Nokoaka emerged from the rubble, colossal.
His white, translucent body glowed faintly in the gray morning light. Gaping holes riddled his flesh – dark, vibrating cavities that seemed to pulse to the rhythm of an invisible heart.
He opened his maw.
"HYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
A scream. Not a sound. A tear.
The shockwave exploded in all directions. Windows of neighboring buildings shattered into pieces. Cars trembled on their suspensions. Bystanders, those who hadn't fled in time, collapsed, hands over their ears, blood flowing from their ruptured eardrums.
Masajo, thrown by the initial impact, flew across the street like a ragdoll.
CRACK.
He smashed through the facade of an upscale building, through a living room, a bedroom, a bathroom, before stopping dead in a walk-in closet.
A woman, in a silk robe, phone in hand, stared at him with her mouth wide open.
"My lover is arriving in ten minutes, can't you come back later?"
Masajo, groggy, face bloodied, staggered to his feet.
"…Sorry, ma'am."
He disappeared through the window.
——
ON THE ROOF OF THE DERELICT BUILDING
Nokoaka stood, motionless, its holes still emitting low-frequency sonic pulsations. It seemed to be… thinking.
Kotobe, still sprawled on the car, head buzzing, felt something in his pocket.
The radio. The one Lina had given him before entering.
He grabbed it, pressed the button.
"Hello? Hello! Come quick! There's a demon that appeared! Need hunters, urgent!"
Crackling sounds.
"…I can't hear you. Who is this?"
"I repeat! Alert!"
"Lina, is that you?"
"No, it's not her, but that doesn't matter! Send hunters immediately! FAST!"
——
ASSOCIATION HEADQUARTERS – CRISIS ROOM
The main screen lit up.
ALERT – CLASS A ETHER DETECTION – SOUTHEAST SECTOR
An agent turned to his superior.
"Chief, a demon has resurfaced!"
"Which one?"
Facial analysis appeared.
"…Nokoaka."
A silence.
"Nokoaka? But it was defeated two years ago! By Captain Man!"
The agent checked the data.
"It's back. And its power… it hasn't diminished."
The chief gritted his teeth.
"Send all available hunters. Now."
——
FLASHBACK – TWO YEARS AGO
Lina wasn't a heroine yet. Just a cleaner. One of those who come after battles to pick up the pieces.
That day, it was Captain Man's fight against Nokoaka. A legendary clash.
Lina was on the cleanup site, a garbage bag in hand. Around her, her colleagues chattered excitedly.
"Did you see that last blow? The Ultra Punch! He blew its guts out!"
"Captain Man is the strongest, I swear!"
Lina approached the monster's carcass, still smoking. She looked at the shredded entrails, the scattered organs.
And in the middle, a piece of intestine. Still warm. Still vibrating.
Without thinking, she picked it up. Brought it to her mouth. Swallowed.
Her colleagues saw nothing.
But she felt it.
Her body had reacted immediately. A heat. A connection. Something new, strange, terrifying.
Her power. A rare gift. A mutation.
Her body automatically stored the DNA of demons she ingested. And her Ether could materialize them at will.
She only needed a gesture, a cry, a thought.
Later, she had ingested tons of demons. Small ones. Medium ones. Dangerous ones.
But Nokoaka remained apart.
She hadn't fought it. She hadn't seen its power in action. Just its carcass. Just its intestine.
She didn't know what it was truly capable of.
And today, it's here. And I can't control it.
——
BACK TO THE PRESENT
Nokoaka roared again.
The holes on its white body emitted a salvo of hyper-sonic waves. The remaining intact windows exploded. Cars caught fire. Street lamps twisted.
In the street, two silhouettes came running.
Musclea – Class A, 7th. An athletic woman, muscular, with the gaze of a warrior. She activated her power: her arms swelled, doubled in volume, striated with visible veins.
Touchme – Class A, 9th. A man in Nano-Tech armor, fingers protected by energy gauntlets. His power: to project anything he touched with devastating repulsive force.
They stopped in front of the monster.
"Fuck, it's him," Musclea breathed.
"Nokoaka. The demon that was brought down by Captain Man."
Touchme activated his gauntlets.
"How many hits do you think it'll take you to pulverize it?"
Musclea clenched her massive fists.
"Even if I'm very strong, Captain Man is in a league of his own. He pulverized it in one hit."
"I think two will be enough."
She charged.
Her fists came down on the monster. BAM BAM BAM. Each blow made the ground tremble.
Touchme, providing support, picked up debris, placed it in front of his fingers, and launched them like bullets.
PIOU PIOU PIOU.
The projectiles pierced through Nokoaka's body, creating clean holes in its white flesh.
The demon wavered.
"We've got it!" Touchme shouted.
Suddenly, a blade cut through the air.
SWOOSH.
Masajo landed between them and the demon, Ku in hand.
"Get out of the way. It's mine."
Musclea stared at him, incredulous.
"Who the fuck are you?"
"Someone who'll save your lives if you leave now."
Touchme stepped forward.
"We're not leaving. We're heroes."
Masajo sighed.
"Heroes? Let me laugh."
He attacked Nokoaka.
His blade sank into one of the demon's arms. A clean motion. The arm fell.
But Nokoaka didn't scream.
It looked at its stump, then at Masajo.
Then it opened its maw.
"HYAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
The hyper-sonic wave struck Masajo full force. He flew across the street, slammed into a moving car – BAM – the impact sent the vehicle crashing into a building.
Masajo disappeared into the rubble.
Nokoaka turned to the heroes.
The waves continued. Musclea felt her eardrums burst. Blood flowed from her eyes, her ears. Her massive arms fell limp, useless.
She fell to her knees.
Touchme, on the ground, struggling against the pressure, managed to send one last data disk to the Association.
"Reinforcements… fast…"
They both remained, solid as rocks, on the verge of giving up.
When.
A voice.
Coming from the sky, it interrupted them.
"Rest. I'll take over."
A silhouette descended slowly, carried by an invisible breeze.
Lior. Number 1 of Class A. The Psychic Storm.
His eyes shone with a yellowish gleam. The air around him vibrated.
His locks floated in the wind.
Nokoaka looked at him.
The fight was about to change dimensions.
——
[BONUS]
This is an official message from KIDSU_XY.
— Please, dear reader, I know you've come far into this work, but I beg your pardon before reading Chapter 6 named ONE: Chapter 6 — you must first read the two auxiliary chapters named ONE: The Life of The Rank C Hunter.
Sorry again for this slight inconvenience. I hope you'll understand. I'm trying to keep my universe as coherent as possible.
But never forget: "A hero must remain indestructible."
So stay strong and don't give up reading for so little.
Thank you!
KIDSU_XY✨❤️