Hello hello guys! After some long time, I finally can publish this new chapter.
Short notice tho, I started another project, but we are two on it, me and a friend, so the chapters here will be written more slowly, do not surprised.
Well, now that it is said, the reviews:
None, as I responded to the commission in private messages.
Enjoy the chapter!
Chapter 20: Joint Activities (Part 2)
/
Izuku observed the wall carefully.
"A four-meter-high wall with holds at irregular intervals…", he noted.
"They're not making it easy for us…", Ojiro remarked, rolling his shoulders as his tail swished back and forth.
Tsuyu and Ochako nodded nearby.
"We've faced worse", Izuku replied, continuing to analyze the wall to find a path everyone could use.
Suddenly, Awase stepped forward, squinting his eyes before pointing a finger at the wall.
"Careful, I can see some loose holds here and there. I can't tell exactly which ones, but I can confirm that the first one on the far right and the third one from the left will definitely give way."
Izuku looked at them, squinting as well.
"I can't see anything, but I trust you. If there are two of them, it's not for nothing."
The gears in his head turned.
"Ojiro and I can scout ahead. We'll climb the wall, test the holds, and mark any that are loose", he suggested.
"Do you think your tail could hold someone? That way you could carry someone to the top.",Fukidashi asked the blonde.
Ojiro seemed to think it over for a few seconds, flexing his tail a couple of times. 'It should work, I think…'
'Then you'll carry Awase-san,' Izuku instructed, turning to the boy with the bandana. 'The fact that you spotted those details shows you can help with scouting.'
Awase's eyes widened. 'Excuse me? No way! I don't feel like falling flat on my face if the blond screws up!' He received a slap on the back. 'Tsuburaba, stop hitting me, dammit!'
The brunet laughed at his friend's complaint. 'Nah, it's fun to see you get irritated over this. Anyway, you won't fall if you do your job right.'
Awase grumbled for a few moments.
'I could be the safety anchor?' Ochako suggested. 'Since I can cancel gravity, if anyone falls, I can catch them.'
'Good idea,' Izuku responded, before muttering, 'Alright, now we need a way to get you up…'
'I could go with Asui and Ojiro,' Kuroiro said in his dark tone. 'I can blend into their shadows, and my arms could help carry someone.'
'Tsuburaba, you'll go with Kuroiro then,' Izuku decided.
The boy nodded.
Okay… That left three people: Fukidashi, himself, and Todoroki… Ochako was more than capable of getting herself up once everyone was safe… Worst case, he'd help her.
'I'll go up last,' Fukidashi declared. 'My quirk is based on comic sound effects, so I can easily create a strong gust of wind to lift myself or anyone struggling.'
Izuku finally looked at Todoroki, who met his gaze with a cold, empty expression.
'And you, Todoroki?' the green-haired boy asked, feeling a slight hesitation at that icy, yet familiar, gaze.
'I don't need anyone's help, nor anyone's plan,' the bicolored-haired boy replied, turning away with a dismissive look.
Izuku felt slightly hurt.
'Isn't the point of this exercise to pass as a team?' he asked.
Todoroki paused, barely glancing back, his heterochromatic eyes fixed on the ground.
'I don't need anyone's help to achieve my goals,' he responded, his voice even colder than before, practically telling Izuku off.
The green-haired boy stood there, frozen, watching as Todoroki walked toward the wall without another word.
'What's his damn problem?' Awase asked.
'That… I have no idea,' Izuku murmured through clenched teeth.
Present Mic's voice filled the air with a high-pitched yell. 'TEAM 1! GO! LET'S DO THIS!'
Izuku immediately focused back on the task and shouted, 'Alright, everyone! Let's go! Stick to the plan!'
'YEAH!' everyone replied—everyone except Todoroki.
The scouting team rushed forward. Ojiro wrapped his tail around Awase's waist, then jumped nimbly onto the wall, gripping two solid holds and placing a foot on another.
Tsuyu didn't even use the holds. Placing her hands on the wall, she began climbing, using her frog-like abilities to scale it faster than the others. Kuroiro melded into Ojiro's shadow, leaving only his torso visible, and grabbed Tsuburaba under his arms to lift him, moving at the same pace as the tailed blond.
Izuku, Ochako, and Fukidashi followed, but, as planned, stayed at the bottom, keeping a bit of distance to avoid the loose holds that fell to the ground and shattered.
"Careful on the right! That one's not solid!" Awase suddenly shouted as Ojiro was about to place his hand on a hold. The blond withdrew his hand just in time, adjusting his grip to extend his tail and Awase, who knocked the loose hold off the wall.
"HEY! ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME?" Tsuburaba shouted below as the piece of concrete nearly grazed him.
Awase glanced down, a sly smile on his lips.
"That was for earlier, with the slap."
He got a middle finger in return.
Izuku carefully observed their progress. Yeah, everything was going as planned for now. But it could all go south quickly.
Tsuyu had just knocked off a handhold about three meters up when suddenly a slope of ice formed. That was the unexpected twist. Izuku saw Todoroki lower his arm, his hand coated with a thin layer of frost, a mist escaping his mouth as he advanced up the ice slope without slipping, leaving faint footprints on the solid ice... Then he heard Tsuyu's gasp.
He turned, eyes wide as saucers, to see the frog girl curling up, her eyes fluttering as she struggled to stay awake… and then she finally lost her grip.
Damn it!
"URARAKA!", the green-haired boy shouted urgently.
But Ochako was already on the move. She sprinted forward, hunched over, her eyes fixed on the falling frog girl. She reached out her hand and exclaimed,
"FLOAT!"
Beside Izuku, Fukidashi let out a 'WHOOOSH!', and a gust of air slowed down the frog girl just in time. Ochako quickly straightened up and caught Tsuyu in her arms.
"She's freezing!", the brunette exclaimed, fearing the worst for her friend.
Fukidashi took a few long strides forward and began muttering 'p'k p'k.' The onomatopoeias landed on the ground and began to emit a bit of warmth. Ochako set Tsuyu down, and Izuku approached as well, grabbing two of the onomatopoeias. He winced in pain as they burned him, but placed them close to his friend.
Like magic, the frog girl started warming up immediately. Izuku grimaced. They had come dangerously close to a case of hypothermia.
He looked up at the top of the wall. Todoroki was standing there, arms at his sides, backlit by the light. The only thing Izuku could see were his eyes—blue and gray, looking down at them with complete disdain in those compassionless eyes.
The two-tone-haired boy turned away and disappeared from the edge of the wall, as the ice slope slowly collapsed with an ominous cracking sound.
What was his problem? His behavior was openly hostile toward any form of social interaction… Izuku would have to talk to him. First, the Battle Trials, then the problem at the USJ… And now this...
The green-haired boy needed to know if he was a danger to the class… and if there was some way he could help him with whatever his problem was…
"EVERYTHING OKAY DOWN THERE?", Ojiro suddenly shouted, bringing Izuku's attention back to what was left of the reconnaissance team.
Ochako was, once again, quicker to respond.
"EVERYTHING'S FINE! WE DIDN'T LOSE ANYONE!"
'Lose?'
The tension left the blond's shoulders, and then he asked,
"SHOULD WE KEEP CLIMBING?"
Izuku gave a thumbs-up.
"GO AHEAD. WE'LL JOIN YOU AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE."
Ojiro nodded and continued the climb. As he grabbed a handhold, however, Tsuburaba asked the question that he, Kuroiro, and Awase were all wondering. Fukidashi probably too, but the manga-sound boy was far too friendly, gentle, and considerate to risk upsetting their teammates.
"Lose?"
Ojiro looked down, meeting the eyes of the dark-haired boy. He hadn't even noticed he'd said it. He knew why, though.
But did he want to talk about it?
…
No, he didn't.
"USJ.", the boy with the tail simply replied before skillfully jumping toward another hold.
The three class 1-B students looked at each other…
"Careful with the one to your left; it's not attached properly. It's the last one before the end.", Awase said, changing subjects and not pressing further the matter.
This seemed to motivate Ojiro for one final push. Crouching down, he launched himself, grabbed the edge with one hand, and threw himself over the ledge, landing smoothly on top before setting down a completely stunned Awase.
Kuroiro followed, climbing up and setting Tsuburaba on the ground before emerging from the shadows.
Back on the ground, since the source of the freezing cold had been destroyed, the air was a bit more bearable.
"ribbit W-What happened? ribbit", asked Tsuyu, blinking as she woke up, completely confused.
"Todoroki made an ice slope. You went into hibernation.", explained Izuku.
Tsuyu processed this information more slowly than usual, her brain functions still recovering from her state, before she got to her feet. The frog girl then looked at the onomatopoeias crackling like embers...
"ribbit Thanks for the warmth… ribbit", she said, looking at Fukidashi, who gave a little laugh.
"It's nothing. It's my duty as a student in the hero course."
Izuku smiled upon hearing this, but now they had to get Tsuyu to the top…
"Uraraka, make Tsuyu float. I'll throw her."
"Okay.", the brunette replied, before realizing something, "Wait, what?"
"Trust me. I've got this. Tsu, ready for a flight?"
The frog girl nodded as Ochako touched her, lifting her off the ground. Then Izuku grabbed her wrists… and began spinning.
"ribbit Wait, what did you say? ribbit"
"Too late to change your mind.", Izuku replied with an amused grin, "Aaaand off to the sky you go!"
Once he'd gained enough momentum, he launched Tsuyu with all his strength toward the top of the wall, the girl letting out a frightened croak as she spun like a top in midair.
Kuroiro raised an arm and caught her, while Ochako canceled her quirk, allowing Tsuyu to land on solid ground, one hand over her racing heart.
Alright. Uraraka's turn.
He turned to the brunette with a smile, and she instantly knew what was coming.
"Midoriya-san, please, no, I'll get sick.", said the girl, going pale.
"Oh, come on.", replied the greenette, warming up his arms for a second throw.
The brunette canceled her gravity and took a powerful jump, launching herself upward.
Izuku watched her soar through the air and pouted.
"HEY! NOT FAIR!"
The brunette started laughing as she floated in the air.
"Sorry, but I'd like to keep my meal where it is."
Izuku grinned at her response. Suddenly, a tongue wrapped around her waist and pulled her to the top of the wall.
"Thanks, Tsu.", the brunette said gratefully. The frog girl nodded as she reeled her tongue back in.
Izuku and Fukidashi were the last two left.
"Alright, think you can get us up there?" Izuku asked, and the manga boy nodded.
"Yeah, no problem. Get ready."
The boy took a deep breath, and Izuku crouched down...
"WHOOOSH!"
A powerful gust of air lifted the greenette off the ground, propelling him upwards with force before letting him land on the concrete surface. He did a roll to cushion his landing and got up, shaking his head to refocus; wow, he hadn't expected that…
Fukidashi landed a few seconds later, dropping to one knee before getting up.
In front of them was a small tunnel, about ten meters long, that they'd have to slide through, even crawl, to reach the other side. Speaking of the other side, Izuku now had a full view of the entire course… He could see Todoroki three obstacles ahead, continuing forward without a glance back.
However, his attention turned back to the tunnel as he noticed Tsuyu slipping through it first.
Probably used to crawling, it was only natural for her to go first. Izuku let her go, and she was followed by Fukidashi, Ojiro, Tsuburaba, Ochako, and Kuroiro, who seemed to almost teleport from one end of the tunnel to the other, and finally Izuku.
The crawl was quick, but accompanied by a lot of grumbling, and Izuku scraped his elbows a bit. No big deal.
The next obstacle was a broken bridge. Some parts were missing, revealing beams they could step on but requiring them to keep a precarious balance. They decided on the following approach.
Tsuyu and Ochako would serve as spotters, Tsuyu using her tongue to hold Ochako, Kuroiro would go underneath while carrying Manga, who could catch anyone with his onomatopoeias, allowing them to bounce back, Tsuburaba would advance and fill the gaps with glass, solid enough, and Izuku and Ojiro would follow on foot.
The crossing began. Everything went smoothly. They advanced slowly but in perfect synchronization, with Izuku keeping a close watch. There were two minor incidents where Tsuburaba, a bit too eager, nearly missed his step and fell, but the spotters didn't need to move since Izuku and Ojiro reacted quickly, grabbing the back of his outfit.
Then came a race across unstable blocks. No problems were encountered. Everyone crossed in their own way, the more agile ones running/jumping across the cubes, while others circumvented obstacles or stabilized them enough to pass.
Next was another wall to climb, shaped like a sawtooth. They climbed it with difficulty, and Ochako nearly twisted her ankle by slipping on a slope.
Finally, they reached a wide spiral ramp, the ascent only made possible by Tsuyu's help, who strained herself to lift them up one by one, even though Ochako had made them lighter.
As soon as he touched the ground, Izuku dashed forward, looking back at his teammates.
"COME ON! LET'S GO! JUST A LITTLE BIT MORE!"
However, he didn't notice that the ground was oddly cracked… and he stepped down.
-CRACK-
With a loud crack, he felt the concrete under his foot give way, and he lost his balance as everything around him shattered and collapsed… dragging him down.
"IZUKU!" he heard Ochako scream behind him.
He felt surprisingly light for a few seconds… Falling, he couldn't see the bottom due to the debris falling with him…
"BOING!" suddenly shouted a voice, and an onomatopoeia slid under him, cushioning his fall and then bouncing him back up with force.
"WOAAAHHH?" Izuku exclaimed, surprise mixed with fear.
He landed on the other side of the pit with a loud 'THUD' against the ground. The air was knocked out of his lungs in one go, and he felt extremely dazed. To make things worse, one of his contact lenses had shifted out of place.
"Midoriya-san! Are you alright?", called Fukidashi's voice from the other side.
Izuku rolled onto his back like a fish out of water, opening and closing his mouth as he struggled to get oxygen back into his lungs. His stomach hurt. It was true that concrete wasn't an ideal landing surface. He lifted his thumb to indicate he was okay.
He heard relieved sighs and used one arm to get himself up while using the other to fix his dislodged contact lens. It was weird to see half-blurry and half-clear.
Once the lens was back in place, he blinked a few times to clear away the tears, grimacing slightly, just in time to see Ochako land beside him. She crouched down immediately, beginning to check him over for any injuries.
Apart from a couple of bruises and a few scrapes, he was fine.
"I'm alright…"
"Don't scare me like that!", the brunette replied with an adorable pout on her face.
"Oh come on, what's the fun in that? Besides, it's good for morale."
"Seeing your classmate and class representative flatten himself like a pancake with the potential to seriously injure himself isn't exactly funny.", Ojiro pointed out as he hauled himself over the edge after a too-short jump.
"ribbit If we're going to finish this course, it's as a full team, with no injuries. ribbit", Tsuyu added as she approached the trio of her classmates.
A thud was followed by a groan of pain, and Izuku saw Awase struggling to get up from the ground.
"Yeah, team spirit, my eye. You all just left us behind like that. I laughed watching Midoriya splat on the ground, but now I know what it feels like… Fuck… my stomach…", the boy said, holding his abdomen.
-THUD-
Tsuburaba suffered the same fate, crashing down spectacularly just a few inches away from where his classmate had landed.
"Ow… I'm not used to flying…"
Kuroiro appeared at the edge of the pit, emerging from the shadows to extend a hand to the boy to help him up, which Tsuburaba gratefully accepted.
Fukidashi landed, cushioning his fall with a gust of air.
"Thanks for the trampoline, Fukidashi.", Izuku said with a nod.
The other gave a thumbs-up, his voice betraying a smile.
"No problem."
Ochako held out her hand, which he accepted as she helped him up, brushing off the dust on his uniform.
"Seriously, don't do that during training. It's terrifying.", the brunette said.
"You shouldn't do it in the field either." Izuku remarked, "If there's anywhere we can fall and break bones, it's during training."
"… Try not to break bones either…", said the brunette.
"We'll see. I'll try, but no guarantees.", Izuku replied, recalling all the times he had shattered his bones during the Battle Trials… That hadn't been the worst, but it was definitely on his injury list…
Ochako let out a resigned sigh.
Izuku let out a chuckle before turning his eyes to the new obstacle…
A wall.
Smooth, nearly nine meters tall, without any visible indentations except for a hole sealed with ice…
"Todoroki…", Izuku murmured, gritting his teeth. Well, at least the other boy had shown them how to pass… Break through the wall and make a hole.
"DZIIII!", Fukidashi yelled, and an onomatopoeia spinning rapidly slammed into the wall, trying to drill through it. It only penetrated a few centimeters before stalling and getting stuck.
"Too thick and too strong.", grumbled the comic book boy through gritted teeth, "Damn."
"Brute force.", Izuku concluded, glancing at the hole Todoroki had blocked. How had the other boy gotten through? Then an idea struck him.
Use this weak spot. He imagined that the other boy had sealed the entire hole behind him, but it left a major structural flaw in the wall. And it was right there.
"I've got an idea. Stand back."
He warned the group.
When he had said he would probably break his bones, well, of course, it had to happen.
He stood right in front of the ice-blocked hole, stretching out his arm and preparing his finger.
"An egg, my finger is an egg… An egg, my finger is an egg.", Izuku mumbled to himself, a bead of sweat running down his temple as he activated One For All in his hand, which lit up with glowing red streaks under the fascinated eyes of his classmates…
Come on… He needed to stay in control…
"An egg, my finger is an egg…"
And he flicked.
-KA-BOOM!-
A concentrated ball of air shot out with such force that Izuku felt his feet slide back a few inches, and his finger throbbed with a piercing pain that radiated through his whole arm.
The ball struck the ice dead-on, seeming to do nothing for a few seconds…
Then, the ice finally cracked… and exploded, showering everyone with shards of ice and bringing down an entire section of the wall.
"Kriff!" Izuku cursed, shaking his hand before grabbing it to inspect his now-purple, almost dark blue finger.
He hadn't managed to stay in control, and it had cost him a broken finger.
His classmates stopped staring at the hole he had made when they noticed his pain.
"Damn!", Ochako swore.
"What happened?", Kuroiro asked, prompting Tsuyu to turn to him.
"ribbit Midoriya has trouble controlling his quirk, which often results in him breaking his bones when he uses it. ribbit"
Tsuburaba grimaced.
"I wouldn't want to be in his shoes…"
Izuku let his arm fall to his side, gritting his teeth to endure the pain.
"I'm fine, just a broken finger."
"'Just'? Geez, your joint is completely dislocated, not to mention the bone is broken!", Ochako scolded him.
Ojiro inspected the finger closely.
"Uraraka's not wrong.", the blond noted with a sigh.
"I'll hold out until the end. It's just a scratch; I've had worse.", Izuku replied, moving toward the wall, starting to climb the debris, wincing with every strain on his injured finger, fuck, it did hurt a lot, but he kept his pained whimpers to himself.
"Let's go. I think it's almost over anyway."
And sure enough, it was nearly the last obstacle, with only a slight incline left. But it was riddled with hazards; concrete rings were missing, but the team had no trouble crossing it, with Awase spotting the platforms that could fall, and Tsuburaba creating solid glass platforms to let them pass safely.
They reached the final platform and let themselves collapse, each one exhausted to varying degrees.
Izuku smiled and said, "Good job, everyone."
"Yeah!" they all replied.
/
Aizawa watched Team 1 return, grimacing as Hizashi announced their time, and he congratulated them by shattering everyone's eardrums… They all looked thrilled; however, the tired teacher had noticed two things.
First, Todoroki had arrived well before them, and the boy was standing off to the side, looking distant. Second, Midoriya was holding his hand, and one of his fingers was purple, almost dark blue.
The dark-haired man sighed and tilted his head toward Midnight.
"Nemuri, call Recovery Girl, and tell her Midoriya broke a bone. Again."
Midnight covered her mouth, trying to suppress her laughter as she heard the exasperation in his voice.
"It's not funny," Aizawa said impassively, giving her a fixed look from behind his bandages.
"Sorry, of course.", Midnight replied, calming herself. She pulled out her phone and held it to her ear, moving away for some peace as Hizashi announced that it was Team 2's turn.
The students in question stepped up to the wall, preparing to go…
/
Mina stretched her arms and legs in a surprising display of flexibility, a wide smile on her face. Alright, time to get going. And when it was time to go, you had to give it your all!
Iida looked at his classmates, warming up his legs by running in place, swinging his arms robotically at his sides. The exhaust pipes on the back of his legs emitted a slight puff of smoke.
Koda stood in a corner, nervously tapping his fingers together, while Hagakure warmed up her arms.
"Alright! Is everyone ready?", Tokage asked, seeming extremely excited. But her voice didn't interrupt Shiozaki beside her, who, with hands clasped in front of her chest, was murmuring a quiet prayer.
"Bathed in your light, grant us the strength to face the obstacles in our path. Amen."
Monoma, meanwhile, stood a bit apart, hands in his pockets, looking downcast. He kicked a pebble.
"Why do we have to end up with students from that class? Look at how they mock us!", said the blonde, pointing accusingly at the four members of Class 1-A, to which Tokage sighed.
"For heaven's sake, Monoma… Knock it off already, it's starting to get old.", said the green-haired girl, rubbing her hand over her face.
"1-A SUCKS! YEAH!", shouted Tsunotori suddenly, with a strong American accent, overly excited, clearly thinking she was shouting something like 'Let's go! Good luck!' without realizing she had just insulted them.
This made Tokage's head turn, eyes filled with surprise, while Shiozaki was taken aback, losing her words and interrupting her prayer and staring at the American girl in shock.
"MONOMA!", they both exclaimed in unison.
"What? It's the truth! A bunch of pretentious fools who think they're better than everyone after facing villains!", retorted the blonde copycat, crossing his arms.
"Still, we must protect our American friend's innocent soul, who's only just starting to learn Japanese! Let's not corrupt her pure soul with such vulgarity!", countered Shiozaki.
The blonde girl realized she'd said something wrong, crossed her hands behind her back, lowered her eyes, and rubbed one foot on the ground in shame.
"I'm sorry if I said something wrong...", she apologized in English.
Mina found her too cute to leave her like that and slid to her side, using her so-so English she'd learned from the internet.
"It's okay, nothing wrong, but try not to say it.", the pinkette said with a big smile, "Say…uh…Plus Ultra! The school's motto!"
"Plus…Ultra?", the American girl repeated hesitantly, then smiled, "I like it! Plus Ultra!"
Meanwhile, Iida positioned himself in front of Monoma, chopping his hand in front of the blonde's face like a machine, standing perfectly straight.
"Tokage-san and Shiozaki-san are right; it's unworthy to say such things in front of a friend who doesn't speak our language well! Such behavior is unbecoming of a U.A. student!"
"HELP! I'M BEING ATTACKED!", Monoma shrieked, instinctively raising his arms in front of his face.
Present Mic then intervened, giving the signal to start.
Iida immediately turned away from the blonde 1-B student to shout.
"LET'S GO, EVERYONE! BE CAREFUL! WE DON'T WANT TO LOSE ANYONE DURING THE COURSE! REMEMBER TO WALK IN SINGLE FILE AND HELP EACH OTHER IF NEEDED! THAT'S WHAT A MODEL U.A. STUDENT SHOULD DO! DON'T PUSH ON THE OBSTACLES, DON'T CHEAT, AND—"
"We get it, Iida! Hurry up!", Hagakure called as she started climbing the wall, along with the rest of the team, Tokage acting as a belayer, having split into several pieces, helped by Shiozaki, who pierced the concrete with her vines and used them to clear loose holds, leaving a clear and secure path.
The blue-haired boy realized he was monologuing alone into the air.
Like an idiot.
Feeling embarrassed, he hurried to catch up with his classmates, tackling the course…
…
Tsunotori came to support Shiozaki as they passed the final obstacle…
"My ankle…", murmured the green-haired girl, grimacing in pain.
Koda, on his side, seemed completely panicked, chirping apologies repeatedly to Tokage, who didn't know what to do in front of the rock-headed boy flooding her with apologies on behalf of his invisible friend, who stood silent, looking sheepish and hesitant to say anything.
"See! Class 1-A tried to sabotage our course by injuring our friend!", claimed Monoma.
"That doesn't give you the right to push their teammate a few seconds later!", Tokage turned, detaching her head from her body and floating it toward the blonde, eyes flashing with anger. "Hagakure-san only tripped; you can't intentionally push someone like that!"
"WHAT DID I HEAR?" roared a voice.
/
Xool tried to hold him back, but once Lockdown was triggered, there was very little anyone could do to stop him from going after someone who needed to be 'dealt with'. However…this time, he wasn't heading toward someone who needed medical attention.
Eyes blazing with intense anger that came on him inexplicably upon hearing that his friend had been pushed with clear intent to harm, he dropped the bandage on the ground, clenched his fists, and approached the blonde dangerously, grabbing him by the collar, lifting him with both arms, and pinning him against a wall two meters away.
The blonde fell silent instantly at the medic clone's aura of rage, his eyes widening with fear.
"Did I hear that right?", the medic clone asked, with an eerie calm for his state, "Trying to hurt people…on purpose? Do you realize what you did? Trying…to hurt…someone…on purpose?"
Lock and Junior tried to stop their vod, followed by Vlad King, who prepared to intervene to restrain the clone in case things got out of hand.
The captain placed a hand on the medic clone's shoulder, giving it a slight shake…
"Lockdown, calm down. Let him go."
A growl escaped the medic clone's microphone before he replied.
"No way, we're not done with our little talk."
"It's an order, sergeant."
The entire body of the medic clone shook, and his fists gripping Monoma's collar tightened even further, his knuckles turning white under his gloves.
Vlad King made a surprised grunt behind him, and another hand landed on his shoulder guard.
"Lockdown? Can you hear me?", asked a voice the medic clone recognized immediately, Hagakure. He turned his head, his aura of rage almost dissipating in seconds, the anger in his eyes replaced by surprise.
"He's not worth it; I'm okay… Can you let him go? Please?", continued the invisible girl with a pleading voice.
Though he hadn't activated his thermals and couldn't see her face, her tone was enough for him. He shot a dark look at the blonde he was still holding firmly, let out a menacing growl, then let him go.
The blonde caught himself and leaned against the wall.
"H-He attacked me! Wh-What—!", the blonde started.
"Monoma, stop. Why did you push your classmate?", Vlad King interrupted, stepping in for the medic clone, towering over him.
"But…!"
A death glare from Lock just behind Vlad silenced him. Noticing this, the man with silver hair turned, locking eyes with Lock, who feigned innocence.
Meanwhile, Lockdown raised his arm and activated his thermals to check on the invisible girl, thoroughly scanning for any signs of injury or color changes that could indicate a bruise.
He found nothing unusual and, with a relieved sigh, raised an arm and deactivated the scope.
"All's good; you're fine.", Lockdown said with some relief, placing his hands on her shoulders, "Next time something like that happens, aim for the temple. Preferably a hook; you'll see, it'll stun him right away."
The invisible girl seemed to nod…
"Uh… Could you let me go now?"
The medic clone realized he'd kept the contact a bit too long and pulled his hand back.
"I—I'm sorry.", his voice didn't tremble, but he stumbled over the start, cursing himself inwardly.
"No problem.", Hagakure replied with an invisible smile.
/
While Hagakure handled Lockdown, Junior came back and him and Xool finished bandaging Midoriya's finger.
Xool stood up and said.
"Alright, avoid putting too much strain on it. Recovery Girl said to go see her when you've regained enough stamina."
The green-haired boy looked at his hand, then at the medic clone.
"Thanks, just wondering, where is Recovery Girl?"
The medic clone raised his head, but it was Junior who answered.
"Near the door, on a stool we brought, but don't go right away, seriously. Trust us."
The green-haired boy seemed to ponder this before nodding.
Xool then stepped back and looked around… If he remembered correctly, the other team had also come out with an injured person…
Ah, there she was. The girl with vine-like hair. Xool approached her, confident as it didn't seem anything was broken, but you couldn't be entirely sure.
The girl turned her head toward him as he approached and murmured something to herself that he couldn't hear. A kind of prayer.
Xool raised his arms to show he wasn't hostile, but as soon as he was within two meters, the girl grew agitated and said,
"Stop. Don't take another step."
Xool froze, a confused expression under his helmet.
"Why? I thought I saw you hurt coming out of the obstacle course. It's my duty to check you for any injuries."
The girl's gaze hardened, and a contemptuous expression appeared on her face.
"I don't want to be touched by creatures not created by our Lord."
Xool blinked in confusion. What she was saying was completely abstract; he figured it was related to religion or something like that, and this was more Aether's area of expertise… But there wasn't time to call him.
"Alright, uh, look, set aside whatever you think or something, because right now I need to check if you're hurt."
When he took a step forward, the girl's hair stood on end.
"You're nothing but a soulless creature, a spawn of hell and, cursed forever be his name, Lucifer. Don't approach me, creature, or suffer His wrath. You don't belong among the living, creature."
At this point, she was pushing it a little too far for Xool's taste. He decided not to push further but couldn't help muttering,
"At least I'm not as ungrateful in my refusals. Here, let me tell you something, in the name of your Luci-whatever, go take a hike. Don't come complaining when you're hurt, because I won't be taking care of you."
The med-clone left the stunned girl behind, grumbling to himself, irritated. Kriffing hell, such a lack of respect—it was mind-boggling.
"I'll show her who's a creature."
It hurt him deeply. Some people saw clones as human beings, while others viewed them as pack animals or, well… exactly, laboratory creatures.
They'd already faced things like this before. They usually ignored it, but it still cut deep… Like a vibroblade through the guts…
/
It was their turn…
Shooting a nasty look at his teammates, Bakugo warmed up his arms, sparking small explosions with each 'pop' of his joints.
He then cracked his neck. Yeah, he was going to do it, as usual. There was nothing the ashen blond couldn't face. He would win this course hands down, no problem.
"Bakugo! Come here so we can establish a strategy!", someone called.
An expression of anger and irritation flashed in his eyes at the word 'team', and he turned very slowly, his red eyes glaring like thunderbolts.
"Team?", he repeated, his gaze landing on Sero, "Are you kidding me, soy sauce face? Work as a team?"
A laugh escaped his mouth.
"I don't do teamwork, you idiot."
Sero took a step back, surprised but also a little scared. That killer look the ash-blond guy had… It was really creepy…
"Okay, okay, calm down buddy, fine, I got it…", Sero said, a bit hurt at being called an idiot, though.
"I'm not your buddy, extra.", Bakugo spat, turning away, calming himself slightly.
What a bunch of morons, every single one of them… You couldn't even think in peace, damn it.
Meanwhile, Sero returned to his team, looking upset.
"Didn't go well?", asked Kendo, standing with her arms crossed in a circle she'd formed with the rest to discuss strategy.
"Yeah, he told me to go to hell basically and called me an idiot.", Sero replied.
There was a small gasp, and everyone looked at Komori, who had put a hand over her mouth.
"That's not very nice, shroom."
"The heart of our comrade is filled with unfathomable darkness… The shadows has already consumed him…", murmured Tokoyami, making Kamakiri shudder.
"Wow, if Kuroiro was creepy… Then he's on another level."
The bird-headed boy turned his piercing red eyes towards the bug boy, a curious glint in his eyes.
"Do you have a brother of darkness in your class?"
With an expression that looked like he was about to pounce on Kamakiri, he nodded frantically.
'Creepy…', thought everyone else.
Kendo clapped her hands.
"Alright, let's summarize. If we do everything safely, Honenuki stays down below.", she said, looking at the lipless boy.
"That's right. I'll soften the ground beneath you if you fall. And if necessary, Sero-san will catch you if he can."
"Yeah! I'll tape you up with my reaction speed!"
A few chuckles broke out.
"Anyway.", Kendo continued, rolling her eyes, though she held back a smile at the pun, "Komori, if I understand correctly, you won't be able to help much."
The mushroom girl shook her head.
"I won't be able to help, shroom. It's too dry for my mushrooms, shroom. I risk clogging up your windpipe if I use my quirk.", confirmed the small brunette.
"Yanagi and I will get you over obstacles like chasms…"
The ghost girl nodded silently, always holding herself in that zombie-like posture…
"And finally, Tokoyami-san will act as a catcher, like in baseball, thanks to Dark Shadow."
As soon as his name was called, the shadowy construct that was Dark Shadow emerged from the bird boy's abdomen to look around.
"Did someone call me?", Dark Shadow asked.
"We're playing baseball.", Tokoyami replied simply. Dark Shadow chirped with unconcealed joy.
Present Mic shouted at the top of his lungs.
"LET'S GO! LET'S GET STARTED, KIDS!"
A series of explosions immediately resounded, cracking the ground where Bakugo had been two seconds before as the explosive blond was already on his way to victory…
"Here we go!", exclaimed Kendo, and the group moved forward.
…
Bakugo finally arrived at the last obstacle. After hearing what Deku had done to it, it was his duty to prove he could do it bigger, louder… A thousand times better…
He'd pushed himself to sweat as much as possible before arriving here, so he was fully loaded. A big grin spread across his face as he planted his feet firmly on the ground. This was going to be a big boom…
And he would prove he was the strongest.
He put his arms back and jumped, using two explosions to propel himself forward. Just before impact, he cocked his fists to deliver two powerful punches… Then, at the moment of impact…
"SHINE!"
Bakugo shouted, throwing his fists forward. At the moment of impact, there was a crackling in the air, very audible… And the world lit up as if a new sun had been born…
The explosion deafened everyone, forcing them to shield their eyes from the intense light. The blast made some lose their footing… Fragments flew, scattering in all directions at high speeds, making dents in the gym walls and floor.
With agonizing slowness, the concrete wall collapsed with a terrible crash.
Bakugo stood on the pile of debris like a demon on his throne, his face and forearms scratched and a little red, a wild smile on his face.
"Hehe… I did more than you, Deku… See, you're just a little bug in my way…"
/
Izuku remained completely silent, a grave expression on his face…
A 'tsk' escaped his lips, and he looked away, utterly disinterested in what had just happened.
In fact, he only had one word to say.
Pathetic.
Actually, make it two…
"Pitiful…" Izuku muttered to himself.
Bakugo… He'd just seen him blow up half a wall, now trying to prove he was stronger with some big flashy display.
He ran a hand through his hair, dusting off the bit of cement dust that had floated up in the air.
His former best friend looked like a dog chasing its own tail, one it would never catch… It was almost funny to watch him do it.
The explosive blond had… such an obsession… Such a sick obsession with proving himself that he was almost going insane. Being number one like All Might, he said. Well, damn, it wasn't like this that he was going to make it…
More like 'The Symbol of Ego and Rage.'
Suddenly, his heart tightened when he realized that his classmates were still inside. Kriff, were they okay?
/
Fortunately, the blast and explosion had only caused a little scare for the team inside the course. Bakugo was reprimanded, something he royally ignored since he had achieved his goal, although no measures were taken, as there was only minor damage and no one was seriously injured.
However, Cementoss took more time to rebuild the climbing wall, as the holds hadn't withstood the blast, and the giant wall.
It was then Lock's team's turn to go...
The clone captain scrutinized the wall carefully, taking command of the group instantly without asking anyone's opinion.
"We'll need some muscle to catch anyone who falls. Shishida and Sato, you stay down below. Jiro, you're going to send a good sound wave into the wall to knock down any loose holds. Kodai, Rin, and Kaminari, you stay back as support. As soon as the path is open, we move."
Everyone looked at each other, wide-eyed, then Kaminari gave a thumbs-up.
"Okay, soldier-boy, I'm with you!"
Jiro also nodded, as did Sato. The classmates from 1-B were slower to agree but eventually did.
"Aren't we just going to talk about how he took command like a dictator?", Rin asked after a moment.
Shishida snorted.
"There must be a reason."
Kodai simply shrugged.
"Don't worry, he's got it." Sato said with a glance to his class 1-B comrades.
But Lock was already focused on the race.
When the signal was given, Jiro rushed forward, plugged her jack into the wall, and sent a light sound wave through it. The holds fell as expected.
"Alright, let's move!", ordered the boy, and Sato and Kaminari moved forward. Their classmates from 1-B reacted a bit more slowly.
Once everyone had passed, Lock instructed the two spotters to climb, assuring them he was right behind them. And he was indeed right behind, never having done much climbing—it wasn't something the Horn Company did—however, urban combat was an excellent exercise for climbing.
Thus, he almost literally flew over the wall with precision, having already found a path to follow.
Team 4, however, had to go through a tunnel because of Shishida's size, and it took them a good fifteen minutes to get him through the narrow space…
The broken walkway was quickly crossed, with Lock rallying everyone, who all helped each other balance…
They then arrived at the fourth challenge… Lock groaned… Damn, this wasn't going to be easy… But suddenly, before he could say anything…
"Let's go!", Denki exclaimed, and without waiting for anyone, he jumped onto the blocks.
"KAMINARI! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!", Jiro shouted, wide-eyed.
"DON'T WORRY!", the electric boy yelled. To everyone's surprise, he nearly made it… just two more blocks… Denki put a foot on a block, but his foot slipped, and he let out a cry.
Rin had an incredible reaction time, raising his arms to shoot scales. With sniper-like precision, he hit the fabric of Denki's clothes, pulling the electric blond over the last block and onto the safe platform.
Everyone sighed in relief, and Lock gave a thumbs-up to the boy with scaly arms.
"Nice shot."
Rin nodded.
The rest of the group passed, covered by Rin, who was there to shoot them if they had balance issues. Given the boy's precision, he could help by shooting at an angle to keep them on their feet if they were about to fall.
And Kaminari was scolded by Jiro about how dumb that was, even if it nearly worked.
The sawtooth wall was promptly crossed, Shishida deciding to scale it on the outside instead of the inside, where he would likely get stuck.
The bestial boy had his moment to shine at the next challenge, the spiral slope, where he carried everyone on his already broad back, made even bigger thanks to his quirk, which he used to anchor himself into the cement with claws as big as Lock's hand with surprising ease.
The boy grunted and roared animalistically throughout the climb, still aware of his passengers' presence. He shone a second time with Sato when they threw their classmates over a pit before crossing themselves thanks to a scale from Rin that Yui Kodai could enlarge as a bridge.
Finally, they reached the end… but here… it was the infamous wall that everyone enjoyed breaking through… Unfortunately, none of them had a quirk to smash it…
But he wasn't about to give up.
On the contrary, he was going to use the weak points he could find. A wall always had them; that's why droid demolition teams were so formidable. They'd find the weak spots and set their charges precisely there to ensure the most damage and create large enough breaches for their troops to flood into the biggest strongholds.
So, he was going to do the same. One learned from one's enemy, right? And here, with superpowers, it was even easier.
"Jiro, I need you to find a crack in the wall.", the clone instructed.
The blue-haired girl raised an eyebrow.
"And how do I—oh, yeah, I get it.", she realized, approaching the wall to plug in an earphone jack. Closing her eyes, she focused on the ambient sounds… and thanks to that, found a small crack, about four feet to her right. She unplugged her jack from the wall and guided it to the hole, planting it inside, "Got one."
Lock approached, running a finger over it when Jiro removed her jack… Indeed, it was small, but it would work, second step.
"Rin-san, Kodai-san, I need you.", he called.
The two stepped forward, looking at each other curiously.
"I need a scale that Kodai will shrink.", the captain said, turning his head and holding out his hand.
"We're going to exploit this weakness."
Rin pulled a scale into his palm, the scales protecting him, and handed it to Kodai, who shrank it as instructed and silently handed it to Lock.
The boy took it, rotated it from side to side, and pushed it in as deep as he could.
But it wasn't enough for him.
"Sato, can you give it a good kick?"
The sugar boy nodded with a smile and gave it a hard kick. Lock was relieved not to hear a crack; otherwise, this wouldn't work.
"It's set. Everyone, step back. Kodai, enlarge it."
The scale suddenly grew, widening the crack and creating fractures in the wall, much to everyone's shock.
"A soundwave in there, please, Jiro."
The blue-haired girl approached, still shaken by surprise, plugged a jack into the wall, and launched a soundwave. The cracks widened and spread, the concrete groaning and creaking ominously.
Lock gave Shishida a quick glance, and the beast boy immediately understood. His fur grew, as did his size, and he let out a roar before lunging forward and delivering a powerful punch. Chunks of concrete fell around the cracks, and Lock signaled everyone to step back.
The beastly Quirk user delivered another punch, and the wall shook even more... On the third punch, the concrete caved in, broke, and created an opening without causing the wall to collapse.
Jaws hit the floor.
"HOW?!", exclaimed Denki, completely in shock.
Lock observed the result with a smirk. Ah... if only they knew.
"Just some demolition work. Simply using what I've studied.", replied the captain, who shrugged the shoulders as he moved forward, "Let's go; let's finish this course quickly."
He went under the gap, patting Shishida's arm, the only part he could reach.
"Thanks for the opening."
The boy nodded slowly, calming from the effects of his Quirk.
"You're welcome." Shishida replied with a deep, low growl.
The following slope seemed perfectly normal, and Lock almost stepped onto it. But at the last moment, he noticed a small issue where his foot was about to land… a slight deformation…
He stomped the ground hard, and it was enough to make a perfect circle drop out of the concrete.
"Huh. A mined slope, I see.", Lock murmured, then turned to his team, "Watch your feet."
Everyone nodded, then moved forward, with Lock guiding the rest through the minefield… until they reached the end without interruptions.
"I was only doing my duty; there's no need to thank me; it's all natural.", the captain would reply each time when his classmates would thank him as they went back to the rest of the group.
/
By the time her vod's squad returned, Momo had already begun to devise a plan with her team.
"Kirishima and Tetsutetsu-san, could you handle the wall at the end?"
The two looked at each other and grinned widely. It was no surprise they got along so well; nearly the same Quirk, the same intentions, and the same attitudes. One could even say they were brothers if they weren't that different physically.
Kirishima hardened himself, and Tetsutetsu covered his skin with metal, the two knocking their foreheads together to look each other in the eye, their shark teeth on full display.
"We'll see who breaks through the wall first.", they both said at the same time, although Kirishima added afterward to the only girl in the group, "Don't worry, vice class rep, we'll clear the way for you with my rock!"
"And me with my steel!", added Tetsutetsu.
"In fact, almost three-quarters of us could help punch through the final wall...", Shoda remarked, crossing his arms.
Not untrue. She could create a whole range of things to destroy the wall, from explosives to miniature drilling machines, heck, she could even build a ballistic missile if she wanted… But that would be too dangerous…
Right, back to her plan.
"Alright, so, support each other... And if I fall... don't come for me. I'm too heavy.", the raven-haired girl instructed.
"Speaking of that, I never would've believed you weighed so much at a glance.", Kaibara noted, to which Momo chuckled.
"That's for sure; I wouldn't believe it myself."
With that, Present Mic's voice rang out for the fifth time, and the team rushed forward… Shoji carried Kaibara, Shoda, and Aoyama by forming a sort of basket with his arms, while Kirishima and Tetsutetsu climbed their way up, competing as always.
Mineta curiously waited for her to start climbing. She didn't, and after thirty seconds, she sighed. Kriff… had this di'kut not learned his lesson?
However, when the raven-haired girl approached with a kanabo manifesting from her arm, to everyone's surprise, Mineta was the quickest to climb the wall despite his significant delay.
Momo then manifested a grappling gun, shot it to the top of the wall, and used her arms to pull herself up, leaving the kanabo behind.
She made sure to stay behind everyone in the tunnel, simply out of principle, though the hardest part wasn't crawling, but rather convincing Aoyama to crawl inside...
All over a matter of glitter...
Momo would never understand it…
They quickly crossed the broken walkway without issue, except that Momo nearly twisted her ankle when a metal beam twisted as she stepped on it.
The raven-haired girl felt quite vexed by it.
Next up, destabilized blocks. With surgical precision, using a magnifying glass Momo created and Shoji's vision, they used Aoyama's Quirk, who was more than happy to show his light to everyone, allowing them to cut parts of the pillars supporting the concrete blocks. Thanks to Shoda's precise calculations, they balanced the blocks to move across them without fear of falling. The balance was enhanced by a few of Mineta's balls to secure everything properly.
Then came a sawtooth wall, which nearly everyone struggled with, except for Kaibara, who went ahead, twisting and rotating his limbs to move like a snake, and reached the top with ease. Shoda had the hardest time, given his build, and the last two 'teeth' involved Shoji and herself pulling the boy, whose arms had said 'no more effort today', as Kirishima and Tetsutetsu cheered on them.
Apparently, Mineta was too terrified to speak for fear of saying something foolish, while Aoyama tried to dust himself off with a look of disgust.
As they approached the spiral ramp, everyone turned their gaze toward the raven-haired girl...
"What? Do I have something on my face?", Momo asked.
Everyone shook their heads. When she understood, she groaned...
"Oh dear… I'm not going to have any calories left by the end of the day…", muttered the raven-haired girl… If Lock made her go running tonight… Oh, kriff it; she'd… survived worse. A flash from the USJ crossed her mind, quickly drowned out by the formulas she repeated in her head.
Ice axes, which she had combined with the vibro-knife concept some of her vode possessed.
They sank like butter into the concrete when she tested them. The raven-haired girl handed one to everyone, and single file, they climbed up with plenty of grunts and groans.
During the ascent, Momo couldn't help but think... Right at this moment… Were some of her classmates thinking about USJ? Did any of them have flashes like she did when they thought of something or saw certain things that could relate to it?
She shivered involuntarily, fortunately, no one seemed to notice. It wasn't cold, but thinking about her classmates possibly suffering now, with nothing to help them except the presence of others, weighed heavily on her… She felt indirectly responsible, as they all probably did.
The Survivor's Guilt.
Living while others had fallen...
How many had cried bitterly in the days that followed, remembering the horrors some had witnessed? How many had suffered from sleep paralysis, haunted by villains they had barely escaped, only for them to come back and finish the job in their nightmares? Life could be cruel sometimes...
With these thoughts, the ascent felt twice as quick, but also twice as heavy. No one spoke, all too focused on their efforts—and perhaps their own thoughts…
Eventually, they reached the top, but Momo felt twice as exhausted.
She was panting, dropping to one knee, then slapped her thigh with force, suppressing a growl before standing back up.
"Yaoyorozu? Are you okay?", Kirishima asked, worried, as he approached her.
"Yeah, just a few... things.", The raven-haired girl replied, glancing at what awaited them next.
A flat surface. Or at least, that's what it looked like.
"Is it just me, or does it look a bit cracked?" Kaibara asked.
"Want me to drill a hole?" Shoda offered, and the ash-brown-haired boy obeyed, spun his arm at high speed, and struck the ground… which gave way. Ah, yes, this was the chasm Midoriya had mentioned.
Sighing, the titan that was Shoji took his comrades... and with phenomenal strength, threw them one by one to the other side without any trouble.
Soon, only Momo and the multi-armed boy were left.
What better solution than a jetpack? Crafting two, one specially adapted to her friend's morphology, she donned hers and leaped into the void.
With a thunderous roar, her jetpack fired up, vents bellowing flames that carried her gently across to the other side, where she landed softly.
Shoji had more trouble handling his and nearly face-planted when he landed a bit more roughly.
Second-to-last obstacle: the wall.
Without hesitation, and keeping their promise, Kirishima and Tetsutetsu rushed forward… only to break through six centimeters of concrete in seven minutes… and they were far from breaking all the way through. Kaibara tried drilling a hole but nearly broke his arm when it got stuck, and he complained of a pain in his limb. With some oil Momo created, they managed to free it, discovering he'd slightly burned himself.
Aoyama attempted to pierce a hole and managed to start one... only to end up with a rather severe case of diarrhea in the middle of it.
Everyone grimaced as his stomach emptied... And damn, it smelled like some really strong cheese now!
Nevertheless, the blond found the distraction welcome, sighing with relief as they turned away, noses pinched...
He couldn't bear the thought of his friends discovering that he actually wore diapers... though now…
He glanced down at the large brown stain on his posterior...
It hadn't really helped.
Alright, it was Momo's turn to step in. Explosives, as usual. Nanothermite, to be precise, this time. That stuff could eat through anything.
A sort of sticky bomb formed on her arm, which she placed on the wall, attaching it to two wires connected to a detonator…
"Back up.", the raven-haired girl ordered, and seeing her step back, everyone followed her lead.
-WHAM!-
The nanothermite bomb exploded, burning through the wall's surface, leaving a scorching edge around the hole. They waited a few more minutes for things to cool down, and even then, as they passed, Momo could still feel the heat from the stone brush against her skin whenever she grazed the walls…
That was typical for nanothermite. Ruthless and effective, but a menace.
They then descended the slope without issue, the blast from the explosion having shaken loose and cleared away the unstable plates on the path just below.
Once at the bottom, Momo finally allowed herself a moment of relief, and everyone exchanged congratulations. A few pats on the back, some 'Good jobs'…
The raven-haired girl simply thanked everyone for the teamwork as they approached the rest of the group, before heading over to Lock.
The two vod smiled at each other, and Lock turned away from Iida, Midoriya, and Uraraka, who were laughing in a corner.
"So, how was the course?", the captain asked.
"Not bad. A few tough spots, and I had to use my Quirk a lot.", the ravenette replied.
"Ah, not the luckiest team composition?"
Momo shook her head.
"Not really, I had more people with offensive potential than tactical abilities."
"Don't worry, they'll get there. By the end of the year, I think everyone will be capable of taking on varied roles." the captain responded, gazing vaguely at the class, "Their experiences will shape them. Unlike most, they know what danger is and all its forms. They understand what's at stake. Some are likely traumatized, but look at them."
The clone made a vague motion with his hand.
"Not one of them has withdrawn from the program. It's like in wartime situations. Some are driven by determination despite the worst events."
Momo looked at him.
"A soldier... is a person, a man, who chose to serve his country by enlisting, even if that reason isn't immediately clear. Choosing to sacrifice oneself and defend others isn't just a job—it's a conviction. They're the ones who decided to protect the innocent. And breaking down in the middle of combat, as some might think, isn't a sign of cowardice. It's normal to crack; no one can remain indifferent to horrors. It's impossible. But they keep going because they know those they protect will pay the price if they don't. Even those drafted against their will know it. Even conscripts often have a cause to defend, even if they don't always realize it... Heroes are supposed to be the same."
The two stayed silent for a moment before Lock sighed.
"Sorry, I got a bit carried away with my speech..."
Momo gave him a smile.
"No problem, it's always nice to hear you speak so nobly about your calling..."
Lock gave a faint smile… He was far from that... A clone made for combat… His words were noble, but he himself barely embodied them. Protecting the Republic's people wasn't his main duty... His role was to shoot, to kill...
And to die.
Now that it's done, there will be a small series a side chapters, just some small POVs during the next two activities, along with some interactions, next big chapter will be... Oh boy... the Talent Show! Oh boy... I am honnestly excited, even if I don't know what some characters can do...
... Oh well! I will find something, don't worry! Everyone will appear!