative hero force than his. Which meant that calling him in was the logical choice. Suddenly, the door to his office shot open. Looking toward it, Endeavor spotted Burnin quickly walking into the room.
She pushed a cart forward, bringing in more documents for Endeavor and Nighteye to read. Endeavor felt tired just looking at it.
"This is everything?" Nighteye asked tiredly, the hero soon sipping from his coffee cup.
"Hardly," Burnin replied, just as tired as Nighteye, "We've got twenty-six years' worth of case files to go through. All of this is just from the last five years."
"Surprised you're not using a digital system," Nighteye then commented, causing Burnin to shrug.
"Eh, we are," Burnin told him, "Boss just thinks it's safer to keep everything physical, though."
And Endeavor would stand by that belief. As ironic as it was to have thousands of papers surrounding heroes with primarily fire quirks, Endeavor believed that having physical files was a must. His first year as a hero had a rather unfortunate event, where a villain with a techno quirk wiped his agency's files clean. It took months to recover what they could, but it taught Endeavor an important lesson. Always have a backup.
The Endavor Agency had everything stored digitally primarily, but kept physical files just in case. With that, Burnin turned to leave the office. Heading out the door, Endeavor spotted the countless sidekicks hard at work. Along with some heroes, as both Fatgum and Ryukyu walked by the door. Nighteye had recommended calling in extra help, and Endeavor had agreed. A trainee working for Nighteye, Lemillion, if Endeavor remembered correctly, had recommended the other two heroes.
So in total, the list of people working the Night Owl case included Endeavor, Nighteye, Ryukyu, Fatgum, Centipeder, Bubble Girl, Lemillion, Nejire Chan, Suneater, and the majority of Endeavor's thirty sidekicks. Picking up one of the tablets, Endeavor began to read it carefully.
"Where's the paper trail start?" Nighteye asked as he stood up and walked towards Endeavor.
"Here," Endeavor replied, "The earliest mention we could find of this Night Owl character was on November third, 2279."
Holding the tablet out for Nighteye to see, Endeavor scrolled down to the file's main points.
"We'd busted a small gang of support gear traffickers," Endeavor began to explain, while Nighteye quietly read through the report, "When interrogated, they explained they were trying to meet a client with the codename Night Owl. From their testimony, Night Owl was searching for arms and material on the black market."
Most other reports on Night Owl were mainly the same in that regard. Along with testimony from some sources in the JSDF, Night Owl had been looking for arms for years. While the JSDF appeared to be his primary source, secondary villain groups also offered up some services.
"Did they give any more info?" Nighteye inquired, looking up from the tablet. Endeavor merely grumbled and shook his head.
"Unfortunately, no," Endeavor replied tiredly, "We found them dead in their cells a few days later."
How it happened was anyone's guess. They were alive one moment, then dead the next. The autopsy report said it was cardiovascular issues; however, the suspects were young men in their twenties. In what world do they suffer heart attacks? Endeavor assumed quirks were at play, but no evidence had arrived to prove it as such.
"After that, the case was taken out of our hands and handed to the Criminal Affairs Bureau," Endeavor added bitterly. Their deaths didn't involve quirks, as suspicious as they were. And if quirks weren't involved, then neither were heroes. By the rule of law, the case became a police problem from then on.
"They never found a murder suspect, and so the case went cold," Endeavor coldly commented, still a bit upset at the dead end. Nighteye, meanwhile, grumbled next to him.
"How convenient," Nighteye muttered sarcastically, with Endeavor quietly nodding. What made it more convenient was that the case mostly just… disappeared. It's not that the authorities covered it up or that it was wiped from the records. No, people just forgot about it. There was other stuff the cops and Endeavor had to deal with. There were other support gear traffickers they'd had to deal with, dozens of big-name villains terrorizing the country, all manner of business that took priority over a case with little info.
And after five years with no leads, it just went cold. Abandoned and filed away.
"Were there any more recent mentions?" Nighteye inquired, causing Endeavor to shrug and sigh tiredly.
"A few, but we're still filtering through them," Endeavor told him, before rubbing his brow. I need more coffee, he thought to himself, exhausted. At the same time, Nighteye looked down at the report in quiet contemplation.
"It's obvious this Night Owl character has been planning this attack for years," Nighteye reasoned, while bringing a hand to his chin, "They've been building up a stockpile of weapons, while funding the Ninth Circle, and somehow managed to keep everything under the radar."
Until now, Endeavor thought to himself. But then again, that was only due to hindsight. It was easy to see the makings of an attack coming after it already happened. Now, Endeavor could only hope to prevent the next mass villain attack before it was too late. But then Nighteye said something Endeavor hadn't considered.
"Clearly, this is not a simple domestic case," Nighteye noted, causing Endeavor to raise a brow in thought.
"You're thinking this could be international?" Endeavor asked, surprised. He hadn't considered it to be an international case. Sure, there was the cult's attack on Shanghai, but somehow Endeavor felt that wasn't actually their doing. They strike Japan for weeks on end, and then launch a single attack in China, before going back to only striking Japan. It felt beyond fishy.
But that wasn't Endeavor's focus at the moment. The cult largely operated in Japan; they used mainly Japanese weapons, and their benefactor was seemingly someone of high relevance in Japan. It seemed like a domestic case as far as Endeavor could tell. Nighteye disagreed with his reasoning, the hero soon answering Endeavor's question with a nod.
"It has to be. The Ninth Circle didn't solely use Japanese weaponry," Nighteye reasoned calmly, "Night Owl, whoever he is, had the power and influence to smuggle in weapons from other countries across the globe."
Which was somewhat of a fair point. Endeavor had been assuming that Night Owl was operating on his own. It was clear that weapon smuggling was involved, but with this sheer scale, Night Owl must have had an ally. And that meant other villain organizations could be at play.
"Then limiting our search to Japan will get us nowhere," Endeavor noted aloud. They'd need the help of more heroes, more than the four already here.
"I have some contacts we can reach out to for help," Endeavor quickly commented, the hero already pulling out his phone. A few quickly came to mind as he remembered some international heroes he'd worked with in the past.
"No better place to start," Nighteye commented, before returning his gaze to the tablet. The hero quietly read over everything again for a few moments. And for a time, everything appeared fine. Endeavor made a few calls while going over more documents. Yet every time he glanced up at Nighteye, he found the hero looking more tense.
"You seem on edge," Endeavor noted, eliciting a groan from Nighteye.
"Something just feels off about this," Nighteye replied, "Like this case is bigger than we think it is."
"We're already dealing with one of the largest villain organizations the world has seen. How could this case get bigger than that?" Endeavor asked. Though for an odd reason, he began to regret asking. He didn't know why, but he felt as if he asked the wrong question. Because it was not, "how could this case get bigger?". The question that popped into his mind now was how much bigger could it get?
When Jiro agreed to go ghost watching with Kaminari, she was expecting something a bit simpler. They'd stay up late, listen for ghosts, and when nothing would happen, they'd go to bed. But the thing was, Kaminari had a plan in mind. Instead of doing their stakeout on the same day Jiro agreed to help him, Kaminari decided they'd need some equipment for the job at hand. So for a few days, Kaminari had asked Yaoyorozu for some night vision cameras, had bugged Tokoyami for his EMF reader, and built up a small fort outside Eri's room.
It had taken a lot longer to set up than Jiro liked… though, the fort was nice… the cushions provided would definitely make the stakeout easier. Still, this could have been overwith days ago. With that thought, she glanced to her left and saw Kaminari setting up the last night vision camera.
"Alright, everything is ready," Kaminari then announced, the teen smiling as he held up his phone. The cameras connected to it with Bluetooth, allowing him to see each one perfectly. Though Jiro was still struggling to see the point of the cameras.
"...Were the night vision cameras necessary?" Jiro asked, unsurely, with Kaminari quickly nodding.
"Obviously. How else are we going to see the ghosts?" Kaminari asked in return.
"If you say so," Jiro relented, before she looked around the hallway, "What now then?"
They both sat right outside Eri's door, their small fort of cushions pressed up against the wall. Her room was situated on the same floor as Akatani's, sitting on the girls' side of the dorms. So far, nothing looked amiss.
"I uh… I guess we… wait?" Kaminari then replied, unsure, causing Jiro to raise a brow.
"For how long, though?" Jiro asked.
"Until… one, maybe three in the morning," Kaminari replied, eliciting a look of shock from Jiro.
"Seriously? We have class tomorrow. I can't be staying up that late-" she began to say, right until Kaminari cut her off.
"I'll get you as many energy drinks as you want," Kaminari told her. And that… that made her pause for a moment. It was a very tempting offer, all things considered. Jiro was not a big coffee drinker. Yaoyorozu had gotten her interested in some teas, but energy drinks remained her primary caffeinated beverage. Getting up in the morning was impossible without it. Kaminari was exactly the same as her in that regard, and he had access to all the best energy drinks.
So… saying yes would mean getting Kaminari's stash of energy drinks…
"...I want your Gamersupps, shaker cup included," Jiro bluntly told him.
"Deal," Kaminari replied, before a look of regret flashed through his eyes. Jiro simply chuckled to herself when she saw it. Kaminari had no problem giving her his stash; the issue was the shaker cup. Said shaker cup had an anime girl in a bikini, with rather generous curves. A deal was a deal, though. So with that settled, they both sat around, waiting for something to happen. Every few minutes, Jiro would stick her jacks into the wall and see if she could hear anything. But obviously, nothing ever happened.
Hours passed before Jiro tiredly sighed and lay down on the cushions.
"This… is getting boring," Jiro muttered, while Kaminari nodded next to her.
"Agreed," Kaminari grumbled, before laying down next to her, "Hear anything yet?"
"Nope," Jiro replied, before glancing down the hallway. Both ends were pitch black, yet Jiro could tell nothing was there. It was just the two of them, sitting in the hallway. Eventually, Jiro noticed Kaminari turning to face her.
"You know, I just had an idea," Kaminari began to say, while Jiro chuckled.
"You can do that?" she jokingly asked, as Kaminari smiled and sat up.
"I know, I know, bask in the glory of my smartness," Kaminari commented with a laugh, giving a few fake bows to a nonexistent crowd. That got a small laugh from Jiro before she shook her head.
"What's your idea?" Jiro asked, right as Kaminari lay back down.
"Well, you know how you got those speaker things for your jacks? And how they can… I guess shoot sound?" Kaminari asked in return, to which Jiro nodded.
"Yeah," Jiro confirmed, before placing her chin on her arms.
"Well, what if you put speakers on your soles?" Kaminari inquired. Jiro looked up at him, puzzled, unsure of what he meant.
"...What for?" Jiro asked, the idea sounding somewhat odd. She already had speakers on her boots, so she could have some ranged attacks. But what good would speakers on her soles do? Maybe if she was kicking someone, though Jiro wasn't entirely sure.
"Added mobility, I guess," Kaminari replied, now sounding unsure of his idea, "Like… you could double jump."
…Double jump? How would she double… Wait…
"You mean… just jump into the air, and use my quirk to launch me up farther?" Jiro asked, and Kaminari's face lit up.
"Yeah! Exactly like that!" Kaminari exclaimed, a bit too loudly, "You could totally double jump!"
Quickly, Jiro shushed Kaminari, both teens realizing the amount of noise they made. For a second, they waited to see if anything would happen, and both hoped they didn't wake Eri. When nothing happened, Kaminari stuttered and continued talking.
"O-or, you could use the boots to help keep you moving! Use sound to propel and bounce you around," Kaminari said, the ideas slowly forming in Jiro's mind. She likely couldn't fly, but she could move around like Akatani without grappling hooks.
"That… sounds awesome," Jiro told him, an excited smile taking hold of her face.
"Right!? You could be moving around like fricking Dante," Kaminari added, making her love the idea more. Now she wondered if she could use her quirk with some kind of sword. See if she could start pulling off mid-air combos.
"That is just a really great idea. I'm surprised I didn't think of it," Jiro said with a laugh. The compliment made Kaminari smile wider, with Jiro quietly enjoying the sight. At the same time, it got Jiro thinking about herself.
"Alright, I've got an idea for you now," Jiro began to say, as Kaminari quickly became curious.
"Oh? What is it?" Kaminari asked, the teen excitedly looking back at her.
"If you use your quirk right, you could act as a defibrillator, right?" Jiro inquired, while Kaminari raised a brow.
"The zappy thing doctors use?" Kaminari asked, and Jiro then nodded in response.
"Yes. Just put your hands on somebody, zap them a bit, and boom! Hearts up and running again," Jiro explained, while Kaminari connected the dots.
"Ooh, that's a good one," Kaminari replied, before realizing, "Wouldn't I need medical training for that, though?"
"Probably," Jiro replied with a shrug, "But medical training would come in handy."
Though… a part of Jiro wondered if Kaminari could get medical training. That tended to require an attention span and brains that Kaminari did not have. But to her surprise, Kaminari mumbled something.
"...Could become a combat medic," Kaminari muttered in thought, catching Jiro off guard. He… he was considering it. She didn't know what to make of it. Kaminari, the combat medic. The hero who can electrocute you in a fight and stabilize you if needed. Part of Jiro wanted to say it wouldn't happen… but at the same time, it… It would be cool if it did. The odd image of Kaminari with a medical bag flashed through her mind, and… maybe… maybe he could do it…
Hours again passed by, and the two were still seeing nothing. They'd finally reached one in the morning, and Kaminari had been adamant that something would happen. But as of yet, his promise went unfulfilled.
"...And I'm bored again," Jiro muttered tiredly, the girl having to stifle a yawn. Again, she looked down the halls, and again she saw nothing. This was all beginning to feel like a waste of time. But she agreed to it, so she stuck through. Looking back toward Kaminari, she now found the teen holding a book, his nose practically buried in it.
"What are you reading?" Jiro asked, a curious look crossing her face. It was no secret that Kaminari liked to read. He did it often enough that Jiro would spot him engrossed with some book in the common area.
"A Farewell to Arms," Kaminari replied, before turning a page.
"Hemingway again?" Jiro questioned, surprised.
"What? I like his stuff. Besides, Hemingway was a badass," Kaminari replied, his eyes lifting up over his book, "He tried to hunt submarines from his modified fishing boat."
"...That cannot be true," Jiro replied, shocked, while Kaminari placed a bookmark into his novel and closed the book.
"I am not kidding, he tried to hunt Nazi submarines with his fishing boat," Kaminari further explained with a smile, "He also accompanied soldiers on D-Day, while suffering from a concussion."
The explanation made Jiro pause.
"Ok, how do you know this?" Jiro asked, confused, while Kaminari stared back at her.
"...I like history," Kaminari replied, with Jiro becoming unsure.
"I'm just… You can remember facts about a dead author from three centuries ago… but you can't remember the math homework we were given yesterday?" Jiro questioned, puzzled. Though her question made Kaminari instantly go wide-eyed.
"We have homework!?" he exclaimed, and Jiro again shushed him. Once everything was quiet again, Jiro couldn't help but look at Kaminari, confused. He was dead last in the class. Silently, Jiro decided to try something.
"Kaminari, what can you tell me about the… Meiji Restoration?" Jiro asked, the teen choosing a random topic from memory. Kaminari, in turn, looked back at her with a brow raised. Yet he looked extremely interested when he heard the question.
"You want to know about the Meiji Restoration?" Kaminari asked with a small, excited smile, "Well, for that, we'd need a bit more context to explain everything. Around 1633, the entire country was put into a state of isolation called sakoku. It was a very strict policy designed to ensure the removal of colonial and religious influences of Spain and Portugal…"
From there, Jiro got lost in what Kaminari was saying. She didn't know how much time passed, but Kaminari spent at least an hour talking. Jiro attempted to keep track of everything, but eventually gave up. Instead, she watched Kaminari's face. He looked genuinely excited as he spoke, and seemed eager to keep explaining everything he knew. There was a shocking amount of knowledge behind him that Jiro just wasn't expecting.
"Which would finally bring the end of the shogunate in 1867-" Kaminari continued to say, before Jiro cut him off.
"Stop, stop. I… that is… whoa, that was a lot of info," Jiro commented, while still trying to process everything. She barely remembered half of what he said, and it was a miracle that Kaminari could even remember it all. The electric teen's excited expression slowly disappeared, and he looked back at Jiro, saddened.
"Come on, I never get to talk about this stuff," Kaminari muttered, before quietly frowning.
"I can tell," Jiro noted, "You reminded me of Akatani for a minute."
He had a lot to talk about, and Jiro still found it surprising. She had difficulty keeping up, but Yaoyorozu would likely enjoy talking about this with Kaminari. In fact, Jiro was a bit surprised they didn't talk about this stuff normally. Then again, based on Jiro's own assumptions, Yaoyorozu likely assumed the same things she did and believed Kaminari just didn't know about it.
The very thought still puzzled Jiro, though.
"How exactly did you learn about all this?" Jiro asked, confused. UA had a history course, akin to a college course in difficulty, but it wasn't nearly as in-depth as Kaminari's small rant.
"Oh, well, I stumbled onto some history videos on YouTube talking about the Meiji Restoration, watched a couple of them, and spent the next week going over everything I could," Kaminari replied, leaving Jiro dumbstruck. Seeing her expression, Kaminari merely raised a brow.
"...What? I'm not dumb. I'm just… smart at different things," Kaminari told her. And, Jiro realized, that was a good point. It felt weird to truly realize. But he was smarter than Jiro gave him credit for. Kaminari did have that cool idea after all… wonder what else is going on in his head, Jiro wondered. Once again, time began to pass, and the two checked Kaminari's phone for any movement. And as Jiro expected, nothing had happened. They reached three in the morning and still found nothing. Thirty minutes passed, and the hall remained quiet.
The moment the clock hit three forty, Jiro sighed and stood up.
"Alright, I'm calling it now. Nothing's going to happen," Jiro stated tiredly, before stretching and yawning.
"There are still a few more minutes," Kaminari told her, though he didn't sound confident in his statement. Shaking her head, Jiro stepped forward and started moving down the hall.
"I don't know. If ghosts were haunting Eri's dorm, we would have heard something by now," Jiro reasoned aloud, before again yawning. It was as she expected it, though. No ghosts were haunting the dorm, and this had all been for nothing. Well… no. It hadn't been for nothing. There were a few moments of boredom, but… it had been kind of fun. Got to learn some things about Kaminari, too. But with that, Jiro slowly walked away.
"I'm going to head to bed. I'll see you in the morning…" she began to say, giving Kaminari a small wave goodbye, only for her words to trail off… When did the room get so cold? Jiro couldn't help but shiver, and she quickly wrapped her arms around herself. Looking up, she expected to see a vent or something above her to explain the sudden chills. But there was nothing. Kaminari, seeing her odd behavior, called out to her.
"Jiro?" he asked warily, standing up from the fort. Jiro, meanwhile, began to take a few steps backwards, her eyes looking over the dark hall. It was probably this cold to begin with, Jiro mentally reasoned. Just some late-night chills, that's all it was. She continued to walk backwards, soon accidentally bumping into Kaminari. Looking back at him apologetically, Jiro continued to look around.
There was nothing wrong, she told herself, nothing wrong at… her jacks slowly lifted into the air, before Jiro plugged them into the wall. Some odd noise was coming from… everywhere. A faint, indiscernible sound that Jiro found was growing louder by the second.
"What's that buzzing noise?" Jiro cautiously asked, her gaze turning toward Kaminari. It sounded like a swarm of bees, all furiously flying around and attacking whatever they came across. But it was like she thought before. The swarm wasn't coming from one location; it sounded like it was all around them. Kaminari then looked back at Jiro, confused.
"Buzzing noise?" Kaminari replied, confused, "I don't… wait…"
The noise had grown louder as he spoke, getting loud enough that Jiro had to cup her hands over her ears. It sounded like it was all around them, yet Jiro couldn't see anything. It was loud. Too loud. Her breathing increased, and she unplugged her jacks from the wall. The buzzing wouldn't end, and where was it coming from!? Her eyes darted around, and Jiro begged for it to end.
Eventually, Kaminari stepped up close to her and saw her predicament. To Jiro's surprise, he quickly placed his hands over hers, helping cover her ears. It muffled the noise a little more, much to Jiro's pleasure, yet the buzzing didn't stop.
"What is that?" Kaminari asked aloud, his eyes trying to find the source of the noise. Neither he nor Jiro could find it. And then, a voice whispered right into Jiro's ear.
"...Pain…"
She yelled in shock and shoved Kaminari away. The buzzing stopped almost instantly.
"Dude, don't do that!" Jiro told him, breathing heavily and placing a hand on her chest. She felt like she was going to have a heart attack. Rapidly, Kaminari held up his hands defensively, a panicked look crossing his face.
"I didn't do anything!" Kaminari told her, while Jiro looked back, shocked.
"I could've sworn you just whispered into my ear," Jiro replied, unsure. Kaminari simply shook his head in protest. It didn't make sense. Jiro heard someone talking to her, and the only person present was Kaminari. So it couldn't have been… the buzzing stopped. Jiro didn't know when it did, but the buzzing had stopped. Confused, she plugged her jacks into the wall again and looked around.
As abruptly as it appeared, it just… it just leaves? Still not hearing anything, Jiro unplugs her jacks and takes a deep breath. There are no ghosts, she tells herself. This was all just sleep deprivation… or something. Not ghosts. As much as she wanted to believe it, a part of Jiro still felt unnerved. Her eyes continued to survey the area, not stopping as they passed over the dark. This time, she heard a new noise. What could only be described as the sound of laughter.
Jiro turned toward Kaminari expectantly, but he wasn't laughing. Listening closer, the laughter didn't sound like anyone Jiro knew. But what's more, Jiro could hear where it was coming from. And it was coming from above. Cautiously, both Jiro and Kaminari looked toward the ceiling. It was shrouded in darkness, making it difficult to see. But Jiro's eyes went wide when she saw a face staring down at them.
"Kaminari… what is that?" Jiro asked with a shaky breath. The face above stuck out a long, snake-like tongue, while still laughing to itself. Unnaturally, it scurried across the ceiling.
"My eyes are messing with me right?" Jiro asked, as she looked toward Kaminari for confirmation. Instead, she saw him shaking, terrified. He looked as pale as the moon, and he took a shaky step back. Again, Jiro heard someone whisper into her ear.
"...Fear…"
She yelped, jumping back this time into Kaminari. He ended up having to catch her to ensure she didn't accidentally tackle him. This was much to Jiro's embarrassment, the rocker quickly getting back onto her feet within moments. The creepy figure from above then crawled through the wall to Eri's room, disappearing into nothingness. Jiro thought she was going crazy. None of this made any sense. Surely this was just a quirk at play. Ghosts weren't real for crying out loud!
But to her horror, she found something worse now underway. Her eyes went wide, and she booked it forward.
"S-smoke! There's smoke coming from Eri's door!" Jiro called out, rushing toward the door in seconds.
"Crap!" Kaminari exclaimed in a panic, before swiftly following behind her. They didn't charge in immediately, and instead, the two quickly checked the doorknob. Finding it still cold, the two pushed the door open, ready to rush in and grab Eri. But the room was empty.
"W-what?" Kaminari muttered confusedly as he looked into the room. There was no fire anywhere. Smoke poured from the doorway upward, but there was no fire. And Eri herself was fast asleep in her bed, unaware of everything going on. Jiro didn't even have time to question why before she saw the smoke start drifting away from her. It flew up into the air, leaving a thick trail as a cloud of smoke darted around the room.
Stepping back, afraid, Jiro and Kaminari watched the smoke cloud shift and change. Suddenly, the cloud was a light, a bright ball of fire taking form in front of them. The ball turned around in seconds and flew straight toward them. The fireball grew larger in seconds, encompassing the hallway entirely. To Jiro's horror, the ball morphed as it got closer, changing into a face. Its jaw was wide open, the face screaming as it charged toward them.
Jiro screamed to, the teen then swiftly dropping to the floor.
"...Fury…"
The fire flew right past her, and as every other anomaly disappeared, someone whispered into her ear. Jiro breathed erratically, and she stood up only when she knew the coast was clear.
"Jiro, what is happening!?" Kaminari exclaimed next to her, while looking around terrified, "Why did the fire have a face!?"
"C-calm down!" Jiro replied equally terrified, "It's just a quirk!"
Rapidly, Kaminari shook his head in disagreement.
"I was right! This place is haunted!" Kaminari told her, making Jiro groan.
"It is not haunted!" Jiro told him, before remembering a way to prove it.
"Check that EMF thing you brought!" she reminded him. When the realization struck Kaminari, his face lit up, and he ran. Sliding back to the fort, he grabbed Tokoyami's EMF reader and switched it on. Jiro expected the device to remain quiet, to show Kaminari that nothing was wrong. Instead, it flatlined like a heart monitor. Every light the reader had was lit up, and it had one long, loud, continuous beep.
And slowly, Jiro went pale. This could not be happening. It should not be happening. The EMF reader was just broken, that's all this was! This was a quirk! Just a quirk! But the ghosts disagreed. Jiro felt something drip onto her shoulder. Then her hand and her head. Nervously holding her hand up, Jiro saw water drip onto her palm.
"D-did the sprinklers turn on?" she heard Kaminari ask, and they both quickly looked up at the ceiling again. It was difficult to see, but the sprinklers weren't doing anything. Instead, Jiro saw dark storm-like clouds hovering above them. Knowing for a fact they weren't there before, she looked down toward Kaminari, confused. The moment her eyes reached him, they shot wide in panic. The water raining down on them was pooling up in the hallway.
"Whoa!" Jiro shouted, unintentionally stepping back and sloshing through water. It reached her ankles within seconds. Hearing this, Kaminari turned toward her and was shocked.
"The dorm's flooding! How is the dorm flooding!?" Kaminari exclaimed, terrified. Jiro didn't have an answer. The water continued to rise, and both teens watched it get higher and higher. Jiro didn't know if she should run, wake everyone up, call for help, or what. This just had to be a dream. Both she and Kaminari had fallen asleep, and this was just a crazy dream. Rapidly, the water had risen to her waist and sloshed around whenever Jiro moved.
Her eyes shot around the room, constantly searching for something. But she quickly began to regret this. Every time she turned around, the hallway changed. Odd plant life started popping up whenever she turned around. The walls and ceiling disappeared, revealing a grey void. Gone was the dorm's hallway; now there was just a jungle. Scared, Jiro heard another voice whisper into her ear.
"...Sorrow…"
She turned, hoping to finally see the source of the noise, but again found nothing. When she looked back toward Kaminari, she found the teen staring out in the distance. Confused, Jiro quickly walked up next to him. There she spotted the corpse. An old caucasian male lay on the water and drifted toward them. Once the body was close enough, Jiro was able to see just how lifeless it was.
The man wore a pair of broken glasses, the left lens being entirely shattered. At the same time, his left eye cried blood, while his right stared into nothingness. But what threw Jiro off was the strange smile the corpse had. Though dead, the man continued to smile as if nothing was wrong. Hesitantly, Kaminari tapped the corpse on the arm. Nothing happened for a brief moment, and Jiro began to breathe deeply. Then the corpse shot up straight.
"Boo," was all it said, still smiling the entire time. But that was the final straw for both teens. They screamed loudly and scrambled backwards. Neither questioned it when the jungle rapidly disappeared. Neither questioned it when the water they were suddenly waist-deep in just vanished. They didn't question any of it and simply ran screaming.
"What is all that noise?" Tokoyami wondered aloud, his head poking through his open door. It sounded a lot like Kaminari and Jiro screaming, but Tokoyami was a bit unsure why. For an odd reason, Kaminari had come to him asking to borrow his EMF reader. Tokoyami had agreed, but was confused as to why. The only reason one would need an EMF device is to look for ghosts. And Tokoyami already knew there were ghosts on campus.
Two of them were currently in his room.
"Buncha youngins. No respect for the dead," one of the ghosts muttered, as Tokoyami glanced toward him. The old ghost sat in a wheelchair, dressed in a ghulli suit, and had a ghost parrot sitting on his shoulder. He called himself the End. At the same time, the second ghost in the room groaned, annoyed. She was a blond woman in some odd hero costume-like outfit, and she called herself Joy. Joy then brought a hand to her brow, while Tokoyami heard the remaining four ghosts laughing around them.
Said four ghosts then appeared in his room, wiping nonexistent tears from their eyes. All had introduced themselves to him weeks ago. The Pain, the Fear, the Fury, and the Sorrow. Afterall, Tokoyami had noticed their presence since the Sports Festival. He more or less knew UA was being haunted for weeks. Which… you know, had him confused. Surely Kaminari had known that as well. The Cobras, as they liked to be known, weren't exactly subtle in their activities.
"I can't believe you did that," Joy would soon comment, before Tokoyami shut the door to his room. Walking back to his desk, he sat down and looked over a chessboard he had set up.
"What? Are we not allowed to have a little fun, beloved?" the Sorrow asked, the ghost soon floating around. He came to a stop across from Tokoyami, with half his body inside the wall across from him.
"Did it have to come at the expense of children?" Joy asked in return, with a brow raised. The Sorrow, for his part, looked back at the woman and slowly became nervous.
"...Perhaps not," the Sorrow relented, much to the other ghosts' enjoyment. They chuckled to themselves as they watched the short lovebirds quarrel. But then they simply scattered around Tokoyami's room, doing whatever they wanted. Looking back at the Sorrow, Tokoyami motioned toward the board quietly.
"I believe it is still your turn," Tokoyami commented, causing the Sorrow to nod in remembrance.
"Ah, right," the Sorrow replied, the man now looking down on the board. Carefully, one of the pieces, a black rook, began to lift off the board. It shot forward for a few seconds before landing back down.
"Rook to A1," the Sorrow told him, before smiling, "Checkmate."
"Wha- how did you…" Tokoyami began to say, as he looked over the board, confused. The Sorrow's rook sat in the far back corner of the board. All Tokoyami needed to do was move his king forward one space. Except he couldn't. Two pawns sat in front of and to the right of his king. The last space available was being guarded by a bishop. It was checkmate. Silently, Tokoyami slouched back in his chair, shocked.
"To lose to a spectre of the damned… it is remarkable," Tokoyami commented, a smile gracing his beak. It was exhilarating, losing to an actual spirit. He doubted it could get any better.
"Care for another round?" the Sorrow asked, while rearranging the pieces on the board.
"I would," Tokoyami replied eagerly.
Breakfast had always been Major Kofi Camara's favorite meal. There was just something about it that appealed to him so deeply. Which is why when his food finally arrived at his table, he couldn't help but smile widely.
"Here we are," the waitress commented, bringing over a large cup of coffee and a large plate of lafidi. She placed it all on his table carefully, while Kofi lounged back in his chair. Removing a toothpick from his mouth, he tipped his head forward as he looked at the waitress.
"Thank you, this all looks great," he calmly told her, before rubbing his hands together, "My compliments to the chef."
"I'll let him know, Major," the waitress replied with a smile and a wink, before walking away. Kofi simply chuckled at the sight before he looked back at his food. Famished, Kofi quickly dug into his meal, devouring as much as he could in seconds. The man himself was somewhat odd. Growing up, his father had smuggled in dozens of American action movies from overseas. And Kofi had more or less become obsessed with them.
His friends often described the bomber pilot as a wannabe action hero. It was how he dressed, with his plain blue jeans, white t-shirt, and thick brown leather jacket, which he went with everywhere. It was in how he acted, continually having a toothpick in his mouth, and always ready to beat someone to a pulp or go against a higher-up's orders. That last part had gotten him in trouble at times, but his actions ended up causing a ripple effect.
He was the hero of Fouta Djallion's bomber force. He was the insane bastard willing to fly deep into KLL territory by himself to bomb the enemy capital, and then somehow come back alive. He was a man that the council did not like, but someone the people loved. But right now, he was just a hungry bastard. Soon, Kofi heard the door to the small restaurant shoot open. At first, Kofi expected a robbery of some sort, given how violently the unknown person had walked in. But then he heard a voice call out to him.
"Kofi!" a male voice exclaimed excitedly, "I knew I'd find you here."
With a groan, Kofi turned around and found a man in a black suit walking toward him.
"Hello, Ab," Kofi tiredly greeted, while Abraham Mulbah sat down across from him.
"Come on, you could be a little more excited to see me," Ab commented with a smile, while Kofi stuffed more food into his mouth.
"I would be if this were a casual meeting," Kofi countered tiredly, the man already fed up with Ab's presence.
"Haven't even finished breakfast yet," Kofi muttered, before sipping from his coffee, "Can't this wait?"
"No, it cannot! Because our chance has finally arrived!" Ab exclaimed excitedly, disturbing a few customers around them. Quickly, the man apologized to some nearby tables, while Kofi mentally groaned. They'd had this conversation enough times that even with as vague a statement as that, Kofi knew exactly what Ab was talking about.
"Not this again," Kofi grumbled and brought a hand to his brow, "You and I both know the council won't even consider surrender."
It was a conversation they'd had a million times before. Because the war against Outer Heaven hadn't exactly been going well. Fouta Djallion, for the last five years, had operated along the doctrine of us over them. They would let the others fight the war, while they stayed back on the sidelines. They'd provide supply hubs, air bases, manufacturing support, and all that, but they would not send one of their soldiers to die against Outer Heaven.
But as time went on, and as Outer Heaven got bigger, it became clear to some that this strategy was not working. Ab, being a rather prominent official in the government's Bureau of Foreign Affairs, began advocating for peace talks. Yet the council would shut the idea down every time. Sure, the war wasn't going the way they wanted it to, but Outer Heaven was still miles away. And they hadn't even sent soldiers to fight yet.
The council wasn't going to surrender to an enemy they hadn't even fought yet. And Outer Heaven's actions weren't exactly helping this either. Every warlord they came across was deposed, and their territory was taken over. As far as the council was concerned, surrender meant dissolving the state of Fouta Djallion. It was effectively life or death. So Kofi wasn't confident that Ab would convince them this time. Of course, Ab simply smiled.
"That's where you're wrong," Ab replied, before pulling something from his bag, "Today's paper."
Confused, Kofi watched as Ab passed him the newspaper. Grabbing it, Kofi looked down at the black and white images on the cover. They were awfully grainy and hard to fully make out, but the photo detailed a rather large man dressed like a hero.
"Who's that?" Kofi asked, the large man looking out of place next to the soldiers of the MSF behind him.
"Oh, you know, the Symbol of Peace," Ab bluntly told him, causing Kofi's eyes to shoot wide open.
"That's All Might!?" Kofi exclaimed in shock before looking at the photo again. He always heard about the hero and his immense power, but he'd never actually seen him before. The man was massive! Utterly huge!
"The one and only. And guess where he is currently," Ab replied with a worrying smile. It took only seconds to understand what Ab meant, as Kofi remembered the MSF personnel in the photo.
"Fucking hell," Kofi muttered, shocked, while Ab nodded across from him.
"All Might has joined forces with Outer Heaven," Ab commented plainly, causing Kofi to groan.
"In other words, the war is even more lost," Kofi stated tiredly.
"Exactly!" Ab excitedly proclaimed, "In just a few short days, the MSF blew up three of our major air bases, a large supply depot near the capital, and now they have All Might beating the Empire's strongest madman. If this isn't enough to convince the council, then I don't know what is."
"Ok, but have we even thought this all through?" Kofi inquired warily, "We don't even know what surrender would entail for us. For our homes."
The MSF didn't let the warlords they beat keep ruling. No, they liberated the surrounding areas and took it all for themselves. And while the Meritocratic State of Fouta Djallion wasn't perfect, Kofi did not want to start over from scratch in a country he knew very little about.
"We could very well lose everything. Have all our land confiscated and integrated with Outer Heaven. I'm not losing my house to some pompous mercenary corporation," Kofi stated somewhat angrily, while remembering Claymore's attempts to take Fouta Djallion in the past. The PMC had taken bits of Angola in the past, but with the Tyrant around, all they got were bits and pieces. So Claymore had turned its attention upwards for a time and attempted invasions of the area.
The last thing Kofi wanted was for the MSF to try the exact same crap.
"Well, that's what negotiations are for," Ab commented with a smile, "We'll go to the MSF to hash out peace terms, and see if we can ensure the state survives."
"And what if the KLL, or any of the other bastards, hear of this? How do you think they'll react to us suddenly abandoning the war effort?" Kofi then asked, a dozen more reasons to avoid surrendering coming to his mind, "Shit, KLL troops would be on our border again within the week, and we'd be at war with the League all over again. Not to mention every other warlord on the continent."
"Then we'll ask the MSF for protection," Ab calmly reasoned, "Negotiate for a defensive pact to ensure we can actually surrender to them."
"This just doesn't feel like a good idea," Kofi groaned. Surrender just did not seem like a good idea. It would give them more enemies, possibly topple the entire system they lived under, and could even cost them their homes. So why, Kofi wondered, why the hell should we? Yet Ab remained adamant.
"We won't know if we don't try," Ab told him, looking back at Kofi defiantly. Stuffing more food into his mouth, Kofi could only frown. Ab was not going to leave until Kofi said yes. He needed Kofi's influence. Because if he couldn't convince the council that surrender was the best option, then Ab would need to convince the people. As time slowly went on, Kofi began to groan.
"Fine," Kofi relented.
"Great! We've got an appointment with the council in half an hour," Ab again exclaimed excitedly.
"Of course we do," Kofi muttered, annoyed. Because, of course, he had a meeting already scheduled, before even knowing if Kofi would agree to it. Standing up from his table, Kofi carefully dusted himself off before putting a toothpick in his mouth.
"Best to get going then," Kofi commented, with Ab rapidly agreeing. They quickly walked out of the restaurant, with Kofi giving the waitress a quick wave goodbye. Once outside, Kofi saw Ab turn right, and instantly protested.
"Hold it, what are you doing?" Kofi inquired while Ab pulled a car key from his pocket.
"My car is that way," Ab replied, before pointing toward an old Buick Sports Wagon. Rapidly, Kofi shook his head and pulled Ab away from the vehicle.
"Nuh uh, I am not riding in your run-down station wagon. Not to a meeting this important," Kofi told him, while Ab looked at him, offended.
"Its not that bad," Ab protested, while Kofi looked him dead in the eye.
"Your kids leave crumbs in every seat," Kofi stated bluntly, before pulling his own keys from his jacket pocket. Walking further away from the old station wagon, Kofi soon spotted his own car. Carefully, his hand traced over the door of his 1967 Pontiac Firebird.
"I'll drive," Kofi announced, seeing Ab already reaching for his keys.
"Please don't," Ab quietly begged, making Kofi chuckle. Opening his car door, Kofi quickly sat down, while Ab got in the passenger's seat.
"The Capitol Building is just nine kilometers away. We don't need to do anything crazy," Ab added nervously, the man shaking somewhat. Kofi couldn't help but smile smugly. He hadn't even turned the car on yet.
"True, true," Kofi said with a large grin. Finally, turning his car on and getting the radio up, Kofi's smile simply widened. Outside music was hard to come by in the meritocratic state. There was always a black market offering up music one could buy. But more often than not, several illegal radio broadcasts were playing live music from the outside. Kofi's radio connected to one such channel. And right on schedule, he heard the broadcasters announce his favorite song.
"K-kofi… no," Ab quickly begged.
"Come on, it's my song," Kofi replied, with a large mischievous grin. Ab couldn't help but gulp.
"I want to live," Ab told him, causing Kofi to slowly nod.
"So do I," Kofi commented, right as Working for the Weekend kicked in. Within seconds, he put his car into drive and drifted out of the parking lot. Ab screamed in terror next to him, while Kofi laughed and sped off.