Please let me go. Sadly, Gunner could only weep in silence, not daring to voice his thoughts.
Dark Matter Gunner, though he preferred just "Gunner,' hadn't been born with that name. After joining the Dark Matter Thieves, he was assigned it and didn't think of questioning the three generals. Like countless others on the 'Giant Spaceship,' he was just another cog in the machine, unnoticed and unimportant, when it came right down to it.
The three eye-tipped tentacles on his head let him see his surroundings from multiple angles, but now all his eyes were locked on the terrifying woman ahead. Her strength, he feared, might surpass even the three generals. And now, as she faced Lord Geryuganshoop, he would see if his fears were justified.
Geryuganshoop's voice boomed. "You leave me no choice. 'Super Telekinetic Gravitational Wave!'"
When Gunner heard this, he wanted to flee like the control room operators scrambling to escape. But he knew even if he ran, he couldn't outpace the attack's range.
The fleeing alien operators were crushed, their screams silenced as they hit the floor.
Gunner realized, after a moment, that he was unharmed. Ahead, the woman's aura had barely flickered, and she hadn't budged. Instead, she casually inspected her fingernails.
"My unparalleled telekinetic powers allow me to manipulate the forces of gravity! Have you any idea what a black hole is, you ape?"
Can't you see your attack did nothing to her!?
"Inside one, the gravitational effects are so strong, even light itself cannot escape!
Wait…?"
Finally noticed, huh? What kind of general are you?
"Pathetic. This is all the 'universe's greatest telekinetic' is capable of?"
"You ape! How dare you speak to me in such a manner!"
Geryuganshoop roared, a violent vortex engulfing him as yellow bolts of psychic energy crackled outward.
"You bore me," the woman said, yawning.
"Take this! 'Telekinetic Shower of Rubble!'" Numerous yellow beams shot out toward the woman, leaving behind large amounts of smoke which obscured the female's small figure.
Did he get her? I really don't want to die. A second later, Gunner realized he was still floating under her power. His hopes vanished before the dust settled.
"I got her! Eh…" Geryuganshoop's expression shifted to nervous surprise.
The woman remained unharmed, wrapped in an emerald-green barrier. "Your pathetic display makes every other Esper look bad. Be gone."
She stretched her hands apart, splaying Geryuganshoop's tentacle-like appendages before tearing him in half.
"How…could…I…Gery..." His two halves dropped to the floor below.
Tears streamed down Gunner's face once again. I wanna go home, Mommy!
This woman's strength far surpassed the generals, but… he was sure even she couldn't stand against Lord Boros.
"Hmph! Why is my time constantly wasted?" She turned, her gaze locking onto him. "You served your purpose—"
BABOOM!
An overwhelming force surged through the ship, shaking it violently as rubble rained from the ceiling above, causing the ship to sink downward.
Before Gunner could react, the woman yanked him through the air toward her. "What didn't you tell me? Explain!"
Gunner stammered, "I-I don't know! The only way the 'Giant Spaceship' can go down is if the Power Sphere is destroyed."
She glared, jabbing a finger at him. "Did you think I would spare if you were useful? Is that why you hid this? Foolish alien. Get out of my—"
THOOM!
Another force rocked the ship, though weaker than the first.
To Gunner's surprise, the woman lowered her hand. Her terrifying expression shifting to amusement. "Your luck is impressive. Fine, let's see how long it lasts. Take me to this 'Lord Boros' you mentioned earlier. Hurry!"
¤ ¤ ¤
"How did A-City end up like this?"
Sweet Mask stared at the decimated city before him. In the distance, towering plumes of dark smoke veiled the horizon.
"All of S-Class was meeting today…"
His gaze shifted downward, landing on a group of heroes standing idly below.
Incompetent bunch. They couldn't even do their job, and now they're just standing around.
Sweet Mask descended the mountain of rubble with effortless grace, striding forward until he reached a suitable elevated piece of a ruined building. He sat down, one knee raised, an arm draped casually over it, his piercing eyes fixed on the most inept of the heroes.
"Care to explain, Metal Bat?"
Metal Bat turned. "Huh?"
"Explain it so I can understand"
"'Handsomely Masked Sweet Mask'… Where the hell'd you pop up from?"
The other heroes turned at Metal Bat's question.
Sweet Mask paused, his eyes locking onto Genos in the far back. If he's here… then Caspian, Saitama, or whatever else he wants to call himself, should be as well.
Metal Bat, visibly annoyed, slammed his bat against the ground. "Eh, you don't even know where you came from?"
Buffoon.
Sweet Mask tore his gaze from Genos and turned back to Metal Bat. "I was filming a TV drama in the next town. There was a roar and tremors, so I came and found A-City wiped out."
"Monsters on a huge-ass ship attacked us." Metal Bat raised his bat, gesturing to the surrounding destruction. "They fired artillery at us and did all this. But we took care of it."
A bunch of failures!
Sweet Mask eyes turned blood-red, as he uttered in rage, "'Took care of it,' you say? You call this victory." He dramatically spread his arms. "Such incompetence. I'm completely appalled at all of you!"
"Hey." Metal Bat glared at him, irritation etched across his face. "You didn't even get here in time, so don't go acting all big."
"It's true I didn't make it in time, but you were right here. You didn't save a single brick!"
Atomic Samurai walked forward. "We were having a meeting inside the headquarters building. We went outside as soon as the enemy attacked, but the city was already in ruins."
One excuse after the other.
"So what? You think if you tell them that, the media will just let all of this go?"
"You…" The ever-naked Puri-Puri Prisoner spoke up. "Whose side are you on? We did our best."
"I'm on the side of justice."
Asking me such a question while standing there without a stitch of clothing beside Child Emperor. You're an S-Class failure.
Sweet mask stood. "Having S-Class Heroes this pathetic…" He stepped forward, sliding down the rubble's flat surface onto the ground below. "…is an embarrassment."
Before things could escalate further, powerful noises of destruction rumbled from the colossal ship to Sweet Mask's right.
All the heroes turned toward the sound.
So, you already boarded the alien vessel? It's about time we had a serious chat.
KLONK!
Suddenly, something crashed into the ground behind him, forcing everyone to whirl around.
What now?
Smoke billowed from an elongated drop-pod lodged into the earth. Its door shot upward, revealing a humanoid robot.
The wild card of the Hero Association has finally made his appearance.
"Metal Knight, you skip the meeting and only show up now?"
Sweet Mask didn't linger when received no reply. Instead, he turned and began making his way toward the fallen ship.
As he approached, he noticed Superalloy Darkshine scanning the area before waving in his direction and shouting, "Hey! I found some alien survivors!"
Survivors…
Up ahead, he spotted nine aliens bound together by heavy chains. They were murmuring to each other, likely plotting a way to kill everyone and escape.
The aliens fell silent just as he reached them.
Without hesitation, Sweet Mask slashed through the aliens with his bare hand, their green blood pooling across the shattered ground.
Superalloy Darkshine cried out from behind. "Sweet Mask! What the—?"
"They did not deserve to live. They were evil. I swiftly implemented justice, that's all."
"I'm sure you understand," Sweet Mask continued, turning to face the one directly behind him. "Genos… Tell me. Is he on th—"
An ear-splitting sound of metal sundering apart thundered from within the ship once more, a massive hole ripping open to reveal its interior.
"Master!" Genos ignored Sweet Mask's question and sprinted toward the ship.
I was right.
Sweet Mask followed after Genos, casting only a brief glance at the bewildered heroes around him.
Completely defying his expectations, two individuals emerged from the ship's interior.
Tatsumaki floated out, an alien trailing helplessly behind her, ensnared by her psychic powers.
Genos, who had come to a halt, stepped forward. "Where is my master? You weren't supposed to be on that ship."
What is going on? Sweet Mask felt his grasp on the situation slipping away.
"Shut your trap, cyborg! I'll go wherever I want. Now…" Tatsumaki made a grasping motion, enveloping Genos in her aura and lifting him into the air.
At that moment, an infinitesimal, yet monumental shift occurred. If Caspian were here, he would have caught it, and been... pleased that his training advice had borne fruit.
The instant Genos was raised into the air, there was the minutest hitch before he ascended. His willpower had increased!
Unfortunately, no one present could perceive such a minuscule lapse.
"…take me to where he is. I know you're in on whatever little plan he came up with."
As Tatsumaki ascended alongside the alien and Genos, Sweet Mask raised his hand to stop them.
"Tatsumaki, explain yourself! What do you think you're doing? How can you let one of these aliens live? And now you're just going to run off? Do you think the media will ignore your absence?"
Silence followed, but anyone looking at Tatsumaki could see her visibly shaking.
"You… You! Does everyone think they can boss me around now?! Mind your own damn business idol boy!"
Sweet Mask's eyes flickered from yellow to blood-red. He was on the verge of losing himself to rage. His transformation was corrupting him. He could feel it, and it was becoming harder every day to maintain his semblance of humanity. But he steadied his emotions once he took a moment to think. Wasn't she going to have Genos lead her to Caspian? He just needed to follow her after she left.
"Don't act like such a spoiled brat when you interact with my master."
This cyborg is absurd...
Rumble
The ground began to shake as debris lifted into the air, accompanied by powerful gusts of wind. It seemed Genos' words had truly enraged Tatsumaki.
Sweet Mask and the others behind him prepared to distance themselves, but to everyone's shock, she took a deep breath and halted her buildup of power.
"Just guide me there. I need to see him."
Without another word, she flew away, Genos and the weeping alien in tow, leaving behind the most confused group of S-Class Heroes the world had ever seen.