A Fated Encounter [private]

Another annoyingly hot day in summer. At least it was the weekend, so Krito didn't have to waste his time going to class - but on the bad side, the AC in his apartment was busted, so the only place he could flee to was Academy City. The streets were overcrowded with people, all talking, sweating... EXISTING. It was utterly disgusting and tiring for the former child soldier to be here, surrounded by so many people... but it kept his cover alive, even if the heat was trying to kill him.

With a sigh, Krito sat down on a bench, giving off a defeated sigh. He was wearing a student uniform even though it was the weekend - he couldn't be bothered to buy himself some private clothes, despite his hidden supervillain outfit, of course. Flicking the somewhat sweaty brown hair out of his face, the young man adjusted his glasses - those darn things always got dirty during summer, but he used them to keep up the illusion of being a weak nerd. Hanging around alone, the nerdy guy still got a lot of looks from couples or cliques every now and then, but who in their right mind would try to talk to him? He had a reputation for being an unlikeable jackass nearly all of the time, pushing people away and insulting them.

Only because a true villain didn't need friends, of course. He wasn't afraid of inter-personal connections, friendship or of having friends that would disapprove of his secret identity! That would just be silly. Sinking into his thoughts in the heat, Krito just hoped the shadow over the bench he was on would last a bit longer...

(Sorry about the wait and subpar presentation! My next post will definitely be better)



Summertime had never been a favored season of our deceptive heroine entering the story. It was bothersome, to be sure.  It was intensely hot on most days and unless one possessed top-notch air-conditioning, it was enduring torture close to that of being driven insane.  Her AC within her room was working properly... so why was she outside? Part of that question was not so easily answered - or rather, the young woman walking around and greeting the residents of Academy City, was in truth, a woman full of whims, oblivious to even the barest minimum of human emotion. She could smile, she could laugh, she could act as if she was the star attraction, yet that's all it was... an act.

Even as she giggled happily while being greeted by her so-called "friends", there was almost an emptiness to it. A group of girls surrounded her shortly after, wasting no time in talking with her about their day-to-day lives.  She would humor them. After all, there was nothing of note happening in the city today that seemed out of the ordinary.  And then, across the street from the entire grouping of people in academy city sat a man who definitely fit the prototypical nerd archetype to a perfection.  

Judging by his disgruntled expression, Miki surmised that while she was fortunate to have her own room functioning properly, perhaps his own was malfunctioning to some degree.  "Hey guys, I'll catch up with you later, there's something I have to go check out, and I also have to catch up on some of my training.  Don't wait up for me!" The girls seemed dissapointed that she would not be hanging out with them but Miki simply smirked derisively - without hesitation she had lied to the girls she knew for quite some time here.

By this point, they were foolish enough to believe that half of the things that left her mouth held truth. They all hugged her tightly in unison, running down the streets to experience the wonders of this city. Her attention now redirected to a new person of interest - Krito, of course -  she decided to buy two refreshing strawberry sodas for herself and this peculiar fellow sitting on the bench in discomfort.  She walked over, handing him one of the beverages before taking a seat next to him. Greeting him, she said, "You look very uncomfortable right now, mister. Mind tellin' me why you're sittin' on a bench in this scorching heat? Well, ha, I suppose I wouldn't call it scorching but still, I doubt any normal human, let alone a spiritually-endowed one, would endure this sort of discomfort. "

Searing heat, more sweat than he cared for, and the background noise of people talking. Right about now, Krito would've preferred being back in one of the many deserts he had been forced to fight in during his missions - at least there, he didn't have to deal with other people, even if the temperatures were even worse. Brooding over his own foul mood, the supervillain didn't even notice that someone was approaching him, until he suddenly got a soda can shoved towards his face. Well, that was... unusual. But hey, free cold drink, so that was nice, in a way.

Taking the can, the former child soldier peered over at the girl handing him the drink from behind his glasses. Another unexpected turn... this girl was, simply put, gorgeous. Why was she wasting her time trying to talk to him and even giving him something? Shouldn't girls like her be too occupied with talking about guys with other girls, or whatever else teenagers did in this century? The bewilderment of this course of events was enough to make Krito hold off on his usual, rather unpleasant behavior towards others, if only for the moment.

"Well..." Since when was his voice so rough? Damn dehydration. Coughing to get his voice back in working order, Krito continued with a sigh, now back to his normal, deadpan voice. "AC is busted. Right now, the temperature in my apartment is about double of everything out here. I could probably start charging for it as a sauna." With another sigh, the young man opened the soda and took a big gulp from it. Gah, this stuff was so sugary sweet... But not entirely terrible. Strawberry wasn't that bad of a flavor... "Tech support is on it, but knowing this damn summer, they won't get to it until a few days. So until then, I can choose between getting steam-cooked or grilled." With another small sigh, Krito turned his head slightly, so he kept the strange girl in his field of view.

"I could ask you why you're out here, but really, that's none of my business. Thanks for the soda, by the way." Emptying the rest of the can after saying that, Krito just hoped that some minimal human interaction may make the time until sundown go by faster. And hearing his own voice meant less of the background noise of the people reaching him, which was good at keeping his sanity intact. "How come you care, though? Never had anyone give a crap about what was happening with me before."

This girl was so… odd. Not necessarily in a bad way, but she definitely was. Could she read his mind? Not entirely unreasonable within Academy City. The Fallen were virtually unlimited in the possibilities of their powers – someone reading minds wasn’t any more unlikely than someone throwing fireballs. Her reasoning made some sense, but he still wasn’t sure why someone like her gave him the time of day, especially since he didn’t feel as if he looked all that attractive, discomfort or not – but hey, maybe she liked glasses. Then she’d be super disappointed to find out those were just for his disguise and he didn’t actually need them… But if she was able to read minds, thinking about being Agent Orange around here would be a bad idea. So just for now – and only because he HAD to, of course! – he’d bury Agent Orange deep within his subconscious mind and focus on being ‘Krito Asmeudos, student of the academy’.

“You’re odd, but I’m sure I’m not telling you anything new with that, right? Oh well, I guess we’re all odd.” Actually giving a small grin – how long ago had he last truly smiled? He didn’t know – Krito adjusted his fake glasses slightly. In this heat, the reflection of light from it together with how easily it got dirty, made it incredibly annoying to even wear…

“But you’re right, I don’t give a crap about impressing others with something I’m not. Yeah, you get people to ‘like’ you, and the moment a Hollow rears its head around the corner, you’re all alone again. The ‘real’ sides of people rarely get along with anyone, and friendships are an empty concept if they’re built on something as flimsy as they are in Academy City. I don’t think you’re ACTING as if you’re okay with the temperatures… I think you’re one of the people who actually do care less about it. Otherwise, you would’ve been too busy trying to impress others to even notice me.”

This girl was something else, alright. Normally, serving up a big pile of cynicism and reality was enough to get people to leave him alone, and often times, for good. But she actually... seemed to agree with him?! Who the hell in this city was actually smart enough to understand him and his viewpoint? Normally, the teenagers here were to self-absorbed to even realize the insane amounts of narcissism inherent in them all. Krito couldn't deny that he felt some silent satisfaction at someone sharing his views at least a bit, as he pushed up his glasses with an actual small smile on his face. They actually WERE just for show, but his ability to observe sure wasn't! It was always important on the battlefield to analyze everyone, and life was an eternal battle if your nickname happened to be 'Agent Orange'.

"I'm not exactly high on the totem pole. Sure, I can see ghosts, but otherwise, its pretty minor." At least, what he could show was minor. He had the ability to kill with a touch! Create poisonous clouds! But he couldn't show that, no. His voice was a bit hesistant, as it always was when talking about his powers - he felt uncomfortable hiding himself, but it was a necessity. He WAS a war criminal according to the United Nations, after all, and a deserter according to the united states. Even though he had never been a damn citizen of that place forsaken by all gods, real or imagined! That place was just pure, raw evil. Krito couldn't banish the disdain from his voice as he spoke of his powers - even if he could talk about them, they were not the kind of powers he WANTED to have.

"I guess I could show you." Grabbing the can again that the girl had given to him earlier, Krito slid his right index finger right into the opening, pressed it against the sharp edges around said opening, and gave his own finger a few good, hard twists, cutting right into his flesh and even down to the bone without hesitation. Searing pain shot through his entire hand, but he didn't even flinch - he had a pretty high tolerance for that by now. Pulling out his strongly bleeding finger, he held it out, even grinning slightly. "Watch."

As if on command, the deep cut through his flesh and even sinews began to knit itself together - the bleeding stopped almost instantly, and the wound around his bone closed. Within seconds, only a small red ring remained where he had cut himself, and even that was fading quickly - if not for the blood on the finger and on the juice can, nobody would even be able to tell that he had just nearly mutilated his own finger, as he was now even moving it again without problem.
"Minor regeneration. Cuts go away within moments, lacerations last a minute at best, broken bones mend within hours or, at the worst, two or three days if I get an actually dangerous fracture. Oh, and well, this." Suddenly dashing away, Krito moved like he had suddenly turned into the wind itself, before sitting right in position again, holding another two fresh cans of soda, handing one to the girl. The bit of blood on his finger had also vanished.
"I hope you like lime flavor, they were out of strawberry by now. I'm Krito Asmeudos."

So his little show had earned him some respect. Good, because this had hurt like hell. Cutting into your own finger down to the bone wasn't nice, not at all. You'd have to be crazy to do that willingly. Good thing then that Krito wasn't exactly sane. He couldn't help but have an incredibly smug grin on his face when she questioned how this was 'minor'. Well, he couldn't regenerate body parts, and any more serious damage would take a long time to heal... But deep cuts were amazing for impressing people. Flesh wounds had their good parts about them. "I guess it's counted as minor because it wouldn't help me actually win a real fight against a Hollow."

"Well, I still feel pain. I just got used to it over a life of being a clumsy oaf." Grinning still with a bit of self-deprecation, Krito actually almost pulled his hands away instinctively the moment Miki reached out for his hands. Miki Hoshii... Why was she so interested in him? That question was really wrecking his mind right now. His powers were nothing special. His personality was abrasive at best, self-important at most times. Yet still, she stuck around... And now, she wanted to show him something? What an odd, odd girl. So carefree... Had his life been different, would he be more like her? Free to talk to random strangers, strike up conversations, and have fun even on such an unpleasantly hot day? Damn, now he was getting jealous of her... And not in the usual, 'she's so popular' way someone else his age might get jealous.

"Alright. Whatever it is you want to do, it has to beat being in this heat." Standing up with a shrug, it took Krito quite a bit of willpower not to pull his grabbed hand free, but... He almost liked it. Human contact was something he usually despised. The additional warmth also wasn't appreciated in this heat. But perhaps it was just the grip, someone else holding onto him, that felt so... pleasant. An odd thought for someone like him, who kept pushing people away... And so, he let the girl lead him to wherever they were headed now.

[Sorry for the long wait for this post]





Miki couldn't come up with any explanation as to why she was being so cordial with a man she met only moments ago. His demeanor was far from welcoming, to say nothing of his observant nature which could be equally taken as signs of arrogance and superiority.  There was an instant admiration she felt being in his presence, experiencing someone who was an individual, not a mundane follower, content to follow the leader. Suffice it to say, Miki lost her sense of self long ago. That sacred sense of self - the individual - a singular person. Even if found someone such as him to be an eyesore to be around, it wasn't as if he cared.

A man such as he, cares little for the opinions of others, taking pride in his own way of living, content to follow that path until the day he ceases to breathe - indeed, these traits were endearing to her merely because she lacked the essential elements of an "individual".  He was fresh air,  a revitalizing sensation, an anomaly in this mundane cycle she had become accustomed to. In a word, he was different and Miki admired that.  

And that is why she would show him an ability only the higher-ups and battle regulators at Hepaestus Academy had seen. Realität des Lügners --- Divine deception given metaphysical form.  When she utters that single phrase, the world conforms to her whim... and allows her to achieve otherworldly abilities that should not exist.  She had never truly understood why she possessed an ability like that but surmised that spiritual skills were merely unusual like that.  

The higher-ups at the academy disliked the idea of the ability, advising that it only be used in dire situations. She wasn't even allowed to battle... though she never bothered to fight anyone after the her very first opponent.  She was challenged by a young woman who thought she could attain an easy victory by fighting someone who looked harmless.  When it came time for them to do battle, she pulverized Miki.

She only knew to utter those words whenever her life seemed to be in danger and before the people who regulated the battles stepped in, she uttered those words, and said, "I am stronger than you", and with that, she rose from the ground and merely returned the favor.  

In a way, no one envisioned that she would win but simply by uttering those words, she did.  No one knew why until they analyzed her spiritual abilities and found that her words possessed magical power after she uttered that phrase, and once they translated the meaning, they were appalled if not outright disturbed by what it meant - Reality of the Liar - It hardly required rocket science to make the connection but essentially Miki was such a deceptive person that her deceptions could manifest themselves on the plane of reality.  

Beyond that, she was a weakling in combat. She possessed no superhuman strength to speak of, she could only run as fast as the typical girls her age,  and her spiritual energy wasn't terrifyingly apparent.   She was an anomaly.  As she walked him towards a small area of forest where people could come to study or hone their skills away from the hustle and bustle of academy city, she turned to face him, winking with an uncontrollable amount of glee.  He had flustered her but she would soon repay the favor!




With that, a single phrase fell from her lips




"I hold domain over the ability of fire - thus, grant me control to manipulate the flames"

In seconds, the area was covered in magical power, as it whirled around Miki's body and in a blinding flash of light that roared across the forest like thunderous lightning,  Miki appeared before Krito with one of her fingers covered in a small, almost candle-like flame that she pressed against his nose before leaping back. In the next instant, two flaming orbs of explosive fire erupted from her hand and soon rushed through the air, and with the simple movements of her fingers, she controlled the movements of the orbs as she allowed them to collide,  as explosions flashed throughout the air, resembling fireworks. There was far more that she could do, having tapped into this ability... but she didn't want to cause any ruckus that would lead her back to being analyzed again.  Turning back to Krito, she chuckled and awaited his expected flabbergasted expression.



Post Limit(Elemental, specified. Two posts Minimum until the ability wears off.)

The ability to control fire would probably be something considered a 'mundane' spiritual power. Elemental magic, conjuring or whatever you wanted to call it seemed like the simplest thing granted by the 'concepts' that gave Fallen their powers... and so, if Miki had just been an elemental user, Krito would've probably put on a fake smile, talked about how impressive it looked, and then he'd never speak to her again after this day. But no... Her power was something far greater, far more mysterious.

"The ability to twist reality..." mumbled Krito, completely baffled. Pulling off his glasses to rub over his eyes, trying to collect his thoughts, they seemed to sparkle with a slight dark violet tinge for a moment as he looked back at Miki, using a hand to move the hair out of his face - not many got to see Krito without glasses and obscuring bangs. He looked a lot more serious and less smug this way, that was for sure. He looked at Miki with newfound appreciation and respect. Such a power was incredibly rare - everyone knew that twisting what was the 'truth' wasn't something you could just 'do'. She had basically just told common sense to roll over, die, and grant her elemental abilities without any obvious downsides on first glance.

"That's incredible. I'm not exactly fluent in German, but... reality of the liar, right? The ability to make lies a reality. That's.. amazing. There's no other way to put it, it's completely amazing. The possibilities, they're... well, nearly endless. But I doubt you need me to tell you that..." shaking his head in slight disbelief, Krito STILL couldn't completely distance himself from some snark. "And I also doubt I'm the first to say that. Is that why I never knew there was a reality warper here? Are they afraid we're going to get jealous? Well, understandable." Giving a short chuckle, Krito put his glasses back on, trying to contain his spiraling thoughts. What were her limits? Time, possibility, plausibility? Could she perhaps... CURE him? Well, it was way too early to ask someone he just met 'can you please remove the deadly poisons that are part of my soul' right now, especially if he wanted to stay in this academy that had no idea about his past for longer.

"Well, anyway. Consider me officially impressed. I think this is where insecure, shallow men would try to play off how amazing it actually is what you can do, but... Yeah, there's no topping that from me."