[2-8] The Campground

[Hiro Protagonist]

Blood seeped through his shirt and wet the wrist of his right hand as he beheld the gargantuan revenant standing before him. Barry lay dead on the ground in two pieces, Hiro's spare tanto still clutched in his palm. 

No. God fucking damnit, no. He was going to save Barry. Get him out of the Danteverse, give him a job at The Black Sun. But now, no more. Secondaries didn't come back from death. Omni didn't deem them important enough. Barry was truly dead. But Hiro didn't have to fear death. Not with the Omnilium coursing through his form. Not with Omni expecting entertainment from him. 

He glared at the sickly looking murderer before him, hate and vitriol metaphysically splattering across the view screen of his goggles. The man, or whatever it was, didn't seem to care. The black holes that served as the thing's eyes just looked back at the hacker, no emotion, no elation. Just blankness as it held the dripping machete that had ended Barry's life in an instant.

Hiro's boot shifted on the ground as he extended his hand towards Barry's body, the magnetized tanto zipping to his palm as he drew the other one, his hands loosely at his sides as he spoke. "You....you killed the only friend I made since I got here. For what? FOR WHAT?!" There was no reply. "You can try to kill me too....but I sure as hell ain't going to make it easy for you."

As soon as he finished speaking, or maybe even a second before, the waterlogged monster lunged forward with a vicious slice from his bloody machete. Hiro raised one of his tanto to parry the blow, but the sheer amount of power in the man's swing caught him off guard. He was forced to turn aside, dodging the follow through as the machete knocked his tanto out of his hand. Thank Omni for those magnets he'd installed.

Before it hit the ground, it was already snapping back into his glove. The hacker strafed around the zombie like killer, and drove the knife deep into his back, right over his heart. Easy ki-

-thwap-

The giant was unfazed, knocking Hiro backwards as easily as swatting a fly. The machete came whipping around to slice open the ronin's chest, except he had ducked a split second earlier, the rusty, gore covered blade taking off two of his dreadlocks.

Aother flex of his hand and he was dual wielding once more, focusing solely on the combat. No time for emotion, he had to be quick enough or Barry would fade unavenged. Slicing and stabbing, parrying and pirouetting, Hiro fought valiantly against the murderous monstrosity. Multiple deep slices flayed the monster's skin and clothes open, spraying black ichor, but to no avail. He just kept coming.

Hiro used his speed burst and flashed backward, panting, his knives raised in a defensive stance. Jason, because of course it was Jason, stared at him, before turning his impassionate gaze to Barry's body. The monster bent down and grabbed the headless corpse's wrist, lifting the cadaver limply. Hiro came barreling towards his opponent, screaming curses and threats, before realizing he'd been baited into a trap. 

Almost immediately, the monster swung his weapon, dropping the body. Unable to overcome his own momentum, he crashed into the killer and felt a sharp, stinging cut, warm liquid flooding down his side along with a searing pain. Jason kicked him away and Hiro stumbled backwards, clutching his side. Almost as if to add insult to injury, the monster prodded Barry's body again, this time with his machete.

That was fucking it.

All the stress of the past few days came flooding over Hiro. Okor, the crash, the cannibals, the bloody vomit, the psychotic voice in his head, and finally, his friend's meaningless death. The view in his visor changed from it's usual blue to a bright, striking green, the words "OVERCLOCK ENGAGED" flashing across his field of view. Anger, hot and righteous, flooded over him, along with his vector shield. He hadn't consciously activated it, and it wasn't the usual bubble shape - It looked, and felt , like a suit of armor, extending a few inches from his body. Time slowed down. He could see Jason standing before him, his seven foot frame outlined in red, with faint white lines and marks dotting his frame. 

The hacker ignored the pain in his side, and drew his glass katana with a noise like a digital nail file, the blade trailing green lines in the air. It was surrounded by the same outline covering his body. Gritting his teeth, the hacker-ronin pointed at Jason. 

"You're fucking dead, you rotting pile of shit."

 A Friend Avenged...Hopefully

Hiro has used Tier 1 Power-up: Ronin of the Metaverse  (1 Spent, 1/2 SP Remaining. Activated for the beginning of the next round).