Shy and Aggressive

by Johng117

Chapter 65: The Sniffles

It was the noon. Sirens wailed as cries of panic filled the air. From the streets, citizens fled as loud bangs and crashes filled the air while two Transmutants fought in a mid-transition state of man and beast. One was a mammoth-like beast and the other was bear-like in appearance. The two gave cries as they slammed into each other and tackled one another. Around them, MONARCH soldiers arrived, surrounding the fighting Transmutants. They fired their quake cannons, causing the beasts to become disoriented and collapse. Before they could rise, Kumonga leaped through the air, landing on a nearby roof top. She opened her mouth wide and sprayed webbing through the air, covering the Transmutants. As the two were immobilized, the soldiers began to advance towards them. Kumonga removed a strand of web from her lip and drew out a walkie-talkie.

"Alpha, we just immobilized two of them down town," said Kumonga. She gasped as she heard a loud crash just a few blocks over. She found a quadruped beast to be running down the road a few blocks away, ramming into abandoned cars.

"Another one popped up!" said Kumomga as she began to run after the Transmutant, dropping down to the street.

"We're still containing a couple down town. Make sure they're neutralized lest MONARCH uses lethal force!" said Senior over the walkie.

"You think Destoroyah's decided to attack Ponyville?" asked Kumonga as she hopped over abandoned cars and began to sprint after the quadruped.

"Destoroyah is coordinated. This is all random. Not to mention that these Transmutants are fighting each other," answered Senior. Kumonga grunted as she jumped through the air, gaining distance on the Transmutant with her leaps. As the Transmutant fled to the park, Kumomga leapt off of nearby trees. With one final bound, she sprayed forth webbing while in midair. The web began to descend on the Transmutant like a shower of mist. When exposed, the Transmutant quickly found himself tangled by the webs, causing him to stumble and crash into the earth. Kumonga dropped to the ground and rushed to the beast, spraying additional web onto its form. Soon, the Transmutant was immobilized.

"The heck is going on here?" asked Kumomga.

---

Aiko stood by in the girl's locker room, sporting gym wear with Canterlot High's logo. She held a tablet, depicting a news feed of Rogue Transmutants being apprehended by MONARCH. This was live, happening miles from the school district. Though the school was ready to go on lock down just in case. This brought concern out of Aiko. For some reason, more rogues were popping up in Ponyville.

"MONARCH has been said to be establishing a new base closer to the town, Ponyville, to allow a faster response to the growing rate of Rogue activity," said the news anchor.

This began to bother Aiko. She knew that it was a logical and tactfully sound response for this growing problem. However, she wondered if this would prove to be a problem in the long run, establishing a greater military presence in town, and how long until MONARCH started policing the populace.

"No, this is necessary. It won't become that," said Aiko to herself. This was surely temporary. Not to mention it would keep citizens safe, but Aiko knew the real problem. It hasn't been shown to the public, but the last couple of days have had these growing Rogues, and they tended to be teenagers. Each registered at Ponyville High. Aiko looked through her tablet, finding images of students’ faces, with information on each subject. These students were apprehended the previous day on Monday morning outside of school grounds. Each was under investigation but had yet to seen carrying any terrorist ties.

Their identities have been concealed, and their families are being investigated as well over the incident. This would be the case for today too if these new rogues confirmed Aiko's suspicion.

"I know those brats have something to do with it," said Aiko as she pulled up the images of the Dazzlings, her expression hardening.

---

Battra found himself eating in the mess hall with Ford. The two had an idle conversation as a few other recruits looked at them from their table.

"Why don’t you go over there?" asked a recruit in annoyance.

"Hell, no! That's weird, man," said another recruit.

"What's weird with just sitting with someone for lunch?" asked a female recruit with a deadpanned look. She shook her head and got up.

"Screw it. I wanna know what they're talking about," said the recruit as she took her tray and made her way over to the other table. Battra and Ford were knocked out of their conversation when the recruit sat across from them.

"Brody, you didn't think to introduce me to your new pal?" asked the recruit teasingly.

"Oh, sorry. Yasu, this is Nakada. Nakada, Yasu," said Ford as he dug into his meal. Nakada smiled as she held a hand out with a smile.

"Hey, pleasure to meet you," said Nakada. Battra shook her hand, although looking having been caught off guard.

"So you're that Transmutant recruit everyone's been talking about," said Nakada. Ford looked at her in disapproval.

"Hey, lay off him," said Ford.

"It's fine," said Battra as he cleared his throat. Nakada suddenly bore a look of annoyance. She began to make a hand motion for "come here". Confused, Battra and Ford turned and found two other recruits from the table behind them began to come over. They awkwardly took a seat next to Nakada, who bore an annoyed look.

"Oh sure, don't worry boys. I'll protect you," deadpanned Nakada.

"So... You're the Night Angel guy, right?" asked one of the male recruits awkwardly.

"Kurtz," said Ford in annoyance.

"People know about that?" asked Battra incredulously.

"Oh yeah, every recruit knows. Heard it from Caliber. Right, Woods?" asked Nakada, looking at the other male recruit.

"You ever accidentally shoot lasers out of your eyes?" asked Woods, curiously. Battra remained awkwardly silent.

"What are you stupid? He doesn't have laser eyes. Right?" asked Nakada, looking unsure.

"Uh..." Battra cleared his throat.

"He does! There's videos of him in Fillydelphia using it a couple times! I saw it on the internet!" said Woods in annoyance. Kurtz looked to be uncomfortable and lowered himself.

"How? They confiscate our phones when here," said Ford in confusion.

"It was before I got here," answered Woods.

"So it's true?!" asked Nakada with wide eyes.

"Yes…" answered Battra. Nakada seemed to have been grinning from ear to ear.

"That's fucking awesome! This is something out of a comic book!" said Kurtz. Battra bore a surprised and confused look. He certainly wasn't expecting this reaction.

"Kurtz, what the hell are you doing?" asked Nakada in confusion.

"He didn't answer Woods's question," said Kurtz as he began to lower himself further.

"You're not in danger. I have to really focus to shoot my eye beams," said Battra with a forced reassuring smile. He brought his hand forward.

"Battra Yasu," greeted Battra. The two male recruits reluctantly shook Battra's hand.

---

Senior stood silently as MONARCH began to haul away two unconscious Transmutants. Teenagers. Both were male. Senior had to restrain himself from stopping the soldiers as they locked the two in the back of an armored truck. He knew that it'd bring more harm to everyone around should he interfere.

Senior felt a buzzing in his pocket, prompting him to reach inside. He drew out a dark phone, and answered it.

"Yes?" answered Senior.

"Your help is most appreciative, especially the past day. There seems to be a growing problem regarding the Transmutants in this town," said Hayato from the other line.

"Any leads?" asked Senior.

"I was kind of hoping you'd have one," said Hayato over the line. Senior sighed under his breath.

"Nothing that I'm aware of. I'm already busy with playing my part of the agreement," answered Senior as he scratched his head.

"Would you suppose that your old pal had something to do with this?" asked Hayato. Senior felt an ache in his stomach as he processed the question.

"You're the Director, aren't you? Surely you see that this is too random for a Revolutionary attack," said Senior in annoyance.

"Just thought I'd ask," replied Hayato. Senior shook his head.

"So what's the plan?" asked Senior as the armored truck drove off.

"We'll keep these Transmutants in a holding location until we can get a clear investigation. Then we'll decide our next step," said Hayato.

"And what of the media?" asked Senior as he sighted a news helicopter above.

"We're going to keep the identities of the Transmutants under wraps for now. That means no access of information for the press. Any relatives will be under investigation as well as to reduce the chances of the media nosing their way into this," answered Hayato.

"If I'm being honest, I hope there's another explanation as to why the youth are suddenly going rogue," said Hayato. Senior nodded.

"As do I," said Senior in agreement.

Senior had hung up. As MONARCH cleared out, Senior was left alone in the park with Baragon and Kumonga. He turned to the two.

"Head on back. I'll join you later in the day," said Senior as he walked off.

"Got it. Come on, Kumonga," said Baragon as he rubbed his aching shoulder. Kumogna began to follow, leaving Senior behind. The older Transmutant began to leave the area, as MONARCH kept the area blocked off to civilians. Eventually, Senior had made his way over near an alley. But as he stepped, he noticed something in the corner of his eye. He froze, finding a small object to be scurrying on a dumpster. Senior's eye followed the object as it moved onto a wall. It was scarlet in color, covered in a carapace.

Senior began to follow the small object as it scurried away. Senior tensed himself as he followed the creature as it crawled onto the ground and disappeared from sight. He stopped in the middle of the dark alley, his body tense.

"What are you doing here?" demanded Senior. He turned and found a larger humanoid figure in the shadows.

"Is that anyway for someone to greet an old friend?" asked the figure. He stepped out of the shadows, standing a foot taller than Senior. His yellow eyes stared at Senior, as a smile crept on his scarred face. His body was partially covered in a scarlet carapace, covering his right side of his arm, shoulder, and his left leg. His chest was partially covered in the scarlet carapace. He wore no shirt, but pants that were stretched out on left leg from the carapace that covered parts of his flesh.

"You look good, Gojira," said the figure, his smile exposing the sharp teeth in his mouth.

"Destoroyah," said Senior as his expression hardened.

"So... you're in bed with MONARCH? That's utterly disappointing," said Destoroyah with a sigh.

"I have no choice. Besides, I'm trying to help our kind," said Senior.

"By locking them away? That's helpful," said Destoroyah sarcastically.

"What do you know about these Transmutants going rogue so suddenly in this town?" demanded Senior. Destoroyah scoffed.

"I know nothing. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were attempting to pin the blame on me for what you speak of," said Destoroyah. Senior narrowed his eyes.

"Then why are you here? How did you find me?" questioned Senior

"I merely wanted to see my brother. Besides, it's no secret that you were last seen in Equestria. It just took additional eyes to find you," said Destoroyah with a chuckle. Senior hardened his expression.

"We're not brothers. What happened before means nothing to me now," said Senior.

"You can't deny it, Gojira. We started something great! You may have left but we continued on," said Destoroyah, pride feeling his voice. Senior glared at him.

"What we started was wrong! It's brought nothing but ruin!" said Senior. Destoroyah glared back as he stepped out of the shadows, exposing his grotesque appearance to the light.

"It will bring a new beginning!" said Destoroyah, raising his voice. The two stared each other down, opposing each other's ideas.

"What's happened to you? You were the most ruthless of all us. Now you've gone soft. You're weak," said Destoroyah in a low tone.

"The Gojira Takeshi that I knew would've scorched MONARCH to ash. What happened to him?" asked Destoroyah. Senior merely hardened his eyes.

"He's dead. And he will never come back," said Senior. Destoroyah scowled at his old comrade's response.

"Hmph. You can't pretend none of it happened, Gojira," said Destoroyah as he walked passed Senior.

"The war, the Revolution, that was all you. You can never take it back," said Destoroyah. Senior clenched his fists in response.

"Having a family doesn't absolve you," said Destoroyah as he looked back at Senior.

"Leave this town, Destoroyah. I don't want to find you or any of your Revolutionaries here, again," said Senior in a low tone.

"Very well. As an old friend, I will comply. For now. But I wanted to warn you," said Destoroyah.

"Of what?" scoffed Senior.

"You may not be aware of it, but there is an enemy that threatens both humans and Transmutants," said Destoroyah. Senior looked at him in confusion.

"What do you mean? Who?" asked Senior.

"I don't know who they are. But I know that they are among us, hiding under our noses. I've been concentrating our resources on finding and stopping them. But I've been dealt a blow back recently," said Destoroyah as he took on a grim tone.

"I know an alliance between your group and mine is out of the question. But, I felt that I should warn you. They're looking for something. And when they do, we're doomed," said Destoroyah as his body began to break apart. He decayed into a swarm of small red crustaceans.

"Wait!" called Senior as he reached out to Destoroyah. The swarm began to move across the ground and into a sewer grate, disappearing from sight. Senior lowered his arm as he furrowed his brows.

---

It was the afternoon. Junior was walking through the hall alongside Mosura. The two were prepared to head home soon, but were gathering their things from their lockers. As they had finished, they ran into Sunset, who was standing just by the Wondercolt statue, on her phone.

"Hey, Sunset," greeted Junior. Sunset snapped her eyes from her phone and greeted Junior and Mosura with a smile.

"Hey guys. Heading home?" asked Sunset.

"Yep," answered Junior. Mosura cleared her throat.

"How's Erika?" asked Mosura with a look of concern.

"Well, she's still in that cave. She hasn't answered my texts or calls," sighed Sunset.

"Maybe you should try seeing her," suggested Junior.

"I don't know. What if..." Sunset was hesitant to speak.

"You never know for sure unless you try. Trust me. It hurts more avoiding the issue," said Mosura with a reassuring smile.

"It's been 2 days. Her father is bound to find out she's not home, right?" asked Junior. Sunset gave sigh.

"You'd think. But he's rarely home. One time I spent the weekend with Erika, and he didn't show up until Monday," said Sunset.

"A real workaholic, huh?" asked Junior.

"Yep. If he knows about your dad, I guess I shouldn't be too worried about him learning about Erika not being home," said Sunset as she brushed a strand of hair out her face. Junior felt his gut sink.

"I'll see you guys later. Bye," said Sunset as she walked off and waved. Mosura and Junior waved back. However, Mosura noticed that Junior seemed to be bothered.

"Are you OK?" asked Mosura.

"Huh? Yeah I'm good. Let's go home," said Junior as he walked on ahead. Mosura followed after him, adjusting her bag on her shoulders.

"You've seemed off for a couple days. Something has to be bothering you," said Mosura.

"It's nothing. Trust me," said Junior.

"I want to, but I don't," said Mosura, softly. Junior sighed heavily.

"Alright, alright. I won't push it," said Mosura.

"Thanks," said Junior. Truthfully, the ordeal with Erika plagued him. Just the uncertainty of what would become of her clawed at the boy's conscience. The revelation that her cure, her mutation, was linked to the blood of his father caused him to feel partly to blame for Erika's plight.

As the teens made their way home, Mosura began to cough. She felt her head as it ached. Her coughing increased as they continued walking and her throat grew soar from inflammation.

"You OK?" asked Junior.

"Ugh. I'm feeling..." Mosura stumbled, prompting Junior to catch her before she could fall flat on her face. Mosura's sight began to blur as her throat grew dry. Her breathing grew labored. Junior felt her forehead and bore a look of alarm.

"You're burning up!" said Junior. Mosura leaned her head on Junior as she grew weak in her knees, slouching on the boy. Junior looked up and found his home a few blocks away. He then scooped Mosura up into his arms and quickly made his way home. He carefully set her down and fished for his key. Mosura nearly fell over to the side, but was held up by Junior. He opened the door and carried the girl into the living room. He lied Mosura down, as she gave labored breaths.

"Goji... I'm..." Mosura muttered as she dozed off. Junior cursed under his breath as he removed the girl's jacket and shoes. The boy left her on the sofa as he rushed into the kitchen, digging through the cabinets. Miwa exited her bedroom with bedhead and a groggy look.

"What's going on?" asked Miwa as she looked to the kitchen.

"Mom, where's the medicine?!" asked Junior as he dug through the cabinets.

"Wha? Why? Oh my gosh!" exclaimed Miwa as she found Mosura to be lying on the sofa, visibly ill.

"What happened to her?!" asked Miwa incredulously.

"I don't know! She just collapsed on our way home!" said Junior. He grunted in frustration.

"Damn it! Where is it?!" said Junior.

"Junior, calm down! I keep the medicine in the cabinet above the fridge," said Miwa. Junior began to make his way to the fridge and reached into the cabinet above. He drew out a basket full of medicinal supplies. He drew out the cold medicine and browsed through the other options.

"I've never gotten sick before, so I never had to look for this stuff," said Junior as he made his way to Mosura. He poured the liquid medicine into a small cup as Mosura sat up with a cough. Her nose was red and her eyes puffy.

"Drink this and rest," said Junior. Mosura took the medicine and drank it, gagging from the bitter taste. Her symptoms were shortly partially relieved, but she felt weak still. Mosura lied herself down, coughing. Junior knelt by her as the girl lied, unable to remain awake.

"Don't worry so much, Junior," said Miwa. Junior looked at her incredulously.

"Mom, she freaking collapsed in my arms!" said Junior.

"Son, she just had a fever. Stressing won't help," said Miwa as she took the medicine and put it away.

"But, I think it's sweet how you sprung to action," said Miwa with a smile. Junior just stared at Mosura worriedly.

"Sweetheart, why don't you get started on your work? She'll be fine," said Miwa. Junior nodded as he stood up and grabbed his back pack.

"How are you feeling by the way?" asked Junior.

"Still a bit nauseous. Had a hard time at work. I haven't felt this way since..." Miwa's voice trailed. Junior looked at her in confusion.

"Since what?" asked Junior. Miwa shook her head with a small laugh.

"Since I was sick last time. Get started on your homework. I'm going to lie down," said Miwa as she left the room and entered her bedroom.

Junior sighed. He made his way to the closet and drew out a blanket. He returned to the living room and draped the blanket over Mosura. The girl snuggled under the covers with a sigh, adjusting the pillow her head lied on.

"Thanks, Goji..." muttered Mosura. Junior brought his back pack over to the coffee table in the center of the living room, right near Mosura. He drew out his books and his pencil.

"I'm right here if you need anything," said Junior.

---

The high school was filled with lingering students. Eliza was wandering through the hall, alone. Her expression neutral and cold. She passed a couple of female students, who whispered as she passed by.

"I heard she dumped Rodan," whispered a student.

"Were they even a thing?" asked another student incredulously.

"That'd be a first. The guy never could get a girlfriend. I even turned him down once," said a third girl.

"Aw. His flirting is bit off putting but he seems nice," said the first student in sympathy. As the girls gossiped, Eliza continued on, paying them no mind. Her expression unchanged, like a cold stone statue. The girl made her way further from the students until she found herself in an empty classroom. She approached an air vent, built into the side of a wall.

Eliza knelt before the vent, placing small four metallic discs on the vent, one on each corner. As they stuck on, the discs flashed a light and shot out small beams into each other, creating a rectangular wall. The wall exposed the inside of the vent, where a small object sat inside. Eliza reached inside and drew out the object. On it were small holes around it, along with foreign hieroglyphs. The girl placed the object into her bag, where a few other similar objects were inside.

After removing the discs that allowed her to phase through the vent, Eliza left the classroom. She stopped as she heard violent coughing. She turned and found the three gossiping students from earlier to be panicking as a male student collapsed onto the ground.

"Someone call the nurse!" cried one of the girls.

Eliza clutched her back pack strap as she watched this. She left the area as she kept her expression cold, her mind shutting out what she had seen. She made her way outside of the school and into the parking lot and found Harold and Chris at the edge of the lot.

"Have you finished?" asked Harold. Eliza merely removed the bag from her shoulders and shoved it against his chest.

"Count them if you wish," spat Eliza. Chris glared at her in response.

"You're being childish!" said Chris. Eliza glared back.

"I did my part, Chro'nus! For once, spare me your belittling!" said Eliza. Chris growled.

"I've had enough of you!" said Chris. Harold quickly stepped between the two.

"Enough! We still have work to do!" said Harold. Eliza looked at him incredulously.

"What more do they want from us?" asked Eliza.

"By now the gas we've set off in the ventilation system has infected only the Transmutants at this school as planned. Our job is to search for any that shows no signs of infection. We need the source of that enhancement serum from GeneCo. The samples we have are contaminated with an unnecessary formula" said Harold.

"What makes you think the source attends this school?" questioned Eliza.

"It's a start. If there's one of them with advanced regenerative traits, there's bound to be more," said Harold as he drew out a metallic object. Suddenly, it sprung a solid light that was flat as a screen. It depicted the school's enrollment data and the faces of the students.

"We shall split up and investigate these Transmutants. If they show no signs of infection, make a full scan on their cellular make up," said Harold. Eliza bit her lip.

"And then what? What of the student? Or what if our search provides nothing?" asked Eliza.

"The search will be expanded until we find a source of these 'G-cells'. As for the subject, we've just been ordered to report back," explained Harold. Chris scoffed.

"Don't worry for these animals. They're a means to an end," said Chris. Eliza hardened her expression.

"They are not animals!" said Eliza. Chris was about to retort.

"Enough!" said Harold. He handed Chris a tablet and then one to Eliza.

"You're assigned to the Transmutants marked on your tablet. Addresses are present," said Harold as he walked off. Eliza and Chris merely glared at each other.

"Your compassion for these things is sickening," said Chris.

"Your way of thinking is sickening. It's why we're in this situation in the first place," said Eliza as she walked away.

---

Hours passed. The sun was setting. Eliza was standing in cover, peering through a pair of binoculars that allowed her to see through a house. Inside, a figure in infrared lied in a bed, visibly coughing. The sight of the binoculars changed, showing the figure in a negative image. Signs of inflammation were present in the subject. Eliza sighed as she removed her binoculars and marked off the investigated student.

"Even if none of the students showed resistance to infection, there are still some missing from the past two days. Our search wouldn't be thorough," said Eliza. Her job just seemed to get more complicated as days go on. Already, her superiors were looking through MONARCH's data base to possibly find the source. But there have been other setbacks depriving that research.

"The seeder of the terra-former is missing and we still can't reverse engineer the cells. There must be a better way for our salvation," said Eliza solemnly. As she continued on her search, she found a subject on her list that made her heart briefly stop. She lowered her tablet with a blank look on her face.

Eliza made her way into another neighborhood. She stood, trembling behind a bush as she drew out her binoculars. But through a window, she spotted Rodan to be dressing himself into pajamas, visibly in a coughing fit. The boy's nose was red as he blew into a tissue. A woman entered the room, presumably his mother, holding out a cup to him. Rodan looked to be declining what was offered, much to his mother's annoyance. She grabbed him by the ear, which he painfully pleaded to stop. Eliza couldn't help but smile in amusement at the scene. She watched as Rodan drank the contents of the cup with a gag. His mother ruffled his hair and left the room.

Eliza bore a sad look as she scanned from hiding with her binoculars. Infection was present, and no cellular makeup matched the G-cells. However, Eliza wasn't sad for not finding the match. She was relieved actually. But, it pained her to see Rodan this ill. He wouldn't die. The gas was odorless and designed to mimic the flu-like symptoms, but only affect Transmutants. Normal humans were safe. Only the carrier of G-cells could resist infection, but she despaired causing suffering, including to Rodan. She slowly left the area, her head hanging low.

There was nothing more than Eliza's desire to continue as things were. She wanted to go to school and be with Twilight and the other girls. To relax instead of constantly working like a slave. But most of all, Eliza yearned to be with Rodan. Her mind wandered back to the day she had cut ties from the boy. Her heart felt empty as she recalled the look of heartbreak on his face. She hated herself for doing what she did, but she couldn't bear the thought of hurting him with who she truly was.

---

Junior sighed as he stretched. His eyes looked through his homework, double checking it. Satisfied, Junior placed his things away. He glanced to the side and found Mosura to be stirring a bit. The girl opened her eyes and grew a small smile.

"Feeling better?" asked Junior as he scooted close to the girl.

"Mm mh. I feel crappy," said Mosura in a tired whisper. Junior placed a hand on Mosura's forehead, causing her to flinch and blush.

"Fever's down. That's good. You gave me a scare," said Junior in relief. Mosura smiled bashfully. This was like a fantasy come to life. The man of her dreams caring for her in her weakest state.

"Did you have trouble with your homework?" asked Mosura.

"Nah, I got through it fine," said Junior. Mosura was about to speak but the boy stood.

"Well, I'm off to bed," said Junior as he began to walk off. But, Mosura locked her legs around Junior's leg, causing him to stagger and stop. He looked at Mosura in confusion, while the girl looked at him innocently.

"Stay with me a bit," said Mosura as she sat up and pulled Junior down to sit on the sofa. She sat up, with the blanket covering her, as her feet rested next to the boy.

"And do what?" asked Junior with a soft chuckle.

"I don't know. Just talk or something," said Mosura, snuggling with the blanket that covered her.

Mosura's stomach began to growl. Her face flushed in embarrassment at the volume of the sound. Junior chuckled as he got up.

"Why don't I boil some ramen?" suggested Junior. Mosura frantically shook her head.

"Oh no! No, you don't have to!" said Mosura.

"I insist. Besides, I haven't eaten yet either," said Junior as he walked into the kitchen. Mosura looked over the couch in confusion.

"Wait, what time is it? It's a little late, isn't it?" asked Mosura.

"It's only 7. Just sit tight," said Junior as he drew out a pot.

Later, Mosura was sitting beside Junior on the ground at the coffee table. She was sipping the warm broth. Her cheeks flushed as she felt the warm juice travel down her sore throat and down into her belly. She sighed with content as her body warmed up.

"Thank you, Goji," said Mosura. Junior nodded to her as he finished his bowl.

"Nothing like inexpensive ramen packages. I only wished we had sausages," said Junior. Mosura smiled brightly.

"Hey, no way. My family would cut up sausages and boil them with the ramen too," said Mosura. Junior chuckled.

"Sometimes I wonder how many families do that. If I'm feeling like a fat disgusting pig, I'd add as much meat as possible to pasta or the ramen. The grounded meat, diced sausages, those cheap packages of frozen precooked chicken meat," said Junior. Mosura laughed in response.

"Your cheeks are gonna get flabby and chunky!" said Mosura with a coo as she playfully squeezed Junior's cheeks. The boy pulled away with a chuckle as Mosura reached for his cheeks again.

"Stop!" chuckled Junior. Mosura giggled as she pinched Junior's stomach, causing him to chuckle a bit harder.

"So will your belly!" said Mosura, deepening her voice.

"Knock it off," chuckled Junior. Mosura smiled in amusement. She then coughed heavily, turning slightly red.

"Keep your blanket on," said Junior worriedly as he brought the covers from the couch back over the girl's shoulders. She sighed from the warmth as she leaned back.

Junior glanced at her with an uncertain look. He took a breath as he crossed his legs.

"Mosura..." called Junior.

"Hm?" answered Mosura.

"You asked me earlier if something was bothering me. And well... you were right," said Junior as he rubbed his head.

"Well obviously. You're not slick with lies," said Mosura with a shrug. Junior looked at her in annoyance, prompting the girl to clear her throat.

"Sorry. I wanna know," said Mosura.

"It's just... do you ever feel responsible for something? Even when you had no direct hand in causing something?" asked Junior. Mosura thought about the question for a minute.

"Well... one I can think of is my brother," said Mosura. Junior faced her, with his attention fully set on her.

"How so?" asked Junior.

"I feel like my brother was partially motivated to be the Night Angel was because I was ashamed of being a Transmutant," said Mosura. Her expression was solemn.

"As much as I thought he was stupid for putting himself in that kind of danger, I see why he did it. And I think he just wanted to help me feel comfortable of being known as a Transmutant," said Mosura as she brought her knees close to herself. Despite her stockings, the girl felt her feet freezing, along with the rest of her body.

"Why do you ask?" asked Mosura. Junior looked away.

"This is about Erika, isn't it?" asked Mosura. Junior didn't respond.

"Gojira, you had nothing to do with that," said Mosura. Junior shook his head.

"I don't know. It's like my family is the center of a lot of problems in the world. Turning high school girls into monsters seems to be one of them," said Junior with a high sigh.

"Gojira, you can't blame yourself for the world's problems. People are just flawed," said Mosura.

I guess..." said Junior. He then began to think back to Adagio. The two obviously had a falling out. This was due to Adagio crossing way over the line, but he couldn't bring himself to hate her. He was just hurt that she'd try to use manipulative tricks to get her way. It wasn't unnecessarily out of malice, but it was still a betrayal of trust.

The bratty way that she was behaving now almost seemed like a response to his reaction. He didn't feel bad for being upset at her, since he was in the right, but he felt as though he had driven her to act out for attention through the other students. Consequently, that caused some students to act abnormally through the hypnosis. Junior felt a tinge of guilt. Maybe had he confronted her himself, he'd get her to stop. Adagio was indeed, flawed. But he wanted to set things right.

What of Twilight and the others? Junior pondered if his anger is still warranted, or if he was letting his emotions get the best of him.

Junior felt Mosura lean her head against his shoulder. Her eyes seeming to have grown tired as she wrapped the blanket around them both. Junior's heart skipped a beat as the girl snuggled against him

"You're too hard on yourself, Gojira. You might end up becoming a narcissist if you're not careful," said Mosura with a yawn. Junior gave a chuckle.

"I think it's too late," said Junior. Mosura began to breathe softly as her eyes closed. Junior found her face close to his. Her soft, beautiful face. The girl's breaths drove Junior's heart to pound in his chest. Anxiety took hold of the boy. He stood up and picked the girl up into his arms and lied her down on the sofa. After placing the covers on her, Junior made his way into the bedroom. He lied himself down onto his bed, staring up at the ceiling.

Unbeknownst to Junior, Eliza was peeking from cover in the bushes near the house. Her binoculars scanned Mosura, finding the infection present but no match to cellular structure. The girl looked at her list, rather oddly.

"Note: tell Harold that Mosura Yasu is in another house," said Eliza as she marked her list. She then focused her binoculars on Junior's bedroom window. She found no infection present and the boy was highlighted in green. His cellular structure was a match. Eliza froze as she stared. She slowly lowered her binoculars and stared at the list on her tablet. Junior's face was present. The face of the boy who showed her around the school. Rodan's friend.

Eliza wasn't expecting to find a match. She hoped they wouldn't, in fact. But being confronted with it drove her to panic. She couldn't expose Junior to her superiors, especially not a friend.

"They don't have to know," whispered Eliza to herself. She marked off Junior from her list and stood. The girl left the area, not daring to look back.

---

Angirasu lied in his bed. His breathing ragged as his face flushed from the illness that had taken hold of him. His body ached and was drenched with his sweat. Aiko stared from the doorway as her sister began to place an ice bag over his forehead.

"I'm going to the store. Mom knew ingredients that should clear his system right up," said Rei as she began to walk out of the room. Aiko entered the room, watching her son as he coughed.

"How are you feeling?" asked Aiko. Angirasu sent her a deadpanned look.

"You tell me," said Angirasu. Aiko sighed.

"Of course. Dumb question," said Aiko awkwardly.

"But on the bright side, calling in sick gives you a chance to take time off from school," said Aiko, forcing a smile. Angirasu didn't respond and merely looked to the side. Aiko scratched her head as she awkwardly looked to her feet. As she looked back to her son, she had a brief flash of an old memory of her child, young and small, lying in bed with a fever. His nose was running with mucus and his eyes were puffy. When he cried for her, Aiko recalled nursing him back to health.

Aiko approached the bedside and knelt onto her knees. Her son glanced at her as she ran her hand through his hair. She brought his head over to rest on her shoulder as she caressed his head. Aiko began to softly hum. But, Angirasu pulled away with an embarrassed look.

"M-Mom, I'm too old for that," said Angirasu. Disheartened, Aiko looked to the side with a forced laugh.

"Of course. Sorry," said Aiko. Angirasu rubbed his head as he awkwardly stared off to the wall.

"Be honest. Do you hate me?" asked Aiko. Angirasu looked her way with raised brows.

"What?" asked Angirasu. Though he heard exactly what she said, Angirasu needed to do a double take.

"Do you hate me for leaving you with your aunt?" asked Aiko. Angirasu was unable to form an immediate answer.

"No. I just wished you came with me. Or at least tried to communicate," said Angirasu. He then lowered his head.

"And i wish you'd talk about dad," said Angirasu. Aiko felt her gut tighten.

"Son I-" Aiko felt her words get stuck in her throat.

"Why can't you talk about him? Did he do something wrong?" asked Angirasu. Aiko was unable to respond. She trembled as she stared into her son's eyes. They may be hazel like hers, but they were soft much like his father's. She couldn't bear to look.

"Let me heat up some water. Your aunt will be back with ingredients for your tea," said Aiko. She stood up and began to walk out of the room, leaving her son. Angirasu cast his eyes to his lap, solemnly.

"Then it's just me, isn't it?" asked Angirasu to himself. Aiko made her way to the bathroom, sitting against the wall. A pained look on her face as she stared at the ceiling.

---

The next day had come. Junior was in school at lunch. He found himself sitting all alone at the lunch table where Transmutants normally sat. He was the only one present, while the other students were further away at the other tables.

"Am I like the only Transmutant that came to school today?" asked Junior incredulously. None of the mutants he knew that normally sat here were present, nor showed up to his classes. Hell, not even his friends were here. He was the only one.

"God. This feels pretty lonely," said Junior as he propped his head up on the table. He noticed Pinkie Pie to be waving wildly to him from a table further down. Sunset and Fluttershy encouragingly waved for him to come on over. Junior shrugged as he got up and sat beside Fluttershy at the table. He found the rest of the Main Seven to be present.

"Say, where are the others?" asked Rainbow in confusion.

"Mosura's sick. She stayed home," said Junior.

"Ugh. I hope you disinfected yourself before leaving your home," said Rarity with a squeamish look.

"You'd probably only catch something because someone decided to bring his sick ass to school and coughed in the air. You may have already inhaled airborne germs," said Junior as he ate his lunch. Rarity squealed in alarm as she cupped her mouth, causing the boy to smirk.

"Goji," said Fluttershy in disapproval.

"It's true," said Junior nonchalantly. Fluttershy leaned close to his ear.

"We know that. But you know how Rarity can be," whispered Fluttershy.

"Well she ought to get over it," said Junior. Fluttershy rolled her eyes in response.

"Did you hear about MONARCH moving a base close to town?" asked Sunset.

"Yeah. Normally I wouldn't like the idea of that. But honestly I can't protest too much considering how some Transmutants are acting up lately," said Junior.

"Really? I thought you hated MONARCH," said Twilight.

"Well i don't trust them. Or any government agency. But they have a legitament role. I just don't like assholes. But I'm concerned how their presence here will be," said Junior.

"Do you think they were Revolutionaries?" asked Pinkie, worriedly.

"Well, they haven't taken credit for it. Something's fishy," said Junior.

"I'm telling ya, it has to be Adagio. Ever since she started using her powers, some of the students have been acting off," said Applejack, hardening her expression.

"It wouldn't be far fetched to think that some Transmutants could have been affected. A couple of weeks before, there were two students going at it and transformed. They removed their own inhibitor chips somehow," said Junior as he bore a pondering look.

"Either way, we can't let this go on," said Twilight.

"Right. And Aria and Sonata aren't much help," said Rainbow. Junior was about to respond but noticed Eliza to be walking nearby. As her eyes fell on him, Junior waved his hand with a greeting smile. The girl froze dead in her tracks. She quickly looked around and rushed to the table.

"Gojira Takeshi, please come with me!" said Eliza. Junior and the girls bore odd looks.

"Wha- huh?" asked Junior. Eliza grabbed and tugged his arm.

"Please, I require your assistance!" said Eliza.

"OK?" answered Junior was he was yanked away from the table. The girls watched as Junior was dragged out of the cafeteria.

"Huh. Wonder what that was all about," said Applejack. Meanwhile, Fluttershy was scowling to herself as she ate.

'Just what I need. Another girl to worry about,' thought Fluttershy in dismay.

Meanwhile, Junior found himself dragged out of the cafeteria and into the hall. Eliza quickly stopped as she caught sight of Harold and Chris to be heading their way.

"Hey!" yelped Junior as Eliza began to push him back to a corner. Eliza began to pull on him as she ran.

"Hurry!" said Eliza as she lead Junior to another hall in the school building, just before Chris and Harold could take notice of their presence.

"Eliza, where are we going?" asked Junior incredulously as the girl stopped. She looked over a corner, relaxing a bit.

"Good. We missed them," said Eliza in relief. She noticed Junior to be looking at her expectantly with his arms crossed.

"Wanna fill me in and what that was all about?" asked Junior in annoyance.

"I apologize. I needed you out of sight," said Eliza. Junior raised a brow.

"Why?" asked Junior in confusion.

"My cousins... they might be looking for you," said Eliza, hesitantly.

"They need something?" asked Junior. Eliza eyed him.

"You could say that," said Eliza. Junior narrowed his eyes.

"Hey if they have a problem, I'm right here," said Junior.

"That would be undesirable," said Eliza as she shook her head.

"Well if they want a fight-" Junior was interrupted as Eliza glared at him.

"You stay far away from them!" said Eliza. Junior slightly recoiled at her tone.

"Of course. I understand, my bad," said Junior awkwardly. Of course this girl would be this intense of that comment. They were family after all. Eliza relaxed but sighed.

"Forgive me. I just don't want you to do something foolish. After all, aren't you on your last warning with the school over fighting?" asked Eliza. Honestly, she'd love to see Chris and Harold bruised up. But she didn't want them anywhere near Junior.

"Ah. That's a good point. I forgot all about that," said Junior as he awkwardly scratched his head.

"I think it'd be in our best interest if you avoided them seeing you for the next couple of days or so. Perhaps even stay home for a while," said Eliza. Junior bore a confused look.

"Wait, what?! I can't ditch school! I already need to keep going to understand the lesson enough to not fail!" said Junior.

"Gojira, trust me. This is for your own safety!" said Eliza desperately.

"Safety? Eliza, what is going on?" demanded Junior.

"You can't know! I'll arrange an excuse for you to leave and come up with a tutor for your missed lessons. But you need to go!" said Eliza as she began to push on Junior, but struggled. Junior remained firmly planted in place as the girl tried to push him. He grabbed her by her shoulders and held her back.

"Hey, you better start giving me answers! Right now you're acting nuts! What do your cousins want with me? What happened between you and Rodan?!" demanded Junior. Eliza trembled as she looked away, unable to answer.

"I can't tell you," said Eliza. Junior narrowed his eyes in response. He released Eliza and stood back.

"Then we have nothing else to discuss," said Junior as he began to walk off. Eliza quickly grabbed his hand with a desperate look.

"Gojira, please!" cried Eliza. Junior merely snatched his hand away from the girl.

"Back off! I'm sick of secrets," said Junior as he walked off.

"Friends trust each other. I've learned that the hard way," said Junior as he left. Eliza bore a disheartened look as the Transmutant walked off. His words stung, reopening old wounds.

"How could anyone trust me?" asked Eliza. She winced as her hand twitched and her wrist bore a slight deformation, as though something was sticking out. Eliza made her way into the girl's bathroom, where she checked to see if no one was present. After confirming that she was alone, Eliza made her way to the counter near the sink and mirror.

"It's dislocated," said Eliza with a sigh as she began to rube her wrist. She winced as she forced her hand on the lump. A pop filled the air, and Eliza sighed in relief. She reached to her bag and drew out a kit. Inside, there were a number of strange tools. Eliza drew out a tablet and found an image of a feminine body, where a graph of wires was present. The wires were lit up green, with yellow surrounding the left wrist. Eliza swiped on the screen, causing the wires in the wrist to turn dark. She drew out a scalpel and dragged it across her flesh. The blade split through the skin, where blood began to spill. Eliza did not so much react to the process. Soon, she had her wrist exposed. Beneath the pink flesh was a metallic bone structure. The muscles were synthetic, made up of pink fibers that almost looked organic. Eliza guided a pick at the wrist, where a rubber-like substance connected wrist, but the substance was slightly torn. Eliza took a gun-like object, where she sprayed a white substance at the torn rubber. The substance filled the tear and seal it up. She began to check the thin tubes that coursed through the wrist, checking for damage.

After analyzing the damage, Eliza began to seal the cut she had made with a heated gel. The gel sealed the two flaps of parted skin together, hardening into what looked like a scar. Eliza drew out the tablet and swiped to the side. The wiring lights in the hand all flickered to life. Each lane of wire was green Eliza winced as she rubbed her recently repaired wrist, suddenly regaining feeling in it. Eliza quickly began to put her tools away and began to clean up any trace of blood.

Eliza took a sack filled with a red fluid from her bag. She stuck a needle into her wrist and winced from the prick. She gently squeezed the sack, injecting the fluid into her wrist before carefully removing the needle and proceeding to place the sack back into her bag. However, she flinched and hastily zipped her bag as she heard the bathroom door slam open. Eliza forced her sleeve down and briskly walked passed Adagio Dazzle and Aria Blaze as they stormed in.

"Will you just listen?!" Aria cried in exasperation.

"I don't want to hear it, Aria!" said Adagio. She stopped at the bathroom sink and began to smooth out her clothes and touch up her makeup.

"Adagio, this is serious! These past two days prove that it can’t be a coincidence! Your power is making Transmutants go crazy!" said Aria.

"That's B.S.! For all we know, these last attacks were from those terrorists!" said Adagio with a scoff. Aria growled in frustration.

"Adagio! This- Ergh!" Aria groaned as she pulled her twin tails and gritted her teeth. She took a breath and released her hair.

"We still need to talk about Sonata," said Aria.

"What about her?" asked Adagio in annoyance.

"I swear to- We need to get her to stop! She's taking after you!" said Aria.

"That's flattering," said Adagio as she placed her make up away. The girl began to walk out of the bathroom with Aria, who fumed in frustration.

"You need to get over Gojira," muttered Aria. Adagio froze. She turned with a glare and got in Aria's face.

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch that," said Adagio. Venom was present in her tone.

"Struck a nerve, huh?" Aria snorted as she shook her head. She pushed Adagio away with a look of disgust.

"You're acting like a brat all because of one guy. One guy managed to get to that ego of yours. Now you're just acting up like a little girl. It's pathetic!" said Aria. Adagio grabbed her by her sister's jacket, face red as a cherry.

"Shut your fucking mouth!" said Adagio.

"Gonna cry, bitch?!" mocked Aria. Adagio smacked her across her face. Aria growled as she tackled Adagio to the ground. The two grunted and yelled as they hit each other, while pulling hair.

"Take it back!" screamed Adagio.

"Fuck you!" yelled Aria as Adagio rolled on top of her and began to hit Aria. Aria scratched the elder sister's arm, and Adagio beat her fist on Aria's chest.

"Don't hit my tits, asshole!" yelled Aria

From down the hall, Fluttershy came around the corner. Her eyes widened in alarm as she stumbled upon the brawl going on. She rushed over to the two and began to pull Adagio off.

"Stop! What are you two doing?!" cried Fluttershy. Aria shot up and rushed to the two with rage in her eyes.

"I'm gonna mess up your fuckin' face!" shouted Aria. Fluttershy quickly got in her path.

"Aria, no!" said Fluttershy as she held Aria back.

"How dare you say those things to me! You don't know what you're talking about! Just shut your mouth!" yelled Adagio, her hair frazzled and her clothes wrinkled. Her arms and face were bruised. Aria began to shove against Fluttershy, who stumbled but kept herself planted in Aria's path.

"You better hope she can hold me back! I've had enough of you!" yelled Aria. She glared at her sister angrily.

"You think you're the only one with problems?! Get over yourself!" said Aria. Adagio gritted her teeth, trembling in rage. Her eyes grew puffy.

"Yeah? Well... fuck you, too!" said Adagio, her voice breaking. She quickly stormed off, breaking into tears. As she fled, Aria pulled away from Fluttershy, sitting against the wall in the hall. She buried her face into her knees, but her face was visibly red. Fluttershy stared as the girl trembled, hiding her face. Fluttershy's expression softened, making her way by the twin tailed girl's side. She placed a hand on Aria's back, who kept her face hidden.

---

Battra sighed as he tapped his foot on the ground. He was standing by a phone that hung on the wall, occupied by Ford. Ford gave a small laugh as he conversed.

"Alright. Talk to you soon. Love you," said Ford as he hung up. He stepped away with a nod.

"It's all yours," said Ford. Battra smiled as he rushed to the phone. Today, the recruits were being allowed one phone call back home. It'd be some time before an opportunity like this would come again. So, Battra began to call the one he wanted to hear from the most. After a few moments of ringing, he heard the click of answer tone.

"Hello?" a monotone but confused feminine voice answered.

"Hey, Maud. It's Battra," said Battra with a small smile. He heard a soft gasp over the line.

"It's... good to hear from you," said Maud. Her voice, while calm, had a tone with a hint of happiness to it.

"Yeah, you too," said Battra with a small blush.

"How's everything at home?" asked Battra.

"Rather quiet. Unless Pinkie is in the room," said Maud, her tone filled with amusement.

"Although... There have been attacks in town recently. The government announced that it's setting up a base nearby," said Maud. Battra's face turned to worry.

"Wish I could be there with you," said Battra, regret filling his tone. Knowing that Maud and his sister were in Ponyville while more attacks from rogue Transmutants were coming, Battra felt guilty on his conscience.

"I can wait. I promise," said Maud in a soft tone. Battra smiled as his blush deepened.

"Just come home safely. I..." Maud paused, unable to finish her sentence.

"I will. Stay safe out there," said Battra.

Later, Battra found himself in a large gymnasium. Recruits were using weight equipment, running laps, or practicing hand to hand combat on the mats. Battra panted as his brows sweat from the running that he had done. Ford, Kurtz and Nakada had joined him after completing their lap.

"If I have to run back and forth one more time..." Kurtz panted as his shirt was stained with sweat.

"We still have to lift weights. Woods, spot me would ya?" asked Nakada as she walked off. As Woods followed, Battra, Ford and Kurtz looked to each other.

"Might as well get to it. Come on, before Drill Sergeant blows a fuse," said Ford. As he walked ahead, three other men walked by. One of them bumped shoulders with Ford.

"Watch it," said the other recruit.

"Hey! Excuse you!" said Kurtz in annoyance. The three other turned with annoyed looks.

"Got something to say?" asked one of the men.

"Yeah, maybe not walk shoulder to shoulder?" asked Kurtz with an annoyed tone.

"It's fine, Kurtz. Just drop it," said Ford. He'd rather just let this pass and not escalate the issue.

"Yeah listen to your boyfriend," mocked one of the other men. Battra sent him a glare.

"What the hell's your deal?" demanded Battra. Unlike Ford, Battra had a thing about people that act disrespectfully when uncalled for. Maybe it was his upbringing.

"Piss off, mutie," said one of the men. Battra scoffed.

"I haven't heard that before. Maybe you should come up with a much clever insult. But i doubt a couple of meatheads are capable of that," said Battra with a glare. One of the recruits walked up to Battra, posturing his chest out as though he were trying to intimidate the Transmutant with his build.

"Oh you think you're hot shit, huh? Let's go then!" said the recruit. Battra hardened his expression but noticed some of the other recruits taking notice of the confrontation. As the provocateur egged him on for a fight, Battra merely walked off.

"Let's go," said Battra as he walked passed Ford and Kurtz. The two began to follow as one of the antagonistic recruits smirked.

"Yeah just keep walking, bitch!" said the recruit. Battra ignored the insults, keeping his sights on the weight lifting equipment further away.

"You could've easily beaten that asshole down!" said Kurtz.

"Just because I could doesn't mean I should. I learned that the hard way," said Battra. Ford nodded in agreement.

"Yeah it'd be trouble if you both threw down. Especially for you," said Ford. Battra was about to respond but paused as he noticed a small group entering the building. They comprised of men of great stature, standing over 6 foot 6. They bore hard muscles that could be seen through their tank tops. One in particular was much larger than the rest, standing at 7 feet tall, with hulking muscles. A woman stood among them, standing taller than the average woman. Her muscles, while not as large as the men, were defined. Her cheeks were defined, as her facial features appeared strong yet feminine. She stood at six foot six. These newcomers all bore amber colored eyes.

"Holy shit. Look at the size of those guys!" said Kurtz. The other recruits had their attention focused on these strong figures. It was like staring at the gods of Olympus. These newcomers were trailed after a high ranking officer and a couple of men in coats, with the Gene Co insignia. They were visibly much shorter in comparison.

"Who are those guys?" Asked Battra.

"I heard about them. There were a number of highly skilled soldiers selected for that Heracles project. I heard that they're dumping them back into basic training to get used to their 'new' bodies," said Ford. Battra stared as he watched these 'super' soldiers make their way to their own part of the gym. Heavy equipment lied. Within moments, the medical team was standing by, as the doctors employed by GeneCo gave a physical for these soldiers.

"So those are the super soldiers the Director mentioned," whispered Battra, to himself.

Later, the recruits had return to their physical exercises. Soon they'd be practicing with fire arms. Though Battra wondered how these super soldiers would fair. He noticed that one of them struggled to secure a lock for the weights used for bench pressing. His clumsy hands dropped the lock, causing him to growl in frustration. These guys didn't seem very graceful. He noticed the only woman in the group to be pinching her brows as she sat on a bench. A doctor from GeneCo was looking her over. She looked distressed. Battra's hearing picked up a bit of their conversation.

"It's just so damn bright in here. And the sounds. It's giving me a headache!" said the soldier as she rubbed her forehead.

"Your enhanced senses require time to adjust. It should be only temporary. Take some water and start on your curls," said the doctor as he wrote on a note pad. Battra was so distracted that he failed to hear Ford call his name. He realized it was his turn to bench press.

Comments

[The Bloon-Man]

This story is the gift that keeps on giving!

[Kevin shough]

New one

[Vendetta5756]

Awesome chapter. I wonder how the super soldiers will feel when they learn about Battra. I think one is going to have some Purist thoughts and try to kill him. BUT anyway keep up the good work always love reading this story.

[Sidetrack]

"It was before I got here," answered Woods.