And we are back. Quite the exciting chapter ahead, setting us up with some final fights that look straight out of three final bosses of three completely different games.
It's also a good chapter to come back on. Save for a few missing people in the Tower, it pretty much gives a rundown of everyone still standing, quite neat.
(XX)
Izmird moved his hand, letting a bottle of wine and enough glasses land on the table. The bottle filled each glass of the precious red, but none of the people sitting with him took even a sip. He, however, grasped his own elegantly.
"What is it you…"
"Wait. Wait." He drank the wine and smiled, "Ah, perfectly aged. Elves always make the best wine, and this one did particularly well, alone in a cellar near the top of this tower. You should try it."
"I find the screams coming from behind you ruin the taste." Itsuka snapped, and Izmird turned. Right, Lord Arkin was still… busy. The Specter was trying to end him, but at the very least his 'Lord' wasn't so incompetent to just die. He was putting up enough of a fight. Commendable. Izmird shook his head, and the sound from the man and the Specter ceased, a thin, translucent barrier appearing between them and the dragon's table. They could still see them, but the sound was completely kept on the other side.
"Is this more of your taste?" He asked. Izmird could tell the woman was studying him. He could see her eyes fall on his clothes, on the golden ring he was deliberately showing by holding his glass with the right hand, and on his features.
He knew this figure wasn't the most imposing, but he found the elven form was far more enticing to the common humans than his dragon form. That one tended to result in them either trying to fight to the death or running, and neither results would have pleased Izmird. They were acceptable, and the third option – subservience – was also possible in this case, but he wasn't a fool. Followers by force, as Arkin had so readily proven, were far less valuable than followers by will.
"Very well. Let us talk then." He said when it became clear the woman wouldn't accept the wine. "He served himself another round, invisible hands moving the bottle as he smiled, "I wish to make myself clear. I do not plan to conquer the Multiverse."
"How can we trust that?" Itsuka asked.
"You can't." Izmird nodded, his eyes moving on the others in the room. Deku, the man that had given him his first inspiration at looking into other worlds, and Huanli, a young woman and Itsuka's apprentice, had at different points moved their hands to their ears. Transmitting his voice, then. A good idea to keep everyone on their side informed. "Not yet. But as I said, I am just being pragmatic. Conquering the whole Multiverse, from all I have seen, is a crushing endeavor, and one with very little reward. Madmen and idealists might be skilled for it, but my wishes are more fitting of a dragon."
"What do you mean?"
"Riches. Power. Knowledge. Such are the wishes that motivate any true dragon. The lizards of this world might have forgotten who we are. What we stand for. But we dragons are, first and foremost, the wisest, most powerful, most envied rulers. We do not seek to aimlessly conquer, we seek to rule."
"So when you say you don't want to conquer…"
"I mean I don't want to invade the whole Multiverse. I mean that I wish to rule it." Izmird replied.
"I'm not sure I can tell the difference."
"You can't? Let me explain then." Izmird offered the woman a smile of understanding. Humans were ever slow to understand the mind of dragons, after all. "I do not wish to personally invade every universe, sit on the throne of each of its kingdoms, and then repeat this process. That is too extensive. Too much time wasted on the takeover, too long to adapt the ruling system of each world to fit my desires. An eternity of jumping from world to world, and nothing to show for it. At the end, I will either find a world that can kill me, not by the hands of a man but by disease or magical effect, or I will find myself, a tired, broken husk of my former self, sitting in my old age on an empty throne, as the people I first conquered fail to even remember I appeared before them. A conqueror that built nothing but a sandcastle."
Itsuka was starting to understand now. Izmird nodded. She wasn't a Midoriya, an alternate form of himself, but she had connections to them. It was good to see a Midoriya surrounded himself with intelligent advisors. The real test, as always, was to make sure they were wise. "So by rule, you mean that you want to control, but not to occupy."
"Ah, I see you can understand my point. Indeed. Alone, the task is mind numbing. But a good leader delegates wisely. I can't conquer the Multiverse on my own, but I can rule it. With enough manpower, it is nothing too difficult."
"You want followers that can travel the Multiverse and take over for you. You want the League to…"
"Become my sword, instead of a shield. A rusted shield, if what I hear about them is correct, and one that is better off being reforged. One man can conquer, but not rule effectively. But what I'm offering to all of you is true power. Go back to your worlds, and help each other in taking them over in my name. You have the strength, and thanks to me you will have an unlimited supply of riches and magic to help in your missions. And then, I will make you governors of those worlds, and let you train others that will go on to do our bidding in the next set of universes." He opened his arm, the vision of the future he could see clear in his mind, "We do not need to conquer the entire Multiverse. But each world is a treasure trove. Money, magic, science, knowledge, power, each of those a new pearl in our collection. Not a conquest, but the construction of the first true form of rulership across universes."
"It's impossible…" Deku said, and Izmird frowned.
"Impossible? Why?"
"The logistics…"
"Are far from the most challenging. What worries you? Communication? Teleport makes it almost instantaneous. Movement? Once again, Teleport is the solution. All we have to do is replicate select methods of Multiverse travel, and we can easily solve those simple problems. And the upsides? The upsides would be oh so magnificent."
"For you."
"For us. All I will ask will be access to the riches and knowledge of the worlds each of you will rule for me. Aside from that, and from occasionally requesting specific favors as need arises, you will be given free reign over your worlds. You will shape them in your image, and once your time to die comes, your successor will be of your choice… so long as they understand their place."
"That's just tyranny!" Huanli shouted.
"Is it? That would be up to you. Tyrannical or enlightened, your monarchy will be your own." He smiled at Deku, "Of course, first of all I would help my fellow Midoriya in this mission… If they are willing to follow my lead."
He could see Deku's fear behind his attempt at keeping a controlled expression. 'Do you think All for Deku would have a problem with this plan?' He was asking. It was certainly lucky Izumi had appeared in the tower. She had quite rich intel on the Midoriya he was confronting now, and she hadn't even noticed Izmird examining her memories. And on the opposite side, he was offering to help with his issue. Izmird didn't care, so long as they agreed to follow his lead.
Then again, Deku was one of many. It was just entertaining to watch the trespasser wonder if the dragon was honest. Funnily enough, Izmird was. To him, ruling over his territory and collecting the riches and knowledge it contained was what mattered. Having vassals was just a means to an end.
"What happens if we refuse?" Itsuka asked, "By your logic, the League should be able to fight you as well."
"It should." Izmird nodded, "Even if it's not doing well, the League for All could be a threat. Swarm me with enough strength, and even I might buckle, provided you are willing to accept a few losses." He stood up, "And of course, so long as I don't learn new tricks. Like this one." He turned toward Hawks, who had been bound by his magic, and simply asked, "Hawks, you already said you wouldn't betray Nion to join me, right?"
"I won't." Hawks nodded, "I don't know what they will do, but I refuse to-"
The spell binding him suddenly pushed Hawks forward, and before any of the three could do anything, he was face to face with Izmird.
The man took Hawks' hand. Hawks shouted, more in surprise than pain, and the ring around Izmird's finger shone brightly.
Then Hawks seemed to lose consciousness for a second. Izmird undid his binds… and Hawks bowed, a knee on the ground, "My lord." On his hand was a slave crest, a green, shining symbol of two wings.
Izmird smiled, turning around, "Beautiful, isn't it? This backward world has some magic knowledge, but they are too far behind. Their magic is certainly interesting, but it deserved some… further examination. It took me several weeks, but I am truly glad I completed this ring on time."
"What did you do?!" Deku shouted, jumping up and staring at Hawks, gritting his teeth.
"I put my own version of a Slave Crest on him." Izmird replied. And why not? It was easy enough to figure out. "This ring you say serves as the array in place o the magic circle. I, however, fixed the clear issue of the Slave Crest by making it so it emphasizes obedience. It pushes the people touched into becoming more obedient to the Crest user." He smiled at Hawks, and patted him on the head, "As you can see, I think I did quite a good job. Hawks, will you take over Nion for me?"
"If you so wish…" Hawks replied, "I just beg my lord to not be hard on its people."
"Don't worry Hawks, I will let you rule over them as you prefer." He turned back around, observing the three. Terror, anger, a twinge of pure despair. "As you can see, I'm not above using the stick, if you won't take the carrot. I'd prefer you didn't force my hand into using this, however."
Izmird turned toward the magical screens, ignoring the worried looks of the people facing him. "Hawks, sit down. Feel free to discuss with them your… enlightened perspective. You three will probably want some time to think. Meanwhile, we can also enjoy the results of the fights. I think they are quite the… efficient metaphor of my plans."
-x-
The Prowler panted. She was losing, that was pretty clear. The new toys of the girl were making a difference, and it didn't help that the wind changing and the rain coming and going were seeping even through her mask.
Mitsuki Bakugo realized she was going down any moment now. Spider-Man was here, and hadn't taken her out yet only because the Stormlord, apparently, was giving her a bit of help, using the storm to push back anyone that tried to come to the girl's aid. That wouldn't last for long though. If she was right, Stormlord's focus on her was the reason he hadn't yet taken out Nine, and sooner or later he would prioritize that over an ally.
A fist slammed in her chest and she wheezed. The eyes of a girl that looked a lot like Mitsuki bore into her. What was she asking? Why she was like this? Why she was a Villain?
Well, she was most likely projecting her son's face over her. Of all the summoned, Mitsuki was one of the few that really didn't feel like going home was desirable, now. If Spider-Man was here, he had probably also figured out who she was. Only an idiot wouldn't put two and two together when the Prowler and Mitsuki Bakugo just happen to disappear.
Would Masaru divorce her? She hated to admit she was more scared of her family's reaction than of jail time. Tartarus was a possibility on the table, given the amount of crimes she had committed, but Tartarus with the knowledge her whole family was trying to forget her stung a lot worse.
She got a punch in, a bleeding wound opened by her armored knuckles on the girl's shoulder, but in turn she stabbed forward, and Mitsuki felt the piercing pain of the sword slamming against her body armor… and then the explosions sparking from the top of the weapon dislocated her shoulder entirely. She stumbled back.
"You have grown a lot." She muttered.
"Spider-Man told me a lot about you." Itsumi replied, "Why did you do it, grandma?"
"Grandma? I'm not…" Her eyes went wide, "You are Katsuki's daughter?"
"Katsumi." Itsumi replied, and Mitsuki snorted. Of course. Mom, not dad. She should have guessed something drastic had changed. Her son wouldn't have a wife if his life depended on it.
"Well, that's good for them. And the lucky bastard is…" She frowned, then a realization hit her. The other half that made the girl look familiar, those sparse freckles and the eyes in a light shade of green… "Oh my god." Despite her situations, that was hilarious. Mitsuki wasn't so long gone she couldn't appreciate a good joke the Multiverse threw her way.
"Eh. That's pretty funny. Unfortunately, my story isn't. I don't feel like telling it. It's just a pile of bad choices, nothing more." The girl still seemed unconvinced but moved forward.
She felt a thug from her Crest. No more talking, uh? She was recuperating, but clearly the Crest wouldn't allow her to put herself in a completely passive position. She dodged an attack, pulled out her weapon, an electrified baton, and darted forward. She could turn this around, if she got the hit in.
She brought the baton up… And then something hit her on the face.
"Wha…" The Prowler looked down. The sheath of the cane-sword, the one connected to a rope, had been tossed to the ground earlier. Now, Itsumi had stopped on the rope, transmitting her explosive liquid along said rope and using it to propel the sheath upward.
The Prowler realized all this in the span of a moment, but it wasn't enough to react.
The attack hit, and the explosion knocked Mitsuki out. Her last sight was the expression of triumph on her alternate granddaughter's face.
'Good job kid. Make sure to not be like me…' She thought, and then she fell unconscious.
-x-
Piper hadn't expected to be free just a few minutes after he was caught, but the six-armed Spider-Man seemed very apologetic about the whole deal. He stumbled back up as the webbing dissolved once the other Izuku poured some sort of liquid over it. "Th-Thank you?"
"Don't mind." Spider-Man replied, looking at the other two Izuku. Both Kitsune and Gun were knocked out cold. He moved his hand to his hear, "Yeah, Slice, the other two are out." He nodded, "Zombie is trying to reach Itsumi, but…" He gasped, "She just knocked out Prowlie! Holy shit, let's go Itsumi! I feel proud. Is it weird that I feel proud?" Spider-Man asked.
"Enough." Superior stepped forward, grabbing the communicator from Spider-Man's hand. "Miss Yagi, we have two people here that are in need of medical care. What about you Piper?"
Piper looked at Superior, and then nodded, ignoring the storm buffeting his face with wind and rain. "I can still fight."
"Spider-Dekiru roughed you up quite a bit." Superior retorted, "Are you sure?"
"I can do it." Piper nodded. He had magical items now. He had to use them, especially now that they could be used for good. Superior sighed, but he didn't insist, instead looking around. As Itsumi and the one they had called Zombie joined them, Izuku realized that, right now, they were all Midoriya. Granted, Nine was fighting just a few meters forward, holding back the storm, but still, what were the chances?
"Miss Yagi says we can't count on any support, beyond her taking out the injured. The greed is the focus for most. We have to take down the Stormlord by ourselves." Superior explained.
"Not entirely by yourselves." A new voice offered. They turned around, to see an hoverboard flying quietly behind them. The God of Thunder, once again wielding his weapons, and a scowling Horizon greeted them.
"I expected you to flee." Superior admitted, and Piper had thought the same. With his freedom achieved, all Horizon had to do was fly away and either find a way home or wait for the winner and join him in exchange for a ticket home. He wouldn't call Horizon amoral – he was proving otherwise even now – but the scientist always seemed on the pragmatic side.
Horizon rolled his eyes, "I'm not leaving this to chance. If I go home, it will be for good, not with the constant risk of someone summoning me again through a 'magic portal'." He said, "I can lift someone up and with my VI it won't be too hard to navigate the storm itself. Though I don't guarantee I won't get shot out of the sky if the Stormlord focuses on me, so please, make sure that doesn't happen."
"Alright, sounds like a plan." Spider-Man said, before Superior stepped in.
"Indeed. The two of us will attack from two sides, and Horizon, carrying the God of Thunder, from the other."
"I'm not really that happy about cooperating with a thief." The God of Thunder pouted.
"Get over it, it's not my fault your stuff is so easy to hack." Horizon replied.
"I can help too." Zombie added.
"How?" Piper asked. He wasn't sure how the man could contribute, considering he had been fighting only hand to hand so far.
He grinned, glancing at Piper and Itsumi, "Well, I can get you both up there, for starters."
-x-
The Stormlord unleashed another rain of lightning, only for the wind to change direction and the electricity following a slightly different path than what he had planned. Inasa Yoarashi grinned madly. He was getting to fight master Nine. Now that was a day!
When he was young, he left his home, angry at his parents' constant push toward him becoming a Hero, no matter what the child actually wanted. He sought someone, anyone, that thought he didn't have to be something he didn't want to be. And he had found Nine.
Nine took him in, not for his Quirk, but for his past. Because, like the others, in his own way, people had seen Inasa has a strong Quirk before a person. Because, like the others, Nine had seen the person behind it. Someone that had put the pressure on himself to take it away from others.
Inasa's blood boiled at the thought of finally fighting him. He had so much to prove!
It seemed this version of his master hadn't focused entirely on powers fitting of his Weather Control, but on the other hand his defensive skills seemed quite high and the lasers were a nasty trick that had already wounded the Stormlord twice.
But he was Nine's heir, and what he could do, he would too. With that in mind, Inasa dove down toward Nine and opened both hands. A large cloud of mist appeared from them, Smokescreen covering his vision.
His master had told him how hard the fight with the Hero known as En had been. The man boasted a Quirk of his own, but according to Nine there was also something else, an untapped abyss he hadn't been able to take. En had escaped, but his Quirk remained. And when Nine had been on the verge of death, he had passed on all his Quirks to Inasa.
The Doctor that conducted the operation called Inasa a freak of nature for being able to withstand so many Quirks, saying he was a monster that surpassed Gigantomachia in terms of resilience to Quirk transfer, if not in terms of raw power.
Inasa in response had found Gigantomachia and fought the monster. The result was… inconclusive. He had eventually been too fatigued to move, but Gigantomachia had fallen asleep at the same time. Knowing they would destroy each other if they fought any more, Inasa had retired, though he still hitched to get a rematch.
Was he stronger than his master and his allies? He wanted to find out. He wanted to prove he was the strongest! "Alright, let's up the tempo!" He shouted, and punched, only to be blocked by a barrier.
"If you shout, the smokescreen is useless." Nine pointed out, as lasers rained out of his hand. Inasa took flight again, sending a lightning down with Weather Control to force Nine to block instead of pursuing, and then activated another of his Quirks.
Fierce Wings sprouted out of his back, black feathers raining down toward Nine from all sides… Only to be burnt by a sudden sprout of fire and a wild roar.
And then a white dragon sprouted from the smokescreen.
-x-
"You can turn into a dragon?!" Itsumi shouted as they took flight, rushing toward the Stormlord.
"Not for long." Zombie – no, Dragon – grumbled, his pale white scales shining under the sun as he shot out of the smoke screen the opponent had created.
"A wyvern?! Now fighting that makes my blood boil!" The Stormlord shouted back, and Dragon felt his eye twitch in annoyance. The whole 'Dragons have four legs and wings, Wyverns had two' was a modern distinction filtered solely from medieval heraldry, not any established distinction in the original myths.
He pushed aside his losing battle against modern fantasy iconography, roaring upward. Itsumi didn't miss a beat, launching one of her makeshift grenades, but the wind pushed it back toward them. Dragon dodged out of the way, moving closer and opening his mouth to unleash yet another torrent of fire. He felt his mouth strain a bit.
"What do I do with the book?!" Piper shouted, holding tight on his back.
"Don't lose it." Dragon replied. That was the main weakness of his big transformation. He couldn't change form by himself, safe for turning back into Zombie, and even then, that locked him from turning again for a while. Luckily, this time he had the perfect helper for this. "Whatever you do, don't let it go."
"Got it." Piper replied, holding with one hand on one of the spikes on Dragon's back. He wondered distantly what the actual Dragon Izuku thought of his current form, but ignored it, focusing instead on trying to reach the Stormlord with his cargo. Itsumi fired a few more shots with her other weapons, the braces around her arms, but she had depleted most of the content fighting the Prowler, so she now only had scattered shots that had little hope of reaching Yoarashi.
But that was fine.
They weren't the ones supposed to take him out.
Both Spider-Men jumped up, having been previously holding to Dragon's leg with their webs and now leaping upward, swinging as one. It was quite mesmerizing to see, he had to admit. While the difference were clear, the most notable the six arms on one of the two, their movements were very, very similar. They leaped together and launched their webbing as one, grappling each one of Inasa's arms and then holding onto the towers with the other arm. For good measure, the six armed Izuku also grabbed Inasa's leg and wing using his other arms.
"We got him!" He shouted, and Dragon rushed forward, opening his mouth to unleash another torrent of fire. The wind grew in intensity as Inasa's grin became almost maniacal, but Zombie was a Dragon. He wasn't about to get sent plummeting to his death by a storm, no matter how powerful it was.
He stopped his torrent of fire when Inasa brought down lightning, even as Nine changed the course of the attacks enough to give him a chance to get out of the way.
And then the God of Thunder and Horizon appeared behind Inasa. The God of Thunder was controlling the drum-drones, moving them to intercept incoming attack, and giving Kaminari the chance to bring down his Mjolnir on Inasa's head.
The impact of the thundering hammer was a mighty crash, and for a moment Dragon was sure he'd see Inasa's head split in two like a watermelon on a summer beach.
Instead, Inasa grinned, head bleeding but still intact, the clear signs of Hardening covering his skull.
"Hell yeah!" He shouted, "You even made me use one of my back-ups! You guys are firing me up, so let me answer in kind!"
Fire started to spread over his body, in a dreadfully familiar shape.
"Endeavor's Hellfire…" Dragon's brain started to realize what was happening. Endeavor's Hellfire fanned by Inasa's Wind Control, with the rain pushed away by Weather Control…
"Let's go! Make sure to not die! Prominence Storm!"
"Run!" Dragon shouted.
The fire exploded in all directions, a raging pillar that for a moment created a third tower of pure flames between the other two.
-x-
Clockwork jumped from roof to roof, dodging a rain of hands growing from the monstrous giant. At this point, how could he even describe what he was seeing? The monster was enormous, standing tall enough to obscure the sun behind his back. It sported six large arms, and from each of those sprouted more hands, enormous limbs that rained from above like the tentacles of a monstrous octopus.
The face at the front was Shoji's, but it also isn't. The eyes were milky white, and Izuku had to wonder if he could see, even if the question was unimportant given the dozen of eyes sprouting all over the arms or extending out of his arms, giving him a three hundred sixty degree view. He could see some of them had Zoom, Mei's Quirk, because they were large enough he could tell apart the crossair from the roofs he was standing on. He also clearly had Quirks to spot Izuku even when he hid behind a building, or when he tried to hide inside a house.
And then there were the other Quirks. Izuku wasn't sure how intentional it was, but the Greed was raining from above all kinds of attacks. At one point he barely dodged a flood of acid that melted entirely a building, and a moment later a chunk of ice grew out of one of the hands into an iceberg that almost cut off his only way of escape. If Clockwork hadn't used his Blackwhip to pull himself out of the way, he would have been captured.
"One for All…" A mouth muttered, extending from one of his arms. It was big enough to eat the top half of his body in one bite, Izuku realized. "Give it to me…"
"No thank you!" Clockwork shouted, kicking upward and sending the mouth back. It did absolutely nothing to stop the Greed, and it did get his attention.
Great.
Clockwork saw at least fifty hands, some on fire, some with the fingers spinning like drills, at least two with each finger handing in large, twisted mouths, rushing toward his position.
Then someone grabbed him and he was flying out of the way.
"Wrap your wings around my body, wrap your wings, wrap your wings…" His savior was singing, dragging him away. The hands followed them, a pillar of flash desperately trying to clutch them both, before they finally out sped them.
"I got him!" The other Izuku shouted as they landed, the wings on his back instantly starting to vanish.
"Are you an idiot!" An alternate Lady Nagant shouted, handing a passed out Izuku with white hair to the Slice Clockwork had avoided before, who immediately vanished, "We told you that he is hunting for Quirks! What do you think will happen if he gets yours?!"
"Honestly nothing, he doesn't sound like he would be a good singer- Alright, not the time for jokes, I get it…" The Izuku quickly turned around, "You are free now, right?"
"Yes."
"Excellent." The man nodded, "I'm Canary. That's Arsenal. This one is Revenant." He pointed to a paler Izuku that was ignoring them and instead studying the kaiju-sized Greed with a pair of binoculars. "You are…"
Izuku sighed. "I go by Clockwork, here, so I suppose that work."
Canary nodded, "Time-based powers?" He asked.
"Nope, I got sent back in time in a different timeline." Clockwork replied.
"I see." Canary looked at the Greed, "Any idea on how to take down that guy?"
"Punch it hard enough?" Clockwork asked. The other two turned toward him. "It's just an idea. That's how All Might stopped All for One, after all…"
"I can give it a shot." Arsenal offered. "But I'm not sure I can dent him alone. My version of One for All seems to have a lost some raw power in exchange for powering up my Quirks." She grimaced, "And I don't have a bullet that can kill that thing."
Canary hummed, "I might be able to do something about the size, but if this is a Shigaraki situation, we will also need raw power. I've seen the man get burned alive and stand back up, I don't fancy our chances of defeating him without a fully powered One for All." He glanced at Clockwork, "You don't have…"
"I have One for All, but I'm not at one hundred percent yet."
"Worth a shot." Canary sighed, "We also have Chimera though. That thing is following him, Paladin and their captured target right now, so we should be able to cooperate with him."
Revenant put his hand on the communicator, then moved the binoculars he was using. "I think that can work. Especially now."
"Why?" Clockwork asked, then followed the binoculars' gaze. A small figure was flying at high speed toward the greed, surrounded by green sparks.
"Is that the Green Scar?" Canary asked, having grabbed Revenant's binoculars to see properly.
The green comet was headed directly toward the Greed, Izuku realized. Dozens of hands emerged, trying to grasp the opponent. Clockwork was sure he could hear a faint 'SMASH' off in the distance.
And then the punch slammed into the wall of hands, and the weather changed, the impact causing the clouds above them to part. It was All Might's strength, Clockwork realized. That was what One for All looked like.
Revenant nodded, "I think that works, don't you Canary?"
"Absolutely. We can go ahead with our plan then." He turned toward Clockwork and Arsenal, "Can we count on you too?"
Clockwork nodded. "Seems like we Izuku are bound to throw ourselves into danger."
"We just really like saving people." Canary replied.
Revenant nodded sharply, "I guess it's something we never lose, no matter how shitty life gets."
Clockwork wondered what he meant, but before he could Arsenal tapped him on the shoulder, "Let's go. We have to deal some damage." She said. Clockwork nodded. His curiosity about Quirks and powers could wait.
-x-
Himikomori Tora, the Beast, prowled in the Forest, following the scent she had felt earlier.
The Beast was not dumb, despite what the Summoner seemed to think. She was more animal than human, sure, but she still had her own mental abilities. She just used them to hunt and feed rather than wasting them like the normal humans did.
The Beast followed the scent. It repeated often, but she never found the right target.
Izuku Midoriya's scent, her prey, her love, her promised meal.
She had been denied her meal so many, many times. In her own world, sure, but even now, even serving a new master, Himikomori's desires were still denied. She was surrounded by so many Izuku, and she couldn't feed of a single one of them.
Not that she wanted all of them. Gun was nice, but he smelled of age. He was older than she liked, his delicious taste spoiled by a life on the run and the challenges that wrought.
Izmird smelled even worse. He smelled ancient. His blood was probably amazing, aged rather than old, but she felt there was no way she could ever want the Dragon's blood.
The ones more fitting to her taste were Kitsune and Piper. Around her age, cute, a nice smell, and she could smell the faintest hint of blood from both of them. Had they killed? Had they wounded someone? Perhaps they had watched someone die. Whatever the case, she could fill it, the intoxicating smell of regret and desire for vindication.
Oh, she so wanted to feed, but she couldn't.
At first, she had followed the smell of another Izuku, but the Izuku she had found while following Martian smelled wrong. He smelled of youth and maturity, of a self-reliance and pride. He had achieved many things, and while he too smelled of regret, that regret was washed away from the rest.
And he was strong. Too strong. A hunter always knew a prey from a predator, and the so-called Green Scar wasn't just a mad animal. So, while Martian tried to fight the man, she had slipped away, looking for one more fight. One more in her favor. That was allowed by the Crest, because she was ordered to win. If she couldn't win, she didn't have to fight. At least, that's what her instincts told her, and it seemed the Crest was fooled.
At first, she had been following another smell. Izumi was fighting two people, and one of them smelled of youth. But now, she had found someone else. Someone she wanted vengeance on.
The bush rustled as the hunting woman spotted her pray. Ojiro, the man that had ruined her beauty and given her the scar that marred her face. He was alone, making his way through the forest, most likely trying to reunite with someone else. Judging by the direction, he planned to meet up with Izumi. The red woman that had carried away Martian and Usagi was probably too busy to help them reunite.
She prepared to leap fully, arching her back. Alone in the woods, Ojiro made the perfect pray. He wouldn't notice her until it was too late, until her claws had left enough scars to wash away the pain he had caused her. She would devour his blood, but only after he had paid for it.
She leaped, and then she found herself frozen in place.
"Sssh, little kitty." A voice whispered in her hear. She glanced at a woman, wearing the clothes of a witch, flying on a broomstick right above her head. She recognized her, but couldn't quite remember the name. One of Izuku's classmates? Or someone from the other class? Both were possible. "Let them. This is a lovely experiment, but your stage has come and gone."
Himikomori growled.
"Don't worry, don't worry. You are going to be welcomed among us." She said, "The True League for All has uses for anyone. And a Hunter for Izukus will prove quite fortuitous. So come, little hunter. Allow me to show you a place where you can really hunt."
The Beast couldn't move an inch, so she just watched as the land around her vanished.
She prayed this time she wouldn't awake in a cage.
(XX)
So yeah, with this we are in the final round. Izmird, the Stormlord and the Greed are the last men standing on the enemy faction.
That's good right?
... Right?
But yeah, they are monsters. This arc is designed to be, among other things, 'the one with the big Multiverse threat that reminds you the Multiverse is a big, big ocean', and I think I'm making the case quite effectively.
Izmird is a ruler, a king. I kinda enjoy giving different motivations to my baddies, and Izmird's whole shtick is about draconic greed. Ultimately, he seeks to collect all the knowledge and riches he can find. With the Multiverse open, he wants in to the infinite honey pot, but he knows that nothing goes well to the Emperor of the massive Empire that wants to rule it all by himself. Delegation is required, and he will delegate, whether those below like it or not.
Inasa Yoarashi is quite the funny character to use as a Villain, if you twist his personality rather than changing it. Still super excitable and overly zealous, just that now those same traits look a lot less friendly when the guy using it can activate Hellfire and fan it with wind until it consumes everything around it...
And then we have the Greed. If the other two's main trait is personality, this one's is definitely monstrosity. What AfO did here was absolutely insane and it shows.
Also, gotta love ominous figure in the shadow. Never a dull day.