Back with another chapter! Thank you so much cxmgamingKR2, Villiansfan101 and Psy-Kick for reviewing with much appreciated feedback Also, welcome to the story Digital-Aron19 and I hope you all enjoy this new chapter!
Chapter 7 Broken Road
Overhaul groaned from the stiffness of his back as he came back to his senses, registering to himself that he was on the floor. His gold gaze noticed the blanket and pillow that attempted to soften where he slept. When did I…? He winced cracking his spine as he twisted slightly, feeling a gaze on him.
"I tried to make you more comfortable." Eri mumbled, sitting cross-legged on the bed while she took a spoonful of cereal into her mouth.
He stared at her, registering that he must have fallen asleep when she was still in the bathroom.
"You should rest more, you look sick." Eri remarked noticing the heavy dark circles under his eyes and his pale and clammy skin.
"He can't wait anymore, it's been too long." Overhaul remarked, leaning his back to the wall once again to test his aching muscles. The only thing he wanted right now was to reach Pops, muscle pains be damned, they were so close to Tokyo – mere hours away.
Eri frowned at him, he could barely keep himself upright for long before a grimace would cross his face. "What happens if we come across other bad guys?"
His gold eyes narrowed by her insinuation, but he could feel deep within himself, the lack of energy from overusing his sporadic quirk.
Eri moved from the bed, "Maybe you should try eating and sleeping some more."
"We need to move." Overhaul remarked as he stood up. He grimaced feeling lightheaded when his quirk shattered the wooden floor underneath him, causing him to drop to his knees in exhaustion. Damn it.
Eri scrambled away from him as the floor around him cracked, revealing the concrete underneath the shattered wood.
Overhaul breathed heavy, his body ached and his head felt like it was splitting by the migraine that was kicking in. He noticed the girl inching her way towards him, "Get away from me." He gritted his teeth, not wanting her anywhere near him in this weakened state, the girl could easily kill him.
Eri frowned seeing him tense up with a crazed look in his sleep deprived eyes. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay."
Overhaul scoffed, not believing that concern, "Why would you care?"
Eri winced as he thrashed away from her, his quirk erupted spikes around him to keep her at bay. She whelped as she fell back almost getting hit by the spikes. He glared at her as he ignored the rippling pain that shot through him.
Overhaul breathed heavily; a wave of nausea hit him with the quick movement. He closed his eyes; I don't understand why I am feeling more exhausted and sicker than in that prison. Is it really my quirk?
Eri shivered thinking about every cruel thing he had done to her – tortured her, traumatized her, killed her and she shouldn't care that he wasn't okay…but the past few days of noticing the broken expressions from him and the slight considerate attempts of him being nice, "I noticed that you've been trying…and I think you are making yourself sick."
He shot out more spikes forcing her further away from him as he attempted to hold the malice gaze with the migraine. He noticed the slight fear that crossed her face. Good, she needs to know her place. He needed her to be scared of him, to push the thought against her to even attempt to go against him. This weakened state of his is just going to make her seize the opportunity to kill him – or to be just more difficult to control if she saw a weak opening. He needed to scare her – to keep her in line, he didn't need more things going against him when he was so close to reaching Pops. She needed the incentive to do what he wanted and he needed his ruthlessness for that…
He scowled down feeling pain, his eyes fell on the empty sleeves feeling a slight stinging sensation. Are they getting infected from the environment? Am I getting sick because of that or is it something else? He bent forward grabbing the shirt with his teeth and pulled it off him, he grimaced at the dirty bandages. Cringing, he deconstructed the spikes feeling worse. He stood up, keeping the deconstruction at bay as he moved forward and sat onto the bed.
His gold eyes fell on the little girl that hugged herself seeing the injury, "If you are so concerned, take these off of me, my condition will get worse if you don't."
Eri was aware of his underlying threat, he was trying to hold his deadly gaze on her before it broke into anxiety when his focus turned to his arms again. He winced as Eri unwrapped the bandages revealing the scarred limbs.
"What do you need?" Eri whispered, fearing if he got worse, they would be stuck in the sealed house.
Overhaul's skin started to form hives by the thought of getting an infection, "Get it cleaned, find medicine and ointments."
The old image in Eri's mind of this man shattered away. The menacing aura and the look upon him that he had, slipped away by the sick and desperate look upon his face. Eri watched him as he wobbled as he leaned back in the bed. She searched through the house, opening up cabinets and pantries in search of the items he requested. Eri carried all the items in her arms heading back to him, finding him hyperventilating with more hives scattering across his chest to his amputated arms.
Overhaul stared at the pile she placed beside him, and attempted to calm his breath, "Show me the inscription on the pill bottles." If there is any antibiotics, I should be fine. Eri picked up each bottle for him to see, he shook his head slightly as she picked up each bottle until one was deemed acceptable. She opened the bottle taking a couple out and held them out to him as he bent forward so she could drop them in his mouth.
Eri frowned at him as he leaned back clearing his throat from the dry swallow. She could tell he was tense to have her so close to him. "What else do you need?" Eri asked.
He studied her, attempting to calm his breathing more, ensuring himself that he needed this to get better. "Just need to clean this."
Eri nodded running into the bathroom to bring a wet towel with soap. Pushing away the underlining fear of him to be of some help, she climbed up on the bed with him. Eri paused noticing him tensing with an unsettled expression that crossed his face. "Something wrong?"
"It's nothing." Overhaul remarked, irritated by being bothered by a kid – it was a ridiculous notion that he had thought she would harbor enough resentment towards him to kill him when he was defenseless.
Eri took the soap towel and cautiously went to the right stump, she flinched as he growled with a reconstruction to floor when she pressed down on it. The little girl nearly jumped on him to avoid the spikes that erupted around the bed as his instinctive move of self-defense kicked in.
"Gently!" He snapped as a wave of burning pain rippled through him, he raised his feet from the floor after deconstructing the spikes to ensure another accidental overhaul doesn't happen. He felt exhausted and he wasn't expecting how painful that mere touch was.
Eri peered back at him noticing his eyes were shut to try to calm himself as more hives splotched his skin. Her eyes went back on the task, the end of the stump was pink and a blood red. She lightly tapped the skin; she was aware of the stagnant clench of his jaw from each touch.
"Is it bleeding?" He muttered, keeping his eyes closed to prevent a nervous breakdown.
"No, but it is a little red." Eri remarked patting it lightly.
He took in a deep breath, "That's a good sign." So it isn't that infected, I caught it in time.
Eri peered back at him seeing him smirk slightly as he leaned back in the bed. Being so close to him, she could feel the body heat radiating off him as though he had a fever. She froze seeing his gold eyes staring back at her blankly.
"You must find it so hilarious." Overhaul sneered at her, watching her shift to his other arm. He couldn't help but think about the times he would slice through her arms, mesmerized by her ability to heal and how she would flinch and whimper in pain – now he was the one to be poked and probed as she cleaned his wounds that tempted even him to flinch.
Eri frowned, "I don't like seeing people in pain. Even though you do terrible things, I don't want that."
Overhaul stared at her blankly, calculating her response. "Whatever you say."
She stared at him as he tilted his head away from her, allowing her to continue with little movement on his part.
The drugs were kicking in, he could feel that the pain had alleviated and drowsiness was setting in. He leaned back once Eri was done dressing his scarred wounds. He pushed away the annoyance of not being able to start their travel again knowing he was their only line of defense from the lawless world outside. It would be humiliating to be the one that made detours rather the little girl. So, he would just need to use this day to heal up and continue without more delays.
Eri peered back at him seeing him actually taking her advice to sleep more. She shuffled out of the room checking out the rest of the house to see if he actually closed out all the exits.
After a few hours of busying herself with left over games and coloring books, Eri huffed ultimately going back to him, noticing he was still passed out on the bed.
His hives went down and the sweat dried from his body. But even though his fever broke and the infection was prevented, there was something that was still hindering him.
He would mutter something in his sleep, she frowned more hearing something on the lines of an apology. Eri peered at the man seeing him twitch in his sleep as though something troubled him. A nightmare? Eri wondered, seeing him start to breathe raggedly, she had always pondered what terrible men would have bad dreams about.
Curiosity got the best of her as she sat near him on a chair by the bed to hear any mutter he may say.
"Sorry…for everything."
Eri turned her gaze towards him, seeing his eyes faintly open. "For what?"
He breathed heavily, his eyes were cloudy from sleep, "Destroying the clan."
Before she could ask more, he fell back asleep. He feels guilty? She hugged her legs, never thinking he would ever feel that way. Her red gaze fell on his injuries and his sleeping grimace, perhaps during his time locked away he had a lot to think about…
Eri fiddled with the television across from the bed, each channel was white noise with static and off-air broadcast. Her red eyes glistened as she came across the first channel that had something broadcasting. It was as though time stood still with the images that graced the screen. Before her, was an arial broadcast of a battlefield, she held her breath witnessing heroes fighting their all with the masses of villains. They're all fighting… Eri held back the overwhelming emotions of seeing the familiar faces that were giving it their all.
There was so much destruction and she feared that some of the people she enjoyed getting to know were hurt. I wish I could help them… She gazed back at the man that slept near her, Maybe after I help him, he will let me go so I can help my friends. Eri thought about what he said, he had stated he didn't care what she does afterwards – he just wanted her grandfather to be fixed. "It depends on the Boss." Like he had said, it wasn't up to him… her grandfather made that decision and she didn't know the man's ideology.
She stared towards the television; it seemed like the major battle was just starting. They are going to beat the bad guys!
It felt like hours had passed with the chaos that flooded the television. Every so often the channel would switch between different battle zones, each one more destructive. It worried her, for the news lady talked over the different scenes and described the many fights throughout the different cities and Tokyo was one of them. Based on how long they have been traveling she was sure they would come across the fighting when they reached that city. There will be heroes and villains ahead of them… and maybe one of the heroes might recognize her and – Eri frowned thinking of her grandfather and how he was the sole thing that brought a sliver of humanity into the man beside her. Based on his restlessness and urgency, it would be dangerous to attempt to draw attention to herself. Any hero that may be in the area on the battlefield, would be in their way to reach the hospital and that was a deadly thing.
She wasn't even sure if Kai would want to go anywhere near people to avoid a dragged-out fight. But if he felt he would need to go where the people are to reach her grandfather… it would be better if people stayed out of his way, he wasn't shy in wiping the floor with blood. Like last night, he merely murdered the fleeing criminals to ensure they wouldn't turn up again down the road. He made it clear, no detours or unnecessary moves for there will be consequences for every mishap action. She supposed he wasn't unfazed by his own statement for she saw the irritated expression on his face that wasn't directed to anyone particular – how he would mutter something about being useless when he struggled in something that would be easy for anyone.
His vendetta to reach her grandfather with the utmost haste had rendered him to near starvation and sickness. Eri knew the nightmare man was gone, he was a shade of his former self – the deadly glares and the emotionless mask were barely managed, for there was always a hint of turmoil and exhaustion behind them now. She didn't understand why he attempted to muster an image that he couldn't achieve, hindering him into more sickness and exhaustion for overexerting his whole being. She didn't know why he couldn't face it – she had heard him muttering apologizes and had seen him with a faraway haunted look… It was as though he was terrified of reality and of past consequences.
Eri could barely remember what her grandfather was like, but the image of the older man in her mind doesn't paint the picture of him being so frightening that it would render Kai Chisaki into this state. Maybe it is the guilt… Eri remembered the way Kai had looked when he confessed to being the one that broke her grandfather – the anguish that flashed in his eyes when he made them turn dark when the gold reached her, how he faked a smile to act like he was unfazed. How it was in his nature. But she knew, she was educated in what it felt like being guilty, knew the signs and the feelings – and now her teacher is learning his own lesson that he taught her. Just like he had instructed her, he was reflecting on past consequences and he must endure them, guilt over them until it was ensured it would never happen again in the future. And around her, she suspects, he would try to carry himself as though he was unattached – to try to separate himself as something more than human, something that would make her wary of him.
She frowned at the man, eyeing his restless expression in his sleep. Even with him sleeping for hours, she doubted he would feel well rested and she was concerned on their morale as they would continue the inevitable trek to Tokyo once he woke up. Eri's eyes settled back on the television as the chaos was broadcasted, somewhere in the far distance she could hear faint explosions. Nervously, she glanced towards the concrete covered window in the room – uncertain on how close the fighting was to them and whether Kai would have the energy to move them outside of the reign of fire. Eri stared off to the broadcast, taking in any information she could get on everyone's situation.
The girl was unaware of the gold eyes that opened, that took in the destruction and horror of the heroes' war. His eyes narrowed at the location the broadcast was airing in, practically in their way in reaching Central Hospital. No… don't tell me the hospital is under siege. Rage pushed away the other fleeting emotions as he witnessed the additional obstacles they would have to plow through. His foot hit the floor to render the television into mere steel and circuit scraps.
Eri jumped from her slight daze as she witnessed the television explode with sparks and broken shards. Her eyes shifted to the man near her, she held her breath seeing the irritated and livid expression on his face – the face of his former self.
Gold calculating eyes took in her frozen red ones, "There is no more time for delays. We are reaching him today, if it's the last thing I do."
Their end goal is almost at reach, there's just some obstacles in the way… Hope you enjoyed, I would love to hear all of your feedback
I will catch you all next time for Chapter 8 "Resurgence"