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Katsuki couldn't believe he was doing this. Yet, if Deku said so, then Katsuki would trust him. If the last eight months showed anything, it was that no one understood these bastards better than him.
Katsuki swung around a building, getting a peek of the monster's red wing. Rodan was perched atop a building, scanning the area. Katsuki grinned. Well, I've pissed off the toughest kaiju. Pissing off the second toughest will be a piece of cake.
He blasted his way up to Rodan's head and threw a grenade at its eye, Deku's idea. As it exploded, he screamed, "HEY BIRD BRAIN! EAT SHIT!" He then flipped Rodan off.
Rodan slowly turned to him, as if wondering whether this idiot was seriously attacking it. Alone. With explosives no bigger than a small bomb. After several seconds of staring, it thrust its beak at him. Katsuki blasted himself away just as Rodan pecked the roof, taking out a large portion of it.
Rodan glared at Katsuki. Katsuki threw another explosive, then blasted himself away. Rodan let out an angry screech and took off after him.
Gotcha.
All according to plan, Izuku thought as Kacchan set off an explosive in Rodan's face.
While Rodan's attention was taken, Izuku said, "Get to positions, we need to lure it back to the warehouses."
"What about the docks?" Hinae said.
"We're still evacuating those."
She nodded. She glanced at Kacchan on her screen. "You…sure he'll be ok?"
Izuku aimed at Rodan and said, "If anyone can survive this, it's him. We'd just better hurry and-"
He felt himself pressed into his seatback as Hinae accelerated. She darted from cover to cover, moving with a smoothness surpassing several seasoned veterans. Hinae weaved past some rubble without even slowing down, plowed through another, then swung around a corner. Izuku smiled. He almost forgot, she may be a G-Force rookie, but there was a good reason they thought she was fit to drive him.
"Get ready," he said.
"Yes sir!" she said.
Rodan batted its wings, hitting Katsuki with the force of its wind. Katsuki barely redirected himself from being splattered against a wall. And then he barely avoided being grabbed by Rodan's massive talons, which tore a house to splinters.
Rodan fired its wind blast from its mouth, but Katsuki avoided it. He didn't practice dodging at UA for nothing! Plus, that windy asshole helped him train to navigate gale force winds.
Rodan however, was bigger and more dangerous than Gale Force could ever hope to be. Rodan flapped its wings full force, forcing Katsuki to dive for a nearby alley. The resulting wind tore apart the street Katsuki had been on. Once it died down, he blasted his way out the other side of the alley and kept moving.
Above, Katsuki saw Rodan gliding. He blasted his way up a bit and threw another explosive. Rodan dove down. Katsuki narrowly dodged while Rodan grabbed a large chunk of ground with its talons. Pebbles of concrete bounced off Katsuki's cheek.
This was getting dangerously close…
Izuku felt a bead of sweat drip down as he and Hinae went ahead of their team. They were almost in position, but Kacchan wouldn't last much longer. Hinae came to a stop while their group continued to their positions.
Come on. Just a little more time.
Eijiro looked over at the other side of town as his best friend went up against Rodan all on his own. He wished he could help, but currently his hands were full. And then some. He was carrying a large group of civilians using Black Whip, bunching them together in a makeshift basket. Eijiro saw one of them quaking in terror.
"Don't worry," he said with a confident smile. "Dynamight's got this. If anyone can survive that, it's him. Especially with Midoriya at his back."
"You really believe that?"
All the other civilians watched him intently. Eijiro had to actually pause for a moment. But then, he answered with total conviction. "Yes. I do."
Just don't prove me wrong.
Katsuki avoided another wind blast. He almost wished Shitty Hair was here, but Ponytail and Teagirl would be keeping him far back. Not only could he not be trusted to take orders, but he also hadn't trained with that windy asshole enough. Against this thing, one misstep would kill him.
Katsuki skidded to a stop as Rodan pecked the earth in front of him. Its feet landed on one side, then the other. Katsuki dove inside a dark abandoned building. Rodan's beak tore a third the roof down. Its talon tore another third. Katsuki cursed as he looked for a way out.
He blasted a hole through the wall as Rodan just smashed the building. He hid in a dark alley. Rodan wasn't fooled. It crept forward and poked its eye inside.
Katsuki smirked. "STUN GRENADE!"
Rodan screeched from the sudden flash of light. Katsuki blasted out of the alley way while Rodan tore after, taking to the sky. Katsuki steered toward the warehouse district. However, Rodan was closing.
Izuku tensed. Kacchan.
He looked at everyone's positions. They were almost there. But not quite! Just a little more…
He looked back at Kacchan. He checked his own position. They could make it if he alone fired. But that would be risky. He could do it. But it would be dangerous. He looked at his map. Then at Kacchan.
Hinae glanced at him. She firmed her expression, "I can do it sir."
Izuku grabbed the trigger.
Katsuki was trying to think of something creative fast when a blue beam hit Rodan in the eye. Rodan let out an angry screech, looking away briefly while Katsuki dove for cover. Rodan came at him again.
The beam struck Rodan again. This time it let out an enraged screech and turned toward the beam's source.
Katsuki smiled. Deku, you madman.
"Guys, we have incoming. Light it up."
"You got it Midoriya."
"Yes sir."
The masers fired several scattered shots along the side. Izuku and Hinae slipped behind one of the warehouses. Hinae drilled them into the ground while Rodan passed over. The wind hit them dead on. Their braces groaned. Izuku felt their tank lurching. The braces snapped, and the tank flew forward for a second before coming down, saved by the last of the wind passing. That wasn't good. They'd broken their braces. There would be no more surviving a wind shot.
Rodan flew over the area, then swung back around and landed nearby. Odd it had swung around, but not unwelcome.
"We've got him! He's in the warehouse district!" Izuku said.
It looked like they'd done it. However, something was off about the way it was moving. Like it was…
Looking for something.
"Hinae, I think it's looking for us."
Her breathing stopped. "What?"
"It seems we really made him mad." That or the fact that his prey had escaped several times already. "You see the escape hatch?"
"Yeah? Why?" she said, her tone becoming frantic.
"If it comes too close. Be ready. I'll be behind you."
"What?! Are you sure?"
"Not yet. But…be ready."
She nodded. She took a deep breath and said, "Yes sir."
Rodan's gaze swept out as it slowly walked along the streets. It took to the skies, creating a cloud of dust as it swept over the area. Its gaze was fixed downward. They'd really made it mad. After flying right over them, it landed closer still.
Izuku readied the trigger as a distraction if Hinae bailed. He'd try to follow but-
Rodan started to dive. Izuku realized it had spotted another maser.
"Drive!" Izuku said, firing his maser. Their tank lurched forward while Rodan turned toward them with a vicious screech. Hinae swept behind a building while Rodan lunged at them. All of a sudden, she stopped and drove out the way she came.
"What are-" Rodan touched right where they'd been about to go, then saw that they'd doubled back. "Good job!"
Several missiles rained down on Rodan from above, causing it to let out a furious cry. However, it then saw Izuku and Hinae again. It must really be mad at all its prey getting away today.
"Hinae-"
"Hiding spot?"
"Yes. I'll blind it."
"Um…let me…there!"
"Let me know when."
"Are you su-"
"Hinae!"
"Yes sir! Um, WHEN!"
Izuku fired into Rodan's eye. Rodan closed it, turning away. That was their opening, he just had to hope-
Then their weight seemed to vanish. "Whoa!" For a few moments Izuku felt, like Ochako had used her quirk on them. Weightless. Then, their tank smashed into the ground, jerking Izuku with more force than just about anything his tanks had endured. For a second the two were dazed. Then, their tank pulled forward, hiding inside a nearby building.
"What is this?" he said.
"W-we were near an onramp to a bridge. So…I figured the building near it could be used to…you know. Hide. We just had to-"
"You drove off a bridge."
Hinae winced. "A little?"
Izuku looked around. This was a good hiding spot all things considered. "Good job. Ochako wouldn't have done better in her first year."
Hinae's eyes widened while her face broke into a massive smile. Rodan looked around, but could no longer see them. It soon unleashed a massive hurricane blast, blowing away several roofs. Fortunately, they were safe indoors. Then it perched atop a destroyed warehouse, either content or sulking.
Izuku was just breathing a sigh of relief when word came from the harbor.
Oh that is not good.
Mina glanced at the smoke rising from the other side of town. She turned around and faced the next group of stragglers with a smile. "It's all going to be ok! Just keep going to the next shelter!" Once they'd passed, she slid down some of the empty streets, finding any more and leading, carrying, or even dragging them to the safe areas.
Nearby, she saw Jiro. "Earphone Jack! Anyone?" she said.
Jiro put a hand to her headphones. "Two more, parent and child. Three blocks down."
"Got it!"
She took off, finding a mother and son hurrying along. "Excuse me you two, mind if I guide you?"
"Yes! Thank you, Alien Queen!"
"You're welcome!" She hoisted the kid on her back, then had the mom take her shoulder so she could ride Mina's acid trail while she slid back to the shelter. She dropped them off, ruffled the kid's hair, then hurried back out.
"Anyone else?" she said.
"This area's clear."
"Onto the next."
She dragged Jiro to the next area. "So, how've you and Chargebolt been doing?"
"Our Agency has just made a big break on-"
"You know what I mean!"
"Trying to keep things quiet, but rumors are spreading."
"Us too," Mina said. "We might have even taken the next big step. On paper at least."
Jiro looked surprised. "Wait, seriously?"
"We wanted to get it done. We're going to do more when able, but well…" she gestured around them. You never know."
"Makes sense. You should be grateful none of us tried the same game as you."
"Hey! We both know I did you a favor."
"I admit nothing," Jiro said as she plugged her earphone jacks into the ground. "What the-"
"What is it?"
"Five individuals in that butcher shop. They seem to be…dismantling something?" Jiro frowned. "They…don't seem like civilians." Jiro plugged her jacks into her amplifiers. Mina immediately readied her acid and slid toward the door, with Jiro following.
Jiro plugged her jack into a wall. "They're talking about…destroying merchandise?" Jiro said.
"Looters, or smugglers?"
Jiro tapped her headphones. "Definitely smugglers."
"Alright then, let's-"
Jiro grabbed Mina and yanked her out of the way as the building's facade exploded outward.
A tall man with a physique that had to come from his quirk leapt out. Two more joined him on either side, one a heteromorph who resembled a giant naked mole rat, and another covered tattoos that were moving and starting to lift off his skin in black ribbons.
Oh great. Villains.
The Hero Seaspray frantically slammed his fist onto his boat's engine. The AMF boats around him had scattered, not realizing his peril until it was far too late. Seaspray was stuck. "Come on, come on!" His engine rumbled to life. "Yes!"
Ahead of him, the sea bulged. Seaspray hit the throttle. However, at that moment a massive sudden wave burst from the sea, nearly swamping his boat. A shadow came out of the water like a submarine surfacing. Seaspray dove overboard as a massive set of teeth clamped down on his boat and snapped it in two. He landed in the water, a large wake swamping him, pushing him further out.
A massive snake-like form rose out of the water and slammed back down, pushing him further and further away. The AMF pulled him out, while the splintered remains of his vessel slipped beneath the waves.
Jiro blasted the Buff Villain with a sonic blast while Mina leaped after the other two. One of them threw a punch, but Mina slid under, swung her leg out and swept his legs. The other tried to slash at her, but she vaulted over his arms and kicked his face. What these villains didn't know was that to her a fight was a dance, and in dancing she was queen.
Mina avoided another blow, kicking Mole Rat with some good old breakdancing moves, then somersaulted past a kick and punched Tattoo in the back of the head. i She parried and twisted around their blows, elbowing Mole Rat in the stomach and Tattoo another in the back.
Tattoo's punch collided with Mina's chin. She fell back, but quickly rolled to get up. Tattoo's black tendrils reached out and wrapped around her throat. Mina struggled against the bonds, but they wouldn't break or melt. Mole Rat ran at her, but she kicked him, shoving herself into Tattoo.
"What's wrong Hero, short of breath?"
She glared, then swung herself over his shoulder, then wrapped them around his throat too. In his surprise, the Villain let her go. Mina kicked out his knee, somersaulted, and slammed her feet down on him, one hitting his back, and the other his head.
As his comrade went down, Mole Rat lunged at her, teeth bared.
Mina tried to skip back, but she was too slow. In the moment before his blow connected, one of her hands lashed out, low-yield acid flying from its fingertips. Mole Rat screamed as the acid hit his eyes. Not enough to injure, enough to hurt. Mina kicked Mole Rat in the face, knocking him out.
Mina then turned to Jiro, who was doing her best to avoid the the Buff Villain's heavy blows, using sonic blasts to keep him stunned. With a little help from Mina, this guy should go down quick.
Just then, two more villains came running out. Mina hurried to Jiro and threw her acid at the Buff Villain's eye. The Buff Villain screeched while Jiro hit him with two sonic blasts at point blank range.
Jiro looked at Mina, "Look out!"
Mina turned and barely avoided a barbell sized disc.
"Filthy Heroes! Face our liberation!"
Mina dove aside as another attack flew past her. The Villain growled and sent several more, while the other one launched small cubes. Mina leaped back, performing multiple cartwheels to avoid their hits. The Villains' projectives flew around her, some brushing a leg, an arm, but none doing any damage. Then one landed a solid but glancing blow to her side.
Mina felt the wind knocked out of her, she tumbled to the ground. The Villains raised their attacks, ready to kill her. Mina baraced herself, but Jiro's sonic blasts knocked both off their feet. Jiro slammed her amplifiers into the ground. "Hearbeat distortion!" The ground crumbled under the Villains, forcing them to remain still long enough hit them with another more powerful blast.
Mina got up and finished the stunned villains. The two dragged them inside. Mina tried to radio for help, but nothing went through. Mina looked inside the building, arriving just in time to see a piece of Support Gear turn to dust. She leaned down and ran her hand through it. This stuf…
Mina heard a bang behind her. Jiro came out with another Villain, a scrawny one, thrashing in her grip. "This guy says he fried our comms."
"That's right! You won't be getting any help! My friends will-"
"Those friends?" Jiro said, pointing.
He saw the others tied up and stopped fighting. "Dammit."
Mina turned around. "Alright, there are two shelters nearby. I'll go one way, you go another. We'll get backup the old fashioned way."
"Got it."
The two took off. However, just after leaving, Mina heard a familiar screech getting closer.
Izuku watched Rodan take off toward the harbor. Hinae was extra-tense. Normally they'd take off after it. But not this time. They had all heard the warning over their comms. There was nothing they could do to stop this.
Kyoka waved to the shelter. She told them of the Villains, and got a spare earpiece. They told her of what was coming from the bay. Which was a problem, since Mina hadn't reported back yet.
This shelter was only a few hundred meters from the water. It was too close. If Mina didn't get back in time.
"Hello? Hello?"
"Alien Queen?" Jiro said.
"Earphone Jack, I think his quirk only interfered in a certain range. Good thing too, because I got a bit turned around. I figured out where I am now. Should I do one last sweep?"
"We have to get inside," the Hero said, throwing fearful looks around.
Jiro said, "Alien Queen. Get back here. Now."
"Why? What's up-"
Kyoka heard a loud screech as Rodan landed on a nearby building, glaring at the Heroes. Kyoka tapped her comms. "Alien Queen, hold up! You're cut off!
"I noticed!" Mina said. This is not looking great."
Kyoka backed toward the shelter doors. "Try to go around!" She muttered, "It could be worse."
"Really?" Mina said. "How?"
There was an eruption of water near the bay. Kyoka felt a stab of fear. A massive shape emerged from the bay, towering over the buildings as water poured off, flooding the streets. Its yellow eyes glared right at Rodan.
"Alright, I spoke too soon! Just get inside. I'll got to another!"
Kyoka clenched her teeth, but ran inside while Rodan let out an angry screech. The doors closed behind her. Just before they did, Kyoka took one last glimpse behind her. In that moment, Kyoka saw Godzilla letting out a defiant roar.
The King has arrived! I repeat, the King has arrived! That last moment was based on the trailer to the 2014 film, which tried to hide the shots of Muto and Godzilla fighting.
Poor Mina just can't help getting stuck outside during kaiju attacks, can she? Meanwhile, Bakugo just keeps surviving the impossible (with some help of course).
That bit with Ejiro was added last minute, but I wanted to show that he is doing something important during this chapter.
Hope you enjoyed! Reviews make me smile!