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Shou was on a mission to save his mother. Therefore, saving the Egg was his priority. He’d buy it, save it and then go on to another.
The repeated rhythm of it made him forget the obstinacy of having a statue for a mother, cold and unmoving just like the day he found her. Every once in a while, he’d visit her by her bed, where she overdose and left him again. He’d trace his fingers over her hair, imaging it overflowing much like the day she walked out of his father’s life.
He’d try to wipe the tears stuck under her closed eyelashes, and stroke her clenched hands. Her expression was serene, lost in a daze of whatever dream she had last. And if he cried, if he told her how close he was to getting her back and how she only had to wait a bit, no one knew.
Shou wished he could say he forgot when it all started but the date of her death is forever engraved in his mind.
Ever since his father was arrested, he was removed to the custody of his mother. He knew she had nightmares, they both did. What hurt was he was the cause of some of hers. They had a good relationship living apart, with the occasional check up. But that was it. There was tension being in the same house.
His mother feared his powers, Shou theorized. She knew what it had done to their family. And he avoided being home often so not to confirm it.
He blamed himself for his actions later when he returned home after a few days to a cold house with a forever sleeping mother.
Everything became automatic afterwards. He called someone on his emergency contact -probably Serizawa- and then he ran.
People would come into the house. His mother would be checked by a doctor and then she would be declared dead. Shou didn’t want to be there when it happened. Maybe he could deny it’s true as long as he could. So he ran to wherever his feet took him.
It was late by the time he reached an empty cold park. The sun was long gone behind the horizon, not a single reddish hue to be seen. And Shou was a mess. His feelings were a mess and if he wasn’t careful and kept himself in check he was certain to go into an Esper outburst.
Nonetheless, he could feel the start of it. His chest was heaving up and down in unsteady breaths and his heart was beating frantically within. His hands were trembling and his aura flickered. His eyes were stinging with unshed tears. A maddening, sickening feeling clutched on his being and froze him in his place.
He wanted to scream. He wanted to shatter something. He didn’t want to go out of control. Too much. Too much. Too much.
It all came to a halt when out of the corner of his eyes he saw a small creature approaching. The sight was out of place, he jumped with surprise. Shou was too out of it to think and allowed his body to move on instinct, desperate to get away from his former state.
He crouched down and picked up his hamster. What brought it here? How the hell did it get out of its cage? The little thing curled in Shou’s hand affectingly before making its way down and running away. Shou was stunned into the question of whether hamsters were supposed to be this fast before hastily running after it.
After what felt like hours, Shou found himself in an unknown area. His Hamster was digging the soil in some old abandoned park. He approached the chubby little thing when it turned around to show him an egg, of all things. Just when Shou was starting to question the absurdity of the situation-a little late, he’s aware- the little thing spoke up and confirmed his thoughts.
“The first one is free,” it said with an odd voice, nothing he’s ever heard a human speak with. “Next time you have to pay.”
Then he woke up. It was a dream; partially at least. Shou wasn’t even sure when he made it to bed but the egg was there in his pocket and his mom’s funeral was on its first day. Shou refuses to recall how it passed.
However, when night fell and he slept with the egg, Suzuki Shou experienced something weirder than stopping his old man’s plan of world domination; which says a lot. Going to another dimension and saving a Wonder Egg person, because there were people that popped out of the Egg when it’s cracked of all things, was dreamlike. Or a semi-dream since he had to sleep to travel there.
Seeing his mother’s statue was what had him. She was so cold at first. She lied at the windowsill of their Egg world house, staring tiredly at nowhere. His grieving mind didn’t question it for long. If it meant he can save his mother, it didn’t matter how many Wonder Eggs it took.
At this point, he lost count of them. It was rare for a child to have an adult ‘target’ but not unheard of. It took longer than ‘usual’ whatever that was. However, his mother’s body was getting warmer and warmer with each saved Egg. That’s what kept him going.
On the hardest of days, he’d curl by her side for a bit, seeking the remnants of her warmth.
Certainly, he couldn’t deny that the girls and boys, and rarely men and women of the Eggs were interesting to chat with during the period they had to run. But none of them were people he would meet once it was over. None of them were faces he knew.
Vaguely, he could sometimes recall why they were here. Similar to his mother, they were waiting to be saved from what their misfortune and misery had led them to. But that was about it. Shou didn’t duel on it much. He didn’t let himself duel on much recently. He felt that the steadily building world would all fall apart if he did. And Shou didn’t have time for that. He had a mission.
Until he was there. And what on earth was he doing there?!
Shou cracked the Egg and while it hatched, he was checking their surroundings in case there were any Seeno Evils around. He wasn’t the best with horror and the quiet of some missions always messed with his nerves. Shou started to think of the best way to clear this one quick and swift when the voice he heard had him turning his head so fast, he almost had a whiplash.
Raven hair over dark eyes, a neat straight gakkuen. The calm collected expression to mask the nervousness his tense shoulders gave off. The sharp warning edge to his gaze as he inspected Shou was much like their first meeting.
Who stood before him was unmistakably Kageyama Ritsu, with all his grace and glory, being today’s Wonder Egg.
Something was completely wrong about this. Shou just left Ritsu before coming. Ritsu didn’t know this place; Shou made sure of that. He was safe and sound and alive. He was going home to do homework or whatever. He should not be a Wonder Egg. He should not…
Before Shou could allow his train of thoughts to rush and crash in an uncertain direction, he halted them in place long enough to inspect.
“Kageyama Ritsu…?” he asked slowly, uncertainly.
Ritsu’s eyes widened in surprise, of all things. It passed by barely a second before he had it all under control. There was suspicion thrown in the mix of his stare.
The simple display felt like a bucket of cold water splashed over his head. He wasn’t recognized. To this Ritsu, he was a stranger who should know nothing about him.
Ritsu, ever the brilliant one, had it all figured out in the mere seconds of silence they shared.
“You know me,” he started slowly then went on at Shou’s confirming nod. “But I don’t recognize you, I’m clearly not your target and you seem shocked to see me,” Ritsu’s voice quieted down by the end of the sentence. “Which means you don’t know me.” Then his eyes snapped back to Shou, drowning him in a wave of uncertainty, disbelief and hopefulness. It all was allowed to seep into his voice when he spoke. “You know a Ritsu who’s alive.”
It was a statement with no questioning tilt to it and Shou replied with one of his own.
“You’re a Ritsu who isn’t.” he received no verbal answer; nonetheless the way this Ritsu pursued his lips in an attempt to hide the crashing waves within him didn’t escape Shou.
Shou wasn’t sure which feeling was worse: The stinging guilt over his instant relief that the one before him wasn’t his Ritsu or the dread over the fact that there was a world where he hadn’t met Ritsu before the boy took his own life.
The weight of his thoughts had yet to settle and send him in disarray when Not-his-Ritsu tensed up in alert and called “Let’s go!”
The Seeno Evils were chasing them down the corridor of an abandoned building. An apartment complex? Shou wondered how this place could be linked to Ritsu’s worst moments in life. Was it the Kageyama’s place in the past? Or something else-
“Damn it,” he heard Ritsu curse when the giggles of the Seeno Evils got louder. They would reach them in no time at their current speed. Shou cursed under his breath; he was too distracted and allowed them to get closer than usual. Running would be useless; they had to hide somewhere as soon as possible.
When taking a sharp corner in the corridor, they stopped abruptly at the sight of another wave.
“We’re trapped,” he heard Ritsu say. Meanwhile, Shou’s eyes were searching for an exit. Ritsu caught up on that as he whirled around and called “there!”
On the left wall was a door leading to the building’s stair. It could’ve been perfect had it not been for the creatures approaching it as well; they wouldn’t make it.
But Shou wouldn’t allow that to happen. With a swift motion of his hand, the doors lining the corridor were yanked off and rushed, slamming the Seeno Evils and blocking them long enough for him to grab Ritsu and run. Once they were out, Shou twisted the door’s handle to lock it. It wouldn’t last long.
Shou was already moving; not a second of rest allowed until they were out of the danger’s direct shot. The giggles were approaching from down the stairs.
“Dude, we kinda screwed up. This building isn’t letting us anywhere near the exit. Better go up.” Shou chuckled and turned around, instinctively offering his hand “Let’s go, Ritsu.” However, the look on Ritsu’s face stopped him in his track. Had he not been Shou’s best friend for god knows how long, he would’ve said it was unreadable.
Ritsu opened his mouth to ask, or interrogate, but Shou beat him to it.
“My bad. Old habits.” He shrugged, ignoring Ritsu’s confused look. “Gotta bear with it, I guess,” he added and waited; there was no way in hell Shou was about to start treating his best friend like a stranger, alternative universe or not. Ritsu wasted no time to speak.
“You're an Esper.” The way he ignored Shou’s use of his first name in favor of getting to the point was so on character, it almost made him smile. Although it was said like a statement, uncertainty laced it.
“Yeah,” Shou answered nonchalantly. And just because he could, he added. “So are you,” while pointing at him. “And your bro too, I guess.”
“I’m not,” was Ritsu’s biting reply. The bitterness was there but it wasn’t what caught Shou off guard. It was the slight flinch at the mention of his brother, the hope and light in his eyes when he was added to the list of Espers.
“It’s not something special, really.” The way this Ritsu glared at him resembled the one he received from his. On any other day, Shou would’ve been secretly pleased to rile him up, get a reaction.
That look, however, was anything but what Shou wished to see. There was no bite in it, any burning edge and desperation to fight was long extinguished; it was empty and a shadow of its former self. Shou clenched his fists to stop the slight trembling of his aura when he recalled that the look was of one who gave up fighting.
“Why did you-“the words were cut short when a bang sounded from bellow them. “Ritsu!” he called in alarm and without a second thought, slammed the Seeno Evil that jumped at Ritsu. The other boy, for his credit, run up the stairs immediately and caught up with Shou.
Why did you end your life? It was a heartless, intrusive thing to ask. Setting aside how insensitive it was, this Ritsu barely met him. Why would he tell Shou?
Nonetheless, there was a nagging feeling telling him he should know. His Ritsu had followed him into his family’s drama and became his one best friend even after their unsavory first meeting and the following interactions. His Ritsu had so much fight in his eyes and bigger dreams that could burn perfectly along Shou’s. Ritsu understood him and Shou took time to be in his space, to be part of his world, to support him too.
Shou should know why.
“Ritsu, you can’t do this. Give up now.”
“Shut up!”
Shou opened the building’s roof door to hear Ritsu shouting at a humanoid black entity. The entity’s form flickered and deformed constantly but Shou felt it looked familiar.
“It’s not something you can train, Ritsu. You can’t have this.” It spoke with a cold, soulless voice, devoid of emotions but incredibly soft.
Ritsu’s arms enveloped himself while he shook his head violently. “No.”
“That’s all you’ll ever be.”
“That’s not-”
“You can’t have this one thing you deeply want.”
“No,” was said so weakly, Shou barely heard it.
Shou’s whole body felt locked in place. It was so clear when he thought about it.
Kageyama Shigeo is a terrifying being. His psychic powers felt endless and his capability to overmatch Shou’s father was nothing to sleep on.
But the brothers shared a strong enviable bound that made it feel impossible that there was a time Ritsu feared his brother to this point; that said brother would be his Wonder Killer.
The moment didn’t last long when Shou noticed the Mob-looking entity raise his arm toward the despair soaked Ritsu.
“Ritsu! Stay close to me!” Shou mentally cursed when there was no reaction.
Didn’t Ritsu already tell him? While Shou wanted to stop his father after he exploded, Ritsu wanted to prevent his brother. But what would’ve happened if he was weak and powerless? What would’ve happened if Ritsu dealt with his older brother’s explosion? At what means would he stop? Would he spare his own life?
The mere thought burned an unbearable ache in his chest. In a world where Kageyama Ritsu didn’t awaken his psychic powers, he paid so much more than what he could afford. A voice in the back wondered if there was a world where that happened to him. If he were in this Ritsu’s shoes, he would’ve hated to hear about a world where things went lot better than his own reality. He must hate being a Wonder Egg.
Shou reflected the light to turn invisible and appeared by the entity’s side, launching it away with a punch.
“Let’s go!” he grabbed a flabbergasted Ritsu who, thankfully, hurried after him without much resistance. Shou carried them into the air and dived down the building until he entered what seemed like a safe area through a window. They both immediately collapsed, breathing through the rush of adrenaline.
Shou’s mind worked instantly to find a way to defeat the Wonder Killer. Chances were slim that it had the same abilities as Ritsu’s real brother but he wasn’t about to risk it. So far, the Egg world’s logic was still unclear and Shou wasn’t about to let any Wonder Egg die in his watch, let alone Ritsu.
His hands went to his pocket, his semi-abandoned weapon ready for emergency use. Shou wondered if it was about time to.
“Brother is here for me.”
The words were spoken so quietly, Shou almost thought it wasn’t meant for him to hear. However, the way Ritsu looked at him, subtly waiting for a reaction, told Shou everything therefore he answered without thought. “He’s the one trying to bring you back.”
Ritsu nodded mutely. The silence that followed was loaded with more answers that brought out more questions. Shou wasn’t sure it was for him to break it.
This Ritsu looked like his usual self in this sort of circumstances –as in life or death situations they often ended up in- with all seriousness drawn on his face. Shou could tell he was planning the strategy of their next escape. After all, he was the sound of reason Shou lacked in his life. But that wasn’t why he saw the perfect ally in him the first time they met.
Ritsu was essentially like him and he understood Shou like no other, rushing to his side without a second thought. Between his dad and Ritsu’s brother, there was no helping feeling inferior. So he made it his habit to remind his best friend of his potential, of how he could surpass his self-made limits. He tried to help Ritsu the way he dealt with it himself.
Sure, Kageyama Shigeo wasn’t a tyrant using his powers to terror everyone around him, but Shou had a feeling that he wasn’t what scared Ritsu. It was whatever inside his brother that created the Wonder Killer. It was in character for Ritsu to fear the powerful unknown.
Shou could tell that Ritsu resented his shortcomings and having lesser powers was one thing while having none was another. It was a matter of time before the mental toll either awakened his psychic powers or…
Ritsu’s shoulders relaxed a bit when no Seeno Evils attacked for a while. “Hey,” Ritsu called.
“Hm?” Shou brought his focus back to the present and noticed how Ritsu met his eyes in resilience which was basically a sign for ‘I really don’t wanna talk about it but I will because I have to.’
“How did we meet?”
Shou smiled excitedly and was about to narrate the tale of their friendship when he recalled how they met and his face froze as he had an inner battle to tell all the details or hide his dirty laundry. However, one look at Ritsu’s focused gaze and he was certain he didn’t ever want to lie to him.
“I was undercover for a mission for my old man to check on one of his awakening labs.”
“Awakening labs?”
“Yeah, some evil project he started to collect Espers. You were there with some kids escaping and I sorta…beat you up.” He winced saying the last part then rushed to add, “For a good reason though!”
Ritsu was looking at him dubiously before moving on.
“So we’re enemies? Wait, Awakening Lab? Why was I there? And why does your dad have many of those?”
Ritsu looked more confused the more he asked. Oh, boy, Shou thought.
A few minutes and a thousand questions later, the two shared a second of silence. It was the most comfortable they’ve been around each other.
“You’re lying,” Ritsu said without hesitation.
“Wha-“ Shou was taken aback and felt greatly offended.
Before he could say another word, Ritsu continued. “There’s no way I invited you to my school festival.”
Shou chuckled nervously at his caught little lie before he blinked in realization. “So, you believe me with the other stuff?”
Ritsu looked thoughtful before he shrugged. “It’s not unreasonable. Shocking, certainly but I can still see it happening.” There was a small smile on Ritsu’s face when he looked at Shou and added “You basically dragged me into friendship.”
Shou was fully grinning at this point and declared “And I’d do it again!”
“I guess I’ll have to meet you again then.”
The conversation was cut short when the windows of the room all shattered. Shou protected them with a wall of psychic energy. They stood up quickly when the floor started shaking and light dimmed around them. Debris began to rise from a window’s frame when a black hazy hand made contact with it.
The Wonder Killer peeked at them with its void eyes and the wall, followed by the room began to diminish piece by piece.
Shou grabbed Ritsu and ran for the door when he opened it and a swarm of Seeno Evils approached them in waves from all directions.
Shou cursed, wondering since when they got so close. He looked back at Ritsu, whose colours drained, staring at his Wonder Killer. Realizing he was completely out of it, Shou attempted to get them out by pushing the Seeno Evils with his powers. Their number made his attempts as effective as pushing waves in a sea storm.
They were trapped. Shou had to think of a way out and it wasn’t easy considering the ground under their feet was disappearing. The Seeno Evils were at aiming range and began to throw knives at them.
In a desperate attempt, Shou shoved his hand in his pocket to bring out his emergency weapon. He lowered the shield and used his glove, his weapon, and punched the wave of Seeno Evils. Convenient as it might be, his weapon required him a close contact with the creatures, endangering the Wonder Egg.
He turned around at Ritsu’s shout of alarm who almost fell through the destroyed floor.
“Hold on to me!” Shou shouted while grabbing him. His eyes were roaming around frantically, trying to find a way out when a hot, searing pain shot up in his arm. He was distracted enough to be shot by a Seeno Evil for the first time.
Although the wound healed instantly, their laughs rose to hysteria and their slamming at his restored shield got more persistent. Haters. At one point, the creatures discarded their knives in favor of attacking him instead.
In an attempt to buy time, he dived through the left wall and flew as fast as he could.
Shou felt a pull by his side. He turned to see Ritsu being pulled by psychic powers. The source was none other than the Wonder Killer. Ritsu was clutching to him with all his powers while muttering repeatedly “My brother wouldn’t….this is him so he wouldn’t…”
Shou’s eyes widened when he saw a blinking third aura enveloping around Ritsu; the cold blue light belonging to none other than his best friend. The aura kept growing stronger and more solid; Shou was reluctant to interrupt it. However, he was worried that Ritsu was sinking into his mind too deeply, his grip going slack and the outcome would be disastrous.
“Ritsu!” Shou physically forced him to look his way which instantly snapped him to their situation. “I want you to do something.” He continued before Ritsu’s face morphed into confusion. “Hold on to me. I can’t fight and keep you afloat at the same time.” Ritsu seemed to just realize that his lifeline from swarms of Haters and a destroyed building was Shou himself. He latched himself to Shou and asked.
“Do you have a plan?”
“Yesn’t.”
“Reassuring,” Ritsu mocked. “What do I do?”
Shou laughed, grateful to have his friend back. “I need time. That thing is trying to pull you with psychic powers.” Shou felt Ritsu shudder at his words, he continued anyway “I need to end it and I can’t fight it head on while protecting you.”
“You can’ fight it!”
“Yes, I can.”
“You’ll get killed! That’s my brother and I know-“
“No he isn’t.” Ritsu froze at Shou’s firm words. “That thing is a Wonder Killer. It wants to hurt you. The Kageyama Shigeo that I know would never do that.”
Ritsu looked conflicted before adding on “How can you tell if you’re a match to it?”
Shou smiled confidently and declared “Because I’m stronger than it and so are you.” He could tell from his expression that he doubted Shou was sane at this point. It brought back memories to their first time having this conversation.
After finding a spot far away from the destruction, Shou put them down.
“That thing,” he started “isn’t comparable to the real deal. He’s weaker and I will beat it.”
Ritsu’s face experienced a variety of expressions before he sighed and nodded. “And the thing I need to do is?”
Shou looked around him and pointed at a chair. “We don’t have a lot of time before they get here. Can you try to move that chair? Use psychic energy.”
Ritsu stretched his arm and put all his focus on that one chair. However, after a few minutes of intense staring, he looked back at Shou with panicked and shouted “It didn’t work! What should I do?”
But Shou wasn’t listening. He was making a weird face stuck somewhere between amusement and bafflement. “That’s impressive. I’ll give you that.” He nodded his head towards the absolute mess around them; all the room’s continents were thrown in disarray except of the chair.
Ritsu went quiet in his awe as he took in his potential. “I did this,” he mumbled audibly, clenching his fist in confirmation as the psychic aura seeped from him.
Shou shook his head with a wide grin. “That’s cool as heck and all that but you gotta work a bit on your aim.” That broke Ritsu from his trance with a startled laugh.
“Okay, what’s next?” the light in his eyes when he said that was as bright as Shou knew it could be.
“I want you to run away and wreck havoc with your new powers.” Shou pulled out the second glove. The weapon morphed and turned into its prime form. “Listen, Ritsu.” He spoke with his serious leader tone from his Claw taking down days, “I don’t expect you to pull a stable barrier this early on, so simply use anything around you to throw off the Haters. They’re going after me now, so run when it gets too much.”
Ritsu looked towards the approaching Wonder Killer; there was urgency in his eyes, however, he looked back and nodded with a calm smile on “Got it”. He was about to turn around when he stopped and asked. “What’s your name?”
Shou’s jaw hanged open in shock when he realized he hasn’t introduced himself. Shortly after, there was a gleam in his eyes as he proclaimed. “Suzuki Shou!”
“Ritsu,” said the voice of the nearing Wonder Killer.
“Go!” Shou turned around to face it off while Ritsu didn’t have to be told twice to take off.
“Ritsu, it’ll all be over soon. Come with me.”
Shou jumped on the Wonder Killer and threw an enforced punch at it. The Mob-looking thing staggered and flickered off for a bit. It seemed to notice Shou’s existence for the first time since their encounter.
Shou smiled and taunted. “What? You thought you were unmatched?” Shou assumed that was indeed the case. It wasn’t everyday that a Wonder Killer was based off an inhumanly powerful being. Unfortunately, its luck ran out the moment Shou woke up today and decided to disperse someone’s trauma.
The Wonder Killer’s lifted its arm and enveloped Shou in a psychic grip before tossing him out of the way in less than a second. Shou protected himself with a barrier as he was thrown through the wall and stopped midair. The wonder Killer took the chance to speed up after Ritsu.
“As if I’d let you,” Shou cursed and flew towards the being, crashing into it and destroying the wall behind it. He took a few steps back to make room for a running start and then lunched himself at the knocked down Wonder Killer. He was a second too late and his fist met the empty ground it was standing at. It didn’t get to run far before Shou attacked it again; shattering its barrier and blowing it away.
The Wonder Killer stopped midair and wobbled its head in what resembled confusion. It stopped faster than what Shou wished for and used its power to slam Shou up and down the ceiling and floor. It didn’t work for long when he flipped and broke its hold.
Shou landed and frowned when he noticed the Wonder Killer flying off to the direction where the sound of shrieking Haters came.
“Dammit,” he cursed and looked down at his palm where he’s been gathering power since he put on the glove. It wasn’t enough yet but he didn’t have the leisure of waiting.
When he took a sharp turn, Shou lifted his arms, forming hands with his powers to grab at the Wonder Killer. Ritsu had his arms in front of him, holding back the swarms of Haters; they were shaking with the force of attacks.
Shou took a second to be impressed how his friend adapted quickly and found a way to form a resemblance of a shield by forcefully pushing off the attackers.
“Ritsu,” with a voice so similar to Kageyama Shigeo yet so devoid of the real person’s warmth, the thing called. Ritsu flinched for a second but didn’t look back. It was all it took for one of the Haters to sneak past his defense and attack him. Shou didn’t think twice before letting go of the Wonder Killer in favor of pushing Ritsu away from harm’s way.
Unfortunately, the Wonder Killer and Haters decided he overstayed his welcome and run at him like shots from a firearm. Shou yelped in a high undignified voice before running the opposite way. He took a flight of stairs and hoped the crowd would find him more of an interesting prey until Ritsu was in a safer place.
“Suzuki!” Ritsu’s voice called from a nearby place.
“Here!” Shou used his voice and psychic aura to pinpoint his exact location. They were soon running up in the same direction when Ritsu spoke up. “Let’s head up. I’ll lead the killer things through the stairs where it’s easier to block them off. You can finish things in an open space.”
Shou regarded his hand and the level of charged power and then the other version of his best friend. The fighting urge and determination in his obsidian eyes made Shou’s heart swell with pride. This could be their goodbye and this Ritsu would go back to where he belonged, except, he was changed. Shou played a role in that.
Even if he didn’t remember his time as a Wonder Egg, Shou hoped his eyes would hold the same light they did the first time they met.
“See ya!” Shou said, running off without seeing Ritsu’s expression.
They broke off in different directions and the last thing Shou heard before climbing the stairs was the Haters shrieking as they were hit with a flying door. Shou giggled and grabbed the Wonder Killer from behind him and threw it out of a side window. Shou followed it shortly and flew up. “Here!” he taunted.
The Wonder Killer tried to return inside and pull Ritsu but Shou clicked his tongue. “You can’t ignore me like that, faker.” Shou felt his palm full of accumulated power. “It’s time you go.” Shou fell down like an arrow and swung his arm at the being. It barely dodged the attack and the consistency of that was starting to piss Shou off.
The Wonder Killer bolted up to the top of the building. Shou kept in pace, constantly trying to finish it off with one blow. What bothered him most was the thing wasn’t moving randomly. It was following Ritsu’s aura. Right on, his friend was closing the door on the Haters when the Wonder Killer jumped at him.
Ritsu made a split second decision and lifted his arms then clenched his fists, actively stopping it in place.
Shou seized the chance to punch the Wonder Killer, destroying it in one move. The invincible Wonder Killer exploded into splashes of dispersing blood.
Shou and Ritsu stood frozen at the aftermath and stared at the spot where the fake Mob stood between them not a second ago. Slowly, they looked up and made eye contact.
The chaos from a moment ago gave to complete unsettling silence. The buzzing in Shou’s ears from the rush of adrenaline settled slowly and then he was laughing. He threw his head back and broke into a full belly laugh. Ritsu joined him with his own relived chuckles.
It was over. Shou’s heart was beating like crazy. He didn’t have time to think so he didn’t. He yanked Ritsu by the arms, ignoring his protests when he floated them into the disorienting sky of the Egg’s world.
It can’t be over. Shou’s bright grin started to wobble. Ritsu was looking down, his eyes as alive as he’s ever known them. But they weren’t always that way. How could he leave him alone when he knew what happened to him? What he’s done to himself?
For the first time, Shou felt like getting rid of the Wonder Killer, the manifestation of trauma wasn’t enough. It was never supposed to be. It was a start to help the person to move on. But this was Ritsu. He wanted to walk with him the whole way.
Ritsu looked up, and smiled. “Thanks,” he said, letting go of Shou, using his powers to float back before Shou could reach for him.
The Egg’s world began to wobble and Shou’s vision blurred for more than one reason. “Find me!” he shouted at a dispersing Ritsu.
“See ya!” was the last thing he heard Ritsu say before he woke up in bed, the Egg cracked next to him.