Those who remained standing on the wall were still trying to process what had just happened. Everything had unfolded too quickly. Just moments ago, Bison had thrown an entire island at them — albeit a small one. In response, Alex had obliterated it with a single punch, and then, without wasting a second, smashed his fist into Bison's face, sending him flying toward Unimak Island.
Everyone on the wall clearly heard the sonic boom that followed — Bison's body had broken the sound barrier. In the next instant, Alex vanished from his spot, leaving behind only shattered ground.
They turned their eyes toward the direction Bison had flown and caught sight of a small dot on the horizon — the point where he had crashed into the earth.
"I mean, I'm not against Alex taking on the main villain — he always does that..." Itami began, his voice uncertain. "But... wasn't Bison supposed to be stronger? I mean, yeah, he did hurl an island at us... and that's it?"
"What did you expect?" Shino snorted, kicking Itami in the leg. "Wanna go try your luck against that flying wannabe god yourself? Or will you shut up before you start spouting nonsense again?"
Itami whimpered quietly and began grumbling under his breath as Shino gave him another round of "discipline." Seeing her clench her fist, he quickly hid behind his teammates — he knew Shino wasn't shy about using force when she wanted to prove a point. The others exchanged indifferent glances. Everyone was used to their constant bickering by now.
But now, a new question hung in the air: what should they do with the bodies of the Shadaloo soldiers and the destruction left behind by the collapsing island? And what about Alex's sudden disappearance as he chased after Bison?
"So what are we going to do with all these burning machines and the pile of corpses?" Ada asked wearily, pointing to the flaming vehicles and the soldiers' bodies strewn across the road. "It's going to take forever to clean up."
"What else can we do?" Coco replied, rolling her eyes. "Either we clean it up ourselves, or the corpses rot on the road."
"Feels like they came here just to ruin our day," Rika muttered, leaning on her sniper rifle.
"Maybe we just pile them up, and let GIR, MIMI, and Stitch burn them?" Miu suggested in a sweet, innocent tone.
"Miu, when did you become so... dark? What happened to the sweet, kind girl I knew?" Beatrix asked in surprise.
The other girls began nodding, glancing at Miu. The suggestion to pile up the corpses and burn them was shocking — especially coming from her. Even the others on the wall stared at Miu with mild astonishment. Realizing she had drawn too much attention, Miu blushed and hid behind Valmet.
And yet, her idea was fairly reasonable. No one was planning to bury these bastards — in a world plagued by apocalypse, they were still committing atrocities, killing those just trying to survive. No one felt compassion for them anymore. Even the masters of Ryozanpaku, who once followed the way of the merciful fist, had long understood that this world no longer allowed for mercy — especially toward Shadaloo's soldiers.
A distant explosion cut the conversation short.
Everyone turned sharply. On the horizon, near Unimak Island, the top of a mountain had been obliterated, and massive boulders hovered in the air.
"Let's hope Alex doesn't destroy the whole island..." Rei said with concern in her voice. "It's our only way out of here."
"Heh-heh-heh... He wouldn't be that irresponsible... right, girls?" Sherry said with a dry chuckle.
There was no answer. Alex's girls looked away, unable to say anything. They knew all too well that in the heat of battle, Alex often lost control. Sherry, Jill, Claire, and Moira understood the silence immediately — Alex really could go overboard.
Even Brunhilde couldn't say with certainty that he'd hold back.
People on the wall involuntarily began to hope—hope that Alex wouldn't destroy the island… at least not this time.
Meanwhile, Alex hovered in the sky, watching Bison as he shot out from the mountain peak. Massive boulders orbited around Bison like obedient satellites. Alex raised an eyebrow slightly, observing how his opponent's power had surged. Or rather, Bison was finally using his full strength.
These stone blocks… Alex felt like he had seen something like this before. A thought even flashed through his mind—he might have to jump across these boulders to reach Bison, like in some kind of video game.
"Now you shall witness the full might of a god!" Bison roared with a mad grin. "When I crush you, the next step will be destroying everyone who ever believed in you!"
"If you say so… Come forth, Chastiefol," Alex replied lazily, extending his hand.
A spear flew out from Alex's inventory, halting midair next to him and slowly rotating. Bison's eyes narrowed at the sight of the weapon that had appeared out of nowhere, but the contempt on his face remained unchanged.
"Not impressed," he scoffed.
Clenching his fist tightly, Bison activated his psycho power, lifting massive boulders into the air. With a rumble, they tore away from the mountain and flew straight at Alex.
Seeing the incoming barrage, Alex began to move his finger through the air like a conductor. Chastiefol—his spear—mirrored every movement, slicing through the air effortlessly. It cut through the incoming boulders with precision, piercing them cleanly and reducing them to dust.
Bison's eyes flashed with fury. His power had increased dramatically, rage boiling inside him. More chunks of rock began to break off from the mountain. With a thunderous noise, they rose into the sky and, at his command, surged toward Alex even faster than before.
"Chastiefol: Multiplication Form," Alex said calmly, watching the renewed storm of rock.
The spear shone with a brilliant light, and when the glow faded, it was no longer a spear. In its place floated a swarm of hundreds of tiny daggers.
Alex moved his finger again—and the metallic blades surged forward like a swarm of bees. They darted through the sky, intercepting every stone launched by Bison. Like living things, the daggers followed Alex's finger movements with uncanny precision, destroying everything in their path.
When the final boulder shattered in midair, the swarm hovered above Bison's head.
"Let's extinguish the flame with a rain of blades," Alex said, staring down at his enemy.
He flicked his finger downward—and the swarm fell like a deadly downpour. Bison tried to shield himself, using his psycho power to raise more boulders as a barrier. The daggers struck the improvised wall one by one with thunderous impacts.
When the last blade hit the stone shield, Alex raised his finger again—and all the daggers soared back into the sky.
"If once wasn't enough… how about one more?" he said, lowering his finger again.
This time, the daggers descended with even greater speed. Shockwaves split the air—each blade broke the sound barrier. This was no longer just a rain—it was a meteor storm, delivering death and destruction.
Bison felt the threat. With every passing second, the attack grew more dangerous. He tried to retreat, shattering the mountain beneath him in an attempt to escape the relentless blades. The mountaintop exploded under the constant bombardment. Huge chunks of rock tumbled down, obliterating everything at the base.
Alex realized that Bison had managed to escape, but he didn't look concerned. With another flick of his finger, he called the daggers back. They swirled around him like a swarm of metallic bees.
He glanced toward the direction Bison had fled and smirked slightly, not particularly surprised the man had survived. But then the ground shook, and Alex turned his head.
From where the shattered mountain once stood, black smoke began to rise—the mountain was a volcano. And volcano it was active.
Bison grinned with a beastly sneer when he saw Alex's attention diverted. He poured every ounce of his psycho-energy into accelerating the volcano's awakening. The ground trembled again, and fiery boulders began erupting from the peak like meteors.
"Haha! Let's see how you stop these while standing here!" he shouted, laughing hysterically.
One massive, flame-wreathed boulder wasn't aimed at Alex—it was flying toward the settlement. Bison cackled like a madman, convinced he would destroy everything his enemy held dear.
But before the boulder could reach its target, a projectile streaked out from the settlement, trailing plasma behind it, and struck the rock with precision, obliterating it mid-air.
Bison's laughter stopped abruptly. He stared at the burning sky, unable to comprehend what had just happened.
"You're naive," Alex said coldly, his eyes void of emotion. "Did you really think I had to protect the settlement all by myself? My people can stand their ground—even without me."
By the settlement wall stood GIR—a loyal follower of the Imperium, a devout believer in the Emperor, and an infamous member of the Disruption Trio. His paws had transformed into the long barrel of a railgun, from which the shot had just been fired, destroying the boulder.
Everyone on the wall was slightly stunned—few knew that this crazy robo-dog with a mischievous nature had a built-in railgun.
GIR, clearly pleased with himself, returned his paws to normal and turned to those watching him. He raised one paw and gave a thumbs-up.
"I did good," he said, seemingly to himself.
Meanwhile, Bison couldn't believe his ears. Rage surged through him again, flooding his mind like molten lava bubbling in the volcano's core. His fury fueled his psycho-energy, which further accelerated the volcano's eruption. Streams of lava burst from the crater, mirroring his boiling emotions.
Alex shook his head. He could never understand why people like Bison always lost control the moment their plans fell apart. Instead of pausing to think, they acted like spoiled children when things didn't go their way. He turned his gaze from Bison to the volcano's summit, where lava continued to spew forth. This needed to end before things spiraled out of control.
But Alex didn't need to intervene. Someone had already taken that task upon themselves. His shadow shivered—and from it emerged the silhouette of a girl with long, flowing hair. A trail of ice raced across the ground from Alex's feet toward the volcano's summit. Cold engulfed the mountain from all sides, rising rapidly until it reached the crater. Where lava once boiled, a thick crust of ice now lay. The volcano returned to its dormant state.
"What did you do?!" Bison shouted in fury, realizing the volcano was sealed beneath a massive layer of ice.
"That wasn't me. That was my lovely wife," Alex replied calmly, as if discussing something trivial.
Bison's brow furrowed even deeper. He realized he could no longer use the volcano as a weapon. No matter how much psycho-energy he poured into it, the lava was instantly frozen, rendered into a useless mass.
Alex no longer wanted to waste time. He decided to end the fight in a special way—to make Bison experience everything he had inflicted on others: fear, pain, and despair. If he loved feeding on the emotions of others, then it was time for him to taste them himself.
While Bison was focusing his psychic power, Alex appeared behind him. He effortlessly placed a hand on Bison's shoulder — and the sound of cracking bones echoed through the area. Bison screamed in pain and collapsed to the ground. Alex landed softly beside him, watching as the enemy hit the dirt for the third time. Each time, Bison rose like an undead, only to spout another pointless speech. The thought struck Alex as so absurd that he couldn't help but laugh. The valkyries' laughter echoed in his mind, clearly sharing in his irony.
And once again, Bison began to claw his way out of the ground, covered in dirt and dust. His right arm hung limp, and his face was twisted in pain and rage. He lifted his hate-filled gaze to Alex — who didn't even bother to look back. Alex stared out toward the ocean, as if everything happening behind him wasn't even worth acknowledging.
Bison activated his psychic power, intending to unleash it on his enemy, but he didn't get the chance. His body was ensnared by black hair that burst from Alex's shadow, coiling around him like a vice and preventing even a single breath. A strangled gasp escaped Bison's throat. He tried to see where the hair was coming from — and saw it extending from the darkness at Alex's feet.
Alex slowly turned to face him, his eyes devoid of emotion — only cold indifference remained.
"You enjoy watching people suffer. You feed on their fear, their despair, their helplessness… all for pitiful scraps of power you can grasp. You imagine yourself a god. But that's just an illusion. Your power is confined to this world, and you can't even begin to comprehend how vast the universe is — or how terrifying its inhabitants truly are." Alex's voice remained calm and even. "You are not a god. And you never were."
"I am a god!" Bison hissed through clenched teeth. "And nothing will change that! The lesser beings must bow before me!"
"Another villain who can't grasp the obvious…" Alex said quietly. "But don't worry. I'll show you everything you ever made others feel. I'll take you to a place where despair and fear intertwine with pain and rage. A place not even your worst nightmares could conjure."
He slowly raised his hand, fingers forming a familiar symbol.
"Domain Expansion: Blood Red City."
A chill ran down Bison's spine at Alex's words. He thrashed in an attempt to break free from the binding hair, but no matter how hard he struggled, the strands coiled around his body like steel chains, refusing to let him move.
Suddenly, behind him, a lone red door appeared. A wave of icy cold rolled from it, racing up his spine. Slowly — almost mechanically — he turned his head and saw the door materializing out of nowhere.
Though it remained closed, crimson veins like spiderwebs had already begun to spread from it, reaching out toward him. With a groan, the door began to creak open — and a violent surge of terror erupted in Bison's chest. A torrent of thick, dark blood gushed out from behind it, flowing straight toward his feet.
His heartbeat thundered in his ears. A faint ripple spread across the surface of the blood — as if the very place responded to his fear.
Out of the blood, pale, thin hands emerged. They reached toward him slowly — and in the next instant, grabbed his legs. The hair that had bound him vanished, as if granting him a fleeting hope of escape.
"What is this hell?! Get it off me! Now!" Bison screamed, struggling to break free from the deathly grip.
He turned — but Alex was gone.
That realization froze him. And in that brief moment, the hands gripped tighter, robbing him of any chance to escape. He flailed, lost his balance, and fell — allowing the hands to take hold of his entire body.
They began to drag him in.
Raising his gaze, Bison saw once again the same open red door, behind which lay a nightmarish city alien to this world. A Red City that instilled fear deep into his very soul. He clutched at the ground with frantic fingers, trying to stop himself, but it was useless — the pale hands pulled him relentlessly. The earth was loose and soaked with blood, causing his fingers to slip.
Never before had he experienced such terror. The vision of the Red City awakened a primal fear rising from the very depths of his being. No matter how much he resisted, his body was drawn closer and closer to the door.
Bison tried to use his psychic power to break free, but nothing worked. It was as if all his strength had vanished.
The red door was approaching. He could feel it.
And then, just as he was about to cross the threshold, his vision darkened — as if he had lost consciousness.
When he opened his eyes, Bison found himself sitting at an old, half-ruined bus stop. Everything around seemed blurry; his vision was hazy, and he didn't immediately understand where he was. The stop looked abandoned, cracked and rusted, as if it stood on the edge of a godforsaken city.
Anger began to boil inside him. He tried again to summon his psychic power — unsuccessfully. Even his body felt alien — weak, exhausted.
He stood up from the bench and looked around. Above him stretched a sky dyed in a thick, saturated red. This deathly blood-colored hue seemed to press on his mind, stirring anxiety and a sense of impending doom.
Suddenly, a rustle sounded behind him. He whipped his head around — a dark alley. Hidden in the shadows, it seemed to be watching him. And inside Bison, a vile feeling took root — as if he was being watched. Hundreds of eyes from the darkness, invisible but present.
His thoughts became tangled. Panic grew. He wanted to figure out how to leave this cursed place.
He wandered the streets — narrow, winding, seemingly designed to confuse. The buildings stood close together, old and crooked, with empty windows resembling dead eyes. It felt as if the city itself was alive — watching, breathing — following his every step.
And the shadows in the alleys… they moved.
Bison frowned grimly, sensing the oppressive atmosphere. Only the fury raging inside him kept him from losing his mind completely. But the sounds — light footsteps, creaks, rustles — made him constantly look over his shoulder. He felt like a paranoid. But the sound… the scraping… it grew louder.
Then true, overwhelming fear began to take hold. Something was scraping — like teeth, or bones against concrete. Bison's legs, as if obeying instinct, took off running. Panic consumed him.
He was no longer the leader of "Shadalu."
He was just a man.
Without power. Without protection.
Just a lonely figure in the Red City, filled with shadows, running from what lurked in the darkness.
Alex sat on the edge of a rooftop of one of the Red City's buildings. All the structures in this sinister place looked alike — Gothic architecture with pointed arches, tall spires, and stained-glass windows glowing with a crimson light. He lazily smoked, exhaling smoke into the scarlet sky, his eyes half-closed as he watched every movement of Bison — from the very moment he had woken at the dilapidated, silent, ash-covered bus stop.
Alex watched as panic-stricken Bison fled desperately, trying to break free from this nightmare. But the Red City released no one once they were within its bounds. He observed how fear and madness gradually seized Bison's mind, penetrating his flesh, soul, and very essence — slowly but inevitably.
On one side of Alex sat Zhang Ya. Her long hair fluttered in the wind like living shadows. Her gaze was empty, but not from indifference — it was bottomless, as if her soul was looking somewhere beyond what was happening. On Alex's other side sat Göndul — with a soft, almost maternal smile on her lips. But anyone who knew her well understood that behind this virtuous mask lay something else. That was exactly why she had befriended Zhang Ya.
Both women leaned on Alex's shoulders while he continued to watch Bison, who ran past that same bus stop once again, as if the city itself was returning him to the starting point. The shadows in the alleys moved, stirred, and watched — the moment Bison slowed even for a moment, they would reach out to him like the rotten branches of an ancient cursed tree.
"Who would have thought," Alex exhaled, releasing a stream of smoke, "that once he lost his power, he became just an ordinary, frightened man."
"Mortals like him are always like that," Göndul replied, resting her head on his shoulder. "As long as they have what they pride themselves on, they think they're invincible. But once they lose it — all their pride turns into fear of the inevitable."
"This place breeds fear and despair. Once a mortal enters here, fear begins to take root in their heart until it completely consumes them," Alex said with a slight smirk.
"Heh-heh-heh… You're right, darling. But I'm still amazed how Zhang Ya managed to subjugate an entire part of this terrifying city — with all its inhabitants. Now they watch Bison's every step, waiting for him to stumble... He'll have a miserable fate if he even relaxes a little," Göndul said, smirking.
"I'm sure all your sisters think you're creepy. Behind your almost saintly smile hides a true demoness," Alex chuckled and playfully pinched her nose.
"So what?" she replied with the same expression. "I just don't forgive those who want to harm my darling and his family. Especially Anya. She's so sweet… just your copy, even if not your biological daughter. Right, Zhang Ya?"
Zhang Ya nodded silently, showing neither emotion nor reaction. Her face remained inscrutable. Everything happening in this city seemed to not concern her at all — even though it was part of her power. All she wanted was to be near Alex. Demons, monsters, darkness — none of it mattered. In her new life, only he was important.
"How long do you think, darling, he'll keep running before he realizes he's running in circles?" Göndul asked lazily, rubbing her cheek against his shoulder with tender affection.
"I don't think it will be long. He's almost there. Look closely — the first ones are starting to sense his fear. The stronger his soul radiates terror, the tastier he becomes for the locals," Alex said, pointing toward one of the alleys.
Göndul shifted her gaze and noticed a strange creature — thin and elongated like a branch, with long arms almost touching the ground. Alex squinted: it looked frighteningly familiar. The creature stood motionless in the shadows, watching Bison as he ran his loop again. Its appearance… tall figure, pale skin, faceless, long limbs, black suit, and red tie…
"Damn…" Alex muttered, rubbing his eyes. "Don't tell me that's Slenderman."
He stared, unable to believe his eyes. Slenderman. The cursed urban legend come to life right here in the Red City — under Zhang Ya's control. Could it be…? Alex even began to suspect that before coming to this world, she somehow first went to another world where Slender Man lived, simply absorbed him, and then somehow ended up here, where they met and she took the place of his shadow.
"Zhang Ya, my love," he said quietly, "could you explain how the damn Slenderman ended up in your domain?"
"Slenderman?" Göndul repeated, tilting her head slightly.
"He's an urban legend from one of the worlds. They say he kidnaps people, especially children. No one knows why — because no one ever returned. And now he's here. I get the feeling that before arriving in this world, Zhang Ya somehow ended up in his world… and just absorbed him. And now he's part of her world," Alex said without taking his eyes off the figure in the alley.
Alex and Göndul exchanged glances with the ghostly girl. She simply nodded slowly in response, confirming Alex's words that she indeed had absorbed Slender Man. Alex noticed the nod and sighed — it was clear from Zhang Ya's face that before arriving in this world, she had already been in others… and most likely all those worlds were closely tied to urban legends.
Alex didn't even want to know who exactly Zhang Ya had absorbed during that time and what entities had now become part of her Red City. The thought that she might have already absorbed beings like Kayako and Sadako was, to say the least, unsettling.
"My love…" he began cautiously. "How many ghosts from urban legends have you absorbed before we met?"
Zhang Ya looked at him, then her shoulders slowly rose and fell, expressing uncertainty. It seemed even she no longer knew the exact number. Alex wearily ran his hand over his face, realizing that all possible ghosts from myths and scary stories could reside in her Red City. This only strengthened his conviction that she had traveled through worlds where urban legends became reality.
"Darling," Göndul asked cautiously, "is it bad that Zhang Ya absorbed them? Could it somehow harm her?"
"No," Alex shook his head. "She's protected by my power and my essence, just like you and the other Valkyries. It's just... if these beings were released into the human world, another apocalypse would begin. The damage depends on the strength of the absorbed ghost. The stronger it was, the more harm it can cause if freed. Especially if these are ghosts like Kayako, Sadako, or Slenderman — who's currently standing in the alley watching Bison."
"You mentioned two… Kayako and... Sadako?" Göndul clarified, frowning slightly.
"Sadako," Alex corrected her. "Those two are embodiments of curses. Sadako spreads hers through a cursed videotape. And Kayako... her curse is the house itself. Just stepping inside dooms you. You can get rid of Sadako by passing the curse to someone else. But Kayako's victims are always doomed to die."
He thoughtfully scratched his chin.
Then, as if from nowhere, Reginleif appeared behind him.
"Maybe you should just throw all the idiots who annoy you in here?" she suggested, adjusting her glasses slightly. "You say death is a relief. And the Red City could be turned into a prison. Eternal confinement, fear, and pain — sounds like a good punishment to me."
Alex looked at her and smirked.
"I'm not against it... but it all depends on Zhang Ya herself. I don't want to overwhelm her with that work," he said softly, gently running his fingers through her hair again.
In fact, he was increasingly liking the idea — turning the Red City into a place with no escape, a dungeon for those who dared to consider themselves evil but were actually insignificant. No reincarnation, no forgiveness. Only eternal suffering. Alex was already considering sealing the souls of such beings, denying them even the mercy of destruction.
But the decision remained with Zhang Ya. It was her world, her city, and only she could decide how to use its power.
Alex, Göndul, and Reginleif all turned simultaneously toward the ghostly girl, awaiting her answer.
Zhang Ya nodded slowly. Her silent consent spoke louder than any word: she did not object. Moreover, she was ready to take on this burden for Alex's sake. For the one who made her a part of himself.
Unable to hold back, Alex hugged her, pulled her close, and gently kissed her pale cheek. A faint blush and a barely noticeable smile appeared on Zhang Ya's face, then vanished immediately. But Alex noticed. And that was enough.
Holding Zhang Ya, he, along with Göndul and Reginleif, once again turned their gaze to the running Bison, who was still circling in the looping city, consumed by terror, madness, and paranoia, growing stronger with every passing second.
To be continued...
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