Tides Of Protomis XLI

Full Power- Data Overlord!!

On Tokyo’s outskirts, there lied a number of cities that weren’t considered part of the city. Just southwest of Tokyo, was Saokoma, where a large complex of bunkers lay. Guarded by Yamato’s military. It was also where the students of North Shima high found themselves. The harshly lit concrete room, filled to the brim with chattering students, was crowded, at best. Kazimir and Zhao stood within the room thankfully safe from this. Of course, the third was there as well… However, he had other issues to worry about, with much of the crowd having been focused around him. Stuck in the middle of a crowd of female students. His eyes closed and his arms crossed in his annoyance.

“Grayhelm- are you okay?!” One questioned.

“Don’t worry- I can help you!!” Said another.

“You, help him? As if-- I could do so much more for him!!!you don't know the first thing about first-aid.”

“:Look who's talking- Matsuda!!”

While the interconnected arguments began to grow, all the while, the blonde only stood there, before letting out a low sigh… Though, this display was met with some amount of contempt from a group of male students, a little removed from the herd. Included in them was Kazimir.

“... Lucky Bastard.” They said in unison.

Alarick opened his eyes once more, looking around himself, and attempting to find the other tides, decidedly ignoring the expansive crowd around him. As he did, he took note of the fact that Arctaius’ friends, who he couldn’t remember the name of, had begun to walk up to them. Yudei, Akashi, and Shinto alike.

“TAIUS WENT TO GO FIGHT THE KAEMERGE GENERAL?!” Akashi yelled in surprise.

This drew some chatter from those surrounding them. Along with what they’d seen in front of the school, and now this, it was clear that they began to view the four differently… They thought Arctaius was just strong compared to the other delinquents in Tokyo. And as for the other four, three, nobody really knew. But that had changed for sure. Though they didn’t see the fights themselves, they saw the aftereffects. Given all that, they weren’t run of the mill Low-tiers. How did they feel about that? Well, that was to be seen. Apparently, both took note, but said nothing.

“That is a strategy with substantial risk, is it not?” Shinto questioned.

Zhao nodded.

“That is true. But if we can eliminate someone that high on the totem pole, it will likely throw them into disarray, especially if we get his direct subordinates. It will make clearing out the rest defeating the Kaemerge much easier in the future. We’ll be going to support him as well as we can soon….

He trailed off, glancing at Kazimir, and Alarick, as the two put their attention onto him.

“You two ready?”

“Yeah.”Alarick began to wade through the sea of people that stood in his way, as he finally rejoined Zhao. Coming toward them soon after, was Kazimir. The russian put his gaze on the crowd of girls, pointing a finger gun at them, a smile on his face.

“Looks like we gotta go, Don’t wait up, ladies.”

Soon, the crowd that was previously filled to the brim with conversation, went silent. The response from them could be seen as lukewarm at best, and, more likely, entirely cold. Alarick glanced over at his ally.

“Real Ladykiller, aren’t you, Kazimir…”

The mentioned youth turned around, as he began walking toward the steel blast doors that served as the entrance.

“Let’s just get out of here…”

Alarick and Zhao soon followed him. As they opened the door, they would soon go to close it behind them, ascending up the concrete staircase, before coming out to see the small town around them. Brimming with activity from the army, as one would expect. They all began to levitate, reaching far above most of the buildings around them before they stopped their ascent, and dashed back into the direction of Tokyo, hoping to reach the battle site.

In said battle site, the youth’s battle with the General continued… As his eyes moved across his opponent’s body, he took note of the fact that the blue light around him had changed. Reminiscent of a mish-mash of holophone, and terminal displays.

“With this technique I've developed… I’ve increased my Physical capabilities tenfold… Any chance you had at victory before is gone!”

As he finished, Yoshio began flashing around Arctaius, something that made the youth’s gaze dash around, as he attempted to keep track of his location. Even so, he found that he was much too fast, launching strike after strike, across his body. In the middle of the volley of fists, he found that even his speed wasn’t enough. He put his arms up in front of him, a quick guard to mitigate the damage, but he found that it was ineffective… He put his gaze on the man once more, analyzing his movements.

“I’m beginning to note two combos he likes the most… A lower palm strike, a fist to the liver, and another palm strike to the chest… The other in reverse, but which one is he going for this time?”

He put his focus on the twitching of muscles, the movement of his joints. By then, Arctaius knew it, Palm strike was coming to his midsection.. It was then that he took the initiative, ducking, and moving out of the way. With a chance gained, he quickly retreated. Before he thrust his arms forward, something followed by a downright gigantic wave rolling below them. Which soon began a quick ascent toward the General.

“Grand CASCADE!!!”

The cascade of water flowing upward did not stay in its form for long. As they began to diverge into different, much smaller streams, steaming as they streaked outward. At first, Yoshio looked undisturbed by this fact. Until one of the streams crashed into him, ripping a piece of his skin off as it went past his arm.

“Water jets, huh.”

The rest of the water jets proceeded toward Yoshio. But the general was quick to begin flashing around once more, only to be attacked as soon as he came to a stop. Only to weave around them, and teleport once more. Arctaius continued the tireless assault, hoping to press him as much as he could.. Even so, his attack seemed ineffective.

“Now then, Time to close the distance.”

Yosho began to flash toward Arctaius, managing to avoid the water jets wherever he appeared. Before he appeared in front of his opponent, launching a punch at his jaw. Arctaius narrowly managed to avoid it, launching a kick at the man’s side. Only to hit air, as he casually moved out of its path, before his fist slammed into his opponent’s stomach. Something that was soon followed by a loud crack, and a thick, red liquid, dripping from Arctaius’ mouth.

“You made a fatal mistake in letting me crash into that fortification-- Now that I've absorbed the data, and electricity from the surrounding settlements, I'm unbeatable… You will not be lucky and survive against me as you did with Lord Minoru… This-- IS DATA OVERLORD…. “

Part B

Arctaius wiped the blood on his chin away, apparently undeterred by his opponent’s attacks, he wasn’t ready to end this just yet, even so, he had to admit.

“This doesn’t look good…”

As he thought this, his eyes darted to his right, as he saw Silhouettes of 3 youths in the distance.

He took note of who they were as he detected their Protomis. Alarick, Zhao, and Rhuskov had arrived. Though some of their injuries were bandaged, they hadn’t disappeared. The appearance of his three allies was followed by a stone Javelin flung at Yoshio, courtesy of Alarick. He casually dodged this. But, no sooner, did a red light swirl around Kazimir, as the earth below them began to split, as chunks of it were removed from the ground. The large chunks began to condense into cubes, much larger than even any of the buildings in Tokyo. He flung these gigantic cubes at Yoshio. The man tsked, as he teleported out of their path, letting them crash into each other. Arctaius’ gaze moved between the four as they came to his side.

“Took you long enough…”

“If you haven’t noticed, we had our own opponents to handle, now then… What are we dealing with?” Alarick questioned.

“That man there- has a unique ability.. It seems that he can teleport among electronics, and absorb data from said electronics. He’s too strong as he is now,even with all of us. So I have a plan. But it isn’t guaranteed that it’ll work.” he responded. This caught their attention, as the other four members of this group smirked.

“Alright, go ahead.”

“You see, I believe that he needs to stay linked to the power, or data networks to keep that power, a sort of link- so to say. While I'm not sure where to start- I assume that it’d be where he managed to achieve that in the first place- that artillery battery.” Arctaius continued.

“Meaning?” As the Russian asked his question, Alarick’s gaze began to move around the area.

“We’ll have to keep destroying possible targets until we can get him back to whatever state he was in before… He is definitely capable of killing us in that form, Especially if Corde's theory is true, and he increases the amount of locations.” The blonde noted.

Arctaius nodded in agreement at his explanation

“ Like half-pint said. I’ll hold him off for as long as I can... Hopefully I won't have to use that attack.”

Just like that, the three began to split, Zhao rushing past Yoshio, Alarick heading back in the direction of Tokyo, as Kaizmir began to head east... Now, with his strategy secured, there was still an issue he recognized, the opponent who’d just appeared behind him.

“It doesn't matter how many of you are here-- You stand no chance regardless… I don’t want to kill you just yet. I’ll have some fun first.”

Yoshio soon began teleporting around his opponent once again, throwing strike after strike. As his body was hit over and over, though they did not fatally injure him, they did have their effects. Yoshio’s face contorted into a grin.

“:Come on!! Scream, Yell!! It’s boring if you give no response!! Or perhaps I should go to those friends of yours, and make them suffer instead… Yes-- I like that ide- What?!”

Yoshio took note of something. A feeling that ran down his spine. The grin on his face disappeared, as he recognized the source, the one standing in front of him… Rage flowed through Arctaius, as well as his protomis. Now, He clasped his hands, as the jets of water pressure flew toward Yoshio, tearing off pieces of his clothing and skin alike, all across his body. He wouldn’t let him pull off whatever he was planning! The man began to pound Arctaius’ torso with a flurry of punches… Regardless, even as his frame shook, and small, minute cracks made themselves known, he did not falter. The air around him began to warp as a wave of heat cascaded outward, with the landscape just below them beginning to burn. The trees, shrubbery, and grasses alike. Accompanying this heat, was a glare that seemed like it would bore into Honda. Arched brows, and downturned lips. This combination of things made Honda cease movement.

“His protomis-- It just jumped!”

The threat made him remember one of his interactions with a certain boy…

2012 Tokyo, Yamato

It was another normal night in the metropolis of Tokyo. The streets were bustling with activity, some, making their way to work, while others were simply on their way to have fun. Though, with that, there were also situations like this, where arguments and possible future fights took place. A younger Arctaius glared up at the significantly taller chestnut haired teenager. Who returned the boy's glare with his own.

“I want you to stay away from my sister… I'd rather not have YOU rubbing off on her.”

Arctaius scoffed at his statement.

“And you're any better than I am- Mr.Siscon?”

“Siscon?!” He yelled, the surprise, and offense evident in his tone. Eventually, a bickering match began, which echoed into the surrounding streets. Catching attention from those who walked past them. Though this wasn’t an uncommon sight for the locals...

Arctaius came back to the presence as he parted his lips to speak.

“Tetsuya Hoshi was always an annoyance. But he didn't want his family dead, that much, I can guarantee…”

Yoshio regained his composure as he heard the youth’s words…

“It doesn't matter how angry you get-- that will not be nearly enough to stop my advance!!! “

Yoshio began to charge at Arctaius once again, throwing a punch in an attempt to end the battle as quickly as possible. However, a yellow light flared around the youth. Yoshio began to feel a burning sensation, as his skin began to blacken and blister. But the effects did not stop there, as his arm went through the golden light, his arm disintegrated upon contact! Yoshio retreated soon after this, and looked down at where his right arm used to be. Seeing a stump covered in blackened skin. His eyes widened in surprise.

“Tell me… Honda Yoshio, do you know of a boy by the name of Hoshi Tetsuya?”

With this question, Yoshio regained his composure, as his face returned to a grin… He wouldn’t lose his nerve over this little, His arm could always be replaced, after all.

“I don’t see how that's important to the situation, but I do, I'm the one who turned that fool over…”

“In that case- you’ve already done more than enough in terms of making them suffer…”

The mentioned friend sat with her knees up, and her head within them... Far away from the rest of the student body, she was silent, in stark contrast to the loud conversations. At this point, she blocked them out. Guilt and grieving alike ran through her. Silencing her outside a few whispered words.

“If only I had stopped him…”

Arctaius cracked his knuckles.

“ I'm no saint, I’ll give you that… But people like you piss me off.”

Yoshio simply chuckled in response to his statement.

“:I ask you one thing, Arctaius Corde… do you feel remorseful about the insects you step on as you walk forward? Do you care about those with weak, and malleable minds- joining these causes due to their own Gullibleness? I do not. The weak are simply tools of the powerful! That… is what Hoshi Tetsuya was, and, even if he'd survived… That's what he would've been. Those as pathetic as him, deserve to be manipulated, and controlled…”

Arctaius looked unamused by the man’s response, the glare on his face having gone nowhere.

“Are you done with your speech yet?”

Silence

“I have no intrest in that idiotic philosophy of yours... I'll just have to bury it along with you…”

Yoshio frowned once more.

“Didn't I already Explain this to you-- It's over!!!!”

Now, he began to back up, unwilling to get caught in that heat again. Bursts of blue light flew toward Arctaius in volleys. And yet, the youth didn’t even move, as the attacks failed to do any damage. What was happening here? Why weren’t his attacks doing anything?! His questions were soon answered, as he took note of the displays by his head beginning to dissipate. Yoshio grunted in frustration, taking note of what was taking place.

“My power is beginning to drain. I should’ve stopped those three when I had the chance. It looks like I’ll have to-”

His thought was interrupted, As arctaius began a charge at Yoshio. The general quickly dashed out of the way as he registered the movement… Now, Yoshio began to move once again, preparing to take him out as fast as possible. Or rather, he tried to. As he found that he couldn’t!

“What is this? Why can’t I move?!”. His gaze flew around as he searched for his opponent… Eventually, finding him floating just above them.

“It’s over, Honda Yoshio.”

Around the two, pristine waters began to swirl around them, as bolts of electricity shot across the sky, and directly below them. As time went on, the intensity, and the amount of water began to grow. Followed by the massive amount of electricity growing. Until, a raging storm appeared in the middle of the sky, Arctaius at the center, and Yoshio caught within its winds. The area around them was drenched in the resulting waters. Now, the fourth tide raised his palm, pointing at Yoshio.

“TARANIS ASSAULT!”

Yoshio found that the jets of water began to rip pieces away from his skin once more, exposing the muscle that lay underneath, as the increasing volts of electricity assaulted his nerves. All the while, Yoshio gritted his teeth, attempting to push back the pain... Even so, he took note of how deadly of a situation this was… But a certain question had come through his head. After the countless years he’d spent rising the ranks, fighting the various opponents.

“NO!!! HOW CAN THIS BE?!”

Arctaius formed a fist as he focused his gaze on Yoshio’s torso. Before, he charged forward, increasing his speed further, and further, before he came into contact. And with numerous loud cracks, and a squelch, the punch ripped through the man’s chest, his fist emerging, covered in blood and tissue alike. For a moment, the winds stopped.. Before one last burst emerged, sending out a shockwave that devastated the area around them, the trees uprooted, the ground under them torn apart.. With the three mountains that lie in the distance torn into fragments. Arctaius removed his hand, letting the body fall to the ground. Elsewhere, the tides began to make their way back to the battlefield. Arriving at the storm’s sudden appearance. And finally regrouping, as Honda’s corpse fell from the sky.

“So that explains why he didn’t want to use it within the city…” Alarick noted.

Of course, they were not the only ones to take notice.. In a heavily reinforced bunker, far underground, sat Yamato’s Emperor, Shin. Looking upon the image in front of him with surprise, the death of one of the Kaemerge’s leaders, in this region, at least.

“So… This is the Agium I've heard about… While he helped us out by killing that man, I can not deny that he could pose a threat to us…”

Elsewhere, Within another shelter, The students clumped together, as well as the other inhabitants of the shima ward, who hadn’t already evacuated. As one would expect, chatters began along the room. Asami, who’d since caught wind of the situation through the conversation around her, scrolled through her holo-phone, watching the last moments of the battle that were recorded.

“That… Was arctaius?”

Elsewhere in the room, two men stood, watching this on a Terminal that was placed within. A lanky one, wearing a suit, shook his head as he watched this.

“Proto-humans…”

“Strong ones at that… Are we really safe here?”

The lanky man glanced at the source, a well-built man with a head of red hair.

“I’d like to say yes- but likely not…”

Arctaius continued to float overhead, Breathing heavily. His mission had succeeded.

“ It’s over…” He paused, the heavy breaths overtaking his words. After some time, he stopped, before resuming.

“The snake is dead…”

Arctaius' eyes closed,as he fell unconscious. Beginning a quick descent to the ground.

Elsewhere, Kaemerge japan branch HQ was gone. All that remained was flattened concrete, and scraps of Zycrium. The bodies of the dead commanders and foot soldiers alike lined the destroyed landscape, any vegetation since ripped up. Though, there was no sign of the Yamato military, and the proto-humans that battled the Kaemerge were nowhere to be seen. There was a question, who was the one responsible?

To Be Continued