Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Juri, I need you to gather intel on and capture Poison.”
Seth, sitting in his stupid fancy chair, gave me some dumb order that I didn’t even want to do.
“Ugh, why do I have to do that? Isn’t she just some low level street punk?”
Seth stared at his big, fancy ass computer, pulling up some of her photographs and stuff like he’s some sorta stalker.
“It would appear to be,” he said, about to drone on into some boring lecture I didn’t even care about. “But our team at S.I.N. have noticed numerous irregularities regarding her that we can’t even begin to describe.”
“Pff, whatever. Everyone in this world is probably a horribly superpowered mutant freak at this point.”
“That isn’t the point, Juri. She doesn’t even seem to have a blood type that we can even recognize. And what’s more, she’s beaten most of our finest agents.”
I rolled my eyes at him. “What about Viper? Ain’t she one of your strongest agents?” I asked, mocking him.
He turned away and clicked another button on his computer/stalker monitor thing. As soon as he clicked the button, it revealed a picture of C. Viper, all beat up and bloodied, with a couple of black eyes and a bleeding nose. On one hand, seeing her like that made me want to laugh. On the other hand, though, it kinda made me want to punch Seth, since he probably gets off to that sorta thing. He probably does, since he basically parades around naked. Freakin’ perv.
“This is what she did to our finest agent, Juri. She’s absolutely decimated.”
I smirked. “Ahaha! So, Miss Perfect Agent got her ass whooped reaaaaaaaaaal hard, huh?! Guess you have to finally send in the right person for the job.”
I smirked at Seth, sticking out my tongue.
“I didn’t know she was powerful enough to defeat our toughest agent. And I figured she’d capture her properly, while you’d just maim her.”
I brushed against his nose, removing my eyepatch and flashing the Tandem Engine at him. “Leave it to Seth to send the weakest person for the job.”
Seth sighed and gave me this little thing. It almost looked like an SD card for like, a camera or something.
“This is a microsiphon, invented by our very own Sam Tanaka. Pay them a visit before you go.”
I smirked and cocked my head. “Sam, eh? Well, buddy, I guess I should visit you once’n awhile.”

---
Sam’s this really androgynous kid who works here at S.I.N. Told me they were a game dev or somethin’ before they came here. I’d believe it; they’re dorky looking enough, but they smile like a cat so I kinda think they’re funny. Bonus points: they hate Seth as much as I do, so it’s a win-win.
“If it isn’t Juri.” There they were, at their computer chair like always. “So, I see you saw the microsiphon I made.” They smiled, seeming pretty proud of themself.
“Yeah, Mr. Nakey Boy gave it to me. Said he wants me to capture Poison or somethin’.”
Sam laughed. “You’re not really a capture type, though, are you? More of a ‘kill ‘em dead’ type.”
“Of course!” I slumped down on the chair beside them, feeling annoyed and like going on a mass murder spree.
“But you know,” they said, “remember what happened to Viper? Heard she got two black eyes, three broken bones and a concussion.”
“Not like Seth cares.”
“True.”
We both laughed, and they gave me some vial.
“Oh, and before you go, here’s a serum I’ve been working on.”
“Looks like it’s from one of your video games.”
Sam nodded. “It’s something like that. It’s made from cellular growth enhancers, crushed medicinal herbs, and autoimmune enhancers. It allows you to heal faster from injuries if you drink it.”
“Thank God we have you around, Sam.” I grab the serum, wave goodbye, and turn on my GPS, going on my search for Poison.
---
“The tracker did say she was around here, right?” I look down at my GPS, and then up at this shoddy apartment. “This has to be the wrong place. She can’t be living here...right?”
I’m feeling a bit sorry for her at this point; maybe I shouldn’t go on with the mission after all.
But my heart starts racing as I climb up near her window.
I could sense it.
I could sense when an opponent is strong.
And this opponent is gonna make my heart race!
I take out a credit card I was hiding in my bra and start to open the window. It clicks, and I make my way in.
It doesn’t take long for me to spy her.
Yup, there she is.
Looking at her from where I am, it’s almost impossible to believe she’s as dangerous as Seth says. She’s holding her cat and wearing some Hot Topic t-shirt and some Wonder Woman pajama bottoms, eating some popcorn. She looks so...normal.
Which makes it more fun to break her.
I jump through the now open window, removing my eyepatch and turning on the Tandem Engine.
“Well, well, Miss Pink Peacock,” I said, strutting into the room, “Seth says you’ve been a naughty girl.” I lick my lips.
“What do you want?” She doesn’t even look at me, she just puts the cat in the crate.
“Heard you took out my little friend.” My heart starts to race even harder. I’m beginning to thank Seth for sending me here after all.
“Oh, so you’re with that Viper lady, aren’t you,” she said, frowning at me. “Sorry, but I’m not interested in being a human experiment.”
She doesn’t even have time to get her whip.
This could be even better.
“Sorry, but you’re coming with me!” I flash my Tandem Engine and strike. She braces, covering her face with her hands. “Ohh, so you’re not even gonna fight back?! This is gonna be easier than I thought!”
“I’m only interested in fighting for show, not fighting for blood!” She hops back and forth the room and she lands on the wall near the ceiling. “Trust me, you don’t want me to fight back!”
I licked my lips. “Oh, I do want you to fight back! If you beat me to a pulp, you’ll give me the show of a lifetime!”
I run towards the air and kick her, knocking her off her feet.
“I’m serious, you shouldn’t be fighting me!” Poison did flips and twirls and whirls through the air. How theatrical.
“Why? Cuz you’re scared I’m going to kill you?”
Suddenly, before I can say anything, a white (pink? red?) flash of light hurtles towards me.
“It’s because I’m scared I’m going to kill you!” The reddish flash of light bounces off the apartment walls, tearing through furniture before---
“Augh!”
---my hand got cut by its edge.
It’s more than a cut; it’s like a cut and a burn. “Augh! Wh-what is that?!” Poison glowered down at me. “Aeolus’ Edge; or, as it used to be called in the Mad Gear, Painwave.”
I laughed, trying not to seem like I was in too much pain. “Haha! Painwave? What’s that, your edgy electropunk band? It barely even hurts!”
It hurts a lot.
“Judging by your hand, it looks like it hurts a lot.”
My hand was bright red and bleeding. Little blisters were forming on it. “Well, I’m a masochist. This kinda thing turns me on.”
Poison still glared at me. “Juri, I don’t think you want me to do this. I need my whip. If I don’t have it I might---”
“Oh, what are you, scared? You’re just a street punk who hurts people! It’d do you good to kill me!”
I laugh, cranking up the power on the Tandem Engine once more. She’s slowing down; I can see her movements, and---
---too fast!
She goes at me with a flurry of punches, each stronger than what a normal human being could even punch. I’ve gotta run, quick!
I pull out some smoke bombs from my bra (hey, a girl’s gotta look nice!) and throw them at her. This should buy me some time.
Time to get that siphon.
Time to run.
“And now you can’t see! Ahahaha! Guess you’re goin’ back to S.I.N. with me!” I grab the microsiphon from my pocket and push it into her arm. It draws a vial of blood.
And then a hand, covered in red energy, comes rushing towards me.
“Ackk!”
“You’re not killing me, you’re not killing my cat, and you’re definitely not taking me away to some psycho lab!” The fist feels like fire is burning at the inside of my face.
“Hey, unfair! You didn’t even explain to me what that is!”
Poison glared, lowering her voice. Her hair is flowing with energy. “I don’t need to explain it to you. I don’t need to explain anything to you. I’m just making sure you stay out of my life.”
She releases her grip and lets me go. “I’m letting you get off easier than Viper. But don’t think you can pull this shit on me again; next time, your punishment will be even worse.”

I run out the window.
My heart is beating faster than I thought it could.
But it wasn’t excitement.
It was fear.

Just who was she?

Chapter Text

“--ri. Juri! Status report!”
A fuzzy message comes on screen on my GPS.

Ugh.

“I’ve got her blood sample in that microsiphon, but I failed to capture her.” My pride was already wounded enough; if he sees my burnt cheek and almost sliced hand, I’m done for.

“I see,” he said, swiveling around in that stupid fancy chair. “Even one of our finest fighters couldn’t subdue her.” I couldn’t tell if he was more pissed off or concerned, but he seemed pretty freaked out to me. “This leaves me no choice.”

Seth stands up from that fancy chair. I have this vibe, this nauseated vibe in me, and I can’t even describe it. I feel like something bad is gonna happen.

Somehow, I feel like the injuries I got from Poison’s gonna be better than the injuries he’s gonna give her.

Ugh…I’m feeling empathy. UGH. I HATE IT.

“Juri, I want you to send the microsiphon to Tanaka immediately. I’ll go on from there.”

This isn’t good.

“Alright, Seth, whatever you say!” Oh god I am so nervous.
He’s going to freaking KILL Poison.

Why am I so worried about that? I’m not getting like, feelings for her or something, am I? That stuff is reserved for like, Chun-li and Cammy, right?

And then I remember: seeing her, with her cat on her lap and in pajamas like a normal person, with pill bottles on the table like she’s some kind of sick person. I don’t know what those pills are for, but she’s got to take those to LIVE, right?!

Oh god, I am feeling guilt.

I AM FEELING GUILT.

I have to tell Sam.

---
“Sam, Sam!”

I’m breathing as hard as I can. It’s mostly because I ditched the car I stole and ran instead of using that car again because I was scared shitless, but that’s not the point.

“Oh, Juri! Didja get the sample---”
“That’s not the point!”

They’re staring at me like I’m an idiot. Oh god, they’re probably gonna tease me.

“Oh, you’re guilty, aren’t you?” they said, smirking at me.

Scratch that, they’re definitely teasing me.

“Shut up! Not like I’m gonna feel guilty for some pink haired mall goth!”
Sam started laughing at me after that.
Stupid Sam.

But I couldn’t help but laugh, too. They’re funny like that. Their laugh is funny. I can’t help but laugh.

And then Sam stopped laughing.
“Juri...what are we gonna do about Seth?”

Oh god, I just remembered Seth’s gonna go after her tomorrow.

I shrugged. “Drug him? Iunno.”
Sam smiled. “More ethical than the last time you suggested overthrowing him.”
“Injecting him with rat poison was totally ethical!”
“It still didn’t kill him.”
I sighed. “You’re right. Regrettably.”

Sam grabbed the microsiphon and began typing on the computer. “I don’t think you can kill Seth just yet. But you have to stop him from fighting Poison.”
“Do you know about her power?” I stared at them and my heart froze.
They paused. “What power?”
I tell them everything.

“You can’t let Seth fight her. If he gets that, nobody will be safe.” Sam looked at me with the most serious eyes they’ve ever given me. “You have to go. Now.”

This is one of the most serious missions of my life, and Sethy Boy hasn’t even ushered me into it.

“If you can’t keep Seth away from Poison, I don’t think there’ll be many people left alive in Metro City.”

The stakes were high. And my hatred for the world was outweighed by hatred for Seth...no, my fear of the impeding apocalypse. I'd need Metro City's finest for this job. And with this, I'm gonna need to go to jail.

---
"What do you want?"
The blonde, meaty looking man sat in the jail cell in front of me, holding those stupid jail phone things, looking lazily at me. (Pathetic.) He could break out of that jail cell if he could; that's how strong he is. But he doesn't have the right incentive: yet.

"Oh, hero of Metro City, we need you! We need you to save us from the evil Mad Gear~!" I sneered at him. If piss him off enough, I figure he could break his ass out of jail.
I got nothing more than a groan.

"Who cares, there's always a stupid gang to fight." He shifted to the side, grunting. "That's nothin' but a bore."

I flash the Tandem Engine at him. "You sure it's just nothin', Cody? Poison 'n Seth are gonna destroy the world if your lazy ass doesn't get out of that jail cell."

A light shone in his eyes. "Oh, a death battle between Bitch 'n the Beast, eh? Sounds good."
I licked my lips. "You know anythin' about this Aeolus Edge thing Poison's got? I've gotta stop Seth from killing Poison."
"Mmn. The more you hit her, the harder she hits. Sends out a shockwave if she stores enough pain. She was Belger's secret weapon."

I smile. "Kinda like me, eh?"
Cody glared at me. "No, you dumbass. She's even scarier than you. Almost killed me once."

"And I'm trying to get her from getting killed now. You up for it, Cody?"

"Eh, seems like it'd be pretty fun. I'll go ahead."

I've got myself an ally. With Sam at mission control and Cody at the rear, Seth's dead meat.

And I'm hoping there's an emphasis on dead.

Chapter Text

It’s almost like a scene out of a television show.

Poison, holding her cat in her arms, opened up her refrigerator. “I just wanted some beer,” she thought, as the Post-it note fluttered out.

“I know your secret.
If you don’t want to be taken in for experimentation, battle me on the rooftop where Belger used to live.”

Secret, secret, secret. Poison had a lot of secrets. Not a lot of people, aside from the Mad Gear Gang, actually knew she was trans, for one thing. Sure, people have probably picked up on it; her cagey attitude around her childhood, her habit of carrying around a weapon wherever she goes, the abundance of medication, whether it be pills or syringes, in her kitchen; she could’ve easily been clocked in a minute if the other person was trans, too.

It could have been Jessica. But Jessica wasn’t like this.

Sure, Jessica could pull a stupid joke like this. She could do something like this, saying, “It’s like your anime show, isn’t it, darling?” and smile. That wholesome smile could power buildings. Ugh, save the gayness for later, Poison, she thought to herself, it could be someone like ----

---- Belger!

“Of course!” She smacked her head a little. She could’ve kicked herself for not realizing it sooner. That man’s probably hidden out somewhere, recuperating again, and he’s probably thought of a plan to get her back again.

Which her?

Depends. Is he horny on main and wishing for some daughter delight? Jessica. Does he want to go with exotic pink hair and intense blue eyes? Poison.

Does he want to leech off the force of women’s PTSD and trauma? Could be both of us! She reasons in her head.

“Sorry, Liz, I’ve got no time to feed you your homemade cat food today,” Poison said, setting down her Persian cat on the couch. “I’ve got an old man’s ass to kick.”

No time for heels. Poison grabs a pair of (chewed up, she might add) tennis shoes and slips them right on her feet, keeping on her short shorts and tank top that she’s probably worn for 3 or more days now.

Her whip?

No need for a whip this time.

Belger gets to suffer all the pain that she feels….

….and that Jessica, too, feels as well.

---
As soon as Poison climbed the steps towards the rooftop and laid her eyes on that man, she knew right away this wasn’t a Belger thing at all.

The man was bald, with silver metallic skin reflecting the sun almost like an expensive car. Inside his belly was this weird object --- a Yin-Yang symbol, spinning around like a vortex.

In her heart, Poison knew right away that this had to do with one thing only: S.I.N.

“You’re the guy who sent that Maya lady after me...and that bratty punk right after that, didn’t you?”

The silver man smirked. “Ah yes, Viper. You know, if it weren’t for the technological advancements over at S.I.N., she would’ve died because of you.”

Poison scoffed. “Like you care.”

Seth waved out his hands with a flourish; “And in the grand scheme of things, should we really have cared at all?” he posited, before slowly turning back to---

“Sonic boom!”

With a flip, Poison dodged the airborne projectile of sound, but not by much. She fell over, landing on her hand, and nearly denting that trademarked hat of hers.

“If I were half as much of an idiot, I woulda said you almost made me break a nail,” she said, getting up and cracking her knuckles, “but you’re into more than just breaking nails, aren’t you? Y’know, that’s bad practice; you’re supposed to wow a partner,” Poison said, an arc of light beaming off her fingertips, “not hurt ‘em!”

That was it; what Seth was looking for. The Aeolus Edge. The cause of the numerous irregularities noted within the structure of power inside her.

And he was about to copy it for himself.

“I’ll be taking that!” Seth said, puffing his yin-yang orb out toward where the light was hitting. "Where you're going, you won't need it! Not anymore, that is!"

Poison jumped forward, trying to somehow manipulate the beam of light in a different direction, but poof---! It was inside Seth, and he was already analyzing the data.

"So, this erroneously-called 'Aeolus Edge' has nothing to do with wind, eh?"

He smirked. Poison didn't like where this was going.

"Oh, it comes from your pain, doesn't it? Didn't expect you to be such a masochist," he said, smirking, "but then again, with those clothes, no one could expect you to be into something normal."

Poison glared. "At least it's actually strong against punks like you!" Poison geared up to use a Frankensteiner on him; hey, maybe she could try this out on Hugo later. But try and try as she might, she couldn't land one hit on Seth, who teleported as soon as he seemed to sense a hit.

"You can't use any normal attacks on me! Is there any wonder why Juri implanted the Feng-Sui engine in her eye; is there any wonder why Viper is armed to the teeth?! Only your strongest attacks work!" He smirked again, holding a piece of glass from the broken window Belger fell out of that the city never bothered to fix. "Either you destroy the city or surrender your strength and power to me!"

Poison grabbed onto her whip, knowing for her sake that he'd take the only thing she could safely channel the pain and light energy into right from her nose. "Alright, you wanna be a big masochist?! You've got it! Thunder whip!"

Bang! A blast of light erupted from her whip as the force emanating from it caused her whole body to rotate along with the whip. Seth smirked as he himself got shocked in the process, his silver skin getting a light char.

"Alright, Poison, I've seen enough." His yin-yang mark on his belly turned blue as binary code spun through it. "You gave me all the data I needed. I just need a bigger incentive to draw you out next time, then."

Poison glared. "What, you too scared to fight me like a man?!"

Seth smirked. "Not scared, practical." As he teleported away, he grinned at Poison. "We'll meet again soon, dear Poison."

As Poison stood on the rooftop, she felt a burning anger not unlike the anger she felt while she was in the Mad Gear Gang; and also, a burning passion.

"I haven't had a fight quite like this in years."