Funeral

Words: 1491

JOIN THE DISCORD: https://discord.gg/zawF4jt5xw

I also have up to 20 advanced chapters of this story available on patre0n.com/xlucqs, with the lowest tier being £4 for 5 advanced chapters. Subscribing isn't necessary, but it is greatly appreciated. Thank you to everyone who had subscribed so far, I appreciate it!

=========================

(3rd person pov, Griffith)

"So that was your answer? well played, looks like the government and its heroes aren't just all talk." Griffith chuckled. 10 of his bases were destroyed, along with 2 of his Apostles, 8 of his bishops and many more of his subordinates. His apostles were slowly dropping like flies, but the look on Griffith's face was impassive, happy even.

He had last so many of his men, but in return he had gained so much.

He still had 5 Apostles left, along with over a million members. Among those million strong, over 100 were assigned the rank of 'Bishop' due to how strong they were. These Bishops came from all walks of lives, some being ex-soldiers, some being ex-pro heroes, while others previously villains.

They all flocked under his banner for multiple reasons, be it promises of power, revenge, someone to blame their problems on, or even the rare occasion they actually believed the ideology he thought up in less than 10 minutes.

Propaganda was an amazing thing.

There was a reason Griffith started in America despite it being a dangerous country to set up operations in. With a population of over 500 million and a heavy influence on social media and starlight and controversy, it was the perfect place to get loyal members to the cause using a manipulation of the media.

Even when he had lost, he had won. With this influx of members, he just had to take advantage of it in other countries.

"Send Apostle Luther, a group of 10 bishops and 10 thousand troops to Africa." He commanded his loyal servant, who bowed deeply and left the room.

"Do the same with Apostle Luke, but send them to South America." Another servant bowed and left.

"And finally, sent Apostle Mark with the same amount of people all the way to Iberan."

Griffith smiled. He had created a plan where even if he loses, he would at least get something out of it. Many of his apostles were dead due to being in America, one of the countries most invested in the hero sector, hence producing a high grade of heroes. But these countries…they were particularly weak areas of the world, their governments barely hanging on by a threat, infested by villains, protests and discrimination.

It was the perfect place for the Holysee Church to expand. He was slowly expanding his empire. Soon he would rule the world.

=============================

(back to Akira 3rd person)

"I only knew Eagleman for a short amount of time, but I could tell he was a great man. He was very caring, kind, and a soft spoken man. He chose his words carefully and was calm. He told me of his past and troubles, and wanted to make the world a better place for mutants. When we met the enemy that Eagleman met his demise too, I remember the first thing he told me. 'Run', he said. He put his own life below mine and told me to run. I was there with him when he took his last breath, and I can say with certainty that that man had no regrets and was happy with his life." Akira said solemnly.

He walked off the stage, sitting next to Cathleen, not saying a word. She gave him a brief smile.

"That was a very thoughtful speech, thank you." The priest said, "Is there anyone else who wishes to say anything?" He asked. Nobody responded.

"Very well." The priest crossed his arms, "May Kabir, known to most by Eagleman go to heaven with no difficulties. May God grant mercy on his kind, heroic soul." The priest bowed. "Now is the time to say your final goodbyes."

Not many people had shown up to the funeral. It was a quiet affair, with only a few people who knew him well attending. Akira didn't know whether to feel happy or to be sad that Kabir had no family.

Everyone came to gravestone and shared a few moments with the former number 10 hero. These moments could be words, tears, or just complete silence, but they were moments that were needed.

One by one, people shared their final goodbyes with Kabir and left. Eventually, it was only Akira left at the gravestone.

"Here lies Kabir, known to most as Eagleman, a brave hero. Died fighting for his country." It read.

The gravestone was carefully crafted and engraved by the best people in their respective professions. The gravestone was oval shaped, with a pair of wings branching out from the stone, spreading wide. It was a resting place deserving of a man like him.

"I avenged your death, if that's any consolation." Akira started, "I barely knew you, but I could tell you were one of the best heroes out there. I promise I will make this right, I will make all of it right."

Akira met up with Cathleen who was waiting for him shortly after. They walked in silence for a few minutes, before she broke it, "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine Cath. I just want to be stronger." He thought back to his fight with Isaac. "I am stronger. But I want to be even stronger, stronger than All Might, stronger than you, stronger than anyone else. If I have that type of power, then I will have the power to do what I wish."

Cathleen remained silent, and Akira continued, "Can I ask you something Cath? In the future I may do some…" Akira paused, his mouth opening and closing wide before sighing, "Never mind. I'm very tired, I should really get some sleep."

"Agreed," Cathleen patted him on the shoulder, "Hey. It's not your fault, you know that right?"

"I know, but if only I was stronger, then maybe I could have…"

Cathleen pursed her lips, "I don't want to seem rude, making this about me, but I've been through the exact same situation as yours many times. Times when I was not strong enough to save someone I so desperately wanted to. I spent many sleepless nights thinking what life would be like if I saved them. Until one day I realised that it was pointless, what was the purpose of thinking about something that would never exist? If I let myself be consumed by this guilt, then I wouldn't be able to save anyone ever again. So I stopped thinking about my regrets, instead focusing on getting stronger so I would never have any regrets again. Don't be swallowed up by it, Akira." Cathleen walked off, leaving Akira all alone in the graveyard.

When left alone, Akira could only look up to the sky with a sigh. Cath was right, there was no point dwelling in regret, would it do him? He needed to turn into something else, a fire that would fuel his ambition.

"Train, train, train!" He felt the voice in his head screaming. That voice. Akira chuckled, as for once he found himself agreeing with the voice.

======================

Akira returned from America much quicker than he had expected. After Eagleman's death, staying in the country left a bitter taste in his mouth, something which would take some time to go away. Maybe in the future he could return.

He was much stronger than when he had been when he left. His fight with Isaac hadn't even lasted 5 minutes, but the amount Akira pushed himself in that time, mentally and physically caused a breakthrough of sorts to happen.

"As much as I like All Might, I need to start going solo and becoming my own hero." Akira was saying.

"Agreed." Nezu responded, "You're much stronger now, probably more than most of the top 10 even if they knew your quirk. It's a good idea to prepare you to become the next symbol of peace."

'Most? Only All Might has a chance at beating me,' Akira thought. He nodded to Nezu's question, deciding to ignore the matter, "Ok, how would you suppose we do that?"

Akira nodded, "Ok, how would you suppose we do that?"

"Well, the hero rankings are actually in maybe 5-6 months, so in that time we need to try and get your rank up as much as possible. Reaching the top 50 is more than possible, but when trying to get into the top 10 it becomes more quality than quantity with the spice of public opinion. It's the reason why All Might is number 1 despite solving less cases than Endeavour."

"So what are you telling me is I should try and focus on solving as many crimes as possible, but also getting a few newsworthy ones?" Akira asked.

"Exactly!" Nezu smiled, "But of course, that comes with the problem of getting the newsworthy ones. They don't come everyday."

"What if…there was a way to do that? To have a front headline on the pages?"

"Do you have an idea?" Nezu questioned, peering at Akira.

"Well," Akira chuckled, "We do first need the evidence, but…have you heard of the Meta Liberation Army?"

======

A/N: Cathleen defeated the other Apostle if you must know.

Also if you forgot Iberan is the United countries of Portugal and Spain

If you guys wished to know to get an idea of power rankings, here are the rankings of the Holysee church:

1.Griffith

2.Adam (beat by Cathleen)

5.Isaac

10.Mozgus