Well, we're almost done with the World Heroes' Mission Arc. I'll admit, it hasn't really been as fun to come back to this story as opposed to the other two movie arcs. Mainly because there hasn't been much change. But with the buildup I'm sure you've all been noticing, there's going to be quite the discrepancy for this finale.
So I won't delay things any longer! Welcome back to "Through the Rough"!
THROUGH THE ROUGH
Flect could see how each and every battle around the world was unfolding. His followers were struggling to stop the heroes, but that didn't deter him in the slightest. Only three minutes were left on the countdown timer. All he had to do was make sure that Rody didn't insert the disarming key and completely ruin his plans. But first, he had to take care of both Izuku and Rebecca.
He dashed forward and landed a straight punch to the crossed arms of the One For All inheritor, sending him tumbling back in an instant into wall as a cloud of dust erupted. The Cat Leaper Quirk user attempted to kick him with her right leg, but the reflected attack made her yelp as she flew back a few feet in midair. Flect then punched her as well, causing her to crash against the same wall where Izuku had gone. However, they both lunged out from it in an instant, still determined to win.
In the meantime, Rody had finally arrived at the control system. But as his breathing grew heavy and his body felt limp, he suddenly slipped on his own blood and fell over onto the floor. In the process, he dropped both Pino and his locket, as the latter popped open. He crawled his way forward, looking at the picture of his family.
"I'll be… like… my dad…" he declared weakly as his vision was starting to grow hazy. He pulled out the disarming key, looking towards the port where it could be inserted, "And Deku…! And Rebecca…!" he gasped out, reaching to the port, which was still just a few yards away, "They… would never give up…!" he noted out. And then, he succumbed to his injury, dropping the disarming key as his head drooped over. Pino was starting to fade out of existence as well. Two minutes were left. Izuku and Rebecca looked at one of the screens, spotting their downed and dying friend.
"Rody…?!" they both gasped out. The One For All inheritor attempted to dash towards the doorway leading to where he was, but was suddenly met with a roundhouse kick from Flect to his stomach that had reflected power behind it, causing him to go crashing into the wall.
"Izu!" the Cat Leaper Quirk user screamed. She was then struck in the face by the Humarise leader's right fist, sending her flying back from the reflective force as she crashed against the wall. He looked towards the timer to see it continue to go down, and then at the screen displaying the state that Rody was in.
"For both father and son to die in vain…" he noted aloud, "There's no hope for such feted scum…" he remarked disdainfully.
"Shut up!" Izuku shouted out, getting his attention as he saw a shockwave erupt with a plume of dust and crackling sparks of green bio-electricity. Inside, the One For All inheritor's eyes burned with anger. "Rody's not scum…" he said, "He's my friend and more noble than you could ever hope to be!" he roared, dashing out and attempting a kick onto the Humarise leader. As he did, the black mass of reflective energy appeared again. From afar, Rebecca was left to watch as she coughed up blood.
"What a pity…" Flect grumbled, having the attack dealt to him reflect back onto his foe, causing him to grimace from its force, "You still refuse to understand?!" he questioned on, sounding vexed by how determined the freckled teen was.
"Look at how brave he is!" he shouted, "We believe in Rody!" he declared for both himself and Rebecca, remaining firm as his foot was getting closer to making contact with Flect's face. A wash of energy came over him as he slightly grimaced. "Because we believe in heroes!" Izuku roared out.
Back in Otheon, Enji unleashed a powerful blast of fire onto Humarise members, knocking them down as he soared towards the Trigger Bomb within the trailer. Moments later, he was holding the device itself up, about to carry it into the sky.
'Whatever happens, we'll protect them!' he decided through his thoughts, launching himself upward with flames exuding from the soles of his feet like a rocket. Around the world, the battles against the terrorist organization had reached their peak, with many of them on the verge of getting the Trigger Bombs into their possession and away from the populous by whatever means they could. All the while, they had to take down soldiers that were willing to do whatever it took to stop them.
They weren't going to give up. Not when they were fighting for something bigger than just themselves. Izuku knew that as he continued to attack Flect, even as he was reflected back.
"That's right…" he said, getting back onto his feet after seeing how valiantly his friends and colleagues were fighting, "Heroes always see things through…" he proclaimed, "And we use our abilities for good!" he declared as he reactivated his Full Cowling and lunged forward in a green blue, this time attempting to strike the Humarise leader with his left fist. His attack was reflected, ripping his glove off. But he steeled himself from the force, pushing harder and harder against his foe. "ERRRRRRGGGGGHHHH!" he grunted through gnashed teeth. As sparks of energy flew about, Flect suddenly found himself slightly pushed back.
"Hm?!" he exclaimed upon noticing, while his luminescent body shined with orange-greenish light for a moment. He fully reflected his foe's attack, sending him crashing up onto the second level once again.
"Izu…!" Rebecca gasped out, wincing in agony. Blood dripped from her body onto the broken floor as she breathed heavily. Her vision was starting to grow hazy. At this point, she seemed to be a liability. The cracks along her body were continuing to grow, and it was likely that she was close to running out of energy for her Quirk. Without that, she was just left to watch as the One For All inheritor continued to strike away at Flect, only to be reflected back each time. At one point, he fell over onto the floor, seemingly close to losing consciousness.
"Why persist when you know that you only delay the inevitable?" the Humarise leader wondered aloud, narrowing his eyes onto Izuku. He then saw the Cat Leaper Quirk user stand back up, still breathing heavily as she held her Happy Blaster in her right hand. "And why do you fight?" he inquired on to her, "You've already exceeded your limits from the look of it…" he pointed out.
"I'm far from done…" Rebecca retorted, aiming her weapon forward, "And we're not giving up!" she declared on. All of a sudden though, her Overdrive form disappeared. Her eyes widened upon realizing.
"No…!" her boyfriend gasped out.
"Hm," Flect huffed, "How disappointing," he muttered. He then shot out toward the Cat Leaper Quirk user in an instant, making her grimace.
"REBECCA!" Izuku screamed. His girlfriend had tears pricking her eyes. There was no way she could evade another attack. And taking one now would likely be fatal.
'Izu… everyone…!' she whimpered inwardly, clenching her eyes shut as she braced for the eventual impact, 'I'm sorry!' she apologized through her thoughts. The Humarise leader was prepared to strike with his right fist. Izuku cried out again to his girlfriend, hoping that she would somehow be able to escape his unscathed. And then, he noticed something out of the corner of his eye.
An explosion of dust erupted. It was slow to clear as Flect narrowed his eyes. Once it did, he widened them. Rebecca was lying to his left upon her stomach, still in a weakened state but not nearly as much as he expected. Looking ahead, the Reflect Quirk user widened his eyes slightly.
"So it was you…" he noted. Both Izuku and Rebecca gasped. Lying on the floor with blood dripping from his head was none other than Connor.
"Mister Connor!" the two young heroes cried out. The portly man coughed up blood as they went over to his side.
"I was wondering what had happened to you after we had taken in the boy…" Flect admitted, narrowing his eyes, "Seems you're scum like them, too," he concluded.
"Ergh…" Connor groaned, batting his eyes open, "Are you alright… Rebecca…?" he asked weakly. The Cat Leaper Quirk user's eyes shook, realizing that it was him who had shoved her aside at the last moment, taking the brunt of the attack meant for her.
"Why would you do that…?" she asked in a whimper. The portly man's breathing grew haggard.
"Because… you're…" he tried to say, letting off a grimace of pain.
"I've had enough of this," Flect decided, aiming his right hand forward. However, he then heard footsteps. So did the others as they looked over to the entrance to the room, seeing a figure walk in. Rebecca slowly widened her eyes.
"That's…" she uttered out. It was none other than Nox, who tapped her staff against the floor as she came to a stop. Slowly, she opened her eyes to look towards the young heroes and the man they were beside. Connor batted his eyes open, widening them upon seeing her.
"Saintfire Nox," Flect addressed as the robed woman clutched her staff tightly, while the student heroes gasped in shock, "You've arrived at the perfect time," he remarked, "A new era is nigh," he proclaimed, looking back at the screens displaying the heroes' efforts to stop the Trigger Bombs, "In a matter of moments, those without power will once again—"
"Hansha Furimuku," Nox interrupted to his surprise, "I did not come to exchange pleasantries with you," she affirmed, tossing her staff aside as it clattered onto the floor, "In fact, I have no interest in your genocidal ambition," she mentioned, removing her tall miter and robe, revealing that she was wearing a skintight bodysuit that was mostly dark blue in color.
"I assure you, these acts align with your belief in a world that will be better without powers," the Humarise leader told her, starting to sweat a little.
"And you believe that killing them is the only solution…" the Oracion Seis member added in a snarl, "You're nothing but a sycophant…" she muttered to his shock.
"So… you've come to fight me?" Flect presumed, taking on a ready stance as the mirrors of his Arachne took position, "I thought we were allies in this endeavor…" he admitted aloud.
"We were," Nox replied as she took on a lunging stance, with energy markings shaped like wings shining from her ankles, "But that was before you hurt my family…" she mentioned. In an instant, she vanished from sight. Flect blinked in shock, looking around for her. All of a sudden, he felt something collide with him from right, making slide back a few feet. Then something struck his back, making him lurch forward.
"What the…?" Izuku uttered out.
"What's happening…?" Rebecca inquired. For a mere moment, she caught a glimpse of Nox. Her appearance had changed. She had flowing white hair with lion-like ears. Her fingernails were like claws, and her feet were bare. She landed a kick onto the Humarise leader's head, making grunt as he stumbled back.
"Why aren't her attacks being reflected?" Izuku wondered aloud.
"I… think they are…" Rebecca said as her eyes shook, "She's just able to move before the attacks reflect against her…" she realized. She watched as Nox raced by Flect again, landing yet another kick to his face before disappearing in the same instant.
'That's… Saintfire Nox…' the Cat Leaper Quirk user noted to herself, 'The one I saw in my dream that time…' she recalled inwardly.
"Agh…!" Flect grunted out, "I don't understand…" he said before enduring another strike to his stomach, "Even with the world about to change for the better, you'd still fight against it?!" he questioned of his foe as he barely managed to block off a kick with his left arm, "And for what?!" he inquired on, "What is so important about this 'family' of yours you'd destroy your own dream over?!" he asked emphatically, throwing his right fist out. To his shock, Nox caught it.
"You have no idea the kind of suffering I've had to endure in comparison to you, Hansha…" she retorted, "For generations, my family prayed for humanity's salvation from Quirks, believing that they didn't deserve to burdened with powers," she told him, "With every follower who had such an ability, we all wished for the day to live our lives freely without worry," she explained further, "I have the burden of helping lead them to that salvation, which shall be my own!" she declared on, "And as for the family you so callously speak of…" she continued, pulling Flect forward as he yelped, "you have no idea what I've had to do to keep them safe…" she snarled, kicking him squarely in his stomach. He gasped in pain, but steeled himself as a mass of reflective energy swirled to life behind him. It contorted, slamming into the Oracion Seis member and sending her sliding back along the floor. She came to a stop beside the others, letting out a heavy breath. She looked over to Rebecca and Izuku, seeing their widened eyes.
"Ergh…" Connor groaned out, eyeing her as well with disbelief written all over his face.
"You're… the other Cat Leaper user…" Rebecca realized, causing Nox to perk up, "That's your Quirk, isn't it?" she presumed.
"So you figured it out…" the Oracion Seis member realized, exhaling a sigh, "I shouldn't be surprised, given how clever you've become," she pointed out, letting off a little smile, "Huh," she huffed, standing up, "You two will be the ones who'll defeat Hansha, not me," she decided, "I'll take care of him," she promised, reaching out to Connor.
"Wait," Izuku said, standing up and aiming his gloved hand toward her, "How do we know we can trust you?" he questioned of her. She lowered her head, contemplating what to say.
"Izu, it's okay," Rebecca assured to their surprise, "We've got more important things to worry about right now," she affirmed, taking to her feet and assuming her Overdrive form in a flash of light.
"Right," her boyfriend agreed, turning with her to face Flect, who narrowed his eyes. Nox knelt down beside Connor, placing his hands onto his stomach before exuding a blue light onto him. His eyes shook.
"It really is you…" he weakly noted, having tears prick his eyes. The Oracion Seis member glanced away.
"Please… don't speak…" she advised while transforming back to normal, "Just let me focus on your healing…" she insisted. Izuku and Rebecca stood off against Flect, even as battered as they were. The Humarise leader growled.
"To think that even Saintfire Nox would stand against me for this righteous path…" he grumbled aloud, "But it matters not," he proclaimed, seeing that there was less than two minutes remaining on the timer, "As I said, we are moments away from the birth of a new revolution," he proclaimed, "A world where powers will cease to exist… and peace becomes restored," he added on.
"That's not going to happen…" Rebecca proclaimed, tossing aside her Happy Blasters as they clattered onto the floor.
"We won't let it!" Izuku affirmed on. Both of them had sparks of bio-electricity crackling around their respective bodies. Flect narrowed his eyes with disdain before shooting out at them. He first attempted to strike the One For All inheritor, only to catch a glimpse of the Cat Leaper Quirk user attempting to strike him with her left leg.
He pivoted and crossed his arms to block off her kick, but before his attack could be reflected, he was punched aside by Izuku. He slid to a stop, widening his eyes. The freckled teen rushed out at him next, landing a straight punch with his right fist to his target's stomach. It was about to be reflected like before, only for Rebecca to leap in with an axe kick to the Humarise leader's head. Both she and her boyfriend were blown back, but not as far as they had been before. They landed down and kept on their charge, both striking simultaneously again. Both of their fists were close to making contact with their enemy's body, though they did end up reflected again as they tumbled back along the floor. But in that same instant, they took to their feet, zipping around speedily. Flect was starting to grow somewhat concerned.
'Why did my reflection lose its power?' he wondered inwardly, looking around for his foe, 'They can't have gotten that much stronger from merely fighting me…' he noted through his thoughts. At that moment, he was ambushed by his foes, coming at him from different directions. They struck with their feet, just a mere inch from making contact with him. They were both blown back again by the reflective energy bursting out, as the Humarise leader gnashed his teeth in frustration.
"This can't be possible…!" he snarled out, only to wind up ambushed from the back by Rebecca as she kicked him as mightily as she could.
"Too bad for you…" she grunted out as cracks continued spreading along her body, "Heroes make the impossible possible!" she proclaimed fiercely. Izuku rushed in and landed another punch to his opponent's stomach. Though it didn't make contact, it was getting closer to his body.
'His reflections are weaker when he's attacked simultaneously by more than one person…' he noted inwardly, 'And his resistance is decreasing…' he added to himself, activating his Full Cowling once more as green bio-electricity crackled around him. He lunged out up into the air, coming down with a powerful axe kick to his foe's head. He barely didn't make contact with the luminescent man, but his skin was starting glow an orange-greenish color.
'What…?! Has he gotten stronger himself?' he wondered through his thoughts, using the reflective energy in his mirrors upon his Arachne to blast his foes back. However, both Rebecca and Izuku only tumbled back so far in opposite directions, quickly getting to their feet. Flect was completely surprised. He was so sure that his Quirk made him invincible, yet his opponents were proving him wrong.
"Perhaps…" he uttered out, looking at his gloved hands, "But something else is different as well…" he realized, starting to sound panicked. The Cat Leaper Quirk user kicked at him again as she lunged in from his right side, while Izuku wound up striking him at his chest with his left leg. They actually managed to rip through his robes to his shock.
"You've never had to face more than one person at a time before in your life, huh?" Rebecca guessed, causing him to widen his eyes, "To be able to completely reflect enough force from so many different directions…" she noted as her leg managed to finally hit his hip, "Your Quirk's not strong enough for that, is it?!" she assumed loudly. Growling angrily, the Humarise leader reflected her back. He then winced, grabbing at his hip before letting out a light gasp of realization.
"This…" he uttered out, only to be interrupted by Izuku suddenly lunging in from the side, striking at his chest with his left foot.
'Thanks, Rebecca!' he exclaimed inwardly with gratitude, 'Not only are his reflections less powerful against multiple opponents, there's definitely a cap to what his reflecting Quirk can take!' he told himself, 'Good…' he uttered through his thoughts, 'Simple then… I'll surpass that limit!' he declared before pushing further against his foe's body, causing his robe to rip apart slightly. In that instant, the force of the One For All inheritor's attack was enough to push Flect back half a dozen yards.
"ERRRRRRAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" he roared as he charged in again, striking fiercely with his right fist. The force of his attack was hardly reflected, as it not only pushed the Humarise leader back again, but only caused the walls behind him to explode. The luminescent man was shocked.
"No, this can't be happening…!" he gasped out, "Have I reached my boundaries?" he questioned as he looked at his gloved hands, "I didn't know such a thing was even possible!" he exclaimed in disbelief.
"Because you gave up…" Rebecca remarked in response, causing him to perk up out of surprise as he looked to see her jump over and land down beside Izuku, who was getting to his feet.
"If you didn't lose hope…" he began, "if you kept trying…" he continued to his foe, "you might've been able to get along with people…" he inferred, causing Flect to slightly tremble before he balled his hands into fists, "But instead you decided that powers are diseased… and chose to wallow in self-pity…" he pointed out as he took on a ready stance with the cat Faunus beside him, "You're a failure because you stopped trying!" he exclaimed.
"Be silent…" the Humarise leader growled out, clenching his teeth together.
"A hero knows what it means… to keep fighting until the end!" Rebecca proclaimed as she took on a ready stance, while Izuku had reddish lines of energy coursing up his body.
"Shut your mouth…!" Flect snarled, slowly losing his composure as he started remembering images of his previous life.
"That's why we always remind ourselves what we have to do!" the One For All inheritor declared as his energy peaked around his whole body.
"You filth!" Flect shouted. Green bio-electricity crackled around Izuku as he clenched his teeth together, ready to settle the battle once and for all. And so was Rebecca.
"GO… BEYOND!" they both declared, lunging forward in a burst of dust, "PLUS ULTRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" they roared, throwing their fists out.
"SHUT UUUPPPPPPPPPP!" the Humarise leader yelled, countering with his own fist. The floor around them burst apart from the impact. Flect saw his glove get ripped off much like his freckled foe's, making him grimace as he leapt back. He then narrowly managed to move his head aside from Rebecca's left foot flying towards him as she had lunged out. However, she flipped around his Arachne and kicked a part of it off to his surprise. That allowed for her boyfriend to jump in and break off another in an instant.
The luminescent man grimaced, seeing Rebecca charge toward him next. He attempted to strike her with a kick, but she sped away from the blow for her before she went around behind him. She yelled as she punched at his support item with her right fist, causing sparks to fly out upon contact. However, it failed to break, causing her to get blown back by a reflective blast.
A black energy tendril then shot out, wrapping around her right wrist. She blinked in surprise, followed by grinning upon seeing that it originated from her boyfriend. Her swung her for an even more powerful kick to their foe, who grimaced. What followed was the One For All inheritor jumping in to land a kick from above to his foe, causing more of his robe to rip off while also damaging his Arachne. He managed to reflect them both back in a grunt. As he watched the freckled teen flip back onto his feet, he zipped out to try and attack him from below.
But he suddenly found himself tripped up as the Cat Leaper Quirk user had slid in and swiped at his right foot with her own. That allowed for Izuku to leap up and come down with a fierce axe kick by using his own leg, shattering more of the floor in the process. Unfortunately, Flect had managed to block the attack with crossed arms, spinning to gain momentum before slamming his knee into his foe's stomach. He then grabbed hold of Rebecca's leg, yanking her up to strike her in the face with his left fist.
To his surprise, she smirked from the blow, retaliating with a head-butt to his own cranium. Before the Humarise leader could even think to do anything else, he suddenly found the glove at his left arm ripping off as the Cat Leaper Quirk user had slashed it, now having what looked to be claws at her fingertips, along with leaving a few cuts in his skin. He snarled, about to attack her again, only to be ambushed by the green blur that was Izuku, who slammed his right knee into his face.
He was reflected away again, but quickly recovered as he dashed towards his foe, meeting him blow for blow. Rebecca joined him, slashing at the other skeletal arms of the luminescent man's Arachne while also enduring the wounds she received from the reflections in the process, as her cracked kept growing. She wound up kicked away after a few moments, causing the One For All inheritor to growl angrily. He ended up enveloped in a plume of dust with Flect before they both found themselves slammed against a column.
They gnashed their teeth together as they pushed against each other, with the Humarise leader unleashing all of the reflective energy that he could from his mirrors, even as his sleeves ripped away. Ultimately, he did blow Izuku back down to the broken floor, grazing through it as he grimaced. He tried to finish him off with another punch from his left fist, but found it pulled back by Rebecca latching her arms around him yet again. That allowed for the One For All inheritor to quickly rise up and rear his right fist back, with the green bio-electricity around him crackling mightily.
"DETROIT SMMMMAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHH!" he roared, slamming his fist into Flect's stomach. Even as he wasn't making direct contact with him, the Humarise leader could still feel the effects of his foe's blow. Eventually, he was the one that ended up blown back, with his Arachne shattering apart as his mirrors went flying before he crashed into the ceiling.
Izuku lunged upward, while Flect shot down towards him. They met within a cloud of dust, exchanging punches and kicks while gnashing their teeth together. To the Humarise leader, this was no longer a battle to save humanity for him. It was to prove his foes wrong.
Rebecca leapt up and joined the battle, striking swiftly with slashes and having her shadow clones attack as well. Flect then positioned a few of his mirrors at his right elbow, thrusting his fist forward and using the resulting reflective energy to strike Izuku down onto the floor in a flurry of dust. The Cat Leaper Quirk user gasped, followed by being met with a burst of reflective energy herself, falling onto the broken floor in a flurry of dust as she gasped. Both she and her boyfriend were practically spent. But they knew they couldn't give up.
'A real hero… will always find a way for justice to be served,' All Might's voice echoed in the One For All inheritor's head as he was wincing with pain.
'I know… All Might…' he recalled, thinking of his mentor's heroic smile. He himself was clenching his fists worriedly back at the World Heroes' Association headquarters, seeing the timer continue to go down
'Young Midoriya! Young Bluegarden!' he exclaimed inwardly, hoping that his pupil was doing his best to try and save the world.
'A hero has so much to protect in this world…' he had once said in his final battle, which Izuku remembered as he steeled himself, 'which is why…' he continued.
"Which is why…" Izuku began as his eyes distorted with energy, while his hair stuck up, "I WILL DEFEAT YOU!" he declared, unleashing massive amounts of green bio-electricity from his body, "RRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" he roared out. In an instant, he shot forward up into the air. Flect jumped back.
"Hrrr… Hrrr…!" he breathed out angrily, anticipating his foe's next move. However, he was caught off guard as cuts suddenly laced his body, followed by fist-shaped markings being left behind. Rebecca had slashed at him and then quickly moved aside for Izuku.
He reared his fists back, striking his foe's chest, followed by consecutive punches that were equally as powerful. Even as the reflective mass of energy built up behind Flect, the One For All inheritor kept punching without a moment of hesitation, roaring all the while. He was so fast that the Cat Leaper Quirk user could see afterimages of him making his blows. In the meantime, the reflective mass of energy started distorting, turning a bright green. It ultimately came apart, much to Flect's shock as he grimaced.
What followed was him again narrowly evading Rebecca's right foot as she had lunged out toward him. But she was actually aiming to be in position for Izuku all along, who was speeding across the walls in a bright green blur before shooting out a Blackwhip, wrapping around his girlfriend's right wrist. She took hold of the tendril tightly.
"DO IT, IZU!" she yelled out.
"UNITED…" he began to bellow as the his girlfriend tugged on the Blackwhip as hard as she could, pulling him towards their foe, "STATES OF…" he continued as he held his right foot out, "WORLD…SMMMMMAAAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" he roared, slamming his iron-soled foot into Flect's stomach fiercely. His reflection failed him as his foe smashed right through it like the shattering glass of a mirror. The entire room practically collapsed as a result of the attack.
A trail of dust erupted into the tunnel leading to the control system, with Izuku leaping out from it. He tugged on his Blackwhip, pulling Rebecca through the dust cloud as she landed down beside him. They hurriedly ran, knowing that there wasn't any time to spare. With all the efforts of their friends on the line, they couldn't afford to fail. In the meantime, Flect was no longer luminescent as he lied upon the broken floor, looking up at the destroyed ceiling.
"You're… too late…" he proclaimed weakly as Izuku and Rebecca had just run into the control system room, where Rody was still lying upon the floor. Both of them looked ahead and widened their eyes. Back in Egypt, the heroes were all bracing themselves from the gas that was about to erupt from one of the Trigger Bombs. But it never happened.
"The countdown is over… but…" Shinji started to say out of shock.
"There's no explosion…" Ochaco noted in France as the device there floated up in the air. Back in Otheon, Enji looked up at the device she carried curiously, while those below watched on in surprise.
'The bomb's not detonating…' the Flame Hero noted to himself.
"Did they… disarm the bombs?" Fumikage assumed as he flew beside Hawks and Shiki in the United States.
"Yeah…" his mentor confirmed with a smile, "That's a relief…" he sighed out. Back at the WHA headquarters, the 'All Clear' sign popped up on the screen as operators cheered, realizing that the threat had been officially neutralized. All Might's eyes shook at the sight as he smiled.
'Well done,' he complimented through his thoughts, 'I'm so proud…' he added inwardly. At the control system in Humarise's base, Izuku and Rebecca's eyes both glimmered with astonishment.
"Ha…" the former of the two exhaled with relief as he smiled. As it turned out, Rody found enough strength to keep himself from succumbing to death. And as such, Pino was able to insert the disarming key. She weakly peeked out to the others atop the chip-like device, lifting her left wing up in a gesture similar to a thumbs up. Her owner was doing the same.
"Thank you… Rody…" Izuku said with gratitude, cradling his friend's hand gently as he knelt down beside him, having rolled him over onto his back, "You hang in there, okay?" he requested, while Rebecca picked up the pink bird and brought her over in her hands, transforming back to normal.
"We'll get you to a hospital soon," she promised, kneeling down next to the One For All inheritor.
"Deku… Rebecca…" Rody weakly uttered, getting their attentions as they looked at him, "We did it, right?" he guessed, "I protected them… like my dad did…" he assumed weakly, "And I… stopped all the bombs?" he questioned on. His two friends gave him smiles.
"Yeah…" Rebecca confirmed with a nod.
"I didn't give up…" the aspiring pilot pointed out as tears were starting to build in his eyes, "I pushed through just like you two would…" he mentioned.
"You did great…" the One For All inheritor complimented, "You're amazing, Rody…" he added to his surprise. He let off a weak smile as his eyes were welling up with tears.
"Heh…" he chuckled, "That's true…" he agreed, "I am pretty cool…" he boasted jokingly. Pino chirped, puffing out her chest proudly to emphasize just how her owner felt. In that moment, Izuku, Rebecca, and Rody started laughing. Though tears streaked down from their eyes and their pain was almost unbearable, they were so happy. Together, they saved the world.
X
Bits of rubble fell from the foyer ceiling as Nox reclaimed her robes, putting them back on. She looked over to the weakened Flect, sighing with disappointment. She then turned to Connor, who was sitting up against the wall, having his head lowered in contemplation.
"…You're going to make her forget everything, aren't you?" he assumed of her.
"Only that I was here," she answered, "She doesn't need to know her true calling just yet," she pointed out.
"Her true calling?" the portly man repeated as he stood up, "Rachel, that's your daughter!" he pointed out emphatically. The Oracion Seis member winced.
"Connor, I can't risk her knowing what she'll have to do one day… in order to bring balance back to this world…" she pointed out seriously.
"Is that you really believe…?" Connor questioned back.
"I don't have a choice!" Nox exclaimed to his shock, "Sooner or later, this world will devolve into chaos like today…" she noted sadly, "And when that happens… she will need to be the one to cleanse the world before it's too late…" she affirmed on.
"And that's all you see her as…?" the portly man asked, causing her to blink in surprise, "Rachel… I never even got to know our daughter's name…" he pointed out, "From the moment she was born, you ran away with her…" he mentioned as he began tearing up, "Even if you thought it was for the best… that was still my child…!" he whimpered out, sniffling, "And seeing her risk her life the way she did…" he continued as his estranged wife frowned sadly, approaching him, "I wish I could tell her how proud I am…!" he admitted as he sobbed.
"Huh…" Rachel sighed, wrapping her arms around him in a comforting hug, "Connor, I'm sorry," she apologized, "But for your sake as well as hers…" she continued, "you can't tell her the truth," she advised, turning around and walking off.
"Her name…" Connor said, causing her to stop for a moment and look back at him, "You picked a good name for her…" he noted, giving off a little smile under his mustache. The Oracion Seis member smiled back. She did hold regrets for having to keep her family away. But in order to see her goals through, she would do whatever it took.
END
And that brings an end to the penultimate chapter of the World Heroes' Mission Arc! We're close to done, and I hope you're excited for what's up ahead, because there's going to be something I'm sure a lot of you have been waiting for next chapter. Until then, thanks for reading!