Hello there!(General Kenobi) How are ya'll doing? I still don't really have anything interesting to say here so on with the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own One Punch Man.

Chapter Ten: Old Wounds

Fubuki had taken her back to her headquarters for the Blizzard Group. It was a large building in the center of City H. Fubuki had ordered her men not to disturb her, although many of them glared at her. She did her best to stare them down, but she was so tired. It was hard to stay on her feet, and her head wouldn't focus enough to use her psychic powers.

All the members of Fubuki's little rescue squad came with her. Amai Mask wore a very large hoodie and baggy pants to try and cover himself. He hid his face as best he could and kept his head bowed.

As soon as they arrived here, Fubuki had led Tatsumaki to a room on the far side of the building. There were no other rooms in the hallway except for this one, so it was the most amount of privacy she would get.

Now, Tatsumaki lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling. No matter how tired she was, Tatsumaki couldn't sleep. She feared if she closed her eyes, she would wake back up in another cell, one white and blank, or another much colder and much more painful.

Memories haunted the forefront of Tatsumaki's mind. Tatsumaki writhed away from men with evil eyes, staring down at her while she screamed and begged them to let her out. She remembered dark prison cells. She remembered one man, with eyes cold and dead, speaking to her every night. Encouraging her to do as he asked. He would often come with gifts, small toys and tokens. Trinkets, things Tatsumaki was sometimes allowed to play with. But when she hesitated or refused, he took them away. He scolded her, preying on her weaknesses. Her fears. He was the only thing on the earth Tatsumaki despised above all things, even Saitama. And the only thing she feared.

She remembered the first thing those people ever made her kill. It was a rabbit, small and weak. It had stared at her with large eyes, looking up at her. It was looking at her, as if it did not know why it was here. Tatsumaki had cried for hours after she wrung its neck. She was seven then.

After that, they moved onto larger things. Geese, dogs, and other large animals. One time it was even a lion. Then they moved onto actual monsters. Hairy, slimy, big, small, there were hundreds of these things that Tatsumaki was forced to kill as they lunged at her. Tatsumaki couldn't count the number of times a monster would grab her and throw her against the wall. She remembered the feeling of smashing into concrete and stone. Her head throbbed and her muscles ached. Blood filled her mouth. And only then could she muster the courage to end its life, before it ended hers.

Tatsumaki had learned to kill monsters in a hundred different ways. She would snap their necks, rip out their organs, crush their skulls, break their spines, even drain the blood right out of their bodies. Over the years, a thousand different monstrosities fell to her hand. Gore would splatter her body as the life faded from their eyes.

The day she drew the line was the day she was thrown into the arena and looked into the eyes of another boy.

He was her age, about 10 years old. He was scared and frightened. He looked at her and saw death. That's what she had become. An agent of death. A weapon, forged to her captors making. The moment she looked into his eyes and saw this, she knew she couldn't kill him.

And yet, she was pressured. Men yelled at her, promising to hurt her ways she cared not to describe. They told her it was necessary. They told her she had no choice.

So Tatsumaki had done something she never knew was possible. She pushed the esper powers away from herself. She cut herself off from her power. She deactivated herself.

Tatsumaki would always remember the feeling. It was like cold water dripping down her body. Ice had spread from her head and traveled down her spine, seeping into every fiber of her being until she was left cold and empty. Utterly alone.

The men watching her clearly noticed something because they went silent for a minute. Then they told the boy if he killed her, he could go free.

Tatsumaki looked at the boy and saw only desperation. Pure fear. He charged at her with all the might of a malnourished underfed 10 year old. But it was enough to throw her to the ground. He beat her with his fists, trying to end her life for good. Tatsumaki pleaded with him, but he couldn't hear her. She broke free of him and started to run, but there was no way out. She screamed, at the men watching her, at the boy, at the world. But the boy kept running at her. Finally, her back was against the wall and she had nowhere to run. The boy lunged at her, grabbing her hair and throwing her to the floor. He jumped on her and grabbed her by the neck and started to choke her.

Tatsumaki could still feel the hands around her neck. The area where he laid his hands would forever hold a reminder of her torment. There were no physical scars there, but it had taken her years to get rid of the nightmares. She'd wake up in the middle of the night, unable to breathe and not realizing she was screaming. When her panic finally died, she'd stay awake, clutching her blanket, unable to get the memories out of her head.

For an eternity, the boy and her struggled on the concrete floor. His hands wrapped around her neck, Tatsumaki trying to free herself. The two of them locked in a fight to the death. When Tatsumaki's final gasps of air started to run out, and her mind began to fade, Tatsumaki reached up with her hands and jabbed her thumbs into his eyes. The boy screamed, letting her go. Tatsumaki gasped, breathing in large gasps of air. The boy stumbled around blindly, stumbling on the floor. Tatsumaki seethed, balling her fists. Tatsumaki approached the boy writhing on the ground. Tatsumaki screamed and pounced on him. She punched and beat him, releasing all her anger and fury on him. All her fear, all her hate, all her rage, all her pain. She beat him until he stopped moving, and she continued to hit him. Her fists were stained red with his blood. They had been red ever since that day, and no amount of soap or water would ever cleanse it.

After that day, the scientists experimented on her, trying to see what was wrong. They injected her with countless drugs. They looked at her brain, cutting open her skull and poking her brain. And yet, her powers remained dormant.

Eventually they realized it was her. They told her to reawaken her powers. They scolded and punished her. They brought her to the brink of starvation. They burned her skin. They locked her in a cell and left her there for days with no food or water.

It was in one of those cells that Blast came. A monster broke out of the cages the scientists made for it. It terrorized them, chasing them out of THE FACILITY.

And then Blast appeared. He came and he slayed the beast faster than she knew was possible. He was a paragon of strength, invincible and undeterred, confident when she was scared. He was the first-and only-person to give Tatsumaki hope. The monster that was no doubt meant to kill her was the omen of her saviour. Blast saved her life that day and gave her a code to live by forever.

"When the time comes, don't expect anyone to come and save you."

He was right. Blast had only been there by chance. If she was to survive in this world, she couldn't rely on anyone to come and save her. If he hadn't shown up, Tatsumaki would have been at the mercy of that monster. Just like she had previously been at the mercy of the scientists. Tatsumaki could never rely on anyone to save her. She had to be responsible for her own fate.

And yet, her sister had saved her. She had come for her while she was trapped by Metal Knight's horrid inventions. And even before that, Amai Mask had rescued her from Metal Knight's clutches.

But could she rely on them to do it again? Fubuki had never really agreed with her or wanted much to do with her. Amai Mask had expressed no interest in helping her in any way.

So why had they come for her? Fubuki shared a psychic link with her and likely felt her pain. But what about the others? Well, Fubuki had likely offered them something in return for their help.

It seems after all this time, Blast was still right. No one would help Tatsumaki. She had to fend for herself.