I don't own My Hero Academia or Jojo's Bizarre Adventure.
Please enjoy this story to your heart's content.
P.S. Please read the Author's note at the bottom.
Chapter 22: Dream Police
Midoriya breathed a sigh of relief the moment everyone stepped out of the nightmare and once more into the world of dreams. He wasn't the only one who was happy to be done with the latest raid into untold horror, Uraraka practically collapsed against a golden column of ants while Gyro and Todoroki breathed deep, fresh breaths of air. Lenny stared off into the distance for a moment before pulling out a cigar and started to puff away furiously. Then there was the four newest members of their rescued party.
Kirishima sweated heavily, trying desperately to shake the blush that glued itself to his face but to no avail. Though it was hard to see her emotions in her invisible state, Midoriya could see Hagakure's gloved hands trembling slightly for a few seconds before slapping her cheeks with a loud clap. Ojiro stared at the ground, unable to bring his eyes up least everyone could see the shame he wore, but his tail curled unconsciously behind. Lastly, Tsuyu's face was pale as the moon, her eyes, while not entirely blank, were numb and dark, as if she seen the pinnacle of horror itself.
To say the last nightmare was an experience would be an understatement. The horrors they endured were objectively worse, some far more personal than others while the rest were general fears taken to the extreme—one of them being a combination of the two and taking the form of the awful night of Scary Monsters' attack. But this dream was just plain disturbing in an entirely different way that just made one feel unclean. Not helped by the instigator of such awfulness standing proudly over a ravine of giant broccoli and without a hint of shame of his face.
"I FEEL REBORN!" exclaimed Mineta, puffing his chest before turning to give his classmates a great, big smile. "After enduring hell for so long, I feel like I rocketed my way to heaven! I never thought conquering my demons that way would be so relieving! I should do it more often."
"Please…" begged Gyro, his haunted gaze turning to meet the jubilated boy. "For the love all that is holy in the universe… don't… don't even think about it…"
"So much moisture…" muttered Hagakure, her hands shaking wildly now. "It was so wrong!"
"I think I will never un-see what just happened…" uttered Ojiro.
Mineta stopped his self-indulgence to stare deadpanningly at them. "Hey, it wasn't that bad. I mean, yeah it did scare the piss out of me before, but once you guys showed me how to—"
"Don't you dare finish that thought, you raisin," Lenny bellowed with a plume of smoke. "That was… I didn't think humanity could produce something like that!"
"I said it wasn't that bad! From what you guys told me, it sounds like any one of yours was way worse than my nightmare."
"Not by half, Mineta," countered Kirishima with a shudder. "Mine was… Was pretty bad, but that was just wrong!"
"Oh come on! Don't tell me you guys hadn't thought—!" A mighty slap from Tsuyu's long tongue silenced the small boy, sending him spinning into a checkered wall.
"It would be nice if you don't remind us any further, Mineta," said Tsuyu, the composition in her usual tone marred by the absolute firmness of the foreboding retribution.
"Yeah, let's move on…" agreed Midoriya, pushing away all thoughts of Mineta's horrible dream to focus their move. Looking at the assembled heads around him, there was no doubt in his mind that the remaining students of Class One-A were also trapped by their nightmares. With Dream On's ominous warning still ringing in Midoriya's ears and the results of each nightmarish trek, it turned from hesitant theory to full on fact.
But this begged the question of who else from U.A. was trapped? After the utter depravity he witnessed—not just from Mineta's own nightmare—there was no end to the Stand's malicious intent. Yet to what end? Midoriya didn't think for a moment that Dream On had any intention of simply leaving them alone when he had his fun, so what else lay in store for them?
A sharp grinding suddenly intruded on that thought, forcing him to look up and spot another nightmarish cloud off in the distance. Rumbling loudly as it drew closer and closer to the heroic students. The very air strained and twisted before them, draining the color like a sponge till it bled all the wonders around them into dried husks.
"Well…" puffed Lenny before stomping out his cigar. "No rest for the wicked I suppose."
"Please just let this next one be somewhere dry…" prayed Gyro.
The first thing Midoriya noticed entering the nightmare was the buzzing. It was faint, almost distant for him to notice at first. But as he and his fellows marched through the dark and narrow alleyway, it became noticeable. Too noticeable. The buzzing hummed in their ears, never leaving and demanding their attention whether they liked it or not. It was annoying to say the least, borderline maddening even, and Midoriya wasn't the only one to feel its oppressive persistence. It would've been bearable if it weren't one other thing that made their skin crawl.
"What is that stench?!" demanded Mineta, slapping both hands over his nose. "It smells worse than rotten dog crap!"
"Keep your voice down, raisin!" hissed Lenny, eyeing the alleyway warily. "There is no telling where the heart of the nightmare will be or what kind beasties await us."
"It is a pretty bad smell though…" noted Todoroki, though he kept a calm mask, his nose wrinkled every so often.
"Kinda smells familiar too…" noted Gyro. "Can't say what it's from… though it's making my skin crawl for some reason."
Midoriya couldn't deny that awful sensation running beneath his flesh. He had encountered bad odors before, but this slightly familiar stink hit a strange nerve in him. Where did he smelled it before? And why did it unnerve him so much?
"Oh please don't say that," begged Hagakure, her gloves shaking a bit as she huddled closer to her friends. "Just saying something like that is going to cause something bad to happen at any moment."
"We're in a nightmare though, Toru," Tsuyu pointed out.
"I know that and I'll do everything I can to help to beat it down, but that doesn't mean we should jinx ourselves already!"
"Don't sweat it, Toru," said Kirishima, clenching a harden fist till it let out a satisfying crack. "With how many nightmares we beat down so far, there's nothing this place can throw out that will keep us down."
"Tempered your enthusiasm, shark teeth," puffed Lenny, causing the spikey red head to blink at his stern gaze. "Hubris brings down even the most powerful of men; pride as the demolitions man to the foundation of their strength. Trust me… I speak from experience."
Kirishima flushed at his words, looking to the side for a moment before meeting the intense stare. "I won't let that happen to me… You all can count on it!"
"See that you do…"
They continued onward, a slow, unwavering advance but they could see a faint light at the end of the alley, coloring the dull gray walls with streaks of rusty red. Yet the closer they got to it, the buzzing grew louder and the smell more intense.
"God… just what is that sound?" Gyro spun around, looking for the source of irritation that bothered them all.
"I can't pinpoint where it's coming from…" admitted Midoriya, eyeing every corner of the alley.
"Who cares?" whispered Hagakure, tension leaking out her voice the longer they walked. "Let's just get this thing done and—"
She paused suddenly at the faintest touch hit her shoulder. Shuddering, she lifted a gloved hand to it before holding it up for all to see. It was a bloody smear. Blinking at the crimson smudge, Midoriya whipped his head up and was met with a most frightening sight.
Buzzing overhead was a thick cloud of flies.
Black as the night itself, thousands of fat bugs flew above the young students in a frenzied rush. The sight of such a plague of insects was unsettling enough, but Midoriya saw the reason why they were swarming in the first place. Hanging off two rows of rusty railings were mangled bodies. Skin once pale showed signs of rot forming around nasty, sliced up wounds along their bodies as blood trailed down to drip onto the unfortunate youth.
Hagakure let out a frightened scream, immediately pressing her back to a wall to avoid more blood coating her invisible body. Her friends also shied away in disbelief, their faces sickly pale as they couldn't tear away from the awful sight. Mineta slapped a hand over his mouth before turning away to puke whatever could. Even Todoroki's remarkable calm fell away as he cringed for a second.
"What the hell?!" Kirishima's mouth fell, but no other word could escape his lips.
"Looks like whoever's nightmare this is has been watching way too many horror movies…" muttered Gyro, stepping around another drip of blood.
"Oh god…" moaned Hagakure, sounding ill as she steadied herself on the wall. "Why can't it be something simple like giant spiders or slime monsters or something!?" She paused for a moment before shuddering. "Actually… I can't tell if that is worse or not…"
"What was that about jinxing us, lass?" commented Lenny, puffing his whiskers as Hagakure jolted. "Got to say though… this could be a truly bad nightmare. Slasher stories were never my thing and with our bigheaded playwright watching us, these are probably going to make McGee's gothic stories look like kid books."
While a part of him wondered who this McGee was, Midoriya's focus was solely on the hanging bodies. A queasy feeling rumbled in his stomach the longer he looked at them, but at the same time there was something rather familiar about them. At first he couldn't put a finger on what it was, but then he saw a glimmer on one of the fly infested bodies. It was shining ruby red star with the letter "A" in the middle. He knew that emblem. It belonged to the Shining Star Hero, Andromeda… but he was murdered little more than a month ago. He along with several other heroes in a series of killings that had gained national attention like a wildfire.
Feeling every inch of his skin go stiff, Midoriya suddenly recognized every single one of those corpses, sending a terrifying realization of the true nightmare they had walked into. "Guys! This nightmare is—!"
A sharp clang silenced the mossy haired boy, forcing him to turn to the end of the alley along with his friends. Another sharp clang echoed off the cold walls, then another and another. It quickly turned into a series of screeching, metallic scrapings followed by heavy grunts.
Without a word, Midoriya found himself running ahead with his friends following close behind. It didn't take them less than half a minute before they reached the end of the alley and were greeted with a wide a rundown street and a familiar set of white armor not far away.
It was Ida.
Dents and long cuts covered his hero costume from head to toe, fabric ripped off at the corners of his joints, and streaks of blood stained much of his body. His proud helmet lay on the floor beside him, visor broken and a huge gouge around the top right. Thankfully there wasn't any wound that Midoriya could see on Ida's head; the helmet had done its job faithfully. Yet there was no denying the cuts and bruises that adorned the class president. He panted heavily, his stance shaky and threatened to bulk at any moment, but he refused to fall. But his eyes—his dark blue eyes shining with a raging fire that Midoriya never seen in him before— captured everyone's attention. At least until they finally followed that heated gaze to the heart of the nightmare.
Standing at about average height was a man completely clad in dark armor with sharp blades covering much of his body. From his shoulder pads to his knees, there was something that could easily rip and tear into flesh. This deadly imagine hit home with the nasty-looking twin claw that covered his left fist. His helm also added to the villain's intimidating imagine, being something akin to a samurai kabuto from the feudal period that completely hid his eyes in dark shadows. Shadows, Midoriya noted, that spilled out the visor and covered much his body in a haunting haze. The last thing of note was the rather inflated plates around the knee and few pipes sticking out of him. Compared to the rest of the armor set, they were a rather odd choice, but didn't diminish how sheer menacing the villain was.
Though he never seen him before, Midoriya knew who this man was and the very reason why he was Ida's true nightmare. "Stain…" he whispered. While the villain didn't appear anything close to the rumors Midoriya heard about the Hero Killer, there was no other person who could encapsulate such a terrifying presence. Yet there was something odd about him that Midoriya couldn't quite place.
"That's the Hero Killer?!" screamed Mineta, shaking uncontrollably and looking on the verge of pissing himself. His reaction, albeit the most extreme, epitomize the terror that swiftly cloaked the rest of his classmates. Hagakure and Uraraka looked ready to faint; Ojiro's face blanched while his tail curled unconsciously forward as a shield; the calm masks that both Todoroki and Tsuyu wore broke away to allow a flash of fear to take hold; Kirishima gulped loudly, beads of cold sweat starting to pour down his face; even Gyro's unwavering confidence blanched, if but for a moment, in the face of someone who earned a terrifying reputation. The only one who remained unaffected by the reveal was Lenny, though he eyed the nightmarish doppelganger warily.
"I take it by his epithet that he's quite infamous back in the waking world," he observed.
"He's the one who almost murdered Ida's brother!" Uraraka cried on impulse, her eyes unable to leave the terrifying visage before her.
Whirling around at the declaration, the sharp-armored man stared at the new arrivals, forcing them to flinch under his shadowy gaze. He stared for a moment before returning his attention to the downed class president. "Are these your minions, monster?" he growled, his voice coming out in a garbled grind that made him seem more machine than man. "Couldn't beat me yourself and now you force others to do your dirty work? Pathetic… A villain like you should be put down!"
Raising his unclawed fist, he rushed Ida with a surprising burst speed. Ida only had a moment to blink before the armored limb bore down on him. Then Midoriya was there, a fist rushing to slam into the nightmare's head. Suddenly a burst steam brushed between them, blinding the fanboy just long enough for Stain lean back from his attack.
Condensed air whooshed powerfully between them, sending everyone back a dozen paces. Midoriya grunted, his back slamming onto the floor, but he already he was scrambling back onto his feet. But Stain was already sprinting to Ida once more, his step literally steaming with every yard he took. However a Steel Ball diverted his course, forcing him to circle around the green steel. This didn't stop him from trying again, but now he was met with more resistance from the students of Class A.
Kirishima, stalwart as a mountain, rushed to intercept a steamy kick. One quickly became two then three before he was forced to endure a myriad of armored kicks. Each growing more brutal and intense one after another. Harden skin cracked loudly under such powerful blows, but the boy didn't yield even as the villain relentlessly assailed him. Gleaming red eyes glinted off the tiny sparks that flew from the villain's blades, reflecting the blazing determination Kirishima held in his heart.
Yet he wasn't alone. Lenny lumbered forward, a giant fist coming down to smash apart the concrete where Stain once stood. He didn't let up, swinging wide arcs everywhere recklessly, but it was enough to force the villain back. Not wanting to be shown up, Kirishima joined in the fight. Where one finish a swing, the other would jab fiercely before repeating the cycle. They couldn't land a precise mark on Stain, but their synergy made them the mountain that broke Stain's violent wave.
Faced with two immovable objects, Stain decided to simply not bother with the obstructive duo and move around them. But the moment he did, he was soon faced with a thick tail deftly aimed for his head.
Ojiro swung with all his might, but the villain's unnatural speed proved to be agile as ever even in such heavy armor. Yet unlike Kirishima or Lenny, who quickly glued themselves to Ida's side, he pressed the attack. Propelling himself forward with his tail, Ojiro weaved around like a hornet, never staying in one place and poised to sting the moment Stain made a wrong move. Though the Hero Killer was obviously the faster of the two, Ojiro proved to be far more flexible—pretezeling his body into different shapes that narrowly avoided painful blows.
Growling in frustration, Stain pulled back for a moment before releasing a huge amount of steam from his legs. Heated whistles blew from his pipes before bursting off the ground into a standing long jump. None of the defenders had a moment to flinch at the practical maneuver as Stain already closed the distance between Ida and himself.
A triumphant cry escaped lips, pulling a leg back and ready to take the exhausted youth's head.
Suddenly a hail of rocks crashed into his side, tilting his course just slight enough for him to only nick Ida's flesh.
Uraraka floated overhead, hands clasp together and ready to loose another volley if need be.
Skidding across the floor with a screeching grind, Stain lifted his gaze to glare at the brunette. Though she twitched under such a baleful gaze, she didn't falter. "Stay out of this! For what he's done… he's mine!" The pipes roared to life underneath him, Stain turned back to the object of his hate before sprinting forward once more. Closely half the distance in a second, Stain abruptly stumbled, his feet literally tripping on thin air before sent flying onto the ground.
Grunting, he pushed himself halfway up only to get smacked down again by nothing. Or so what he thought.
"Ida isn't going on your kill count, you sicko!" yelled Hagakure, delivering another invisible kick to the villain's head.
Howling in frustration, Stain swept his arms out to try to hit the invisible girl, but a slimy tongue yanked him off the ground. Twirling him around, Tsuyu let him loose like a rock from a sling, skimming through the air towards her target: Midoriya.
With One For All crackling in his veins, Midoriya aimed carefully with fingers before releasing a ear splitting air shot. The shockwave should've it ended then and there, but to his shock Stain abruptly spun in the air, the pipes on his legs blowing him wildly out of the way. Spinning through the air, he finally crashed into to wall with great crack, his arms and legs angled in bent angles that looked like a rigid stick figure.
"No…" Midoriya felt his being grow still, his eyes widening with recognition. "A human stop sign…"
There was no denying the resemblance, but that's not what shocked him. It was that only one person has ever done something so ridiculous before… and he was currently laying on the ground behind Kirishima. It didn't make sense, but he quickly reminded himself that in a nightmare, sense was merely a suggestion.
Putting aside all his preconceived notions, Midoriya forced himself to reexamine everything in a different angle while his friends dealt with the nightmare. "Ok… Up till now Stain has been solely going after Ida with the exception of us coming in between him… but why? Why would he focus on simply him and not all of us? Is there a personal vendetta between the two of them?" The easy answer would've been "yes", but the more Midoriya thought about, the more flaws he quickly found. Ida would've certainly had reason to hate Stain, but the same couldn't be said for the Hero Killer. There was no way Ida could've known anything about Stain's true personality or intentions unless he met him in real life. Even his appearance, the armor and blades, were a complete fabrication.
Then there was the way Stain fought. Despite the many blades on his armor, he never once used them so far. His attacks were fast and agile, but mostly consisted of kicks and punches that were far too practical for the wounds that Ida had. A highly famous killer with a prolific track record of hero killing would've have used something far deadlier! Combined said moves with how eerily similar Ida's running style, right down to the way his arms angled up and down at a perfect ninety-degree angle with every step and the high jump he performed earlier, Midoriya needed no further proof to know that they all been duped.
"Everyone stop!" Midoriya called out, realizing there was no time to waste before his friends accidently killed their class president. "That isn't Stain! That's Ida!"
"What!?"
"Did you bust a screw loose?!" demanded Gyro before dodging a speeding kick aimed for his head.
"I know it sounds crazy, but with the way he's acting, everything points to him being the real Ida!"
"But what about the one behind me?!" Kirishima jerked a finger to the bloody fake. Ida didn't say anything, merely staring in confusion at Midoriya. But the fanboy could see there was a slight change to him now; his eyes were hardened and cold, a silent threat promising retribution.
"It's a fake conjured up by the nightmare! It's merely tricking both us and Ida!"
"But that doesn't make any sense!"
"It doesn't matter…" Kirishima blinked as Todoroki strolled up, his right side brimming with frost. "If Midoriya thinks that the real Ida is 'Stain', then I trust him. Now move back while I handle this!" Waving his right arm, ice erupted from the ground, completely covering much of the area and surrounding the rampaging Ida.
Growling like a rabid animal, Ida propelled himself forward with his Quirk as the Ice closed in. With a great leap, he hurled himself over the frozen cage that Todoroki erected, but before he could clear it, several sticky balls stuck his feet to the edge of the wall. He only had a moment to look down to see Mineta smirking gleefully before ice soon ran up his legs. Barring the head, most of the body soon was encased in a straightjacket of frost.
Spluttering wildly, Ida struggled in vain to free himself as his classmates surrounded him.
"Ok, he's a popsicle now, but how can we tell if he's your real friend, kid?" asked Lenny.
"Wait, can't you tell with your snout, tubs of fun?" demanded Mineta.
"First off, there is so much nightmarish miasma in here that I can't tell what's a horror or a weeping mess of humanity. And secondly, call me that again and you'll see how fun I can be."
As Mineta shied away from the Walrus, Midoriya knew the best away to put his theory to the test. "Uraraka, could you please take off his mask?"
"On it, Deku!" Floating up the icy pillar, Uraraka hovered in front of Ida before yanking off his mask. It was indeed the Class President of Class One-A, though his glasses were a darker shade than normal.
"It is him!" shouted Kirishima.
"But why is he dressed up as Stain?" asked Ojiro.
Tsuyu pressed a finger to her chin for a moment before shaking her head. "I get it if was simply him fighting Stain, but this? This doesn't make sense."
"DON'T TALK LIKE I'M NOT HERE VILLAINS!" roared Ida, startling everyone as he thrashed about wildly. "You won't stop me from beating Stain senseless!"
"I-Ida!?" Hagakure squeaked. "It's us! Don't you recognize us?!"
"Don't tell me he's been brainwashed into seeing everyone as Stain…" speculated Todoroki.
"Hold on a moment," interjected Gyro. "Hey, Uraraka! Could you take off his glasses for a moment?"
Uraraka blinked at the Italian for a moment before hesitantly obeying. "Alright, but I don't see how that will help."
As soon as his dark shades were taken away, Ida's struggles lessened before stopping entirely. Blinking, he finally seemed to notice who exactly he was raving at. "Uraraka? Midoriya…?! What… What's going on?! Where's Stain?!"
"That's what we want to know!" complained Mineta, receiving a few nods from his classmates.
"Then allow me to enlighten you."
Blinking at the sinisterly sweet voice, Midoriya turned around to the fake Ida. Or rather a man he only seen on media over the course of his life. There were plenty similarities between him and Ida, but there was a maturity to his features and his build was taller and more muscular. And why not? He was Tensei Ida, the Turbo Hero Ingenium, and Ida's older brother. Or rather the nightmare version of him—broken and bloodied, scars lining what little skin he had and his limbs mangled beyond belief. Completing the finishing touch was the horns rising from his head that announced Dream On's hand at work.
"T-Tensei?!" uttered Ida, his face pale and unable to look away from the bloodied imitation of his brother.
"This is your fault, Tenya… It's not enough that you ruined my life—ruined my dream of being a hero!—but for you dare wear that armor in front of me?! What, are you trying to piss on me as well?"
"No! I would never—I would never do such a thing!"
"Don't listen to him, Ida!" yelled Midoriya, realizing too late that they all walked into another trap. "He's just a—!"
"Oh Ida… you still don't get it?" The fake Tensei glared scornfully. "You're the one who did this to me… You're the one who crippled me! And almost did the same to your classmates… What a poor excuse to our family legacy…"
The younger Ida flinched at every word as if they were a blow. Tears glistened the corners of his eyes before spilling down his trembling cheeks. An anguished wail left his lips, despair completely taking over and sending him spiraling downwards.
Suddenly the ice encasing him cracked. The students of Class A balked at the growing dark, unnaturally jagged lines that quickly wrapped around the frosty prison. They soon hit the deck as chunks of ice erupted everywhere and freeing Ida.
Sobbing wildly, Ida burst forward at top speed, gaining more traction with everywhere step he took.
"Wait, Ida!" yelled Midoriya before giving chase. Using the power of One For All, he quickly caught up with his friend. However Ida proved to be breaking every personal record he set when it came to his Quirk. Reaching speeds that he only barely could reach back in reality, blue fire erupted from the pipes of his legs, threatening to cook the very flesh off his skin. Judging by his reckless movements and overwhelmed emotional state, Midoriya doubted Ida even noticed, let alone cared.
However that immediately proved to be life threatening when the mossy head boy noticed something a dozen meters ahead of them. A wall of spikes had appeared out of thin air, cutting of their path and threatened to fatally intercept the despairing Class President.
Feeling his breath quicken to the point of threatening to clog his throat, Midoriya pushed all he had into one last ditch effort to save his friend. With a mighty heave that crushed the floor beneath his feet into a crater, he launched himself forward! Every bit of flesh on his face pulled back at the intensity of which he flew. It was a familiar sensation, but not something that distracted Midoriya from his objective.
However, something did catch his attention as a familiar aching pain that shot up his legs! Every bit of muscle in his felt like they were dipped in molten iron—straining to their breaking point and threatening to push beyond that thin line. His bones didn't feel like they were broken, but their intense aching told Midoriya that his body had finally recognized what was dream and what should be reality.
Cursing at the rotten timing, he pushed that painful revelation aside to focus on saving Ida.
The space between the two of them disappeared in less than a second and before the Class President could take another step, the fanboy crashed into him. The sudden added weight threw them both off balance, sending them flying through the air for a moment before careening to the floor with an awful skid. Thankfully they stopped just a few paces short of the spikes, saving them both of them from becoming heroic kabobs.
"Let me go, Midoriya!" Ida sobbed as he struggled against his friends grip. "I have to… I have to—!"
A resounding slap silenced Ida's struggling. Blinking, he ignored the stinging sensation on his cheek before turning aroundto see sympathy welling Midoriya's bright green eyes. "Ida… What happened to your brother isn't your fault. There wasn't anything you could've done to stop it and you certainly didn't cause it! That thing just now wasn't your brother… do you really think that he would say that you, his little brother? Do you think that Ingenium would accuse the brother he loves of being as bad as the Hero Killer?! Stop running from the truth and face it head on!"
Ida was silent, his mouth agape but not a word left his lips. Green eyes held his dark blue, unflinchingly and relentless with compassion, he found himself unable to look away. Finally after what seemed like an age had passed, Ida let out a breath before looking down in shame.
"Your right… I knew it wasn't my fault that I couldn't save my brother, but… when I saw him bound in that hospital bed… I felt… doubt… guilt… I hate Stain for what he did to Tensei, but at the same time a small part of me blamed myself for not being there for him… and I hated that. I hated myself…"
"Ida…"
Ida then looked up, a mirthless smile stretching across his face. "Don't worry… I see now that I was wrong… I can finally see the truth for what it is… and I will face it instead of running away from it!"
Midoriya didn't know when the nightmare broke, but by the time he helped Ida off the floor, everything had changed back to the World of Dreams. With it came the awe inspiring visuals and outlandish creatures that once hid from the nightmare's embrace. Though for someone who was straightforward and serious natured, Ida only had one response for such a sight.
"WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON!?" he exclaimed, his eyes growing wider the more his darted from strangeness to strangeness. "What's with these weird structures bending like corkscrews into the ground?! Are these… pigtails?! Made out of glitter and butter?! AND WHEN DID I CHANGE BACK INTO MY HERO'S COSTUME?!"
"That's what got you the most?" exasperated Mineta as he and his classmates quickly caught up with the pair.
"Ah! You're right! There is so much other lunacy going that takes precedent over my attire…" He blinked for a moment, his face going pale before pointing to the side. "Like that! Why is there a mouse riding a golden tiger up the side of a giant leg sticking out the clouds?!"
"Is he always this high-strung?" Lenny asked Uraraka before pulling out one of his cigars.
"Well… No, but actually yes," she answered, awkwardly rubbing the back of her neck while Ida continued to rant incoherently. "He's just a bit more… strict than the rest of us."
"That's putting it lightly…" commented Todoroki.
"For real…" agreed Gyro with a nod. "Ida's a good guy, but can quite the stickler for the rules and what not… Which the dream world is going to be hell for him."
"Definitely."
It took a little while for Ida to truly calm, having to keep averting his eyes from the craziness around him, before he could finally hear to his friends' explanation of the situation. The uptight strictness that overcame him a moment ago quickly melted away to a thoughtful seriousness the more he listened. "So this 'Dream On' is the reason we're here in this dream world and why we're all having to experience such awful nightmares… And the only way to beat him is by saving everyone caught."
"That pretty much sums it up," said Kirishima.
"Though I like to add that we don't know how many people are trapped here," Midoriya interjected. "So far there have been students from our class, but—"
"Then we need to save every one of our peers post haste!" declared Ida, pushing back his newly formed glasses. "We can't let them suffer the same awfulness we have any longer."
"At least he's quick on the update," puffed Lenny, blowing smoke out his nostrils.
"That's one of his better traits," agreed Tsuyu. "And I have to agree with his assessment. The longer we wait debating what we should do, the more people have to suffer."
"But we don't know how many people are left trapped in this place!" pointed out Hagakure with a frantic wave of her hands. "Let alone know where they are."
"She's right," said Todoroki, placing a hand on his chin. "At the rate we're going, Dream On will outpace us with new victims than the number we free them."
"Then the answer's simple," Ida announced in his usual energetic self. "We split up and start rescuing everyone we come across."
"Is that really a wise idea, Ida?" Ojiro asked skeptically.
"Actually splitting up might be a good idea," pondered Midoriya, his eyes growing intense as he analyzed Ida's plan in depth. "It would allow us to cover ground much more quickly than doing it as a huge group. Furthermore with the more people being rescued, the more Dream On's powers will wane."
"But how do we find each other once we're finished?" asked Uraraka, her eyes drifting the madness around her. "I mean, this place isn't exactly built with map or GPS."
"Not a problem, Lass," answered Lenny before putting out his cigar. He then whistled sharply, a cheerful tune that carried a certain sea-like theme that the teenagers found instantly catchy. Soon enough a returning whistle was heard, one that harmonized with the Walrus's toon to make something delightful to the ears. Suddenly a hole opened in the air above the students before a steady flow of water gushed out of it. Scrambling out of the way, they were soon met by a figure dropping out of the waterfall. It was the Egg-Octopus hybrid from earlier.
"I didn't think you would be calling for me so soon, Lenny," he said, straightening up on his tentacles before taking in everyone around. "And I see you found some more friends."
"Yeah, the numbers going to hit a true house of cards worth at this rate. Which is why I called you. Can you help guide half these guys around on our little war with the nightmares? I know you don't like these sodding puffs of bad dreams, but—"
"Say no more, man. Anything to remove these boils of terrors then the better."
The Walrus grinned before turning to the students. "Well there you have it. Starrkey will take you any place that you need to go and will bring you right back to me when you're finished."
"Thank you very much, Mr. Walrus!" thanked Ida, bowing politely to the Walrus before turning back to his friends. "So we're all in agreement then? I may be Class President, but if anyone has any objections then I will endeavor to find a better solution."
"Nah, I'm cool with this idea," Kirishima said with an enthusiastic crack of his knuckles. "The faster we save our friends, the faster we can punch that white masked jerk in the face!"
"Agreed," said Todoroki.
"I don't have objections!" yelled Hagakure.
"None from me," added Ojiro.
"It's a bold plan, but it's the best we got at the moment," admitted Tsuyu.
"I kinda wished we can just, I don't know, find the exit to this madhouse, but I doubt that freaky stand is going to let us," complained Mineta before letting out a sigh. "Fine… Fine! If that is how it is then let's do this thing!"
"Damn straight I'm on board for this plan!" said Gyro, his grills shining and he spun a Steel Ball in a hand.
"I'm ok with this idea as well!" beamed Uraraka. "So let's do our best everyone!"
Midoriya was the last to agree, but his was no less brimming with eager determination. "Yeah… Whatever's awaiting us all, we'll be ready for it!"
"I… wasn't ready for this…"
None of them were. The moment Midoriya and his group—consisting of Uraraka, Gyro, Todoroki, and Lenny—entered the newest nightmare, they were rooted to the floor by the sheer contrast to everything they experienced till now. They expected to face more horrors based off personal fears, trauma, or phobias common for teens their age. What none of them expected to see was the hundreds—if not thousands!—of clones that looked almost exactly to Midoriya.
They packed the hallways of U.A., chatting away as if everything were normal as the sun was gold. But Midoriya could see slight differences between each clone of himself. For starters, most of their body builds were larger than their real life counterpart. Having muscles that lined much of their flesh that rippled with every move they made. This was despite the fact that many came in all shapes and sizes too boot; some towering till their heads reaching the ceiling while others were small as Mineta.
Many also had very different additions to their person. Some had horns that crackled with lightning; some having dozens of tentacles instead of legs; others having a variety of glowing colors shining from parts of their body. It was clear that each clone had a different kind of Quirk that nowhere resembled that of their original counterpart.
Furthermore, there was a certain smug attitude about them as they walked to and from certain rooms. They all admired themselves whenever they looked in a mirror or complimented another clone for how powerful Quirk they had. "Powerful", "Strong", "Awesome". Those words they used the most and none seemed to have a hint of modesty. In fact, there was a lot bragging between all of them. Prideful and arrogant, each boasted how their Quirk was the best and how they can beat down "extras". They also referred to each other as "Deku".
It was surreal to say the least and would've been enough to leave the already speechless dreamers dumbstruck. However the craziness didn't stop there.
The clones weren't the only thing that resembled Midoriya; lockers, doors, clocks, lamps, books, backpacks, trees, and plants all resembled the fluffy green haired boy. Even the sun glowed a bizarre green as Midoriya's smiling face shined from above.
There was no words in the dictionary that could describe the utter astonishment that ran through the real Midoriya, let alone his friends. They all just couldn't believe what they were seeing.
"Is… Is this really a nightmare?" muttered Uraraka, her eyes shifting from one Deku to another.
"Hell no…" answered Gyro, equally mystified by the utter everything that he was seeing. "This… is just…"
"Obsession…" finished Todoroki, his usually stoic face slipping to allow him to gape unashamed.
They all nodded absently. It was the perfect word to describe the sight before them.
The only one who was unaffected by the utter craziness was Lenny. "That's putting likely, but I guess that's typical for these kind of nightmares," he said before pulling out one of his favorite cigars.
"Wait, what do you mean by these 'kind of nightmares'?" questioned Midoriya. "These aren't abnormal?"
"Good god no. These are a lot more common than you think. In fact they usually spawn from people who have a deep obsession—really hit the nail on the head with that word by the way—with someone or something. Not necessarily particularly born from hatred or envy, but they do help form that framework of—"
"Bakugo," all the students said at once.
The Walrus paused just before he stuck the cigar in his mouth, eyeing the students curiously. "I take it you know who we're dealing?"
"Oh you have no idea," said Gyro.
"Yeah… There is no doubt this is Bakugo's nightmare," backed Todoroki.
"Definitely Bakugo…" said Uraraka before awkwardly eyeing Midoriya beside her. "He's kinda hotheaded and a little—"
"A little?"
"—incredibly obsessed with Deku…"
Scratching his neck, Midoriya couldn't deny such a claim even if he wanted to. "Yeah… Kacchan has always been like this since we were little. He tends to see everyone below him due to his Quirk and didn't take it… well when I managed to get in the U.A. High."
"Ah, well that explains the situation then," said Lenny, letting the matter drop as he puffed away at his cigar. "We might as well get this over with then. Shouldn't be too hard finding our boy this time around."
"How so?" asked Uraraka.
"Just watch…" Lenny then casually walked up to a hulking clone with several arms sprouting from his back. "Excuse me, but can you point in the direction of the one called Bakugo?"
"Eh? You want to see that loser?" The clone rolled his eyes for a moment. "What for?"
"What else? To look down on the sod and ridicule him for not being Deku."
"Oh! Why didn't you say so at the start? He's in Ground Beta being put through the Test again." The fake shook his head scornfully. "This is the tenth time he tried and failed to get into U.A.! Doesn't he understand? He'll never get into this school since he's not a Deku!"
"Thank you, Deku."
"That was too easy!" exclaimed Gyro as Lenny walked back to them.
"That's the thing with these kind of nightmares. If you know the why or what the obsession that they're based off, then it becomes child's play to manipulate them. Heck, I should know—got stuck one time in one of them but managed to get out after tricking the nightmare into thinking I was the opposite of their obsession."
"I see…" contemplated Midoriya, his mind whirling at the information. "Then that might make it easier for us to beat the nightmare once we meet Kacchan… Although he's going to be difficult to convince him that this is all a dream."
"I find that obsessed dreamers are remarkably stubborn as diamond dogs." Taking a drag from his cigar, Lenny eyed all the clones around them. "That said, we should hurry. These guys might ignore us for now, but they are still a nightmare. No telling when their fuses will be lit."
Needing no further encouragement, they all sprinted their way to Ground Beta's testing area. No sooner they reach the familiar gigantic gates that a mighty explosion went off. Great plumes of smoke towered within the fake urban center, a hint of sulfur mingling with the stench of burning debris filling the air. As the deafening blasts died down, there was an unmistakably angry voice ranting and cursing wildly before another explosion going off.
"I see Bakugo's being his usual subtle self," said Gyro, hurrying with the rest of his classmates towards increasingly booming explosions. "Well, better than being led on a goose hunt with the egg being made out of fool's gold."
"I didn't get half of what you just said…" said Todoroki.
"Well, I for one hope our egg doesn't explode the yolk in our face," said Lenny, raising an eyebrow at another explosion followed by more distant cursing. "Guy is going off worse than the Red Queen after a bad haircut."
"Now I can't understand him…"
"You really need to read some Western kid stories, dude," commented Gyro.
Venturing further into Ground Beta, the sight of broken streets and crumbling buildings became a common sight the closer they got to their goal. Scorch marks and blasting craters dotted here and there as well, especially around huge impact sites that left nearly half a block in ruins. There were other scars popping here and there, all overshadowed by the explosive aftermath around them. However Midoriya noticed that some debris were made by something entirely different.
He didn't have to ponder long on the reason why as he and his classmates entered a large, smoking square. Standing on top a mound of rubble, smoke pluming from his hands, was none other than Bakugo. Lips peeled back into an awful sneer, he glared down at several Midoriya clones, his eyes glowing with towering rage.
"COME AND GET SOME, YOU GOD DAMN EXTRAS!" he roared defiantly. "I'LL SHOW YOU WHO THE REAL LOSER IS WHEN I TURN YOU ALL TO ASH!"
"Really?!" one of the Deku answered smugly, his arms shining brightly with an ominous red glow. "Cause your little demonstration truly showed all of us here who the true loser is. Doubt even a villain could do any better than this, you wannabe hero. Which is why you'll never get into U.A.!"
If Bakugo was an embodiment of anger a moment ago, then he truly became a sun of burning hot rage at the insult. Blasting off his mound with a seething war cry, he hurled himself at the assembled Deku with his most powerful attack. Bodies flew, black smoke plumed wildly everywhere along with debris, and Bakugo stood at the center of it.
However the Deku didn't take this lying down. More spawned out of the debris, disfigured and disturbingly obtuse in portion, while others appeared out of nowhere to surround the raging blonde. Using their Quirks, they fought more grandly than actually trying to kill their target. Many even shouted out awesome names for certain moves or powers they used, as if to drive home how inferior Bakugo's own Quirk was to their own. However all that did was add fuel to the enraged explosive fury that continued to blow apart Ground Beta.
"Uh… are you sure this guy is your friend?" asked Lenny, his cigar hanging out his mouth as he couldn't take his eyes off the carnage that Bakugo wrought.
"Friend is a bit stretching it for me…" said Gyro. "Over egotistical classmate with massive anger issues? Definitely."
"He isn't really a bad guy," defended Midoriya, though it was a bit undercut by a deafening explosion that leveled a building. "He's… Well… Ok, he's all those things that Gyro's listed, but he isn't a villain. Just very prideful. I will say this… Kacchan's ego isn't unwarranted. He is strong."
"I can see that…" said Lenny. "At the rate he's going, I doubt he will need our help at all."
No sooner did he say that did great rumble shuddered throughout Ground Beta. A rumble that Midoriya was all too familiar with. Looking high above the city roof line, he spotted an eerie shape rising over a building. It was a Zero Pointer. Though one with an addition that wasn't lost on any of the dreamers. Deku's smiling face beamed down from high, a very uncanny grin that sent chills down Midoriya's spine. Intimidating as ever, it trudged through building after building till he stood before Bakugo, poised and ready to strike.
"I had to open my big mouth…"
"Haven't you learned your lesson, old man?!" demanded Gyro.
"Don't worry. Bakugo can handle this." Todoroki pointed out. "He's done this before during the Sports Festival."
"Yes, but not with an army of demon Deku gunning for him!" yelled Uraraka.
"Uraraka's right!" declared Midoriya, already moving to help his temperamental friend. "We can't sit by and let him handle this alone! Otherwise he'll never realize we're in a nightmare!"
At that truth, the others immediately jumped in to action. They followed after Midoriya, climbing over piles of rubble and disappearing clone bodies they hurried over to Bakugo. Before they could reach him, he unleashed another powerful explosion that took out a third of mutated Zero Pointer.
Immediately the other clones started to swarm like angry hornets that had their hive smashed. Explosions met their charge, frying them and blowing them back, but some managed to shoot off a couple of ranged attacks. Bakugo dodged them, using his explosions to keep himself mobile in the air, but more than one stray shot managed to graze him.
Landing on the ground for a split second, Bakugo turned around, explosions ready to take on a huge Deku Clone with a monstrous face. However he paused just as a white gloved fist smashed into the monster's face, sending freakishly large teeth flying. Midoriya grunted painfully, his fist and arm felt like it was on fire. Not the same explosive bone-shattering pain he felt back in the real world, but he could feel every strand of muscle strain to their limit underneath his skin.
Shoving down the pain for a moment, he landed atop his fake before turning to Bakugo. "Kacchan! Are you—!"
"DEKU!" An explosive fist shot for Midoriya's head, but was stopped just short by an ice wall that sprung up from the ground.
"Hold up, Bakugo!" yelled Todoroki before freezing several clones that had turned their attention finally to the intruders. "That isn't—!"
"What the hell are you doing here, Icy-Hot?!" He blinked before taking note of the rest of his classmates heading his way. "And why're the extras here!? And who the hell is tubs-of-fun?!"
"Tubs-of-fun?!" roared Lenny, but his anger distracted by two clones rushing him with stone pillars. Scrambling over rubble, he kept ahead of their hurling swings, but only by the skin of his teeth. Thankfully Gyro's Steel Balls crushed one of their heads, causing the fake to twist around till he slammed the other clone crumbling dust.
"Long story short, hothead," said Gyro, catching his green spheres before turning his attention to more of the oncoming horde of menacing Deku. "You're in a nightmare version la la land and we're here to wake you!"
"What he means is this you're stuck in a nightmare and we're here to—!"
"Damn right this is a nightmare!" fumed Bakugo. "It's bad enough with the damn nerd, but now everything god damn thing is him?!"
"No, Bakugo, you don't understand," interjected Uraraka, carefully avoiding the sweep from a bat-like clone. "Everything here isn't real! We're all in a literal nightmare tailor made to make you feel despair!"
"Despair?! Hah! Like hell that'll happen to me! If anything, I already figured out these guys were fake!"
That caused everyone, even the clones, to stop dead in their tracks. Midoriya blinked owlishly at his friend, confused thoughts whirling in his head.
"K-Kacchan…? When… How did you find out that this was all fake?"
"Long before you extras showed, these faked attacked me and forced me out here. They all claimed to be the nerd, but there's no way in hell that they were the real deal. There is only one real Deku and you are a weak assed nerd! Not some wannabe stuck up prick in a cheesy a high school melodrama! No… A crappy kiddy show with everything having stupid face that you want to punch!"
Midoriya couldn't believe what he just heard. This was probably the first time that Bakugo had ever defended him. Sure it was a in a backhanded way that stung a bit, but it was overshadowed by his sheered amazement. That is until a thought made him do a double take.
"W-Wait… If you realized that everything isn't real… then why did you try to attack me?! Or continue with this whole nightmare?!"
"Do I need a reason not to punch your face, nerd?! Or need one to crush all these fakers?!"
Midoriya was sorry he even asked, but at the same time he should've expected as much from Bakugo.
"No…" Both boys blinked before turning to see the clones' figures grow distorted and demonic till they resembled Dream On itself! "'Cheesy kid show'? No, no, no… You can't just break script like that… Improv actors like you… SHOULD BE ERASED!" Swarming together, a literal tide of demonic hybrids rose up high before descending on Bakugo.
Midoriya understandably panicked at the sudden tidal wave, but Bakugo merely grinned evilly. With a mighty blast from his gauntlets, he flew high to meet the villainous tsunami head on.
"DIE, YOU GOD DAMN GARBAGE!" Roaring wickedly, Bakugo raised his gauntlets before unleashing an explosion that burned the very air! The deafening blast that followed blew everyone off their feet, shattering buildings and tearing apart the mass of clones till nothing but ash. Leaving nothing but smoke in his wake, Bakugo stood triumphantly as the nightmare cracked apart around him.
With one last fracture, the Dream World burst through what remained of the night terror. Brushing the last of the smoke out of his face, coughing hoarsely all the while, Midoriya stood up with relief at the now familiar chaotic landscape. That feeling was soon broken by an all too familiar yelling as Bakugo took in the bizarre environment for the first time.
"What the hell?! Why am I still in acid trip?!"
"I can't believe he managed to break his nightmare but still doesn't get what's happening…" muttered Lenny as he brushed a bit of dust from his coat. "I don't think I met any dreamer so stubbornly egoistical before."
"Join the club, we got little gold star badges," said Gyro, ignoring the death glare Bakugo gave him before stomping over to Midoriya.
"DEKU! You better tell me what the hell is going on before I kill you!" he roared before grabbing the green haired boy by the collar.
Midoriya knew this was coming more so than with any other recued victim. It wasn't that Bakugo wouldn't get what was happening—he was smart enough to figure out his nightmare wasn't real after all—it was just that no matter what answer he got, he would still be pissed. Hard truths were always the toughest pills to swallow, but for Bakugo they were covered with tar and refused to go down quickly. Never the less, Midoriya already resolved himself to endure what blistering rants Bakugo had for him.
"Listen, Kacchan, we're in—" He started before pausing at the sight of a black and red demon rushing up from behind Bakugo with a vicious dagger in hand. Seeing his hesitation, Bakugo turned just as Midoriya lifted up a hand and shot at the nightmarish creature with an air bullet. Familiar agony rushed up Midoriya's finger, but it was worth it as the demon blew away into smoke.
"What the heck?!" yelled Uraraka. "Why are nightmare demons showing up still?! Aren't we back in the Dream World?!"
"We are!" answered Lenny, bristling his whiskers as more demons phased up around them. "They shouldn't be here without a nightmare!"
"Oh they can if I want them to be, you mountainous tub of blubber," answered one of the nightmarish demons, its head turning into Dream On's bone white mask. "Did you all forget exactly what I can do? I think it's time I give you all a very up close reminder."
"…I thought you were going to sit on the sidelines and simply watch the show," said Gyro, carefully easing one Steel Ball from its holster. "That's bad showmanship, you know?"
Dream On's avatar glared a horrible twisted eye at the Italian for a moment before grinning viciously. "Oh I do… But this act has been marred by a certain rogue actor. And as the playwright of tonight's performance, it would be bad form of me not to correct that behavior and have a bit of fun with it. This is the punishment for making a mockery of my plays!"
"Like hell you are!" Roaring furiously like a lion, Bakugo boomed forward with a mighty blast, ready to tear into the demons once again. However this time they were ready for him. Mashing themselves together, they formed a giant maw with thousands of razor sharp teeth. Not only teeth, but several spindly claws rose from within the gaping hole, shooting out to grab Bakugo down into the eager mouth.
Yet before they could reach him, white bands wrapped around Bakugo, yanking him away and leaving the arms empty handed.
Blinking at the familiar fabric, Midoriya and company turned to see Bakugo land beside none other their teacher, Aizawa.
"Aizawa Sensei!" the students of Class A cried out in relief at the shaggy-looking teacher's appearance. He wasn't alone either as Ida's party quickly arrived to deal with some of the demons that hadn't yet morphed.
"Midoriya," acknowledged Aizawa, though his eyes never left the monstrosity that tried to eat his student. "I've been caught up on what's happening… And now that I'm here, I'm going to show this monster what happens when you mess with my students."
Author's Note: Ok... This chapter, for whatever reason, was difficult for me. I don't know why as I had a good start at first, but then I kept running into problems, namely trying to keep focus while writing and not distracted by crap. Even had problems with devising certain paragraphs and it left me frustrated to distraction. I have no idea why this took so long to write, but it was annoying to say the least. Not helped that the nightmare scenarios that I wrote kept getting bigger than intended. I mean, having creativity is one thing, but it starts to ruin the flow of the story or gets bloated! That's why some of the nightmare segments you see here are a bit short because I had to compress them least they ruined the pacing!
And I will be honest, It was going to be longer. I had originally intended to get the pen ultimate nightmare done before the finale, but with how big each segment of the chapter was getting, I didn't really feel like dragging out this chapter. Which was originally supposed to be wrapping up the nightmares from the last chapter! So yeah, this has been annoying to say the least. Now I'm debating on whether or not to go with the second to last nightmare scenario I planned because honestly the finale will be big enough on its own. Having one more nightmare before it would be too long despite how well it would be for bonding between certain characters. I think I will just make up a new chapter about the bonding, but between other things and/or what not.
Anyway, I will keep the rest of this short, so without further ado, the music reference for this chapter. "Dream Police" by Cheap Trick. It's a song that talks about how the singer is fighting with nightmares that are trying terrorize him or control him constantly and he can't really wake up from them. Kinda like how this arc is going.
Before I end this chapter, I want to say a few other things. Firstly, a shout out hesscayden150 for pointing out mistakes in Chapter 17 and helping me correct them. Really appreciate that!
Secondly, I would like to give a recommendation for anyone who's a fan of tournament arcs and super awesome action. There is this manga called "Record of Ragnarok" and it's about all the gods of the world vs. humanity in a tournament to decide the fate of the latter. The action is amazing, the plot simple but slowly going to into some deep backstory that is compelling, and the art style is simply breath taking as it is memorable. And to give an idea who's in this fight, well, the Second Round of the tournament has the Biblical Adam vs Zeus. Yeah, let that sink in. Hell, the first round had Thor vs. Lu Bu! It's a crazy ride and I hope you guys enjoy it as much as I do. So much so that I really want to see fanfiction of it! So please spread the word of this manga if you like it!
Lastly, I want to give one last shout out to my newest story, "Old Blood of the New World". It's a crossover between Bloodborne and Dorohedoro, with the setting be in the latter series, but with elements from the former crossing over into the latter. If you don't know what Dorohedoro is, it's basically a dark comedy, action story with a heavy dose of mystery behind a certain amnesiac protag with a lizard for a head. There is plenty of fun characters in it that are so likable that it's hard not to love them! Furthermore there is a definite underlining tone of cosmic horror in the series, slowly starting out relatively normal gothic, but then moving on to something into unspeakable horror. I won't say what or why, otherwise the plot of story will be ruined, but I will say this. It's enough for the Bloodborne Hunter to come and start a bloody hunt over it. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this new story of mine! Please leave a review if you do or simply give it a quick comment! I always appreciate it!
Well that's about it for me! Thanks again for reading this wonderful story! Oh, one last thing. Due to me now starting a new fanfic, I want to get a few chapters of that done next, and still working on setting up my new original nonfiction story setting, I don't know when I will be posting another chapter for Anyone Can Become A Hero. I will try to get this arc done before the end of the year but no promises will be made. Not to mention I want to have a break in between writings so I don't burn myself out.
Until then, I hope you all have a nice day!
Sincerely, Count Chaos.
