“What’s wrong with mushrooms, asswipe?” retorted Bisco, firing off a couple more shots. “Launch:Wall:Protect!” said Apollo, and at his mantra-like command, a jet-black wall rose from the ground and blocked the arrows. “?! The Rust-Eaters… They ain’t takin’ root!” “Launch:City:Maker!” Next, a rapid-fire barrage of blue cubes came from Apollo’s hand. Bisco flitted around the settlement, evading them, but the glowing projectiles followed him doggedly, and even his arrows bounced off the black walls protecting Apollo, without even giving the mushrooms a chance to grow. “Shit! This ain’t good!” “Won/shed/kerd/snew! (Protect target area!)” Milo leaped to Bisco’s side and chanted a mantra, creating a wall of green spores. The pursuing cubes crashed against it one after the other, but Milo’s shield kept them all at bay. “That bastard,” growled Bisco. “He’s got a barrier like what Kelshinha had. This bow’s not gonna be enough!” “Okay,” replied Milo, “then I’ll give you the Mantra Bow!” “Yeah!” Apollo was charging up some kind of attack in his hands to break through Milo’s shield, so Milo quickly and silently muttered the mantra to himself, and the green cube traced out a brilliant emerald arc in the air. A shining longbow appeared in Bisco’s hand, looking as though it could pierce the very stars themselves, and it gleamed like the fang in the corner of Bisco’s grin. “Now get him, Bisco!” “City:Maker:Blast!” “Take thiiis!” The second Apollo fired the cube, imbued with all his might, Bisco released his arrow, and it impaled Apollo’s blue cluster of particles with a bright-orange streak and a scattering of golden motes. “!!” Apollo threw up his jet-black shields to defend himself, but even they only slightly altered the course of Bisco’s extraordinary arrow, which struck Apollo in the arm and tore it clean off. “…Wh-what?!” Apollo clenched his teeth in pain and surprise, yet still he raised his other hand toward the now defenseless duo, and blue particles danced along his arm as he charged up another attack. The two boys had been launched into the air by the incredible recoil of Bisco’s Mantra Bow and now drifted helplessly toward the ground. They were sitting ducks. Gaboom! Suddenly, a shining Rust-Eater mushroom burst out of Apollo’s side, launching him off in the opposite direction. Gaboom! Gaboom! A second and third explosive growth sent him flying all over the place before he finally landed on his hands and knees, an orange arrowhead in his hand. He coughed, and a strange white dust, like sand, hit the ground. “Im…possible… The spores… They’re devouring the Apollo Particles…!” In stark contrast to his previous expressionless demeanor, Apollo was clearly aghast over what was happening. He coughed a few more times before the two boys finally fell unceremoniously to the ground. “W-we did it, Bisco!” Milo cried. “No, not yet!” replied Bisco. “I don’t know how, but he’s still alive!!” The two watched Apollo struggle to his feet. Somehow, the mushrooms had not killed him. He was using his strange particles to keep the Rust-Eater’s growth at bay. He glared at Bisco and Milo, clutching his stump, as the white dust poured from his wounds. “I must withdraw…,” he said. White sand spilling from his crimson eyes, he slowly took a step back. “It is proper manners to recognize the strength of one’s opponent. You win, this time… However, I believe I understand…what was hindering my urbanization. These…organic particles… They’ve been obstructing the Apollo Particles. I shall triumph next time…if I can just get past you…” “You think we’re going to let you?” “Milo!” “Launch:City:Maker…!” Milo leaped to his feet and leveled his bow, but Apollo slapped his remaining hand to the ground, and a steel girder shot from the earth and pierced Milo’s leg, pinning him to the spot. “…! Wh-whaah!” “Milo!” Apollo pressed his attack on the wounded duo. Like setting a hunting dog on its prey, he levitated his severed arm into the air and fired it toward Milo. Damn, my leg! I can’t move! “Rrraaaargh!” At the last second, Tirol came out of her hiding place and threw herself in front of Milo. Swinging her crowbar sideways, she caught the flying arm on the wrist and severed it in two. “Hahh…hahh! Yeah! How d’ya like them apples, asshole?” “Tirol! Get out of the way!” Milo shouted, but Apollo was too fast. Discarding its arm like a lizard’s tail, the hand continued moving on its own and latched on to Tirol’s face. “Wagh! What the heck?! Get off me— Waagh! Aaaagh!” The hand fired a stream of blue particles into her head, and there was a horrific crunching sound, like termites eating at wood. Tirol screamed out in pain as the hand clamped down on her, hard. “It hurts! It hurts! Milo! Bisco! Get it off!” “Tirol!” screamed Milo. “You bastard!” Still on the ground, Bisco fired a Rust-Eater arrow at Tirol, tearing the hand from her face with unparalleled finesse. There was a Gaboom! Gaboom! as the mushrooms blossomed, and then Apollo’s hand fell silent and unmoving at last. “Transfer…preparations…complete… Tokyo in five…four…” “What did you do to Tirol, asshole?!” “I must hurry…and create an antidote… It’s the spores… The cause is mushroom spores…” As Apollo walked away, his body began to disintegrate into countless blue particles. Bisco fired an arrow after him, but just as it was about to hit, Apollo disappeared completely into blue mist and was blown away on the breeze. All that showed he was ever there was the destruction left in his wake: a village half-transformed into a city and the remains of the Mushroom Keepers and crabs who fell in battle against him…and Tirol, who now labored with heavy and ragged breaths. “Tirol!” cried Milo. “Ahhh, what has he done…?” When Bisco heard his partner’s tragic wails, he rushed over to help. But when he took one look over Milo’s shoulder at Tirol, he fell silent. From the leftmost part of where Apollo’s hand had grabbed her, down her neck, all the way to her collarbone, Tirol’s skin was covered in a miniature cityscape. Even now, it seemed to be spreading, tiny buildings and roads bursting out of her skin. “Why, Tirol?! I told you to stay hidden!” “Ah-ha-ha… Yeah, ya did… I guess I’ve just been around you two idiots for so long, I caught the stupid.” “What about the Rust medicine? Where is it?” Bisco asked. “I’ve already tried that! But it’s not working… The disease is still spreading!” Tirol gave a resigned laugh. “Ah-ha-ha… I guess that’s it, then. What a rotten life I had… Cough! Cough!” When she coughed into Milo’s chest, little buildings and telegraph poles were mixed in with her blood. Already, the infection had spread to her lungs. “Cough! But…it was a fun life, ya know… ’Cause…I got to meet you…” “You can’t give up yet!” pleaded Milo. “I can still save you!” “C-come…visit me in hell…when ya get the chance, won’t you? I’ll be waiting… Milo… Akaboshi…” “No! This can’t be happening! Tirol! You can’t die!” Milo cried with teary eyes. Just as he did, though, something started to happen. A host of green spores began floating around him. Don’t let her die! As if whipped up by Milo’s determination, the spores grew agitated and became a fiery orange color. Milo squeezed his eyes shut in concentration, and the spores combined into a miniature sun. “…What the hell is this?! Milo! Hey, Milo! Snap out of it!” “Bisco! Tirol’s gonna… She’s gonna…!” “Pull yourself together, dumbass! Look at that! Did you make it with your mantra powers?” At Bisco’s voice, Milo seemed to calm down a little, and he slowly opened his eyes…to see before him a brilliant crimson cube, quite unlike his usual one, giving off a radiant gleam. “Wh-what the heck?!” Milo squinted at it. It was unlike anything he had ever seen. It gently rotated, as if surveying the state of Tirol’s body, before drifting over toward her gently parted lips…and disappearing inside her body with a ridiculous Shthunk! noise. “?! Wh-whaaa?!” “Whaaah?! What is it doing? It won’t listen to me!” Breaking free of its master’s control, the cube darted around inside Tirol as she clutched her throat, causing her whole body to shine crimson. “Ah! Wait—! What? What’s…? Are those my lungs? Hey! Get outta there! You can’t touch a lady’s organs like—! Ah-ha-ha-ha! Stop it! That tickles!” “It’s out of control! I can’t stop it! Bisco, do something!” “Wait, look at that…! Look at what it’s doing to Tirol!” The cube’s green light swept over Tirol’s body and erased the miniature city, causing it to disintegrate into white dust. The two boys stared in shock at the miraculous recovery, while Tirol herself was unable to contain her discomfort, alternating between fits of laughter and screams as she flailed in Milo’s arms. “Look, Bisco! It’s turning her back to normal!” “She’s like a flopping fish… Well, if she’s got that much energy, I guess it means she ain’t about to croak.” “How can you say that at a time like this?!” Tirol continued to thrash about as if possessed before giving one last spasm and falling still. Then she shot to her feet and, with strange, robotic movements and unsettling cracking noises, turned to face the two boys. “City Maker ninety-four percent erased. Normal movement restored. In order to maintain organic system life span, this device will remain present until such time as City Maker root user is deleted.” From out of Tirol’s expressionless mouth came an incomprehensible stream of jargon, and Bisco and Milo turned to each other in disbelief. Ignoring them, Tirol looked herself over before crossing her arms and going, “Hmm…I hadn’t planned on leaving Milo yet, but with such a strong desire, there wasn’t much I could do. If I hadn’t intervened, this girl would have fallen prey to the city.” “…Hey, Tirol. What’s the matter? Something still wrong?” Bisco asked. “Nope. I feel totally fine.” “Totally fine…? But you…” Though the jellyfish-haired girl did seem to be looking a lot healthier, her usual cheeky expression was nowhere to be seen. Instead, she sported a noble, almost manly look, and most strikingly, her signature yellow eyes were now bright red. And on her brow, there was some kind of mark. A diamond-shaped, geometrical pattern that glowed and dimmed with a faint red light. “…Do I look different to you? I suppose I must. But that’s what girls are like at that impressionable stage in our lives. Look away for a moment, and we can change. Just like that.” “It’s been five seconds. And we were looking at you the whole time.” “Do you not trust me, Bisco? After all we’ve been through together?” Tirol’s red eyes flared wide, and she stared into Bisco’s eyes with fierce resolution. “I’m the genuine article. Your friend, Tirol Ochagama. Height: four feet and eight inches. Weight: seventy-eight pounds. Twenty-one years of age. Likes: money and hot chocolate. First fell in love at eleven, and a troubled relationship followed. My ex-boyfriend hated jellyfish, and it is for that reason that I subsequently styled my hair after one. My measurements, from the top, are…” “Okay, okay! I get it! You don’t have to tell us all that!” “Hey, Tirol?” asked Milo. “Has the infection really stopped? Does it still hurt?” “Indeed, it has! Some of the substance still remains internally, but the urbanization of the surface has been completely erased. This part is fine now. This part, too…” Tirol started stripping off articles of clothing until she stood before the boys in only her underwear. When she moved to remove those, too, she suddenly slapped herself across the face, knocking herself to the ground. Then she slowly sat up, rubbing her swollen cheek. “Th-this one is surprisingly willful, to still be able to exert control over the body like that… What’s that you say? If I’m going to give a striptease, I should be charging for it? What is that supposed to mean…?” “Tirol! Who are you talking to? What the heck is going on?” “Looks like demon possession to me,” said Bisco. “We’d better get her to the elder’s place; they’ve got incense that can help with this kind of thing. Besides, there might be more of that guy’s goons around. I wanna make sure everyone’s okay.” As if on cue, Actagawa dropped from above, quaking the earth as he landed, and the two boys leaped atop his back. Without even waiting for Bisco’s helping hand, Tirol sprang up behind them and clung to Milo’s back. “Okay, Bisco, let’s go! We have to figure out what’s wrong with Tirol!” “…Tirol,” Bisco said. “Was that thing you said earlier true? The reason you style your hair that way is to get back at an ex?” “It is true. It says as much in my memory banks…,” Tirol said, then once again slapped herself across the cheek, causing her nose to bleed, before continuing. “…I mean… Er…you must pretend you didn’t hear that. Apparently, it’s supposed to be so that it’s easier to remember my store, Jellyfish General.” “Yeah, that’s what I thought, right?” said Milo. “This girl’s gettin’ weirder by the second. Actagawa, take us to the elder’s place, pronto!” Actagawa kicked aside one of the white robots that still littered the ground before responding to Bisco’s guiding hand and taking off like a bullet toward the center of the village.
Chapter 60
12 min read