A/n: Welcome back fellow inmates! Psychojack here with another combat fueled chapter of Mineta the Mayhem. Quite a development occurred in the last chapter. Hall Monika, All Might, Burnin, and Warlow survived a rather tension-filled chase by Legion Lycant. Though they were able to escape for the time being, they face yet another adversary in the form of Narcissia, another unique villain who has possessed Warlow! What will happen to our group now that they are fighting against a bodysnatcher? How will they be able to fight one of their own? With prisoners swarming the lower floors, it's a fight against the clock! It's showtime readers!
The current battlefield for floor 19 was one that was littered with the many bodies of eviscerated prison guards, victims of Harukaze's coordinated air vent traps. Though they had outmaneuvered the wild powerhouse that was Legion Lycant, they faced off against Narcissia.
Though she was still unknown to all the heroes in attendance by face, in a split second she had managed to overtake Warlow, an essential figure in their survival as well as maintaining order with the rest of the remaining guards spread throughout the many prison floors. If that weren't enough, Warlow was their main defensive fighter from a tactical standpoint. Without him they would be subject to either the many prisoners who were swarming to their position or to Legion Lycant who was still regaining his strength from the sealed off stairwell behind them.
An ominous chill shivered the spines of the heroes and prison guards who gazed upon the once fearsome prison warden, now turned into a puppet for Narcissia's personal use. Like a marionette, Narcissia was in full control of Warlow's limbs, making his movements robotic, lacking the usual life and poise Monika would expect from the disciplined and strong symbol of authority that Warlow normally displayed.
Internally, All Might felt his blood boiling. Narcissia appeared to be the type that would utilize hostages to make herself possess some form of an advantage over her opponent. Unlike Lycant who used his animalistic strength to dominate his opponent, Narcissia used underhanded tactics like this in order to break her opponents will to fight.
Taking a look at the body language of the prison guards, he could already notice the slight shiver in their hands as hesitation made their grips light on their batons. Their grips were lacking, too weak and lacking the dutiful strength they would need in order to survive this hellhole.
Being that Warlow was their commander, there was no doubt in the ex hero's mind that their morale had been compromised with Warlow's unexpected possession. They no doubt were considering holding back as a means to prolong their commanders' life. They were conflicted between carrying out their duties as prison guards and their personal loyalties towards Warlow himself.
'We're in a really bad position. Psychologically I'm not sure that these men are willing to do what is necessary.'
All Might looked at Warlow's face. The near wide eyed expression on the commander's face combined with a lifeless smirk gave it away. Narcissia clearly knew the effect that Warlow's possession would have on the rest of the guards.
'I see, Narcissia is looking to use Warlow against his men as a hostage as well as a viable means of combating against us. Unlike Lycant, she's a dirty fighter…which means that engaging is probably the last course of action that we should take. Escape should be the main objective.'
All Might observed the warden with his giant shield sparking off some electric discharges as Narcissia was clearly ready to utilize his quirk.
'But his quirk will no doubt prevent us from doing so.' All Might narrowed his eyes as frustration wormed its way to the forefront of his mind.
The teacher then looked downward, specifically at a keycard that was tied to the left side of his uniform above his left pectoral. It was strapped tight with metallic locks that required manual removal in order to take out the card. The guard was held upright via magnets that enabled the card's removal when enough grip strength was applied. No doubt this was done so intentionally as a form of hostile design against prisoners who attempted to remove the card off the officers as well as to ensure that only those with enough physical intensive training would be able to remove it easily. A unique and yet efficient means of delaying a prison escape by enough seconds for retaliation. Now however, in this circumstance, that same design would be used against them all.
'At the same time…Warlow is the only one with enough security clearance to bypass all the security doors. Which means…no matter what action we take, it won't matter unless we obtain that keycard!' All Might thought to himself, his grip tightening on Burnin.
Burnin readied a green fire ball from her locks on her left hand as she readied to fight. If Monika and the current enforcers were going to do direct battle then she would be sure to provide enough long range backup to secure a win.
Hall Monika narrowed her eyes in seething revulsion. The idea that someone would bodysnatch a comrade of hers made her skin crawl. Narcissia was using her superior like a toy, and that was something that just made her blood boil.
"You piece of shit…" Monika hissed from her lips, her eyes razor sharp and focused on the being that navigated Warlow as her hostage and her victim.
Narcissia garbled through Warlow's lips. "I will be honest I hadn't expected to be noticed this quickly."
Hall Monika hissed out. "You probably should have done your research a bit more before you decided to take over someone's body!"
Narcissia scoffed . "I suppose with every plan runs the risk of unnecessary…"
Narcissia took a peek at the corpses that littered the floor. One of the bodies had bled so much that some of the stray crimson droplets had gotten on her now possessed left boot. With a revolted expression on the wardens' face, Narcissia kicked off her foot to relieve herself of the droplets staining her foot
"...unwanted setbacks..." Narcissia finished, stretching Warlow's arms as she adapted to the body now under her control. Befitting the personality of her own name she clearly took no fault of her own for the reason behind her immediate exposure.
"This one is incredibly sturdy. No addictions, not even a sip of alcohol. Quite boring, and yet at peak condition. This will do nicely." The bodysnatcher said with glee on her sick and twisted face smirking towards the Hall Monika.
"You won't get away with this, it doesn't matter what you think, we will be the ones to stop you!" Burnin protested, knowing full well how manipulative types like Narcissia operate. They make you act on desperation as opposed to rationality. She said this to also maintain morale for the squad that was currently present. Being a hero did not only mean defeating the villain, it also meant being a symbol during unfortunate circumstances such as this one where if their morale breaks the efficiency of their teamwork would shatter in despair, and follow through with their deaths.
"Perhaps that would be the case if Lycant were here but that is not the case as I am now. Your only means of escape is past me, that is if you can avoid being ensnared by my quirk. You merely prolong what comes next, Kuro is on his way." the wicked puppeteer said. No doubt looking to make the fight as easy for herself as possible by mentally breaking down her opponent before the fight.
"Harukaze is locked up, he can't help you now!" Monika argued back.
"Surely you know by now that he isn't like any of your usual prisoners. There's something to admire in his conviction for carrying out his plans. He is truly a wonder, save for yours truly of course." Narcissia echoed, her voice being a chilling mix of female and male pitches, as if two voices spoke as opposed to one. Narcissia narrowed her slightly bulging eyes, the red veins sticking out due to the nature of her quirk circulating every movement Warlow made.
"Yeah, a vicious murderer who deserves to be locked behind bars. He's not going anywhere. Not as long as I have something to say about it." Monika said. Two of the guards raised their weapons in hand with impassioned grips, with more conviction than before. Clearly Monika's bravery and her retelling of the threat Harukaze embodied reminded the guardsmen of their duty and what they must do.
All Might nodded approvingly. 'Hall Monika probably doesn't notice how her words alone are rallying the men under her care. That's good, it means they are willing to fight at top condition.'
"The way I see it, the prison is lost. It was lost the very moment you decided to lock Harukaze back in the one place that already proved useless. Your precious warden is under my control. You really have no idea what's coming next do you?" Narcissia mocked, making Warlow display a sickening open-mouthed grin.
Hall Monika whipped out her whistles, placing all three on her mouth ready for use with her hands currently carrying her metallic batons tightly. Her burgundy officers' hat shadowed her forehead, making her blue eyes practically glow through the darkness the visor cast on her face as she arched her legs in a battle ready stance.
Commanding her fellow prison guards, Monika commanded. "Don't lose your drive, this is exactly what we've been trained to do, what Warlow trained us to do."
One guard responded. His voice was a youthful one. "Never retreat."
Another continued, this one belonging to a middle aged gruff voice. "Never surrender."
Monika narrowed her eyes towards the assailant. "I refuse to allow you to get in our way! You want to escape, you'll do so in a bodybag!"
A third guard followed suit, this one sounding commanding. He was the one who recognized Narcissia earlier with a scanner. "You're going nowhere but 6 feet under, Warlow would rather die before we allowed you to go free with his body."
The guards followed suit and raised their riot weaponry.
Hall Monika taunted Narcissia. "Kiki Yagi, aka Narcissia, you either go back in your cell or things get ugly for you.
Narcissia simply echoed. Her face, the face of Warlow was completely neutral, lacking any form of mockery from before. The air came to a still, and with it the silence of encroaching danger. "So be it..hero…"
With Warlow's body at her command the manipulative felon moved forward, raising the quirk shield and slammed it against the ground. The electrical arcs from the counter based quirk shot out a surge of electric discharges towards the group, causing them to be forced to roll away from the incoming shockwave.
All Might held onto Burnin as he jumped, nearly falling downstairs towards floor 20 due to the unstable railings that usually prevented falling. No doubt from the many bodies that were here, the fighting due to the riot has left the structure frail and dismantled thus far.
All Might breathed in deeply as he got his bearings, standing upright with Burnin in tow. If the fiery sidekick was going to provide long range support then he would need to be in the fight as well, carrying her around during this battle. She would be the one to fire and he the one to navigate them both during this ongoing battle.
Hall Monika took a peek at the ruptured ground from the electrical burst that emanated from Warlow's shield.
'Dammit! I didn't know Warlow could send the electrical surges of his shield into the ground like that! Then again, by his own admission he never really practiced with it. Part of the role of an officer is restricted use of their quirks. Only heroes are licensed to do so.' The ebony haired hall monitor thought to herself.
"I've played with many bodies, all sorts of quirks have been at my disposal, there's no quirk in the world I cannot figure out with a little practice." Narcissia smirked before charging the shield as static electricity emanated against the frame of the quirk weapon.
Monika responded by blowing her number one whistle. The loud sonic blast sending bits of chunks of concrete from the ground in Narcissia's direction.
With practiced reaction time, Narcissia raised Warlow's shield, blocking the incoming debris. Each dense impact of the debris causing the static electricity of the shield to emanate in more volume as it charged itself from the damage it was taking. The stray bits of electrical arcs sizzled against the ground, an obvious indicator of the power they possessed.
Monika immediately rolled and fired off several blasts of her number two whistle. When fired two sickle shaped sound gusts careened straight into Warlow's shield.
As the felon intended to use the electrical charge of his quirk, Monika pressed her number one and number two whistle together before blowing on them at the same time.
SHWEEEEEEE
The sound was sharper than the whistles usually were when fired on their own. The usual sound gust of her number one whistle was literally cut in half by the number two whistle, causing the singular gust of sound to split into two, passing by Warlow's sides. As the twin gusts went they sent large concrete debris in an explosive manner that smashed into Warlow's sides, flanking him in areas the large forward facing flat shield could not cover.
Narcissia let out a snort. "That is quite a quirk…perhaps I should have used your body instead…would make the perfect escape weapon to blow away the walls of this oversized cage."
Monika felt her body sporadically twitch, her limbs practically numb and yet forcefully stuck in place.
Warlow's body fell onto the ground, his eyes were completely white from unconsciousness.
Burnin reached out towards Monika. "No, Monika!"
The hall monitor gritted her teeth as she wanted to yell from the sensation of something crawling inside her brain. She felt as if there was something drilling deep into her cranium, unleashing all sorts of small spasmic reactions throughout her body.
"I…I can't…move…" Monika let out as her back arched crackling from the speed of the unintentional movement.
'Monika…' A voice echoed in the chambers of her mind.
Hall Monika blinked in shock at the echoed voice that stemmed inside her own thoughts. It was a disturbing sensation, as numbness began spreading along her limbs, steadily increasing and spreading from the tips of her fingers and making its ways upwards her forearms.
Monika felt her legs almost give out, forcing her to plant her legs deeply onto the ground to not tip over.
'Close your eyes…'' The voice spoke again, this time growing louder. It sounded feminine.
"Monika!" All Might called to her.
'Give me your body…' The feminine voice requested. The numbing sensation reaching upwards to her biceps and shoulders.
"No…no…I won't…let you…" Monika said. Speaking was difficult for her, lacking volume due to the invader that was steadily seizing her body.
'You only prolong the inevitable. Just let me in…' The feminine echoed in her ears, forcing Monika to close her ears with the palms of her hands to deny the voice in her mind, though it was fruitless. The voice came from inside her. Her spine began twitching in quick movements.
'I won't let you hurt anyone! I refuse to let you use my body to hurt those I care about' Monika thought aloud.
All Might called out to the hall monitor. She seemed lost in her own head. Clearly she was struggling desperately to hold on. "Monika, fight it!"
'There's no point in fighting…let go.'
Monika clenched her eyes tightly. Her mind grew silent as she did so, desperately trying to hold onto her own mind. Her limbs had regained some sensation of feeling, though the numbness was still there.
…
…
…
'LET. ME. IN. LET. ME. IN. LET ME IN. LET ME IN. LET ME IN. LET ME IN. LET ME IN. LET ME IN.'
The once feminine voice had distorted, sounding shrill and in some way, monstrous. It practically boomed against the interns' eardrums, making Monika press her palms against her ears with as much strength as possible. The voice shifted and would echo and reverb with multiple pitches, both male and female, high and low. The more the words repeated the more that a third overlay of the same voice would speak in turn, this one being deeper, as if from a beast as opposed to a human. It screamed at her with a shrill hollowed wail. As it did so, the numbness throughout her legs and arms transitioned into needle-like pain that stabbed deep into her nerves. It was like someone cutting her body apart with a hot knife, searing and shredding her innards.
'LET. ME. IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINN!!!'
'I'm scared…I'm scared…someone…' Monika thought inwardly as all sound from her body was muffled. Her mind was racing as she felt her body steadily losing control. Despite her resistance, Narcissia was conquering her against her will. She felt violated. The dutiful heroine feared the worst.
It was at this moment she remembered something, from someone very important to her. It was when Mineta had consoled her at her lowest after their fight.
-Flashback: Chapter 4-
"I just started today! So I'm scared too! More scared than I've ever been in my life! But...that's the thing about bravery...you can't be brave if you're not afraid!" Mineta added.
-Flashback End-
Monika felt her eyes water, as her thoughts recalled her hero. She breathed in, despite the egregious pain that ran through her body, she felt her whole feeling warmth, serving as an unintentional inhibitor to the invading presence inside her brain.
"Minoru…thank you…" Monika spoke in a hushed whisper, her eyes bearing an adoring look in them before blinking them tight in focus.
With a swift movement of her hands, out of intensive pain, Hall Monika took her secret fourth black whistle with blue decals and placed it into her mouth.
'Like a rat you skitter around looking for some easy pickings! Well okay, I hope you're ready for the time of your life.'
'LeT mE iN…' The voice echoed again.
'Savor the taste, because it's the last one you're getting from me!' Hall Monika thought loudly in her head.
With her hands on her black whistle she blew into it, this particular whistle had been used during the ending of her fight with Mineta. (A/n: Check chapter 4.)
As she did so the sound that emanated from the black whistle was the most silent of all four. However, when in use, the blue decal of the whistle glowed like neon lights, spreading blue cracks that began from her whistle and spread onto her face as she blew. The glowing blue cracks continuously stretched across her face as she blew into the strange whistle. Around Monika, a blue tinted sound dome began emanating like a cocoon around her, shielding her and containing the sound inside the small dome, but nonetheless causing the floor to shake with the power this whistle enabled her to unleash.
It was as if an earthquake was passing through, causing many prisoners and guards upstairs whisky rioting to fall and tropical over themselves, some falling downstairs. Other prisoners had slipped haphazardly off the railings and fell all the way down to the bottom of floor 20. Their immediate landing resulted in large violent bursts of blood and gore, splayed far across the ground where they landed.
PWEEEEEE
"AGHHHHHHHHH!" Narcissia's voice could be heard emanating from Monika's mouth, though not from her own self. It sounded like a pained woman, one with a raspy voice. The numbness diminished in Monika's body the more she fired off her quirk.
Monika blew again as her air gave out before taking another deep one and blowing straight into the ebony crafted whistle.
'AGHHHHHHHHHH! STOP! LET ME OUT! LET ME OUTTTT!' The distorted voice belonging to Narcissia spoke with desperation. The voice sounded ominously deep, like a vicious beast as opposed to a woman.
'I'm going to keep blowing! So unless you want to fry like an egg you get the hell out of my body you bitch!' Hall Monika threatened Narcissia internally.
Monika took a third deep breath. Wind could be seen coming into her mouth as she did so, with her torso flexing with the strength of her lungs as she attempted a third blow.
Before Monika had blown a third time her body spasmed, the same numbness and stinging pain from before practically sucked out of her body as quickly as it came in. Sweat marred Monika's face as the shadowy whistle took a lot out of her, her own throat felt a tad sore from the cost that using the black whistle demanded.
Hall Monika dropped onto her knees from the strain of her quirk. Her body felt sluggish from the mental resistance she had utilized from the experience.
All Might and Burnin helped her up in concern.
All Might asked in a concerning manner. "Monika! Are you okay?"
Monika nodded. Her voice came out in her youthful tone. Her usual dominatrix persona taking a backseat. "Yes…yes I am…"
"YOU FUCKING BITCH!" A booming voice echoed near the group.
GRIP
Monika looked downward, in front of her, grabbing her left ankle was the otherwise lifeless body of one of the guards who had died on floor 19. Though covered in blood, and having a deeply engraved blade wound across his torso, the dead corpse rose and gripped Monika's leg. With his free arm, the lifeless husk shocked her with a stun baton that was still clenched in his hand.
Monika felt her body spasm as she collapsed on the ground, gasping for breath from the many jolts of shock that coursed through her body. Steam emanated from her from the intense shock.
The dead body of the guard went atop of Monika in a staggered fashion. Other guards tried to bash and smash the reawakened corpse off of Monika. Unfortunately, being that the guard's body was dead, there was no pain to be registered to Narcissia directly. Blood dripped against Monika's face as the dead guard opened his blood drenched eyes, gazing daggers into her soul.
"I'LL KILL YOU, I'LL KILL YOU!" Narcissia garbled through the bloody mess of the possessed dead prison guard. With two cold stiff hands clenching around Monika's throat, the husk pressed deeply into her neck, with the intent to snap her neck. Monika gasped for breath as even All Might kicked Narcissia from behind, though the felon remained anchored to Monika.
Moe shot a torrent of green fire that, due to its velocity, propelled Narcissia off the ground, forcing the body midair.
Narcissia turned towards Moe, the dead body limply accepting the blitz from the fiery blast.
ZOOM
Moe's pupils shrunk as her own body began spasming, forcing her to drop the firey locks in her hand as she clenched her head. She screamed as if on fire herself. Her emerald colored flame hair wildly shot outward as she lost all form of control of her quirk.
Moe clenched her large fanged teeth, her usual smirk was missing from her face as she struggled to maintain her own mind.
"Get her out of me! She's digging into my head!"
All Might thought fast. The last thing they needed was for Burnin to be possessed. If that were to happen they would literally be cooked alive.
All Might thought fast. There was one way that could help. If Narcissia could possess someone by entering their mind through eyesight then perhaps…
"Burnin! Here!" All Might said aloud.
The flame haired sidekick looked towards All Might. For a split second she thought she was going to be given something.
WHAM
What the emerald flamed heroine had not expected was a vicious left hook to the face, one that literally sent her head whiplashing to her left from the power that the legendary retired hero possessed in that punch.
Burnin blinked twice, recuperating from the blow before breathing harshly.
"W-what-you punched me?" Moe said with a swollen cheek. While nursing her sore face the sidekick noticed All Might was spasming.
"AGH! I got her!" All Might informed the group as he now was the one grasping his head. Unlike the other two however he kept his eyes intentionally closed.
"Narcissia's quirk travels through her eyes! Ack! She takes over the last person she makes eye contact with. GAH! But if you hit her in the head she'll be forced to go there prematurely!" All Might informed Monika and Burnin as his shoulders flexed and his bony arms tried to reach for his throat. Narcissia was trying to force him to strangle himself. His eyes remained closed.
"SHUT UP!" Narcissia spoke through All Might with ferocity, a disturbing mix of her own voice with All Might's as the blonde held onto his mind.
Monika gasped out. "She also can take damage herself if you use sound…All Might come here…"
"Don't worry, we've got it." A guard said before immediately grabbing All Might from under his armpits to restrain him in place. Another guard took a small set of headphones and placed them into All Might's ears.
"What-what are you-?" Narcissia questioned, using All Might's lips to speak.
All Might however grinned. He came to the same conclusion they did.
"Just giving you a classic tune…and a headache…" Another guard said before flicking the headphones volumes setting to maximum and playing a song.
(A/n: Que Star Wars Opening Theme)
All Might clenched his eyes even tighter as the blaring orchestral music deafened his eardrums to the point he wanted to tear off the headphones himself. At the same time he had no other choice but to endure the sound induced pain.
"FUCKERS! GET OFF ME!" Narcissia screamed through All Might's mouth. As she tried to fight back she couldn't help but notice something.
All Might's body was extremely frail. Not only because he was a man in his 50s, but also because his body was already deprived of many of its resources and nutrients. It lacked the power to put up a fight, it lacked stamina to breathe. It was weighty, as if his own body was ready to collapse from starvation.
The other problem was that Narcissia couldn't fully grasp All Might's mind. It was as if it was reinforced. Despite the frailty of this bony and deprived body, the mind of this individual remained firm. It was one belonging to a wizened warrior, it's defenses were honed from years of combat and training. It was the mind of a scholar and one used to the battlefield. It was the mind of the legend, the man who for years, was titled the world's greatest hero.
'That's right. This is my body. Old, weak and frail. But the mind and all my experiences remain. This is what age does to you. I always thought of it as a curse. But I can't believe that despite its weakness, this body of mine makes a perfect container for you!' All Might echoed to Narcissia, who tried to stave off the prison guards, but their towering strength superseded that of All Might's scrawny figure.
Hall Monika wiped a stray bit of blood dribbling from the left side of her mouth, she walked towards All Might with her number three whistle at the ready.
"Excuse me boys…" Monika asked with her dominatrix voice in place as the guards went out of her way before she blew on the whistle causing All Might to spasm again, though this time from being disoriented by the red flame decorated whistle in Monika's possession.
In the deep recesses of All Might's mind he could hear the screams of Narcissia, tortured from the ear splitting sounds of Monika's whistles and the headphones against his eardrums at the same time.
After a few more seconds of more blowing.
THUD
Monika stopped as she had heard something collapse from afar. She looked upwards towards a railing on the floor above them. From far away she could see a woman on her knees clenching the rail in order to not fall over.
It was the physical form of Kiki Yagi. Upon focusing her eyesight, Monika and Burnin were able to pick up on her physical features.
Narcissia's appearance was that of a woman who appeared young, though possessed notable crows feet like scars on the sides of her eyes. She had an extremely long mane of unkempt curly purple hair that flowed messily in the wind, stopping nearly at the ground by her ankles. Her eyes were an ominous pair of pink, glowing past the shadow that her hair made behind her. Her skin was pale, as if deprived of sunlight.
Currently she was wearing her prison garb which was form fitting, enabling one to notice her toned figure from the many years she spent in Hydra Prison. She had notably long nails and toenails of the same color as her hair, sharpened to serve as effective natural weapons belonging to a feral animal.
*Que Present Mic Narration (serious tone): "Kiki Yagi, Her Quirk: 'Body Snatcher' She can possess any person she makes eye contact with. Both living and dead. On record she has been found guilty of killing 53 innocents...so far..."*
Her face was emotionless save for her eyes which stalked Monika like prey. Hers was a look of a silent promise, that she would break the burgundy cladded heroine.
WHEE WHEE
WHEE WHEE
A sharp whistle reverbed in the air vent near Narcissia's position. Harukaze had let out a whistle from within his cell.
The inmate simply turned around and walked away, the railway blocking their view of the felon as she clearly retreated, immersing herself in the chaos of the ensuing riot above them.
Monika had let out a breath that she didn't know she had. The realization that she was so close to her own demise was still intrusively coming to the forefront of her mind.
As for All Might, he was stunned to say the least. His eardrums were practically frazzled beyond measure, and his own movements were sluggish and fatigued from the strain his body went through with the blast from Monika he was forced to take.
He coughed out a small bit of blood from his mouth. He wiped it off the bottom of his chin.
Being a hero, All Might had seen his fair share of villains, but one who would fight with almost chessmaster level awareness whilst on the battlefield was a surprising one. This Narcissia, though still unknown to him was a unique kind of criminal, one who used intimidation and confusion as her main form of psychological combat. She was also quite quick with her quirk. As seen from Warlow, when one isn't expecting her, her quirk was at its strongest, capable of taking over minds in an instant. For Monika, himself and Burnin, the only reason they were able to put up any form of mental resistance was only because they were expecting it. Had they not known, they too would have succumbed to the possession.
At the same time, the fact Narcissia took over a dead body spoke volumes. She's dangerous. She was an individual with no rules, no restraints or even moral codes against disrespecting the dead or using one's own quirks against their comrades. The fact she was able to use Warlow's to an extent before having to phase in and out of the heroes in the group was a testament of her adaptability and the mastered control of her power.
To top that all off, even with all that, she still was far enough to establish a speedy retreat. Whereas Lycant was ferocity incarnate, Narcissia was sly and underhanded. Had it not been for Monika, they would have been decimated.
'If this were a mere battle of minds, I would say even Nezu would be impressed, but to me…this Narcissia is…disgusting! Plain and simple!'
All Might narrowed his blue eyes. He would remember this particular villain. It was a good thing he knew of another brainwashing quirk that could combat Narcissia. He would worry about that later however, right now they all needed to escape.
Burnin shook her head. "Shit! No use wasting time here anymore than we already have, let's keep moving!"
Monika dragged her feet towards Warlow. One of the guards raised him up, carrying the warden on his right shoulder as they shuffled towards the nearby security elevator. Their sole means of escape within their grasp.
Scanning the key card against the small flat reflective sheen of the scanner resulted in the elevator doors opening. Inside there was enough room for the group to fit inside. As they stepped in, a sigh of relief escaped one of the guards' mouth. He clearly was glad to be alive, a feeling shared amongst the squad of Warlow's finest.
As Monika used her finger to dial the 1st floor against the panel, the group heard the floor 20 stairwell door break apart as Lycant had regained his strength and sought them out.
GROWL
He sprinted towards the door on all fours, leaving deep imprints in the ground due to the weight he possessed. A guard pulled out his gun he had used as an improvised club and threw it like a boomerang at Lycant on his nostril, causing him to whine and flinch before All Might landed a right haymaker that made Lycant take a step back before the security elevator closed, Lycant swiped at the door, with his claw literally carving through the metallic elevator entrance, scratching against All Might's extended right arm.
All Might hissed as his right arm bled from the claws of the felon. The thickness of the doors made the swipe lack power and thus the claw mark was not a severe wound. It was however, one that prompted a guard to immediately pull All Might and whipped out an emergency bandage wrap to seal up the scar before it worsened. All Might was an old man after all, the last thing he needed was an unforseen infection.
The group breathed hard from the stress and anxiety of facing those two villains thus far. It was like a nightmare having to run from these particular quirk users one after the other.
One guard limped against the wall of the security elevator, his energy spent. Another one clapped his shoulder in a consoling manner, understanding his fatigue.
Another guard laid Warlow against the wall and checked his own weapons to ensure that his clawed riot shield and baton were ready for combat.
Monika stood in the front of the group, placing her whistle on her lips again in case someone tried to attack from the door in front of her once they made their way to the top. It was quiet, a nice change of pace compared to before.
"*static* Warlow, floor 1-10 have been cleared. They're retreating, what the hell's going on?" A voice radioed on Warlow's walkie.
"*static* Floor 11. We've lost sight of the prisoners, besides the ones we've already detained, the others are nowhere to be seen. Any sight of them?" Another guard radioed in.
Monika listened in before picking up the radio. "This is Monika. We're heading upstairs via the security elevator heading to floor 1, over." Monika radioed in.
"The intern? Why are you answering from Warlow's walkie, is he alive?" The walkie echoed.
Monika nodded to herself as Warlow's unconscious body groaned from the damage he had sustained. One guard raised a thumbs up towards her. All Might and Burnin did so as well in synchronization.
Monika grinned.
"Yeah, but he's hurt pretty bad, we're all hurt pretty bad. We're gonna need medical aid when we get topside."
"Monika, make sure you get him back to floor 1. The doors into the entrance route will not open without his key card." The officer on the intercom responded.
All Might raised an eyebrow. "You guys have no clearance?"
Another officer spoke from the radio. His voice answered in a deep baritone.
"Floor 1 here. During operations the doors remain locked until someone from the outside opens it. Once you are inside, the doors cannot be opened by any officer. Only Warlow can exit from inside, via key card and eye scan. It's a safety measure to keep prisoners from attempting escape. If you wanted to escape you would need his key card and Warlow himself."
All Might felt his anxiety spike.
'If that's the case then how the hell did Harukaze escape?! All these safety precautions and failsafes! It should be impossible!' All Might thought in anger. Frustration filled his mind due to the complete lack of means for Harukaze to escape.
As he thought about it, he also dreaded the answer to the internal questions that circulated his mind. If this is true, that only Warlow or an outside guard were the only ones who could open the entrance inside the prison building itself, then that meant that there was a possibility that Harukaze had help…
From outside the prison.
"Floor 1, don't relay that over the radio! You never know who's listening!"
DING
With the sound of the security elevator door opened. The LED lights on a monitor by the elevator panel read:
FLOOR 1
Upon exiting the cramped elevator, All Might and the rest of the team stopped in vivid shock.
The deep baritone voice radioed in. The radio practically shrieked before the intercoms jammed completely.
Two diamond optics stared at the group, the man who possessed such unnatural eyes stood perfectly straight with proper posture. In his bony right skeletal hand a bloodied walkie was held, still attached to a disembodied hand, its owner was missing. The limb dripped blood against the ground in a puddle of scarlet.
"Apologies…WoNt HapPeN aGaiN…"
CHAPTER END
A/n: BTW Merry Christmas readers! I thank you for the comments and support that you have given me thus far in 2022. Lets have some gingerbreads, open some presents or have fun for this day! Stay warm, be well and hope you have a jolly one! I'll see you next chapter!