Chapter Text
Flashes of alleys passed by in an instant, her heart pounding out of her chest as her backpack rubbed against her back, herself cutting corners in an attempt to reach the opposite side of the city. Brutally cold wind sliced itself into her delicate skin whilst her skinny fingers began to grow numb.
"I recognize you, kid."
Sparks of light flash within her eyes, her mind racing faster than her body. Dirtied white sneakers scraped frantically against cracked asphalt followed by thick steel toed boots thundering against the ground behind her.
A blurred glance behind her had the man's figure only growing.
Left.
Left.
Right.
Left.
The turns were seared into her brain. They told her to practice, to know the route in the dark, rain, and snow. Months of training that led to this very moment. They were going to catch this guy, no matter what. Whatever it takes. She just had the unfortunate luck of being the bait.
"You've got something I want."
Once again the man's rough voice swam within her mind, each new word blending in with the ones before. Without hesitation, a basketball sized sphere of light is grown in her free hand and released behind her, pounding into the other’s chest.
"Stay back!" she screams. Dipping into the crowded streets of Tokyo, she shoves her way past gawking pedestrians, diving into yet another shortcut.
"Just a little further," she mutters, clutching her bag even closer to her body.
Back in the darkness, a metal pipe crashes into her back, her body ricocheting off of the ground. Scarred hands push herself upwards, she turns her head to only capture bloodlust in the tattooed man's eyes and a frightening smile seared across his face causing her to stall.
Something has changed.
Before being able to fully rise to her feet, a hand grasps her ankle, her hands and shins scraping violently against the concrete. Within reach, the man pulls up the hem of her shirt, her skin meeting the cool air of the night. Desperate, she jabs her tennis shoes into his chest, the man left breathless once her feet gracefully against the patched concrete.
Growing breaks in alleyways point her towards safety, the familiar sound of Tokyo traffic rushing by. Mind wrapped around the man's hand that lingered just a second too long around her skirt hem allows a scrap of metal to whiz through the night sky unnoticed until lodging itself deep within her side.
A deafening scream fills the open air, her throat soon becoming raw. Unprepared, her quirk releases itself, blocks of heavy traffic flooded with blinding light, multiple bystanders screaming in agony at the sudden onset of burns and limited use of their retinas along with multiple car accidents. A spare hand to her side leaves a fountain of red to leak throughout her middle school uniform. Snatching her by the shirt collar, the grimy man soon suspended her off the ground, pupils gone and instead welcoming thick red blood which seeped endlessly down his greasy face.
"You seem like too much trouble for my leader to take care of. I guess that means I'll have to take care of you myself," the man spats in her face, her own hands attempting to remove him from her body. Squirming, the front portion of her shirt is quick to tear, providing just enough leverage for his hand to be away from her neck and for her to drop to the ground.
Another ball of light generated by her skin this time larger than the last is sent forward, the pair ripped apart from each other and sliding to a stop.
Weakly pushing her upper body from the ground she coughs, red splatter painting her palm, her eyes glancing towards something (rather someone) unfamiliar.
Out of the Tokyo night sky, a man in an all black jumpsuit lands between the two foes, yellow goggles shielding his eyes. Sturdily he rises between herself and her attacker, the opposing man only beginning to come to.
"Attacking young girls? There's a never ending shortage of you kind of scum these days," the hero states in the midst of adjusting his goggles. In front of her he stiffed slightly before turning backwards towards herself.
"Kid, you need to go get help. I’ll be right behind you," he spoke, refocusing on the grime that continued to push themselves to their feet. Staggering herself, she stumbles as she observes the newcomer, his long hair suspended oddly above his head.
“Don’t,” she coughs again, “he’ll kill you.”
On its own, the man's scarf began to float, the hero attacking her foe with ease. Backing away slowly, it takes her a full moment to recognize her chance of escape before breaking out into a half-hearted sprint, sticky bile rising in the back of her throat.
Quick, short breaths pushed in and out of her lungs, a searing pain tearing through her left side. Shakily, her palm rests on a brick wall a mere twenty feet away, her head growing dizzy while her legs and shoes began to become soaked giving center stage to the growing puddle of blood that drenched the ground.
Blurry vision consumed her eyes as she desperately searched for anyone on the busy avenue to notice her although to little use. Most civilians were too incapacitated with their own injuries to be able to help, multiple ambulances with ear-piercing sirens already beginning to flood the busy street.
Taking a final glance at the fight behind her, her skin finally met the neon city lights, the brutal signal of civilization. Her limbs were quick to fall weak, herself unconscious before even reaching the ground.