(With a mighty crash, the door is kicked off it's hinges! Standing in the open portal is a familiar, anonymous face!)
I! AM! HEREEEEE-COUGH! HACK! COUGH!
Sorry... how the hell does Sabot do that voice without choking?
Ahem.
Hello, crazy, beautiful world! Did you miss me?! I missed you and guess what?! I finished the final term of my semester! I'm not graduated yet, but after a month and some change, I now have all the time and creative energy I need to get back into this story! We are getting on in the festival arc and I can't wait to wrap it up and get into the internship arc!
I have been keeping on eye on the story while I have been working on my final school projects and am happy to see that viewership has been consistent instead of dropping off! Good to know that I made something that people come back to! Speaking of...
Reviews:
Engineer4Ever, your continued comments make my heart swell (and not in the cardiac stress kind of way). Hopefully you will enjoy this entry!
magiclovercolver, I'm just going to take that as a compliment, lol!
Borderlands is owned by Gearbox and 2KGames and My Hero Academia is owned by Kohei Horikoshi and Funimation. Please support the official release.
Please rate and review!
And now, no more stalling! On with the show!
"This means someone is talking."
'This means someone is thinking to themselves.'
This means it's a flashback.
*This means it's a sound effect!*
{This means I'm speaking in a different language!}
Angel in a Gilded Cage
It was an odd feeling, seeing it from the outside. Angel found it even stranger that her "experience" with such a problem would help her one day, especially with Uraraka of all people. Ever since she had first become her friend, Angel had always kept the girl on a podium of sorts, admiring how she was the type of person who couldn't be weighed down.
It just took a fight with Bakugo to remind her that even those who seemed the most cheerful and carefree were burdened with their own self doubts. But Angel was optimistic that Uraraka was already in good hands, surrounded by people who would make sure that she got the support she needed, just like she had for all of the difficult times before.
Now however, there was someone else she needed to support.
'Midoriya.' She thought, her mind buzzing with uncertainty and worry as she finally made it back to the bleachers, where the class was chatting speculatively about the next fight. She caught a couple conversations as she walked down the stairs.
"So how long do you think he's going to last?"
"For pretty much anyone else I'd say not very long, but… this IS Midoriya we're talking about."
"Yeah, that guy is just full of surprises!"
Their words reaffirmed her own view on the upcoming battle. She had seen first hand the overwhelming power that Todoroki wielded with a harrowing degree of control, her thoughts trailing back to the combat trial and the USJ attack.
On the other hand, there was Midoriya, the unintimidating yet plucky boy who defied all logic. Time and time again the odds had been against him and time and time again he would pull a miracle out of nowhere. The entrance exam, his fight against Bakugo, the obstacle race and the cavalry battle, no matter what, he always seemed to find a way.
The question of the day however, was he capable of replicating his success here? Angel ran over the factors in her head over and over, only to be met with frustration.
She sighed. Once again her only option was to wait and see. Never before had she felt her patience being tested so much, before she enrolled in this school.
Shaking her head in annoyance, she finally reached her row and gingerly pushed past several of her classmates before nearing her seat near Iida. He was currently joined by Tokoyami, conversing until they both noticed her approach, turning their heads her way.
"Ah Angel-chan, good timing! I was just congratulating Tokoyami-kun on a well fought match against Yaoyorozu-san!" Iida piped up in his usual robotic, yet enthusiastic way.
"Ah right, I missed it." She said as she pushed past and sat down. "I'm guessing you won then?"
The birdboy nodded. "That is correct."
"How did you win? It felt like your fight and Kirishima-kun's tiebreaker didn't last long at all."
"Yaoyorozu-san's quirk is frighteningly powerful in it's versatility and her intelligence is unmatched. I couldn't let her have enough time to come up with a plan, thus I attacked immediately, pressed my advantage and pushed her out of the ring with Dark Shadow."
"With Fumi and I together, it was a piece of cake!" A familiar, higher pitched voice cheered, making Angel glance down and notice the sentient silhouette's eyes peering from his partner's feet in the shade cast from the seats in front of them.
"Dark Shadow… please… don't call me that in public." Tokoyami grumbled with embarrassment.
"Sorry Boss!" He said, his mirthful tone betraying how unrepentant he truly was.
"Hey guys." They all turned their heads to see Uraraka stepping over. "Deku-kun's fight hasn't started yet, right?"
All three of them blinked in surprise!
"Urakaka-san! What happened to your eyes?!" Iida exclaimed! Uraraka's eyes and the skin around them were red and puffy, forcing her face into a squinting expression! "I think you should see Recovery Girl for more treatment!"
"Ah, don't worry about it, my eyes are fine. They're like this thanks to… something else." She answered, rubbing them as she moved past to sit next to Angel who hadn't missed what she had implied.
"Hey, uh…" Angel stammered, feeling a little awkward after their conversation in the waiting room. "Are you... alright?"
"Mmm." Her friend hummed and nodded. "I'm feeling a lot better now."
"O-Oh okay! Good! Great!" She said and tried to look away, only to get a tap on the shoulder. She looked back as Uraraka leaned in.
"I thought about what you said and.. well… thanks for that." She whispered, her voice soft. "I didn't want to bother you guys with how I was feeling, but I guess that was me being silly, thinking that you all don't care. I'll try to be more open about these sort of things from now on."
Angel smiled. "Happy to help." She replied quietly, suddenly feeling a lot lighter thanks to her friend's assuring words.
Uraraka briefly beamed back before turning her gaze down to the stadium, her expression becoming more grim and anxious. "So, it's THAT fight coming up, huh."
"Mmhmm."
"Truly, this is one of the most anticipated matches of the tournament. What would you say Midoriya-kun's odds are?" Iida muttered, rubbing his chin.
Angel let out her own frustrations on that topic with a groan. "I dunno."
Her two friends and acquaintance turned to look at her in surprise.
"Really? You don't have any clue if Deku-kun has a chance or not?" Uraraka asked in disbelief, making her blink.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"W-Well, you always struck me as an analyst or something. Not like Deku-kun, but still a really smart person who puts things together."
"Like when the villains attacked at USJ." Iida pointed out.
"Or during the combat trial? Mina-chan told me how you weighed our chances in our fight with Bakugo."
"Indeed." Tokoyami agreed.
"Y-You noticed that?" She sputtered bashfully, thrown off by the sudden revelation that her peers regarded her as some kind of keen eyed, extrospective intellectual. She knew that she had a habit of noticing and memorizing key details thanks to her former "profession", but she didn't think she was that special.
"You weren't exactly… discreet." He answered, a small shift in his expression implying his amusement.
"I-I mean, thanks, I guess? For thinking of me like that? B-But I-I'm not that special, not like that!" She laughed with no shortage of unease. "B-But I guess if you want my two cents… Todoroki-san will definitely not go down easily. All he has to do is make sure to keep Midoriya-kun at a distance like pretty much anyone else." She explained, turning her gaze back to the arena. "Midoriya-kun doesn't have many options other than trying to hit or push him out of the ring with his super strength, but he can't use it too much without hurting himself. On paper, it should be a foregone conclusion."
"But?" Uraraka pressed.
"Buuut, if there's one thing that we can bet on, is that when it comes to Midoriya-kun, things are anything but that. And that throws all of my theories out the window. So again..." She shrugged. "I dunno."
Her companions regarded her silently, contemplating her words. Then there was a swell in the crowd and they all looked to the field, spotting a now iconic head of green and one of red and white walking up the steps of the ring. Even from here, Angel could see the look of nervous energy on her friend's face as he stared down his opponent, who was wearing his usual mask of stoic resolve.
Looks like it was that time again.
"HOH MAN! LISTEN TO THAT CHEERING! IT SOUNDS LIKE EVERYONE IS ALMOST AS EXCITED FOR THIS NEXT MATCH AS I AM! ALLLLLMOST!"
"You can say that again Torgue, my man! Can't blame them either! This matchup is between two rising stars of a hero class thrown into the spotlight, both stealing the show multiple times today with their crazy strength and their scary determination! But there can only be one winner!"
"THEN WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR?! MIDORIYA VERSUS TODOROKI! FIGHT!"
The buzzer rang! Just as Angel anticipated, Todoroki immediately slammed his foot down, a torrent of spiked ice surging towards his target! But, again like she predicted, Midoriya raised his arm!
With a crash, he flicked his fingers and unleashed a blast of force, buffeting the audience with freezing air as it smashed through the oncoming crystals and pushing Todoroki a few feet back before halting against a small ice barrier!
'Looks like he was prepared in case Midoriya tried to blow him out of the ring like that.' Angel grimaced as she pushed some wayward strands of her hair out of her face. Squinting, she could see Midoriya's now broken middle finger, the digit an angry red and leaking some blood! 'At least Midoriya avoided getting frozen right at the start, but now what is he going to do? He's only got so many fingers!'
A moment later, Todoroki sent out another wave of ice, only for it to be destroyed just as fast as the last one! Then he did it again! Each time Midoriya repelled his assault, immediately followed up with another shattered finger! For now, it seemed like they were at a standstill. Neither of them had made any ground and while Todoroki seemed perfectly fine, Midoriya now had three broken fingers as a result!
"Oh man! I didn't miss the fight did I?!" Most of the class turned their heads as Kirishima ran onto the bleachers!
"Hey dude! You did great against that metal guy from class B! Congrats on getting to the next round!" Kaminari gave him a thumbs up.
"Yeah! Guess I'm fighting that explosion girl after Hodunk huh? Hey Bakubro, got any tips for me?" He asked the blonde.
"Why the fuck would I know anything about her?!" Said blonde spat with an annoyed glare, receiving a confused look.
"I mean… aren't you two..?" He trailed off before shaking his head. "Nevermind. But man, you and Todoroki are so lucky with your crazy strong emitter quirks right? Same for Hodunk over there!"
Angel perked up at being mentioned, pulling her gaze away from the fight to glance back and listen in.
"I'm kinda jealous of you guys, you can just keep shooting attacks out over and over again without stopping."
"You dumbass." Bakugo retorted.
"Huh?"
"Lemme put it in a way a musclehead like you will get it. You have a limit to how much you can lift when weight training right, before your arms give out? Or a certain distance on a treadmill before you run out of breath? They're super powers, but quirks are still physical abilities. Everyone has their limit, usually in different ways." He explained in a surprisingly restrained tone.
'That's true.' Angel noted. 'I can only go so long firing phase bolts before I get a headache. And as powerful as Todoroki is, he is still human.' She turned back to the arena.
'Which means that this fight might just come down to a battle of attrition. Whoever hits their limit first loses. Is that your plan Midoriya?' She wondered.
As luck would have it, it looked like she wasn't the only one who came to that conclusion. Todoroki shot another stream of ice, but this time he made it taller than before, shielding him from the oncoming shockwave from Midoriya, whose fingers on his right hand were now all completely broken! The bicolored teen took the opportunity to rush his opponent, shooting more ice forward! Midoriya noticed him draw closer and lifted his other hand, still bandaged from his last fight!
Another flick, another broken finger and the ice shattered, but it looked like Todoroki had accounted for that as he used the ice as a ramp, soaring over the attack!
"Deku! Look out!" Uraraka cried!
Todoroki slammed down, ice erupting from his feet and knocking Midoriya into the air! Todoroki swiftly followed up with another wave of cold, seeking to freeze the verdet midair!
Angel's heart leapt into her throat! He had nowhere to! He was a sitting duck!
But then, right when she thought it was over, there was a clap of air and a boom, engulfing the ring in a cloud of dust and pieces of ice, the force so strong it made her and the audience jolt!
"What just happened?! Is Midoriya-kun out?!" Iida barked!
Seconds crawled by and the dust began to settle. Todoroki stood amidst a field of broken crystals, covered in patches of frost and across from him, near the edge of the ring was Midoriya.
Angel sucked in a breath at the state he was in, his left arm up to shoulder was bruised, bleeding and hanging uselessly at his side, reminding her all too much of the entrance exam! His face was twisted in pain as he breathed laboriously!
'He sacrificed his arm to get away!' She realized. It was risky play, but he had stopped himself from being incapacitated! For how much longer now that he was down an arm and the rest of his fingers, remained to be seen!
"Incredible! Midoriya is still standing, but it's starting to look bad! He's totally battered while his opponent doesn't even have a scratch!" Mic announced!
"IS THIS THE END?! F***! I HOPE NOT!" Torque bellowed as Todoroki strolled closer to Midoriya, who was currently bent over in pain.
With another twist of his foot, he sent another cascade of ice across the ring!
Angel leaned forward, clutching the seat in front of her in terror! Midoriya had no more fingers left! Was this it?!
*CRASH!* Apparently not, as the ice disintegrated once more, throwing Todoroki back! But how?!
Angel stifled a gasp along with the rest of her companions as they saw the fingers on Midoriya's right hand, now a ugly shade of purple!
"He used his broken fingers?!" Uraraka whimpered!
"Why is he going so far?! He's going to destroy himself at this rate!" Angel hissed, the sight of her friend's injuries sending shocks of fake pain down her body as she imagined suffering them herself!
"Midoriya-kun seems to be incensed for some reason. Maybe there's a personal matter between the two?" Iida hypothesized with a grim look, his guess reminding Angel of the strange way Midoriya had been acting earlier.
In fact, it looked like they were talking right now, standing across from each other, but much like the fights before, they were too far away for her to try and read their lips, filling her with frustration and worry!
Then Midoriya arched his back and Angel was taken aback! He had the most furious glare she had ever seen him make and finally, his words could just barely reach the crowd!
"STOP PLAYING AROUND AND FIGHT ME FOR REAL!" He roared and clenched his bloody fist, making her flinch!
Whatever the meaning behind the words were, it seemed to be enough to make a crack in Todoroki's stoic mask, an angry glower appearing on his face and moved to attack!
Angel's eyes widened. His movements were slower!
Midoriya appeared to have come to the same conclusion or perhaps it was his plan the whole time as the moment his opponent started to run, he dashed forward himself, low to the ground! He pulled his arm back and slammed his bloody fist into the other boy's stomach!
As Todoroki went flying back, bouncing off the concrete, Angel's spirits soared! He finally got a hit in!
Then her elation turned to anxiety as her friend struggled to stay on his feet, his entire right fist bruised and purple! If that wasn't enough, there was a layer of ice left on his left elbow, Todoroki's part of their exchange!
'Still, Todoroki is moving slower! That must be his weakness! Too much ice and his body will freeze up! Midoriya has a chance! He...' She trailed off. 'Wait. Shouldn't Todoroki be able to heat himself up? He did that during the combat test. Then there's the flames from the cavalry battle. Is he not using the other half of his quirk?' She wondered before returning her attention to the fight.
Todoroki was just getting to his feet, clutching his stomach where he received the super powered punch! He stomped and shot more ice, which was visibly smaller and slower than before, which Midoriya easily sidestepped as he closed the distance! With his fist now utterly wrecked, he did something no one expected by lodging his thumb into the inside of his cheek and gave it another flick!
It succeeded, creating another explosion of force blowing away the ice and throwing Todoroki back again! He stumbled, barely keeping balance, then immediately losing it when the other boy leapt and headbutted him in the stomach, moving him even farther!
"Come on! He's almost there!" Angel yelled, clutching the seat so hard that her fingers were starting to hurt!
Todoroki shakily stood back and was visibly weakened, from how much ice was on his body and how stiff he was moving! He was left wide open for Midoriya to punch him in the midsection again! He tumbled backwards, head over heels on the concrete, his back right against the ring's edge!
This was it! Midoriya was going to win! The crowd was going wild at the sudden upset, most of them baying for the underdog to finish the fight already!
He staggered, moving closer to his struggling foe, likely running only on adrenaline and fumes at this point.
But then he stopped.
"What is he doing?! Just win Deku!" Uraraka yelled!
Angel squinted again, trying to find the answer to that question herself. It looked like they were still talking.
Midoriya's mouth opened wide and this time, from where she was sitting, Angel could read his lips clear as day!
"It's… your... power?" She mouthed quietly. The implication was immediately lost on her as right then, as if triggered by Midoriya's declaration, there was a burst of light!
*FWOOM!* Bright, crimson flames exploded from the ring! Waves of heat washed over the stadium! The warmth and the light made everyone jump back, it was so hot!
"What's this now?! Fire?! We finally have fire folks!" Mic crowed!
"WHEW! IT FEELS LIKE SOMEONE OPENED A BOTTLE OF TORGUE BRAND "FRAGATON BOMB SAUCE", WHICH WAS SO HOT WE HAD TO RECALL IT BECAUSE IT QUALIFIED AS A NAPALM SUBSTITUTE!"
The flames petered out a bit, revealing Todoroki in all his glory, his left side engulfed in fire, melting all of the ice on his body! But what really stuck out(to Angel at least) was the smile on his face! She couldn't explain it, but to her, it was a look of relief and gratitude, like an immense weight had been lifted from his shoulders.
'He looks… happy.' She thought.
"SHOTOOOOO!" She jumped as a loud, triumphant voice echoed through the stadium! Everyone turned towards the far end of the bleachers where a large, muscular man was stepping down the stairs to the guardrail, a corona of matching fire emanated from his body!
It was a bit of a distance but there was no mistaking it.
"Is that Endeavour?!" Someone questioned.
"YOU FINALLY COMPREHEND YOUR WORTH!" The number two hero continued! "AS MY PROGENY, YOU WILL CARRY MY LEGACY AND FINISH WHAT I STARTED!"
The stadium remained silent, in awe and confused at the very enthusiastic man's odd choice of words.
"Uh… some words of encouragement from Endeavour on the sideline? What a… supporting parent!" Mic said, just as baffled as everyone else.
Leaving the meaning behind the man's ominous speech for later, Angel tore her eyes back to the ring. Regardless of his reasoning, it looked like Midoriya had sabotaged himself, as his opponent was now back to peak condition with all of the frost hindering him now evaporated!
Right then, the flames on Todoroki's body intensified as he lowered himself into a stance! Midoriya did the same, the legs of his pants shredding as wind swirled around him!
They were going to end it all in one last blow!
Todoroki stomped once more and a huge glacier erupted towards Midoriya, who leapt over top in a super powered bound! As he hurtled through the air, rearing back his arm! Todoroki raised his own in retaliation, his body glowing white hot!
They both swung with all their might!
A split second before a series of concrete walls sprung up between them, the referees finally stepping in!
*KABOOOOOM!* The earth shook with a bone rattling explosion, a tornado of steam, smoke and stone erupting into the sky over the stadium! Members of the audience screamed in fright and awe at the result of the two boy's rampant power! Angel shielded her face from the blast as her hair blew back over her head!
Moments passed and the explosion's echo gradually faded. The entire ring was shrouded in a cloud of dust and smoke.
"My… god!" Mic gaped. "What the heck just happened?!"
"WELL MIC, IT APPEARS THAT IT WAS DUE TO THE CHANGES IN TEMPERATURE AIR IN THE RING! THE AIR WAS STILL COLD FROM ALL OF THE ICE, SO WHEN IT WAS HEATED SUPER FAST, IT EXPANDED RAPIDLY, CREATING AN EXPLOSIVE FORCE SIMILAR TO THAT OF A LIGHTNING BOLT!"
"That's… actual true." Aizawa said, sounding very surprised at Torgue's insight.
"SCIENCE MOTHERF***ER! I'M THE MASTER OF EXPLOSIONS!"
"Radical! But the real question is, who won?" Mic asked.
The world went silent, holding their breath in suspense as they waited for the obstruction to clear. Angel and her friends watched on, hearts racing in their chests as they scanned for Midoriya.
The wind picked up and blew the clouds aside and everyone leaned forward.
In the centre of the ruined ring was Todoroki, panting for breath with half of his shirt burned away, revealing his muscular form underneath! And all the way across from him, leaning against the stadium wall was Midoriya, who immediately slumped and collapsed!
Angel's face fell and her blood went cold.
"Midoriya… is out of bounds! Todoroki Shoto wins the match!" Midnight declared!
After all that. After all of the other events. After horrendously breaking his body. He had lost.
All of her friends were out now. She was the only one left.
"Darn it." She spat and hung her head.
"Sheesh that was intense!" Uraraka breathed uneasily, drawing Angel's eye. Her other two friends both had looks of dejection and pity, like she imagined was on her own face.
"Indeed. Midoriya-kun and Todoroki-kun really held nothing back. If Cementoss didn't intervene, both of them could have been seriously hurt."
"Midoriya IS super hurt!" Angel shot back, watching her friend getting carried away on a stretcher! "He went that far and he still lost! I'm so… I don't know what I am!" She groaned, shaking her head, then she jolted! "We should check on him! Let's go!" She said with worry, jumping from her seat and moving along the row only to be abruptly halted by Iida's hand around her wrist!
"You can't do that Angel-chan! Your fight is next! You'll be disqualified if you don't show!" He told her, making her freeze!
"B-But I need to know if he's going to be okay!" She weakly protested.
"It's alright! We'll go and make sure that he's fine!" Uraraka piped up. "Deku-kun wouldn't want you to miss your fight and lose your chance to advance!"
Iida nodded. "Exactly. We'll go and see Midoriya-kun in the infirmary. You go and get ready for your fight, we will try to make it back to support you." He assured her.
She stared at them for a moment, before her shoulders sagged. They were right. Midoriya wouldn't want her to give up this opportunity. She just had to have faith that he will make a full recovery.
"All...alright then. Wish me luck I guess." She said morosely, gently shaking off Iida's hand.
Her leisurely walk through the halls did little to assuage Angel's worries. The quiet ambience only partially intruded upon by the muted sounds of the crowd outside only served to give her little distractions from her own mind, trying to make sense of her feelings and confused thoughts concerning the last fight.
Why had Todoroki abstained from using his fire power for so long? Why did he choose then to finally use it? Why did it seem that he only did so due to Midoriya?
And finally, what did he mean by "It's your power."
She sighed and rubbed her temples, trying to massage a brewing migraine away. It was like she was trying to solve a huge puzzle, but several of the pieces were scattered all over the room before she even opened the box.
She should really be focusing on her upcoming fight, but she couldn't stop her thoughts drifting to those questions. Growing up, she had always been that type of little girl who wanted to know everything, that when faced with a mystery, it would torment her until she found the answer.
Of course, later on her father discouraged her from reading too far into things, saying that sometimes the things hiding behind the curtain will make her wish she never uncovered it.
Looking back, she had a feeling it was to hide his secrets more than anything.
'Ughhh! Enough of that!' She mentally scolded herself, turning a corner. 'Forget all about that stuff and get your head in the-OOF!'
Ironically, in her attempts to focus on the present, she had completely zoned out as she collided with another, larger person, knocking her back a couple feet! She stumbled a bit, but she managed not to fall over.
"Oh my gosh!" She exclaimed, looking up to the individual she had bumped into. "I'm so… sorry…" Her words died in her throat as she looked up and recognized the man towering over her.
It was the number two hero, the flame hero, Endeavour! He was a statuesque man, his physique almost as powerful and broad as All-Might, about the same size as Brick. His hero costume was a dark navy blue bodysuit, silver coloured metal bracers on his wrists. Fire engulfed his boots as well as crossing his chest and lining the back of his arms, connected to his neck. He had spiky red hair and had even more flames serving as a beard and a small moustache on his face. Lastly, fire blazed harmlessly on his face as a makeshift mask, from where two piercing blue eyes peered down at her, the same color as his son's left eye.
No wonder the hallway had felt so warm.
Angel stood in awe at the sheer presence that this man, this titan, possessed. The very air shimmered and the light radiating from his form cast long shadows down the hall. But there was something else about him that felt familiar to her. She didn't know what trait it was and whomever she had seen it before.
The only thing she was certain of was that she really didn't like it.
"O-Oh! I-I am so sorry! I-I wasn't watching where I was going!" She apologized, bowing her head.
He didn't respond. He just stood there, burning away as he blocked her path.
Feeling more than awkward, she tried to make conversation.
"Heh-heh, i-it's an honor to meet you sir. It's not every day you literally run into one of the top five pro heroes!" She laughed nervously. "My friend Midoriya is going to be so jealous that I met you, he'd probably ask for your autograph! I bet he already got All-Might-senseis!"
As soon as she said that name, the flames on the man's body rose a little, making her jump!
'Touchy subject?' She thought as she swallowed dryly. Either the heat was really starting to rise, or she had broken into a cold sweat for some reason.
"S-Speaking of, that last round was a heck of a fight, huh? Y-You seemed really excited for Todoroki-kun there, b-but I guess you call him Shoto?" She continued. "I-I was rooting for my friend, but it was still a really amazing fight, w-wouldn't you agree? Shoto-kun is going to be a great hero! Y-You must be very proud!" She offered, trying to lighten the mood, no pun intended.
Still nothing. Looking up into his eyes, she could feel him studying her, like an ant under a magnifying glass. Right now she was fearing that one wrong move and he would decide to tilt it and cook her alive.
"A-Anyway..." She stammered, looking away. "...it was r-really nice to meet you, b-but I have to get going! It's my fight next! Don't want to be late! S-So if you'll excuse me?" She asked, trying to step past him.
"Your quirk is a curious one." She froze in place at the deep rumble of his voice, making her look back up at him. "You can generate some form of energy that can be manipulated into attacks, a method of flight and even imposing your will over machines. An exceptional combination, with the latter being particularly rare. A synthesis of two separate emitter quirks in your bloodline… ambire-ergokinesis and technokinesis... or perhaps a mutation?" He mused to himself.
She shook a little under his gaze. The way he was talking, it was like he was comparing her to a selectively bred horse, taking notes on specific genetic traits. Now she REALLY wanted to leave!
"U-Um… t-thank you?" She answered, completely unsure of what to do. "I-I'm sorry, but can you p-please move? I'm going to be late for my fight!" She requested.
He narrowed his eyes. "You're rather skittish for someone with such unique and powerful abilities." He said as he took a step past her, the air becoming boiling for the brief moment he was close to her. "Don't embarrass yourself by losing to that vine-haired girl and make it to the third round."
He stopped and looked over his shoulder. "You'll make a good stepping stone on Shoto's path to glory."
And with that, he turned and left, leaving Angel paralyzed, with only one thought running through her head.
What just happened?!