AN: So as a head's up, if you check my author's page you will notice several of my stories have been taken down. Over the next several weeks I plan on slowly removing the rest of my stories from FFN entirely. For the last several months myself, and other authors, have had their stories stolen from FFN, run through a text-to-speech translator, and posted on youtube, where people have been monetizing our efforts for profit. I've personally found multiple stories of mine on youtube, and it all points back to FFN. So sadly I will eventually discontinue posting on FFN entirely. If you wish to continue reading my stories you can find everything on Archive of our Own, as well as several more one-shots that never made an appearance on FFN. Just search for my pen name in the search bar and you'll find me :)

With that out of the way, it's time for the next chapter!

"Can you run?" Ochako said as she gently touched Izuku's shoulder.

"I–" Izuku closed his eyes and forced himself to stand upright before he once again looked at the girl beside him. "yes."

"I'd say I trust you to keep us out of danger but…" Ochako let out a far too high-pitched giggle that betrayed her nervousness.

"Y-eah," Izuku said as he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "We should…"

"My parents aren't home," Ochako explained. "Let's go make sure your mom is safe."

"Thanks," Despite Izuku's efforts to hide it, Ochako couldn't help but notice the relief that filled him as his shoulders sagged slightly. He offered her a hand. "Let's…"

"Yep!" Ochako said far too quickly as she took his hand. "Let's go!"

Hand-in-hand, the two took off as they ran back up the street, both desperately hoping Danger Sense was wrong.

They made it two blocks before they heard a shout. As if in synch, they looked at each other before they both nodded. It was a chance to figure out what was causing Danger Sense to go haywire!

It didn't take long to spot the crowd that had formed. With all of the people traveling to work and school, the streets are naturally crowded. And given the relative safety of Mustafu, villain encounters are often treated more like a spectacle than a serious matter. Izuku, to his shame, used to treat them the same way. So of course they were naturally drawn to the strange purple smoke that had appeared on the street, curious to see what would happen.

Izuku and Ochako used their smaller sizes to worm their way through the crowd, weaving through the small gaps until they had secured front-row seats. Their grips tightened on each other as they waited in anticipation of what was about to happen.

They didn't have to wait long. Moments later, a massive purple helmet pushed through the portal, the eye slits glowing a menacing read. It was followed by the rest of the creature – a massive, half-naked creature clothed in tattered jeans with pale green skin and six arms.

"Nomu!" Izuku whispered loudly.

Ochako turned her head to speak but was cut off by the voice of a hero arriving.

"Everyone back!" The voice of Kamui Woods was heard loud and clear from a nearby rooftop. "That creature is dangerous!"

As if drawn to the sound of its voice, the creature's helmet stared upward, looking directly at the hero. Before anyone could react, it let out an unearthly growl as each of its hands transformed into chainsaws.

Melissa didn't have time to react before the Nomu charged.

"Not today!" Crust announced firmly as he stepped forward, a dual-layer of hexagonal Shields already forming on his arms as he crossed them to block the attack.

The sound of stone shattering reverberated around the street as a massive fist slammed into Crust's quirk, shattering both of the Shields. The hero let out a grunt as he stepped backward, but was otherwise unharmed.

"No!" Melissa shouted as she raised her hand. Powering up her laser to maximum strength, she fired it at the Nomu's face. Her aim was true and the blast struck the creature's eyes, causing it to recoil with a hiss.

"Sentinel!" Crust called out. "We've gotta protect the civilians." As he spoke he was already using his quirk to erect a massive barrier between them and the Nomu. "This thing's out for blood."

"But the Nomu's–"

"I know," Crust looked at her with a serious expression on his face. "It's after us specifically." He nodded his head toward the crowd. "But that doesn't mean they're safe."

Melissa opened her mouth to protest but was interrupted by the sound of Crust's shields shattering as a massive obsidian fist punched a hole through them.

"Okay."

Turning, she began to assess the situation. As the first blow landed most people had begun to (smartly) evacuate the area. But in their haste, several people had fallen. Bringing Overcharge up to ten percent, she reached down to pick up a nearby salaryman and with a running leap carried him to safety.

"T-thank you," The man said shakily as Melissa set him down.

"Just doing my job," Melissa said tightly. "Now please leave the area."

"I will," He assured her before he took a nervous glance towards the fighting and visibly winced. "You– you'll be able to stop that thing… right?"

Melissa's eyes darted toward the scene and she saw Crust smash a Shield into the creature's arm, filling the air with debris before he darted underneath the creature. "Yes, we will." She turned towards the man again and forced herself to smile. "But we can't do that with people in the area."

"R-right," The man said as he backed up several steps. "Good luck!" And with that he turned and ran, joining the retreating crowds as they cleared the area.

Dropping her smile, Melissa turned back toward the scene. There were still too many civilians. They were too close to the fighting. Tightening her fist, she called upon One For All, bringing Overcharge to twenty percent.

"Don't worry Crust, I'll keep everyone safe."

In Tokyo, Mirio looked over to his mentor. "What are we going to do, Sir?"

With a weary sigh, Sir Nighteye reached into his coat and grabbed three weighted seals, each held between his knuckles as he looked at the creature. "It is time to put your lessons into action."

In Osaka, Tamaki pulled his hood down to obscure his face. "Why did this have to happen to us?"

"Come on," Fat Gum patted him on the shoulder. "I know you don't mean that."

Tamaki let out a low whine as his eyes drifted over to his mentor. "You're so mean."

Fat Gum put his hands on his stomach and laughed. "Maybe if you weren't so easy to tease." He gave his intern a grin. "Come on, let's save those people!"

In Castiron, Ryukyu and Nejire watched as the Nomu beat its wings and took to the skies.

"Nejire-chan," The hero growled. "If we can lure it away from the area, we can keep the civilians safe. Think you can stay airborne for a while longer?"

"It'll be hard," The girl admitted before her expression turned serious. "But I'll do it!"

On Okuto Island, Arabele watched as her quirk recoiled in horror.

"I don't like that thing!" Juno exclaimed. "It's wrong!"

"What do you mean wrong?" Arabaele asked her quirk.

"I mean it's mind," A pair of eyes opened up to look directly at its partner, and Arabele swore she saw fear in them. "I'm not hearing any thoughts from it!"

Swallowing the lump in her throat, the girl turned toward Gang Orca, ready to relay this revelation.

"What the hell are you two doing here?!" Akari called out.

Izuku and Ochako spun around to see Melissa's classmate rushing towards them, alongside Burnin, one of the sidekicks at Endeavor's agency.

"We heard a commotion…" Ochako said lamely, her grip tightening on Izuku's arm.

"Who are these kids?" Burnin asked, not bothering to slow down as they approached the crowd.

"They're friends of my classmate," Akari responded.

"At least they'll know how dangerous this is," the sidekick said before she threw a thumb over her shoulder. "You heard Kamui Woods, get out of here."

"B-but–"

"No buts," Burning replied as she took to the air. "That thing's dangerous!" She then looked over at her intern. "Blaze, let's go."

"On it," Akari said. Glancing over to the middle schoolers, her gaze softened for just a moment. "We both know how Shield will be if either of you get hurt, so please get out of here. For her sake."

With that fire flared out from her boots and wrapped them in blue flames. When the students looked at her face again, her apologetic look was gone, replaced with the hardened visage of a hero. Right now she wasn't Melissa's friend-slash-rival Akari, but the future hero Blaze. Without another word she took to the sky, following Burnin airborne. While Burnin pulled a pair of fiery spears from her hair, Blaze held her hands out to her side and two small fiery daggers formed in them.

"Let's go," Ochako said.

"But the people–" Izuku protested as he felt a fresh spike of pain from Danger Sense. His gaze locked on an elderly woman being carried backward by the crowd, the people threatening to topple her.

"That's what I meant," Ochako said. "We're not leaving anyone behind." She dared a glance to her side where the hero, sidekick, and intern had all engaged the Nomu. "And hopefully that'll be enough."

Melissa charged forward, her legs closing a dozen meters in a fraction of a second as she saw the Nomu's clawed hand come down on Crust's shields, shattering them. Despite the hero's best efforts, a large chunk of stone was sent flying in the air – right toward a group of retreating civilians.

Eyes narrowing, she turned, relying on the maneuvering thrusters in her suit to help her bleed momentum quickly as she made the split-second change in course.

And not a moment too soon. She barely made it in between the civilians and the debris as she felt the Shield smash into her back, shattering across her armor. Melissa winced under the force of the blow and staggered toward the civilians, her glasses flying off of her face. Thankfully, the strap held and she heard them clatter against her suit as she threw her arms out, catching herself from falling face-first onto the very people she was trying to protect.

"I've got you," She said unsteadily. Grabbing her glasses, she put them back on and offered the group a faint smile. "You're safe, for now."

"T-thank you!" A woman replied.

"Don't thank me yet," She glanced over her shoulder. "We've still got to take down that thing."

Fortunately, this group didn't have to be told twice and continued running away from the scene. Satisfied that they were safe, Melissa turned around to see who she needed to help next.

"I've got you," Ochako assured the elderly woman as she pulled her out of the crowd.

"Thank you," The woman said as she steadied herself. "I was just minding my own business when–"

"I know," Ochako replied curtly. She knew time was of the essence. "Just please be a little more careful."

"Of course," The woman politely bowed her head before she took off, this time under her own power.

With a soft sigh, Ochako turned toward her friend, and spotted Izuku several meters away, returning a teddy bear to a small child. Despite the chaos surrounding them, she couldn't help but smile at the sight. When he was done he turned his attention to her, and she swore she saw his cheeks turning red. As much as she'd like to tease him about it, they had other priorities right now. She shot him a questioning glance, and he jogged over to her.

"How's your head?" Ochako asked as he approached.

"I think we've done all that we can," Izuku said, although his worried glance at the fighting suggested otherwise.

Ochako followed his gaze and saw Kamui Woods pin two of the creature's arms, only for the chainsaws on two more to attack his branches and sever them. She involuntarily winced and returned her attention to Izuku. "Time to find a safe place to watch?"

"Yeah," Izuku nodded rapidly before gesturing toward a building a few stores down. "I've been up there before to get a better view."

Ochako wanted to laugh. "Of course you have. Lead the way."

With one final glance back at the fighting, Izuku took off with Ochako in tow as they headed toward safety. Even though they knew their time would come, right now they desperately wished they could do more to help.

And that Melissa was okay.

"That should be the last one," Melissa said to no one as she saw the last civilian running away. In the distance she heard sirens, but she wasn't sure they'd make it in time to matter.

Turning, she saw Crust had managed to keep the Nomu at bay, fighting the creature to a standstill long enough for her to get the civilians clear. No wonder he was a top-ten hero! Although she wasn't sure how much longer he could hold out.

Well, time for her to help.

As she took a step forward, she felt One For All course through her body. By the next step, she felt the power of Overcharge rippling just beneath the surface of her skin, like a weapon ready to be unleashed. Despite fighting before – even at her current twenty percent power! – this felt different.

She made a note to ask Uncle Toshi about it later.

Melissa closed the distance in the span of heartbeats. Lowering her shoulder, she charged past Crust and landed a solid blow into the side of the Nomu. Against a normal person, that much power would have sent them flying, launching them dozens of meters until they crashed into the side of a nearby building.

The Nomu barely recoiled from the force of the impact.

"Hu– WHAT?!" Melissa exclaimed as she saw the creature regain its footing, its massive head slowly turning towards her.

"It has some kind of shock absorption quirk!" Crust called out from beside her.

Melissa's mind went to work as the creature raised a massive claw and swatted at her. Fortunately, her body acted on instinct and raised her arms, crossing them in front of her. She blocked the blow, but the force of the impact was still enough to force her backward.

Of course! Melissa thought as her mind caught up. If this creature was strong enough to break Crust's shields… Twisting her body, she avoided another blow before she delivered a knee to the creature's stomach, the thrusters in her boots offering a minuscule boost of power on top of Overcharge. Just like before the creature barely flinched, but it gave her enough of an opening to dance backward, putting several meters between her and it.

She dared a glance at her mentor and saw he had the same idea. He had also retreated and was already building a structure of hexagonal Shields to buy himself more time.

"It's not perfect shock absorption!" Melissa called out. "Otherwise it wouldn't react to me."

"It may as well be for most people," The hero replied.

"I'm not most people," Melissa said softly.

This armor's been tested for up to fifty-five percent, but only for a few seconds… if I can't stop it in time…

"Sentinel, I can't let you fight that thing alone!" Crust said.

Melissa opened her mouth to speak but was cut off as the Nomu slammed into her, sending her flying. The wind was knocked out of her as she crashed into the wall, her armor groaning under the strain as it kept her safe.

"That was almost as bad as one of Uncle Might's hits…" Melissa complained as she saw the creature following through, intending to finish the job.

Raising her hands, she fired both of the lasers in her gauntlets. Just like last time the beams of coherent light engulfed the creature. It let out an inhuman screech and was thrown off course, ending up slamming into the wall about a meter away from her. She felt the shockwave and dust cloud, and when she dared to look at the hole it left in the building was a grim warning of what would have happened if she was caught.

Crust was there immediately, and as Melissa watched the hole was quickly filled with dozens of hexagonal shields as the hero sought to trap the Nomu in place.

It probably bought them thirty seconds, tops.

"Are you okay?" The hero asked, offering her a hand.

"Yeah," Melissa said before she coughed up a lungful of dust. Taking the hero's hand, she pulled herself free from the wall. "I've had worse, if you can believe it."

"With All Might as a teacher? I can," The hero gave her a wry smile. "There's no way I'm letting you take that thing on alone."

"What choice do we have?" Melissa asked as she glanced at the pile of Shields. Already she could hear the rumbling as the creature sought to free itself.

"I never said I won't let you fight it," The hero retorted. "I said I'm not letting you take it on alone."

Melissa let out a small gasp before she smiled at the hero. "So what's the plan?"

Moments later, Melissa watched a clawed hand thrust itself out of its temporary prison, only to be joined by its companion. Together the two arms made short work of the bindings and the Nomu rose to its feet to stare at her.

I just need to restrain it long enough so that Crust can build a prison it can't escape from. Melissa thought to herself. Not like he's asking me to do anything hard. She supplied nervously.

Once again the Nomu let out a bellowing roar, and Melissa called upon One For All. This time, she opened the valve even higher and pushed her Overcharge to forty percent. The energy lines on her suit flared a brilliant blue as they found themselves bleeding off more of the destructive power in an effort to keep Melissa from tearing her body apart, but they quickly stabilized.

Dad and I tested the suit up to fifty-five percent, but that can only hold for a few seconds… Melissa thought to herself as she raised her hands. Hopefully, it won't come to that.

She didn't have any more time for doubt as the creature charged. But this time she was ready. Pushing Overcharge to fifty percent, she held her hands out–

–and managed to grab its clawed arm.

"Got you!" Melissa yelled triumphantly.

She didn't know if the creature could be confused or not, but it certainly didn't feel like it as it stared down at her. Instead, it raised its free hand and took a swipe at her. Anticipating the move, Melissa twisted her body, forcing the creature's other arm to take the brunt of the attack. As she thought, the creature didn't care as it clawed down and tore out a chunk of its own arm.

"These things really are mindless killing machines…" Melissa mumbled to herself as she felt the arm go limp in her hands. But it worked out to her advantage so she wasn't going to complain too much.

Tightening her grip on the slack arm, she twisted it around as she danced around the creature's back and pinned it there.

The Nomu didn't like that and let out a bellowing roar in response. She struggled to maintain her grip on the damaged arm, finding it harder and harder as its Regeneration quirk did its work.

"This isn't good," Melissa said. "If I can barely hold one arm that means…"

Dad, you'll keep me safe, right?

"Crust! Now!" Melissa called out. At the same time, she activated Float and rose off the ground. She danced back and forth thanks to her maneuvering jets, deftly dodging the Nomu's free hand.

As she watched, she saw Crust dash out from his hiding spot, his arms outstretched as he slammed them into the ground next to the Nomu. He immediately went to work with his quirk, creating dozens of hexagonal Shields around the creature's feet.

The creature paused and looked down in confusion, momentarily unsure of how to handle the combined efforts of both heroes.

Now!

Pushing One For All to her maximum safe limit of fifty-five percent, she pulled her left arm free and reached out to grab the Nomu's free hand. The creature bellowed at the contact and immediately began to thrash about, seeking to free itself from her grasp

"This isn't good," Melissa said through gritted teeth as she felt her grip slipping.

If I can't even hold onto it at this level, how can I keep it pinned? She asked herself as she saw the hexagonal shields already working up the creature's legs.

"I'm gonna have to…"

"Sentinel, no!" Crust called out as if sensing Melissa's decision.

"Plus Ultra, right?" Melissa said with a shaky smile on her face.

Turning her attention back to the Nomu, she pushed One For All to seventy percent.

The effect was immediate. Her armor flashed a bright neon as its systems tried to bleed out excess energy for even a few seconds. The small HUD displayed in Melissa's glasses lit up as it flashed its brief warning about the integrity of her armor. Not that she needed it to warn her – her arms burned with power as One For All's destructive force tore through her just as indiscriminately as it would tear through her foe.

But with the burning came that same addicting sensation of strength. Tightening her grip, she heard the Nomu bellow as her fingers overcame its Shock Absorption quirk and buried themselves into its hard flesh. Biting her lip to keep herself from screaming, she pulled on the arms, feeling joints pop and muscles tear as she pinned them behind the creature's back.

"I'm almost done!" Crust assured her from his position on the ground.

Sure enough, as Melissa watched, Crust's quirk slowly made its way along the creature's back and covered the Nomu's claws and shoulders. Even though she felt her bones fracturing and muscles tearing, she refused to let go as she held the Nomu in place. Piece by piece, she saw the armor failures go off on her HUD as large cracks appeared on gauntlets and sleeves, letting the golden light of Overcharge seep through.

She didn't want to think about what was happening to her body underneath the armor, even though the pain gave her a good idea.

"Now!"

The hero's voice cut through the haze of pain and Melissa let go, letting her thrusters carry her backward as she watched the last of the Shields lock into place, pinning the Nomu's arms in such a way that it won't be able to free itself. As she watched, they continued up the creature's neck until they fully covered its face, its beak disappearing under a mass of hexagonal-shaped rock.

"We– we did it," Melissa said weakly as she lowered herself to the ground, her arms hanging limply by her side.

"We did," The hero stood up with a weary sigh. Turning toward Melissa, he gave her a critical look before he walked over to her. He reached out a hand but stopped before he touched her arm. "Once you're taken care of, we're going to have a long talk about this."

"Ehe," Melissa managed to muster up a weak laugh as she looked at the hero, guilt written all across her face.

"C'mon," The hero threw a thumb over his shoulder towards a bench. "Let's at least get you sitting down until the paramedics get here."

Melissa dutifully followed the hero, and as she approached the bench she saw the emaciated form of her Uncle Toshinori appear on the bench. It felt strange to be so helpless and in pain. But with the hero's help, she managed to lower herself down next to the vestige. Making sure she was safe, the hero gave her a comforting smile before he returned to the Nomu to monitor it while they waited for the police and paramedics to arrive.

"I'm sorry Uncle Toshi," Melissa finally said as she closed her eyes. It didn't make the pain go away, but she felt like it helped anyway.

"There's nothing to be sorry about," The vestige replied. She felt a faint warmth on her shoulders as he rested an arm on them. The benefits of being a ghost, she thought with (faint) amusement. "You did good."

Even though her eyes were closed, Melissa could feel the first tear running down her face. Whether from the pain or the praise, she wasn't sure.

She supposed that in the end, it didn't matter.

"Thank you."

AN: "..."