Rule #23: Never mess with a sidekick, if you want to live
The scent of burnt bacon and caramel followed them as they tumbled out of the warp gate and onto the unforgiving concrete, some miles away. Feverish panting and coughing fell from Toru's lips as she split out of the darkness and onto the dusty ground. Bent double at the waist, the albino retched and heaved as her stomach rebelled against the black sludge which coated the inside of her mouth. It was worse than any convenience store cough medicine and thrice as thick as treacle.
It reminded her of that fateful summer camping trip. Flashes of choking fevers, sickly sweet poison and murderous substitute teachers came to mind. It made her retch all that much more, her entire body wracking with the aching force. Though she retched and coughed furiously, nothing but bile came up (when was the last time that she had eaten?) Just out of arm's reach, Bakugou retched only twice before spitting out the last of the foul sludge and wiped the spittle from his chin. From the corner of her eye, Toru noted the sunburns littered across his skin from where she had burnt him; it seemed that his fiery Quirk had done its best to protect him from the blast. At least he still had a body to complain about, though, so silver linings and all that.
As to their sudden replacement, she noted that the broken concrete jungle they had landed in was this jagged cityscape which had been sprinkled with a healthy showering of debris. She couldn't say what had punched this crater into the earth, only that whatever had done so, had pulverised the surrounding buildings to dust and probably made a concrete-based warehouse explode (if that half-crushed door with the squashed label painted upon corrugated iron, was anything to go by). Bits of wall, roof and wall were strewn about the place like a child's forgotten toys and just beyond Shigaraki's shoulder, she could see bits of chemical baths, plus a few nomu pieces lying about.
Evening had fallen by then, casting the concrete jungle in the warmth of sunset, only offset by Toru's unrelenting fierce glow. It filled the area in this eerie glow that made the shadows all that more frightening and the newly revealed masked villain stood tall amongst them, like he belonged there. Toru tensed as she heaved herself up onto her elbows, arms shaking in an effort to keep herself upright as her fists clenched so tight that a collection of small moon-shaped indents were left in her palms thanks to her nails; some had even drawn blood. Whomever this 'Master' was, she had no intentions fo finding out what he could do, however with way her body currently was, she may not have the choice.
Gazing around through blurred vision, Toru noticed that there were no heroes in sight, only those who had already been taken down and now lay in various stages of unconsciousness amongst the rubble. Amongst the living there stood the scattered League of Villains, Bakugou, herself and a well-dressed masked man that Shigaraki reverently referred to as 'Master' not two metres from them. She assumed that this was the same one whom the hand-faced villain had been communicating with earlier in the day, the one whose voice they had heard through the television. I can see why there was no picture. Toru thought absently as her shaky arms collapsed beneath her, dropping her to just-this-side of her puddle of bile. 'Coz that is DEFINITELY a face for radio.
She was quickly finding it hard to even stay upright or even conscious. And that didn't even take into account how this strange man sent her hair raising on end and nerves pricked to attention. The albino thought she'd experienced fear before, but that was nothing in the face of this man who stole more than just her breath away; it was like she was standing in the presence of a predator and she fucking knew it. This…Master was at least as tall as All Might and carried with him, an air of someone who was getting on in years, but could still ground you beneath his heel if he so desired. Despite—or perhaps, in spite—of the life mask clasped to his maw, there was something about him that appeared too artificial, too fabricated, too fake to be natural, like a monster out of a child's nightmare. What the hell was he?
And when he spoke, every nerve within her seemed to scream with fear. If she could move, Toru would've most certainly bolted. "My deepest apologies, to the both of you" The Master hummed, his voice deep and only half-warped by the reverb of the full-face mask and the myriad of tubes running across the surface of it.
"T-tch" Bakugou made a noise that sounded like a scoff, though it was just as shaky as she felt.
"Sincerely" He added, as though he thought their opinions mattered in the slightest. (They couldn't have, surely, not to someone like him).
Golden eyes followed the Master's calm gait towards the crouched villain to her right, where Shigaraki appeared to be trying to replace all of the disembodied hands which had fallen from his figure upon landing. He was like a kindergartener trying to hoard of his most favourite toys, all to himself. Stopping before him, the imposing villain stood tall with his hand in his pockets and a disappointed air emanated from this faceless man. "So, you failed me once more, Tomura?"
His tone was almost scolding—almost sincere—as if he were a parent talking to a child. And if the flinch from Shigaraki was anything to go by, he knew it too. Glancing up at his master, the blue-haired man clutched to his last hand like it was a lifeline or a safety blanket against the one standing over him. Once, where this villain had been nonplussed & intimidating, he was now small & shaken in the shadow of far bigger prey.
The master of the League of Villains reached down to pet the boy upon his crown, ruffling tousled hair in a rare show of affection. "But you must not be discouraged, Tomura, you'll try again. That's why I brought you and your associates back here. Even if they were children of the Deity of Death—" Toru received a soft smile in her direction. It was likely supposed to be gentle or even comforting, but all she felt was fear. "—And All Might" Here, he spared a glance towards Bakugou who had been trying to scoot closer to his classmate without being caught. At the sudden attention, he paused like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar and froze in place. Because you judged them to be important pieces on your game board. Start over as many times it takes, I am here to provide you with help, all of this is for you"
"All For One…" Shigaraki moaned as he watched his master walk away.
"Uh-uh-uh, patience young Shigaraki" The newly named All For One tsked, as he continued on his spiel. "Wait a moment, we have more guests on they way. It would be impolite to start without greeting them first"
A beat of silence rang throughout the dusty clearing before All for One turned from Shigaraki, his hand fondly ruffling his hair one last time as he passed. Casually turning to face the moon and bask in its light, he sighed in relief as if he had just discovered his missing keys. "Ah, there you are, All Might!"
The aforementioned hero burst onto the scene in a blaze of glorified fury. "I'LL HAVE YOU RETURN BOTH OF MY STUDENTS, NOW, ALL FOR ONE!" He punctuated his demand with a pair of powerful punches, that were easily caught by All For One.
Shockwaves rippled across the area as All For Once caught All Might's punches with ease, batting them away as if they were weak little kiddy fists. "Have you come to kill me a second time, All Might?" All For One taunted as bedlam erupted around them; they were like the eye of this chaotic storm, uncaring—or perhaps, unaware—of the trouble they caused.
"Ack!" Toru gasped as she was suddenly picked up and flung backwards across the yard, alongside the others. Rolling ass-over-kettle, the albino found the breath knocked from her lungs as she came to an abrupt stop atop an outcropping edge that jabbed at her back, leaving her already breathless body to wheeze in lungfuls of air.
Across the battlefield (if you could call it that), All For One's voice carried even without the need to raise it. "It took you long enough to find us" All For One taunted as the smoke cleared to reveal him standing tall as he shook out his fists, whilst All Might knelt a pace or two away as he tried to clamber to his feet. "It's only five kilometres from the bare to here, All Might, and yet it was at least thirty seconds after I sent out the nomu, that you arrived. You've gotten weaker, One For All"
"Like, you're one to talk!" All Might retorted as he jerked to his feet, "Kind of difficult to ignore that fancy life support mask that you've got on. Aren't you overexerting yourself?"
Gale force winds whipped themselves up into a frenzy, circling the landscape in circles around the two opponents who stood centre stage. Buildings leant precariously on either side of the two, bent in half in the wake of that latest destructive hit. There was something to be said about two predators facing off against each other. All Might puffed up his chest as he stood tall and glared down All For One. "I won't repeat that same mistake I made five years ago, you hear me—?!"
"Mistake?" Toru mouthed, face pinched in confusion. What had been so bad that their teacher—the Symbol of Peace—could've regret so much in regards to this villain? They certainly seemed well acquainted, that was for sure. And what was that thing about One For All? Did that mean they were related in some way?
"—I will take my students back! And I will make certain that you are locked up for the rest of your sad little life! RIGHT ALONGSIDE YOUR DESPICABLE LEAGUE OF VILLAINS!"
All For One purred, a hungry grin on his lips as smugness seemed to seep from every pore. "Big words coming from someone whose already standing on their last legs! Sounds like you've got your work cutout for you!"
BOOM!
A thundering boom ricocheted throughout the area as the two opposing forces met once more. This time, when All For One reengaged with All Might, he compelled a torrent of compressed air to shoot forth towards the Symbol of Peace, hitting him dead on. A choked wheeze fell from the blonde's lips as his breath was snatched from his lungs & he was jerked off of his feet, and sent flying backwards through a row of buildings which had previously lain behind him. And, like all the times before, All For One remained standing and seemingly unfazed.
"Hmm, the air cannon plus spring-like limbs work well, I must remember to thank him for that…" All For One mused as he rolled his wrists, inspecting the devices strapped there with what could almost be construed for glee. "…Quadruple the kinetic booster, thrice the strength enhancer…What a delightful combination! Mayhaps a few more enhancers could be added next time…?" (Honestly, it sounded like they were listening to Midoriya gush over some sort of Quirk that he'd never seen before, or when he was breaking an attack down, or just in general, really).
Once again, Toru found herself cowering away from the onslaught of the shockwaves produced by the two overpowered Quirk users battling it out in front of her. What little breath she had managed to regain was soon used to hack up the dust invading her lungs and weak hands scrabbled to get ahold of the loose dirt, digging into the gravel in an effort to not be blown away. Nearby, Bakugou had shoved himself up into a low crouch, where the blonde struggled to move any higher thanks to the high winds, but still stared wide-eyed after his longtime idol.
Disbelief coloured his expression as he watched their teacher sail overhead like he weighed no more than a bag of grapes. "All Might!" Bakugou cried out as the contrails streaked high above them, staining the sky in dust.
"Don't you worry, little hero" All For One cooed as he turned to Bakugou, "It'll take more than that to kill him"
Almost instinctively, Toru's eyes flashed wickedly at the word 'kill' as her trigger word sounded on the air, but weak as she was, she made no move to attack. Swallowing thickly, she was instead resigned to watch this whole show & dance play out in front of her; well aware that even one wayward attack from those two could mean their certain death. Deeming the hero students unimposing, All For One's attention then shifted back to Shigaraki as he ordered him to vacate the area. "Get off of the battlefield, Tomura, and take those children with you"
All For One simply raised an ungloved hand in the air as his blackened and veiny fingers shot out at an unnatural angel and latched themselves onto the unconscious warp villain, impaling there with a ferocity that was frightening. "Kurogiri" All For One commanded of the limply-lain man, "Warp them away—"
"—Be careful!" Magne interjected as he rushed forth with a slight shake in step. Clearly he was just as afraid of the villain, as everyone else. "The UA girl messed with him! And now he's unconscious! I'm not sure what's going on, but—but if you can teleport, can you get us outta here?"
"My warp power is still new, Magne" All For One replied contritely, "There is much that I still need to learn about it. It's distance is limited and whilst Kurogiri can teleport to specific co-ordinations, I, myself, can only transport people to & from my own location. Or—with much focus—to or from someone I am very familiar with, that is all. It is much easier to have Kurogiri to do it. Force Quirk Activation"
WHOOSH!
A large warp gate bloomed to life from the body of Kurogiri, sucking in all that stood too close. "What the—!" Magne quickly retreated from his unconscious comrade as the familiar inky black warp gate sprung to life.
"Holy hell!" Toru gasped as she watched only a sample of All For One's terrible power circumvent all other limitations of his companion's Quirk.
"Leave this place" All For One's voice carried just like it did before; commanding and authoritative in a way that it should not have been at such a whisper.
"But, what about you, Master?" Shigaraki murmured as All Might reappeared from the rubble he had been tossed into, surging up into the air like a bird taking flight.
In turn, All For One continued to ignore the charging hero as he continued to scold Shigaraki for his childish pleas, "You're not thinking clearly, Tomura. There still remains much room for you to grow"
"YOU'RE MINE!" All Might decreed as he sent hefty and unrelenting blows towards All For One's head. Although, these were easily voided by a simple arm raised to block. The two tousled like dogs in the street, each exchanging a blow for a backhand and so on.
Shigaraki appeared reluctant to leave as he stood watching his teacher take on the Symbol of Peace without nary a thought. "Master…!"
Compress tried to shoo the distraught young man towards the open warp gate, with a pocket full of already marbled comrades. "Let's go, Shigaraki! Whilst our masked leader is keeping All Might entertained. Claim your prizes!"
Compress' pleas were not only heard by the villains, however, across the way the two young heroes took that warning for what it was and tried to regroup as best they could. Toru had half a mind to slip the Twice-gifted USB (that was miraculously only half-damaged) into her mouth and clicked her jaw shut; gritting her teeth so hard that she thought they might break. Absently, she hoped that she wouldn't swallow the damn thing, or choke on it, but her main focus lay elsewhere.
Specifically, in the burning sensation which left her panting like a dog in heat and all-but-melted on the concrete floor. She could feel the ultraviolet light bubbling & boiling just beneath her skin, begging to burst forth from the cage that was her skin and the effort she had to enforce just to keep her bones from crumbling inwards, was immense. I…don't know…how much…longer…I can…take this! She panted, sweat making what little surviving cloth she wore, stick to her body like a second skin.
In that same small window, Bakugou quickly scurried over to where the prone form of his classmate lay sweltering on the ground (it was weird being able to see the invisible girl, and it felt so very wrong, for some reason). His hands had only just barely alighted upon her shoulder before they were jerked away at the heat that emanated from her. "Shit! You're burning up!" He exclaimed as his hands sparked uncontrollably from the brief contact between the two teens; as unstable UV met glycerine sweat.
"Gee? Really?…I hadn't…noticed!" Toru panted, sarcasm dripping from her usually chipped tone.
"Oi! What the fuck is up with you?!"
"Well, I can't feel my legs for one, and I'm pretty sure I'm going supernova, for two"
"What the hell does that mean?!"
"Bad shtuff…really…really…bad shtuff…" She slurred, tongue feeling thick in her mouth like it had been stuffed with cotton (or, it could've just been the strange taste of the USB, whose to say?)
Bakugou rolled his eyes as he grit his teeth and quickly rolled Toru onto her back, the remnants of their search & rescue hero lessons coming to mind (Teach would've been so proud!). "Oh, that's helpful"
If she had the energy to roll her eyes, she probably would've of, as it was, as Bakugou was precariously rolling her over, Toru caught a glimpse of the advancing villains who still remained hidden amongst the rubble. Propping herself up with energy she did not have, Toru jabbed her hand out towards the League of Villains, blowing their hiding spot to smithereens. Twice (or at least a clone of him) who happened to get caught in the line of crossfire, let out a screech of pain-filled agony. Twice collapsed to the ground where he writhed and thrashed on the ground in anguish. Monstrous burn marks and harsh redness covered his skin like a rash; not to mention the scorch marks which painted the surrounding area in black, or the angry red sunburns which had quickly climbed up Bakugou's side.
"Again I ask" Bakugou hissed as he rose to crouch and watched the fallout with wide eyes (he almost seemed afraid of Toru). His own sunburns seemingly irrelevant in the wake of the villain's downfall. "What the fuck was that?!"
"Like I…I said…really…really…bad" Toru panted as she flopped back against the ground, limbs all akimbo as her limbs splayed about like a starfish and she wheezed in harsh breaths. This is nothing…like what happened…after Stain! Why…why…does it…hurt so…much more…?
"Hmm, now that is interesting" All For One mused as his gaze turned towards the resulting bombshell blast which the albino had created. "Although, expected from one of the Grim Reaper's children. I wonder what else could you be capable of?" His attention shifted back to the two teens huddled together, though when he next spoke, it was not to the students, but to the Symbol of Peace rising admist the wreckage and though he had no eyes, it still felt like his gaze was boring a hole into the two teens. "Don't you agree, All Might?"
Blood dripped from a cut upon the blonde's forehead, trickling down his face and made it hard for him to see. Coughing around the blood in his mouth, he stood tall with fake courage that he did not feel. His withered form—his true form—typically moved with a bowed spine on the bestest of days. Today wasn't his best, and it was getting hard to keep ahold of this muscular form with each passing moment. One arm was clearly broken—at the very least grazed with a severe case of road rash—but damn it all! He was still standing! He was still speaking! He could still fight!
His voice didn't echo like it did before, nor did it bellow, but he was still there. "All For One, you have reached the end of the line" All Might decreed full of bravado. Which was quite something coming from a man who looked like he had one foot in the grave. "Surrender now"
"Do I look like I am beaten, All Might?" All For One responded testily, not even twisting around to acknowledge the Symbol of Peace. And he didn't, nor did he look like he cared.
All Might continued to decree with only the slightest of wheezes colouring his tone, "Your League of Villains is already dismantled" He sounded so tired. "You legacy stops here, as it should"
"I have never needed them to face you, All Might" All For One chuckled, rusty and lowly rasping as it ground its way out of his mask. "But I must admit, you were clever. Enticing our attention with one of the Grim Reaper's children, dangling her out like bait to snatch up? A masterful stroke of genius, if I ever saw one. Pity it wasn't your idea, now was it—?"
What…? Toru puzzled, What was he talking about? They were clearly talking about her. But the words didn't seem to fit quite right, or make any proper sense. Maybe if her brain had been less jumbled, they might have.
"—And it would be ever so rude not to accept such a tantalising offering, now wouldn't it?" All For One purred, making Toru's hair stand on end.
Bakugou had been preparing to haul Toru over his shoulder in a firemen's carry when All For One's needles snapped outwards again. This time, however, they did not latch onto the warp villain as they had done before, but onto his previously-invisible classmate. The villain's fingertips shifted from plain, blunt nails to black-tipped points, sharp like a cat's and each extended far beyond anything natural; they looked like the world's deadliest horde of ikasumi. They branched off and split apart, slicing through the air towards the pair of hero students huddled together.
Bakugou had been able to dance out of the way, but Toru had not. Instead, she could only watch as the noodle fingers of death advanced and with the memory of Kurogiri's forced Quirk activation in mind, she knew that there was nothing she could do to outmanoeuvre this beast of a man. This is gonna hurt, huh?
"Young Hagakure—!" All Might protested, startled as his adversary's needles embedded themselves into her flickering form.
"I wonder what this looks like at full power?" All For One mused aloud, lifting her into the air, a little and out of Bakugou's reach. She hung limply in the air—like pietà—tethered only by the needles in her chest. "Force Quirk Activation"
A heartbeat.
Two.
Three.
Toru's head lolled over to where Bakugou stood, hovering nearby with a rare look of concern plastered across his face. Beyond his shoulder, she could catch a glimpse all of whom who stood too close. Fear coloured her expression as her Quirk bulged at the seams one final time. It was already leaking from her orifices like molten wax but it would soon break free in the most painful of ways; she just knew it. Like Grandfather Aoi as he was pushed from the heavens, burning all the while. But unlike her predecessor, Toru was not laughing. Instead, one simple word left her lips as the needles dug deeper into her skin, deep enough to feel like they were scraping against bone, as All For One's Quirk sank its claws into hers.
"Run"
And then the world was bathed in blinding, scorching light.
And Bakugou, who knew explosions (implosive or otherwise), who knew when it was time to get the hell out of dodge, was already running. Even as a deep sense of guilt cut him to his core for fleeing with his tail tucked between his legs, for leaving behind someone in need of help, for doing the exact opposite of what a hero was supposed to do. (He was no better than the villains who had kidnapped them!) The fact that his friends & classmates were flying directly overhead, desperately calling for him; the fact that Hagakure had looked at him with such imploring—pleading—eyes, definitely didn't have anything to do with his hasty retreat. And as he surged up to meet them—as they flew away (like cowards)—he tried his best not listen to her terrible, terrible screams.
Quietly, he promised himself to do better.
Next time, he would not run.
Toru's body burnt bright as she shook in All For One's grip, making the villain hiss out in pain (for these needles were still a part of him) and in turn, causing him to drop her. Though she was no longer held aloft by the needles, Toru did not fall. Instead her bubbling skin seemed to bulge and boil like water in a pot, pushing against the recesses of her skin in an effort to escape. The light that engulfed her had turned blinding as she finally began the last stages of this terrible, fantastical supernova.
She shook vigorously, like her body was seizing admist the dust motes and as her Quirk turned its ire on her, her blazing eyes rolled up into the back of her head. With consciousness teetering on a razor's edge, Toru lost herself to the sensations of her body which were screaming to be noticed. Her head pounded like a drum, her heart jackhammered in her chest as if trying to escape, her breath came in short, sharp gasps and her skin bubbled something awful, like an overflowing pot of water. She knew nothing but pain, completely blind to the world around her. And then, as if this day could not get any worse, from her flesh came burning spheres of solid light. They were blinding even as they burst forth like tiny little planets and sizzled in the air like microscopic bombs just waiting to go off. They varied in size and number, though none were any bigger than the average softball. These burning masses filled the air around them and circled her thrashing form in rings upon rings.
Lain limp like pietà, Toru's head lolled backwards with hair now falling freely; cascading down in waves of pure white. If it had been any other situation, one might've thought her a work of art. As it was, the audience that they had gathered over the night, were more concerned with seeking shelter as the metaphorical bomb went off. "Wha—AAAAAAAHHH!" Pain-filled screams ripped themselves free from Toru's lungs as she burned and her body seized its rigorous shaking, only to be replaced with the feeling of her body folding inwards on itself. Of bones breaking and falling away, only to be replaced with this molten light that scorched all that it touched.
Faintly, she could hear frantic and panicked calls sounding on the wind, though they went in one ear and out of the other. There was someone screaming, someone crying in the distance…or maybe that was her? Was she crying? It wouldn't surprise her if she was. Pain filled her very core—it was her very being—it tore at her soul like she had never known anything else to. And then she burst. Multicoloured lights burst from her center with an almighty boom; one that was echoed by the pop, pop, pop of each of the little balls of light around them. Enormous shockwaves encouraged by the balls of light, ripped across the landscape and destroyed all in its path; including the few remaining news helicopters that thought it was a good idea to keep filming the event, and a few wayward cranes that had the misfortune of being in her vicinity. If they had thought the explosion at the bar had been bad, then this was by far, worse.
Although, that was not to say that the teen was left unharmed, far from it, in fact. Rashes of red scoured her limbs as they exploded up the limp arms & legs and crept across her cheeks like monstrous freckles. Rainbow lightning danced beneath previously-invisible skin, skipping down muscular pathways and tripping over ivory bone. In some other mind, one might've even considered the sight to be beautiful, like the dancing lights of the aurora borealis. But this was not that mind.
Soon enough, her heart began to stutter in her chest as it was no longer able to keep up with her Quirk (she was impressed that it had made it this far, if she was being honest) and the tenacious hold that she had previously held on her consciousness slipped through her fingers like water through a sieve. Toru seemed to hang there, on the precipice of wakefulness as the sound of deafening silence echoed in her ears, now that all had fallen deathly still.
Only the fluttering of her heart in her chest filled Toru's ears and as darkness finally exploded across her vision, her burning bones turned blessedly cold for the first time in hours. Pale and limp, her lifeless body flopped back to earth in a tangle of limbs and gasping breaths. Toru knew no more as true darkness enveloped her whole, wrapping her in its tight embrace before the dust even settled.