Remove ads

How to Train Your Endbringer

Reader mode
OstermanA said:
It's much, much more nuanced than just "god". It's also usually plural, but Japanese does not have an indicator for that.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
The rest of the sentence was in singular.
And also exactly the phrase "god only knows", usually referring to the Christian god, just with one of the words replaced by the Japanese translation.
 
Unseelie said:
The rest of the sentence was in singular.
And also exactly the phrase "god only knows", usually referring to the Christian god, just with one of the words replaced by the Japanese translation.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
It would be equally correct to translate as "The gods only know". Meh. Enough of a derail, I'm not gonna continue any further down this rabbit hole. Today, at least. >_>
 
RavensDagger said:
I don't understand the correction. Do you mean I should capitalise the K in kami?
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
I meant it as a reference to the old "keikaku means plan" meme.
Apparently it's less well known than I thought.

What I was complaining about is that there is no entity specifically named "kami", so it seems weird to place one random Japanese word in an otherwise English text.
 
Considering Simi....

I want to see them in Jojo.

The sheer amount of lulz that will be had will beggar the mind.

Two words:
Endbringers POSING
 
Last edited:
When and if they ever get to the Chunni Exams, I wonder what the Mark 3 Friendship Cannon will look like.
...
"Befriending no Jutsu"? "Anvil no Jutsu of the North Star"?
Your next line is, "It's Chunin, not Chunni.".
Sakuya's Butler said:
I want to see them in Jojo.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

Jotaro stares in absolute horror at a lanky and innocent looking girl. "A Stand User can only have ONE Stand!"

Taylor does her absolute adorkable best to POSE but mostly just ends up looking like she needs to use the bathroom. The three Endbringers behind her, however, deffinitly help sell the terror and give off a menacing aura. "But that's where you're wrong, kiddo!"
 
Due to shenanigans, I'm not really sure what parts of this I actually read. So, I may have said this before, but does anyone know why she let that many people get hilariously gibbed in that arena battle?
 
LostArchivist said:
Due to shenanigans, I'm not really sure what parts of this I actually read. So, I may have said this before, but does anyone know why she let that many people get hilariously gibbed in that arena battle?
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Anyone who got gibbed deserved to be gibbed. Also, body doubles for a lot of people we think we saw getting gibbed.

Simi be like that.
 
Yes, Taylor has three Endbringers. But, it'd be nice to have a situation where, maybe just chibi versions the heads, in a semi-circular arc over Taylor, the other seventeen pop-up, as a sort of Greek chorus...

Bonus if they actually are singing...
 
Remove ads
Taylor’s Adventures in the Land of Oh God Why is it On Fire? - Part Three: A Failed Interrogation
  • Sidestory
    • Queen Administrator's Multiverse Adventures or; How Everyone Started Worrying and Taylor Took Over the Worlds

    Alt Title:     Taylor's Adventures in the Land of Oh God Why is it On Fire?

    Part Three: A Failed Interrogation

    "So good to see you, Ibiki," the Hokage said from behind his desk. He was wearing a bit of a smile, hands folded on the desk and eyes half lidded. Ibiki knew that the old bastard knew what was going on. His ANBU had told him, or the Jounin grapevine had whispered into his liver-spotted ears.

    Whatever the case, Sarutobi knew, and he invited all the other ostensibly important people to listen in.

    Danzo was occupying the darkest corner of the room, like a cancerous lump ready to jump out at anyone and bore them to death.

    The Nara was sitting in the only comfortable chair, slumped back and looking like he wanted to smoke, even if that would be disrespectful in the Hokage's office (never mind that the old man did it all the time).

    Inoichi was there, even if he had a sack full of frozen beans pressed up against the side of his head.

    Bear-sama, the ANBU leader was standing ramrod straight two steps behind the Hokage, arms crossed and body tense as if he was ready to spring into action at any moment.

    "Now that everyone is gathered," Sarutobi said. "We can begin talking about our new guests."

    "Yes, let's," Danzo said. He looked as if someone had pissed in his afternoon tea.

    "I think," the Hokage began. "That maybe Ibiki can give us all a rough outline of what happened?"

    "Yes, Hokage-sama," Ibiki said. If it was a little stiff, no one commented. "This morning at eleven hundred hours three foreign shinobi with markings associated with no known village were escorted into T&I."

    "Weren't they wearing headbands?" the Nara asked. He was staring at the ceiling as if he'd find something interesting hidden there.

    "The Village Hidden in the Village isn't a known village," Ibiki pointed out. He wasn't sour about the interruption. In fact, if he could be interrupted until the meeting couldn't go on it would be for the best.

    "Troublesome."

    When no one else was going to save him from having to report, he continued. "The three shinobi, named Sim, Viath, and Moth at the gate were split apart and brought to three interogation rooms. Standard procedure according to protocol seven-six-four, dash thr--"

    He stopped when the Hokage raised a hand. "Ibiki, do you intend to quote every procedure down to the page number in order to avoid telling us what happened? I would appreciate it if you skipped ahead a little."

    Ibiki nodded. "Very well," he said while cursing the wise old bastard. "The three subjects were, as I said, escorted to three standard interrogation rooms. Since we had extra ANBU staff on hand I decided not to strip them of their equipment just then. It allows you to question them in a more comfortable manner and establish a baseline. The initial interrogations failed. Horribly."

    "Do fill us in," the Hokage asked.

    Ibiki tightened his fist by his side, but knew better than to disobey. "Three T&I agents were sent to each room, with two more on overwatch. We had three members of ANBU on hand as well, so they also spectated the interviews through either one way mirrors or CCTV. Our first interview was conducted on subject Moth.

    "Subject Moth is a presumed male, approximately six feet in height with wide set shoulders and an estimated weight of two hundred kilos in armour. Our interview began with simple questions which the subject refused to answer. Subtle threats failed to make the subject react, so I allowed the interrogator to try physical intimidation." Ibiki shook his head. "It did not work."

    "How did it not work?" Danzo asked from his corner.

    Ibiki sighed and wished he could just go back home, walk his dog, feed his cat, then climb into bed and forget that anything had happened that day. "The first attempts failed to move the subject. Further attempts to disengage his armour failed. We could not find any straps or hooks to remove it, and pulling didn't do anything. Attempts to use Jutsu also failed. By the end I had three Chunen in the room throwing ninjutsu around like genin on graduation day and the subject didn't move so much as a muscle, at least, until the incident."

    "Incident?" Nara asked. At least he was paying some attention.

    "We'll get to that later," Ibiki growled. "The second subject, named Viath, is a tall presumed male. He was wearing a trenchcoat and a large metallic hat upon entering our facility. The style of the coat is a match for that worn by members of the rogue group Akatsuki, though with waves instead of clouds. He refused initial suggestions and subsequent orders to sit down at the interrogation table, and paced his end of the room instead. When put to the question he also failed to answer. When we attempted to capture him for sedation and to remove his gear, we failed."

    Ibiki paused there, waiting for someone to ask the inevitable. "How did you fail?" the Hokage asked. He hid his smile, poorly, by placing his pipe's stem in his mouth and breathing out a plume of smoke.

    "We couldn't touch him. The subject slid out of our grasp, moved across the room and on one occasion used the provided glass of sedative-laced water to block a spray of senbon that would have hit him. For most of the hour and a half he was in custody, the subject was bouncing off the walls while a junin and two chunin tried to tag him. He never struck out at my people, though he did move them aside at times."

    Ibiki stifled a sigh and wished that he was sitting down. "And so we come to our third subject. Sim."

    "Is this more of the same?" Danzo asked.

    "No," was Ibiki's sharp reply. "Sim was cooperative, gentle, even polite. She had the manners and bearing we usually see in friendly nin who are brought in for a briefing with T&I as opposed to an actual interrogation. The reports from our Chunin say that she was wonderful, and great, and a kind soul."

    "So what's the problem?" Nara asked.

    "Those reports said one thing. All the people looking into the room could only see her smiling at the chunin while he smiled right back for minutes on end."

    "A Genjutsu specialist, then," the Hokage guessed.

    "Maybe," Ibiki said. "We removed the Chunin and replaced him with a more experienced Jounin. He was suborned within seconds. The same scenario played out. He was laughing and smiling at her while she fussed about. That's when I went to Inoichi for help." Ibiki felt a downright predatory grin stretched across his features. "Perhaps he could explain."

    Inoichi pulled the sack of frozen peas away from his head, revealing a wet splotch across his face where water was dripping down and into the collar of his uniform. "Please no," he said.

    "Oh, but my report wouldn't be complete without your help, my old friend," Ibiki insisted. He could vividly recall Inoichi giving him shit duty years ago, back when the man was the head of T&I.

    Inoichi groaned, but he sat straighter, used the hand not holding onto the formless sack to straighten his uniform and tried to look presentable. "Shit's fucked," he said.

    There was a moment of silence as all the men in the room took in the statement. The Hokage cleared his throat. "Could you perhaps explain in more depth?" he asked.

    Inoichi sighed and pressed the bag back against the side of his skull with a wet splat. "That monster's mind is an open book. All minds are unique. Their either organized or disjointed or something between the two. Some people remember things as images or voices or flashes of events. It takes a lot to figure out how someone thinks and sees things in their mind before you can even begin to start looking for things. Then you have to remember that most non-civilians use chakra to enhance their senses and sharpen their wits. There's a level of mental defence in every person."

    The man paused, shifting his bag around on fingers that were pale with cold. "That girl had nothing of the sort." He paused as if looking for the right words. "Did you ever walk down a staircase in the dark and expect there to be one more step when there are in fact two, so you trip?"

    No one admitted that yes, they had tripped that way before, because they were all respectable ninja, but the experience was definitely shared.

    "Diving into her mind was like that. Just, nothing to stop you and then everything." He shuddered. "It's not a healthy place."

    "Right," Ibiki said slowly, stretching the word out. "Well Inoichi failed to get anything but a headache from the girl, and we opted not to risk any more of our better interrogators on her for a while. Unfortunately that's when we hit the... deadline."

    "The deadline?" Danzo repeated.

    "All three subjects paused at the same time and made their way to the exits of their respective cells. Moth and Viath tore the doors open. Sim was... aided out of her cell by a helpful member of ANBU. They then proceeded to exit the T&I facilities."

    "You let them escape?" Danzo asked.

    "Let them implies that we didn't try to stop them," Ibiki said. "We didn't lose any agents, but it was a near thing."

    That finally had the Hokage lowering his pipe. "Did they attack your people?" he asked.

    "No. Not exactly. Some of our more enthusiastic operatives let fly some Jutsu which were redirected. Or they tried to bodily restrain our prisoners. I can't reliably say that any injuries caused were the fault of those three, not directly."

    "Ah, that is reassuring. It at least means that our young guest was telling the truth when she said her genin wouldn't hurt anyone," the Hokage said.

    "Pardon my brusqueness, sir," Ibiki said. "But if those three are genin I will eat my hat."

    The Hokage tapped his lip with the stem of the pipe. "While you were having your little containment breach fun, I was talking to the nice young lady from the Village Hidden in the Village. The Jounin leader of the team visiting us. She was quite kind, surprisingly open for a foreign nin."

    The others in the room all stared at the old man, expecting him to go on.

    He sighed and tapped his pipe into an ashtray. "I have decided to allow a... probationary period to be granted to our new friends. Bear, you have your ANBU watching them?"

    The ANBU behind the hokage had been so still that Ibiki almost forgot he was there. "Yes, Hokage-sama."

    "Good, good. Then we will keep an eye on our guests, try to learn a little about them, and of course allow them to participate in the Chunin exams if they promise to try and prevent any casualties. After all, having more powerful friends can only help the spirit of fire burn brighter."

    "That sounds like an awful idea," Danzo said.

    "Do feel free to observe them yourself, Danzo my old friend. More eyes cannot hurt. But I think that everything will work out in the end."

    ***

    Taylor bounced. Not too high, because the mattress wasn't all that springy, but high enough that her robes billowed out under her, then fwumped back down. It was a nice, pleasant way to pass the time and an obligation when occupying a hotel room. "So-- what-- should-- we-- do?" she asked between fwumps.

    Her endbringer friends were lounging around the room and being big lazy louts, but she wasn't really doing much either, so she couldn't complain. The Simurgh made a gesture with her hand as if saying 'whatever.' [Can Cause Chaos for Amusement and Profit.]

    Taylor thought about it. "Yeah, okay."

    ***
     
  • Sidestory
    • RavensDagger said:
    Her endbringer friends were lounging around the room and being big lazy louts, but she wasn't really doing much either, so she couldn't complain. The Simurgh made a gesture with her hand as if saying 'whatever.' [Can Cause Chaos for Amusement and Profit.]

    Taylor thought about it. "Yeah, okay."
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    AngelWings said:
    This can only end well.





    Poor Danzo
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Poor Shikaku, actually. I've always had the headcanon that when insane shit goes down, he's the one who has to deal with the aftermath, as Jonin-Commander.
     
    Typo:
    RavensDagger said:
    Fizz opened its covered wide and reached in
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    covers


    RavensDagger said:
    Fizz bobbed up and down, seemingly ignorant of the tension in the air. "It's for Miss Simmie's Saber cosplay," he said. "She's going as a character from fate stay night to a thing."
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Oh no. How lewd is it...?
    The part about Item #3 that no one shall mention is great, by the way.
    RavensDagger said:
    "Weren't they wearing headbands?" the Nara asked. He was staring at the ceiling as if he'd find something interesting hidden there.

    "The Village Hidden in the Village isn't a known village," Ibiki pointed out. He wasn't sour about the interruption. In fact, if he could be interrupted until the meeting couldn't go on it would be for the best.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Well, that's a valid tactic too. I still smirk at the name, as well. That right there is a sign that everyone else is going to be having "fun" soon...
    RavensDagger said:
    He stopped when the Hokage raised a hand. "Ibiki, do you intend to quote every procedure down to the page number in order to avoid telling us what happened? I would appreciate it if you skipped ahead a little."
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Smart. Maybe too smart. :D
    RavensDagger said:
    "Subject Moth is a presumed male, approximately six feet in height with wide set shoulders and an estimated weight of two hundred kilos in armour. Our interview began with simple questions which the subject refused to answer. Subtle threats failed to make the subject react, so I allowed the interrogator to try physical intimidation." Ibiki shook his head. "It did not work."
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Pffrt. Ha. Intimidating Behemoth!? I have no idea why that would fail... :rolleyes:
    RavensDagger said:
    "No," was Ibiki's sharp reply. "Sim was cooperative, gentle, even polite. She had the manners and bearing we usually see in friendly nin who are brought in for a briefing with T&I as opposed to an actual interrogation. The reports from our Chunin say that she was wonderful, and great, and a kind soul."

    "So what's the problem?" Nara asked.

    "Those reports said one thing. All the people looking into the room could only see her smiling at the chunin while he smiled right back for minutes on end."
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    That's still better than how they did with Levi and Ben, at least. Shame that all these ninja are hilariously out of their depths. :p
    RavensDagger said:
    Inoichi sighed and pressed the bag back against the side of his skull with a wet splat. "That monster's mind is an open book. All minds are unique. Their either organized or disjointed or something between the two. Some people remember things as images or voices or flashes of events. It takes a lot to figure out how someone thinks and sees things in their mind before you can even begin to start looking for things. Then you have to remember that most non-civilians use chakra to enhance their senses and sharpen their wits. There's a level of mental defence in every person."

    The man paused, shifting his bag around on fingers that were pale with cold. "That girl had nothing of the sort." He paused as if looking for the right words. "Did you ever walk down a staircase in the dark and expect there to be one more step when there are in fact two, so you trip?"

    No one admitted that yes, they had tripped that way before, because they were all respectable ninja, but the experience was definitely shared.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    I was smirking right until I read that last line. Now I'm cackling. The funniest part is that he got exactly what he wanted, but in such a way that he couldn't get anything out of it. Which I'm sure was the point, and it embarrassed him to boot. :rofl:
    RavensDagger said:
    "All three subjects paused at the same time and made their way to the exits of their respective cells. Moth and Viath tore the doors open. Sim was... aided out of her cell by a helpful member of ANBU. They then proceeded to exit the T&I facilities."
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    I saw that little amendment there for Simmy. Had to give them a final poke, didn't she...
    RavensDagger said:
    [Can Cause Chaos for Amusement and Profit.]
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Oh hell. This is going to be a ceremony to remember. Now the only question is if they team up with Naruto. I've seen one or two Naruto stories where the trap and prank count is roughly equal to how much space is physically available in the area, and somehow think that it might get exceeded here...
     
    Last edited:
    This smile on my face, it's a rictus grin; if I could go back in time...

    ... I wouldn't change a thing. I love every chapter and every omake with equal fervour.
     
    Remove ads
    Half-Time
  • Threadmarks
    • Half-Time

    Keeping in theme with breaking the rules of writing, I'mma spit in the face of Word Entropy now.

    See if you can Spot the Salacious Surprise

    ***

    She should have felt guilty. Knocking Chevalier, one of the Protectorate's greatest heroes, out was a bit rude. But they had sent her here as little more than a glorified sidekick. A show of how cool the Protectorate still was. Lily knew that she was marketable (the damned PR department counted that as a bigger victory than her actual achievements), so of course she was picked.

    She figured she had a day, two at most, before she would be brought in for questioning about her very public betrayal of a world-renowned hero.

    Sucked for them. Flechette's days as a glorified sidekick were over, and if the PR department wanted to make a fuss about it, they could always label her as some sort of anti-hero. Those were always cooler anyway.

    She ducked down under a cement overhang, making sure not to knock her head as she walked towards the waiting room set out for the champions of the first round. The indistinct roar of the crowd faded behind her as she walked down a fluorescent-lit corridor, only really noticing that she wasn't alone when she was nearly at the end.

    Some of the people around her were easy enough to recognize. Jack Slash could call himself whatever he damned well pleased but it wouldn't stop her from knowing just who he was. The same applied to Bonesaw.

    She wasn't the only one. The two villains were being separated from the rest of the group. Even Valefor and Citrine and Othello were leaving them plenty of space.

    Sticking with the other heroes was probably for the best, she decided.

    Siddling over to her left, she found herself next to a floating Glory Girl and a rather grim-faced Vista.

    "Someone pissed in your cornflakes?" she asked the shorter girl.

    She got a flat look her for troubles. Vista looked ready to tear into her, but a phone started ringing, the sound echoing down the corridor and interrupting whatever she was going to say.

    Sticking her neck where it wasn't wanted was, fortunately, one of Glory Girl's many hobbies. "I figure that she's actually a little miffed that she won."

    "She wanted to lose?" Lily asked over Vista's head.

    "She," Vista said. "Is right here. And I'm not sad that I won. I'm happy that I won. Winning is good. I'm pissed that I had to be all sneaky just to participate."

    "Some would say that you're a bit young," Lily said.

    "Some didn't say that about you," Vista shot back.

    Shorty: one, Lily: nil, she thought. "Okay, that's fair, I guess. But you made it through the first round. Didn't murder anyone that I saw. You'll probably get a hell of a tongue lashing but you'll be fine." She went to pat the girl on the head, but decided against it and gave her shoulder a pat instead.

    Squeezing a little closer, Lily and the others moved through a set of wide-open double doors and into a large lounging room. Chairs and long sofas lined the far wall, there was a small bar and even what looked like a workshop, ostensibly for the Tinkers to Tinker at.

    She wasn't surprised when 'Wyvern' dragged 'Defiant' over to the corner and gently placed him on a stool. Or as gently as a two meter tall walking techno-dragon could be. The man looked a little rumpled.

    Still, they were minding their own business, so Lily wasn't about to start anything. Instead she picked out a nice sofa and walked over to it to flop down and sink into its plush cushions.

    Sitting down next to her was Glory Girl, then Vista uncrossed her arms and sat on Lily's other side. "How long do you think we're going to have to wait?" she asked.

    Shrugging, Lily replied, "I don't know. I can't imagine Queen Administrator stretching it on for too long. People like their bloodsport too much."

    "Sport?" Glory Girl asked. "That was more like an exhibition match of how scary parahumans can be. Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if Queen Administrator just did it to distract people from how much scarier she is. She's tricky that way."

    "She really is," Vista agreed. With a gesture at the fridge all the way across the room, the floor shifted so that it was right next to her, the rest of the area looking like a M.C.Escher painting that had gone a little runny. "Want anything?" she asked as she opened the fridge. "Nevermind."

    Soda bottles came out. Three of them. Each with an anime-style caricature of Lily, Vista and Glory Girl on them. Vista stared at her image on the can for a while, taking in the fierce glare and the admittedly badass high kick pose her tiny image was in for a few long seconds before nodding in approval.

    "Sister... Saviour Flavour," Glory Girl read aloud. "What the heck?" Her can had an anime Glory Girl with 90s anime eyes holding onto a black suit wearing Panacea's hands in both of hers. She was also wearing the skimpiest wedding dress Lily had ever seen.

    "So that whole thing about you and your sister," Lily asked.

    "S-shut up, none of that's true," Glory Girl said. Her blush spoke to the opposite though, if Lily had to guess.

    "She's adopted, no?" Vista added.

    "So what?"

    "So nothing," Vista said, both hands coming up in a defensive stance. "Just... pointing it out." She smiled and popped the tab on her Vista Berry Her Foot In Your Face flavoured can and took a sip. "Oh, it's strawberry," she said.

    She spun her can around and took in the image of, well, herself. The armour was all correct, so were all the costume bits. Though she didn't usually get so bloody in a fight, or so sweaty. And her armour didn't fit quite that... well. Her character was standing with legs apart and arbalest resting on the ground, bent forwards a little as if she was tired, but satisfied. Above and behind her was the Kanji for her namesake, but instead of being written how Lilly's mother taught her, it used the kanji for the actual flower. Which seemed like an odd mistake to make.

    She then read the name on the can. Scissor Sauce. And under it, a subtitle: Slices Through Your Thirst.

    "So, who am I going to have to kill?" she asked with the sweetest smile she could manage.


    "Simurgh, probably," Vista said. She tried to hide her grin by taking another sip of her drink, but Lilly could see right past that. The girl's eyes were practically dancing with mirth. Then she started ringing again.

    Sighing, Vista pulled out a phone and slid the end call button across the screen before slipping it back into a pocket.

    "Shit, you really think the Simurgh did this?" Lilly asked, still eyeing the can.

    "She totally would," Glory Girl said. "She likes anime and cosplay and all that stuff."

    "Spend lots of time with the local Endbringer?" Lilly asked. "Or were you just there to keep your sister safe?"

    "Shut up," Glory Girl bit back. "It's not like that."

    "'S okay," Vista said before swallowing. "If anime has taught me anything it's that sister love is the sweetest love. Personally I think it's real romantic."

    She had to hide a smile behind the act of popping open her own can of soda and pressing it against her lips as Glory Girl went so red it looked as if she might pop a blood vessel. "The Simurgh, Queen Administrator, Brockton Bay. What can you girls tell me? I was thinking of maybe transferring over a while ago. It's not too far from home and Brockton Bay gets more action than New York, at least for Wards. But now the whole place is kind of an information black hole. No idea what's going on."

    "Seems weird that we wouldn't hear about that," Glory Girl said. She was giving Lilly a dubious look. "Who's stopping information about the Bay from getting out?"

    "Senate tried to sneak this bill about information quarantine about Brockton Bay. It flopped, but they managed to keep it out of the news," Lilly said. She was enjoying being the one with all the cards here, it was refreshing. "PRT tried something similar the second the Simurgh landed, but that failed too. Like, it failed via a bunch of totally random coincidences. Three directors had anvils accidentally crash onto their cars on the same day kind of thing. The higher-ups aren't saying it, but it's totally a Simurgh plot."

    "She would use anvils," Vista said. "Or pianos. She probably did it just for the mem--" Vista was interrupted by another ring from her pocket. She sighed and pulled out her phone, the same Wards issue smartphone that Lilly had, and glared at the screen.

    "Someone important?" Glory Girl asked.

    "Someone annoying," Vista said. "It's Director Piggot."

    "Shit," Lilly said. "You're in so much trouble."

    Shoving the phone back, Vista put it on the table before her and crossed her arms. "Well I'm not answering her."

    Silence reigned for a bit. Lilly met Glory Girl's eyes and they silently agreed not to touch Vista's issues just yet. It was probably not very nice of them to let the girl stew in her problems, but they didn't have the time to figure out all the ways the smaller girl was messed up.

    Showing up incognito in what was essentially a deathmatch (even if Lily silently suspected that no one had actually died) was not a sign of strong mental health.

    "Sorry, could I get to the fridge please?" a soft, young voice asked from over the top of the couch. "Uncle Jash is really thirsty."

    Sliding to the side, Lilly watched in mounting horror as Bonesaw, the Bonesaw, hopped up to the top of the couch, limbs spinning as she tried to climb up. She failed, eyes going wide for a moment before her entire body pitched forwards and she flopped onto the couch with an oomph. "Well, that worked."

    Sitting straighter, the girl shook her head, adjusted her head full of black ringlets and then opened the fridge door. "Ohh, they have sodas just for us! I'm not allowed to drink soda usually. It's too sweet." She shut the door, three cans tucked up against her tummy. "Uncle Jash says that it makes me too hyper."

    She held up a can that had a cutesy picture of Sawbones on the cover holding hands with a blonde-haired Bonesaw over an indistinct pile of bodies. The entire can was covered in garish, neon colours that practically glowed. "Oh, it's candy flavoured!"

    She popped the tab and downed the drink like an alcoholic that had had a long, hard day. She lowered the can with a gasp, a huge smile plastered across her face while neon pink juice stained the corners of her lips. "So sweet!"

    "Sure," Lilly said. She went to take a sip of her own drink then paused. Eating or drinking while next to the homicidal biotinker was probably against a regulation somewhere.

    "So, what are we talking about?" Bonesaw asked as she bounced on the spot and fluffed out her dress. "Is it something fun?"

    "Simurgh, Queen Administrator, how they're... themselves so much."

    "She's a lot of fun," Bonesaw said with a nod. "Both shes. Queen Administrator is super nice, and the Simurgh looks like she gives the best hugs. Did you see how fluffy her wings are? Do you know how they feel?"

    "Soft," Glory Girl admitted. She noticed the sudden attention on her and flushed red. "What? I was there, the Simurgh was there, she let me touch. It wasn't weird or anything."

    "So was that before or after you started obsessing over your sister?" Vista asked.

    "Shut up, it's not like that!" Glory Girl said.

    "Sister love?" Bonesaw asked. Her hands clasped together and her eyes sparkled as she looked up at Glory Girl. "Did you get hurt and she healed you? Was your heart broken as she fixed it and then you discovered that you love her? That's so romantic!"

    "Stop saying that! I'm, I'm not a lesbian," Glory Girl said.

    "So you're saying that your love transcends concepts such as gender?" Bonesaw asked. She tilted her head to one side. "You know, if you find some guy around somewhere, I could turn you into a boy. I just need extra parts and a few hours."

    "Never gonna let you touch me, creep," Vicky said with narrowed eyes and her body edging away from the smaller girl. Lilly could sympathise.

    "Gonna have to put a rain check on that one," Vista said. She was staring off towards the entrance and that had Lilly and the others doing the same. Legend was standing there, looking tall and proud as he surveyed the room, then he saw all the villains looking his way and his expression saddened a bit.

    "Give me a hand," Bonesaw asked after Lilly got up. She was making grabby motions. Lilly hesitated, but gave in and helped the girl to her feet while everyone else was preparing to do the same.

    "You guys were a lot of fun to talk to, but I think we'll have to cut it short for now," Vista said. "Looks like the next bit's going to start.

    "Up on your feet everyone," Legend said, his voice carrying. "The next part of the show is about to begin!"

    ***

    Next time, on How to Train Your Endbringer, the second stage of the tournament.... Begins!

    A big ol' thank-you to all my patrons. This month was hard but they made it a whole lot more bearable.
     
  • Threadmarks
    • That's so disturbing that it's funny. The soda may have been a bit much, though. The conversation was fine. :D
     
    Reader mode
    You must login or register to reply here.
    Remove ads
    Back
    Top