Akane ran as fast as she could, trying to keep up with the students around her. She was falling behind, but staying with the group wasn't the best idea either. The others would steal all of her kills and her quirk wasn't very flashy, so she didn't have much of a chance of standing out in a crowd.
The girl dashed around a corner and found herself in an open plaza. A one-pointer robot rolled around the abandoned square aimlessly as if it was malfunctioning. This was her chance.
Akane stepped back and fired at the robot, but her spiny projectiles bounced off harmlessly. The robot turned, it's red eye-like lense focusing on her.
"Target acquired."
The robot zoomed forward, faster than she could have anticipated.
She backed up quickly, tripping and falling on the uneven concrete. The robot towered over her and she froze in fear. Her attack hadn't done anything. There was no way she could beat even a 1 pointer, even in self defense. It wouldn't actually kill her, would it?
It pulled back one arm and swung down at her. Akane threw up her hands to protect herself.
"Someone help me!" She screamed. Everything became warmer.
Suddenly a boy jumped in the way, catching the arm and the robot's head. Akane gaped as his hands seared into the metal, making it melt. The heat was so intense she could feel her skin begin to blister and she crawled backwards as quickly as she could, trying to escape it.
The boy stepped back and the robot collapsed, completely disfigured and glowing white hot. The mysterious boy was completely covered in some sort of heat suit, except for his hands, which were bare until he put on the gloves hanging from his belt. She could just make out his red hair and green eyes under the helmet he wore.
"You okay?" He asked. She nodded, standing up carefully. "That's good." The boy gave her a bright smile.
"Target acquired."
She spun to face three more robots as they appeared from an alley.
"You should go. It's going to get a little warm over here," the boy said more serious again.
"Right," she managed. Akane should have thanked him, but he was already walking away to face the robots, taking off his gloves. She glanced at the destroyed robot one more time, before turning and running in the other direction.
It wouldn't be safe for her to stay.
