Previously in Blood for the Blood God.
[… Acts of goodness are not always wise, master, and acts of evil are not always foolish…]
…but regardless, we shall always strive to be good. He chanted in his mind to keep his sanity; his true wish was to finish the job, for now this would have to do.
[When the frail of heart join the fray, the hunter becomes the hunted!]
Izuku snarled in his mind, suppressing the whispers of the [Beast Within].
[We are born of the blood; made man by the blood; undone by the blood. Through it we reach the truth of this world and peek into the light of the next…forget not who we are, master…]
The vampire let silence dominate the recesses of his mind.
[…fear the old blood, master…]
...
...
...
Now,
Currently in Blood for the Blood God.
Chapter 29: [A Violent Red Tide Called Midoriya Izuku]
Izuku impatiently tapped his foot against the floor of the elevator that was bringing him to the rooftop of the building. It had a heliport perfect for an escape, which was what Wolfram was most likely to do. The vampire hoped with all his heart that All Might had managed to reach the villain and save the professor and inventor.
A small noise echoed in elevator and the doors began opening, however the vampire had already left the metallic box with a use of [Blink], leaving his classmates behind in his rush.
Izuku's heart was beating like a war drum in his chest, the whispers of the [Beast Within] becoming more and more enticing as his senses kept being triggered by his proximity with his classmates. The vampire was sure that he was blood-drunk, as never had he felt so relaxed and powerful, yet eager to rush into combat. His friends' voices were a forgettable noise as Izuku rushed to the middle of the top floor, just in time to see a helicopter crash against the edge of the raised concrete platform that made the heliport.
The vampire expected to see the hero emerge from the wreckage of the helicopter, his heart tightening a bit at the mere notion that All Might had failed in his rescue attempt, but this feeling was soon dismissed as the hulking man soon landed close to him. All Might tenderly lowered David to the floor, the inventor beat up and scuffed; it was clear that he had tried to resist a bit the mercenaries, his wounds proof of that.
"All Might…I'm sorry…" David seemed to be under the effect of some drug, as his words came out slurred and he was clearly out of focus, but the sheer regret and pain in his voice was clear for all to hear. Izuku knew that those were the withdraw effects of the quirks used on the professor by Sam.
The Symbol of Peace merely smiled at the smaller man. "There there David. You don't need to apologize; you haven't done anything wrong, my friend." The blonde noticed that Izuku was close by, his brows narrowing a small margin before he motioned for the vampire to get closer. "Young Midoriya, please do me a favor. Escort David to a secure location, I still need to do a sweep of the area to make sure that there aren't any villains or mercenaries hiding nearby."
The vampire nodded, hearing the footsteps of his approaching classmates and Melissa. The girl would be overjoyed to reunite with her father, especially after such perilous little adventure.
Except…
Izuku immediately brought about his Blood Gauntlets up, covering his arms in blood metal while also pulling on a new quirk-factor he had recently acquired; four black tendrils emerged from his shadow, each carrying a heavy shield that had been gifted by a black-haired heiress (even if she was unaware of her gifting him anything).
"Ninpou Hissatsu: Teppeki no Bogyo! (Shinobi Arts Ultimate Move: Ironclad Defense)" the vampire placed the heavy plated shields in front of David while also pulling the inventor behind him, bringing his arms up in a defensive pose, much like the one that he took when defending Melissa earlier.
Various thunderous crackles echoed in the area, the vampire being thrown backwards due to the enormous impact that hit his defense. He hissed in pain, the blood-armor that protected his arms crumbling in a few spots to reveal holes both in the blood construct as well as the suit's sleeves and his own flesh. The smell of charred meat also hit his nostrils, the burnt flesh painfully reminding the vampire of its state.
"What the fuck was that?" Bakugou shouted his question, being the first to arrive next to David and check on the inventor. Noticing that David was well and had been protected, the ash-blonde clicked his teeth in annoyance, grasping the man and throwing him over his shoulders in a fireman's carry to bring him to safety. "Take the fucking offer she said; it will be a fun opportunity to make contacts she said!" He grumbled while carrying the man on his back close to his female classmates.
He observed Izuku raise himself up, the vampire jabbing those wicked gauntlet-claws into the bullet holes to dig out the metal, Bakugou nearly snarling at how the green-haired teen did that shit as if he was smoothing out his hair.
Todoroki got closer to the vampire and observed the situation, noticing that All Might was zero-ing towards the source of the terrifying shots. "Midoriya? Are you alright?" The half-and-half teen asked while guarding the perimeter, ready to summon ice shielding any time.
The vampire was clearly bothered by the damage he received, his eyes fully focused on the burning helicopter wreckage while he dug around his arms for the rounds that hit him and were buried in his flesh. "I'm fine, Todoroki. Check on everyone at the back to see if they were hurt." Izuku said as if his wounds didn't matter; they didn't matter to him, as he would regenerate them in seconds.
Yaoyorozu and Kyouka observed their surroundings while Bakugou tossed David on Kaminari, the electric blonde nearly buckling and falling down due to the sudden weight tossed on him. "Yo Bakugou, what the hell? A little warning, please?"
The bomber either didn't hear him or pretended not to. Anyway, he seemed ready to fight. His red orbs scanned the area, also wondering how they had been attacked. Their answer came soon enough, as All Might did a Texas Smash towards the flaming heli, a few shadows moved away from it. The punch pushed immense wind pressure on the destroyed aircraft, putting out the flames and pushing the helicopter into a corner.
"SHOW YOURSELF ALREADY, VILLAIN!" It was rather clear that the Symbol of Peace was not playing, the intense pressure that All Might exuded reaching even the hero trainees; they didn't flinch, but they were still feeling intimidated by it.
Hot damn, did Izuku and Yaoyorozu really face that and won? That is insane! Those thoughts ran in the minds of Kaminari and Jirou. Bakugou merely snarled, his grin growing as his hands sparked with a multitude of tiny explosions. Todoroki stared at the hero's back, seemingly familiar with such pressure.
The surprises – however – seemed to be endless today. The heli-wreckage suddenly began to rise from the floor and with scary momentum, it was thrown their way. An ice wall stopped the attempt at harm from the half-ton aircraft, stopping it as it crashed and rumble the frigid obstacle.
Todoroki released a small cloud of cold breath, eyes focused on the direction that the aircraft came from.
"Candy-cane you fuck! I was going to blast that shit away!" Bakugou shouted at the teen, hands already up and ready to do as he implied. Shoto seemed content on ignoring Katsuki's jab, thus further pissing off the ash-blond.
"I don't think we really care who took care of the heli." Kyouka nervously stated, her breaths deep. Yaoyorozu agreed silently with a head nod, trying to ascertain the threat that was capable of such. Kaminari wanted to add something to the discursion, but his jaw refused to work and let him speak words, leaving him to merely release tiny sounds from his mouth.
Their perpetrators soon revealed themselves. A group of 5 mercenaries remained, being led by their leader, the red hair and metallic mask an unforgettable sign of today. Izuku openly growled at the man, showing his sharp fangs at the mercenary leader.
"Well, you heroes sure are quick to dispatch violence and death when it suits ya, huh?" The man mocked them, the group still pointing their rifles up, now the target changing from the inventor to the hero trainees. "Don't worry, I like to answer in kind." Wolfram pointed his pistol at the group, sure that his mercenaries' firepower would push through the ice wall.
All Might was quick to respond to his act, as did Izuku. While the pro-hero cocked his fist back for another Texas Smash, Izuku [Blink]'ed to the group's left, various tendrils of dark matter exiting from his shadow and carrying with them the same rifles that the mercs were carrying. The shadow tendrils squeezed the triggers of their held firearms, unleashing a relentless storm of bullets upon the men. The vampire was sure that that would end their problem, but as his guns ran dry, he noticed something. The rounds were stopped midair.
"TEXAS SMASH!"
Were it not for the second blow from All Might, the vampire was sure that he would have received all his bullets back. As the wind pressure hit the mercs, the vampire took the chance to fall back towards the ice wall, finding a perch atop it and beside Todoroki.
Bakugou was quick to fly there to get a better sense of the field. "You fucks better stop ignoring me! Don't think yourselves better than me, I'll fucking deal with those piss ants!"
The two stoic teens ignored the explosion boy ranting.
"What do you think, Midoriya?" Shoto's question was answered by a gun suddenly smacking against his head, the teen barely blocking the blow. He glanced at Izuku, wondering what happened, but the vampire found himself busy with his own problems as his pistols suddenly seemed to have gained a mind of their own, the guns pointing their barrels at the vampire. He let blood tentacles emerge from his newly formed gauntlets and grab the weapons, the crimson tentacles crushing the pistols into harmless scrap metal before they could fire.
All the firearms at his disposal suffered the same fate before they could do more harm, the vampire wondering what happened.
"Fucking leech…" Bakugou called out, pointing towards the incoming villains. From the group of five, two were coming their way while another two were already defeated by All Might, the hero now attacking Wolfram. "Take care of the lanky-stick, I'll deal with that lard-fucker. Wait for my assistance, I'll be quick."
Izuku released an annoyed click of his teeth. His pupils – taking a diamond-shape – stared intently at the villain that All Might was facing. "It was his quirk. None of the grunts knew what it was," The vampire spoke while jumping from the ice wall and letting blood cover his mouth to protect his face, forming into his oni-mask. "but now I get it. It is some sort of magnetism."
Bakugou scoffed, cracking his fingers. "Doesn't fucking matter one bit. I'll destroy them all the same."
The mercs also looked confident in their abilities, the men slowly making their way the trio as if they were merely going on a walk.
"Wow, lookie here! Some brats thinking that they are the best just because All Might is here to cover them up." The lanky man spoke in a cynical tone, holstering his rifle and taking off his right-hand glove. "Normally Wolfram likes to do things quick and easy, but since the plans went to shit anyways, we might as well have fun while we wait."
The bigger mercenary just grunted, the two slowly making their way towards the group.
"I hate little brats like you two." The lanky pink-haired mercenary exclaimed while pointing his right hand at Izuku and Bakugou. His tan-skinned hand began to grow in length, becoming something akin to a very sharp-looking blade. "I hate heroes in general, but little kids that play heroes are my most hated thing." He swung his blade-arm a bit, almost as if testing the limb.
The bigger grunt at his side didn't speak much, merely keeping his eyes trailed on Bakugou.
"Don't you brats have something to say? Cat's got your tongues?" The lanky man shouted, the duos a few feet from each other. Bakugou and Izuku side-glanced at each other for a moment before returning their eyes back to the mercenaries. They said no other word, but their eyes said enough.
Pathetic…
The lanky mercenary and the chunky one were irritated by the teens' judging eyes. The duo got ready to attack the teens and make them beg for mercy before slitting their throats right in front of their little friends, but…
"Ninpou: Kuro Teza no Shibari (Shinobi Arts: Black Tether Binding)."
"Cluster Charge!"
Izuku [Blink]'ed behind the lanky mercenary, detaching some dark matter from his shadow and letting it wrap around the man like hellish snakes. The shadow tendrils tightly grasped the man, not letting him swing his blade-arm or do much of anything for that matter; Bakugou wasn't far behind the vampire. He had accumulated sweat on his hands, using his right to suddenly boost himself forward while his other hand grasped the pig's head and began unleashing a barrage of concentrated explosions.
Izuku glanced back to see if his prey had been captured and after confirming it, he turned his head to focus back on the battle occurring between All Might and Wolfram.
"I defeated that tub of lard before you got that gangly motherfucker!" Bakugou shouted, almost as if the situation was a competition. Izuku silently glanced back at the ash-blonde, not dignifying him with an answer and merely returning his eyes to the scene, witnessing All Might land a devastating punch against the mercenary leader's head, shattering the mask the man wore and throwing him on the floor.
Izuku wanted nothing more than to finish the job himself, but if All Might was on the case, then the vampire could assist later in other matters.
Bakugou began grinding his teeth, ignoring the shadow that covered his frame for a moment before he blasted himself away from the blow. The bigger grunt hadn't been defeated just yet, the fact pissing Bakugou off a great deal.
"Fucking DIE!" The bomber used his explosions to deliver a mean roundhouse kick to the grunt's head, but the man took the blow without looking worse for wear. He tried to get a hold of Katsuki's foot, but the blonde aimed his palms at the man's face. "Stun Grenade!"
Izuku's quarry was still secured, thus the vampire turned to aid Katsuki. He was about to [Blink] atop the man and paralyze him when his [Hunter Instincts] went off. Izuku retreated from his position just in time for an enormous piece of rebar to crack the floor under him, the metal being pulled off by some unseen force.
[Something is wrong, master! That man's power is suddenly growing tremendously!]
[We don't know it…what is it? What grants him this power?]
The vampire let Bakugou continue to deal with the grunt, noticing that the man seemed to be even bigger than before. His own capture was tossed aside due to the crumbling floor under them, the shadow matter that captured him still firmly holding him still (and gagging him, else Izuku was sure that the man would be spewing some colorful language).
The vampire caught from the corner of his vision something else being tossed aside with great speed, the object crashing against one of the other buildings. Anything metallic was being pulled towards where Izuku felt the strange pulsing power, his attentive eyes capturing the sight of a man. The teen recognized the coat, but everything else about the villain seemed to have changed.
Wolfram's skin turned into a deep glowing tone of red, almost as if his body was barely managing to contain the strange power that threatened to burst from within him. The vampire felt his skin tingle, his senses managing to capture the magnetic field that was washing over a kilometric area; around the mercenary leader's head Izuku noticed something akin to a modern-looking crown.
The vampire began an immediate retreat, dodging the rain of metal that began descending atop him. Izuku appeared behind Bakugou while the blonde was still fighting. The vampire grabbed the ash-blonde by the scruff of his neck and [Warped] the two far from the beast-like villain, a large chunk of metal crashing against the man and pinning him on the ground. Izuku let go of Katsuki's dress shirt just in time for the bomber to whirl around with an explosive palm, the green-haired teen easily dodging the heated attack and putting a small distance between the two.
"Fuck off, lamprey-bitch!" While the ash-blonde cussed, Izuku scanned their surroundings. Shoto was hanging back, attentive and ready to protect David and his less combat-ready classmates; thankfully Melissa had taken back control over the island's tech, thus ensuring that no more robots would be aiding the villains, else the groups would have to contend with facing a tiresome attrition battle in two fronts.
Izuku let the falling metal stop before he approached the bigger merc that Katsuki had been facing and the bomber, not willing to let his prey be taken, followed suit. They got closer to the merc buried under the mess of warped steel, but before Izuku could check on the man, the rubble and bent metal shifted. It was lifted and carelessly thrown aside, the beastly-looking man scanning the area and focusing on the two.
"Let us fight, brats! Show me your best!" The enhanced grunt charged at the two, his clothes mere scraps of cloth that didn't withstood his transformation and quirk-usage. Not that it mattered to Izuku, the vampire dodging the bull rush move and slashing with his claws at the man's exposed side. His gauntlet-claws didn't cut skin, the vampire retreating backwards with a jump; the villain tried to pursue him, but Katsuki intercepted him, treating the man to another vicious barrage of explosions aimed at the merc's torso.
"Die!" *Boooomm* "Die!" *Boooomm* "Die!" *Boooomm* "Die!" *Boooomm* "Die!" *Boooomm* "Die!" *Boooomm* "Die!" *Boooomm*
The burning impacts did get a response, the villain trying to flatten Bakugou like one tries to against a particularly annoying mosquito, but the bomber was faster.
Skin tough enough to withstand slashing and even explosions, Izuku mused, letting shadow matter pool around his feet. Let's try something more…internal. The vampire let Bakugou finish another barrage of attacks before he jumped in. As the blonde dodged another dangerous punch by using his explosions to boost himself up, Izuku suddenly appeared atop the outstretched arm of the villain, his blood gauntlets dismissed. Bakugou wondered what the shitty vampire was planning. Izuku was eager to show both his classmate and the rampaging villain his idea.
The merc grit his teeth and smacked his other hand against his arm, trying to squish the vampire. The hemomancer was faster, and with incredible agility he dodged the blow, now sitting on the grunt's right shoulder as if the man was merely a couch. The vampire's right hand flew to the mercenary's mouth and Izuku slapped the man almost as if wishing to wipe the man's sense of taste out of his mouth.
The vampire jumped away after his intense slap, letting the grunt spatter and struggle in a confused manner.
"Did you just fucking pimp-slap that fucker?" Katsuki asked in incredulous disbelief, also maintaining his distance from the wildly-swinging villain. Izuku shrugged his shoulders, staring at the man who seemed furious with the two teens.
"Let him tire himself out, it is just making it spread faster." The hemomancer stated cryptically, Bakugou grinding his teeth but following the advice of the vampire. The duo stuck close to the villain, bobbing and weaving around him and harassing him with minor blows.
The ash-blonde noticed that with each passing moment, the enhanced merc began to slow down. His swinging fists overextending more and more, and the man seemed to find breathing to be laborious; it seemed almost as if the villain had lost all his stamina in a mere moment.
Bakugou glanced at Izuku with a smolder in his gaze. This fucker, another power! He keeps getting more and more powerful…The ash-blonde began to accumulate sweat on his hands, letting the unstable concoction of his sweat gather more and more until he could display power just like his grenade gauntlets. It put a strain on his arm, the recoil would fuck his joints and muscles, but it would be a sure-kill against this grunt. Don't think for a second that you can surpass me, you fuck. The festival was a mere setback, I'll fucking show you!
Yet, before Katsuki could act and blow the opposing enemy to kingdom come, his prey was restrained. Much like the sword-bastard from before, shadow matter began spreading around the man. However, the disgusting and horrifying part of that was that the inky-black tendrils didn't sprout from the ground like before or even from that leech's fucking shadows. It exited from the merc's own mouth, shadowy tendrils exiting from inside him like abominations being birthed. The tendrils coiled around the man and captured him, the sight making Bakugou hold back a gag.
Disgusting!
Izuku merely watched the situation play out from a measured distance, cold eyes staring fixedly at the physically strong man be subdued in such manner. A combination of [Poisonous Blood], [Coagulation], [Shadow Control], [Permanency] and [Blood Dampener] stopped the man in his tracks before he could do much damage or get other ideas.
The merc had been insistent on combat with the two teens, but at any moment he could have made a run for his classmates. Shoto would be more than enough to stop the man, but Izuku wasn't one to let others do his work; he might also have let the [Inner Beast] choose that particular combination of attacks, but that was beside the point.
He could feel Bakugou's stare, but the ash-blonde wouldn't be foolish to pick a fight with him right now over who defeated who. They also had a bigger obstacle to face, Izuku's instincts calling attention towards the shadow that was growing in size close to them. The vampire's senses told him of incoming danger, Izuku glancing towards the direction where he felt so. And then, Izuku widened his eyes in surprise.
An enormous amalgamation of scrap metal was shaping up in the sky, more and more scrap being fed into the gigantic (and growing) cube that was approaching them.
"Perish alongside your precious students, All Might. He certainly won't miss you." Wolfram shouted, his bulging muscles moving alongside him as he swept his hands towards both the hero and the teens.
The hero grimaced, but still fixed his stance. "I will not surrender! A hero has a job to do! I shall have you spill everything about this little stunt of yours!" After a few moments to properly prepare himself, All Might cracked the ground under him as he jumped towards the metallic cube. "New Hampshire Smash!" The blonde hero crossed his arms and did a cross chop, his thick arms easily crushing the metal and destroying the attack aimed at the children.
Too easy…Something is wrong! All Might's instincts blared at him, finding Wolfram being carried by a tower made out of metal tubes and pieces, the villain wildly grinning at him while moving his hands. The hero then noticed that the metal that he had destroyed had simply parted, putting the hero midair between two walls of metal.
The two walls tried to close back and squash the American-themed hero into paste, but he extended his hands and held his death back. It was somewhat straining, the weight and awkward position not allowing the hero much leverage as he found himself stuck and restrained by the villain.
"No plan or thought, you always just jump into action as soon as you can! It doesn't matter if it is clearly a trap, the top hero has to show off and put up a façade!" Wolfram let his tower of scrap bring him closer to the restrained hero, a few other metallic cables and tubes wrapping around All Might's arms and securing the hero in place.
The two stared hard at each other, the hero's blue sapphires trying to intimidate the villain's purple-glowing orbs.
"Don't worry, All Might. I'll relieve you from your duty, that way you can finally rest your tired body, hahaha!" Wolfram's words were accentuated by his actions, the man harshly grabbing at the hero's side and twisting his hand, fingers digging into the suit and drawing blood. "How weak, Symbol of Peace!"
"Arhkk!"
The sight of All Might spitting up blood got all the hero trainees wide-eyed. Most due to the fact that they had never seen such thing happen; Izuku, however, knew some of the truth behind it, the vampire tremendously worried. Had All For One told Wolfram of the hero's weakness? What else had the hidden villain revealed?
"Don't worry! I made a tomb especially for you! That way your precious students don't have to see their teacher crushed; am I not the kindest?" The booming taunts from Wolfram angered not only the hero, but the vampire too.
Izuku looked at Katsuki, his nose picking up on the heavily sweet scent of nitroglycerin-like sweat that emanated from the bomber. It seemed that the vampire wasn't the only one pissed off at this debacle, even if he was sure that only he could hear the spoken words of the far off villain due to his enhanced hearing and the distance between the groups.
"You want to help?" Izuku rhetorically asked, approaching the ash-blonde.
Bakugou scoffed, violent intent and murder rolling off his body in waves. "Do you even have to ask, lamprey-eel-looking motherfucker?"
Izuku let the insult wash harmlessly off him. He glanced back at Todoroki, aware of the teen's orbs glancing at his back. Izuku was quick to fetch the dual-quirk user, two [Blinks] all that the vampire needed to have his classmate close. As the trio stared into each other, a plan was wordlessly formed between them.
The temperature around Shoto increased as his left side flamed up, his dress shirt and suit quickly burning up and showing the teen's bare skin. Bakugou had long removed his suit and rolled his sleeves back, putting his hands up and letting his hands spark up, crackling akin to firecrackers lit up his hand in a fearsome tone of orange. Izuku, behind the two, let shadow matter cover his hands akin to his Blood Gauntlets, the shadowy tendrils wrapping around his classmates waists.
"Take a deep breath and keep your mouth open, it will lessen the internal pressure caused by the explosion." Izuku warned Todoroki, eyes focused on the metal-manipulator villain.
Shoto nodded, the flames on his side increasing in intensity and making both the vampire and the bomber sweat.
"Stop wasting time, fucker! Let's kill that bitch!" Bakugou roared, his hands now constantly echoing the pop-and-crackle of his barely contained explosions.
[XXX]
[XXX]
"This is how you die, All Might." Wolfram grabbed the hero's neck with his free hand, the other still trying to dig further into the hero's wounded gut. "Don't worry about your pretty friend, I'll have him in a sweatshop building me and my associate new quirk-boosting equipment; it is a better use of him that anything this fancy island could ever hope to accomplish." The villain spouted his spiel, too busy with restraining the top hero to notice the defeat of his grunts.
Unfortunately – for the villain anyway – there was a group of teens very much willing to spoil his mood.
Izuku suddenly appeared from a mist-like fog, bringing with him heavy firepower. Literally in this case, as the trio appeared atop the metal cube, all their efforts aimed at the villain; the vampire left his classmates atop the two halves of the metal while he [warped] close to the hero. After he did a second [warp] to get close to All Might, Izuku's claws swiped at the villain, forcing Wolfram to back off less he lose a hand to the sharp claws of the vampire.
A firm hold on All Might's shoulder and a third [warp] had Izuku back at his starting position, his stamina being sapped tremendously due to the heavy effort. All Might barely had time to thank Izuku before the vampire vanished again, just in time for a tremendous explosion to set off, a torrent of flames following suit and illuminating the night sky like a second sun.
*BBBBBOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMM*
*FWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH*
The aftershock cracked many of the glass pane windows of the building they were on as well as many of the nearby buildings. The black oily smoke that remained blocked the sight from the result of this attack.
Kyouka was slightly deaf, even with her jacks and ears protected by the special headphones Momo had made for her. They watched this clash with wide eyes, wondering if they could even help in such situation; even Kaminari was left staring with wide eyes and mouth hanging open like a fish out of water. Melissa acknowledged the events while she took care of her father, the man sickly and too roughed-up to be out and about moving.
Izuku appeared again close to All Might, the vampire's breathing a deep and tired thing. On his hands were grasped Todoroki and Bakugou, the two also finding some trouble getting their breathing back in order. The ash-blonde's arms slightly trembled, but his vicious grin displayed that he was clearly not out for the count. He shrugged off Izuku's supporting and holding hand, his first few steps shaky until he found his strength again.
Todoroki was in a similar situation as the bomber. His fancy shirt and suit became ash as he deployed his flames like nothing before, and his breathing was labored, but soon the teen straightened his back. He might not be as proficient with his fire as he was with his ice, but he had been training.
Izuku took a deep breath, a languid feeling of tiredness trying to settle in his muscles, but the vampire pushed past it. Even with all that firepower, he could still hear the certain rhythm of the man's heart and his senses could still pick on the powerful magnetic field that made his main quirk.
Scrap metal was sent towards them, a rain of heavy metal fully intent in killing them. The icy barrier created by Todoroki protected the foursome, easily withstanding the metal thrown at them. The smell of All Might's blood was attractive, but Izuku was busy staring at the dispersing smoke that hid their attacker from sight.
Soon enough Wolfram entered the vampire's sight, and it was a gruesome scene. The villain had managed to somewhat protect himself, but he still had half his body burnt into a crisp. It was very clear that the villain was full of second-degree burns, maybe even third-degree ones. The flames of the two attacks had managed to lick the man in his face, reaching up to his eyes and covering his face in gruesome taut flesh covered in boils. The smell must also be something fierce, but luckily the hero trainees were far enough to not be subjected to it. Izuku was managing to observe it due to his enhanced eyesight, and even them he was barely able to make the scene out.
The villain stared hatefully towards the group, his less injury-filled hand searching among the tattered remains of his coat for something. He managed to find whatever it was that he was looking for, Izuku's eyes identifying the object as a cylinder; the villain opened the container and for a moment Izuku's world stood still as if a single movie-frame.
The villain consumed one of the precious marbles inside the container, sending Izuku into a frenzied rage.
HOW DARE HE CONSUME THE FRUIT OF OUR LABOR? THIS FOOLISH AND ROTTEN MAN DARES TO INGEST OUR GLORY INTO HIMSELF?! His thoughts filled with absolute grudge and rage, the vampire launched into an all-out offensive move, uncaring as he used [Rage] with reckless abandon. All but in a blink of the eye Izuku had approached Wolfram, the villain flinching in surprise as the vampire suddenly was all up in his face, bringing a clawed hand down in a motion that would have – literally – ripped the man's face off had it connected.
The villain managed to drape himself in steel, the vampire's claws digging deep into the metal, but not fast enough to go through it; the split second that the vampire stayed stuck in the villain's defenses was enough for Wolfram to counter. The mercenary controlled one rod of metal of about 30 centimeters, and with the aid of his boosted power, shot the impromptu projectile into Izuku. The vampire couldn't defend in time, and thus ate the attack in full force.
His reckless charge was repelled as the steel rod pierced his gut and launched the vampire away from the villain. Izuku slammed into the concrete floor with great force, clutching at the wound while hissing in pain and anger.
"Aren't you a tad too murderous to be a hero, kid? That sort of killing intent is best suited for us villains." Wolfram commented, the burnt and ruined skin that decorated his arms and face flaking and falling off, the skin under it new and tender. "Amazing, ain't it? One pill and you are back from the brink of death and ready to fight. Imagine what an entire battalion could do with a supply of these?" Gloating to the hero and trainees, Wolfram sent a surge of metallic tubes towards Izuku, intent on capturing the vampire.
The teen quickly got to his feet and retreated, activating the Full Gauntlet and using it to deflect any other metal bits that tried to either hit or subdue him. A mountainous amount of scrap came to bury him, but before the vampire needed to worry help arrived.
Bakugou blasted in front of Izuku, blowing the incoming projectiles away. Todoroki was quick to arrive at the vampire's side, also firing a wave of flames toward a second rain of metal that was quickly melted and rendered into useless slag.
All Might was by his side, worriedly and gingerly trying to offer some aid to the vampire. "How is your wound, young Midoriya?" Seeing Izuku still clutching at the broken rod that pierced the hemomancer at the stomach level, the Symbol of Peace chastised himself in his head. How could he allow these children to get hurt while fighting a battle that he should have already finished!
Izuku snarled, grabbing the rod with his Full Gauntlet-clad hand and with an act that shocked everyone, he pulled the metal bit off. A roar of pain escaped his mouth, his oni-mask wobbling and almost losing its shape, but the vampire got a hold of himself. There was some bleeding, but soon enough the hole in his torso was sealed shut, leaving no scar whatsoever. He held the bloody rod in a tight hold, staring back at Wolfram and narrowing his eyes, promises of violence and bloodshed clearly displayed on his expression.
The steel rod began to crack under his holding hand, the metal turning into a shade of reddish-orange color as the blood that coated it began to work. Soon the metal was nothing more than rust dust blowing in the wind.
"How scary." The villain sarcastically commented, pulling more and more scrap, specifically rebar rods akin to the one he had pierced the vampire. "Let's test the limits of your regeneration, vampire boy! Let's see too if your friends can heal as well as you!"
"Don't you forget about me, villain!" All Might acted as soon as the villain finished his spiel, jumping to attack the mercenary and dissuade him from the area of such deadly wide attack. They might be hundreds of feet up, but the risk of one of these still hurting other civilians or heroes wasn't null. It was bad enough that one had hurt one of his students, the hero had to step up and stop this.
Wolfram had to forgo his attack in favor of bringing heavy metal plates to block the incoming punch from the blonde hero as well as the incoming funnel of flames directed at him. His ears also captured the sound of sequential explosions, another one of the hero brats coming to attack him. Troublesome kids! That spook said that he would pay for rare and powerful quirks; these kids fit the bill. I'll need to get a bigger check to fill in the ranks that I lost due to these shitty brats.
The merc leader sent a big scrap pile towards the explosion brat while using another to protect himself from the hulking hero as well as defend himself from the fire that other kid was throwing his way. His power responded smoothly, the device on his head sure being a marvel. Wolfram was quite good with his quirk, but it was more of a reliable trump card that he rarely had the need to use – since normally his planning would take care of any and every problem before it reached this point – yet today even with plans within plans, he had been backed in such a corner.
No wonder the spook wants that vampire brat and his quirk. This healing drug is amazing, and obviously that ain't all it can do. Wolfram mused as he blocked another blow from All Might, the heavy plate denting and breaking under the hero's might, allowing him to keep approaching the mercenary. Tch! Fucking pain in the ass! Wolfram grit his teeth and greeted the hero with a punch of his own, the two meeting halfway and were now measuring strength, trying to push back against each other.
Normally the merc would never try such risky tactic, but with the aid of an enhancement quirk such as [Muscle Augmentation] and the boosted power granted by David's device, Wolfram could withstand minor confrontations like this, even more now since he could feel the miraculous drug working on his system, repairing any and every little bit of damage that the villain acquired; he honestly felt…
"I'm fucking invincible, All Might!" Wolfram shouted, the previous numerous steel bars and rods were merged into a single, machete-looking construct that slammed against the hero. The Symbol of Peace was pushed back and had to resort to being saved again by the two other teens, explosions blowing a great chunk of the construct away while a sudden iceberg was created, stopping the remaining bit and forming a sort of improvised bridge that pointed to him.
He tried to move the metal or divide it again into tiny bits to rain attacks upon the group, but the metal was further encased into ice. Wolfram grumbled in annoyance, but suddenly shivers went up his spine, and they weren't caused by the iceberg, which was still far from him.
"Ninpou Hissatsu: Shutsugen Kira! (Shinobi Arts Ultimate Move: Apparition Killer)"
The vampire brat! Wolfram once more found himself face to face with the vampire, but this time Izuku had arrived alone, stealthily moving until he could pounce upon him. Wolfram observed a red blade – a Kodachi if he wasn't mistaken – firmly grasped on his hand, the blade incoming towards his neck.
Shit, the brat got the drop on me! The villain used his quirk to both manipulate the weapon as well as bring some metal to protect himself. The second task was successful, metal-alloy tubing emerging from his tower to protect the mercenary, yet the first and most important task didn't bear fruit. He could feel a tiny amount of metal in the weapon, but nothing that he could control. He unconsciously brought his left arm up to protect his neck. What is it made out of?
The vampire snarled, not offering anything to the villain beside the edge of his blade, carried by his armored hand dressed in both Blood and Full Gauntlet.
The first touch of the blade against the tubing that protected Wolfram caused sparks to emerge. The improvised defense didn't stand for long, as the superheated red blade carved its path towards the villain's neck, the obstacle in the vampire's way was cleanly sliced off. The red blade didn't stop, continuing its path as it meet the mercenary's arm. The smell of cooked flesh emanated, the blade cutting through the corded and dense muscle, slowing down somewhat. It didn't stop though, and Izuku's strength was enough that he lopped off the offending arm with his swing, the path now free to the villain's neck.
[Give up your blood, flesh bag! Your only use is as nutrition and cultivation material for us!]
[We offer you the kindness of death, which is much too good for an undeserving vermin such as yourself! You dare touch the sum of our work?]
[You have made Melissa cry! A thousand deaths are too kind for the likes of you!]
The [Inner Beast] roared in his mind, Izuku's eyes shining like rubies as he poured most of the power of his [rage] state into this swing. A roar left his maw, his red blade finally touching the villain's thick neck and slashing into the corded muscle; Wolfram's eyes bulged widely, almost falling off their sockets as the pain immediately registered in his mind, his other arm desperately coming to grasp at the vampire's attacking arm with a vice-like grip.
Izuku felt his blade finally stop as dug almost halfway through the villain's neck, the blood that should have gushed out being greedily drunk by the blade. His other hand shot towards where the vampire remembered the merc leader store away the cylinder, his fingers almost grasping the storage unit before the villain let go of his arm, opting to use his quirk and the metal around his tower as projectiles to push the vampire back.
Izuku hardened blood around his torso, willing to withstand the barrage if it allowed him to finish the fight. The villain began showering him with metal scrap, doing everything he could to dislodge the vampire and give himself some breathing room; unfortunately for the green-haired teen it worked, the villain removing the sword from his neck (the blade a few centimeters from digging into the bone and severing life) while also pushing the vampire back.
The mercenary immediately assured that the cylinder with the pills was still in his possession, and he immediately opened it, grabbing three pills; he quickly ate one while applying the remaining two in his open and gushing neck. For a moment Wolfram thought he was too late, the edges of his sight darkening and he could swear to be feeling extremely cold, but the medicine saved him from the brink, the man nervously (and heavily) sweating while his eyes searched for the vampire. He could not lose sight of that kid!
Pain the likes of which Wolfram never felt before triggered into his severed left arm, the stump grossly bubbling as the flesh morphed to cover the stump and blood stopped flowing from the wound. Some bits were seared, proving the high temperature of the blade that the vampire had used, but soon enough (in a gross display one might add) it was as if no limb of his had been cut, a new arm replacing the old.
The villain panted in agony. He was used to pain, but this was completely maddening. He took stock of his supply of the miraculous saving pills, finding himself only with three remaining ones. Not good, the spook wanted at least two. It was frustrating, but even with all his power and enhancement from the quirk booster device, Wolfram was still being pushed back. I'll fucking bury everyone; the vampire brat can heal like this too, he can survive missing a limb or four!
Izuku crashed back on the floor, feeling the strain of [Rage] call its due. His body healed, still in condition to fight, but the vampire had to search for other means of attack. Besides that, he had to take the Ambrosia Pills away from Wolfram; a battle of attrition had left them all worn out, especially All Might – who was on a timer. He began to pull out the bits of metal that had pierced his suit and defenses, glad that the only damage had been to his clothing, the Full Gauntlet still pristine.
He glanced back at his classmates and All Might. The hero was coughing up blood, steam emerging from his side. Not good, he is clearly on his limit and is pushing it. I don't know his true health state, and if I were to give him my some of my blood, it might just finish the job and kill him instead of healing him. He glanced to his classmates, finding Shoto and Katsuki to be approaching him. If he had a plan to help to All Might keep his secret safe, now was the time.
Especially since Wolfram also seemed to be willing to finish the fight. Massive amounts of scrap metal began to be called by the villain, the shine of the quirk boosting device illuminating the man almost like a halo. He began to recklessly pull metal from his surroundings, uncaring if it came from the nearby buildings' structures.
"I have an idea." The vampire murmured to the American-themed hero, sending him a serious gaze.
"Young Midoriya?"
"Your timer is almost over, right? Then you will have to trust me." Izuku stated. "At this point anything goes, we can't let them see you in your weak state." He said while discreetly pointing towards the other two close by teens.
"It is my responsibility to take care of this villain, you children stay back. You all have done splendid work already." The hero tried to argue, but his argument lost several points of credibility as he broke out into another bloody coughing fit. He had - at least - the decency to look to the side in shame.
"Hope you have enough in the gas for one last push, hero." Izuku tried to put some humor into the situation, but his tone and dark-type of humor didn't have the intended effect. He licked his fangs and turned to the farther location where Yaoyorozu, Kyouka, Kaminari, David and Melissa remained at.
One [Blink] Had Izuku at the rich heiress side, the vampire's eyes shining with the eldritch light of his improved [Mesmerize].
"I'm going in." He stated to Momo, gazing deep into her onyx orbs. For a moment the girl rejected the mind touch, but considering the type of situation, it was clear that the vampire had some purpose behind the action. Thus, she hesitantly opened her mind to the red light and mind touch of the vampire.
[XXX]
[XXX]
"Can you do it?" It took no more than a few seconds, the experience still sending her mind in circles around herself. It was intense, the high-speed at which Izuku's thoughts and ideas flowed in her a barely contained maelstrom of forbidden knowledge and power; the vampire's processing power was immense, but still he had managed to hold himself back. To only dive into the most shallow parts of her own brain and merely grant some knowledge instead of reading it from her mind or forcefully pulling it into the surface of her mind.
She didn't speak and instead began to pull on her last reserves of lipids. Once this was all over, she would dine into the fattest wagyuu steak that fine money could buy and then she would proceed to stuff herself full of food until she passed out. For now, though, she had been granted a way to help, a task that only she could accomplish.
Her creation emerged and she felt weak, but the vampire was by her side, supporting her ever so easily.
"Easy does it." He whispered, helping her get into position.
Momo grasped the handle of the mounted gun, the weapon much too light for such an intimidating design. The materials that she made it weren't suited to withstand the sheer offensive power that this gun could deploy, but considering the circumstances it would have to do. Izuku trusted in her to do it and score the victory. She had to do it.
His presence was no more, and it left the remaining others questioning the purpose of the weapon, but Momo knew what to do, and that was all that mattered.
She grasped the reloading bolt and pulled it, placing in the big chamber the 20mm-round she had especially made with non-ferrous materials. It was bigger than her entire hand, but that wouldn't matter. The RT-20 was recoiless, but the damage it would cause...
[XXX]
[XXX]
Izuku emerged back with All Might, huffing tiredly. He had abused the use of [Warp] and now it was taking its toll on his stamina, add on top of that the languidness followed by the use of [Rage], Izuku was truly feeling the strain. Still, he soon fixed his breathing and offered a hand to help the top pro hero up. "You might only have one shot at this, sensei." The vampire murmured, allowing his blood to cover himself in the usual Gauntlet/Greaves combo; his right hand still held the red kodachi blade, the blood-creation construct seemingly to be alive and asking for more. He could feel as if the [Inner Beast] was loose, and such thing might not be far from the truth as he was still in his [Rage] state, if only barely due to overfeeding in blood.
The power was waning, slowly draining him. It lasted this long due to the surplus of life-liquid he had ingested so far, but it was reaching its limits. The vampire would put everything into this last attack. The hemomancer took a deep breath and pushed more blood into the finished construct, elongating and thickening the kodachi until the final result was a magnificent Odachi (this one being 170 cm long).
Edgeshot had given to Izuku a few training scrolls with a myriad of techniques, most of them pertaining to Ninpou (Shinobi Arts) that were highly versatile. One could accomplish them with ninja tools/weapons, or with what they had access too - in this day and age that was mostly quirks. Most of the skills there worked with stealth or deception-based tactics, but a few of them were fully focused in combat. The swordsmanship that the Shinobi hero had taught Izuku (finishing techniques included) mostly worked with a blade already drawn, as it was easier to simply execute the slashing motion with an already-drawn blade - Apparition Killer the first move Izuku could barely manage to successfully do - but Edgeshot was an avid preacher to the idea that one could learn many things and incorporate them into other fields.
Battoujutsu was more up Yoroi Musha's alley, as differently from the commonly-practiced Kendo, the art of drawing from the sheath was for combat effectiveness. Nonetheless, Edgeshot had ""borrowed"" a few moves and techniques from the Samurai Hero, incorporating them into his own style of shinobi martial arts. Izuku had been exposed to a few of these techniques, but he had failed to perform all of them so far (Apparition Killer being the sole exception). However, now the vampire didn't have the luxury of other chances, else the plan he had worked out would fail. They could not fail.
Wolfram had a massive attack getting ready and was launching a few distractions (if you could call a few tons of compacted metal aiming for you distractions) to stall the group out. The mercenary leader was truly aiming to kill them.
Izuku took a few deep breathes to ease his tired lungs.
"We are going to open a path for you. Don't hold back and finish him already." The cold way Izuku spoke towards his teacher could give the impression that he wouldn't accept any other course of action. Besides, he had a contingency plan in case All Might fell short. "Todoroki, please clear some space for us, the sky is too cluttered." The vampire stated, creating a sheath out of his shadow matter and letting it hang from his left hip, the blood-red Odachi snuggly fitting into the musou-black sheath.
The youngest Todoroki grunted his acknowledgement, aiming his left hand towards the sky and working on pushing out his strongest flames. His left side was engulfed in yellow-red fire, the brightness caused by fire making it hard to look at the teenager. He wordlessly followed the command of his friend, the torrent of flames that he launched lighting up the sky in a manner that those present would seldom forget. Izuku himself was highly impressed with the display of his friend's prowess, Shoto's power akin to an unstoppable force of nature. The vampire hoped to see the move more frequently during training sessions now.
Bakugou growled, unwilling to be left behind or ignored. He had plenty of gas in the tank and he could dish out as much, if not more attacks than that candy-cane fuck. However, it would be a waste for him to just blast his explosions around without a clear goal; he would show All Might his pinpoint accuracy and prove that he was the top 01 in his class. The ash-blonde teen raised his arms and accumulated sweat on his hands; he let the explosive concoction begin to heat up and light his palms into a fiery-yellow tone. Many of the smaller metal cubes launched their way found their end in a firework-like manner, Katsuki sucking his teeth to endure the mind-shattering pain running in his arms, his veins bulging under the stress and his shoulders screaming bloody-murder at him. Yet, he persisted. Howitzer Shelling Turret! You fucks aren't the only ones with fancy special moves!
The night sky lit up in a manner that couldn't be described as anything less than mythical. All Might was stunned for a few moments, being forced to acknowledge the strength of the new generation. These kids did end-up growing up faster than normal, but they were all the more tough due to it.
A light poke touched the hero, the green-haired vampire at his side tapping the man with the handle of his weapon. "Stop gawking and let's get this done." Izuku's voice tone was a serious thing, but All Might couldn't help but worry about the teen. Izuku's mouth was hidden under the oni-shaped red mask, but his eyes spelled a clear message to anyone that could stand to maintain eye-contact. Young Midoriya...
Lamenting would not get anything done, thus All Might buried his worries for now. He had already neglected his duties for too long, it was time for him to show why he was called the Symbol of Peace. He let his usual confident smile appear on his lips, clenching a fist and flexing his chest wide. "Worry not, you zygote." He loudly exclaimed, power brimming from his frame even as the incoming gigantic metal cube descended to crush everyone here. "I am here!"
Izuku also got ready. All Might began his rush to reach Wolfram, trusting the vampire to follow through with whatever plan he had. The concrete floor cracked under their force, the duo rushing towards the villain unimpeded, gouts of flames and precise explosive shelling clearing the way for the hero and trainee to ascend the rubble tower that housed Wolfram.
The villain began to increase his assault, his super attack still not ready, but at the rate which All Might and that vampire-brat were rushing towards him, he'd be defeated if he didn't do something to remedy the situation. He pushed the quirk-boosting device to its absolute limit, bringing both arms down and throwing the gigantic metal cube towards the group. It would surely destroy everything, but no hero would ever have the courage to face him once it was clear that he had brought down All Might.
"Get crushed by your own recklessness, All Might. Watch those children and your friend become stains in the floor you stand."
[XXX]
[XXX]
(Recommended OST - Rules of Nature - Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance)
The gigantic cube was descending towards them, casting a terrifying shadow over the entirety of the Haruka Mirai building. Yet, the vampire couldn't find in himself any trace of fear.
[His blood is tainted, but it shall do for a restoring meal. A pathetic fool that barely counts as food is disgracefully struggling, touting a borrowed and fake power.]
[His end is near, we shall make sure of it!]
[One cannot flee from us, for we are the essence of life.]
Izuku's legs took long strides, allowing him to follow behind All Might as the man rushed to face the villain one more time. The approaching death mattered not, his life essence pumping through his veins and beating with the drum of victory. His mind cleared of all his previous rage-induced thoughts, clearing for a brief moment until they returned like the raging waves of a stormy ocean.
"In my veins I hold the key of life."
The further they ran, the closer Izuku and All Might got to the enormous obstacle.
"Flowing, shapeless, without clear definition."
Izuku's sheathed Odachi blade seemed to be brimming with power, not unlike when the vampire called upon one of his ultimate moves: [God Shattering Star]. Even when not even a single inch of blade was out of the black sheath, the air around the vampire seemed to be rending.
"I carve my path against this ruthless mountain that does not give back what it takes."
All Might now seemed to be worried about this plan, especially seeing as while they hadn't been hindered by the smaller projectiles, the biggest one remained. The hero grit his teeth, calling upon the maximum power of his ancestral quirk, the crystallization of eight generations of heroes fighting for the good of the common people. The young ones had done enough, inspiring him to act and go plus ultra. Thus, even with his aching side and loosening grasp over his quirk, All Might cocked his fist back and flexed his muscles. He could push past this obstacle, the zygotes supporting him had made sure of it.
"Detrooooooiiiiiiddddd..."
Izuku pushed his legs to their utmost, the explosive power of his [Flash step] pushing him in front and over the Symbol of Peace. His right hand, clad both in Blood Gauntlet and reinforced by the Full gauntlet, rested upon the simplistic handle of his blood creation. His clawed, armored fingers slowly grasped the handle, the veins in his arm bulging to obscene sizes as they pumped life fluid with such incredible pressure.
"I call upon the power of the fierce, bloody wind; please, grant me a rending..."
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"[Jetstream]!"
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*Slice*
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The gigantic deadly attack of the villain was vertically split in the middle as Izuku drew out his Odachi with an impossibly-fast movement, the temperature of the surrounding area increasing various degrees in a mere moment as the crimson-red blade split the titanic metal cube and left behind two vermillion-red halves of the whole. Even All Might was left speechless. Wolfram stared wide-eyed at what was his trump card be circumvented, opening a clear path for a certain America-themed hero to advance unimpeded.
Seeing his demise approaching him - as a burly fist - in high speed, Wolfram began to drape himself in many layers of metal, hoping that the improvised armor was enough to allow him to survive the blow. It would be a close thing, but with the quirk-booster, he would make it...
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A rushing gust of wind was the first thing he felt before the following thunderous noise boomed, the echo of the sound taking few moments to catch up as the sound barrier was broken. It was a gunshot, or something akin to it. Wolfram wasn't sure. What he was sure, however, was that whatever it was, it had effortlessly pierced his defense; hell, he was lucky to still have a functioning head attached to neck. His thoughts were fuzzy, and he felt as if his head was a bit lighter. He needed to get attack back, to offer a counter. Anything. Anything. Anything. Anything….
*KRAAAAAAACKAAAABBBBBBBBBBBBBBBOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!*
"SSSSSSMMMMMMMMMMMMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The hero's fist landed squarely into the villain's face, the punctured hole in the metallic defense the perfectly made weak spot. Wolfram might be enhanced due to his second, given quirk and the quirk-boosting device, but he was not invincible; his powers had been boosted, but the device that granted the villain such power had been damaged, twice now in the short span of a few seconds.
(End of OST)
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The sun was rising from the coast, and following the first rays of light were a squad of tactical helicopters, their approaching LZ being the remains of the Haruka Mirai skyscraper. What once was a monument to human ingenuity and hopes now was a dangerous wreck of a building, barely sustaining itself up due to smart engineering and the resistant materials it was built from; were it to be the standard construction, it would have gone down and under quite a long time during the titanic fight. As things stood, rubble and metal was scattered around the rooftop and the surrounding buildings, much damage and destruction caused by the mercenary leader's rampage and the attacks that dealt with him.
Speaking of the villain, he was carelessly draped against a pile of concrete and scrap metal, a far cry from the previously imposing man. Wolfram had thinned down considerably; gone were his muscles and opulent frame, his limbs now thin and weak as those of fairly old man. His clothes were a tattered mess, but what called the most attention was the nasty scar tissue that ran on the left side of his face: it was a mess of pulled tissue, almost as if something had forcibly pulled the skin until it ripped and then it was let to heal naturally, causing the deformation that covered half the mercenary's face. The quirk-boosting device that had rested on his forehead before was a pathetic mess of broken bits, the prototype unusable now and no better than scrap.
His survival was a miracle caused by his over usage of the prototype miracle drug called Ambrosia. The use of three pills in succession had granted the villain enough time to heal from his certain death. All Might's blow might have been a powerful thing, but it was never intended to kill. By itself that is, but coupled with the round shot at the villain, Wolfram had lucked out in his gamble with death.
One of the many piles of rubble began to shake, the concrete chunks and warped metal frames being pushed aside as a figure emerged from it. A clawed hand was the first thing visible, pushing every debris piece away and allowing the teen buried under it to finally stand up. His own clothes were mere tattered remains; the fancy suit riddled the tears and bullet-holes in different areas. However, the person wearing the previously luxurious outfit was hale enough. His right arm still firmly clutched a long red blade, but one good look would reveal that it was less intentional and more that his muscles had locked in place due to the overwhelming strain. Had it not been for the reinforcement of the Full Gauntlet, Izuku was fairly sure that he would be forced to let his body create new bones for his arm, as the previous ones would surely have been reduced to calcium-phosphate dust. Outside of his limp arm, the vampire's legs were also heavy in their steps, the physical strain of pushing his [Rage] state for so long finally asking for its due payment.
The vampire scanned his surroundings, noticing that after All Might's last Detroid Smash attack, the wind pressure had wasted the rooftop/helipad area and essentially pushed everything away with such fierce force that one could be forgiven in thinking a hurricane had ravaged the area. He had already detected the villain though, and was walking towards him with heavy steps. Izuku arrived close to the shrunk and weak man, lightly stabbing him the tip of his blade and activating [Coagulation], just in case.
Many might call Ambrosia a miracle drug, but it was not the cure-all end-all medicine. It was still a prototype. They had reduced the strain that [Ambrosia Effect] had on people, but it was still an incredible acceleration of the consumer's healing; the body couldn't heal from nothing – much like one could not build a house from air. It required incredible amounts of nutrients and resources. The Ambrosia pills had been jam-packed with those, but even them it was incredibly toiling in the body. Wolfram had eaten those while abusing the power of the quirk-booster device; it was a true wonder how the villain hadn't died before from chemical unbalance.
Nonetheless, Izuku was still willing to finish the job. First, however, the vampire began a pat-down search on the man, hoping to find the cylinder canister that the merc was carrying. His search was a bit slow as while there weren't many places where the dried-up husk Wolfram could hide it, the vampire was searching the item with only his left hand (the right one still out of commission). Upon finding it, he tossed it into his shadow, where it sunk slowly, almost like an item that had fallen into swamp waters.
His major objective complete, Izuku let his eyes turn back to the villai–…mercenary leader. With what the vampire was about to do, it was better for him to not be throwing around the label like he was a saint himself. He scanned the area for All Might, finding the hero to be far enough from him. After that last wind blast, no one was closer to Wolfram than him. Izuku's sight began to get dyed into blood-red tones, the song of life and death starting to play strongly in his mind. Wolfram's particular song was muted thing, his tone particularly pissing the vampire off. Though, could he finish the life of this villain and prevent a world of hurt in the future? Was he strong-willed enough to do it? This is a living person, not a broken puppet stripped of its will.
[A hunter must hunt, master. We prey on the wicked, so that the meek can prosper. We shan't fear this vileblood.]
[He is not a man, he is a tumor to be ripped off. He is merely prey. A beast to be hunted.]
[Hunt!]
"One bastard left alive is enough, I don't need more adding on the pile." The vampire spat the words out, his blood-red Odachi being stabbed into the man's torso, the sword drinking up the remaining blood instead of the vampire.
[Putrid wretch. Vileblood. Your memories and blood are about the only things useful, scum.]
The blood construct finished drinking, leaving behind the dried husk of the mercenary behind. Some of the blood was passed along from the blade to Izuku, the vampire seemingly not bothered by his act. He huffed as snips of memories tried to call his attention, but he let them fade to the background of his mind; there was no wish on his part to see the life of the man.
Izuku took a deep breath, finding the scent of blood in the air to reach his nostrils; which was strange, since there shouldn't be any left in Wolfram. It was a sweet thing, enticing the hemomancer with the promise of a bountiful harvest and an incredibly addicting taste. Where is this coming from? The smell…it is…familiar. I have sensed it before. Where?
[This is…]
[It can't be…]
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…
The elevator and stairs leading to the rooftop where about the only part of the area that hadn't suffered extensive damage, and had served as shelter from the terribly strong winds that were caused by All Might; Momo coughed as some dust bothered her throat. She had been the one to lead everyone to this place immediately after doing her task, aware that the finishing blows would surely cause aftershocks and terrible pressure.
Kyouka was by her side, protecting her ears and trying to not vomit. Her cochlea and semi-circular canals were more sensitive than most and the wind pressure and loud explosions had really done a number on her. She was used to some degree of loud (she did go to class with Katsuki after all), but this was truly out of her scale. She would need to bump her training up a new notches, she felt as if she didn't have much use this night, the feeling lightly burning in her chest.
While the duo rested, Kaminari checked up on the state of David. The man had clearly seen better days, but he was slowly getting better from his lethargic state. His check-up on the Shield patriarch done, Denki searched for the man's daughter. He found her resting up on a corner, curled up in a ball. Must be frightened out of her mind from everything that happened today; I know it is not every day one gets attacked by villains like this. Let's see if my charms haven't rusted.
"Hey, how are you doing?" Kaminari asked in English to the blonde, his words a bit accented but still understandable. He got no answer out of the girl, but he noticed that she was shivering lightly. He took easy steps towards the girl, the low lighting of the room not aiding him at all. As he got closer to the Shield, Kaminari felt the floor under him sticky, as if he had stepped on a puddle or something.
He stopped his approach and glanced down, wondering if the fight had broken some water or coolant pipe that was leaking. Curiously, he crouched and touched the fluid, noticing how sticky it was…
Wait, is this?
"H-h-h-h-help!" He shouted to his group.
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Izuku arrived at the entrance to the elevator and stars that led out from the rooftop/heliport, the doorway blocked by rubble. The vampire impatiently slashed at it, but considering his exhausted state, his attacks lacked both power and the high-temperature that had allowed him to barely execute [Jetstream]. The hemomancer called upon his shadow, dark matter tendrils and blood tentacles now aiding him in removing the obstacles that were blocking his access.
His efforts paid off, enough rubble moved that he could squeeze in. A use of [warp] had the vampire in the waiting room, the darkness in there illuminated by a few glow sticks (no doubt made by Momo). Izuku's nose immediately captured the sweet scent from earlier, his mouth watering, but his eyes refusing to believe the sight.
Melissa, laid down, with a piece of rebar going through her chest. If the vampire was less focused on the girl, he would have noticed that the room was dotted with many other projectiles, but considering none of his other classmates had suffered injuries, they would have to forgive then green-haired teen for hyper-focusing on the blonde girl.
Momo and Kyouka were around the girl, fussing and trying to figure out a way to help the hurt girl. It would be a terrible call to try and remove the object, as Melissa had already lost quite some blood and the foreign object was now saving her life, tamponing the wound and keeping her remaining blood inside with minimal loss. Thus, that left the two with just trying to keep the girl still and avoid jostling the metal piece going through Melissa.
David was also close to his daughter, the man clearly distressed as he wondered what he was to do now, bitter tear shedding from the inventor's eyes. "Come on baby-girl. Don't do this to papa. We can pull through this, help is already on its way here." David begged while lightly holding his daughter's hand, afraid that any excess pressure would hurt the girl further.
Izuku immediately plunged his hand inside his shadow, the darker-than-black shadow rippling almost as if it was a liquid, the vampire's left hand soon pulling out a scorched and damaged cylindrical container from it. As the seal was undone and air hissed from the item, attention was called to the vampire, the teen approaching the group with rushed steps.
"What is her status?!" His question was met with silence, the vampire snarling towards his classmates. "How is her condition?! Since when is she like this?!" He short of shouted at them, his volume shocking the group into action.
Yaoyorozu spoke first. "W-we don't know for sure! Kaminari-kun found her a few minutes prior, already bleeding and wounded. We wanted to help, but moving her too much might have caused more damage and we don't know what to do."
Kyouka was still half-deaf, so she cringed a bit at the loud volume of the vampire, but kept her mouth shut. It was clear that Izuku wasn't in the right state of mind.
Izuku's eyes shot towards Kaminari, the teen flinching under the undivided attention of the vampire. "How long?"
"I t-t-think fifteen m-minutes?"
Izuku growled. "You think?!" The rough and animalistic voice made everyone in the room flinch. The teen let his eyes return back to the container, the green slit orbs staring firmly as the container revealed the three remaining orbs, the vampire picking two and storing away the last one back into the cylinder, throwing the item towards David.
Izuku said nothing, bringing the pills to Melissa to see if she ingest it somehow. She wasn't awake, and ingestion was the best way to consume the regeneration drug. You ain't quitting on me just yet, Melissa. We still have much to do. The thoughts ran in Izuku's mind, the pills in his left hand being crushed into a fine red powder. The vampire's righ hand finally began working properly, the broken bones and shredded muscle healing enough to allow him proper motion; the vampire was quick to set his blood-red Odachi aside, resetting the Full Gauntlet (that had been serving as a compression brace) to its default state.
Blood covered Izuku's hands in a thin layer, many tentacles sprouting from it. He had to be careful about this, as contrary to Sam the butler, Melissa's blood was a delicacy that even now constantly teased the vampire's taste buds. He knew it was of utmost importance to save her, yet the [Thirst] still reared its head, trying to entice him to feast upon the available fresh blood. The vampire licked his fangs, lucky that his oni-mask was still covering his face.
His hands hovered offer Melissa, Izuku staying still for a few seconds. The moment his blood touched the girl's, it would be a battle. He wasn't sure how long it would take for rescue to arrive, and with All Might out of commission and everyone exhausted from the battle against Wolfram, the chances of the Shield girl surviving were dropping fast each moment.
The vampire took a deep breath, one hand wrapping around the rebar stuck on Melissa's chest – right beside the pericardial area – and the other settled over her mouth. He had to do this, and he had to do this carefully. One mistake and he might trigger the [Beast Within] to act out wrongly. He needed precision, as hard as it was right now.
Come on, Izuku. Blood is your domain, you command it. There is no one out there that can do this! Save her, don't hesitate. The moment you stop, it is the moment you fail and let Melissa die. That won't happen. Blood is your call.
The tentacles from his right hand went inside Melissa's mouth, while the ones from his left worked on both severing the excess length of the rebar while also spreading the powdered Ambrosia pills over the wound. The metal was cut off in one swift motion, but the hard part was now. The vampire's blood slid inside the girl, following the remaining length of metal that was inside the girl and applying the drug to the wounded area, while at the same time also grasping the metal. It would hurt, but he had to expunge the foreign object to allow the flesh to heal properly.
[Sweet, sweet mate! Your taste! Magnanimous! How could we have forgone this pleasure for so long?! Master, let us drink deep!]
The vampire grit his teeth and hissed, brow furrowed in concentration as he ignored the mused whispers of the tenant deep in his mind.
[The purity! Untainted and lively! The taste of this maiden pleases us! Spare us not from the paradise. Let us drink properly already!]
This will hurt, I'm sorry! Izuku apologized to the girl in his mind, the metal remains firmly grasped by his left-hand blood tentacles. It was a swift motion.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Melissa suddenly screamed, the pain bringing back her consciousness for a moment. Izuku quickly placed his hand back over the hole, letting his blood plug the hole. His oni-mask receded and his fangs gleamed with saliva, sinking into her neck.
There was a collective gasp from the group watching the morbid happenstance, David almost bringing down a fist on the vampire to separate him from his daughter as he watched the vampire go crazy. What stopped him however, was the reaching hand from one of the girls accompanying him, the shorter one.
She shook her head and her hands made a motion for him to wait and see. Kyouka trusted in Izuku. He had to have a reason to do what he was doing, that was how he worked.
It is a mild poison, just to numb you down. I know it hurts, but please bear it for me. The vampire mused, holding back as much as he could to not pull in blood. He could do this. I'm going as fast as I can, just trust me. He knew that he couldn't transmit his thoughts to the blonde, so he tried to be as comforting as possible. The Ambrosia pill finally finished its work, not leaving even a scar. The vampire removed all his tentacles from Melissa, letting the girl lie down, her consciousness no doubt a muddled mess.
Her skin felt clammy and cold, but Izuku was sure that she was now stable. He, on the other hand, took a few staggering steps backwards, putting as much distance between the two as possible.
"W-wait, Izuku!" David tried to call out, but the vampire raised a hand to stop the inventor.
"Not now!" The vampire's voice had a commanding effect, the Shield Patriarch stiffening and standing still under it. The vampire leaned against a wall, panting as his forehead touched the cool plaster. His mouth salivated in excess, the liquid dripping in thick drizzles as he fought hard to keep himself in check.
Melissa's blood – that of a quirkless person – was like a concentrated drug; it was a sweet thing, tantalizingly so. Even now his body begged for him to come back and drink deep from her neck, regardless of the consequences. Izuku clamped his mouth shut, yet he couldn't silence his thoughts.
[How sweet! How rich! How tasty! We want more! Drink!]
[DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK!]
[Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty! Thirsty!]
Izuku [warped] away from the room, once again outside. He was breathing hard, the veins on his face bulging and the scar tissue becoming prominent again; his eyes became slits and it was clear that the vampire was on the brink of a rampage. His sight was colored in tones of red, his ears pounding with the orchestra of his own song of life and death.
Izuku walked with heavy steps, seemingly searching for something. He found one person resting against one pile of rubble, the vampire immediately recognizing the lanky frame of the hero.
"…All Might…" The words echoed, the vampire slowly making his way towards the hero. The man was unaware of his approach, taking the time to rest after the reckless use of his depleted time and body. The hero lightly coughed, blood also lightly spurting from his mouth and calling the hemomancer's attention.
Izuku since earlier had smelled the blood from All Might's injury on his side, the wound forcedly opened by Wolfram and teasing Izuku with its fragrance. It wasn't as rich and tantalizing as Melissa's, but it promised a different thing to the vampire: Promises of hidden power and boundless might; an ancient thing that beckoned respect; a strange mix of unspoken truths that the vampire was dying to get a taste of; something truly unique.
The vampire's mind blacked-out for a moment, feeling the cage that held the [Inner Beast] open naturally, as if it was a common and usual occurrence. His jaw closed around something, and a warm liquid spilled inside his gullet, his throat moving as he drunk something
…
…
-Oi Oi, what is this?
-A new host? But we haven't been transferred forward yet.
-This is strange…Oh? Look there.
-That…quirk is certainly strange, wouldn't you say?
-…
-…
…
…
…
Like he had just awakened from a dream, the vampire suddenly sprouted back to consciousness, finding his jaw to be locked around one of All Might's arms. The hero had half-turned into what Izuku referred to muscle form, the other half of his body deflated and weak. The teen immediately released the hero once he realized the gravity of his act, his head bowed down in incredible shame.
"Sir, I apologize. I don't know what came over me." There was a hint of panic in the vampire's voice, clearly indicating that he had never meant to attack the hero.
All Might's left arm bore the brunt of the bite, two perforations visible and slowly dripping with some blood. The hero released his form, hacking a bit from his mouth before he coughed to clear out his throat. "Young Midoriya, it is fine. You have been pushing past your limits for a while, right?" The hero was somewhat uncomfortable to have been treated as a snack by the green-haired teen, but the pro recognized that without the aid of either him or the present children of his class, the night might have turned out very different. He was lagging behind, failing. The Symbol of Peace had to retire soon and place someone else in charge. He needed to pass on his power.
He would muse that back home. Right now Toshinori needed to calm this young man down.
Izuku stood with his head lowered, guilt burning a bit in his chest. He had attacked All Might in his drunken stupor. How could he do it? Fool! You absolute fool, Izuku! Way to show your control over yourself! The teen chastised himself, biting his lower lip and letting his fangs piece the flesh. It was luck that he hadn't drunk too much, two mere mouthfuls before he returned to his senses.
The blood of the hero boiled in his gut, already being consumed in order to be digested and give information to the vampire. His body shivered under the snips of information that begged to be looked at, the quirk-factor identified making the vampire widen his eyes in surprise as he stared at the hero, his previous apologetic bow forgotten as he licked his fangs nervously, unsure of what to say.
A name was ghostly whispered on his ear, a promise spoken a long time ago rewinding in his memory as a fragment of a past event.
"Toshinori…Yagi" Izuku couldn't help but speak the name, scaring the pro as he heard his own name, something he hadn't revealed to the teen.
The pro narrowed his gaze. "How do you know that, Young Midoriya?"
Izuku gulped, his throat feeling dry. "…blood echoes. If I drink enough blood, I can glimpse into some of their memories. It is how I know about…" The vampire was unsure if he should finish the sentence. The hero was already suspicious of him – granted, it was creepy to have a student suddenly know your name without you ever mentioning it – adding on the conversation that Izuku knew about a super-villain like All For One was just begging to invite more suspicion towards him. "It is how I figured out the reasons behind the kidnapping attempt that Melissa and I suffered, sir." He kept the information to himself, at least for now.
Toshinori – aka All Might – released a tired sigh. "I'm sorry if I intimidated you, Young Midoriya. It is just that I'm very secretive of my real name; to have a child suddenly say it like it is a common name, well, I'm sure that you can get the reasons behind my wariness."
Izuku nodded. "Sir, there is also something that you must know." The vampire explained that Melissa had been hurt, and that he had managed to heal her. The hero paled under the news and almost rushed to try and meet her, but was stopped when Izuku pointed out his current appearance. David surely would already have called rescue, so they needed to stay still and wait for the cavalry.
The night had been quite long, the first sunrays reaching the duo. It was time to rest, but the vampire still had one last confession to make. He waited until David arrived with other heroes in tow, the vampire taking a deep breath and getting ready to face the consequences of his actions.
"Sir…"
…
…
..
..
.
.
Izuku was escorted by a group of heroes to his hotel room, where he was told to wait until the major authorities arrived. David had put in good word in the teen's favor, which was why he was waiting in his room instead of in a cell with quirk-suppressant cuffs slapped on his wrists. Melissa – along with his classmates – had been taken by EMTs to a local hospital to check on their injuries. All Might was secretly taken too, while the vampire was directed elsewhere (his hotel room).
Once police had arrived and entered his room, the vampire was thoroughly interrogated over the course of his actions. He could try to cover up some of his acts, but without knowledge over the quirks that these people had, he could end up deepening the hole that was his problem; thus, the vampire opted to tell the truth about everything he did, sparing no detail about his course of action. He only held back on the degree of involvement of his classmates into this mess.
He didn't lie, just didn't speak about their parts, downplaying what he could and carefully constructing a story that had no glaring holes that the police could poke. A deep investigation would find out the finer details, but the vampire was fairly sure that the cops would take what they had over further stirring up this mess. Besides, if they were truly willing to dive deeper, the deep pockets of the Yaoyorozu family would stop them before they could ruin the reputation of the young heiress; she would also protect Kyouka, which suited Izuku just fine. Kaminari would be fine too, as Izuku spun the events in a manner in which the teen had merely been a stand-by watcher, another victim of the mercenaries.
The vampire didn't have to worry about Melissa or David. Todoroki would be more than fine, he was backed by Endeavor and was a media favorite. Bakugou might get into trouble if he opened his fat mouth, but Izuku was counting on All Might to bail the ash-blonde out in case things went to shit.
All in all, the only one who might get into trouble over this was him; the murdering, blood-sucking vampire, the monster of UA.
This is fine…I can handle it.
[They think their paper-written laws will bind us? How amusingly cute!]
We did what we could; now we just need to wait.
[They would be foolish to try to restrain us, master!]
[Foolish would not even begin to describe such act!]
Arrogance and pride comes before the fall. I thought Bakugou was quite a clear example for you to learn from.
[Arrogance is for fools who need to parade their power to gratify their self-worth. We speak only truths.]
Sure, do tell.
[It is best that you acclimate to our new power. Soon enough we shan't fear the Old Blood. We are still working on the locked knowledge, but secrets of a long era are about to reveal themselves to us. You too, master, shall see that we speak no lies. Trust in yourself]
…
Izuku closed his eyes and took a deep breath, letting his body do what it needed. He would have much to worry about later when he arrived on Japan's mainland. I hope you are doing well, Melissa. The vampire released a tired sigh.
[XXX]
[XXX]
Mainland Japan, unknown location
A man sitting alone in a throne rested his scarred head against one closed fist, his expression a rather indescribable thing not only due to the mish-mash of scar tissue that made the top part of his head, but also due to the man's lips, which were a thin line, expressing neither joy or displeasure.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap.
His free hand lightly tapped its fingers rhythmically against the armrest. He turned his head towards one of the many monitors adorning the room, the screens only displaying static. Yet, it seemed that this man gleamed some information from it; his fingers stopped their motion, returning to it a few moments later.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap.
"Failed, huh?" Neither anger nor regret was expressed, the tone of this man cold and impartial. "I didn't lose anything myself, but it would expedite my plans if Wolfram had succeeded in his task. A prideful fool until the end."
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap.
"I suppose that the doctor can use what we managed to gather and work from there, but a sample would have been much appreciated." The ghost-like man mused, speaking to no one in particular.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap.
"Tomura said that he disliked this young one. I guess it is time for a special lesson." The man's lips moved, forming something akin to a smile. It was a warped thing, the expression not meant to display that much greed and maliciousness. "Kurogiri, fetch me Tomura." The man said to empty air, but after a few moments a purple-black portal appeared in the room, a blue-haired man emerging from it with a slouched posture.
"Sensei, I was busy gathering my elites. Can't go with cannon fodder, the heroes specialize in dealing with common-rarity troops." Tomura whined at his teacher, standing in front of the super-villain like a petulant child.
If All For One was bothered by it, he showed no reaction. "Of course, Tomura. Do as you like, I am here to help you gather yourself up. However, I have a favor to ask of you."
The words seemed to perk up the younger villain, his red eyes widening at the mere mention that his teacher would have a request for him. "Sure, anything you'd want!"
The man released a small chuckle. So eager to please, almost like a puppy. "I have a particular interest in one of your targets; please, do be a dear and bring him to me in your next assault. I'll even grant you one of high-end noumu."
Shigaraki nodded. "That important, huh? I guess it's not a problem, sensei. Which one do you want? That explosion brat? Or maybe the bird head."
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap.
All For One silenced the room with the simple motion and movement of his fingers. "Fret not, I'll tell you when the time is right. For now, continue to organize your plans and prepare your troops. I trust that Giran had been fulfilling his part or our deal?
This time the silent specter in the room spoke up. "Indeed, sir. The latest batch of recruits have been brought due to him. We faced some difficulty in their recruitment, but we managed to smooth things out in the end."
"That fucking stabby-bitch is bonkers, and that fucking sour-patch looking bastard is constantly looking down on me. I don't want them on the assault team, Kurogiri!"
All For One chuckled. "Patience, child, patience. Commanding respect from those that have been hardened takes time." His words settled the blue-haired man, although he was still grumbling to himself under his breath.
"…fucking Stain this…Stain that…"
The super-villain tuned the two occupying the room with him out, his 'gaze' turning to one of the monitors in the wall, the information that came to him making his smile grow two-fold. Ahh the QRA, acting the fools again in their desire to remain in power; thanks for making my job easier, that quirk will soon be mine.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap.
[XXX]
[To Be Continued]
AU NOTES
Well, I really planned on this one being longer, but the fight scene played out in my mind seemed to be a lot shorter when put to words. Besides, I didn't want to bloat out word count just to add more words without meaning or content. The remaining consequences will arrive in the next chapter.
Heads up, Izuku might be becoming more powerful, but now things have turned complicated for him. It was one thing to shut down the noumu, but killing a person changes the direction of the story.
I was sort of wondering if I should spare Wolfram, but I figured that Vampire!Izuku would not be one to let the merc leader's acts go unpunished. And he hurt Melissa! He hurt sunflower thicc girl and that is a big no-no!
Well, what did you think? Was it a good chapter? A bad one? Do I need bleach to write a better, cohesive story?
If you feel like reviewing, do not hesitate!
Coffee or donations are welcomed; I'm still wondering if I should put this fanfic to youtube as an audio-log/book type of thing (but with illustrative images). And I still plan on having NSFW-content made for it, just need to work a bit more to hire an artist. Thanks for taking your time to read my garbagio.
Take care,
Ryujin Maou out!