..What a shitshow," Sam whispered to himself, rubbing his forehead as he looked around. He was standing on a street next to some docks in Honolulu. A van that had been heavily battered by some unknowable force sat in the center of the road. Yellow placards with numbers on them sat around the floor next to spent bullet casings. Nine men had been arrested, all of them Silicon Dragons, two of whom had to be fished out of the ocean, most of whom had been caught on camera shooting at someone with illegal weapons.
Someone with superhuman abilities, accompanied by animals with abilities.
"He was a teenager," Sam mused. "A damned kid…" the FBI agent looked around with hard eyes, tracing his vision wherever he could. He'd already taken notice of everything he could, but he was trying to make sure he got everything.
Technically, witness reports mentioned a large man had been with the teen, but whoever that was, he'd disappeared before anyone started filming him. After that was when the kid started causing a mess.
He'd taken two bullets and came out with nothing but scratches. His animals had been terrifying. The small blue one had incredible physical abilities, it's speed and strength beyond what a being its size should have been capable of. It had obliterated the men before it, with powers of water and ice, like a storm brought to life.
And then, that yellow hooded creature. If the blue one had been all the power of the ocean shoved into a puppy-sized package, then the yellow one was all the shadows that crawled in the night. The darkness brought to life. It had shattered a car, took a man… somewhere, a man they couldn't find.
Three superbeings. And Sam knew there had to be more. If they were the same ones that hit that smugglers farm on the Big Island, then there had to be more, based on the footprints he'd found. If they hadn't been there, well… That left seven footprints to account for.
"Sir!" a uniformed officer ran over, her face pale. "We found the last guy! H-He's, he doesn't want to leave the dumpster."
Sam sighed slowly, shaking his head. "Lead the way, Janey."
The officer nodded so fast she looked like her head was about to fly off, turning and rushing away. Sam followed her at a more sedate pace. He wasn't about to rush this. He took in the sights as he walked, noting every last detail. They were dealing with monsters and gangsters. Anything could be a clue. And that was putting things lightly. He'd heard of reports in London of officers having trouble with a literal poltergeist. They'd had to find a random stone in a garden that was tying the poltergeist to the city of London. This, among many cases, was proof that the best way for a normal detective to deal with the supernatural, was accounting for everything. Leave nothing to chance. No stone left unturned, brought to its literal conclusion.
In an alleyway behind the hotel, very far from where the fight had taken place, two officers were waiting. They parted as Sam approached the garbage dumpster they had been guarding. Sam looked inside.
"...Danny?" Sam blinked slowly. "Danny Shousa? What the hell are you doing in the trash?"
Danny Shousa was a Silicon Dragon. One that had taken advantage of the powerful lawyers and his lack of any truly violent crimes, any people could prove anyways, to escape jail time. Now, however, he'd been on camera carrying a gun with intent to kill someone.
He was also pale, covered in sweat, curled up in the fetal position, and had a banana covered in mold on his head.
"What the hell happened to-" Sam was cut off when Danny spun up to his knees, gazing into Sam's eyes.
"The shadows, Samuel!" he grabbed Sam by his jacket. The uniformed officers stepped forward with guns drawn, and Sam quickly waved them back. "They cut, but I do not bleed!"
"Why were you going after that guy?" Sam asked seriously, unfazed by the screaming man in his face.
"She comes," Danny trembled, clutching at Sam. "Smelling like the dark of the forest and fabric softener-"
"I know, the yellow one," Sam without skipping a beat. "Focus, Danny. Why were you here?"
"...I don't know," Danny laughed, tears falling down his cheeks. "There are things out there, Sam. Monsters."
They eyed each other. Finally, the FBI agent turned around.
"Get him outta here," Sam said. He watched as the uniformed officers came forward to lift Danny out of the dumpster. The terrified gangster was half-laughing as he passed by. Maybe, with some time, Danny would be willing to talk, but as of now, the other gangsters weren't talking, and Danny was too crazy to talk.
He needed more. To find whoever that kid was, stop him from running around the island getting in fights. The Silicon Dragons had to have some idea of who was fighting them now. With that smartphone footage people had created spreading around-
"Sam! Sam!" someone ran up to him as he was broodingly strolling past the yellow tape lines. A microphone was shoved into his face. "Any thoughts on this superhuman that has been fighting criminals across the islands?"
"No comment," he squinted down at the reporter. He was a skinny man, with short-cropped blonde hair and dark eyes. The reporter was also smiling way too much, the cameraman behind him pointing a camera right at his face. "Get out of my way."
"What do you have to say about the things people are calling him? Some have been saying he's Hawaii's First Superhero!"
"He's a vigilante," Sam snarled. "Not a superhero. He's causing trouble for the islands, nothing more. If he's smart, he'll either stop, or turn himself in."
"You disapprove, then," before Sam could choose to ignore him, the reporter continued. "Well, what about the names people have been giving him!? Any in particular you prefer? Beastmaster, Monster Tamer, Blood Vengeance-"
"Vigilante. Or Idiot," Sam lifted a palm and pressed it against the reporter's chest, pushing him aside.
"Sam, come on," the reporter said. Seriously, why did this guy know his name? "You can't tell me having a little superhero backup is a bad thing for Hawaii."
Sam almost punched him right there. He kept walking instead, trying to keep calm. This damn kid was causing problems on top of problems. If he started becoming famous, the Silicon Dragons would have to escalate to keep their vaunted 'honor'. Worse. Heroes attracted trouble. Superman may not have wanted it to happen, but the number of disasters in Metropolis had risen drastically since he came along. Worse, he had enemies. People with vendettas coming after him, and causing damage.
If this kid started running around, he'd attract enemies of his own. Enemies that would see Hawaii as collateral damage.
Sam entered his car, more determined than ever to find this kid. Before people started getting hurt.
"This really hurts," I winced, feeling the antibiotic ointment being placed on the shallow bullet hole in my chest. I placed it gently there, while a small paw placed more against the hole in my back. "Since when am I bullet-resistant?"
"I imagine, since you appeared in our world," Alakazam twirled a bullet in between his hands, the flattened piece of metal dancing in the air. "While guns are used in my world, they are relics of an age before Pokemon training became commonplace. And I'm glad you said bullet-resistant."
"I'm a nerd, I know the different levels of bulletproof," Mudkip grabbed a bandage off the pile of first aid stuff we'd gotten. I'd bought two first aid kits at a pharmacy once we'd gotten some distance. After all, we didn't know when we'd want more first aid stuff, and the ones in Honolulu were more professional than the ones I'd found near Kilauea.
"We wouldn't have been discussing it, if it weren't for the fact you decided to help that man," Alakazam said. He smirked, tossing the bullet he'd been playing with towards me. "There really was no need to fight for him. It was in your best interests to let them kidnap-"
"Enough," I snapped. Alakazam stopped, though I could still feel the amusement he was sending me. I looked around for a moment, thinking.
As soon as we'd left the area, I'd made a beeline for a pharmacy, put one of my back up shirts on, went in, grabbed the two first aid kits, then went to a rooftop of a nearby McDonald's. Now, as the sun slowly rose, the four of us were thinking about what we'd done and seen. "Mimikyu, you okay?"
My little eldritch abomination looked up at me. She had taken her costume off, laying it out in front of her so she could stare at it. The Pikachu outfit had taken bullets on her behalf, but it needed to be repaired so that it would be able to stand up on its own again. She had tears in her eyes, her shadowy and horrific form trembling just a bit, though she nodded.
"Do you want one of your backups?" I asked her. I easily held in a shudder as her body shifted in a way that reminded me of the sound your mouth makes when something in the night tastes your skin. Then she nodded.
"Here," Alakazam said gently, passing her my backpack.
Mimikyu hopped into it. For a moment, my backpack shifted as I wrapped my chest in clean bandages and tape, trying to implement what little I remembered from health class, while Mudkip completed his work on the wound on my back. Then Mimikyu hopped out of the backpack. I eyed what she was wearing.
When we'd met those kids in a store a while back, Mimikyu had come to a realization. Nobody in this universe knew who Pikachu was. With that epiphany, she'd decided that if she wanted people to like her, she had to change her methods.
So when she looked up at me with a black flowing cape, grey costume, and a fake black cowl with a yellow symbol on her chest, I knew exactly what she was thinking. She looked at the three of us nervously.
"That's one of the best Batman costumes I've ever seen," I said with a grin.
"Mudkip!"
"A well-crafted suit," Alakazam said simply. I got the feeling he didn't care that much, but cared that she cared.
Mimikyu gave us a happy-eyed look, wiggling in place, her Batman head shaking back and forth. I had to wonder what the Dark Knight would have thought of that.
Well. Back to business then.
"Okay, well, we're here," I sighed. "I don't suppose the roof of a McDonalds will do the job for a teleport zone."
Alakazam scoffed. "The lack of dignity aside, now, it would not. The best place would be somewhere relatively undisturbed. A place of peace, or healing. I can sense a few that would work near us."
"We can get there," I shook my head. "After that, we'll head right home."
"Mudkip?" the little guy said, surprised.
"I'm not staying here long enough for people to track us down," I explained. "We'll disappear for a while, let the heat die down. It's too bad, since I'd have loved to get an internet connection into the cave, but we can't risk it."
Alakazam stroked his mustache. "That makes sense. But I might recommend that we at least visit more regularly. I can already see that you've made quite an impact on the public consciousness."
"Made an impact?" I groaned. "Damnit. What are people saying?"
"Based on the surface thoughts of the customers here? That Mudkip and Mimikyu are adorable. But they're also saying that you looked like a bloodthirsty lunatic, covered in blood and throwing men into the ocean."
"It could always be worse, I guess," I'd written fanfics on the internet. I'd dealt with a bunch of people who didn't know me making weird assumptions. A bunch of strangers calling me a lunatic was low on the ladder. "Okay. Alakazam, what's the closest place to us that we can get this done at?"
He pointed at a building in the distance. I nodded slowly. "Before we leave… Anyone hungry?"
The smell of french fries in the air was driving me nuts.
Even then though… Well, I could try to ignore it, but the thought that I could tank bullets, even just lower caliber ones, made me feel so strange. On the one hand, the little kid in me was dancing. Every kid imagines bullets bouncing off of them. The pragmatist in me was happy. I was in a lot less danger now. Though I had to worry about people bringing much bigger guns to kill me now.
A part of me, though, felt a little bit… violated. No, not violated, that was far too strong a word. It was more that I felt less real somehow. I'd clung to the idea that I, at least, was still human. Not, I don't know, whatever you would call the anime equivalent of a human being.
I'd noticed I was a little stronger than I'd been when I was a teenager the first go around, but it wasn't until now that the differences really struck me. That humans weren't supposed to be able to do some of the things I did.
With those thoughts running through my head, I went to satisfy my cravings for unhealthy food.
Tana Moon
"Why did you interview Sam Mokoa?" Tana asked, sitting behind her desk with a skeptical look on her face.
Tana Moon was a beautiful young woman, with shiny black hair, large brown eyes, and brown skin. She was wearing a purple suit cut to her figure, red lipstick, and looked like she was constantly wondering if the person in front of her was a moron.
The desk held a single placard with the words 'News Director'. She was sitting in the middle of KONA-TV, with a blonde-haired man sitting in front of her. "I told you to avoid him. Sam is like interview poison. He hates anything that isn't a clue."
"That's why he was perfect for this!" the blonde man said proudly.
"John, you're an idiot."
"No, no, seriously, Mrs. Moon, I promise, I have a plan! Look, this isn't just another supermarket opening or something. This is Hawaii's first superhero! We have a chance to drive the narrative here. This kid is gonna be our Superman!"
Tana rolled her eyes. "First, no reporter worth their salt is going to stake their career on some teenage kid being the next Superman. Second, you're ignoring reality."
"I'm not, I swear," John said placatingly. "But look at what we have," John held his arms out. "A teenager with superpowered animals fighting the Silicon Dragons in the street. A gruff and tough detective, ready to arrest all of them. I know you hate it when we manipulate the news to make ratings, but we don't have to manipulate the news here, Mrs. Moon! This is going to make ratings soar."
Tana thought about that. In truth, it was a boon. Hawaii had never had a story like this. One that they could follow and spread across the islands. If this kid continued the way he was, things would be very good for the news. But she was worried.
The Silicon Dragons were a problem. One that a lot of people didn't know about. Thus far, they'd been a relatively 'safe' gang, if such a thing could be said to exist. But that was if you didn't know the truth…
Still. The news had to be told.
"By the way, have you come up with a name?" Tana asked.
"I came up with a couple," John took out a notepad. "Based on what people are calling him on Twitter."
"You really want to use Twitter to decide something?" Tana said. "That's a horrible idea."
"No, no, there's some good ones! Here's one. Beastmaster?"
"That's the name of a show."
"Dr. Moreau?"
"Are you serious? I thought you wanted this guy to be a hero, and you want him to have the name of some asshole who rips apart animals."
"Okay, okay, don't worry, we have more!"
"How many more?"
"Thirty or so."
Damn you, twitter.
"How about Pickaname?"
"What?"
"It's what he yelled while he ran off. 'Pick a name!'"
"That's off the table."
"Well, how about this one. Kahu Koko."
"...Hawaiian for Blood Keeper."
"According to Google."
"Well, the translation is a little off. Still, Kahu is a good name," Tana looked at a picture on the wall. The image of the young man, shirtless and covered in his own blood, a red and white goalie mask.
"Not bad. Little vicious though. Even if this kid does turn out to be a secret supervillain, we can't go giving him the name 'Blood' right out of the gate. Besides, anyone who uses the word blood in their name is a pretentious asshole."
"Ah. Well, I have more names-"
"No, hold on John," Tana raised a hand, cutting him off. "...Red Keeper. He's covered in blood, has two animals who fight for him. It's a good combination. Kahu Kia'i, the Red Keeper of Monsters. Make that the headline."
"Kahu Kia'i," John said softly. "Yeah. Yeah, that'll work."
"Of course it will," Tana smirked. "I'm the one who came up with it after all."
A Penthouse Suite, Honolulu, Hawaii
A man dressed in an immaculate black and red suit turned off his smartphone before leaning back in his chair contemplating the image of the strange "animals" that were currently being spoken about in social media. One, a small blue-finned creature. The other, a yellow-clad creature of the shadows. Both accompanied by a young man who controlled them.
"How unexpectedly interesting,"
He smiled sinisterly and turned his head towards the man seated at the door who was currently cleaning one of the many pistols from his extensive personal arsenal. "Mr. Lawton, would you be so kind as to get one of our people to investigate deeper into these recent reports on this new superhero?"
The man looked up with his usual hard-eyed stare. "Sure thing boss. But you know, messing with heroes…" he glanced down at a mask that rested on the table, a single red lens attached to the white mask. "It never ends well."
"Oh don't worry," he told Lawton. He looked at his phone again. At the image of a young man covered in blood, with those animals on either side of him. "I think this is only going to get more intriguing."