DISCLAIMER:
-This story is written on this time line: after the Railgun Daihasei festival (with everything canon happened before).
-Everything that happens in this story disregards what happens after the festival in the canon novel and is written without knowing it.
-I will post a new chapter as soon as I can (Usually from 3 weeks to one month from now on) AAAAND Sorry for taking this much time for this one! We'll try our best to be faster!
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«Soldiers, hang tight! They must not pass!» Yomikawa yelled with her shield up; while Mikoto and the others were busy fighting at the hospital parking, Anti-Skill and Judgment were trying to fight back the possessed herd. The security forces were equipped with shields and smoke bombs, but the unreal strength of the wolf marked was too difficult to overcome; in addition, the controlled clones had rifles too and that was making the whole situation way more lethal.
«Try harder, Tessou!» Yomikawa said to her goofy bespectacled partner.
«I-I'm trying, but... if they keep going like this, they'll break our defences in no time...» the woman replied, intimidated by the number of the herd that was diving on them all; the possessed were also aiming to the helpless students in the backlines.
«They'll defeat us... we have no other choice.» a soldier took his gun out and targeted a clone.
«YOU, STOP RIGHT THERE!» Yomikawa yelled at him once she noticed. «even if it doesn't seem... those are still our students. Try hurting my children and you'll answer to me!» she added threatening, so the man surrendered to her orders; anyways, she paid this distraction. A possessed got over her shield and bit her on the neck.
«Yomikawa-san?!» Tessou exclaimed worried; she would've soon realized the neck wound of her Senpai was the last of their problems.
It was a matter of a second before Touma's punch deformed Elana's candid face, but that tiny moment was enough to make Chiara's mind work; she was a professional detective just like Fran, the fact her archenemy was back in fight even after getting defeated and that all her opponents teamed up to deliver that attack on Elana was something she really needed to figure out.
«Why did they use all their resources on Elana...? Even knowing knocking her out would've been useless... Shirai Kuroko is almost torn on herself and they risked Mental Out and that nun's lives. All this just to help that boy get closer to Elana and hit her? Why? Him hitting her was really that important to them? If that's so... then why didn't they just teleport him closer thanks to Shirai Kuroko's powers...? I get it...! Because they couldn't! The ability of that boy is not to be immune to others' powers... but to nullify them! If now he touches Elana... she would lose her ability and all the power ups I gave her and this means only one thing, and that is...!!!» Chiara noticed Misaki had her remote ready; her considerations were correct, however, one second was not enough time to help her or sentencing something.
«ELANA, DODGE!» Chiara screamed to her partner, cold sweating from her forehead and with her eyes covered in terror; that was the only thing she could've said while she ran flying at her; obviously Elana wasn't suspecting anything and, even if she heard Chiara's advice, she had no intention to dodge. Anyways, what really saved her was her hunter instinct.
A couple of light gun shots shattered the tension of the moment; Elana managed to open one of her eyes in time. Touma got shot on his right shoulder, while the second bullet cut through his left hip; the two shots suppressed Touma's attack and he kneeled wounded at Elana's feet, who appeared to have an hidden barrel inside of her left sleeve from where the bullets came from; the girl recovered from her temporary blindness and wielded a second gun, taking it from the back of her skirt.
«You weren't expecting that, huh? This city's Dark Side actually have interesting individuals. A fellow hunter gifted me the project of this hidden weapon. This will be also the last thing you'll see! AHAHAHAHAHAHAH!» Elana exclaimed with her finger on the trigger.
«Dammit! He failed... we couldn't know she had a gun attached to her own body! Anyways, he must not die! We still need him!» Fran affirmed embittered.
«Is she going to kill him?!» Mikoto yelled worried, but she hadn't enough strength to help.
The moment Elana pulled the trigger aiming to Touma's face, a vertical car appeared in front of the girl, fending the bullet; Kuroko teleported it there to save Touma. After that, the Judgment vet teleported next to him, helped him standing up and lifted him on her shoulders, eventually running towards the rest of the group.
Elana easily got rid of the car, throwing it away with her bare hands and then aimed at them again.
«You all look like scary annoying ducks running for their lives... AHAHAHAHAHAHAH!» Elana shouted, ready to shoot; but she got interrupted this time too. A strong wind gale blew Touma and Kuroko against their friends, Chiara landed in front of Elana and summoned dozens of rainbow shields separating themselves from Fran's group; the shields were colourful but transparent and thin, everything could've been still seen and heard.
«Ohi, Chiara! What are you doing?! Don't interfere with my hunt!» Elana exclaimed disappointed.
«Does it matter now?! If that punch would hit you, it would've been the end for us!» severe Chiara ranted her.
«Such overreacting... it's okay to be willing to look cool and intelligible, but that scared lamb's weak punch wouldn't have even damaged me...» Elana replied, confused by her partner's concern.
«This is bad... she already realized...» Fran whispered to Mikoto, but she didn't understand.
«Didn't that bother you... the effort they put just to make that Kamijou's hand touch you...? That wasn't made to hurt you... that guy is a living danger.» Chiara added. «He was able to parry every single of our attacks, but not because he is immune... it looks like his right hand can nullify powers and erase every attack...»
«What?! Are you sure?» Elana asked dismayed.
«If I had even a tiny doubt before... now I can confirm. When you tried to shoot him again, his friend teleported to save him... but then why did she start running instead of teleporting back to safety with him? Well, because they couldn't... once you get touched by that boy all your power vanishes... they wanted to make you incapacitated so Mental Out could've mind controlled you and cancel every step we did until now with our efforts and hard work... how did you fell for such an obvious stratagem...?» Chiara explained, clenching her teeth and fists due to the anxiety.
«I can't deny it... they deceived me with some baits... but how could that bunch of leftovers plan such a detailed combined operation without even talking in advance...» Elana asked herself, doubtful.
«Francy... how did you know the situation would've turned like this...? I bet you're behind all of this!» Chiara affirmed, aiming her finger at him and Fran went on guard. Elana turned her deadly stare to Misaki, who quickly went backlines after realizing she wasn't able to use the remote anymore; anyways, that item in her hand helped Elana solve the mystery.
«Of course...! They sneakily used Mental Out to communicate... also...! The call! That was a fake to gain some time!» the wolf girl exclaimed.
«Call? What are you talking about?» Chiara asked.
«It looked like a dumb friend of spiky head disturbed us durin- ... wait a minute...» Elana's face darkened and her eyes became red of anger. «You never talked to your friend... the one on the call was the blondie, am I right?!» she asked furious; Fran didn't reply, but his worried looks answered themselves.
«Elana... all this power must have stunned you. Because of your shallowness... you almost ruined it all...» Chiara said and Elana started shaking due to her wrath; she obviously couldn't accept being looked down by her partner, but getting fooled by her opponents was far worst.
«I gave you the chance to say farewell to your friends one last time and I was deceived... these damn fleas... how dare them make fun of me like this... YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGH!» Elana yelled flaming, her face was all wrinkles and veins.
«How are you, Kamijou Touma...?» Fran asked after joining the rest of the group, followed by Mikoto; in the meanwhile, Elana was covering them in savage insults that won't be reported in order to not ruin the polite style of our storytelling. They used her moment of madnessto take stock of the situation.
«Well... I don't really enjoyed getting shot... but I can keep going...» the level zero answered after getting up with his own strength.
«I gave him what was left of the haemostatic... I hope it's enough...» Kuroko sighed. «Anyways, where was I... where the heck you came from, prick?» She added, shaking, both her arms were looking awful and her whole body was wounded and scratched; in addition she exhausted after carrying Touma to safety with her last energies.
«Fran-san... I'm so glad you are fine...» Misaki exclaimed, then she realized her kind words and fixed them. «I mean, I needed a meat shield... look at my nails, so dirty! Tsk...»
«Onee-sama... what's with all those copies of you fighting on their side?» Kuroko went straight to the question; everybody silenced. After all, she was the only one unaware of the Sisters, but none wanted to lift the burden of the explanations, especially Misaka.
«Don't think about it, Shirai-san... I'll tell you once we are done with them...» Misaki said, sneakily winking to Fran and Mikoto. She would've dealt with erasing the clones' existence from Kuroko's mind right after the end of the fight, hoping that moment will arrive.
«We can't keep going easy like this... we can't risk that happening again... after all we did to arrive here...» Chiara said tormented; her eyes were covered by her long hair descended on her forehead since she lowered her stare due to the anguish.
«Then we'll deal with the nun later... just focus on the special right hand guy. Once he's eliminated... nothing will stop us! Remove those shield and get over this!» Elana exclaimed, bloodthirstily licking her lips.
«Wait... what happened to your fangs?» Chiara asked.
«Ohhh... right. That nun has a weird barrier around her... if it's still up after your sentences, it means it must be some anomaly similar to the nullify ability of that boy...» Elana considered.
«You want me to get back your denture...?» Chiara proposed.
«Obviously! I can't way to rip their livers off! AHAHAHAHAHAHAH!» Elana yelled with her usual creepy freaky expression.
«I will... but there's an issue. To help you I have to use my powers on you... but I sentenced the wolf marked are immune to esp powers. I have to cancel the immunity for the time I need to get you the new one...» Chiara said and everybody felt thrilled.
«She is breaking the barrier! It may be our chance to attack, Misaki-san!» Kuroko exclaimed.
«But this is nonsense... why did she tell that aloud?» Mikoto asked.
«It may be a trap, but... that moment will be enough for Misaki to use her-»
«ARE YOU DUMB?! AHAHAHAHAHAH! We are invincible! The esp immunity isn't our only defence! Go on, Chiara.» Elana ordered laughing her lungs off; Chiara sighed, but acted.
«Shields will be much more resistant and... will reflect mental and electromagnetic waves. Also... the Alpha wolf will lose their esp immunity..» Chiara stated solemn.
«Dammit...! This way we can't hit her with Mental Out... it doesn't matter! We can still get through the shields! Kamijou-san, you think you can do it?» Fran asked, but he couldn't even hear an answer from the level zero; the explosive candies that were left floated ahead of the shields, standing in pairs of two.
«This is a pretty obvious threat...» Kuroko affirmed resigned.
«If Kamijou-san tries to get closer... she would make the bomb explode before he could touch them so he would not be able to cancel the damage and end up...» Misaki didn't finish her line and gulped.
«I can still try to be faster than them...» Touma started walking to the shields and candies, But Mikoto blocked him by tightly grabbing him from his ripped jacket.
«You can't risk your life every time! It's my fault... I wasted my energies recklessly, otherwise I could've destroyed everything from range... I'm such a stupid!» Mikoto exclaimed with her stare lowered; Fran looked at them, helpless, and clenched his fists.
«This was our best chance ever... anyway none of us can do anything! Fuck!» Fran yelled with anger and sorrow; if only his ability was normally available he could've saved his friends.
«Look at them! Look how desperate and pathetic they are! Do it now, Chiara! Give me back my fangs and let me finish my meal! AHAHAHAHAHAHAH!» Elana said but, even after her evil laugh, Chiara didn't answer her. «Ohi, did you hear me?! Move! Fast!» but her partner won't reply; instead, she was sobbing and tiny tears were coming from her eyes.
«No one else will decide for me! Never again!»
«They almost destroyed our dream... they were so close to steal all the progresses we achieved paying with our sweat and blood... I can't allow this to happen again, I can't risk... cough, cough!» Chiara said, then she covered her mouth with her right hand to stop a sudden nasty coughing.
«What are you even saying?! Just kill them and we fix it all!» Elana said, confused by the inexplicable change of attitude of her colleague.
«I'm sorry, Elana... but I made my decision. It's time for you to prove me your words were the truth. We are a complete being if we stay together... so now, I sentence the two opposite parts shall become one and only for the eternity.» As soon as Chiara finished her line, her hair turned completely pitch black and became way longer, morphing into thick and strong vines that grappled around Elana and started strangling her.
«What are you doing?! What does this mean?!» Elana asked as she tried to resist in vain.
«This is the reason I cancelled your esp immunity... you'll be a part of me from now on.» Chiara exclaimed with trembling voice while the vines were dragging Elana closer to her.
«You brat! You are betraying me! You just want to rule the world all by yourself! I won't let yo-WAAAAAAAA!» the vines lifted Elana higher in the sky and tightened their grasp on all her limbs, destroying her hidden weapon under the sleeve and forcing her to lose grip on the gun in her hand.
«What the heck is happening?!» Kuroko asked upset; Misaki was watching in silence while Fran and Mikoto went to watch closer.
«Did Chiara... just wished to absorb Elana... just because she didn't want her to get hit...?» Fran questioned incredulous.
«Can she really do it, though? What a backstab, anyways...» Mikoto affirmed shocked.
«I'm truly sorry, Elana... but I can't protect you forever. If that power nullifying guy managed to touch you... we would be both screwed. I tried to warn you, to convince you to play safer... but you won't listen. If you give up your powers to me now instead... we'll be flying in the sky where they'll never get us!» Chiara exclaimed crying, but with visible decision and no regrets.
«We?! YOU'RE JUST A CRAZY BITCH!» Elana screamed and Chiara backed off, hurt. «You just want to kill me... and inherit the full power of the mark! How could I even fall for this fusion-like bullshit?! You're really deluded if you think I'd really believe to your craps about the link between us... the only dumbass believing it was you from the start! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! I'M STILL THE REAL ALPHA! I officially retire the order I gave to follow you instead and I now order everybody to stop believing to this stupid wish!» Elana yelled with all her breath; all the possessed people's neck started glowing red. The vines stopped moving, Chiara closed her eyes and put her left hand on her chest, like it was aching.
«Chiara has no control over the herd anymore?!» Misaki asked, still not believing something so convenient for them actually happened.
«Well then, Chiara?! Are you already regretting turning against me?! Unlike you, with my useful power and this army of hungry wolves I can still march to the conquest of the world! While you alone are less of a zero! You are just leftovers without my support! That's what you are! And I'm gonna feed all over them! AHAHAHAHAHAH...- Huh?!» In the middle of her bragging, Elana realized the vines were now moving again. «What?! THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE!»
«You changing the wishes of your slaves makes no difference... my sentence was immediate. You know what happens, right? Once I say the words, there's no coming back...» Chiara said, looking her partner straight in her eyes; Fran relaxed his shoulders and seemed to feel relieved. The face of the rainbow girl was quivering and was covered in tears. «Please... forgive me. Please! This is necessary, Elana!» A section of the vines coming from the center of Chiara's hair turned into a sharp teethed mouth; its fangs opened below Elana, who was pending above it and immobilized.
«N-no! This can't be happening... don't do it! Let me go! I-I DON'T WANT TO DIE! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!» the girls shouted in despair, watching as the giant fangs were getting closer.
«You're not dying, Elana... we are and will always be one... now forever. I'm sorry...! I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY!» Chiara looked like she was having a mental breakdown; she was crying so loud her words weren't understandable anymore, but the message was clear: Humanity, sanity, consciousness; she was willing to lose everything but her now acquired powers and the world she was going to build over the ashes she was creating.
«H-HELP ME! HELP! PLEASE! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! THIS CAN'T END LIKE THIS!» Elana's noisy prayers were terribly drilling into the spectators' eyes and heart who, petrified and with their mouths open, still didn't make a step towards her; except for Misaka, who started running to them, but Fran stopped her.
«You feel sorry for that monster...?» Fran asked.
«I don't feel anything for her, especially anything good but... not even someone like her deserves such an awful death.» Misaka replied in all honesty.
«I can understand how you feel... but you won't be able to help by your will only. You cannot help, none of us can now... but even if we would've had, I would've not let you... and I'm not talking personal reasons.»
«What are you trying to tell me, Fran-san...?» Misaka questioned clueless.
«Elana just removed from Chiara the power to give orders to the herd and, especially, she removed her direct inherit of the Alpha. This means that once Elana will be dead... Just in Herd will be inherited by a new random wolf marked and I'm sure they'll not be Chiara!» Fran explained.
«But Chiara is absorbing Elana right in front of us... will she not transfer her power into herself too?» Mikoto asked rightfully.
«No way. Chiara screwed herself with her own hands... her power is very strong now, sure, but she can't wish for something so unreal like erasing the existence of someone and embodying it in somebody else. Also it was an immediate sentence, she just said that... those sentences are even more difficult to perform. Chiara used the one hundred per cent of the brains she had... but the results will only be a classic murdered in a weak, evitable way. If you only was still in shape... you would've been enough to stop it... still, you can't and this is the reality.» Fran said, Mikoto turned her eyes on the other side and bit her lips. «It may sound horrible but... the moment Elana will be killed, we'll have our chance to fight back and end this madness once and for all! The panic and the greed of Chiara will be the cause of their defeat!» All the rest of the group listened to Fran's considerations; they all stayed there waiting, some finding it easy, some wanting to act but not being able to, but the upcoming killing scene was now unavoidable.
«Help! Please! Level fives! Judgment! JUDGMENT! PLEASE! AAAAAAAAAAH! NOOOOOOOOO! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGH!!!» Elana yelled her last words and prayers, then the vines let her fall into the giant mouth that started chomping rapidly.
Elana didn't die instantly, her screams and her bones twisting could be heard outside of the jaws and her blood was showering out of that hair-made carnivore plant's joints.
Touma covered Index's eyes and Shokuhou approached her to help and cover her ears, they were both looking elsewhere; Kuroko watched it all. She hated Elana, but she could've never expected the fate was waiting to deliver her punishment in such a tremendous way.
«This time I failed... I couldn't bring them all home, I couldn't save them all...» Mikoto exclaimed with her eyes filled with frustration and anger.
«Evil always strikes back stronger to them who inflict it to others... anyways, her sacrifice will not be wasted. She'll have her revenge once we defeat the one who betrayed her.» Fran affirmed ready.
Chiara's hair assimilated the liquid and the slime inside of the jaws; few second later Chiara started yelling in pain and having contortions. The shield vanished and the candies exploded without doing damages; the hairs were growing longer and turned into uncontrolled spiky frails, slaying and cutting everything in their path like she was fully going berserk.
«Let's get away from her! Just as I thought... she wasn't allowed to do this and her body is rejecting!» Fran exclaimed, then suggested everybody to get as far as possible from Chiara and her attacks; the group followed him, Mikoto helped Kuroko moving since she was too tired to use her teleport.
After crushing all the asphalt and the cars around her, Chiara started calming down and her hair began shortening till their original length and initial prismatic colours; the girl looked at herself in a mirror shard on the ground and took a deep sigh of relieve, not even her was believing she survived.
«Surrender, Chiara!» Fran yelled at her and she raised her look to him, staying in silence.
«You dared pass the limits... and were close to get killed by your own ability... accept your demise. Misaki-san... people is already starting to stop believing to her wishes... immobilize her!» Fran ordered and the level five wielded her remote; Chiara lowered her stare and relaxed her body, like she was really willing to give up.
«This time... it's really over...» Chiara said with low voice.
«Not working... IT'S NOT WORKING!» Misaki screamed upset and everybody turned watching her pushing all the buttons unsuccessfully without rest.
«T-this makes no sense...!» Fran affirmed, puzzled. «She should've lost her immunity already! Try it on somebody else, Misaki-san!» Shokuhou used her power on the possessed people around, but that ended up being ineffective too.
«Maybe you should try using a real remote... why do you have a centipede in your hand?» Chiara answered, playfully tilting her head.
«Huh?» in a blink, Misaki found herself with a centipede rolled around her wrist;
the insect bit her. Shokuhou screamed in pain and shook her hand to get rid of it, the centipede fell on the ground and quickly retired into the closest hole; Misaki dived on the floor and began trembling and crying.
«Dammit! That was a Scolopendra subspinipes! They are the biggest and most poisonous of the world! We have to stop the advance of the poison!» Fran grabbed a shard of glass and, bleeding, took his coat off and cut a piece of cloth to make something to lash around the bitten wrist. It was impossible, Misaki couldn't stop writhing.
«Did you enjoy this reference in your honor, Francy? Eheheh... come on, deal with her all the time you want.» Chiara exclaimed smirking.
«Let me try once!» Touma approached her and touched her with his right hand, but it was no use.
«Touma... Touma...!» Index was pulling Touma to show him something, but he didn't want to listen. He wanted to help Misaki.
«Even if it's a centipede born out of an ability, the poison it inflicted it's now real! This makes all your attempts useless!» Fran explained to the level zero.
«There's no point to bring her to a hospital...» added Kuroko.
«Let me to her!» Mikoto touched Misaki and shocked her lightly; immediately, the poison together with some blood squirted out of Shokuhou wounded wrist, who seemed to already feel calmer and able to breathe.
«H-how did you do that...?» Fran asked surprised.
«I stimulated her muscles with the bioelectricity in her body... contracting the muscles around the arm so she could've squeezed the poison out of her veins... but that's the best I can do. I couldn't erase it all from her body...» Mikoto explained, saddened; Misaki opened her eyes, but she looked awful and she probably had a fever.
«You bastard! How did you-...?!» Fran turned to insult Chiara but, as soon as he looked up, he saw all the parking zone turned into a place filled with rainbows and unicorns of any dimension; the air smelled lavender and all the urban noises were replaced with kids TV shows' songs.
«It took her just a moment?! She changed the whole environment?!» Fran asked incredulous.
«Touma! Why did you ignore me?! You just had to look at this for a moment!» Index ranted furious.
«Don't get mad at him, little nun... what would've changed? He can't stop this anymore... I hope you enjoyed your last time together.» Chiara exclaimed from the sky.
«Fran-san... what is this now?! Didn't you say she had lost her powers?! » Touma questioned upset.
«There's only one reason possible... she really randomly inherited the Alpha title! But this is nonsense! There was a single chance on more than ten thousand people!» Fran affirmed, waving his arm to the enemy.
«The reason has always been in front of your eyes... I embodied Elana's life essence, and then I assimilated her powers.» Chiara stated.
«No way! You know well that wouldn't be really possible, not even with all those people at your command!» Fran replied agitated.
«This is true... but this city has a solution to everything.» Chiara said smiling, then she opened the hand she was keeping closed since when she was talking with Elana and so showed what was inside: shiny, tiny pieces of what seemed to be weird glass.
«T-this can't be...!» Fran immediately recognized them; they were the ability amplifying body crystals. «But how did you know it would've worked with these...?»
«I didn't know. I just guessed it. I hoped the power of ten thousand brains amplified to infinity would've granted my wish. I believed in one decisive sentence and so I got rewarded by fate. With those two powers inside me... I really am a god now.» Chiara raised her hand to the sky and new rainbows erupted from the asphalt and pierced to the starts, enlightening the whole city with spectacular and shiny colours.
«She is still controlling people using Elana's esp ability... they really fused!» Kuroko exclaimed in disbelief.
«That's right... now that I don't have to answer to the real Alpha first, the link between me and the slaves' brain is straight and clean and so will be all the things I'll sentence from now on. Also, the herd will keep growing until... I will be able to wish for anything! Just to make it clear for you guys... I reached what you call here a level six!»
«Do I have the face of somebody who cares?!» a voice violently interrupted the superb Chiara's monologue; Touma aimed his right arm to her and talked to his opponent. «You were so scared I could've touched your friend... you ended up eating her and running up there where I can't reach you. Still, I want you to know I never surrender, even if we have the slightest chance ever! Even if we have less than one percent chance to beat you, I'll still come up there beating that micro number on your face! Did you hear me well?!» he affirmed prideful.
Please, shower miss Eleuphii with lots of compliments, follow and likes on her social medias (instagram and twitter!) She is super mega ultra awesome! Thank you so much for your art and hard work!
Also we have to thank our colleague @Z-KING-Awakening for starting a project with Shadow Crafter Orifinal Themes! This Chiara Ost was simply amazing! Thank you so much! We may seem more of those in the future! Look forward to it!