Chapter 27
And to think, she actually thought today was gonna be a bust!
Not more than five minutes earlier, The No. 5 Pro Hero, Rumi Usagiyama: The Rabbit Hero, Mirko, had been kicking back, absentmindedly chewing on the tip of a particularly large carrot like a cigar, and absolutely bored out of her skull. It was a habit she had picked up from her father, the world renowned zoo owner, Shiina Usagiyama. She had asked Endeavor for a light, but of course, the scarred prick wouldn't oblige, simply glaring at her with disgust. She knew he hated Mutants, but would a simple light REALLY have been so damn difficult? She made a note to knock his asshole teeth down his throat later.
Yep, Mirko was a Mutant, though thankfully she wasn't an ugly motherfucker like Gang Orca. Her Quirk was called Rabbit. Why, you ask? Simple. It gave her the attributes and abilities of a rabbit. She thought about calling it Lagomorph, but it sounded WAY too nerdy. She had truly catastrophic leg strength, allowing her to jump and kick with extreme force, and even destroy large chunks of the ground just by thumping her foot. She also had excellent hearing, and possessed a kind of animal instinct that alerted her to nearby danger. She had a VERY athletic build with muscular arms and legs, a veritable Amazon. Her skin was a light tan, and her eyes were a deep red, tilted slightly inwards, and she had long eyelashes. Her straight, snow white hair cascaded down from her head to past her waist. The only visible mutations she had were a pair of long, white, rabbit ears that pointed upwards with a slight crook. Along with these, she also had a round white cotton tail, which along with her red eyes, led to her father often joking that she was part albino rabbit.
Her Hero costume perfectly fit her fighting style, being maximized for ease of movement. It consisted of a sleeveless white leotard with dark purple trim around her shoulders and waist, a wide, yellow crescent moon design over her chest, and two thick metal plates on her midriff. She wore purple thigh-high boots that complimented her leotard beautifully, with extra plating around the heel and toe areas, making her feet look like those of a rabbit. She also wore a pair of thick white gloves on her hands with long cuffs that sported small triangular protrusions around their edges. Her stellar looks had gained her legions of admirers, but she was, for the most part, indifferent to it all. She had been told by a few of her managers that she was frequently in the running for Sexiest Pro Hero, but if it was true, she didn't give a shit. Let the losers punch their porpoise, she was too busy punching faces.
That was another thing she had inherited from her father. Her peculiar brand of hedonism. There was NOTHING more important to her father than having fun. Not her mother, not the rest of her family, and CERTAINLY not her. It was why he had started the zoo in Oumagadoki City. He liked being around animals, and he thought running a zoo would be fun. Of course, he only took care of the fun parts of running a zoo, leaving the rest up to the beleaguered, overworked, and underpaid employees. Still, his "Fun First, Fun Second, Fun Only", life style certainly appealed to the young Rumi.
And as far as she was concerned, there was NOTHING more fun than fighting.
The coppery stench of freshly spilled blood, the immensely satisfying CRUNCH! as her foot smacked a fucker straight in the nose shattering it to pieces, the feeling of sheer ECSTASY she gained from putting her life on the line against all comers, was more intoxicating than any drug she tried. And she tried a LOT. She was a notorious brawler growing up, being feared as "Bunny Eared Usako". Anybody who laughed at her nickname typically didn't end the day with their spine intact. She picked fights with anyone she could find, becoming an accomplished trash talker. She fought classmates, teachers, jocks, nerds, priests, nuns, monks, bikers, yakuza, miko, shinshoku, salarymen, hobos, anyone and EVERYONE. Anything it took to get her fix. It didn't matter if she was outnumbered three, four, five, or even seven to one, she'd take 'em all on and she'd take 'em ALL down. Her parents wealth helped shield her from any consequences for her actions, though even THEY drew the line after she killed Goro Abe. She didn't know WHY. It's not like he was anything special. He was a weak, spindly little nerd from her middle school that she thought would be fun to smack around one day. Despite the fact that he was terrified of her, getting him to fight her was easy peasy. He was a total Mamma's boy who's Mom had just ODed and expired, so Rumi made a crack about how his dead Mother most likely overdosed to get away from his worthless ass. The resulting "fight" was actually fairly disappointing, and to be quite honest, she probably would've just let him live with two broken arms, a broken leg, and a shattered jaw, pathetically crying for his worm ridden mommy.
If he hadn't made a CRITICAL mistake.
He begged her for mercy.
If you wanted to live after going up against Rumi, there was one thing you must NEVER do.
And that's beg for mercy.
Rumi ascribed to the belief that mercy was for the weak.
And she DESPISED weakness.
She looked down disgustedly at the bug's broken shattered body, and crushed his skull with her foot, like the ant he was.
She was arrested, naturally, though her parents friends in the media managed to hush up any mention of it to the public, and their lawyers got her case ruled self defense. Still, her parents went off on her, tearing her new asshole after new asshole. They informed her, in no uncertain terms, that this was the very last straw, and they were NOT going to bail her out anymore. If she got into any more trouble, she would be left to rot. Rumi simply took her lumps, nodded, smiled, and assured her parents that she wouldn't be fighting anymore.
She was, of course, lying through her teeth.
Soon enough, she had snuck out and went looking for The Underground Masquerade.
The Underground Masquerade was, without question, the most famous underworld fight circuit in the world. Each fight attracted dozens of rabid, bloodthirsty, patrons to watch the carnage live in the various abandoned gyms, tenements, and parking garages, with tens of millions more watching on streaming through the dark web. Gambling was a big part of each event, with hundreds of millions of yen changing hands annually.
The rules were simple.
First off, EVERYONE, even the patrons, wore a mask.
And second, two people entered the fight, last person standing won. EVERYTHING was allowed; deadly moves, lethal weapons, Quirks, and even drugs like Trigger. Due to that fact, the fights tended to be to the death.
It sounded like heaven to Rumi.
The first time she showed up to an event, some of the promoter's friends tried to kidnap her. They said she had an amazing rack, a knockout set of legs, and an absolutely GORGEOUS ass, and they wanted her to put 'em to work. After she used her knockout legs to kick them all to pieces, surprisingly, the promoter wasn't angry. Every one of his friends had a powerful super strength Quirk, so if she could take them apart that easily, she'd be wasted working the streets. He made her wildest dream come true, and agreed that she could make him FAR more money by getting in the ring.
He gave her an orange mask with striking black tiger stripes on it and billed her as The Mysterious Masked Beauty: Tiger Bunny. He always chuckled a bit whenever he said that, but if it was a joke, Rumi didn't get it. At first, the coldhearted bastards she went up against weren't exactly happy squaring off with her. They were all hardened killers with years on the circuit, and the body count to match. They thought that asking them to lower themselves to fight a high-schooler who just walked in off the street, and a girl at that, was insane at best, and a joke at worst. Luckily, being an attractive high-school girl, she had the perfect deal to get scumbags like them to fight her.
Any guy that could beat her, could fuck her.
She remained a virgin to this day.
Though, admittedly, one fighter got CLOSE.
She still hoped she would see him again someday.
In fact, she was thinking about him, fantasizing about his outrageously powerful fists slamming into her body as she countered by drilling him with repeated kicks to the skull and groin, her nether regions growing increasingly wet imagining the sound of his screams, when she first heard it.
Today had been a total bomb, and to be quite honest, she didn't expect much else. If it was up to her, she wouldn't even have bothered to come to the Sports Festival, but as one of The Top 10, it was expected of her. She had attended every single Sports Festival since she had gained the rank, and she had NEVER taken on an intern. The idea of doing so made her skin crawl. It was far too much like being on a team, and Mirko HATED Pro Heroes who were a part of a team. They were, to a man, gutless pussies and cowardly faggots who couldn't rely on their own strength. They were weak, they were spineless, and quite frankly, they were better off dead. She had been particularly revolted by the display put on by the four Class 1-B students during the obstacle course. Seriously, those pussies were so fucking scrawny they couldn't even take down a 0 pointer unless they ganged up on it! And they thought they were gonna be the next big Pro Heroes?! Best to just break their necks and get it over with now. They stood no chance. Only a few students stood out to her. Kirishima had started off strong, then faltered, though she had to admit, she was impressed by his comeback, and even more so by what he had turned into. She felt like she SHOULD have liked Tokoyami's performance, but something about him actually managed to unnerve HER. And as much as she hated to admit it, Endeavor's kid had also done a pretty good job, finishing his opponent off with ruthless efficiency. But the only one who really seemed to GET what being a Pro Hero was all about, was Katsuki Bakugo. It was all about being the best, grinding the Villains into the dirt as painfully as possible, and making DAMN sure that they knew just how fucking worthless they were. He was without a doubt Mirko's favorite for the day, showing a hatred of weakness that rivaled her own. Sure, he had technically lost the obstacle course, but it was close enough that she believed it was just a fluke. Just seeing the way he had handled that disgustingly weak Uraraka girl had sent shivers of pleasure up Mirko's spine. While she would never take on an intern, if she WERE to ever change her mind, he'd be the first person she called.
Of course, there was no chance of that happening.
After all, All Might had his eye on the boy.
And what All Might wanted, All Might GOT.
Other than those students, though, she was bored to tears for the majority of the event so far. None of the other competitors stood out to her, and the fights weren't nearly brutal enough for her tastes.
So it was almost a godsend when her ears began to twitch.
Something was coming. Actually, that wasn't quite right. Something BIG was coming, followed by a swarming multitude of smaller somethings. They were moving towards the Stadium from the direction of the obstacle course, so she bet she knew what they were. Her incredibly sensitive ears picked them up a mile away, and she almost got up to inform the others.
Then she caught herself, and sat back down. Actually, now that she thought about it, there was really no need to spoil the surprise. Even with the unexpected Villain attack supposedly going on, today had been dull as dishwater. "Maybe this will finally spice things up." she thought, smiling ear to ear.
Her wish was granted when the 0 pointer burst through the wall, droning out its challenge and letting the bots flood in.
Mirko grinned like the Devil and leapt into combat.
Thanks to her Quirk, she cleared the massive distance between herself and the horde in one graceful somersault. As she spun, she stuck her right leg out straight and landed right in the middle of a large group of 2 and 3 pointers. "LUNA FALL!" she yelled, her foot connecting with the ground and absolutely shattering it. A massive cloud of debris went up, as large pieces of the ground exploded outwards, and crushed the bots. Mirko didn't wait for the cloud of dust to clear. She charged headlong into the fray, her ultra powerful kicks tearing through the bots steel hide like they were made of tissue paper. 1 pointers unloaded their guns on her, and the scorpion like 2 pointers fired their lasers. They might as well have been moving in slow motion as far as she was concerned. She easily leapt, dodged, flipped, and ran circles around them, before tearing them apart. A 3 pointer far off in the distance unloaded its missile battery directly at her. Mirko decided she wanted to show off a little, so she smiled and leapt high into the air. She proceeded to jump from missile to missile, her every hop sending the explosive projectiles falling to earth and detonating, taking out crowds of bots. She leapt from the final one to the 3 pointer, raised her leg, and delivered a powerful front facing axe kick. "LUNA ARC!" she roared out, as it connected with the bot cleanly. The 3 pointer exploded in a towering conflagration that bathed her in blistering flames.
Mirko walked out of the hellish blaze beaming, without a scratch on her.
Mirko looked at where the 0 pointer was, pleased to see that bots were still flooding in. Good, she hadn't had NEARLY enough fun yet! NOW things were starting to heat up! She charged at the massive Bot, eager to take it's head as a trophy.
Of course, she wasn't the only one.
As soon as the 0 pointer burst through the side of the stadium, flames roared to life on Endeavor's face. As if the Villain attack hadn't been enough, this new intrusion would ensure that the Sports Festival would be canceled. That meant his son wouldn't be able to obliterate his hated nemesis's favorite on live television like he had planned. That annoyed Endeavor. GREATLY. From spending the day having to sit next to the man that he despised more than anyone else in the world, a walking putrid drugged out bag of STDs, and a revolting Mutant, to watching his son fail him by coming in THIRD in the obstacle course (The little shit couldn't even manage to get second), to seeing Shoto disgrace himself even FURTHER by refusing to fight at his full strength, today had been one infuriating disappointment after another. This bot attack was simply the swarm of metallic straws that finally broke this particular raging camel's back.
Endeavor blasted off in an explosion of flame, channeling his Quirk through the soles of his boots. He flew through the air, bathing bots below him with roaring flames hotter than Hell. 3 Pointers all around him emptied their missile batteries at him. He merely growled, and shot them all down, before taking out the 3 pointers with lances of flame. He scowled at the exploded and melted remains of the bots. They were all just fleas, barely worth bothering with. He needed to put down the dog they rode in on. He flew towards the 0 pointer, channeling his Quirk into his right arm and raising his fire's temperature to its highest level. This would heat up his body A LOT, but it shouldn't be a problem. He would only have to use it once.
"FLASHFIRE FIST! JET-"He roared powerfully, taking aim at the 0 pointer's skull, ready to incinerate it.
Only to get knocked aside by a flash of red, white, and blue.
All Might grinned confidently as he flew towards the 0 pointer. "So, you thought you could harm innocents while I was around, did you?! Well, fear not citizens! Everything is OK, because…"He pointed a thumb towards himself. "I AM HERE!" What audience members were still in attendance cheered. Seeing All Might in action, they all knew they would be all right. The 0 pointer reared back it's massive fist, and threw a titanic punch directly at the No. 1 Hero. All Might's Heroic smile didn't drop an inch, as he reared back his own arm, his muscles bulging. "TEXAS SMASH!" he yelled, his fist shooting out to match the 0 pointer's. A deafening CLANG! rang out through the stadium, as the two attacks connected, the 0 pointer testing it's strength against All Might's.
It never stood a chance.
Cracks spread up the 0 pointer's titanium arm, before it exploded like shattered glass, raining debris down on the stadium. What Heroes weren't focused on fighting bots managed to protect most of those civilians that hadn't been evacuated yet, though a few got crushed by the falling metal. Heedless of the carnage below him, All Might turned around and punched the air with both fists, propelling himself towards his target. "NEW HAMPSHIRE SMASH!" he roared, as he shot towards the 0 pointer's skull like a bullet. As he flew, he spun into a frontal somersault, gathering more and more momentum, until he had reached the gigantic bots cranium. "CALIFORNIA SMASH!" All Might bellowed with righteous fury, before bringing his fist down square on the top of the 0 pointer's skull. The force of the blow was catastrophic, and the 0 pointer's head detonated in a miniature mushroom cloud of scrap metal. The 0 pointer tottered for a second before falling backwards, it's titanic body causing an earthquake as it hit the ground. All Might wasn't finished yet, though. He landed and leapt over the body to the outside of the arena. He grabbed a hold of the 0 pointer's neck, his ungodly tough fingers easily puncturing the titanium for better purchase. With a mighty, blood curdling roar, he flexed his Herculean muscles, and actually PICKED UP and THREW the 0 pointer, it's gigantic body soaring off into the distant sky.
All Might paused, and caught his breath. That thing had been heavier than he had thought. He looked out into the distance. More and more and more bots, a horde hundreds strong swarmed towards the stadium. He saw at least five more 0 pointers scattered amongst the crowd, their every step shaking the earth. All Might merely stood up straight and cracked his knuckles, flashing his blindingly shining, Heroic smile. These bots might as well have been made out of tinfoil for how difficult they were to take apart. His Nebraska Smash should do the trick. His personal best was 200 in one use, but he could EASILY beat that score today!
All Might smiled widely and tensed his muscles, ready to leap into the fight.
A sharp pain in his chest put an end to that plan.
All Might collapsed to the ground, clutching his heart. Excruciating pain lanced throughout his entire body. He gritted his teeth, trying to block out the agony. He failed miserably, and he coughed up a small amount of blood. The look on his face as he gazed down at the crimson liquid staining his right palm was a curious combination of shocked bewilderment, total rage, and utter terror. Fuck, why was this happening NOW?! He was certain he had more time before the next attack kicked in! All Might gazed out at the advancing horde, and frowned deeply. He couldn't take them all out before he ran out of steam. Time for a strategic retreat. The other Pro Heroes should be able to handle them, and if a couple hundred people died, well, that was a small price to pay to keep his secret under wraps.
Without a second thought, All Might leapt off into the distance to enter Might Sleep.
Back in the arena, Endeavor was still hovering. He merely stared dumbly at the hole where the 0 pointer had been. Hawks flew past him, and couldn't help but laugh when he saw the look on his face. "Sorry, ya old fart! But you're gonna have to be quicker than that if you want the BIG kills!" he cackled, soaring high into the sky. He grinned widely, and shot out dozens of his feathers. Hawks's Quirk not only gave him the ability of flight, thanks to the two large scarlet wings that adorned his back, but he could also freely manipulate each individual feather telekinetically. The feathers were both stiff and flexible, as Hawks demonstrated, shooting them out across the stadium. Some punctured bots, while others hooked on to civilians clothes, yanking them off their feet and flying them outside to safety. Hawks figured he better get the gnats out of the way so he could focus on having fun. Of course, some of the civilians had the feathers unfortunately tear through their clothes while they were in mid air, dropping them and turning their fragile bodies into sidewalk pizza when they hit the unforgiving ground with horrific SPLAT!s, but Hawks just shrugged at the carnage. He had gotten MOST of them out, what more did they want from him? His face broke out in a stoned grin, as he tore out two particularly long thin feathers, and shot towards the nearest group of bots. They all turned their blasters on him, filling the air with projectiles, but even in his current wasted state, Hawks was just too damn fast to touch. He swiftly dodged, spun, and barrel rolled around the blasts, lasers, and missiles, before using his feather swords to slice them to pieces.
Endeavor finally snapped out of his shock, and his entire body vibrated with an unimaginable anger. All Might had managed to outshine him AGAIN! And now that degenerate sack of shit was trying to show him up?! NO MORE! Endeavor's rage boiled over, and he blasted around the arena, unleashing his pent up anger on the surroundings. Large fireballs shot out of his palms, setting groups of bots ablaze in towering infernos.
Unfortunately, some of the bots had managed to make their way into the stands, and as they went up in flames, so did a number of Pro Heroes and the civilians they were attempting to defend. The No. 10 Pro Hero Ryukyu had activated her Quirk, transforming into her dragon form, and was currently engaged in tearing apart a crowd of 2 pointers, until she saw a fire ball heading for a group of 1 pointers. The Hero they were fighting, as well as the crowd members who he was trying to protect would be caught in the blast for sure. Her eyes went wide, and she scrambled towards them as fast as she could, trampling bots and just barely reaching the crowd in time. She swiped a powerful claw at the bots, tearing them apart, and brought her wings together as a shield, protecting the group from Endeavor's fireball. The heat was immense, and caused her to let out a short yelp of pain, before turning on the blazing Hero in a rage. "DAMMIT ENDEAVOR! CHECK YOUR FIRE! WE'VE STILL GOT CIVILIANS DOWN HERE!" Ryukyu roared at him.
Endeavor didn't even bother to look at her. He just continued to bathe the surrounding area in flames, intent on laying waste to as many of his enemies as possible.
He gazed down at his work and nodded approvingly. A large amount of the bots that had managed to get in were now melted slag thanks to him. And if a few civilians happened to die, well, there was such a thing as acceptable collateral damage. Still, there looked to be no end to the damn things. They just kept funneling in through the giant hole the 0 pointer had ripped in the stadium. He looked towards it, and off in the distance, he could see the unmistakable shape of more 0 pointers approaching. The sight would've filled almost anyone else with pants shitting terror, but it just caused Endeavor to grin. All Might was nowhere to be seen. That meant no one else to steal his glory!
He rocketed straight towards the 0 pointers, his Quirk blazing a trail of Hellfire through the air. Mirko had tossed up a 3 pointer and leapt after him. As she spun into a somersault, just before her heel connected with the pile of soon to be scrap, Endeavor collided with her, his flames singeing her hair and knocking her out of the air. Endeavor was only knocked slightly off course and quickly corrected, focusing on the 0 pointers with single minded determination. Mirko landed on the ground and grunted in discomfort, before fixing her baleful gaze on Endeavor, and hopping off after him. Accident or not, No. 2 Pro Hero or not, NO ONE got in her way and went unharmed.
Ryukyu growled as she saw the two hot headed assholes charge out of the stadium and abandon them. For Christ's sake, there were still civilians in here! They needed help! She looked out into the stadium. "At the least the others haven't bailed. YET." she thought bitterly, chomping on a 2 pointer and ripping it's electronic guts out.
Indeed, the other members of The Top 10 were acquitting themselves quite well. They had spread throughout the crowd, helping to evacuate the remaining civilians, and defending their fellow Pros from attacking bots. Gang Orca took a deep breath and blasted a large group of 1 pointers with a wave of hypersonic sound. The sonic blast tore through the bots, scattering their pieces to the four winds. Any humans unfortunate enough to be in the vicinity, jammed their fingers into their ears, trying desperately to block out the ear-splitting noise. Those who weren't quick enough screamed in pain as their ears bled and bones broke, the violent sonic vibrations refusing to distinguish between friend or foe. Any bots that remained standing after the blast were crushed into the ground by the strength of a killer whale. Yoroi Musha moved incredibly quickly for someone so advanced in age, and any bot he laid his hands on rusted over in an instant, before he smashed their corroded chassis to smithereens with a powerful blow from his kanabo. Edgeshot used his outstanding agility and Quirk to easily dodge any attacks, and strike down any missiles that might hurt civilians, before folding his body into a drill, and burrowing straight through crowds of bots.
Ryukyu gripped her head, trying to soothe an agonizing headache, and used her tail to bisect five 1 pointers. Dammit, she needed a drink. Oh well, at least the crowds were thinning out as more and more people were successfully evacuated, thanks to the other Pro Heroes. Soon, she'd be able to concentrate on the bots with no distractions. She recognized them as the ones used in the obstacle course. Why the hell they had gone psycho, she couldn't guess. U.A. was SUPPOSED to have top notch security all across the board, both physical and Cyber. But, this was just the final cherry on top of the shit sundae that was today. Between the Yaoyorozu girl's match, the Villain attack, and now this mess, Nezu would be lucky to escape from this clusterfuck with all of his skin attached. Not that it couldn't happen to a nicer guy. Or rat, or bear, or whatever the hell he was.
Then her draconic brow furrowed, as she realized something. She had seen all of the Top 10 enter the fray, with two noticeable exceptions.
Wash and Kamui Woods.
So, where the hell were they?
The crowds of civilians screamed and scattered as Dabi darted through them, Gentle and Compress hot on his heels. A frown creased his burned and scarred face as they dashed towards Deku's location. The presence of civilians and security guards meant he couldn't make full use of his Quirk without scorching them. He was forced to make do with less powerful, but more accurate, fireballs to take down the Heroes they were encountering, rather than just setting the entire hallway ablaze with one large burst like he wanted to. Sure, such a large blast would hurt like a MOTHERFUCKER, but he didn't have any time to waste, and it would also quickly clear out any problems between him and Deku. He tossed gouts of flame above the heads of any paying attendees that stupidly decided to stick around to encourage them to grow a brain cell and get the hell out of there.
The giant BAM! he heard must've been their distraction arriving, and from what he could tell, it had worked like a charm. They had encountered relatively few Heroes in their mad dash to Deku, and those few were, for the most part, easily taken care of. He had to admit, he was impressed as hell by the two newcomers. Gentle's overall appearance of high class sophistication belied a keen hand to hand combatant, and his Quirk rendered him essentially bulletproof. Security guards that fired on the group, found their projectiles bouncing off of invisible membranes harmlessly, only to either be knocked out cold by a precise jab or kick to the temple, or be turned into a marble by Compress. The masked man's agility was incredible, easily dodging and weaving around any obstacle, even while decked out in his elaborate costume. Most impressively, his top hat stayed glued to his head, NO. MATTER. WHAT.
"This Deku we're retrieving, what's he look like? Stain's the only one of the group that's really known to the public. The rest of you are all shrouded in rumors." remarked Compress, as he masterfully slipped around a crackling bolt of lightning and marbled his attacker.
Dabi sent two fireballs blasting through an attacking Heroes kneecaps, burning through all the meat and leaving only bone exposed. Her legs couldn't handle her own weight and snapped clean in two. Her screams of agony were muffled as Dabi covered her mouth with his left hand and send roiling flames pouring down her throat. Jets of blue flame erupted from her nostrils, anus, and vagina, the inside of her body glowing a slight blue before he released his grip and she fell to the ground dead, smoke curling out of all five holes. A security guard tried to get off a shot, only for Dabi to send a stream of fire at his gun. The intense heat caused the rounds in the firearm to cook off and detonate, turning the guards hand into hamburger. His howls of horrified pain filled the air as he fell to the ground, clutching the burned, useless stump where his right hand used to be. At least the wound was cauterized. He'd live the rest of his life maimed, but he'd LIVE. It was the best Dabi could do for him. "Deku'll be a cinch to spot. Just look for the guy in a grey trench coat and mask standing in the middle of a sea of corpses."
"He's THAT good?" Compress couldn't help but raise a skeptical eyebrow.
"Better. I've seen him go into a warehouse with 40 yakuza and come out without a scratch." Still, best to be sure. Dabi tapped the device in his ear. "Shiga, what's Deku's current status?" he inquired, as he roasted a Pro Hero with four legs alive.
"He's still making his way towards the male tournament contestants waiting room. Heroes are engaging but they're falling rapidly. Barring any other sudden surprises, he'll soon reach the waiting room." answered the Doc.
"How long do ya think he'll last without backup?" They were still some distance away. Dabi was hoping Deku could hold off whoever he was trying to kill until they got to him.
"My professional opinion? Two minutes." Garaki answered soberly.
Dabi couldn't keep the surprise off his face. "You're kidding."
"I wish I was. The contestants that won the last round have left the room, they all look extremely powerful, and he's between them and the exit. Without help, he won't coming out of that fight alive."
"Shit!" Dabi swore under his breath. He waved at the other two. "Pick it up! We're running out of time!" Compress and Gentle merely nodded and quickened their pace.
"So, is this sort of jaunt the typical for our group?" Gentle asked good-naturedly, deflecting gunfire before cracking a guard on the nose and dropping him like a sack of potatoes.
"Nah." Dabi responded, dodging an enlarged kick and sending a fireball through the skull of the Pro Hero the leg was attached to. "This was a particularly big job. Usually we go after one of the lower ranked Heroes helping out yakuza, smuggling, or trafficking kids. I told Stain this job was too fucking much, but damned if anyone ever listens to me." he groused, his nose crinkling from the smell of his own burning skin.
His griping was cut off as something wrapped around his legs, yanking him off his feet. Dabi hit the unforgiving ground with a yelp, and was pulled through the air, only to have a wooden fist meet his face and send him flying backwards. He got to his knees just in time to see wooden tendrils rush towards him, intent on crushing the life right out of his body. Then he saw an incredibly well dressed flash, as Gentle leapt over Dabi and waved his palms, erecting an invisible membrane. The tendrils crashed into the barrier, before rebounding off with twice as much force, redirecting the attack up into the ceiling and bathing the floor with clouds of concrete and rubble. The respite was short lived, just long enough for Dabi to get to his feet, before another mass of wooden tendrils came roaring back through the dust cloud, sharp as stakes. They hit the membrane with even greater force than before and managed to puncture it. Luckily, it held long enough for the two to dodge out of the way of the attack. Dabi tossed a fireball at the attacker, only to have him block it with his other arm, formed into a wooden shield.
"Damn, filthy, fucking man-animals!" The figure snarled harshly as he beat his arm against the ground, putting out the fire. With the threat briefly abating, Dabi was able to take stock of his new opponent.
And he grimaced when he saw who it was.
None other than the No. 6 Pro Hero in Japan, Kamui Woods.
Part of the Pro Hero Team called The Lurkers with the Nos. 4 and 23 Pro Heroes, Edgeshot and Mt. Lady, respectively, Kamui Woods was a young man with a rather muscular build, who stood a bit shorter than most of the other high-ranked Pro Heroes. His Hero Costume was a dark blue bodysuit that included what looked like a wooden belt, gloves, knee pads, and shoes. A small bundle of roses hung from the left side of his belt and he had two wooden rings hanging from his shoulders, stumps and branches protruding from them. There were rumors that he was quite the handsome bastard, but whether it was true or not remained unknown to the general public. Thanks to his Quirk, his face had never been captured on photograph in his adult life. His Quirk was called Arbor, and it allowed him to generate and control wood from any part of his body. Indeed, the various wooden accessories he wore were actually manifestations of his Quirk, including the wooden helmet that fully encased his head, only allowing his oak brown eyes to gaze out.
And gaze they did, right into Dabi with inhuman levels of hatred.
"So, who the fuck are you herbivores supposed to be!?" he growled, smoke rising from his wooden left arm. Dabi scowled at how little damage his attack seemed to have done. From what he could see, it was only slightly burnt, and otherwise looked none the worse for wear.
Gentle let out a laugh. "Is it not obvious, you poltrudinous rapscallion?! We are the bringers of dark justice, the punishers of false heroes, avengers of the innocent victims of malodorous, malevolent maleficence! You face none other than the righteous, indomitable might of...THE RED RIGHT HAND!" Gentle bellowed while striking a suitably dramatic pose.
Dabi couldn't help but stare at Gentle, bewildered. Did this guy have a word a day calendar or something? He turned his attention back to Kamui Woods. "Yeah. What he said." he responded, nodding in Gentle's direction.
Kamui Woods grunted. "Never heard of ya." he shrugged. "But judging by your actions, I'm guessing you ain't that smart. You fuckers actually thought attacking a place the Top 10 were at was a GOOD idea?! Sorry retards, but I'm about ta show you just how fucking wrong you are!" he barked, the wood forming into multiple writhing tendrils again, and his muscles tensing.
Dabi weighed his options. A fight with one of the Top 10 was NOT something he needed right now. Every second wasted taking on Kamui Woods was one Deku and the rest of the team were getting closer to death. He heard Compress arrive behind them, and he also heard his incredibly nervous gulp. Gentle, despite his outward facade of boisterous over-confidence, was clearly sweating, visibly trying to fight down any traces of fear, and not doing a very good job of it.
Dabi steeled himself and made his decision.
"Go." he simply said to the other two.
Compress blinked. "I'm sorry?"
"You two get a move on. Find and secure Deku. I'll torch the wooden buttplug, and make my way to your position afterwards." Dabi told them.
"You're SURE you wouldn't like some help, old boy? He looks substantially more...formidable than the washing machine." Gentle asked.
Dabi nodded without hesitation. "Getting Deku's more important, and he won't last long without any help. Here." He quickly took out his earpiece and tossed it to Gentle. "Put this in. When you feel a buzz, tap it. The voice'll tell ya where to go."
Gentle fastened the earpiece and gave Dabi a concerned look, but just nodded and patted his shoulder. "Very well then, good sir. Just be careful. You seem a fine gentleman and I'd hate to see you expire so soon after we've become acquainted."
Dabi tried to give the two newest members the most reassuring grin he could. "Don't worry, I won't be long. Fire vs. Wood? You do the math." he joked.
Quicker than he liked, wood filled Dabi's field of vision. "YOU MAN-ANIMALS AREN'T GOING ANYWHERE!" roared Kamui Woods, as grasping tendrils shot towards the three.
"GO! NOW!" ordered Dabi, as he charged up his Quirk. Gentle and Compress sprinted away as fast as their legs could carry them. Dabi released a blast of azure fire torching the mass of grasping tendrils. Kamui Woods howled in frustration, as he furiously beat them against the walls and ground, futily attempting to put out the roaring flames. Dabi charged into the fray, just barely managing to avoid the writhing tendrils. One tendril went for his feet, attempting a repeat of earlier. Dabi dodged the grab and stamped down on it, pinning it to the ground. He channeled his Quirk through the sole of his foot and bathed it in fire. The fire enveloped the wood and began to travel the length of the tendril back to the Hero's body. Kamui Woods squealed in agony, and sent more tendrils at him. Dabi dodged out of the way of the grasping vines, countering with more fireballs. He powered through the considerable pain his body was in and managed to bathe any threatening tendrils that came close to him in roaring flames, only adding to Kamui Woods considerable cries of distress.
"You pulled the shit end of the stick going up against me, asshole!" Dabi taunted, making his way closer and closer. Kamui Woods was awash in agony, off balance, and despite his best efforts, on fire. No matter how much he thrashed about, he just couldn't tag Dabi.
"Here's a fun science fact, dickhead! WOOD BURNS!" Dabi mocked, thrusting his right hand forward, and blasting Kamui Woods square in the chest with a massive column of fire. The heat was overwhelming, and the No. 6 Hero was launched off his feet, backwards through the air. He landed hard on the unforgiving ground, the multiple wooden tendrils retracting into his scorched body.
A minute passed and he just lay there, smoke curling off of his supine form. Dabi took advantage of the brief break in the action to catch his breath, and stretch out his muscles. He had used his Quirk so much he was gonna be sore in the morning, and the disgusting stench of burning skin refused to leave his nostrils. He didn't know whose flesh was more burnt, his or Kamui's.
Unfortunately, he got his answer to that question when he saw Kamui Woods sit up. The Hero had used his Quirk to fashion a wooden chest plate that had taken the brunt of the attack. It was scorched a dark charred black, but it didn't look like the fire had been able to penetrate through to his torso. "MINE DOESN'T, MAN-ANIMAL!" laughed Kamui Woods, as he flipped to his feet and rushed towards Dabi. Dabi was caught off guard by the sudden attack, and just barely managed to avoid the sharpened tendril that was aimed at his face. Unfortunately, he wasn't quite quick enough to avoid the follow up one that wrapped around his waist. Dabi set it alight, but unlike before, no cries of pain passed Kamui's lips. Instead he just whipped Dabi into a nearby wall. Now it was Dabi's turn to cry out, as his body made an indentation on the wall with a sickening SMACK! Kamui Woods let Dabi drop, and switched to using his tendrils like whips, brutally beating him into the ground. Through the excruciating pain, Dabi managed to roll out of the way and send a gout of flame at the Pro Hero. Tendrils blocked the blast, and all he succeeded in accomplishing was setting the wooden tendrils that were currently beating the piss out of him on fire. Dabi was sick to his stomach, as it slowly began to dawn on him that the flames didn't actually hurt the Pro Hero as much as he had let on earlier. Kamui Woods had been toying with him.
His body was writhing in so much pain he could barely think straight, and he finally made a critical mistake in his dodging. He zigged when he should've zagged, and Kamui wasted no time in exploiting his severe error in judgment. Tendrils wrapped Dabi up tight, pinning his arms to his side. Dabi cried out in agony as he was slammed to the floor multiple times, before the flaming tendrils tightened their vice like grip, slowly crushing the life out of him while burning him at the same time. The pain was so excruciating, he almost passed out.
Kamui Woods pulled Dabi in closer, until they were face to face. Dabi gritted his teeth and glared at the No. 6 Pro Hero. His gaze was furious, but nowhere near the level of abject hatred that Kamui Woods exuded towards him. The wooden Hero stared daggers at him so intensely, Dabi thought he might die of impalement before asphyxiation or burning to death. The creaking and snapping of wood could be heard as Kamui Wood's faceplate morphed into a particularly sinister looking Glascow smile, ringed with sharp, jagged wooden teeth.
"Since you only have a few seconds left before I put you back in the dirt where you belong, I'll let you in on a little secret, man-animal." he smiled, thick tree sap dripping from the teeth like saliva. "You aren't the first fire Quirk user that's underestimated me. Plenty of limp dick herbivores like you think I run screaming every time someone lights a match. After all, 'WOOD BURNS!', right?" he asked Dabi mockingly, doing his best impression of him. Much like everything else about Kamui Woods, it sucked, and Dabi let him know it. Kamui disagreed rather strongly, and let DABI know it, headbutting him viciously. Blood flew from Dabi's mouth when the wooden helmet connected, and he spat out two teeth. "Needless to say, I LOVE seeing the looks on their putrid muzzles when their worthless sparks fail to even scorch the phloem. My Quirk allows me to generate and control wood from my body. ANY kind of wood." Kamui Wood's demented grin grew even wider, as he tightened the squeeze on Dabi. "Currently, I'm crushing the life out of your disgusting meat-sack of a body using a combination of Baobab and Mediterranean Cypress, two of the most fire resistant trees in the world. Oh, it'll burn. EVENTUALLY. You just have to ask yourself one question..."
The sound of the wood (or was that his spine?) cracking as the tendrils became tighter still, rang out through the air, almost drowning out Dabi's howls of anguish.
"YOU THINK YOU CAN HOLD OUT THAT LONG, MAN-ANIMAL?!" Kamui Woods cackled maniacally.
Unfortunately, Dabi doubted it. He used what little of his mind wasn't occupied with the pain to puzzle out a solution to his precarious predicament. He had to admit, his future prospects looked, in a word, bleak. Even as he was rapidly losing oxygen from the multiple thick tendrils constricting him, his flesh popped and sizzled from the heat of the flames that licked at the wood. If things continued as they were, he'd either end up squeezed flatter than a tube of toothpaste, or fried alive in no time at all. In such a situation as he was in, he usually got out of it by burning his bindings. The problem was his flames, hot as they were, still weren't doing dick.
Death seemed to be the only option.
Luckily, when given a choice between A or B, Dabi prided himself on always knowing to pick C.
Kamui himself had told Dabi the solution.
The wood he was using was fire RESISTANT.
NOT fire PROOF.
That meant there was a limit to how much it could take. All Dabi had to do was turn up the heat.
Kamui's eyes danced with wicked malice as he watched Dabi writhe in pain and gasp for air. While he knew that the other Pro Heroes most likely needed his help, he just couldn't resist tarrying and drawing the torture out a LITTLE bit longer. Few things brought so much joy to his vine choked heart as seeing the filthy man-animals squeal like the pigs they were lower than. This little shit actually thought that with his Quirk, Kamui would be easy pickings. Countless scum sucking herbivores before him, with Quirks just like his, had thought the exact same thing. Now, their rotting corpses ALL fertilized Kamui's gardens, and this wretched little shit would be no different.
Dabi drew in what little breath he could, and shut his eyes tight. Kamui Woods wicked grin remained carved onto his face, certain that this was Dabi's last gasp.
He could very well be proven right.
Dabi was about to play his trump card.
If it worked, it would give him the strength he needed to burn this weed.
It also might just kill him.
Oh well. Better to go down fighting.
BOOM!
The next thing Kamui Woods knew, a blinding blue light enveloped his vision, and he was sent flying through the air. He hit the hard cement ground and skidded to a stop, screaming his lungs out, flailing, and rolling around on the ground, frantically trying to put out the sapphire flames engulfing his body.
Through the horrendous pain, Dabi grinned. Good, THAT scream sounded FAR more genuine.
Kamui had barely managed to put out the flames and get to one knee, when Dabi rushed him with a speed he shouldn't possibly have had, given how injured he was. He launched himself at Kamui, flames roaring from his feet, and smacked him square on the side of his head with a flying roundhouse kick, causing another burst of flame, and launching him through two rooms. Kamui howled with pain as his body crashed through the walls, but he managed to gather his wits enough to roll to his feet as soon as he hit the ground. His helmet was lit up like a candle. The flames were FAR stronger than before, and he desperately tried to slap at his head to extinguish the fire.
Only to realize that he couldn't.
After all, it's hard to slap at something when you no longer have any HANDS.
Kamui Woods stared down in horror at his arms. Where his wooden hands had once been, were now two burnt stumps, stinking black smoke rising off them. He was so damn shocked, it took him a few seconds to even register the pain. Then it hit like a freight train, and the howls he made were just barely muzzled by his gritted teeth. He heard a vicious cackle, and turned his head to see Dabi stalking towards him. His coat, shirt and prosthetics were burned clean off, giving the whole world an unobstructed view of the Frankensteinian patchwork of sick, charred skin that was his torso. Bright, blazing blue flames covered the vigilante's body, but shining brighter still was the savage smile that rested on his lips.
"HOT ENOUGH FOR YA NOW, ASSHOLE?!" he laughed, and launched a blazing column of fire directly at Kamui. The Pro Hero dodged, the blast missing him by mere centimeters. Kamui Woods growled in anger, and activated his Quirk, the useless stumps growing back into functioning hands. He quickly wrapped his tendrils around his head, snuffing out the blaze like a wick, then let out an almost feral roar, and shot more wooden tendrils at Dabi. The ends were sharpened like spears. Kamui was sick with rage, and was officially through fucking around. This worthless man-animal had actually HURT him, so he needed to die. Screw constriction, it took too damn long. He'd just impale Dabi's head on a spike, and move on with his damned life. So imagine his surprise when Dabi easily boosted out of the way of the mass of stakes, and torched them. Kamui was suddenly thrown into a fight for his life. Unlike before, his fire burned all the way through, severing the deadly appendages. Dabi countered by blasting towards Kamui at breakneck speed and nailing the son of a bitch square between the eyes with a devastating straight. The thunderous blow actually managed to crack his helmet, and the No. 6 Pro Hero was launched backwards through the air. Dabi boosted after him, nailing him in midair with dozens of lightning quick attacks that blazed with the roaring heat of the sun, before finishing by blasting him into the ground with powerful fireball. Kamui's back smacked the hard concrete, leaving a crater and shattering his wooden armor. Kamui's howls of pain rang out through the air. Dabi shot down downwards like a comet. Kamui tried his damnedest to block out the pain, and managed to flip to his feet and out of the crater. Dabi made landfall, and though unfortunately he missed Kamui, luckily, the explosion of flame that emanated from his touchdown caught the Pro Hero in it's blast radius.
Dabi sniffed the air. He couldn't tell if he was getting a whiff of burning flesh or Baobab. Evidently, they had very similar smells.
Kamui Woods got to his feet, furiously smacking himself in order to extinguish the flames. Kamui's hard eyes glared at Dabi, burning a hole in him. It was the kind of gaze that one would usually give a colony of maggots they found feasting on the bloating corpse of a disease riddled rat. But beneath all of the rage, loathing and disgust, Dabi could see another emotion ever so slowly beginning to form.
One that he was willing to bet Kamui Woods hadn't felt in a long, LONG time.
FEAR.
Dabi couldn't help but smirk at the bastard's growing look of terror.
THAT sent Kamui over the edge.
"WRETCHED, FUCKING MAN-ANIMAL!" he screamed, totally possessed with blinding rage, and shot out dozens of grasping, piercing tendrils. Yet, no matter how quickly the deadly wood stabbed, flailed, or whipped about, he just couldn't hit the son of a bitch. Kamui's mind was overcome with anger, frustration, and utter disbelief. This made no goddamn SENSE! The man-animal had been beaten, burned, fucking CRUSHED like a fly! He should be a fucking, walking CORPSE! HOW THE FUCK WAS HE STILL ABLE TO MOVE SO FAST!?
The answer was rather simple. Dabi had finally gotten desperate enough to use his secret technique, the only worthwhile thing he had ever learned from his piece of shit father. By raising his fire's temperature to its highest level, he was able to maximize his power, and increase his speed DRAMATICALLY. The problem was, all that power came with a pretty severe drawback. When his father used it, he ran the risk of overheating. Dabi had a bit more serious of a consequence to watch out for. Using his Quirk at normal temperatures hurt him. Using this technique could very well cause his Quirk to blaze out of control and burn him alive. If he had to guess, he only had around 30 seconds before that happened, and by his count, he had already used up 15 of them.
Time to light this walking pile of kindling.
Dabi shot forward, sapphire flames roaring from the soles of his feet like a jet engine. Kamui had lost all sense of strategy, he was so overcome with fear. His dozens of tendrils lashed about wildly, but Dabi managed to easily dodge around all of them. Within seconds, he was no less than two feet in front of the bastard.
Dabi planted his feet, concentrated all of his flames into a white-hot point on his fist, reared his left arm back…
…And SMILED.
Kamui's eyes went wide with terror, and he reflexively coated his entire body with the thickest wood he could possibly think of.
It wouldn't help.
Dabi flung his arm forward, and the No. 6 Pro Hero vanished in a massive explosion of azure flame.
The resulting BANG! was deafening, and the blue light was so bright, Dabi swore he went blind for a few seconds.
With the exception of the crackling of the fire, the room was strangely quiet. Dabi dropped to his knees, his body wracked with unimaginable agony. "C'mon man, get it together! Take deep breaths. You CAN'T die yet. You don't have the RIGHT to die yet!" he growled at himself, gritting his teeth, trying desperately to get his Quirk under control. He couldn't go out like this. He still had too much to do, too much business left unfinished. Stain and the rest of the team were still out there in the stadium, fighting for their lives. He had to make sure they got out. There were still too many evil Heroes at large in the world; abusers, rapists, murderers. He couldn't just die and let them continue their monstrous ways.
And there was one man in particular that Dabi despised above all others, that he hated with a passion that burned infinitely hotter than the flames currently consuming him. He could NOT die until that man was ash.
Dabi went over a list of all of the many, many reasons he had to keep going, to stop the roaring inferno that was engulfing his body.
He came to a VERY unpleasant conclusion.
It was no help at all.
Bright sapphire flames continued to roar to life on his body, slowly cooking more and more of his formerly healthy skin. The horrific sound of his own flesh popping and sizzling echoed in his ears. He bent over into a ball, clutching the back of his head, lost in unfathomable suffering. He was burning alive and there wasn't a damn thing he could do to stop it.
He was in so much pain, and he couldn't even fucking cry.
His Quirk had seared his tear ducts shut.
Memories pushed their way to the surface of his mind.
HORRIBLE memories that caused him as much pain as his Quirk.
For the first time, he smelled his own flesh burning.
"FATHER! PLEASE! HELP ME! IT HURTS!"
"You. Worthless. FAILURE."
He couldn't believe just how HARD the damn, unforgiving rocks felt.
Dabi's life had been one miserable shit sandwich after another, and it looked like it had all led to this. Burning himself alive while trying to take down a Pro Hero that had a WOOD Quirk, something that should've been no problem for him. Instead, he was going to die, alone and having let down the team.
His father was right.
He was weak.
He was worthless.
He. Was. A. FAILURE.
Dabi's will to live hung by the thinnest of threads. He had almost given up, had almost surrendered to the pain...
...When one more memory flashed through his brain.
It was another miserable afternoon, and like usual, Dabi was holed up under the covers of his bed, crying. His body writhed in pain from the truly sadistic "training" his father had put him through. Or at least, that was what he always called it, but to Dabi they felt more like torture sessions. "A sound mind rests in a sound body." his father had always said, so Dabi spent countless hours in the fully stocked gym at their lavishly expensive home, pushing the limits of his physical endurance relentlessly. His father would train Dabi so hard he would puke, and then train him some more. Many were the days he left the gym beaten black and blue. Dabi learned not to complain. Any hint of dissatisfaction with his father's "flawless" training regimen would be taken as a sign of gross disrespect, and lead to his father pummeling him mercilessly. Since Dabi was home schooled, his father saw to his academic education as well. It was just as brutal and unforgiving as his physical education. Dabi should have been in elementary school, and yet he was routinely tested on junior high and high school level material. Given that, he actually did fairly well, but anything less than perfect was a miserable failure as far as his father was concerned.
And if there was one phrase that seemed to define Dabi, it was "Less than perfect."
Worse than the physical abuse, was the almost never ending parade of despicably degrading insults his father would shower him with whenever he "failed". Loser, piece of shit, idiot, weakling, and above all else, FAILURE. That was his Father's favorite insult, the one he used more than any other. It signified his total contempt for his only son, and let Dabi know that he despised him and thought he was worth less than nothing.
One time, after a particularly vicious beating, Dabi had managed to ask his father, through choking sobs and bleeding puffy lips, WHY he hated him so much. His father merely got up off the floor that he had just finished pounding his son's face into, and stared down at him with blazing fire in his hateful eyes.
"You want my respect? EARN IT." he snarled, and stalked off, leaving Dabi to painfully peel himself off the floor and limp to his room.
Dabi tried hard to never let his sorrow show around his father. His father thought crying was a disgusting sign of weakness, and he HATED weakness. Any time Dabi slipped up and shed a tear, his father would brutally backhand him and warn him to cease blubbering if he knew what was good for him. Dabi learned to hold his tears in until he managed to get back to his room. Once that door closed, however, they flowed like a river, some days for hours at a time.
Today was just such a day. He had been lying on his bed, crying out all of the misery in his heart. It was a deep, almost bottomless well of sorrow that never seemed to run dry, no matter how much he sobbed.
He heard a soft knock on the door.
Terror caused his breath to hitch. Please don't let that be his father! Please, dear GOD, don't let that be his father hearing him cry!
It was an irrational fear. His father wouldn't have bothered knocking. He would've just broken the door down.
Instead of the deep, threatening snarl of his father, Dabi heard the warm, comforting tone of his mother from the other side of the door.
"Honey, are you all right? Do you need any help?"
Dabi's racing heart calmed slightly at the sound. He tried to answer that that would be fine, but as he was still crying, his request for assistance came out as more of a choking snort. His mother must have understood his intent regardless, as she opened the door and entered.
Dabi took his head out from under the covers and tried to wipe away the bitter tears that were stinging his eyes. Though his vision was blurry, he could still clearly see her loving smile, and kind grey eyes. She went to Dabi and embraced him, hugging him close, letting him know everything would be all right. Slowly but surely, Dabi's tears dried up. She broke the hug and Dabi looked her in the eyes. Though she still wore her kind smile, he could also tell that her right eye had too much foundation on it, obviously trying to cover up a wicked shiner. Dabi almost grimaced when he saw it, but he suppressed the urge, not wanting to upset his mom.
"Sorry about that, mom. Thanks for the hug." he sheepishly apologized.
His Mom put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "It's all right if you want to cry, honey. You don't need to apologize to me. I'm not your father. Is there anything in particular I can help you with?" she asked him, concern dancing across her gaze.
This time, Dabi did grimace, and he nervously brought up his left arm. His mom actually gasped when she saw it. The skin was bright red.
"Did he do that to you?" she asked him gently.
For once, Dabi shook his head. "No. Well, not directly. We were training, and he told me to push my Quirk harder. I tried, and that's when this happened." Dabi had been getting a better handle on his Quirk, but pushing it too far always made his skin hurt. Despite what the doctors had said, his father was convinced that he was being a little bitch, and he just needed to toughen the fuck up. His father's goal for Dabi wouldn't allow him to fight at anything less than his full potential.
His mom took Dabi's arm in her hands. He winced a bit. Not only was he sore as hell from the training, his skin still felt like it was burning up. His mother noticed his discomfort. "I'm sorry, but don't worry honey. This will only take a second." she reassured him. Then she took a deep breath, and blew on it. Her Quirk was Ice Breath, and cool air flowed from her mouth, coating his arm. Dabi's skin, previously as red as a lobster, began to take on something resembling it's normal coloration again, and the burning pain was replaced with soothing relief.
His mother let go of his arm, and gave him a comforting grin. "Is that better?"
Dabi rubbed any remaining sting out of it, and nodded. "Yeah, thank you Mom." he said gratefully. "Though, I do have something else to ask you."
"Of course honey, what is it?"
He looked at her questioningly. "Can I have another hug?"
His Mom blinked for a second, and then her mouth turned up in the most caring smile he had ever seen. "Honey, you KNOW you never have to ask me for one of those."
She embraced him warmly, and he gave her the biggest hug in the whole wide world. She cradled his head close to her heart, gently letting him how much she loved him and how proud she was of him. That no matter WHAT his father said, he was the furthest thing from a failure possible. The tears started to flow again, but this time they were tears of joy. Still, she began to sing his favorite song in the hopes of cheering him up.
They stayed there like that, greatly enjoying a rare moment of calm in the chaos that was their lives. Her, soothingly singing to him, reminding him that he was her sunshine, the light of her life. Him relaxing for the first time in a long time, perfectly at peace.
Make no mistake, their lives were hell.
But as long as they had each other, it was a little less hellish.
Back in the present, Dabi found that the memory actually had a positive effect. As he remembered his Mom's gentle singing, he swore he could feel her icy breath on him, cooling him down. One by one, the roaring flames that covered his body were snuffed out.
Dabi shakily got to his feet. He gazed out at his surroundings and took in the damage. It was rather substantial. His last attack had done quite the number on his surroundings. His mass of fire had managed to burn through not only the concrete walls but into the ceiling as well, opening an expansive hole up to the third floor. Bright blue fires raged, and Dabi could see burnt corpses littering the floor, though for a second he couldn't tell if they were Heroes or civilians. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the charred costumes.
Then a noise caught his attention, and Dabi's jaw actually dropped.
Kamui Woods was STILL ALIVE.
Well, BARELY.
Dabi had blasted him back into the main hallway and a good distance down it, leaving a charred black trail of scorched stone. Kamui crawled pathetically on the ground, screaming in anguish, his entire body covered in sick burns. His legs from the shin downwards, and his forearms had been scorched to ash. They were growing back, but it was slow going. Evidently, Kamui's Quirk had been tasked to it's limit.
As shouts for Heroes rang out through the air, Dabi set his eyes on his target. He still had a job to do.
Dabi limped his way over to the soon to be former No.6 Pro Hero as quickly as he could. Though his body was no longer ablaze, he was still in horrible agony. He just gritted his teeth even tighter, sucked in his breath, and beared the pain.
He reached Kamui, and the Pro Hero turned to look at him, sheer panic swimming in his eyes. Dabi noticed that part of his helmet had been burned off, giving him a view of some of the face underneath. If he HAD been handsome, that was no more, thanks to Dabi. The part of his scalp that was exposed was hairless, blistering and peeling. His cheek had a deep hole burned through it, the skin charred black on the edges and bright pink in the middle. Dabi could actually see some teeth peeking out through the wound.
Dabi grinned widely and raised his hand. They came here to kill Wash, but he had no problem with taking a two for one deal.
A column of blazing fire flew through the air.
And hit Dabi square in the back.
The force of the attack was incredible, and Dabi was launched over Kamui Woods, landing in a crumpled heap, writhing on the ground in pain. He managed to get to his knees, and lay eyes on his newest assailant. It was a kid, making his way towards them from down the hall, his face a grim mask of determination. The kid was dressed in some kind of suit, the right half of which looked to be made of some material in the shape of swirling flames. In fact, they looked much like the flames that currently danced on the kids left palm. Great another fire Quirk user. Dabi had enough problems with his own flames, he didn't need someone else's making him even uglier.
Then, he blinked. Was it just him, or did this kid look slightly familiar...
"SH-SH-OTO!? The hell are you doing here?!" Kamui yelled at the newcomer.
Shoto didn't take his eyes off Dabi. "I was searching for my father, but you looked like you could use some help." he stated simply.
Kamui actually looked offended at the insinuation. "I don't need your worthless help, herbivore!" he spat venomously.
Shoto just shrugged. "Suit yourself. You should know that things are about to get VERY hot around here. But by all means, stay and get caught in the middle of the firefight. It shouldn't be a problem for you, especially in your current condition."
Reality was dawning on Kamui Woods, and he had to admit, BITTERLY, that he was currently in no shape to plant the man-animal in the ground. The utter shame at being saved by another filthy man-animal burned hotter than the scorched flesh that covered his body. He jumped up and dashed away as fast as his recently grown back feet could carry him.
Dabi blasted a fireball at him, not wanting to let the fucker get away, only to have it get shot out of the air by a flaming lance. Kamui took advantage of the interruption and skedaddled. Dabi growled at the retreating form of Kamui, but the sight of flames rushing towards him brought his attention back to where it belonged. He just barely managed to avoid them, and turned to face Shoto.
"Forget about the wooden dildo. You're facing ME now, Villain!" Shoto growled, his eyes locked onto Dabi with a laser like focus.
Dabi smirked defiantly. "Yeah, yeah, yeah, and who are you supposed to be? Phosphorous Rex? Matchstick Boy? The Burnt Wonder?!" he laughed mockingly. Best to keep the kid talking, give himself more time to cool down.
Shoto's eyes flashed with rage.
"Shoto Todoroki: Supernova! Son of the true No. 1 Pro Hero Endeavor!" he proudly announced, and flung a torrent of flame at Dabi.
Dabi blinked.
What?
WHAT?
WHAT?!
That statement hit him like a brick to the face. He turned it over and over and over in his mind. It wasn't possible. It just COULD NOT be POSSIBLE!
Shock rooted him in place, and he took the full force of Shoto's attack. The flames smacked into him with the force of a burning car, and Dabi went flying, colliding with the wall and leaving a massive imprint, spiderwebs of broken concrete radiating out from the impact zone. He dropped to the ground on his hands and knees, in more pain than ever before, and coughed up blood.
"B-B-Bullshit..." Dabi whispered, shaking his head.
"As far as last words go, I've heard better." Shoto grinned fiercely.
Dabi glared at him. "You're a FUCKING LIAR! ENDEAVOR DOESN'T HAVE ANY KIDS!" he roared, absolutely refusing to believe it.
The vehemence in Dabi's voice actually caused Shoto to take a step back and raise an eyebrow, somewhat confused at his opponent's apparent outrage. Then his mouth turned into a grimace. "I'm sure that he WISHES that were true. Luckily, bringing you in should at least get me a nod of respect!" he growled, and charged up his Quirk.
Dabi snapped out of his shock, and took in the situation. He couldn't take any more damage. It was a miracle that he was still conscious, never mind that he could get to his feet. Whoever the hell this asshole was, he looked fresh as a daisy and certainly held the advantage. If this turned into an actual fight, Dabi was going to die.
He needed to end it, STAT.
So, he proceeded to do just that.
Dabi activated his Quirk through the soles of his feet, shooting him at his opponent at the speed of a rocket. In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of Shoto. Shoto's eyes went wide as flames shot out of the back of Dabi's right fist, propelling it straight towards his face, fast as a bullet. The blow was overwhelmingly powerful, and the CRACK! of crunching and shattering bone was sickening. Blood erupted from Shoto's mouth and was instantly vaporized by the hellish heat of Dabi's flames. Shoto was flung backwards with tremendous force, crashing through a total of three thick walls of plaster, concrete, and steel, before finally coming to a rest in an unconscious bloody heap.
Dabi powered down his Quirk and thanked whoever the hell was up there that he finally had a chance to catch his fucking breath. His body was for the most part, swimming in agony, and yet the parts of his body that were the most burnt didn't really hurt at all. That wasn't good. He looked down at his right hand. Unfortunately, super strength was NOT a part of his Quirk, so his body wasn't used to exerting that kind of force. The powerful punches he had nailed Kamui with were already pushing the limits of his endurance. When he had shattered Shoto's jaw, he had also shattered his own fist. It was deformed with large, sick purple bruises. He tried to move a few fingers, and grunted in pain. Nothing doing. They refused to obey him.
"HOLY SHIT! Is that Shoto Todoroki?! Is he all right?!"came a horrified shout. Dabi's attention snapped to the source of the voice. Apparently, he had actually punched Shoto clean into the main stadium. Heroes and civilians were gathered around the unconscious form of Shoto. Behind them, Dabi could see that the place was in absolute chaos. Civilians ran like chickens with their heads caught off, looking for protection from any available Hero, or scrambling for any available exit. Some Heroes fought bravely against bots, while others ran for the hills or cowered behind the civilians who looked to them for safety, using them as human shields.
The crowd of civilians and Heroes surged in through the newly defenestrated hole in wall, eager to take any chance to get away from the utter insanity that was the inside of the stadium. Leading the group was the Pro Hero Backdraft, and his Sidekick Frostbite. Backdraft was a Mutant, his most recognizable feature being that instead of hands, he had large taps with circular wrist-guards just behind their openings, and red valves over the top. He was dressed like a firefighter, sporting a long yellow jacket with high-visibility lines running down the center, his sleeve cuffs, hem, and high collar. A thin water cannon was strapped to his left shoulder and looked to be attached to a bright red water tank he wore on his back. His face was completely covered by a white mask with a single orange bead embedded into the center, and he wore a standard red fireman helmet. A pair of similar looking knee-pads on his legs, and yellow sneakers on his feet completed his outfit. Frostbite was a large man, wearing a black ball cap, camouflage pants, and an olive green jacket with a furred collar left open to expose his muscular torso, the word BITE tattooed across it in large blood red letters. Most noticeably, he had a high tech belt that was wrapped around his midsection, as well as pitch black metallic gloves that covered his hands.
Backdraft turned his attention towards Dabi and pointed in his direction, water flowing from his hose and forming the shape of a hand. "Oh my God! Quick Frostbite, subdue the Villain! I'll put out these damn fires!" he ordered. Frostbite nodded, and some of the flames were sucked into him, before he flung his arms forward and projected a beam of freezing cold at Dabi. Dabi growled and dodged it, blasting off down the hallway as fast as his Quirk could carry him. He chanced one last look back, and was surprised, though glad, to see that the Heroes hadn't elected to chase him, instead busying themselves fighting the raging fires.
Dabi gritted his teeth and sucked in his breath, fighting against the almost unbearable pain his feet were in, but he REFUSED to stop. He had to get to Deku's last location and back up Gentle & Compress while he still had the skin left to help.
This was a horrible, MISERABLE situation, but he had survived worse growing up.
For all of his many failings, he had NEVER been a quitter.
He would find Deku.
He would make SURE the team got out safely.
Then, and ONLY then, he would pass the fuck out.
Not a SECOND earlier.
As always, I would like to start out by saying thank you to everyone who read and reviewed! I hope I can continue to entertain you!
So I figured I should get this out now, to let you all know I'm still alive. Like I said, the chapters might take awhile, but I have NO intention of stopping.
I do have a question, though. I usually have a handle on what I'm going to be able to fit into a chapter without it ballooning to stupidly long lengths, but lately I've found that these chapters getting longer and longer.
So here's my question. Do you guys still want me to do the UP NEXT at the end, even if what I think is going to be the next chapter ends up being the next three? Let me know in the comments!
Up next: Stain VS Cementoss, Hound Dog, and Jurota Shishida; and Spinner VS. Nejire Hado and Mirio Togata!
See ya next time!