You watch your friend's eyes widen in shock as he looks down at the weapon impaling his thigh. The boy stumbles back and you make it to him in time to throw yourself behind him, catching him beneath his shoulders. 'Shit, shit shit.' Your eyes examine his leg as Bakugou lets out a stream of curses. "I'm going to kill these damn villains!" He shouts angrily. His eyes water slightly from the pain he's surely in. Bakugou attempts to push himself back up to standing but you keep him down with an arm across his chest.
'I have to pull the knife out if I'm going to use my water ability to heal him as best I can.'
"What the hell are you doing, fireless? Let me up so I can blast these assholes into oblivion!" Bakugou rages, his eyes shooting daggers at Twice.
"Listen, I can mend your injury as best I can but I'm going to have to take the knife-"
"You're out of your damn mind, fireless!"
"Do you trust-"
"Like hell-"
"Bakugou, do you trust me?" You raise your voice over his.
His eyes search yours, finding them looking back at him in all seriousness.
"Fine." He scoffs, shifting his gaze back to the weapon in his leg, "But I'm pulling the damn knife out myself." Before you can protest he reaches his hands over and takes the dagger by the handle, dragging it from out of his thigh. The boy doesn't wince, keeping his jaw set and brows furrowed.
A torrent of crimson blood gushes from the deep puncture wound. You don't waste time in bringing your hands above the injury, working hastily to keep Bakugou from losing as little blood as possible. You let your eyes fall shut, activating an anxious water spirit. Having already sensed the immediate need for care from the shift in your soul, the water spirit flows through you intentionally.
Water begins to rise, hovering over the puncture wound in a small bubble beneath your hands. You lower your hands slightly, the cool water pouring gently into the opening between his skin. Like it did with Denki, a mental image of Bakugou's energy flow replaces the darkness behind your eyelids.
Exhaling softly, you sacrifice some of your own energy in order to gain control and manipulate Bakugou's to repair the torn tissue and muscle. Your energy flows into the healing water and combines with that of Bakugou's energy, creating a soft white glow within the water.
You open your eyes to the boy watching, mesmerized, the shining liquid reflecting off of his ruby eyes. Your lips tug into a smirk and he scoffs, tearing his focus off of your healing ability. Letting your eyes fall shut again, you direct some of Bakugou's energy to target the open wound in his thigh. Slowly his body works to repair the injury, starting from within and making its way up to his skin.
The flow of energy into the wound stops. You watch as the bright glow of Bakugou's energy makes its way to where he is hurt but is blocked by another force. The water spirit hums a warning from the smallest corner of your mind. You snap your eyes open and look at Bakugou with confusion. His brows furrow as he feels a strange sensation form over the knife wound.
"He's stopping you."
You lift your head in the direction of the League of Villains' mastermind. Even in All Might's clutch, the man manages to stop you.
"Go to hell." You whisper.
With no way to stop the brute, you direct your attention back to Bakugou's condition. Your gaze falls over his thigh, the wound significantly better than what it had previously been. The puncture remains deep enough for stitches but well enough for him to continue to fight with caution. You fear that with too much motion he'll tear the wound open again.
Your hands fumble slightly for the knife at your side as you cut a slit in the ends of your shirt. You tug forcibly at the divide, ripping enough fabric off to wrap around the blonde's thigh. Moving quickly, you lift his knee carefully and begin wrapping the fabric around the wound. As you tie a sturdy knot to hold the material in place Bakugou speaks up.
"What the hell."
You can't be bothered to look at the boy as you weave the fabric into another knot, securely fastening the wrap, "What is it?"
He brings a hand below your chin, lifting it slightly, "Who did this to you?"
You bring your eyes to his.
An unexplainable fire rages behind his red eyes.
You've nearly forgotten the damage done to the skin on your neck, completely distracted with your concern for Bakugou's safety.
"I'm going to kill him."
Bakugou pushes himself to standing, disregarding the pain the movement causes in his thigh. Before he can make it anywhere near Shigaraki, Compress strides over from where he'd been temporarily unconscious. He twirls a bright blue marble between his pointer and index fingers, a black and white mask adorning his face, once more.
"You didn't think you'd handled Twice so easily, did you?" He tosses the marble up, catching it with his hat and letting it spin one time around before dropping it into his other hand. "I sure hope you like surprises just as much as I do."
Compress tosses the marble towards you and Bakugou, snapping his fingers quickly after. The real Twice appears in thin air, falling into a roll as he lands. A magician and his assistant, indeed.
"And now for the second act!" Compress calls out joyfully, performing for an audience that isn't there. Twice crouches down, seemingly in preparation for a sprint. The man begins to run laps around the two of you. A new copy materializing within every half lap. You struggle to keep track of the real one when soon there are at least two dozen racing around you and Bakugou.
Compress claps and the copies stop running. He makes his way into the circle, dramatically taking a bow before you. He looks over to his other companions.
"Toga, you can get up now. Shigaraki, care to join?"
Toga pouts as she marches over to Compress' side, "Lying there was getting boring."
Shigaraki strolls lazily over to the group, taking his hand and twisting it harshly back into place.
'They're crazy. Every single one of them.'
You and Bakugou are completely surrounded. Twice and his copies start to move around again. Your eyes dance across the many bodies, watching intently for any sudden assault. Bakugou presses his back against yours. You maneuver your hands through the space in front of you, moving your wrists in circular motions. A barrier of high speed winds begins to form around you and Bakugou. Before it can fully take form, it's immediately terminated.
"That damn asshole." You spit out.
Bakugou sneers, almost excited about this, "What are you idiots standing there for?"
Toga and Compress look over at Shigaraki. Waiting for permission.
Shigaraki nods his head. They attack.
Toga lunges toward you with a speed she held back in your previous fight. A group of seven clones make to capture Bakugou while Compress waits for his opportunity to land a touch on him and imprison Bakugou within a marble. As if you share a mind, you and Bakugou replace each other's positions. The two of you turn swiftly in sync, throwing your opponents off guard mid-attack.
You stomp forcefully against the ground, a large flat rock bursting through the rubble. With a harsh kick, the heavy slab is sent careening towards Twice's clones. The rock meets the men and sends them hurtling back into Compress. All the while, Bakugou sends a strong blast to meet Toga head-on. The girl has no escape and lifts her arm above her face as she takes the blow.
Bakugou turns to Shigaraki and you move with him, your backs never separating. Sparks bounce around Bakugou's palms as he raises them, aiming both explosions at the man who's given you yet another merciless injury. Compress and the replicas push themselves up from the rubble, preparing themselves for another round.
They run towards you, determination in their agile legs. You lift your heel, keeping the ball of your foot planted firmly on the earth. Slamming your heel back down sends a tremor from your foot, out to where they charge. The ground beneath their feet shakes like an earthquake.
With each rise and fall, the clones stumble, losing their balance and any advancement towards you.
Bakugou sets off his blasts, letting them loose on Shigaraki. The leader of the League of Villains faces the attack with a sinister stillness. The dust settles from the explosions and Shigaraki lets out a cough, the only effect the move seems to have on him other than his shirt beginning to singe.
Bakugou growls, "Guess I can stop holding back."
The League members recover quickly, settling back in formation for another attack.
"I'm gonna take down all of these losers. Feel free to sit back, fireless." Bakugou snarls behind you.
You let out scoff, "Please. I'll be done taking down three before you can take down one."
Bakugou laughs his cocky laugh of his, an answer within itself.
The villains surge with a new attack.
You and Bakugou engage in a dance, moving gracefully from one spot to another as you attack and deflect the villain's attempts at an ambush. Never do the two of you separate. Whether connected at your backs, ankles, or shoulders, you look out for each other. Like you always do. More than often, your rivals will break through and land merciless strikes on either one of you. You're both quick to switch and take on the one responsible for hurting the other.
This cycle continues for minutes, neither side gaining the upper hand on the other. Bakugou heaves out a sigh, growing irritated at the lack of success in bringing the League down. You tilt your head, cracking your neck as you wait for the next villain to make a move. Toga and many of Twice's clones pant, never having a moment of rest. You stare down Toga and Shigaraki. Bakugou scowls at Twice and Compress. Each of you waiting for the first to make a move.
A reverberation like the clap of thunder, rumbles through the air, cutting through the tension between you, Bakugou, and the League. You all turn with desperate eyes, searching for the figure you respect. All For One walks out of the murk of rising dust and you feel the air grow glacial around you. A loud thud resounds from a building. From almost three streets over, you watch as cracks form along the brick wall where All Might is thrown. Bakugou looks over at the hit his hero takes and his breathing shallows.
All For One makes his way to where his underlings have you and Bakugou encircled. He fixes the industrial mask properly over his face, the thing having taken one too many hits. Your heart pounds desperately with each step the Big Man takes towards you. You reach out a shaky hand and take hold of Bakugou's in an attempt to steady yourself. The boy looks over at you, the thrill of a fight completely drained from his eyes. He nods at you. You dip your chin in response. An understanding passing between the two of you.
'Not without a fight.'
You bite down on the insides of your cheek, refusing to let the burning tears fall from your eyes.
Bakugou gives your hand a tight squeeze. With the number one hero far from your rescue, you and Bakugou prepare to give more than the extent of what your abilities are capable of. The way you've been taught your entire life. Go beyond. Plus Ultra.
The Big Man takes his last few steps in his trek to stand before his pride and their prey.
"It seems I was correct. Your top hero has only grown weaker."
This time, you grip onto Bakugou's hand a little tighter, enraged by the monster's words.
"I will take the opportunity to put an end to your Symbol of Peace." The man bores his eyeless gaze into you and Bakugou.
A deep snarl builds in Bakugou's throat at the threat to All Might.
All For One changes his focus, turning to his most loyal underling.
"Tomura. I must go bring upon the end to All Might that we all wait for. I trust that you can hold your ground against these two."
Twice laughs, "Hold your ground. Holding our ground is all we can manage to do. Nothing stops these devils!"
Shigaraki looks at Twice with a deadly glare. Toga puts a gentle hand on the man, knowing he often can't help his outbursts.
"I see." All For One replies.
Shigaraki looks to his master, a slight hesitancy in his watch.
"Is it time for reinforcements?" The Big Man asks.
You sense the air grow tense from the simple question.
Compress fidgets with the buttons on his long coat.
Toga toys with the ends of her skirt.
Twice shakes his head. Then nods.
Shigaraki finds his neck again. Scratching anxiously.
The Big Man sets his soulless gaze on you.
"What do you think? Up for a family reunion?"
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Sooo how are we feeling? Sorry not sorry for yet another cliffhanger hehehe.
This chapter was one of my absolute favorites to write. I swear I was typing like a hundred words per second. I really hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I loved writing it.
You all mean so much to me! It's such a great feeling to know that every week I get to put out pieces of work for you all to read. Thanks for believing in me! Your support is amazing and I thank you endlessly for it!
Next week, a brand new journey will take flight.
*wink wink*
As always, I love you all so much and...
See ya next chapter!