Meanwhile, when Vulcan's containment sealed around you and the other Benimaru, there was a temporary silence on the battlefield. The dust and ash lingered in the air from General Oze's eliminated forces, and Maki stood in silent shock behind company 7 and 8 as they discussed what, if anything, they could do next.
"We don't have much time. He'll get out." Hinawa began.
"Y/n will keep that doppelganger contained as long as she can." Konro's voice was tactical. "We need to protect that box from damage from the outside-"
"That's the least of our worries." Obi interjected.
"The Evangelists will want him back out and on their side. If they break him out, we're done for." Konro continued.
"I'll guard them." Gaku volunteered before Konro could.
------
The battle raged on in a daze.
Mara paused to catch her breath, but noticed the dust in front of her face stop midair. She turned, studying her frozen companions with growing unease. "The Evangelist would like to speak to you." Sho introduced.
Mara looked in the direction of, but not at, the blinding deity. "Mara..." The Evangelist greeted warmly. "So good to finally meet you."
Mara rolled her eyes. "Yeah, you can cut the flattery. What do you want?"
"Flattery?" She scoffed. "It's not flattery, dear. I just want to talk. I think we can come to an agreement."
"Not interested." Mara dismissed immediately.
The Evangelist smiled. "Always so eager to fight. You don't need to prove anything to me, Mara. I know how strong you are. I've been... patiently waiting for this moment for a long time. Ever since I recruited that dimwit father of yours." She laughed. "You don't think I ever wanted him for his skills, do you? I just wanted to get him away from you, so he wouldn't stifle your growth. Your anger..."
Mara raised an eyebrow. "Am I supposed to be mad that you separated me from my dead-beat dad?" She replied, unimpressed.
"Of course not, but hopefully you'll understand why I didn't connect you to any of your recent teachers earlier. Not until you were no longer impressionable. Konro and Gaku crippled Benimaru's capacity and ability. I think you just saw that first hand." A smile curled her lips at the thought of Other Benimaru's massacre. Her pride in her orchestration going to plan left Mara uneased. She didn't like feeling like she was part of a plot... just a piece on a board to be played with by a being she didn't understand. "I would never let the same thing happen to you. But tell me, doesn't it bother you? You walk in the shadows of these weaker men who claim titles that belong to you..."
Mara was silent, faking her composure. Of course it fucking bothered her. For her entire life, it-
The Evangelist continued her monologue. "I assume, that in Benimaru's absence, the responsibility falls to you to kill me, right? You should have never been the second choice to him, but... What do you think happens when you all defeat me? When your power is gone? What do you do then? You think the pyrokinetics will retain their abilities if my presence leaves this world? No. Do you even know who you are without your pyrokinesis at this point? You never had to live without it. And as much as you claim to love your dear friend Y/n, you always pitied her. You always felt you needed to protect her because of how weak and helpless she was compared to you. Even with everything she did to try to make herself otherwise, she was nothing compared to you and you both knew it. Do you really want to be that helpless?"
Mara opened her mouth to argue, but the words she needed to defend herself flittered out of grasp. The Evangelist was right.
"The question is, do you have any interest in surviving without your power? Because you will survive, one way or another." She promised. "You can join me, have the authority and power you deserve in the next world I cleanse... The next sun I create. You can bring pets along if you wish, as long as you can keep them in line. I want my devoted to be happy." She sounded so genuine. "Or... you can lose my gift. Killing me will be an extraordinary show of your power, remembered for- at least a little while..." She condescended the short-term nature of human glory. "But I hear tephrosis is a miserable way to die slowly." She looked past Mara to the box on the battlefield. "So much so that Benimaru bargained away his own autonomy to spare himself from the guilt of Konro's suffering." She returned her attention to Mara. "And your suffering would be for what? This empire that never valued you? I can spare the few people you actually care about, and we'll be on our way." She extended her hand to Mara.
YOU ARE READING
The Border of Asakusa (Benimaru x Reader)
FanficYou always knew there was something wrong with the Tokyo Empire. The Church. Amaterasu. You didn't know you'd be part of the Fire Force company to destroy it all. How did it come to this, it started so peacefully... with a community garden at the bo...
