Description[]
Sonic vs Akira! From humiliated and powerless to feared warmongers, the psychic terrors face off to see who will rule the wreckage of the world around them. Who will triumph, the enforcer of the Eggman Empire or the powerhouse of the Great Tokyo Empire?
Interlude[]
Wiz: Those who have no power or respect desire both above all else, but when they finally get a taste of the power they so desire, it usually becomes catastrophic for the world around them.
Boomstick: And today, these two empire leading psychic warriors are going to face off to see who's the greatest of them all.
Wiz: Infinite, the Mercenary turned War-Monger from Sonic Forces.
Boomstick: Tetsuo Shima, the Tyrannical Telekinetic terror from Akira.
Boomstick: He's Wiz and I'm Boomstick.
Wiz: And it's our job to analyze their weapons, armor, and skills to find out who would win... a Death Battle.
INFINITE IS REBORN IN DEATH BATTLE![]
Wiz: Off on the far off world of Sonic the Hedgehog, the vile Doctor Eggman, tired and ready to end his rivalry with the speedy blue hedgehog, had enacted a plan that would finally ensure the destruction of Sega’s speedster and allow him to conquer the world. Luring the Blue Hedgehog into what seemed like a classic attack, he was instead greeted by something new.
Boomstick: This black Jackal with a mask and speed rivaling Sonic was no mere robot, but a nameless mercenary hell bent on world domination. He may have no real name, but you can just call him; Infinite.
Wiz: The former leader of a mercenary band known as Jackal squad who had been hired as security by Eggman, the Jackal Squad ultimately destroyed by Shadow the Hedgehog on a routine mission to infiltrate one of Eggman’s facilities, which just so happened to be the one Jackal Squad was stationed at.
Boomstick: As the whole squad was annihilated, their raging leader was humiliated by Shadow in what could hardly be called a fight, the mercenary was faced with a cold reality. He was weak, helpless, worthless, and now, alone. His gang, destroyed, his pride, in pieces, and a haunting reminder of his weakness ringing in his head. So, in a desperate, last bit attempt to prove his worthiness, he allowed Eggman to perform what we can only assume was a life altering surgery, implanting a mysterious ruby he’d found a few days prior into his chest.
Wiz: But this was no Chaos Emerald. This was the Phantom Ruby, a reality augmenting Gem that granted Infinite, well, nigh infinite power. With it, he can augment his strength and speed superhuman levels, as well as granting him levitation and high speed slight. But the Phantom Ruby’s greatest power is its control over reality itself. Not in the traditional sense of literally distorting reality and rewriting the universe around them, but rather by manipulating the reality of the mind.
Boomstick: Infinite’s powers are psychic in nature. Telekinesis, psy blasts, and his favorite, illusions. He can create fake copies of himself or others that are just as strong as the original, but have no will or mind of their own beyond what Infinite gives them. Hey Wiz, you think he ever gets bored and just talks to his illusion clones?
Wiz: Probably not, given Infinite’s distaste for any sort of compassion, friendship, or bonds in general. It’s likely his defeat as Shadow’s hands solidified the idea that power comes from loneliness, and that bonds forged with others were a weakness. Fitting then, that nothing he creates could be considered “real”.
Boomstick: Yeah, well, his arsenal of nothing was still strong enough to completely stomp Sonic into the ground and lead the Eggman Empire to take over 99% of the world. Infinite really was the trump card Eggman wanted, eh?
Wiz: But, he made one, tiny mistake. He spared a rookie soldier in the resistance purely because the thought of leaving a single, terrified survivor alive, amused him. Something he could do multiple times, sparing both Sonic and that Rookie even after defeating additional rematches.
Boomstick: But I mean, beating Sonic is no joke of a feat! That fucker can outrun black holes and keep up with spaceships moving 560 million times the speed of light! It’s amazing how Infinite could ever match him with his nothingness powers!
Wiz: That’s due to the Phantom Ruby itself, which as mentioned prior, argues his physical body with its psionic energy. It’s power is so great he can even open a hole to a pocket reality known as Null Space, a whole reality where nothing exists. Even more impressive though is that at his full power, Infinite could create a sun that he could weaponize to destroy the entire resistance in one fell swoop.
Boomstick: His power was off the charts, but it was all thwarted by that rookie, who’d managed to grab one of the Phantom Ruby copies created by Eggman and used it to just turn off Infinite’s sun. And then, that same rookie teamed up with Sonic to take him down for good.
Wiz: Despite Infinite’s commitment to his belief that strength was solitary, the power of Sonic and the Rookie’s friendship was more than he could handle. And in the end, it was revealed even Eggman never cared for him, as he had instead given Infinite the finalized Phantom Ruby copy instead of the original, which Eggman kept on hand and used to discard of Infinite when he was no longer needed. It’s almost tragic, Infinite’s power of nothingness was unable to give him anything. In the end, he lived and died a lonely, tragic, cold existence, one that was soon forgotten by his enemies, and former ally.
Boomstick: It’s like one big joke that nobody cared to laugh at.
Infinite: “That day, I gave up my own unsightly face. And I let go of the old me, the one that was so weak, so that I could become stronger. And then, at last... I obtained the power. The power to make all yield to my will. I... was... REBORN!”
TETSUO SHIMA GOES NUCLEAR IN DEATH BATTLE![]
Wiz: The year is 2019, 31 years after a Japanese experiment went so catastrophically wrong that caused World War 3. The Japanese government struggles to hold control of the city of Neo-Tokyo, which may look pretty on the outside, but a deeper look into the dystopian city reveals gangs that run rampant, and a military that must act as violent law-enforcement.
Boomstick: Geez, it really does sound like 2019.
Wiz: One of these gangs was a small-time biker gang known as the Capsules, founded and led by an orphan named Kaneda Shotaro, and his best friend, Tetsuo Shima. But while Kaneda was content with the usual biker gang activities of vandalism, reckless driving, and getting into high speed motorcycle fights with their rivals gang, the Clowns, Tetsuo wasn’t, and deep down, wanted more.
Boomstick: Yeah, Tetsuo secretly resented Kaneda because he was the top-dog of the group, always there to save him when he screwed up. All that came to a head though, on one fateful night during a typical bout with the Clowns, when Tetsuo went a bit too far chasing one guy in particular, and HOLY SHIT TETSUO LOOK OUT THERE’S A KID IN THE ROAD- OH GOD WIZ HE CAN’T HEAR US HE HAS A HELMET ON!
Wiz: As it just so happened, a boy had escaped from military confinement earlier that night with the help of a rebel working to undermine the Japanese government, and while trying his damndest to escape, walked right into Tetsuo’s path. But miraculously, both Tetsuo the boy survived, as the boy was an Esper developed by the Japanese science branch, and their contacts unlocked the same latent abilities within Tetsuo.
Boomstick: Which won forehead over here a one way ticket to military experimentation while the rest of his buddies got off scott free. No longer would Tetsuo’s be bullied by the kids from the orphanage, or by the Clowns, and he’d certainly never need Kandea’s saving again. Within the next 24 hours, and a brief escape from the hospital later, Tetsuo’s Esper abilities had fully manifested, and he was storming out of the hospital crushing everything in his path.
Wiz: Ironically enough, the very experiments that created the incident that caused World War 3, had now unlocked nigh unstoppable powers in a boy with the hunger for power to crush everything in his way. And that’s not a metaphor either. With his newly developed psychic powers, Tetsuo could literally crush your internal organs to dust, or shred dozens of armored guards with gravity wells. He can also fly, read minds, create psychic barriers, and casually release shockwaves of psionic energy that can casually splatter a human body against a wall.
Boomstick: He can even teleport, manipulate fire and lighting, dispel illusions, rapidly heal his injuries, absorb blasts of psychic energy from others, and even peer into the future with minor precognition. There was no way around it, Tetsuo was the strongest guy in Neo-Tokyo, and he proved it by not only killing everyone the military sent to stop him and defeating this trio of weird Esper kids, but by completely slaughtering everyone in the Capsules except for Kaneda and this one guy, Kaisuke, and completely wrecked their old hideout. After that, he went on a rampage trying to find the only Esper as strong as him; Akira. And in doing so, he accidentally became the leader of a revolution that believed Akira would save humanity.
Wiz: This is where the storytelling differs from the movie and the manga. While in the movie, Tetsuo’s followers are quickly forgotten about when he discovers Akira had been dissected years ago after he caused the World War 3 incident, in the manga Akira was very much alive, and Tetsuo convinced him to start an empire together, of which they would rule over; the Great Tokyo Empire. Any opposition was quickly wiped out, including both the Japanese and US Military that tried to stop him.
Boomstick: He’s survived having his entire body deformed, and just healed right back up. Hell, they even tried to nuke him with an orbiting laser satellite that fires light speed lasers, and he was fast enough to dodge it! You know how fast that is!?
Wiz: Yeah, it’s-
Boomstick: It’s really fucking fast for a 15 year old who got powers like, two days ago! And that shit’s consistent, since the laser rifles Kaneda and the military used also move at the speed of light, and Tetsuo had no problem reacting to and dodging those either. He even jumped to the moon in just a couple seconds one time, just because he could. Also he made himself this sick-ass metal arm after losing his right one, that’s pretty cool.
Wiz: Fair enough. But Tetsuo’s psychic power doesn’t just make him fast, but terrifyingly strong. He once created a 8.5 magnitude Earthquake, created a massive crater on the moon just because he could, and is even listed as having power so great, it could destroy the Earth itself. Despite all his newfound power however, Tetsuo still found himself as lonely as before, even with his developing romantic relationship with Kaori, the one girl who still genuinely loved him for who he was.
Boomstick: Whatever she saw in him was beyond me, but hey, you do you lady. Although it uh, didn’t quite work out for her, when Tetsuo’s right hand aid shot her in the back. Or if you prefer the anime version, where she gets crushed to death after Tetsuo loses all control of his psychic powers and uh, turns into this…gross…monstrosity…
Wiz: That was Tetsuo’s one big weakness, aside from his arrogance and short temper. While he generally had pretty alright control of his psychic abilities, without the medicine given to him to keep them under control, the stress of the military and Kaneda’s rebellion breathing down his neck, and Kaori’s death in the manga, Tetsuo’s ever increasing psychic power, what was his greatest trump card, caused his body to mutate into this…honestly, abomination to humanity of flesh and mass, causing his power to skyrocket, but also subjecting him to unendingly horrible madness, agony, and pain.
Boomstick: God, I think I’m gonna hurl-
Wiz: But for as gross as this mutation form is, it also gives rise to Tetsuo’s greatest feat. His power had grown so great, it transcended even this form, and threatened to cause a blast of psychic energy so great, it could cause the big bang and destroy the universe. In the manga, Tetsuo, Akira, and the Espers disappear to never be seen again, and it’s speculated by scientists that Tetsuo created a new universe. But in the anime movie-
Boomstick: Yeah, they just straight up confirm that’s what happens. Jesus, how the fuck did we get here Wiz?
Wiz: But in the end, after becoming a literal monster both inside and out, Kaneda was still there for Tetsuo in his final moments in our universe. Making amends at the very end, Tetsuo acknowledged his failures as a person for what they were, and went off to create a new world, never to be seen again. Ironically enough, Kaneda would still keep Tetsuo’s empire standing, now the Great Akira Empire, finally giving Tetsup the fame and glory he always wanted.
Boomstick: It was only in death that Tetsuo received the power and attention he always wanted, as well as the humanity to properly wield it.
Tetsuo: “Kaneda, you've always been a pain in the ass, you know. You've been telling me what to do since we were kids. You always treat me like a kid. You always show up and start bossing me around, and don't you deny it!”
Pre-Fight[]
Wiz: Alright the combatants are set and we’ve run the data through all possibilities.
Boomstick: It’s time for a DEATH BATTLE!!
DEATH BATTLE![]
// NEO TOKYO \\
An explosion rips through the air as a tank is reduced to rubble, human soldiers screaming as robots gun them down and march over their bodies. The leader of the military, Colonel Shikishima, fires at one of the oncoming robots while ordering his men to retreat as another tank explodes to nothing at the hand of Infinite, the jackal laughing as he flicks his hand and fires a laser that cuts down several more soldiers.
Infinite: You have fought admirably, Colonel, but I run out of amusement playing with you. The stench of your fear no longer amuses me. Lay down your arms, and die quickly.
Colonel Shikishima: I will…never let this city fall to men like Doctor Eggman.
Infinite: Fortunately for you, you won’t be around to see it.
???: Now just wait right there!
Infinite pauses and looks over to see a boy standing amongst the ruins of the battlefield, standing atop a large pile of debris like he owned the place with a cape flowing in the wind and a coky, shit eating grin on his face.
Tetsuo: Only I get the honor of killing that man, you hear me? My Empire runs this down, not yours! You got it, freak?
As Infinite’s only visible eye draws over to Tetsuo, the jackal just laughs again in amusement while crossing his arms and just shaking his head at the esper.
Infinite: Hahahaha! What do we have here, a child trying to be a king. Very well, I shall play with you, until you know the feelings of fear and despair. Only after you succumb to both, will you be allowed to die.
Tetsuo’s eyes narrowed as he raised him, grabbing several Badniks off the ground with his telekinesis and crushing them into projectile weapons and he aims as Infinite, sending them flying at him at high speeds. Infinite, noticing the incoming projectiles, raised his hand and activated the Phantom Ruby, several phantasmal cubes appearing in the air to intercept and counter the metal projectiles.
Leaping through the air, Tetsuo propelled himself forwards and flew across the battlefield at high speeds, grabbing several Egg Pawns with his psychic abilities and dragging them through the air, using them as shields to deflect oncoming cubes fired by Infinite, before grabbing the last one and redirecting it back around at the jackal. Infinite casually raised a hand to dispel it, only for Tetsuo to suddenly fly up in his face, grin, and release a shockwave that blasted Infinite straight down into the ground, kicking up pieces of concrete and rubble.
Tetsuo: Don’t call me a child. I’m the boss around here!
Another shockwave swept across the battlefield as Infinite raised up into the air again, firing several laser blasts that Tetsuo weaved to the side to avoid before absorbing one and sending it back around to hit Infinite, who quickly dispelled it with the flick of a finger. Flying forwards, Infinite suddenly appeared in front of Tetsuo and and swing around, kicking the boy in the gut before firing a laser from his hand to send him flying backwards, and then throwing a few more bolts of energy at Tetsuo who quickly recovered himself and absorbed the energy bolts before they could hit him. The distinct sound of the Phantom Ruby activating could then suddenly be heard as Infinite laughed as several large pillars of phantom cubes suddenly manifested in the air, all aimed straight at Tetsuo. Infinite motioned his hand forwards, and fired one straight at Tetsuo like a javelin aiming to pierce a target.
Tetsuo stuck his arms out into the air, grabbing the phantom javelin with his telekinesis to slow it’s momentum, but Infinite just laughed as he motioned his finger forwards while the javelin slammed into Tetsuo and crushed him against the ground before disappearing. Tetsuo lay on the ground, groaning in pain as his eyes opened to see the rest of the javelins suddenly flying towards him. It was clear to him that he couldn't just stop and redirect them, so he instead formed a barrier around himself that the javelins slammed into quite harshly. Tetsuo grunted loudly as he pushed back against the javelins, which continued to push against his attempts to repel them away, pushing him deeper into the ground.
Infinite: Well, are you scared yet, boy? Hehehehe, the stench of your fear…it amuses me so much. You try to fight back, yet it’s fruitless to do so.
Tetsuo: Nggggh…SHUT UP!!!
In a burst of rage, Tetsuo’s powers skyrocketed as a wave of psychic energy flew across the city, dispelling the Phantom Ruby’s javelins into mist as Tetsuo blasted into the air, a bolt of lighting flying through the air and surrounding him until he fired the bolt of lighting outwards to hit Infinite and send him flying backwards. As Infinite recovered from getting hit, Tetsuo grabbed several badniks, cars, and pieces of concrete, shoving them all together into a massive pile and using it to dunk Infinite on the head and crush him into the ground.
That was short lived however, as Infinite blasted the pile of trash away and raised a hand to focus on Tetsuo, then created a gravity well on him to bring the boy down to earth. Tetsuo grunted as he felt himself slam into the ground, a vein on his forehead rising slightly as he used his own ability to create gravity wells on Infinite, canceling both abilities out. The downside, of course, was that the ground around them crumbled and destabilized for miles outwards. Buildings began to tilt and collapse onto the military soldiers fighting against the Eggman Empire, with both sides seeing casualties to the falling buildings around them;
Miles away, Shotaro Kandea watched the double battle between Tetsuo and Infinite and the Japanese Military and the Eggman Empire from a vantage point from atop his bike through the scope on his laser rifle. He glanced down at the laser rifle in his hands, and then back to the battle as he watched what little to be a 10 story tall building be lifted into the air.
Kandea: Yeah…think I’m gonna sit this one out…
As he peered back through the scope, he could see it was Tetsuo lifting the massive building with his Telekinesis, which somehow didn’t surprise him at all.
Back at the battlefield, Tetsuo grunted as he strained himself lifting the building into position, but he had succeeded in his goal. A massive ten story building, aimed directly at Infinite and the robot army he was leading. He grinned as his hand clenched tightly, and he thrusted it forwards and sent the building flying.
Tetsuo: EAT SHIT AND DIE, JACKAL!!!!
Several soldiers gasped as they were caught up in the attack and crushed by the building, not that Tetsuo cared. He only grinned, and furthermore, laughed, as he watched dozens and hundreds of Eggman’s robots be crushed in an instant by his stunt, which had caught even Infinite off guard and left him buried beneath the now fallen building as he landed on the building and looked up at the Egg Carrier.
Tetsuo: Hahahahaha!!! Guess what Baldy, you’re NEXT! YOU HEAR ME!?
But as Tetsuo continued to shout obscenities as the Egg Carrier, he suddenly gasped and noticed a shaking in the building as Infinite flew up through the side and into the air, a glare at Tetsuo noticeable despite only having one eye.
Infinite: Perhaps I misjudged you. You do have a bit more…bite, to your bark. It will only make breaking you all the more amusing.
Tetsuo: You’re gonna die, you hear me! I’m not done with you yet!
As the two psychics began to fight again, Colonel Shikishima looked upon them in fear as their fight continued to wreak havoc upon Tokyo. His men were outnumbered and outgunned, and if the Eggman Empire didn’t slaughter them, Tetsuo would. So, he grabbed his radio, and turned it on.
Colonel Shikishima: Fire the SOL on my coordinates, now! We have to kill both Eggman and Tetsuo Shima!
As Tetsuo teleported behind Infinite and blasted the jackal with a shockwave, the esper suddenly paused and turned to look towards the sky when he saw the beam of the SOL flying straight down upon them. No, it wasn’t them raining down on them. They were ground zero for the attack. Tetsuo quickly formed a barrier around himself as he was swallowed by the laser, and Infinite activated the Phantom Ruby to protect himself, and the laser impacted with the ground.
The ground shook and upended and the sky brightened before it went darker, the Egg Carrier remained floating over the now giant crater in the city. Down within the city, Infinite was down on one knee, but glanced up at the Orbital Satellite and crossed his arms, giving a soft chuckle at the failed attempt on his life when his wrist communicator went off.
Eggman: Infinite, do you copy? Are you okay!?
Infinite: Of course.
Eggman: Well hurry up and take out that SOL before it fires again!!!
Tetsuo: Don’t bother!
Infinite turned around as he heard an impact on the ground, and to his surprise, saw Tetsuo standing there with his entire right arm missing, replaced by a metal one constructed out of machinery.
Tetsuo: I destroyed it just now. Now there’s nothing left to stop me from killing you.
Infinite: You really still think yourself capable of defeating me? Hahaha…well then, come and prove it.
Shutting off his com, Infinite activated the Phantom Ruby again and flew forwards, appearing in front of Tetsuo and swinging his leg around to kick him, only for Tetsuo to block it with his metal arm before swinging around and socking Infinite square in the faceplate of his helmet with a literal iron fist. Raising his left hand, Tetsuo then grabbed and threw a large boulder with his telekinesis that Infinite blasted apart before generating several cubes with the Phantom Ruby, flinging them through the air at Tetsuo, who flew out of the way to dodge them before he grabbed a few and hurled them back around at Infinite. Of course, Infinite promptly erased them with a wave of his hand before bringing a cube back around to hit Tetsuo in the back.
As Tetsuo spun through the air, Infinite laughed again as he appeared before him and kicked him square into the ground, where a spring materialized on a block that Tetsuo bounced off with a loud “twang” sound playing before he was suddenly punted through the air by Infinite yet again. Spinning to get control of himself, Tetsuo released a wave of psionic energy that ignited the molecules in the air, releasing a big explosion of fire aimed that at Infinite, but the jackal simpled phased through it and released a shockwave that blasted Tetsuo off balance.
Infinite: Hahahaha! Where’s all that bravado now, kid? Or are you finally realizing how outmatched you are?
Wincing in pain as he rubbed a bit of blood off his lip, Tetsuo glared as he gathered crushed his hand and created another gravity well on top of Infinite to bring him down, but that was short lived as Infinite appeared behind him like a sudden glitch and promptly kicked him straight into the dirt of the ground. As Tetsuo brought himself out of the dirt, he felt a blast of energy send him flying and sprawling along the ground again as Infinite’s laugh again echoed in his ears, and he growled while pushing himself back onto his feet, spinning around to face Infinite.
Tetsuo: STOP LAUGHING AT ME--
But Tetsuo’s outburst was cut short as a beam of energy pierced his chest, causing him to spit blood as he curled over, clutching his chest wound. Infinite lowered his right hand as it swirled with energy, and the jack began to laugh further at the boy before him.
Infinite: What’s there not to laugh at? You’re a child, throwing a temperature tantrum. I relish in your anguish. Making you break has been the most fun I’ve had in ages.
As Infinite prepared to yet again kick Tetsuo while he was down, Tetsuo suddenly shot his hand out and clutched it, and in that second Infinite suddenly hunched forwards as he felt a clawing pain in his chest that felt like it was about to combust. His heart squeezed, and within his mask Infinite spat blood that could never reach the ground while his body froze up, and it was Tetsuo’s turn to begin laughing loudly.
Tetsuo: Ha…ahahaha! How do you like that!? Now it’s your turn to kneel over and beg for mercy, weakling!!!! And when you finally do, I’ll crush your heart!
As Infinite clutched at his chest, his one eye focused on Tetsuo as his anger began to boil. The Phantom Ruby in his chest began to glow before it blasted out and the entire area around them was bathed in a crimson red aura. Tetsuo blinked as he slowly stood back up, only to gasp when he noticed his psychic abilities were no longer working. Infinite stood back up, his body lurching as blood began to drip from a crack in the mask where Tetsuo had hit him earlier.
Infinite: I…am not weak. I am the only one with power…in my reality, you have nothing.
Several Egg Pawns suddenly formed at Infinite’s side, their blasters all aimed at Tetsuo’s face as he, for a moment, wondered if Infinite had actually taken away his Esper abilities. But, he scoffed at that idea as soon as he thought of it. It was ridiculous. In fact, if he focused…he could hear something in his mind…
This is an illusion…
I just need to open my eyes.
Infinite: Any last words?
Tetsuo: YEAH! EAT SHIT!
Pushing through Infinite’s illusion, Tetsuo’s mind focused his psionic energy to swell up and blast him away with a shockwave as he flew forwards, drawing his metal arm back just so he could enjoy the satisfaction of punching Infinite’s mask, delivering a blow that genuinely made it crack before he went to try and choke the jackal out. Infinite let out a choked gasp, but quickly stuck one hand out to summon a cube and beat Tetsuo in the side with it to get him off of him before flying back, irritation showing in the jackal.
Infinite: How…how is he stopping me!? This cannot be!
As the power of the Phantom Ruby began to overclock,l copies of Infinite spawned by the jackals side as he raised his hand to the air, and the copies began to fly down towards Tetsuo down on the ground. The Esper looked up at them, and then grinned as he rocketed through the air. By connecting with Infinite’s mind to break through his illusions earlier, he’d gotten a chance to read his mind, and now he knew exactly what he needed to do. He just needed to destroy that damned ruby, and he’ll have proved that he was stronger.
Flying through the air at speeds beyond the speed of sound, Tetsuo weaved past the copies of Infinite and turned to focus on one, sticking his hand out and crushing it’s chest until it exploded before he shielded himself from a laser blast and turned to another copy, flying past it and shooting a bolt of lighting that punctured it’s chest. He dodged two more, catching those two in a gravity well that crushed them both, and then finally he turned and dispatched of the last clone by causing its head to combust. Looking up at the real Infinite, Tetsuo went flying through the air and drew his hand back to strike at his chest, when…he saw it. A bright light.
The sun.
He was looking at a mini sun being held in Infinite’s hand. The jackal laughed like a maniacal madman as he threw it down at Tetsuo, and Tetsuo stopped flying as he looked up at the impending ball of doom flying straight at him. But he showed no fear, because he was confident he could stop it. Mustering up all the psychic energy he had, Tetsuo focused it all into a single focal point, enough power to rupture and destroy the planet, and flew straight up to Infinite’s star. He readied himself, and unleashed all his power straight into the star that aimed to collide with the earth.
Psychic energy began flying haywire through the sky. Eggmab watched the collision in suspense from the Egg Carrier, monitoring the energy output of the collision, while Kandea, Kei, and Kaisuke watched from the ground. Tetsuo grunted to exert himself as he pushed against the star, and Infinite simply motioned his hand forwards to counter it by pushing the star forwards more. The energy began to swell, building between the two of them…and then, as Tetsuo felt his limits shatter and his power rise like never before, the star exploded in a bright flash of light. Infinite gasped in surprise as Tetsuo floated before him, charging straight for him and his hand outstretched to grab the Phantom Ruby.
Tetsuo: NOW I’VE GOT YOU, YOU BASTARD!
Only for him to stop an inch away. Not because Infinite had attacked him, but because he just couldn’t keep going. Tetsuo gasped as he tried to catch his breath, but his body went limp and he began falling back towards the ground. He had exerted more power than ever before, but now, it felt like he couldn't fight at all. His body felt heavy, he could barely focus his telekinesis, let alone keep himself from falling. He was completely spent.
As his body hit the ground, Tetsuo could faintly see Infinite landing before him, the jackal being equally tied, but still standing. Still fighting. Still…stronger…
Infinite: Hahaha…I’m almost impressed. For a child, you were a worthy opponent. But now, this fight is over.
Tetsuo: N…no…
As Tetsuo lurched his body forwards, aiming his metal arm at Infinite, he tried to grab the jackal with telekinesis, but he couldn't. Instead, his arm began to shake and twitch, something that surprised him, before he felt a sharp pain go flying through his metal arm. Well, a sharp pain, and giant blobs of flesh. Tetsuo screamed, in fear, in agony, and even Infinite backed away in surprise as more and more blobs and mounds of flesh began expanding from Tetsuo’s body. Expanding, pulsing, outwards, consuming the young boy until he was nothing but a giant, gross, hideous abomination to humanity.
Eggman: INFINITE, THAT MONSTROSITY IS GROWING IN POWER! His body couldn’t contain his psychic energy, so now it’s mutating as a result! Destroy him, now!
Infinite: Ha. I’ll simply contain him in Null Space.
Flying closer towards the mutated Tetsuo, Infinite sliced away a few tentacles trying to grab him before he opened the portal to Null Space, which ripped through the world like a tear and began to try and pull the massive, mutated Tetsuo in. There was just one problem, Tetsuo’s own psychic energy lashed back against Null Space, causing the portal to destabilize and the world around them to begin cracking.
Infinite: WHAT!? Impossible! This can’t be- AGH!
As a blobby mass of flesh grabbed Infinite, the jackal struggled to escape as he heard Tetsuo’s voice ringing in his mind.
Tetsuo (V.O.): I can die…but…I can…kill you too!
Infinite: NO!!!!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!
The reaction of psychic energy and the Phantom Ruby reached is climax, the shattering Null Space portal closing up for a second before a white light suddenly blasted outwards, engulfing Tetsuo, Infinite, Kandea, Kei, Kaisuke, Eggman, and all of Neo-Tokyo. And then further, further, and further. Until the world, the galaxy, the universe itself was consumed by Null Space…
And then, the big bang destroyed it all.
Or did it?
A light came through the darkness, as stars began to shine again. Galaxies began to twirl anew, lights shining all across the new universe. A shattered, broken mask floated through space, as a voice could be heard watching over the new universe.
“I am…Tetsuo…”
Conclusion[]
Boomstick: Woah, Wiz, I uh…I’m gonna be real with you, I have no idea what the fuck just happened. Who even won!?
Wiz: This was a very weird matchup to look at. Surprisingly, despite holding massive advantages, Infinite just didn’t have the means to come out on top over Tetsuo. It’s true that his creating a star and keeping up with Sonic made him several hundreds of times faster and stronger than Tetsuo, but he was still outmatched by the Esper’s abilities.
Boomstick: Yeah, Tetsuo’s esper abilities hard countered the Phantom Ruby. Tetsuo could just see right though and uno reverse card any of Infinite’s illusions at any point, or read his mind to figure out exactly how the Phantom Ruby worked, or just crush his internal organs if he really didn’t want to fight Infinite.
Wiz: It’s also worth noting that Tetsuo was technically more versatile than Infinite, as he’s shown to be a bit more creative with how he applies his Psychic abilities compared to Infinite’s use of the Phantom Ruby. He could absorb or deflect many of Infinite’s ranged options, and he lacked any real exploitable weaknesses, while the Phantom Ruby had a more limited power supply that Tetsuo could theoretically drain until it was powerless, or just destroy with a lucky shot.
Boomstick: Okay, but Wiz, we’re still beating around the bush? How the hell could Tetsuo win if he was so much weaker compared to Infinite?
Wiz: Simply put, Infinite’s own arrogance and ego was his undoing. As shown by his encounters with both Sonic and the Rookie, Infinite has a consistent habit of underestimating those he considers weaker than him, as well as not committing to fights that he’ll either leave, or simply just not finish his opponents off. That, and his obsession with wanting to “break” his opponents until they’re trembling in fear, which would never go well with Tetsuo’s feisty and headstrong personality.
Boomstick: Ah, so it’s a good ol’ case of fuck around and find out, eh Wiz?
Wiz: That’s right Boomstick. Despite Infinite being much, much stronger, it’s still within his character to toy with his opponents, which ironically gave Tetsuo plenty of time to play catch up with his ever increasing power. Eventually, Tetsuo would be able to match and surpass Infinite, assuming he didn’t just mutate and cause a Big Bang, something Infinite had zero counter to. And remember, in Death Battle, we have to look at characters at their maximum potential, which includes Tetsuo’s mutation and universal nuke.
Boomstick: Maybe Infinite could stop the big bang by sucking Tetsuo into Null Space, but Sonic was able to break outta there pretty quickly, so it’s hard to say that would work. Damn, Infinite really did shoot himself in the foot here, didn’t he?
Wiz: Despite Infinite’s seemingly superior power and speed, Tetsuo’s greater versatility, stronger psychic powers in combination with Infinite’s own character meant the end for the ultimate mercenary.
Boomstick: Infinite just got Tetsu-owned.
Wiz: Is that seriously the best pun you can go?
Boomstick: Eh, I don’t want Forces em.
Wiz: The winner is Tetsuo Shima.
Additional credits[]
Thank you to Sharaku Jr. for beta reading this fight, as well as creating the sprite renders seen in the battle.