"Unknown?" Yaoyorozu echoed, brows knitting in confusion, "What in the world is that?"
"Why did they mention our class?"
"What did they mean when they said the teachers wouldn't be able to help us? Did they capture them too?"
"Do you think we're in danger?"
"What's happening?"
The speaker system crackled to life again, instantly quieting the frantic students.
"As of this moment, anyone found in the hallway will be disposed of. We're coming to you, Class 1-A. Oh, and don't try anything- we have one of your own."
Everyone's breaths hitched as they glanced around the room, trying to identify who they could be talking about. The only students missing were Koda, Sero, and Todoroki.
"T-they're coming here?!" Mineta exclaimed, shooting out of his seat.
"What are we going to do?" Midoriya stood up anxiously.
"Listen, everyone! We have to stay put and wait for help to arrive!"
"But what if they don't get here in time?!"
"We'll have to fight them, won't we?"
"We don't know how strong the villains are! It could be dangerous!"
"We can't just watch while they do whatever they want!"
"E-everyone! Please listen!" Uraraka shouted. The commotion quieted slightly as all eyes turned to her. "I think I have an idea! I-it's not much, but… it sounds like they're looking for someone or something called 'unknown.' The man said they were coming here, so they must think we have it! Maybe if we all keep quiet and stall for as long as possible, it might give the pro-heroes time to get here!"
"But how are we supposed to stall?"
"We can just avoid their questions! We can also try to learn what 'unknown' is while we're at it!"
"Wouldn't it be easier to just stop them? We could surprise attack them all at once- it would be hard for any villain to defend against all of us, right?"
"We don't know how many of them there are, ribbit. They might have some way to call for backup."
"Yea, they could hurt the hostages..."
"What if we split up?"
All heads turned to Yaoyorozu as the words left her mouth.
"But they said they'll kill anyone in the hallways!"
"I don't think they will," she said, her eyes focused on something invisible as her brows furrowed in concentration. "Think about it! The only reason they would come to us is because they need something from us. They addressed all of class 1-A, not just one person, so I think they might not know which one of us has, or knows about, what they're looking for! If we split up into groups, we can slow them down while also looking for the teachers and hostages. If we can find the teachers or save the other students, that'll give us an advantage, right?"
The students glanced at each other uncertainly, some exchanging slow nods between them.
"Maybe Yaoyorozu's right," Iida spoke through gritted teeth. "It's wrong to disobey the rules, but there are students in danger!"
"How many groups should we split into?" Tokoyami asked, standing up.
"I think there should be two: one to focus on saving the hostages, and the other on finding the teachers."
Hesitant glances were soon outnumbered by determined nods, and as quickly as they could, with what little order they managed, the class split into two groups. With the risk of running into an unknown number of villains, they made certain each team had a mix of offensive and defensive members. The two non-1-A girls who had ducked into the room earlier were shaken, adamant they couldn't be on their own; one of the groups was tasked with bringing them back to their classrooms safely.
After one last run-through of the plan from Yaoyorozu, quickly and quietly, the students slipped out of the room.
Naoko was placed on the hostage rescue team. They were headed for the upper levels of the building, having reasoned the villains would most likely place themselves at a high vantage point. She shuffled quietly next to Uraraka as their group hurried towards the stairway. First, they were headed to class 3-E to drop off the two girls, then they would begin their search for the hostages.
Their hearts pounded in their ears as the eleven of them ran up the stairway, keeping as quiet as they could while also rushing for time. Everyone was on edge, adrenaline burning through their veins as their eyes darted left and right in search of the strangers who had overtaken their school. It wouldn't be long until the villains got to the classroom and found it empty; no doubt they would come searching for them.
They had to move quickly.
"Why do we have to take care of these extras?"
"Kaachan, lower your voice!"
"Where are we going to start looking?" Uraraka whispered.
"Only a few offices in the school have access to the speaker system. We should start with those," Shoji reasoned warily. He shifted his tentacles into ears, spreading them out to listen carefully for any sign of the villains or hostages.
"There! Our class is that one!" One of the girls pointed ahead to a door with '3-E' hanging above it. They quickly reached the classroom and she peeked through the window, waving frantically to the students inside.
"Where have you been! We thought you were caught by the attackers!" a boy whispered harshly as he quickly opened the door and ushered the two in.
"Sorry!" She hurried into the room before turning back to the group behind her, "Be careful, guys. And thanks!"
"Tch. That was a waste of time."
"Now that's done, let's start looking for the hostages!"
With nine of them remaining, they hurried back to the staircase and continued upwards.
"I know the principal's office and one of the staff rooms have access to the speaker system. There may be others too," Iida announced quietly from the head of the group.
"They should all be on the upper floors, right?" Mineta asked, voice cracking as he moved next to Shoji. He seemed to be the most nervous among them, his hands trembling slightly and startling at the faintest noise.
"I think so. We can split up when we get there; the other group is starting with the staff rooms, so we can skip the ones they've already searched."
"I'll ask them to let us know which ones they clear!" Kaminari volunteered, pulling out his phone.
"Hey, where do you think the missing three are?" Uraraka whispered quietly, brows drawn with worry as she glanced at the raven-haired girl next to her.
"One of them must have been taken by the attackers, but the other two… I'm not sure," Naoko admitted, an apprehensive frown tugging at the corner of her lips.
"Don't worry! We'll get them back for sure!"
She glanced back at Midoriya who wore a determined expression. He smiled at them encouragingly, a fist clenched in front of him. He believed in his words- that much she could tell.
The group stopped upon reaching the 12th floor.
"There are two staff rooms on this level," Iida stated, pointing to the metal door leading into the hallway. "Bakugo, Mineta, Midoriya, Uraraka, and Naoko, can you take them? The rest of us will begin searching the next floor."
"Leave it to us!" Midoriya declared softly.
"Once you finish, go up two floors; if we alternate, we might be able to find the villains before they find us. Be careful; we don't know what kind of quirks they have."
"We will. Good luck!" Uraraka forced a small smile as the four others turned and continued up the stairwell. Her hands were shaking, but she refused to let her apprehension slip.
They opened the door leading to the 12th floor.
"Let's be careful to not be seen."
Quietly, they started down the hall, sticking closely to either side in hopes of concealing themselves. Midoriya and Uraraka crept along the left wall while Bakugo, Mineta, and Naoko moved on the opposite side.
After a minute of tense silence, they slowed to a stop as they came to a door with a 'Staff Only' sign next to it. The room had no windows and the small slot on the door was covered from the inside with black paper.
Exchanging determined nods, Midoriya held up three fingers.
Two-
One-
Bakugo slammed the door open with a blast and the rest of them leapt out behind him, tensed and ready to attack.
There was no one inside.
"Damn it! Not this one," he cursed.
"I'll let the others know..." Uraraka breathed a quiet sigh. "The other one is on the other side of the building. We should hurry; if the villains are nearby, they might have heard us."
Quickly, the five slipped out of the room and continued down the hall.
A tall, white-haired man sat in the back of the conference room, arms crossed and reclining comfortably. A muscular man with a shaved head walked over to him from the control panel on the wall.
"Boss, Brazil says the classroom is empty," he reported.
The white-haired man sighed and shook his head. Raising a hand, he pressed a button on his earpiece. "Tracer, where's the girl?"
"I believe she's on the 12th floor, sir. There are others with her, so it's a bit difficult to tell."
"Looking for us, is she? Connector, send Brazil after them."
"But boss, won't he be at a disadvantage?"
"I told you before- as long as there are others around, she can't do anything. If she wants to keep her cover, he'll have no trouble capturing all of them."
"Still, we don't know what she looks like. How will-"
"Connector," he looked up at the man impatiently, eyes narrowed with a dangerous glint, "you're not afraid, are you?"
Connector stiffened, shaking his head fervently. "Of course not, sir!"
"Then send Brazil after her, and go back to watching those idiots."
"Y-yes, sir!"
Connector hurried back over to the control panel and mumbled something into his earpiece. He glanced over to see a boy inching towards the door, and the student flinched when he met his poisonous glare.
"What do you think you're doing?" he growled.
Stalking over to the mortified boy who frantically tried stuttering out an apology, he raised a leg and drove it straight into his stomach. Cries of pain spilled from the boy's mouth as he tumbled backwards, doubling over and coughing violently.
"All of you better stay still if you want to live! You hear me?!" he hollered, his sharp glare sweeping over the large group cowering on the floor.
The tied-up students all looked away in fear, gritting their teeth as the boy began coughing up blood.
"No one here either," Midoriya sighed as they stepped out of yet another empty staff room. This was the only one with speaker system access on the 14th floor, and they had, yet again, found nothing.
"Anything from the other teams?" Uraraka asked as they headed towards the stairway once again.
"They say they haven't found anything either. The rest of our group is on the 15th floor right now, and the others have cleared most of the rooms in the lower half of the school."
"It's just a matter of time before I blast those assholes to pieces!"
"Hey, lower your voice!" Mineta reminded harshly, "The villains might still be looking for-"
"Finally found ya'. Some slippery kids we got 'ere."
The five whipped around to see a short, pale man leering impatiently at them. He was thin, narrowed blue eyes peering out from under the wide-brimmed hat engulfing most of his head. He wore a suit of tattered white leather, and a pair of gleaming handcuffs hung from his belt.
"So you're one of those damn bastards that have been threatening us, huh?" Bakugo grinned maliciously, his knuckles cracking as he flexed his fingers.
Without hesitation, he charged at him with an impatient shout. Within seconds, he was eye to eye with the man, a loud boom thundering through the hall as he aimed a blast at his stomach, bright enough that they had to shield their eyes.
"What the hell?!"
They looked back to see Bakugo's arm had gone straight through the man, a gaping hole punched through in his chest. In an instant, the writhing wound sealed with quicksand, engulfing his arm.
"Flashy kid, huh?" the man sneered down at him. A mound of quicksand rose from the ground and threw him to the side, encasing his limbs as it pinned him to the wall. "I'm not 'ere for you though."
Midoriya grimaced and ran towards the man, arms crackling with energy as Mineta frantically threw hairballs around him in an effort to restrict his movements. Uraraka dashed to a stack of boxes nearby and lifted them with her quirk, sending them flying at the man.
"This crap is heavy!" Bakugo shouted, wincing as the sand pressed down on his chest. His palms detonated with muffled bangs, but the explosions barely shifted the sand at all before they were completely swallowed.
"Hold on!" Naoko called, hurrying over to him and bracing herself.
A sudden wall of wind hit Bakugo in the face, as if some giant, invisible hand had just slapped him. He was about to open his mouth to shout at her for the sharp stinging on his cheek when he saw the layers of sand pinning him to the wall begin to tear away, scattering down the corridor.
She frowned when she saw the mass still clung to him stubbornly, resisting the harsh, clawing gust that knocked open a number of doors down the hall. She grit her teeth and reached forward, grabbing him by the collar and pulling as hard as she could, leaning her entire weight on the back of her heels as he writhed against the binds. The quicksand started to give way.
The pale man caught Midoriya before he reached him, engulfing him quickly and tossing him against the incoming boxes. Uraraka's eyes widened and she quickly tried to release them, but she wasn't fast enough. His back collided painfully with the heavy weights midair, and he went tumbling to the floor, the boxes crashing down on top of him.
The tile beneath Uraraka melted into a pit of quicksand, swallowing her up to her ankles before she could react. Thinking quickly, she activated her quirk on herself and grabbed onto the doorframe next to her, straining to pull her body free from the trap, but the flow of sand kept dragging her further down even as she struggled.
Naoko and Bakugo stumbled backwards as he finally tumbled out of the suffocating trap.
"Bastard!" he sneered, quickly rising to his feet and turning to the villain with one arm extended, "Die!"
A hot blast shot from his hand, creating a gust of scorching air that Naoko instinctively snapped away from, raising both arms to shield her face. She held her breath, but it quickly became difficult to breathe, and just when the heat was becoming too much to bear, the blast finally faded.
She looked up to see Bakugo wincing as he gripped his wrist.
"A-are you ok?" she asked frantically, scrambling to her feet and rushing behind him.
"Yea, I-"
"You're better than I thought, kiddo."
She looked up in alarm. As the smoke cleared, a red-hot wall of sand collapsed to reveal the pale man standing untouched, leering at them. The walls next to him were streaked, charred black, but he remained unfazed.
The ground beneath them surged as quicksand engulfed them both up to their necks. Naoko gasped- it was as if she had been encased in concrete; she couldn't move at all.
"Damn it!" Bakugo shouted, struggling against the vice grip around him. He tried to free his hands, but his explosions did little against the heavy quicksand.
"Kids these days ain't nothin' to sneeze at, huh?" The man stalked towards him, a patronizing smile tugging at his lips. The sand encasing the four of them rose from the ground. "Y'all come with me now," he smirked, starting down the hall.
Bakugo cursed under his breath. No matter how he tried, his explosions were useless: almost instantly being absorbed into the sand before they could cause any damage. He shouted and cursed as he struggled vigorously against his restraints. When he finally glanced up admist his fit, he caught Naoko's eye.
She was gesturing with her head, motioning towards something behind them.
He glanced over his shoulder.
Standing in a doorway, eyes watering, his bleeding head peeking out from down the hall, was Mineta.
"Found some more of 'em, boss. These was the ones ya' asked for."
Bakugo, Midoriya, Naoko, and Uraraka dropped to the ground harshly, still immobile from the cocoon of heavy sand binding them. Looking up, they saw the short man speaking to two people across the room. The unfamiliar pair stood over a group of their classmates: each bound and gagged with thick black cords. The other half of the makeshift rescue team was among them, staring at them nervously, as well as almost all of the remainder of the class. There were at least a dozen other students in the room as well, tied up and herded together in the far corner.
"Well done, Brazil," a white-haired man, apparently the leader of the group, spoke, standing up from his seat.
A bald man stepped forward and black cords emerged from his chest, shooting out to force themselves around their mouths and sinking into the quicksand surrounding the four of them. Muffled cries of protest were ignored as the sand fell slack, melting to the ground, save for a chunk still encasing each of their hands, and leaving them in the same positions as their classmates.
"Tracer," the white-haired man spoke into his earpiece, his cold eyes shifting between Naoko and Uraraka, "which one?"
The two girls furrowed their brows in confusion. They glanced at each other, then at their classmates.
"I… I-I'm not sure…"
"What do you mean? Look at the heat signatures. Which is it?"
"I… um…m-maybe the one on the left…?"
"Maybe?" he spat incredulously. "Get in here, now. And you'd better have an answer by the time I see you." He ripped out his earpiece and tossed it across the room. He sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose before looking back down at the two girls. "Maybe you can make things easier for me, since my brother has suddenly become stupid," he sneered, crouching down in front of them. The cords around their mouths fell slack. "Which one of you is Unknown?"
They glanced at each other, confusion still etched onto their faces.
"What do you mean? Who's Unknown?" Naoko asked, an angry frown on her lips.
"We don't know what you're talking about!" Uraraka shouted, glaring daggers at him.
He sighed once again. Turning around, he waved over one of the others. "Connector, where's the paper?"
The bald man, Connector, produced a single, folded sheet of paper from his pocket.
"Give it to that one," he gestured to Midoriya.
Connector walked over to the struggling boy and held up the paper. "Hey, kid, which one of their names isn't on here?"
Midoriya grit his teeth, glaring daggers at the white-haired man before glancing at the paper in front of him.
"I don't know," he stated, turning away defiantly.
"Is that so?" the man frowned, shifting his eyes to Bakugo, "What about you?"
"I'm not telling you shit!"
The leader pinched the bridge of his nose, breathing a humorless laugh as his eyes narrowed impatiently.
"Since no one seems to know, I'll just have to find out myself."
He stood up and glanced between the two girls for just a moment. His right foot began emitting a soft white light as he drew it back, shifted his weight, and rammed it into Naoko's stomach, sending her flying into the back wall.
"Hey! You piece of-!"
"Keep him quiet, Brazil."
A lump of quicksand instantly formed in Bakugo's mouth as another cord wired his jaw shut. He gagged at the repulsive sensation and lurched forward, trying in vain to spit it out.
Naoko's face twisted as she coughed painfully, slowly pushing herself up as the leader stalked towards her.
"W-what...what do you-!" She was cut off by another glowing kick to the stomach. She choked out a cry of pain, her back slamming against the wall before she fell to the ground once again. A trail of blood dripped from the corner of her mouth as she doubled over coughing.
"Naoko!" Uraraka shouted, eyes wide in horror as the muffled cries of their classmates almost drowned her out. She struggled painfully against her restraints, the skin around her wrist turning red with friction. The man didn't seem to notice any of it, however, as he crouched in front of the cowering girl.
"Come on, you can take more than that, can't you, Unknown?" he cooed lowly, driving a fist into her side.
"Stay still!" Brazil yelled as the other students tried moving towards them. He quickly melded the floor into pits of quicksand as they struggled haphazardly, having to encase Bakugo, who fought hardest of all, up to his knees.
"Stop! Stop it! What do you want?!" Uraraka pleaded, trying to push herself over to where her friend lay.
"How long are you going to keep this up? All you have to do is admit it," he whispered as if he couldn't hear the chaos behind him.
"...I...I-" Naoko paused, coughing violently as blood spattered onto the floor in front of her. She hunched over, trying to relieve the stabbing pain in her ribs as she glared up at the man with as much venom as she could muster, "...I'm n-not who you're looking for…"
He stood up, ramming his foot into the same spot in her stomach. She bit back a scream, nearly sobbing in pain as her body lurched backwards, black spots creeping into the corners of her vision. She hit the ground hard, but she could barely register it as she desperately curled into herself, nails digging into her palms hard enough to draw blood. She squeezed her eyes shut, gritting her teeth as tears dripped onto the hard tile beneath.
He gazed down at her, narrowing his eyes for a moment, and tilted his head.
"Maybe it's not her…" he muttered, lips curling into a frown. He turned around with his eyes now fixed on Uraraka. "In that case, it must be you!" He kicked her violently, sending her flying across the room as she cried out in pain.
The shouts behind him grew impossibly louder.
Uraraka grit her teeth and pulled herself up, glaring poisonously.
"I-I'm not scared of you!"
He narrowed his eyes and drew back a glowing fist.
Suddenly, the glow faded from his hand. He looked up to see the sand beneath the students had disappeared as well.
"Brazil, what-"
The door burst open as a block of cement shot up beneath Connector, slamming him against the ceiling. A stream of bullets tore through Brazil's chest before he could react, blood spraying from his wounds and splattering across the wall behind him as he gasped and clutched at the bullet holes. The white-haired leader bolted forward to grab Uraraka, who tensed up and readied herself to fight, but before he could reach her, All Might burst into the room, knocking him out of the way with a "Texas Smash!"
Everyone cried out in relief as the teachers flooded into the room. They spread out quickly, some to capture the villains, others to free the shaken students. A few went to untie the group on the other side of the room.
"Can you hear me? Are you awake?" Aizawa frowned as he placed a hand on Naoko's shoulder, bending to kneel beside where she lay curled on the floor.
Glassy brown eyes pried themselves open and drifted up to him.
"Y-yea…"
"Good. You're going to be ok," he reassured as he untied the cords around her wrists and ankles, helping her sit up.
"Hey!"
Bakugo shot up the moment his restraints loosened enough to slip out of, the shouts from the teachers behind him falling on deaf ears as his eyes could only focus on a single person.
Time seemed to slow as he ran.
His body was numb.
He couldn't think.
He couldn't feel his heart pounding.
Bakugo nearly shoved Aizawa aside as he dropped to his knees in front of her, hands flying up to her shoulders, wide eyes frantically looking her over. His expression morphed into fury when he saw the blood on her lips and the tears in her half-focused eyes.
"...H-hi…" she smiled weakly, an unsteady hand cradling her stomach, "...are... you ok?"
His eyes widened. "Are you fucking kidding?! The hell are you worried about me for?! You're the one who's half fucking conscious!"
"...oh," she breathed quietly, "...so you're ok..."
His heart nearly stopped as she tilted forward, gently wrapping her free arm around him. He felt her cheek press softly against his shoulder, her hair brushing the side of his neck as she breathed out tiredly.
It took him a moment to return to his senses. Once he regained control of his limbs, he reached out, and in one smooth motion, pulled her flush against him, one arm wrapped tightly around her waist while the other clutched at the back of her disheveled uniform. He grit his teeth harshly, closing his eyes as he buried his nose in her hair. He breathed in the familiar, sweet scent that quickly enveloped his mind, easing his thoughts without the slightest effort.
What fear he had melted away long ago, leaving only a harsh, dull pain constricting in his chest.
"...shit."