Chapter 52: Dive into the Flames

“Text” – Normal speech

‘Text’ – Thought

“Text” – Quirk Spirit speaking in the human world

“Text” - Attack

“Text” – Radio/Communication lines

“Text” – None Japanese speech

(text) – Subtext/meaning behind a spoken word

Chapter 52: Dive into the Flames

Ectoplasm was a simple man at his core. He didn't have anything especially noteworthy, and despite what people thought, his needing prosthetics was not as uncommon in hero work as the public believed.

But he believed that his simplicity was an asset. It made him honest and direct, but it also meant he didn't have baggage that could otherwise impede his skills as a hero, such as observation and puzzle-solving. Thus, he knew that with the first-year hero course all but begging to be included, it wouldn't be long before the rest started asking questions about it.

But that could come later, as he led the group of 40 out of the shelter and towards the command station. U.A.'s stadium, which had been a loud, lively avenue not even an hour ago, was silent, save for the dozens of security drones doing the rounds. At times, they would spot some of the pros who had attended to scout potential talent, not that they were on the clock, ensuring that whatever was happening in town did not spread here.

Ectoplasm was a simple man. It made him honest; it made him direct…It meant that he knew in his heart that all the pros he saw, all the costumed men and women who looked on in curiosity at the parade of students he was leading, would be slaughtered should the threat make its way to U.A., and they might never even see what killed them.

The visiting pros didn't stop them; they continued with their requested duties. After passing through several security gates, they made it to the command centre.

Entering, the students got their first glimpse of what a true hero’s command station looked like. Nezu and the board had spared no expense when putting it together, with the large room being filled with high tech equipment, manned by staff who sat at chairs monitoring things via screens, communicated with the police, the commission and even additional pros at the radio station, or where the Dean was, seated at a large table, one with a screen built into it showcasing a map of the town, with details being feed into it as they came in.

Above them were large screens displaying additional information, or what was seen as important in the moment, such as footage of the disaster unfolding, most likely captured by pros in the field and the police choppers in the air above the town.

At the Dean's side were a group of heroes who must have specialised in command and control, or some other skills which would have been better used here and not in the field. Also, they saw that Midoriya's mother and Intelli were present, which, if any had any doubts about that, the teachers feared was happening.

"Sir, I've brought them," Ectoplasm said, drawing the students' attention away from the set-up and back to the present issue.

"Thanks for bringing them, though I doubt you recall asking that you brought the entire hero course." Nezu smiled, though it was strained by the situation they found themselves in. The map showed the city not giving much good news with how much was labelled unknown or red.

Iida bowed to their Dean, but he felt no guilt over this. “Forgive us, sir. But we simply couldn’t just sit around as things unfolded and wished to lend whatever aid we could, even if only in support roles.”

“Speak for yourself.” Nezu, much like the rest, ignored Bakugo’s comment.

“Well, I should have suspected such from U.A. students, and your group in particular, which was why I did!” Nezu had just a little pep to his tone and pride in the sort of people his students were, but he quickly fell into hero mode, his gaze moving to two in their ranks. “Midoriya, Aoyama, I trust I don’t need to spell things out.”

"You suspect that the chaos is something we're…uniquely suited for," Aoyama replied, his eyes looking around the room, which, while big and filled with activity, was still full of people who weren't in the know.

Nezu waved off his concern. “You may speak freely, but the people present are trustworthy. No word of what is classified will be breathed outside this room unless we need to. You just leave the reasoning to me when things are resolved." Inko hadn't been happy about that, particularly as she could see how many had questions for her about all of this. Still, they were professionals and kept them to themselves till this was over. She did the same, regardless of her feelings; they needed to help each other, which meant sharing information and assets.

“So it's true, this is a Quirk's rampage?" Yaoyorozu asked, worry borrowing deep into her gut, same as the rest of them who had seen the USJ.

Inko was the one who spoke up, the woman seated at Nezu’s side, conveying how much authority she had in this situation. Authority she didn’t want from how tired and resigned she looked.

"It would match reports. Despite dozens of eyewitnesses, no one has seen the villains, yet they've been active across Musutafu. All attempts to fight the presented threats have yielded few results. We’ve also gotten word of an anomaly from Eraserhead about a villain whose quirk he can't erase."

“Can’t, couldn’t he just be a heteromorph?” Sero asked, as he was pretty sure Aizawa’s quirk didn’t just make Mina’s skin not pink, or give Tokoyami a non-avian head.

Inko knew that, but it wasn't as simple. "It's not impossible, but it's highly improbable. His quirk seems to be a flame emitter type, and despite Eraser keeping his gaze on him, his flames were not impeded in the slightest." She wished it were that simple, but the fact proved otherwise. "There was also the report from Midnight, who was confronted by another quirk which we believe to be similar in ranking to the creature you faced at the USJ.”

Seeing her worried, especially her boyfriend at the hat, Saiko quickly added, "Don't worry. She's not hurt; at least she didn't report any injuries. She's being helped by Yoarashi. Shindo is also in play, but…"

Izuku could see the issue. “It’s too much for them, so we need more people.” Looking over the map, the areas of red weren’t much, but only when one considered the districts that Musutafu, but with each being as large as it was, having a quarter of the map being what he assumed were confirmed attack sites…it would overwhelm them. In the meantime, more people got hurt or worse.

Nezu nodded, seeing how many of his smarter hero students could see things for what they were. "Which is why we asked for you. You're the only two close enough to help. According to the professor, there are no other agents close enough to make the trip, as unlike pros, they can't break traffic laws or otherwise rush over without drawing attention from law enforcement."

Yes, that was an issue. Aoyama knew that they had at least two dozen agents in central Japan, possibly more, but they were closer to big cities like Kyoto or Tokyo. Typically, disasters were small-scale and easily confused with villains, so public transit was a viable option to get from place A to B.

This was nothing like that. Aoyama wouldn’t be surprised if all traffic coming into the region had been halted, with only those taking people out. Pros could find means, but they had no such privileges.

“Just them, can’t we lend any help?” Uraraka asked.

"We didn't say that you couldn't, but it would be somewhat…delicate," Nezu told her.

"That's why I was read in on things," a voice spoke up behind them, someone Todoroki knew and loathed. Turning, they all saw his father, the number 2 hero, Endeavour, standing there. His frame was coated in flames, his arms crossed.

Endeavour didn't give them time to gawk or fawn over him, not when they had work to do, which he had to bring them along with. "You're all to be deputised under the Endeavour Hero Agency. You'll have powers similar to fully licensed heroes, but only for the crisis. Everything you do will reflect on me." He gave the silent reminder:

Don’t screw this up.

"Why you?" Todoroki didn't pull punches, even if his classmates were surprised by his open hostility to his own father.

"Because I'm the highest-ranked hero present, boy. Remember that," Endeavour, as he had come to expect such attitude from his youngest, didn't so much as pay it attention. Instead, he looked toward Midoriya and Aoyama, who, while out of costume, had heard of their…artificial quirks, and could easily fit them onto the files he had on their vigilante personas.

“Still, I would have thought that incident last year was related to something like this. I had suspicions and several leads, but…well, it doesn't matter now. We will discuss this later, as I might be at a party, but I will get answers.” Endeavour's gaze left the two worried college students, landing on his alma mater's current Dean and the not-so-civilian at his side.

Inko did well not to wilt under Endeavour’s intense look, offering the man a small bow. “We’ll answer whatever you have, Endeavour, but let’s focus on the current crisis.”

Nezu handled things from there, facing the group not as a dean and his students but as a dispatcher to a group of heroes. These heroes could differentiate between saving lives and relieving tears, screams, and funerals.

“Students, you're to get back to campus, get your gear, and meet up with Endeavour and a team of reinforcements. Midoriya, I hope you reach All Might's location and lend him aid. Aoyama, you're to lead a team that will hunt for the rest of the rampaging quirks." He gave out their directives, watching with pain as students—still children, really—nodded and tried to brave this.

They shouldn’t need to, he doubted all were truly as dedicated as they claimed, but he didn’t have the luxury to say otherwise.

"I've already made the call, and with Nezu's assistance, a chopper carrying additional equipment, such as captured balls, should meet you in town," Saiko informed them. As they turned to leave and rush back to the main campus, Saiko quickly ran towards Izuku, giving him a hug and kiss and whispering for him to be safe before she let him go.

Line break

It wasn't just them who had been watching events. The entire country, which had moments prior been tuned in for the U.A. Sports Festival, quickly had its attention shifted to the growing disaster. With the news being cut, many stewed in their concern, fears, and anger over this unprecedented attack.

"Well, it seems the news won't report the incident anymore." But not all shared such concerns, as Kurogiri mused. The TV was now blank, as it seemed like the broadcaster wasn't foolish enough to try to distract them with something else.

“This is insane, it’s a fucking insult!” Shigaraki tossed his drink to the wall, but even the shattering glass couldn’t soothe his fury over this. "We hit U.A. right where it hurt, yet they stopped talking about us in just a few days. And when they did, they covered everything about it."

He had followed news of their attack by the hour, and while things had gone to shit, he had expected something…something more. But with them saying nothing about the mutated Nomu, there was nothing the media could latch onto. They were just smiles and cheers over how a freshman class proved their mettle against villains. They were nothing but a joke!

Pointing to the black TV, Shigaraki so badly wanted to destroy it, and news casters and the assholes who had stolen their thunder! “But this…this is so intense that they stop broadcasting so the sheep don’t get worried? When was the last time they did that?”

“I can’t say I’ve ever seen such an occurrence, not in Japan anyway.” Kurogiri did note that the news being suppressed so openly and broadly was new to him. Japan and many other nations tended to side with the idea of press freedom for better or worse. It helped make heroes look good when they could rush into disaster and villains and bring victory and hope for the masses.

He wondered…was there fear that this would be the one time such couldn’t happen?

To the side sat the second TV, one that wasn't broadcasting video—it never did—but served as the means through which Shigaraki's master could converse with them. “It is quite rare. The last time I can recall such was my clash with All Might five years ago. As far as my people can tell, every picture, recording, or shred of evidence of the incident was seized and most likely destroyed. But before then? It had been decades. Not since the 66 Incident.”

“I believe that the Great Jedda Purge was a later example.” The second voice, the master’s assistant and the creator of the Nomu, added.

“Oh yes, do forgive me for forgetting.” Master chuckled, recalling the tragedies like an exceptional movie or vacation.

“Master, do you know who’s responsible for this?” Shigaraki asked, as he needed to find out quickly.

“Surprisingly, no,” Even Kurogiri couldn't hide his surprise at the master's response. The warper paused as he turned to fetch the dustpan and broom, looking towards the TV as the master continued. “Tomura, I might reign over the underworld, even in this diminished state, but I've come to accept that some things just happen without me or my many friends knowing about them in advance.”

“It is rare that such events could occur without build-up or notice.” Kurogiri managed to regain his composure and continued to fetch the cleaning supplies before someone stepped on the broken glass.

Their master made a sound of agreement and excitement over this new puzzle. “Yes, which in of itself is a clue. Whoever planned this, those carrying out…they aren’t the typical breed of villain.” He had fingers in every pie, ears in most walls, and plenty of friends happy to pass along information.

Given that all of that failed, if he had been a younger man, he would have been displeased, even angry. But he was an old dog, a wiser beast, and only saw this as a learning opportunity for himself and his successor.

“Tomura, we'll soon get news of things once again. I want you to study it. The destruction, yes, but how it impacts society, how the masses see it, and most importantly, learn how you can take that terror and fear and embody it.” He encouraged the younger villain, as if this was the path of modern villains, then he would need to master it, take the works of these pioneers, refine and master them.

“What about the assholes who stole my thunder?” Shigaraki asked, but he wasn’t as violently angry now.

“You can observe them too, perhaps you can recruit them to your organisation… presumably this wasn't a suicide attack from what I'm hearing.” The master chuckled, as they hadn’t been much about the attackers, only that they seemed to be everywhere, without a true target or purpose other than chaos, which was a respectable form of evil, if a tad crude for him.

“Even if it was, I would love to get our hands on their bodies. To think there were quirks out there who could behave in such a manner is fascinating.” The Nomu’s creator added, as they hadn't seen anyone, but they had certainly seen the effects of quirks in use. Most of these seem to be targeted or are areas of effect types. If they could produce a Nomu with similar powers…well, the USJ would be a misstep.

Shigaraki thought it over. He wasn't the type to sit and plan; he preferred action—charging into new levels and areas of the map and doing what he wanted. But there was a purpose to watching videos on stuff like this, looking through stat screens, and properly planning for dungeon raids. “Kurogiri,” he called out.

“Yes, Shigaraki Tomura?” Kurogiri kept sweeping the broken glass, but the decay user knew he had the warper's attention.

"Get me something to drink. When the TV comes back on, I'm going to be busy." He ordered. He didn’t know how the master planned to return feed on things for them, but he didn’t care right now. He trusted his master to get him the footage so he could study it.

“At once.” Kurogiri finished the clean-up and picked up the dust pan to toss the broken glass. As he cleaned his hands and started preparing another drink for Shigaraki, Tomura was still thinking about things.

'I hate that you showed me up, but…' Tomura formed a smile. 'I can't deny that you're a real master at this game, great party members, good AoE and precision attacks, and you're not noob either since they can't even find you.'

Moments later, they got food once more. It wasn't from the news, but it looked like police chopper cameras. It was muted, so they couldn't hear their communications, but it was enough. ‘So show me more, I want to learn all I can from this walkthrough.’

Line break

While some revelled in the growing crisis, many simply continued with their days, their jobs not giving them the luxury to take a break or check their phones for alerts. One such group was the Pro Heroes, out in the field, protecting the citizens, chasing down villains, or lending aid where possible. If they carried their phones during their shifts, many of them had long since learned to keep them silent.

Ingenium was in this group because he needed his full attention on the hunt. As he ran down the streets, he kept regular communication with his team as they hunted for one particular villain. “Squad A, no north! Squad B, check the west side!”

“Squad A, roger!”

“Squad B, roger!”

Ingenium was about to turn a corner and rush down the street when he got a message, the preceding three beeps alerting him to its seriousness. So, to keep an eye on things but out of immediate danger, he fired up his quirk, the engines in his arms propelling him faster. With just a few leaps and flips, he landed on the roof of a small building.

With a bird's eye view, he answered the line. “Ingenium, we just got a priority order from the hero commission.”

Ingenium beneath his helmet frowned, as that was…odd. The commission might have supervised agencies, and at times did meddle, but he liked to believe they didn’t step on toes to do it. Besides, he had given them no reason to interrupt them now. And what could be more important than this hunt? Did they think he wasn’t doing it? "Tell them we're already hunting the target and are closing the knot."

“It’s not for the Hero Killer; you and our fastest people are to leave Hosu and head to Musutafu.” His despatch replied, sounding…off and strained, which, for a seasoned despatcher like this, was telling.

“Musutafu? Do they need me for the medal ceremony or something?” That was where the U.A. was, but the festival shouldn't be over yet for at least another hour. Was there an issue related to it? Another attack?

His worries weren't helped when his despatch couldn't answer clearly. “Ingenium…I…don’t know how to say it…”

“Is it about Tenya?” He asked, feeling his heart cease at the idea that another USJ had happened, one so terrible they were calling him in despite how far he was, despite how many pros would have surely already been on sight.

“No..no, not him…” He breathed, feeling some relief, as selfish as it was, that it wasn't his family in danger. “Ingenium, there's been a massive villain attack. They don't have much detail, but it's already making headlines even with suppressed news. All Might and others are on sight, but…this is worse than Naruhata. It's like someone unleashed an invisible trigger using villains.”

That…wasn't good. He recalled that entire affair like it was yesterday, and how they never had caught the true masterminds behind it, only middle men and regional leaders like Queen Bee. A part of him wondered…was that merely a prelude? A test run for something bigger, tested and refined? “And Stain?”

“…We’ve been informed he’s not a priority right now. The commission needs as many people as possible for combat and rescue operations.” Ingenium scoffed, not a priority. As if a man with as many murders on his record as Stain could be called such.

But if this was like Naruhata, he couldn't ignore it, not when it seemed they needed anyone they could get.

“Understood.” He replied, turning away from the street, that he would have otherwise gone down. Part of him wished for him to do just that—what was one more street? One check before he left. But his pragmatic side won out. If he had stumbled onto the Hero Killer, he wouldn't be able to just report it and leave, nor could he engage him.

‘Another day, hero killer…another day.’ With that, he turned and jumped off the building, racing towards where his mobile command station was so he could be refitted and make his way to Musutafu.”

Line Break

Unlike their hero classes, when they approached with eagerness to learn, to cut loose and compete with one another, or even what they imagined their first time would be like, suiting up as full pros, none of the hero students spoke. None smiled, none talked as they quickly made their way back to the campus and grabbed their gear.

They didn't use the bathroom; it would be too small for so many, and the changing rooms were too far away, so the boys used the empty hallway, while the girls got the relative privacy of the classroom. They just set their stuff on their tasks and were off. Now, like their teachers before, they stood outside U.A. waiting for their rides to get them to town.

“I get that we signed up for this, but…” Sero looked at his helmet, which he had not put on yet.

"I know what you mean. We expected it would be a while before we could patrol the streets, save people, and stop villains." Tokage brushed some hair aside, feeling…underequipped for this in more ways than one, but she couldn't just do nothing.

“Typically, being scouted by the Number 2 hero would be seen as a great honour,” Tokoyami stood to the side, brooding as he typically did. However, for one, he wasn't alone in such a situation. "But circumstances have made that feeling bitter, revolting even." Looking to the side, they could spot Endeavour. The man hadn’t said much since they left the stadium, and if he thought they were smart to change where they did to save time, he kept such thoughts to himself.

However, once they got there, he had asked-ordered really, Midoriya and Aoyama to speak with him, to get a clear picture of things, as while Professor Midoriya must have filled him in, he wished for the accounts of those who handled the field work.

Tokoyami wasn't the only one who picked up on this, on how Aoyama and Midoriya could just…fall into this mindset so different than them, and to be treated with respect, grudgingly as it was, from Endeavour. Todoroki certainly looked less than pleased, but Tetsutetsu and Hagakure just guessed he must have been upset he wasn't being treated as such.

"Yeah, and then we have the whole, how the heck are we going to explain this later? The Dean said he'll handle it, but with how much attention this will have." Kaibara sighed. This entire thing… was going to be a big thing, and he couldn't delude himself into thinking anything else. Being involved would mean their faces would be pasted all over the news.

“We should focus on the current crisis, what comes next…well, we’ll handle it when we get to it.” Shiozaki paused in her prayers, but got back to it, her words too soft for him to make out.

"Cross that bridge when we get to it? Well, we should be worried about making it there." Jiro stated that this wasn't going to be easy.

“Aoyama, Midoriya,” Uraraka spoke up, some looking her way as her eye hadn’t left the two. Walking up to them, she interrupted their conversation with the number one. Still, the situation outweighed her fear of the flame hero's glare.  “Is…is this what you do?”

Aoyama's face softened, losing some of the knightly charm he loved to put on. Reaching for a lock of hair, he nervously toyed with it as he replied. “Nothing has ever been bad. Attacks have, and often are, awful, start to finish, but this…this is something else."

"And it's only going to be four agents for the entire thing, when we need at least a dozen and plenty of capture balls," Midoriya added, as yes, his mother was working to get them delivered, but it would still be a while, and he would rather not need to use…serious options to handle things.

Ojiro spoke up. “We’ll lend you support the best we can. We might not be able to hurt them, but we can keep them away from the people while you two handle things.” Yes, his quirk couldn't put them down or do serious damage, but much like they had done at the USJ, they could run interference.

“Yeah, and All Might’s already out there. He’s probably sending some of those things flying already.” Ashido added, getting some chuckles while Endeavour's angry face got more. Looks like the stories of his dislike of the symbol of peace weren't made up.

"There, there," Lucky for the adult, he didn't need to listen to them any longer as a group of choppers arrived, some already bearing marks of damage and soot from how much they had been flying over the disaster zone. But the fact that they could arrive meant these pilots were skilled enough to avoid being downed.

Turning to the students, he was brief with his words. "You all have your information. Listen to your group leaders, don't do anything stupid, and handle things to the best of your ability. I will accept nothing less."

“Yes, Endeavour!” Endeavour grunted as the first chopper landed, the man boarding it without a word, the rest doing the same.

“Midoriya, your unit’s with me. We’ll drop you close to All Might and then head to carry on our tasks.” Midoriya nodded, along with Tokage, Asui, Honenuki, and Sero.

Aoyama, their second ace, would need to be on another team to help spread their forces as best they could. He had been paired with Shishida, Koda, Mineta, and Tsuburaba. Both teams were made up of largely sensible people, people who could work well together and had quirks, each of which could fill a role in the team.

Uraraka had no such luck, as in a repeat of the festival, she would need to work with Bakugo. Only now would she need to worry about Monoma setting off Bakugo, but at least Kirishima was something she could depend on. Kuroiro…she didn't know him well, but he seemed similar to Tokoyami, whom she also didn't know. At least he seemed like the type you could easily work with, so she hoped this would be the same.

Line Break

All Might was not used to this much struggle. He was not a man who had it easy in life, and he had certainly had his share of big fights and moments, but such were against natural disasters, or the worst of the worst, or against All for One and his enforcers.

This unknown was none of those, at least not in the traditional sense as this man, this quirk given flesh was like a wildfire burning through dry Californian landscape, with winds feeding it as it ravaged the landed as no matter what he did, how hard he hit, how much he could clearly hear its fleshy body crack and break, it kept getting back up.

Of course, he wasn't immortal or invincible. Despite how much it laughed off his attacks, it avoided Thirteen's Black Hole. All Might wasn't sure if it feared being turned to dust or if Thirteen could put this spirit down, but he could see that it wasn’t invincible if it was going to such lengths to avoid it.

A jet of flames forces All Might back, his sleeves already burnt off to his elbows, an impressive feat considering his costumes were designed to endure almost as much as he could.

“All Might, have the others made it out?” Thirteen asked, having stayed to the back and diverted their opponent’s flames by sucking them up.

“They should have, knowing Eraser, if he couldn’t make it to the drop point, he’s most likely searching for survivors where he is.” All Might replied, keeping an eye on their opponent, who pulled themselves out of the wreck of a truck All Might had punched him into, the man looking worse with bruises, welts, and cuts, all of which were bleeding profusely or had already burned shut. His chest rose and fell, but All Might and Thirteen had enough experience to see when someone had a broken rib, or several.

Despite all that, the villain didn’t stop. “Oh damn. Do you know how hard it was to make this meat suit?” He rolled his arm, the two heroes watching as the limp limb from the elbow down set itself with a bone-crunching snap. The villain hardly reacted as he clenched and unclenched his hand, testing to see if it worked.

“So, you’re admitting to what you are?” Thirteen asked, trying to buy time.

"Who can say? How about this: You managed to beat me, and I'll tell you." The villain smirked, their hands lighting up once more. Bright blue flames licked at his flesh, burning it, but it didn't faze the villain. "But it seems like you can’t do that, can you?”

"They might struggle." He didn't give the intruder time to attack, and the villain was already turning to face them, but he saw that the man was too close, and his fist was already pulled back. “But I can!” Shindo finished as he punched the villain square in the back. Shindo activated his quirk on impact, sending heavy vibrations through the villain’s body, shaking around bones and organs, before he was sent flying from the hit.

All Might adding to this, as with the villain airborne, coming towards him, and dazed if only for the moment, he punched the villain in the gut, bending him on his fist as the villain’s body, merely a vessel, coughed up bile and blood from the hit as he was sent flying back toward Shindo who hit the villain with a hard backfist, once more activating his quick, aggressively shaking the villain’s body, adding to the damage he had already taken as he was sent to the side, landing in a pained pile.

“You’re our back-up.” All Might asked.

“Yes, sir, All Might. Shindo Yo at your service,” Shinso, despite dressing like a simple civilian, carried himself well enough as he smiled towards All Might. However, the number one got the feeling the guy was a little sneakier than he presented.

Hearing a groan, they all turned to the threat as the villain got back up, slower than before, and shaking as he did so. "What are we looking at here? I've seen a couple quirks around and handled them, but this guy…" Shindo's TV-perfect smile faded as he looked at their opponent. He had never used his quirk like that, not against flesh and blood people. Yet, despite both attacks being where he would consider to be dangerous for people, the guy was still getting up.

"We were hoping you'd tell us." Thirteen noted, none moving, not when they couldn’t trust that this guy didn’t have some other trick up his sleeve.

Getting to his feet, Dabi could admit that it was not what he was expecting. It wasn't the coolest to be rag-dolled around like that. Coughing up some blood and bile, he spat it to the side. "Okay, that really hurt. You…you're like the other one, aren't you?" His gaze went to Shindo, as he didn't recognise him as a hero, but those two hits… did more than just damage his fleshy suit; they hit deeper than that.

“Damn straight, so why don’t you surrender now and save yourself the pain?” Shindo held his hands in a boxing stance, spreading his feet apart to keep a good stance.

“Tempting,” Dabi admitted, as if this guy was here, who’s to say others weren’t? But then again….“But I’ve never been one for sound rational when I’m this close!” With a crackle of laughter, Dabi decided to hell with it, bursting into flames so vast they covered the entire street, burning everything around them, the road, the guard rails, the trees, even the building. All of it caught fire and burned.

Line break

Well, it's Sunday evening when I started this, and with Thursday free once more, I would have more time to work on stories and also some WIPs as planning…man, that's a real bitch, as I learned my lesson, when I just work off ideas, I stumble. Also, it helps that I'm starting this early, as my laptop has been acting up; the keyboard thing is something I can just deal with, but charging now is an issue, as the damn thing cannot be hooked up. Still, before I know it, I get a 'low battery' message because, surprise! The damn thing, still plugged in, wasn't charging.

Now, with the chapter itself, I won't pretend that JJK's Shibuya act, or even the first MHA war arc, didn't play a role in my thinking for this. Still, considering that I didn't watch JJK, just commentary and other stuff about it, I like to believe that this is still its own thing, which makes it a bit of a challenge to write. Still, I dug deep, and I think that what has been written and what you'll be reading would be pretty damn good.

Line Break

Dabi: Did I really just get pin-balled?

Author: Just be glad it wasn’t the Mahito 2-piece special. People are still meming on that bitch.