Hello all,

I tried not to make the villains OOC, but don't hesitate if you have comments on them.

CHAPTER 11 – An vow to protect

Toshinori had acted out of habit.

Some heroes had the indescribable sixth sense to feel when villains were near. All Might was one of them, and even if he knew full well that his body could not buff up to his hero form anymore, said body jumped into action in a heartbeat, without giving his brain any time to catch up.

He was so used to this, that he barely registered the sharp edge of the knife as it plunged into his flesh, nor did he acknowledge the pain at first. Protecting the civilians was top priority.

And right now, the civilian he had unconsciously chosen to protect first was Philae.

However, as blood began soaking his clothes, and hot pain radiated in his shoulder, he could not stop the wince from showing on his face, and he saw his student's eyes widen at this. Her pupils were clouded and panicked, and her shoulders tensed under his palms. She was bracing herself for something. No doubt her link was responding to her, and she was fighting against it.

His mouth filled with a well-known metallic taste, but he retained it. He could not show her he was worse than he looked.

A whine drew him back to the situation at hand. The villain that had stabbed him was complaining quite loudly to someone else. A quick glance confirmed him of their identities.

They were new recruits of the League of Villains. They must have been sent by Shigaraki, to scout and gather information about Philae. Probably to take her, too.

"Shoot!," the blonde girl, Toga, pouted, "I hit the ugly bone bag. Though he looks much better now that he's bleeding."

She giggled and petted her hunting knife fondly, its end still dripping with the retired hero's blood. The male villain who accompanied her, Dabi, a skinny young man with terribly stitched patches of wrinkled, purple skin on his chest, face, and arms, hmphed and thrust his hands into his pockets.

"Whatever. You're crap at targetting," he said.

"Not my fault he jumped in to protect the girl."

"Don't care."

Philae breathed with difficulty. Her link was humming so loudly that blood pounded in her ears. She fought the urge to let the dragon out into the shop. He was powerful, terrifyingly so, and she could not let him wipe out the area. She had sworn to herself she would control her magic.

Why resist, the voice stated sternly, I am only obliging. Did you not make a vow to kill bad people? Did you not want them all dead?

She did, did she not? That might have been what she had wished for at the time, in the lab. She remembered thinking: If only they could all die, everything would get better. The dragon had only answered accordingly.

She realized something then. Her first contract had been made out of despair and hatred. A partnership based on negative feelings.

You can't do that, innocents will die!, she tried to counter.

So? Is that not what you wanted, to be free? Is that not why you called me? I only answered. Why does it matter, if it is through death and destruction.

The beast sounded sly, but he was right. He had only answered. After millennia of existence, one could only guess that questions of life and death meant close to nothing to him. He had only answered and got content with this. Philae was the only one able to change that answer.

"Move out of the way, All Might," the girl ordered playfully, "unless you want me to shape you into a magnificent bloody piece of art."

Toshinori stiffened, refusing to reply. So, Shigaraki, and through him All for One, really was after Philae. Why? To take her powers away from her? To use her? He could not let that happen.

What options did he have? He could not fight in his state. Had the owner fled? He hoped so. He would not forgive himself if something happened to her. Heroes in the area could have had a pageant informing them of the commotion, if any witness had seen and reported it to the authorities. If. Until then, they were alone. The best he could do, was buy time and create an opening for his student to flee.

His decision taken, the retired hero squeezed Philae's shoulder briefly before straightening up, hoping she would get the silent indication as a sign he would try something. He was not certain she had got the message, but it hardly mattered. It was too late to think of another plan.

Steeling his mind, he kept his chin up and swallowed down the blood in his mouth.

"I won't let you, and you're not going anywhere. Heroes will soon be here to stop you."

"Oh?" The blonde high school girl put a finger on her mouth, in deep thought. "I didn't see anyone out there. They look happy, I hate happy. I can't be happy, I don't have my Izuku to make bleed."

She was talking nonsense. Izuku, bleeding to death? She sounded way out of her mind. The man was nonplussed and sighed.

"I'm fed up already. Let's kill him quickly and take the girl."

"Can I make him bleed."

"Whatever."

"Yay!"

At the word kill, Philae jolted and jumped up. Sensing her reaction, Toshinori turned a fraction and attempted to keep her behind him. He could not avoid the second attack directed at his throat.

Philae suddenly saw the things in slow motion. Roars echoed on the other side of the link, and she repressed the violent urge to let the other warp out with as much will as she could muster. She could not let him unbind his rage.

She did not want a vow to destroy.

Unable to use her magic, she did the next thing she thought of. Her arms jerked up and intercepted the weapon before it landed on All Might. It sliced into her flesh like butter, and nearly reached the bone. With a yelp, she backed away clutching at her wound.

Why do you let them live?, the dragon screeched with fury. How dare they live?

Her emotions wanted to spill out in flames. Her dragons demanded revenge. She was torn and struggling.

But she held her ground.

Dark flames emanated from the man. Annoyed with the situation, he wanted to finish quickly and leave. Staying too long would mean that heroes would soon swarm up and circle the area. And the stupid wench he had to baby-sit did nothing. So it was up to him to get done with the job.

Toshinori yanked on Philae's arm, but she did not budge. His grip was weaker than before, with his open wound slowing him and making him dizzy. His vision blurred and he blinked, doing his best to stay focused. The flames licked at his shoes and trapped him, separating him from her.

No!

Philae saw the dark fire circle and isolate her. Now anguished for both her and All Might, she tried to find a way out. Her insides burnt with the intensity of the radiating link, with calls and growls rippling through the bond.

The floor cracked and crumbled around her, as sheer power fought for release in her. The calls for bloodshed were growing more and more impervious.

They demanded revenge. She refused to kill.

They wanted action. She did not trust her control over them.

What to do?

She heard someone call her name. In front of her, there was the man, but the girl was nowhere in sight. All Might was alone with her. And he was in no shape to fight back.

Anguish morphed into anger. Anger steeled her resolve. Her thoughts cleared, and while she glared at the villain, she pulled on the link forcefully.

Bearer of the Solar Essence, she sent mentally, you will listen.

The man raised a brow. Had he guessed what she was doing?

I contracted you at a time when I thought death as the only outcome. I don't anymore.

Fire closed in on her. The air was suffocating.

Therefore, if I must, I free you from your duty. My vow is not to kill. It is to protect. That means protecting my friends, my allies, but also my enemies. Protect them from themselves, as from me. Either you accept this, or you leave me.

No answer. For a fleeting moment, the link got silent. Philae was about to decide on a desperate hand-to-hand contact with the man approaching, until she heard, Very well.

Power surged to her in scorching waves. Energy filled every fibre of her body and made the air around her clear and sing. She felt invigorated and strong.

The villain stopped in stunned contemplation. Something was not right about his target. He had to stop his stupid acolyte before she stepped on dangerous grounds.

Toshinori's breath was laboured. He had tried to dodge some blows, but other had left him even more bloody and weaker. This girl was trying to see how much blood she could shed, before he collapsed. She took great pleasure in it.

A wave of hot air hit them, and the flames around Philae and her opponent evaporated in a whoosh. A low growl came out of her mouth, and when she turned to check on him, he could see trails of smoke coming out of her nostrils. Her pupils split vertically and took a golden hue he had never seen in them.

She was turning into a dragon. The blonde-haired maniac oohed loudly and pouted.

"Uh-oh."

She did not have time to dodge the slender, long thorned tail that smacked her away and into the nearest wall, effectively knocking her out.

Philae felt strange. Her body felt ten times more powerful and sensitive to her environment, and at the same time she felt as if nothing could reach her. Her skin hardened, and her magic flowed freely into her veins with the song of dragon hearts beating in rhythm with hers. Ripples of raging killing wishes tugged at the corners of her mind, but she shook them away.

The dragon had agreed to a change in their core agreement.

A vow to protect. An oath of humanity.

She did not know if she could trust him, but she would take what he offered for now.

She could not last very long, however. Her limbs were creaking with the pressure they went under. She had to end this fast. To attract attention on them, so that the authorities could get to them.

She had the perfect trump for that.

The villain in front of her tried to summon his flames back around him, but she could not let him reach anyone. Stretching her senses as far as she could to detect any presence, she took in a huge breath, pulling on the link to get to her wyvern. Infuriae answered her easily, profanities spewing out of the link while he gave her what she wanted.

Now dat's the creepy pancake's out, let's do a Lego Mighty Horror Show wit' Frankenstein's monster!

She kept the power in for a second, checking one last time that everything was clear. Then, she released everything at once.

The screech she produced could have ripped off any normal man's vocal cords in an instant. The sheer intensity of the note she managed to get out of her throat was enough to make ears bleed and organs explode, should the victim stand right in front of her. Coupled with the magic she infused in it, the villain, then a few feet away, received it as a giant blow in the stomach and went flying backward, the wall, tables, and window behind him disintegrating as if they were made of paper.

Directing the attack downwards and making it as brief as possible, Philae managed to spare the street and buildings on the other side of the road, as well as the man, but the tiled floor of the shop disappeared and a monstrous hole took its place.

The villain landed back on earth in a heap of flesh and bones, limbs broken and at odd angles. His skin tore and bled from multiple cuts, and he nearly cracked his skull on the crumbling pavement. He was barely breathing, but he was breathing still. He had taken much of the blow, but it had not killed him. If medical help came soon, he would heal and live.

She had done it. She had managed to retain her power, more or less, and not kill. With a low rumbling sigh, she let go of her hold on the link. Her skin lost its scales, her eyes found back their natural chocolate hue, and her tail disappeared. Her energy left her.

Turning around, she found All Might on the floor, shocked into silence, but not terrified nor disgusted. He ignored the villains entirely, gaping at her with a strange expression, then turned his head away from her and refused to look at her in the eyes. His face grew red and his posture was very, very stiff.

Anguish clawed at her mind.

Maybe the blonde hero thought she had done too much damage. Maybe she had failed, in fact. She held her head low in uncertainty.

Heroes and emergency teams soon came running to them. They took care of the two villains, especially the man, and carried them out to a large ambulance. A hero scouted the area to make sure all was clear, while another worked on the weakened foundations to secure the building. Officer Tamagawa entered the shop with a colleague, and after a few minutes of taking in the situation and amount of damage done to the place, they joined Philae and Toshinori.

"Are you both alright? Can you walk?," he asked them loudly.

Philae snapped out of her thoughts and turned to the cat-man. She nodded slowly. She tried advancing towards him, but she stumbled on her first step, and he jumped forward to catch her. She was more exhausted than she previously thought, now that the adrenalin had left her body.

"Easy, Miss Crawford," the policeman murmured gently. "Lean on me, I'll help you."

She thanked him quietly, turning her head anxiously to All Might, who was flanked by Tamagawa's colleague. They talked in hushed whispers, and the officer left the blonde for a short moment in order to take off his uniform jacket and offer it to Philae. She took it with a frown, not understanding why he did that.

"You may want to cover yourself, Miss," he said in a professional tone, his cheeks showing the faintest tinge of pink.

What does he mean by 'covering my-'... Oh. Oh!

She turned red the moment she realized why All Might and the policeman acted so oddly. Her clothes were obviously not dragon-tail-proof. What a horrid sight she must have been to them.

She thanked the man and used the jacket to hide her bottom in a hurry, shame burning on her face. She wanted to disappear into the ground.

"I-I'm sorry," she spluttered helplessly, "I wasn't aware..."

She stopped abruptly when she noticed her teacher sway on his feet and fall back to the ground. She called to him and scrambled to catch him, ignoring the shouts of Tamagawa and the other policeman. Her knees landed on the cold floor with a harsh and painful thump, but all she cared about was All Might. She managed to catch him into her arms.

"All Might!"

Toshinori did not hear her. He was already unconscious. He only had time to think they were in good hands, and feel warmness engulf him.

He smiled. He hoped to remain in this comforting cocoon as long as he would be allowed.