Conscious, Conscientious

Hiroko shifted in front of Kotono, her arm stretched out protectively.

“He’s—he’s untouched?” she muttered.

Utter disbelief was not an emotion Kotono thought Hiroko was capable of expressing. If even she was baffled, the situation truly was dire.

Kotono shuddered. Unable to hold it back, she felt a jolt of harsh red energy spike all around her.

“How…?” was all she could let out.

Floating in place above the now-erupted hole, so still it seemed he was standing on the air, Wei smiled. There wasn’t a hint of malace in his expression—just a courteous greeting. Particles of stone and dirt still lingered in the air. Many steadily descended as if they were falling in slow motion.

“Good idea,” he said simply. “Skip the pleasantries. Go straight for the head. I like the way you think. With the strong one out of the way, you thought your rescue might have a chance.”

Wrong, Kotono wanted to say. We’re just here to hold you back until it’s time.

Even still, she’d almost convinced herself he was done for good. The powers she couldn’t restrain should have decimated his entire body with their direct impact. And even if they didn’t, the tons of weight piled on top of him from the wreckage should have crushed him.

She thought she’d killed a man. And yet here he was, unblemished and unbothered, just like before their ambush.

But the relief that she’d avoided becoming a killer didn’t outweigh her new unraveling dread.

Who was he?

“It’s a decent strategy. But honestly, strategy doesn’t mean anything here,” Wei continued. “Not in a faceoff between you and I.”

Kotono’s eyes darted to Hiroko.

Wei laughed. “I’m not talking about her. I’m speaking only to you of course, Ms. Kotono Inoue.”

Another crackling spark ignited around Kotono’s body, in sync with her skipping heart. Hiroko had no choice but to take a step away.

“See? Don’t you realize it? In a fight with potentials as high as ours, strategy becomes meaningless. All that matters is sheer, overwhelming force,” Wei said to Kotono. “Step forward. You’re my muse in this little encounter.”

With a jump, Hiroko didn’t hesitate to return close, ignoring the raging heat emitting from her companion. She raised her arm back out in protection.

But again, Wei laughed. “You think you have to protect her? Really?” he observed. “Don’t you think she’s the one who needs to keep you safe? Step aside.”

Hiroko spat in his direction.

Wei ignored her decidedly, his shallowly warm stare remaining on Kotono.

“I’m so intrigued…I’ve achieved my full potential, and I did it through fully artificial means,” he shared. “You, Ms. Inoue­—your powers are natural, and evolutionary normative. And yet, I feel you haven’t even begun to scrape the surface of your full potential.”

He brought his hands together before his smiling mouth, his eyes lighting up. “This will be a wonderful study: do you want to discover how far your powers can go? Do you want to see how long your potential can stand up to the best of the synthetic? I don’t know about you, but I’m dying to find out.”

Hiroko turned back to Kotono.

“Wow. This guy’s a freaking nerd.”

Wei offered his hand cordially, once again ignoring her. “Now, my lovely glowing muse,” he said, “shall we dance?”

“We come as a package deal, weirdo,” Hiroko shot. “Like it or not, you’re gonna have to fight both of us.”

The slight decline of Wei’s smile was his only initial response. Then subtly, he waved his hand to the side once.

Hiroko jerked off the ground, shooting into the air in the same direction he signaled. She spun violently into the distance.

“HIROKO!”

Kotono’s energy shifted with a burst, igniting blue. She raised her hands in a hurry and launched a wave of light.

Unlike her usual red beams, the blue light tumbled airily like a cloud in a windstorm. She pushed it hard as Hiroko began to plummet towards the ground.

Just in time, the blue cloud enveloped Hiroko and caught her in place, turning purple upon contact. Hiroko slowed to a smooth, floating stop within its embrace until Kotono allowed it to lower her back to her feet.

Kotono sighed, dismissing the power. She was grateful her worry for others yielded a different nature of energy than raw fear or anger.

Wei’s power, however, she still had yet to fathom.

Deon was right—that was like imagining. Plenty of top-ranking Imaginers have mastered making particles to influence the air around people, she thought quickly.

That explained his levitation, and the way he threw Hiroko.

But it still didn’t answer how he survived her blasts.

The pressure…the reaction time…it doesn’t make sense!

“Do you actually want the extra burden of keeping her from harm?” Wei called to Kotono in annoyance. “I was trying to give you a fair playing field. Whatever; let’s start.”

Hiroko darted back their way, already drawing near as grass shot out behind her blurry feet.

“Kotono! No read!”

With a flinch, Kotono drew from her powers to launch herself backward. They reverted back to a fiery red, singeing the ground as she flew.

A ‘no read’ was a worst-case scenario: if Hiroko’s powers couldn’t predict Wei’s next move, there was no way to prepare a strong defense.

But Kotono’s attempt to fall back came to a jarring halt. She blinked from the disorienting whiplash—she’d met an instant stop in the air.

Even her limbs could hardly move as she remained in place: an invisible pressure was pushing on her from all angles.

Kotono recognized the sensation immediately: she’d felt this before.

After Wei emerged during their courtyard brawl against Benton and Irma and took down Deon and Skrili, he’d used this same pressure to trap the rest of them in place. Then with that same ability, he flew the five of them all the way to the outskirts of the city.

She couldn’t manage to shake it then. But she needed to now, or this was already over.

Drawing from the raging energy fueled by her pounding heart, Kotono slammed her red light against the invisible weight. The energy brightened, quickly blinding her, but it didn’t make a difference—she was still just as trapped.

“Show me more power than that,” Wei demanded from a distance.

Kotono pushed again, letting out a cry. Still, nothing.

“Come on. I know you have it,” Wei said. “I want to see it. I need to compare.”

Against her wishes, Kotono felt her breath turn shallow. There was no way out. This was her doom.

No…don’t panic…don’t panic…Kotono tried to recite.

She gave up quickly. That never worked.

Once again, she was about to lose control. Her powers were skyrocketing and she had no say. It would likely break her free, but it would put Hiroko in danger once more.

“YES! Show me again!” Wei cheered.

No…

Her eyes couldn’t burn any brighter. She gasped what felt like her last breath.

No, please…

“HIROKO, RUN!!”

Just as she screamed, an explosion erupted from around her body. It ripped through the air, and immediately, her body broke free of her bondage.

Kotono fell into the grass and tried to fight the new sting in her eyes. But she couldn’t see if Hiroko had been able to change course in time—she couldn’t see anything through this light and smoke.

No…I lost control again…

Her despair only deepened when Wei was the first sight she could make out through the vanishing smoke. Like a phantom, he still floated in place. But now, his smile was from ear-to-ear. He clapped at her like a child at a clown.

“AWESOME! FEARSOME!” he cheered. “Good: it seems I didn’t put enough strength into it to match yours. That means I can really test my limits against you. Can you push yourself harder for me?”

“Psycho,” came Hiroko’s voice.

The smoke subsided, and she stood unharmed at Kotono’s side.

The sight brought breath back to Kotono’s lungs. Her already reemerging energy returned purple. “I—I told you to run…” she gasped.

“I did. Then I came back.”

Kotono mustered a smile. Of course: Hiroko knew everything about the nature of her Emovert powers—including when they got out of control. Kotono had once again let panic cloud her reasoning.

Shaking, she found the courage to stand. Red light gradually overtook the purple hue surrounding her body.

“Hiroko…he’s…”

“I know. He’s trying to get everything out of you,” Hiroko finished. “But besides keeping him trapped underground, this is the best-case scenario.”

“Huh?! Are you crazy?!” whisper-shouted Kotono.

“He’s preoccupied with his curiosity. All we have to do is keep his attention until the others are ready to come back,” explained Hiroko. “We have to stay worthy of his time. And we can do that without—”

“Panic for me more, Ms. Inoue!” Wei demanded from the air. “Don’t you see your anxiety is your greatest gift?”

“Uh…without that,” Hiroko finished.

Kotono’s wavering gaze gave away her reluctance. The blaze intensified around her body.

“How?” she pleaded.

Hiroko’s slight nod and raise of the eyebrow communicated her wishes far faster than words could have.

“THAT?!” whispered Kotono.

“That.”

“B—but…we can’t do that…” Kotono insisted. “Not yet. We haven’t even gotten it cleared to use in fights…it’s not ready.”

“Eh, screw the advisors. It’s close enough.”

Kotono tried to ease her breath as she nodded. Hiroko’s calls had gotten them through every tournament so far—even the calls their advisors didn’t approve.

But it was more than that…

Kotono watched Hiroko as she turned, took a few steps to the side into position, and eyed their deadly opponent without a shred of fear. All those sleepless nights before fights, all of their makeshift Daufloflas—many with Zayza—flashed in Kotono’s head.

To every prior teammate the agency selected, in every previous friendship, Kotono was a burden. But Hiroko never complained. Not once.

Hiroko’s love was the reason she got through every tournament.

And it was the reason they could get through this, too.

Kotono’s energy turned gold.

They’d only rehearsed the technique a handful of times; it was still very much new. Not a single pro had laid eyes on it. But Hiroko was right: if there was ever a time to be bold, it was now, against an enemy of unknown ability.

As Kotono raised a hand towards Hiroko, she recalled its working title:

Emotional Support.

Raging energy shot out from Kotono’s hand towards Hiroko. Thankfully, as they’d theorized, Kotono’s concern for Hiroko’s safety transformed the nature of her power. It shifted to blue as it slowed around her. Kotono closed her fist, and the energy took form around Hiroko’s body just as it did around her own.

For once, she’d done it on the first try.

At the very least, it was an easier technique than the Emovert Bombs she and Deon created yesterday. With this, she didn’t have to separate the power from her own mind.

As long as she could remain stable, it would, too.

But that very condition was the reason she feared it most.

“Sticking to your guns,” Wei noticed. “I tried to warn you. You may be one of the best in your world, Hiroko, but by joining this fight, you’ve entered a place you don’t belong: the world of the impossible.”

The glowing Kotono and Hiroko’s eyes widened as chunks of the destroyed front gate rose from the ground beneath Wei. With the flick of his finger, they all came barreling.

Terror set in. Kotono’s light began returning to red, and as a result, so did Hiroko’s.

“NO!” Kotono cried.

But Hiroko simply smiled. “What? This is nothing.”

Kotono knew she was lying. But her heart calmed, nonetheless. Focusing on Hiroko’s patience, the energy reverted to blue.

While her body naturally withstood the pain of her own energy, as with every Emovert, that wasn’t the case for Hiroko. They’d quickly learned anything harsher than purple could be deadly.

I HAVE to control myself…

The masses of stone closed in. She trusted Hiroko—but now, Hiroko was relying on her.

The blue light intensified. Kotono jumped.

She took to the air, and a chunk of wall destroyed the earth just beneath her feet. She felt her powers heighten.

Keep her safe…keep her safe…

The blue warded off a quick spark of gold. Kotono spun to avoid another incoming mass and flew farther to the side. A third, smaller chunk whirled her way—but there was no time to evade.

Keep her safe…

Kotono lifted her hands. She could handle this. She didn’t need to fear for herself—only for her love.

She had to release this fear.

Kotono blasted a golden beam out of her palms, though the energy around her body managed to remain blue. The mass of stone disintegrated instantly.

Before the strike was even complete, Kotono’s head already whipped to Hiroko’s location.

She wasn’t there anymore.

“YES!” came a cheer from higher above.

Hiroko floated not far away, just as her. She threw a couple air punches and observed the light around her.

“You did it, Kotono! This feels so interesting,” she said, eyes bright. “It’s almost like I’m cosplaying as you, isn’t it?”

Kotono smiled. Their interconnected energy heightened to a purple shade.

“More Leaguer games…” muttered Wei.

“Like I said, we’re a package deal,” Hiroko reminded him. “And you took our third from us. So we’re not playing games. We’re gonna blow that smile off your face.”

She turned her sharp gaze to Kotono.

“Remember the second Science Fiction Country Conscious Competition? The semi-finals?”

At first, it didn’t land: what attack from that fight would be applicable here?

Wait—not an attack, Kotono thought rapidly. A defense.

It clicked.

That could actually work! she realized.

Hiroko didn’t clarify. She trusted her teammate would get it and returned her focus to Wei, arms spread out in preparation.

Clearly, she’d been thinking about it too: they couldn’t see Wei’s means of controlling objects. But if this was indeed particle imagining, they had just one way to detect it.

Kotono stretched out her arms like Hiroko and drew out more purple energy. The light sparkled around both of their bodies.

Isolate the fear…Kotono told herself. Give it meaning, and release…

Red appeared near her palms and Hiroko’s. Then with spins, they both pushed it outward.

The red light spread wide as it parted from each fighter. At first, it seemed the effort was in vain.

Then, the energy burst with popping explosions—countless of them, small, and all around the duo.

Hiroko’s prediction was right: Wei was attempting to trap them once more, and he was doing it with microscopic imagining. Though her enhanced foresight was limited to what few moves she’d seen him make thus far, she picked correctly.

And now, they had a way to see it coming.

Wei's trick was just like that semi-finals fight, back when they faced an Imaginer who specialized in creating invisible objects. Their victory came that day when they realized a dusting of Kotono’s energy could burst against the objects, identifying their precise positions.

And now, the strategy’s application proved successful here, too.

Kotono and Hiroko ascended quickly, avoiding the danger zone.

“So it is particle imagining,” Hiroko muttered.

They knew they couldn’t remain strictly on the defensive. Kotono glared at Wei, contemplating all the hurt he’d caused so far. He’d only continue to hurt Zayza and the rest the longer this went on.

It was time he felt some fear.

She focused more energy around her hands and Hiroko’s, and this time, it emerged red and gold.

Hiroko moved first: she needed to avoid its burn. Kotono followed her lead as they flew farther apart, casting more waves of light around their paths. The air crackled with smoke like fireworks.

Particles all around…keep moving, Kotono knew. He has to run out and replenish at some point. No imaginer can keep up something this complicated forever.

“I took your ‘third,’ huh? You must mean the killer princess,” Wei acknowledged as he watched them. “She doesn’t seem to fit with you two. Those with small potentials resort to cowardly, deceptive acts to reach their goals, and that’s precisely the behavior she’s shown.”

“Ha. You have no idea, guy,” Hiroko scoffed.

He’d probably shut right up if he did, agreed Kotono silently.

The champions flew through the air, continually releasing more trails of light. But the small explosions continued to reveal more particles. No matter how fast they moved, or how many blasts they fired, Wei’s particles seemed to replenish wherever they went.

How? How is he doing this?!

Kotono brought herself to a midair halt when Hiroko swooped in under her.

Right—this is the only way now, she recognized. She’s covering so I can attack.

She channeled red energy into their hands again, though it flickered and intensified against her wishes, reflecting her weakening composure.

Hiroko didn’t let out a sound as she twirled and unleashed their widest sprinkle of energy yet, but Kotono knew it probably hurt. As the light detonated against particles about to surround them, Kotono aimed.

They’d only practiced the offensive variation of this technique once.

She fired a hot red beam at Wei, and the duo shifted into evasive motion in the same breath. As they avoided capture from his newly unveiled particles, the pointed beam plowed straight into Wei.

The resulting smoke masked him from view. But Kotono had seen the impact with her own eyes: this time, her attack landed.

“Creative,” admitted a voice, “but not impressive.”

The haze cleared. Wei still floated before their eyes, completely untouched.

“W—what?” gasped Kotono.

“Keep moving!” Hiroko called.

They continued their flight above the field. With another several releases of energy, they found Wei’s particles had never stopped appearing around them. He hadn’t paused his hunt, even while somehow withstanding an attack like that.

Eventually Hiroko returned beneath Kotono again. Holding her breath, Kotono tried her best to control the energy as they repeated their offensive. She fired another beam, this time with gold mixed in.

It made impact, just as the first. And after the smoke, Wei remained unharmed once more.

Fruitless as this attempt was, there was no use in stopping—not until they could detect another option. As soon as they slowed, he could capture them in place. Kotono and Hiroko continued for what felt like an eternity, and fired several more successful blasts.

And yet, somehow, it didn’t matter.

“It looks like you’re struggling to understand,” Wei called to them. “Let’s see: Imaginer powers…Multitasker...a decent dose of Levelhead…Emovert, actually—just the energy without the emotions…some Mastermind…and a sprinkle of a few others that may or may not make a difference…are all coursing through these veins right now.”

“You’re all of those types?!” Hiroko demanded, narrowly avoiding a cluster of particles she’d fired at.

“I’m none of them,” Wei dismissed. “We blended them all together—all of the ones my body could receive. So don’t worry if you don’t know how to classify my powers.”

He smiled.

“Because neither do I.”

He’s a monster…Kotono shuddered.

“Now, stop fidgeting around,” said Wei. “I’m getting impatient.”

Once his words left his mouth, Kotono and Hiroko stopped hearing the air pop against their energy waves.

No more particles…noted Kotono

They came to a stop beside each other.

“I figured trapping you would give me what I want,” Wei said. “I’ll just have to make this something you can’t dodge, instead.”

As his first major motion in this entire fight, Wei raised his hands above his head.

What appeared made Kotono’s entire body go cold—despite the heat radiating from it.

A massive orb of multicolored light, bright like the sun, blinked into existence in the sky above Wei’s palms. Its size rivaled the front gate Kotono had decimated, though its spiral of heat eclipsed the devastating blasts she’d used to do it.

Wind ripped against Kotono and Hiroko’s faces, spinning them out of the air. They landed unsteadily on the whipping grass and struggled to remain looking forward.

The howling in the air welcomed them to their new hell.

“Now listen, Ms. Inoue. I don’t have all day for you,” Wei’s voice echoed. “To be clear: you’re both going to die when I release this. Will you die resisting who you can be? Or will you die with a spark, unleashing your full power?”

Hiroko drew close. “Don’t listen! We can figure something out…”

But Kotono was already shaking her head.

“No. We can’t.”

Clenching her fist, she released the energy from Hiroko.

Wei stretched his fingers. “Feed into your fear and anxiety, Kotono. At last, discover your limits.”

With a thrust, he launched the small sun their way.

“COME ON!!” Hiroko shouted. “We can…”

The orb descended closer, its expanse more obvious.

They couldn’t dodge it.

“He’s right about me, Hiroko,” Kotono choked out. “I guess this is w—who I am…”

“It’s not!” Hiroko protested.

A hot tear rolled from Kotono’s cheek. Even in the face of death, Hiroko was refusing to let her lose hope.

“We finally got there. I finally controlled my powers today…but it still came down to this…” Kotono muttered, her eyes unblinking on the light. “Hiroko…I seriously hate fighting.”

She didn’t want her fear to save Zayza and the others. She wanted to save them.

But it seemed she’d been wishing for too much.

Kotono stopped separating the feeling of her rapid heartbeat from her mind. She stopped trying to control her shallow breath and shaky arms.

She returned to the way she started: feeling everything at once.

Kotono raised her trembling hands to the orb. Her body burst gold.

She screamed, and everything around her faded.

~

Kotono blinked, then blinked again. Once more, she sat in the dark grass.

The natural daylight had returned.

She heard a sniffle, and realized her shoulder was a bit wet. She didn’t understand how her own tears could have fallen at that angle.

Hiroko’s hand massaged her back tenderly. Kotono looked up, still blinking, to see her face.

With a slightly wet cheek but a strong gaze, Hiroko’s icy eyes were focused ahead. Kotono followed them to the source of her attention.

Behind the ditch at the start of the capital, now on the ground, stood Wei.

While she spotted no physical damage, this time, he didn’t come away untouched.

His face was pale and stunned. His eyes didn’t blink. Still numb to her own feelings now, Kotono couldn’t interpret if it was awe or terror in his stare.

Then, in a rush, he began to raise his hands to the sky just as before.

Hiroko pulled Kotono close to shield her.

But a second orb never appeared. Instead, they heard the vague buzz of a voice through a small speaker.

Reluctant, Wei paused and brought his watch to his face. He muttered something into it, and a brief conversation followed. Then, composed once more, he returned his eyes to the couple.

“It seems we’re out of time,” he said. “This has been…revealing.”

Before Kotono and Hiroko could attempt to restrain him, Wei took to the sky and flew off into the city.