MAGO - Stardust Crusaders X OC

Chapter Thirty-Nine: Monday, January 16

The last of the debris scattered, sending golden sunlight cutting through the darkness of the interior. Apparently, this was the quickest way, but Sana hadn't realised just how quick: Polnareff was standing right in front of them, looking up at the top of some stairs. He was alone, but he looked alright, apart from one bandaged, slightly bloody leg. Sana tried not to think about the implications of that.

"It's- Mr Joestar!" Polnareff turned around, his eyes alight.

"There's no need to worry, Polnareff," Mr Joestar said.

And movement caught Sana's eye, and she looked up, and there was someone standing up at the top of the stairs. He was huge, and strong, and his presence commanded rapt attention,and something about the way he looked down at them all made Sana feel sick yet, somehow, like she wanted to know more. She couldn't take her eyes off the shadowy figure, a smirk on his barely-illuminated face, and she was frozen, utterly paralysed, and her blood had run cold and she briefly wondered if this was what death felt like as she looked at him, met his eyes, for what felt like an eternity.

But it wasn't an eternity. It was a split second. No sooner had he smirked, he vanished, leaving a gaping void where he'd once stood. Sana understood now. That innate charisma but utter malignance. There was nobody that could've been but DIO. That had been DIO. She'd seen him, and survived.

"Was that..?" Sana somehow choked out, her voice sounding almost strangled. She moved her head, that seemed all too heavy in the too-thick air, and tried to look at the others.

"DIO! After him" Mr Joestar yelled, already running. Sana nodded, swallowed her fear, and followed. Noriaki ran, too, faster than either of them, driven by something he'd never been able to tell Sana about. His motives didn't matter. He would kill DIO if he could. They all would. Right now. They just had to follow his tracks, and-

"I have to tell you something first!" Polnareff cried, and Sana stopped, and looked at him. There were shadows under his eyes.

"It was only out in the open for a moment or two, but I saw him use his Stand. Well, I didn't actually see it, but I did feel it, in a manner of speaking," Polnareff paused. "It's... complicated, but here's the long and short of it: I was heading up the stairs to beat the life out of that bastard when suddenly I was back where I started. Believe me, I know what I'm saying doesn't make any sense at all. I can't wrap my head around what happened, either! I feel like I'm losing my mind over here. I'm sure he wasn't using any hypnosis. I'd say super speed, but... No way. All I know is that I sensed something utterly terrifying."

Sana frowned. So, he had some strange, otherworldly ability... it seemed fitting for someone like DIO. From the split second she'd seen him, yes, it was fitting, but that thought only made him more horrifying.

"Hey. Where are Iggy and Avdol?" Jotaro asked, glancing around the empty stairwell. His words hung in the air. He'd asked the question none of them had wanted to, but it had been on all of their minds from the moment they'd seen Polnareff alone. It felt like Sana had been punched in the gut, and she hadn't even heard what Polnareff was going to say.

But then he teared up, and she knew, and the scene went blurry as Polnareff spoke. "They-" he took a sharp breath. "-didn't make it. They're both dead. They both died trying to- save me."

Sana just stared. She didn't feel like she could breathe, like she'd been hit again, but this time, along with aching so deeply within her, it took all of her breath with it. The scene focused and unfocused as Sana tried to blink the tears back. "Oh," she said, her voice trembling. She covered her mouth, and stared at the sky like that would help her keep it together.

"...is that so..?" Mr Joestar murmured. Sana closed her eyes, and one tear cut down her cheek, then another. Mr Avdol and Iggy. Both dead. Both gone. It didn't feel real. Slowly it would sink in, Sana knew, but for now, she was just strung up in disbelief, and her tears were more like that of shock. Mr Avdol and Iggy. Dead. They sacrificed themselves for Polnareff, and they were dead. Sana felt so empty as the tears traced patterns on her cheeks.