“You don’t understand. This isn’t about control, or manipulation. This is about responsibility!”He could feel the pressure of the smoke building up, trying harder and harder to force him down, but he refused to be forced to the floor again.
“I have a responsibility to my position, to the power that I received, and to the people who I can help!” He shouted,
“I don’t get to choose to stop, to change my ways, or to let things go. I have no choice but to perform my duty, or die trying!”He tried to stand, fighting against the ever growing pressure building on top of him, no longer trying to push him down, but to crush him into the floor. His legs felt like they were being filled with molten lead, his arms like he was holding up the sky, but he wouldn’t allow himself to collapse. He didn’t have the
choice to falter. He had a responsibility to Otoya, to Kanna, to the other Kaijin, to the healing powers he had gained, to everyone.
Something appeared in his hands, a long, wooden object. He slammed it down onto the ground, using the force to push himself up, until he was standing on his own two feet again. He forced his eyes open, ignoring the acrid sting of smoke as he focused his gaze on the face of the giant Akuma.
“I let myself become a demon in order to help those I care about!” Mori shouted at the top of his lungs,
“And I have a responsibility to make sure you don't do the same!”He took one hand off the object in his hands and reached out in front of him, as if he was grabbing for something only he could see.
“If at the end of this, you want nothing more to do with me, then that’s fine by me!” blue fire started blazing in his outstretched hand,
“Because I don’t care if the only end of my path is an unmarked grave with no one one mourn me! If I can make a better world for those I care about, then I’ll burn in Hell with a smile on my face!”The blue fire chased back the smoke, swallowing Mori like a ravenous beast, until his body was completely consumed. Then he heard a voice, whispering in the back of his mind.
“Call me once more…”He snapped his outstretched hand closed.
“Seize Power! Seize What’s Mine! Seize Everything!” he shouted, causing the fire to flare up, breaking through the cloud of smoke that still surrounded him,
“Reynart!”A shadow washed over him, blocking out the light of the fire, as he could feel his form shift again, and just like when he’d first become Fantomas, he could hear a voice speaking to him from inside his head.
“Don’t worry about fighting, Mikado.” spoke Reynart,
“I’ll be your Kogarasu Maru. Even if the demon tries to stop your once more, I’ll fight on.”As the shadow disappeared, there stood Reynart, looking the same as when he’d appeared in the Home ec room, with the exception of the leafy green kuanai in his hands having been replaced by a bokken, dappled in the color of autumn leaves, which he leaned on like a walking stick. A few such leaves spun around the masked Kaijin as well, before burning up with an otherworldly blue fire.
The only disturbance was another voice.
“Very well. A different approach next time.”He ignored it. He had more important things to worry about now.
“Sorry for taking so long, everyone.”He lifted his sword up and pointed it at Otoya.
“Forget my babbling. We can talk later. For now, I have a promise to keep.”Move to K9, Nen Promise A
