It's official! Grape Squishing is the highest reviewed Mineta story on the entire site! That's so great, and…

Oh. Oh no. This…is an award I never wanted. XD It's a bashing fic, it's a bashing fic, that makes it okay, hahahaha!

All jokes aside, thank you all so much for the support. (Review wise this is in the lead, but favs and follows will take a while longer!) As a thank you, I'll be putting together a special chapter for the next release. Remember, I'm skipping Sundays, so Monday morning be sure to keep an eye out for the special thank you chapter, "vs Stain!"

You've all been wonderful! Thanks for reading, and now onto the Ingenium chapter! :D

~o~

Reviewers who requested Tenya Iida: Omega-Neos, Graveyard Disco

*Guest reviews italicized

Thanks everyone! ^o^

~o~

Disclaimer: Not so fast, I don't own Ingenium! I don't have the 'Engine-nuity', ahahaha, I'm still not sorry. XD

~o~

Mineta dragged his heels as he walked down the sidewalk dejectedly. "Of all the rotten luck with partners," he muttered under his breath. "I just had to get this guy!"

"Keep up, Mineta, we've got a large perimeter to patrol!" Tenya Iida called out brightly from in front of him, his powerwalking pace never faltering. "Ah, can't you just feel it? The sunlight, the smell of the streets – this is hero work! As much as I enjoy class studies, and the theoretical aspects of strategies and mathematical calculations of average force and velocity, there's nothing quite as invigorating as a real day in the field!" He laughed, waving energetically to a young boy who gaped in awe of his flashy set of armor.

"How can you feel the sunlight in that outfit?" Mineta grumbled snidely. "This assignment sucks. We're just patrolling the safest area of town! We'll be lucky if we run into any trouble at all! I'm never gonna get super rich and famous with assignments like this!"

Iida's voice took on a disapproving tone. "You shouldn't be so concerned with the glamorous aspects of hero work just yet! We are still students after all, so even more mundane experiences such as this one have significant value in raising our overall experience and practical skill, such as teaching us the value of hard work and vigilance even in the face of apparent calm, since we need to be aware that evil could strike at any moment, and…"

Mineta had stopped listening a while ago, but that didn't stop Iida from talking. 'Where is Biojinx when you need her?' the grape hero thought irritably, wishing he were dead as Iida launched into an explanation of crime statistics in urban settings. "Kill me," Mineta grumbled out loud, depressed at the thought of the next three hours of patrolling with Iida.

"As you wish…" a smoky voice purred through his mind, and he smelled jasmine and sage on the wind.

Mineta nearly fell over, squeaking in a completely dignified fashion that in no way resembled a dying balloon animal.

And his eyes went wide, because he recognized the horned silhouette standing in the mouth of the alley across the street, purple mist billowing around her ankles, from her clawed hands to those gleaming violet eyes!

She was here.

She was here!

"Iida!" Mineta shouted, clutching his class rep's hand urgently. "Iida, that's her! Biojinx! We have to-!"

"Villain!" Iida shouted, his voice echoing oddly in his armored helmet, as his hand closed around the nape of Mineta's tiny cape. "You'll pay for what you've done! Recipro Burst!"

Engines screamed in a high pitched, mechanical whine, as power exploded from the exhaust mufflers in Iida's calves. They shot forward like a bullet, wind howling around their passage, and Mineta's body lurched with the sudden force of their acceleration, his words torn away.

Biojinx smiled as Ingenium surged past her alley, baring her rows of needled black teeth, gesturing dismissively with her hand, and…

Smoke whirled from Mineta's skin, casting a long plume behind their screaming speed like a jet engine's exhaust, as Ingenium hurtled towards the edge of a brick wall, Mineta held out to the side, establishing a save point just in time for Recipro to reach full speed-

Mineta splatted against the brick wall, as Ingenium surged unharmed past the corner, in a moment of pure agony that only lasted a fraction of a second…

Smoke whirled, and Mineta was abruptly back in Ingenium's grasp, and-

SPLAT!

'No!' Mineta realized, exploding against the brick three times in quick succession, agony shattering through his mind…

Iida was only the traitor once…

Splat, splat, splat!

But he can't slow down in time!

Mineta crunched against the bricks, his head breaking with a wet thwack-

Their speed was so incredible! There was only two seconds between his deaths and the new save point!

Splat, splat, splat, splat, splat!

Would he be here forever, Mineta wondered?

Blood splattered up the wall as Ingenium surged past…

If Mineta didn't do something, he'd never get out!

In the time it took to complete the thought, he'd already died nine more times…

After his next death, he snatched at a ball on his head, but he wasn't quite fast enough! His arms shattered against the brick.

A little faster the next time, and three times after that he managed to throw a ball!

It stuck to the ground, and Ingenium stepped over it in a stroke of bad luck.

Mineta howled with frustration, trying again, and again, and again, hearing faint laughter in the back of his mind!

Tenya Iida finally stepped on the sticky grape, stopping his momentum like he'd hit a wall!

Mineta flew out of his grasp like a bullet, and splatted against the wall anyways.

Grape Juice sobbed inwardly, trying desperately to escape again and again, but it was hours later that he finally was set free.

Ingenium hit his grape at an angle, and Mineta was thrown just past the brick wall, his arm scraping against the rough corner. He tumbled and spun across the concrete, and narrowly avoided being crushed by a car!

"Mineta!" Iida called out behind him with horror. "Oh no, what have I done! I was the traitor, wasn't I! Let me assist you!" He struggled with the grape sticking him to the ground, and a screeching whistle stopped him.

"Hold it right there!" a grouchy looking beat cop said, flashing his badge. He had long, floppy ears like a beagle. "All speed type Quirk users must obey the posted speed limit on the roads unless in the case of a villain attack! You know the rules!"

"But…I was under the curse of a villainous monster who turns friends into mindless killing machines so she can eat the lifespan of select individuals for her own dark purposes!" Iida protested, gaping.

"Sure ya were," the cop snorted, flipping open his ticket book. "What's your Quirk ID number?"

"No…" Mineta protested, struggling to get to his hands and knees. "Biojinx! She's…going to get away!"

With sudden determination, Mineta found the strength to stand, bolting towards the alleyway, which was further away than he remembered it. His legs were like jelly, and even though it felt like he was moving through mud after being trapped in the speed of Recipro's death loop, he never stopped running.

But the alley was empty, with a tall concrete wall closing it off on the other end. The last whispers of mist where already fading in the breeze.

Mineta crumpled to his knees, shuddering from head to toe, and took a few minutes just to breathe. She was right there…she was so close!

Biojinx had vanished without a trace. As if she'd never existed at all.

~o~

Patrolling ended early. The class rep listened carefully to Mineta's story as they walked back towards campus. "You say I killed you hundreds of times? But how? Isn't the traitor usually different people?"

"Usually," Mineta grumbled, holding his aching arm. "But sometimes it'll be the same person, three, or even four times in a row. But you tried to slow down most of the time, so I think it was only the first time with you. If you hadn't been going so fast…"

"I see," Iida said thoughtfully, glancing down at Mineta. "And in the wake of this latest spree of dying, have you changed your mind about trying to break your jinx by giving up your bad habits?"

"No, of course not!" Mineta responded grumpily. "But when I see Biojinx next, she'll face the wrath of Mi-net-a, just you watch!"

It was unfortunate that Iida's helmet concealed his eyes from view.

His engines roared with power, as Ingenium shifted his weight on one foot, and kicked Mineta's chin with the full force of a speeding train, ripping off his tiny head like a soccer ball. It soared into the sky, winking as it disappeared from view.

Mineta's headless body collapsed to the ground, and Iida stared. "No, not again!" he shouted, grabbing his head with both hands in panic. "What would my brother say! I'm sorry, Mineta, I didn't mean it, and believe me when I say I would never knowingly-"

Reality faded before his rant was finished.

But as smoke whirled and wind chimes sang, it took Mineta a moment to realize he had bigger problems…

…as he reappeared in Ingenium's grasp, splatting against the brick wall with agonizing reminiscence.

"Noooooo!" he shouted into the void, the scent of incense and his own blood thick in the air.

~o~