11/12/2021

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The Emperor's Dragon
Fledgling 27

Yakuni slid down the back of the door as soon as it was closed. He gasped for air, desperately drawing air into his lungs. It felt as if someone had put bands around his chest. His eyes were wide, and he didn't bother to wipe the tears from them as they ran down his face. Breathing was more critical and it was taking everything he had to drag the air into his lungs.

When he'd come to see Ujiko that day, he knew it was his time off, and he knew that the Doctor had told him not to come then. He'd realised why when he saw Dragon, but he'd been friendly. He'd been polite, and he wasn't going to tell anyone. Though, he didn't know who would be interested in Dragon… Wait, he did know.

The Police. The Heroes. Probably the Department of Industry since it seemed like human experimentation was the industry here, which was against the law. They would be interested.

And Dragon's Father was interested. Yakuni was pretty sure he'd met the man once, back when he started working with Ujiko, but…

He swallowed, fighting against nausea that threatened to overwhelm him. He knew there would be some consequences for meeting Dragon, but… Meeting the man seemed like too much punishment. There were a few things Yakuni assumed before he met the man. He was rich. He was powerful. He had an interest in biology. Those all seemed reasonable.

All of them were true but, all of them paled into insignificance when he met the man. There was something about Dragon's Father that was utterly indescribable. The man was powerful but that word didn't do him justice. The man didn't radiate power in the way movies and books tried to say, but it was there. It had pressed down upon him, and Yakuni had known that he would do whatever it took to ensure that Dragon's Father never looked at him again. He couldn't even remember what he'd said.

He knew he'd apologised. He'd fallen to his knees and apologised. He'd apologised for a lot of things in his life. Being quirkless meant that he had to. He hadn't meant most of those apologies. He'd had to apologise for being in the way when he was the one tripped, so yeah, he had said sorry a lot in his life.

Yakuni had meant every word he'd said to Dragon's Father. Every whisper, every tone, everything. If he'd been insincere with anything, the man would have known.

And he knew he'd agreed to something, but…

Yakuni shook his head, finally drawing enough air into his lungs. He held up his hand, watching as it trembled before he took another deep breath. The trembling slowly stopped. Whatever he'd agreed to was fine.

He forced himself to stand, ignoring the way his legs felt like jelly. He had to check on the specimens because that was one thing he did remember. Dragon's Father had told him he was pleased about suggestions. Durama had said to him that as well, but hearing it from the man himself… It didn't lessen his fear, but it did make him feel proud.

Yakuni took a deep breath, telling his legs to stabilise. He was still alive. That was important. Sure he'd met a mighty man… He was working for a powerful man, which meant, so long as he didn't stuff up, that power wouldn't be used against him. In fact, Yakuni knew how these things worked, that power would never be used for him, but the very fact he worked for Dragon's Father would be its own protection in the right circles. So long as he didn't stuff up.

He wasn't going to stuff up again.

Ever.

-ted-

"All right, Izuku," Doctor Garaki said to the boy, "one more scratch on the flank. This time, really think about wanting to poison them," he instructed.

There was a pig carcass hanging in his lab. There were multiple scratches on it from where Izuku had attacked it. He had noted down the position of each scratch and would analyse them for how much toxin Izuku transferred with each swipe.

There was a table next to the carcass. On it was several pieces of rolled meat. They were the next target for Izuku.

He watched as Izuku flexed his fingers and then slashed at the pig. The cuts looked particularly deep. This was the first time he'd actually seen Sensei's son use Poison Fang. He'd almost forgotten Izuku had it. "Did you use your strength quirk then?" Kyudai asked curiously.

"No," Izuku replied immediately.

"Oh well, it wouldn't have made a difference," he reassured the boy as he noted down the location of the slashes. "Now, this next bit could be a bit messy," he told Izuku.

"Messy?"

Izuku currently had white hair and gold eyes. Ever since Yakuni had barged in on them, even when Izuku visited him, he had to have alternate hair and eye colour. The Doctor had heard the boy comment that he would never get to use his natural colours again!

Garaki gestured towards the table and saw Izuku cock his head when he saw the meat there. "It's to test your fangs," the Doctor explained. "You will have to bite each piece of meat, and again, I'll determine how much venom is there."

"I thought it was poison?" Izuku said.

Kyudai smiled. "It is," he agreed. "But there are different types of poison. Venom is a name given to those toxins which are delivered by a bite or a sting. Since you will be biting this time, it's venom you are going to be delivering."

"Is it the same venom as my claws?"

"I will be checking that." Garaki thought it was since it came from the same quirk, but he would be confirming that belief. The initial tests did indicate it was highly toxic. And the thought that Izuku had been running around with this for years was slightly horrifying. He should have investigated it sooner.

All For One had simply been delighted that his son had a potentially lethal poison to fall back on. But Sensei was wise enough to know that Izuku would need to be taught some safety precautions with it.

"For the first piece of meat, I just want you to bite it normally," Kyudai instructed.

"As a baseline," Izuku said in a sing-song voice. It was the same procedure as they'd gone through with his claws, just this time with his mouth.

"Exactly," the Doctor praised.

Izuku picked up the meat and looked at it. He didn't seem too impressed with the thought. Then Garaki saw him sigh. "Well, this is one way of finding out what it feels like to be Himiko," he murmured before biting into the roll of meat.

The Doctor saw him make a face, and he quickly pulled back after leaving a small circle of teeth marks. "Good," he murmured, ignoring the way Izuku was working his jaw, no doubt not really liking the taste of the raw meat.

"Her quirk really helps a lot," Izuku said. It didn't make much sense to the Doctor.

"Who's quirk?" he asked curiously.

"Himiko's," Izuku told him.

Kyudai didn't know who that was. "Who is Himiko?"

"One of my friends," the boy answered. "At least, I hope so. I haven't been able to talk to her for a while."

The Doctor nodded. He still didn't know precisely who Himiko was, but he had heard that Izuku had lost the contacts of several friends. Himiko must have been one of them. "What does her quirk do?" he asked. He wasn't entirely sure how it could help with biting meat.

"It's called Transform," Izuku told him happily. "If Himiko drinks some of your blood, she can transform into you," he explained.

That's how it helped with blood. "So she doesn't mind the taste of blood?" He surmised, already knowing the answer.

"Yeah, she thinks it tastes good."

"Hmm, maybe Kurogiri can get you a Katsudon tonight?" Garaki suggested. He had no idea what the misty man would make for Izuku's dinner but figured it wouldn't hurt to offer that to Izuku.

"Hopefully!" Izuku said with a grin.

"Now, use Poison Fang, and please bite the next piece," the Doctor instructed, getting back to what they were working on. Izuku didn't look impressed at the instruction, but he obeyed and briefly showed off a set of fangs after activating the quirk.

He bit into the next piece of meat, this time leaving larger holes from his fangs.

"Feel around with your tongue, please," Garaki instructed. "Is there anything that feels soft behind the fang teeth you now have?" If there was, those would be poison sacs.

Izuku frowned, and the Doctor saw his jaw move slightly as he complied. "There's nothing behind the tooth, but something is at the top of my mouth."

"May I see it?"

Izuku moved over to him and Kyudai picked up a little mirror on a stick. When the boy opened his mouth, he pushed it in and looked at the roof of Izuku's mouth. There was something there.

"I believe they are your venom sacs," he told Izuku. "So when you bite the next piece of meat, I want you to see if you can massage them with your tongue. Try to push the venom into your teeth." Garaki instructed, pulling the mirror back.

Izuku nodded.

"It may not make a difference," the Doctor continued. "When you bite, you may be putting enough pressure on them to actually activate."

The boy smiled and picked up another piece of meat. He eyed it without enthusiasm, and when Kyudai nodded, Izuku bit into it. He remained biting into it for a few moments longer than usual, and the Doctor knew he was trying to envenomate the bite. When Izuku released the meat, there was a thin trail of saliva between it and his mouth, which quickly snapped. "Himiko's quirk really, really helps!" he announced.

"No doubt. How do you feel?"

Izuku knew to take that question seriously and Garaki saw him think about it before he answered. "I'm fine, though," Izuku moved his jaw slightly and the Doctor wondered if he'd tasted his own venom, "there is a bit of an aftertaste in my mouth."

"Is it the meat?"

"No, it's sharper," he confirmed.

"Let me swab it," Kyudai said and again Izuku came over. "I think this will be enough tests," Garaki told Izuku as he took the swab. "But I want you to be careful with your claws," he cautioned the boy again. "I believe you will be able to control the amount you use in time, for the moment if you accidentally scratch someone, it could be fatal."

Izuku didn't nod but once he withdrew the small cotton piece the boy did. "I will be careful," he promised.

The Doctor smiled at him. "I know, and I will let you know the results here as quickly as I can," he added. It wasn't Izuku who wanted to know but Sensei and that meant he would be working on this quickly. No doubt the ancient man wanted to know everything about the weapon he had inadvertently given his son. If what All For One said was true, it appeared Izuku's quirk had a good feel for quirks, given it wanted to keep that one.

And that was another line of research that excited him. Except it was a line he would have to wait before he could pursue it. For now, he just had to find the details of the quirk and that had to be enough.

For now.

-ted-

"What are the results, Doctor?" All For One asked softly as Garaki came towards him.

"As expected, Sensei," Kyudai replied. "Any scratch from his claws will deliver some toxin, though he does have some control over how much."

All For One nodded. The Doctor knew what that meant. He foresaw many, many more pig carcasses in his area in the future. "His bite is a little more variable."

"How so?"

"Normal teeth display no sign of venom. When Izuku activates Poison Fang, venom sacs become apparent in his mouth and normal bite pressure is enough to envenomate a bite. However, Izuku can add venom to a bit by manually massaging the sacs."

The ancient man nodded. "Opportunities to do that may be limited," he observed. Most people would not allow themselves to be bitten, let alone let Izuku sink his fangs into them and take the time to add venom.

"True," Garaki agreed before he made a decision. "Izuku mentioned one of his old friends a few times during the test," he told Sensei.

That got the man's attention. In so far as All For One could look at someone, Kyudai got the impression that he was being examined. "You think there will be an outburst?"

"Possibly," Kyudai indicated, "but it was the reference to her quirk that interested me." There were relatively few blood-based quirks out there.

"I believe her quirk is called Transform," All For One told him. "It allows her to transform into the form of anyone whose blood she inge-" The man went silent.

Garaki got the impression that Sensei had just been hit by a revelation.

"What is it?" the Doctor asked.

"She could, according to my Little Dragon's notes, transform into anyone whose blood she ingested," Sensei said.

It took the Doctor a few moments to realise what that meant. If All For One had that quirk and ingested his own blood, what would he transform into? Would it be his currently scarred form, or his uninjured body? And if it was his uninjured body, could he then make that transformation permanent? It might take a few experiments with Regeneration but it would be worth it.

Or would the quirk just not work if he ingested his own blood? That was also a possibility.

But there were possibilities there.

They had yet to find out if Regeneration would accept implanted eyes so long as the operation was done while the quirk was no longer in Sensei. Using this girl's quirk would be far more efficient.

"I think it's time someone went back to Niigata," All For One murmured.

"Are you sure her quirk would work on its holder?" Garaki asked. The question had to be asked. The girl would have had no need to test it upon herself, and it was entirely possible that her quirk would not work on herself.

The way Sensei smiled at him told the Doctor that he didn't know. It was the expected answer. No one really knew if their quirk worked upon themselves. Oneself was either the focus of one's quirk, such as in his case or was the one body that couldn't be affected by one's quirk. They would only know by testing it.

"I think Izuku needs to be reunited with his friend," Sensei said gently.

"It would be a nice surprise for him," Garaki agreed.

"I believe I will send Tomura," All For One mused. "But I will make it clear that the girl is not to be harmed. It will be a good test for him," he added.

"It will be."

"Make preparations to copy her quirk, should it be useful."

"You won't keep it?" Kyudai was surprised.

Sensei gave him a look as if he was insulted. "She is Izuku's friend." He said nothing more.

From that simple statement, the Doctor knew arrangements would be made. She might never know that her simple act of friendship had just… well… It had done a lot. More than she would ever know.

Even so, Garaki couldn't help but think that her quirk had possibilities but… he didn't think the effects would be permanent. Not without using another quirk but what, he had no idea.

-ted-

Yakuni survives! He had a scare but he survives 'cos ultimately he's useful! And AFO doesn't remove useful people.

Also, someone finally twigged that Himiko's quirk could be useful! It's come up a few times before but I just held out until now. Sure AFO and Garaki are smart but they aren't always thinking of Himiko beyond the fact she was Izuku's friend and in making sure that Izuku doesn't do something stupid, like try to visit her.

So... what will this mean? Tomura better not do anything to Himiko or Izuku will be upset and that will make AFO upset and we don't want that. Tomura would get in trouble and that might ruin AFO's plans for him to think he's beyond anything. So we will see what happens.

My discord is on this code: ZX2R5h2cEm FFN will remove links but you should be able to figure that out.

-ted-

Loved it? Hated it? Found a spelling mistake? Let me know please!