Ember Sunblaze: Hope everyone is enjoying their summer. In this chapter we finally get to see what foes the girls will be dealing with. I hope you enjoy the chapter! Please leave a review and let me know what you all think! ^_^
Chapter 10: The Enemies
It was like Ochako was being pulled down a drain, the rush of water zooming past her and slapping her face in a way that made it extremely difficult to keep the death grip she had on her friend. She willed her eyes to open, just so she could at least catch a glimpse of what or who was dragging them around like a fish on a line. But at the speed they were going, all Ochako could do was cling on to Mina's waist for dear life and concentrate on holding her breath. She could feel the weight of the rest of her friends behind her, Kyoka nails digging into Ochako's thigh as she, too, struggled to stay attached.
"We can't hold out like this." Whatever had a hold of them was either dragging around until they drowned or was taking them to a specific place. Ochako figured it was the latter option. "If this is connected at all to those missing students then we shouldn't be killed right away, right?" In the last two cases, the students that were returned, all came back with little to no injuries. "But that was only the students who returned." Ochako thought darkly, lungs straining for air. "Either way, if something doesn't happen soon, we'll all drown!"
But just as she was contemplating what to do, Ochako suddenly felt their speed slow as their direction shifted upwards. "Are we heading to the surface?" Now that they weren't thrashing through the ocean at breakneck speed, Ochako made herself open her eyes. She winced, the salt stinging as she strained to see over Mina's head. She just barely saw Mineta's slack body, heading the group, but then…nothing?
"Where is it?" Something was definitely pulling at Mineta, the boy's limb's were completely motionless. But whatever it was, wasn't visible despite the light filtering through the water. It was as she was looking ahead that she noticed that they were heading straight towards what looked to be like a large wall of coral. She felt herself panic once she realized they were not slowing down. "Are we going to crash into that?"
She thought of letting go crossed her mind but she stubbornly rebuked it. "If I let go of Mina, both her and Mineta will be gone." There was no way her or any of the other girls could follow them, not when they so desperately needed air. She clung on tighter, willing herself not to look away as they neared the wall of coral. It was then she noticed the coral move.
"No…not the coral," Ochako corrected herself. It was something on top of the coral. Or some things to be more precise. "Or those….Octopuses?"
It was. Fifty or so of the large cephalopods were situated over the coral, camouflaged to almost complete invisibility. It was only as they approached that they moved aside, revealing a large opening in the wall, large enough for them to easily swim through. Once through, darkness fell on Ochako as they went through what she assumed was a dark tunnel. And then, in a flash, it was over as her body, along with the rest of classmates, were thrown out of water onto the cold hard stone floor.
At first all she could do was gasp, sucking in as much air as her poor lungs could take. She could hear the other girls doing the same, each of them sounding weak and strained from their underwater, rollercoaster experience. It was only after she felt her heartbeat slow, the pounding in her head subsiding as oxygen returned to her body, that she heard the male voice speaking to them.
"I thought it felt a little too heavy back there."
Ochako lifted her head, wincing as she took in her surroundings. They looked to be in a dimly lit cavern, with an array of stalagmites and stalactites adorning the room. The only exits were a dark opening that seemed to be some sort of passageway and the pool that led back to the open ocean. She tried to find the source of the voice, but could see nothing.
Then he appeared. A dark haired teenage boy around their age, maybe a little older, leaning against the wall of the cavern as he surveyed the group with annoyed indifference. His camouflaged skin had shifted away, strikingly similar to the group of octopus' that guarded the entryway. But what struck the girls the most was not his amazing camouflage abilities, but the four giant, red tentacles that draped down from his hips and onto the floor. Even as they gaped, one long tentacle came up and casually set a pair of glasses on his nose.
Instinctively, Ochako sat up, one arm covering her still exposed breasts. "Who are you? Why did you drag us here?"
In answer, his hand whipped forward, transforming into a long tentacle that instantly wrapped around Ochako's chest. She felt herself get lifted and slammed roughly into the cavern wall. She gasped in pain, feeling her breath catch as the large arm squeezed around her chest. She heard the other girls scream and slam next to her, each being entangled by one of his tentacles.
"I'm only going to say this once." The boy said quietly, every syllable dripping with loathing. "Your presence here is simply a mistake, caused by my inaccurate timing." He used his free hand to adjust his glasses before also transforming it to a large tentacle that rose up and drifted towards Mineta, who was still dazed and dangling from Mina's open palm. The tentacle wrapped around the small teen's head and pulled him free. "This guy is the one I'm after."
"Hey! Let him go!" Mina cried, angrily.
"Yeah don't you dare hurt him!" Toru yelled, "We already got dibs on that!"
He ignored both girls, dropping Mineta on the ground next to him. "You know what to do." He said, giving Mineta a dismissive glance. To their surprise, Mineta merely nodded, turning away and walking towards the dark passage out of the cavern.
"Mineta! What are you doing?" Ochako called out frantically.
"Yeah! Come back you little perv and help us out!" Toru yelled angrily. The teen ignored her cry, disappearing into the darkness.
"Let us go, Octopus boy!" Kyoka growled, glaring at their captor.
He gave an annoyed eye roll. "It's not Octopus boy."
"Well don't expect us to call you Octopus MAN." Toru replied snarkily.
He glared. "It's Kai. Just Kai."
"Kai, what are you going to do with him?" Momo asked, tense as she struggled against the giant appendage.
"Don't worry about him. He's gone to a way better place than you girls are going." Kai replied darkly, turning his attention to them. "Like I said, you being here is a mistake. One that I don't plan on the Boss finding out about." He lifted his one free tentacle, hovering it menacingly over them. "Question is… what would be the best way to dispose of you?"
"I think that's our question!" Kyoka cried, ear jacks coming down and piercing into the tentacle that held her. Vibrations ran through the arm and Kai jerked in surprise at the sudden attack. The tentacle that held Kyoka loosened and she fell to the ground, just managing to land on her feet.
At the same time, steam rose from the tentacle holding Mina as a dark slime oozed from her body. Kai gave an angry cry as he released her, his tentacle rearing back as its blubbery flesh sizzled from her acid quirk. She landed next to Kyoka, acid shooting from her arms and cutting through the tentacles that held the other girls. They fell to the ground, free from Kai but still constricted by the suckers of the tentacles.
"Get you all out in a sec–AHHHH" Mina screamed, falling to the ground as a black ink-like substance was shot from Kai's mouth straight in her face.
"Mina!" Kyoka cried before quickly diving into a roll as a tentacle swatted at her. But just as she prepared to send her ear jacks forward for an attack, the end of a second tentacle crashed straight into her face.
"KYOKA!" Momo screamed from her position on the ground, watching as the hit carried Kyoka forward straight into the pool of water. There it easily held her down, the surface of the water roughened as she struggled to fight back from under the surface. The girls instantly fought against their binds, in a desperate effort to save their friend.
Kai sighed, looking disgruntled as the four tentacles at his side regrew from the spot they were severed by Mina's acid. "FYI, these things do grow back, you know. Hacking them off is just going to annoy me. Though having you all here is annoying enough as it is."
"Let her go!" Momo demanded.
"I will…once she stops moving." He replied lazily. "Drowning really is a boring way to kill someone off. Was hoping for a bit more screa—ARRRRGGHHH!" His complaint was cut off mid sentence as he doubled over in pain from an unexpected punch to the gut by what appeared to be a…long tongue? He glanced up just in time to see a bikini-clad Tsuyu leap from the pool's surface, her tongue shooting up and slapping his face.
He screamed as mucus from her tongue covered his eyes and nose. "What…WHAT IS THIS?!"
"My mucus, kero." Tsuyu casually answered, jumping onto shore. "It can cause a bit of an irritation, especially in sensitive areas."
"TSUYU!" Ochako exclaimed, relieved to see her friend. Tsuyu jumped next to her, quickly unraveling the tentacle from around Ochako's body.
"Help the others, kero! I'll keep him busy!" Without missing a beat, she leapt over to Kai, giving him a powerful kick to the gut as he hurriedly tried to wipe her mucus from his face. Several tentacles attempted to wrap around her, but she skillfully dodged, keeping them at bay as she jumped about.
As Tsuyu kept him busy, Ochako quickly started pulling at the tentacles still binding both Momo and Toru. She was soon joined by Kyoka who had dragged herself out of the pool, nose dripping blood. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine! Let's just hurry!" Kyoka answered gruffly, pulling Momo free just as Ochako unwrapped Toru. They all hurried towards Mina, who still laid curled on the ground, eyes shut tight as the ink blocked her vision.
"Mina, it's us! We're going to guide you out, okay?" Momo said, helping her up as Toru supported Mina's other side.
"What do we do?" Toru asked. "Go back to the pool?"
"There's no way we can swim out of here without drowning!" Momo exclaimed.
"We have no choice! Let's head to the tunnels and come up with a plan!" Ochako said, leading the way.
"One moment!" Momo replied, pausing as she turned back towards the fighting. "Tsuyu!" The frog-like girl swiftly spied her retreating classmates and gave a great leap out of the way as Momo's stomach glowed. Using her "Create" quirk, a giant net shot out of her body and covered Kai and his many tentacles. "Hurry! Let's go!" She ordered. "While he's distracted!"
The group hurried forward, plunging into a dark tunnel. They could hear curses from Kai behind them, but soon those died away as they found themselves navigating their way through. The passage wasn't straightforward, instead breaking off into several tunnels, each barely lid by a fluorescent substance that littered the stonework. Puddles of water were scattered everywhere, their feet making splashes that seemed extra loud in the enclosed space.
Uraraka and Kyoka led the way, with Momo and Toru guiding Mina as Tsuyu brought up the rear. They stayed quiet, hoping to not alert anyone else of their location. Finally, with Kyoka giving the all clear, they squeezed themselves into a small passage that veered away from the main tunnel.
"I'll keep a lookout." Kyoka said, turning away as her ear jacks jammed into the wall, listening for intruders.
Momo gently helped Mina to the ground. "How is your vision?"
The pinked skinned girl once again rubbed at her eyes, wincing. "I'm not sure. Everytime I try to open them, it stings."
"Here! Try this!" Ochako ran to a large puddle, carefully filling her palms with water. A small octopus and several dark crabs scuttled away. Returning, she tried to rinse the black ink off Mina's face. After several more trips back to the puddle, Mina was finally clean and able to slowly wince open her eyes.
"It's a little blurry, but I can see!" Mina exclaimed. A collective sigh of relief followed this statement.
"Now that that's settled, " Momo said, holding up several bundled zip-up jackets. "Can we please cover up before any more villains see us topless?" She tossed each girl a different colored jacket, which the girls hastily put on, minus Tsuyu.
"Thanks Momo." Ochako said, zipping up her pink jacket.
"Yeah! You're a lifesaver!" Toru complimented, twirling around in her light blue colored jacket.
"Should you really be using up your energy to make clothes for us though?" Kyoka asked worriedly as she slipped on her new black jacket. Momo's creation quirk relied a lot on the calories in Momo's body. If Momo used too much of her quirk, without replenishing her body with food, she could easily grow faint.
"Please don't fret, I had quite a big breakfast this morning." She reassured her. "Besides…every new gaze that befalls my bare chest strongly diminishes my chance of ever getting married." Momo murmured darkly, tightly zipping her red jacket "Anyway, this will also help with the cold." She continued, handing Mina a purple jacket.
It was true. Compared to the beach, the temperature down in these tunnels had dropped several degrees, leaving the already wet girls shivering as goosebumps covered their exposed skin. "Here, Tsuyu! I also made one for you as well." Momo said, handing out a green jacket. "I know how sensitive you are to the temperature."
But the frog quirked girl declined. "Sorry, but I won't need it. I plan on heading back the way we came, back to the pool to try and receive help, kero."
"All by yourself?" Ochako questioned, voice tinged with worry.
"There's no choice." Tsuyu calmly explained. "I'm the only one here who would be able to hold their breath the longest to make it back to the surface."
"How far are we from the beach anyway?" Toru asked. "I don't know about you all, but I couldn't see anything when we were pulled down."
"Not too far." Tsuyu answered. "Just a little bit past the bay, just as the water deepens down into a section filled with coral reefs. But the tunnel that leads here is deep and long. None of you would be able to make it out without drowning."
"That Octo-wannabe must have been swimming super fast for us all to make it here so quickly." Mina observed.
Tsuyu nodded. "He was. Much faster than me. I was lucky I managed to make it to the entrance to the tunnel before you all disappeared through."
"It's camouflaged by a large group of octopus, correct?" Momo questioned.
Tsuyu nodded, "They're not easy to scare away either, kero. That's why it took me a minute to get through to you all."
"We're just grateful you came." Ochako said, smiling.
"Will you even be able to find your way back to the pool?" Kyoka asked from her crouched position near the entrance.
"I marked the path with my mucus." Tsuyu explained, her long tongue sticking out. "It's clear enough that no one should be able to notice it and I can easily sense it."
"How clever!" Momo exclaimed, as the rest of the girls agreed. "But before we split up we need to make a plan. If Tsuyu leaves, what should the rest of us do? Should we try to stay hidden until backup arrives or seek out the missing teens and Mineta?"
"Do we even know if this guy is involved with the missing teens?" Toru questioned.
"He has to be! It's too much of a coincidence!" Ochako replied.
"I'm all for finding the missing teens, but Mineta can take a boot for all I care." Mina grumbled.
"Agreed!" Toru concurred.
"Now, now, we're heroes, we can't just decide who we want to save." Momo reminded them sternly. "Even if the person in question is rather bothersome." She tagged in.
"The guy is more than bothersome!" Toru argued. "He nabbed our tops and took pics of our goods! The guy is practically a villain already!"
"I was wondering about that, kero!"
"Not to mention he ditched us earlier." Kyoka added, "What's up with that?"
"Wait, our tops!" Ochako interrupted, realization dawning on her. "Our tops had our tracking devices on them!"
"That's right!" Mina exclaimed, remembering. "So that means…"
"Sensei Aizawa has no way of knowing we're missing." Momo finished solemnly. "At least not right away." She turned to Tsuyu hopefully. "But don't you still have yours? If you do, we can use it to contact Sensei!"
But Tsuyu shook her head. "I'm sorry, kero. I'm afraid I lost mine during the chase." She explained, "When I first saw you all get pulled under, my first thought was to try and pull you away from whatever was dragging you. But when I got close, I was suddenly kicked by Toru's leg."
The invisible girl gave an embarrassed chuckle. "Oh, my bad! I thought I felt my leg hit something…"
"The kick knocked my shoulder and I felt my tracker fall." Tsuyu continued. "I wanted to grab it, but worried I would lose sight of everyone if I stopped."
"It's okay, Tsuyu." Ochako said, setting a hand on her friend's shoulder. "You made the right choice. Who knows what would have happened if you didn't show up."
"Wait! What about Mineta!" Mina pointed out.
"What about him?" Toru asked.
"His tracking device!" Mina explained. "I'm sure he still has his!"
"That's true!" Momo agreed, with a note of relief. "If that's the case, Sensei should know by now that something is amiss!" There was a moment when everyone looked at each other excitedly before they heard another embarrassed laugh from Toru. They all turned in her direction with a sense of looming dread.
"Yeaaaaah, about that…." Toru explained, clearing her throat. "He did have a tracking device that he attached to the back of his phone… but I accidentally dropped it in the water when we got pulled down….Oopsie?"
Before they could reproach the poor girl, Kyoka signaled them to be quiet. Instantly, the girls went still, bodies tense as they got themselves into battle stances. They kept their gaze locked on Kyoka as she used hand signals to indicate two people approaching.
Ochako, who was the closest to Kyoka, quietly crept forward to stand behind the crouched girl. Peeking out, she could barely see the outline of two figures coming their way. From the height and body structures of the two, it didn't seem like either one was Kai. As they came closer, she started to make out their faces in the dim light. She gasped.
"Deku?" She whispered, before darting out of hiding.
"Ochako! Wait!" Kyoka hissed, but was unable to stop the girl as she ran to meet both Deku and Tokoyami in the dark passage.
"Deku!" Ochako said, halting in front of Midoriya. "What are you doing…here?" She paused, taking an uneasy step back. Both Midoriya and Tokoyami showed no recognition of her, their eyes bloodshot and glaring. Midoriya especially had an aura around him unlike his own, as if the air around them pulsed with angry waves.
Worriedly, Ochako reached a hand toward him. "Deku…What's wrong?" But before she could touch him, she gasped as a dark claw flew out of the shadows, pinning her arms against her sides and lifting her up. It was Tokoyami's dark shadow, his golden gaze glaring at her from his position next to her partner. Her gaze darted to Deku, but found her friend wasn't even looking up at her.
"Hey! Leave her alone!" Kyoka yelled, darting out and confronting the two boys. "Tokoyami, get your shadow under con–HEY!" Her demand was cut short as a separate claw reached out and also grabbed a hold of Kyoka. She joined Ochako in the air.
"Deku!" Ochako yelled down at him, confusion lacing her voice. "Why aren't you helping us?!" But just like with Mineta, he ignored her. She felt a pain in her chest that had nothing to do with the claw squeezing at her. "Deku…what's wrong with you?"
At this point all the girls had come out of hiding, curious at the commotion. They stared in confusion at Ochako and Kyoka being suspended in midair by Dark Shadow, captives to both Midoriya and Tokoyami. Momo stepped forward, taking charge. "That's enough, you two! Put them down now or we will att–ARGH!" Instantly, several more claws shot out not only at Momo, but the rest of the girls as well.
"Hey! Did you both hit your head or something?!" Mina yelled down angrily. "Let us down!"
"What kind of day at the beach is this? First I have to team up with Bakugo, then Mineta, now this! You guys are seriously lame!" Toru wailed as Dark Shadow suspended her upside down. The bird shaped shadow bought his beak over to her, hissing menacingly. However, a swift kick from Toru's invisible foot sent him rearing back. "Bad Dark Shadow! BAD!"
Ignoring the girls' protest, Midoriya and Tokoyami silently continued down the dark passage. Now dragging along six hostages. The girls shot confused glances at each other, each one seeming to wonder the same thing…what should they do? Attacking a villain was one thing, but fighting against their trusted classmates was another. And why would their classmates even be doing this in the first place? It all made no sense.
"Psst! Ochako, do something about your boyfriend!" Mina hissed in Ochako's direction.
She didn't answer, staring miserably down at Midoriya. "I wish I could Mina…but this person doesn't feel like the Deku I know." She remembered her conversation with Deku in the sand as they waited on Momo and Todoroki to practice. He had told her his theories on the teen abductions. How a mind quirk could possibly be responsible…
Her eyes widened and she gave an audible gasp that left the other girls staring at her. "Deku and Tokoyami….and even Mineta…could they possibly be mind controlled right now? And if so, by who?"
Her answer came sooner than she expected as they suddenly exited the passage into another cavern. This one was much larger and very brightly lit. So much so that the girls were momentarily blinded. Squinting her eyes, Ochako found her gaze focusing on what appeared to be a throne situated at the other end of the cavern. The throne, decorated with an assortment of beautiful shells and pearls, occupied by a large group of people.
Kai, the octopus quirked boy, on one side. He turned to them, the tentacles at his side squirming in an agitated manner. On the other side of the throne, to her great surprise, stood Bakugo, Kirishima, Kaminari and Mineta. Just as with Midoriya and Tokoyami, the four boys seemed to stare past them with identical red rimmed eyes and angry scowls.
"Bakugo's here too?" Ochako was surprised to hear a note of concern in Toru's voice. She glanced at Mina and Kyoka and found the same expressions of shock and worry appear at the sight of their classmates.
Trying to shake away the dread that began to fill her, Ochako focused her attention back to the throne, where a small woman sat. The woman was quite beautiful, with fair skin and bright pink hair that flowed down her back and settled on her feet in a pattern that looked similar to a mermaid's tail. She was dressed simply, in a floral skirt and black tank top that fit snug against her large chest. Her sharp blue eyes were focused down at the tablet she held in her perfectly manicured hands. Even as they approached, her gaze didn't linger away from the screen. That is until….
"THAT *BEEP* ASS*BEEP*!" The woman growled, clutching the tablet in a vice-like grip as her nails dug into the screen. "How dare he post pictures of his new little slut! That *BEEP**BEEP*! They could go *BEEP* in Hell for all I care!" With that she threw the tablet with enough force to break if one of Kai's tentacles hadn't easily caught it. He gave a polite cough, signaling their arrival.
She glanced up, her venomous expression changing from enraged to silky sweet in a millisecond as she gazed down at the group. "Oh! Look what we have here! New boys and….others." She said, gaze wavering over the girls that were still being held hostage by Dark Shadow.
"I must apologize for my language. I'm afraid I have a love/hate relationship with men." She drawled, gracefully slipping off the throne. She slipped in between Kirishima and Bakugo, drawing them close to her body. "I absolutely adore them…." She purred, hand caressing Kirishima's face. Carefully her nail slid down his cheek, blood trickling down as it cut into his skin. "Until they make me mad, that is."
"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Mina yelled, dark eyes livid.
The villainess smirked, moving away from Kirishima who remained still and unaffected by the cut. She moved towards them, her movements reminding Ochako of a dancer. Her long legs took each step in a slow beautiful motion, as her long hair trailed behind her, almost touching the ground. "By that tone I assume this batch of boys are your classmates? No need to worry. Despite my words, I actually have a soft spot for boys this age. I find they really are quite obedient, hardly ever giving trouble." She slinked over to Midoriya and Tokoyami, coming behind Midoriya and resting her head on his shoulder in a loving manner while shooting a mischievous glare upwards. "Not to mention, they're very fun to play with."
"Who are you?!" Ochako demanded, her voice shaking with rage. "What do you want with our friends?!" The woman smiled, obviously amused by the teen's interrogation.
"Me? I am the beauty that has been both worshiped and feared by men for ages." Her hand came up to rest elegantly on her chin, long nails flashing like claws. "An idol who's song will blow your mind. A goddess who brings men down to their knees." Her blue eyes flashed, narrowing as she peered up at Ochako and the girls with undisguised disdain. "I am Siren and unfortunately for you, you're in my domain now."