The following night greeted Sunny, Stella and Yuna with clear skies. They had ditched the car not too far away from the kill street's exit. Stella planned to hover in the clouds the day before but today she would have to remain closer to the ground. Sunny had dressed down significantly from yesterday's attire. He wore a white button up with sleeves rolled up his forearms. His ruby red tie was loose around his neck and he wore black slacks with red Abibas sneakers. Yuna had done the same. She had tucked a white shirt into a flexible blue and black plaid mini skirt. She wore an urban black and white zipper hoodie over her top. Her hair was back to its normal shape, flowing freely down her back with the jade hairpin fixed to the side of her bangs.
Once inside Lyra's, Jamal spectacularly greeted the pair. He brought them over to a seat by a fountain and took their orders. They shared a pleasant conversation to try and keep their minds off the absence of Locke and the threat of The Frankenstein Slasher. Yuna had been fidgeting with her hair pin the entire time.
"Are you going to be okay?" Sunny grabbed her hand.
Yuna looked up at Sunny and blushed. Shit. Sunny pulled his hand back quickly from her. Yuna looked at the fountain and sighed.
"I tried keeping it in Sunny, I really did."
"Keeping what in?" Sunny's chest began to tighten.
Yuna took a deep breath and exhaled so hard she got dizzy. "How do you feel about Stella?"
"She's a nice girl," Sunny said, deflecting the question.
"Don't do this to me Sunny. I thought we were closer than that." Sunny looked into Yuna's eyes. He recognized that look.
Sunny sat back suddenly and stared at Yuna. "You really want to do this right now?"
"Yes, Sunny. Like I said, I tried keeping it in. We might as well get it out of the way."
"I like Stella a lot," he said bluntly. "Sorry that was wrong, I love her."
Something looked like it snapped behind Yuna's emerald eyes. "Figures," Yuna said after several moments had passed.
"Yuna?"
She didn't respond but instead excused herself from the table, darting out of the door. Sunny's expression must have been terrifying because Jamal darted over to check on him.
"Is your heart okay sir?" Jamal had his phone in his hand ready to call an ambulance.
"Erhm. Yes, thank you." Sunny waved his card over the sensor to pay for their unserved food. "Hopefully I'll be back." Sunny said to him as he ran after Yuna.
Once outside he glanced around but there was no sign of Yuna.
"No no no no no!" Sunny pulled an earbud from his pocket and placed it in his ear. "I lost Yuna!" he called out to Stella.
"WHAT?" Stella's voice shook his eardrum.
Yuna kept running in a blind rage unaware of where she was headed. I should have known. The touches, the looks, their mana. I did know but I just thought… Yuna's eyes began to form drops of tears as she ran through the night. Did I wait too long? Yuna began to slow down and her tears subsided. Lifting her head she took stock of her surroundings. Where am I? She closed her eyes and pictured the map she went over so many times with Locke. Kill street. She thought. Panic set in when she felt the suffocating malice from the night prior wrap around her neck. Yuna could feel her vision blur as something strangled her from behind.
"F-fuck… You… BA—" Yuna's voice cut out as she felt a cylindrical object sink into her liver.
The entity that was behind her tossed her to the ground like a ragdoll causing her to scrap her face on the pavement. Yuna tried to turn over but the feeling of a boot pierced her side by her armpit sending her tumbling into a concrete guardrail. She was conveniently propped up with her back against the concrete. Raising her wobbling head she tried to see her assailant through the blurred vision. A rather tall slender looking man walked erratically towards her slumped body. I'm such a selfish dumbass. Yuna's anger gave her the energy to stand up and face the creepy man. To her surprise the man wasn't scary at all. Instead the enemy before her had his face buried in a white hoodie. He was dressed like any other bum in Oldhaven. Yuna reached for a chromium box on the inside of her skirts waistband. She opened it up and pressed a button. It made strange hissing noises before opening up into a sword that seemed to be assembled in chunks. Its edges, cross hilt and pommel gave off a golden glow reflected off of Yuna's face. It's him. I can feel it. The Frankenstein Slasher rushed Yuna and she channeled some mana into her sword.
"CLINK!" Yuna yelled as her mana pulsed throughout her newly revealed weapon.
It broke off into several pieces attached by a string of her mana. She swung her right arm around wildly letting the blade flow through the air like a whip of death. The Frankenstein Slasher created three long and jagged claws of blue energy on either hand as it closed the distance. One by one he deflected the chunks of chromium and Yuna began to strafe to move away from her assailant. Her whip-like blade cut through the air dismantling everything from lamposts to greenery but she was unable to land a blow on The Frankenstein Slasher. No matter how fast she moved she seemed unable to widen the gap between herself and his lethal claws. Yuna continued to back dash as she changed up her combinations on the fly but The Frankenstein Slasher seemed to easily dodge each strike while ignoring all her feints. He sees right through me. Oof. Yuna's eyes widened and she gasped as she felt the edge of a pothole click against the back of her shoe. She waved her arm to the side causing her attack to veer off course destroying a nearby tree, showering debris everywhere. Shit. Everything slowed down around Yuna as she watched the Kinshi approach her falling body. I'm going to die. She felt her body's will to fight rise and her gate surged with power in response. But not today. Yuna noticed something flying towards the Kinshi and threw her head back causing her body to flip. Just as she was landing back on her feet she saw a redressed Stella coming from the sky like a meteor driving her foot into The Frankenstein Slasher's spine. Her body suit was alive with lightning and two angular shapes almost like bladed wings were erected from the back of her suit.
"REMEMBER ME BITCH?!" Stella's scream echoed throughout the empty street as she drove his body into the ground.
The impact from her drop crushed the ground below her killer and he was forced to lean forward until his face was parallel with the ground. But he never fell.
"Ohoooo?" A creaking voice came from within the killer's hood.
Stella pushed off the phantom's back and hovered in the air. We have to finish this quickly. Stella remembered what Lilith had said about using the enhancement features of the suit. Five minutes is more than enough. Stella took out her Vanablasters and channeled some mana into them. The one on her left was a pure ivory white with green accents and the one on her right was ebony with the same green accents. From the under barrel of her guns a bayonet of mana erupted. She proceeded to fire a volley of pebble sized sparking blasts at The Frankenstein Slasher. The Kinshi adeptly dodged the raining descent of bullets by flipping and weaving. Everywhere the bullets hit looked like they had been aerated. They're too fast. I can't keep up. Yuna was already out of breath when she realized she was in way over her head. The only thing her brain could register was the sight of a neon green blur zipping through the sky, producing a barrage of lightning balls that chased a pair of blue luminescent claws.
Yuna's eyes lagged behind as the terrifying scene continued in front of her. She withdrew the flying chunks of her blade. Occasionally the Kinshi managed to slip by or power through the stream of bullets and leapt up to Stella. She would block its strike then swiftly counter attack. But everytime she would narrowly miss. Humans can't do this. Not even espers. Yuna's viridian eyes reflected the light show and the grip on her weapon laxed.
"YUNA RUN!" She could hear the sound of Sunny's voice but it was too late.
She hadn't noticed but The Frankenstein Slasher had started blitzing towards his original mark. By the time Sunny's voice registered in Yuna's mind, the Kinshi had reached her. He drew his arm back, coiling his muscles like a viper that was ready to attack. Right as he sprung his arm outward an impossibly bright ball of energy appeared in front of his face. The Frankenstein Slasher roared in pain bringing his arm up and back to cover his eyes. During that same motion one of his claws grazed Yuna's abs.
She hugged her stomach like she was trying to hold her insides in place. Her shriek from the intense pain was disorienting. Even as she fell to the ground the air vibrated around her causing the Kinshi to drop to his knees.
Stella floated down behind The Frankenstein Slasher and holstered her Vanablasters. Her eyes seemed to blaze from the current of her mana. She raised her hand to the sky channeling as much mana as she could. Even with all the suit's upgrades she felt her magikal circuits sear her skin. The atmosphere around Stella and Yuna practically electrocuted them. Arcing beams of energy erupted from Stella's body carving craters into the ground all around her. Sunny was getting close enough that he had to start dodging her wild discharge of energy.
"Choke on your tears, bitch." Stella's fury turned to magnificent power.
She dropped her hand like a hammer. A mega bolt screamed through the sky burying itself into The Frankenstein Slasher. He recoiled, screeching and slashing wildly at the air. Another bolt blasted him and then another. With each one he got up again and wailed, his voice seemingly overlapping with another.
"Just die already." Tears formed in Yuna's eyes as she watched the horrifying Kinshi writhe with pain.
Yuna held out her hand and forced her mana outward. Her magical circuits burned her right side. ZAP.
An invisible current ran through his body, paralyzing him. Every subsequent bolt of Stella's lightning rang true as they punished her killer's body. He lay in the newly formed crater unable to move but still breathing.
Stella felt her energy wane and she flickered for a moment before undressing. She tried to call upon her mana but nothing happened. That wasn't five minutes. She had the look of a frenzied animal as she remained suspended in space, unable to finish the job.
"I'll finish this," Sunny's voice came from behind her. "See if you can call for help. Yuna needs to be seen."
Stella's eyes showed signs of reason as she nodded at Sunny. "Don't let me down." Stella's voice rang through Sunny's earbud as she hurriedly flew off.
Sunny walked forward menacingly towards the injured Kinshi. "Feel honoured. You will be the first Kinshi I exorcized since I earned the crown of The Unseen Tyrant." Sunny's entire demeanor changed.
His head was slightly cocked to the side and he had a sick expression crawl across his face. "I command you to stand and face me."
The Frankenstein Slasher raised itself to a kneeling position and turned to Sunny. Once it did it lowered its hood revealing a man with an equally unsettling expression. A smile with crying eyes. Sunny looked down on him in disgust. The Kinshi jolted to its feet and readied itself for Sunny.
"I command you to dodge my right straight." Sunny's voice was icey as he lunged at the killer.
Oh? Sunny's twisted smile came out when he felt the sensation of The Frankenstein Slasher's jaw break under his right fist. Sunny hit him with a quick follow up combination sending the Kinshi back into a fetal position.
"You know about my Unseen Tyrant quirk. How is that?" Sunny's voice shook with rage but he already knew the answer because he could now read The Frankenstein Slasher's mind. "Fine. Think about whatever you want."
Sunny lunged towards him again planting his right arm directly into the Kinshi's stomach. Sunny drew his fist back again and put all of his weight behind it as he aimed for the Kinshi's ribs. The Kinshi dodged purely on reflex. No! Sunny could hear his thoughts screaming in fear. The rush of energy Sunny felt was unlike anything he ever felt before. So much power. This is only half? Sunny fought to keep his wits about him so he didn't get power drunk and uttered his final command.
"Cut my left cheek." Sunny's glare was monstrous.
He could have commanded anything else but he wanted The Frankenstein Slasher to know fear. The same fear he put in the hearts of every woman's life he took. The same fear Stella felt as she was brutally murdered on her way home. The Frankenstein Slasher was no longer smiling. His tears had stopped rolling down his cheeks but his body quivered as Sunny squatted down onto his chest.
"Do it," Sunny hissed.
The Kinshi lifted a shaking arm and lightly grazed Sunny's cheeks with one of his claws. Sunny ran his fingers through his hair before whispering the last word The Frankenstein Slasher would ever hear.
"Checkmate."
A bright light burned from within the Kinshi's chest causing him to immolate beneath Sunny. Once The Frankenstein Slasher had been reduced to ashes Sunny stood up and dug his remains into the ground with his shoes. Sunny covered his eyes as high beams came from both directions of the road. Members of Vanguard rushed to him and Yuna to provide medical care. Sunny brushed off the medic who had been checking up on him to get in the all black ambulance they put Yuna in. He held her hand and after a few moments, they closed the back up and Stella phased through the doors.
"We did it," Yuna's voice was weak.
"Yeah we did." Sunny held her hand firmly. "If it wasn't for you two I wouldn't have been able to finish so easily. You both did great."
Stella remained quiet and Yuna closed her eyes. "Just say it. I was dead weight." Tears formed in the corners of Yuna's eyes.
Stella's mouth moved and Sunny listened to what she had to say with his ear bud. "Stella says that if you hadn't paralyzed him she wouldn't have been able to land so many direct hits. Sounds like she was slipping her lightning somehow and minimizing the damage."
Yuna's bottom lip trembled and Sunny watched as the medic staff patched her up with a mixture of modern medicine and Magik techniques. After their long ride home Yuna was carried off to the medical bay so she could receive proper treatment.
"She should be good to go in five days," one of the staff told Sunny.
Sunny lazily made his way to Stella's room since she had gone ahead without him. Once he arrived he rapped on her door and waited. She poked her head through and saw that it was him. The electric lock on her door made a clicking sound as it unlocked and Sunny let himself in.
"Has Locke returned?" Stella asked him worriedly.
"No, but I'm sure he's fine." Sunny laid down on Stella's floor. "Mind if I sleep here tonight?"
"Don't be an idiot. Use the bed." Stella pointed at the mattress in the corner.
"Okay." Sunny crawled over to the bed and climbed in hiding under the covers. "So, how are you feeling?"
"I don't know how to answer that. I'm relieved and happy mostly."
"Mostly?"
"I'm glad he's gone but… Am I going to disappear?" Stella sounded scared.
"Wait, are you worried about passing on or something?" Sunny tried not to laugh.
"Yes."
"Unless exorcized, phantom's come and go as they please as long as they figure out how to get through the veil. Sorry, I thought you knew that or I would have told you sooner."
Stella sighed in Sunny's ear. "I'm very happy to hear that."
"You can't get rid of me that easily," Sunny joked.
"I suppose not." Stella redressed and stood at the side of her bed looking down on Sunny.
"Want me to get back down?" Sunny looked so innocent.
"No." Stella held up a strange looking pendant in the shape of the Sun. "I've been using this every night like Lilith told me to."
"Lilith? Oh you mean Dr. Rose, so what is it?" Sunny raised his brow.
"It's a talisman that allows me to store a day's worth of what she calls 'casual energy.'" Stella smiled awkwardly.
"English please," Sunny laid his head on his palm and propped himself up with his elbow.
"Even if I run out of juice I can stay redressed for twenty four hours as long as I have this topped up. If I use Magik it depletes everything and I'll be forced to undress." Stella looked longingly at Sunny. "Tomorrow we go back to training and exorcizing phantoms, but tonight I want to be with you." She pressed her knee into the pillow top padding of her bed.
Sunny was unable to formulate the words he wanted to say to Stella. Instead he found himself with his body pressed against hers. They suppressed their gates and allowed their hearts to race freely through the night. Hours flew by as they explored each other's bodies and learned what made them tick. Many hours later Sunny woke up with Stella still in his arms and the cold metallic Sun pendant laying between their chests. He saw the blink of his phone's LED and wondered if he should ignore it.
"It might be Locke," Stella yawned.
"R-right." He leaned his bare body over hers to grab his phone.
"What's wrong?" Stella sat up quickly once she saw his face.
Sunny read the text over and over again. The terror grew in his heart as he said the words for Stella to hear.
"Looks like I may not make it home. I love you son."