Garou woke in the middle of the night and immediately raided a 24/7 convenience store. He filled bag after bag with all the food he could grab, plus one other item. After all, he needed to recover from his injuries, especially the two most severe: his head and abdomen.
He couldn't pinpoint the cause of his head injury straight away. But then he remembered where he'd woken up and realized he must've rolled down the grassy hill and smashed his head against a tree.
Blood had seeped out, soaking into his hair, causing its color to become a dark pinkish-red. Something he noticed in his reflection as he made his way out of the store.
He then raced straight to his S-City hideout. Once there, he ate the enormous amount of food he'd taken and fell into a deep sleep.
And now, the loud chirping of birds pulled him from his slumber, their sounds piercing through the shack.
Garou sat up and stretched. "Recovered. And I feel stronger." Standing from the couch, he studied the wall decorated with hero pictures. "That monster 'Lord' wrecked my plans... Still can't take someone at that level yet. I'll pick up where I left off."
He glanced down at the plastic bag beside the couch and reached in, pulling out its lone item — a thick 'Hero Association Catalog.'
"Wouldn't have stopped and noticed this last copy wedged in the magazine rack if my reflection hadn't surprised me first."
He flipped through the pages, scanning each section. "They even track monsters... Well, damn." His finger tapped a page. "You've already taken out my next two targets in Z-City Ghost Town.
Once I carve through the S-Class's upper ranks, I'll come find you there and finish the job while also getting payback on the one called 'Lord.'"
Garou slammed the catalog onto the couch and stalked to the shack's entrance. Outside, his eyes snapped upward where a woman with four radiant pink butterfly wings glided overhead.
"A hero searching for me out here? Guess I need to find a new hideout." His hands hooked into claws, a razor-edged grin splitting his face. "Let the Hunt recommence."
¤ ¤ ¤
"Sis, please let us go about on our own. How can we grow stronger if you take care of every enemy for us?" Fubuki pleaded.
Tatsumaki scrunched her eyebrows. Floating in front of her was her sister, Yuta, Suiko, and the Blizzard Group.
Her thoughts warred within her. I don't want her to fear me anymore. We can't grow closer otherwise. But does that mean letting her walk into danger?
"Alright."
"Thank you!"
Tatsumaki's glare swept over the Blizzard Group, making them flinch as one. "I don't care for any of you. Or the idea of this 'group.' But, you're important to my sister, so guard her with your lives. Fail, and I'll erase you myself. Understood?"
"Yes, Miss Tornado!" Their reply roared back.
Her gaze flickered to Suiko and Yuta, words sticking in her throat. That mosquito's constant use of 'sisters' had wormed into her mind. Now she couldn't unsee them that way either.
"I know the two of you will protect Fubuki… but don't get yourselves killed." Her voice dipped and before her cheeks could betray her, she hurled the entire group downward, dumping them onto S-City's streets.
I can't show any weakness in front of them. They need to understand that I'm the leader.
I should despise this situation. But since meeting Caspian, my worldview's twisted into something… I like better.
Her phone's abrupt ringtone pulled her from her mind.
"What?"
A Hero Association operator called out: "Tornado, status? Multiple cities are facing an attack in a coordinated monster assault. We have yet to confirm their goal or origins, but Child Emperor and Metal Knight are gathering intel at maximum speed."
"S-City. And I'm aware of the attack."
"H-How did you kn—"
"No time to chat." She hung up and returned her cellphone to its proper place.
Eyes slitting, she spotted a distant figure soaring above the city's nature park. "Her? Here? Hmph, does she think she can disappear without giving proper thanks?"
Tatsumaki would set this little idol straight.
As for Fubuki, Yuta, and Suiko, she wasn't worried. Let them roam free. Tatsumaki had no plans to leave S-City until then.
If anything happened, she could reach them in an instant.
She ascended, then flew until she closed the distance and loomed over the descending idol. Why land there?
¤ ¤ ¤
Wavygyaza touched down in S-City Nature Park's open recreation area, her four wings dissolving.
She faced a small utility building equipped with restrooms and showers, then marched to the drinking fountain. Gulping down water like a parched wanderer.
After a minute, she leaned back with a relieved sigh, her body temperature plummeting. She glanced sideways at a weathered picnic table a few meters away, its legs buried in overgrown grass.
Wavygyaza walked to the table. "What now?" She asked the morning breeze as she sat down.
Awaking on that tilted surgical table had startled her. She almost attacked Doctor Kuseno, but paused at his frantic explanations. Though she distrusted him at first, his irrefutable proof of how he helped her dispersed her doubts, replaced by gratitude that she vowed to repay.
He also informed her of the Neo Heroes' treachery. Their 'enhancements' would have bound her to lifelong maintenance, with death as the only alternative.
Beyond healing her body, he had altered the Neo Heroes battle suit she now wore under her dress. Horrifyingly, the unmodified version enabled remote mind control from outside parties. Knowing the Neo Heroes' plans for her, she was certain they would have abused that nerve-signal hijacking on others as well.
Wavygyaza's tearful gaze dropped to her navel, fingers pressing against it. Of all the benefits her abduction brought, this one mattered most.
The cybernetic enhancements had come with a grim condition...
A river of memories flooded through her mind.
Years of betrayals and opportunists leeching at her fame left her heart calloused.
Still, determination drove her through every hardship, yet no matter how hard she struggled to rise, he towered over her — Sweet Mask, eclipsing all her efforts.
She had sacrificed everything, still failing to surpass him. By the time she reached her current age of nineteen, her jealousy had sharpened into two blades: one for his fame, one for his strength, both meant to cut him down.
Who appeared when her jealousy had sharpened to such a degree, as if they were waiting?
The Neo Heroes.
And what did they promise her?
A path to overcome Sweet Mask. Hearing this, she accepted without hesitation. Drowning that whisper of regret in her ravenous pursuit of power and fame.
To her boundless joy, she received a second chance and woke to a brighter future. One where she wouldn't be the Neo Heroes' pawn, where no one would ever control her mind, and where she stood far stronger than originally expected, thanks to Doctor Kuseno.
She brushed away a tear that trailed down her cheek. Understanding that with the grim condition no longer present, there was now… a future where she would one day get to be a mother…
But first she would crush Sweet Mask beneath her heel.
Wavygyaza sprung to her feet. "The Neo Heroes won't get away with attempting to turn me into their puppet. I'll eradicate them as well."
Her senses spiked when a branch snapped from the forest's edge off to her side.
"Eradicating heroes? I like the sound of that."