Chương 2312: 54
Chapter 54: Agitation
A/N: Hey everyone! I want to start off with saying that I've had a change of plans! It looks like I lied last time by saying we'd have Festival stuff this time around (whoops?)
Why? Well, I just realized that canon-wise there's a whole month in between the remedial course and the actual start of the festival. I decided to move up some events that I was originally planning to occur later. With this, it'll help set things up and now there'll be greater gaps in between said events so that it doesn't feel as rushed.
P.S. Hmm… I'm not entirely all too sure if I need a warning for this chapter. I mean, I personally think that the things in here aren't too gruesome, but some of you might disagree. So... Here you go?
Warning: Graphic depictions of death, if you care about that stuff. I've labeled it so you can tell where it starts and where it ends; the first and last parts of the chapter being safe. Though, I will say that there is some vital info in the section. It you want it, I'd suggest looking for the sections in italics.
Izuku was sitting down on one of the couches within the common area of the dorms. Beside him was Spurt, who was lazily lounging on the middle cushion. The crab was greedily taking coconut flesh from Izuku's hand, nibbling on the white fruit in glee.
It was a fairly normal thing for Izuku to do by now; sometimes a fellow student would pass by and show an amused look at the two, but usually that was the furthest extent that interaction went with Izuku while Spurt was out.
Considering such things, it only made sense for Izuku to slowly raise an eye as Ashido came by, plopping herself down on the only remaining spot on the couch. She didn't waste a moment adjusting her smiling towards Izuku.
"May I?" she asked, gesturing to the coconut slices in Izuku's possession.
Izuku looked down to the coconut and then trailed his gaze over towards Spurt. He took a look at still smiling Ashido, and then placed his eyes back on the coconut.
Izuku shrugged his shoulders and handed over the fruit to his classmate. "Sure. Spurt doesn't really care where the food comes from — he just cares that it's still coming, really."
"Nice!" shido all but squealed. She hastily took the offered coconut and began feeding them to Spurt. And just as Izuku had said, Spurt paid little heed to the sudden switch in who was feeding him.
"Soo…" Ashido hummed, "how was the Remedial Course yesterday?".
Izuku blinked. "Umm… fine? I guess? I didn't really do much, really. I wasn't really supposed to be there in the first place, so butting in would've kinda hindered everybody else's role, so—"
Ashido laughed. "Always so awkward, Midoriya. You need to learn when to let loose."
Izuku sputtered. "But— I— That's what I was doing with Spurt!"
Ashido simply nodded along with a mischievous smile on her face, one of her hands leaning down to feed Spurt while another went to pet the crab's shell.
It went on like this for a good minute, but the comfortable silence was eventually broken by Izuku.
"No offense Ashido," Izuku began, "but we don't exactly talk all too much. And I find it weird that you'd suddenly want to initiate a conversation. So you want something, right?"
"What? You think I want something?" Ashido said in mock glee. "Can't your fellow classmate just want to check in with you and stuff?"
Izuku inclined his head and body slightly forward, his eyes slightly raised with an expression that expressed he waiting for an answer.
Ashido snorted. "Alright, fine. You caught me. I guess that I'll get right down to the point. It's about Yaomomo."
"What about Momo?" A quick check with his bugs revealed that the girl in question wasn't within earshot.
"Ooh, it's just that— wait." Ashido leaned forward. "'Momo?!' Not... 'Yaoyorozu?'" Ashido's eyes widened. "Since when were you two on a first name basis? I mean, you two have been Class Rep and Vice Rep for months! I never noticed anything hinting at this?! And you two were still 'Midoriya this!' and 'Yaoyorozu that!' just a few days ago! What's with the sudden change?!"
Izuku pulled his hand through his hair. "Umm… it started just a couple days ago? It's just what I do with people I consider close friends, you know?"
"Oh? Must have been the hospital visit then…" Ashido chuckled. "Oh! That means that you can call me Mina, right!?"
"I don't think so, Ashido."
"Agh! So harsh! I've been rejected before I even got to ask!" Ashido made an exaggerated clutching movement at her heart.
The movement had the unfortunate side effect of disrupting Spurt's feeding, eliciting a garbled string on snips and clacks from the crab.
"What?" Izuku asked, ignoring Spurt's sounds of annoyance in favor of focusing on Ashido.
Ashido giggled in response. "Kidding, it's nothing. Anyways, back to the topic on hand. You see, Yaomomo's birthday is coming up and we're planning a surprise party! I was hoping that you'd help with all the details. You know, foods and decorating and stuff."
"Me? Plan a party?" Izuku asked, bewildered. "I'm not really that good at that type of stuff, Ashido. Shouldn't you be asking someone life… Aoyama? Or… yourself? You've got a knack for extravagant designs."
"Why, I'm flattered!" Ashido cooed. "And while that may be true, that doesn't mean that I won't need help. I mean, I was thinking of the perfect partner in crime, and I thought: 'Who else would be better than the boy she hangs out with all the time?' Plus, you two are on a first name basis now! It's even better than what I was anticipating!"
Izuku hummed in thought. "I don't know, Ashido. I mean—"
"MIDORIYA!"
A duet of screams filled the air, and the two didn't waste any time jumping to their feet to avoid the sudden presence that had appeared between them from over the couch.
They calmed down when they realized the sudden intruder to be none other than the principal himself. What caught the two's attention the most was how Nezu drinking from yet another cup of tea despite his current position.
He was leaning over the couch just above Spurt, and due to his height it was obvious that he was balancing himself on his stomach on the couch's edge.
"Mr. Principal Sir?" Ashido asked wearily.
"Hello Ashido," Nedzu greeted. "Sorry to interrupt your conversation, but I have a need for Midoriya right now."
"Oh? What happened to Hound Dog being responsible for me now?" Izuku asked with a smile.
"What? Tired of me already?" Nezu chuckled, taking a sip of his tea. "No matter. I just came to tell you that Edgeshot called for you. Apparently the group that got away during the raid on the Twisted Dragon has been… busy."
"What happened?!" Izuku asked. His previous joking demeanor disappeared almost instantly.
"It'd be best if Edgeshot briefed you. He has all the details," Nezu replied. "Your friend Tokage is coming along too, since she has experience with this group as well. You'd best get ready."
"Right." Izuku scooped up Spurt in his arms and turned to the stairs. However, before he sped his way back up to his room, Izuku turned back towards Ashido.
"Sorry Ashido! We'll talk later, alright?"
And with that, he sped up the stairs and towards his room, straight to where his Dragonfly costume laid in wait.
*Previous Warning In Effect*
"Huh. Looks like you're with me this time, Dragonfly," Reverb said. She went ahead and placed her mask — the mask made specifically for this scenario — over her face.
"Try to keep up, yeah? And remember, watch out for traps. Especially the drones." Not long after she activated her quirk.
For the first time, Izuku got to see the sidekick's quirk in action as she prepared to enter the building in front of them. A thin mist began to emanate from her body, coalescing together to form a gaseous, floating copy of Reverb. Two others came into being not long after.
Izuku was subconsciously reminded of Ectoplasm in that respect. The only difference between Reverb and Ectoplasm's power, however, were the purpose of the clones. Unlike Ectoplasm's, Reverb's clones didn't stand much for physical altercation. Instead, their main purpose was amplifying the original Reverb's capability; the more of them that were on the field, the more "sound" that was collected to boost Reverb.
Izuku shook his thoughts out of his usual quirk-analyzing habits. He was on a mission right now, and that mattered more.
He reached over his head and placed his own mask over his Dragonfly one. The colorful spectrum of infrared filled his vision, and he could hear his breath as it was filtered by the mask. He went ahead and followed Reverb.
The fishing factory they were approaching was huge, something which had warranted the need for the responding heroes to split up and scout out the building in separate teams. For Reverb and Izuku, their assigned entry was through the factory's shipping center.
They made their way through a metal shutter, one that had been quite obviously ripped open if the human-sized tear in the metal was any hint.
It was dark, a factor attributed to the power having been knocked out long before they had arrived, the initial team discovered the broken fuse box.
Nevertheless, the duo advanced into the factory. All three of Reverb's premade clones spread out, while Izuku and the real Reverb made their way towards the nearby offices.
Izuku ignored the wet sounds that came about as his feet touched the floor, and averted his gaze from the walls that had been stained with blood. At the same time, he tried to drown out the smell that came from the mix of raw fish and death that lingered in the air.
He wasn't too successful at either action.
That meant that, even as he tried to ignore the bodies that littered the floor and the walls, he couldn't prevent the images from being ingrained in his mind.
The way the bodies had been torn in half, both horizontally and laterally. The way certain limbs had been pulverized, while others dangled from places higher up. The look of terror in the eyes of countless dead.
He went ahead and split his attention. One part stayed to observe his surroundings, taking note of any sign of movement or heat. In this aspect, Izuku made sure he stuck close to Reverb.
However, another part of Izuky thought back, recalling everything that he had told about, everything that had been dug up regarding that had been this group of villains that the heroes had come to call "The Nine."
Kizu. Adult female, estimated age range of forties to fifties. Identifying features include a large, ragged scar that stretches from left ear to right lip. Quirk: Wound - Gives the user precise aim, with projectiles often homing in on their targets. Items that are either thrown or shot imbed themselves in victims' wounds for a span of time which ranges from a minute to an hour. This leads to a high risk of bleeding out. Kizu can apparently also track victims she has marked with ease.
The thinking helped quell his nerves.
Izuku attempted to call in some bugs from the outside, trying to send as many of them as he could deeper into the factory.
But yet again — as he had previously discovered — the bugs died not long after entry.
Something in the air was killing them off. Izuku had suggested that it was some remnant from Pathogen's gas.
However, that had been something which had already been considered, hence the preprepared masks that each of the heroes now held.
Pathogen. Adolescent female, no identifying features. Quirk: Growth - Allows the user to emit fumes from their body that cause hallucinations, inebriation, dizziness, etc. The fumes in turn incite biological growths to form on the victim, which eventually encapsulate the victim — suffocating them — if not surgically removed before a period of 24 hours.
Izuku and Reverb turned a corner, both making sure to watch the ceiling for anything suspicious. They both kept a careful eye for any valid heat signatures, wary of facing another encounter with the drones as they had before during the raid on Twisted Dragon.
Horde. Adolescent boy, seemingly of African descent. The individual is capable of building and customizing drones that are specifically designed and programmed to kill. Quirk unknown. Possibly holds the quirk dubbed "Command Persuasion."
Izuku and Reverb stumbled upon a body as they entered another room. The body was already cooling, with almost all of its heat being gone. The man was quite obviously dead, with half a dozen spikes sticking out of his body. The spikes were things that Izuku readily recognized. His fists involuntarily tightened at the realization.
Centaur. Middle-aged male. No identifying features; identification reliant on transformation. Quirk: Katamari - Allows the user to transform into a large, monstrous form with a tough hide. Spines emit from the user's back and are able to be used as projectiles. Strangely enough, the individual seemingly holds another quirk. He is one of many of a slowly rising phenomenon. Centaur's second quirk makes it so his punches have no need to connect, with targets needing only to be a few meters away from Centaur to feel the force of the punch.
Izuku resisted the urge to expel what had consisted of his lunch. He reminded himself that the factory had been open when the villains had stormed the place. Three hundred workers were present at the time. Before Izuku and the current group came along, seven other heroes had arrived on the scene.
And they hadn't been heard from since. The place needed to be searched, that was the top priority. He couldn't be lounging around being held back by his disgust while others could still be alive.
Izuku pushed on, going back into his thoughts in an attempt to push the image from his mind.
Phantom. Middle aged female, seemingly of Middle-Eastern descent. Quirk: Phantom - Allows the user to enter an intangible state that can slightly alter the physical world. Like Centaur, Phantom also has a second quirk. Said quirk consists of a power nullifying screech that temporarily disables and/or weakens powers, for up to ten minutes at a time. Conditions of what decides whether the screech nullifies or cancels a quirk are unknown.
The two came across a fork in a hallway, one path leading left while another led right. Reverb split off another of her clones towards the left, leaving her and Izuku to turn right.
They stumbled upon another body. It was a hero this time, their bright yellow and blue costume marred in blood. Her arms and legs had been taken from the torso, and were likely spread out across the room if the glimpse of a hand Izuku saw behind a shelf was any indication. Her eyes were bloodshot and wide in fear, her face stuck in a scream of terror.
Frisk. Young adult male, identifying features include constant twitches emanating from any body part. Quirk: Hyperbody - Allows the user to enhance either a single limb or the whole body to provide super speed and reflexes. Individual is either incable or not willing to speak.
Izuku and Reverb left the room without a word and entered another. There was a clear sign of battle here. Chunks of the ground were missing, seemingly pulled up by some unseen force. There were another two bodies nearby.
One of the heroes was missing his jaw, with his body embedded deep in the concrete of the wall.
The other was almost missing. While the tatters of his costume were readily identifiable, the rest of him was splattered against the wall. Izuku could spot the remains of an intestine and a few organs; what wasn't present was likely what made up the flowing paste nearby.
Ricochet. Male, estimated late thirties, identifying features include a multitude of scars present on both arms. Quirk: Unbreakable - User has a forcefield that extends around half a foot from their body. The field disrupts inertia, and renders most physical attacks harmless. The user also has a form of regeneration that repairs damage to the body by taking in matter from the surrounding area. Highly dangerous. Energy attacks recommended.
Izuku and Reverb entered another room, and another, a third, and a forth. All they saw was more blood, more death, and more destruction. And not a hint of the villains left in sight.
Waypoint. Young adult male, estimated age in the twenties. Dons blue and silver armor, possibly steel in origin. Teleportation quirk; specificities unknown.
Izuku heard an explosion. Reverb made another of her clones, which immediately sped off towards the noise.
Reverb herself stood her ground. Izuku himself tensed, but followed her example and stopped himself from running towards the noise.
It would have been a foolish move given the capabilities of these villains, and Edgeshot had warned the others of such beforehand. They were simply too skilled, too crafty, and too brutal. The raid on the Twisted Dragons was proof of that.
Kentaro. Male, estimated age mid-late thirties. Wears a top hat and wields a cane, while wearing a simple button down white shirt and black trousers. Previous leader of Twisted Dragon; Apparent leader of the group recently dubbed "The Nine." Quirk unknown. Possibly holds the quirk dubbed "Command Persuasion."
And the ability to apparently talk to QA, Izuku reminded himself. He took a breath.
Reverb and Izuku continued their search. They walked on in silence, checking around corners and looking for heat signatures. Room by room they went, and all they found were more bodies and blood.
They turned another corner and immediately tensed, falling into ready stances as they spotted two moving forms from down the hallway, heat signatures easily highlighted by their masks.
Izuku saw the two forms doing the same, falling into stance to face a possible threat. Despite the dark, Izuku eventually came to realize just who he was facing. He sent a few bugs forward to notify the two.
Izuku notified Reverb beside him, and the two eased themselves, just as Setsuna and Highbrow did across from them.
It wasn't too long after that Edgeshot's voice came through the comms, breaking the eerie silence that had been held until then.
The whole building had been cleared, and the villains were long gone. All that remained were the bodies.
Izuku took a breath and retreated to his mind.
Quirk: Command Persuasion - Allows the user to imbue a hypnotic effect on an item that causes victims to subconsciously follow the commands placed on the object. i.e. Ignore me, Read me, etc. User unknown. Possible users: Kentaro, Horde.
The search proved fruitless. The Nine had gotten away without a hitch, and their debut had a kill count in the hundreds.
*Alright. All's good… Well, you know what I mean*
"I want you all to remember what we did today," Edgeshot told his audience. His voice was quiet, but it easily traveled to the ears of those gathered. Nobody dared to make a noise, and all were listening with apt attention.
"All of you have to keep these procedures in mind, because we'll be doing the exact same thing when The Nine show up again," Edgeshot continued. "What happened today is proof that we aren't facing just any group of villains. We're lucky that the drone we stumbled upon didn't result in any casualties as is. But that might not be the case next time. We need to stay vigilant."
"The fact of the matter is that we can't let what happened today happen again, and we need to be ready for when these villains decide to show themselves so we can prevent further casualties."
Edgeshot sighed. "That being said, I appreciate all of the efforts all of you have put into this. I know that the group we're facing is dangerous, and I applaud you all for your conviction in facing such a dire threat."
Edgeshot inclined his head. "Now, all of you get some rest. I'm sure that you need it. We'll investigate the leads that we have tomorrow. Stay safe. I'll contact you all again when we need you."
Izuku watched as Mt. Lady and Kamui Woods headed off, leaving the room with a nod towards their new team leader. Edgeshot himself gave a nod to them, and then went ahead and ordered his sidekicks out for their own duties.
The other heroes that had gathered — Izuku noticed Miruko and a few lesser known ones — left as well, no doubt to leave for their own agencies.
Before long, the only ones left in the room aside from Edgeshot were Izuku and Setsuna. The hero went ahead and addressed his two students.
"Good job today, you two. You really showed your ability to work under harsh conditions. I'm proud of you both."
"But we were late," Izuku said, a grimace on her face.
"We got there as quickly as we could Midoriya," Edgeshot reassured him. "By the time we got the call The Nine were already rampaging within the factory. We did the best we could in getting there as fast as we did."
"I… guess."
There was a brief silence. Setsuna, despite sharing Izuku's sentiment, decided to change topics to ease the tension. "So… new team, Edgeshot?"
The hero nodded. His face was somewhat lighter, like he was thankful for the change in conversation.
"The Lurkers have been a work in progress for a while, actually. There's proof of our teaming up everywhere if you know where to look. It's just that today was one of our first outings all together." Edgeshot scoffed. "Quite a debut, huh?"
Edgeshot let out a heavy sigh, turning to leave the room. But before he did, he turned back to his students one last time.
"Go take a shower you two, you both need it. And don't take too long. You still have school tomorrow, and I don't need Nezu barking down my throat. I'll meet both of you downstairs in an hour."
He left without another word, the door closing with a click.
Izuku sighed in his seat. "You good, Setsuna?"
Setsuna shrugged her shoulders. "I knew what I was getting into. Edgeshot gave us the chance to back out, after all. But I… needed to see it for myself."
Setsuna shook her head. She turned to face Izuku, her eyes narrowing at her friend. "I should be asking you that, if anything. That look on your face speaks for itself. What's that brain of yours thinking?"
Izuku slightly shook his head. "It's just the fact that they've gotten away a second time, you know? We were there at the Twisted Dragon raid. That was the first appearance of Kentaro and this group that he's built around him. They were nobodies back then."
Izuku sighed. "But they got away. And because of that, not just a few months later, we have over three hundred dead? It's just… we could have stopped them back then. And then—"
"Hey," Setsuna interrupted. She set herself in front of Izuku, placing her hands on his shoulders and looking him straight in the eye. "It's like Edgeshot said. You did what you could at the time. You even fended them off despite lacking information on them. None of us could've done anything."
"I guess."
"Stop with that 'I guess' shit. It's the truth. All we can do now is make sure that they don't take any more lives. And we — you — can't do that if you're sulking over things in the past, alright?"
Izuku took a deep breath. He nodded his head. "Thanks, Setsuna. I'll try not to dwell on it."
"Make sure that you do." Setsuna stood up. "Now come on. I heard that somebody wants you to help out in planning Yaoyorozu's upcoming party. You still need to talk about that, don't ya?"
Izuku blinked. "You mean to say that you're the one that suggested that to Ashido?"
"Maybe," Setsuna drawed out. A smirk appeared on her face. "But does that matter? That's something to cheer up about, right?
Izuku let a small smile sprout on his face. "Yeah, I suppose. Let's get back to UA. "
A/N: More of Kentaro and his group this time around. That being said, School Festival stuff is coming next time. Not the whole thing though. Still a month in between, after all.
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