Jaegers Battle Royal is a Death Battle by Sinnovalos.
Description[]
Akame ga Kill fest! In a total self destruction of the Jaegers, which assassin busting team member stands above all others?
Interlude[]
Wiz: Night Raid proved to be a thorn in the side of the Empire for as long as the rebellion drew breath. A direct method of countering them was the formation of The Jaegers.
Boomstick: But, as with all factions, there is the question: which member is the strongest?
Wiz: And today, that is precisely what we set out to find out as we place all seven members against one another.
Boomstick: He's Wiz and I'm Boomstick!
Wiz: And it's our job to analyse their weapons, armor and skill to find out who would win a Death Battle.
Bols[]
Wiz: Despite his intimidating appearance, andhaving the unfortunate occupation of executioner, Bols goes against the presumption that everyone on the antagonist's side is a monster. Handpicked from the Incendiary Squad, Bols was the oldest, and kindest of all Jaegers.
Boomstick: He had a loving wife and kid, whose love for him was simply blinding - to Wave that is - but there was always that one thing haunting him every day.
Wiz: Retribution. Bols knew it came with the territory for what he had done; he had murdered so many, not out of crass nature or evil desires, but merely following his orders. But he knew that the victims, or their families would never let go of what he had done.
Boomstick: But, he took that certain doom like a champ! He came to terms with it long before becoming a Jaeger, and eeriely figured it was retribution he would always deserve at the end of a needle strike.
Wiz: We'll quickly ignore the atrocities that happened to his family after his death.
Boomstick: Yeah, we may be all about death matches here, but that... might get us in sponsorship trouble.
Wiz: Bols' role as a Jaeger was usually on the investigative side, like when he and Run would look to draw a conclusion for Doctor Stylish's disappearance after Tatsumi's escape. But he was also a talented cook, and a patient and understanding team member.
Boomstick: He was also surprisingly bashful considering his appearance. And despite him seemingly being a glorified executioner, he was also a good front line option for a battle, helping the Jaegers against assassins and Danger Beasts alike...
Wiz: Indeed. Thanks to his Imperial Arms, Rubicante - Puragtory's Invitation. A massive flamethrower, which Bols could use in consecutive streams of flames, or as individual blasts of fireballs. He was capable of burning down whole villages, but was even capable of combatting Akame in a one on one battle, almost catching her several times.
Boomstick: He was even able to defend against her by putting protective clothing on his arms. The flames of this attack were said to be so deadly that not even submerging yourself in water would help you. That's fucked up.
Wiz: Bols is also indicated to be very physically strong; he is able to lug around the giant container on his back throughout long travels and battles.
Boomstick: And that thing looks heavy, I mean, it is almost the size and width of Bols' upper body.
Wiz: The use of the fan inside is helpful for powering attacks; it performs an aerial suction that then heats the air to lethal heats before bursting out into the flamethrower attack we see in the series.
Boomstick: He is a very experienced combatant, based on his service to the Empire and the entrustment of an Imperial Arm. But as you may have figured, he is not unbeatable.
Wiz: Though he is skilled, Bols was never explicitly a great solo combatant; in fact, the only reason he did hang with Akame as long as he did was when he had one of Kurome's puppets backing him up.
Boomstick: Although, he was able to keep track of Akame on his own, and could pick his shots against easily the fastest member of Night Raid.
Wiz: And Rubicante is not unbreakable; in the ambush by Night Raid, Leone managed to bite off the tip-
Boomstick: OUCH! TMI, WIZ!
Wiz: Of Rubicante...
Boomstick: Oh, thank god!
Wiz: Which lead to him having to use his Self Destruct mechanism, creating a giant explosive ball of fire, which he somehow managed to survive. Now, Chelsea used the reasoning that he underwent a ritual that made him resist fire, but there is reason to doubt the validity of the statement.
Boomstick: Firstly, Chelsea only said that with no real proof. I mean, you can't credit someone based on what they say they can do, unless they actually did it. Imagine crowning a new boxing champion everytime someone thought like that?
Wiz: Ahem... And secondly, the context in which Chelsea used this line was to further fool Kurome so she may land a sneak attack after earning her trust. Although, Bols did genuinely survive the blast despite being right under the source of it. So there may be some truth to it after all. Especially since Night Raid were keeping information on Bols.
Boomstick: Regardless, Bols is still human. And he can still suffer from lacerations, stabs, gunshots, broken bones and so on.
Wiz: But, his reputation as a merciless killer - as unwarranted as it was - struck fear into many. And he was a force to be reckoned with for foes of all skill levels. Be it bandit tribes or Night Raid assassins, Bols was always a good call to burn them out.
Boomstick: Hey, are we gonna mention what happened to his family, or nah?
Wiz: ... No.
Bols sets fire to the Bandit stronghold, screams can be heard among the hiss of flames.
Bols: The Flamethrower Imperial Arms, Invitation to Purgatory: Rubicante. Nothing personal, guys. Okay?
Seryu Ubiquitous[]
Wiz: A young girl with a strong sense of justice. Seryu Ubiquitous was fantastic in her role as an Imperial Police officer. But her line of work often beared great sadness. Seryu lost her father to Revolutionary Army members when he died in the line of duty, which would soon be followed by the loss of Captain Ogre, another Imperial Seryu respected deeply.
Boomstick: This set her a little over the edge. Justice became her entire being. But not in the 'I'll arrest some no good thugs' No, no, no! Instead she opted for more... well... fucked up approaches.
Wiz: Seryu saw good and bad as clearly as white and black. Either you were a member of the Empire and its citizens, or you were a threat. This lead to some violent executions of justice over small, minute crimes like theft.
Boomstick: She is first introduced as a sweet girl with a kind heart, helping Tatsumi navigate the city. But by the end of the episode, she has shot the best girl - at the time - Sheele through the back.
Wiz: During the battle, she lost her arms thanks to Extase, so had to visit soon to be fellow Jaeger Doctor Stylish, who gave her cybernetic enhancements to help better her abilities when combatting injustice. This saw a great deal of upgrades, where she was able to annihilate bandit groups almost on her own.
Boomstick: She still maintained her need for revenge against Night Raid, obviously not content with taking just Sheele. And this hatred only deepened when Stylish was felled by Night Raid himself. Leaving Seryu entirely in the hands of Esdeath.
Wiz: The cyborg would be unable to enhance herself without Stylish, but could maintain an upkeep, helping combat Night Raid until her dying breath, where she fell short of Mine in a one on one battle, ultimately resorting in a self destruct-
Boomstick: So, two Jaegers in and we've already established they liked self destructs. What are they, wild Geodude?
Wiz: But her powers were still very impressive. She had good aim, strength and a wide options for tools of justice to employ in combat. So, what hand did Stylish leave her with to contest assassins and Danger Beasts?
Boomstick: Primarily among her arsenal, Seryu had concealed guns in her arms and mouth, making for surprise attacks that were effective against even skilled assassins such as Sheele and Mine of Night Raid.
Wiz: Her accuracy with these weapons was usually high, being able to pick off Sheele from several feet away. But these were only used on her close range battles; Seryu was also armed with an Imperial Arms of the Biological class. Magical Beast Transformation: Hekatonkheires! See, Hekato-
Boomstick: Wiz, please, for the love of Peep's awful spelling, just call it Koro. Everyone else does.
Wiz: *sigh* Fine. Koro was the name selected by Seryu, who was entrusted with the Teigu once Ubiquitous became a member of the police.
Boomstick: Koro may have seemed like a weak little yapper, but oh no... That long winded name, beast transformation? That was kinda its whole gimmick.
Wiz: Yes, Seryu could order Koro to initiate a handful of forms, which saw it grow in height and bulk dramatically. Koro would become a hulking monster with razor sharp fangs, clubbing fists, and great speeds.
Boomstick: It was able to shrug off blows from Mine and Sheele quite comfortably; and could regenerate most of the damage sustained.
Wiz: As it was a Biological Imperial Arms, the only ways to keep it down for the count were to kill its wielder, or to destroy the core. Which could be anywhere on the body. Not all were as easy to track of Susanoos, and it took two battles for Mine to figure out where the core was.
Boomstick: So, these two often worked in perfect synchronisation, but if things were beginning to go South, Seryu was able to instruct Koro to use its Trump Card: Berserk Mode. This mode sent Koro into a blind, mindless rage where his already stupid strong durability and attack were amplified.
Wiz: He was much harder to slow down, but the cost was that Koro would sometimes be unable to move for months after battle should Berserk Mode be initiated. In this stage, Koro almost killed Mine when he crushed down on her arms and ribs, but was stopped by Sheele gaining the upper hand on Seryu. Koro was then able to pretty much destroy Sheele's whole body in about two bites.
Boomstick: Dr Stylish also performed enhancements on Koro, generating weapons on the inside of the Teigu to allow it to aid Seryu. This was called The Judgement of the Ten Heavenly Kings - and you are not likely to hear a better weapon name all day.
Wiz: So, as the name suggests there were ten phases. Seryu would often stick out an arm, and allow Koro to bite into it and reveal the weapon. Which is totally fucked up. In a brief rundown, we had:
Boomstick: KORO, PHASE 1!
Wiz: ... Don't do that for every one of them. Phase one was called Shinkou's Ball of Justice, a large ball that resembled a mace head, and was capable of smashing aside large groups of enemies at once.
Boomstick: Phase two was a group of missile turrets - which begs the question of where the hell Koro hid all those things. Phase three was a sword used for executions. Phase four, namelessly was a hookshot.
Wiz: Her fifth phase was called Enma's Spear of Justice, which more resembled a drill head rushing through enemies, such as at the bandit camp. It also had a self destruct mechanism inside for extra damage. Six was another missile attack, this one being armored.
Boomstick: Next was Taizan's Cannon of Justice. This was an anti tank weapon. Which does seem overkill, but if you hadn't noticed, overkill is really Seryu's thing.
Wiz: Eight had an unknown ability, but her ninth was a radar that could be used to detect lifeforms in the area. This was perfect for a tactical approach rather than her usual guns blazing approach instead.
Boomstick: Please. I bet she used that so little it still has the packaging on it.
Wiz: But Seryu, if in a bind, would be forced to play a sacrifice hand.
Boomstick: Are. You. Fucking. Kidding. Me?
Wiz: Wh-what?
Boomstick: The last four characters we have analysed have been self damaging. Bols, D.Va, Soldier. Now Officer Psycho decides her best move is to nuke herself as well?
Wiz: Not just herself actually, Koro and even the large valley she battled Mine in the rematch on. Indeed, Final Number: Chakravartin Furnace of Five Hells lived up to the name. Though Seryu only used this after Mine left her and Koro incapacitated. This was merely an act of spite rather than tactical.
Boomstick: Suicide attacks aside, Seryu was always keen to battle for justice. Whatever she thought that meant. Her downside of large dependency on Koro is easily exploited. And if she is seperated from Koro by a superior foe, it can make for a world of trouble.
Wiz: With that in mind, she was still one of the most feared aspects of the Empire - and a large target for many members of Night Raid to want to get their hands on. And she'd be more than happy to take them all on.
Seryu Ubiquitous: Justice should always be direct; strike from the front!
Run[]
Wiz: The world of Akame ga Kill was in the vice grip on an evil Imperial government. Rotten to its core as it squeezed funds and life out of the small towns and villages outside the Capital.
Boomstick: A teacher by the name of Run was massively aware of the problems at hand, and really wanted a way to change the structure of the government internally - and what would motivate him even more? Returning from an errand to find his students had been massacred. He would soon nail the bastard who did this, but in the mean time he had to amass tools and a foothold.
Wiz: After worming his way into the Empire via the town's mayor, Run climbed the ranks - determined to find the cause of the corruption. After a while, Run would be recruited by General Esdeath and Minister Honest into the Jaeger faction. Whereas Seryu, Stylish and Esdeath were visibly unhinged, Run was far more modest and reserved - being described by Wave as the only other 'normal person' at the formation.
Boomstick: And it paid off; Run was Esdeath's personal assistant - not a bad role to keep if you are capable. He would accompany the general in missions to fight Night Raid and to settle the score against Danger Beasts.
Wiz: Run was also very capable on recon missions, as well as testing the waters against the legendary Akame at one point - where he also showed capability to decipher strategic plays on the part of his opponent.
Boomstick: So, not hard to see why Esdeath handpicked him to play as crucial of a role as he did.
Wiz: As powerful as he was with his wits and sharp mind, Run was a very capable fighter. To begin with, he had the reaction speed to anticipate Esdeath's assault on the Jaegers as well as the physical capabilities to block her attacks.
Boomstick: Damn! That's impressive!
Wiz: No kidding. Run also showed a talent for his battlefield intelligence: being able to deduce an opponent's play and adopt a strategy to combat it. There was the time he faced Akame, and realized she was baiting him in. Run figured it after a short while and was smart enough to avoid prolonging a losing battle.
Boomstick: And the time where he knew not to be baited by Leone's trash talk and close the distance; he knew he was the physically weaker of the pair, but found a way to keep the fight in his favour.
Wiz: He also has a large element of toughness and durability; he was able to survive being blown up and falling from a great height. What's more, Run even managed to get back to his feet and carry on fighting all while suffering from wounds that would prove fatal.
Boomstick: Wait, he dies?
Wiz: In the manga, yes.
Boomstick: Aw, shit. But he didn't make it easy; Run was armed with a set of wings.
Wiz: Yes, Run's Imperial Arms, or Teigu, was the Thousand Mile Flight: Mastema! Run obtained these Imperial Arms through the seduction of the governor in Joyou. The wings spread from two discs on his back and let off a bright, white glow - being mistaken as an angel when in the moonlight.
Boomstick: An angel, who can fly: Eat your heart out Pit, and then bombard his foes with sharp, bullet like feathers! Man, this guy could have totally been the Kid Icarus protagonist!
Wiz: Riiight: Run vs Hades. But, these feathers were indeed nothing to scoff at; they were able to puncture solid rock pillars and went through metal helmets, cutting through the skulls of many unfortunate victims.
Boomstick: Sadly, this weapon loses effectiveness up close and in a personal battle; that's basically why he backed up from Akame or Leone in either instant.
Wiz: But, put in a corner, Mastema can offer one last gift: the Trump Card: Divine Wings!
Boomstick: Divine Wings allow the ability to reflect projectiles, which sounds a little weak on the surface, but that wouldn't do the skill justice; this ability negates Run's shortcoming in a close range battle, being able to smash the pillars that Leone threw at him. And when you consider how buff Leone was, and how she was very much a power type player, you can take our word for it that the defense of God's Wings can screw up an opponent in seconds.
Wiz: His Teigu was powerful enough to deflect the Supreme Imperial Arms, Shikoutazer, when Wave equipped them. The attack blocked by Wave was a similar beam that had frequently levelled buildings during the battle with Tatsumi, meaning there was no clear limit to what could be deflected.
Boomstick: Anything from a small nuke to a Flame Orb, God's Wings has it all! For all your Champ melting needs!
Wiz: Run was a composed man, but had a very dark side to him. In the events of the Akame ga Kill manga, he and Kurome succeed in luring out Champ - a member of Wild Hunt who... had kid issues.
Boomstick: Ohhhh this guy....
Wiz: Run baited him with the promise of beautiful children, before capturing and beating him, torturing Champ near to death. This did ultimately lead to a lapse in judgement, leaving Run and Kurome susceptible to a follow up attack, which Run initially survived, but was grievously wounded in when saving Kurome.
Boomstick: However, this was extremely out of character, and his death did shape the future of the Jaegers, helping allow Wave and Kurome see the light towards the end of the manga. Hooray for developmental sacrifices! And hooray for a good guy politician - for once!
Run: There are two ways to change a country. Destroy it from the outside, or correct it from the inside.
Esdeath[]
Boomstick: Esdeath. A name that sends shivers down the spines of even the most hardened of fighters.
Wiz: Well, there is more than one reason for that – we will touch on one later on. But for now, we’ll talk her history.
Boomstick: Turns out, General Frosty Nips was born and raised in the Northern Frontier Lands, and was raised to be a hardened killer and poacher of Danger Beasts. The Partas Clan, chief of which was her father, held a very simple philosophy that Esdeath herself would come to follow religiously.
Wiz: That being: the ones who die, were simply too weak to survive – and should be spared no mercy nor sympathy.
Boomstick: And one day, it turned out daddy-o was himself too weak. Esdeath returned to her tribe to see it in ruin, and held her father as he passed away.
Wiz: This set her on a path to never be weak, where she would challenge herself to become the strongest possible version of herself that she could be. Thanks to her malicious streak, she was able to join and climb the ranks very easily. This earned her the right and the qualification to attempt to master an Imperial Arms.
Boomstick: The one that called to Esdeath was the ominously named Demon’s Extract. And - bang to rights - should have drove her insane... insaner. See, you were supposed to sip some of the ritual blood. Esdeath kinda just guzzled the lot.
Wiz: With this, she was able to become even more overpowered, often taking out entire insurgencies with the might of the Teigu. Though an accomplished fighter, something was missing from her life. And while squashing rebellions was satisfying, and the challenge of hunting Night Raid was intriguing, Esdeath became interested in love.
Boomstick: She would find her heart of ice thawed by the young Tatsumi, and would engage full Yandere mode in her pursuit of him. Eventually though, Tatsumi would be free of her advances, and the General would ultimately fall at the hands of Akame in the final push for revolution across the Empire.
Wiz: The fall of the General would ultimately spark the beginning of the end for a lot of the Empire, so let's get into what gave her such an aura of fear and respect from her opponents:
Boomstick: Well, Esdeath was a skilled warrior long before the inheritance of anything particularly super-powerful. She was a skilled tactician and had a way with the blade that was almost unrivalled. She rose through Imperial ranks with ease, eventually earning the right to her Teigu.
Wiz: After consuming all of the blood, ahead of the advised amount, she would display her will and strength of character by subduing the voices in her head resulted from Demon's Extract.
Boomstick: I wouldn't go as far as to say she stopped herself going insane, by the way. More like, she prevented herself from reaching all new levels of insanity instead. But the trade off for being a bit of a fruit-loop seemed fair enough; Esdeath would inherit cryokinesis on a massive scale. Now, cryokinesis shouldn't be fucked about with in the first place, but this ability alone was enough for Esdeath to end wars in a split moment.
Wiz: Najenda recounted a mission where both she and Esdeath were sent to quell an uprising that had gotten the upper hand on the Empire momentarily. Where the soldiers had been losing ground by the minute, Esdeath simply froze over the choke point and allowed the village to be burned to the ground.
Boomstick: Freaky shit, right? And that was when Esdeath's thirst for war was truly on display; she allowed survivors to regroup down the line as it would result in another war - more intense - down the line.
Wiz: There were several techniques she developed with the Teigu, one being the Hagelsprung, which appeared as a large chunk of hail coming out of the sky.
Boomstick: She deployed this to great effect, almost catching out even Akame with the technique. On top of that, she had the Grauhorn, a large icy spear she could generate in the air that would pierce through targets. And then there was the Weissschnabel - where Esdeath simply tossed shards of ice at an opponent instead.
Wiz: Weirdly, Demon's Extract had no Trump Card to begin with. So the fact that Esdeath managed to use three of them is quite something.
Boomstick: 'Use them' isn't doing her enough justice there. She actually went as far as to create them. Like the Ice Cavalry, allowing Esdeath to summon a squad of icy centaur soldiers to aid her in combat. You think Esdeath alone is bad, a squad of her own military is probably about to end your whole career.
Wiz: She could freeze over entire terrains and create a 'Russian Winter' with the Ice Storm Commander in Chief. The ice terrain obviously benefits Esdeath when she can create weapons out of the ice freely as she did against Akame, creating makeshift shield, knives and swords.
Boomstick: She could even make a temporary ice arm if she needed to. You know, like after the time she had to remove her arm to counter Murasame's curse. She even continued the fight with one arm, and could have even won the fight with the help of her most well known trump card: Mahapadma!
Wiz: Akame ga Kill's response to Chaos Control, Esdeath literally froze time and space. Just, you know, when she decides to. Admittedly, this is a rare usage as Esdeath will only call on it when she feels she is about to lose.
Boomstick: Or when she is trying to prevent Tatsumi's escape. She used it to try and prevent his second escape, even if Incursio developed resistance to the time stop. As well as this, she used it to gain the advantage on Susanoo, and almost to get the kill on Akame.
Wiz: Except for Akame was smart enough to bait the technique and hit her from another angle. The ability is very powerful, and almost always results in a clear cut killing chance, but Esdeath's strength is really taxed by the move.
Boomstick: Despite her fear factor and experience, Esdeath is still only a human. And though her techniques are very impressive, her Teigu does put a strain on her body for all the techniques she uses, there is a chance of fatigue.
Wiz: Though she can use her physical strength to compensate for his if she needs to. Remember that time she kicked that guy's skull in? And she went blow for blow with Susanoo as well. So, while there are certain weaknesses in her game, you'd still count your blessings to not be in her way.
Esdeath: Now, this is the kind of battle I enjoy the most. If any of you Niobids are unsatisfied with your destiny I invite you to put me in my place!
Wave[]
Boomstick: Hehehe...
Wiz: What's so funny?
Boomstick: Sea men...
Wiz: Ugh. As a member of the Imperial Navy, Wave is a respected member of the Empire, even before his invitation to join the Jaegers. He was a kind hearted individual, if not a little on the naive side; his time at sea meant he was largely unaware of the illigitimate Imperial Capital and the corruption inside its hierarchy.
Boomstick: Wave is a lot like Tatsumi in many ways; their appearance is mostly seperated by the colour of their clothes and hair. And Wave is a little more reserved when it comes to sharing his feelings.
Wiz: Probably a smart thing to do in the Imperial Capital. Wave's reputation as a man of the sea would earn him an invitation to join the Jaegers, where he would meet his new team members, being initially weirded out and intimidated by the force at first.
Boomstick: Particularly, he would be fixated on Kurome, but would be close to Run and Bols as well, Bols of course was where he was trying to make amends to after judging him before allowing him a chance to introduce himself.
Wiz: The only Jaegers he seemed particularly distant from were Seryu and Dr Stylish - Seryu in particular thanks to her much more easygoing nature about murdering people for the slightest reasons.
Boomstick: He would also get along with Tatsumi, understanding his desire to flee Esdeath and the Jaegers but was forced to try and prevent it. He was then distracted by Incursio, who Wave assumed was Bulat, which saw him change targets.
Wiz: Wave's punishment would be torture, and being more closely observed by Esdeath. But Wave stuck with the Jaegers for a long time, helping them in numerous battles with bandits, Danger Beasts and Night Raid.
Boomstick: Wave earned respect from a handful of Night Raid members despite being enemies, in particular the likes of Akame and Tatsumi who appreciated his sense of morality, and how he had protected Kurome.
Wiz: In the weigning days of the Empire, Wave would assist Tatsumi in clashing with the Emperor himself. Rather than defecting from the Empire, he was simply seeing the mindless destruction that would doom innocent people. He was a soldier, not a taker of innocent lives - which forced him to aid Tatsumi in suppressing Shikoutazer.
Boomstick: In both anime and manga incarnations of the story, Wave survives - either alongside Run or Kurome depending on format. He abandoned his duties to the Empire, not wanting any part of their corruption, though his opinion on the revolutionary army was still a frosty one.
Wiz: Regardless, Wave was a soldier bound by duty, and a skilled one at that. What made him so unique was how identical he was to Tatsumi, but in a different scope of vision. This means that, of course, he too had his own set of skills and weapons to combat the forces that conspired against the Empire.
Boomstick: Let's get right into introducing that wonderful Imperial Arms of his. You ready, Wiz?
Wiz: Huh?
Boomstick: GRAAAAAND CHAAARIOT! Hehehehe.
Wiz: Uh huh. Okay, Grand Chariot is the armor type Imperial Arms that Wave uses; it is the successor to Incursio, which obviously means there are a few traits that exceed that of the older Teigu. For example, Wave's Grand Chariot is much more streamline than Incursio, making for easier and speedier movement.
Boomstick: It is well known as Carnage Incarnate - so expect to see it defeated by Lucy's Vectors. No? Okay. It also fobbed off the idea of a tacky cape, and went for a more protective bit of phantasmagoric protective film.
Wiz: One perk is simply the sheer strength upgrade Wave receives. In the manga, Wave was able to break through a shield of World Severing Strings created by Lubbock, as well as tank a shot from Mine's Pumpkin. However, Akame was able to note weaknesses in the armor; establishing the knee caps as the weakest places, and managed to pierce the armor with repeated attacks in a single spot.
Boomstick: It also seems to lack the Digivolving capabilities of Incursio. Which may well be for the best considering what happened Tatsumi when Incursio evolved on him.
Wiz: Grand Chariot's full strengths were never shown, though Wave himself displayed great initiative to create techniques such as Grand Fall, where he was able to floor Tatsumi in a few hits, though he was not fighting back. One technique was Grand Fall, a move Tatsumi noted would have killed him if he was not protected by the armor of Incursio. And Akame herself noted that a single strike from Grand Chariot would be enough to knock her out.
Boomstick: According to rough sketches though, it has more armored parts than Incursio. So while Wave lacks adaptability, he has strength and bulk. And a sweet spear as well!
Wiz: Even without the armor, Wave was skilled enough to kill several Danger Beasts alone, as well as take on bandits in bladed combat. And he had a tough streak in him; he survived a merciless punt to the gut from Esdeath, as well as enduring the torture for losing track of Tatsumi.
Boomstick: Let's not forget when Susanoo punted the guy several hundred feet away; that blow oughta have killed Wave, but instead he survived the impact of the attack, and summoned Grand Chariot in midair to survive the crippling blow!
Wiz: Indeed, Wave was as tough as they came. His technique was recognized by Esdeath as impeccable, a remark she did not make lightly. He was also one of the few people to ever combine Imperial Arms - using both his and Run's for a brief while in the manga. While using the dual Teigus, Wave was able to deflect an attack from Shikoutazer - however, the emotional and physical strain of wielding two Teigus was excruciating. After the evacuations of the imperial city, Wave found one of his kidneys functioning improperly. It took nearly a year of treatment to help him back to normal.
Boomstick: So, the Jaegers' own Tatsumi is quite the combatant. He never had the easy path, but always pulled through - and he even was one of the only characters to survive both versions of events, so that's boss!
Wave: Well, how about that? I can't believe what I'm seeing right now. That's Incursio, isn't it? It's the prototype for my armor. And, most importantly, if you have Incursio that must mean you're a member of the Night Raid!
Dr Stylish[]
Boomstick: Something about this guy rubs me the wrong way...
Wiz: Dr Stylish was a fascinating creature. His role in the stories even factoring into Akame ga Kill Zero. In that time, he was responsible for creating a poison, which imitated the symptoms of a deadly plague to flush out enemy spies, as well as help examine blood samples of the Path of Peace leader - proving to be half Danger Beast.
Boomstick: But his forte as a scientist was modification. No, not in the positive way, but rather "hey, let's see what happens if I glue this on here!"
Wiz: Research and engineering bodies became a frightening hobby for the scientist, one such patient he treated was of course Seryu Ubiquitous, who had an arsenal of weapons fitted entirely by the Stylish one.
Boomstick: Stylish was one of the six candidates reached for by Minister Honest upon Esdeath's request for a new Imperial Arms wielding army. You know, because you'd trust this guy to patch up the squad in a pinch!
Wiz: He accompanied the Jaegers on a few missions, and was present of Tatsumi's capture by Esdeath for the first time. Unlike his teammates however, Stylish was not fooled by Tatsumi's blacksmith act, and stalked him and Akame through Mount Fake all the way back to the hidden Night Raid hideout.
Boomstick: Now all he had to do was make the right call, get reinforcements and much of the Revolutionary Army's heavy hitters could be killed in one go- ohhh he decided to go alone with just his band of freaks.. cool!
Wiz: Formulating an actually well thought through plan, Stylish and Team Stylish... Stylish name... chose to attack Night Raid themselves, capitalizing on their lesser numbers and recently acquired Teigu to lead the way. Each step of the plan was carefully conceived, seeing Leone and Lubbock struggle early on to cope with the infantry.
Boomstick: But... it all fell apart. Much like an Everton Champions League push, losses quickly racked up and Stylish was soon on the back foot. With the timely arrival of Najenda and Susanoo, the doctor was on the ropes.
Wiz: And not long after that, Stylish himself would perish, becoming the first Jaeger to fall in defeat. But his legacy would last; his drugs were acquired by Syura, who set loose modified Danger Beasts into the capital, leading Bols and Run's investigation to a dead end.
Boomstick: Despite being the professional whack job of the group, the doctor had recognisable assets, which made him a horrible opponent to go up against. Firstly, well, if you wanted to fight Stylish you were going up against his brains. The man was a great tactician, outlining weaknesses and creating ways around most great defences with fantastic success.
Wiz: This is perhaps most evident in the creation of Team Stylish. In the assembling of that team, Stylish outfitted Toby with a metallic opponent designed to resist the one hit killing sword, Murasame. By having this defence, Toby was able to hang with Akame in a one on one engagement. While calculations could not account for Akame's sheer skill and tenacity, Toby was easily the best suited opponent.
Boomstick: Another menacing member of Team Stylish was Kaku - the friendly brute fella who inherited the Shears of Creation: Extase! Aside from totally fucking with Tatsumi's head, which worked well, and fucking with Mine's, which ended not so well, he was skilled with a pair of oversized scissors.
Wiz: Extase's limits are broad as weapons; they are supposed to cut through "anything" which is very sweeping, and never truly tested. Yes, Tatsumi was caught through Incursio, but that was before he truly mastered it and Tatsumi was only in the first stage of the armor. He was built well as a threat, and overpowered Tatsumi with ease, only falling after Mine interfered and obliterated him with an emotionally charged Pumpkin shot.
Boomstick: The deranged Trooma was a skilled stealth unit, who got the drop on a hung over Leone. Skilled with blades, he could lurk in the water for extended periods of time.
Wiz: Team Stylish also had overwhelming numbers. Weaponless foot soldiers who would attack blindly after undergoing experiments. They were often convicts who agreed to Stylish's terms to undergo the procedures for 'shortened sentences'. They were fiercely loyal, and erratic, but motivated easy enough by the promise of... spending the night with Stylish. I am not making that up.
Boomstick: Look, Wiz, it's 2020 - anything goes now.
Wiz: Even in defeat, the pawns were effective; they were implanted with bombs for last resorts, which nearly finished much of Night Raid if not for Susanoo's interjection. Stylish's closest three assets though were Hana, Mimi and Me.
Boomstick: Makes sense someone like you would befriend hi *consults notes* Oh, my mistake...
Wiz: The trio's uses doubled down as both recon and energy sources. All three were fitted with one sense particularly amplified - Hana was smell, Mimi was hearing and Me was sight. It was thanks to Hana's smelling abilities that Tatsumi, Lubbock and Akame had been tracked back in the first place despite masking their scent.
Boomstick: Wait, what did you mean before about energy sources?
Wiz: Well, the doctor had been successful in mutating his own body as well as others'; he was able to merge with a Danger Beast that he could undergo a transformation. In order to grow into a bigger and stronger beast, he would... "merge" with the other Team Stylish members, eating them.
Boomstick: That's disgusting. And I'm not even surprised with this series any more...
Wiz: The skin of the beast was so strong, Murasame could not cut it, and Susanoo, who was capable of destroying giant boulders much bigger than most of Night Raid, could barely stun it. The only weak spot was on the head, which even then was protected by tentacle like attacks.
Boomstick: And all that was if you could get past his paralysing gas. That was enough to drop Lubbock, Leone, Mine, Akame and weaken Tatsumi. It doesn't effect organic Teigus, which blows, but it's Super Effective on mere humans! And even better, all his team had the antidote fitted in them, so they could all keep going!
Wiz: Ultimately, Stylish was a man of great and twisted ambition. As a tactical genius, he could orchestrate so much more had he not been blinded by his own haste. If he hadn't been foiled so quickly, who knows what he could have been capable of?
Stylish: I successfully merged my body with a Danger Beast, so I may personally kick your ass!
Kurome[]
Wiz: Kurome had it very, very difficult. When she was very young, her and her sister Akame were sold off to a tribe. A tribe that happened to be raising assassins. And to make sure they were ready for the line of work, they decided to test the children...
Wiz: By sending them into a dangerous forest full of Danger Beasts! Luckily for Kurome, fatigue, weakness and frailty could not account for the fact that Kurome's sister happened to be the badass Akame.
Wiz: The pair clawed their way to the finish line and they looked set to become a lethal set of assassins for the empire. But there was a problem: The tribe did not want to keep the sisters together, citing that they would be nothing but trouble. So Akame was taken away, leaving Kurome to hone her skills alone.
Boomstick: They weren't split for long, however, and Akame would soon find Kurome again. Only to leave again when she ditched the Empire for Night Raid. Despite Akame's desires for Kurome to join her, the little sister stayed put- becoming more and more corrupted by the evil philosophies of the Empire and her assassin clan.
Wiz: From then on, both sisters swore to themselves to kill the other.
Boomstick: Anything beat sibling rivalry?
Wiz: Oh, it was more than that. Kurome felt hollow. Without Akame in her life, Kurome had been afraid of being seen as a weakling. Anyone seen to be weak in her tribe was simply discarded as a failure.
Boomstick: So she planned to meet Akame again, looking to slay her with her Imperial Arms (or Teigu) was able to reanimate those slain by it as a puppet. If she couldn't force Akame to stay with her back then, she would... force Akame to stay with her as a puppet. So there!
Wiz: The pair eventually got to clash after Kurome had been recruited by the Jaegers. And- depending on what media you watched- Akame did slay Kurome, or she was able to survive and leave with Wave. Regardless, she never succeeded in killing Akame. But she was still skilled enough to be a worthy opponent of every member of Night Raid.
Boomstick: And we're not exaggerating. Her Imperial Arms was called March of the Dead: Yatsufusa! This was a katana, which Kurome was an expert duellist with in her own right. Her attacks were surgically precise and she was incredibly quick.
Wiz: She fought Akame at blinding speeds and was able to strike down mighty Danger Beasts because of her skill. She was also a master at taking advantage of any slight openings; she was able to slice off Leone's arm in an encounter with Night Raid. But her most valuable asset from her weapon stems far beyond that of regular swordplay.
Boomstick: Kurome was a puppet master, and thanks to the special powers of her Teigu, anyone taken down by way of her blade could be reanimated as an undead ally. For example, Kurome could use Natala- a fellow assassin from the Empire. He was skilled with the Shingu, Trisula. This was a blade based on a staff, which would often expand to catch an opponent off guard.
Wiz: Natala, as with most reanimations, lost little to no skill in his new state, and was able to chase down and murder Night Raid member Chelsea. Though this was thanks to her being compromised and in a more exposed state. Though it should be noted that Shingus are much more inferior than the Teigus. That said...
Boomstick: It's still a pretty sharp weapon. And it'll cut you down in a second.
Wiz: Alternatively, Kurome used Doya, another assassin though this time of the Northern Tribes. Doya offered something that Natala did not: range; Doya used two handguns, and rivalled the marksmanship of Mine from Night Raid, though she was later subdued after the initial advantage.
Boomstick: It's alleged that Doya is quite cheerful, and she sure seemed it when she helped hunt down Chelsea- shooting her Imperial Arms and destroying them. Thanks to her resurrection, she does not fatigue or weaken which feels kind of like a cheat, but hell- if you're gonna be living in the Akame Ga Kill world, you need all the help you can get.
Wiz: Rokugou was a General of the Empire at one point in his life. He wielded a whip, and was so skilled and fast with it that even Leone, and initially Najenda, struggled to keep pace with it. But the whip is not all about speed; it could shatter rocks and held Najenda to a very close duel. Again, like the rest of the puppets, he felt no fatigue or exhaustion. And he had incredible durability.
Boomstick: Incredible enough to survive without a head anyways. Then Najenda put him out of his misery.
Wiz: But it was not only the humans that needed to fear falling to Kurome's blade; Danger Beast Apeman was also a victim. This unit offered more brute force and worked in synchronisation with other puppets. Even Tatsumi in his legendary Incursio Imperial Arms struggled to take him on initially.
Boomstick: Though, Apeman was let down through becoming more predictable and being a very straightforward combatant. That said, Kurome trusted him as one of her "favourites" which can only make me assume she had kept the poor thing a long while.
Wiz: But Kurome's biggest surprise when she first met Night Raid was the Danger Beast Kaiser Frog!
Boomstick: Eww. What the hell is that meant to be?
Wiz: A frog. Did you not hear me?
Boomstick: Don't get smart, Wizard. It does not suit you.
Wiz: Whatever. The Kaiser Frog was a huge opponent, that acted like a typical frog.
Boomstick: Yep. A typical frog. A typical, man eating frog. A typical Night Raid eating frog.
Wiz: Yeah... it may do an impression of The Smoker from Left 4 Dead when it ensnares its victim, but you do not want to let it pull you in; the stomach acids could dissolve just about anything- as Mine was about to find out!
Boomstick: Not after some bitchy remarks about Sheele became Koro food. Man, Kurome knew what buttons to press to piss off Night Raid.
Wiz: Indeed. On top of the dangerous summons, Kurome was well versed in making personal remarks that pried just enough to get in her opponent's head. Though this method, and the fact that Mine's Trump Card helped Pumpkin destroy the Kaiser Frog thanks to the danger she was in.
Boomstick: Hard to plan for something you've never met.
Wiz: And also the fact that her puppets seem to retain wounds Kurome inflicted on them prior to death. The stabs in the stomach of the Kaiser Frog leaked the corrosive stomach acid, which allowed Mine to survive long enough to power up Pumpkin.
Boomstick: But even without her summons, Kurome is not the kind of enemy I would wanna make. Imagine being one of those... things.
Wiz: A Kaiser Frog?
Boomstick: No, you idiot. A puppet. Never feeling, never truly thinking. Just... existing because some creepy little assassin cut you down.
Wiz: As disturbing as ever, thanks a lot Boomstick!
Boomstick: Kurome was also subject to some drugs, which helped her become a more durable fighter. Thanks to the medication, she survived an otherwise fatal stab in the neck from Chelsea. She even went as far as to claim that the only way she could be stopped, was with her heart destroyed.
Wiz: Her reflexes are also top of the line; Mine lined up a perfect shot when Night Raid went to assassinate Bols and Kurome in the valleys but Kurome reacted to, and dodged the shot without knowing they were even targeted. She was also quick enough to react to, and block, a punch from Esdeath in a groggy state.
Boomstick: And though the drawback of the drugs is immense pain for Kurome when she is off them, it's balanced by the fact she is usually dosed up on them before combat- though they offered no protection against Murasame against Akame and the toxins of Chelsea's attack still damaged her significantly in days to come.
Wiz: But just because she is wounded, do not count her out. She will carry on fighting to prove her skill- regardless the pain she is enduring.
Boomstick: So if you want to get rid of your assassin troubles, just call on the twisted sister of Akame. That oughta do the trick.
Kurome: If you want to kill me for real then it looks like your only two options are to cut off my head, or pierce me through the heart...
Intermission[]
Wiz: Alright, the combatants are set. Let's end this debate once and for all.
Boomstick: It's time for a Death Battle!
Fight[]
Location: The Palace Gardens (Akame ga Kill!)
Syura hissed and smirked an evil grin. His old man had been a fool! The Jaegers were not a fit replacement for the Minister’s own son, and his elite Wild Hunt members.
It hadn’t been easy to pull it off though. Taking the role of the daring Night Raid member sneaking into enemy territory, escaping the pursuit of guards. And the redirection of Jaeger pursuit, sending them after their own tails. Pitting them in uncomfortable confrontation. Stripping away their trust. Their respect. Whatever foundation their cute little meetings were based on, Syura had gone the extra mile to tear it away.
And that little shit, the handsome town diplomat, or whatever the fuck he was supposed to be… Run. Keeping that particular Jaeger in the dark wasn’t easy; the bastard was always on the lookout for the slightest hint of treachery – he was no fun. But he still had a part to play in the pending spectacle. His sole investigation adding just that extra layer of false hope for the survival of the Jaegers.
But he was much too late now.
“Goodbye, Jaegers! May the best Imperial toy win!” he laughed, looking on as Esdeath exited the Minster’s meeting room. She glared at him, sensing something more unusual about him today of all days, but still she marched. Syura straightened his back, and intentionally mocked the formality of the general, wiping the grin off his own face for the time being.
Esdeath then pushed the doors open, the sun’s light beating into the palace halls, only being blocked by the tall figure of the Jaegers’ leader. She then walked into the open, as the giant door slammed shut behind her, leaving Syura alone once again.
“It’s showtime!” Syura hissed as he let the smug grin return to his face.
These new instructions from Honest were incredibly bold and – in Esdeath’s mind - seemingly wasteful, but they came from the top. And whether or not they made sense to her was irrelevant; Esdeath, though one of the most powerful influencers in the entire Empire, was still but a physical force of this Imperial body – albeit, a very strong one at that – and not the anointed ruler of it, so she would obey without a trace of hesitation.
That instruction was simply: Eliminate the suspected insurgent Jaeger team.
The ugly truth of the manner – in all its festering insanity, was that Minister Honest had no idea whether or not he could trust the taskforce. And mistrust, in a system as corrupt as the Empire was today? It was just a recipe for disaster.
The rest of the Jaegers had also received mixed messages from their Commander; Esdeath had informed them that the other Jaegers were indeed traitors and had been conspiring with Night Raid.
What none of the Jaegers knew however was that the Night Raid spies had detected the mistrust, and had created even more of this distrust by distributing tampered evidence around the palace.
The garden grew more and more busy. Esdeath stared off into the flowers, sensing the arrivals of Wave, Doctor Stylish, Bols, Kurome. She didn’t need any help detecting Seryu Ubiquitous’ bundling entrance – dragging her Imperial Arms (and most loyal companion) Magical Beast Transformation: Hekatonkheires along by its lead.
“Come on, Koro; we’re keeping the Commander waiting.” Seryu barked. Esdeath almost let a smirk slip. Something about that pet name just did not sit right.
But Run was the last to arrive – as he had once been under much more friendlier terms when the force was in its original stages of conception. Perhaps it was a fitting act of sentiment, for the final time the Jaegers would be together – in one capacity or another.
As it happened, Run being one of the most intelligent of the whole team, was also one of the least trusting of the system of Imperial policies, he had been doing his own private study on the matter. And he had almost closed in on concrete proof that the Jaegers were being framed. Even if he didn’t have all the pieces, he had a solid frame for his investigation, and that was something he had planned to bring to the attention of his Commanding Officer.
He knew what he saw.
The hooded Night Raid member leaving the palace grounds, barely opposed by the pursuing guards.
He was also increasingly wary of Syura and other members of the Wild Hunt being so forgiving of the guards whose lapses in concentration had allowed the breach in security.
What the hell was happening? What did the Imperial Garrison stand to gain from turning the Jaegers against one another?
“Commander!” he called, rushing into the garden. He panted, holding a piece of paper in his hand.
Esdeath turned, and drew her sword, holding it En Garde. The tip sent a chill across the garden, causing the hairs on Run’s neck to stand up.
Finally, words left her mouth. The rest of the team anticipating her explanation.
“I’m sure you all know what is about to happen.”
Kurome drew Yatsufusa. Of course she knew.
Bols puffed up his chest, more out of fear and a means of steadying the nerves. He began clutching at the handles of his instrument of execution, arms indicatively shaking. His eyes flickered from each of his team mates, as he tried to figure who would make the first move.
Wave frowned and drew his own sword. “What’s going on?” he tested, demanding to know.
Run stepped forward with the paper, but Esdeath fired a shard of ice through it, pinning it against the wall several hundred feet away.
“Commander… Why?” Run asked, daring to challenge the actions of the feared General.
Esdeath didn’t speak further, but instead stepped into the middle of the Jaegers, taking her time to glare into the eyes of each one of them. Who would be the first fool to stain the battlefield with their blood?
Her mind games seemed to work on the remaining Jaegers yet to draw, sending a chill down their spines.
Now everyone had a weapon drawn. Be it confidently, timidly, or stoutly.
Stylish smirked. “My Stylish team had already drawn the conclusion that something was wrong. Any ordinary Doctor would be long dead. But I came prepared!” he said with a long, evil laugh as Team Stylish leaped over the walls and hedges, flooding the rest of the Jaegers.
“You’re kidding! This is madness.” Wave spoke aloud, backing into a corner. Toby came side to side with Stylish, and glared down Kurome. Kaku brandished Extase, and made advances on Wave.
The air around the battlefield was a sea of battle cries and commands. “KORO, ARE YOU READY? WE’VE GOT EVIL TO CRUSH!” Seryu cried. Her obedient Teigu leapt up, and revealed its fangs, quite literally chomping at the bit.
Kurome remained silent, but drew her blade and pointed at Run. The former teacher took a deep breath, and closed his eyes, almost in meditation for a brief moment. He then opened them again; he was a man of strong convictions, and knew his goals would force him to fight terrible odds. Even if he never planned this, he would have to learn to find a way through to the other end of it. “Mastema!” he called, summoning the Wing type Imperial Arms on his back, arching them towards Kurome. “I will do what I must, Kurome. Don’t think I will show you mercy on my way to doing so.”
“I wouldn’t have bet on it in the first place.” Kurome shot back. A little smile appeared on both faces, before they all made their first combative moves of the encounter.
FIGHT!
“GRAND CHARIOT!” Wave cried out, activating his Teigu and rushing to meet Kaku head on. The brute looked to cut through him, but Wave recognised the Teigu; Extase’s reputation was a fierce one and he knew he would be shredded by it on contact.
“C’mere, Flyboy! Let’s see how strong that armor is!” Kaku called, giving chase.
Toby looked to cut down Kurome, who backed away into a quick defensive stance. She quickly leapt as a Bols attack went waywards, scorching the back of the metallic foe.
Run took off over the head of Esdeath, looking to open fire with feathers to restrain her. No luck was to be had, however, and Esdeath smirked coldly as she backed away from the onslaught. Several Team Stylish members were now looking to weigh down Koro quite close to the Commander, so Esdeath made sure to create a pillar of ice that rammed the Teigu and the freaks in the back, creating space.
“Come down and face me, Run. You can’t stay away from me forever.” Esdeath said, leaping up after he former right hand man. Run blocked the attack, and kicked at her, though she was able to dodge the attack.
Esdeath landed on her feet, ducking as a bloodlusted Seryu looked to blindside her Commander. “See how much I have improved!” the cyborg insisted, as her mace came rolling down towards Esdeath. The cryokinetic blocked the attack with a chunk of ice, and then kicked Seryu a few feet away.
They were all then set on by Team Stylish, and each Jaeger took turns swatting away the minions. Bols then managed to round up a group of the infantry, scorching them into a small pile of ash on the ground. He then turned to where Stylish had taken cover.
“There’s no use hiding.” He called, firing an explosive ball of flames at the Doctor. But he was able to sidestep the attack. “Puh lease.” Stylish said with a pout. He then pointed the minions towards Bols, and they continued to swarm him.
Meanwhile, Kurome was managing to fend off Toby with little issue. She had drawn the conclusion that, though ferocious, he was way too open.
She stabbed him in the chest, but she suddenly realized he was no ordinary human; he was entirely metal. She withdrew her blade, shielding a kick from the metal foe. But she knew she could still cut through him. She just needed precision.
Ducking an overzealous lunge, she managed to clip his hind leg, which revealed a gun inside, nearly taking her eye out. But Kurome dodged, before cutting across him again, taking the second leg and avoiding the shot again.
Much as her sister had done in regular continuity, she had begun to dissect his patterns. And ultimately, his limbs.
“No… impossible!” Toby protested, looking to deliver to fierce cross cuts. But Kurome placed Yatsufusa between both blades, and looked him dead in the eyes, her pitch black irises almost filling Toby with the emptiness of pending doom. He then jolted back, as Yatsfusa’s reputable sharpness peeled the flesh from his cheek. And then, with one cold and calculated finish, her blade slotted through his right eye, dropping him to the ground. Lifeless.
“Quite possible. As you see.” Kurome said, finally responding. She then fought on that. “Or… maybe you don’t. Not anymore that is.”
Kurome left him to rust, sizing up, and ultimately trying to engage Esdeath, who had simply been toying with a member of the infantry, before snapping his neck with a wicked kick.
The younger sister of Akame stood a few feet from Esdeath, and the pair stared each other down as the carnage continued in the background. They were at it in a flash, the sounds of their blades smashing into one another. They were a nigh blur, save for Esdeath stopping to continually allow Kurome to press her own offence. “Hit me with all you have, Kurome. Out of all the Jaegers you are the one I held the most hope for.”
Not falling for the mind games, Kurome cut low – nearly taking the Commander’s leg out from under her.
Run circled the battlefield, before noticing Stylish had taken himself a little further away than before. Looking to close the gap, he raced in after him, but the recon units of Stylish noticed the teacher’s trajectory before he could close the distance substantially.
“Master Stylish!” they said in unison, as the Doctor dived away from the feathers. “Oh my, a brave one.” He said, almost applauding Run’s efforts. “But that will prove to be the only thing you’ve got going for you.”
As more minions poured over Run, the angel backed off and rained down with feathers, clipping them decisively on the shoulders and the chest. “Doctor. Why… what did you do to these people?” the teacher asked, horrified at the sight of the JoJo posing minions.
(Music Pause)
Stylish opened his mouth to monologue, resting his head on his right hand, handing the former teacher an ironic lecture – as if he had waited for this moment of boasting all his days.
“Oh, Run. If only you saw the obvious. This is my arsenal of wonderful Stylish creations!” he boasted. A disgusted hiss slipped from Run’s mouth. He had known something was wrong with Stylish. But what did he mean… creations?
“Creations?” he asked aloud, repeating the thought openly.
“Were you not paying attention?” Stylish smirked. Run was not impressed, as he quickly blocked a sneak attack by one of the creations. He drove it head first into the ground, before firing feathers at Mimi, who cowered behind Hana and Me.
In a sucker punch attack, Trooma dived out from seemingly nowhere, and barely clipped Run on the wing with a blade. Run skidded across the floor, landing in a heap. He looked up at the advancing stealth unit, trying to repel him with range, earning a swift kick to the ribs, almost forcing a gnarly collision with Wave.
The naval Jaeger was now establishing Kaku’s styles, and had seen enough of his reckless strikes. Run and Wave stood alongside one another, forming an alliance as Trooma and Kaku circled them. “Wave. We need to get to the bottom of this.” Run said. Wave nodded in agreement. “First we need to concentrate on keeping ourselves alive. Then we take it from there.” He responded.
(Resume Adramelech)
Run took off high, leaving Wave to block an incoming rush by Trooma. Wave kicked him back, before barely evading an attack from Kaku, with Extase missing by about a hair. “Not bad reactions, kid.” Kaku praised, still looking down his nose at Wave. “But these scissors are getting tiresome. So how’s about I cut some stuff off?” he chuckled, before being ironically cut off himself by a fly by attack initiated by Run. “Feathers? Get real.” Kaku spat.
“Never leave your back exposed, little man!” Trooma said, diving in and trying to cut through Grand Chariot’s armor. He may as well have punched a steel wall. Wave turned around, not impressed. He leapt up, being escorted by Run’s sharp turn, allowing Wave to come down with tremendous force. “GRAND FALL!” he called, placing his boot through Trooma’s back leg.
The unhinged assassin curled up, clutching the wound, before Run put feathers between his eyes, finishing off the deranged member of Team Stylish.
Before a word could be said between the two Jaegers, Kaku barged Wave through a group of Stylish’s minions. He then had to arc himself to the right as a loose shot from Bols’ flamethrower scorched the ground next to him. He then raised his weapon high, looking to cut off the leg of Wave, who had daringly placed a kick to the oncoming attacker.
But now Wave was back to his feet, amid the missed cleave, and he placed Grand Chariot’s boot right into the stomach of the much taller man. He then followed with a back elbow, and then two well placed kicks. Kaku again swung wildly, but Wave ducked. And this time a wayward ice shard from Esdeath even came in, cutting the cheek of the ruthless Kaku.
“You know, as far as Imperial Arms users go…” Wave said, before kneeing him in the face and driving the physical opponent downwards. “You lack the skills I’d expect to partner one.” Extase dropped from the grip of Kaku, who looked back up at Wave. He blocked an initial blow, but Kaku was only prolonging the inevitable.
He pushed back against Wave, who swept low and used his skilled hand to hand combat to overpower his bulky foe. Kaku landed on a side, awkwardly. “Ah crap…” he muttered, as the shadow of a boot closed on his forehead. With a fierce stomp, Wave crushed the crown of Sheele’s would be successor to Extase, leaving the bloodied corpse several feet from his broken comrade, Toby.
Koro then stormed on through, with Seryu barking orders at her Teigu. The large biological Imperial Arms looked to take a bite out of Run, who barely got out of reach. But as he looked to angle back around, Bols fired a blast of flames up at him, scorching the wings on his back. As Run crashed down, he managed to pop his wings back open.
His eyes then widened as the raging beam of flames burst from Bols’ weapon, forcing the angel to use his Trump Card: “GOD’S WINGS!” he cried, reflecting the flames.
Bols wasn’t letting up.
Run was not letting up.
Something had to give…
Someone had to give…
And finally, Run began to feel momentum shift his way. The flames went back to Bols, catching his sleeves and his wrists as the pressure mounted. The mask around his nose and mouth began to swirl as Bols twitched uneasily. Run stepped forwards, maintaining the pressure on Bols and now putting the incendiary squad member on his knees.
Bols could see it in Run’s eyes, his body language. He could hear between each grunt the screams of all those he had claimed the lives of. The fire now burned at his knees, and began to cape around the downed executioner.
But he couldn’t. He knew he had to carry on fighting, for his daughter, and his beautiful wife. But no. It looked like Karma was having its way. And it had found the most poetic send off for him. He began to lean back, finally letting go of the trigger when-
BANG!
(Music Stops)
A sickening blast pierced the back of Run’s neck. The former teacher gasped out a breath, as blood sprayed before him. A grave miscalculation on his part had left Seryu Ubiquitous completely unchecked. And with that opening, a single gunshot through the back had come out through Run’s throat.
Wave slowly turned, and Bols willed himself back to his feet, catching the glimpse of a fallen angel.
But no one spoke yet; Run’s eyes rolled back in his head as he breathed out his final exhale. His proud eyes and handsome smile curling into a relaxed, bland look. In total contrast, Bols – who had been expecting Karma to find him, now stood before the falling Run. And any chance of the prevail of politics passed.
The twisted serenity of the gut wrenching moment was finally disturbed when Koro steamed in, and bit down on Run’s corpse. The crunching and squelching of the fallen comrade, and then the spit out of the Imperial Arms made it all clear to Wave, who stared, eyes trembling with the urge to scream and rage-fully mourn a man he had come to trust and respect so much. It was all finally setting in;
Run was gone…
JAEGERS REMAINING: 6!
“Great job, Koro!” Seryu laughed maniacally. She then turned to Bols, who had turned his fire to her and Koro now. “LET’S KILL THE REST OF THESE EVIL TRAITORS!” she called, before extending her arm to the side. “Koro, Phase 2!” she instructed. Koro chomped down in obedience, removing the arm to reveal a four missile turrets. She then burst into laughter as the missiles decorated the air, homing on Wave, Bols and even a horde of Stylish grunts.
Wave ducked his missile, and the trajectory of it found itself wavering off into Esdeath and Kurome’s direction.
Kurome skidded back as a boot from Esdeath had her reeling. The general smirked as she walked towards her. “What are you waiting for Kurome? Use it. Reveal to me the powers of Yatsufusa in its entirety!”
Esdeath then caught Kurome ducking to a side, which could only mean… incoming!
The missile had come within inches of the general, who merely patted it aside with a block of ice. The missile headed off towards the city. Oh well. The general smirked, before turning back to see a ball of dark energy over the tip of Yatsufusa.
“Rokugou, rise now!” Kurome called and summoned her puppet of the fallen general. Rokugou immediately lashed out with a whip, looking to lacerate the bottom of Esdeath’s eye. The living general jumped back, creating a shard of ice and launching it through the chest of her deceased comrade.
“Former General Rokugou. How far you’ve fallen.” Esdeath smirked, pointing her sword at his throat. The former general prepared to duke it out, as Kurome found Wave, who had been manhandling one of the dwindling numbers of Stylish’s squad.
The pair then turned to Stylish himself, who had been watching the battle unfold.
“No, no. Carry on! You’re all going to leave me wonderful test subjects.” Stylish smirked. “The criminals back in the hideout make for promising grunts, but my fellow Jaegers? That’s just dreamy.”
Wave and Kurome made a silent truce, before bombing it towards Stylish’s position, unwilling to listen to any more of the doctor’s lingering lunacy.
“Oh very well.” He begrudgingly said, standing up. He then took a shot of his Danger Beast concoction, becoming a mutated beast himself. “Sorry guys. But needs must, I’m afraid. And so, we must become one!” he said, turning to his modified recon team. With a fierce hand, he seized them and swallowed them whole. He grew several times his size and loomed over the remaining Jaegers, who momentarily stopped battling.
“Oh? You all look like you’ve seen a ghost!” he laughed, glaring down particularly at Esdeath, looking to exert previously repressed dominance.
Koro looked to chew on the leg of the Danger Beast, but Stylish merely frowned at it. “Go find another leg to hump you filthy MUT!” he ordered, booting it into the pillars of the nearby observation area. Koro stayed down a few seconds as Seryu went to comfort her companion.
Bols looked to burn through the legs, and Kurome rushed up the side of its arm, but they were both shrugged off. Esdeath placed a hand on the floor, and simply froze over the giant Danger Beast’s ankles. With it unbalanced, her and Wave rushed the head of the monster, but yet MORE Team Stylish members made the save.
As they all engaged in seeing off the hordes, Stylish chuckled as he revealed another nasty play. He pushed a button, and in a matter of seconds, Kurome, Esdeath and Seryu were all momentarily neutralized.
“What?” Wave asked, looking around. Bols too was holding up well, and they stood side by side, glaring the abomination before them.
Wave drove at the legs, this time managing to climb the side of the body and hop from left to right legs as Stylish went to defend himself. Bols then began to burn away the lower half of Stylish’s body, but the maddened scientist’s skin was more durable than they had imagined.
Bols took a gruesome kick, knocking him into a row of the nearby flowers. As he picked himself up, their spores began to react with his open chest wounds, causing excruciating pain.
Seeing their efforts failing, Kurome called on Doya and Natala to aid Wave. The pair of puppets darted at Stylish, looking to chip away at him. With Ape Man now on the way, and Rokugou also engaging, Stylish was left to fend against five opponents unaffected by the gas.
“It’s over, Stylish!” Wave declared, as he leapt up towards the head of the beast.
“The hell it is!” Stylish shot back.
Ape Man roared as it grabbed a wayward wire that came his way, breaking it in half. In a panic, Stylish fell backwards, landing on several trees that broke his fall.
Seryu observed this, and her cybernetics were allowing some faint resistance to her paralytic shackles. “KORO, FINISH HIM!” she ordered. Koro bulked up, and then bounded forth. Not for Stylish, but rather the struggling Bols.
Bols knew what was coming. He threw his barrel into the air and self-destructed, looking to at least see of the Teigu. Though the damage was great, Koro seethed over him. “No…” Bols realized, as the jaws snapped shut around his upper body.
JAEGERS REMAINING: 5!
Now Koro looked to add a third course of Jaegers to his meal plan. It bounded at the wounded Stylish, but Ape Man looked to tackle the fierce creature as it charged. The brutes threw slugging blows, which would have surely outright killed a regular beast.
But these were not ordinary.
Stylish twitched, as he realized his predicament. Wave was now advancing on him, and he nowhere really to go. “MINIONS!” he roared, but a lowly three alterations made their way to him. All three being picked off by Doya on the way.
“Huh. Well shit. I guess I had a good innings.” Stylish mused as he and the puppet zombie exchanged blank stares. Doya then aimed her pistol, pressing the metal of her barrel into his forehead, drenched with sweat.
As he opened his mouth to talk again, no doubt lining up a sarcastic quip, Doya performed the execution, seeing off the lunatic, Doctor Stylish for good.
JAEGERS REMAINING: 4!
Now the others were coming back around; the effects of the poison waring off now.
The puppets returned to Kurome’s side, as Koro did Seryu’s.
The four circled one another, trying to decide who would be their targets. Kurome then suddenly attacked the waiting Esdeath, who parried the initial cleaves. Koro turned to Wave, who tried to go about things the polite way. “Uhh… heel? please…” he asked.
“Koro, Phase 5!” she instructed, as her arm was bitten off, replaced by the drill head that was Emna’s Spear. She then fired at Wave, who tried to block initially, but he was thrown back into the wall. What Koro didn’t count on when he advanced on his doomed meal was the interference of the nagging puppets of Kurome. Doya fired on the beast, ducking its attempt to fight back. Ape Man continued to brawl it where possible, though this angered Koro further, who pounced into the middle of the raging puppets.
All but Natala, who was flanking Esdeath. Every time the General looked to make a step forwards, Kurome cut to her right, forcing Esdeath closer to Doya. Esdeath recognized the strategy though, and kicked the puppet to the ground, before blade locking with Kurome and creating a platform of ice beneath them, bringing them both into the air.
The platform then began to descend, knocking both Seryu and Wave out and momentarily burying the remaining puppets and Koro beneath it. For now, this was a one on one with Esdeath and Kurome.
Kurome used quick chops to try and undo Esdeath’s guard. The pair of them had made a large leap towards the roof of the palace, seeing them engage in a trade of fast, precise cuts and even more paced jabs.
Esdeath looked to deliver a kick to Kurome’s midsection, but the younger assassin rolled under the attack and delivered a peppered kick of her own, stumbling Esdeath. Being off balance was not a sensation that the cryokinetic general was too acquainted with, and certainly was not a feeling she intended to entertain for long as she quickly took a swipe at Kurome, who leapt over her and cut at the back of Esdeath.
When Kurome turned around, she noticed a straight line of ice that had blocked the attack was running almost the exact course Yatsufusa had taken. Esdeath looked for a kick, but Kurome blocked it with a sharp cut. They continued to use wide swings, simply trying to overpower one another rather than looking for techniques of finesse at this juncture.
Natala had invited himself back into the fray now, looking to cut the head off the legendary commanding officer. But Esdeath weaved back. “Too slow.” She then practically pirouetted between the pair, as if she were merely figure skating – leaning into a block to parry Natala again. “Too sloppy.” She continued, belittling him further. She then picked him up by the neck, and kicked Kurome away. “Where does she find these incapable pawns?” she asked aloud, before looking to cut the head off of Kurome’s reanimated childhood friend.
Doya made a timely intervention, as she opened fire at the general, who blocked with a shield of ice. “Three versus one? You must be running low on confidence, Kurome.” Esdeath concluded, drawing her blade towards Doya.
In the meantime, Wave and Seryu were coming back around. Koro seemingly smirked at Wave, as it had figured what Seryu may order it to do. “Not yet, Koro. We need to weaken him first. Phase 5 – again!” she insisted, as Koro presented her with the spear once more.
“Another drill rush?” Wave protested, taking to the air to evade. He then had to pull himself further into the air, tucking in his knees as he just barely evaded the chomping fangs of the enraged Koro. Wave then pushed off Koro, looking to deliver a greater variant of Grand Fall.
"I know I need to destroy the core. But that thing… it’s massive. How am I going to whittle it down?" Wave asked himself, before booting down on Koro’s head. He then quickly turned, being caught by a gunshot from Seryu. Seryu was now running in a clockwise circle around her naval foe.
Wave was going to bide his time, looking to get a clean counter to her pestering offense, but Koro continued to interfere, ramming Wave into the ground. Now Wave sensed he was in a great deal of danger which resulted in – for the first time of the match – Grand Chariot’s blade being revealed by the anti villain incarnation of Tatsumi.
With an emphatic roar he dragged the blade across Koro’s chest, and then back through the arm, severing it for the time being. “ALRIGHT!” Wave yelled in celebration, turning focus to Seryu, who now had a mace head equipped instead. “HANG IN THERE, KORO! I’LL TAKE CARE OF THIS DIRTY CRIMINAL!” she snarled, as the mace nearly cracked through Wave’s defences. The armored Teigu proved too fast though, and allowed Wave to skid beneath her. He then cut at her back, but the metallic side of her body held off any fatal wounds, leaving only superficial wounds on show.
Unrelenting now, Wave pressed on against Seryu, backing her towards the palace walls. With a fierce kick, he sent her in through a window, breaking the wall on the other side of the hallway. She got herself back up, caring little for collateral damage dealt to the inner parts of the building. She smashed her mace down into the floor. “PREPARE TO TASTE JUSTICE, WAVE! IN ITS PUREST FORM!”
“Justice? What the hell has any of this INSANITY got to do with justice? Open your eyes Seryu.” He called out, trying to reason. But Seryu dragged the mace through the ground, flicking chunks of the floor boards at him. He had no problem chopping through it, but Seryu fired another shot, this time at the chandelier over his head, bringing it crashing down on top of the armored Teigu. “We are being played Seryu. Run knew something was wrong.” Wave said again, throwing the remnants of the chandelier at her. She destroyed it with a second shot, but this had proved to be a mere feign.
Because now, Wave had closed the gap between them, and he slammed down his blade at Seryu’s head. She managed a narrow evasion, but she was unsettled by Wave’s resolve. “And if I can’t convince you to pay attention to the corruption of the world around you…” Wave said, as he kicked her down the hall. “Then I will have to save you from it – by any means necessary.”
(Music Pause)
But all that bluster and bravado was quickly eliminated with a simple, wordless response.
A cold smile.
What was she up to?
From behind him, the fierce roars of Koro bellowed through the halls. Wave never even saw it coming, and was immediately picked up in the mouth of the Imperial Arms.
“NO!” Wave yelled, as he tried to wriggle free. Koro ran him through a wall, before spitting him out towards a nearby doorway. Wave struggled to his feet, as Seryu finally spoke again. “DO IT NOW, KORO!” she yelled, as Koro advanced down the hall, full speed ahead.
Wave flung open the doors and slammed them shut behind him. He knew that Koro was not going to slow down, so he needed to move. Now! He leapt through the ceiling, and ran along the upper levels of the building towards a wide open window. He could hear the creaking groans of the peeling away floorboards behind him, as Koro somehow sensed him going back on himself. Wave dived out of the window, rolling through the garden and finding Sheele’s Extase – still a few feet from Kaku’s body.
He lifted it. Or tried at least. The damn thing was heavier than it looked!
But he had no time to think on that.
Koro was coming.
More troubling than that…
Koro was here!
With as much strength as he had on hand, he threw Extase through Koro’s legs, cutting them off and slowing down the Teigu.
“Thank goodness for that.” Wave said, panting heavily. He quickly noted that Seryu was lining up a cannon towards him, but he also saw the pillar next to her was unstable thanks to Koro’s bounding strides.
Wave looked to create a collapse of the building around Seryu, diving to his right, Seryu dragged her cannon, right into the side of the pillar. With a glance, she noticed it fall towards her, burying her for a while as Wave looked to regroup.
Although their battle was slowing down, Kurome and her puppets found themselves in a showcase of speed with Esdeath, racing around the garden with guns blazing and swords cutting swiftly through the air. As Kurome skidded back on her heels, Esdeath booted her into a pillar, cracking it slightly, but was headed off at the pass by Doya when she went to capitalize. This prompted Esdeath to freeze over it, trapping the once confident gunslinger in a prison of ice.
She then cut at Natala, slashing up his arm and then stabbing through his chest. Doya no sold the attack, and swatted at Esdeath, who baited the strike in.
“No, DON’T!” Kurome warned her puppet, who was already now coated in ice. Esdeath then shattered the pair of frozen puppets, seeing them off.
“Well, that was quite the exercise. Now Kurome. What cheap tricks have you got left?”
Kurome held her blade in an aggressive stance; she was gonna make this bitch pay if it was the last thing she did. Most of her puppets had been trapped or killed at this point, and Kurome doubted her strength would keep up if she risked another.
In a flash of black, she dived forwards. This baited in a wide stance from Esdeath, who blocked the attacks with confidence and grace. “Yes! Hit me with all you have to offer!” They continued their trade of slashes and cross cuts, with Esdeath soaking up the pressure. Kurome was now backing her up against the flower bed where Bols’ remains sat. Kurome performed a quick slash, which lead into her using her own momentum to sweep Esdeath’s legs out from under her.
The general placed a hand down mid fall, cushioning the impact slightly, and arched herself into a position where she could deliver a sliding, scuffing kick – driving her heel into Kurome’s legs. She fell back, hitting her head on the floor quite hard as she rolled through. Esdeath looked for a clean stab, but Kurome managed to lean away from the tip. The younger sister of Akame then looked to return the favor, presenting a jab of her own, which saw the cold Commander off to the side.
Esdeath snapped her fingers, commanding the shards of ice to form around her. They then swarmed Kurome, as if they were dagger wielding wasps. But Kurome was up to the task of blocking them, cutting through the projectiles with precision and an advancing motion. She was weathering Esdeath’s storm for now. But she had to land something significant here. Or else things could be quite bleak.
Noticing the advances of her foe, Esdeath smiled but ultimately had no sentimental thoughts when she created a pillar of ice that barreled forwards at Kurome. The puppeteer noticed the attack, but also sensed one coming in from behind her.
Kurome gasped, as she just barely jumped over the sandwiching attacks. Esdeath joined her atop the ice, and their duel maintained. Kurome’s new objective was to somehow force Esdeath into the building; the narrower layout may benefit her.
But Esdeath cared not for Kurome’s strategy, rather she looked to rush her deeper into the flower bed. Small, but noticeable cuts on Kurome’s naked arms. She was going to apply one of her torture techniques on the young fighter. Much as she had done to Bols earlier in the battle.
Kurome unwittingly aided this intent, leaping backwards and into the flowers. Esdeath’s chops were now wide, sweeping low ones. Cutting the heads off the flowers, they were gusted towards Kurome, who raised her arms to block. Her eyes then began to water as the stinging and burning assaulted her open wounds. How had she not seen that coming?
Esdeath laughed, as she snapped her fingers together and directed the icicles around her towards Kurome. The wielder of March of the Dead continued backing off, trying to bait an Esdeath mistake. But none was to present themselves.
So Kurome fought back with a likewise technique. With a deep cut, she sent heads of flowers towards Esdeath, who shielded them with ice. But Kurome was relentless, and hammered away at the frozen shield of the commander in chief. Despite her reputation as an all conquering aggressor, Esdeath’s defences proved to be just as frustrating to unlock. Any and all attempts to do so in a significant way had proven themselves quite fruitless so far.
The pair then ended up separated for a moment, as Wave spilled in between them, landing next to Kurome. She took a few steps to a side, creating a triangle, with her, Esdeath and Wave being each point of it. It then became a rectangle, as Seryu and Koro took their own spot.
Seryu was armed with a missile launcher, looking to obliterate Wave and Kurome at the same time, though both fighters managed to nimbly evade. Wave found himself backing further down the garden, as Kurome looked to flank Seryu. The cyborg laughed in a crazed trance, barely even locking on to targets any more. Esdeath made a move, looking to catch out the police officer with a blindside assault, but Koro stepped in front, and swatted the ground before her, sending a small cloud of dust that blinded Esdeath.
The general took to higher levels with her cryokinesis, elevating herself above Koro, who rushed into the ice, trembling it though Esdeath remained composed. Seryu had now let the heat off of Kurome and Wave, who had regrouped together and were rushing Seryu from the side. The crazed officer turned, but couldn’t lug her missile launcher around as easily, with meant there was a chance to score drive by attacks. Kurome slashed her across the chest, and Wave delivered Grand Fall, sending Seryu careening into Koro.
The Teigu lost focus, and Esdeath planted a heel in its head, and then cut into the chest, prodding for any indication of the core. Koro turned, and swung a fist at the three enemies – sending them scattering. Kurome planted Yatsufusa into the floor, wiping the dirt from her cheek. “That dog…” she grumbled.
Wave panted next to her, catching his breath. “If we work together on Seryu, then her Imperial Arms should also stop working. Right?”
“Right. Neutralise the user, and the Teigu itself will stop responding.” Esdeath confirmed. “So, that’s what we’ll do.” All the while, smirking smugly as she kept her true intentions close to her chest.
Esdeath then created a spiking pillar of ice that went horizontally, towards Seryu. The cyborg jumped aside, but that had been Esdeath’s plan; Seryu had unwittingly put herself on the other side of the ice to Koro. Now three Jaegers were surrounding Seryu, who was struggling to hold them back. Her gunshots were swatted aside by Esdeath, who kept advancing. The general stuck out a hand, generating an ice dagger that she then flung at Seryu, pushing her shoulder against a pillar.
Seryu snarled, before revealing the guns in her mouth and her hands, mounting more pressure on Esdeath, and putting her on the defensive for now. Wave then punched her square in the face, an impact that would have knocked out an ordinary fighter. This was then followed by another deep cut by Seryu, who screamed in a horrid concoctive hybrid of pain and rage.
“KORO!” she screeched, a blood curdling call that almost deafened the three remaining Jaegers. Her Teigu finally managed to resurface, haven detoured through the wall of the building and out from behind Seryu, nearly taking off Esdeath’s head with a bite.
The general flew back from the potential danger, only to be caught with a swing from the spear head that Seryu had managed to fire off in the distraction. Kurome rushed past the reeling general, slashing up and down Koro but doing little more than anger it further. It lunged for a chomp, but Wave dived in and snatched her from its jaws. He then dived beneath Koro, only to be kicked back by Seryu and rushed into by Koro, sending the armored Jaeger scattering into the wall.
“JUSTICE WILL PREVAIL!” Seryu screeched, almost as if she was trying to reassure herself that it may be possible.
She then turned her attention to Kurome, who was looking to cut down the cyborg and unravel her path of righteousness before her. Seryu rushed in a circle around Kurome, but the younger sister was not making this motion easy; she was incorporating cuts and slashes into the shots, knocking them back at Seryu, all the while keeping a wary eye on the prowling Koro.
Koro then bounded into life, chasing Kurome towards the palace wall. She ducked a fist, and then cut up it. Before leaping on the Teigu’s head and stabbing it through the cheek. Koro thundered a booming noise of pain and frustration, looking to drive his head – and Kurome – through the wall, but the puppeteer jumped down, leaving the Teigu wobbled.
“NO!” Seryu screamed, charging Kurome with all guns blazing. Kurome fell back on her defensive stance, blocking attack after attack. Until one fluked a way through, winging her in the stomach. Now Kurome’s defensive cleaves were much slower, and generated far less speed.
Seryu kept up the fire, only for Grand Chariot’s trident to block off further damage. “PERSISTENT PEST!” Seryu snapped, turning all her vicious venom and bitter righteousness on Wave, who was baiting her shots wide, gradually drawing her arms into wider angles and creating an obtuse frame for him to aim his attack through. And then, when the time was right, he lunged in and sent Seryu slamming into a wall, with a sickening, and stone shattering thud.
The wall began to crumble, but it inadvertently got Koro’s attention back, as the Imperial Arms’ nostrils flared violently; its eyes widened, and teeth prepared for a tinned meal.
Kurome joined the side of Wave, but it was a scary situation; they knew Koro was capable of an absolute massacre. “Phase 3!” she instructed, as Koro snapped off the arm to reveal a blade. Now Seryu was ready to bring them to justice by way of the blade as well.
“Oh man…” Wave said to himself, as Seryu – despite her pain – was still raring to go. Seryu knew what the plan was, and she had a vague idea how she was going to defend against it too. Koro then turned aside and lunged at the returning Esdeath, who baited the Teigu away from Wave and Kurome. The three underlings gripped their weapons tightly, before all taking decisive swings.
Wave’s power drew the attention of Seryu’s blade, and baited her into a block, leaving her back open to Kurome and resulted in the narrowest of dodges. Wave then nearly had her head, but Seryu blocked, revealing the gun in her mouth again and firing off at Kurome as she flanked. All three of them ended up smashing their weapons into the same lock. And though Wave seemed favourite to outmuscle her, Seryu was able to slip beneath him, kick Kurome in the knee and then push Wave further back. Wave skidded on his knees, blocking a sharp stab with nothing but the armor on his chest.
He took advantage of the hesitation in Ubiquitous’ game, hoisting her overhead and stomping on the arm, trying to snap the blade. Seryu’s defence held up well, as she shot her other arm up and grabbed Wave, pulling him over and onto the floor. Kurome slashed at Seryu, who repelled comfortably this time and cut for Kurome’s throat.
All three Jaegers were then sent flying helplessly as Koro was slammed into the ground next to them with a fierce kick from the general. “No, Koro!” Seryu cried, as she placed a hand on her temporarily defeated companion. Wave and Kurome pulled themselves up, and watched as Esdeath landed down on the chest of the Teigu, and kicked at Seryu, who crossed her arms out before her general – blocking the assault with both arms and a great deal of effort. The attack’s impact sent a powerful shockwave around the field, and Wave grabbed Kurome’s hand as her smaller frame almost saw her go flying.
The Navy man’s hard work proved to be for naught as Esdeath kicked Seryu into the pair, and they tumbled in a torrid mess.
“Kurome, Seryu. Listen.” Wave started, before being cut off by a slash by Ubiquitous. Wave’s armor blocked, and Kurome leapt over him, cutting at Seryu’s unprotected side. “Both of you need to listen!” Wave tried again, looking to take control. Esdeath drew closer, rapier drawn out and ready to cleave her way through. “WE HAVE TO BAND TOGETHER!” Wave finally shouted out, pulling both Seryu and Kurome out of range.
He then kicked at Esdeath, who blocked with her blade. She then created a small slab of ice and thwacked Wave in the chest with it. Grand Chariot was being really tested at the moment, and Wave knew Esdeath would surely find a way in if the battle continued the way it did.
Kurome was the next to engage Esdeath, being swatted aside by a relentless elbow strike, but recovering quick enough to pepper Esdeath’s legs with sharp kicks. In response, Esdeath went to drive her heel into Kurome’s throat, but the twisted sister ducked beneath, and Esdeath’s boot smashed into a tree, snapping it in half and showering the area in snapped splinters of the trunk.
Seryu leapt in, but Esdeath was out faster than Seryu could strike. “Admirable efforts all around.” Esdeath remarked, cutting Seryu aside and generating a wall of spiked ice between Kurome and Wave. “But you must simply do better.”
(Music Stops)
“You may have proven to be the strongest three of my subordinates, but mere status, subordination and synchronisation will not spare you. Nor will your deaths be any less painful.” she said gleefully.
“What’s wrong with you, Commander?” Wave sniped back in disbelief. “We served you and the Empire loyally. Without question. Like any good soldier would. How can you be so callous as to cast us aside in such a way?”
“Orders are orders, Wave. Surely the soldier you claim to be, you’ll see that. The fact of the matter is that the Jaegers have been targeted for execution – guilty of treason against the Imperial Government.” Esdeath said, face blank.
“If the Jaegers have been marked, why are you being spared of charges? As Commanding Officer, that would surely make you more of a target.” Kurome thought aloud, bewildered by the blatantly contradictory logic being used to justify the move.
“Because fear is a great motivator. The Emperor and Minister both know that they need the very best to defend this government. I am spared as a valuable member of the Imperial Army. Not just some glorified police officers whom we can pull from anywhere. Being Teigu users was a great gimmick for you all, but no matter what title you give it, or little toy you give them to hit people with…”
Esdeath leapt from her position towards Kurome. “A chess piece is still merely an object. With no power or will of its own.” she and Kurome traded slashes, with Kurome more and more on the back foot running the length of the ice wall. “The ones looking down on the board have all the power. Now you all need to play your parts as expendable pieces and be sacrificed. If this belief hurts you so, then do something to stop me!” she finalised, kicking Kurome in the stomach and knocking her onto her knees.
Just as she prepared to stab down on the puppet master, Wave appeared over the top of the wall. “Grand Fall!” his attack landed on Esdeath’s blade, and he put all his might into gaining the upper hand. Esdeath drew a second sword, one of ice this time, and pushed Wave up, who back flipped and landed behind Kurome.
“Fine! Then I’ll fight for my friends. For Bols and Run – and even the Doctor. They all bought into the Jaeger’s cause and I won’t allow them to be seen as valueless property! NONE OF US ARE!” yelled the impassioned Wave. Esdeath smirked. “You’ve matured Wave, but compassion is a great weakness. Soon you will see.”
Wave acted fast, blocking a stab destined for Kurome’s chest and trying to push Esdeath over. As Esdeath took a step, Seryu rushed in, now with her mace head arm extension wielded. She swung it maliciously, seemingly not too bothered about who she aimed at, but coming closer to hitting Esdeath than any other target. Wave jumped up and used the weapon as a spring board as he dived into the face of danger again, kicking at Esdeath, who repelled with a single cleave. She then tried to karate chop Wave’s armored arm, figuring hitting a joint would still greatly impact the wielder.
Wising up, Wave begged off, and Esdeath’s hit went astray. This allowed Seryu and Kurome to rejoin the fray, with Esdeath kicking Seryu back a few feet, and then blocking Yatsufusa in its path. “Again with the ambush. I’d hate to think you’re becoming predictable, Kurome.”
“It was intentional.” Kurome shot back, as Esdeath looked around and saw the agitated re-emergence of Koro. The Teigu blindly jumped at Esdeath, who put an ice sphere around herself as a shield, which was launched into a distant hedge line.
Kurome quickly took cover from Koro as it mindlessly charged forwards, and Wave offered a shoulder to the March of the Dead wielder. “I’m fine.” Kurome bluntly stated, hinting back at Seryu, who got herself back up. “But I think we could all do with a moment to reassess.” she continued. Seryu nodded, wanting to whistle Koro back, but being stopped by Wave. “Let him fight the Commander a short while.” Seryu nodded and waited until she was given the command.
Meanwhile, Esdeath was having a bit of fun with Koro, keeping herself just out of the beast’s range and peppering him with small ice shards. She quickly had to improvise her style though, because Koro ripped a solid strip of floor off the surface and was fully intent on beating Esdeath up with it. She leapt back, throwing an ice shard for the neck, but it landed awkwardly, and Esdeath landed awkwardly on something.
A few stragglers from Team Stylish had somehow gone undetected, and jumped on Esdeath, who mercilessly stomped on the first one’s throat. She then stabbed a second one in the head and tripped a third one, stomping down on the skull decisively. This brief distraction allowed Koro to grab her and begin squeezing down on her. Esdeath was not to be beaten this way though, and let out a heavy breath as she pulled several ice shards to herself and cut through the arm of the dog like organic Imperial Arms.
Esdeath landed on her feet and kicked out at Koro, trying to stagger its bulking frame. She then acted quick as she had to shield herself from a gunshot that came screeching from the hand of Seryu. Esdeath turned on her heel yet further, cutting straight through the middle of a slab of rock that Wave had thrown her way, and then she completed the final parry as she kicked out at Kurome, who dodged the initial kick, but clashed blades with the general. Frenzied, Esdeath drew a second sword entirely of ice, and dual wielded at Kurome, putting her on the defence.
Wave ran in, looking to play hero, but Esdeath foresaw it, and drove her foot back, clonking Wave in the chest, much like when they first met. This time, Grand Chariot repelled it, and Wave was sent skidding into Seryu, tripping the police officer as they finished in a heap. Seryu pulled herself up. “Koro, finish the Commander off! Do it!”
A roar filled the area, as Koro looked to hit like a ten ton truck with his dive.
He was about as subtle as one as well, and Esdeath simply pulled an ice pillar beneath her. She evaded the attack, Koro knocked over the pillar and Esdeath used the fall to cut for Kurome. This time, Kurome got the better of the exchange, cutting sharply for Esdeath’s ice blade, but tilting her blade so the blunt edge bounced off the inside of Esdeath’s guard, and then came a fine whisker away from cutting Esdeath’s nose off.
That intricate attack sparked a reaction, and Esdeath quickly looked to grab Kurome’s wrist and try to straight up twist it out of position, but Kurome pulled back and Wave returned to the scene, daringly blocking Esdeath’s blade with his own. “Oh, Wave. How noble. And yet, so infuriatingly predictable.” Esdeath remarked, as she reached a hand out for his plated chest. “Now, freeze!”
As her palm opened, Wave recognized the glowing blue in her hand. He pulled back slightly, and scuffed a kick down Esdeath’s shin and knee, staggering her and – for the first time in the match – Wave began to dominate Esdeath! He landed a few punches at his former commanding officer, who backed up and raised ice shields in thin air, looking to keep the relentless and passionate Wave at bay.
“Always wearing your heart on your sleeve, isn’t that right Wave?” Esdeath sneered, as she kicked through her shield, and then quickly ran a string of ice spikes towards Grand Chariot’s wearer. “I’ll be sure to rip it from your chest, still beating!” she added, as the sheer thrill of the sadistic remark seemed to intoxicate her. Her eyes and smiling mouth creepily widened as she grabbed the Navy member by the arm and threw him into the side of a palace wall. Kurome jumped to hit a downwards slash, wanting to put distance between the general and Wave. But Esdeath grabbed her, and then Seryu who had also rejoined the fray. She pulled them into each other, and then sent them skidding across the floor with a strong gust of ice wind.
(Music Stops)
“So, all three of you are going to lean on one another. If I didn’t know better, I’d have wagered that this was a rebellion planned against me all along.” Esdeath said with a smirk. “Still, none of that will matter in too much time. You have all shown me a fantastic fight, and I am almost disheartened to see it end so soon, but you’ll all understand. So, which one of you wants to challenge me first?”
“ME!” Seryu said, as she jumped up. “KORO: Phase Six! Let’s eliminate her!” she cried. The Teigu bit down and revealed a massive rocket, with obvious explosive capacity beyond the garden. Esdeath jumped back as the rocket launched, and assessed the landing zone.
“Well played, Ubiquitous.” Esdeath remarked, as she realized the blast would in fact kill her, the other Jaegers and the Emperor himself. She jumped before the missile. “MAHADPAMA!” she cried out. The three remaining Jaegers gasped, as they were momentarily encased in ice, but Esdeath’s target was the missile.
Using great delicate care, she redirected it up into the air, where she jumped up and snapped her fingers. She didn’t want to use techniques so close together, but there was surely no way this would come back to haunt her. “HAGELSPRUNG!” she ordered, as a giant sphere of ice overshadowed the missile. With the collision being several miles in the air, the explosion merely created a hot breeze over the palace, and chunks of metal and ice showered the area. Mahadpama’s effect had worn off, and Wave ordered Kurome and Seryu inside the palace, sheltering from the hail. “What happened back there?” Wave asked. Seryu was panting. “She countered the rocket. I thought for sure that would annihilate her.”
“We have to press the attack now!” Kurome said, pulling Yatsufusa to her hand. “Come on!” she rushed out into the debris, looking around and parrying a late strike by Esdeath. Now it was Kurome’s turn to berate Esdeath…
“Your form seems to be slipping, Commander. You can’t keep this up forever.” she said smarmily, keeping a single, concentrated gaze centered on Esdeath’s eyes as she cleaved. “You’ll see how long I can keep this up. First, I’ll kill Seryu. Then I am going to kill Wave. I wonder, Kurome, between them – your sister - and even the March of the Dead’s puppets, how many people will have left your side before you finally die?”
“You know, when I kill you Commander. You’ll make a really good puppet. I will not die before I find Akame again – you can bet on that!” she snapped, as she broke off the blade exchange and kicked at Esdeath, who had the same plan. The two kicks collided and of course Kurome came out behind, being sent flying. Wave dived and caught her, bringing her down safely. “Rest yourself a while, Kurome. We’ll try our hand from here!”
“Wave, I can still fight.” Kurome protested, but the former sailor was having none of it, and left her behind. Wave ran up the back of Koro, and jumped off the top of the Teigu, angling his foot for Esdeath. “GRAND FALL!”
His attack missed Esdeath, but the force of the impact on the ground staggered her, making an opening for Wave to attempt a kick to the chest. Esdeath blocked with a slab of ice, and then threw that same shield into the throat of the looming Koro. As the Teigu staggered back, its wielder, Seryu, returned to Wave’s side and fired in a flanking circle around to Esdeath’s right. Wave veered to her left, and Esdeath countered with a repulse of uniform ice shards that sent everyone scattering into different directions. Seryu caught the worst of it and landed in a heap. Koro went to protect her, but took a moment too long – allowing Esdeath to place a palm on the Imperial Arm. “Now FREEZE!” she commanded, bringing the organic weapon to a pause.
“Koro! KORO!” Seryu screamed, as she caught a kick to the chin. Esdeath loomed over her, looking to stab her through the heart, but Wave tackled her to the floor and the pair spilled into a tree. Seryu wasn’t as lucky as it first seemed though; the attack had cut her across the throat – not deep enough for the kill, but still enough to render her unable to fight. She turned and saw Kurome stood over her. “I’m sorry, Seryu.” Kurome said coldly, as she pulled Yatsufusa up. “But there’s no other way to let you live…” she said as Seryu’s eyes widened.
Yatsufusa claimed Seryu, killing Ubiquitous – bang to rights – but also serving one more purpose – a greater one at that: Kurome had a new ally!
JAEGERS REMAINING: 3!
When Wave turned around, he was in horror at the sight of a puppet form Seryu, but had little time to dwell on it as a shadow appeared over him. Esdeath looked to snap his neck with a kick, but Koro jumped up – taking an order on instinct from his master. The puppet Seryu remained silent, but a pointed finger suggested she had indeed ordered the move. “So it was Kurome to turn on her team mates after all.” Esdeath smirked, trying to put the thought of further treachery in Wave’s already swirling mind. “You mean before or after we were all marked for treason?” Kurome snapped back, as Seryu rushed Esdeath. “Besides, I didn’t betray her. I simply made it so she’d be my friend forever! And when this is all done, I’ll play with her forever and ever.”
“That’s a cute sentiment, but I don’t suspect you are going to live long enough to do that.” Esdeath snorted, as she elbowed the Ubiquitous zombie in the chest. Little effect, and Seryu slashed at her, sorta grazing the chest of Esdeath but the damage was only really superficial. Esdeath leaned back to evade further impediment from the blade, and instead found a gunshot whistle past her eye. In an awkward, leaning position, Esdeath had to draw strength from deep as she cartwheel kicked Wave out the air as he attempted Grand Fall. He skidded away into some flowers, as Esdeath threw ice shards at zombie Seryu.
Kurome slashed at her relentlessly, her cleaves forming a perfect x shape across Esdeath’s chest, but the cryokinetic commander kept her central line strong, and almost impossible to penetrate. The swings of Yatsufusa were on the money though, and Kurome’s control over her strikes’ width and angles kept Esdeath on the back foot as she looked to swat attacks aside. She then turned and took a kick to the chest from Seryu, tanking it well before placing a palm on the nearby tree and creating a gate of ice to block out the two advancing Jaegers. Kurome looked to stab through a gap, but Esdeath stepped aside and stabbed back through another gap, nearly catching her ribs. Kurome pulled away, and Seryu navigated around the outside of her, grabbing Esdeath’s rapier.
“Back OFF!” Esdeath snapped, as ice shards shot from the tip of her blade, stunning Seryu and knocking her back a few feet.
Esdeath then reshaped the gate she had built around herself and looked to coil it around Kurome, who leapt up and sprung into the air. Unfortunately, that’s where Esdeath wanted her. She spun a kick into her, and sent the shortest of Jaegers flying towards the palace, smashing through an upper floor window. Kurome was out for a while, reaching into her bag of cookies.
Back outside, Wave dived into Esdeath, trying to run her into any obstacle he could find. He took flight with her, looking to throw her to the floor, but with a flick of her wrist, she generated an ice dagger and started applying pressure to Wave’s shoulders, weakening his grip. As he began to let go, she brought a pillar of ice up beneath them, but Wave acted quick and rotated both their bodies so he could plant her against it with a power slam. They both let out discomforted grunts as they landed, and Esdeath fell off the top of the pillar, looking at a head first collision with the ground. That was until she saw Koro come bounding in – overzealous and desperate to feast on the falling commander.
The reanimated Seryu rasped as Koro’s jaws opened, which Esdeath countered by placing a sphere of ice inside, lodging its jaw wide open. Koro struggled to spit out the sphere, and Esdeath knew it was going to be difficult for him. She kicked Koro in the chest, and then flicked a succession of ice shards at the flanking undead Ubiquitous. Seryu shielded her face with her shoulder, and when Esdeath turned, she saw Koro bulk up significantly. Bersker Mode activated for the biological Teigu.
The now much taller Teigu punched the floor, sending a ripple of mud and rock at Esdeath, who evaded on principle. She aimed for Seryu, wanting to incapacitate Koro by association. Seryu fired away – unable to properly move as Koro’s Berserker mode drained her own energy. The shots were desperate as the rushing Esdeath swatted them aside, cutting off the hands of Ubiquitous and then the arms as well. Before she could land a fatal blow to kill of Seryu a second time, Wave leapt down and kicked Esdeath back, allowing Berserk Koro to swat the general several feet into the air. Esdeath took a second of readjustment and then landed gently before Koro, who roared in her face, sending her flying. She planted a kick into a trunk to slow her fall, knocking the tree way wards as she sprung off it, cutting Koro on the chest. The added muscle depth meant he simply just punched her again, but she was able to sponge the hit with an ice shield, which shattered on contact.
Wave rushed before Koro and slashed at Esdeath, who parried the assault and sent him to a side as she tripped the charging Koro with a simple flick of her hand, and sheet of ice at his feet. The wounded Seryu fell on the back of Esdeath, trying to create an opening, but simply took a kick to the knee, and then a stab through the stomach. The Berserk Koro dived again, but this time Esdeath smartly opened a wall of ice spikes and let the Teigu run into it himself. When the Imperial Arms collided with the spikes, it yelped, and slowly shrunk down… Berserk no longer…
(Music Pause)
Esdeath fended off a slash from Wave, who was knocked a few feet back towards the returning Kurome. “What took you so long?” Wave asked, panting heavily. Kurome didn’t respond, staring blankly as Seryu began to glow. The limping Koro came to its master’s side – cuddling up to the reanimated Ubiquitous. “I’m sorry Seryu. And Wave.” Kurome finally spoke. Seryu then began to glow, as her self destruct mechanism charged up.
But suddenly, the pair became encased in a solid block of ice. Koro, and the doomed Seryu were lifted in their ice prison, by Esdeath, who became visible from behind the spot of the fallen Imperial Arms – and Seryu.
Wave and Kurome simply watched as the isolated Seryu and Koro were lifted several miles in the air. With a wily grin, Esdeath made her intention clear. It was a grenade! Kurome went to charge Esdeath there and then, but ate a kick to the face. Wave looked back and forth, considering his options. Attack Esdeath, or help Kurome?
He took a deep breath… And chose to assault Esdeath, using a leaping Grand Fall to send the ball away from the battlefield and higher into the air. Esdeath leapt on platforms to draw herself closer to the flying Wave, and they locked in mid air. Finally, after so many attempts, Wave got the upper hand and kicked Esdeath in the knee, and then uppercut her, hitting her head on the lower hemisphere of the ice sphere prison around Seryu and Koro. He then kicked her against an ice pillar, sending her skidding down to the palace. But Wave caught an unsettling look.
(Music Stops)
Esdeath’s beam then became apparent as the first flash of orange kissed it. Wave could barely turn around as the explosion of Seryu inside the ice – the ice he was right beneath – sent him spiralling out of the air. His armor hit against every ice pillar and block on the way down as he landed in the middle of the Palace Garden, wheezing and spluttering as Grand Chariot went dormant. He looked at his hands and knees from his seated position, blood and now tears – but not his – flowed down and into his pants legs.
He looked up through watering eyes as Kurome cradled him in a hug. “Wave…” she said softly. The tears no longer held back as she sobbed into his shoulder. “I’M SO SORRY!” she cried, an ugly screeching sound as she struggled for composure. She panted and breathed deeply as the drugs, and physical and emotional stress all began to take a toll at once. Wave could barely speak through the pain, but his eyes went wide when Yatsufusa’s tip appeared at his heart.
“Kurome… no…” he whispered in a pleading way, eyes fixed on Kurome’s tears filled ones. “I have to Wave… To save you!” she cried, trembling as she positioned it. She looked up and saw Esdeath coming too in the distance. “This way… we… we’ll be together… Forever Wave!” she wept, as she sunk Yatsufusa into the heart of the one who had – in some ways – stolen hers.
JAEGERS REMAINING: 2!
Still not quite fully composed, Kurome trembled to her feet as Wave’s body vanished into Yatsufusa. She looked through still teary eyes and Esdeath rather sheepishly walked towards her. “Well done Kurome. You have proven what I had long since suspected. You are the strongest of the Jaegers.”
She then smiled to herself and went back on that line.
“Well, nearly, the strongest.”
“You see, Commander. Over the next few moments there will be nothing left to compare.” Kurome said coldly. “Either I will die taking a piece of you to hell, or I will prevail, and send you there entirely. And your body becomes a very nice new instalment to my puppet collection.”
“That doesn’t scare me.” Esdeath shrugged.
“Not having Tatsumi will. Never getting the fight you crave will.” Kurome replied adamantly.
“You do wrong to give personification to me. Tatsumi is a simple conquest – a side hobby. An interest that does not define me. And what of you, Kurome? The sister you never had – the lover who will never know you felt the same? You can’t lecture, or unnerve me with emotional attachment. Your passion for those you love has always driven you. If you fight with your heart, then I promise that is the first thing I will cut out.”
Both women held off a moment, a little stung by the shared words. Kurome had to ignore Esdeath. Couldn’t let another voice in her head.
“Come and take it, General. We’ll know soon enough how far our passion gets us. Like you said, we are the strongest ones left. And in a moment – it will not matter either way.” Kurome retorted, drawing Yatsufusa in one hand, and stuffing her face with the drugs laced cookies in the other…
Esdeath pointed her rapier up at Kurome, not letting on the agony her entire body was in from that fall. For a few seconds, they circled each other, Kurome dragging her woozy body to a side while Esdeath stumbled the other way. They changed stances – Kurome opting for a traditional samurai esque stance, while Esdeath seemed to mirror that of a fine fencer.
They approached one another as slowly as they possibly could, looking to do their opponent with the eyes, before finally the first wide swing came in from Kurome, being met with small and consistently placed poking jabs by Esdeath’s rapier. Kurome kept rotating her sword’s trajectory, uncomfortable with the unwavering and blatant direct approach Esdeath was taking. Blades clashed, and Esdeath simply walked in a straight line, probing Kurome’s defence with jabs that occasionally banked left, or dipped slightly lower to the right. Kurome backed away again and again, before coming next to the stone balcony of the seating area. She slashed Yatsufusa across the stone, flicking the material at Esdeath, who blocked with a small circle of ice.
Kurome kicked out at Esdeath, who spun out and returned with a horrifically quick kick. Kurome blocked with both arms, but this had been a front and Esdeath used her height to help the length of her second kick. And then, a teasing, grazing slash across the stomach had Kurome hunched over. A second kick knocked her against a tree as the commander stood over her fallen subordinate. “It is finally finished.” she recognised, plunging downwards.
Her blade tangled with something. It was a resurrected Wave – his dull eyes fixed on Esdeath’s. “Oh, another puppet after all?” Esdeath laughed. “Very well. Stand together, die together.” The puppet of Wave then became encased with the muddied Grand Chariot. The armor made for a powerful punch, which Esdeath blocked with her sword. Wave closed his hands around the blade – seeing Kurome flank on the other side and cleave for Esdeath’s neck. The resourceful general created an ice shoulder plate that sprang up and blocked the attack, sending shattered ice over the commander’s face. That backfired.
Kurome then went for a lunging stab, but Esdeath let go of her weapon and allowed Wave to pull it away, putting herself in a position to slash Kurome in the arm with a small ice dagger. Kurome cried out, but kept her concentration on one particular target. Calling back to their first ever engagement, she went for the chin, but Esdeath weaved away, landing awkwardly as Wave tripped her on the landing.
“WAVE! Go high!” Kurome ordered. The undead navy man sprang up, drawing Esdeath’s focus. Still without a sword, she attacked Kurome with a kick, and then looked to stab her in the heart – wanting to make good on the promise. She then saw the shadow of the incoming Grand Fall and tried to redirect herself, but Kurome sprang up as she turned, pinning Esdeath between two attacks. The general stabbed Kurome in the stomach, but Kurome put all her weight on keeping her hand there. Esdeath frantically went to karate chop Kurome’s shoulder out of place, but Grand Fall connected on her back at the last moment, sending the attack wayward.
Kurome bled heavily, but Esdeath was also suffering, crawling away and sending a gust of icy wind at the pair. In sync, Kurome and Wave joined hands for a second, before the puppet stepped in front of a stab by Esdeath, who had a sword of ice ready. The attack hit Wave’s armor, getting lodged in the loosened back plating, before Wave spun around and sent Kurome diving like a black and red missile at Esdeath – Yatsufusa running the length of the general’s outstretched arm.
“You’re MINE!” Kurome snapped, as silence fell. The dark aura around Yatsufusa came up again, as Esdeath – now with a sliced jugular – fell to the curse. “Not… possibl-urgh.” Esdeath rasped, choking on her final words. She fell to her knees, before vanishing into the sword. Wave bowed his head, in a lot of pain, before also returning to the sword.
JAEGERS REMAINING: 1!
Limping away weakly, Kurome could hear the oncoming guards. “No…” she rasped, clutching her wounds and trying to trudge to the nearest escapes. “I had hoped it’d be you who won this! We wanted for so long to make you our little toy!” Syura laughed maniacally behind her.
Kurome hurried her limping, hearing someone coming from behind. She couldn’t let herself be caught. She reached for Yatsufusa, but collapsed from the pain… Into familiar arms.
“Big… Sister?” Kurome asked weakly. A hooded Akame held Kurome gently. “It’s okay, Kurome. You’re okay. We can be together again.” Akame said softly as Kurome passed out. Mine – in a hood of her own - and Tatsumi appeared beside her, looking around. “What… was this?” Mine asked in surprise.
“It looks like the Jaeger implosion was more than a rumor.” Leone commented. “Look – they’re all dead… And they took a lot of the city with them.”
“But that means…” Tatsumi started.
“Yes Tatsumi. Though casualties were many, and the pain even more abundant, our goal becomes that much easier.” Akame smiled. “We need to go. Our mission was simply to scout. We take Kurome back to base, and we can clear her name from the Revolution’s targets. Quickly. I sense someone.” The one hit killer remarked, as they scampered into the shadows.
(Music Stops)
Enraged, Syura kicked a nearby Team Stylish corpse. “You keep running and pretending to play heroes, Night Raid. But we’ll meet soon enough…” he promised, laughing a cold, unsettling laugh. He then turned to greet the rest of the Imperial Soldiers and Minister Honest. “Oh hey dad! This… didn’t go well.” He said, before turning on the pretentious emotions. “It was so horrible. General Esdeath fought so bravely and valiantly, but there were just too many traitors-“
“Enough, Syura.” Honest said with a grimace. This unexpected turn means we will need to take more drastic measures. Come with me, son. We have a great deal we need to figure out.” He said, waddling back indoors. Syura cut the act, and smiled. “Right away, pops! I was thinking a promotion. Great General Syura, Commander Syura? Oooh, how about-“
“SYURA!” Honest said a lot more sternly, as he glared. Syura pouted. “Fine. Just Syura…” he mumbled, following behind his father.
KO!
Conclusion[]
Boomstick: Those team mates will make a fine addition to her collection. But man, I am really surprised Esdeath did not take this.
Wiz: It was not an easy call deciding which Jaeger would stand tall after all out war. We’ll get to the latter stages soon enough, but first we have to explain away the first few eliminations. Okay, so the first out was Run – a decision Sinnovalos is not a fan of, and one he is still struggling to come to terms with. The former teacher was a very capable fighter, and has showcased some impressive feats, such as reacting to and blocking Esdeath’s strikes in a sparring match. However, his Teigu was best fitted really for recon missions, and navigation against a single foe.
Boomstick: While he could send back projectiles – ones strong enough to destroy several buildings, it added to very little when you consider the chaos of the battle royal. If anything, him being airborne just made him a more tempting target, and he lacked the attacking output to put a real dent in the volume of attackers.
Wiz: While his feathers could penetrate flesh with ease, it was unlikely he would land such attacks on many of the Jaegers in context. The second elimination was also a fairly easy call, as Bols bit the dust not too long after. His bulky frame meant he was easier to hit, and despite having good reaction speeds, via his showcase against Akame, he has never been shown as a particularly mobile attacker. And his Teigu really was not going to be too effective as even the slowest Jaegers had reaction speeds to avoid it. He was effective at keeping people back, but once it came down to longer battles, without the protection he had in the Valley match in the show, he was out of his depth.
Side Note: You could probably swap Run and Bols’ eliminations around, there is little to separate them as fighters and Run only went out first this time based on him being ambushed, playing into Seryu’s traits rather than Bols’ strength or Run’s weakness.
Wiz: The next to fall was Dr Stylish. This… was a hard one to pinpoint. Stylish, inconceivably, had very viable ways of winning this battle. Firstly, the sheer numbers of Team Stylish would overrun most of the Jaegers if given the chance, and members such as Kaku would match up decently with Wave and Seryu. The problem was that no member of his team was outright as skilled as the Jaegers. With people like Bols who specialized in mass killings, his standard grunts were simply cannon fodder most of the time. And while Mimi, Me and Hana had great perks, they were simply fuel for his final form.
Side Note: Stylish could have also won had the Jaegers all been caught out by the paralysis gas. The problem is that not all Jaegers would be neutralised; Wave’s armor would resist it and Koro would be immune. It’s also hard to say if the gas would effect Seryu properly thanks to her being more machine than human. Given that Toby (similarly created to Seryu) was able to resist Murasame – a poison like curse – you could make the case she too would be immune.
Boomstick: Another problem for Stylish was that his own Super Form, if you like, was similar to a Danger Beast that was annihilated in seconds by Esdeath on the desert island. It was simply not good enough in single combat, as seen against Susanoo, nor was it resistant enough – as proven by Esdeath – to maintain its role in the fight.
Wiz: Stylish outlasted Bols and Run thanks to his trickery and a lot of help from Team Stylish, but when the chips were down, the final four far outmatched him, and any victory he could have gotten, while possible, were not wholly probable as they depended far too much on circumstances to line up.
Boomstick: So, into the final four we go. Esdeath, Kurome, Wave and Seryu Ubiquitous.
Wiz: Seryu was obviously the most exploitable character in this sequence as she was unstable, and very passionate. She lead directly and Koro bounded after her, but that isn’t to say she was easy to beat. Mine got the better of her thanks to previous knowledge of the character and was familiar with Koro’s durability. But she was the first of the final four to fall. Regardless of who got her, eventually she was going to be outmatched by one of them, and no amount of phases could bail her out.
Boomstick: In fact, Seryu’s downfall might be evidence of one of Bulat, I mean, Handsome’s favorite sayings…
Bulat: It takes more than passion to stay alive, you know.
Boomstick: Seryu was very passionate about what she did – and was very direct… usually… meaning she was never really looking after her defence – something Mine and Sheele exploited in their battle with her. Mine and Sheele were both very capable, but neither of them possessed the talent and prowess of Wave, Esdeath or Kurome at this stage of the Battle Royal.
Wiz: Wave was a tricky character to analyse. On one hand, he is a very talented soldier, skilled with martial arts and capable at using his Imperial Arms, Grand Chariot. While the armor offered a lot of defence, it was vulnerable to strikes in the same spot – exploited by Akame in the manga. However, that was in a straight one on one battle, with no interferences and Akame had already been able to run an analysis of Wave’s style and defence.
Boomstick: In the sheer madness of a seven person battle royal, it is very unreasonable to guess someone would keep dialing in on the same spot over and over and over again on the same foe as they would just be taken out on a blindside by another opponent. Considering this was something other Jaegers such as Seryu and Kurome were specialists in, there’s no way any one person would just get away with lining up identical attacks on Grand Chariot’s exact same spot.
Wiz: Wave would eventually be undone as it is likely Esdeath would single him out once the team up between Seryu, Kurome and Wave began to dwindle as he was not the most capable fighter remaining – being a step below Kurome – who Esdeath was always going to want in single combat.
Side Note: Just because characters’ moral codes are removed, doesn’t suggest their approaches to fights are. Esdeath lived for good fights, and would want to combat the strongest Jaeger remaining alone. In this case, it was pretty much nailed on we were going to get Kurome VS Esdeath as the final showdown.
Boomstick: Wave would make her work for it, no two ways about it, but Esdeath was able to defeat Incursio and had the strength advantage over a roided up Akame. Remember, when Akame took drugs to try and get close to Esdeath’s level of strength and conditioning in the manga and still came up short?
Wiz: Eventually, Wave would be broken through; Shikoutazer proved that a powerful enough strike would be enough to put him down for a while, and while Esdeath’s strikes surely don’t match the city destroying lasers of the legendary Imperial Arms, she has shown analytical approaches and surgical accuracy at dissecting opponents – including armor wielders such as Tatsumi.
Boomstick: So with Wave defeated, this is where a disadvantage for Esdeath would present itself; Kurome would likely be the one to kill Wave thanks to her thoughts on “killing the one you love”. A sentiment shared by Esdeath, sure, but Kurome and Wave did have personal feelings. Even if they didn’t, she was not going to let a talented team mate go to waste when she could keep them on side as Yatsufusa’s puppets.
Wiz: This would then leave Esdeath back in a three on one. Only this time, the puppets would actually be in perfect sync with Kurome and her strategies. See, while considered mindless, they still had blind devotion to Kurome and would be willing to put themselves in harm’s way for her much as Run did in the manga. Much like Run as well, Wave and Seryu could quite possibly retain some of their personal feelings in reanimation – owing loyalty to the person who stood by their side.
Boomstick: Obviously, by no stretch of the imagination would the zombie forms be invincible, but they would take a pounding – especially with Seryu being mostly machine and Wave having Grand Chariot still. In a three on one perfect synchronization – with a drugged up Kurome – they would be a very hard pest to remove.
Side Note: Yes, the drugs would not put Kurome on par with Esdeath, but they would give her durability a huge boost. Her durability was already impressive (surviving a needle through the neck for example) and her sheer force of will in both medias saw her take on Akame to impressive lengths. While Kurome would not be superior to Esdeath alone, she would be able to hang in there better than her fallen comrades.
Wiz: In a straight up fight between Kurome and Esdeath, I don’t think many people give Kurome much of a chance. However, while a gap in skill does exist, it is important to establish that it is not the massive gulf it seems. Remember in the sparring session when they first met? No one was really holding back apart from Stylish, Bols and the dumbfounded Wave. Kurome all but scored a clean hit on Esdeath’s face. Yes, this was possibly thanks to a distraction from her being focused on Seryu, Koro and Run, but it was as good as a hit – especially when you consider that was the closest to an outright Jaeger Battle Royal within the story as we got. It was a similar layout, and there is no saying Kurome could not repeat that feat.
Boomstick: They would be both fairly similar in speed, being able to dodge Pumpkin shots – though Kurome did so while being sniped from several miles away – and both going blow for blow with Akame in separate duels – an assassin notoriously considered the fastest member of the Night Raid squad.
Wiz: Esdeath took experience, being a General and all, but Kurome could lay claim to having a great deal of experience too thanks to her role as an assassin within the Empire. Esdeath was more used to her showdowns consisting of large numbers, whom she would often freeze over, but this was usually after she defeated the strongest or the leader one on one. Like Kurome would be…
Boomstick: The use of Demon’s Extract would be difficult for Kurome to combat, but Esdeath usually used it for innovation, not always overwhelming – creating a new sword here, or a new arm there. That kind of stuff.
Side Note: While yes, Mahadpama would likely be an insta win, I don’t see Esdeath calling on it. It was invented for her to ‘slay her enemies’ while also keeping Tatsumi imprisoned, but she only ever used it when she was on the losing end. There’s nothing to suggest she would know her end was near in the first place, and even then – she can only use it once so would need to know for certain when she was going to have to use it… Pretty unlikely.
Wiz: Finally, there was the Ice Cavalry and Commander In Chief. The main gripe with this technique pairing is that Esdeath used it once, and in a stockpile preparation for the final battle. Because she solely created it to combat the Revolutionary Army in the big battle, it is unreasonable to assume she would just use it here, as it essentially classes as prep time. Even if she could make some on the spot, she would need space to do so – which would be unlikely considering the velocity of opponents in the fight. And while CiC allowed her to beat several Teigu users alone, they were not particularly skilled ones – and they were only there to provide Akame with a distraction. Which Esdeath gave her. It is probable that she would leave a similar opening as she did against Akame (carelessly raising an arm etc.) which Kurome – a girl similarly trained to Akame – could capitalize on. Only, this time Kurome would see her off as Mahadpama was spent, and Esdeath’s defenses were well and truly exhausted.
Boomstick: This final exchange really could have gone either way, as Kurome and Esdeath were both skilled beyond belief. Esdeath is the strongest one on one fighter in the Akame ga Kill world, but unfortunately, there was simply too much going on that Kurome could use to get a clean hit.
Wiz: The battle would be excruciating, the wounds would be plentiful and the casualties would be many, but in the end – we believe Kurome would soon stand tall.
Boomstick: Things were never straight forward, but she eventually Kuromade things work.
Wiz: Yeah, that pun was never gonna be an easy one. The winner is Kurome!
