火

BOOK TWO:

FIRE

CHAPTER SIX:

PYROPHOBIA part two.

The last written chapter of Op Taipan. Please enjoy.

"Hellfire wall!" The flame hero shouted the name of his move as fire billowed in his fists. His palms struck the ground, and jets of fire spewed forth and formed a circle around him and the villain.

Beyond the wall of fire and smoke, a crowd of civilians loudly cheered for the battling hero, hollering his name. In front of all the fans and bystanders, almost on the edge of the battlefield; was one ash-blonde boy, watching the ongoing fight with both intensity and excitement.

The villain darted his head from side to side frantically, trying to find an escape.

Katsuki grinned. There was no way out. The flame hero had already deduced from his quirk that the villain had no aerial mobility and had reacted accordingly by trapping him in a ring of fire.

The hero stood ramrod straight at the edge of the ring, his arms crossed and his face a mask of steely indifference. The fire sprouting from his shoulders flailed in the wind dangerously, its light overshadowed by the raging inferno behind the muscular man, casting a long shadow that engulfed the lowlife.

"Damn you, Endeavor!" The villain, a lanky man with a well-defined jaw, grumbled as sweat poured down his brow. By his feet laid a fallen duffle bag, spilled open to show a pile of stolen electronics inside. 'Tough luck!' Katsuki almost cackled at the villain's misfortune. How unlucky was this petty robber to have run into the No.2 hero?

Well, he wouldn't get any sympathy from Katsuki. It was his fault for being a damned villain.

The flame hero merely scoffed at the line he had heard a thousand times before. "You are under arrest for robbery, assault, and unauthorized public quirk use." He recited, almost robotically. "Anything and everything you say can be used against you in court. Come quietly or you'll have 'resisting arrest' added to your charges."

The villain snarled, showing glistening, razor-sharp, metallic teeth.

The crowd hollered, and Katsuki's grin widened in anticipation.

"Rah!" The villain charged; his teeth bared.

Endeavor took a step back, not even blinking as the set of jaws chomped down where his head used to be a moment earlier.

He backed into the wall of fire, letting it engulf him before coming out the other side. The fire roared out his backside and feet. He shot to the side, circling the ring before randomly going in through the fire.

The villain yelped and rolled away seconds before the flame hero rammed him down. He watched Endeavor disappear into the veil of fire again, only to appear from the other side and charge at him once more.

From the left. From the right. From behind. Ten o'clock. Four o'clock. Seven o'clock. Ele-No two!

The villain ground his metallic teeth together, sending sparks everywhere.

He couldn't keep up.

The flame hero came to a stop in front of the crowd, his back to them. He crouched down; fists pressed against the ground as the fire on his back flared. The heat radiating from the hero engulfed the bystanders, bathing them in the dry air and increasing heat.

Katsuki gawked at the image of the hero, the radiance of his fire washing over his body and drowning out everything else. Blazes reflected in his eyes, sparkling like stars. He felt the heat, the hero's presence and will all around him. It felt powerful, indomitable, unbeatable!

That was the aura of a hero!

With a mighty cry, Endeavor released his stored energy, launching himself high into the air and over the ring of fire.

The villain, too focused on the area around him, never noticed the man descending from the heavens until it was too late.

"Vanishing fist!" An explosion blasted its way, its fire rising high above the ring in a plume of brilliant blaze. The inferno surrounding the scene began to die down. And when it quelled, the visage of Endeavor towering over the villain, holding him down by the neck, became visible.

The crowd erupted into cheers, none as loud as Katsuki.

Why wouldn't he? He just witnessed with his own eyes what it was to be a hero. To win, no matter against what or what were the odds. Because that's what heroes do, they win.

That's what heroes are all about. Winning, being the best.

And sure, Endeavor wasn't All Might, he wasn't the best. But he was close, the closest there ever was. And Katsuki could still appreciate and respect it, even if he was destined to surpass him one day soon and move on to take All Might's spot.

The police soon arrived to apprehend the villain. After talking to one of the officers, the flame hero turned around and blasted off, disregarding the hollering fans chattering his name.

Nobody whined about the sudden departure. Endeavor didn't do any fan service.

With only the handcuffed villain being led to a van to watch, the crowd that had assembled quickly began to disperse. Soon, it was all gone, and without it, the streets returned to their usual dull selves. Only Katsuki remained standing there, trying to remember what he was doing before the incident.

'Wasn't I with somebody else?' He grumbled; his arms crossed as he tilted his head from side to side.

The ash-blonde tsked.

'Where are they?!'

He swiveled around and turned back, stuffing his hands in his pockets, and grumbled about 'extras' running off on their own.

Not that he cared much. He preferred it if they'd be away when he watched heroes fight. It was easier to get upfront that way. And even better, there wasn't any 'Wow, did you see that Katsuki?! That's so cool Katsuki! Think we can get their autograph, Katsuki?' He wanted to watch the fights damn it!

Then again, it's not like he had anything better to do. And his original plan for the day was to spend it with them, anyway.

He huffed as he left the shopping district which stretched across the majority of it, entering the neighboring Gomurasen street.

A familiar sight greeted him there.

Bordering Gomurasen Street was Chenini Park, the largest park in Musutafu. He knew it well, he used to play there a lot as a kid. He still remembered the time he used to spend going on 'expeditions' and 'missions' there, almost every afternoon. But not anymore. It had been years since he had bothered stepping foot there.

A movement near the park's fence got his attention.

There the extras were. Heading straight into the woods instead of using the path like normal people, thinking they're all sneaky. What a joke.

Katsuki cursed but followed.

He entered the undergrowth.

At first, he didn't bother with catching up to them. He was in no rush. He still couldn't see them, what with all the timber in the way. But the sounds of those idiots running and giggling about something incomprehensible were unmistakable.

He still didn't know what dumb reason possessed them to come here; 'Whatever it was it had better be good' he grumbled.

The extras didn't stop. They traveled deeper, deeper than Katsuki ever remembered going in the park. The pace was hastened, and so was their distance from Katsuki.

The ash-blonde ground his teeth together, breaking into a run as he followed the sounds the extras made. He couldn't even hear their voices anymore, just the breaking of twigs and scrunching of leaves in the distance. The forest grew thicker, harder to traverse without struggle, and soon, he produced a rattle of his own, drowning out his guide.

He was lost.

"Shit!" Katsuki cursed aloud, punching a nearby trunk.

He kept looking, rummaging through the forest blindly, walking in circles endlessly. He was growing impatient. Why was he even bothering? It's not like he cared, the ash blonde, rationalized.

He turned to leave, but a new sound stopped him in his tracks. Screaming, sobbing, coming from far off but still nearby.

Katsuki Bakugo didn't think, he ran. His feet pounded on the luxuriant ground; his face was constantly being scratched by the twigs of the tall bushes. He extended a hand, intent on moving away a large branch that hung in his way.

He would never forget what he revealed.

A wall of orange, yellow, and red filled his vision as it swiftly expanded in front of him. Its volume rose, threatening to engulf multiple silhouettes, before it dissipated as quickly as it seemingly came, only grazing its victims.

The disappearance of the fiery veil is revealed to the boy. It was Deku, his friend, and the extras, at his feet, and a brown-furred wall behind him.

The ash blonde was dumbfounded, 'W-what… just happened'. Forming a more coherent thought proved to be a bit alluding. Katsuki's skin prickled as if thousands of tiny needles stabbed at him constantly.

That feeling was but a phantom. A ghost of the sensation of the intense thermal radiation he experienced a moment prior. His entire skin felt dry and craggy, as if every drop of sweat and oil got vaporized off. The feeling was somewhat familiar. He experienced it many times before, in camp, whenever he used his quirk, and even earlier today in the presence of a hero.

But this felt different somehow. Malevolent. Or, perhaps enraged, impulsive, and violent.

He stared at the sniveling messes on the floor that were his supposed friends, nursing fresh burn wounds.

There was no mistaking what caused this.

Fire.

Deku hadn't moved. He was at the center of where the fire was, still staring down over the results of what had happened. Of the fire, he generated.

It didn't make sense; it shouldn't have been possible. But Katsuki Bakugou saw it with his own eyes.

Katsuki's blood boiled, and his vision grew red.

"DEKUUUU!"

Present Time.

"Hello Izuku, how do you feel?" The unfamiliar woman says as she enters the room, using his first name to try and create a faux sense of confidentiality.

It doesn't work.

He took a sit on the chair in front of her desk. "M'kay." The greenest muttered halfheartedly, finding much more interest in his sneakers and the cold tiled floor than the slightly wrinkled face of the middle-aged counselor.

Everything happened so fast.

After what had happened, both he and everyone else. Were rushed back to school by their parents, After their burn wounds were treated of course. They were brought before the principal, where Izuku felt a bit too much like the defendant in a courtroom.

Thankfully the principal didn't blame Izuku for what had happened, recognizing it for the accident it was. Both Izuku and his parents could hardly recall a time they were so relieved.

But, the ginger young principal wasn't satisfied with just that. He required him to get that new aspect of his 'quirk' under control. "It's too dangerous for him to be without control over his quirk." The principal explained as he played with his golden leaf tie-clip.

So, he sent him here, to the Quirk counselor's office. He hadn't been in this place since his mandatory checkup back in the first grade.

The room was a lot smaller than he remembered. Besides the counselor's chair and desk, everything in the office was undersized. It was for the first and second-graders who used this office the most, it had nothing to do with him. But Izuku couldn't help but feel like they were babying him, treating him with kids' gloves.

Or rather, protective gloves.

The office felt oppressive, with its undersized furniture and the overly whimsical drawings decorating the walls. It felt a bit too much like a clinic; even the smell was that of heavy disinfectant.

"Izuku," The counselor used his first name again, and he grimaced. "I know you don't want to be here. Children your age tend to have a negative opinion about needing my help." True. The last time someone his age needed to visit her was two years ago. It was a big deal in class back then, and no one had forgotten about it till now.

"But this is necessary. Try to think of it positively. This could be an opportunity to develop your quirk beyond what you could've done without professional help."

If Izuku was a less sympathetic person, he would've scoffed.

Not at the notion of getting help, no. He knew he needed it, now more than ever. But the help he required wasn't from any quirk counselor. The true nature of his power was nothing like what any of them had in their repertoire.

Quirks and bending worked differently, they were different. He had learned that early on in his training; trying to use common tricks for fire quirk users to attempt triggering his Firebending. Those efforts proved to be in complete avail.

But it wasn't his choice. He couldn't say no to any of this. So, after a lengthy conversation that involved her talking the most and his reply with 'yes' and no's, she told him to follow her to the sports field, and he did as she asked.

The greenette followed her in silence. The halls of the school were empty, the last of the teachers had already left. Dusk had come, and the last of the day's light, a deep violet, seeped into the windows of the western corridor of the building where they walked.

Through the plastic pane of one of the windows, Izuku could see both his parents having a conversation near the gate. He couldn't hear what they said, but the way they held themselves was a lot more reserved than the last time he spied on one of the conversations.

The tiniest smidge of a smile etched itself over his lips at the thought of his parents making up.

Jirou was also there, leaning against the wall nearby, and for a moment he was almost sure they made eye contact.

Izuku averted his gaze, 'It's just my imagination…'

They left the building through the eastern exit and into the sports field. It was small, its main feature being a track and field court with faded paint markings that doubled as a basketball court.

The counselor continued the rambling through the hallways "I usually conduct exercises in the gymnasium," Izuku registered, "but given what I know about your quirk, I think this place suits your needs more."

Yes, it did suit him better than the wooden gymnasium. More rocks to through, fewer things to burn.

"Now, why don't we start with something you're comfortable with?" The counselor asked rhetorically, pulling a clipboard out of her purse and clicking a pen. "We might be dealing with a new aspect of your quirk, but it is still inherently connected to the other aspect of it, the one you are familiar with."

Ignoring how the counselor had already displayed exactly why her expertise couldn't help him, Izuku crouched down into the horse stance with practiced ease.

If the counselor recognized his stance as one of a martial artist, which she probably didn't, she didn't show it.

"You may begin."

A shoed foot stomped on the ground, launching out a tall pillar of rock that was then sliced clean in half by a swipe of his arm.

He tried to hold back as much as he could, especially on the size of whatever he made, he didn't want to cause too much colleterial. It was hard to concentrate on holding back, especially when every movement he made begged to effortlessly move mountains.

Springtime was nigh, and his Earthbending was enjoying its yearly boost in power. It was only a recent revelation, with his bending grip only now growing strong enough to notice. But noticed it he did. It wasn't even the peak of the season, and yet the earth itself already sang. Gripping with the life that sprouted from it, hugged it tightly for its nourishment and protection.

He could feel it, even through his thick-soled shoes. It was reassuring, to be backed by something so strong, so brimming with life.

"That's enough."

The counselor's voice brought him back to reality. The voice of the earth dimmed in his mind. Izuku lowered his arms and retracted the debris he made back into the ground.

"Good. It seems your original ability wasn't affected by your quirk's evolution." The counselor murmured as she wrote something down on her clipboard. Izuku didn't reply, merely listened to the tapping of her pen on wood.

Then came what he was dreading.

"Now's the time to see what you can do with the new aspect of your quirk." Izuku didn't miss how she took a few cautious steps back, "Try to do what you did in the park," The boy's throat turned dry instantly at the reminder, "Just…smaller…"

"O-o-okay…"

Izuku took a deep breath, squared his shoulders, and tightened his muscles. '1…2…3…' He began to count down the seconds, telling himself he'll do it on ten. '4…' But as the seconds ticked by, he began to find himself dreading the number. '5…6…7…' His legs began to tremble, his wide stance narrowing. Sweat poured down his brow, his teeth clanked together. '8…9…-'

'10!' Izuku thrust his fist forward in a panic, no form or conviction behind the punch. As expected, nothing happened, but the boy overextended and almost toppled. He wobbled in place for a moment, flailing like a newborn lemur, before stopping.

"Hmph. Not unexpected. " The counselor grunted, somehow both unimpressed with the boy's performance and impressed with her own. "Try to recall what you felt when you created that fire. I find that's what works best for first-timers."

The boy suddenly felt a lot smaller; and not because the counselor was scrutinizing him with a harsh gaze that went over her cheap plastic glasses.

"R-right!"

Getting back into his stance, Izuku reluctantly did as he was instructed.

He let the memories of out happened, still fresh and crisp, ebb and rise into the forefront of his mind. The panic, the rage, the guilt, they all came flooding back; fueling the inner core that had just recently burst into being.

Involuntarily, older memories surfaced as well.

A sharp light, followed by a pushback and a stinging pain. In one memory, he was only four. In another, five. At the third, he was still five; in fact, that memory happened only a day after the last one. By the summer of that year, just before he met Chima, shrinking away from the bursts, the bright light, and the heat was already second nature.

It still was.

A dark prison, deep underground. Deafening roars filled the air, but somehow, they didn't manage to divert the attention from the smell of ash. Two serpents rose, a deep carmine and amber in color. They stared him down, their hissing unbearable to hear. Like a bolt of lightning out of a clear sky, they lashed at him, coiling themselves around his left forearm and burning.

Suddenly, the urge to intake air overwhelmed his subconscious.

The core pulsed with power, sending energy through Izuku's body. It crashed violently into his fingertips. The end of his nerves lit up like fireworks, sending erratic signals as if they were submerged in boiling oil.

It went on for far too long; the pain was far too great.

Izuku fell on his back with a pained cry, a veil of tears forcing his eyes shut. From his outstretched arm, a plume of violent flame roared into being. It dissipated quickly, leaving behind breathless silence.

Unmoving, Izuku sat and stared at his left arm with an expression of pure horror. As if the limb itself belonged to a corpse; mangled, decayed, and monstrous.

The pain that ransacked him ceased. It's only a remnant, a stinging ache under his sleeve. On his scar.

"C'mon kid!" A hand violently yanked him by the same arm; It was the counselor. "Snap out of this!" They demanded as they jostled the boy.

In a flash, the pain was back. His scar felt like it was on fire again. Sweat, cold and sleek, broke out through his pores. Suddenly, Izuku struggled to breathe, as though it was not clear spring air he inhaled, but foul smoke.

He let out a choked gasp, trying his best to draw breath.

His pulse skyrocketed when he found he couldn't.

His breathing became erratic, shallow, and heavy.

He couldn't breathe!

He couldn't-!

"GET AWAY!"

The scream tore out of his sore throat. A forceful yank from his arm, and he was free. Izuku wasted no time. He bolted and ran out of the basketball field, not once looking back. Behind him, the consular yelled after him, demanding he come back and finish the session.

This writing isn't my work, but the original author's work. This was the unpublished Chapter six of Book Fire.

Originally the chapter is supposed to be longer. However due to the change of writers. I've decided to split it into two or three. Depending how it goes, especially now that I'm writing it.

As I mentioned before. I don't plan to write long chapters, shorter ones are in my comfort zone. Shorter chapters are what I can handle and manage.

The next chapter is Not Part 2, but rather another unpublished chapter. Meant for the spin-off fanfic, Everyday life of an Avatar.

The Spin-Off fanfic is canceled, between Op Taipan and me, he is the comedian. Not I.

So note the next chapter titled Jennamite. Is not canon. It is meant to be a non-canon comedic chapter.

Pyrophobia part two won't be out soon. I need to retake my Smart Serve exam. So real life is my main focus for now.

So please enjoy Op Taipan's final works, until next time.

Mabuhay!