Rico's entire body completed its transformation into solid rock. Every inch of skin is replaced by granite-like armor with cracks in between. He crouched low, muscles coiling beneath the stone exterior and then launched himself into the air with explosive force. His massive form arced through the night sky, silhouetted against the smoke still rising from the burning warehouse.

  He came down like a meteor.

  Rico drove straight through the boat's base flooring with a deafening crash. Wood splintered. Metal screamed. The entire vessel shuddered violently from the impact. He crashed through deck after deck, plummeting downward until he smashed directly into the engine room. Machinery exploded around him. Oil sprayed in black fountains. Steam hissed from ruptured pipes.

  Then, just as suddenly, Rico leaped back up through the hole he had created, landing on the main deck with another thunderous impact that cracked the floorboards beneath his feet.

  All the guests erupted in screams and panic. Women shrieked. Children cried. Men shouted. People scrambled away from the massive rock-covered figure, pushing and shoving each other in their terror. Champagne glasses fell and broke. The elegant wedding celebration had become complete chaos in seconds.

  "What is that thing?!" David screamed, pulling Maria behind him.

  "Monster! There's a monster!" someone else yelled.

  "We're going to die!" a woman wailed, clutching her husband.

  I wasn't able to get the better of him last time. How can I take him on one on one with all these people around? Or is it 2v1? Whose side is Tanaka going to take? Kazama thought, his muscles tensing as he slowly stood up from the railing, water still dripping from his clothing.

  Tanaka and Rico stared at each other for a long moment. Tanaka stood perfectly still, his expression unreadable. Rico's rocky form remained motionless as well, his stone-covered chest rising and falling with each breath. The screaming guests faded into background noise. The world seemed to narrow to just these three superpowered figures on the tilting deck.

  "You could have gone through the engine room as well. Why stop?" Tanaka asked calmly, his voice cutting through the panic with surprising clarity.

  This bastard. He is no hero. What is this guy even thinking? Kazama thought bitterly, watching Tanaka's reaction carefully.

  Rico shifted his weight, his rocky exterior cracking slightly with the movement. "I... I don't want this to go this way. I am not sure."

  "You are not sure whether you want to kill these people or not? I guess your task is to sink this ship so that your guys can do whatever they want to do and the heroes who arrive here would be busy with saving this boat instead," Tanaka said, his analytical mind piecing together the strategy instantly.

  His senses are right, I would give him that, Kazama thought grudgingly.

  "You are... right," Rico admitted, his Portuguese accent thicker with emotion.

  "And you are hesitating. That means there's still time to turn around," Tanaka said, taking a step forward.

  Water had started flowing into the ship through the massive holes Rico had created. The cold ocean water poured in steadily and the boat had already begun listing to one side. The engine room was completely destroyed and had no power, no steering, no pumps to combat the flooding. The boat would sink in thirty minutes, maybe less.

  "Seems like half the work is done," Rico said, looking down at his handiwork.

  "Nope. You think I will let you get away with this?" Tanaka said, his tone hardening as he dropped into a combat stance.

  "You are one hero. I have done my job. The boat will sink. You can try to stop me, but then who saves these people?" Rico asked, gesturing at the panicking guests with one massive stone arm.

  Tanaka's jaw clenched. Rico was right. If Tanaka fought him, the civilians would be left unprotected, drowning when the boat went under. But if he focused on evacuation, Rico would escape and the mafia operation would succeed.

  "That's the problem with heroes," Rico continued, his voice almost sad. "You always have to choose. Fight the villain or save the innocent. You can't do both."

  "Then I guess it's a good thing there are two of us," Kazama said, stepping forward to stand beside Tanaka.

  Both Tanaka and Rico looked at him with surprise.

  I can't believe I am about to do this. But now I know which side Tanaka is on. I don't think I can help in getting these people out right now. Tanaka is a top 50 hero. These people. They would trust him. He is here for a reason. If he is going to headline the evacuation, then that leaves only one thing….. Shit. I need to use my actual powers now to make this work, Kazama thought as he pushed his doubts aside.

  "You handle evacuation. I'll handle him," Kazama said to Tanaka, his voice firm despite his exhaustion.

  "You can barely stand," Tanaka observed, noting how Kazama's legs were trembling slightly from fatigue.

  "I've been in worse shape," Kazama lied. In truth, he was running on fumes. Every muscle ached. The heavy wet gear was restricting his movement. But he couldn't let these people die.

  "Who are you exactly?" Tanaka asked quietly.

  "Does it matter right now?" Kazama replied while adjusting his mask.

  Tanaka studied the masked figure for another long moment, then nodded. "Don't die, vigilante."

  "Don't let them drown, hero," Kazama shot back.

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Tanaka immediately sprang into action, his strength-enhanced abilities allowing him to move with impressive speed. "Everyone listen to me! We need to evacuate in an orderly fashion! Move to the life rafts on the starboard side! Do not push! Help those who need assistance!"

  His commanding voice cut through the panic. People began to respond, their terror channeled into a purposeful movement by Tanaka's leadership. The bride and groom were the first to board a safety boat while others followed.

  Rico watched this unfold, then turned his attention back to Kazama. "You can't beat me, vigilante. You saw what happened last time. Sooner or later, all of them would be in the water. And you would be on the seafloor".

  “Last time I didn't have a real purpose. But this time, I do!” Kazama declared.

  The boat tilted further as more water poured in. The deck was now at a fifteen-degree angle and getting steeper. Footing would be treacherous. The water made everything slippery.

  Kazama removed his heavy outer coat, letting it fall to the deck with a wet thud. It had served its purpose protecting him from flames, but now it was just dead weight. Underneath, he wore a tight black shirt that allowed better mobility.

  "Last chance to walk away," Rico offered as he cracked his knuckles.

  "Same to you," Kazama replied with one arm behind his back with electric sparks.

  This is serious now. Lives are at stake. I can't hold back anymore and rely on these cheap fire tricks. If someone gets hurt knowing that I could have prevented that, knowing that I could have done more…. I know my powers would be useless against his rocky form. But still it might throw him off guard…., Kazama thought with one final resolve.

  Rico charged with crossed arms. His charging footsteps were getting embedded on the wooden floor. The deck shook with each thunderous step. Rico was slower in his full rock form but devastating if he landed a hit.

  Kazama sidestepped the first punch which was a massive haymaker that would have taken his head off. Rico's fist punched through the wooden railing behind where Kazama had been standing, splinters exploding outward.

  Kazama countered with a burst of electrical energy directly at Rico's chest. The lightning crackled and sparked across the rocky surface but didn't penetrate. Rock was too poor a conductor. The attack did nothing.

  "Electricity? You can't hurt me with that! Hahaahha" Rico declared, pressing forward with a combination of punches.

  I knew that wouldn't work but now I have an idea, Kazama thought as he dodged another punch from Rico.

  Rico swung again, this time a backhand that Kazama ducked under. The stone fist whistled over his head. Kazama tried a leg sweep but it was like kicking a concrete pillar. Pain shot through his shin. But he got back up and stamped his foot on the ground with an electric jolt flowing through his leg which seemed to have reduced the pain.

  Kazama dodged and weaved, using his smaller size and greater agility to avoid the attacks. But the tilting, wet deck made every movement seem like he was fighting on a cliff end. His foot slipped on a puddle and he barely rolled away from a devastating downward punch that cracked the deck where he had been standing.

  I can't keep this up. He's right…. I can't hurt him directly, Kazama thought as he lashed out an electric whip which did no damage.

  Kazama took one step on the railing with his left foot with electricity flowing through from his left leg to his right and delivered a single legged dropkick with his right foot to the face of Rico which threw him off balance. Kazama landed on knee and found his balance.

  The electric current flowing through his legs made his legs stiff during impact. The muscles got tightened as the electrical impulses triggered involuntary contractions in his muscle fibers, temporarily locking them in a state of sustained tension. This tetanic contraction transformed his leg into a rigid striking weapon, maximizing the force transfer on impact while preventing his knee from buckling under the stress of hitting solid rock.

  Kazama quickly followed up with a two footed dropkick with electricity assisting him in his jump which pushed Rico a bit further. And then again and again until Rico was at the south end of the boat. This maneuver pushed Rico to the opposite end of the leakage. The weight of the boat seemed to balance out with Rico’s weight on the other end. This made the boat steady and allowed the passengers to get on the life boats easily.

  That’s….. That is impressive. He was able to get that big boulder of a man to the other side of the ship, Tanaka thought as he helped an elderly woman into a life raft. He knew what he had to do and he was able to execute it in such a short time. Used the villain's own mass as a counterweight to stabilize the boat. That kind of tactical thinking in the middle of combat... whoever this vigilante is, he's no amateur. He's buying us precious time.

  Tanaka glanced back at the masked figure as Kazama delivered another dropkick, despite his obvious exhaustion. He's running on fumes but still going on…..

  "Did you see that?" a man in a tuxedo said breathlessly as Tanaka guided him toward the life raft. "That masked guy! He's keeping the boat level!"

  "He's fighting that monster alone!" a woman added, clutching her dress around her shoulders. "Look at him go!"

  "Someone should help him!" the bride called out, tears streaming down her face. "He's going to get himself killed for us!"

  "That poor man," an older gentleman said, shaking his head as he watched Kazama narrowly avoid another devastating punch. "Fighting that... that thing. He's half the size and that monster is made of solid rock!"

  "Come on, masked hero!" a young boy shouted, pumping his fist even as his mother pulled him toward safety. "You can do it!"

  "Everyone keep moving!" Tanaka commanded, though he too couldn't help but watch the desperate battle unfolding. Hold on, vigilante.

  “ENOUGH!” Rico let out an enraged growl while he got cornered.

  He got really angry and smashed the whole flooring of the boat with both hands clasped together which made it even more unstable. The entire vessel groaned and shuddered from the impact. Wooden planks exploded upward in a shower of splinters. Metal support beams buckled and twisted.

  Around 20 passengers were still left on the boat and their lives were now in danger. Most of them lost their balance and fell hard on the wooden boards, crying out in pain and terror as they scrambled for anything to hold onto. The violent impact sent shockwaves through the water, creating massive waves that radiated outward in all directions. The life rafts that had already launched bobbed dangerously on the sudden swells, nearly capsizing as passengers screamed and clung to the sides. Water sloshed over the edges of several rafts, drenching the occupants.

  "We're sinking! We're sinking!" a woman shrieked, clutching a table leg as the deck tilted further.

  "My leg! I think I broke my leg!" a man groaned, sprawled on the deck where he'd fallen.

  "Mommy, I'm scared!" a little girl cried, clinging to her mother who was desperately trying to crawl toward the railing.

  "The water's coming up through the floor!" someone yelled as seawater began bubbling up through the massive cracks Rico had created.

  People were sliding across the increasingly steep deck, grasping at anything they could find. Railings, decorative pillars, overturned chairs.

  The boat itself lurched violently to one side, the careful balance Kazama had created now completely destroyed by Rico's rage-fueled attack.

  Shit. I hope this thing can stay afloat. The engine room is down. These people… They are still far from the safe zone. We need to get this boat close to the port. But the mafia is also there…..

  Kazama realized that he needed to get the boat closer to the shore but it was stationary as the engine room had no power.

  Tanaka had evacuated around 20 people already including the bride and groom. But the boat started to sink a bit as some compartments got water in them.