- Location
- Ohio
And suddenly all I can think of is an Rougelike Indie game called We Happy Few. Almost every character in the game wears that kind of mask with a very creepy smile. It's scheduled to release sometime this month.
Stand Proud and Make Yourself a Legend [Evangelion/JJBA]
- Thread starter TGT09
- Start date
You're right. The characters do look pretty creepy. I might check out the gameplay after it releases.
What? Ano-
Ninja'd! I can't believe it!
Wow, it actually worked. I should try that trick more often. Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys what I have planned next.
Ridiculously Average Guy
I'm you, but stronger
- Location
-
Wait...but LCL already tastes like blood.
Damn it, I can't believe I pulled an Araki plothole.
EDIT: Ok, I fixed the problem. Thanks for the catch.
Last edited:
Little teaser for the next chapter. By the way, do people actually like these teasers, or do they distract too much from the actual update?
Rohan smiled in satisfaction as he read through a summary of the episode of "American's Most Wanted" that Rei was watching. Not only did he find out what the guy looked like, but also his modus operandi. Apparently he used the same "hallucinogenic agent" excuse every time he committed a crime even though toxicology reports repeatedly turned up negative. Despite the tests, Clearwater's hostages always started to hurt and even kill each other once a hostage situation dragged on, just as he had warned them. The show's host said that they were still trying to identify the substance, but it was clear that the people weren't being driven insane by any drug, but by Creedence Clearwater's 「Stand」abilities. Having found the information he needed, Rohan decided to dig a little deeper into Rei's background and flipped to the beginning of Rei's「book」.
Let's see now…no way…there's no way she was born in 2010. Scratch that, she wasn't even born at all! More like they grew her in a tank. Of course, the whole thing was Gendo Ikari's idea. Who would have thought? Rohan's eyes widened as he read through the pages detailing Rei's creation. A clone of Yui Ikari with DNA from something called "Lilith" as well as the creature's soul mixed in. All right, I'm not one to intervene in someone else's love life, but I better let Shinji know before he starts putting the moves on his mom or sister or whatever the hell Rei is…
"Mr. Kishibe, did you find what you were looking for?" Shizuka asked.
Damn it! Rohan thought as「Heaven's Door」turned Rei back to normal. I'll go through the rest later.
Rohan smiled in satisfaction as he read through a summary of the episode of "American's Most Wanted" that Rei was watching. Not only did he find out what the guy looked like, but also his modus operandi. Apparently he used the same "hallucinogenic agent" excuse every time he committed a crime even though toxicology reports repeatedly turned up negative. Despite the tests, Clearwater's hostages always started to hurt and even kill each other once a hostage situation dragged on, just as he had warned them. The show's host said that they were still trying to identify the substance, but it was clear that the people weren't being driven insane by any drug, but by Creedence Clearwater's 「Stand」abilities. Having found the information he needed, Rohan decided to dig a little deeper into Rei's background and flipped to the beginning of Rei's「book」.
Let's see now…no way…there's no way she was born in 2010. Scratch that, she wasn't even born at all! More like they grew her in a tank. Of course, the whole thing was Gendo Ikari's idea. Who would have thought? Rohan's eyes widened as he read through the pages detailing Rei's creation. A clone of Yui Ikari with DNA from something called "Lilith" as well as the creature's soul mixed in. All right, I'm not one to intervene in someone else's love life, but I better let Shinji know before he starts putting the moves on his mom or sister or whatever the hell Rei is…
"Mr. Kishibe, did you find what you were looking for?" Shizuka asked.
Damn it! Rohan thought as「Heaven's Door」turned Rei back to normal. I'll go through the rest later.
Finagle007
[Verified Great Old One]
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
I for one enjoy the teasers. Reminds me of the ones from anime episodes.
Fair point. My plan is to just have Rohan give Shinji a quick warning about Rei being a clone while leaving out the Lilith-related stuff. Rohan does things for the sake of drawing manga, not to dig up other people's secrets.
The issue is that if he's going to warn Shinji in the first place I don't really see why he wouldn't give him all the details. Now you are right about Rohan in that he wouldn't care one way or another and doesn't do things for the sake of digging up secrets, but I'm still not sure if him not mentioning the other stuff, even if he has no context for it, is something he would do.
I can see where you're coming from, and frankly I can't really tell from DiU and the one-shots whether Rohan is the type person to mention some secrets and not others. My interpretation is Rohan warning Shinji about potentially having the hots for a person that's basically his sister rather than about Rei being an Angel.
I can see that, but the issue is that Shinji will probably demand an explanation, which is where the issue of whether Rohan would mention that Rei is a clone but whether he would mention the Lillith stuff or not is coming from.
I think I have a solution to this issue. Rohan would just write "I'll only think of Rei as a friend" in Shinji and worry about explaining later.
- Location
- Ohio
That'll work. Rohan really is a good person at heart, but that doesn't mean he'll go too far out of his way to help others. Whether or not Rohan immediately reports this information to Jotaro or the Speedwagon Foundation, and by extension Shizuka, is a different issue entirely. Rohan did not read long enough to figure out what Lilith is. He only read far enough to gleam that Gendo is a creepy f*ck and that using Yui's DNA was his idea.
That could work, my main issue here is that them getting the info about Rei and whatnot, even if they don't have the structure to understand it, could send the fic spiraling in directions you don't necessarily want it to go, referring back to my warning about "biting off more than you can swallow." Now if you actually want this to occur that is a different matter, which I should have taken into account, but I was worried the story would be pushed in a direction you didn't want it by what would effectively be an offhand comment/search by Rohan.
Agreed, having Rohan tell Shinji right away and in the earshot of Shizuka and Rei herself would introduce way too many plot elements than I can handle especially considering some of the things I have planned.
Just another peek at the next chapter. Hopefully it'll be out by the end of this week.
"Wait a minute, manipulating electronics?" Shizuka said. "That's not one of the powers Jotaro told me 「Poker Face」had!"
"So what the hell does that mean?" Rohan demanded. "The Speedwagon Foundation isn't as all-knowing as they claim to be?"
"Well, nobody's perfect, you know!" Shizuka said before pulling the group together and dropped her voice down to a whisper. "Or Clearwater has an accomplice who also has a 「Stand」."
"That can't be good." Shinji said. "And why are we huddling and whispering?"
"Think about it, if there is another 「Stand」user who can manipulate electronics. That means they can use the security cameras to watch our every move and record everything we say." Shizuka started explaining. "They probably already know about me calling Jotaro to dig up on Clearwater as well as our 「Stand」abilities. We need to be extra careful from now on."
"Great, just damn great." Shinji rolled his eyes. "So how are we supposed to sort this out with two enemy 「Stand」users running around?"
"A 「Stand」like this is probably using the security room to control the cameras." Shizuka replied. "Let's start there. We can grab the keys from one of the security guards."
Fortunately, the group was able to locate one of the guards soon enough. On the flip side, the guard had already been sprayed with one of 「Poker Face's」masks and was carrying a bloody truncheon.
"Ok, none of us know him, so there's no risk of him thinking we're impostors." Shizuka said, recalling the information her guardian gave her. "Let's just walk up to him and ask him for the keys. Hopefully stage two of 「Poker Face's」ability hasn't set in yet."
"Pardon me, Pilot Joestar." Rei asked. "What does 'stage two' entail?"
"Gotta get away!" The security guard turned towards the group and started running towards them while haphazardly swinging his truncheon. "GETAWAYGETAWAYGETAWAY!!!"
"Jotaro described it as 'severe cabin fever'."
"Wait a minute, manipulating electronics?" Shizuka said. "That's not one of the powers Jotaro told me 「Poker Face」had!"
"So what the hell does that mean?" Rohan demanded. "The Speedwagon Foundation isn't as all-knowing as they claim to be?"
"Well, nobody's perfect, you know!" Shizuka said before pulling the group together and dropped her voice down to a whisper. "Or Clearwater has an accomplice who also has a 「Stand」."
"That can't be good." Shinji said. "And why are we huddling and whispering?"
"Think about it, if there is another 「Stand」user who can manipulate electronics. That means they can use the security cameras to watch our every move and record everything we say." Shizuka started explaining. "They probably already know about me calling Jotaro to dig up on Clearwater as well as our 「Stand」abilities. We need to be extra careful from now on."
"Great, just damn great." Shinji rolled his eyes. "So how are we supposed to sort this out with two enemy 「Stand」users running around?"
"A 「Stand」like this is probably using the security room to control the cameras." Shizuka replied. "Let's start there. We can grab the keys from one of the security guards."
Fortunately, the group was able to locate one of the guards soon enough. On the flip side, the guard had already been sprayed with one of 「Poker Face's」masks and was carrying a bloody truncheon.
"Ok, none of us know him, so there's no risk of him thinking we're impostors." Shizuka said, recalling the information her guardian gave her. "Let's just walk up to him and ask him for the keys. Hopefully stage two of 「Poker Face's」ability hasn't set in yet."
"Pardon me, Pilot Joestar." Rei asked. "What does 'stage two' entail?"
"Gotta get away!" The security guard turned towards the group and started running towards them while haphazardly swinging his truncheon. "GETAWAYGETAWAYGETAWAY!!!"
"Jotaro described it as 'severe cabin fever'."
Chapter 5 - Fortunate Son, Act 2
Announcements: This will be the last chapter before my hiatus. I will be working on this story again after mid-August, so stay tuned until then. I'm also switching up the format of the story a bit in order to reduce clutter. Future chapters will have either Stand sheets or Little Shinji in Morioh, but not both. I'll also be including a short section with dialogue from upcoming chapters to serve as teasers for future updates.
Kujo Residence, Tokyo-3
"Jotaro dear, there's a call for you!" Mrs. Kujo called out to her husband. "Apparently it's urgent."
"I'll be right there." Jotaro said as he saved the paper he was working on and went over to the phone. "Good morning, this is Dr. Kujo speaking."
"Hello Dr. Kujo, I'm Lieutenant-Colonel Misato Katsuragi, Shizuka's supervisor at NERV." The voice on the other end said. "We have received confirmed reports from our Security Division that your ward is among the hostages in the Tokyo-3 convention center. As far as we know, she hasn't been harmed."
"「Yare yare daze」, the Old Man is going to throw a fit." Jotaro muttered to himself before speaking into the phone. "Thanks for letting me know, Colonel Katsuragi. Please update me on the situation."
Jotaro immediately hung up then picked up the phone again. He started dialing Joseph Joestar's number, but changed his mind halfway through.
First things first, I need to contact the Speedwagon Foundation. Reports say Creedence Clearwater is a「Stand」user. Jotaro thought as he dialed a special access number only given to select members of the Joestar bloodline. Giving gramps bad news can wait.
Tokyo-3 Convention Center
"Ok, we hid him. Now what?" Shinji asked. "This isn't exactly a small place. How are we even supposed to find this guy?"
"It'll be great if we could figure out what he looks like." Shizuka said. "Like I said before, I can't help with that since I've never seen him in person."
"The show I watched last week contained several images of the criminal." Rei said. "I could try to sketch him if I can borrow a pen and some paper from Mr. Kishibe."
"There's no need for that, Ayanami. Remember what I did to your friend?" Rohan said. "Besides writing commands, 「Heaven's Door」can also access someone's memories by turning them into a book."
"Very well, then." Rei said as she laid down on the floor. "Please proceed."
Rohan summoned 「Heaven's Door」and lightly tapped Rei with the 「Stand's」pen. The girl's flesh immediately split open into uncountable thin slices and took on the texture of paper while words and pictures appeared on every page. Rohan scanned through the girl's memories as he flipped to pages to find what he's looking for.
Hmm. Go to school, homework, reading my manga, and watching TV every week. Rohan thought as he read through Rei's memories to try to find images of Creedence Clearwater. Her life is so damn dull… here it is!
Rohan smiled in satisfaction as he read through a summary of the episode of "American's Most Wanted" that Rei was watching. Not only did he find out what the guy looked like, but also his modus operandi. Apparently he used the same "hallucinogenic agent" excuse every time he committed a crime even though toxicology reports repeatedly turned up negative. Despite the tests, Clearwater's hostages always started to hurt and even kill each other once a hostage situation dragged on, just as the career criminal had warned them. The show's host said that they were still trying to identify the substance, but it was clear that the people weren't being driven insane by any drug, but by Creedence Clearwater's 「Stand」abilities. Having found the information he needed, Rohan decided to dig a little deeper into Rei's background and flipped to the beginning of Rei's「book」.
Let's see now…no way…there's no way she was born in 2010. Scratch that, she wasn't even born at all! More like they grew her in a tank. Of course, the whole thing was Gendo Ikari's idea. Who would have thought? Rohan's eyes widened as he read through the pages detailing Rei's creation. A clone of Yui Ikari with DNA from something called "Lilith" as well as the creature's soul mixed in. All right, I'm not one to intervene in someone else's love life, but I better let Shinji know before he starts putting the moves on his mom or sister or whatever the hell Rei is…
"Mr. Kishibe, did you find what you were looking for?" Shizuka asked.
Damn it! Rohan thought as「Heaven's Door」turned Rei back to normal. I'll go through the rest later.
"Huh? Yeah, I got it." Rohan replied. "Let me just sketch the guy's picture in your memories so we all know what he looks like."
Should I warn Shinji about Rei being his sister? What if he gets suspicious and asks me what else do I know about her? Rohan thought as he drew Creedence Clearwater's picture in Shinji's 「book」. You know what? This really isn't my problem. I'm a mangaka, not a relationship counsellor. Rohan paused for a couple of seconds, then wrote "I will only think of Rei as a friend" on one of the pages before turning Shinji back to normal. Still, I gotta look out for someone who's about to walk into a trap. This would have to do for now. He then moved on to add Clearwater's picture to Shizuka's memories.
"All right, now let's go find the guy." Rohan said. "How hard can it be?"
"Hang on a second, let's try calling Jotaro first." Shizuka said as she took out her cell phone. "He knows a lot about「Stands」, so we better learn a thing or two about 「Poker Face」instead of rushing in blindly."
Meanwhile at NERV HQ
Misato Katsuragi hated working on Sundays, and the fact that the hostage situation dropped the number of available pilots to zero significantly contributed to her stress level and her hatred for working overtime. As soon as Section Two confirmed all 3 pilots were being held hostage in the convention center, Misato rushed to her office in the GeoFront in order to make arrangements for transferring pilots to Tokyo-3 as soon as possible. Understandably, she was more than a little moody during her calls.
"WHAT? What the hell do you mean the Second Child isn't ready yet? I thought Eva Unit 02 is already fully operational?" Misato practically screamed into the handset. "Immigration? Visas? FUCK those guys! Just tell them this is official NERV business and that they can shove their fucking stamps somewhere the sun doesn't shine!"
Misato opened up several electronic forms on her laptop and began to fill out the various pieces of information needed in order for the Operations Director to execute her authority.
"I am calm, damn it! Look, I'm filling out those forms right now!" Misato calmed down, but only slightly. "Just tell me which address to send them to and I'll get this shit sorted out."
After sending off those forms to NERV's Germany branch, Misato visibly relaxed.
"You should be getting them soon, and thanks again." Misato said without a hint of sincerity. "I'm looking forward to meeting the Second Child soon. Have a good day!"
Misato took a deep breath as she slammed down her office phone's handset, then picked it up again and dialed a Russian number.
"Good day, this is Lieutenant-Colonel Katsuragi." Misato said in a practiced monotone voice. "I'm calling to request the transfer of the Fifth Child from Bethany Base to Tokyo-3..."
The other side suddenly interrupted her, and Misato's expression hardened as a result.
"'Still in conditioning'? What the fuck does that mean?" Misato demanded. "I have never heard that term being used to describe any part of pilot training. Classified? I'm the Operations Director, damn it! I should have access to this kind of information! Hello? Hello?"
Misato paused for a few seconds to see if the person on the other side was still there, but a dial tone was all that answered her. She thought about calling back and give that individual an earful, but decided against. Fuck it; I don't have time to deal with those clowns. Instead, she dialed a British number.
"Hello, UK Branch? I'm Lieutenant Colonel Katsuragi, Operations Director for NERV." Misato said, expecting more bad news. "I'm calling to request the transfer of the Sixth Child to Tokyo-3."
Misato bolted upright in her seat as she heard the news from the other side.
"What? You already have the forms ready, and all I need to do is sign them? She and Eva Unit 05 can get here by tomorrow evening?" Misato said as her eyes widened in amazement. "This…this is great! Just send it over to me right now; I'll take care of it."
I finally got some good news on this shitty day. Misato thought as she opened the documents. I hope they can get Shinji, Rei, and Shizuka out before an Angel attacks.
Tokyo-3 Convention Center
"All right, I managed to get some info on Clearwater's 「Stand」." Shizuka said as she put her cell phone away. "「Poker Face」is a medium-range 「Stand」, and the user has a habit of hiding in the same building he's robbing. The「Stand」is not very strong or durable, but it's pretty fast."
"「Fly Me to the Moon」is a very fast 「Stand」with long range." Rei said. "I can use my 「Stand」to track down Clearwater and guide us to him."
"Great, let's do that then." Shinji said. "The sooner we track him down the better."
「Fly Me to the Moon」materialized behind Rei with a bright blue flash. The 「Stand」hovered in the air as it oriented itself horizontally, extended its wing-cape, and zoomed off. Rei stood still as she stared vacantly into the direction 「Fly Me to the Moon」flew off to and controlled her 「Stand」. Shinji, Shizuka, and Rohan stared at the blue-haired girl with a mix of excitement and nervousness as they waited for Rei to say something. Several minutes passed by while 「Fly Me to the Moon」zipped around everywhere on the first floor before moving onto the next floor. It was not long until Rei saw through her 「Stand」the image of 「Poker Face」resting crossed-legged against a wall while watching a husband and wife starting to fight each other.
"I have located the 「Stand」. It is on the second floor." Rei said. "I shall restrain 「Poker Face」while I guide you towards it. Please guide me along so I may concentrate on controlling my 「Stand」."
The small group nodded as Rei commanded 「Fly Me to the Moon」to rush forward and tackle 「Poker Face」to the ground. The two 「Stands」tumbled past the fighting couple and skidded on the floor as they struggled against each other. 「Poker Face」swung its squirt gun against 「Fly Me to the Moon」, but wasn't able to build up enough momentum to cause anything stronger than light taps against the other 「Stand's」head. Using her rudimentary hand-to-hand combat training that was mandatory for all Eva pilots, Rei commanded 「Fly Me to the Moon」to hook its own arms under 「Poker Face's」arms, pin them as far back as possible, and lift both「Stands」 into the air. To prevent 「Poker Face」from kicking its way loose, 「Fly Me to the Moon」oriented itself horizontally and let the enemy 「Stand」hang loosely by the arms while 「Poker Face」kept kicking uselessly. 「Fly Me to the Moon」shook and wobbled as it desperately held on to 「Poker Face's」arms trying to prevent the enemy from wiggling loose.
"Let us hurry." Rei said to the group as they ran to the location Rei told them. "I do not know how long I can hold the enemy 「Stand」."
As the small gang rushed towards 「Fly Me to the Moon」location, 「Poker Face」suddenly stopped kicking. Instead, it looked at a nearby security camera, nodded, and morphed its mask from a frowning to a smiling expression. Had Rei not been too occupied with leading her fellow pilots and Rohan towards her 「Stand」, she would have noticed the strange signal and prepared for what happened next.
Without warning, the camera exploded in a shower of sparks, launching the Plexiglas canopy still containing some electronic circuits right into the side of 「Fly Me to the Moon's」domed face. The impact made a sickening CRACK sound as fissures appeared on the 「Stand's」helmet while Rei suddenly threw her head back in pain with a loud yelp. 「Fly Me to the Moon」, a low-strength 「Stand」already straining from 「Poker Face's」struggles, loosened its grip on the enemy「Stand」. Taking advantage of the opportunity, 「Poker Face」shook itself loose and fell onto the floor below, landing with a roll, then cartwheeled out of sight.
"Rei! Are you okay?" Shinji asked her as the small group stopped to tend to Rei's injuries. A large bruise appeared on the left side of Rei's pale face as if someone punched her there. The girl was also bleeding from her mouth, indicating a couple of teeth got knocked loose. "Maybe we can find some ice in this building."
"There is no need for that. We need to focus on catching the culprit." Rei grimaced as she rubbed the pained side of her cheek. "The 「Stand」attacked me, and the enemy got loose."
"But how? I thought you restrained the enemy?" Rohan asked.
"I do not quite know." Rei answered. "All I know is that a security camera exploded and hit my face."
"Wait a minute, manipulating electronics?" Shizuka said. "That's not one of the powers Jotaro said 「Poker Face」had!"
"So what the hell does that mean?" Rohan demanded. "The Speedwagon Foundation isn't as all-knowing as they claim to be?"
"Well, nobody's perfect, you know!" Shizuka said before pulling the group together and dropped her voice down to a whisper. "Or Clearwater has an accomplice who also has a 「Stand」."
"That can't be good." Shinji said. "And why are we huddling and whispering?"
"Think about it, if there is another 「Stand」user who can manipulate electronics. That means they can use the security cameras to watch our every move and record everything we say." Shizuka started explaining. "They probably already know about me calling Jotaro to dig up on Clearwater as well as our 「Stand」abilities. We need to be extra careful from now on."
"Great, just damn great." Shinji rolled his eyes. "So how are we supposed to sort this out with two enemy 「Stand」users running around?"
"A 「Stand」like this is probably using the security room to control the cameras." Shizuka replied. "Let's start there. We can get one of the security guards to lead us there, and I'll use one of my 「Stand」abilities to get us through the wall."
Fortunately, the group was able to locate one of the guards soon enough. On the flip side, the guard had already been sprayed with one of 「Poker Face's」masks and was carrying a bloody truncheon.
"Ok, none of us know him, so there's no risk of him thinking we're impostors." Shizuka said, recalling the information her guardian gave her. "Let's just walk up to him and ask him nicely. Hopefully stage two of 「Poker Face's」ability hasn't set in yet."
"Pardon me, Pilot Joestar." Rei asked. "What does 'stage two' entail?"
"Gotta get away!" The security guard turned towards the group and started running towards them while haphazardly swinging his truncheon. "GETAWAYGETAWAYGETAWAY!"
"Jotaro described it as 'severe cabin fever'." Shizuka replied as she adopted a fighting stance, her two fists in front of her face. "「Achtung Baby, Act 3」!"
The air in front Shizuka shimmered and flowed with static patterns as her 「Stand」soon warped into being in front of the girl. Before the crazed guard could land a hit on her, 「Achtung Baby, Act 3」punched him squarely in the forehead. Static flowed like water from the 「Stand's」fist onto the man's forehead then down into the eyes, covering them in the same static that enveloped the 「Stand」. The dazed man dropped his truncheon and put his hands in front him, trying to find an object to grab onto.
"Hello? Is anybody there?" The man calmed down significantly as he pawed the air in front of him. "Why can't I see anything now?"
"Sir, can you hear us?" Shizuka called out to the guard as she dismissed her「Stand」. "How are you feeling?"
"Yes, I can hear you just fine." The guard replied. "I-I honestly don't know. I was in a really weird daze for some reason. Did I fall asleep, please don't tell my boss if I did!"
"Don't worry, you didn't fall asleep." Shizuka replied. "But listen, you…hey! What are you doing?"
"This is taking too long." Rohan said as he shoved past Shizuka and summoned 「Heaven's Door」. The mangaka then turned the guard into a book and wrote several things in there before turning him back to normal only for the guard to pass out cold and dropped to the floor. Without saying a word, Rohan tore off the mask, which crumpled to dust in Rohan's fingers.
"There, I made sure he can't remember why there's blood on his nightstick in the first place. I got the floor plans for this place too." Rohan quipped as Shizuka raised her finger and curling it back down as if trying to say something then decided not to at the last minute. "Now let's get to the security room on the 4th floor and get this over with. I'm getting hungry."
Thanks to the map Rohan pulled from the guard's mind, the group was able to easily locate the security room. On the way there, Rei noticed that some of the security cameras exploded in the same way as the camera that hit her, with the occasional blood trail nearby. As they got closer, a smell that could only be described as burnt rancid pork grew stronger. When they turned a corner into the hallway the security room was on, the group saw the electrocuted corpses of several security guards and Section Two agents that tried to bust into the room. The camera that was supposed to watch the door the security room was broken, with the equipment lying beside a guard with an obvious head wound.
"OH! NO!" Shizuka yelled as she put her hands on her cheeks. "This-this could only mean…"
"…the security room is a trap." Shinji finished the sentence for her while crossing his arms. "This is just great. How are we supposed to get Clearwater when that door is a giant bug zapper?"
"We could still go with the original plan of phasing through the wall using Shizuka's 「Stand」, but if this trap is 「Stand-based」, we'll just get zapped like those poor chumps." Rohan said as he stroke his chin; the part of the brain responsible for his manga ideas were working on overdrive to think of ways to solve the problem ahead of them. He bit his lip as he surveyed the scene in front of him. The normally-stoic Rei was looking visibly uncomfortable at the sight of the electrocuted corpses and had her back to a wall. Shizuka was pacing back and forth with her hands behind her back, her eyes sealed shut to both focus on her thoughts and to avoid looking at the bodies. She had also pulled her lime green shirt over her nose in order to shut out as much of the stench as possible. Shinji had his arms crossed and was slightly leaning back, his left leg in front of his right one for balance, his eyes focus on the door. Like himself, the teen boy was also thinking of ways to get past that door and the electric deathtrap.
Wait a minute, electric trap? Rohan's eyes widened as he perked up. If the trap is this powerful, the power has to come from somewhere else and not the「Stand」. That means…
"Hey kids, I think I got something!" Rohan announced loudly, sending the three pilots jolting towards his direction and huddled together. "If the 「Stand」has the entire building trapped, the power must be pulled from somewhere else like the building itself. If we find the electrical room and shut down the convention center's power, the trap would be disabled and we can get Clearwater and maybe his accomplice."
"That's a great idea, Mr. Kishibe!" Shizuka whispered. "I just have one issue with the plan: what if the basement door is trapped too?"
"That might be a problem, but I did notice something when the whole mess started." Rohan replied. "The first few guards were hammering at the door without any issues, which means the enemy 「Stand」had to redirect power towards that door in order to use the trap. If we can make it to the electric room without anybody noticing, they wouldn't have a reason to trap that door!"
"All right, I guess that can work." Shizuka said. "I can make myself and other people invisible, so I volunteer to go to the basement."
"I know this building's layout thanks to the memories I pulled from the guard's head." Rohan tapped the side of his skull with a finger. "I'll go with Shizuka."
"I'll keep an eye on this door to make sure Clearwater doesn't escape." Shinji turned and looked at the door. "I'll have 「Black Hole Sun」suck the bodies towards the door to block it."
"In that case, Rei, can you stay here with Shinji?" Shizuka asked her. "It's not a good idea to leave someone here alone in a situation like this."
"Affirmative." Rei said and the group broke their huddle. Rohan wrote "I will stick to the floor for two minutes" in both Shinji and Rei. Shizuka then grabbed one of Rohan's hands with her own, causing the mangaka to raise an eyebrow.
"Mr. Kishibe, I need to be in physical contact with you if you want to stay invisible for more than half an hour." Shizuka explained before Rohan could complain. "Watch your step, it took me a while to get used to walking without seeing where my feet would end up."
With a wordless command, Shizuka and Rohan's bodies immediately became transparent and faded out of view.
"Ok, you need to take slow steps and make sure the entire sole of your foot touches the ground before taking the next step." Shizuka explained as she took the first step and pulled on Rohan's arm. "Anything else, you'll trip and roll your ankle."
Following Shizuka's instruction, Rohan raised his left foot and slowly lowered it to the floor, first touching the ground with the balls of the foot, then the ankle. He then repeated the same thing with his other foot.
"Great, just keep practicing, and we'll take this as slowly and carefully as we can."
After waiting long enough for the two to be far enough away, Shinji called out 「Black Hole Sun」and ordered the 「Stand」to float to the door and orient itself so its underbelly was facing the door. With a metallic click, the spots on「Black Hole Sun's」carapace turned red, slowly pulling the bodies towards the door. He kept his eyes on the 「Stand」even while he and Rei were leaning forward due to the 「Stand's」gravity, with Shinji's hat being pulled off in the process. As soon as the bodies were airborne, Shinji dismissed「Black Hole Sun」, causing the bodies to continue flying forward thanks to the inertia and hitting the door in a series of dry smacks before falling back down in front of the door. The corpses made a decently-sized pile that blocked the door's lower half while Shinji's hat landed on top of the pile.
"Rei, with this smell, I think I understand why you don't like meat." Shinji quipped. "And I am definitely washing that hat when this is all over."
Edge of Police Cordon
"Good morning, Dr. Kujo." A Speedwagon Foundation lawyer greeted Jotaro, who nodded at him in response, as the marine biologist approached the cordon. "I'm afraid we can't enter the cordon yet. It took me a while to convince the authorities to let our paramedics in."
"How have things been before I got here?" Jotaro asked. "Are the cops making progress yet?"
"Not yet." The lawyer sighed as he wiped his glasses with a cloth. "They've tried to enter the building several times, but everyone who touched the building got electrocuted. Last time I heard, they want to bring in the Self-Defense Forces to blow a hole in the wall."
"「Yare yare.」" Jotaro muttered as the tipped his hat's visor downwards. "This day is going real smooth."
"Excuse me, Dr. Kujo!" A feminine voice caused Jotaro and the lawyer to turn their heads. It was a reporter from one of the news agencies. She wore a pantsuit that closely hugged her figure as well as makeup that Jotaro could only describe as borderline garish. A portly cameraman followed closely behind her, with the camera's lens directly pointed at his expressionless face.
"Dr. Kujo, what's a celebrated marine biologist doing at the scene of a hostage situation?" The reporter shoved the microphone in Jotaro's face. "Do you have any friends or loved ones trapped inside?"
Jotaro blinked and suddenly disappeared right in front of the reporter, causing the young woman to stagger back in surprise and trip on her heeled shoes. Luckily, she didn't fall thanks to some invisible force that caught her. The cameraman suddenly felt a tap on his shoulder, and the man turned only to come face-to-face with Jotaro, who stared 「menacingly」at him, sending beads of cold sweat streaming down the chubby man's forehead.
"No comment." Jotaro said curtly before assuming a harsher tone. "Now get lost."
The cameraman lowered his head and walked away from the cordon with quick shuffling paces. He turned to look at Jotaro again, only to get a cold stare which sent him walking even faster. The reporter looked at the cameraman, then back to Jotaro who looked at her with a harsh gaze as if telling her to leave as well.
"Talk to me later, ok?" She winked at him.
"I'm married, you damn hag!" Jotaro yelled, causing the reporter to scurry off after her coworker.
"This is why I don't do press conferences." Jotaro muttered as he walked back to the lawyer. "「Yare yare daze.」"
"You know, that probably wasn't the smartest move." The lawyer said. "The Speedwagon Foundation has been having some problems with public image recently, and some media companies seem like they're out for our blood. Once they find out about your ties to us, they'll probably use this incident as an excuse to go after you too. I'll go make some calls to smooth things over."
I know exactly why they're going after The Foundation. Jotaro recalled the secret meeting, which took place a couple of years before he met Josuke, with his grandfather and some other members of the Joestar family. SEELE will do everything they could to eliminate any resistance to their plan.
He glanced to his left and noticed a woman with long-purple hair who wore a short black dress, leather ankle boots, a red jacket with a matching beret arguing with a police officer. She was trailed closely by two G36C-wielding body guards decked in black combat gear including Kevlar helmets and balaclavas. The cop maintained his composure as he explained something to her before she flashed a badge in his face. The officer's face turned pale and pulled the wooden barrier to the side, clearing a way for the woman and her guards. He snapped off a salute which was lazily returned by the woman before putting the barrier back in place.
"You know, this is my first time seeing Section Two decked out like that." Jotaro turned behind him to find Kaji, who wore a pair of sports sunglasses and a yellow t-shirt adorned with white magnifying glasses. "Good to see you again, Jotaro."
"Ryoji, it's been a while." Jotaro nodded.
"Indeed, and I'm sure you can guess that was good old Misato walking into the cordon." Kaji smiled as he rested his arms on one of the wooden barriers. "Poor woman can never catch a break these days."
"So, what brings you here, Ryoji?" Jotaro asked.
"Oh, just being an extra pair of eyes on NERV and the Speedwagon Foundation." Kaji replied. "Say, you want to get into the cordon, right? I can arrange for that to happen."
Inside the Convention Center
"Are we there yet?" Shizuka asked as she and Rohan took slow deliberate paces in the basement.
"It's just around the corner." Rohan replied. "I can try throwing one of my pens to see if it's electrified."
Just as the duo rounded the corner, they noticed Kensuke in a fetal position leaning against the electric room door. Without saying a word, Rohan summoned 「Heaven's Door」and wrote a phrase in Kensuke, knocking him unconscious. The two then decloaked and dragged Kensuke to a nearby room before ripping off his mask and going back to the door.
"All right, now here's the fun part." Shizuka said as she took Rohan's hand again and pulled on it to get him to walk closer to the closed door. Before he could protest, he witnessed Shizuka putting her hand on, and then through the door.
"Just relax and focus on getting in." Shizuka said as she slowly walked forward and put her left leg through the door, then her face, and then the rest of her body besides the right hand that was still holding Rohan's hand. Not knowing what else to do, the mangaka simply visualized himself walking through an open door way and soon found his vision darken, followed by Shizuka appearing in front of him again still holding his hand, with various electrical equipment and a loud cracking sound in the background.
"Great, we're through." Shizuka said. "Now let's turn off…whoa."
Rohan looked around and saw that the floor, ceiling, and walls were covered by crackling electricity and seemed to serve little more than decoration, but that was not what Shizuka was pointing at. Instead, she pointed at the bright blue glow that came from deeper within the room, hiding behind one of the electrical cabinets.
"That seems a bit unusual." Rohan said. "Let's go check it out."
Shizuka turned both of them invisible again, and they slowly and carefully made their way towards the light source. By the time they got closer, the light was bright enough for Shizuka to put on her sunglasses and for Rohan to squint. Shizuka turned around and saw the source of the glow, which was something that crackled with bright electric arcs that wrapped its lower body over one of the distribution boards. It had a blue humanoid upper body with red bug-like eyes and sharp teeth. The portion below its waist looked like a disgusting mix between a spider and an amoeba, with the "legs" having dug into the distribution board. The creature's body was adorned with yellow lightning symbols. Judging from the creature's strange appearance, it must have been the accomplice's 「Stand」.
"Ok, we found the ugly fella, now how to we attack this thing?" Rohan whispered.
"We could trip the fire alarm and dump water all over it." Shizuka replied as she surveyed the environment around the disgusting creature. "The issue is that we're definitely going to get electrocuted."
"Wait, do you hear that?" Rohan asked. "Not the crackling. It sounds like someone's snoring."
Without decloaking, the two tip-toed around the enemy 「Stand」and saw the source of the snoring sound, a woman lying on the floor with a newspaper and several cigarette butts by her head. She was mostly bald except a long tuft of green hair that extended from the back of her skull down to the middle of her back. She wore a leather vest adorned with symbols of shackles, and her arms were covered with crisscrossing chain tattoos. Her jeans were frayed, and she wore black leather boots covered in metal studs. Shizuka thought the woman looked somehow familiar before she gasped in realization.
Wait a minute; she was one of the prisoners at Green Dolphin! A bead of sweat ran down Shizuka's head as she saw the woman stir. Jolyne got into a fight with her once!
Thinking quickly, Shizuka spread her feet apart, pointed in the air, and summoned「Achtung Baby, Act 3」. The 「Stand」 climbed above one of the cabinets and touched the large of collection of wires that connected into the electrical cabinet being controlled by the enemy 「Stand」. The wires became translucent and dematerialized, leaving the remaining electrical charges in the box sputtering out of the openings that once served as the connection points. The electrics arcs around the enemy 「Stand」dimmed down until they disappeared.
"Huh? What's going on?" The woman said groggily as she slowly opened her eyes, only for 「Achtung Baby, Act 3」to punch her square in the nose, sending her head back down and bumping into the floor. The blow knocked her unconscious and caused her 「Stand」and the crackling electricity on the walls to disappear. Without any hesitation, Rohan turned her into a book.
"Well, this is interesting." Rohan saw the woman, named Allison Chaynes, in the booth of a restaurant talking to a nondescript man wearing a black suit and sunglasses. The man was talking about Rohan's own meet-and-greet on Sunday and how the Eva Pilots will be attending the event. There was also some discussion on how the "right people" would be working that day and how they would be conveniently busy while Allison and Clearwater did their work. There was even a mention of some kind of bonus for Shizuka's death. Rohan went back a few more pages through the woman's history and stumbled upon Allison's murderous criminal history and some of her past partnerships with Clearwater. Deciding he had read enough, Rohan wrote "I will stay in a coma and only speak to confess my crimes" and turned her back to normal.
Thus Allison Chaynes, chain-smoker and former auto mechanic, 「RETIRED」!
"All right, let's go back to the security room and get Clearwater." Rohan said while 「Achtung Baby, Act 3」turned the wires back to normal, restoring power to the building. "Shinji and Rei are waiting for us."
Getting back was easier since they didn't have to worry about haywire security cameras anymore, and the duo made good time in being able to actually run back. Soon, the two were reunited with Rei and Shinji.
"All right, you guys ready to link up?" Shizuka asked before she heard someone cackle.
"So, all of you are here to try to stop me, hmm?"「Poker Face」came out of one of the overhead vents and did a three-point landing. The 「Stand」then snapped its head upwards and looked at the group. Before it could say anything else, the group called out their 「Stands」. Shinji ordered 「Black Hole Sun」to point its carapace at the enemy 「Stand」and activated its gravitational field, pulling 「Poker Face」towards Shinji's 「Stand」. Before they could celebrate, however, 「Poker Face 」twisted to the prone position in midair and bent its legs backwards until the feet practically hung over its head. Then, it fired its gun several times at the group before disappearing. While the group dodged most of the shots, one of them straight at Shinji before disappearing, covering his face in one of the masks and causing him to lose focus and dismiss 「Black Hole Sun」.
"Hey, Shinji, are you OK?" Shizuka put her hand on Shinji's shoulder only for the boy to swat it away.
"Get the hell away from me!" Shinji yelled as「Black Hole Sun」appeared a little further down the hallway behind him, activated its gravity field for a couple of seconds before disappearing, which pulled Shinji and only Shinji away from the group. "You're all Clearwater's accomplices!"
"Damn it, kid! You should have just left him alone!" Rohan yelled. "He might have been able to pull off the mask by himself!"
Before Shizuka could say anything, she could feel herself being dragged forwards by 「Black Hole Sun」, which manifested again right in front of Shinji. She, Rei, and Rohan tried crouching down and planting their feet to no avail. The three were soon airborne as they and the various burnt corpses behind them flew towards Shinji's 「Stand」. Thinking quickly, the three linked their hands together, and Rohan used「Heaven's Door」to turn both Rei and Shizuka into books and wrote "I will fly backwards and stick to the wall". Meanwhile, Shizuka also used her power to give all three of them intangibility powers. While Shizuka and Rei flew backwards, phasing through the dead bodies on the way, Rohan continued to fly forward.
Shinji was confused. The one moment he was by his friends and Rohan Kishibe, only for them to disappear and replaced by impostors who were definitely Clearwater's minions. He managed to get away in time and call out his 「Stand」to deal with them. Although he was disappointed about how the fake Shizuka and Rei managed to escape 「Black Hole Sun's」pull, being able to get fake Rohan was a good start.
He watched apprehensively as the impostor Rohan and the bodies flew towards his 「Stand」. If the enemy wouldn't get hurt from the spikes, the sheer weight of the corpses would be enough to crush him. Time seemed to slow down for Shinji as Rohan's impostor flew closer and closer to 「Black Hole Sun」, only for him to phase through his 「Stand」and barrel straight into the boy, tackling him to the ground while the corpses clumped around 「Black Hole Sun」. The fake Rohan wasted no time planting his hand on Shinji's chin and made an upwards tearing motion.
"Wh-what happened?" Shinji asked Rohan as the mask crumpled to dust in the mangaka's hands.
"You got affected by Clearwater's 「Stand」and tried to kill all of us!" Rohan yelled as he pulled Shinji up. "Now let's go get Shizuka and Rei down."
While Rohan undid his effects on Rei and Shizuka, Shinji noticed something else that could give them problems later.
"Guys, the security room door is open." Shinji said. "Looks like Clearwater escaped."
"Relax, Shinji." Shizuka said after getting down from the wall. "He's pretty old, so he can't get very far."
"Pilot Joestar tagged me while we were on the wall." Rei said. "「Fly Me to the Moon」is trailing him as we speak. Follow me."
Wasting no time, the group chased after Rei as they made their way downstairs and towards the front door, swerving away from several people who still had 「Poker Face's」masks. Soon enough, Shinji could see the criminal half-hobbling and half-jogging, trying to get away from them.
"Hey, Rei, I'm going to give my 「Stand」another shot." Shinji said to her in between breaths. "When I tap your shoulder, you need to withdraw your 「Stand」."
"Understood." Rei replied as she continued running.
"All right, NOW!" Shinji tapped Rei on the shoulder and immediately summoned his 「Stand」. What appeared, however, was not 「Black Hole Sun's」beetle-like form, but rather something that resembled a shiny black hornet with a red eyes and a yellow orb at where the stingers are supposed to be.
What the hell? Shinji thought as he tried to give the new 「Stand」the same commands he gave 「Black Hole Sun」. Instead of slowly floating, the 「Stand」flapped its wings and darted forward towards Clearwater. Then, it pointed the yellow orb at the old crook and the ball glowed red, sucking him back towards Shinji's new (or rather, evolved) 「Stand」.
There was no spike impaling Clearwater when he made contact with the orb, just him sticking to the glowing red ball while he squirmed and tried to get off. Creedence Clearwater summoned 「Poker Face」again. The 「Stand」tilted the gun sideways, raised the weapon above its head, and squeezed off several potshots at Shinji's group while the 「Stand」was also sucked towards the ball. Shinji and friends were prepared this time, however, as the shots passed through the four people thanks to 「Achtung Baby, Act 3's」ability.
As they pulled closer and 「Poker Face」kept firing, Shinji lowered his 「Stand」to ground level, then jumped into the air and drew his right arm back. The boy let out a roar before sending a punch straight into Clearwater's face, sending blood and a tooth flying. Following closely behind, Rohan summoned 「Heaven's Door」which turned Clearwater into a book. Rohan quickly wrote "I'll suffer a heart attack the next time I use my 「Stand」" and quickly glanced through the pages. Satisfied after a quick reading, he slammed the book shut and turned Clearwater back to normal.
Creedence Clearwater, age 56 and an amateur stamp collector, 「RETIRED」!
"Well, that was interesting." Shinji wiped the sweat off his brow. "What the hell was that anyway?"
"Looks like you 「Stand」evolved, Shinji." Shizuka said. "Just like what happened to me twice."
"That's pretty neat! I guess I'll call my new 「Stand」「Black Hole Sun, Act 2」." Shinji beamed as he turned to look at Rei, who seemed to be in shock with tears on her face.
"Rei, what's wrong?" Shinji asked as he approached her. "Is everything okay?"
"I-I do not know." Rei replied as she wiped her eyes and felt the bruise on her face with her slender fingers. "There is so much emotion inside me, and I do not know what they are."
"Well, how do you feel then?" Shinji asked her.
"I feel…relieved that this is all over. I also feel elated, as if I just defeated an Angel with my Eva. There's also this warmth that I believe comes from using my skills to help everyone contribute to this success." Rei replied as she turned to look at Shizuka and Rohan. "For the first time, I'm showing concern for another person besides the Commander. I just do not know how to express it all."
"You could try smiling." Shinji as he showed off his own smile. "That's always better than crying, especially after we just got out of a hostage situation."
Slowly, Rei began to pull the corners of her lips outwards and upwards. Soon, her mouth formed a line that could be described as a smile if one looked closely and measured the angles between the corners and the center of her mouth. Still, it was a smile nonetheless.
"All right kids, you guys can continue this sappy moment later." Rohan stepped in between the two. "We still need to find your two other friends and wake them up."
Convention Center Entrance
"Shinji!" Misato called out as Shinji, Rei, Shizuka, Toji, Kensuke, and Rohan exited the building while escorted by Special Assault Team officers. She rushed past her Section Two bodyguards and wrapped the tall boy in a hug, only letting to after a minute or two. Meanwhile, Jotaro approached Shizuka and gave a quick smile and a pat on her left shoulder.
"You should probably give the Old Man a call when you can." Jotaro said. "He's worried sick."
"Thanks, Jotaro. How did you get in here anyway?" Shizuka smiled as she asked her guardian. Jotaro said nothing and simply pointed with his thumb; Shizuka looked towards that direction and saw Kaji give a quick wave while police held back reporters and the crowd. Shizuka nodded and reached into her purse, which was adorned with pacifier-shaped pins, until Jotaro put his hand on top of her arm and gestured towards a police detective that was walking towards them.
"They still need to ask you guys questions about Clearwater and Chaynes." Jotaro said. "Don't worry about those two, by the way. They'll be extradited and locked away until they die."
"Hey Kujo, you mind if I talk to you about something before my little police interview?" Rohan suddenly approached Jotaro from behind. "It's kind of urgent."
Jotaro let the detective take Shizuka while he and Rohan got into a Speedwagon Foundation ambulance to make sure nobody could listen in on them.
"All right, what's on your mind?" Jotaro asked.
"When I was going through Clearwater's memories, I noticed a certain word kept popping up inside the memories about the guy who hired him and Allison Chaynes." Rohan replied as he leaned closer to Jotaro. "Who or what is 'SEELE'?"
Jotaro's expression visibly darkened at the mention of that word. Before Jotaro could answer, however, a civil defense siren's wail pierced through the air.
"「Yare yare daze」." Jotaro muttered before leaning into the driver's compartment. "Driver, take us to the nearest shelter."
"God-FUCKING-damn it! An Angel just had to attack right now!" Misato was about to tear her hair out as she dragged Rei towards Shizuka and the police detective. "Hey, copper! I need that girl for official NERV business. Here's someone else you can interview, but make sure you guys get to a shelter first!"
<====TO BE CONTINUED==|\|==
Unknown Location
"Gentlemen, it appears we have a major problem on our hands." Keel Lorenz addressed the rest of the five-man Human Instrumentality Committee. "I have received reports regarding two of our agents being neutralized."
"Perhaps we need more competent agents, then." The British representative chuckled. "We simply introduce harsher screening processes."
"That is not the issue." Lorenz said sharply before assuming a softer tone. "The issue is twofold. One: I was not notified of those two agents until one of our members brought it up during our last meeting with Ikari. Two: they were well-known criminals. Need I remind you all that we must maintain our appearance as a UN-sanctioned organization? Associating criminals will only damage that image."
"Well, I see your problem then." The American member said. "I suppose we do need to keep a tighter watch on our members. Accountability hasn't been the same since we stopped meeting in person."
"I agree! We must take measures before The Scenario is compromised!" The Russian member yelled. "I propose we call a meeting as soon as possible, Chairman. Any delay will only set us back. Leave Ikari out of this one too."
On the Next Chapter of Stand Up, Become Legend
"The name's Mari Makinami. Nice to meet you all!"
"What? Another Angel already?"
"Otoishi, I need you to cancel your concert tomorrow night. It's important."
"I need the heaviest sniper rifle you got. I gotta practice for the fight with that Angel."
"Commencing Operation Yashima! Eva Units 04 and 05, launch!"
Just remember your training. Three breaths. Shoot after third exhale.
Stand Name: 「Man in the Box」
User: Allison Chaynes
Power: None
Speed: C
Range: A (varies depending on size of building)
Endurance: A
Precision: E
Development Potential: D
The 「Stand」takes the form of a blue humanoid upper body with red bug-like eyes, and sharp teeth as well as a lower body consisting of what is best described as a cross between a spider's legs and an amoeba's pseudopod. 「Man in the Box」is adorned with yellow lightning bolt symbols all over its body. Its modus operandi is to wrap its lower half around a building's distribution board and take control of the building.
Electrical System Control: 「Man in the Box」 can manipulate any device that is plugged into the building's electrical system at will. This includes any portable electronics that is plugged in to charge batteries, and the effects persist after the device is unplugged. If a building has a robust security system including cameras, 「Man in the Box」would essentially know everything that goes on inside. This power depends entirely on the building's own power supply. This means if no electricity is going into the building, 「Man in the Box」is essentially useless.
Building Trap: The building taken over by 「Man in the Box」becomes impossible to escape due to two things. The first factor being all barriers such as walls, windows, and doors experience a significant increase in durability, preventing the victims from simply breaking down a window to escape. The second reason being an electrical field surrounding said barriers that kills anybody the Stand deems a threat.
Kujo Residence, Tokyo-3
"Jotaro dear, there's a call for you!" Mrs. Kujo called out to her husband. "Apparently it's urgent."
"I'll be right there." Jotaro said as he saved the paper he was working on and went over to the phone. "Good morning, this is Dr. Kujo speaking."
"Hello Dr. Kujo, I'm Lieutenant-Colonel Misato Katsuragi, Shizuka's supervisor at NERV." The voice on the other end said. "We have received confirmed reports from our Security Division that your ward is among the hostages in the Tokyo-3 convention center. As far as we know, she hasn't been harmed."
"「Yare yare daze」, the Old Man is going to throw a fit." Jotaro muttered to himself before speaking into the phone. "Thanks for letting me know, Colonel Katsuragi. Please update me on the situation."
Jotaro immediately hung up then picked up the phone again. He started dialing Joseph Joestar's number, but changed his mind halfway through.
First things first, I need to contact the Speedwagon Foundation. Reports say Creedence Clearwater is a「Stand」user. Jotaro thought as he dialed a special access number only given to select members of the Joestar bloodline. Giving gramps bad news can wait.
Tokyo-3 Convention Center
"Ok, we hid him. Now what?" Shinji asked. "This isn't exactly a small place. How are we even supposed to find this guy?"
"It'll be great if we could figure out what he looks like." Shizuka said. "Like I said before, I can't help with that since I've never seen him in person."
"The show I watched last week contained several images of the criminal." Rei said. "I could try to sketch him if I can borrow a pen and some paper from Mr. Kishibe."
"There's no need for that, Ayanami. Remember what I did to your friend?" Rohan said. "Besides writing commands, 「Heaven's Door」can also access someone's memories by turning them into a book."
"Very well, then." Rei said as she laid down on the floor. "Please proceed."
Rohan summoned 「Heaven's Door」and lightly tapped Rei with the 「Stand's」pen. The girl's flesh immediately split open into uncountable thin slices and took on the texture of paper while words and pictures appeared on every page. Rohan scanned through the girl's memories as he flipped to pages to find what he's looking for.
Hmm. Go to school, homework, reading my manga, and watching TV every week. Rohan thought as he read through Rei's memories to try to find images of Creedence Clearwater. Her life is so damn dull… here it is!
Rohan smiled in satisfaction as he read through a summary of the episode of "American's Most Wanted" that Rei was watching. Not only did he find out what the guy looked like, but also his modus operandi. Apparently he used the same "hallucinogenic agent" excuse every time he committed a crime even though toxicology reports repeatedly turned up negative. Despite the tests, Clearwater's hostages always started to hurt and even kill each other once a hostage situation dragged on, just as the career criminal had warned them. The show's host said that they were still trying to identify the substance, but it was clear that the people weren't being driven insane by any drug, but by Creedence Clearwater's 「Stand」abilities. Having found the information he needed, Rohan decided to dig a little deeper into Rei's background and flipped to the beginning of Rei's「book」.
Let's see now…no way…there's no way she was born in 2010. Scratch that, she wasn't even born at all! More like they grew her in a tank. Of course, the whole thing was Gendo Ikari's idea. Who would have thought? Rohan's eyes widened as he read through the pages detailing Rei's creation. A clone of Yui Ikari with DNA from something called "Lilith" as well as the creature's soul mixed in. All right, I'm not one to intervene in someone else's love life, but I better let Shinji know before he starts putting the moves on his mom or sister or whatever the hell Rei is…
"Mr. Kishibe, did you find what you were looking for?" Shizuka asked.
Damn it! Rohan thought as「Heaven's Door」turned Rei back to normal. I'll go through the rest later.
"Huh? Yeah, I got it." Rohan replied. "Let me just sketch the guy's picture in your memories so we all know what he looks like."
Should I warn Shinji about Rei being his sister? What if he gets suspicious and asks me what else do I know about her? Rohan thought as he drew Creedence Clearwater's picture in Shinji's 「book」. You know what? This really isn't my problem. I'm a mangaka, not a relationship counsellor. Rohan paused for a couple of seconds, then wrote "I will only think of Rei as a friend" on one of the pages before turning Shinji back to normal. Still, I gotta look out for someone who's about to walk into a trap. This would have to do for now. He then moved on to add Clearwater's picture to Shizuka's memories.
"All right, now let's go find the guy." Rohan said. "How hard can it be?"
"Hang on a second, let's try calling Jotaro first." Shizuka said as she took out her cell phone. "He knows a lot about「Stands」, so we better learn a thing or two about 「Poker Face」instead of rushing in blindly."
Meanwhile at NERV HQ
Misato Katsuragi hated working on Sundays, and the fact that the hostage situation dropped the number of available pilots to zero significantly contributed to her stress level and her hatred for working overtime. As soon as Section Two confirmed all 3 pilots were being held hostage in the convention center, Misato rushed to her office in the GeoFront in order to make arrangements for transferring pilots to Tokyo-3 as soon as possible. Understandably, she was more than a little moody during her calls.
"WHAT? What the hell do you mean the Second Child isn't ready yet? I thought Eva Unit 02 is already fully operational?" Misato practically screamed into the handset. "Immigration? Visas? FUCK those guys! Just tell them this is official NERV business and that they can shove their fucking stamps somewhere the sun doesn't shine!"
Misato opened up several electronic forms on her laptop and began to fill out the various pieces of information needed in order for the Operations Director to execute her authority.
"I am calm, damn it! Look, I'm filling out those forms right now!" Misato calmed down, but only slightly. "Just tell me which address to send them to and I'll get this shit sorted out."
After sending off those forms to NERV's Germany branch, Misato visibly relaxed.
"You should be getting them soon, and thanks again." Misato said without a hint of sincerity. "I'm looking forward to meeting the Second Child soon. Have a good day!"
Misato took a deep breath as she slammed down her office phone's handset, then picked it up again and dialed a Russian number.
"Good day, this is Lieutenant-Colonel Katsuragi." Misato said in a practiced monotone voice. "I'm calling to request the transfer of the Fifth Child from Bethany Base to Tokyo-3..."
The other side suddenly interrupted her, and Misato's expression hardened as a result.
"'Still in conditioning'? What the fuck does that mean?" Misato demanded. "I have never heard that term being used to describe any part of pilot training. Classified? I'm the Operations Director, damn it! I should have access to this kind of information! Hello? Hello?"
Misato paused for a few seconds to see if the person on the other side was still there, but a dial tone was all that answered her. She thought about calling back and give that individual an earful, but decided against. Fuck it; I don't have time to deal with those clowns. Instead, she dialed a British number.
"Hello, UK Branch? I'm Lieutenant Colonel Katsuragi, Operations Director for NERV." Misato said, expecting more bad news. "I'm calling to request the transfer of the Sixth Child to Tokyo-3."
Misato bolted upright in her seat as she heard the news from the other side.
"What? You already have the forms ready, and all I need to do is sign them? She and Eva Unit 05 can get here by tomorrow evening?" Misato said as her eyes widened in amazement. "This…this is great! Just send it over to me right now; I'll take care of it."
I finally got some good news on this shitty day. Misato thought as she opened the documents. I hope they can get Shinji, Rei, and Shizuka out before an Angel attacks.
Tokyo-3 Convention Center
"All right, I managed to get some info on Clearwater's 「Stand」." Shizuka said as she put her cell phone away. "「Poker Face」is a medium-range 「Stand」, and the user has a habit of hiding in the same building he's robbing. The「Stand」is not very strong or durable, but it's pretty fast."
"「Fly Me to the Moon」is a very fast 「Stand」with long range." Rei said. "I can use my 「Stand」to track down Clearwater and guide us to him."
"Great, let's do that then." Shinji said. "The sooner we track him down the better."
「Fly Me to the Moon」materialized behind Rei with a bright blue flash. The 「Stand」hovered in the air as it oriented itself horizontally, extended its wing-cape, and zoomed off. Rei stood still as she stared vacantly into the direction 「Fly Me to the Moon」flew off to and controlled her 「Stand」. Shinji, Shizuka, and Rohan stared at the blue-haired girl with a mix of excitement and nervousness as they waited for Rei to say something. Several minutes passed by while 「Fly Me to the Moon」zipped around everywhere on the first floor before moving onto the next floor. It was not long until Rei saw through her 「Stand」the image of 「Poker Face」resting crossed-legged against a wall while watching a husband and wife starting to fight each other.
"I have located the 「Stand」. It is on the second floor." Rei said. "I shall restrain 「Poker Face」while I guide you towards it. Please guide me along so I may concentrate on controlling my 「Stand」."
The small group nodded as Rei commanded 「Fly Me to the Moon」to rush forward and tackle 「Poker Face」to the ground. The two 「Stands」tumbled past the fighting couple and skidded on the floor as they struggled against each other. 「Poker Face」swung its squirt gun against 「Fly Me to the Moon」, but wasn't able to build up enough momentum to cause anything stronger than light taps against the other 「Stand's」head. Using her rudimentary hand-to-hand combat training that was mandatory for all Eva pilots, Rei commanded 「Fly Me to the Moon」to hook its own arms under 「Poker Face's」arms, pin them as far back as possible, and lift both「Stands」 into the air. To prevent 「Poker Face」from kicking its way loose, 「Fly Me to the Moon」oriented itself horizontally and let the enemy 「Stand」hang loosely by the arms while 「Poker Face」kept kicking uselessly. 「Fly Me to the Moon」shook and wobbled as it desperately held on to 「Poker Face's」arms trying to prevent the enemy from wiggling loose.
"Let us hurry." Rei said to the group as they ran to the location Rei told them. "I do not know how long I can hold the enemy 「Stand」."
As the small gang rushed towards 「Fly Me to the Moon」location, 「Poker Face」suddenly stopped kicking. Instead, it looked at a nearby security camera, nodded, and morphed its mask from a frowning to a smiling expression. Had Rei not been too occupied with leading her fellow pilots and Rohan towards her 「Stand」, she would have noticed the strange signal and prepared for what happened next.
Without warning, the camera exploded in a shower of sparks, launching the Plexiglas canopy still containing some electronic circuits right into the side of 「Fly Me to the Moon's」domed face. The impact made a sickening CRACK sound as fissures appeared on the 「Stand's」helmet while Rei suddenly threw her head back in pain with a loud yelp. 「Fly Me to the Moon」, a low-strength 「Stand」already straining from 「Poker Face's」struggles, loosened its grip on the enemy「Stand」. Taking advantage of the opportunity, 「Poker Face」shook itself loose and fell onto the floor below, landing with a roll, then cartwheeled out of sight.
"Rei! Are you okay?" Shinji asked her as the small group stopped to tend to Rei's injuries. A large bruise appeared on the left side of Rei's pale face as if someone punched her there. The girl was also bleeding from her mouth, indicating a couple of teeth got knocked loose. "Maybe we can find some ice in this building."
"There is no need for that. We need to focus on catching the culprit." Rei grimaced as she rubbed the pained side of her cheek. "The 「Stand」attacked me, and the enemy got loose."
"But how? I thought you restrained the enemy?" Rohan asked.
"I do not quite know." Rei answered. "All I know is that a security camera exploded and hit my face."
"Wait a minute, manipulating electronics?" Shizuka said. "That's not one of the powers Jotaro said 「Poker Face」had!"
"So what the hell does that mean?" Rohan demanded. "The Speedwagon Foundation isn't as all-knowing as they claim to be?"
"Well, nobody's perfect, you know!" Shizuka said before pulling the group together and dropped her voice down to a whisper. "Or Clearwater has an accomplice who also has a 「Stand」."
"That can't be good." Shinji said. "And why are we huddling and whispering?"
"Think about it, if there is another 「Stand」user who can manipulate electronics. That means they can use the security cameras to watch our every move and record everything we say." Shizuka started explaining. "They probably already know about me calling Jotaro to dig up on Clearwater as well as our 「Stand」abilities. We need to be extra careful from now on."
"Great, just damn great." Shinji rolled his eyes. "So how are we supposed to sort this out with two enemy 「Stand」users running around?"
"A 「Stand」like this is probably using the security room to control the cameras." Shizuka replied. "Let's start there. We can get one of the security guards to lead us there, and I'll use one of my 「Stand」abilities to get us through the wall."
Fortunately, the group was able to locate one of the guards soon enough. On the flip side, the guard had already been sprayed with one of 「Poker Face's」masks and was carrying a bloody truncheon.
"Ok, none of us know him, so there's no risk of him thinking we're impostors." Shizuka said, recalling the information her guardian gave her. "Let's just walk up to him and ask him nicely. Hopefully stage two of 「Poker Face's」ability hasn't set in yet."
"Pardon me, Pilot Joestar." Rei asked. "What does 'stage two' entail?"
"Gotta get away!" The security guard turned towards the group and started running towards them while haphazardly swinging his truncheon. "GETAWAYGETAWAYGETAWAY!"
"Jotaro described it as 'severe cabin fever'." Shizuka replied as she adopted a fighting stance, her two fists in front of her face. "「Achtung Baby, Act 3」!"
The air in front Shizuka shimmered and flowed with static patterns as her 「Stand」soon warped into being in front of the girl. Before the crazed guard could land a hit on her, 「Achtung Baby, Act 3」punched him squarely in the forehead. Static flowed like water from the 「Stand's」fist onto the man's forehead then down into the eyes, covering them in the same static that enveloped the 「Stand」. The dazed man dropped his truncheon and put his hands in front him, trying to find an object to grab onto.
"Hello? Is anybody there?" The man calmed down significantly as he pawed the air in front of him. "Why can't I see anything now?"
"Sir, can you hear us?" Shizuka called out to the guard as she dismissed her「Stand」. "How are you feeling?"
"Yes, I can hear you just fine." The guard replied. "I-I honestly don't know. I was in a really weird daze for some reason. Did I fall asleep, please don't tell my boss if I did!"
"Don't worry, you didn't fall asleep." Shizuka replied. "But listen, you…hey! What are you doing?"
"This is taking too long." Rohan said as he shoved past Shizuka and summoned 「Heaven's Door」. The mangaka then turned the guard into a book and wrote several things in there before turning him back to normal only for the guard to pass out cold and dropped to the floor. Without saying a word, Rohan tore off the mask, which crumpled to dust in Rohan's fingers.
"There, I made sure he can't remember why there's blood on his nightstick in the first place. I got the floor plans for this place too." Rohan quipped as Shizuka raised her finger and curling it back down as if trying to say something then decided not to at the last minute. "Now let's get to the security room on the 4th floor and get this over with. I'm getting hungry."
Thanks to the map Rohan pulled from the guard's mind, the group was able to easily locate the security room. On the way there, Rei noticed that some of the security cameras exploded in the same way as the camera that hit her, with the occasional blood trail nearby. As they got closer, a smell that could only be described as burnt rancid pork grew stronger. When they turned a corner into the hallway the security room was on, the group saw the electrocuted corpses of several security guards and Section Two agents that tried to bust into the room. The camera that was supposed to watch the door the security room was broken, with the equipment lying beside a guard with an obvious head wound.
"OH! NO!" Shizuka yelled as she put her hands on her cheeks. "This-this could only mean…"
"…the security room is a trap." Shinji finished the sentence for her while crossing his arms. "This is just great. How are we supposed to get Clearwater when that door is a giant bug zapper?"
"We could still go with the original plan of phasing through the wall using Shizuka's 「Stand」, but if this trap is 「Stand-based」, we'll just get zapped like those poor chumps." Rohan said as he stroke his chin; the part of the brain responsible for his manga ideas were working on overdrive to think of ways to solve the problem ahead of them. He bit his lip as he surveyed the scene in front of him. The normally-stoic Rei was looking visibly uncomfortable at the sight of the electrocuted corpses and had her back to a wall. Shizuka was pacing back and forth with her hands behind her back, her eyes sealed shut to both focus on her thoughts and to avoid looking at the bodies. She had also pulled her lime green shirt over her nose in order to shut out as much of the stench as possible. Shinji had his arms crossed and was slightly leaning back, his left leg in front of his right one for balance, his eyes focus on the door. Like himself, the teen boy was also thinking of ways to get past that door and the electric deathtrap.
Wait a minute, electric trap? Rohan's eyes widened as he perked up. If the trap is this powerful, the power has to come from somewhere else and not the「Stand」. That means…
"Hey kids, I think I got something!" Rohan announced loudly, sending the three pilots jolting towards his direction and huddled together. "If the 「Stand」has the entire building trapped, the power must be pulled from somewhere else like the building itself. If we find the electrical room and shut down the convention center's power, the trap would be disabled and we can get Clearwater and maybe his accomplice."
"That's a great idea, Mr. Kishibe!" Shizuka whispered. "I just have one issue with the plan: what if the basement door is trapped too?"
"That might be a problem, but I did notice something when the whole mess started." Rohan replied. "The first few guards were hammering at the door without any issues, which means the enemy 「Stand」had to redirect power towards that door in order to use the trap. If we can make it to the electric room without anybody noticing, they wouldn't have a reason to trap that door!"
"All right, I guess that can work." Shizuka said. "I can make myself and other people invisible, so I volunteer to go to the basement."
"I know this building's layout thanks to the memories I pulled from the guard's head." Rohan tapped the side of his skull with a finger. "I'll go with Shizuka."
"I'll keep an eye on this door to make sure Clearwater doesn't escape." Shinji turned and looked at the door. "I'll have 「Black Hole Sun」suck the bodies towards the door to block it."
"In that case, Rei, can you stay here with Shinji?" Shizuka asked her. "It's not a good idea to leave someone here alone in a situation like this."
"Affirmative." Rei said and the group broke their huddle. Rohan wrote "I will stick to the floor for two minutes" in both Shinji and Rei. Shizuka then grabbed one of Rohan's hands with her own, causing the mangaka to raise an eyebrow.
"Mr. Kishibe, I need to be in physical contact with you if you want to stay invisible for more than half an hour." Shizuka explained before Rohan could complain. "Watch your step, it took me a while to get used to walking without seeing where my feet would end up."
With a wordless command, Shizuka and Rohan's bodies immediately became transparent and faded out of view.
"Ok, you need to take slow steps and make sure the entire sole of your foot touches the ground before taking the next step." Shizuka explained as she took the first step and pulled on Rohan's arm. "Anything else, you'll trip and roll your ankle."
Following Shizuka's instruction, Rohan raised his left foot and slowly lowered it to the floor, first touching the ground with the balls of the foot, then the ankle. He then repeated the same thing with his other foot.
"Great, just keep practicing, and we'll take this as slowly and carefully as we can."
After waiting long enough for the two to be far enough away, Shinji called out 「Black Hole Sun」and ordered the 「Stand」to float to the door and orient itself so its underbelly was facing the door. With a metallic click, the spots on「Black Hole Sun's」carapace turned red, slowly pulling the bodies towards the door. He kept his eyes on the 「Stand」even while he and Rei were leaning forward due to the 「Stand's」gravity, with Shinji's hat being pulled off in the process. As soon as the bodies were airborne, Shinji dismissed「Black Hole Sun」, causing the bodies to continue flying forward thanks to the inertia and hitting the door in a series of dry smacks before falling back down in front of the door. The corpses made a decently-sized pile that blocked the door's lower half while Shinji's hat landed on top of the pile.
"Rei, with this smell, I think I understand why you don't like meat." Shinji quipped. "And I am definitely washing that hat when this is all over."
Edge of Police Cordon
"Good morning, Dr. Kujo." A Speedwagon Foundation lawyer greeted Jotaro, who nodded at him in response, as the marine biologist approached the cordon. "I'm afraid we can't enter the cordon yet. It took me a while to convince the authorities to let our paramedics in."
"How have things been before I got here?" Jotaro asked. "Are the cops making progress yet?"
"Not yet." The lawyer sighed as he wiped his glasses with a cloth. "They've tried to enter the building several times, but everyone who touched the building got electrocuted. Last time I heard, they want to bring in the Self-Defense Forces to blow a hole in the wall."
"「Yare yare.」" Jotaro muttered as the tipped his hat's visor downwards. "This day is going real smooth."
"Excuse me, Dr. Kujo!" A feminine voice caused Jotaro and the lawyer to turn their heads. It was a reporter from one of the news agencies. She wore a pantsuit that closely hugged her figure as well as makeup that Jotaro could only describe as borderline garish. A portly cameraman followed closely behind her, with the camera's lens directly pointed at his expressionless face.
"Dr. Kujo, what's a celebrated marine biologist doing at the scene of a hostage situation?" The reporter shoved the microphone in Jotaro's face. "Do you have any friends or loved ones trapped inside?"
Jotaro blinked and suddenly disappeared right in front of the reporter, causing the young woman to stagger back in surprise and trip on her heeled shoes. Luckily, she didn't fall thanks to some invisible force that caught her. The cameraman suddenly felt a tap on his shoulder, and the man turned only to come face-to-face with Jotaro, who stared 「menacingly」at him, sending beads of cold sweat streaming down the chubby man's forehead.
"No comment." Jotaro said curtly before assuming a harsher tone. "Now get lost."
The cameraman lowered his head and walked away from the cordon with quick shuffling paces. He turned to look at Jotaro again, only to get a cold stare which sent him walking even faster. The reporter looked at the cameraman, then back to Jotaro who looked at her with a harsh gaze as if telling her to leave as well.
"Talk to me later, ok?" She winked at him.
"I'm married, you damn hag!" Jotaro yelled, causing the reporter to scurry off after her coworker.
"This is why I don't do press conferences." Jotaro muttered as he walked back to the lawyer. "「Yare yare daze.」"
"You know, that probably wasn't the smartest move." The lawyer said. "The Speedwagon Foundation has been having some problems with public image recently, and some media companies seem like they're out for our blood. Once they find out about your ties to us, they'll probably use this incident as an excuse to go after you too. I'll go make some calls to smooth things over."
I know exactly why they're going after The Foundation. Jotaro recalled the secret meeting, which took place a couple of years before he met Josuke, with his grandfather and some other members of the Joestar family. SEELE will do everything they could to eliminate any resistance to their plan.
He glanced to his left and noticed a woman with long-purple hair who wore a short black dress, leather ankle boots, a red jacket with a matching beret arguing with a police officer. She was trailed closely by two G36C-wielding body guards decked in black combat gear including Kevlar helmets and balaclavas. The cop maintained his composure as he explained something to her before she flashed a badge in his face. The officer's face turned pale and pulled the wooden barrier to the side, clearing a way for the woman and her guards. He snapped off a salute which was lazily returned by the woman before putting the barrier back in place.
"You know, this is my first time seeing Section Two decked out like that." Jotaro turned behind him to find Kaji, who wore a pair of sports sunglasses and a yellow t-shirt adorned with white magnifying glasses. "Good to see you again, Jotaro."
"Ryoji, it's been a while." Jotaro nodded.
"Indeed, and I'm sure you can guess that was good old Misato walking into the cordon." Kaji smiled as he rested his arms on one of the wooden barriers. "Poor woman can never catch a break these days."
"So, what brings you here, Ryoji?" Jotaro asked.
"Oh, just being an extra pair of eyes on NERV and the Speedwagon Foundation." Kaji replied. "Say, you want to get into the cordon, right? I can arrange for that to happen."
Inside the Convention Center
"Are we there yet?" Shizuka asked as she and Rohan took slow deliberate paces in the basement.
"It's just around the corner." Rohan replied. "I can try throwing one of my pens to see if it's electrified."
Just as the duo rounded the corner, they noticed Kensuke in a fetal position leaning against the electric room door. Without saying a word, Rohan summoned 「Heaven's Door」and wrote a phrase in Kensuke, knocking him unconscious. The two then decloaked and dragged Kensuke to a nearby room before ripping off his mask and going back to the door.
"All right, now here's the fun part." Shizuka said as she took Rohan's hand again and pulled on it to get him to walk closer to the closed door. Before he could protest, he witnessed Shizuka putting her hand on, and then through the door.
"Just relax and focus on getting in." Shizuka said as she slowly walked forward and put her left leg through the door, then her face, and then the rest of her body besides the right hand that was still holding Rohan's hand. Not knowing what else to do, the mangaka simply visualized himself walking through an open door way and soon found his vision darken, followed by Shizuka appearing in front of him again still holding his hand, with various electrical equipment and a loud cracking sound in the background.
"Great, we're through." Shizuka said. "Now let's turn off…whoa."
Rohan looked around and saw that the floor, ceiling, and walls were covered by crackling electricity and seemed to serve little more than decoration, but that was not what Shizuka was pointing at. Instead, she pointed at the bright blue glow that came from deeper within the room, hiding behind one of the electrical cabinets.
"That seems a bit unusual." Rohan said. "Let's go check it out."
Shizuka turned both of them invisible again, and they slowly and carefully made their way towards the light source. By the time they got closer, the light was bright enough for Shizuka to put on her sunglasses and for Rohan to squint. Shizuka turned around and saw the source of the glow, which was something that crackled with bright electric arcs that wrapped its lower body over one of the distribution boards. It had a blue humanoid upper body with red bug-like eyes and sharp teeth. The portion below its waist looked like a disgusting mix between a spider and an amoeba, with the "legs" having dug into the distribution board. The creature's body was adorned with yellow lightning symbols. Judging from the creature's strange appearance, it must have been the accomplice's 「Stand」.
"Ok, we found the ugly fella, now how to we attack this thing?" Rohan whispered.
"We could trip the fire alarm and dump water all over it." Shizuka replied as she surveyed the environment around the disgusting creature. "The issue is that we're definitely going to get electrocuted."
"Wait, do you hear that?" Rohan asked. "Not the crackling. It sounds like someone's snoring."
Without decloaking, the two tip-toed around the enemy 「Stand」and saw the source of the snoring sound, a woman lying on the floor with a newspaper and several cigarette butts by her head. She was mostly bald except a long tuft of green hair that extended from the back of her skull down to the middle of her back. She wore a leather vest adorned with symbols of shackles, and her arms were covered with crisscrossing chain tattoos. Her jeans were frayed, and she wore black leather boots covered in metal studs. Shizuka thought the woman looked somehow familiar before she gasped in realization.
Wait a minute; she was one of the prisoners at Green Dolphin! A bead of sweat ran down Shizuka's head as she saw the woman stir. Jolyne got into a fight with her once!
Thinking quickly, Shizuka spread her feet apart, pointed in the air, and summoned「Achtung Baby, Act 3」. The 「Stand」 climbed above one of the cabinets and touched the large of collection of wires that connected into the electrical cabinet being controlled by the enemy 「Stand」. The wires became translucent and dematerialized, leaving the remaining electrical charges in the box sputtering out of the openings that once served as the connection points. The electrics arcs around the enemy 「Stand」dimmed down until they disappeared.
"Huh? What's going on?" The woman said groggily as she slowly opened her eyes, only for 「Achtung Baby, Act 3」to punch her square in the nose, sending her head back down and bumping into the floor. The blow knocked her unconscious and caused her 「Stand」and the crackling electricity on the walls to disappear. Without any hesitation, Rohan turned her into a book.
"Well, this is interesting." Rohan saw the woman, named Allison Chaynes, in the booth of a restaurant talking to a nondescript man wearing a black suit and sunglasses. The man was talking about Rohan's own meet-and-greet on Sunday and how the Eva Pilots will be attending the event. There was also some discussion on how the "right people" would be working that day and how they would be conveniently busy while Allison and Clearwater did their work. There was even a mention of some kind of bonus for Shizuka's death. Rohan went back a few more pages through the woman's history and stumbled upon Allison's murderous criminal history and some of her past partnerships with Clearwater. Deciding he had read enough, Rohan wrote "I will stay in a coma and only speak to confess my crimes" and turned her back to normal.
Thus Allison Chaynes, chain-smoker and former auto mechanic, 「RETIRED」!
"All right, let's go back to the security room and get Clearwater." Rohan said while 「Achtung Baby, Act 3」turned the wires back to normal, restoring power to the building. "Shinji and Rei are waiting for us."
Getting back was easier since they didn't have to worry about haywire security cameras anymore, and the duo made good time in being able to actually run back. Soon, the two were reunited with Rei and Shinji.
"All right, you guys ready to link up?" Shizuka asked before she heard someone cackle.
"So, all of you are here to try to stop me, hmm?"「Poker Face」came out of one of the overhead vents and did a three-point landing. The 「Stand」then snapped its head upwards and looked at the group. Before it could say anything else, the group called out their 「Stands」. Shinji ordered 「Black Hole Sun」to point its carapace at the enemy 「Stand」and activated its gravitational field, pulling 「Poker Face」towards Shinji's 「Stand」. Before they could celebrate, however, 「Poker Face 」twisted to the prone position in midair and bent its legs backwards until the feet practically hung over its head. Then, it fired its gun several times at the group before disappearing. While the group dodged most of the shots, one of them straight at Shinji before disappearing, covering his face in one of the masks and causing him to lose focus and dismiss 「Black Hole Sun」.
"Hey, Shinji, are you OK?" Shizuka put her hand on Shinji's shoulder only for the boy to swat it away.
"Get the hell away from me!" Shinji yelled as「Black Hole Sun」appeared a little further down the hallway behind him, activated its gravity field for a couple of seconds before disappearing, which pulled Shinji and only Shinji away from the group. "You're all Clearwater's accomplices!"
"Damn it, kid! You should have just left him alone!" Rohan yelled. "He might have been able to pull off the mask by himself!"
Before Shizuka could say anything, she could feel herself being dragged forwards by 「Black Hole Sun」, which manifested again right in front of Shinji. She, Rei, and Rohan tried crouching down and planting their feet to no avail. The three were soon airborne as they and the various burnt corpses behind them flew towards Shinji's 「Stand」. Thinking quickly, the three linked their hands together, and Rohan used「Heaven's Door」to turn both Rei and Shizuka into books and wrote "I will fly backwards and stick to the wall". Meanwhile, Shizuka also used her power to give all three of them intangibility powers. While Shizuka and Rei flew backwards, phasing through the dead bodies on the way, Rohan continued to fly forward.
Shinji was confused. The one moment he was by his friends and Rohan Kishibe, only for them to disappear and replaced by impostors who were definitely Clearwater's minions. He managed to get away in time and call out his 「Stand」to deal with them. Although he was disappointed about how the fake Shizuka and Rei managed to escape 「Black Hole Sun's」pull, being able to get fake Rohan was a good start.
He watched apprehensively as the impostor Rohan and the bodies flew towards his 「Stand」. If the enemy wouldn't get hurt from the spikes, the sheer weight of the corpses would be enough to crush him. Time seemed to slow down for Shinji as Rohan's impostor flew closer and closer to 「Black Hole Sun」, only for him to phase through his 「Stand」and barrel straight into the boy, tackling him to the ground while the corpses clumped around 「Black Hole Sun」. The fake Rohan wasted no time planting his hand on Shinji's chin and made an upwards tearing motion.
"Wh-what happened?" Shinji asked Rohan as the mask crumpled to dust in the mangaka's hands.
"You got affected by Clearwater's 「Stand」and tried to kill all of us!" Rohan yelled as he pulled Shinji up. "Now let's go get Shizuka and Rei down."
While Rohan undid his effects on Rei and Shizuka, Shinji noticed something else that could give them problems later.
"Guys, the security room door is open." Shinji said. "Looks like Clearwater escaped."
"Relax, Shinji." Shizuka said after getting down from the wall. "He's pretty old, so he can't get very far."
"Pilot Joestar tagged me while we were on the wall." Rei said. "「Fly Me to the Moon」is trailing him as we speak. Follow me."
Wasting no time, the group chased after Rei as they made their way downstairs and towards the front door, swerving away from several people who still had 「Poker Face's」masks. Soon enough, Shinji could see the criminal half-hobbling and half-jogging, trying to get away from them.
"Hey, Rei, I'm going to give my 「Stand」another shot." Shinji said to her in between breaths. "When I tap your shoulder, you need to withdraw your 「Stand」."
"Understood." Rei replied as she continued running.
"All right, NOW!" Shinji tapped Rei on the shoulder and immediately summoned his 「Stand」. What appeared, however, was not 「Black Hole Sun's」beetle-like form, but rather something that resembled a shiny black hornet with a red eyes and a yellow orb at where the stingers are supposed to be.
What the hell? Shinji thought as he tried to give the new 「Stand」the same commands he gave 「Black Hole Sun」. Instead of slowly floating, the 「Stand」flapped its wings and darted forward towards Clearwater. Then, it pointed the yellow orb at the old crook and the ball glowed red, sucking him back towards Shinji's new (or rather, evolved) 「Stand」.
There was no spike impaling Clearwater when he made contact with the orb, just him sticking to the glowing red ball while he squirmed and tried to get off. Creedence Clearwater summoned 「Poker Face」again. The 「Stand」tilted the gun sideways, raised the weapon above its head, and squeezed off several potshots at Shinji's group while the 「Stand」was also sucked towards the ball. Shinji and friends were prepared this time, however, as the shots passed through the four people thanks to 「Achtung Baby, Act 3's」ability.
As they pulled closer and 「Poker Face」kept firing, Shinji lowered his 「Stand」to ground level, then jumped into the air and drew his right arm back. The boy let out a roar before sending a punch straight into Clearwater's face, sending blood and a tooth flying. Following closely behind, Rohan summoned 「Heaven's Door」which turned Clearwater into a book. Rohan quickly wrote "I'll suffer a heart attack the next time I use my 「Stand」" and quickly glanced through the pages. Satisfied after a quick reading, he slammed the book shut and turned Clearwater back to normal.
Creedence Clearwater, age 56 and an amateur stamp collector, 「RETIRED」!
"Well, that was interesting." Shinji wiped the sweat off his brow. "What the hell was that anyway?"
"Looks like you 「Stand」evolved, Shinji." Shizuka said. "Just like what happened to me twice."
"That's pretty neat! I guess I'll call my new 「Stand」「Black Hole Sun, Act 2」." Shinji beamed as he turned to look at Rei, who seemed to be in shock with tears on her face.
"Rei, what's wrong?" Shinji asked as he approached her. "Is everything okay?"
"I-I do not know." Rei replied as she wiped her eyes and felt the bruise on her face with her slender fingers. "There is so much emotion inside me, and I do not know what they are."
"Well, how do you feel then?" Shinji asked her.
"I feel…relieved that this is all over. I also feel elated, as if I just defeated an Angel with my Eva. There's also this warmth that I believe comes from using my skills to help everyone contribute to this success." Rei replied as she turned to look at Shizuka and Rohan. "For the first time, I'm showing concern for another person besides the Commander. I just do not know how to express it all."
"You could try smiling." Shinji as he showed off his own smile. "That's always better than crying, especially after we just got out of a hostage situation."
Slowly, Rei began to pull the corners of her lips outwards and upwards. Soon, her mouth formed a line that could be described as a smile if one looked closely and measured the angles between the corners and the center of her mouth. Still, it was a smile nonetheless.
"All right kids, you guys can continue this sappy moment later." Rohan stepped in between the two. "We still need to find your two other friends and wake them up."
Convention Center Entrance
"Shinji!" Misato called out as Shinji, Rei, Shizuka, Toji, Kensuke, and Rohan exited the building while escorted by Special Assault Team officers. She rushed past her Section Two bodyguards and wrapped the tall boy in a hug, only letting to after a minute or two. Meanwhile, Jotaro approached Shizuka and gave a quick smile and a pat on her left shoulder.
"You should probably give the Old Man a call when you can." Jotaro said. "He's worried sick."
"Thanks, Jotaro. How did you get in here anyway?" Shizuka smiled as she asked her guardian. Jotaro said nothing and simply pointed with his thumb; Shizuka looked towards that direction and saw Kaji give a quick wave while police held back reporters and the crowd. Shizuka nodded and reached into her purse, which was adorned with pacifier-shaped pins, until Jotaro put his hand on top of her arm and gestured towards a police detective that was walking towards them.
"They still need to ask you guys questions about Clearwater and Chaynes." Jotaro said. "Don't worry about those two, by the way. They'll be extradited and locked away until they die."
"Hey Kujo, you mind if I talk to you about something before my little police interview?" Rohan suddenly approached Jotaro from behind. "It's kind of urgent."
Jotaro let the detective take Shizuka while he and Rohan got into a Speedwagon Foundation ambulance to make sure nobody could listen in on them.
"All right, what's on your mind?" Jotaro asked.
"When I was going through Clearwater's memories, I noticed a certain word kept popping up inside the memories about the guy who hired him and Allison Chaynes." Rohan replied as he leaned closer to Jotaro. "Who or what is 'SEELE'?"
Jotaro's expression visibly darkened at the mention of that word. Before Jotaro could answer, however, a civil defense siren's wail pierced through the air.
"「Yare yare daze」." Jotaro muttered before leaning into the driver's compartment. "Driver, take us to the nearest shelter."
"God-FUCKING-damn it! An Angel just had to attack right now!" Misato was about to tear her hair out as she dragged Rei towards Shizuka and the police detective. "Hey, copper! I need that girl for official NERV business. Here's someone else you can interview, but make sure you guys get to a shelter first!"
<====TO BE CONTINUED==|\|==
Unknown Location
"Gentlemen, it appears we have a major problem on our hands." Keel Lorenz addressed the rest of the five-man Human Instrumentality Committee. "I have received reports regarding two of our agents being neutralized."
"Perhaps we need more competent agents, then." The British representative chuckled. "We simply introduce harsher screening processes."
"That is not the issue." Lorenz said sharply before assuming a softer tone. "The issue is twofold. One: I was not notified of those two agents until one of our members brought it up during our last meeting with Ikari. Two: they were well-known criminals. Need I remind you all that we must maintain our appearance as a UN-sanctioned organization? Associating criminals will only damage that image."
"Well, I see your problem then." The American member said. "I suppose we do need to keep a tighter watch on our members. Accountability hasn't been the same since we stopped meeting in person."
"I agree! We must take measures before The Scenario is compromised!" The Russian member yelled. "I propose we call a meeting as soon as possible, Chairman. Any delay will only set us back. Leave Ikari out of this one too."
On the Next Chapter of Stand Up, Become Legend
"The name's Mari Makinami. Nice to meet you all!"
"What? Another Angel already?"
"Otoishi, I need you to cancel your concert tomorrow night. It's important."
"I need the heaviest sniper rifle you got. I gotta practice for the fight with that Angel."
"Commencing Operation Yashima! Eva Units 04 and 05, launch!"
Just remember your training. Three breaths. Shoot after third exhale.
Stand Name: 「Man in the Box」
User: Allison Chaynes
Power: None
Speed: C
Range: A (varies depending on size of building)
Endurance: A
Precision: E
Development Potential: D
The 「Stand」takes the form of a blue humanoid upper body with red bug-like eyes, and sharp teeth as well as a lower body consisting of what is best described as a cross between a spider's legs and an amoeba's pseudopod. 「Man in the Box」is adorned with yellow lightning bolt symbols all over its body. Its modus operandi is to wrap its lower half around a building's distribution board and take control of the building.
Electrical System Control: 「Man in the Box」 can manipulate any device that is plugged into the building's electrical system at will. This includes any portable electronics that is plugged in to charge batteries, and the effects persist after the device is unplugged. If a building has a robust security system including cameras, 「Man in the Box」would essentially know everything that goes on inside. This power depends entirely on the building's own power supply. This means if no electricity is going into the building, 「Man in the Box」is essentially useless.
Building Trap: The building taken over by 「Man in the Box」becomes impossible to escape due to two things. The first factor being all barriers such as walls, windows, and doors experience a significant increase in durability, preventing the victims from simply breaking down a window to escape. The second reason being an electrical field surrounding said barriers that kills anybody the Stand deems a threat.
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FoxOnPie
Into the Dojyaaniverse
- Location
- Napkin store
Alright, another good chapter. The fighting was very JoJo, and a good deal of subplots got foreshadowed. However (for those familiar with my main work, the irony is not lost on me), you need to tone down your usage of 「」. You've used them a lot in this chapter, and when you use them multiple times in the same paragraph, it becomes a bit of an eyesore. Speaking from experience, 1-3 times in a paragraph, followed by a sizeable break before the next use, is the best way to go about it.
Duly noted, thanks! I did get kind of carried away there with 「」. The guideline you suggested is pretty reasonable, and I'll definitely use that when I get back to writing. I was actually pretty nervous writing this Stand battle since I was worried it wouldn't be JoJo enough, but I guess I was wrong.
RexHeller
Title Incoming. Please Hold.
- Location
- Somewhere else.
You probably meant t-shirt.
- Location
- England, unfortunately.
- Pronouns
- She/They
Nah, T-shorts, Ya know?
Fixed. Thanks for the catch.