Chapter 1: Enter the Gate, Soldiers
Chapter Text
Chapter 1: Enter the Gate, Soldiers
If anyone ever saw Momo Yaoyorozu walking down the street, they would assume that she was just like them: An ordinary, twenty-six-year-old woman.
However, that's just what she wanted everyone to think. She never wanted to be known by everyone as the heiress of the Yaoyorozu conglomerate, and a modern-day zaibatsu. She made sure that she would make a mark during her adult life, and not simply get by on her parent's name. And she would say that, so far, she has done pretty well.
It was an ordinary Saturday morning within the Musutafu city of Shizuoka prefecture, in Japan. Thirty minutes 'till noon, but since it was early summer, the sun wasn't killing everyone just yet. Plus, with the clouds in the sky, most would consider this the perfect day.
Everyone was shopping within Tatooin Station, with small children hugging their happy parents, and the occasional news network interviewing people on the streets. All in all, a perfectly average day in the 21st century.
Momo herself was smiling at the nice day, too. She was wearing civilian clothes on this fine morning, and was currently waiting for the train to drop her off at Tatooin Station, where she would be shopping the rest of her free Saturday.
Closing her mind, she sighed in bliss, happy that her life was going just as planned. Her parents had prepared her for everything that could possibly happen in life. Languages, economics, mathematics, the sciences, even athletics, all of this had been done to ready her, and in her line of work, it was an excellent advantage. She had climbed the ranks ever since she was eighteen, and while many would consider her a workaholic, she was looking forward to relaxing.
"Now arriving at Musutafu."
A small smile reached her lips. "Perfect," she said to herself, as she walked out of the open doors of the train, and out of the station. "First stop, the boutiques."
"Kota, wait up!" his father yelled. "Your mom said not to wander off too far!"
Kota wasn't listening to his old man. He was too busy staring to the far end of the street, his eyes wondering if they were playing tricks on him, or if the heat was getting to him.
The light in front of him began to take shape, and slowly, but surely, something was appearing right in front of the teenager. Something big.
Within the inner workings of Momo's mind, she was going a hundred miles an hour. First, I think I'll get something with a frilly top. Then, I'll get a leather skirt with a built-in belt. And then, some knee-high boots, and a white dress shirt, and a dress that goes all the way to my knees, and –
WHAM!
"Ow!" she yelped, as she tumbled down, and fell on her back. As she groaned in pain, her vision blurred as she saw that she had accidentally ran into a stop sign.
"Are you okay?"
Looking towards the sound of the voice, Momo saw… a man about her age, with sharp, and obviously dyed, red hair, a small scar over his right eye. Not only that, but he was wearing the all-green outfit of the JSDF, which would explain why he also had a sidearm.
Standing up, she smiled. "Yes, thank you… Kirishima?"
"Hm?" the redhead hummed, before remembering, "Oh, yeah, the name tag, right. Sorry, I kinda forget that we have 'em right over our hearts. But yeah, Corporal Kirishima, reporting for duty! Me and a couple of other guys are just patrolling the town today for an exercise."
"Well, that would explain the uniform," Momo said, as she gave the officer a salute before walking off. "Make us proud, soldier!"
"Will do!"
"Whoa…"
"What is that?"
"A movie prop?"
Civilians everywhere looked at the large building that seemingly appeared out of thin air in the span of minutes. It was a few stories tall, made of white marble, and it was in the shape of the Parthenon in Greece. A large blue crystal at the top of it, with three others on each side, holding the columns in place. Its entrance was dark, no one could see what was inside.
"Whoa…" Kota uttered, as he was amazed by what he saw, just like everyone else.
"Kota!" his mother yelled out, as she finally found him and his father in the crowd. "Don't run off like that again, you two! What are you even… looking… at…?"
Even his mother was entranced by what she was looking at.
Then, something flew out.
"I wonder if I can get myself a kimono…" Momo wondered to herself, as she kept walking down the shopping district of the little town, focusing on her own little world.
Well, that was until she noticed a shadow dash over her.
"Huh?" She looked up. "Did something just…?"
The locals of Musutafu still looked in awe and wonder as they saw more figures exit the gate. Some of them looked human, albeit riding unrecognizable mounts and dressed in armor, but some others stood ten feet tall, had horns, and didn't look remotely human.
One of the armored men blew into a horn, and then all went to hell.
"BWAAAA!!!"
The armored humans pulled out spears and began to charge, while those on top of reptiles took to the skies and dive-bombed back into the crowds of people. The inhuman creatures screamed, and pulled out their swords and clubs, and advanced.
As the Japanese civilians fled, the armored men pulled out their bows and drew out their arrows, pulled back, aimed up to an angle, and fired.
And Eijiro Kirishima just happened to walk into all of this chaos.
Momo Yaoyorozou could not believe what she was seeing.
Over her head, and the heads of many other people, there was now some sort of flying reptile, which could best be described as a pterodactyl with the head and neck of a cobra, the wings of a bat, and the tip end of a scorpion, diving down to grab its prey.
Its prey being the Japanese civilians she swore to protect.
As many other people ran past her, Momo broke into a sweat, trying to deny what she was seeing. "This is impossible…" she whispered to herself, but soon enough, she snapped back to reality and proceeded to run the opposite direction of everyone else.
As she watched several… monsters… destroy the shops all around her, she weaved and dodged around them, occasionally shouting, "Out of the way!"
"Damn… if this doesn't stop… people will die!"
Running, she noticed a guy cowering in terror, as she ran towards him, and yelled, "Get up! It's dangerous here! You have to run!" When he didn't respond, she shouted, "HEY!"
Looking up, the man, clearly panicking, asked, "Who are you?"
"I'm –"
BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!
Before she could answer, she looked towards the sound of gunfire, and saw a familiar mess of red hair firing towards the dragon-like creatures and their riders in the sky.
Kirishima!
Momo watched as the young soldier managed to ground one of the armored riders, and relax. That was a mistake, as the soldier suddenly got up, and ran towards him, pulling a dagger out from his back, and ready to stab the redhead, who was fresh out of bullets.
"AAARRRGH–"
Before the warrior could sink his blade into Kirishima, Momo had already blocked him, grabbed him by the neck, and proceeded to tackle him to the pavement, holding him down, and restraining the man with a neckhold.
The soldier struggled, trying to grab the black-haired woman's face. Momo was clearly struggling to hold him in place, when she noticed the man's dagger. Slowly grabbing it, she lifted it towards the man's neck, and plunged it into his throat, staging her dress.
SPLURT!
As the man stopped moving, Momo turned back to Kirishima, and asked, "Are you all right?"
The young man quickly snapped out of it and nodded in confirmation.
"I need you to contact your superiors and tell them what's going on! I'll focus on evacuation and trying to get the police force here! We need to stop this from becoming a bloodbath!"
"R-right!"
Elsewhere, a squadron of armored police trucks rushed down the streets, and stopped. Getting out we're officers with riot gear and helmets, each officer armed and ready.
"Tatooin Station has been largely occupied, but we'll defend this city to the death!" the leader of the Special Assault Team, Iawo Oguro, yelled to his subordinates. "Reinforcements are coming soon, so we just need to hold them off for the time being!"
"Where's the main force?" Koichi Haimawari, his second-in-command, asked.
"They're coming now."
"REEHEHE!" the horned horse neighed, as its rider, an armored man examined the structures around him. The bandage wrappings around his head made his expression hard to read.
"Structurae lateris et marmorei sunt hic," the general said.
"Domine?" one of his subordinates asked.
"Im 'solvitur videre aliquid nota," the general, Kido, responded, as he kept marveling at the buildings all around him. "Non turbat? Non miraris ubi nos ipsi invenimus?"
"HERE THEY COME!" Oguro yelled, as his men held up their shields and rifles.
"HURHHHG…" Several inhuman monsters appeared out of the smoke and fires, all of them with their weapons raised up high, as they charged towards the armored police.
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
For the next few minutes, the police did everything in their power to stop the opposing force from getting any closer. Bullets kept flying out, and the end didn't seem in sight.
"When are the reinforcements coming?!" Haimawari yelled, already sick of the monsters.
"THEY'RE HERE!" a new voice responded. Turning around, they saw a redhead in a familiar green uniform waving at them. "The Ground Self-Defense Force has sent choppers!"
FWOOSH!
And as he said it, above them, a familiar-looking Boeing AH-64 Apache chopper flew right over them, and made contact with one of the flying monsters.
"SKREE!"
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
Within seconds, the wyvern was riddled with holes, and it proceeded to crash down.
As the armored soldiers gasped in horror, several Komatsu LAVs pulled up, all of them filled with soldiers, coming pouring out, as the mounted weapons and their rifles began to fire.
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
Within seconds, the monsters fell, and the armored humans learned that their shields were worthless against these sorts of projectiles, as they too fell, albeit a few seconds slower.
"The enemy's formation is broken!" one of the higher-ranking soldiers, a guy with curly brown hair shaped in an afro yelled, as he looked over to Kirishima. "It was smart of you to call us."
"Yeah, well, communications IS my specialty," he acknowledged.
"Indeed," he hummed, as he handed him a rifle. "Alright, the rest of us are going to advance and take back the area, I want you to help us find your missing teammates. Oh, and while we're at it, exterminate all of these monsters, with extreme prejudice! Let's send them back to Hell!"
"Yes, sir!"
Momo had long since left Kirishima, and as she promised, she focused on evacuation. She finally finished explaining what had happened to the local Musutafu police, and was now let go. As she looked over the sea of civilians who had fled, she saw something.
A teenage kid, by himself, on the verge of crying.
Walking towards them, she kneeled down, and gave them the friendliest smile. "What's wrong?" she asked, extending her hand. "You can't find your mom and dad?"
The young boy, she guessed fifteen, slowly nodded.
Standing up, Momo smiled, "Alright, then let's go find them. What's your name?"
"Uh…" the teen spoke up. "My name is Kota. Kota Izumi."
Holding his hand, Momo smiled. "It's nice to meet you."
I wish it was under better circumstances…
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
The sounds of gunfire could be heard as the Japanese Self-Defense Force mowed down hordes and hordes of creatures, both big and small, as they tried to reclaim the town.
Eijiro Kirishima was not one of them.
During a particularly nasty encounter with a big red monster wielding dual-clubs, he got separated from the rest of the group, and was now by himself in the middle of the street, with a very limited supply of ammunition.
Stupid idiot, he cursed himself. Can't even get one damn thing right –
He immediately stopped his self-deprecating thoughts, as he looked up and saw something big. Tall, made of white marble, and adjourned with blue crystals on all sides.
This must be what's causing all of these problems…
"RAWWWRR!"
"Huh –?! AHHHH! OH, MY GOD!" Turning around, Eijiro scrambled and screamed, as she saw three more of those giant monsters appear from behind them. On instinct, he immediately pulled up his borrowed weapon, and pulled the trigger.
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
All three of the giants fell immediately, but before Eijiro could relax, he heard a scuffle from behind him, and in a wild panic, fired without looking.
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA–
Stopping and gathering his bearings, he saw a fourth one, which had fallen onto its back when he wildly fired bullets into the pavement in front of it. This one was smaller than the other ones, around his height, but with a tail, and it appeared to be better dressed than the other ones.
The creature quickly tried to pull back, as it clawed onto the pavement behind it to get away from the redhead, but all Eijiro saw was the red mask with horns it was adroning, and the spear it was holding in its arm. He approached it, aiming his gun, and ready to fire, when –
"Misericordia! MISERICORDIA!"
…the gun didn't go off.
Eijiro didn't shoot.
He couldn't. He knew what that word meant.
"Mercy."
Looking back down at the… girl… it had a girl's voice... Looking back down at the girl, he saw that she was breathing heavily, and behind the scary mask, he could see her eyes. Even with her black sclera wrapping around her golden eyes, he could understand her emotion.
It was fear.
She was afraid of him.
He didn't know what to do. Was he supposed to capture enemies alive? His superior told him to exterminate them, but to do that to someone who just begged for their life?
Eventually, he lowered his rifle, and pointed towards the gate. "Vade."
Slowly, the horned girl grabbed her spear, turned around, and ran. She dashed towards the gate, but before she went back in, she turned around and looked at Eijiro one last time.
And then, she was gone.
A few minutes later, the soldiers he got separated from arrived, and made a perimeter around the gate. "There you are! Thought we lost you!" the curly brown-haired officer smiled. "And I see that you racked yourself up some kills, nice! Did you get all of them?"
"Uh… yeah," Kirishima lied. "Yeah, I did."
It had now been a few hours since the initial invasion of the unknown forces, and Momo was walking through the debris, where the JSDF was now doing post-battle clean-up: Removing corpses, checking for survivors, all of the unpleasantries of war.
But Momo was focused on other things.
She walked up towards a familiar face. Despite his military status, he had long and messy black hair, which went all the way to his shoulders. His facial hair was short and stubby, and his eyes made it look like he hadn't slept in years, or that he was just entering his forties.
Saluting him, Momo said, "Lieutenant General Aizawa."
"First Lieutenant Yaoyorozu. Of course it was you," he sighed. "Still, I figure it was probably best that it was you. You did well with the evacuation, we only have seventy-one casualties so far. I'm sure that the media vultures and the politicians will be singing your praises for months to come."
"Regardless of that," she said. "What exactly happened?"
"That's what everyone would like to find out. We've secured whatever the hell it is that spewed out those… things… but our current problem is that none of the captives speak Japanese."
"We have captives?"
"Almost a hundred," he said, as he pointed to one of them. "We think he's the leader."
The leader, a man with bandages covering his face, was currently struggling with the handcuffs and yelling at the soldiers who were trying to interrogate him. "Hoc mihi facere non potes! Ego sum dux in exercitu Imperatoris Todoroki! Omnia capita tua habebunt! Iuro!"
"We're trying to figure out what they're saying, but –"
Before Aizawa could finish, Momo immediately ran past him and kneeled down towards the armored soldier, and spoke. "Potestis intelligere me?"
The Lieutenant General looked at his subordinate in confusion. "Yaoyorozu, what are you –"
"Ita. Quomodo me intelligere potuisti? Nemo alius potest."
Aizawa's eyes widened as he saw Momo converse with the captured invader.
"Simplex," the black-haired woman responded. "Linguam tuam ut puer studui."
"In nostro imperio natus es? Si esses, essem –"
"Me paenitet, sed erras," Momo corrected him. "Hic natus sum, et pro patria pugnabo."
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu," Aizawa said, in a tone the younger soldier knew meant that her commanding officer was trying to get her attention. "How did you know what he was saying?"
Getting up, Momo looked at him and said, "Sir, it's Latin. He's speaking Latin."
Within the next twenty-four hours, the entire world knew about what would later be dubbed by the media as "The Musutafu Incident."
With videos surfacing all over YouTube about Japanese civilians being attacked by monsters, along with the news media getting glimpses of the chaos of the JSDF fighting off the invaders, as well as any foreigners who immediately reported this to their country of origin, it was an inevitability. To even consider keeping this under wraps was a joke.
By the end of the next day, the current Prime Minister of Japan, Yokumiru Mera, was ready to address the situation, not just to the Japanese public, but to the entire world. Mera was a man approaching his fifties, with beige hair. And if Shouta Aizawa's eyes made it look like he hadn't slept in years, then Mera's made it look like he hadn't slept in decades.
And yesterday's incident was not helping his sleep schedule.
"...Naturally, this land does not appear on any map," Mera said, remembering the reports of the initial soldiers who went in yesterday. "We don't know what lies beyond the gate, or what it is like. Everything about it is a mystery. We apprehended many of the attackers of the previous incident. At present, they are no more than criminals, who have broken the law, or in other words, terrorists. Destroying the gate will not solve his problem. We fear that it may simply lead to the opening of another gate elsewhere in Japan."
"Thus, we have decided to consider the land beyond the gate, the Special Region, a part of Japan," he continued. "And in order to learn what is on the other side, as well as to bring any forces to the negotiation table, we have determined that it is necessary to go beyond the gate, even if it is dangerous. For the purpose of investigating the Special Region, apprehending the ringleader of this atrocity, and securing compensation by force, the government of Japan will dispatch the Self-Defense Force to the other side of the gate."
A small part of Mera knew that the thunderous applause he heard was hollow.
The following day, Momo marched into position, along with almost a hundred ground soldiers from the Japanese Self-Defense Force, as they all made their way towards Tatooin Station.
Getting into position, she saw as Aizawa stood up on the podium, and began speaking into the microphone. "My name is Aizawa, I'm your commander. Thanks to Prime Minister Yokumiru Mera's blessing, we are now ready to dispatch you to the Special Region. All of you, the mission which you have been charged with is of grave importance."
"Nobody knows what will happen to us in the Special Region," Aizawa continued. "Thus, you must be prepared for combat to begin with the moment we cross the gate."
Even though Momo was listening to the speech, her mind was elsewhere.
She was thinking back to earlier that day.
While civilians weren't allowed anywhere near Tatooin Station anymore, they still were around the barrier where the JSDF made a checkpoint to make sure no unauthorized personnel came across. And across that checkpoint, they had made a memorial.
A few hours ago, as Momo was walking down the street with the rest of the troops, she looked to her side to see the memorial. Rows and rows of flowers for the deceased, along with grieving friends and relatives, all of them crying in front of the flowers.
And that's when she saw them.
Passing them by, she saw an adult, a brown-haired woman who was crying. But the older grieving woman wasn't what caught Momo's eyes.
It was the kid.
It was Kota.
She never did find his parents a few days back, didn't she? She tried to help them for a few hours, but by the time the clean-up was ready, she handed him over to the local police, as she left to go find Lieutenant General Aizawa.
She hoped that he would find his parents, but not like this.
"We'll be entering the gate shortly."
As Aizawa finished his speech, the sour feeling returned to Momo, as she loaded her rifle.
"READY!"
She heard Kirishima's voice over one of the vehicle's speakers, as she, and several other soldiers, entered them. That's right, he said he's a communications specialist, isn't he?
"BEGIN! Stay frosty, and watch your vision clocks like your lives depend on them."
"MOVE OUT!"
With Aizawa's order, the trucks began to drive forward, as the tanks followed behind them. Inside one of the armored vehicles, Momo looked out the window, and she saw that her truck was fast approaching the gaping darkness that was the entrance to the gate.
"Aizawa," the Major General, Hizashi Yamada, said. "The advance party has entered the gate."
"Worst case, if we are engaged in combat immediately, we'll just respond with the forces that we have currently ready," Aizawa said, as his friend and subordinate nodded.
Within the gate, it was pitch black. Even with the lights of the vehicles on, the only things anyone could see were the other trucks and tanks. They couldn't even see five feet in front of the road, almost as if it was an empty void between Japan and the other side.
It certainly felt like one to Momo. The temperature immediately dropped, and she could start seeing her own breath in front of her. Looking towards the front, she could see Kirishima in the passenger seat, and he was getting a bit anxious.
Eventually they saw it.
A literal bright light at the end of the tunnel. It was shaped as a rectangle, just like the entrance to the Japanese side of the gate. And out of the darkness, they found… a hillside.
The other side of the gate landed them into the middle of a bunch of hills, surrounded by dead trees to the front, and a mountain range to the back, and fog everywhere. It was the crack of dawn, and the sun was just about getting ready to peak out.
As the first tank came out of the gate and stopped, they all saw it.
Hundreds of small lights, out in the distance.
Torches.
It was a massive army, with hundreds of soldiers, both human and not. The soldiers could even see a few dozen of the wyverns from Tatooin Station above them.
"Enemy army sighted!" Kirishima yelled through the speakers.
SLAM!
In an instant, the soldiers slammed open the backdoors of the heavy trucks, and ran to find cover. Once found, they propped up their weapons, and waited.
As Momo adjusted her helmet, the sun had fully risen.
And then, she heard Aizawa's voice on the radio ordering them to open fire.
Author's Note: And from here on out, things will start to be different.
This originally began as a prompt I toyed with back earlier this spring, or so. However, I still have to finish writing it, so my publication dates are gonna be a bit… slower than usual. Specifically, once every other week.
So, the next chapter comes out on September 21st, 2023!
In the meantime, this upcoming Friday, the 14th of September, I will be updating last week's story, Megethos, so every other week, one of the two is gonna be updated. I really wanted to do both every week, but I don't have enough of a backlog for that!
For those of you that are new here, this is the third part of a series I have been working on known as "The Other Protagonists," where in each story, the main character will be someone other than our favorite green-haired Midoriya. Sure, he could still be an antagonist, a background character, or something, but not the main hero.
The first story was "When They See, They'll Understand," starring Katsuki Bakugou in a future where AI and the dead end up mixing. If you're interested in that story, the links are s/14250531/1/When-They-See-They-ll-Understand on , and /works/48272467/chapters/121740241 on ArchiveofOurOwn, respectively.
The second story is "Megethos," starring Ochako Uraraka in a reality where she receives One For All, and sinister forces are waiting to emerge. If you're interested in that story, the links are s/14273590/1/Megethos on , and /works/49782343/chapters/125662327 on ArchiveofOurOwn.
Also, if you're interested, you can leave a comment. I respond to them in the next chapter in the Author's Note, so if you wanna, go right ahead. Just please be respectful.
If you wanna know more, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz . You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and I'll see you in the other story's debut next week!
- Ernalore
Chapter 2: Meet the Crew
Summary:
It was fairly easy for the JSDF to fight off the enemy, on their home turf, no less. But now a new issue had arisen: Japan had essentially found a doorway to a whole other world, and they have no idea what was in it. It's now up to Momo, along with her newly ragtag group of scientists, soldiers, and various other professions to explore this new world. Hopefully, nothing bad will happen to them on the road... right?
Chapter Text
Chapter 2: Meet the Crew
The fighting barely lasted two days.
During the initial first day, the Japanese Self-Defense Force was able to shoot down anyone who got too close. As it turned out, bows and arrows were practically worthless in the face of M4 carbine assault rifles and the various anti-tank missiles.
After the first retreat, the enemy forces decided that they would try to sneak up on the JSDF under the cover of the night. The end result of that was devastating, as the medieval army couldn't comprehend the idea of night vision goggles and thermal scopes.
After that, they attempted an aerial assault with their wyverns. All it took was a well-placed aim from one of the self-propelled Howitzers to knock them out of the sky.
By that time, any surviving forces were smart enough to retreat.
However, the fact remained that hundreds of them had been taken casualty.
And not a single member of the JSDF was lost.
By the third day, the middle of the battlefield became a wasteland.
The opposing armies had long since retreated, and the JSDF was now able to advance. In the early mornings, while the fog was still prevalent, soldiers walked the no man's land.
Momo Yaoyorozu walked by herself in the middle of the empty field, as she heard the crows, vultures, and other scavengers flying over her head, cawing excitedly at their feast.
In fact, she could see dozens of them flying over her head, and landing down to eat. In front of her, she could see the remnants of spears, pikes, and helmets, all of them making it look like this had all come out of some sort of war movie about Sparta.
Looking over to the other side, she saw that Kirishima was kneeling down, and holding something. Upon further inspection, it was part of a wooden bow, with the string still attached.
"I heard we killed almost fifteen hundred of them," she said, trying to strike up a conversation.
"Didn't they send like fifteen hundred to Musutafu, too?" he asked, standing up.
"Yes, but only fourteen hundred of them were killed."
"So that's three thousand soldiers in total," he growled.
Momo looked at the redhead worryingly. "Are you worried about the enemy?"
"Think about it: Three thousand soldiers, all of them heading straight for the gate. They clearly didn't know what was on the other side, hence why they got wiped out so easily. What the hell kind of country sends three thousand soldiers into unknown enemy territory… WITH LITERAL STICKS AND STONES AS THEIR ONLY WEAPONS?!"
As he yelled out his frustrations, Kirishima threw the broken bow out of his sight.
As Momo walked through the beginning foundations of their base, her mind kept wandering back to what Kirishima said during their patrol earlier that day.
He was right, it made no sense. There was no way that there would be any nation in this, or any other world, that would be stupid enough to go into an unknown territory, guns blazing, and expect complete victory. They had to have done some sort of advanced investigation, used spies, anything like that, but no, they just charged in blindly.
What happened in both Musutafu and in the Special Region was a complete waste of manpower and resources. The only thing that could have come out of something like this was that whatever survivors there were would go back to their superiors to warn them of the enemy.
Unless that was some sort of elaborate suicide mission, something was up.
But she really couldn't think about it for the time being.
For some reason, Nemuri Kayama, the Major General, had summoned her to her "office."
It wasn't much of an office as it was a private tent. There were talks of establishing a permanent military base around the area, but they had literally just gone to the other side less than five days ago, so any such plans to do such a thing were a few months away, tops.
Entering, Momo saluted, and said, "You called for me, ma'am?"
"I did," she said. Kayama was around Aizawa's age, but her service in the military gave them both a healthy athletic build, but for Kayama, it also made her look like she was ten years younger than she actually was. With dark hair and sky blue eyes hiding behind her red glasses, she stood up from her makeshift desk, and addressed Yaoyorozu once more.
"I'm going to be frank with you," she said. "Thanks to your discovery, we have been able to get linguists to help us with learning all we can about the enemy, but it's not enough. The higher-ups have come to the conclusion that we need to investigate the people, ecology, industries, religions, geology, and politics of this region, among other things."
"So, you're sending someone to investigate? A recon team?"
"Unfortunately, no," the superior officer answered. "It has been decided by our oh so wonderful politicians that we should try to investigate this world peacefully, which means knowing the local language, and determining their nature, and, if possible, establish a friendly relationship."
"So…?"
"Look, it's basically like this," the glasses-wearing general explained. "We were asked to make a team of scientists, mechanics, communications specialists, and the like to explore this world, but they gave us two conditions: One, they all have to read and speak Latin, at the bare minimum, and two, they're all combat-capable; in other words, from the JSDF."
"And how many ended up fitting that criteria?"
"Only fourteen. You included," Kayama said. "First Lieutenant Momo Yaoyorozu, you have been authorized to fully command the first-ever Special Region Exploration Unit. The mission is to go out into the Special Region and discover everything you possibly can, by any means necessary, and report back to base one month after your deployment. Do you accept it?"
"Yes, ma'm."
"No hesitation, I like that," she smiled. "Alright then, come on over to my desk, I don't bite. I have the pictures and profiles of your very own rag-tag team of adventurers."
Nodding, Momo walked closer towards her superiors desk, who pulled out a file containing thirteen profile pages, all of them with photos.
"Alright, we're starting with this one," Kayama said, handing Momo the profile of a blond man with blue eyes. "This is Second Lieutenant Neito Monoma. We had him and his girlfriend shipped out of our base in Kanagawa. He'll be your second-in-command. He may appear to have an inferiority complex, but deep down, he's a good soldier."
"This right here is Sergeant Major Itsuka Kendo." The profile picture shows a woman with orange hair and teal eyes. "Monoma's girlfriend. She is an expert in hand-to-hand combat. Karate, tae-kwon-do, jujutsu, kung fu, if you can name it, she can kick your ass in that type of martial art. She has a friendly personality, and will help you reign in Monoma."
"And here we have Sergeant Major Katsuki Bakugou." A man with spiky ash blond hair and piercing eyes is the profile picture. "Demolitions expert. RDX, PETN, amatol, Composition B, Composition C, TNT, we'll be giving him all the good stuff, and then some. He may appear crude, arrogant and aggressive, but don't worry, we've vetted him thoroughly. He's good."
"The next one is Master Sergeant Ochako Uraraka." The picture has a woman with brown eyes and equally brown hair, in a bob cut. "She holds a Bachelor of Science in Astronomy and Astrophysics. She may appear bubbly and cheery, but she is determined as can be, seeing how she climbed the ranks so quickly. Friendly word of advice; don't piss her off."
"After that is Sergeant First Class Yui Kodai." A woman with black hair, also styled in a bob cut, blue eyes, and an expressionless face. "Holds a Bachelor Degree in Health Sciences, specifically in Clinical Health Sciences. She'll be your combat medic and field doctor. Keep in mind that she doesn't talk much, and has a quiet personality, if a bit… promiscuous."
"Next up is Corporal Yosetsu Awase." The picture is of a man with spiky black hair that is held up with a headband. "Holds a Bachelor of Science in Automotive Technology. He's also the genius who souped-up your vehicles for the mission, making them all-wheel drives, incorporating solar panels alongside the turret guns, and making a new type of light armor."
"Up next, Corporal Kinoko Komori." Just like Uraraka, the woman in this picture has a bob cut, but unlike her, her brown hair covers her eyes completely. "Holds a Bachelor Degree in Life and Earth Sciences, specifically in Botany and Plant Science. Her profile picture may make her look shy, but she is extremely excitable and gleeful. Fair warning, she loves mushroom puns."
"Then, we have Corporal Rikido Sato." The picture is of a man with spiky brown hair, tan skin, and big lips. "He is a British immigrant who holds a Bachelor's in Culinary Arts, so he'll be acting as your group's cook, with his expertise being in sweets. His personality is pretty chill, if a bit dull, but he is ready and willing to fight alongside the rest of you."
"Afterwards, we have Corporal Eijiro Kirishima." Despite the fact that the photo featured a man with black hair which went down to his shoulders, instead of red, upright hair, Momo knew who this was. "He'll be your radio communications specialist, both in machine operation and the codes used. He has an outgoing and confident persona, but I think it's a facade."
"Moving on, this is Private First Class Hiryu Rin." The photo was of a guy with lightly tanned skin, and black hair that was shaped in a braid. "A Chinese immigrant, he holds a Bachelor Degree in Zoology, and his job will be to document any new fauna found in the Special Region. Has a serious demeanor, but will work with others diligently."
"Following him, we have Private First Class Yuga Aoyama." The picture shows a man with blonde hair and a rather feminine face. "He is a French immigrant, who will be your team's sniper. Turns out, he's talented, hence why he's a sniper despite his current rank. He may come off as vain and prideful, but he's actually a really compassionate and kindhearted individual."
"And then there's this fella, Private Sen Kaibara." The profile picture features a man with shaggy, dark brown hair. "He holds two degrees in both Geology and Geophysics. He can flop between a level-headed personality which is both calm and focused, to a belligerent personality who'd agree to any stupid dare his friends ask of him. You'll want to keep him in the former."
"And last but not least, Private Kosei Tsuburaba." The profile picture featured a man with spiky, light brown hair. "He holds a Bachelor of Science in Meteorology. Usually, he has an enthusiastic personality. However, he's also best friends with Kaibara, so his more lecherous side might appear whenever the two of them are together. Any questions?"
"Uh, ma'am?" Momo asked, as she read over the files she was given. "No one here is over the age of twenty-seven. Hell, the oldest one of us is Bakugou, at twenty-seven!"
"Well, of course. As it turns out, the majority of your team took Latin as an extracurricular class during their university days, so they're not completely rusty," Kayama explained. "The ones who didn't either studied it on their own as a hobby, or they learned it outside of the country."
"I see," Momo whispered to herself. "Uh, one more question: This page says that we'll only be taking three of Corporal Awase's modified vehicles, each one capable of holding five of us. However, aside from our gear and weapons, I don't see anywhere where we would be able to store our food, camping supplies, scientific equipment, or well, anything else."
"And that's where the neat part comes in," the Lieutenant General said, as she opened up a box, and handed Momo the contents. "Do you know what this is?"
"Uhh… a sack? A really fancy one?"
Momo gave the bag a thorough inspection. It was small, the leather was dyed purple, there was a golden belt around it, and it had some odd-looking runes all over it.
Oh, and it also had a strap. How convenient.
"Not exactly," Kayama said. "We actually confiscated it from General Kido."
Momo gave the general a confused look. "Who?"
"The guy you spoke Latin to? Bandages covering his face?"
"Oh, right, him!" Momo remembered.
"Exactly," the higher-ranking soldier nodded. "Apparently, it's a magic bag. And before you ask, yes, we tested it ourselves. According to him, it can hold up to two hundred kilograms of materials, as long as it does not exceed eighteen hundred liters."
Momo simply stared at the bag in disbelief. "There's no way this is real. It has to be some kind of trick. I mean, the implications of pocket dimensions are just –"
"Yes, we know," Kayama nodded along with Momo. "The problem is, we can't cut it open to find out, or we risk destroying it, and this is the only one we have. So, Aizawa figured that if we can't study it, it could still be of use to us. We already calculated what you'll be taking with you. Food, camping supplies, scientific equipment, explosives, drones, scuba gear, it's all in there. You can test it for yourself. All you have to do is put your hand in, visualize what you want, and pull out."
"Okay…" Momo said, skeptically. "What have you put in there?"
"Try a pack of ground beef."
Unsure, but nodding, Momo put her hand into the bag, and imagined an everyday pack of beef she would get from the supermarket. Pulling out, she felt that her hand was holding…
"No. Fucking. Way."
"I told you so."
…a neatly, wrapped-up packet of ground beef.
"It's… still fresh. I can feel the cold."
"The best theory we have so far is that the objects that go into the bag end up in some sort of "stasis," so nothing would end up spoiling," Kayama said, as she handed a piece of paper to Momo. "Here, this is an inventory of everything that we put into the magic bag. It includes weight and volume, too. The other reason we're loaning this to you is so that whenever there's enough room, you'll put in something that is local for the Special Region, you know, to give us something tangible alongside your report. Photos, flora, weapons, magical items, whatever."
"Understood, ma'am."
"Great," Kayama smiled. "Get well-rested, and pack up all of your essentials, Lieutenant Yaoyorozu. You all leave in two days, specifically, at ten in the morning."
Eijiro double-checked his pack as he made his way towards what was basically a parking lot, passing several other soldiers on his way. Though, to be fair, it wasn't a parking lot, as it was more like a flat plane where all of the military's vehicles were parked.
Still, he could not believe his life.
In less than a week, not only did he help stop an otherworldly invasion of Japan, but he did it alongside the Momo Yaoyorozu, the heiress of the Yaoyorozu conglomerate, who he didn't even know was a member of the JSDF at the time.
And now, he was going on a mission with the very same Lieutenant Yaoyorozu!
Arriving towards his designated mission destination, he was amazed by what he saw.
Right in front of him were three trucks he vaguely recognized as Komatsu LAVs, but they were… different. Sure, they still have the turret gun on top of each of them, but…
Are those tiny solar panels on the roofs? He stopped and rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't seeing things. Holy crap, they seriously spared no expense for this mission! Next thing they're gonna tell us is that they're air-conditioned, too –
BUMP!
Breaking out of his stop, he felt something shoving into his back, as he turned around and saw a guy with spiky blond hair and scary-looking wheeling an open crate in front of him.
"Hey, Shitty Hair, if you're looking for the visitor's center, go all the way back to the gate and fuck right off back to Musutafu," he growled, before muttering, "Not even wearing your helmet…"
"Excuse me?" Eijiro asked, before he noticed that something fell off one of the guy's crates. Picking it up, he said, "Hey, you dropped your dy-dy… dynamite…" Eijiro began to sweat a bit, as he asked, "Uh, heh-heh… what else have you, uh, got in there…?"
Grabbing the stick of dynamite, the grumpy-looking blond said, "Oh, you know, C4, nitroglycerin, notepads, fuzes, TNT, glue, uh, paper clips. Big ones. You know, just the office supplies."
Before Eijiro could figure out whether or not the guy was being sarcastic, the dude simply walked away, and a new voice entered his ears. "Corporal Kirishima! There you are!"
Turning around, he saw… "Lieutenant Yaoyorozu! Hey, it's good to see you!"
"Likewise," she smiled, as she introduced a different blond man who was next to her. "Kirishima, this is Second Lieutenant Monoma. He'll be the second-in-command of this operation."
"Corporal Kirishima," the blond smiled, shaking Eijiro's hand. "Pleasure to meet one of the heroes of Musutafu. Did you shoot up any monsters? I saw the photos, they were really ugly."
The redhead winced a bit at that, but he let out a strained smile and said, "A couple."
"All right, all right, you can introduce yourselves later!" Yaoyorozu said. "Line up!"
"Fall in!" Monoma yelled, as he, and every other soldier Momo was now responsible for, stood in attention, their uniforms packed to the brim. Saluting, he said, "Ready to go, ma'am!"
"Thank you, Momona," she said, saluting back. If she was nervous, she was good at hiding it. This was her first time leading a team all by herself, and for the past two days she was freaking out on the inside. But now was not the time to deal with that. Now, she had to act serious.
"Hello, I'm Lieutenant Yaoyorozu," she announced, loud enough to be heard. "All right, before we head out, I want to establish a few rules. We're going to be the first outsiders the natives will ever see, so I want to leave them with a positive impression. That means no destroying settlements or monuments that may be inhabited or culturally significant towards them. That also means not taking anything of theirs without asking, and making sure that it's not a sacred treasure of theirs, we're not the British Museum. And absolutely no killing, unless explicitly for self-defense. I don't want these people to remember us as conquistadors. Any questions?"
A few hands went up. "Okay, let's start with you. Private Aoyama, what is your question?"
"Doesn't this outfit make me look très magnifique?"
"We're all wearing the same outfit," Momo said, rolling her eyes at the blond sniper. "I would suggest you focus more on staying alive than how you look, Private Aoyama."
"Your words might wound my heart, but they do not make me glow any less."
"Whatever helps you sleep at night," Momo said. "Private Kaibara, your question?"
"Uh, I don't wanna offend anyone, but are we really ready for this?" he asked.
"You have all been doing military service for nearly an entire decade. If Corporal Kirihsima and myself could survive the Musutafu Incident, you can all survive this mission."
"Yeah, but I was a mechanic!" Corporal Awase speaks up. "I mean, I was pretty good at inventing new shit, like our souped-up LAVs, but I've never been in an actual firefight before."
"All of you have had training in live fire exercises, correct?" the raven-haired commander asked.
"I mean, yes, but the majority of us barely know each other. I only know Sen here because we were stationed together when we got called here," Private Tsubaraba answered. "How are we supposed to work together, regardless of the fact that we all went through the same training?"
"Well, then it's a good thing that we'll all be working together for the foreseeable future, that should give you all plenty of time to get to know your comrades, should it not?" Momo smiled. "Everyone works, everyone drives, and we all take shifts as look-outs."
Sighing, the First Lieutenant says, "Look, I'm going to sugarcoat this, soldiers: Japan has a crisis on its hands. We have no idea what's out there. For the average civilian, this could be seen as the end times. However, we are not the average civilian. We are the JSDF! Each one of us has been hand-selected for our completely unique set of abilities. We have the resources and the willpower to complete this mission, and to make it back alive. Now, let's get going!"
"Understood, ma'am!" Monoma said, as he turned to the rest of the squad. "All right, soldiers! Lieutenant Yaoyorozu wants this convoy moving five minutes ago! Move, move, move!"
In less than a few seconds, all fourteen soldiers had now gotten into their assigned seats, ready to go. The vehicles blared to life, and a few minutes later, the three cars had exited the recently erect checkpoint, with the guards saluting them off to their mission.
And so, at ten in the morning, the Special Region Exploration Unit had moved out.
Thirty minutes later, they were now on the road.
Lieutenant Yaoyorozu was in the leading car, along with Awase as her driver, Uraraka as the gunner, and Kirishima in the back. Meanwhile, Monoma had the vehicle in the middle, which had Rin as the driver, Kodai, Komori and Kaibara as the gunner, and Kendo led the rear with Sato as the driver, Bakugou and Tsubaraba in the back, and Aoyama as the gunner.
Sixteen minutes after leaving the area that was the battlefield that occurred less than five days ago, the area around them had become much cleaner. There were no more signs of burned down trees, damaged weapons, dead wyverns, or the bodies of soldiers.
The sky was now much clearer, with only the occasional cloud or two in the sky, and by the seventeen minute mark, the SREU could see lush hills, tall grass, forests, mountains, and above all, a road. Or, to be more accurate, multiple roads.
They weren't paved for anything of the sort, they were merely dirt paths which showed that the locals had traveled through that part of the grasslands enough times to make the surrounding plantlife stop trying to take root there, but good enough for them.
The car ride for the most part was silent, especially in the leading car, which had Momo in the passenger seat, writing down anything of interest. Looking around, she told the driver, "Awase, slow down here. Kirishima, radio the others and tell them to stop here."
"Why'd we stop here all of a sudden?" Kendo asked.
"Look over to that direction," Momo pointed, and everyone looked. "We can't see the gate or the base from there. Heck, I'm fairly certain that the battlefield itself is now over the horizon. I believe that this is the perfect place to conduct our first series of tests."
"Tests, ma'am?" Kodai asked.
"Yes, tests," Momo said, before looking over at a few soldiers. "Sargent Uraraka, see if you can take notice of any differences between this world and Earth. Corporal Komori, please examine the local flora. Private Kaibara, I want you to analyze the soil samples. Private Tsubaraba, I want you to take atmospheric readings and find out the composition of the atmosphere."
"Understood, ma'am," Uraraka nodded, as did the other three.
"Good." Pulling out the magical bag from her side, Momo put her hand into the pocket dimension and handed each one of them their equipment to run the proper tests.
"Whoa…" Kirishima let out a low whistle. "So that's magic, huh? Manly."
"Manly?" Momo repeated the word.
"Uh, yeah. Anything I like I call "manly." It's just my thing," he said, scratching his head.
"Oh, well… that's pretty manly, I guess."
A little less than a half hour later and…
"So, what did you find?" Momo asked.
Uraraka stepped up to her commanding officer first, and showed her a rock and a stick in either one of her hands. Letting go of them at the same time, both fell to the ground.
Looking down at the rock and stick, the brown-haired soldier said, "I can safely say that this world's gravitational pull is a safe, normal, 9.8 meters per square second, ma'am. That means that this world is either roughly, or exactly the same size as our planet. Once it gets dark, I should be able to see if there are any constellations I can recognize."
"All right, do so once we set up camp. Komori?"
"The majority of trees surrounding us right now are mostly deciduous trees, but I also saw a couple of coniferous trees, as well," the botanist replied. "And the grass around us is nothing special, just your standard grass. Kentucky bluegrass, blue grama, buffalograss, the usual. I'm honestly kinda disappointed, ma'am. No new species of fungi."
"We'll search again later," Momo reassured her subordinate. "Kaibara?"
"Soil composition is just the same as back home," the geologist answered. "Feldspars, micas, and quartz, mostly, plus some pyroxenes and hornblendes, as well. I also borrowed the compass you gave Uraraka, and I can safely say that there's a good chance that the planet's core is also made of iron, if the compass working is any indication."
"I see… Tsubaraba?"
"Well, the good news is we won't die from breathing in the air," Tsubaraba chuckled. "The atmosphere is seventy-eight percent nitrogen and twenty-one percent oxygen. I also picked up traces of carbon dioxide, neon, and hydrogen, as well. The majority of the clouds in the sky are cumulus and stratus clouds, but I can assure you all of them exist back home."
"Why did you ask them to do all that?" Sato asked.
"We were asked to find out everything about this world, Corporal," Momo answered. "That includes the ground, atmosphere, flora, and fauna, as well as the people. Hence why we have geologists, meteorologists, botanists, and various other scientists on this team."
"And cook!"
"Yes," the commanding officer chuckled. "And cook. Anywho… Monoma?"
"Understood, ma'am," the blond second-in-command nodded. "Alright, back to your assigned vehicles! We'll keep driving for the rest of the day, and then make camp in the evening!"
Continuing with their drive, Private Hiryu Rin was looking at the beautiful scenery through the windows, when he noticed that the soldier across from his seat, Katsuki Bakugou, was reading something. Taking a closer look, the title read, Monster Manual: Fifth Edition.
Wait, what?
"You done squinting?" Bakugou growled.
"Sorry," Hiryu said. "But I gotta ask, why the book? Isn't that a manual from that Dungeons and Dragons game? You know, the one for nerds and socially awkward adults?"
"Then how do you know about it, nerd?" Bakugou shot back, before relenting, and saying, "Think about it: We're out here on a mission to explore a fantasy world, where literal wyverns came out of a gate that magically appeared out of nowhere and began eating people. You saw all the videos everyone posted on YouTube, same as me. So, if reading this book gives me an edge on making it our of this place alive, then I'm gonna read the fucking book."
"But… It's for a game. There's no way in hell that it'll be accurate to this world."
"Alright, don't read it. When you get eaten by a dragon, don't blame me."
"Man, you're crazy."
With the initial scans of the environment done, Momo enjoyed looking at the local scenery now that she knew that this world's atmosphere wasn't going to slowly kill her and her team.
She saw James Cameron's Avatar. She knew it was a possibility.
Still, a small part of her felt a bit of comfort knowing that even though she was technically in another world, some basic things wouldn't always stay the same.
"It sure is peaceful, don't you agree, Kirishima?"
Looking up from the radio, the redhead said, "Huh? Oh, yeah, I guess."
"The scenery sure is beautiful," Momo continued.
"With all due respect, Lieutenant," Awase interjected. "We have beautiful scenery back in Japan. So far, all we've seen are trees that we can find back home. I mean, I dunno, I figured we'd see a fairy, or a wyvern that wasn't being ridden by those Roman-cosplaying assholes."
"Corporal Awase, I'll have you know that the research we are doing is extremely vital, and that everything you have just said proves my point," the raven-haired officer retorted.
"Oh, yeah? How?"
"Well, while the trees Corporal Komori classified are also found on Earth, it still shows that there's a major chance that we'll find more flora and fauna aside from those local plants and humans existing in this world, which also hail from ours. In other words, we have a higher chance of recognizing such threats, and in turn, defending ourselves from them."
"So, you're saying that there's a good chance that we'll be fighting against regular bears instead of giant fire-breathing dragons?" Awase asked. "And, that, that's somehow a good thing?"
"Yes," the raven-haired First Lieutenant answered curtly. "I would very much prefer to combat a bear, as we'll at least know what we're going up against."
"Aight…"
"But, like I said, the scenery is still quite beautiful," Momo said. "Sunny day, clean air, not a single trace of pollution, and the best part… it's peaceful, and it's quiet –"
BOOM!
Before Momo could even finish her sentence, something crashed down into the middle of the road, faster than a meteorite, and created a dust storm from the impact of the blast. It was nothing short of a miracle that Awase stepped on the brake when it hit, and that none of the others crashed into them from the sudden stop.
The first thing she could hear after the crash was Kirishima yelling…
"ENEMY CONTACT!!!"
"Your Imperial Majesty," Moe Kamiji said, bowing before the throne. "We have received a report from one of our wyvern riders. The gate at the Collibus Hills has apparently been taken over by the enemy, and they rained fire on our troops and mercenaries. A little over a hundred of them are now fleeing for their lives. That one wyvern rider was our sole survivor of his brigade."
Just as Enji had predicted. The most rebellious of his vassals had been successfully eliminated. But now, he had to deal with the matter of this new enemy. A scorched-earth policy should prevent the enemy forces from eating the Empire's agriculture, and make them back off.
Still, the main issue for the moment was that he had no idea how powerful this new threat was. General Kamiji wasn't one to use figurative speech, so chances are they had plenty of mages capable of using fire. But so many of them that only a hundred troops escaped with their lives? And only a single wyvern rider? Something didn't add up.
Not even the Demon King to the west or the Elven Queen to the south had that sort of firepower, on such a massive scale. Sure, they had plenty of powerful allies, capable of taking down entire armies, but to have that many powerful mages together? Not feasible.
Not only that, but since Kamiji herself wasn't there, he couldn't press her for further details. The wyvern rider, sure, but that would have to wait after they recuperated. Seeing all of your allies get obliterated in front of you was bound to have negative effects on a soldier's psyche.
Still, though, it gave Emperor Enji Todoroki some time to think and plan.
Perhaps a few hours of training with Shoto would refresh his mind a bit.
Author's Note: No comments, huh? That's a new one.
Regardless, I'll still keep posting my stories. Anyways!
If you wanna know more, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz . You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 3: The Peeps of this Fantasy World
Summary:
Momo didn't expect for the thing that crashed in front of her convoy to be an angel, much less one that basically offered to be her team's guide, provided they could reunite her with her beloved on the other side of the continent. Still, her skills would be useful, especially as the local Demon Kings, Heroes, Imperials, and many others began plots as soon as the JSDF arrived...
Chapter Text
Chapter 3: The Peeps of this Fantasy World
"ENEMY CONTACT!!!"
That was not what Momo wanted to hear from Kirishima less than an hour after starting their mission. Fortunately for her and her team, the JSDF prepared them for such a scenario.
Hence, their assault rifles.
As soon as Kirishima sounded the alarm, everyone had grabbed their weapons and half of them had gotten out of their vehicles, their guns aimed towards whatever had crash-landed in front of them. Momo still couldn't see what had landed in front of them through all the dust.
Kirishima claiming it to be an enemy might have been hasty, but she wasn't taking any chances. For all she knew, the same people who invaded Musutafu had just launched ammo from a catapult at them, or some sort of monster just landed right in front of them.
Whatever it was, she would act with protocol.
Mentally switching over to Latin, Momo announced…
"Whoever is in that dust cloud, stop moving, immediately! In accordance with Japan's rules of engagement, we will not attack unless in self-defense! Surrender, and we swear that we will treat you humanely, as per international law! Please, do not force our hand!"
No movement.
"Maybe it was just a rock?" Kirishima suggested.
"Crashing down on us at such high speeds at that angle? Not likely," Awase replied.
"Shh! The dust is clearing up!" Momo hissed.
Both soldiers shut up and steadied their weapons. The dust cloud began to break up, and right in front of them was…
"A girl?"
"Hey," Fuyumi said, grabbing Moe's attention. "How did it go?"
"If you're referring to the meeting with your father, then the usual. He'll be off to train with Shoto," the green-haired knight told the princess. "He still doesn't suspect a thing."
"Good. The less he suspects, the easier it is to stage our little… takeover."
On that much, Moe could agree with her red-and-white mistress.
"Everyone, stand aside!" Kodai shouted, as she approached the fallen girl.
Upon further inspection, she noted certain physical characteristics of this… girl. Physically speaking, she was around Kodai's age. She was a few inches taller than Kodai, with long blonde hair, and skin tone that would be associated with Europeans.
However, there were a few things that were off about her.
One, was that, despite the seriously high speed she crashed down onto the ground, she was practically fine. Unconscious, and with a few scrapes and bruises, but that was it.
The second, and more obvious issue was her wings.
Aside from the sword and the full-body armor she was wearing, which made her seem like a medieval knight, on her back were two large, white, bird-like wings on her back.
It almost made her seem like…
"An angel."
Turning around, Momo asked, "Sergeant Bakugou, what was that?"
"That thing, it's an angel," the spiky-blond said, handing her a book.
Taking a look at the page it was on, Momo read, "An angel is a celestial agent sent forth into the planes to further its god's agenda for weal or woe. Its sublime beauty and presence can drive awestruck onlookers to their knees. Yet angels are destroyers too, and their appearance portends doom as often as it signals hope. Angels are formed from the astral essence of –"
"Lieutenant, you can't take this seriously!" Rin interjected. "That's coming out of an instruction manual from a tabletop game! There's no way in hell that it's accurate to reality!"
"Yeah, well, do you have a better idea of what the hell that thing is?" Bakugou asked.
"Uh, I mean, it's probably some sort of highly-evolved avian, or perhaps some sort of primate that evolved wings, something that naturally developed in this world!"
"Uh, I'm not a zoologist, but I'm pretty sure that if a mammal were to grow wings it, oh, I dunno, would probably look like those of a bat's, not that of a fucking dove."
"It's a better theory than saying that it's a human concept come to life!"
"Both of you stop arguing, NOW!" Momo barked, causing both Rin and Bakugou to shut up. "Look, we're in uncharted waters, this is a whole new world, so we don't know for certain what exactly this woman is! And we're not going to find out by you two bickering!"
"What do you propose, Lieutenant?" Monoma asked.
"Well… she's wearing clothes, so it's obvious that she's sapient. She also happens to be the first person from the Special Region to not be actively hostile towards us, even if she is unconscious," Momo analyzed the situation. "Sargeant Kodai, your medical analysis?"
"She's stable," Kodai answered. "Should regain consciousness soon."
"Alright, I want the majority of you to put your guns away," the raven-haired commander ordered. "We don't want to give a bad first impression. We'll probably need to start with some basic questions, like name, origin, and her situation. But that comes later; right now, we should set up a temporary camp here, and –"
"Ugh…"
"...or she could wake right now, sure, why not?"
"Now, for your reward, Mirio Togata!" Toshinori Yagi, one of the strongest men on the entire continent bellowed out, as he pulled out the great sword from behind his back.
"Yes, sir!" the younger blond man exclaimed, excited as can be.
Next to the two of them were the members of their respective parties: For Mirio, it was the elven archer, Tamaki Amajiki, and the witch, Nejire Hadou, while for Toshinori, it was Mirai Sasaki, a cleric who was also Mirio's mentor, and Sorahiko Torino, a rogue, and Toshiniori's old mentor.
Out in the middle of the empty plains, with the only other witness being the rising sun beside them, a special ritual was happening. One that was hundreds of years old, and one where it last happened several decades prior, with Toshinori and his own mentor, Nana Shimura.
"Someone told me this once: There's a difference between being lucky and deserving. One's an accident, the other a reward. Never get the two confused! Take that to heart, young man! This gift… you earned it with your own valiant efforts! Now… take this!"
Nodding, Mirio held out his hand… and took the great sword from Toshinori.
With that, Mirio Togata was now the newest wielder of One For All.
The first thing that Melissa saw when she regained consciousness was that she was surrounded by people. Well, surrounded might have been a bad word choice. They were clearly giving her space, and none of them were holding any weapons towards her, so that was nice.
None of them were wearing any clothes she recognized. In fact, oddly enough, all of them were wearing the same exact set of clothes. They were green, with small blotches of tan, brown and black all over them. Plus, they had vests and pouches on top of all that, too!
What weirded her out more was the fact that their wagons were also green. And that they seemed to lack any beasts pulling them. Upon a closer inspection, she saw that they had glass on them, so it was more accurate to say that they were carriages.
But still, where were the beasts?
Looking towards the people who have found her, she could tell that they were all human. However, she could tell just by their outfits that they were certainly not Imperials. Perhaps mercenaries? They seemed to be wary of her, but they didn't have any swords drawn out on her. Not even a crossbow. Just some black, long sticks… oh.
Flintlocks.
They were carrying flintlocks.
Hell, even their beast-less carriages had giant flintlocks mounted on top of them.
Alright, that made Melissa's analysis of these individuals go up much higher. Whoever they work for is either a genius or very wealthy. She didn't recognize what sort of flintlocks they were carrying, but it was clear from their posture that they knew how to use them.
Was some new model created? And if so, by who?
Questions for later. Right now, she had a few options. She could simply try to escape, but she would prefer to not spill blood. Maybe they just wanted to talk to help her? There was no way that they would simply be that benevolent. Maybe they –
"Salve ibi."
Getting out of her thoughts, Melissa saw that one of the strangers approached her. She was tall, clearly well-built, with raven-black hair in a ponytail, and seemed friendly enough. She was most likely the leader, since she was the one who said, "Hello there."
But her accent was atrocious. It was obvious that Common was not her first language.
Melissa figured that if she wanted to appear friendlier, speaking their native language was probably a good way to earn their trust, right? Using her telepathy, Melissa picked around the woman's brain, and then cross-referenced her thoughts with Melissa's language catalog.
Japanese? That's a new one.
It didn't matter. Opening her mouth, Melissa decided to go with a standard "Hello."
"Konnichiwa!"
Then the screaming began.
On the other side of the continent, the land was dark. Whether it was due to the fact that the sun was being blocked out, or it had always been like this, no one could say for sure.
Within that dark countryside, near the ends of the earth, a dark castle could be seen. Within it, a meeting was being held, with eight individuals in attendance, all sitting around a circular table.
"Thank you all for coming," the host, one sporting curly green hair and red horns, said.
"I'm going to cut to the chase," he continued. "As of now, we have successfully reclaimed every part of Daemonium that we lost in the last seven years. Congratulations all around."
The other members of his council cheered and celebrated for their victory, but were quickly silenced when they saw their leader raise his hand, a request for them to quiet down.
"Now… to my more personal matters," the host announced. "We all saw it earlier today, didn't we? The falling star in the middle of the day? I'm sure you all know its significance…"
All of his subordinates knew what that meant.
"I have peered into the oracle fire, and I know both that she has indeed arrived in this material plane of ours, and that her current location is on the other side of the continent. She seems to have made contact with an unknown group, however. Their weapons and technology are unfamiliar to us. The time to act is now," he said, standing up. "Kurogiri."
"Yes, Master?" the shadow demon seated next to him spoke.
"Send your shadow demons all throughout the continent. Every major city, every capital, every port, I want one of my spies there. I'll leave you and Shihai in command."
"It shall be done, sir," the dark elf, Shihai, said, as Kurogiri nodded his head.
"Excellent. Now… Hitoshi."
"Boss?"
"Send your messengers to my territories that are governed by Himiko, Touya, Ryo, Shuichi and Setsuna. Alert them to the news, and tell them to remain vigilant for her."
"Consider it done," the purple-haired human saluted his employer.
"Good. And now… my dear sister… Eri."
The horned girl looked up. "Nii-chan?"
"The men she has made contact with are a strange group, and given the location, I have predicted that they may have originated from the Collibus Hills. I want you to go there, investigate it quietly, and please, come back to me safely."
"Anything for you, Nii-chan!" the horned teenager said.
"Thank you, now for the rest of you, this is a royal decree: Inform your subordinates and order them to begin their search. Tell them in detail, how she looks, how she acts, I don't want them to miss her. I want them to find Melissa Shield, and to bring her here."
As all the Demon Lords bowed at the command, he said, "Meeting adjourned."
Retreating back to this throne room, a smile appeared on his freckled face.
The Demon King, Izuku Midoriya, liked it when plans came to fruition.
"WHAT THE FUCK?!"
"HOLY SHIT!"
"JESUS CHRIST!"
Of all the things to happen, Momo was not expecting that.
When the winged lady began getting up, she had gestured to everyone else to lower their weapons, so as to not frighten her. She also signed to them to give her room to breathe, and that she would be the one to make first contact. So far, so good.
She slowly approached her, so as to not frighten her, then said a standard "hello there" in Latin.
Then, everything did a complete one-eighty.
The first thing that came out of the lady's mouth was "hello" in PERFECT JAPANESE. Hence why everyone was now panicking, because absolutely no one saw that coming.
It was up to Momo to salvage this.
"How the fuck do you speak Japanese?!" Kaibara yells out. Great.
"I know all spoken languages?" the blonde woman replied, as if it was the most obvious answer.
"I KNEW IT!" Bakugou yelled out, his smile looking ferocious. "I WAS FUCKING RIGHT!"
"What the hell are you talking about?!" Tsuburaba asked.
"She's an angel! They can speak every language!"
"For the love of God, she's not an angel!" Rin groaned.
"Yes, I am," the blonde woman said.
Immediately, the shouting and screaming stopped. Everyone looked towards the winged woman, and Momo decided to seize the situation. "You said that you're an angel?"
"Yes, that's right," she said. "We know each and every language. Even those we've never seen before, such as yours. Speaking of which, who exactly are you?"
"Who am I?" Momo repeated, and then realized, "Oh, right! Where are my manners? I'm Lieutenant Momo Yaoyorozu, of the Japanese Self-Defense Force."
"A soldier, huh?" Melissa asked. "I've never heard of this "Japan" place, though."
Kirishima seems more than happy to answer the angel's questions. "Oh, we're from the other side of the gate – OW! Sargeant, what was that for?!"
"Never heard of the phrase "loose lips sink ships," Corporal?" Kendo hissed.
"You're from the gate?" the angel repeated. "Well, that explains a lot."
"Hm?" Momo hummed. "Wait, what do you mean by that?"
"The Collibus Hills Gate," the blonde said. "It's an ancient structure that magically appears in other realms, probably some old wizard's experiment gone wrong. I'm assuming that it showed up in your homeland? Incredibly large, white marble, has several blue crystals adorning it?"
"That actually describes it to an uncanny degree," Momo said. "How did you know that?"
"That artifact has been around for a millennia," she replied. "And besides, it's the only notable thing about the Collibus Hills. The rest of the area around it is unremarkable. Normal trees, normal beasts, no monsters, or anything. The only reason no one has ever settled in that land is due to the fact that the gate is there. No one wants to gamble what comes out the other side, except for the Imperials, and absolutely no one wants to be near them."
"The Imperials?" Aoyama asked. "Are they armor-wearing humans, perchance?"
"Yep, those would be soldiers of the Todoroki Empire. Entirely human, conquer with no remorse, the majority of them wielding spears and rectangular shields, all that," she said. "Every now and then, the Emperor sends his most disloyal troops to investigate the gate. If they come back with nothing to report, good. If they don't come back at all, even better."
"Itsuka, are you writing this down?" Monoma whispered to his girlfriend.
"Every single word," she whispered back.
"Wait, all-human?" Momo asked. "We saw several monsters attacking our city alongside their soldiers. Giants with horns, a couple of them even wielding weapons."
No one noticed Kirishima slightly flinching.
"They were probably either hired mercenaries or bullied into subservience," the blonde angel explained. "The Todoroki Empire values strength above all else, so they're bound to have a couple of soldiers capable of going toe to toe with even the strongest of other races."
"Huh… I see."
"Do you have any other questions?"
"I do have one more lingering question," Momo spoke. "Who are you?"
"Hm? Oh, I see. I forgot to tell you my name," the angel smiled. "I am Melissa Shield. As you can tell, I'm an angel, well, I guess technically I'm now a fallen angel."
"A fallen angel?" Uraraka asked. "What's that?"
"A fallen angel is an angel that retains their power, but loses the connection to their deities from which they were made," Bakugou answered, reading from his book. "Whether intentional or accidental, this is a permanent stain that marks the angel as an outcast."
Rin groaned once more. "Dude. It's a book. For a game. It's not accurate to –"
"Actually, he's correct."
Rin looked at Melissa with a dumbfounded expression. "Huh?"
"I was judged for what the gods perceived as a crime, found guilty, and cast down to the earth to spend the rest of my existence in exile, where I met… you fine folk," Melissa answered.
Rin simply looked gobsmacked, while Bakugou had a smug expression.
"Wait…" Uraraka spoke up. "What crime did you commit?"
Melissa simply sighed, "I fell in love."
"Awww!" Komori cooed, before asking, "Wait, that's it?"
"That's it," Melissa nodded. "Apparently, the gods don't like it when their agents go against their agendas and commands decreed by them. I rebelled against such agendas by falling in love."
"With what? A human, or something?" Bakugou asked.
All he received for an answer was silence.
"Alright…" Momo said, glossing over Melissa's silence. "What are you going to do now?"
"Well, now I'm going to cross the continent to be with my beloved. He's on the other side of the Occidensian continent, in case you didn't happen to know which continent you're on –"
"No, we don't."
"- the journey will be a hard one, especially as I have been stripped of most of my divine powers. I'll have to deal with monsters, hostile demi-humans, Imperials, evil magic users, pirates, dragons, sea monsters, other angels sent to assassinate me, vampires, bandits –"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Sato said, stopping her. "We have to deal with all that?!"
"What do you mean?"
"Our superiors ordered us to explore the land around us. We have no idea about anything out here, so we're supposed to investigate, and come back with our findings in one month," Momo explained. "In fact, today is our first day on the job."
"I see," Melissa analyzed. "Well, it seems quite clear that you're all foreigners. You're most likely going to need a guide to survive out here. Quite a few dangers."
"And it would be best for you to not travel alone," Momo said.
"Is this going where I think it's going?" Kodai whispered to Komori.
"Probably?" the brown-haired botanist whispered back.
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu!" Melissa announced. "I have a proposition!"
"A proposition?" Momo repeated.
"Yes!" Melissa exclaimed, standing up, unsheathing her sword, and pointing it to the sky. "Allow me to accompany you and your team on your noble quest! I shall provide you with both protection and information about this world! In exchange, I ask you to go in the direction where my beloved is! I shall be your guide for as long until the two of us are reunited!"
"Oh! Well, that's certainly an offer…"
"Lieutenant, permission to privately speak with you?" Bakugou requested.
"Uh, permission granted?" Momo replied, as Bakugou pulled her away from the main group.
"Take the deal," he whispered.
"What? Why?"
"Reason one, she'll act as our living map. She knows the layout of the land, and knows where her boyfriend or whatever lives, so she'll be guiding us in a straight line. This also means that we'll be able to turn back and know where to go, and what dangers will be there."
"And the second reason?" Momo whispered.
"She's a literal angel, one step lower from actual gods," Bakugou deadpanned. "Even if most of her powers are gone, the locals out here would have to be suicidally stupid to go up against her. Plus, I'm pretty sure anyone who doesn't fight us will immediately try to help us, since they'll think we're holy enough to be an angel's entourage."
"That sounds morally compromising."
"Well, what's more morally compromising?" the spiky-blond asked. "Saying a few white lies to some hostiles? Or leaving this poor girl all alone out in the wilderness?"
Momo internally debated it in her head. They had enough room for one more person, sure, but would that technically be allowed? These were uncharted waters, and a single mistake could kill her troops. She weighed the two options in her head… and came to a decision.
Returning back to her team, she said, "We accept your proposal."
Out in the middle of nowhere, between the most vile swamps and the most toxic wastelands of the continent, several individuals were meeting up for an important ceremony.
The main instigator of this meeting was waiting for the others to arrive. The air was filthy, and the only thing protecting him from the smell was his white mask and full-body hood.
Hearing a nearby branch break, he turned to see two of his associates had finally arrived. One of them was a tall man with gray hair, the other was short and bald, with a mustache.
"Nine. Garaki."
"Hari Kurono," Nine wheezed out. Kurono could see that Nine was still sick after all this time. "I see you've been waiting for us. Has anyone else arrived aside from the three of us?"
"We have also arrived," a new voice called out, causing the three of them to turn. Kurono can see Flect Turn, a member of the aquatic demi-humans known as the tritons, along with Chitose Kizuki, an oni, Maguma Iwata, a powerful fire mage, and, oddly enough, Chizome Akaguro.
He didn't think that the Great Spirit of Murder would show up, honestly.
"We're all here?" Kurono asked. "Good, let's begin."
The seven of them walked through the toxic hellscape they called a countryside for quite a few minutes, ignoring the shrieks and calls of the local monsters, until finally, they arrived.
In front of them was a mound of dirt, with a corpse peeking out from under it. If you removed both the dirt and the corpse from on top of them, someone would also find a dried-out well underneath all of that. But Kurono didn't dare move anything.
The ritual was about to begin.
"Garaki," Kurono calls out the necromancer. "The wand?"
"Right here," the bald man answers, pulling out the ancient relic.
"Good. Kizuki, the soul?"
"Right here, inside this phylactery," she said, showing him a green vial, with a skull adorning its top. "I have to tell you, it was a hassle getting his soul out of the Nine Hells. But it's done."
"Good… Iwata, ignite the candles around us."
FWOOM!
"Done," the flame-haired man grunted.
"And his heart is already in his body…" Nine spoke. "So… let's begin."
"Right," Kurono said, as he grabbed the phylactery, and placed it around the corpse's neck. They all stepped back, and then Kurono addressed them. "We have no idea if this is going to work. No one has ever tried to resurrect someone as a lich before, so, if we fail… it's over."
They all nodded in agreement. "Garaki, do it."
"Understood," the necromancer nodded. "Kai Chisaki… RESURRECT!"
In an instant, the wand chimed, and an orange, bubble-like aura washed over the entire swamplands. For a few seconds nothing happened, and then… the corpse started moving.
"My turn…" Kurono muttered, before yelling to the heavens in an ancient and cursed tongue, "KOVATALA… ZAVANASA… VAKASALA! LET KAI CHISAKI RISE ONCE MORE!"
The corpse's heart began to beat, while glowing a bright green, the same color as the vial. Soon, the entire body became wrapped up in the same bright green. But it wasn't enough. Evil spirits from all around appeared, floating around this cursed ritual, and encircling the corpse.
KRAK-BOOM!
Green lightning erupted from the corpse, causing Kurono and the rest of them to back away from the body. After the green lighting, there were green flames, ooze, and the souls of the damned erupting out of the well, all of them coming from the corpse, as well.
And then… they heard it. Laughter.
"Ehehehe…"
The body rose once more, as the insects that were feasting off the flesh flew away in terror, and with green fire coming out of its eye sockets, but still… it laughed.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!"
Kai Chisaki now walked the earth, not as a man… but as a lich.
Author's Notes: Still no comments, huh? Eh, I'm sure it'll turn around soon enough, especially now that the stage has been set, and our story can truly begin!
I also drew a reference picture for Melissa Shield, and I'll be posting it across all my platforms, so check that out, too!
But that's all for today! I've got a Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz . You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
And until next time, ciao!
- Ernalore
Chapter 4: Mushroom Kingdom, Here We Come
Summary:
After recruiting the fallen angel known as Melissa Shield into their group, the first location Momo and her team visit is... a mushroom forest. But little do they know that this forest is home to oversized arachnids, man-eating fungi, evil mollusks, and a creature capable of turning them into stone with just one look. I'm sure they'll be fine.
Chapter Text
Chapter 4: Mushroom Kingdom, Here We Come
"I must say, your vehicles are quite impressive," Melissa said, as she sat in the back alongside Kirishima. It had been a few hours since Momo officially recruited the angel as the SREU's guide, and during that time, the conversations while on the road had been lively.
"Is that so?" Awase, the team's mechanic, asked.
"Yes, I have never seen a carriage that wasn't being pulled by a horse," the blonde woman remarked. "Or a ground dragon. Or a giant bird, horned horse, giant lizard, liger, crocodog –"
"Whoa, whoa, what the heck is a crocodog?" Kirishima asked.
"It has the physical build and size of a horse, but with the physical features of a crocodile and a dog. In fact, they can even bark like dogs," Melissa explained. "They can even do tricks!"
"Huh, looks like Rin is going to have a field day over the new wildlife we'll find here," Momo remarked. "Shield-san, do you know if there's any place to rest up ahead?"
"There aren't any major settlements around for quite a bit while," the angel said. "But, there is a mushroom forest up ahead, right before we enter the desert. We can camp there for the night."
"Mushroom forest?" Kirishima repeated. "So, are they, like, as big as trees?"
"Yes, some of them even reach up to ten meters in height!"
"Forget Rin, Komori is gonna have a field day instead," Awase joked.
Half an hour later, the team was radioed by Kirishima to stop deep within the mushroom forest, and begin setting up camp for the night, while Sato prepared dinner.
However, there was one person who was doing something else.
"EEEEEEEEE!!!" Corporal Kinoko Komori, the team's botanist, squealed in delight, as she hugged Melissa in her excitement. "Oh my gosh, shroom! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
"So, I take it that your findings were fruitful?" Momo asked, in an amused tone.
"Fruitful? FRUITFUL?!" Kinoko repeated back to her. "Lieutenant, do you have any idea what we've just stumbled across?! One day in, and we've already struck metaphorical gold!"
"Really? Is that so?"
"It is so, shroom!" Kinoko smiled, as she threw her hands in the air. "Look at these! The world's largest fungus of the fruit body variety was discovered in China back in 2008, but it only got as big as it did due to the fact it was growing some really big dead wood. BUT THESE?! These managed to achieve the same height WITHOUT having to attach themselves to any trees! Hell, these things are practically trees themselves! We need to get some samples, like, ASAP!"
"Well, then, it's a good thing that we brought these," Momo smiled, as she presented Komori with some plastic gloves, a facemask, a pocket knife, camera, and some Ziploc bags.
"EEEEEEEEE!!!" Kinoko squealed once more in joy, as she gleefully took the items from Momo's hands, and ran towards the first non-giant mushroom she saw.
"What are you doing?" Melissa asked the over-ecstatic botanist.
"Collecting samples!" she happily replied. "I start by taking pictures of the mushroom in its natural habitat, and then I use this knife to carefully dig out the mushroom, so as to not damage any of it! Then, I place them into the plastic baggies and move on to the next sample!"
"Oh, I see!" Melissa nodded. "Perhaps I can be of assistance?"
"Sure! Just put on these safety gloves and facemasks! Don't know if they're poisonous yet!"
"Actually, the small red specimen you're collecting right now is a glowcap." Melissa pointed to the aforementioned mushroom. "They're eaten by sapient races, so they're safe to touch. Oh, I almost forgot to mention, they can also glow in the dark, too! They're considered a commodity."
"Edible and bioluminescent?" Kinoko was practically drooling. "Two for the price of one!"
"COME AND GET IT!" Rikido Sato yelled, alerting everyone else that dinner was ready.
"For dinner tonight, we have Caesar salad spring rolls, with miso Caesar dressing!" the cook said, as he passed around roll-wrapped vegetables and sauce. "Dig in!"
"Ugh, cold vegetables," Tsuburaba cringed. "Hope they're not slimy."
"Just be grateful there's some eggs in there, too," Rin shot back.
The majority of the Special Region Exploration Unit were all gathered around a lamp Momo brought out of the magic bag to use for lighting, since there was no firewood.
"Hey, where's Komori?" Kendo asked. As soon as she asked…
"Whoo! This was the best day of my life!" Komori cheered, as she suddenly appeared and plopped down alongside everyone else. Lifting up various plastic baggies with, she said, "Here, Lieutenant! I even collected some stem samples from the bigger mushrooms!"
"Thank you, Corporal," Momo smiled, as she took the baggies and put them in her personal pocket dimension. "With tonight's dinner done, we have plenty of room to store them all."
"So, did you enjoy yourself?" Sergeant Kodai asked.
"Uh-huh!" she nodded her head vigorously. "So many of them resembled mushrooms from back home, but they were still different! And the nature of this forest itself is quite amazing! The only plant life we managed to find was some purple double impatiens! It was crazy!"
"Well, I'm glad to see you're enjoying this advancement in your field," Monoma smiled.
"There were so many of them out there, I wouldn't be surprised if there's a new genus in them! Maybe I'll get one named after myself! I can imagine it now! Komorius Kinokous!" she gasped.
Momo was enjoying the conversation, when she suddenly felt a tug on her shoulder.
Turning back, she saw Saregeant Uraraka. "Lieutenant, I have to show you something."
Nodding, Momo got up and followed her astronomer away from the group's "campfire" and out towards the trail between the giant tree-like mushroom, far enough that Momo could clearly see the night sky. "Okay, we're far enough that the light won't affect us," Uraraka said.
"Sargeant Uraraka, what do you want to show me?"
Handing her the telescope, Uraraka said, "Look up to where I'm pointing."
Momo obliged, and she followed Uraraka's finger. Putting the telescope up to her eye, she saw… "Is that a planet?"
Right out in the distance, Momo could see a planet. It was bright red, with magenta overlapping its surface, and stranger than that, it had a small green moon with stripes orbiting around it.
Removing the telescope, she looked again, and sure enough, she could see both of those celestial bodies. While she couldn't see specific details, like what sizes they were, or what patterns they had, she could easily tell apart their colors with just her naked eye.
"Not only that, but tilt your head about forty-five degrees to the right."
Turning her head towards the instructed direction, Momo saw yet another planet, this one as gray as the moon, and somewhat reminded her of Mercury, but closer to them that she could see that it was bigger than the previous red one. Also, it had a blue moon. Weird.
"I'm assuming that these aren't from our solar system?" the raven-haired commander asked.
"No, ma'am," Uraraka said. "Also, I can't find any of the constellations."
"Well, that rules out the theory that this is an alternate version of Earth," Momo said. "So either that gate took us to the other side of the universe, or we're in a completely different reality."
"Should we tell the others?" the brunette asked.
"Sure, why not? The whole point of this mission is to learn, after all."
"Hey, Melissa, aren't you gonna eat anything?" Kirishima asked.
"Due to my celestial physiology, I don't require food to survive, along with air, water, and sleep," the angel explained. "While I still can technically eat, breathe, drink, and sleep, I don't have to."
"Well, that ain't right," Sato said. "Here, have one. I made enough for everyone, so dig in."
"Well, if you did indeed make one for everyone, I guess it would be rude for me to not have mine," she said, taking a bite. "Oh, wow! I can taste the salt and lemon! This is really good!"
"Well, glad you like it!" the chef smiled.
"All right, everyone," Momo said, as she returned with Uraraka. "Clean up your plates, brush your teeth, and get in your sleeping bags. Bakugou, Rin, you two have the first watch."
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu," Melissa interjected. "If I may, allow me to take the night shift instead. Due to my nature, I will be able to keep watch, and all of you can rest completely."
"That is a kind offer, Shield-san, but I'm fairly sure that if we did that, we'd become complacent pretty soon. But you can still keep watch with us if you wish," Momo smiled.
"Very well, I shall do that."
"Alright, Aoyama, Kodai, you have the next watch. Everyone else, get some shut-eye."
Obeying their commanding officer's orders, the rest of the squad got themselves ready to sleep, as Komori noticed something happening around them. "Hey, guys, look…"
"Hm?"
"The mushrooms… they're glowing…"
Everyone looked around them to see that, sure enough, the mushrooms began to glow in the dark. Bright blues, orange and green lit up the night, making the world around them look magical, and reminding them that they were a long way from Japan.
"Oh, wonderful," Bakugou growled. "They're gonna keep me up all night."
Komori, and pretty much everyone else, ignored the blond's usual grouchiness, as they simply admired the scenery around them, while also taking a few pictures. For research.
Soon enough, the lamp was dimmed down, and everyone began to slumber.
Little did they know that from afar, they were being watched.
It was early morning when Yuga Aoyama suddenly sprung up from his sleeping bag, with a sensation he was all too familiar with. When he was younger, he had a hard time controlling his bladder, and every now and then, he would lose control.
In short, he had to go to the bathroom. Right away.
Getting out of his sleeping bag and quickly putting on his shoes, he bolted out, headfig out of the campsite, before he suddenly felt something grab him. "Urk –"
"Whoa, whoa!" Tsuburaba said, holding onto Yuga's collar. "Aoyama, I know that you're technically a higher rank than I am, but you can't just disregard the buddy system like that –"
"Please let me go, mon ami!" the blond begged. "I really have to go…"
"Ugh, fine," Tsuburaba groaned. "But make it quick."
"Merci!" Yuga thanked his comrade in French.
The French sniper instantly bolted away from the campsite, and searched for a place he could relieve himself of his privacy. After running for a bit, he found an empty spot.
Well, not quite empty. He saw that there were a bunch of those glowcaps that Komori collected yesterday all growing in straight lines. Odd, but not the time to contemplate that.
Quickly unzipping himself, he sighed in relief. Once he was done, he zipped back up, and looked around, only to realize that he had gotten too deep into the mushroom forest. Added with the fact that there was a lot of fog this morning, he came to one conclusion.
He was effectively lost.
Mustering up as much courage as possible, the blond sniper attempted to retrace his steps, only getting even more lost in the process. Eventually he found himself in the center of the forest, but outside of the large mushroom trees, and towards an empty space… with a stone statue.
Oh, that's quite odd, the thought to himself. Upon closer inspection, he could see that the statue was clearly carved in the likeness of those Imperials that attacked Musutafu. Same armor type, same sword and shield, however… one thing was odd to him.
Why carve him with a frightened expression?
Snapping out of his thoughts, Yuga heard someone shuffling behind him. It spooked him a bit, but turning around, he calmed down. It was just a local mademoiselle.
He wouldn't admit it, but he took a good look at her, from the bottom of her feet, all the way to the top. Long, beautiful legs, a purple dress which accentuated her wide hips, short waist, and generous chest. And to top it all off, several golden… snakes… in the place of her… hair…
Before he began screaming, Yuga Aoyama made the grave mistake of looking into her eyes.
Momo woke up well-rested, given how much had happened yesterday.
Getting up and out of her sleeping bag, she smiled as she saw that Sato had already begun cooking breakfast, and that Melissa was patrolling around the campsite.
And that, oddly enough, the sky was green.
Eh, she'd ask Tsuburaba about it later.
"Oh, good morning, Lieutenant!" Melissa smiled at her. "Sleep well?"
"Yes I did, thank you," Momo yawned. "I take it there was no incident on your part?"
"No, and everyone assigned to their shifts completed them," the angel reported.
"Excellent. Alright, wake everyone else up, and gather them up for a roll call."
Melissa obliged, and soon enough, everyone got up, dressed in their uniforms, and lined up for roll call. "Let's see here… Monoma, check. Kendo's here, too. So is Uraraka. And Kodai…"
Momo went through the entire roll call, until… "Hm? Where's Private Aoyama?"
"Wait, he's not back yet?" Tsuburaba asked.
"What?" growled Momo.
"Uhh… I might have allowed him to leave camp to take a wiz…?"
"WHAT?!" Momo was now angry. "You let him leave without a buddy?!"
"He looked like he was about to burst!" The meteorologist tried to defend himself. "And besides, you told us just because we've got an angel, doesn't mean we don't have to keep guard!"
Smacking her face, Momo groaned. "Okay, fine. I'm calm. This is the second day of our mission, we're bound to make some hiccups. What's important is to fix this right away."
Turning back to everyone else, she said, "Grab your walkie-talkies and your pistols. We're gonna split up into teams of two," she said that part while glaring at Tsuburaba, "and we're gonna find our missing Private. Bakugou, you're with me. Monoma, go with Kendo. Awase and Kaibara, you're a team. Kirishima, take Tsuburaba. The rest of you, stay back at camp."
"May I be of any assistance?" Melissa asked.
"Sure, you go with Komori and Rin. Here's a spare radio," Momo said, giving her the device. "Sato, Uraraka, Kodai, stay at camp, but keep your channels open. We might need help."
"You got it, Lieutenant!" Sato said, as Uraraka and Kodai nodded.
"Alright, Private, which direction did he go?" Momo asked Tsuburaba.
"He went that way," Tsuburaba said, pointing towards the trail.
"Then we're going that way. Everyone split up into your teams, and don't stop until we find him."
Itsuka Kendo knew how her boyfriend's brain worked.
Considering she grew up with Neito Monoma, it made sense she best knew how he ticked. While most people who first met him would think of him as antagonistic, she knew there was a reason behind it. Sure, most people wouldn't say that his… rough childhood was an excuse for him to act out, but at least Itsuka knew there was a method to Neito's madness.
One of the biggest things she knew was that he would always try to top anyone he perceived as a rival; whether they were in school, or if he was trying to climb the ladders of the JSDF. He would always try to one-up them, and laugh whenever they fucked up.
But that was a double-sided sword: There were some cases where he would try to be proactive and beat his so-called "enemy" to the punch by doing something great that would get him noticed, and more importantly, validated. Unfortunately, that meant that his ego would sometimes lead to him writing checks his body couldn't cash.
Sure, he kept that part of him in check during basic training, but now that he was second only to one an an all-important mission, and two of his "underlings" had now royally screwed up, Itsuka knew what he was thinking: He would find Aoyama first, before anyone else, and he would end up in Yaoyorozu's good books, and basically lord that over anyone beneath him.
She was honestly interested on how he would fuck it up.
"So, how are you gonna fuck this up?"
Neito looked back at her with a raised eyebrow. "Excuse me?"
"Come on, we've known each other since, what? We were eleven? I know that you're thinking of a way to "get all the glory" and I'm just wondering how that plan's gonna blow up in your face," the orange-haired soldier said. "I mean, remember our first-year Sports Festival?"
"This will be nothing like the Sports Festival!" he instantly defended himself, before calming down and casually leaning on a smaller mushroom tree. "Trust me, by the end of this, the two of us, well, mostly me, will be remembered and well-documented by our teammates."
"Uh-huh, sure," Itsuka said. "And that mushroom you're leaning on can totally hold your weight."
"Hm?"
Creak… POOF!
"Oof!" Neito grunted, as he hit the forest floor alongside the mushroom.
"Timber."
"Ha-ha, laugh it up," the blond grimaced.
FWEE…
"Huh?" The young couple looked towards the downed mushroom, and they saw that the cap burst open when it fell, and now a purple cloud was slowly escaping it.
"Well, that was anticlimactic," Neito humphed.
"Here, let me help you up," Itsuka said, as she kneeled down.
"Thanks… hey, wait, do you smell anything?"
"Yeah, something… really good? Where did it come from? Neito? Oi, Neito!"
"Hey, Itsuka…" Neito asked, with a small chuckle. "Can you see that rainbow river behind us?"
Oh. So this is how he fucks it up.
"Hey, Tsuburaba, you're a meteorologist, right?" Kirishima asked.
"I mean, yeah, why?"
"What the heck is up with the sky, man? I mean, why is it green?"
"Well, back on Earth, a green sky meant that there's a lot of water within a cloud. And since this is a mushroom forest, it would explain how they got so tall," Tsuburaba explained. "This entire area is basically one giant moisture trap. It rains, the mushrooms thrive on that humidity, the excess water goes back to the clouds, and soon enough, boom, green skies in the morning."
"Is that what's causing this fog?" the artificial redhead asked.
"Eh, kinda. Fog happens when cold air moves over warm air," the meteorologist explained. "This place has to have a lot of warm air to let the mushrooms thrive like they do, but there must have been a strong wind or something earlier today, and the end result is this fog."
"I see, I – WHOA!"
"KIRISHIMA!"
Before either of them could register it, Kirishima slipped on some loose pebbles, and tumbled down a slope, where he would fall with a sudden thud, and get separated from his partner.
"Wow, this fog is thick!" Komori let out a whistle.
"No wonder Aoyama got lost in all of this," Rin grumbled.
"Well, the good news seems to be that we're on stable ground," Melissa pointed out. "It's also good fortune that we haven't accidentally run into any of the mushroom trees."
"Good fortune… or they aren't there," Rin quickly realized.
"Guys, this is Tsuburaba!" their walkie-talkies came to life. "I've lost Kirishima! The ground beneath us was loose, and he fell! I can't find him anywhere with this fog… huh? AHH –"
"Tsuburaba?" Rin grabbed his radio. "Tsuburaba, come in! We gotta help them!"
"ROOAAARRRR!!!!!"
"What was that?" Komori whispered, in fear.
"It sounded like a lion…" Rin said. "But I can't be sure with all this fog.
"Son of a – Why didn't I think of this sooner?!" Melissa suddenly growled.
"Melissa?" Komori asked the clearly-frustrated angel.
"I completely forgot! I have a spell that can control the weather!"
"ROOAAARRRR!!!!!"
"Well, what are you waiting for, a personal invitation?! Use it!" Rin commanded.
"Right, right, just give me a second!" Snapping her finger, Melissa chanted, "IMPERIUM TEMPESTAS!" and within a few seconds the fog around them dissipated.
The trio saw that they had completely left the mushroom forest, and were only on the outskirts of it by the miniature mushrooms growing around them like grass. In front of them was a gray desert of rock, with the only noteworthy things being the crags…
…and the scorpion, the size of a horse, right in front of them.
"Oh," Rin realized. "So, not a lion."
"Dude, we were so close," Sen Kaibara groaned to Yosetsu Awase. "Our shift was almost over, but then Kosei had to go and let Aoyama get lost in the shroom forest."
"Look, man, what's done is done." Yosetsu really didn't wanna hear Kaibara's bellyaching this early in the morning. "All we can do now is hope that he didn't get eaten or something."
"Fine," Kaibara groaned. "Jesus, how thick is this fog?"
"I dunno, but it's dissipating a bit, so that's good."
"Shhh."
"What? What is it?"
"Hide in the mushrooms."
Obliging, Kaibara did as Awase commanded, and the two of them hid behind some of the taller mushrooms as the fog began to dissipate. Once it cleared up a bit, the two soldiers could see two figures out in front of them. One of them seemed to be a woman, and the other…
"Holy shit, it's Aoyama!" Kaibara whispered.
The bandana-wearing mechanic started at the scene in suspicion. "Why isn't he moving…?" Suddenly, when he saw the lady's "hair" it all clicked. "Kaibara, I'm pulling rank. Shoot her. Now."
"I dunno, man, she's kinda hot, though."
"No, you idiot, you don't understand! That thing's a –"
"Guys, this is Tsuburaba!" their walkie-talkies came to life. "I've lost Kirishima! The ground beneath us was loose, and he fell! I can't find him anywhere with this fog… huh? AHH –"
Before the two of them even had a chance to silence their radios, the medusa turned her head.
"Shit" was Awase's last word before he and Kaibara were turned to stone.
Eijiro Kirishima groaned as he lifted his head up. "Ugh… so unmanly…"
Looking around, he saw that the fog was beginning to dissipate, at least, so he wouldn't end up tumbling down a slope like an idiot again. So stupid, he chided himself.
Getting up, he grabbed his gun that fell to the side and began to walk around the area, hoping to find Tsuburaba. He walked around the area, and saw that there weren't as many big mushrooms. There were mostly those purple flowers, and weirdly enough, some statues.
Lots and lots of statues.
Before Eijiro could figure out why the heck they were all carved to look terrified, someone grabbed him from behind, restrained him, and covered his eyes with their hands.
"Shh… calm down. I'm not going to hurt you."
They were speaking Latin. And for some reason… their voice was familiar.
"Listen to me carefully; you are in grave danger. You and your comrades are in the lair of a medusa. Whatever you do, do not look her in the eyes, or she will turn you into stone. Use this blindfold I'm giving you to cover your eyes. You will still be able to see shadows and basic shapes, but it should be enough to prevent you from seeing her eyes. Please, be careful."
"Wait, who are you –?"
Before Eijiro could finish asking his question, the figure was gone.
Looking behind him, he figured that they fled deeper into the mushroom forest. He also saw that they left behind a long white cloth; a blindfold. Picking it up, he wrapped it around his head, and sure enough, the fabric was still thin enough that he could see the basics.
Hopefully, it would be enough to keep him from turning into stone.
Katsuki Bakugou was not having a good time.
It began as a few small things ticking him off. First, he gets dragged onto this suicide mission. Then, one of the idiots decides to go tinkle in the forest by themselves and get lost, causing the rest of them to go look for him. Then, he gets paired up with the Lieutenant, someone he wants absolutely nothing to do with, getting lost with her of all people in the fog.
And now, they were being chased by man-eating mushrooms.
And he didn't have any of his explosives.
Just peachy.
"SHHRRREEEE!!!!!"
"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Katsuki yelled back at the tentacle-wielding mushrooms. If it were up to him, he would have stood his ground and blasted each and every one of those things with his pistol. But nooooo, Yaoyorozu ordered him to run, so run was what he did.
All he could do was hope that they would shake these bastards off, because there was something really unsettling about seeing a bunch of purple mushrooms over one meter tall moving around like an octopus on dry land, all while trying to use their tentacles to grab him.
Oddly enough, they did stop chasing them pretty soon.
Right as soon as they entered a field with stone statues everywhere.
That was pretty fucking ominous.
Elsewhere, deep within the Todoroki Empire, a young man was walking down the hallways. He had red-and-white hair, and was considered quite handsome, even with his scar.
"Shoto."
The young prince turned back to see his older sister. "Fuyumi."
"Did you hear about what happened at the Collibus Hills Gate?" she asked.
"Vaguely. Apparently, someone was on the other side with enough firepower to wipe out the nearly entire army that our father sent there. Do you think they could be useful?"
Fuyumi thought it over for a second, before saying, "The only thing we have so far are Moe's reports. Aside from a reasonable reason for retaliation against us, we don't know what motivates these people. We would need to find out ourselves."
"So, you're planning to call out to your contacts?" Shoto asked.
"Yes. Best case scenario, they could help us with our… cause," Fuyumi said. "Worst case scenario… our father stepped on the tail of a dragon, one who is far more powerful, and far more cruel than than the old Demon King could ever hope to be."
Author's Note: YES! FINALLY, A COMMENT!
And here I was thinking I accidentally disabled the comment option!
LaeItonMe: I am so very glad that you enjoyed it! Without these comments, I really can't tell if what I'm writing is good or not, so thanks for the positive feedback!
Anyways, that's all for this week!
If you wanna know more, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz . You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 5: Uwabami's Stone Statue Forest
Summary:
Almost everyone has been stranded within the mushroom forest. Tsuburaba is under attack by man-eating snails, Melissa, Rin and Komori are fighting against a giant scorpion, and everyone else is either lost or incapacitated. And the only hope lies with Momo and Bakugou, along with the pair of sunglasses they have. Oh, and Kirishima.
Chapter Text
Chapter 5: Uwabami's Stone Statue Forest
Kosei Tsuburaba was having a bad day.
And no, it wasn't due to the fact that he got scolded by Yaoyorozu for letting Aoyama get himself lost in the mushroom forest. And no, it wasn't due to the fact that because of their poor visibility in the fog, he might have accidentally sent Kirishima plummeting to his death.
No, it was because he could potentially die to a bunch of snails.
Giant snails. With arms.
If he was going to give them a basic description, they would look like snails, with them being green and their shells on their backs, except they stood upright, at almost two meters in height, orange eyes and mouth that basically screamed "evil," and muscular arms, with thumbs.
Of course they had thumbs. Because why not?
Oh, and to make matters worse, their antenna could shoot out a green snot that could restrain Kosei, and pull him towards them, as if they were some sort of biological fishing line.
There were only two things that gave Kosei hope: One was that these creeps were carrying burlap sacks, so they wanted him alive, probably to eat him later. And second, a single shot from his semi-automatic pistol to their heads was enough to kill them.
Unfortunately, he was running out of bullets.
"ASSHHHAAAA…" one of the monstrous snails hissed
BLAM!
The snail's reply was a bullet to the head.
"I ALREADY TOLD YOU FUCKERS, I'M NOT ON THE MENU!" the meteorologist yelled back at the snails. He already tried communicating with them in Latin, but it was clear to him that they were hell-bent on catching him. He only had a limited number of bullets to go around.
"ASSHHHAAAA…"
"Hey, can anyone please come and help me?!" he yelled into his radio. "I'm about to get eaten alive by these snail dudes! Kendo?! Monoma?! WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU GUYS?!"
"Come on, Itsuka, let's panic at the disco!" Neito said, grabbing his girlfriend's arm, and taking her to the dance floor, where circles upon circles of colors danced behind the purple backdrop.
"Hey, Neito?" the orange-haired girl spoke up.
"Yeeeees?" the blond asked, as the two of them went into hyperspeed. "Whoo-hoo!"
While getting sucked into a black hole, she asked, "Do you feel like we forgot something? Because I just keep having this nagging feeling that I've forgotten something."
"Hey, you forgot it, it probably wasn't all that important!"
"Yeah, I guess," she said, as she turned into a mushroom parasol, and spun around.
"Now, dance with me, Itsuka! Dance with me on this pink moon!"
Grabbing his hand, the young couple danced to the sounds of the space whales.
"ROOAAARRRR!!!!!"
"You know, I liked it better when we couldn't see!" Rin complained.
"Shut up and pull out your gun!" Komori growled, ready to fire.
In the few seconds Melissa had managed to dissipate the fog, everything went to shit. They were found by a monstrous scorpion, which could best be described as an eyesore.
The top half of its body was purple with black stripes, while its underbelly was red, along with the tip of its stinger and claws, which also had black stripes. Meanwhile, its legs, arms and mandibles were orange, with the arms also having black stripes on the forearms. And to top it all off, its tail was pink, the face was black, and its eyes were yellow, with black slit-like pupils.
If it weren't for the fact that it would have ripped them to shreds if Melissa didn't pull them out of the way, Rin would have thought it was some kid's first attempt at coloring.
Right now, though, he just really didn't wanna die.
"Hey, can anyone please come and help me?!" their radios crackled up again. "I'm about to get eaten alive by these snail dudes! Kendo?! Monoma?! WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU GUYS?!"
"That's Tsuburaba!" Komori gasped. "We gotta save him!"
"ROOAAARRRR!!!!!" The scorpion tried to grab at them again.
"Save him?!" Rin looked at her like she was inane. "We gotta save ourselves!"
"Actually, I think we can do both," Melissa said, keeping her sword pointed at the arachnid. "I have a plan: Run towards Tsuburaba's location, and whatever you do, don't stop running."
"Yeah, sure, we can do that," the brown-haired botanist replied.
"Okay, on my mark… GO!"
As soon as the angel gave them the signal, the three of them immediately ran back towards the mushroom forest, as fast as their legs could carry them. However…
"ROOAAARRRR!!!!!"
"THAT GIANT SCORPION IS CHASING BEHIND US!!!" Rin screamed in terror.
"Don't worry!" Melissa smiled. "That's all part of the plan!"
"Why did the mushrooms stop chasing us?" Momo wondered.
Alright, Yaoyorozu, think about this logically, she thought to herself. There were enough of them that they could have caught up to you eventually, so they wouldn't just give up without a reason. What happened when they stopped pursuing? Well, we entered this field… of statues…
Looking around the various statues, she saw the same thing over and over again: Frightened expressions. One quick look at Bakugou made her realize he was thinking of the same thing.
"Sergeant Bakugou…" Momo quietly said. "That monster manual of yours… the one you used to identify Shield-san… did it happen to list any creatures with a petrification ability?"
"Five of them," he slowly answered, quietly looking around the area to make sure nothing jumped out at them. "Basilisks, beholders, cockatrices, gorgons, and medusas."
The two of them quietly pulled out their guns, and with all the caution they could muster, slowly walked through the forest of stone statues. They kept walking, until…
"Oh, no," Momo whispered. "Aoyama."
Right in front of her was her sniper, completely turned to stone, with an expression on his face which showed that he was screaming in his final moments.
"Lieutenant, you need to see this."
Turning to where Bakugou was pointing, towards some of the taller mushrooms, she silently cursed, as she saw that both Awase and Kaibara had also been turned to stone.
"Lieutenant," Bakugou said. "I have a plan, but I don't know if it will work."
"Considering the alternative is turning to stone, I'm all ears."
Momo immediately regretted her decision when Bakugou pulled out a pair of sunglasses.
Kosei knew he was gonna die.
He was out of bullets, and there were too many of those snail fucks. They had wrapped their snot antennas all around him, and they didn't care about shoving him into a burlap sack anymore. He knew that at this point, he pissed them off enough that they decided he wasn't worth the trouble to cook alive, and that they would just eat him raw.
And it wasn't the type of "eating" he liked.
It wasn't fair. He wasn't supposed to die two days into this mission. He was supposed to explore this place with his buddy, Sen. They would discover new lands, slay dragons, get themselves each a harem of monster girls, and live a full-blown isekai life, not this!
A small part of him hoped these snails would get sick from eating him.
So, as they approached him, their hands at the ready, he closed his eyes, and –
"ROOAAARRRR!!!!!"
Huh?
Whatever that noise was, it grabbed the snails' attention, because they all stopped drooling over him, and turned their heads to whatever the fuck made that noise.
That's when the mushroom in front of them began to fall.
Something big was coming towards them. But what?
"GANGWAY! GANGWAY! GET THE FUCK OUT OF OUR WAY!!!"
Is that Rin?
Sure enough, Kosei could see Shield, Rin and Komori running towards him and the snail dudes. And behind them… was the ugliest fucking scorpion he had ever seen in his life.
Like, seriously, who the fuck was behind the color choices on that thing?!
SLASH! SLASH!
"Are you all right?!" Shield asked, slicing away at the snot ropes with her rope.
"Are you kidding?! You just saved my ass, thank you!" Kosei said, happily.
"Thank us later!" Rin yelled. "We gotta get outta here before –"
"ROOAAARRRR!!!!!"
Before Kosei could register what happened, the angel immediately grabbed him, Rin, and Komori, and proceeded to fly them towards the nearest highest ground, far away from the monstrous scorpion and snails, who proceeded to attack each other.
"Are you sure this will work?" Momo asked.
"Trust me, I saw it once on an Amazon commercial," the spiky blond next to her explained. "Basically, if the monster's a medusa, we just have to shove these sunglasses on her face while not looking at her eyes, and bam, she can't turn us into stone anymore."
"Fine, but we're doing this only if we run into her," Momo said.
"Shh, someone's coming!"
The two of them immediately ducked behind the stone statue of Aoyama, their pistols pulled out, and peeking out from the sides, waiting for the newcomer to show themselves.
What they didn't expect was Kirishima, wearing a white blindfold.
Kirishima? Momo slowly crawled out and whispered, "Psst! Kirishima!"
"Who's there?" the redhead asked, pointing his gun to the ground.
"Shitty Hair, it's us!" Bakugou barked.
"Yaoyorozu? Bakubro?"
"DON'T CALL ME THAT!"
"Corporal Kirishima, what are you wearing?" Momo asked.
"It's a blindfold, ma'am," Kirishima answered. "It turns out, there's a medusa living here in the mushroom forest, so I'm wearing this thing so I don't look into her eyes."
"How do you know it's a medusa?"
"Oh, uh, the lady who gave me this blindfold told me."
"What lady?" Bakugou asked, becoming increasingly skeptical.
"Uh, I dunno," Kirishima answered. "She just grabbed me from behind and told me not to panic. After she explained the situation to me, she just left the blindfold and disappeared."
"Okay, that's hella suspicious."
"Well, it's better than nothing!"
"Both of you, be quiet!" Momo hissed. "We need a plan of attack!"
"Here, I have one," Bakugou scowled, as he handed the sunglasses to Kirishima. "Since you're the one wearing the blindfold, you get to be the one to put these shades on the snake bitch!"
Kirishima scratched his head. "I guess that seems fair…"
"Shh, someone's coming!" Momo whispered, as she and Bakugou immediately hid once more behind the stone statue of Aoyama. "Good luck, Kirishima, we're counting on you!"
Yeah, no pressure at all, the artificial redhead thought to himself.
Slowing down his breathing in an effort to calm himself, Kirishima nodded. He was as ready as he would ever be. He heard the sound of shuffling footsteps behind him, and he turned around.
From the basic shapes he could see, whoever it was definitely wasn't one of the team, they would have called out to him immediately. And no one had long wiggly afros, which meant…
That's the medusa!
Immediately he charged towards the monster, catching it off-guard. Good, it must have thought its petrification ability would have stopped him, so now he had the advantage.
He instantly tackled her to the ground, and went to try and place the sunglasses on her face. Obviously, she resisted, but it was actually a small shock to see that she had an arm grip on par with Kirishima's. The two of them struggled against one another, one of them trying to keep the other restrained, while the other was trying to pry them off themselves.
"HEY, GUYS!" Kirishima yelled. "I COULD REALLY USE A DISTRACTION FOR HER! I DON'T WANT HER TO TRY AND RIP THE BLINDFOLD OFF OF ME!"
"DON'T WORRY, I HAVE AN IDEA!" Momo yelled back.
BANG!
A shot was fired through the air.
But it was an excellent distraction.
The medusa was momentarily stunned by the sudden loud sound, and using those precious few seconds, Kirishima shoved the sunglasses right on her face. "THEY'RE ON!"
As soon as he said that, the medusa pushed him off, and he landed on the ground. He could hear the fast footsteps of his teammates, and Yaoyorozu's commanding voice.
"I wouldn't remove those if I were you."
That stopped the medusa for about a second. She obviously didn't recognize what a gun was, so she wasn't afraid of the one pointed at her. She went for the sunglasses again, and all hell seemingly was about to break loose, when suddenly –
"You will do as you are commanded."
Kirishima recognized that voice.
Lifting up his blindfold, he could see both Yaoyorozu and Bakugou, their pistols pointed at the monster. He could also see Shield, with her sword at the medusa's throat, and right behind her were Rin, Komori, and Tsuburaba, all of them also having their pistols at the ready.
Raising her hands, the medusa made the wise decision of surrendering.
"All right, I guess we should start off with the easier questions," Momo said, as she sat across from their captive. "My name is Momo Yaoyorozu. What is your name?"
"Uwabami," the medusa hissed.
"Uwabami-san, may I ask, are you responsible for turning my men into stone?"
"I am."
"Why did you do it?"
"I caught the blond one urinating in my garden," she said, her voice laced with venom. "Then the fool trespassed on my property! Did he not notice the stone statues everywhere?!"
Momo decided to take a moment to glare at Tsuburaba before continuing.
"And the other two?"
"I caught them spying on me from behind the mushrooms. Like stalkers. Or perverts."
Okay, WOW, that is a lot to unpack, Momo thought to herself. All of this looked pretty bad for her and her team. Aoyama might have just ruined this lady's only food source, and while she could technically forgive Awase and Kaibara for the compromising position they found themselves in, at the end of the day, if anyone was a bit too trigger-happy, they would have killed a civilian who was only trying to protect herself and her home with whatever biological advantage she had.
And all of that before breakfast.
"Now, I have a question for you," Uwabami said, as she pointed to the sunglasses on her face. "What are these shaded spectacles the redheaded brute forced upon my eyes?"
"Oh, those are sunglasses! Basically, they are tinted glasses that prevent the eyes from the glare of sunlight," Momo explained. "And since they're dark enough that we can't see your eyes, we theorized that if we placed them on you, we wouldn't be turned to stone."
"Well, your theory has been proven correct. Now what? Are you going to have your pet angel decapitate me? Place my head in a bag and use it on your unsuspecting enemies?"
"Goodness, no! This is all a huge misunderstanding! We are not barbarians, we are simply peaceful explorers who simply didn't know any better!" the raven-haired soldier said. "Let me re-introduce myself: I am a Lieutenant of the Japanese Self-Defense Force. My team and I were assigned to explore these lands after driving off the Empire from our homes."
"Ugh, those Imperials attacked you, too?" Uwabami groaned. "I hate them."
"That does seem to be a common theme around here," Momo said.
"So, what now?"
"Well…" Momo said, standing up. "Before we leave, I guess it would be right to give the men turned to stone a proper funeral. We can't bring their bodies back with them, but –"
"They're not dead."
Momo looked at Uwabami, stunned. "What?"
"Well, technically, they're not dead yet," Uwabami clarified. "My blood, if applied within twenty-four hours of petrification, will reverse the process. All you need to do is to get a skilled healer to apply my blood on either the petrified victim's mouth or lips."
"Well, that's nice and dandy," Bakugou said, sarcastically. "There's only one problem with that: Where the fuck exactly are we going to get a healer with that kind of skill level?"
Rin, Komori, Tsuburaba and Kirishima all looked at each other, before giving the same answer.
""""Kodai.""""
Yui Kodai was a simple person.
She knew what she liked: Tomatoes, anime, and everything lewd, though she never told anyone that last one. She also liked helping others, which is why she decided to become a medic in the first place. That, plus the fact that it would help pay the bills for her other three hobbies.
However, a part of her felt like she made a grave mistake.
It was probably due to the fact that after an hour of searching, Lieutenant Yaoyorozu returned with everyone else, but with Aoyama, Awase, and Kaibara all turned into stone, and being carried by anyone who wasn't a statue.
Also, there was a lady with snakes for hair wearing sunglasses, for some reason.
"... so, to summarize, you need to apply Uwabami-san's blood on everyone's lips to reverse the petrification. Do you think you can do that, Kodai?" Yaoyorozu asked her.
She nodded her head. "Mm."
"Well, I guess the rest of you have worked up an appetite," Sato said, quickly adapting to the situation. "Breakfast is ready. It's pancakes with strawberries. The lady can have some, too."
As it turned out, Uwabami loved pancakes, especially with strawberries.
"Wait," Uraraka said. "Where are Monoma and Kendo?"
They found Monoma and Kendo sprawled on the forest floor, laughing their asses off.
Momo looked at the medusa. "Uh… Uwabami-san?"
"They must have breathed in some of the trog log spores," she said, pointing at one of the taller purple-and-gray mushrooms. "They can cause hallucinogenic effects for up to an hour."
"Dale a tu cuerpo alegría Macarena! Que tu cuerpo es pa' darle alegría y cosa buena!" Monoma began singing off-key. "Dale a tu cuerpo alegría, Macarena…"
"Heeeeey Macarena, ay!" Kendo finished him off.
"This won't cause any permanent damage, right?" Momo asked, concerned.
"Other than a few memory lapses, no," she answered.
Eh, could be worse.
The first thing Yuga Aoyama noticed when he opened his eyes again was Kodai looking directly into his face, as if examining him. "How are you feeling?" she asked.
"Terrible," the French sniper groaned. "I had the most horrible dream. There was this mademoiselle, but she had these golden snakes for hair, and she turned me into stone…"
Before he could continue, however, he saw said snake-haired woman, eating pancakes alongside everyone else. She was also wearing some sunglasses.
Oh. So, not a dream.
"Private Aoyama." He turned his head to see Yaoyorozu, and while she was smiling, her aura was that of death. "The next time you decide to go out and urinate on someone's private property, the very least you could do is make sure that you take a buddy with you. Am I clear?"
"C-c-crystal."
"Good."
"Ugh…" Kaibara groaned. "What happened? Did we find Aoyama?"
"I think so?" Awase responded, also groaning. "Hey, wait, where's the monster?"
Aoyama simply pointed to the medusa eating pancakes, ignoring the choked gasps from both the geologist and the mechanic, who apparently shared the same fate as him.
The next hour after that, things proceeded as normal.
Or, as normally as Momo could possibly hope.
After a final medical check-up, Kodai assured her that Aoyama, Kaiabara, and Awase would not suffer any permanent damage from the petrification, and would make full recoveries.
During that same time, Monoma and Kendo came down from their mushroom-induced high, and after getting the all-clear from Kodai as well, Yaoyorozu informed the two of them of what they had missed, and in what state the team found the two of them.
Monoma was blushing red from the embarrassment, while Kendo poked fun at her boyfriend, while also saying that was a pretty unique way for him to "fuck it up."
Momo honestly didn't know if that was an inside joke, or what.
Afterwards, Momo got the written reports from everyone else, including how Tsuburaba was almost eaten alive by some sort of snail-like demi-humans which shared the same neighborhood as Uwabami, and the giant eyesore of a scorpion that chased Melissa, Rin, and Komori. Oddly enough though, Uwabami claimed that no other sapient person lived here.
Which meant that whoever gave Kirishima the blindfold was a mystery.
After the written reports, Momo assembled a small team composed of herself, Sato, Uraraka, Kodai, Rin, Komori, Melissa, and Uwabami to investigate the aftermath of the fight between the monstrous scorpion, and the snail-like creatures, while also gathering some evidence.
As it turned out, it was a tie. Both parties killed each other.
As Uraraka took some photographic evidence of what had occurred, Rin tried to figure out how the hell a scorpion could grow to the size of a horse in a place where the oxygen levels were the same amount as back on Earth, which made Momo a bit curious, and asked Melissa if there were other cases of such megafauna in this world, and if so, what were they.
Momo immediately regretted it when Melissa's answer included but wasn't limited to ants, clams, cockroaches, crabs, cranes, eagles, flies, frogs, beetles, fireflies, rats, lampreys, sharks, leeches, lynx, hornets, wasps, ravens, praying mantises, skunks, snakes, vultures, weasels, toads, crocodiles, bats, bees, owls, otters, porcupines, sheep, slugs, and of course, spiders.
Because evolution thought humans had it too good, apparently.
Meanwhile, both Komori and Rin were responsible of taking samples of the various new species they encountered during this little adventure, which included vials containing DNA samples of whatever material was left of both the scorpion and the snails, along with whatever organs and body parts that weren't damaged during their battle to the death.
They even got some samples from the man-eating mushrooms.
As it turned out, Uwabami had trained the purple fungi to chase any large animals towards her home. There, she would turn them into stone, reverse the petrification process whenever she got a craving, eat her fill, and then give the rest of it to her tentacled pets.
She could hear Rin cursing about such a fucked-up symbiosis from a mile away.
The only thing that was left to do was gather some photographic evidence of Uwabami's existence because, let's be honest, even Momo understood that the scientific community would be scratching her heads on how her existence was biologically possible.
After some experimenting, they found out that if you looked at her eyes through a camera lens, you wouldn't turn to stone. The end result of that was after several photos for scientific research, anyone who had their phone on them asked for a selfie with the medusa.
Weirdly enough, Uwabami could have a future in modeling.
After all that, the SREU was ready to leave the mushroom forest.
The group had collected more than enough photos and samples, so they packed up, left no traces of their presences, and said their final good-byes to Uwabami.
"Again, we apologize for what happened to your garden," Momo said, deeply bowing. "To make up for it, you are free to visit the area of the Collibus Hills we're occupying whenever you like. Simply say that Lieutenant Yaoyorozu invited you, and we'll take care of the rest."
"It's fine. You already made up for it with the dead scorpion and snails. Now, I'll be able to eat meat for months! Plenty of time for my glowcaps to grow back!" the sunglass-wearing medusa replied. "However, I might take you up on your offer to visit this base of yours."
"Of course, Uwabami-san." With that, Momo saluted her, and headed back to the front of the LAVs, where Melissa, Kirishima, Uraraka, and Awase were waiting for her.
"Alright, Awase, let's move out."
The mechanic smiled. "Read you loud and clear, Lieutenant."
The engines hummed to life, and the three vehicles drove away from the mushroom forest, and out towards the desert of rocks and crags. As the green sky above them slowly turned into a normal blue, Momo thought back to the start of her mission.
They recruited an angel, spent the night in a mushroom forest, three of her men got turned to stone, two of them got high on spores, several more of them, including herself, were almost eaten by the local wildlife, and to top it all off, they ended with a medusa in their selfies.
And this was only two days into their mission.
What else are we going to get ourselves into?
They left.
They took their bizarre metal beastless carriages and left the mushroom forest. They didn't even kill the medusa. So, they were both highly advanced and capable of mercy.
That made them far better than the Imperials in Mina's opinion.
Grabbing her spear and mask, the tiefling followed them. She knew she couldn't catch up to them, but it didn't matter. With the help of the spirits, she would always know where they were heading, and it was only a matter of time until she caught up to them.
Mina Ashido swore to herself, she would do everything in her power to ensure her crimson-haired savior remained safe in her world, even if it was the last thing she would do.
Author's Note: Sorry for the delay! I woke up late this morning, so I was unable to post this chapter until this afternoon. Anyways, don't do drugs, kids.
And look! More comments! Yay!
ShinyZubat: Glad you're enjoying this so far. For your questions, I don't exactly know how Momo and Shoto will interact considering I haven't written that yet, but it will probably include someone getting slapped. I'm also glad you liked the mushroom forest scenes, I was intending to make it as creepy as possible. And as for who helped Kirishima out… well, take a wild guess on who it was.
Anyways, that's all for this week!
If you wanna know more, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz . You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 6: The Coral Reef in the Desert
Summary:
It's been a week since the Special Region Exploration Unit set off to explore this strange new land, and five days since the incident with Uwabami and the mushroom forest. For the most part, the trip has been quiet, with relatively few monster sightings. That's going to change as the SREU arrives to a place where fish swim in the sky, and not all is as it seems...
Chapter Text
Chapter 6: The Coral Reef in the Desert
It had now been five days since the Special Region Exploration Unit had left Uwabami's mushroom forest, and for those last five days, they had been driving through a desert.
A dry, rocky, desert, with nothing to show for it but pictures of crags.
"Hey, Uraraka, how are you holding up there?" Kirishima asked his car's gunner.
"Just keep the sunscreen coming!" the brown-haired girl called out from above. "Also, I'd like you to refill my canteen, please! I'd rather not die of dehydration up here!"
"Roger that!" he smiled. "Uh, Lieutenant…?"
"I heard her, Kirishima," Momo said, as she reached into the magic bag, thought of a water jug, and pulled out just what she wanted. "Make sure to give it back once we're done."
"Gotcha."
"Five days," Awase, the car's driver, groaned. "We've been out here in this goddamn desert for five days, and we've got nothing to show for it. No civilizations, no monsters, no nothing."
"That's not entirely true," Kirishima said. "Remember that basilisk from a few days ago?"
Three days earlier…
The crew couldn't help but admire the creature. It looked like a chameleon, but it had eight legs, a giant red rhino-like horn on its nose, was longer than all three of their LAVs lined up, taller too, and, if Bakugou's book was accurate, could turn them all to stone with just a glance.
They decided to admire it from afar.
Oh, and to make sure that the camera didn't have the flash on, as to not draw its attention.
"Okay, we have one monster to show for it," Awase corrected himself. "But that's it."
"Well, we are in the Rupes Desert," Melissa, the fifth passenger of the vehicle, stated. "This place is not exactly known for sustaining any major life like, say, a sandy desert."
"Oh, yeah, good point. We haven't seen a single sand dune, either."
"Mmm…" Momo was about to say something when she noticed something on the horizon. It kinda looked like a rock formation, or a plant. Grabbing a pair of binoculars, she took a better look, and saw… Colorful rocks? I can see blue, yellow, and pink…
"Kirishima," she called out to her communications specialist. "Radio the others. Tell them that I just noticed something interesting on the horizon, and that we'll be getting closer to it."
"Roger."
"All units, this is Kirishima," the radio crackled to life. "The Lieutenant spotted something in the distance. It could be an actual thing, so get ready to get out of the LAVs, just in case."
"Understood," Itsuka replied. A small part of her was hoping that whatever Yaoyorozu saw was actually something, just so she could actually prove herself out there.
While she laughed off the fact that her and Neito got high off mushroom spores, a small part of her was still embarrassed by the incident. Not only that, but she knew that if she felt like that, then her boyfriend felt far worse, and he would only be more gung-ho to prove himself.
Which would only end up making things worse.
Not only that, but that was one of the few things the entire squad was talking about. The only other topics of interest were the giant scorpion and the snail monsters, and honestly, most people were pretty uncomfortable with the fact those things existed.
And sure, she could relate. Realizing that humans aren't anywhere near the top of the food chain in this world was a bit of an unnerving fact, so of course rather than that shit, everyone would try to find something light-hearted to think about.
Even if it came at the expense of someone else's dignity.
So really, for everyone's sake, Itsuka hoped that whatever Yaoyorozu saw was actually something. Hopefully, that would mean at least a new thing to talk about.
"Oh, hey, I can see it!" Awase said.
Whatever Momo saw, it was far closer than before. It was a location, alright. She could see blue and yellow structures that somewhat reminded her of the mushroom forest, along with pink branches. Honestly, the height itself made it seem like another forest.
As they drove even closer to it, she saw even more things…
"Yo, Lieutenant, do you see those things flying around them?"
"I can, Awase," she replied. She could see them alright. Whatever these things were, they were alive, and they always stayed close to the colorful structures. Maybe they were birds?
Grabbing her binoculars once more, Momo took a closer look at whatever was flying around the structures. Let's see, they're a bluish-silver, they move from side to side, they have fins –
That immediately made her do a double-take.
"Wait a minute, are those… FISH?!"
"WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?!"
For some sad reason, Momo knew those would be Rin's first words.
Five minutes after the squad leader realized that there were FISH FLYING IN THE SKY, she radioed the other vehicles to keep driving, and to follow her. Ten minutes after that, they found an entrance that allowed their vehicles to fit inside, and some observations became clear.
The colorful things were not some weird rocks, or some man-made structure, those were coral. And those things that were flying, or more accurately, swimming in the sky were fish.
They had entered a coral reef.
In the middle of the desert.
Where there was no water.
What the fuck?
"Private Rin," Momo called out to him. "You're an expert in zoology. Care to explain… this?"
"Explain?" He looked at her like she was crazy. "EXPLAIN?! HOW THE FUCK AM I SUPPOSED TO EXPLAIN THIS?! THIS SHOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE! FISH FLYING IN THE SKY?!"
"They're actually swimming in the sky," Kodai pointed out.
"My point still stands! This violates so many laws of natural science! Like, for example, what the hell is keeping the fish swimming through the air in the first place?! This place acts like there's water, but we can clearly breathe out here! Hell, there's not even a change in gravity to mimic the effects of being underwater! Second off, how are they breathing?! Fish gills are designed to take in water and filter out oxygen! They're not designed like lungs, they can't breathe in air! Finally, what the hell is keeping them and their epidermal mucus from drying out in this desert sun, WHEN THERE'S NO GODDAMN WATER TO BEGIN WITH?!"
It was at this moment Momo realized Rin was having a mental breakdown.
She needed to salvage this. Fast.
"Shield-san." Momo looks toward their resident angel. "Since you're a local to this world, perhaps you may know how this environment is at all possible out here?"
"Hmm…" Melissa thought about it a bit, before responding with, "Magic."
"THAT EXPLAINS NOTHING!" Rin snapped at her.
"OKAY!" Momo clapped her hands, trying to diffuse the situation. "Since we have five competent scientists in our ranks, how about we use them? Uraraka, an explanation to how physics around this works would be nice, and Tsuburaba, assist her. Kaibara, take some soil and earth samples. Komori and Rin, see if you can identify any of the local flora and fauna."
"And the rest of us, Lieutenant?" Monoma asked.
"The rest of you can form teams of three and scout the area around us. Awase, Monoma, and Bakugou, take the eastern path. Melissa, Kirishima, and Kodai, take the east. Kendo, Aoyama, and Sato, you will take the path in front of you. Report back in an hour."
And with that, everyone got to work.
As the fish swam around them in the air, Awase had to admit, this was a nice change of scenery. Compared to the desert they had been traveling for the past five days, this place was an explosion of bright colors and beautiful creatures.
It looked like they were on an alien planet, and yet, all of the fish that were swimming past him were definitely the types he had seen in an aquarium back in Japan. It kinda reminded him of Uwabami's mushroom forest; familiar, but with a twist to it.
The twist this time around being that both he and the fish could breathe in the same place.
"Look alive, boys," Monoma commanded them. "Who knows what's out there…"
"Uh, I'm pretty sure it's fish," Awase said. "And maybe some starfish, and the occasional crab. On, and I'm pretty sure I saw one of those rock lice you find in tidepools scuttling about –"
SMACK!
"Ow! Bakugou, what the hell was that for?!"
"Idiot! Did you already forget what happened to you the last time we were in a forest of weird shit?!" the demolition expert asked. "You were turned to stone! Hell, I was almost eaten by some goddamn fungus! And both of those things happened because we were woefully unprepared for what was in that forest! This place could be no different!"
"Bakugou's right," Monoma replied. "None of us had any idea that there were so many things in that forest that could kill us. For all we know, this place has just as many dangers…"
"RRRRR…"
"Speak of the devil."
"Take some pictures, Aoyama," Kendo said. "Aizawa's gonna flip when he sees this."
"Oui," the French sniper agreed, as he took some photos of the local fauna.
"You think I could make some sushi out of these fish?" Sato asked.
"Absolutely not!" Kendo looked horrified at the suggestion. "These are reef fish! They're already endangered back on Earth, do you really wanna start reducing their populations here, too?! And besides… don't you remember basic biology from middle school? Animals with this sort of coloration tend to be poisonous. Remember those poison dart frogs?"
"Yeah… that was a bad call."
"There is a saying I recall known as, "Take only pictures, leave only footprints," Monsieur Sato," Aoyama said. "Of course, we will be taking more than a few pictures ourselves, but we'll only be taking what we need for scientific research, and nothing more."
"That's right, Aoyama," Kendo smiled. "We'll…"
"Hm?" Both Sato and Aoyama noticed she stopped talking. "Kendo?"
"We're being watched."
"Mm," Kodai hummed, as she pointed to a… "Starfish."
"Yep, it's a starfish alright," Kirishima nodded. "Big and orange one, at that."
Kodai pointed at something again. "Crab."
"Yeah, that's definitely a crab. It's also orange."
"Octopus."
"Let me guess, Kodai…" Kirishima sighed. "It's also orange?"
"Yellow. With red rings."
Okay, that got Kirishima's attention.
Turning towards where Melissa was pointing, he saw that, floating out of the coral crevices, was an octopus, around a meter in size, with a dull yellow skin tone, and with dozens of red rings adorning its body. It seemed to be observing the group, curiously.
"Hey there," Melissa said, as she got down on her knees, in an effort to appear less threatening. "Come on out, little guy. My friends and I won't hurt you. Promise."
The octopus slowly floated towards them, approaching Melissa. Kodai made sure to record the interaction on her phone, as Kirishima made sure not to make any sudden movements.
Eventually, the octopus stopped right in front of them, lifted up one of its long tentacles, and waved. In turn, Melissa gave it a small smile, and waved back. Kirishima, deciding to follow suit, lifted his hand as well, to wave, but before he could register it…
…the octopus touched his hand.
He didn't panic. Melissa didn't show any signs that this was a bad thing, and the octopus didn't seem like it was trying to grab him, more like, it was trying to get a feel of him. Kirishima figured it was trying to shake his hand, but in its own octopus-like way.
Slowly, Kirishima gave it his own, big smile.
FWOOM!
In an instant, the octopus darted away, back into the crevice, and into hiding. Kodai stopped the recording, and Melissa got up. Kirishima wondered for a second if his smile scared it away, when he heard some sound coming from the sand, approaching them.
Footsteps.
Turning their heads, the three of them saw a newcomer approach. He was tall, and definitely bulky. In fact, due to the fact that he wasn't wearing a shirt, they could see his rock-hard abs. But he was at least wearing a blue jacket, with gauntlets, a darker shade of pants, and a yellow-and-black bandana covering part of his spiky white hair, kinda like Awase.
He waved towards them. "Hello there!"
Switching to Latin, Kirishima greeted him first. "Hey! My name's Kirishima! What's yours?"
"I'm Desutegoro, but you guys can call me by my adventurer name, Death Arms!"
"An adventurer?" Kodai asked. "Like, ones that explore dungeons?"
"Yep, that's us!" Death Arms smiled, pointing at himself. "Explore dungeons, slay dragons, save princesses, all that kind of stuff! When you need heroes-for-hire, we're the guys you hire!"
"That is so manly!" Kirishima's eyes had stars in them.
"What are you doing here?" Melissa asked.
"I should be asking you the same thing!" Death Arms pointed a finger at them. "An angelic paladin, and two human fighters, here, in the Corallium Forest, of all places? If I was a betting man, I'd say that you're adventures, too, and you're here for the shrine's magical map!"
""The what?"" Both Kirishima and Kodai were now confused.
"Oh, I guess that you're not there for that, then. But I guess it wouldn't hurt to tell you about it," Death Arms murmured. "In the center of this coral forest, there is a large tree, and in front of it, a shrine. Etched in it is an up-to-date map of the continent. Legends say that the shrine always updates itself whenever a new part of the world is discovered, whenever new countries are created, or when new borders are drawn. It even never runs out of ink. So, the only thing a person would need is a piece of parchment to get themselves a copy of that map."
Kirishima, Kodai, and Melissa all looked at each other for a few seconds before Kirishima asked, "Could you please give us a moment?" Then, they immediately huddled.
"Guys this is huge," the artificial redhead whispered. "A literal map of the continent? And one that is that up-to-date?! The Lieutenant would kill for something like that!"
"Agreed," Kodai whispered back. "Need to obtain it."
"Guys…" Melissa said, worryingly. "I'm not sure about this…"
"Kodai, you got any paper on you?" Kirishima asked.
"Mm-hm. I have a roll used for headrests, but it can be used for this…"
"Alright, let's do this," Kirishima smiled, as the huddle broke up. Turning back to the adventurer, he asked, "Ahem… would it be alright if we accompanied you to this tree?"
"Sure, the more the merrier! Follow me!"
The three of them followed the white-haired man through the coral reef, two of them excited at the prospect of such a valuable item, while the angel of the group…
Melissa didn't know why, but something was off about that Death Arms guy.
"Alright, what have you found so far?"
It had been half an hour since Momo ordered the three teams to explore deeper into the coral forest. Since that time, the science team she stuck around with made as many observations about the environment as they could. Time to see the fruits of their labor.
"Well, Rin's observations about there being no water were right on the money," Uraraka said.
"How do you figure that?"
Uraraka proceeded to open her canteen of water, and pour some of it onto the ground. "The water isn't being absorbed into the atmosphere by any kind of magic, it's just falling to the sand at a normal 9.8 meters per square second. This would imply that all the living things in this ecosystem have somehow evolved to survive with seemingly no water. Also, for why the fish are able to fly, my current guess would be some sort of force field, but I'll need more data."
"I see. Tsuburaba?"
"All the clouds around the area seem to be cumulus type, with the occasional nimbostratus. My best guess is that any water that shows up here gets evaporated as normally, and then when it rains, this… coral forest absorbs whatever it needs to survive, and the rest of it gets evaporated again. So, there's a good chance this place still needs water to survive, but just a small amount."
"Okay. Kaibara?"
"The sand here is the same type of sand we'd find on a coral reef back on Earth," the geologist explained. "It's fine sand mostly composed of calcareous fragments of biogenic origin. I also did some analysis on the coral, and the base of it all seems to be made of limestone deposits."
"I'm going to need the terminology of some of those words you said."
"Calcareous fragments are made up of calcium and magnesium, like the limestone. Stuff that's biogenic means that it was made by once-living things, ma'am," Kaibara answered.
"Thank you," Momo said, as she turned to the botanist. "Komori?"
"Well, considering that it's a coral reef, the majority of the creatures here are all animals. However, I did manage to find some sea lettuce, a type of edible green algae," she said, showing the baggied sample. "I also noted that the algae was healthy and showed no signs of dehydration, which, given where we are, is honestly kind of baffling."
"I can imagine. Rin?"
"Okay, so I decided to just identify any type of animal I found, because if I tried to figure out how they're all surviving out here in the desert, I would probably go insane," the zoologist said.
"Good call. What did you find?"
"The majority of the coral and other sedimentary life here are ones that can be found back home. The pink branch-like ones are known as precious coral, the purple tube-like ones are stove-pipe sponges, the small green ones are a type of plate coral, and I saw a lot of different types of table elkhorn, and staghorn coral, of various colors, too," Rin said. "But aside from the fact that some of those corals were way larger than normal, I also saw some that looked more like freaky mushrooms or something else completely, that I honestly couldn't identify. Maybe an expert in marine biology could, or maybe they're just coral native only to this world."
"And the non-sedimentary animals?"
"The ones I could identify were all native to Earth. In terms of invertebrates, we had sea lice, red boxing crabs, orange sea stars, and in terms of fish, we have clownfish, moorish idols, píntanos, blue drummers, blue tang… and do you see those giant fish swimming above us right now?"
Momo looked up to where Rin was pointing, and she could see that up above her, there were two giant gray fish with barely any tail, and the most odd of fins moving above them.
"Those are ocean sunfish, also known as common molas."
"Wow," Momo whispered. Nature truly was amazing.
"This is Monoma, come in!" Momo's radio suddenly crackled. "We have an army's worth of hostiles surrounding us! My count's at least two dozen of them! Requesting backup, NOW!"
Momo's, along with everyone else's eyes, widened at the implications. Immediately, the black-haired woman got into action. "Uraraka, with me. The rest of you, stay here!"
"Yes, ma'am!" the brown-haired soldier nodded, grabbing her assault rifle, and followed her commanding officer down the path she sent her soldiers earlier.
Hopefully, they will make it in time.
"This is Monoma, come in!" Itsuka's radio suddenly crackled. "We have an army's worth of hostiles surrounding us! My count's at least two dozen of them! Requesting backup, NOW!"
Neito, Itsuka's mind immediately jumped to. "Aoyama, Sato, we have to –"
Before she could even finish her order, both she and Aoyama saw something that first made them do a double-take, and then made them freeze in horror.
Sato was being held down by two wolf-like creatures.
Their bodies had a purplish-gray coloring, while their muzzles and legs were white. They also possessed large eyes, long tongues, and sharp teeth. In fact, Itsukua would have mistaken them for wolves, if it wasn't for the fact that they had spots and cat-like tails.
And two of them had managed to pin Sato to the ground.
Without either her or Aoyama hearing them.
Ituska felt so stupid! She literally warned them that something was watching them, but then the second someone called them for help, she immediately let her guard down, and this was the result! One of her teammates was almost dragged off to become puppy chow!
It was now a stalemate. Neither party knew what to do. The wolf-monsters were caught in the act, and they knew it, but the humans simply stared at what they were doing in confused horror. Even Sato didn't know what exactly happened. One moment he was standing, the next… this.
No one moved a muscle. But then… one of the wolf creatures opened its mouth.
"Uhh… woof… awkward…" it growled out.
That immediately made Itsuka's blood pressure spike through the roof.
Those things could talk. Meaning they were intelligent. They were capable of planning, and executing a strategy, and they were smart enough to grab Sato while no one was looking.
"Uhh… woof… Bye-bye."
FWOOM11!
Before either Itsuka or Aoyama could comprehend what the hell just happened, the two beasts sunk their fangs into Sato's body, dashed off at the breakneck speed of a cheetah, dragging Sato along with them, as he stirred up a bunch of dust while being dragged away.
"HEEEEELP!!!"
"SATO!!!"
For most of his life, Katsuki Bakugou hated it when he was right.
Sure, it was fun in grade school. But once he got into junior high, that shit got old, real fast. Now, the only times he ever felt satisfied with his ability to always be right was when he was trying to make a point to some idiot. But this was not one of those moments.
Because, once again, he was right about something.
This coral forest was infested with hostiles.
"GOGEKO GAKEKO!!!"
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
He, Monoma and Awase were now surrounded by no less than two dozen furry monsters with huge-ass teeth. The best way to describe them was as if they were those yellow Minion things, but without eyes, taller than the average person, way stronger arm muscles, claws, and their fur colors ranging anywhere from a pale white, to a dark blue, to sickly green, and brown.
Hell, he even saw a pink one with those animal patterns found on rugs.
"RRR… GAKEKO!!!"
They were all jumping around the place, roaring at them, and screaming some sort of gibberish. The ones that got closer to them got shot, but they weren't letting up.
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
"Ugh, there's too many of them! And they are not even fazed when they see their buddies get shot up!" the bandana-wearing guy complained. "At this rate, they'll be able to surround us, and then pick us off one by one as soon as our assault rifles run out of ammo!"
"Well, if we need to get rid of them in one fell swoop, then I have the perfect solution!" Katsuki grinned, as he opened up his satchel and pulled out a grenade. "One frag, comin' right up –"
"NO, DON'T!"
Katsuki turned around to his commanding officer. "Why the fuck not?!"
"Look around us!" Monoma yelled, waving his hands all over the area. "If you set off an explosion, it could destroy parts of this ecosystem and the habitats of various wildlife!"
"With all due respect, our priorities seemed to be a little fucked-up, sir!" Katsuki said that last part with a hint of sarcasm. "You'd rather let those things eat us than risk some coral?!"
"Just keep shooting them until help arrives!" he barked. "That is an order!"
Katsuki groaned, but obliged. Sure, he might be loud, crude and rude, but he isn't the type to be insubordinate. So, he kept shooting at the furry eyeless fuckers, until…
"RAARRR!!!!!" One of the bigger ones, with horns on its head and wearing leaves all over its body like some kind of makeshift clothes, charged towards them.
"BAKUGOU!" He could hear Awase yelling for him.
He didn't have time to react, to shoot.
But he did have enough time to see his life flash before his eyes.
This was it, wasn't it? This was how he was going to die. He was going to get eaten alive by some furball, an entire world away from his country, from his home, from his parents, and from –
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
"Huh?"
Before he could even register what happened, Katuski saw the giant furball get riddled with bullet holes all around the head area, and fell down onto its belly, head-first into the sandy floor.
PLOP!
From behind the dead monster, he could see her.
Yaoyorozu.
In an instant, she and Uraraka started firing at the monsters from behind them, scaring them, and promptly making the majority of them run away as fast as possible.
They were gone. He was alive.
He was gonna make it back home.
As the remaining SREU troops waited by the cars, Kosei looked over to his best friend. "Hey," Kosei said, grabbing Sen's attention. "You ever wonder why we're here?"
"You mean why are we here, in this world? I guess it's because we were the most qualified, but I personally like to think that we're here to fulfill our purpose," Sen said. "To get ourselves each a monster harem, bro! From elves, to onis, to sexy witches, we're gonna catch 'em all!"
As the two boys laughed, Uraraka simply groaned in annoyance. "Ugh. Boys."
Author's Note: Okay, confession time. The mushroom forest from the previous chapter was inspired by that one episode of the old "Dungeon and Dragons" cartoon from the 1980s, and the coral forest for this chapter is from the first episode of the second season of "Princess Connect! Re: Dive," just to let you all know.
Also, I can't believe I'm saying this, but for the love of all that is holy, please be respectful in the comments. So, nothing trollish, or criminal. I won't even acknowledge them, as I'd rather respond to actually good critiques. Speaking of which…
ShinyZubat: Yeah, one of the common themes of this story is that any characters that didn't have a conventional human look in canon will be a completely different species here, with Mina being a tiefling and Uwabami being a medusa. But I'm glad you liked Uwabami. And as for Mina and Kirishima's relationship, that's a surprise for later. And as for the Imperials… well… yeah, honestly, no one likes them, including themselves.
And now, for the last bit of shilling…
I also drew a piece of art depicting Uwabami as a medusa back when I originally wrote this chapter a few months back, and it'll be on my Discord, along with some of the MHA subreddits (I still don't know how to paste images into AO3), so check it out!
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz . You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 7: Octopuses, Octopi, or Octopodi?
Summary:
Everything went to hell in an instant. After saving Monoma and his team from a bunch of eyeless monsters, Momo now had to deal with a couple of wolf-like monsters dragging off her cook, and even worse, a bunch of ghosts haunting the coral forest. And Momo's only hope of getting her entire squad out of here are... a bunch of cephalopods? What?!
Chapter Text
Chapter 7: Octopuses, Octopi, or Octopodi?
"HEEEEELP!!!" Sato kept screaming as the wolf-monsters dragged him off.
Itsuka's mind was going a kilometer a minute. Two of those wolves were fast enough that they could drag someone like Sato off with them, and they would still be able to outrun an athlete. There was no way in hell Itsuka would be able to catch them on foot.
"Aoyama, I need your help!"
The French blond nodded, ready to do anything to help.
"Get on top of that blue coral!" she said, pointing at the tall one that sort of resembled a mushroom. "It should have a good enough view for you to be able to use your rifle!"
"Quoi?!" he exclaimed, looking shocked. "But I might hit Monsieur Sato!"
"It'll be a better death than whatever those things will do to him, trust me!"
Following her orders, Aoyama climbed up the blue mushroom-like coral, propped up his M26 sniper rifle, looked through the scope, and saw Sato being dragged off by those beasts.
He wasn't called a sniper prodigy for nothing. In mere seconds, he calculated where his comrade would be, in order to avoid hitting him, while also finding the best parts of the wolves to target, ensuring that they would stop dragging Sato off. He could do this.
So, with a deep breath, he pulled the trigger… and fired.
"What the hell happened here?!" Momo demanded to know.
As soon as she and Uraraka took off to find Monoma's group, they could hear their assault rifles going off constantly. Heck, it was how they managed to find the trio so quickly.
Sure, she heard the distress call. Monoma's group was attacked by two dozen hostiles. But she was imagining a group of marauding humans, not some oversized stuffed animals.
"Ma'am, it all just happened so fast," her second-in-command began to report. "We were just exploring the area you assigned to us, when we suddenly heard some growing. One voice became two, then four, then eight, until we found ourselves surrounded by at least two dozen of them. They were hiding all around the coral, using the colors to camouflage themselves, and then they attacked. It was only thanks to our rifles we kept them off us as long as we did."
Momo looked around her, and started counting the corpses of the colorful monsters. "And even with all our combined efforts, we only managed to kill ten of them."
"Ma'am, their hides were like pillows," Awase said. "The type of pillows which are so fat and fluffy, even the speed of bullets gets slowed down by them. Their only vulnerable spots were their arms and stomachs. We would have to hit them at the same area constantly just to even leave a scratch on them. The three of us almost ran out of bullets trying to just kill those things."
Well, technically, the backs of their necks are also vulnerable, considering that's where myself and Uraraka aimed. Momo decided to let Awase finish before she brought that up.
"Bakugou considered throwing a grenade at them, but Monoma talked him out of it," Awase continued. "Something about damaging the environment, or something."
"Good call, Monoma." Momo looked around and summarized, "So, we have a species of large predatory monsters, capable of blending into their environment, and with fur so… furry… that most of their bodies are basically gunfire resistant, sans for three weak points."
"Three, ma'am?"
"Their underarms and underbellies, as stated by you, along with the area in the back of their heads where their spines connect to their skulls," Momo explained. "Sargeant Uraraka and myself aimed for those areas, and honestly, it was a miracle that it even worked. Now then, it's best we gather some photographic evidence of these things, and…"
POW!
Everyone immediately turned to the sound of the loud noise, but saw that no one in their group shot their weapon. Whatever that noise was, it came from over the distance.
POW!
Another shot fired. This time, Momo was able to ascertain that it was coming from the opposite end of the coral forest. "That's the sound of an M24, ma'am," Awase realized.
An M24. A sniper rifle.
Aoyama's weapon of choice.
Kendo!
Grabbing her radio, Momo said, "Sargeant Kendo, this is Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, do you read me? We heard shots fired. What happened? What is going on over there?"
Way before the shots were fired, Itsuka Kendo had run after her comrade.
She knew it would take a bit for Aoyama to get into position, so she did what she could do. She was a star athlete, so she ran after those wolf creatures as fast as humanly possible.
She saw them within her line of sight when the first shot fired. It was a direct hit to the side, making the wolf monster drop dead instantly. The second one was technically a miss, as it merely hit the tail, but it was enough to make it drop Sato and run off.
"Sato! Sato, are you all right?!"
"Oww…" the cook groaned. "I think my legs have friction burns…"
"Hmm… you're bleeding from the arms…" Itsuka analyzed. "How do you feel?"
"Like shit."
"Heh," she chuckled softly at that. "Yeah, I think you'll live."
Itsuka suddenly felt her radio begin to buzz. "Sargeant Kendo, this is Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, do you read me? We heard shots fired. What happened? What is going on over there?"
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, we had an encounter with some hostiles," the orange-haired soldier reported. "We got rid of them, but Sato is injured. Repeat, Sato is injured."
"I read you, Kendo. Stay there, my team and Monoma's are on the way."
"Read you loud and clear, over."
It had now been thirty minutes since Kirishima, Melissa, and Kodai decided to follow Death Arms to the magical shrine located in the center of the coral forest.
So far, the view was worth more than any conversation they could strike. The deeper they went into the forest, the taller the coral seemed to have gotten. They had seen entire schools of fish swim above them in the sky, and they even managed to climb up to these giant green and yellow coral pads, almost like giant mushrooms, to keep up the hike.
And the more they walked on top of the giant coral, the more of the reef they saw. They saw oversized versions of native Earth coral, and even types that seemed too bizarre for the likes of Earth. And walking through an alien environment that looked like it came straight out of a science fiction movie, it truly reminded them that they were indeed in a fantasy world.
"So, Death Arms," Melissa asked. "You said you're an adventurer. Do you have a party?"
"I did have a party, once," the white-haired man answered. "Four of us, and we all had nicknames. Me, Native, our ranger, Takeshita was our druid, and our wizard, X-Less."
"You all sounded close," she said. "What happened to them?"
"Oh, they're still around, in a way."
All that did was raise Melissa's suspicions even further.
"Here it is," Death Arms said, as he stopped walking.
They had arrived.
"Kendo!" Momo called out to her subordinate.
"Lieutenant!" she smiled. "It's good to see you!"
"What exactly happened here?" she asked. Momo had just noticed Aoyama running towards the group with his sniper rifle in hand, along with the dead creature next to a wounded Sato.
"We got so distracted by Monoma's distress signal, that we failed to notice these things," Kendo said, gesturing to the dead monster, "who managed to pin down Sato to the ground without making a single sound. They even began to drag him off, most likely to eat him."
"What exactly are they?"
"I dunno, they barked like dogs every now and then, but even weirder than that, they seemed to be capable of speech, even if it was a bit crude," the orange-haired soldier said. "Also, they're extremely fast. Two of them were able to outrun me while dragging Sato off for dinner. If it wasn't for Aoyama's marksmanship, we probably would have lost our cook."
"How badly hurt is Sato?"
"His legs have a few friction burns from when they were dragging him, and the little bastards sunk their teeth into his biceps to drag him off. There may be some blood, but I don't think that their teeth got too far in. But then again, I'm not a doctor. You'll have to ask Kodai about this."
Kirishima knew that this image would be ingrained into his mind forever.
In front of them was a giant tree, one they had never seen the likes of before. Its trunk twisted and turned, with the color of its wood ranging from a light pink, to a dark purple. The leaves on the tree were also of various colors. Blue, pink, yellow, orange, and purple, all of those colors adorned the leaves, as various small pieces of coral made the trunk their home.
It was truly beautiful. Something that would make most adults cry with how beautiful it was, and Kodai made sure to get many, many photographs of this magnificent tree.
And right in front of the trunk of the tree, was the shrine. It was a small rectangular monolithic pillar made of a gray stone, with zig-zags carved on the body, and only reaching a bit over half of Melissa's height. But something that was noted of interest was the fact that surrounding the shrine was a bow, along with two staffs that would belong to certain magic-users.
But the thing that grabbed Kirihima's and Kodai's attention was that the top of the stone was slanted down towards them, revealing what they came there for.
An up-to-date map of the entire continent of Occidens.
Putting the piece of medical paper Kodai had onto the shrine, the ink absorbed itself into the paper, creating a whole new map for themselves. Kirishima also insisted on doing it two more times, to make sure in the event that they lost the first map, they had spares.
And now, they had three copies of the continent's most accurate map.
Unfortunately, in their haste to create the maps, they failed to notice the three swords that surrounded the shrine. Nor did they notice when those swords began to glow ominously.
"Kosei."
"Hm? What is it, Sen?"
"Look alive. The Lieutenant's back."
"Oh, okay."
Uraraka, along with Rin and Komori, also noticed that Yaoyorozu had returned, along with both Kendo and Monoma's groups. However, they also seemed to be carrying…
"Sato?" Komori realized who it was. "What happened to him?"
"Turns out my group wasn't the only one that got jumped by monsters," Monoma explained.
"Great. Just great," Rin drawled out sarcastically.
"Regardless of how it happened, he needs medical attention. Though, I see that Kodai and her group are nowhere to be found." Yaoyorozu immediately grabbed her radio. "Come in, Sargeant Kodai. Where are you? We need you back at camp. Corporal Sato has been injured."
No response.
She tried again. "Sargeant Kodai, do you read me? I'm requesting –"
"This is Corporal Kirishima, requesting help, RIGHT NOW!" her radio blared out. "Were at the center of the forest and were under attack! You'll find us at the purple tree! SEND HELP –"
Then it cut off.
"Kirishima? KIRISHIMA?!" She knew she had to do something right away. "Rin, Komori, Kaibara, Tsuburaba, with me! The rest of you, stay behind and reload your weapons!"
"Shouldn't we come and help you?" Awase asked.
"No, you're low on ammunition and some of you are tired and injured," she explained. "If the situation calls for it, we'll request for more help. Until then, stay here, that is an order!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
"AUUGGHHH…" the ghost moaned out, as it launched out to attack them.
"I KNEW SOMETHING WAS OFF ABOUT THIS!" Melissa yelled, as she unsheathed her sword.
Eijiro and Kodai hated that she was right.
One minute they were celebrating the acquisition of their new maps, the next minute a bunch of ghosts pop out from the cursed weapons that were surrounding the shrine.
"AUUGGHHH…"
One of them resembled a human with short hair and whiskers, wearing clothes befitting of a bamboo forest. The second one was obviously a wizard with a cape and everything. And the third one, the human with long hair, if Eijiro was going to try and describe it, looked like he was wearing a stereotypical Native American costume from the United States.
Eijiro looked towards their other companion. "Death Arms, help us!"
The adventurer did not move from his place.
"Death Arms?"
"HE WAS IN ON THIS!" Melissa yelled, as she charged towards the undead, and reflected their attacks with her sword. "He was using this place as bait to lure us here!"
Before Eijiro could even deny it, their radios went off with the same message. "Come in, Sargeant Kodai. Where are you? We need you back at camp. Corporal Sato has been injured."
"Kodai!" the artificial redhead called out to the medic. "You gonna answer that?!"
"Little busy right now!" she hissed, dodging another attack from the ghosts.
"Sargeant Kodai, do you read me? I'm requesting –"
Oh, for fuck's sake, Eijiro cursed, before grabbing his walkie-talkied, and shouting, "This is Corporal Kirishima, requesting help, RIGHT NOW! Were at the center of the forest and were under attack! You'll find us at the purple tree! SEND HELP –"
"AUUGGHHH…"
"AHHH!!!" Kirishima screamed, and instinctively fired his assault rifle.
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
"Keep doing that!" Melissa yelled to the two soldiers, as each one of them took on a ghost. "It's not hurting them, but it's catching them off-guard! Help me try and box them in! My celestial nature will allow me to purify them if I'm close enough to all three of them!"
"Augh!" Eijiro hissed in pain, as he was tossed towards the coral. Before he got up, he also saw Kodai get dragged up and tossed into the air by some unknown force.
It wasn't fair. There was no way in hell to box them in, let alone Shield exorcize them! But neither he nor Kodai could predict the fact that the ghosts were capable of using telekinesis.
So, while they also had to recover quickly from getting tossed around like ragdolls, they also had the initial problem of not letting the ghosts drain them of their life essence. All while still trying to get close enough to them in an effort to box them in. In short, it was a balancing act, where if they screwed up, they'd die.
And now it seemed like Eijiro was gonna get his ticket punched.
Even with Shield's ability to teleport around, that ability was limited, and she was still only one person. Which meant that the inevitable was just gonna get there even slower.
And that's while discounting the fact that whoever responded to his distress call would also come to experience a similar fate to them.
It wasn't fair. He still had a lot more to do. He needed to prove himself! He wanted to make friends, be outgoing, stop being the coward he was! He wanted to thank the mystery woman for giving him that blindfold! He… he… he wanted to apologize to the masked girl.
As the wizard-looking ghost cornered him, Eijiro was ready to accept his fate, when out of the corner of his eye, he saw dull yellow skin tone, and with dozens of red rings adorning a body.
The octopus?
Flying through the air was the large red-ringed octopus that the trio encountered earlier, before it was scared off by Death Arms. He had no idea why it came back to them, when suddenly –
WHAM!
"AHHH!!!"
… it wrapped its tentacles around the ghost's head, and used a spell on the ghost.
The spell cast was a bright yellow dust-like cloud, and kinda reminded Eijiro of Tinkerbell's fairy dust from the movies, but sure enough, it caused the ghost to start writhing in pain.
WHAT?!
Before he could even stand up, several more red-ringed octopuses swam into Eijiro's frame of view, and began ganging up on the ghost, blasting it with the same spell over and over again.
"Uhh… Kodai?" he called out. "Are you seeing this?"
"Seeing," Kodai answered. "Still not believing."
Looking around at what Kodai was seeing, Eijiro's eyes bulged out of his skull when he saw an entire army's worth of octopuses floating around all of them. Oddly enough, the only ones that were attacking the ghosts were the larger ones with red rings, while the smaller ones with blue rings swam around the ghosts, as if they were trying to confuse or scare them.
However, that quickly ended when Ejiro realized what they were doing, and yelled out to Shield. "OI! THEY'RE BOXING THEM IN FOR YOU! DO THE THING! NOW!"
"Oh, right!" the angel said, as she immediately darted towards the three ghosts, and grabbed each and everyone of them, and began to do her magic. In an instant, the bluey and undead aura of the ghosts began to fade, and was replaced with some normal-looking dudes.
Both Eijiro and Kodai breathed a sigh of relief, as it was finally over.
"SARGEANT KODAI! CORPORAL KIRISHIMA!"
Well, almost over.
Momo had no idea what to make… of any of that.
She, along with Rin, Komori, Kaibara, and Tsuburaba, had spent the last ten minutes running like madmen to save their guide, medic, and radio specialist from some unknown threat, without even knowing where they were aside from the general direction they went.
It was a good thing that Komori spotted the purple tree, otherwise they'd be lost.
Climbing up the coral was no easy feat, and it was definitely something that Rin vocally disapproved of, but this was a state of emergency, and time was of the essence.
And then, they came and witnessed… this.
An army's worth of flying cephalopods had apparently rescued her men, and were now ganging up on whatever the hell attacked them, some kind of ghost? Regardless, they kept harassing the ghosts until they trapped them all together, at which point their guide to this world charged towards them, and began… disintegrating them? She had no idea.
And it was time to get some answers.
"What exactly happened here?" she asked.
Before either Kirishima or Kodai could answer, a bright flash of light appeared, grabbing everyone's attention. Melissa had backed away from their attackers and said, "It's done."
Momo took a better look at the ghosts… and they looked normal. They no longer had that bluish aura or those rotting faces, they looked like people… at ease.
One of them was a blond man with whiskers, wearing a lot of green and some bamboo decorations. The second one was a human wearing a blue outfit and a red cape, along with a monocle on his right eye. And the last one was a man wearing a traditional Native American outfit, with a fur-like cape and a feather on his head and everything.
"Takeshita. X-Less. Native."
Momo and her team did a double-take as they heard a new voice. They turned to see some white-haired dude wearing a blue jacket and a yellow-and-black bandana.
Melissa, Kodai and Kirishima looked at him cautiously, so they obviously knew him, and were weary of them. Momo decided to be cautious and quietly observe him. "Sorry it took so long," he said, as he approached the three figures, and hugged them. "But you're free now."
As soon as he let them go, the three former ghosts started to glow white, and their figures began to float up, before suddenly disappearing into the sky.
The sole stranger then walked away, and sat down on one of the pieces of coral, and smiled. "I'm sorry I wasn't youthful with my intentions from the start," he said. "But using the shrine as bait was the only way I knew you would follow me, and for that, I apologize."
Momo and the newcomer didn't say anything, as they had no context for what just happened, so they simply let the trio do all of the talking. "Was the map also a lie, Death Arms?"
"No, the map is genuine," he said. "Consider it a reward for freeing my friends."
"What…" Kirishima began to speak. "What happened to them?"
"This coral forest is beautiful, but it also comes with its own dangers. We were foolish enough to take from its natural bounty. I was the last one standing, and my anguish gave me this…" the man Momo now knew as Death Arms said, as he removed his jacket to reveal… that his body was being consumed by something purple and mold-like, giving off a darker smoke.
Melissa's breath hitched. "Whispering dead."
"That's right," the white-haired man nodded solemnly. "If you never arrived, my wish would never have been fulfilled, and I would have slowly lost my sanity, turning into an undead."
"Wait, but your wish was granted!" Kirishima argued. "Your friends are free –"
"That wasn't what I wished for," Death Arms said. "I wished for myself and my party to be at peace, together. Yes, they have been freed from their ghostly prisons, but I am still here. If I am to truly be free from this curse I ask of you, angel… to please, purify me. Let me die."
Everyone looked toward Melissa, who didn't know what to say to that. She was basically asked to kill him, after killing his friends, even if he did wish for both of those outcomes.
She was silent for a moment, before saying…
"I'll do it."
Approaching the sitting man, the blonde angel set out her arms, placed them on his head, and began to glow white. Unlike with the ghosts, this took longer, and everyone could hear Death Arms' grunts of pain at being burned away, as he started to become… green dust.
"Thank you," he smiled. "Let us meet again in the afterlife…"
And with that, the white-haired man was reduced to hundreds of specks that glowed green, all of them scattering like ashes to the wind, reaching the sky, and then disappearing.
"Hey, Kosei?" Momo heard Kaibara whispering to Tsuburaba.
"Yeah?"
"You recorded all of that, right?"
"Your thoughts, Rin?" Momo asked.
"Yeah, physically speaking these are blue-ringed octopuses," the zoologist said. "The only difference being that they're now over one meter in length rather than just being twenty centimeters, and that the ones with the red rings have magic powerful enough that it scares off the undead. Oh, and the fact that they're smart enough to live in colonies and they tried to rescue Kirishima and Kodai from certain danger, making them also capable of morality, or at the very least, understand it enough that they consider helping others to be a good thing."
Momo nodded at the assessment, as she turned to Komori and Kaibara. "Well?"
"The tree, despite its odd coloration, has physical characteristics to that of an oak tree, given the shape of the trunk and the leaves," Komori said. "So my current theory is that someone either blasted it with magic, or this off-shoot naturally evolved in this world, though I'm leaning more towards the first option due to the fact chlorophyll usually creates green leaves, not… this."
"This shrine appears to have been sculpted from a combination of both marble and granite, hence the weird gray coloration," Kaibara said. "Though, I have no idea how the ink on the top of it has stayed this wet for so long. I doubt there's a hollow cavity inside the base of the shrine that has reserves of ink, so I'm gonna go out on a limb and say it's magic."
"I swear to God, if one more person says "magic" I'm gonna lose it," Tsuburaba growled.
Momo nodded along to that sentiment. It had been ten minutes since Melissa had exorcized that Death Arms guy, and while she sent her rescue team to do some basic research on this new location they discovered, she began chewing out her three insubordinate subordinates.
Like, seriously, did they never hear of the term "stranger danger"?! At the very least, Melissa was vocal about the fact that she didn't trust the adventurer for one second and tried to tell the others, but they were too enamored with the prospects of a map to listen to her!
However, upon seeing that the map was one that showed the entire continent they were ordered to explore, her wrath decreased by a bit. At least now they knew where the hell they were going.
Speaking of… the majority of the octopi had already left, and with the state everyone else back at base was, now was as good a time as any to grad back.
"Corporal Komori, did you get some of the tree samples?"
"Sure did!" the botanist said, holding up a baggie filled with multicolored leaves.
"Excellent, then we're heading back, but we're also going to be getting some samples from the dead monsters on the way back, so get ready for that, Rin," she said, getting up. "Sargeant Kodai, Corporal Sato was injured in the line of duty, so treat him once we get back, post-haste."
"Mm," Kodai nodded. "How serious?"
"He was bleeding from the biceps, and his legs had some friction burns," Momo said. "Chances are he won't be able to work for the next week, at least. The good news is that Sargeant Bakugou is also a capable cook, and will make an excellent substitute for the time being –"
"I can just heal him."
Momo turned around to look at Melissa. "Excuse me?"
"I can just heal him," the angel said. "It's one of my abilities as an angel. I simply cast the spell, and even something as bad as broken bones would be mended in seconds."
Momo simply stared at the blonde woman in shock. Decking to err on the side of caution, she also asked, "What else are angels like you capable of? Just out of curiosity."
She would learn that the number of an angel's skills was, including but not limited to, changing their appearances, knowing all languages, healing major injuries, detecting lies, seeing in darkness, summoning monsters, teleporting, altering the weather, and reviving the dead.
Shaking her head, Momo decided to deal with all that later. Right now, she had to deal with the map that Kirishima and Kodai had gone through all that trouble to acquire for them.
She had to admit, it was pretty detailed: It showed the borders of the four major superpowers of the nation, surrounding archipelagos, and it even had the Collibus Hills written down.
"So…" Krishima said, as he eyed the map. "Where are we headed?"
"Hmm… you remember how Awase said that he was sick of seeing the desert?"
"Yeah?"
As the fish swam through the sky above them, Momo simply smiled as she looked over to the corporal. "Well… how do you think he would feel about going south to see a jungle?"
They were here. Their tracks and trail of destruction gave her no doubt.
But their beast-less carriages were fast. She would have to predict where they were going next. Asking the spirits for guidance, she had her answer: The Saltu Jungles.
They were in danger. Her crimson-haired savior… he was in danger.
Running as fast as her mana reinforcements could allow her, she sped away from the coral forest as fast as she could. She doubted she would be able to reach the jungles before the viridian soldiers did, but she could at least save them from their fates.
Mina Ashido would make sure of that… personally.
Author's Note: And another leg of the adventure is done!
Now for the comments!
valkrus: I mean, you're probably right about adding the "Gate" tag, but it doesn't use any characters or elements from that anime, just the premise. It would be like adding the "Cthulhu Mythos" tag on Mirrond's "When Reasons Fail" or the "Dark Souls" tag on "Only Embers Remain." Sure, there are elements from those media in those stories, but they're not crossovers. Also, thank you for bringing all of these typos to my attention, they have been revised, glad you'll be sticking around for future chapters.
ShinyZubat: I had Rin's reaction to the coral forest prepared for MONTHS. But now, as you can see, the wolf-things had absolutely nothing to do with Death Arms, even if you were right about him being super untrustworthy. This coral forest just happens to be filled with creatures that wanna murder you cold around every corner.
Elvengirl3: Glad you find my story fascinating, I put a lot of effort into worldbuilding for this story, so I hope you stick around for the rest of it. And as for translating Latin into English, I just used Google Translate, it was nothing special, really.
And now, for the last bit of shilling…
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz . You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 8: Warrior Bunnies
Summary:
The Saltu Jungles have everything that makes a jungle a jungle; hot weather, exotic animals, hostile bunny girls... wait, what? Yes, as it turns out, the jungles of this fantasy world are inhabited by women with rabbit-like features, who have developed a taste for men. Meaning it's up to Momo and her female teammates to save their captured comrades!
Chapter Text
Chapter 8: Warrior Bunnies
"Rin. Out of curiosity, what did you learn about those big monsters?"
"You mean the ones that jumped Monoma's squad back at the coral reef?"
"Yeah, those things," Kodai said.
"My analysis of their corpses showed that they had no eyes, for starters. My current theory is that they either used enhanced hearing and smells to navigate their environment, or that they had some sort of built-in receptors to detect electromagnetism, like sharks do."
"Hmm… anything else?"
"Their flesh had two types of toxins in it, cereulide and tetrodotoxin," Rin explained. "Cereulide causes nausea, and tetrodotoxin causes paralysis. There's a pretty good chance that we'd die if any of us tried to cook and eat their flesh. It also explains why they came in so many different bright colors: It was to warn potential predators that eating them would be a bad idea, along with allowing them to camouflage among the coral to sneak up on potential prey."
"So that's how they surprised Monoma's team, despite being so loud."
"Yeah, it was a good thing the Lieutenant arrived just in time to save them."
It had been a week since they were at the coral reef in the desert, and since then, they had been busy traveling south-east to head back to the Collibus Hills.
However, due to the fact they still had about half a month left on their mission, they ended up taking a new and more scenic route back to the base, aided by the map that they had gotten back from the oddly-colored tree from the Corallium Forest.
Their newest destination: The Saltu Jungles.
"This is Lieutenant Yaoyorozu," the radio crackled. "Look alive, we're here."
"Oh, thank God," Kaibara groaned. "Finally, we can stretch our legs."
"Tell me about it," Komori smiled. "Can't wait to touch solid grass."
"Don't you mean solid ground?"
"Maybe for you, Mr. Geologist."
Momo breathed in the fresh air as she examined the environment around her.
On her left, she could see hills upon hills of grass, while on her right, she could see miles upon miles of giant trees. Clearly it showed that they had arrived upon the border of the Saltu Jungle. She smiled, knowing that map they got was paying off.
"Alright, everyone, gather around!"
She watched as her crew filed up to hear her orders, and smiled at how smooth things were going. She hoped it would stay that way. But for now, it was show time.
"Listen up! We'll be forming pairs of two and going inside the jungle to gather data and some evidence to bring back with us. I want you all back here in one hour. Understood?"
"""SIR, YES, SIR!"""
"Excellent. Kaibara and Tsuburaba, you're team one. Rin and Awase, you're team two. Bakugou and Kirishima, you're team three. Komori and Kodai, you're team four. The rest of us will stay behind with the vehicles. Good luck out there," Momo gave her soldiers a salute.
Yes, she knew that it probably wasn't the best idea to send their one and only medic out into the jungle, but Momo knew Kodai was a trained soldier, more than capable of defending herself.
But aside from that, that girl downright disturbed Momo.
Especially all of her "secret stuff" she brought with her.
Momo shuddered, as she remembered accidentally opening that bag on their way to the jungles. Sure, everyone had their own personal tastes, but four of them?
The jungle would be quiet, if it weren't for the fact that it was… well, a jungle.
Birds chirping, rivers streaming, animals making noises, all of those little things eventually built up to make one big annoyance. But the biggest annoying noise here was –
"Yo, Bakubro, what do you think we should bring back?"
"Don't know, don't care," Katsuki hissed back.
"Aw, c'mon, man, don't be like that!" Shitty Hair clearly didn't know how to take a hint. "Where's your sense of adventure? This is the place that separates the boys from the men!"
"You mean the shithole that's infested with blood-sucking bats?"
"Uh, I think you're confusing bats for mosquitoes," the redhead said. "Unless you're talking about Dracula. Wait, do you think that vampires are real in this world?"
"If they are, I hope they take you first."
"You don't really mean that…"
This was going to be a long hour, wasn't it?
"Any cool plants?" Yui asked.
"Yeah! Rafflesia arnoldii, Venus fly traps, and even a couple that I don't recognize! I mean, look at this one right here!" Komori smiled, as she pointed to a giant plant.
"It's a Venus fly trap." Even Yui knew that.
"Yeah, but they don't come big enough to swallow a person whole!" the brown-haired girl explained. "I swear, the photos we bring back from here are gonna rock the botanist world!"
"Are we also getting samples?"
"Oh, yeah, I'm getting tons of samples, shroom!" Komori smiled.
At least someone was having fun.
"Is that a chameleon?" Awase asked Rin, as he pointed at a lizard.
"Yeah, a three-horned chameleon, also known as Jackson's chameleon."
"So… they exist back on Earth?"
"Uh-huh, they're native to Africa, but they've also made their way to the US," Rin said.
"Mm, what about that lizard?" Awase pointed to an orange one with large eyes.
"Don't know, my degree isn't in herpetology. I don't know each and every reptile."
"Which means that it might only be native to the Special Region!"
"Maybe, but don't get your hopes up," Rin said. "Not everything here's some fantasy creature."
"Well, what about those parrots?" Awase pointed upwards.
"What parrots?"
"The ones with the four wings flying over us right now."
Looking up to where Awase was pointing, Rin saw that, sure enough, some large, four-winged parrots. Their colors were green, blue and orange, with a small bit of pale yellow, and they were flying through the air like a sea turtle would through the ocean, slow and graceful.
"Huh," the zoologist deadpanned. "That's bizarre."
"Is it because they're super silent in the air, or because they have six limbs?"
"Both, if I'm being honest."
"Do you think they can talk?" the mechanic asked.
"Parrots don't actually talk, they mimic the sounds they hear from humans," Rin explained. "Hell, they don't even understand the meaning of the words that they're trained to say –"
"Turn back! Turn back! Turn back!"
Rin stopped talking when he heard those words. Both he and Awase looked up at the parrots again, making sure they actually heard what they thought they heard.
"Turn back! Turn back! Turn back!"
And evidently, they did.
"Hey, y'all!" Komori exclaimed, as she exited the jungle. "We're back!"
"We bright plants," Kodai deadpanned.
"That's good to hear," Momo said. "Kirishima and Bakugou just came back, too."
"So, the others are still out there?" the team's medic asked.
"Yeah, and their time's almost up," Monoma said, grabbing his radio. "Kaibara, Tsuburaba, this is Monoma, do you read me? What's the status of your patrol? Over."
"This is Tsuburaba. We're on our way back. We'll be there shortly, over."
"Alright, so they're running a little late, but nothing to worry about."
"So, what are the rocks out here like?" Tsuburaba asked. "Got any history?"
"There are signs of erosion around some of them, indicating that there are rivers nearby," Kaibara told his best friends. "What about the air? I swear, I'm sweating just by talking."
"Makes sense, it's twenty-seven degrees Celsius, with seventy-seven percent humidity."
"Yeesh, and I thought Japanese summers were hell," Kaibara scoffed.
"Yeah, well, were almost back, so –"
CRACK!
The two of them immediately stopped talking as soon as they heard the sound of a branch snapping. Silently nodding to one another, they held their knives, and approached closer to the source of the noise. They moved some leaves out of the way, and saw…
"Holy shit," Tsuburaba whispered.
Next to a creek, they saw a woman, dressed in jungle clothing, bending down from where she was sitting, in order to get a sip of water. However, the bizarre thing about her were the large rabbit-like ears on her head, along with the short fluffy tail right above her skirt.
"Duuude," Kaibara whispered. "A bunny girl! A straight up bunny girl!"
"Look at her!" the meteorologist said, in a low voice. "What's she wearing?"
"Some kind of crop top? And a skirt?" the geologist said, getting a better look with some binoculars. "But who cares about that? Look at her hair! It's frickin' blue!"
"Yeah, you're right! She looks like something straight out of an anime!"
Suddenly, the rabbit woman lifted up her head, and her ears began to twitch, almost as if they were trying to locate some sort of sound. Her face was that of alert caution.
"Oh, shit, do you think she heard us?" Kaibara asked.
"Probably," Tsuburaba said. "Don't worry, I got this."
Immediately stepping out of the trees, Tsuburaba had a smile on his face, and began to walk towards the demi-human, slowly. The demi-human noticed her, her breath hitching.
"Hey there, no need to be scared, I'm not gonna hurt you," he said, switching to Latin. "My name's Kosei, I'm an explorer. You got a name to go along with those pretty eyes?"
"..."
"Can you not understand me? I know my Latin's a bit rusty, but –"
BAM!
Before Tsuburaba could even finish his sentence, the rabbit girl delivered a kick straight into his gut, making him violently cough up spit before falling down towards the grass in pain.
"KOSEI!" Kaibara yelled, aiming his rifle. "Don't worry, I'm gonna save ya –"
WHAM!
In an instant, the geologist could feel a fist coming into direct contact with his face. Stumbling to the ground, his mind went into overdrive. How the heck did she manage to reach him so fast?!
Looking up, he saw that there was a brown-haired rabbit girl standing over her.
It was a trap, he realized, before losing consciousness.
As it approached the twentieth minute, Momo was starting to get anxious.
"Rin, Awase, are you guys out there? Kaibara, Tsuburaba, what's your progress?" Monoma called into his radio. "Uh, ma'am? Two of the teams still haven't responded."
"Still?" Momo was now getting worried. "Are they out of range?"
"I don't think so, those walkie-talkies can work up to two miles out."
"So either they're seriously lost in the forest, or something's gone wrong." Momo looked towards her team's unofficial mascot. "Melissa, could you please survey the sky to look for them?"
"Sure thing," the blonde angel said, unleashing her wings and lifting off.
Momo called after Melissa, yelling, "Hey, wait! You forgot to grab a… radio… dam, she's already gone…" Deciding she couldn't do anything about it now, she turned to everyone else.
"All right, listen up!" Momo shouted to the rest of her squad. "It appears that two of our teams have gone missing! I want to comb through this jungle, and find them! Kendo, Uraraka, you're going in there alongside the teams that just got back. Report as soon as you find something."
"Understood, ma'am!" Kendo gave her a salute.
"THIS IS SUCH BULLSHIT!" Bakugou shouted. "We come back right on time, and then we have to go back in just because those assholes are late?! Are you kidding me?!"
"Easy, man. We just have to find them," Eijiro said. "Now… where could they have gone?"
"I dunno, but if those idiots got themselves killed, I'm not gonna bury them," Bakugou hissed.
The artificial redhead hoped that wasn't the case. As the two of them kept marching through the jungle, Eijiro was stopped by Bakugou's hand signal. "I hear something."
Hearing the rustling of the leaves, Eijiro nodded in silence. The two of them slowly crept towards the vines, and parted them, only to see… "Oh my God."
In front of them was a village, entirely composed of rabbit-like demi-humans. Every single one of them seemed to be wearing something straight out of the ancient Aztecs. But the most interesting part was that Eijiro couldn't see a single male among the crowd.
Well, with about four exceptions.
Said four exceptions were in the middle of the crowd, where a wooden stand was at the center of the village, and on the stand were… Rin, Kaibara, Awase, and Tsuburaba in chains.
"What do we do?" Kirishima whispered.
Bakugou looked towards the redhead. "Alright, here's the plan…"
"Ahem."
The two soldiers looked behind them, only to see an orange-haired rabbitfolk staring at them.
"Uh-oh," the ash-blond muttered.
The last thing Eijiro saw before blacking out was a rabbit foot to the face.
"Bakugou, this is Kendo, do you read me?"
No response from the radio.
"Kirishima, this is Kendo, do you read me? Come in!"
Nothing.
"They disappeared, too?" Uraraka asked.
"I seriously hope not," Itsuka said.
Walking a bit deeper into the jungle, they could hear voices. The two of them looked toward one another, and silently moved closer to the source of the sounds. Getting close enough, they parted some of the plants in their way, and were amazed by what they saw.
"Whoa…" Uraraka murmured. "That's a lot of bunny girls."
"Hey, look," Itsuka quietly said. "It's our missing guys."
"Oh, great, they've been captured. Again."
"Now, our chieftess shall decide the fate of these outsiders!" one of the rabbitfolk declared.
"They have a leader?" Itsuka whispered to Uraraka, who just shrugged.
On top of the make-shift podium arrived a warrior bunny in golden armor, one with dark skin, hair as white as snow, and eyes the color of blood, the same color as her cape.
"All bow to Chieftess Rumi Usagiyama!"
"""ALL HAIL USAGIYAMA!"""
"Should I be recording this?" the brown-haired girl whispered.
"Mmm… yeah, sure," Kendo whispered back. "For research's sake."
The white-haired rabbit looked towards the captured men she was standing beside, silent. After staring at them for a few moments, she asked, "Why are there outsiders here?"
Kirishima said, "Ma'am, were simply peaceful explorers –"
"SILENCE!" Usagiyama roared at him.. "I did not give you permission to speak! To trespass in our jungle is to forfeit your life! Now… I shall decide your punishment!"
"Oh my God, they're gonna execute 'em," Uraraka quietly gasped.
"That's it, I'm calling the Lieutenant, right fucking now," Itsuka hissed.
"Hmm… after much debilitation, I, the great Rumi Usagiyama, have come to a decision," the chieftess said. "I sentence these men… to death! BY PROCREATION!"
"What," the orange-haired woman deadpanned.
As several of the rabbit-like women cheered, Katsuki looked absolutely stricken.
Nope. He wasn't gonna die like this. He absolutely refused. He wasn't gonna –
"WHOO-HOO!"
"ALL RIGHT!"
"YEAH!"
Katsuki turned to his left to see that Kaibara and Tusburaba were celebrating, despite the fact all six of them had literally just been sentenced to death. Those fucking horndogs. Even Rin and Awase were smiling. The only person who wasn't happy was Shitty Hair.
I gotta think of a way out of this…
What would get him out of this jam? There was no way in hell he was agreeing to a fucking gangbang, that absolutley disgusted him. Wait… disgust…
Katsuki had an idea.
"I'M GAY!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.
The chieftess looked at him, as the rest of the bunny bitches' cheering died down.
Perfect.
"You're what?" the boss bunny bitch asked. "Say that again."
"I'm gay," Katsuki repeated. "I like men, I can't get it up for women, no matter how much you try."
"Is that so…?"
"I'm also gay!" Shitty Hair shouted, copying his idea. "Women make me limp!"
The chieftess looked at the other four idiots. "And the rest of you?"
The other four idiots shook their heads, and confirmed they were completely straight.
"Hmm… alright," she said. "These two shall not partake in the copulation."
Katsuki breathed a sigh of relief. He was gonna live! He was gonna go back home to –
"Throw them into the Blood Snake's Pit!"
Shit, spoke too soon.
Momo could feel a headache incoming. "I'm sorry, could you repeat that?"
"Warrior bunnies, ma'am," Kendo's voice sounded through the walkie-talkie. "Our six missing guys were captured by a tribe of what I can best describe as… rabbit kemonomimi."
"And four of them are gonna get fucked to death, while the other two are gonna be eaten alive by snakes. Fucking wonderful," Momo cursed. "Alright, guess we're doing a rescue mission."
As everyone else prepared for the rescue mission, Momo went into one of the cars and grabbed Kodai's bag. It may not be her medical equipment, but it could still help us…
Still didn't like the fact that Kodai carried this stuff around with her, but whatever.
"Komori, Kodai!" Yui's radio buzzed. "It's Kendo. We found our missing teams, but they've been captured by an enemy group. Be prepared to stage a rescue mission."
"Understood," the black-haired woman said. "What do you need from us?"
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu has a plan, but we'll need your help. We're about a couple of kilometers west from where we parked. Meet us there, and be ready for a fight."
"Understood. Over and out?"
"Guess we're fighting our way out of another jam, huh?" Komori sighed.
"Yes, I…" Yui trailed off, as she noticed something. "Kinoko, did you happen to see a statue while we were exploring this part of the jungle? Specifically, a head of a statue?"
"No, why?"
Yui proceeded to point at the structure to their left, one of a head. It was just a head, and was made of a dark type of stone, which reminded Yui of the statues found on Easter Island.
However, unlike those heads, this one didn't look human. The carvings showed a face with sharp teeth and tusks, a bald head, minor facial hair, evil-looking eyes, elongated ears, and a scrunched-up face, with the main features of the face being a flat, upturned nose, and a forehead which Yui could only describe as belonging to literal Neandrethals.
In short, the statue wasn't depicting the head of a human.
"How did we miss that?" Komori asked herself.
"We probably came through this area from the other side, so we weren't looking directly at it. If anything, we probably saw it from the back of the side, so we wrote it off as a weird rock."
Snapping a quick picture, the botanist said, "Yeah, I guess that makes sense."
"Shh," Yui said, placing a finger over her mouth. "I hear something."
The two soldiers remained quiet, as they approached the statue from a new angle. Getting clear of the leaves, they both gasped at what they completely missed.
It was a village, entire homes and bridges made out of stone. The builders must have carved each and every door and window out of rock outcropping, allowing the inhabitants to live within this gorge, of sorts. And speaking of the inhabitants…
The two girls hitched their breath as they saw… a whole lot of ugly. The locals were tall, easily three meters tall. They had hunched backs, and fat bellies, but it was clear from their arms and legs that they were incredibly strong. But most importantly of all, their faces looked just like the statue's. Tusks, elongated ears, scrunched up faces and swelling-looking foreheads.
Yui had read enough fucked-up doujinshi to instantly recognize what those creatures were.
"Ogres," she whispered to Komori.
"Wait, how do you know that?" the botanist asked.
"Umm… I've read fantasy manga?" she half-lied.
"Well, what do we do now?"
Yui hated to admit it, but Komori was right. These were straight up ogres. There was no guarantee that they would be able to sneak past the entire village a second time. Not only that, but the commotion the rescue mission would cause was bound to grab their attention.
Which meant that there was a good chance the team would be fighting two different enemies on two different sides. Wait… she thought to herself. Two different enemies…
"I have an idea," she whispered. "But be ready to run like hell once it works."
"So, do you have a plan to get us out of here?" Eijiro asked.
It had been about ten minutes since he and Bakubro had been sentenced to be eaten alive in a snake pit. And currently, they were inside a giant pit, but still no snakes.
Just a bunch of rabbit ladies watching from higher ground, arrows pointed at them.
"Actually, yeah," Bakugou said, pulling out two grenades from his pants. "These bunny bitches may have confiscated our guns, but luckily, they didn't check our pockets."
"Uh… do you always carry grenades with you?"
"Always," he said, with a malicious smirk. "Aight, here's the plan: When their little ceremony starts, I'm gonna throw these little beauties at both the left and the right sides. When they go off, we hightail it out of here by climbing from the least elevated part of the pit, in the middle."
"Wait, what about the snakes?" the redhead asked.
"Run as fast as you can, and pray they aren't venomous," the blond said.
"BWWAAA!"
Before Eijiro could ask any more questions, a horn was rung by a blue-haired rabbit lady, signaling that the execution was about to begin. "It is time!"
Alright, showtime, Eijrio thought to himself.
"RELEASE THE BLOOD SNAKE!"
Wait, what? "Snake", as in singular?
Bakugou also seemed to have also caught that, but before the two of them could react, the gate across from them in the pit opened up, revealing… OH, WHAT THE HELL?!
Out of the gate came a giant snake, literally. It was over seven meters long, at least by Eijrio's quick estimations, with its head easily towering over both him and Bakubro by almost a whole meter, so much so that they had to look up just to make eye contact with it.
The main color it had was a dark green, while its underbelly was a lighter shade of green. It also had a hood, like a cobra, which came in both the light green coloration, along with orange diamond-shaped dots lining it like a pattern. Its yellow sclera helped its black, cat-like pupils emphasize that it was staring down at him and Bakubro like they were lunch.
But the scariest parts about it were its large, white horn on top of its nose, like that of a rinoscerous, and the two giant fangs it had, easily the length of Eijrio's forearm.
"Welp, guess we heard it right," he could hear his buddy deadpan. "It is just one snake."
P lease be alive, please be alive, please be alive!
As Mina Ashido kept running towards the jungles, that thought kept repeating in her mind.
Please be alive… MY CRIMSON-HAIRED SAVIOR!
Author's Note: For those who don't know, this whole chapter is based on the whole "death by snu snu" thing from Futurama. If anyone has any issues with that, let me know in the comments I'll be replying to in the next chapter.
Anyways, it's time for this week's comments:
valkrus: Yeah, you're right, I was supposed to say "truthful." I honestly don't know how "youthful" slipped in instead. And as for your second question, there are two reasons I don't directly reply to comments: One, I can't do it on , so it doesn't seem fair to me. And the second you can write off as paranoia. Please don't ask.
And now, for the last bit of shilling…
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz . You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 9: Shrek Super Slam
Summary:
It's pure chaos here in the Saltu Jungles. From exploding snakes and surprise cameos, to an all-out war between the warrior bunnies and the new payers of this jungle warfare, the ogres. All while Yaoyorozu and her fellow squad mates are wearing bunny costumes, thanks to their team's medic. How will the higher-ups ever make sense of this?
Chapter Text
Chapter 9: Shrek Super Slam
"Alright, what's the plan, Lieutenant?" Uraraka asked.
Momo nodded, as she grabbed a bag she brought from their temporary campsite with her. Opening it up, she revealed, to the shock of both Uraraka and Kendo… bunny ears.
And bunny suits. Like the ones straight out of a Playboy magazine.
"What the fuck…?"
"Uhh… Lieutenant?" Kendo looked at her nervously.
"Before you ask, they're not mine, they're Kodai's. I'm pretty sure she's… into some freaky stuff, if I'm being honest," Momo said. "Regardless, here's the plan: Wearing these bunny costumes, we'll sneak into the village and rescue our comrades. If things get bloody, we'll shoot our way out. These things don't have pockets, so we have no choice but to carry our pistols by hand."
"I'm still reeling from the fact Kodai was carrying all of that," Uraraka said.
"Yeah, imagine how I felt back when I discovered them on the drive here," Momo said. "Just put them on, and make sure to cover your actual ears. These rabbit ones may appear realistic from a distance, but if they also see our real ears, the enemy will know something's up. Monoma."
"Yes, Lieutenant?" the blond soldier asked.
"Once we're done changing into these costumes, take our uniforms and head back to the AVTs. I want you, Sato and Aoyama in each of the driver's seats, engines running, ready for a quick escape, in case we have to run like hell," she said. "Oh, and don't look while we change."
"I wasn't going to!" he said, turning around. "My heart belongs to Itsuka, and Itsuka alone!"
"Well, that sure inspires confidence," Kendo said, as they began to strip.
"BWWAAA!!!"
Rumi smiled as she heard the horn be rung. Those two men would be eaten alive by the Blood Snake, and the other four would join them by day's end. Looking over her people, she gestured towards the four men on display, ready to divide them amongst the tribe.
"The one wearing the ridiculous bandana will be paired with the smartest of the tribe!" Rumi said, as she pointed to the one that called himself "Awase." What a bizarre name.
"The one with the beady creepy eyes will be paired with the hunters of the tribe!" she continued, pointing to the one with the black braided hair, calling himself "Rin." Eastern, perhaps?
"The one with the dark brown hair will be paired with the most beautiful of our tribe, and the one with the light brown hair will be paired with the rest of the tribe! Is that understood?"
"""YES, CHIEFTESS!!!"""
"Excellent! Then let the ritual… begin!"
"""BLOOD SNAKE! BLOOD SNAKE! BLOOD SNAKE!"""
As the rabbit women chanted for the titanic serpent, Eijiro looked over to Bakubro, who was also backing away from the giant snake. "Please tell me you have a new plan!"
"Uh, kind of?" the blond said. "I was kinda thinking of lodging one of them into the big snakes' mouth. That would leave us with one more we could use on these bunny bitches?"
"Yeah, that works for me – OH MY GOD!!!"
"ROOOAAR!!!"
Before the horned snake could take a bite out of either of them, the two soldiers dodged and rolled out of the way, avoiding the serpent's fangs, and making the crowd go wild.
"Wait, are they enjoying this?! I thought this was some sort of sacred ritual!"
"What are you, stupid?!" Bakubro yelled. "This is entertainment for them!"
The redhead looked at his friend in horror. "But this is evil! And super unmanly!"
"So they're basically a sorority!"
"Uhh… I guess –?"
"DODGE!"
"AAAHHH!!!"
Kosei Tsuburaba was a simple man, with simple dreams.
One of those dreams was having a harem full of monster girls.
Unfortunately, at the ripe old age of sixteen, he learned the sad truth of the world: Monster girls didn't exist. So, he buried his dead dream, and decided to be more realistic.
Chicks loved the sciencey types, right?
So, he dedicated himself to meteorology, the study of the atmosphere and weather. He could just imagine it now: Him, the smoking hot scientist who would save the world from a weather disaster like the ones he saw in action movies, all while scoring a hot news reporter babe.
Unfortunately, college tuition costs money. So, he decided to enlist to pay his tuition.
To be honest, that was the best decision of his life, cause that's where he met Sen.
Sen Kaibara was kinda like him: An average joe trying to make his way in the world. He also racked up debt on his geology degree, so he enlisted as well. Sure, the similarities there were nice, but the best part as the fact that they were both closet pervs.
Turns out, he also fantasized of having an army of beautiful women at his beck and call, a dream that died due to the harshness of something called reality. While it is true that they bonded over normal stuff, too, they became truly best friends over the lewd.
And then the Musutafu Incident occurred.
Honestly, when General Aizawa showed up to their base asking for the two of them to go on an exploration mission to a fantasy world, a spark returned to their eyes.
So, after ten whole years, his dreams of a monster girl harem had been revived.
They weren't really paying attention when Aizawa was saying stuff like "high likelihood of death" or "the fate of the world rests in your hands." They knew exactly what their priorities were.
Unfortunately, reality kicked them in the balls. Again.
Their fellow soldiers were out of the picture. Sure, maybe the two of them could try something like what Monoma and Kendo had, but that sort of "office romance" cliche could easily become a harassment lawsuit. And besides, they respected their comrades too much for that.
Melissa Shield? Sure, she was beautiful, but she already had a lover. And aside from the fact that if the two of them tried anything they would be smited by the fallen angel, adultery was something that both Kosei and Sen agreed was SUPER UNCOOL.
Uwabami could have worked, if it wasn't for the fact that the rest of the SREU kinda fucked up her property, along with the fact that she turned Sen into a statue for a couple of hours. Plus, the fact that the SREU left the day they met her, made it kinda impossible to get his groove on.
And now, there were the warrior bunnies.
At this point, both Kosei and Sen were gonna take what they could get. And if they had to die in order to get themselves a harem of monster girls, then dammit, die they shall!
"Hey, Sen, for what it's worth, it was nice knowing ya," Kosei said.
"The honor was all mine, Kosei," his best friend smiled back.
"Excellent!" he could hear the chieftess wrapping up her speech. "Then let the ritual… begin!"
Immediately, Kosei could feel himself get dragged by chains off the stand, and being marched towards some unknown location by a real black-haired beauty of a rabbit girl.
"So…" he tried to strike up a conversation. "Who's virginity are you taking? Is it mine?"
"Private Tsuburaba, I'm going to assume that your comment just now was a result of this ordeal you're going through, so I won't report what you said to me once we return to the base."
Kosei suddenly felt his eyes pop out of his skull the second he heard that voice.
"Wait… Lieutenant Yaoyorozu?!"
"Hey, shh!" He could hear Kendo's voice behind him. "Do you want us to get caught?!"
"Wait, wait, what's going on?" Sen said, who was just as confused.
"This is a rescue mission, you idiots," Kendo said. "We're getting you out of here."
"Wait, how the hell did you come across bunny suits?!" Awase asked.
"Kodai," was all Uraraka said.
That somehow both explained everything and nothing at all.
As Katsuki escaped another snake bite, he strategized.
This damn snake was moving around like a goddamn Dark Souls boss, never giving them a chance to breathe. If it wasn't trying to bite their heads off, it was moving in closer to get their heads within biting-off distance. Which meant that they had to dodge to avoid that, and the fucking cycle would repeat itself. I need to find an opening!
As Shitty Hair dodged those arm-sized fangs of the snake again, Katsuki had an idea. It was stupid and most likely gonna get them killed, but he had no other choice.
"HEY!" he shouted, waving his hands around like a maniac. "HEY, YOU OVERSIZED GARDEN HOSE! YOU WANT A REAL MEAL?! COME AND GET ME, YA SCALY WORM BASTARD!!!"
"Bakubro, what the hell are you doing?!"
"Just stay as far away from its head as fucking possible! I have a plan!"
The rhino-horned cobra reared its ugly head towards Katsuki, and slithered towards him. He immediately ran towards one of the walls of the pit, and faced the snakey bastard.
He silently calculated the distance between him and the snake monster, along with how quickly it would rewatch him. Once he was done, he grabbed one of the grenades from his pocket. As the big green fuck nearly reached him, and prepared to open its mouth, he pulled the pin.
"ROOOAA –"
BAM!
The second that thing opened its mouth, Katsuki threw the grenade down its throat, and then dodged to the left. The snake slammed its ugly-ass face into the wall, and Katsuki ran like hell as far from the snake as he could, to get out of the blast radius.
"Bro, what did you do –?"
Grabbing Kirishima, he shouted, "GET THE FUCK DOWN!!!"
The two of them hit the dirt, and turned to see the giant snake and shaken off the impact from hitting the wall… and had turned around to stare them down with its yellow eyes.
The horned monster hissed, making its way towards them, when –
BOOOOOM!!!
Blood and viscera sprayed both Katsuki and Shitty Hair, as both of them could still feel the ringing in their ears seconds after the blast went off due to how close they were. Opening his eyes, Katsuki could see that the head of the Blood Snake was completely gone, blown clean off, and all that was left was the stump of a neck and the rest of its body.
Momo's plan backfired.
Momo's plan had seriously backfired.
At first it was going great. The three of them had managed to get the four idiots, who she is now dubbing as the "Chaos Corps" from now on due to the constant bullshit they ended up getting involved in, away from the soon-to-be rabbit orgy thanks to their disguises.
Unfortunately, as soon as that happened, they ran into trouble.
Turns out that, even in a jungle within a medieval fantasy world, bureaucracy was still a thing. Meaning that the locals noticed that something was up when the warrior bunnies who took the chained men away for preparation weren't the ones who were assigned the job.
The second issue came when said warrior bunnies took a closer look at the ones who were escorting the men to the "mating chambers," only to realize that they weren't wearing their tribe's traditional clothing. Sure, Momo and her soldiers may have fooled the locals into believing that they were the same species, but in terms of clothes?
Not even Momo was able to explain to the warrior bunnies why the three of them were wearing black skin-tight Playboy outfits instead of the clearly Aztec-inspired clothing the rest of the women were wearing, which included lots of feathers and golden jewelry.
Meaning that Momo and the other girls were about as out-of-place to the rabbit women as, say, an American would be in literally any country in the world at any given time.
And, much like with Americans, the local's reactions to them were, understandably, hostile.
Which would explain why Momo, Kendo and Uraraka had now formed a kill circle between the Chaos Corps and the very much angry, and very much armed, warrior bunnies.
BLAM!
"AIIEEE –!!!"
As Momo shot another one of the rabbit-like demi-humans in the arm for getting too close, she was running through the statistics in her head. All three of them only had their handguns with them, Minebea P9s to be specific, which each had six shots before having to reload.
Meaning that between the three of them, they had eighteen shots.
And there were definitely way more warrior bunnies than eighteen.
As she shot away another one of the warrior bunnies, Momo grabbed her radio. "Kodai! Komori! Please tell me that you arrived at the coordinates we sent you! We need reinforcements!"
No response.
Wonderful. Kodai and Komori weren't responding, and Melissa was still in the air searching for them. And since she didn't have a radio, Momo couldn't order her to come rescue them.
It was now only a matter of time before the bullets ran out.
Eijiro Kirishima would have been celebrating right now.
He just survived against a monster of a cobra. Normally after such a stressful ordeal, he would have laughed hysterically at its corpse and yelled "fuck you," while pointing at the corpse.
But he wasn't doing that for two reasons.
One, it wasn't manly to make fun of your defeated opponents.
Two, he was currently being aimed at by arrows from all sides.
Turns out that Bakubro was a bit too late to launch the second grenade, so the shock the bunny girls had at witnessing their mascot explode had passed, leading to them being reasonably pissed off, and all of them now pointing their bows and arrows towards both him and Bakubro.
Bakubro couldn't reach down to his pockets. If he did, they would notice, and fire. Meaning all they could do now was wait to get chained up again. It was game over for them.
That was… until Eijiro saw a miracle.
KRAK!
"AHH!"
One of the bunny girls was hit with a spear to the side, surprising the rest of them. They all turned to see that the unknown assailant was a woman wearing a red mask, with horns. But the second Eijiro saw the eyes behind her mask, he knew who she was.
That's the girl back from Musutafu…
Several of the other bunny girls next to her immediately engaged the masked woman in combat, as the artificial redhead watched her dodge the arrows, as if she was dancing around them –
BOOOOOM!!!
Snapping out of his thoughts, Eijiro turned around to see that Bakubro had used his second grenade while everyone was distracted, taking out everyone on the other side of where the masked girl was fighting. "COME ON! LET'S GO WHILE THEY'RE DISTRACTED!!!"
Nodding Eijiro immediately clawed his way out of the pit alongside his explosive friend, making it out, and immediately making a break for it to the trees. Before Eijiro could leave however, he turned around. All he could see were the downed bunny girls, no sign of the girl.
He felt bad for not being able to say "thank you" to his savior.
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, this is Kodai, do you copy?"
Momo looked down to her radio. Her current situation was bad. She was down to one bullet, and the rest of the girls had run out of ammunition a few minutes ago. The warrior bunnies around her group were slowly closing in, and Momo could only keep bluffing about the awesome power behind their "fire sticks" for a few more minutes before the jig was up.
"Lieutenant, do you copy?"
Picking up her radio, Momo talked into it. "Kodai? Is that really you? Where are you?"
"I'm with Komori, we're almost to your location with the cavalry, but you have to listen carefully: When we show up, start running like hell, and get out of the crossfire. Understood?"
"Cavarly? What calvarley?! Kodai, come in! Kodai –"
RUUUMBLE…
Momo took her eyes off her radio the second she heard that sound. Everyone turned around, even the warrior bunnies, the second they heard that sound. Turning to her right, Momo, along with everyone else, could see that the trees were falling, and whatever was causing them to fall was both big, and heading towards the direction of the village.
But what Momo wasn't expecting to come out of the trees was… Komori.
"RUN!" the brown-haired botanist yelled, as she sprinted. "FUCKING RUUUUUN!!!"
A few seconds later, Kodai came out running, followed by… OH, WHAT THE HELL?!
Escaping from the forest, and taking down as many trees in their way were these… giants. Twice the height of her men, hunched backs, fat bellies along with tusks scrunched up faces and armed with clubs, that suggested they were nothing more than savage brutes.
But, apparently, the warrior bunnies recognize these monsters.
"OGRE ATTACK!!!" one of them yelled, and in an instant, all of the warrior bunnies stopped pursuing Momo and her team, in favor of fighting off the brand-new attackers.
"Ogres…?" Momo tried to wrap her head around what she heard.
"Oh, hi, Lieutenant. I see you were snooping through my personal stuff."
"Kodai!" Momo turned to see the team medic. "How did you manage this…?"
Twenty minutes earlier…
It was at this moment that Kinoko realized their team's medic was insane.
Kodai-chan's "idea" consisted of her raining gunfire at the homes of the ogres, and then taunting them, all to get their attention. Oh, and not only that, but she also told them to chase after both her and Kinoko, emphasizing how both of them were both beautiful and defenseless women.
What the absolute hell?!
Not only that, but she kept going. She kept telling those monsters that if they managed to catch the two of them, they could do whatever they wanted with her and Kinoko. She then proceeded to list off a bunch of extremely explicit acts the ogres could do with them.
So now, Kinoko was running as fast as her little legs could carry her, not because she was afraid of what the ogres would do to her, but because she was terrified of whatever twisted fucked-up shit lurked in Yui Kodai's mind that would make even Satan go "nope."
"Irrelevant," Kodai quickly said.
Momo gave her a questioning look, but she figured that she could ask again later, when they were out of harm's way. "Whatever. For now, let's get the fuck out of this jungle."
Everyone seemed to be in agreement with that decision, so the nine soldiers made their way through the bunny versus ogre chaos, heading towards the trees.
Unfortunately…
"YOU!"
Momo turned around to see a white-haired rabbit woman, one with dark skin. Immediately recognizing her as the chieftess from Kendo's report, she tensed. This was gonna be bad.
"You bring these men here, trick ourselves into appearing as members of the tribe, and now, you bring the ogres to attack us?!" Brandishing a halberd, Chieftess Usagiyama was seeing red, as she screamed at Momo, "NONE OF YOU ARE GETTING OUT OF THIS JUNGLE ALIVE!!!"
FWOOSH!!!
In an instant, using her powerful legs to propel her forward, Usagiyama launched herself towards Momo, her weapon clearly set on splitting the black-haired woman's head into two. She was inhumanly fast, and no one in the squad could stop the blade from landing on Momo's –
CLANG!
Before Momo could react, she saw two wings in front of her.
White wings.
Usagiyama, for her part, was shocked that someone had blocked her attack. A woman of blonde hair, whose sword was keeping her halberd from spilling blood.
Momo smiled, as she exclaimed, "Melissa!"
"Hey, Lieutenant," the angel smiled. "Sorry for coming late to the party, it took me a while to find you from up high. But I'm here now. Get out of the jungle, I'll keep this woman back."
"Right!" Turning to her team, she yelled. "You heard Shield! Fall back, immediately!"
The rest of the group nodded, immediately making a break for the trees, and back into the jungle, where they ended up running into Bakugou and Kirishima, of all people.
"Hey, Lieutenant!" Kirishima smiled as he ran. "Going our way?"
"You have no idea how happy I am to see you!" Momo said.
"Why the fuck are three of you wearing bunny suits?!" Katsuki asked.
BOOM!!!
Before Momo could answer, she turned around to see that several trees of the jungle began to fall, as Melissa and Usagiyama seemed to be… following them? What?!
"Melissa, what is going on?!" she shouted.
"This woman's super strong!" Melissa shouted, as she kept trying to keep the rabbit woman at bay. "Her power and combat ability make her on par with the Chimera, at least!"
"Who the fuck is the Chimera?!" Rin yelled in a panic.
"Shit, shit, shit!" Momo cursed, as she tried to grab her radio.
"Uh, guys? It's not just the bunny chieftess!" Kirishima pointed out.
Momo quickly turned around to see, and immediately regretted it. Not only was there aerial combat going on between Melissa and Usagiyama going on, but both the bunny tribe and the ogres were chasing after the squad, while also fighting each other!
"SHIT, SHIT, SHIT!!!" Momo cursed even louder, as she grabbed her radio even faster.
Neito Monoma stayed silent, as he heard the engine of the LAV purr.
As instructed by Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, he went back to camp with their equipment, and told Sato and Aoyama to pack everything up right away. Once they were done with that, he ordered the two of them to have the engines of the LAVs ready and on standby.
And now, all they had to do was wait.
That was, until suddenly, Neito's radio came to life.
"MONOMA!" Yaoyorozu's voice carried through. "MONOMA, COME IN!!!"
Immediately grabbing the radio, he said, "Lieutenant? What's going on –?"
"THE ENGINES! START THE FUCKING ENGINES, RIGHT FUCKING NOW!!!"
"Understood!" he said, as he quickly changed radio channels. "Sato! Aoyama! Start your engines! As soon as everyone's in the cars, drive as if Satan's chasing you down!"
"Roger that!"
"Oui, monsieur!"
Neito put his foot on the gas pedal, as he looked towards the trees. Immediately, he noticed them shaking, even a few of them falling, but nothing could prepare him for the shock he got when he saw everyone come out of the treeline, running for their lives.
Yaoyorozu, Uraraka, and Itsuka were still in the bunny outfits, along with Kaibara, Tsuburaba, Awase and Rin, who were for some reason still in chains, followed by Kirishima and Bakugou, who were covered in blood and viscera. Hell, the only people who seemed even relatively normal at the time were Komori and Kodai, but their expressions told a different story.
But that was just the beginning.
Following behind the group was some crazy white-haired bunny woman, who was wielding some sort of insane ax-thing, jumping in the middle of the air, and somehow fighting Shield, who had to keep dodging and weaving the insane bunny lady in midair, while also blocking her attacks with their sword, all while making sure she stayed away from the squad.
And to top it all off, an army of bunny girls and off-color Shreks, all of them fighting one another, while simultaneously chasing after the squad. WHAT IN THE ACTUAL FUCK?!
Neito simply stared at the chaos in front of him for a good thirty seconds, before the sound of the doors being opened snapped him back to reality. Turning around, he saw that the Lieutenant, along with three more in their group had just got into his LAV.
"Lieutenant –"
"GET US THE FUCK OUT OF HERE, RIGHT NOW!!!"
Neito immediately stepped on the gas pedal, as did the other two LAVs, as he could hear Yaoyorozu order someone to the turret guns on top to shoot down any and all hostiles, while he could also hear the rain of arrows and spears hitting the armors of their vehicles.
Oh, and of course, Shield's anime-styled sky battle going on right above them.
After an entire hour of driving, the LAVs slowed down.
They had left the Saltu Jungles well behind them. The bunny warriors and the ogres stopped pursuing them after about twenty minutes, and they proceeded to devolve into fighting each other rather than chasing the metal carriages shooting at them.
About five minutes after that, Melissa managed to come out victorious in her battle against Usagiyama, only because she managed to slam her sword into the chieftess' stomach, plunging her straight into the earth. As the angel retreated, she could hear Usagiyama getting back up and vowing that she would hunt them all down to the edges of the world.
Now that all the danger was gone, the cars stopped.
Momo, Kendo, and Uraraka managed to change from the bunny suits to their normal uniforms, and Bakugou and Kirishima managed to clean the snake blood and viscera off their faces, while also getting a pair of clean uniforms to replace the ones completely stained in red. Meanwhile, Melissa was able to free the Chaos Corps from their chains by cutting them with her sword.
Now that everything was deathly calm again, Momo looked her entire squad dead in the eye and quietly said, "We… are never going back there again. Unless it's with an army of tanks."
Every single one of her squad members nodded in morbid agreement.
He noticed her.
During the rescue attempt, Eijiro Kirishima has noticed Mina.
She didn't know whether or not her crimson-haired hero recognized her from the attack through the gate, but if he did, what was going on through his head? What was his reaction?
Mina Ashido didn't know, and frankly, she didn't care.
Grabbing her spear, she kept following the green soldiers.
As long as they had her red-haired savior, she would follow them forever.
Author's Note: Happy New Year! Last chapter of 2023!
In terms of special announcements, please keep your eyes out for a brand-new story coming your way this January 1st! Now, onto the comments!
Norisu Ninja: Finally! A comment from ! I was starting to think that there was a bug with that comment section since it was so barren! Anyways, I'm glad you asked your question: A story where Jiro is the main protagonist? I have considered a few possibilities with her, from a city in the sky in a post-apocalyptic future, to an underwater adventure set before World War II, to even her in space! Still workshopping it!
valkrus: Last chapter's typo has been corrected. Thank you!
And now, for the last bit of shilling…
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz . You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and once again, Happy New Year!
- Ernalore
Chapter 10: The Weather Wizard
Summary:
An artificial thunder storm caused a cave-in while Momo and her crew were attempting to set up camp. Bakugou and Uraraka attmept to free themselves, while Kirishima, Komori, Kaibara and Tsuburaba search the cave they trapped in, only to find madness. But the real danger is whoever out there caused the thunder storm, and Melissa intends to find out who it was...
Chapter Text
Chapter 10: The Weather Wizard
KRAK!
The wind howled, and the lightning crackled, as the Special Region Exploration Unit kept driving through what could be best described as a flat plane full of nothing but rocks and the occasional bush. But even then, the remaining bushes were blown away by the storm.
It had been a week since the incident at the Saltu Jungles, and it was at that point that Momo had decided to cut her losses and head back to the Collibus Hills. The good news was that the path of the Saltu Jungles was towards the direction of the gate, so all they had to do now was travel northeast for the next week to make it straight home.
The problem was that they were in foreign territory.
KRAK!
Instead of simply backtracking and heading through the Corallium Forest and Uwabami's mushroom land, they were heading to a new and unfamiliar place on their way back home. Which did make a bit of sense. Why? Go back to places you've already been, when you can head somewhere new on your way back, while also grabbing some new stuff?
Two birds and one stone, really.
Unfortunately, with every new place, came risks.
For the Uwabami's mushroom forest, it was giant scorpions, man-eating snail monsters, sentient fungus, and the medusa herself. For the Corallium Forest, it was those blind furbags, the talking wolf-hyena things, and the cursed undead. For the Saltu Jungles, it was the bunny women, the ogres, and the giant horned cobra that Bakugou and Kirishima blew up.
For this place, the risk was the high winds and lightning.
KRAK!
Snapping out of her internal monologue, Momo looked out the window once more. Thanks to the clouds overhead, not a single ray of light could break through. If it wasn't for the fact their vehicles came with some heavy-duty headlights, Momo and her entire squad could have easily been trapped wandering this perpetual darkness for who knows how long.
There were also two things that the black-haired soldier was glad weren't happening right now: One was the fact that it wasn't raining, and the other was that the lightning at least illuminated their path for a bit, even at the risk of it possibly striking their very-much metal vehicles.
KRAK!
"All right, that's it!" Awase growled. "If I see another goddamn lightning bolt, I'm gonna get out of the car, and shoot my gun straight into the sky! Maybe Zeus will get the message to stop…"
"Perhaps it is best that we stop for the day…" Momo said, as she saw something out the side of the window. "Look over there, there's a mountainside. We can camp there for the night."
"Sweet," Uraraka said. "This storm is putting me on edge."
Grabbing her radio, Momo said, "Everyone, this is Lieutenant Yaoyorozu. We're making camp for the night. Please drive towards that dark area of the nearby mountainside. Over and out."
FWEEE —
Stepping out of the car, Katsuki cringed as he heard the wind scream at him.
It almost sounded like his mother, the old hag, when she had a bad day.
"Hey, Bakubro!"
Oh, great, it's that guy again.
"Check out what's next to the mountainside! We could use it for shelter!"
Katuski looked towards where the red-haired idiot was pointing to see… a cave.
The entrance was big enough that two tall people could easily walk inside, but Katsuki didn't know anyone who would do such a thing voluntarily. The inside was completely pitch-black, and the stalagmites and stalactites at the entrance made the cave look like an open mouth.
The fact that there were also four other holes on top of the main opening of the cave that resembled nostrils and eyes did not make Katsuki feel any more comfortable.
"I'm not going in there, and you can't make me," he flatly said.
"Oh, come on, don't be such a baby," the ginger-haired ponytail lady, Kendo or something, said. "Kaibara already looked it over. Despite the fact that it looks like a face, it's a hundred percent rock. So you don't have to worry about being eaten alive by some kind of giant."
"It could be a golem pretending to be a cave," Katsuki retorted back.
"Okay, fine, I'll indulge your little fantasy for a bit," she said. "Why would a golem go through all that effort to shove itself into the side of the mountain, just to keep its mouth open in the hopes that some dumb animal would wander inside? Look how big it is! If that cave truly was its head, then the rest of its body would be even bigger, so wouldn't it make more sense for it to roam around the land actively hunting, rather than acting like some sort of ambush predator?"
Katsuki cloaked his tongue, seeing no flaw in her logic. "What do you want?"
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu wants to see how big the cave actually is," Kendo said, handing him a flashlight. "She thinks that there's a chance we can fit all our tents, and maybe our vehicles, in there for the night. Kirishima, here's your flashlight. The two of you are buddying up again."
"AWW, YEAH! BACK AT IT AGAIN WITH BAKUBRO!!!"
God fucking dammit.
As the wind kept flying into Momo's face, her frustration was rising.
"Lieutenant, this is Kaibara!" her radio crackled. "Tsuburba and I are a bit deeper in the cave along with Uraraka and Komori! It's pretty roomy! We can fit all our tents in here!"
"What?!" she asked, not being able to hear her radio due to the wind.
"I SAID IT'S ROOMY!"
"I can't hear you, give me a minute!" she shouted, as she looked over towards the team's resident angel. "Melissa! Is there anything you can do to help with the noise?!"
"What?!" the blonde-haired woman shouted to Momo.
"I SAID, "IS THERE ANYTHING YOU CAN DO TO HELP WITH THE NOISE"?!"
"Okay, okay! I heard you! You don't have to shout at me!" she said, getting closer towards Momo. "While I can't help with the noise, I can maybe do something about the weather!"
"Like what?!"
"Didn't you forget I have magic powerful enough to change the weather?"
"Oh, uh, yeah, I guess I did. I was so busy, it must have slipped my mind," Momo said, before realizing something. "Wait a minute! Why haven't you changed the weather already?!"
"I didn't get your permission?" the angel answered.
Momo took a deep breath to calm down before answering. "Melissa, there's something known as being "proactive." So, for future reference, here's some advice: When there's something you can do to help others, do it, even if they didn't ask for it. I'll handle the legal paperwork."
"Oh, okay! Then in that case… IMPERIUM TEMPESTAS!"
Momo stared in amazement as Melissa sent her hand up towards the sky, chanted those magical words, snapped her fingers, and then… nothing happened. Wait, what?
"Uhh, Melissa?" Momo asked. "Nothing happened."
"No, that doesn't make any sense, it should have worked unless…" Melissa's eyes widened from confusion or horror as she realized something. "This isn't a natural storm."
"Wait, what? What are you talking about?"
"My spell allows me to alter the weather, with one exception… I can't alter someone else's created weather," the angel said. "Two weather-altering spells can't work at the same time. Which means… Someone powerful is here. Someone is causing the storm."
KRAAAAK!!!
Before Momo could even comprehend what Melissa said, a bolt of lightning struck the side of the mountain, and out from the impact came… falling boulders.
"ROCK SLIDE!!!"
The words Monoma shouted hit Katsuki's brain in an instant.
After the last lightning bolt, he could hear the creaking of something big and heavy from even inside the opening of the cave. And he knew that those sounds only meant trouble.
"SHITTY HAIR, WE GOTTA GET OUTTA HERE, NOW!!!"
The redheaded guy immediately nodded and the two of them made a break for it, trying to hear back out of the cave before the rocks – "KIRISHIMA! GET OUT OF THE WAY!"
GRAB!
Before Kirishima could even react, Katsuki tackled him away from the opening of the cave, and for good reason. Large boulders began to fall towards the entrance, and if the explosive blond hadn't saved Kirishima, the redhead would have been squashed trying to escape.
The last thing Kirishima saw before the darkness came in was Aoyama pointing at the sky.
"LOOK OUT, EVERYONE!!!" Aoyama screamed, as more boulders fell.
This was a nightmare. Several people had already gotten struck by the boulders, and Melissa worked overtime to heal the life-threatening injuries, while Kodai took care of the less serious wounds. All Momo could do was order her troops to fill her in on the details.
"Sato! Status report!"
"Well, the good news is, nobody died," the team's chef said. "Shield-san and Kodai are treating the injured, but the worst part is that a bunch of our tents got wrecked by the boulders."
"The tents are replaceable, you aren't," Momo said. "Wait… where's…?"
"This is Bakugou! Someone, come in!" Momo's radio suddenly turned on. "Fuck!"
"Bakugou, it's Yaoyorozu, what's going on?"
"Me and Shitty Hair are trapped in the cave! All those damn boulders sealed us in here! And to make matters worse, one of them got me in the leg! Can't walk… fuck, that hurts!"
"What's everyone else's status in there?"
"The other two teams just met up with us, there's a total of six of us trapped in the cave! Shitty Hair's radio and flashlight are busted. We've only got two of those flashlights left, from the other two teams. And the damn rocks aren't budging! We'll have to blow our way out."
"How? Bakugou, you're the only one who's explosives-certified here!"
"I'll walk you guys through it from here! Round Cheeks is staying with me, Shitty Hair and the other three are gonna try and scout for another way out of this cave system!"
"Alright, we'll see what we can do from here, stay safe!" Momo said. "Aoyama!"
"Yes?" the French sniper asked.
"You, Rin and Awase grab Bakugou's supplies and follow his instructions to the letter! These are delicate explosives, and one wrong move could get us into an even bigger mess! Kodai!"
"Mm?" the medic hummed.
"What are the statuses of our other patients?"
"Melissa managed to save their lives, but Kendo and Monoma still have minor fractures," she said. "Melissa said she's conserving her mana in case of an emergency."
"Good. You and Sato watch over and keep treating our injured. Melissa!"
"Yes, ma'am?" the angel asked.
"Use your wings and find the bastard who's causing the lightning with their magic," she hissed. "I don't care what you have to do, kill them for all I care, but I want this storm gone!"
"Understood, ma'am," she said, before taking off on her white wings.
As Momo looked over the damage, she realized it was going to be a long night.
"I'm not leaving you behind, Bakubro!" Eijiro shouted.
"SHUT UP! I'm not gonna be alone, Round Cheek's is gonna be with me!"
"I refuse to be addressed like that!" Uraraka protested.
The spiky blond stared daggers at her. "I kinda don't care right now –"
"Bakugou, do you read me? It's Awase, we got the explosives from the car!"
"About fucking time," Bakubro grumbled, before grabbing the radio. "Alright, listen carefully, first thing's first, do you see the box that says "M112 demolition charge" on it? Pull it out and…"
As Bakugou began explaining the instructions over the walkie-talkies, Uraraka looked to Eijiro and said, "He'll be fine, I'll be with him. Just go with the others and try to find a way out."
Eijiro wanted to protest, but Kaibara said, "Hey, don't worry, man. Bakugou's a tough bastard, he'll pull through and help us get out of here. Isn't that right Kosei?"
"Oh, yeah, totally," Tusburaba said.
"Yeah, I guess you guys are right…"
"Alright," Komori said, grabbing one of the flashlights. "Let's explore this cave…"
As Kirishima left with the other three, he took one last look back at Bakubro and Uraraka, the light of their flashlights being the last thing he saw before the darkness overtook them.
The only thing Kinoko could see with the flashlight was just how green the walls were.
There was probably some scientific explanation that Kaibara would be more than happy to explain to them, but it still didn't remove from the fact that this place was eerie as hell.
This was about as far as she went in terms of exploration with Uraraka, before everything went to shit. She really didn't notice the coloration of the walls at the time, she was more busy trying to figure out whether the squad could sleep outside of the thunder storm for the night.
That, and if there were any mushrooms in the cave. She still had her priorities.
She remained silent, as did everyone else, as they continued their little improvised spelunking trip. But the fact that they weren't talking made their ears hyper-sensetive to even the smallest thing. Their footsteps on the ground sounded like they were stepping on crackers, and she could have sworn that she heard a xylophone being stroked in the darkness.
It was probably just some weird cricket, right? Right?
As the four of them kept marching through the darkness, they saw that there were now two paths in front of them. Kirishima cleared his throat, and said, "So, the left or the right –?"
"HOW MANY, THEN?"
In an instant, Kirishima's question died in his throat, as everyone else stayed quiet.
"What the fuck was that?" Tsuburaba asked, in a whisper.
That wasn't one of their voices. It sounded like an old man's. And to top it off, it wasn't in Japanese, but Latin. Meaning there was someone else, a local, in the cave with them.
Turning around, Kinoko could see Kaibara was slowly pulling out his pistol from behind. The geologist looked at the others, and then quietly asked, "How do we respond?"
"I dunno, we tell him the truth?" Tsuburaba asked.
"Oh, that sounds like a great idea! "Hey, there's four of us! Enough for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a bonus desert!"" Even in whispers, she could hear Kaibara's sarcasm.
"Maybe we don't say anything?" Kirishima suggested.
As the other three began to quietly argue over how to proceed, Kinoko gulped. She stepped forward and away from the group, and said, in Latin, "Uhh… four?"
The other three looked towards her, only for all four of them to be silently shocked when a glowing green skeleton arm came out of the darkness, with four… tickets in hand?
What the fuck?
Kinoko quietly took the tickets and gave one to each of the group members, before the four of them decided to head towards the left tunnel. But before they could step any further, the green skeleton arm snapped its fingers at them, and then used its thumb to point them towards the other tunnel, where it was. And then, just like that, it disappeared into thin air.
"Huh…" Kirishima was the first to say anything. "I guess we're going towards the right."
The four of them proceeded on their way, only to hear… bubbles?
No, it was a bubbling sound, as Kinoko suddenly saw that on one side of the tunnel was this orange-and-brown liquid… thing… covering up the right wall, while on the left side, there were a bunch of dark green-and-black columns, each one suspiciously looking like a pile of skulls.
"Okay, no, seriously, what the fuck is going on here?" Tsuburaba asked.
"Man, I have no idea," Kaibara said. "This… orange wall thing… it's moving around like a liquid, or like a living organism, but that makes no sense in the world of physics, let alone science."
"Maybe we should ignore it, and move on?" Kirishima asked.
Everyone agreed immediately.
As they moved on from the… bubbling room… they ended up in a part of the cave system where it actually behaved like a cave. Water dripped from the ceiling, forming small puddles, and they even saw spider webs illuminated by the dim green glow of the cavern.
And then they heard a wolf howl.
Everyone was immediately on edge again, with Kaibara pointing his pistol towards the direction the wolf howl came from. "We should leave it alone," Kirishima said. "It sounds far away."
"Yeah, you're probably right," Kaibara said, lowering the pistol again.
As the wolf howls became more and more distant, and the spider cobwebs above them became more and more prominent, the group heard a new sound. It was squelching, like when a pocket of air escaped puddy, or when someone was walking through mud.
Wait, speaking of mud… my feet are getting kind of heavy…
Kinoko suddenly looked down, shining her flashlight to reveal that everyone's boots were now submerged in some sort of black-and-green sludge, which was making the sounds.
"Eww!" Tsuburaba squealed, kicking his boots around. "Ew, ew, ew, what the fuck?!"
"What is this stuff?" Kirishima asked. "Tar?"
"Actually, no," Kaibara said. "If this was a real tar pit, it would be much harder for us to move around, maybe even impossible given the right conditions. Plus, this stuff isn't as heavy as tar, since it doesn't seem to be severely impeding our ability to move around."
"IT'S STILL ON MY FUCKING BOOTS!!!" Tsuburaba yelled.
"We'll clean them once we're out of here!" Kinoko said. "But right now, we have more important issues than dirtying our shoes. Come on, we need to keep moving."
She could still hear the team's resident meteorologist grumbling about his boots, even as they made their way towards the next section of the cave. It was pitch black again, with the only visible things being the walls, just like back with the glowing green skeleton arm.
The only new difference now was the fact that she could hear some sort of "hoo" thing. That was the sort of thing owls said, right? Were there owls in this cave? She didn't know.
Kinoko looked over her group to see four pairs of eyes still following her. Good, she –
Hold the fuck up.
Taking a double-take, Kinoko saw that there was an extra pair of eyes. They were large, green, and certainly not human. "Uh, guys…?" she said, pointing towards them.
The three of them looked around, confused, but as soon as they saw the big green eyes, they leapt back, with Kaibara pulling out his gun once again. He was really jumpy, wasn't he?
The four of them kept their backs to the wall, as the large eyes kept getting larger, and larger… until suddenly, they began to get an electric look on them, making a rapid clicking sound –
POP!
…and then bursting.
"Huh…" Kirishima looked a bit dumbfounded. "That was weird."
"You can say that again…" Tsuburaba deadpanned.
Kaibara breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, at least it wasn't anything dangerous –"
"GET DOWN!!!"
"""SKREEE!!!"""
The instant Kirishima screamed that, a bunch of high-pitched flying critters descended upon them, making everyone panic and hitting the floor, with Kaibara unleashing a bunch of bullets.
BLAM!
BLAM!
BLAM!
"AAAAAAAA–"
"KAIBARA, STOP THAT!"
"What?! Why?!"
"They were just a bunch of bats! Calm down, man!" Kinoko said.
"Komori, come in. This is Uraraka. We heard gunshots. What the fuck is going on down there?"
Grabbing her walkie-talkie, Kinoko said, "This is Komori. Everything's fine. Kaibara just got super trigger-happy over a bunch of bats. No one is injured. Repeat, no one is injured."
"Glad to hear that. Don't scare us like that again."
"Roger that, over and out," Kinoko said, as she put away her radio. "Welp, you heard our superior. Kaibara, please don't try and make us go deaf with your bullets again."
"ARE YOU SERIOUS?!" he shouted, as he and everyone else got back up. "That's what you're worried about? Not the fact that there could be monsters lurking in this cave, or that everything we've seen so far in this hell is making us question reality itself?!"
"Okay, one, the only "monster" that attacked us so far were those bats. Even the skeleton arm didn't hurt us. And two, have you forgotten that we're in a magical fantasy world, with dragons and shit? Literally everything here is gonna make us question reality!"
"Yeah, well… wait, do you hear that?"
Everyone calmed down a bit as Kaibara called everyone's attention to the sound of… repeated whacking? No, it was a pattern. A hit, then silence, then another hit, all within a few seconds.
The group all looked at one another and nodded, and proceeded to go past the next part of the cave, and into the darkness, only to see… the most bizarre thing yet.
Two ethereal green rackets, simply floating on their own, with no one holding them, were playing badminton. Except that the "birdie" was… a green glowing skull.
WHACK!
WHACK!
WHACK!
WHACK!
The four of them simply watched, dumbfounded, as the skull was hit from one side of the dark cavern to the other side by the floating green rackets, over and over, until…
WHACK!
PLOP!
…one of the rackets did a bad swing, and the skull fell to the floor.
"15 – 0," the glowing skull on the floor simply said.
"..."
"..."
"..."
"That's it," Kaibara deadpanned. "I've officially gone insane."
"Come on, bro, it wasn't that bad…" Kirishima tried to console him.
"Yeah, and considering that we all saw the same thing, that either means that we've all gone insane, or what we just saw was real," Tsuburaba said, trying to comfort his friend.
"Is this what Rin felt like at the coral reef? With fish flying in the sky?" Kaibrara asked.
"Dude…"
"Oh my God, what if we're actually in Hell? We died during that cave-in, and we're in Hell."
"DUDE!" Tsuburaba yelled at his best friend. "We're not dead, and we're not in Hell. If we were in Hell, we'd, you know, be judged and punished for the things we actually did, and aside from having some perverted minds, I'm pretty sure we've been both squeaky clean our entire lives."
"I…" the geologist recomposed himself, before gaining a serious expression. "You're right, you're absolutely right. There has got to be a scientific explanation for all of this."
"See? Good as new!" Tsuburaba patted Kaibara on the back.
"Look, man, I know we're all on-edge right now, but we'll be fine!" Kirishima said. "Here, instead of focusing on all the weird stuff happening to us right now… um… try and focus on something you can understand. Like, uh, hey! These glowing rocks on the walls! Since you're the local rock expert, you know what they are, right? Maybe you can give us a lecture while we walk!"
"Oh, uh, sure," Kaibara said, as he inspected the colorful stones on the right side of the wall. "They seem to be composed of calcite, fluorite, and sodalite, but those types of minerals only glow like that under ultraviolet light. They shouldn't be glowing in the dark like that…"
"Maybe they absorbed some sunlight before the storm kicked in?" Kinoko asked.
"No, while sunlight does produce ultraviolet light, the percentage of it is pretty small. To have an effect like this would take a UV light bulb, and even then it would have to remain over the rocks constantly to produce this type of glow," Kaibara said, pointing to the glowing rocks. "The only theory I have is that some super-powerful source of UV light blasted these rocks recently, hence why they're still glowing all of those colors even though the source is gone."
"So, what you're saying is that there's a good chance that the source is still in this cave?"
"Uh, I mean, maybe?" Kaibara said.
"Great! A "maybe" is good enough for me!" Kinoko said. "Let's go, shroom!"
TINK!
Deep within the bowels of the cave, someone was hard at work.
TINK!
TINK!
Picking away at the gemstones littering the cave, she sang herself a happy tune.
"Heigh-ho! Heigh-ho! It's home from work we go!"
TINK!
TINK!
TINK!
TINK!
"Heigh-ho! Heigh-ho, heigh-ho, heigh-ho!"
Melissa flew through the skies, searching for the culprit behind this storm.
KRAAAK!
All while trying to avoid the lightning littering the sky.
As the winds blew around her, she resisted the pressure they were exuding. The wind was trying so hard to send her crashing down to the ground, but still she went against their currents, as she kept searching the dark skies.
KRAAAK!
Now that she thought of it, there seemed to be more lightning strikes around this area in particular. In fact, the wind also seemed to be even stronger around here, too.
That's when it clicked for her.
I'm getting close…
Author's Note: This cave is gonna get a lot trippier, trust me.
Before we continue, I want to make an announcement: I have come bearing a gift in the form of a new weekly series, a collaboration between myself and my good friend, Infinite the Celestian. A crossover between Re: Zero, Dark Souls, and the Elder Souls V: Skyrim, that we have dubbed… the Elder Souls. The links are here, for both ( s/14313467/1/The-Elder-Souls ) and ArchiveofOurOwn ( /works/52723891/chapters/133355623 )! Now, the comments!
DefultIdiot: Considering I've never heard of War Thunder until I read your comment, not until today. It was mostly Wikipedia articles on the Japanese military as my sources.
valkrus: Weird, I thought it was all spelled right. Oh, well. Fixed it. Thanks.
And now, for the last bit of shilling…
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz . You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and Happy New Year!
- Ernalore
Chapter 11: The Cave of Illusions
Summary:
Those trapped in the recent cave-in have either one of these two thoughts on their mind: How to get out, or what was going on? As it turned out, there was someone else in the cave with them causing this insanity. And even outside of the cave, and outside of Yaoyorozu's rescue operation, there were several others out there making their moves...
Chapter Text
Chapter 11: The Cave of Illusions
Eijiro Kirishima didn't think of himself as a leader.
He never even thought of being one. Too much for him to screw up.
All his life, he was just the guy who tried and failed at everything. Even if his family said that everything was fine, and that failing was just a part of being human, he never felt that way. He felt like he could, should, so something, to make up for the way he was.
So, he enlisted for the JSDF.
Eijiro always hated bullies, and during his middle and high school years, would be the kind of guy who defended those who couldn't defend themselves. He figured that signing up for the Self-Defense Force would allow him to help more people than before.
Then the Musutafu Incident occurred.
It was the first time Eijiro killed. He didn't mean to kill those monsters, but they were attacking civilians, innocents. He had a job to do. But then, he encountered the masked girl.
He couldn't do it. He couldn't shoot her. He let her go, back to the gate. A part of him wondered if he did the right thing, letting an enemy go like that. But then, she saved him and Bakugou back at the Blood Snake Pit last week, which made him wonder: What was her angle?
Was she repaying some debt to him? A life for a life?
Did he make the right call?
He didn't know. He didn't say anything about it to Bakubro, and he was pretending like it never even happened. Shaking his head out of those thoughts, he focused back on the task on hand. He and the others needed to find a way out in case Bakubro's bombs failed.
The four of them continued to walk through the darkness, until –
"Get down!"
As Komori yelled at them again to duck, a giant blue, ethereal face with sharp teeth sprang out from the darkness, making noises that sounded like the cross between a creaking bike and a dying animal. It was big, bigger than any of them, and it was charging towards them.
"What the fuck, what the fuck –?!" Tsuburaba yelled, pulling out his gun.
It floated around the dark, before flying passed the group, and before the meteorologist could shoot it. The second it was gone, the group breathed a sigh of relief, when suddenly another head, a red one which looked like the cross between a fish and a lizard, with a forked tongue, charged at them, making a sound which Eijiro could only describe as "electric."
"What the hell is this shit?!" Kaibara yelled.
As the red lizard face left, a green gorilla-like one, with fangs, charged towards them, followed by an identical one that was orange, and then a blue one, all of them flying towards the four soldiers in a straight line, before suddenly disappearing themselves.
"Okay… the jumpscares are starting to wear off now," Kaibrara said.
"I agree," Tsuburaba replied.
As the four of them stood back up and proceeded through the dark cavern, another giant ethereal head flew towards them. It was green, and somewhat resembled a decaying head, and it used the long hair it had as wings, before landing right next to the group.
"It's just… sitting there," Eijiro deadpanned.
"How tall do you guys think it is?" Komori asked.
"Around four times our height, I think?" Tsuburaba estimated.
"Wait, that doesn't make any sense," Kaibara said. "The other ones that jumpscared us did it super quick, but we had enough time to get some details out of their faces, meaning they had to be small, relatively speaking. If they were as big as this green guy, then it would have been harder for us to see any details due to how fast they were approaching our faces."
"Maybe it's a ghost trick?" Komori said.
"I dunno, remember those ghosts Shield, Kodai and I fought against back at the coral reef?" Kirishima said. "Those could fly, sure, but they couldn't warp our perception like that."
"So, we're dealing with something else?" she asked, walking.
"Maybe? I mean, look at all the amazing things we've seen in just under a month: Angels, medusas, giant animals, ghosts, demi-humans, monsters, there's bound to be some sort of creature we can't fully understand, given the insane amount of variety."
"Hmm, you have a point, shroom," the botanist said, as she looked towards the giant ethereal head. Switching to Latin, she said, "Excuse me, but may I ask, what are you?"
The green ethereal head merely made a wet, squelching sound.
"I think it's ignoring us," Kaibara said.
"HEY, BIG AND GREEN!" Komori shouted at the giant head. "WE'RE TALKING TO YOU! I KNOW YOU CAN HEAR US! IT'S RUDE TO IGNORE PEOPLE!"
"Maybe he can't understand us?" Tsuburaba suggested.
"Good call," she said, before turning around. "DO YOU SPEAK COMMON?!"
"Jesus Christ, Komori!" Kaibara groaned. "Yelling louder at it won't make it magically understand us! What you're doing is basically when Americans yell "Do you speak English?" at foreigners."
"Oh, you're right. Whoopsies."
"Uh, guys?" Tsuburaba pointed at the creature. "It's melting."
The four soldiers looked back at the giant green skull-thing, only to see it begin to lose its form, melting down into a bunch of sludge, before simply disappearing.
"..."
"..."
"..."
"Welp," Tsuburaba deadpanned. "That just happened."
"I think Kaibara might have been right about the "going insane" thing," Komori said.
"Come on, guys, don't be like that," Eijiro tried to convince the rest of his group. "I mean, remember, it's still a fantasy world, that just might be how things work here."
"I suppose you're right… in any case, we should probably keep going."
The four of them continued to walk through the darkness of the cave in silence, with the only thing visible to them was the green of the walls, as they prayed for a way out.
KRAAAK!
Despite the health risks, Nine enjoyed being able to use his magic.
He wasn't sure why that was. Maybe he enjoyed the sounds of thunder and lightning surrounding his ears like a destructive symphony. Maybe it was the cool breeze from the gusts that flew past him, as they destroyed everything in his past.
But maybe… It was because it made Nine feel powerful.
Yes, that was it. He was powerful, and he wanted to flaunt that power.
Born in some small village out in the sticks, Nine discovered that he was capable of using high-level magic at a young age, up to the sixth level, to be precise. Now, in terms of Level Magic, he was in the middle of the totem pole, but compared to all of the other peasants in the village, he might as well have been a god. And he was worshiped like one.
However, as it turned out, he was just a big fish living in a small pond. When he left to see if he could conquer the outside world, he realized just how weak he truly was. Level Magic wasn't the only magic system out there, and even in his own domain, he was mid. There were even rumors of the old Demon King out in the west capable of using magic of the eleventh level.
He couldn't compete with that, and that made him angry.
To make matters worse, while he was capable of using magic, his body couldn't handle the backlash. He was still human, after all. In order for a human to have such mastery over magic, they would have had to be two hundred years old, at least. He was still in his early thirties.
It was basically an issue of his glass being unable to hold all the wine.
So, his magic would damage his body if he ever went overboard. Sure, he could heal himself, but that was only a temporary solution. He was still weak, and that made his blood boil.
It wasn't fair. He was supposed to be the one who would rule this world, but seeing people like the Todorokis and Shigaraki made him realize just how small he truly was. The best he could do at that point was swear fealty to one of them, and hope they could cure his condition.
But he would never do that. He was too prideful.
Then, a miracle happened.
Hisashi Shigaraki died, killed by Toshinori Yagi. And while his son inherited his father's kingdom, the boy was too busy trying to maintain order and avoiding conflict with the Emperor of Flames and the Elven Queen to see that there was a new power rising in the world.
Garaki and Kurono were the joint leaders of this newfound alliance, one where they managed to grab nearly every single powerful entity on the Occidensian continent for themselves, or at the very least, every entity that wasn't satisfied with the current status-quo.
Their goal? Bring about the end of the world as all knew it.
Nine could see it now. Kai Chisaki would bring about the calamity he attempted so many decades ago, and when the dust settled and those in the way perished, the alliance would split, all would go their separate ways, and fight one another over who inherited their new land.
But there was one small detail in that alliance: For Nine's part, he was promised by Garaki a cure to his condition, an even better body than his current one. So once the alliance ended and everyone was once again at each other's throats, he would have the advantage.
Once the new Demon King was gone, would rule the world.
KRAAAK!
But for now, he would simply enjoy the chaos he was currently causing.
Kurono and Garaki had succeeded in bringing back Chisaki, and had ordered everyone else to prepare for the next phase of the plan. Obviously, it would take a while before Chisaki would plan the next move, so for the moment, Nine would simply relax and unwind…
As the winds he created kept blowing around him over the mountain he was standing on, however, something bugged him. Specifically, something bright was making his eyes squint. Taking a closer look, he saw that something glowing yellow was indeed flying around the storm he was causing. Whatever it was, it had to be strong, to resist his winds like that.
Oh, it was flying towards him. That probably wasn't a good sign.
"Deprehendere magicae…" he muttered, allowing him to sense if whatever was flying towards him had any magic whatsoever, and… OH, WHAT THE FUCK?!
This thing was on par with him in terms of magic, at least.
He had to get out of here, and he had to do it RIGHT FUCKING NOW.
"I spy with my little eye… something green," Komori said.
"Ugh… is it the goddamn ceiling?" Kaibara asked.
"That's right!" the botanist cheered. "Three for three! Great job, shroom!"
"Don't patronize me, Komori."
"Sen, you're the one who said he was getting bored," Tsuburaba said.
"Well, excuse me for being a bit antsy while we're trapped in a cave, full of monsters straight out of deep fried memes!" he shouted. "It was either boredom or insanity!"
"So… you got bored of insanity?"
"Fuck you, Kosei."
Eijiro softly chuckled at their antics. They hadn't had any new bizarre surprises in the last few minutes, so the group had started to breathe a little easier. And some were getting bored.
"Man, how long does it take for Bakugou to rig some explosives?" Tsuburaba asked. "I –"
"WHOA, STOP!"
Eijiro immediately grabbed Tsuburaba from walking any further, while the other two stopped in their tracks by the artificial redhead's yelling, and not a second too soon, because –
FWOOOOOSH!
Straight out from the right intersection of the cave system came… a subway? An entire subway train rushed past them, and as it left, they looked around to see that their surroundings had changed to that of an underground train station.
"Uhh… where exactly are we now?" Komori asked.
"Wait… I recognize those ads," Kaibarai said, as he pointed towards the posters on the walls. "Those are from the subway station I grew up taking! We're in the Tokyo Metro Station!"
"WHAT?!" Tsuburaba shouted. "We're back in Japan?!"
"Wait, this doesn't make any sense!" Komori said. "I thought the gate in Musutafu was the only way people were able to go from one world to another! Did we just get teleported?!"
"How the hell is a cave able to teleport us?!"
Before anyone else could ask any more questions, the same rushing sound flooded their ears, as they saw a second subway car coming from their right, rushing right past them, and then…
Darkness. Pitch black darkness.
"Uhh, Komori?"
"Yes, Kirishima?"
"Do you still have that flashlight on you?"
"Yeah, just give me a second."
The brown-haired botanist turned on her flashlight, only to see that the four of them were still together, and that… They were back in the cave.
"Okay…" Kaibara sighed. "So, we have skeleton arms giving us tickets, invisible wolves, floating rackets and skulls, ghost-face jumpscares, and now, the Tokyo Metro. Sure, why not?"
"Kaibara, you good?" Komori asked.
"Yeah, I've shot past insanity, and now I'm just in depressing acceptance."
"Guys, shh!" Tsuburaba shushged the others. "Do you hear that?"
Getting up silently, the four of them listened in, as they heard a… heartbeat? Following the sound, they saw that just past the tunnel, there was something big, bright, and red… it was… pulsating? Like an actual heart, but it was also… it was growling?
"It sounds like a dragon…" the meteorologist whispered.
"How do you know what a dragon sounds like?" the geologist whispered back.
"Both of you, shut up!" the botanist hissed in a quiet tone. "Kirishima?"
Eijiro merely stood, as he listened to the heartbeat, and stared at the glowing red aura. Sileinty, he pulled out his pistol, and looked back at the others. They had also pulled out their guns, and with Komori's nod of approval, he took the first step.
Then, everything went blue.
"Alright, Bakugou," Awase said over the radio. "We set it up. Now what?"
"Get the fuck as far away from there as you can, I would recommend a good thirty meters, at least," Bakugou said. "Once we're also out of the range, we'll give you the signal."
"Understood," the bandana-wearing mechanic said, as he slowly set up the detonation line from the rock slide out towards the recommended zone Bakugou just gave them.
Elsewhere, Momo gave the orders to everyone else to move the cars and other equipment away from the soon-to-be detonation site as well. It had been a few hours now since the incident that trapped six of her men in a cave, but things were looking better than before.
For one, the weather had calmed down significantly.
And two, they were almost ready to attempt their rescue operation.
Of all the things Eijiro was expecting, it wasn't the blue lighting.
Or the girl who was mining with a pickaxe, and singing herself a happy tune.
"Heigh-ho! Heigh-ho! It's home from work we go!"
Her appearance was… weird, even by fantasy world standards. She looked human, sure, but she had short, bright-green hair, which also held specks of pink, blue, yellow and maybe purple. Even her eyebrows and eyelashes were multi-colored. And as for her eyes, those were even weirder. Her irises were a combination of blue, green and yellow, while her pupils were white.
Her clothes at least looked kinda normal. Knee-high dark boots, underbust corset, some sort of light-colored jumpsuit that seemed to act as both her shirt and pants at the same time, black shirt underneath that, a dark long-sleeved jacket, and some leather gloves.
Eijiro and the rest of the group remained silent as they watched the lady keep swinging her pickaxe at some light blue crystals, which seemed to be responsible for the lighting in here.
As she kept swinging, Tsuburaba decided to be the first to speak up.
Switching to Latin, he cleared his throat, and said, "Um… excuse me?"
"Huh?" The girl looked up to see them, and immediately went into a panic, swinging her pickaxe around wildly. "Ahh! Who are you?! Wait, how'd you even get past my defenses?!"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Chill! We just got trapped in this cave, we're not gonna hurt you! Look, my name's Tsuburaba, this is our leader Komori, this is my friend Kaibara, and that's Kirishima."
Okay, it stung a little to be called out last, but Eijiro ignored it.
"Oh… okay," she said, as her attitude immediately made a complete one-eighty back to cheerful, as she struck a pose. "My name's Toru Hagakure! Nice to meet you!"
Sensing that this girl might potentially be mentally unstable, Komori decided to take charge. "It's nice to meet you, too. So, uh, what exactly are you doing here?"
"Oh, I'm just mining for these glanz crystals," she said, pointing to the bright blue glowing gems on the walls. "Their luster and radiance make them really popular in women's jewelry."
"Wonderful, a whole new type of mineral to discover…" Kaibara said in Japanese.
"So, what are you all doing here? You're not here to steal them, are you?!"
"What? No! No, we don't want them!" Komori waved her hands at Hagakure. "We were just trying to make camp at the mouth of the cave when lightning struck the side of the mountain and trapped us in here! We've been searching around this cave looking for an alternate way out."
"Oh, I see… wait, you've been searching for a way out all this time?"
Eijiro decided to add something to the conversation. "Uhh… yeah? Why?"
"Oh, you poor things! You must have been frightened by all my illusions!"
"Wait, what?!" Kaibara shouted. "You mean those skeletons, ghost faces, and the goodman Tokyo Metro weren't real?! You were just making a bunch of goddamn hallucinations?!"
"While I don't know what a "Tokyo Metro" is, the rest do sound like my work. I can personally assure you that there are no actual ghosts or skeletons inhabiting this cave."
"Wait, so all of that was just you?" Eijiro asked. "The wolf howls, the glowing eyes, the bats?"
"No, the bats are very much real," Hagakure said. "We are inside a cave, after all."
"But wait, how'd you make them so… accurate?!" Komori asked. "I mean, some of the stuff we saw felt kinda personal, or played into some of our biggest fears! Heck, while you may not know what a "Tokyo Metro" is, we certainly do! How the heck did you pull that off?!"
"Oh, that would be my Personal Magic," Hagakure said. "I've gotten so good at making illusions nowadays that I can now just send them out subconsciously while also customizing them to scare off any intruders in the most efficient way possible without ever having to see said intruders! Hell, I didn't even know you guys existed until you showed up right here!"
"Yeah, well they kinda goddamn worked," Kaibara hissed. "We were on edge the whole fucking time! If it weren't for the fact that we were trapped in here, we would have bolted for the exit!"
Eijiro mulled over what he heard. This girl was strong enough that creating magic-based illusions was as simple as breathing to her: She didn't even have to think about doing it. And if he understood it right, she was just half-assing it with them. If she decided to go into a combat zone, she could easily scare the enemy to death by showing them their worst nightmares.
"But wait, some of the illusions were solid!" Komori said. "The weird sludge on our boots and the tickets the glowing skeleton hand gave us! I felt them, they were real!"
"Do you still have the ticket on you?" Hagakure asked.
Komori fished into her pocket to grab hers… only to be unable to find it.
"The second the illusion is no longer needed, it fades away. Usually it vanishes away in a cloud of blue smoke, but sometimes I hide the smoke to make the vanishing seem more realistic," Hagakure smiles. "After all, you can't have your enemy figure out they're illusions!"
"Wait, touch?" Tsuburaba asked, his face full of concern. "If you can make us touch something that's not actually there, how is that any different from reality warping? What's stopping you from stabbing someone to death with an illusionary knife?"
"My magic can be disabled by an anti-magic barrier?" she said, her tone making it seem like she was wondering if that was supposed to be a trick question or something.
"Oh," Tusburaba deadpanned. "Well, I didn't know that."
"Who the fuck is this?" Katsuki asked, clearly having missed something.
He had spent the last few hours or so telling the idiots on the other side of the rockslide how to set up the C4 without accidentally killing someone in the process, only to see that the four idiots had come back with some rainbow-haired chick in tow, it was kinda obvious.
"Oh, hey, Bakubro!" Shitty Hair smiled. "This is Hakagure! She's a wizard!"
Okay, it was official: Katsuki did not have the time or patience to open up that can of worms.
"Bakugou, it's Awase," his radio chimed in. "We did the last step as we were told. Now what?"
"Alright, give us fifteen minutes to get out of the blast range, and then blow it to kingdom come," he said, before turning to the others. "Please tell me you found some other part of the cave where we can hole up. Preferably, as far away from the C4 as possible."
"Yeah, we can head back to Hagakure's room full of precious crystals," the redhead said.
"Great, you can fill the rest of us in on the way there," he said, as he looked towards the other brown-haired woman. "Round Cheeks, can ya help me move? Leg's still busted."
"No," she hissed. "Not until you call me by my name. It's Uraraka. U-ra-ra-ka."
Katsuki simply glared at her, before clenching his teeth, and saying, "Uraraka, could you please help me, your teammate with the busted leg, get the fuck out of the blast radius of the C4?"
"Sure thing, Bakugou-kun," she said, giving him a shit-eating grin.
As she helped pick him up so he could limp away to safety, Katsuki looked towards the rainbow-haired lady and asked Shitty Hair, "So, what kind of wizard is she, exactly?"
"Hey, Lieutenant," Awase said. "It's been fifteen minutes.
"I know, Awase," Momo said. "Blow it up."
"Roger that, ma'am," he said, as he pushed down on the detonator's lever.
BOOOOOM!
As the first rays of sunlight came through, everyone celebrated.
Despite it being morning, Momo was ready to go to bed.
They had spent all night setting up the explosives, treating the wounded, and overall trying to avoid any more lightning strikes caused by the storm, but they had done it. They had succeeded in freeing their comrades from the cave, with an extra passenger, to boot.
What followed was a report from the four soldiers that went to investigate deeper into the cave, along with an in-depth interview with Toru Hagakure. They even managed to get Kodai to record Hagakure creating some illusions on camera, as well as a glanz crystal for analysis.
They even managed to get a selfie of Hagakure alongside Aoyama.
After that, Melissa returned, reporting that whoever was responsible for the artificial storm had already left. Once she used the last bit of her power to fully heal the rest of the injured troops, Momo asked the angel to give her a run-down of how Hagakure's magic worked.
That turned out to be a mistake for her sleep schedule.
As it turned out, there were, not one, but four different magic systems in the world of Mundus (yes, they finally learned this planet's name): Elemental, Level, Conduit, and Personal.
Elemental Magic was split into six categories, those of fire, water, earth, air, light and dark. They all had different effects, but what made them consistent was that, provided you had the right amount of mana and an affinity for one of the elements, you could cast them. Apparently, the ruler of the Todoroki Empire was a master of the fire-type magic from that category.
Level Magic was split into eleven levels, with the first being the weakest, with examples being creating water and warming up food, and the eleventh being god tier, with examples such as summoning an army of demons or stopping time itself. For reference, the jackass responsible for last night's thunderstorm was of the sixth level, according to Melissa.
Conduit Magic was new experimental magic that wasn't given a proper category yet, or that required complex rituals or catalysts to work. All magical items also fell under that category, such as rings of power, communication mirrors, and for a more relative example, the pocket dimension bag Momo had on loan from General Kayama for this mission.
Personal Magic was unique magic that only belonged to a single person, bloodline, or species, that wasn't usually taught to outsiders. Hagakure's illusions were a prime example of that, as she was the only person who could do them. Another prime example of that category was Melissa, who could cast certain spells that all angels could because of her heritage.
Momo could already hear Aizawa's expletives in the near future regarding the topic.
Regardless, with both Hagakure's interview and Melissa's crash course in magic done, all that was left to continue heading back to the base. While it was true that everyone worked through the night to rescue their teammates, it was also true that everyone was pretty wired, and Momo figured she could get at least two more hours out in the open road before they had to stop somewhere to actually get some proper sleep.
So, with that, she thanked Hagakure for having the decency to not give her soldiers heart attacks via illusions, and offered her the same deal as Uwabami: She was free to visit the part of the Collibus Hills the JSDF was currently occupying for a friendly visit.
Getting back into the car, she felt herself get overtaken by sleep as Awase drove away from the mountain. They'd be back at the base in five days or less, by her estimate.
As she drifted off into unconsciousness, she thought over all she had seen this past month: Angels, giant mushrooms, demi-humans, monsters, flying fish, ghosts, and magic.
She honestly wondered how she'd report this all to Aizawa.
Deep within his chambers, the Demon King tossed and turned in his bed.
His dreams were constantly occupied by the same figure: Golden hair like that of the sun, blue eyes like those of the sky, beautiful wings and an aura of power. He could watch her figure dance and fly all around his eyes, always within reach, and yet so far away.
Getting up and out of his luxurious sheets, the green-haired demon left his bedchambers, attempting to clear his mind. Music, yes, that always helped him. Quickly entering one of the grand halls, he found his way to the piano, and began playing an old song.
It was one Kurogiri had taught him. The shadow demon had actually taught him a lot of songs from his previous one, Izuku's particular favorite one being one titled "In the Hall of the Mountain King," but he wasn't playing that one tonight. No, his choice was far more… calming.
At least, it should have been. Instead, his melody became far more faster, and far more tragic, as more memories pooled in, from his parents, to his siblings, to Melissa –
"AAAAARRRRGHH!"
SLAM!
The fists of the Demon King slammed into the piano in a fit of rage and anguish, as pieces flew all across the room. In silence, the green-haired demon slid down to the floor, and wept.
Down on that floor, the Demon King reaffirmed his mission, reaffirmed his vow.
He would not lose her. He couldn't lose anyone else ever again.
Izuku Midoriya vowed that Melissa Shield would be his, and his alone.
Author's Note: And like that, the first month of the SREU's mission comes to an end.
A lot to process, huh? Everyone is out there, plotting and scheming, while Momo and her crew have barely scratched the surface. But that's for later. Right now, I have a special treat for myself. It may only be one new person, but they've commented a lot!
Hansledane: Wow, a new customer, and by the looks of it, you're the biggest commentator in a long time! I'm gonna enjoy going through all of this! To start us off, glad to see that you're gonna be sticking around for future chapters. There's a reason for Bakugou having a Monster Manual, trust me. And yeah, I needed a generic unlikable dude to be one of our main antagonists, but not someone completely irredeemable. Hence, Enji Todoroki. But his kids still don't like him, hence the soon-to-be-coming coup. And yeah, he's not the only bad guy, as shown by Demon King Midoriya and Overhaul the Lich. But hey, now you at least know who the fallen angel Midorya was referring to was, and why he wants Melissa. Also, trust me, if you think everything you've seen so far was insane, you ain't seen nothing yet. Also, Kaibara is gonna be one of the least affected people when it comes to the madness of this fantasy world, mostly due to his screwy personality. Speaking of screws loose, yeah, what Aoyama did was a pretty big rookie mistake. But hey, they're all fine, even Kodai, despite the huge violations of science she is witness to. Unfortunately, the Todoroki siblings won't be appearing for another ten chapters, minus a few small cameos. And I know that splitting up is a bad idea, but it's still going to happen, even if they have good intentions.
That's all, as that was the only recent commenter, now for the closing remarks…
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz . You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
That's all for today, thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 12: Aizawa's Terrible, No Good Day
Summary:
The SREU returns to their base, and Shouta Aizawa experiences the first of his terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days as Yaoyorozu gives her report of everything her team encountered out there. Meanwhile, Kayama interviews Melissa along with the rest of the SREU, and by the end of it all, the soldiers are allowed to head back to Japan for a little bit of rest and relaxation...
Chapter Text
Chapter 12: Aizawa's Terrible, No Good Day
When Lieutenant Yaoyorozu came back, General Nemuri Kayama was happy beyond words.
That was around five minutes ago.
When Yaoyorozu came back with a winged woman on her team, her happiness was replaced with concern. Especially as she had to order the soldiers under her command to not shoot.
This is now.
"ALL OF YOU, STAND DOWN!!!" she shouted, making sure absolutely no one fired a shot. "Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, please tell me there's a reason for this."
"General Kayama!" The black-haired girl gave her superior a salute. "Shield-san is an ally, ma'am! We met her out on our mission, and hired her to be our guide!"
"Is that so…?" Nemuri said, as she took a closer look at the winged woman. "All right, she can come in. Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, General Aizawa and General Yamada are waiting for you in the new building for an official debrief. The rest of you – start unpacking the vehicles!"
This was going to be a long day, Nemuri just knew it.
"Lieutenant, as much as I am glad for your safe return, I need you to give me a full report on the situation we are in," Shouta said, as he sat on one side of the desk.
Next to Shouta, Hizashi was sitting next to him. He wasn't sure why the guy was there. Sure, something about being a silent observer, but of all the people that could have been chosen, it had to be him? Shouta liked his friend, but the guy wasn't exactly "silent" material.
Yaoyorozu, on the other side of the desk, nodded. "Yes, sir. I'll go through this in chronological order. On the day of our mission deployment, the first thirty minutes away from the base were calm. I had my team analyze the local environment, and we deemed that it was more or less similar to Earth. Atmosphere, plant life, gravity, all of it normal, and nothing indicating anything was off. And that, I'm afraid, is where all sense of normalcy ended, sir."
Aizawa at first was nodding his head but as soon as he heard the last part he paused. "Hmmm… go on, Lieutenant," he said, as he was trying to mentally prepare himself.
"Around thirty minutes into the trip, something crash-lands in front of my vehicle. It was honestly nothing short of a miracle that no one rammed anyone from how quickly Awase hit the breaks."
Shouta narrowed his eyes as he asked, "Did any one suffer any injuries?"
"No injuries. We immediately stepped out of the vehicle, anticipating the worst, when all we found was a blonde woman wearing armor, with white wings, unconscious."
For a second Aizawa looked at the Lieutenant blankly in the eyes and said, "Lieutenant, are you sure that you didn't suffer any injuries to the head?"
"General, half your men pointed their guns at her when we entered the base. I know you didn't see her, but I know for a fact that Generals Yamada and Kayama did."
Aizawa blinked slowly and put a hand to his nose, as he murmured to himself, "What now? Did we find Heaven, or something? Did you and your team search her for any foreign objects?"
"Kodai checked her for injuries, and the only thing she had were a few minor bruises. In terms of equipment, the only thing she carried with her was a sword on her hilt, and some glasses."
"Is she able to understand our language or not? It would be crucial to us knowing if we can extract information from her. Also, have all the objects taken to the lab and searched for any sign of a virus. We don't need to start a three-year pandemic right now."
He thought to himself where did that last part come from. Ehh, whatever.
"When she regained consciousness, I approached her in a friendly manner, and said "hello" in the local language. Imagine both mine and everyone else's shock when she repeated my "hello" back to me in fluent Japanese."
"Hmmm… so not a language barrier, well that's a relief. Go on, continue."
"As it turns out, sir, the woman in question is an angel, and her species simply know each and every language. Including ones not from her world, such as Japanese."
Aizawa let out a sigh and siad, "Great, first the Roman cosplayers on dragons, and now angels. What's next? Talking frogs? Actually, don't answer that, Lieutenant."
Ignoring his comments, she said, "We questioned her about her origins. She claims to be an angel that was cast out by the gods for falling in love. We brokered a deal with her: She acts as our guide in this world, and we take her to her beloved on the other side of the continent."
"As much as I want to lecture you and your team on why you shouldn't trust foreign people who call themselves angels, I can see that, given the circumstances, you took the rational course to use the situation to your benefit," he said. "So, go on."
"The rest of the day proceeds for the better. She rode alongside my vehicle, and was fascinated that it wasn't being pulled by some kind of beast of burden, like, say, a horse. Or a ground dragon. Or a giant bird, or by a horned horse, or a liger, a giant lizard, or by a crocodog…"
"I'm sorry Lieutenant, but can you repeat the last part? I think I didn't hear you correctly."
"Corcodog. We asked about it. Apparently, it's around the size of a horse, with the physical characteristics of a crocodile and a dog. It even barks like one."
I don't get paid enough for this, he thought to himslef.
Shaking his head, he continued. "And they use those to carry things?"
"Or as mounts, yes."
"I have to know, are there any other foreign races in that location?" Shouta asked. "Because I don't think flying children of literal gods need to carry things by land when they can fly."
"Aside from the humans who were at war with, the current sapient races we've run into are medusas, warrior bunnies, and possibly ogres. But there are far more than just those."
Aizawa looked at her with a deadpan stare. Ah, we either have a "High School DxD" situation here or a "Fate" one... why did I even agree to watch those with Hizashi?
"Monoma, Lieutenant Yaoyorozu gave you the magical bag, correct?"
"That is correct, ma'am!" he said, handing Nemuri both the bag in question, along with a piece of paper. "Yaoyorozu also took the liberty of updating the manifest within the bag!"
"Excellent to hear," the general said, handing over the bag to the science division of the JSDF. Turning over to look at the blonde angel, she asked, "Now, what to do with you…"
"I was told I would be protected by our JSDF," she said.
"And you still are," Nemuri said. "But please do understand, Shield-san, even if you are the Exploration Unit's guide, you are still technically a civilian, albeit an armed one."
"I could assist in defending your fortress," the angel said.
"That is greatly appreciated, but it won't be necessary, we have that covered," the general said. "I was thinking something more on the lines of… local and foreign relations?"
"I believe that can be arranged,"
"All right, then, please follow me," Nemuri asked, as she entered her tent, grabbed a few documents on a clipboard, and then sat down in a chair. "Now, please state your name."
"Melissa Shield, ma'am," the blonde angel said, sitting across the table from her.
"Now, Shield-san, the following interview will be to both evaluate your psychological state by asking a few questions, along with interviewing the soldiers you spent time with for the last month to see, ah, what sort of person you are. Is that acceptable?"
"Yes, ma'am,"
"Excellent," Nemuri smiled. "Let's begin."
"Anyways, our first night camping was also noteworthy. We spent the night in a mushroom forest, where they were around the height of trees, and many of them were bioluminescent, and some were edible," Yaoyorozu said, continuing her report.
The thought of Hizashi shouting out "Mushroom Kingdom'' almost made Shouta laugh, but he held it in. "Were there any hostiles in the area, or not?" he asked.
"We encountered a scorpion the size of a horse on the outskirts, and several snail-like humanoids who tried to eat Private Tsuburaba. Also, there was the medusa, but given that Aoyama stepped on her property, that last one was understandable."
Shouta groaned at that. "Please inform me why you didn't call for backup, or at least try to come back as soon as you encountered those beasts, because I'm starting to think that you actively endangered the life of your team to have an isekai adventure."
"Considering that General Kayama ordered us not to come back for an entire month, along with the fact that we were too far out of range for our radio to work, my hands were tied," Yaoyorozu explained her reasoning. "And besides, we were only two days into the mission, I wasn't calling it quits and coming back that soon."
"This is already giving me a headache. I need some beer…" he sighed, rubbing the temples of his forehead, before asking, "Did you manage to judge their defense and military?"
"The scorpion was nothing more than a wild animal. The snails' method of hunting seemed to be surrounding their prey, and using the mucus from their antennas to capture them, before stuffing them into their burlap sack and dragging them away to be eaten later. And the medusa, while capable of turning people to stone, was still a civilian, and only acted in self-defense."
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu," Shouta said, his voice especially dead. "Please back up a bit and explain to me what a burlap sack is and also why it was a burlap sack, in specific detail."
He knew she was asking her a ridiculous question, but he needed her to understand the implications of what she just said when it came to these "snail monsters."
"A burlap sack is a sack made out of the skin of a plant, sir," she answered, still unaware of what Shouta was thinking. "Most people use them to fill them with produce, or for games."
"And you're telling me that the snails are intelligent enough to use those things?" he asked.
"Yes, sir. In fact, there were quite a few creatures we encountered that were smarter than animals, but nowhere near as smart as the sapient races, almost as if they're in the middle of an evolutionary breakthrough. We have decided to deem them as semi-sapient for the moment."
"Hizashi, please inform the third and fourth commanders to send a search team to capture some of these species for research… Also, make sure that we don't end up having an evil scientist on the team. I don't want to be a part of a show or something about battling a supervillain."
Hizashi simply gave him a thumbs up. Wonderful.
"First question: You find a man injured on the ground calling for help. What do you do?"
Melissa answered with, "I would first cast a spell to detect whether they were evil or not. If they were, I would then question them if they were a member of the Demon King's army. Depending on their answer, I would either heal them or kill them before they could wreak any havoc."
Nemuri thought over what she said. Okay, let's think rationally about this: First, this is probably a dog-eat-dog world, so prioritizing her safety is reasonable. Second, Demon Kings exist in this world, we'll deal with that later. Third, what other sorts of magic does she have?
She decided to ask those questions during the free-from part of the interview.
"Okay, second question: You find a lost child wandering a city. What do you do?"
"Depends on the scenario. If they know where they live, attempt to fly them to their home. If they are searching for their parents, attempt to locate them," she answered.
Both are good answers, Nemuri thought to herself. Moving on…
"Third question: You are being harassed by a person. What do you do?"
"If they are a lowly thug, frighten them away with the presence of my celestial aura. If they are something more dangerous, or even a sexual deviant, decapitate them with my sword."
Nemuri simply stared at the angel in silence.
'"Understood, sir. Moving on from that incident, we spent the next five days traversing a desert, until we came across… well… a coral forest in the middle of it."
Shouta simply stared at his protege with a blank expression. "Elaborate."
"It was a living coral reef in the middle of a desert," the raven-haired woman explained. "It looked like it didn't need water to survive. In fact, we were able to walk through it, with fish flying through the sky all around us, as if swimming through the air."
The only thing Aizawa could do was nod.
His brain was overloading.
He didn't sign up for this.
"We split into four teams. I stayed behind with the science nerds, while the three other teams explored deeper into the forest, each one of them in a different direction. Unfortunately, each one of them ran into a different set of problems we didn't foresee."
Science nerds? Naming taste aside… Shouta cleared his throat. "Elaborate."
"Kendo's team encountered some sort of hyena-wolf monsters that were capable of basic speech. However, they also tried to grab Sato and run off with him, presumably to eat him. Bakugou's team encountered an entire tribe of semi-sapient monsters, whose physical characteristics are best described as the Minions, but if they were eyeless, bigger, with colorful fur, and large, man-eating mouths. However, Kirishima's team had it by far the worst."
Aizawa had a blank look on his face as he looked at her.
Slowly but surely, his face went from being blank to angry.
"I'm not sure how it could get any worse but we are dealing with a world that has –!!!" He stopped to calm himself down. "I apologize for not acting rational, Lieutenant, but if it was anybody else giving this report, I would have thought they were under the effects of drugs."
"Sir, we have both video and photographic evidence. I saw Kirishima's group encounter a purple tree holding all the colors of the rainbow. I saw them approach the magical map shrine surrounded by cursed swords. I saw them fight off a bunch of ghosts, and I saw that the only reason they survived was because a colony of oversized blue-ringed octopuses exorcized the evil spirits before they could do any further damage. This entire world is on drugs."
Just eighteen more years. Just hang in there for eighteen more years and then you can go live the rest of your life taking care of cats, Shouta thought to himself. "Look Lieutenant, I only have one question… is there any way that we can close the gate and be done with this Loony Toons isekai situation because I think I've already aged around twenty or more years by being here."
"Sir, my mission was to explore the world, not to figure out how to close the gate. Also, I've only completed half my report so far. Permission to continue?"
He nodded, and she continued. This was gonna suuuuuck.
"The following part of the test is free-form, meaning that your answers are completely open-ended," Nemuri said. "I am going to ask you a question, and then allow you to speak in full, while I occasionally ask a few clarifying questions. Is that all right?"
"I understand the concept, ma'am," Shield said.
"Excellent. Now, you claim to be an angel, correct? As in a being that serves as a messenger to the gods?" Shield nodded in response to that. "I see. What can you tell me about these gods?"
"The following seven days were peaceful," Yaoyorozu said. "We traveled down south, where we exited the desert, and ended up in a more tropical location. I had the team stop and explore the local jungle. That turned out to be a mistake, as I would soon learn."
He put his hand on his face and took a deep sigh.
"Let me guess: Did you guys have to fight giant snakes?"
She nodded. "That was one of the problems, yes."
"Fantastic," Shouta grumbled. "Also, I am sending you and your team to therapy after this, and that is an order. We cannot risk having an unstable team on the field."
He should be worried that he was getting numb to this. As Yaoyorozu kept giving him the report, a part of him kept telling him that he should take this more seriously but for God's sake he couldn't. Warrior bunnies... What's next, cat girls?!
Regardless, he kept as much of a neutral face as he possibly could.
"Hm. How long were they held hostage by them?" he asked.
"One day, thankfully," she said. "Our rescue operation was swift and effective."
"I see…" he said. "Also, were the scientists on your team able to take some DNA samples for further study? I know some people would be curious about their biology."
"No, no DNA samples were acquired, sir."
"Why not?"
"If our men spent even a few more hours with them, they would have died. As it turned out, that particular tribe consisted solely of females. So, to maintain their populations, they kidnap males from other races, and then… forcefully reproduce with them… until the males die of exhaustion. Any males who survived or refused to comply were disposed of, by being thrown into a pit which housed their pet, a giant green cobra, with a rhino-like horn on top of its head."
Hizashi let out a low whistle at that.
Well, at least your men would have managed to have some fun before biting it… But the more this goes on, the more I'm questioning if I should have gotten more sleep yesterday or not...
"Ahem, how did you manage to rescue your team?"
"Myself and some of my female teammates disguised ourselves with rabbit ears and Playboy costumes Sargeant Kodai had, and then forced our way to rescue them, while two others lured ogres towards the village to attack the rabbit women. The natives may be formidable warriors, but as long as we stayed out of their ranges and used our guns, we were fine. Also, Bakugou and Kirishima were able to escape the snake pit all on their own. Afterwards, it was a mad dash back to the cars to escape, fighting any rabbits and ogres we saw on the way."
"Ah, yes, firearms," Shouta said sarcastically. "The best answer to all problems."
He decided to ignore the ogre part, for his sanity's sake.
"Private Tsuburaba, can you confirm Shield's statement about saving your life?"
Nemuri had finished her interview with Melissa Shield a while ago, and now had begun to interview the remaining members of the Exploration Unit. This… would take a while.
"Oh, yeah, totally!" the meteorologist said. "She saved my ass from getting eaten by some snail monsters! But I have to admit, I wouldn't exactly call being a part of the "rescue" operation to get me and Sen away from our bunny girl harem a good thing –"
"Private Tsuburaba, please stick to "yes" or "no" for your answers."
"Right, right, sorry," he chuckled.
"Unfortunately, sir, the next incident couldn't be solved with firearms."
Okay, I hoped that we had a fighting chance, but I guess we have to settle for nukes. Either way… Shouta thought to himself within his own personal cloud cuckoo land. Noticing that Yaoyorozu was waiting for his permission, he said, "Go on."
"During the final week of our mission, we ended up getting caught in the middle of a lightning storm caused by magic. We were forced to take shelter near a mountain, with a cave opening. Unfortunately, a rock slide occurred, trapping several of my team inside the cave."
"Before you go on, I have a question... How did all of your team survive?" Shouta asked, stopping her. "And I don't mean that specific incident, but the entire mission as a whole? It doesn't seem likely that you all managed to get out with just scratches only."
"It was a combination of excellent medical skills and dumb luck, sir."
"Hmmm… understandable. You may be ready for a promotion, Lieutenant, because I think you've gone through enough in this one mission," he sighed. "I will try and talk to the higher ups. Either way, go on and let's finish this so I can get drunk and forget about this."
"Yes, sir. Due to the fact that our demolition expert was trapped inside the cave, he instructed the rest of us on the outside on how to set up the explosives to free them, while the rest of our trapped comrades decided to venture further into the cave."
"What gave them the idea to explore an area on their own without the rest of the team?" Shouta asked. "The whole point of making this team was to make sure that you could cover every needed part. I understand you were in a precarious situation, but the buddy system still exists."
"Bakugou convinced them to try to find a space that wouldn't get caved-in in the event that the bombs set something off. Though, personally, I believe that he simply wanted to be left alone."
"And what did that result in?"
"They encountered a skeleton hand that glowed in the dark asking for their tickets, slime puddles, bats, two rackets playing tennis with a talking skull, the Japanese metro system, a wall of skulls, several colorful ghost-like monster faces, and a room with a red, pulsating aura."
"Hmmmm… So a horror house?"
"Sort of. As it turned out, they were all illusions created by a miner deep within the cave. Her name was Toru Hagakure, and she used her light-based magic to scare others out of the cave, as she was busy mining away valuable magical crystals."
"Did you manage to restrain her?"
"Sir, what she was doing technically wasn't illegal. She was just trying to make a living. And besides, thanks to the rockslide, she was just as trapped as the rest of my men."
"I do understand that, but she had endangered the lives of my soldiers and I would like to know if she had done this to more people or not," Shouta explained his reasoning. "For all we know, she has given someone a heart attack, or was planning to kill and rob your team."
"Sir, with all due respect, she was quite friendly with us, and Shield-san never informed us of anything she said was a lie," Yaoyorozu said, looking a little bit offended.
"I understand that, but you yourself know that your team's life has been in danger many times during this mission and even with all the information that your team has gotten we need more in-depth knowledge from the locals. Right at this moment we have only one source of information and that is the blonde angel that you guys came with."
"About that, sir… I do have a proposal."
"Go on?"
"Sir, despite the fact that the land is completely safe, the area around the gate is uninhabited due to two reasons: The first is that no one wants to risk finding out whatever comes out of the gate. The second reason is that whenever the gate does open up, the Imperials, the ones who attacked Musutafu, come to investigate, and absolutely no one wants to deal with them."
"So what do you suggest?" he asked.
"Sir, we have successfully driven away the Imperials, and the gate is connected to Japan, it belongs to us. My proposal is that we build a town around the base, and whenever my team visits more individuals like Uwabami and Hakagure, we invite them to emigrate to our town. It's a win-win. The soldiers, and you, can get more information from the locals, and these decent folks can make a better life for themselves."
"Hmmm… I have to take it to the higher ups, but it's a great idea, Lieutenant."
"Thank you, sir."
"You're welcome, Lieutenant. I thank you for your service, on behalf of the entire Japanese government," Shouta said. "You're dismissed."
The black-haired girl gave her superior a salute, as she headed off. Shouta could only lean back in his seat and sigh. This report was far worse than anything he could have imagined. This entire world was basically a really pretty-looking death trap.
Shaking his head, Shouta Aizawa vowed that he wouldn't let his protege get murdered in this place. He wouldn't let Momo Yaoyorozu become another Oboro Shirakumo…
"So, yeah, even if we were probably gonna die, me and Kosei were pretty happy with the way we would have gone," Private Kaibara smiled. "Knee-deep in bunny girls."
The dark-haired general merely gave him a blank stare, before sighing.
"Kaibara-san, please be honest with me: Why did you and Private Tsuburaba agree to this mission?" Nemuri asked. "And no need to worry, all of this is confidential. As long as it's nothing as egregious as indiscriminate killing, there should be no repercussions."
"Oh, well, if it's tight-lipped, I guess it's okay to say," Kaibara said. "You see, me and Kosei have this dream, and with the appearance of the magical gate, we can finally fulfill that dream!"
"Oh? What is it? To be heroes in a fantasy world? To slay dragons?" she asked.
"Even better!" he smiled. "To have our very own monster girl harems!"
Nemuri stared at the soldier as what he said registered in her brain. "Huh…?"
"That's right! Kosei and I are on a quest to have sex with every species imaginable! From jungle amazons, to mummy queens, to mermaids, icy witches, bunny girls, demi-humans, demons, spirits, and devils! If there are hot chicks among them, THEN WE SHALL BONE THEM!"
Note to self: Screen both Kaibara and Tsuburaba for any potential HR violations.
"ATTEEEEENTION!!!"
The synchronized sound of soldiers standing upright was music to Hizashi's ears.
"All right, little listeners!" he said, casually breaking formality. "Thanks to Lieutenant Yaoyorozu's report, we have the general understanding of what your mission has entailed. However! Before we can send you off on a week-long break, we need to finish up your psych analyses!"
He may have been hard of hearing, but those subtle scowls said it all.
"All of those who have already been interviewed by General Kayama are free to head out the gate and back to Japan after putting away your weapons and equipment. You've earned this week off, boys and girls! We'll see y'all again seven days from now, noon sharp!"
"""SIR, YES, SIR!!!"""
"DISMISSED!!!"
"Private Rin, you are a zoologist, correct?" Nemuri asked.
"That is correct, General Kayama," the Chinese man said.
"Could you please describe the Special Region's ecology to me," she asked.
"It's basically what would happen if Skull Island from the King Kong movies had a baby with Pandora from the Avatar movies, and then was adopted and raised by Florida and Australia."
Wow, that did not paint a pretty picture. "Please elaborate."
"On this mission alone, we had to deal with giant scorpions, man-eating snails, tentacled mushrooms, basilisks, talking hyena-things, blind furballs, giant horned cobras, and that's without mentioning the gigantified creatures Shield off-handedly mentioned."
"Oh, um… you wouldn't happen to remember any of them, would you?"
He did indeed remember, and Nemuri didn't like what she heard.
"So, you'll be staying here?" Momo asked.
"Correct," Melissa said. "General Kayama said that a few other officials might have questions for me, and that it would also raise trust between the people of Mundus with those of Japan if I engaged in comradery with other members of your Self Defense Force."
"Well, that does make logical sense."
"Do not despair, as this assignment is only temporary. As soon as you and the rest of the team return from your breaks, I'll act as your guide once again," she smiled.
"That is nice to hear," Momo smiled. "Well, I'll see you in a week!"
"Enjoy your break, Lieutenant. You've earned it!"
As Momo waved good-bye to the angel, she walked past the building supplies and vehicles coming through the gate. Now in civilian clothes, Momo waved her identification to the guard, and was on her way to the other side, back to Musutafu.
She wondered what she would do for this week.
Perhaps I could go shopping at the boutiques again!
Yes, that was an excellent idea!
Author's Note: Everyone has made it back in one piece, and it's now time for them to have some R&R! Next time… how will the rest of the world react to this?
Anyways, with this, the first arc of the Dungeon Crawlers is pretty much over. After the next chapter, everyone will return for their second big mission, and trust me, it will be even more insane than the last one! But for now… it's time for the comments!
Hansledane: Hey, glad to see that you've come back for more! I hope you're enjoying what you've been seeing so far! Also, I checked out your comment for "When They See, They'll Understand," thanks so much for reading it! Might I also interest you in some "Megethos" while I'm at it? Anyways, back to the actual story you came here for! Yeah, so, Nine is a power-hungry maniac, nothing special there. Hagakure being a magic-user will come back as a future plot thread, so keep your eye on that. And as for Izuku being a bad guy, and yeah, I can see how, given the evidence that he hasn't done anything wrong, he isn't a bad guy, he just happens to cosplay as one. But it's still pretty suspect that he's got his eyes on Melissa, don't you think? Also, I hope that Momo giving Aizawa a brain aneurysm was good for you to read. And regarding the gate and the possibility of it moving, I'll just say right here that it won't… which will become a problem in the future.
valkrus: Yeah, one of the biggest story plots for this series is gonna be Melissa's relationship. Sit back and grab some popcorn, it's gonna be a doozy…
That's all, as that was the only recent commenter, now for the closing remarks…
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz . You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
That's all for today, thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 13: Time Off in Japan
Summary:
While most members of the SREU left the gate behind for some rightful rest and relaxation, Japan, and the rest of the world, was still moving without them. From CEOs and politicians trying to figure out what to do with all this new information, to the families of soldiers waiting for their loved ones to come back, the one thing they all know is that the SREU will be back in action soon...
Chapter Text
Chapter 13: Time Off in Japan
Katsuki Bakugou stared at the front of his old family home for a few minutes.
Yep, it still looked as color-muted and somewhat gaudy as he remembered.
But there was still a ghost of a smile when he looked at it.
He did it. He survived an insane month-long mission in another world full of giant snakes, ghosts, mushroom monsters, dragons, and who knows what other crazy shit.
And all so he could come back here.
Fiddling with his civilian clothes, he took a deep breath, walked past the garden and up to the door. He still has the house key, so he simply put it in, turned the lock, opened the door, and –
WHAM!
""KATSUKI!!!""
– immediately got tackled by his mom and dad into a bear hug.
"OI, GET OFF ME!" he shouted. "YOU BOTH SMELL LIKE OLD PEOPLE!"
"We're happy to see you, too, son," his dad, Masaru said.
"Oh, my little Katsuki, already a war hero!" his mom, Mitsuki, cried as she squeezed him a bit more. "And here I thought that you'd never find work as a pyromaniac –"
"I'm not a pyromaniac, you old hag, I'm a goddamn demolitions expert!" he yelled, as he pried his parents off of him. "And I'm not a war hero, there has to be a war going on to be one!"
"Have you been eating well? Oh, you must be hungry! You're so skinny –"
"I'm not hungry, Ma! I'll just have dinner at the same time as everyone else! Sheesh!"
Walking into the house and putting his things down in the living room, he heard his dad walking up behind him. "So, did you kill any monsters while you were on the other side, son?"
"Can't talk about it, old man. Top secret, and whatever," he curtly answered.
"It's okay, Katsuki. Just tell us what you can."
"Ugh, fine. Let's see… I almost died a bunch of times, and most of my teammates are complete idiots," Katsuki said. "But our commanding officer is at least half-decent at her job."
"Oh, that's nice to hear!" the old hag smiled. "I'll go start on dinner!"
"Ma, I said I'm not hungry –"
"Katsuki."
The ash blond stopped talking as he heard a familiar voice, one which was neither one of his parents, but one which he had yearned to hear for the last month.
Turning around, she saw her. Fawn-colored hair that reached just below her shoulders. Wide, dark brown eyes. Glossy lips. And she was still wearing her ring on her finger.
She was Katsuki Bakugou's wife, Camie Bakugou, formerly Utsushimi.
"Thank you both for coming here as soon as possible," Rikiya Yotsubashi, the CEO of Detnerat company, said to his two colleagues in the room. "I know you're both busy."
Said colleagues were Koku Hanabata, the leader of the Hearts and Minds political party, and Tomoyasu Chikazoku, one of the board members of Feel Good, Inc.
To say that Detnerat had connections would be an understatement. Over his long life, Rikiya had created a foundation, an intricate web of partners, politicians, and clients, all of them relying on one another, from the top journalists and authors at Shoowaysha Publishing, to the commissioners of the Japanese police, to even some members of the JSDF.
He had to admit, the United States had an interesting idea when it came to money in politics: The majority of it came from extremely wealthy donors during election times, who would either support those who believed in their ideals, or get them to change their minds on something with a little cash-based incentive. And when their chosen politicians couldn't accept any more money due to the whole "bribery" thing, they simply used lobbyists in order to go around it.
It was as ingenious as it was insidious. Because of that, anyone with enough money could essentially buy a politician and push their own agenda. The downside, however, was that when it came to the United States, thanks to their polarized political climate, everyone already knew who supported everyone else, simply to go for their opponents' throat.
For example, several of their conservative politicians took money from, say, gun lobbyists, big oil, and anti-abortionists. Now, that wasn't technically illegal, but it was highly distasteful to half the country over the fact that school shootings, climate change, and women's health were hotly debated topics over in the States. And because of the internet and 24/7 news cycle, anyone would be able to know which politician took what money from which group.
Meaning that if you screwed up badly or were particularly disliked, you would end up being demonized by the opposition for taking "blood money" from say, the gun lobbyists, after saying something regarding school shootings, whether claiming that it was purely a mental health crisis, or that the only way to stop a bad guy with a gun was with a good guy with a gun.
Rikiya liked the idea that you could use money to influence certain groups. The part he didn't like was the fact that America took it to the absolute extreme, and that thanks to their polarizing media, the entire country had devolved into an "us versus them" mentality.
It was nothing less of a miracle that the US was still a standing country after so long.
Regardless, Rikiya decided to borrow from the American playbook and create his own network of relationships, but with two differences from how the States did it: One, his group would be far more subtle. And two, his group would not be composed of absolute psychopaths.
Seriously, how the fuck did American politicians sleep at night when making deals with people like gun lobbyists? Sure, Rikiya loved money as much as the next CEO, but come the fuck on! Rikiya himself had a daughter, for crying out loud, he would have absolutely pushed to make sure those things were kept as far away from school as fucking possible!
But, yeah, anyway, that was what Rikiya did: Create his own inner circle of like-minded people, who would work together to try and influence Japan from the shadows, while also making sure they wouldn't go too far and turn it into a post-apocalyptic wasteland like America.
But when it came to his most trusted colleagues, that would be Hanabata and Chikazoku, hands down. Sure, it somewhat helped that they were both highly influential politicians and board members respectively, but their personalities were also simply fun to be around.
So, Rikya enjoyed when they got to meet up at times like these.
"Not a problem, boss," Chikzauko said. "Just call, and I'll answer."
"Wonderful. So, to start, let's recap," Rikiya said. "Nearly a month and a half ago, some mysterious portal showed up in the middle of Mustafu, and everything from dragons to giant monsters to knights came out of it and started killing people left and right. Luckily, the JSDF managed to suppress the enemy, and Prime Minister Mera sent the troops to the other side."
"Well, yeah, no shit," Hanabata grunted. "This is just like that Attack on Titan fanfic I read last week, but just replace the Titans with crap from the medieval ages."
"Well spoken," the Detnerat CEO said. He learned long ago to deal with his associates' quirks. "Unfortunately, due to the media blackout, that was all we knew. Up until now, that is."
Hanabata and Chikazoku remained quiet as Rikiya pulled out a binder from his desk.
"Oooh… So, what's the juicy info we got, Chief?" Hanabata asked.
"I have a soldier on the inside, and apparently, it's common knowledge on the other side that Lieutenant General Aizawa sent his most prized pupil along with thirteen others on some sort of exploration mission. They go out there, collect their findings, and be back in a month."
"Well, let's hope your inside guy is a good actor so no one finds out," Chikazoku hummed.
"No, it was more "grab an extra copy of the written report and give it to me" sort of deal, but after reading it, I'm starting to think that he might have at least some minor acting skills, given how much of a straight face he had when giving me the report. Seriously, it's ridiculous."
Both Hanabata and Chikzauko grabbed a copy of the report Rikiya brought, and while the Feel Good board member began to read it, the politician didn't. Hanabata knew that his old friend would just explain it to them as they read, so he really had no reason to.
"Alright, well let's not stay in suspense. What's the new intel we got?" he asked.
Katsuki stared at his wife with a dumb smile. "Camie…"
"I'm just gonna leave you two to catch up," Marusu said, leaving the living room.
The two of them were left alone, and immediately, Katsuki went in for a hug and kiss, which his wife reciprocated wholeheartedly. "Whoa, someone really missed me," Camie said.
"You have no fucking idea," he whispered, his face full of relief.
To most of the outside world, Katsuki Bakugou was a crude, short-tempered person, who didn't care for anyone but himself. That was somewhat incorrect. He cared for others, it was just that the people he cared about happened to be either his parents, or his spouse.
The two of them met when they were in high school, and it was sort of a rocky start. Katsuki thought that Camie was just some bimbo, and Camie thought that Katsuki was just some loud-mouthed idiot. But eventually, after a couple shared detention sessions, the two of them gained a mutual understanding, and that understanding became a friendship.
From there it was pretty soon that they became a couple, and once Katsuki was done with both his basic military and demolitions training, the two of them were married.
When a pair of JSDF officers knocked on Katsuki's door, he knew that it had to do with the Musutafu Incident earlier in the week, and he was right. A mission which required both his demolition expertise and his fluency in Latin, which he took during his high school days.
Katsuki and Camie's last good-bye in front of his old childhood home was a tender one, especially as they had spent the night before being intimately close to one another, but Katsuki rest assured that if anything were to happen to him, his parents would care for Camie.
But now he was back, and she was right there. He had survived, and was greeted by his better half. Her glossy lips tasted delicious on his, the scent of her hair, the slight bulge on her belly –
Wait, what?
Doing a double-take, he placed his arm near her stomach, and sure enough, it was slightly bigger than before. It wasn't big enough for him to notice just by looking at her, but every time he felt her abdomen region, he did. Did she gain weight? Was his mom stuffing her? Even if that was the case, she was still the woman he loved, regardless of her physique, but still –
"So, you noticed?"
Katsuki snapped out of his thoughts to see his smiling wife's face. "Noticed what?"
She leaned in, and whispered two words into his ear.
And with that, Katsuki now had one more reason to come back alive to his family.
Rikiya simply said, "In short, it's anywhere between unbelievable to absolutely insane."
The leader of the Hearts and Minds Party smirked. "Well, at least it's gonna be interesting."
"Apparently, the gate that showed up is called the "Collibus Hills Gate," and it's located in an area between a forest and a valley. Interestingly enough, the flora and fauna there are also native to Earth. But, that's where the similarities to our world and theirs stop."
"Lemme guess," Chikazoku drawled. "Everything else is fucked?"
"Less than an hour into their mission, Aizawa's prized pupil and her team nearly get crushed by a crash-landing angel," the long-nosed man said. "Literally, she had wings and everything."
"Huh... I'd make a "It must've hurt when you fell from Heaven" line, but that's beneath me."
Rikiya glared at the politician. "Hanabata, in the first hour of their mission, these idiots discovered the existence of literal higher powers, this is not the time for jokes. Be serious."
"Right, sorry boss."
Even with that ridiculous schnoz, Rikiya Yotusbashi was intimidating.
"Luckily, the good news seems that even though gods apparently exist, they're only limited to their world, if the astronomical data they gathered is any good, so we should be fine. Probably."
"Good, best it stays that way," the long-haired board member said. "I've studied a bit of Greek Mythology in my youth, and I can safely say that we don't need a Zeus ruling over us."
"Glad you think that, because apparently, the local ecosystems will probably do us in before any cosmic beings get the chance to smite us," Rikiya said with a deadpan delivery.
"Before we continue with that, what's the deal with the angel?" Hanabata asked, slightly curious. "Did it actually get kicked out of their version of Heaven or whatever?"
"Apparently, she got booted out of there for falling in love with some mortal," the long-nosed CEO said. "She got stripped of most of her power, and she basically struck a deal with Aizawa's pupil and the basic grunts: They escort her to her lover, she acts as their guide to the world."
"No information on this heavenly hierarchy?" Chikazoku asked.
"Actually, she did divulge a few things to General Kayama once the team returned from their month-long mission. In fact, it was one of the last things to go into this report."
"Oh? And what exactly did she divulge?" Hanabata asked.
"It was about the local deities. Apparently, gods over there come in two types: The really ancient ones that are responsible for creating something or other, and the recent ones that are the result of either mortals being super overpowered, or because a bunch of weaklings decided to worship said mortals. Jury's still out on their immortality, so we don't know if they can actually die or not."
"What about the mortal she fell head over heels for?" the glasses-wearing politician asked.
"I doubt they would've just kicked her out for getting it on with some random guy."
"Hmm… that is a good point, actually," Rikiya agreed with his scheming buddy. "If they're someone important, she probably kept her mouth shut and let the Yaoyorozu girl and her cronies just assume whatever they wanted. We should probably investigate this."
"Let's hope they're not someone we don't wanna be on the wrong side of," Chikazoku said.
"Yeah, imagine if her lover turned out to be the local Demon King, or something like that, heh," Rikiya chuckled, before thinking about it some more. "Actually, let's not think about that."
"Anything else we should know?" Hanabata asked.
"Considering that we're still discussing the parts pertaining to the first hour of the first day of their report, yes, quite a bit, actually," the Doofenshmirtz impersonator said.
"Alright, what's next on the list?" Hanabata asked.
"Chronologically, that would be around seven hours later, when they made camp at a… mushroom forest. Ugh…" Rikiya groaned. "Never liked the taste of those things."
"I swear that wouldn't be the worst on this list, I've looked through it quickly and the things they got up to are literally straight from one of your crack fics, Hanabata," Chikzauko hissed.
"Well, look who finally decided to speak up," Hanabata said. "Forty seconds, a new record."
"Wait, have you been timing how long I've been staying silent?"
"Kinda, I'm actually timing how fast you get your head out of whatever report you're reading and come back to join me and Yotsubashi into the conversation. Your old record was two minutes."
"I'm just going to ignore that. Anyway, there's a certain quartet of individuals that have a penchant for creating chaos, and are aptly named... the Chaos Corps."
"Like... the Green Lantern Corps from DC Comics?" Hanabata asked.
"No, you idiot. The shit they get into somehow manages to outdo each other like it's a competition," Chikazoku hissed. "AND apparently, two of them have said on the record that their goal is to seduce female members of every native species within the Special Region."
"Yes, according to the official report, they happen to be characters of interest, only second to the Yaoyorozu heiress, the squad's leader, along with a few others," Rikiya said.
"It's almost as if they were protagonists of a shitty shonen manga," Chikazoku grumbled.
"So, are they gonna be a problem?" Hanabata asked.
The CEO with the long nose and receding hairline snorted. "Hardly. Regardless of the insane stunts they pull, they still have managed to bring us all of this information."
"I agree, one's a zoologist, but got traumatized by the wildlife," the long-haired board member said. "Another's a mechanic, and always winds up in trouble with the others, somehow."
"The other two are a best friend duo, a geologist and a meteorologist, and they both share the same goal of… ugh, quote, "having a monster girl harem." Ugh…" Rikiya cringed.
"The scary thing is that they might actually pull it off," Chikazoku said.
"Fucking weebs…" Hanabata cursed. "They're even in other worlds now."
"Says you," Chikazoku muttered under his breath.
"Thankfully, they managed to keep it in their pants for the majority of their mission. Which allowed them to bring us a goldmine of intel. And since we're the only ones who have this for the time being, we have the advantage," the Deterat CEO smiled.
"Well, after skimming through this, it seems like that other world is a very terrifying place, but… aside from those threats, has the away team run into any of our country's main hostiles?"
Chikazoku immediately understood what Hanabata meant. "Ah, yes, the Empire…"
"Yes, them. As it turns out, the guys responsible for attacking Musutafu the day the gate arrived were soldiers of the Todoroki Empire, some sort of power-based hierarchy, where personal strength matters most, and where there's no room for weakness. Real-life social Darwinists."
Hanabata looked at Rikiya in a funny way. "Wait, Todoroki? Isn't that a Japanese name?"
"Yes, there are several cases of eastern-based names, along with European ones, like the angel's name, which happens to be "Melissa Shield." Not only that, their world's equivalent to English is Latin, so it's not that big of a surprise that some of their cultures are similar to ours."
Chikazoku re-read the report, trying to figure out what he was missing. "Ah, but, Yotsubashi-san, Rome is on the other side of the world, how would OUR culture get there?"
"Honestly, no clue," Rikiya responded to Chikazoku. "Yaoyorozu's report had nothing about that, but maybe they'll have something during their second outing, so let's be patient."
"Not even minding the place, could something like this have happened before?" Hanabata asked. "Like, say, another gate opening up elsewhere during early human history?"
"Probably. According to the Shield woman, the reason no one ever created a settlement near the Collibus Hills was because the gate would activate at random, and absolutely no one wanted to find out what was on the other side," Rikiya paraphrased the report. "Regardless of how several human cultures showed up there, the fact also remains that there are several, sapient, non-human species inhabiting that world."
Chiazkuko and Hanabata listened closely.
"Now, the real question is… how do we deal with them? Do we propose giving them rights, making them customers, or what? I have no idea, honestly," Rikiya sighed.
"Giving non-humans rights, in our world, where they are not even inhabitants? I don't think that's viable," said the long-haired board member of Feel Good, Inc.
"Well, they're alive, they can think. I don't think dehumanizing them is gonna be a good idea."
Chikazoku mulled over what Hanabata said. "Maybe… but if we can convert them to customers, or even suppliers at lower rates, that could be lucrative for both Detnerat and Feel Good, Inc."
"Hmm, maybe. We could introduce them to modern appliances, have them hooked on that lifestyle, like some kind of cargo cult," Rikiya said. "But it's going to be risky."
"We can discuss it later," Chikazoku said. "There are a few other things in this report…"
"Ah, yes, "magic." Honestly, we'll probably need to figure out if there's a way to replicate that in our world," Rikiya said. "The potential applications from that would be unimaginable."
"So we could do some Doctor Strange shit?" Hanabata excitedly asked. "That, and I'm also getting some major Seven Deadly Sins flashbacks."
Melissa simply watched as the Japanese Self-Defense Force expanded.
It had been a few days since Momo and the rest of the Exploration Unit went on leave, and for the moment, Melissa had been somewhat bored. When Kayama and Aizawa weren't asking her questions, she was simply told to try and mingle with the soldiers.
Easier said than done, as most of them were either intimidated by her celestial status, or were too busy helping expand their reach beyond the Collibus Hills Gate. There were even rumors that Aizwaw approved Momo's proposal, and they were now building a town.
Maybe one of –
"HELLO THERE! IT IS NICE TO MEET YOU!!!"
"GYAAH!!!"
For the first time in a while, Melissa felt a spike of fear as one of the soldiers appeared out of nowhere and started shouting. After calming down, she took a better look at the man. He had very short dark hair, and eyes that betrayed his Japanese heritage.
He also seemed to be constantly… grinning?
Clearing her throat, Melissa said, "Oh, um… right… Who are you?"
The man stared at her blankly for a few seconds, before he suddenly punched himself in the face. "HOW STUPID OF ME! I FORGOT TO TELL YOU! HI, I'M INASA YOARASHI!!!"
Samuel Abraham, President of the United States, did not like what he was hearing.
"What in the hell does Japan think it's doing?" he asked himself. "They send an entire division across the gate, and then send only fourteen soldiers to explore the rest of the world?"
"Sir, it was their first mission, and it was to understand the sort of world they're now connected to," Cathleen Bate, the Secretary of Defense, said. "A purely scientific expedition –"
"Oh my God, they're missing out!" President Abraham wanted to laugh. "They've stumbled across a goldmine of untouched resources, and they're just gonna let it sit there?! That does nobody any good. Hey, don't we have guys in Shizuoka? Why not send them in?"
"I don't think that's a good idea," Cathleen said. "Sir, the other world leaders are hoping Japan will drop the ball on this one. The thought is to simply let Japan fail on its own this time."
"Interesting… we don't want to get pulled down with them. Plus, if we do try to take action, we'll have to use more… covert means. Plausible deniability is a good friend to have."
As the President dismissed Cathleen, she walked out of the room in disgust. She used to be a five-star general, dedicated to protecting her country. But all she saw during her long career was old geezers like Abraham trying to cling to power and money. It sickened her.
She hated how she had to use his language of manipulation to get him from doing anything stupid like sending the army to try and seize the gate for themselves. In her honest opinion, if Japan were to keep the gate and its potential resources all to themselves, all the better.
At least she knew it would be in safer hands than in her country's.
"Okay, moving on to the actual local wildlife, we should probably go over each type and figure out how to deal with them," Rikiya said, already salivating at the thought. "Who knows? Maybe their meat is delectable and their hides valuable!"
"I'm afraid we'll have to do it later, sir. I have to get back to work," Chikazoku said, as he stood up. "Send me anything else important that came up in the report."
"Very well, we shall continue this later! Keep up the good work and all that!"
"Meeting adjourned?" Hanabata asked.
"For now," Rikiya said. "We shall return to this subject soon enough."
Chikazoku left the room, waving them good-bye. "So long, Koku, Yotsubashi-san."
"Alrighty," Hanabata said, standing up. "I'm gonna go get drunk. Later, sir."
With both of his trusted colleagues gone, Rikiya Yotsubashi was left all alone.
Leaning back on his chair, he groaned, "Ugh. Being a boss is rough."
Momo felt refreshed when she came back from her week-long break.
She had spent her week going on a hard-earned shopping spree all across the boutiques in Japan, and now, she was ready to return to service and get back into action.
Dressed in her basic military uniform, she flashed her rank and identification to the guard at the front of the gate, and was allowed to pass. The walk towards the other side was quiet, if a bit dark and cold, but when she emerged to the other side, she was back.
And the first person to greet her back was…
"Ah! Lieutenant Yaoyorozu! Welcome back!"
Momo smiled. "It's good to see you, Melissa. How was your week?"
"I believe I integrated well with the remaining soldiers here at base. I made a particularly fond connection with one of the pilots for those flying machines, Yoarashi-san. Apparently, he knew Sargent Bakugou from high school, and was his best man at Bakugou's wedding!"
"Bakugou is married?" Momo asked. "I didn't see a ring on him."
"Perhaps he feared he would lose it on the expedition, so he didn't bring it along?"
"Who knows? Regardless, I'm glad to see that you had a fruitful week."
"Yay, good for you," Kaibara sarcastically said, as he walked up to the group, alongside Tsuburaba. "Meanwhile, me and Kosei had to stay back for "harassment training.""
"You two had that one coming, to be honest," Melissa said.
"Regardless," Momo cut in. "Has everyone arrived?"
"Yes, everyone else is present and accounted for," the blonde angel said. "In fact, you were the last one to arrive, Lieutenant. Were you being fashionably late, or simply unprofessional?"
Momo honestly couldn't tell if Melissa developed sass over the week.
"You wanted to see me, sir?" Momo asked, entering Aizawa's office.
"Indeed," the older man said. "While you were out for the week, I discussed your proposal of integrating some of the locals here with a few key government officials. Congratulations, Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, you're now the leader of Operation: Cultural Integration."
Momo blinked in surprise at the news. "This is for real?"
Aizawa nodded. "Yep. Not only will the JSDF be constructing a new town here in the Collibus Hills, you and your crew will be responsible for convincing the locals to move here."
"I see. Is there anything else, sir?"
"There is. In addition, all members of your squad will now have full-body cameras on their uniforms. Apparently, the higher-ups didn't really believe all of the insane shit that you went through, so this time around, you're also gonna be getting full video evidence."
"Understood, sir."
"We're also sending a few squads to investigate the areas you've already been to, to gather more information and talk to the locals you met there," Aizawa added. "However, going to new and unexplored territories is still the SREU's job. Think you can still manage it?"
Momo saluted her commanding officer. "More than capable, sir!"
"Glad to hear it. Now, come on. I've gotta give a speech to your team before you head out."
"All right, listen up!" Aizawa shouted. "Thanks to your team's efforts, we have a somewhat understanding of the world around us. However! We still have more to learn, and thus, you will be going out there for another month to gather more evidence! Dismissed!"
As Yaoyorozu took command and ordered everyone to prepare the vehicles for immediate departure, Eijiro smiled and turned over to the team's demolitions expert.
"You hear that Bakubro?" Eijiro smiled. "Even more adventures!"
"Uh-huh, yeah, sure," the blond said, uncharacteristically calm.
The artificial redhead wondered if he was all right, but decided to leave him alone, for now. Heading over to his designated car, he saw his commanding officer already waiting. "If the smile is anything to go off of, I take it that General Aizawa gave you some good news?"
"Indeed he did," Yaoyorozu said. "My proposal for creating a town around the base here was approved. Our secondary mission, alongside exploring this world, is inviting the local inhabitants to emigrate to the Collibus Hills, to help integrate Japan into this new world."
"You came up with that?" Ejiro gasped. "That's super manly!"
Yaoyorozu smiled. "Yes, as of now, "Operation: Cultural Integration" is a go!"
"Well, if that's the case, I already know of a place south of here!" Melissa said. "We could go to the hidden village there and ask some of the locals if they'd like to come here."
"That… is very considerate of you," Yaoyorozu said. "I gladly accept."
"Great! I've got the map, you can tell Awase where to drive!"
"Glad to hear that," Yaoyorozu said, as she entered the car. "Now, let's head out."
As the two of them headed in, Eijrio smiled. This was gonna be so much fun!
And with that, the LAVs left the base and the outskirts of where the new town was beginning construction, with the Special Region Exploration Unit's second mission having begun!
Author's Note: The second arc of this adventure starts… now!
I should have expected only one comment, but what a comment it has been!
Hansledane: Hope you enjoy Megethos! Glad you also liked the last chapter, it took me a lot of effort to make Aizawa's frustrations readable, and I'm happy to see that it came out as such a banger! Also, all of the evidence you presented for Melissa and Izuku being in cahoots, from the way Melissa worded things to the fact that Izuku hasn't done anything malicious, is pretty compelling. Can't wait to see your comment for this chapter!
Anyway, that's all I've got for this week!
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz . You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
That's all for today, thanks for reading, and we'll see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 14: The Underground Labyrinth within the Swamp
Summary:
It's the second official outing into the Special Region for the SREU, and the first place they go to investigate is a supposed hidden village. But all they find within the center of a swamp is a labyrinth which has trapped Momo and her friends, all while the rest of the squad is back at the entrance fighting off some of the local monsters. And as it turns out, there someone else in the labyrinth with the crew...
Chapter Text
Chapter 14: The Underground Labyrinth within the Swamp
"This place is a shithole," Bakugou simply growled.
"C'mon, Bakubro, be nice about this place," Kirishima said.
"Okay, fine. This place is an aesthetically pleasing shithole."
"Wow, that's the first nice thing I've ever heard you say," Kaibara joked.
"Shut up, monsterfucker, you have no right to judge me."
"Why were we saddled with that nickname, again?" Tsuburaba asked.
"You two monsterfuckers know exactly what you did!"
"WILL ALL OF YOU SHUT UP?!" Momo shouted. Turning around, she looked towards her squad's angelic guide. "Melissa, please tell me this is the right place!"
"We're in the right place all right, a map made with magic doesn't lie," Melissa answered. "Though, I'm not exactly sure where this tribe is in all this… muck."
"Muck" was an appropriate term for this swamp the SREU found themselves in. As far as the eye could see, there were only decrepit trees, fog, and green, bubbling mud-water.
Momo was secretly glad that they brought boots that went up to their shins.
"Okay, well, where exactly is this hidden village?" Kendo asked. "Because if it's deeper in this swamp, I don't think that the cars will be able to fit through all the tree roots."
"It's around here somewhere," Melissa said.
Momo groaned as she heard her boots make another squelching sound. She knew General Aizawa approved of her town idea, but she didn't think they would be actively seeking out locals and asking them to emigrate to the Collibus Hills. Especially not in a place like this!
When Melissa heard about the project's approval, she insisted they head out to a marked location south of the base, near where the bunny warriors were living. Apparently, she knew of a hidden village there, but she never mentioned it was in the middle of a swamp!
Well, they didn't come here first. Technically speaking, they went to Uwabami's home first, followed by Hagakure's cave. And okay, maybe Momo agreed to go along with Melissa's idea because she was in a good mood due to the fact that both Uwabami and Hagakure agreed to look around the Collibus Hills and consider moving there, but still!
She could have at least told them they were going to a SWAMP.
"I swear to Christ, if I have to kill another goddamn giant leech…" Rin hissed.
Oh, yeah, Momo almost forgot about that. This swamp was teeming with what the brainiacs back at the base decided to classify as "megafauna," or in layman's terms, giant animals.
Giant frogs, slugs, cranes, and of course FUCKING LEECHES were prevelant in this swamp. She ended up having to shoot a couple of them Kodai stumbled across.
She also ignored how Kodai seemed almost disappointed when Momo killed them.
Of course, such zoological discoveries were promptly dissected and properly stored in her magic bag, but two things, aside from the fact that they were blood-sucking monsters, made them feel like hollow victories: One, Melissa had already mentioned leeches as one such megafauna before, and two, her subordinate's attitudes were really getting to her.
"Sacre bleu, it's hot out here…" Aoyama complained.
"It's not hot as it is humid, actually…" Tsuburaba explained.
"WILL YOU ALL STOP FUCKING COMPLAINING?!" Bakugou shouted.
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu," Momo's radio went off. "It's me, Monoma. My team found some sort of man-made structure. It's a few minutes drive north east from your location. Over."
"Understood. Thank you, Monoma. Over and out," Momo said into her radio. Turning around, she shouted, "Everyone into the LAVs! Momona's team found something!"
"Yes! Air conditioning! Finally! I'm sweating balls out here!"
"Too much information, Kaibara," Kendo groaned. "Too much information."
The two LAVs pulled up where Monoma and the others were waiting, the dirty water of the swamp splashing on the tires as they came to a halt. Slowly, the doors opened, and Momo stuck her head out. "All right, Monoma, let's see what your team found."
"It's right this way, behind these trees," he said, pointing in that direction.
Momo took a close look, and sure enough, there was something behind those trees. It somewhat resembled a cave opening, but it was more… aesthetically pleasing.
"Oh, great," Bakugou sarcastically said. "We found a hole."
"A hole? A HOLE?!" Kaibara shouted, offended. "Look at this! The tessellations spanning across! The symmetrical opening! The straight lines! This, you uncultured swine, is a TUNNEL!"
"Is he really that upset over it?" Sato asked.
"He spent years getting his degree, he's gonna use it," Tsuburaba said.
"Whatever it is, it's clearly man-made," Kodai said.
"Right… I guess we found the entrance to this hidden village. It just happened to be… underground," Momo said. "So… who's going exploring with me?"
"I'm in!" Kaibara said. "I wanna know what sort of minerals they used to make this!"
Tsuburaba also raised his hand. "Wherever Sen goes, I go!"
"Ehh… as long as we don't have another cave-in…" Bakugou said.
"I'm right behind you, Bakubro!" Kirishima smiled.
"DON'T CALL ME THAT, SHITTY HAIR!!!"
"Sure, why not?" Uraraka said. "I'm a bit curious, myself."
"Great, and with Melissa, that makes seven," Momo said. "Monoma, you're in charge while I'm gone. Radio me in fifteen minutes. If I don't respond, send in a search party after thirty minutes. Once we hit the one hour mark, presume that we're all dead and drive back to the base."
Monoma gave her a salute. "Morbid, but understood, Lieutenant."
"All right, those coming with me, grab your water bottles, weapons, radios, whatever else you need now," the raven-haired said. "It's time for us to go spelunking."
"IT'S NOT A CAVE, IT'S A TUNNEL, GODDAMMIT!!!"
"With all due respect, shut up, Kaibara."
Entering the tunnel wasn't anything special. All Momo and her hand-picked team of problem children had to do was walk into the entrance. What was special was the tunnel itself.
Sure enough, Kaibara was right about what he was ranting earlier. The tunnel was definitely man-made. The floors, walls, and ceiling were all made of smooth tiles, each one of them perfect squares, and parts of the room were glowing with installed lights.
Upon a closer look, Momo saw that the "lights" were glowing green rocks.
"Private Kaibara, give me a geological analysis."
"Well, given its coloration, I would have to say the walls are made of slate rock, but it would take a lot of time and effort to simply make a single smooth tile of the things," the geologist said. "It could also be serpentinite, but I could be fooling myself with the lighting in this room…"
"Speaking of the lighting… what exactly is it?" Momo asked her team.
"They're glowstones," Melissa answered. "A type of ore that absorbs mana and emits a faint green light. I've also heard rumors that they come in different varieties of colors."
"I'm definitely taking one of those," Kaibara said. "You know, for research purposes."
"Hold on," Momo said. "We haven't even met the locals yet, so we're going to wait a bit, before asking them nicely if we could have one of their glowstones, instead of stealing it."
"It's not stealing if they don't find out!"
Katsuki didn't pay attention as his superior began chewing out Monsterfucker #1 over the simple idea of stealing being wrong, but instead, paid more attention to the tunnel walls.
Specifically, something he found indented into the tunnel walls.
It looked like one of the stone tiles was chipped away at by something, and from what Katsuki could tell, whatever it was happened to be big, powerful, and liked to ram into things. Did some rhino find their way in here and decided to smash up a part of the architecture?
"Oi, Round Cheeks, go grab Monsterfucker #1 and get him over here."
"My name is Uraraka!" Round Cheeks shouted. "And don't call Kaibara that, it's mean!"
"Oh, yeah? Then how'd you know I was referring to him, and not his friend?"
The brown-haired woman sputtered at that. "I… uh…"
"Yeah, that's what I thought," Katsuki said. "Now, please, hurry up."
"You know you can't be such a dick, right?!" she shouted at him.
"Fine, fine," Katsuki groaned, standing up. "I'll do it… my… self…"
The astrophysicist looked at him with concern. "Bakugou?"
"Where the fuck… is everyone else?" Katuski asked.
"And, to top it all off: STEALING IS WRONG!!!" Momo shouted.
"Okay, okay, I get it!" Kaibara said. "Sheesh, someone can't take a joke!"
"I'm not in the mood for jokes!" the raven-haired woman hissed. "All day today I've been hearing all of you bickering like children while we we've been in a megafauna-infested swamp, and –"
"Uhh… Momo?" Melissa called out.
Momo turned around. "What?"
"Where are Uraraka, Bakugou, Kirishima, and Tsuburaba?"
The lieutenant immediately did a double-take as she looked around for her four missing soldiers. Not finding them, she went for her walkie-talkie. "Come in, is anyone –?"
"Hey, guys, this is Tsuburaba!" a familiar voice cut her off. "What the hell is going on? Kirishima and I turned our backs for one second and all of you suddenly disappeared! Where are you?!"
"Where are we? Where are you?!" Uraraka's voice came in. "Bakugou and I were just walking through the corridor together, and the rest of you just got up and disappeared!"
"Wait, how are all of you lost?!" Momo asked.
"Bakugou noticed something off with one of the corner tiles, so he went in for a closer look, and he was done and we turned around, no one was there!" Uraraka replied.
"Yeah, what's going on here?!" Tsuburaba asked.
"Melissa…" Momo looked at her angel friend. "What the hell is this place?"
"This place can't be just a tunnel," Bakugou said.
Ochako looked at the demolition expert in confusion. "Huh?"
"I've seen a lot of fantasy anime, and if it wasn't for the fact that this place was well lit and clean, it would scream "dungeon," to me," he explained. "Why are you staring at me like that?"
"Just to be clear… you watch fantasy anime?" Ochako asked.
"IT WAS STUDY MATERIAL!" Bakugou shouted. "I just needed to know how to survive out here, a literal fantasy world! It's no different than the Monster Manual I carry around with me!"
"Sorry, sorry, it's just… you don't seem like the kind of guy who watches anime."
"IT'S A PERFECTLY NORMAL BONDING ACTIVITY BETWEEN COUP–"
CRREEEAAAKK…
Bakugou stopped yelling, as the two of them watched the corridor to their left suddenly have a wall fall from the ceiling, cutting off their access to that specific hallway.
Ochako swore she could hear Bakugou whisper, "Oh, no."
CRREEEAAAKK…
Before she could ask him what that meant, the two of them turned around to see that the wall behind them was suddenly gone, and replaced with another long tunnel.
"This isn't a dungeon," Bakugou said.
"ALL OF YOU!" Momo's radio blared to life again. "STAY FUCKING PUT!!!"
"Bakugou?!" she replied. "What is the meaning of this?!"
"THIS PLACE ISN'T SOME KIND OF TUNNEL, IT'S A GODDAMN LABYRINTH!" Bakugou's voice answered back. "WE DIDN'T GET LOST, THE WALLS SHIFTED AROUND US!"
"What?!"
CRREEEAAAKK…
Before Momo could reply, she, Melissa and Kaibara watched as a new wall was suddenly erected behind them, cutting them off from their quick way back to the entrance.
"Oh, shit, Bakugou was right," Kaibara realized.
"YAOMOMO, HOLY FUCK!!!" Momo's radio blared again.
"Kirishima, what's going on?! And what's with that nickname?!"
"Half these walls are fake!" Eijiro shouted. "Also, I thought the nickname was manly…"
"Wait, what?! What do you mean that half the walls are fake?!"
"Tsuburaba placed his hand on one of the walls for balance, and his hand just went through it!" the redhead explained. "It's like some kind of hologram, or an illusion!"
"I ALMOST NO-CLIPPED THROUGH REALITY!!!" Tsuburaba shouted.
"Okay, so let me think," Momo said, scratching her head. "We're trapped inside a maze where half the walls are either constantly shifting, or where the other half are illusions."
CRREEEAAAKK…
"Um, guys?" Melissa called out. "We have a new problem."
Momo looked over to where the blond angel was pointing towards, only to see that the walls were making a familiar noise, but none of them actually moved around them.
CRREEEAAAKK…
"Oh, you have to be fucking kidding me," Momo cursed.
"What? What is it?" Kirishima asked.
Momo forgot for a second that she still had her button on the walkie-talkie's speaker. Quickly explaining, she said, "Some of the walls are making that shifting noise, but aren't actually doing it. So to recap: Not only do the walls shift, but some of them also trick us by playing us the same audio, and some others are just an illusion. They're trying to trick both our eyes and ears."
"Not to mention our sense of direction," Uraraka added.
Neito breathed a sigh of relief at how quiet it was. This was indeed the life. While his subordinates might not be currently enjoying the boredom, Neito certainly was. After all, boredom and quiet meant that nothing was currently wrong.
He could enjoy cuddling with Itsuka on top of one of the LAVs, soaking up some sun.
"Hey…" Itsuka said. "It's been fifteen minutes, you better radio in."
"Mmm… you're right," Neito said, grabbing his radio. "Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, this is Monoma. It's been fifteen minutes, I'm calling in to make sure that you guys are still alive, or whatever."
No response.
"Great… all right, we'll go in to find them in another fifteen."
"Understood," Itsuka lazily smiled. "Now… where were we?"
Yep, this was definitely the life.
"So… what do we do?" Ochako asked. "Better yet, what are you doing?"
Bakugou gave her an answer as he laid down on the floor. "I'm staying put. The first rule of being lost in the woods is to stay right where you are. There's a good chance that trying to find the way out yourself will only get you even more lost. So, I'm staying right where I am."
"Okay… what's the second rule of being lost in the woods?"
"Make some sort of signal for help to come," Bakugou explained. "For example, a smoke stack for people to follow. But since there's no firewood here, I've gotta do the next best thing."
The brown-haired woman looked at him curiously. "And that is?"
"Making noise," Bakugou said, pulling out his radio. "Lieutenant, Shitty Hair, I've got a whistle with me. I'm gonna blow on it for a bit. If you can hear it, try to follow the sound to me."
"You brought a whistle with you?" Ochako asked.
"I brought a lot of things with me. Whistle, flashlight, C4, a few other things," Bakugou listed off. "Anyways, you might wanna cover your ears, this is gonna get pretty loud."
"Do you hear anything?" Eijiro asked, as he kept walking.
"Nah, man," Tsuburaba answered. "And to be honest, Bakugou's plan has some flaws. Like, sure, we can hear sounds clearer through the atmosphere, but they also travel slower than they do through, say, solids. Plus, the shifting walls open a whole bunch of new problems."
"Mm. You know, you're pretty smart," the artificial redhead said.
"Of course I'm smart! I'm a meteorologist! I have a degree and everything!"
"Sorry, sorry, it's just that, uh…" Ejiro stopped talking as the two of them turned the corner, only to find one of the shifting walls opening up to a completely new room.
"Whoa," Tsuburaba whispered.
The two of them walked into the new room. It was massive, way bigger than the tunnels, and circular. All around them were massive columns, with the floor of the room filled with flowers. And in the center of the room was a massive white crystal that was shining.
"I think… that you might wanna radio this in."
Eijiro Kirishima had to agree with that one.
"Hey, guys, it's Kirishima," Momo's radio flared up. "I think that me and Tsuburaba just found the center of the maze. We can see, like, six different entrances to the place."
"What else do you see?" Momo asked.
"Umm… a bunch of columns, flowers, and a big crystal? Oh, look, there's some stairs."
"All right, stay put, we'll try to find our way to you. Over and out."
"How are we supposed to find them?" Kaibara asked.
"Hmm… Melissa, do you have anything that sees through illusions?"
Melissa smiled at that. "Now you're speaking my language. VERUM ASPECTA!"
Momo could see Melissa's irises and pupils disappear, leaving nothing but white sclera. If it wasn't for the fact her eyes were glowing with holy light, she would have called an exorcist.
"Okay, we're close, I can see Kirishima and Tsuburaba," Melissa said, as she stared off at some wall. "We need to go straight, take a left, another left, pass one false wall, and we're there."
"All right," Momo said. "Let's go."
"FWEEEEE!!!"
"Bakugou, stop! Didn't you hear the Lieutenant?!" Round Cheeks shouted.
Katsuki pulled the whistle out of his mouth and looked at her. "Yeah, I heard. She said her team was gonna try and find Shitty Hair. She never said anything about us doing the same."
"Yeah, well, they're not gonna try to find us now!" the brown-haired woman said, rubbing her ears. "You're wasting your breath, and I think I'm gonna get tinnitus!"
"Listen, just because Ponytail and her idiots are gonna try to find the center of the maze, doesn't mean that they might stumble across us while doing it!" Katsuki explained. "Hell, who knows? Maybe they'll be able to hear us from the center of this goddamn labyrinth!"
"All right, fine! You –"
CRREEEAAAKK…
Both of them stopped talking, as they heard one of the walls at the end of the hallway and around the corner open up. Katsuki considered trying to figure out the pattern of movements coming from the maze, so now might be as good a place to start as any other.
However, fate decided to play him a different hand.
Because at the end of the corridor, they both heard a sound.
"Footsteps?" Round Cheeks mumbled. "You think it's the others?"
"Maybe," Katsuki said, standing up. At the end of the corridor, he could see a figure approaching them. He couldn't make out much, aside from their funny-looking hat. No, not a hat…
In an instant, something in Bakugou's mind clickled. Earlier in the labyrinth, he saw that a part of the wall was indicted, like some kind of horned animal, like a rhino, rammed it. But what if it wasn't a rhino… what if it was something more… bovine… like a cow… or a bull…
"Uraraka," Katsuki whispered. "Pull out your gun."
The astrophysicist looked at him confused. "What? Why?"
"What's the most famous story featuring a labyrinth back on Earth?"
"I dunno… the Greek myth one, maybe? Theseus and the… Minotaur…"
"Is this the place?" Momo asked.
"Just up ahead," Melissa said. "We just have to wait for the walls to shift."
CRREEEAAAKK…
And then, as if on cue, the wall ahead of them went into the ceiling, and like a gate, revealed to them the room up ahead. One of columns, flowers, a massive crystal, and…
"Kirishima! Tsuburaba!"
"Lieutenant Yaomomo!" Kirishima smiled.
"Kosei!" Kaibara shouted, tackling Tsuburaba.
"Sen! Hug me, brother!"
"I'm glad to see that you're all still alive, but we still have to find Bakugou and Uraraka." Turning around, Momo looked towards the resident angel. "Melissa, can you find them?"
Nodding, Melissa scanned around the room with her glowing eyes, before saying, "I see them. They're at the north-western part of the labyrinth. But… someone's with them."
Momo's eyes widened at that. "What? Who?"
"I don't know, but whoever they are, they're approaching our friends, and fast."
"Melissa! Intercept them, now!" Momo commanded.
The angel nodded, and extending her wings, she was off.
Momo seriously hoped that whoever they were, they didn't harm her squadmates.
Neito could feel his boots squelch from the dirty water as he jumped off the LAV's roof.
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, it's Monoma, come in!"
Still nothing but radio silence. Guess they were doing this.
"All right, everyone! The Lieutenant hasn't responded, so we've gotta go in and find them. Kodai, Sato, Aoyama, you're with me. Everyone else, stay back here with Kendo," the blond said, grabbing a rifle. "If we're not back in an hour, presume we're dead."
"Please, be careful in there," Itsuka said.
Before Neito had a chance to reply, someone else opened their mouth.
"Uhh… sir?" Rin called out. "We might have a problem."
"What is it?" Neito asked. "More giant leeches?"
The blond decided to ignore how Kodai perked up at hearing that.
"Thankfully, no, but… you might wanna look over there."
Neito looked over to where Rin was pointing, to see two massive eyes popping out of the water. Not only that, to make matters worse, they were swimming towards the group.
"Rin… what the hell is that thing?"
The zoologist insanity went into his analysis mode. "Definitely another megafauna, eyes are on the sides of the head, long snout, scales, avid swimmer, that thing is a –"
BOOM!
The giant animal lifted itself out of the water like some sort of kaiju, and then proceeded to charge towards the group, letting out a cross between a roar and a hiss.
"ROOOOOAAAR!!!"
"GIANT CROCODILE!!!" Rin screamed.
"EVERYONE, OPEN FIRE!!!" Neito shouted.
Immediately, everyone began shooting bullets at the absolutely massive reptile in front of them (over eight meters, if Neito had to guess), from Sato and Kodai blasting it with pistols, to Aoyama sniping it from the top of one of the LAVs, to everything in between.
Sorry, Lieutenant, Neito apologized. Guess you'll have to wait for us a bit.
Melissa flew as fast as she could within the confines of this cramped maze, certain that Momo was following behind her. She just had to make another quick turn, and…
"Oh! An angel! You must be with the Arms of Fire!"
Melissa paused, as she saw that… Bakugou and Uraraka were perfectly fine. Looking towards the newcomer, the angel saw that she was a… fairly small minotaur.
"Umm… who are you?" Melissa asked.
"On, right! My name's Pony! Pony Tsunotori! And I need your help!"
Author's Note: And so, the first part of the second series has begun.
For those wondering, this is going to follow the same formula as the previous arc, where every two chapters, the squad will explore a new place, making it four new places in total. After that, they'll go back and report everything to Aizawa, all while the plot continues to grow in the background. But that's for later. For now, the comments!
Hansledane: Yep, that's one of the big twists; Bakugou's gonna be a father, giving him even more motivation to come back from these missions alive. And while they are a minor plot point, Yostubashi and friends really are in it for the money. And the United States is gonna be playing an even bigger role in the future, trust me. Glad you noticed the new tags I posted, and I shall now leave you to your theorizing! Ciao!
valkrus: Fixed the typo. And as for why this village is hidden, it either explains it in this chapter or the next one. Or it doesn't, I don't particularly remember.
And now, for the last bit of shilling…
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz . You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 15: Pony Tsunortori's Minotaur Adventure
Summary:
The members of the SREU that are currently within the labyrinth have come across what they were looking for; the hidden village of the minotaurs. Unfortunately, said village is currently dealing with a monster problem, and have asked the SREU for help, due to the fact that they carry what the minotaurs think are legendary weapons. Things get complicated quickly.
Chapter Text
Chapter 15: Pony Tsunortori's Minotaur Adventure
"I'm sorry…" Momo said, talking in Latin. "Your name is… Pony?"
"That's right! Pony Tsunotori!" the minotaur answered her, still wearing the same dopey smile she had when Melissa brought her in alongside Uraraka and Bakugou.
To be honest, she didn't look like a minotaur. Sure, she had horns, a cow-like tail and ears, and rounded calves, with hooves for feet… but that was it. Everything else about her looked pretty human. She had blonde hair, blue eyes, the rest of her body was fairly normal, and to top it off, aside from her horns and ears her face was… completely human-looking.
She didn't have a cow head like in those classic myths Momo read as a kid.
And to make things even weirder, she was actually shorter than Momo herself.
"So… just to be clear… you're a minotaur?" Tsuburaba asked.
Pony nodded. "That's right."
"So… you're basically a cowgirl, right?"
"I've been called that before, yeah."
I don't like where this conversation is going, Momo thought to herself.
"Then… Why is your chest so small?"
SMACK!
"Ow! What the –?!"
"TSUBURABA, YOU PERV!" Uraraka shouted. "YOU CAN'T ASK A GIRL THAT!"
Momo sighed, thinking, I guessed correctly.
"Congratulations, Monsterfucker #2, you filled your daily quota of horny," Bakugou said.
"It was just a question!" Tsuburaba tried to defend himself.
"Yeah, for science and shit!" Kaibara added on.
"DON'T ENCOURAGE ONE ANOTHER!" Uraraka shouted, before she turned back towards Pony. "I am so sorry about those two! We don't mean to be offensive –"
"Actually, his question was pretty valid," Pony interrupted her.
"Wait, it was?" Bakugou was dumbfounded.
"Wait, it was? I mean, of course it was!" Tsuburaba said.
"I mean, most minotaurs are easily taller than most humans, but I'm actually a runt," Pony explained. "It's also why my chest isn't as big as all of the others'. I'm pretty small."
"Wait… how big are we talking here?" Kaibara asked.
"Mmm… Well, aside from me, the second shortest member of our tribe is around seventy-two inches tall… and in terms of bust size… the second smallest would be around her size."
Momo might have let out a small squeak when Pony pointed at her chest.
Meanwhile, Kaibara and Tsuburaba just stared at each other.
"Dude…?"
"Duuude."
They both cheered, ""WE JUST HIT THE JACKPOT!!!""
SMACK! SMACK!
"Ouch!"
"Uraraka!"
"STOP BEING PERVS, BOTH OF YOU!!!" Uraraka shouted.
"Wait a minute," Bakugou said. "If you're the literal runt of an entire village, then why did they keep you around? From what I could gather, you don't seem like someone who could offer your tribe any skills, so from how I understand it, you're just an extra mouth to feed."
"Bakugou, don't be rude!" Kirishima said.
"You're right," Pony said. "Compared to the other minotaurs, I'm weaker. If it wasn't for the fact that my mother was the chieftess, I probably wouldn't have lived for as long as I have."
"Your mother?" Momo asked.
"Kau Redi," Pony said. "Tsunotori is my dad's family name, and I took it when he died. But yeah, my mom is the village chieftess… or was the chieftess, before… he showed up."
"He?" Melissa inquired.
"Minotaurus. He's some sort of cross between a cyclops and a minotaur. Blue skin, one red eye, and completely massive. He showed up a week ago, acting all big and scary, and now he's terrorizing my village!" Pony said, before smiling. "But it'll be fine, because you're now here!"
"Us?" Bakugou asked. "What does this have to do with us?"
"Because you're summoned heroes!"
Every single person in the room blinked at what the minotaur had to say.
"I'm sorry… could you repeat that?" Momo asked.
"You're the wielders of the Arms of Fire!" Pony said. "You've returned to liberate my people! You even have an angel alongside you! That is proof of your heroic nature!"
"Whoa, whoa, slow down… you're saying we're some sort of chosen heroes?" Kaibara asked.
"Not chosen, summoned," Pony corrected him. "From a far away land."
"Uh-huh… and what sort of proof do you have of such a claim?" Bakugou asked.
Pony simply pointed towards the assault rifle on Momo's back.
"Wh-what?"
Bakugou, meanwhile, smacked his face. "Godammit."
"Bakugou, what is it?" Uraraka asked.
"Arms of Fire. Firearms. GUNS. This cowgirl and her people have been duped into thinking that guns are some sort of legendary weapons," the blond groaned. "Ugh… um, Tsunotori-san, could you please tell us what you know about the first Arms of Fire wielder?"
The minotaur nodded enthusiastically. "Of course! Legends say that the first wielder appeared many centuries ago, from a mythical kingdom known as the Land of the Lonely Star –"
SMACK!
Okay, now, Momo was starting to get concerned. "Bakugou?!"
"God-fucking-dammit," the spiky blond cursed.
"What happened this time?" Kirishima asked.
"The Land of the Lonely Star. The Lone Star State. TEXAS," the demolition expert said. "Whatever idiot got isekai'd here, he was from America, and he brought his guns with him!"
"But wait, that makes no sense!" Momo interjected. "Pony said he appeared several centuries ago, but this model of assault rifle were carrying is an M4 carbine! These things didn't come to the market until the early 1980's! They shouldn't have been in production whatsoever!"
"Maybe time flows differently in this world?" Uraraka suggested. "There's a theory out there that suggests that time in different dimensions flows differently. So, maybe the guy went missing in our world roughly thirty years ago, but he appeared in this one centuries earlier?"
"Wait, but if that's the case, why did time march at the same rate while we were gone from Japan on our first mission?" Tsuburaba asked. "If what you're saying is accurate, then shouldn't we have been gone for like, a second, rather than an entire month, from Japan's perspective?"
"Maybe when the gate appeared, our time flows synchronized?"
"Regardless of how it happened, someone from your recent history ended up influencing an entire culture when they arrived here," Melissa said, getting everyone's attention. "But, hey, on the bright side, we now know where the hidden village we were looking for is."
"Yeah, right beneath our feet, held hostage by a giant monster," Bakugou said.
"Not to mention, we're still trapped inside their security system of a labyrinth, and we probably have a limited time before Monoma thinks up and we died," Kaibara added.
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
"ROOOOOAAAR!!!"
"DIE, YOU REPTILIAN SCUM!" Monoma laughed. "DIIIIIE!!! AHAHAHAHAHA!!!"
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
"All right, let me think," Momo said. Looking back at the minotaur, she asked, "Tsunotori-san, do your people happen to know how to navigate the labyrinth we are in towards the exit?"
"Of course," Pony answered. "This labyrinth was our security system designed to keep out intruders. Only minotaurs know how to make it from one end of the maze to the other. Which only makes Minotaurus' arrival extra weird, since he's too big to fit inside the entrance."
Momo hummed. "I see… all right, I guess we will help in your people's liberation."
"What?!"
"Lieutenant!"
Momo turned back to her troops. "Look, I didn't sign up for this either, but we have no choice. It's either that, or wandering around the labyrinth aimlessly until we starve to death. Your call."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"Uuuugh… guess we gotta go kill some monsters," Bakugou sighed. "Again."
Momo smiled. "Glad to hear you're on board. Now let's go."
The team began making their way down to the subterranean habitat of the minotaurs through the staircase Kirishima and Tsuburaba found when entering the maze's center. As Pony explained, the stairs were carved out from the walls of their underground habitat, and were used to make their way to the surface if any minotaur ever wished to leave home.
It was also what Pony used to enter the labyrinth in her attempt to get help, before she ended up stumbling into the JSDF soldiers. And now, the team was making their way down.
The first thing they saw was a bright light, followed by a bird's eye view of the entire minotaur colony. They could see rivers, fields, waterfalls, trees, freshwater beaches, and small huts, which made every single moving creature down there look like the size of ants.
Of course, there also came some questions with all this.
"Hey, Pony, if this whole place is underground, then how come there's sunlight?"
Pony looked back at Kirishima, before pointing at the ceiling. "See those crystals?"
Kirishima looked upward to see several bright white crystals covering the ceiling, with the exception of the small opening to the side, which housed the staircase they were using.
"Yeah, what about them?" the artificial redhead asked.
"You saw those same crystals at the center of the maze, surrounded by the flowers, right? Well, down here, they reflect and refract the sunlight from the center's open ceiling."
"Ohhh, so that explained why there was so much natural light coming in!"
"Exactly!" Pony nodded. "The sunlight gets absorbed and refracted through the crystals, and then shines just as bright down here, mimicking a day and night cycle for us."
"Oi! Both of you, keep it down!" Bakugou hissed. "Don't wanna be spotted!"
When the group reached the bottom, they made sure to stay both as quiet and unseen as possible. If they were gonna beat Minotaurus, they would have to do it sneakily.
Unfortunately, Pony Tsunotroi didn't get the memo.
"HEY, EVERYONE!" she shouted. "I BROUGHT HELP!"
"What the fuck is your problem?!" Bakugou hissed.
A few seconds later, out of the bushes and huts, came several minotaurs, of all kinds of varieties. Some were taller than humans, some of them looked more like Pony, while others looked more like the mythological monsters Momo recognized, and all of them came in different varieties of heights, hair color, horn shape, breeds, and of course, bust sizes.
For the very first time in her life, Momo Yaoyorozu felt insecure.
"Look who I brought!" Pony said, pointing at the soldiers.
Immediately, all of the minotaurs knew who they were.
"Arms of Fire…"
"The champion has returned!"
"All hail!"
Several of the minotaurs bowed down, while others kneeled in front of Momo and her team, which she could tell made most of her squadmates uncomfortable. Most of them.
"You know, I could get used to being worshiped…" Kaibara whispered to Tsubutaba.
"Don't even think about it, either of you," Uraraka hissed at them.
However, the noise died down when one minotaur stepped out of the group. She had curvy blonde hair, dark blue eyes, massive horns, and an amazing, human-like physique.
Yeah, that's definitely Pony's mom, Momo thought to herself.
"Champions of the Arms of Fire, thank you for answering our prayers," she said, kneeling down. "I am Kau Redi, the chieftess of the Palus Village, and Pony's mother."
"Greetings," Momo said. "I am First Lieutenant Momo Yaoyorozu of the Japanese Self-Defense Force. We are here to help. So… where exactly is this Minotaurs character?"
"He's up near the river… he arrived here a week ago, and chased us off from our fishing grounds… he must be stopped!" the minotaur chieftess said.
"What's his fighting style? Does he have any weaknesses?" Bakugou asked.
"Aside from his immense size and strength, he has around his neck a magic medallion, a white-and-green one. I've seen it fire off two types of magic, a beam of disintegration and a ray of frost. Anything caught in their path will either burn up or be frozen in ice.
"Well, that's a charming image," Tsuburaba joked to himself.
"Not only that, but he also has a sort of crystal-colored defensive magic around his arms, which will appear to block any ranged attacks with curricular-shaped shields," she added.
Turning around, Momo said, "Okay, guys, I think I might have a plan."
As it turned out, finding Minotaurus wasn't that hard to do.
It was kind of hard to miss the giant blue monster patrolling the river.
Popping her head out of the bushes, Momo took one good look at Minotaurs, and sure enough, he was just as Pony had described. The bastard was three meters tall, at least, covered in blue skin and with one massive red eye. Honestly, the whole "half-minotaur, half-cyclops" thing was kind of a mislead, since the only cow-like things he had were his curved horns and cow-like tail.
Seriously, he had no visible nose to speak of, no cow-like ears, and his feet weren't even hooves, they were just regular feet, which happened to be decked-out with sharp toenails.
"Jesus Christ, he is one ugly motherfucker," Kaibara whispered next to her.
"Agreed," Momo said. Pulling out her radio, she said, "Everyone, this is Yaoyorozu. Kaibara and I are in position. Is everyone else ready to execute Operation: Minotaur Liberation?"
"This is Kirishima. Tsuburaba and I are in position."
"This is Uraraka. Bakugou and I are in position."
"This is Melissa – er, I mean, Shield. I'm in position."
"All right," Momo said, as she smiled. "Let's rock."
Momo knew that her plan could go sideways almost immediately.
That was already assumed since her idea was to wait until Minotaurus was in the right position for Kaibara to snipe him with his assault rifle. The plan was risky. One, they weren't using a rifle designed for sniping, and two, Kaibara wasn't a sniper, that job fell to Aoyama.
So, of course Momo knew that their first strike might have failed. She knew that there was a good chance that Kaibara would miss Minotaurus' eye.
BANG!
However, neither one of them expected Minotaurus to turn around at the last second, with the bullet hitting the monster's horn instead of his eye. Momo also didn't expect Minotaurus to look towards where the bullet came from, spot the two of them, and then charge.
Unfortunately for them, all of that happened.
"ROOOOOAAARRR!!!!!"
However, Aizawa drilled into Momo that no plan ever survives first contact, so she had already come up with a few contingencies. One said contingency happened to be an angel.
"MELISSA, PLAN B!" Momo shouted into her radio.
"Understood!"
As Momo and Kaibara dodged the massive hands of Minotaurus, Kirishima and Tsuburaba popped out from the other bushes and shot the giant blue monster in the back a few times, wounding him. Momo smiled, as her theory was just proven right.
His magic isn't on all the time! He has to do it on command!
Pretty soon, however, a red magic circle appeared behind the blue giant, and two massive, crystal-like force fields showed up on his forearms. That's his defensive magic!
"HEY, UGLY!"
Minotaurus looked up to see Melissa dive-bomb him, her sword immediately going for his medallion. The blue cyclops blocked her, and the blonde angel was now responsible for keeping the giant's attention, while Momo and the others shot him from all around.
As Momo had correctly theorized, the defensive magic was only around the monster's forearms, meaning that if he wanted to defend other parts of his body, he would have to move his force field. Slowly but surely, they would chip away at his defenses.
"Great. Melissa and the others have him occupied," Momo said, as she watched Melissa dodge another ice beam from the cycolp's magic medallion. "Bakugou, your turn."
Bakugou gave her one hell of a wicked smile, and said, "My pleasure."
Quickly, he pulled out a lighter, along with several pieces of white, plastic-looking material, all of them with a piece of yellow wire in some place or another, from his pockets.
"Uhh, are we sure this is a good idea?" Kirishima asked.
"As the Mythbusters once said… When in doubt, C4," Bakugou said, before charging.
While Melissa made sure Minotaurus focused on her, Bakugou ran circles around the monster's feet, dumping pieces of lit C4 at its feet, before running like hell away from the basalt site.
"AAAAAAAAAAA–"
BOOOOOM!!!
SPALT!
"Are you all right, Bakugou?" Momo asked, picking him up.
"I'm gonna feel that in the morning…" he groaned. "Did we get him?"
"He's writhing in pain and… glitching in and out of existence?"
Momo and the others took a closer look, to see that Minotaurus' body was shining on and off a bunch of reddish-pink lights, like some sort of strobe light, the kind that causes epileptic seizures. In fact, the only thing that remained solid was the magic medallion itself.
"Wait a minute…" Kirishima said. "Is his entire body some kind of illusion?!"
"If that's the case… MELISSA! THE MAGIC MEDALLION! GRAB IT!" Momo shouted.
The angel dive-bombed again, avoiding the disintegration rays and the frost beams that Minotaurus was shooting out of his magical medallion, and –
SNATCH!
With the medallion gone, Minotaurus began shrinking, reddish-pink lights flashing off of him… and once they were gone, they revealed a tiny figure. They were short, slightly over a meter tall, with purple, curly hair, almost as if they were orbs, and pointed ears.
"Is that… a gnome?" Melissa asked.
The aftermath of the battle was somewhat anticlimactic.
The purple-haired gnome was chased off by the very-much angry minotaurs he had scared, with them eventually tracking the little bastard down, and stringing him up with some rope.
While that was happening, the rest of them celebrated their liberation, with Pony's mom thanking the squad herself, with Momo knowing it was time to get down to business.
"Thank you for saving our home," Kau Redi said, bowing down to Momo and the others. "You truly are the Arms of Fire! If there is ever any way we can repay you, let us know!"
"Actually, there is," Momo said. "We've come from the gate at Collibus Hills, and we need people to inhabit the town we're building there. Perhaps some of your minotaurs could…?"
Kau Redi smiled. "Say no more. I shall send my daughter and a portion of our people to the Collibus Hills right away. This shall be the beginning of a prosperous alliance!"
Momo smiled. "Great. When you make it to the front gate, tell them that First Lieutenant Momo Yaoyorozu sent you, and that you wish to speak to Lieutenant General Shouta Aizawa."
Kau Redi nodded. "Understood. Now, I believe my daughter promised you something…"
"There is. But before we go, I have to ask… what's your plan with that gnome?"
"Oh, Lieutenant, you're back!" Rin said. "Uh… what's that thing behind you?"
"A minotaur," Momo said, glancing back at Pony. "Why are you covered in blood?"
"Giant crocodile blood, actually. And, I wasn't the only one who got splattered."
"I see that we weren't the only ones who had quite the adventure…" Melissa said.
"Yeah, we were pretty occupied," Komori said. "What's that on your back?"
"A gnome," Bakugou said, as he showed off the tied-up little cretin.
"I see… well, I suppose both groups have some explaining to do?"
Thirty minutes later, Momo had finished up explaining their underground labyrinth adventure to the rest of the SREU, while Monoma explained to them why, not only were they still in the swamp, but also why there was now a giant crocodile corpse near where the LAVs were parked.
While the two team leaders were swapping stories, some of the others were also collecting samples of the area, from the crocodile corpse, to one of the maze's glowstones, to selfies with Pony. Honestly, Momo wasn't expecting such a massive haul from today.
"Well, I suppose it's a good thing that you were all occupied with that crocodile," Momo said. "I could already imagine it: Myself and the rest of the team, in high spirits after defeating such a villain, only to come back and discover that we were presumed dead and left behind."
"We should probably extend the assumption time," Monoma suggested.
The raven-haired woman nodded at that. "I agree, that is a good idea."
"But wait…" Kendo said. "If the labyrinth was tricking your eyes and ears along with your sense of direction, then how was Pony able to lead you back out afterwards?"
"I asked her that myself on the way back here," Bakugou answered. "Apparently, she could smell the swamp stank near the exit, and the flowers at the center of the maze."
"Oh, I get it!" Rin said. "Cows have a better sense of smell than either humans or dogs! They must have planted those flowers in the center of the maze to direct other minotaurs to the right path! The different smells must have acted as homing beacons for them."
"Well, that does make sense," Uraraka said. "But how did he bypass it?"
Momo looked over at the tied-up gnome Bakugou was hauling with them. The minotaurs had already beaten him up, so they were more than glad to hand him over to Momo's crew.
"Well… why don't we ask him ourselves?"
Bakugou nodded, and pulled out the gag from his mouth. "All right, listen up," Momo said. "I'm gonna ask you a few questions, and I want you to answer honestly. Am I clear?"
"PLEASE DON'T HURT ME!" the gnome cried, squirming around.
"We're not gonna hurt you. Now first question: How did you find the underground village?"
"It was a complete accident, I swear! I just got lost in the maze, and would have starved to death if I didn't find the center! One thing led to another, and I used my medallion to disguise myself!"
"Along with frightening an entire village of minotaurs from part of their home?"
"Like I had a choice! They would have eaten me!" the gnome shouted. "Do you know how hard it is to survive when you're as tall as I am?! I had to use every advantage I could, and even that wasn't good enough! Now I'm gonna be tortured to death by a bunch of humans…"
Momo sighed. This guy was completely pitiful. Then again, he did say that he had it rough due to his height. He was probably terrified of how massive the minotaurs were. Did he overreact? Probably. Did he deserve to be tried like some sort of criminal? Probably not.
Sighing again, Momo decided to give the little guy a way out of this, and untied him.
"Let's start over. My name is Momo Yaoyorozu. What's your name?"
"Minoru Mineta."
"Look, Mineta-san… I am going to make an err in judgment and say that you genuinely believed that your life was in danger. That being said, the way you went about defending yourself was… let's say, misguided. So, I'm going to give you a chance to redeem yourself."
The gnome looked at her, with hope in his eyes. "Redeem myself?"
"My people from the gate at Collibus Hills, creating a town around it. I want you to go there and tell them that I sent you, and that you'd like to ask Shouta Aizawa for a job. Do that, and I promise that you'll be treated as any other member of society, regardless of your race."
Standing up, the gnome said, "All right, I'll do it!"
"SKREE…"
As soon as Mineta said that, a giant leech popped out of the swamp water. But before anyone could shoot it, the purple-haired gnome jumped at its head, grabbed its antennas, and proceeded to use them as a person would use reins on a horse.
"I won't forget this kindness, Yaoyorozu-sama! I'll make you proud! HYAH!" Mineta said, as he rode the leech out of the swamp, and into the sunset, like some kind of cowboy.
"Well…" Momo deadpanned. "That happened."
"Less than a week into this mission, and I already wanna go home," Bakugou said.
Why did Momo feel like that would be a running theme for the rest of the trip?
A few minutes after processing… that… Momo and the rest of her team said their good-byes to Pony, before heading back to the LAVs, and getting the hell out of that swamp.
"Okay, where to now, Melissa?" Momo asked.
"Actually, I wanna keep it a surprise," the angel said. "But trust me… you'll love it."
Author's Note: One insane adventure down, three more to go.
Before anyone asks, this is the last time they'll be going on a month-long expedition for a while. Once this is over, the main story will officially begin, which includes a coup, rescue mission, hostage crisis, army recruitment, and the end of the world. But that's still in the far future! For now, I've got a whopper of a comment to respond to!
Hansledane: Yep, the whole gimmick of the "hidden village" was that it was hidden first, inside of a swamp, second, in the center of a labyrinth, and third, it was underground. Any all-talk wannabe adventurer would have never found it, or died trying. Next, I think that it's been established in the fanon that Kodai is a huge closet perv, something which my version of Kodai also is, if the ogre incident didn't give it away. If you need a specific reason why, just go with daddy issues. A friendly reminder to everyone: Kaibara and Tsuburaba may be the biggest idiots on the team, but they still have science degrees, making them still productive members of society! And yes, I love Monoma and Kendo as a ship, especially when I have them achieving relationship goals. The labyrinth was actually inspired by an episode of the animated series, "The Deep." Had an undersea minotaur and everything. Speaking of minotaurs, Pony is here! Her arc may be over, but I guarantee she'll be back for more! Also, that thing the gang outside was dealing with was a giant crocodile, not a lizard. Anyways, in terms of geography, while it is true that Pony's people were living close to Usagiyama's, they're actually a bit north up. Plus, given that both the rabbit incident and the cave-in were on the way back towards the base, it actually means that the SREU is still close to the Collibus Hills for the time being, and only a week into their second expedition. Welp, guess I'll talk to you again next time!
And now, for the last bit of shilling…
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 16: Wizard City
Summary:
The SREU have arrived to their second location... one of the three Magical Capitals of the world! Inside, they explore potion shops, learn to unlock their inner sorcerer, and lose Sato in the crowds! Meanwhile, someone else has also arrived in the city, with their mission being to find a certain fallen angel...
Chapter Text
Chapter 16: Wizard City
"This is the right road?" Awase asked, as he kept driving.
"Mm-hm," Melissa said. "We should be there in less than an hour."
"And where exactly are we going?" Momo asked. "While I do appreciate you wanting to help me recruit people for Collibus Hills and O:CI, I would like to know where we're going…"
Melissa smiled. "Don't worry, Momo, it's not another swamp. In fact, it's a city."
"Oh, well, that's a relief to hear," Awase said. "What sort of city?"
"I'm not telling!" Melissa said, putting a finger on her lips. "That would ruin the surprise!"
Around thirty minutes later, Melissa told the LAVs to park.
Eijiro was a bit confused at what their guide was doing, but he trusted her. Plus, all she told them to do was fill up their bottles with water and eat whatever leftovers Sato made for breakfast as a sort of impromptu brunch, while she went over Yaomomo's inventory.
"And just to be extra sure, the captured general had gold on him?"
"Yes. General Kayama even let me use it for our missions." Yamomo responded. "It's inside the magic bag's pocket dimension as we speak. But we've never gotten to use it…"
"Well then, today is that money's lucky day," Melissa said.
"What exactly are we doing out here?" Bakubro asked.
Everyone behind him also let out a few noises of agreement.
"Oh, I was just letting everyone rest up a bit before we enter!"
"Enter? Enter what?" Rin asked. "There's nothing but grass out here. Well, grass, plus a couple of trees, roads, hills, and maybe a lake out in the distance? I can't see that far."
"Oh, don't get me wrong, the nature out here is pretty nice, but that's not what we came here for… this is." Melissa turned around, and said, "ARIOLOS IMPERARE!!!"
In a matter of seconds, the clear blue sky and empty fields in front of the cars began to fill with something, that something gaining more and more color and density by the second.
"Whoa!"
"What the fuck?!"
"Huh?!"
Everyone was shocked and amazed how, seemingly in an instant, an entire city had appeared in front of them, one of crystal, stone, metal and wood, where beautiful architecture and nature meet, and which seemingly glowed, even without the assistance of the sun.
If Eijiro had to describe witnessing this city appear he would say it was… magical.
"Ladies and gentlemen," Melissa said, gaining everyone's attention. "Welcome to Yueei-Shiketsu City, one of the three Magical Capitals of the world!"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, back up! Magic? Like, actual magic?!"
"We've seen magic before, Kaibara," Kendo said. "Hagakure's illusions, Melissa's spells, our lieutenant's pocket dimension bag, the labyrinth's illusions, the magic storm, Mineta's medallion, the coral reef, and the literal gate that appeared in Musutafu! Or did you forget all that?"
"I didn't forget all that!" the geologist said. "It's just that our first-hand experience with the stuff has been sub-par, at best! If this city is as actually dedicated to magic as Shield implied, we could actually learn how this shit works on a scientific level from the source itself!"
"Plus, we could try to recruit anyone in the city for Operation: Cultural Integration…" Eijiro heard Yaomomo whisper, before she said out loud, "Melissa, you magnificent woman!"
"I knew you'd like it!" Melissa smiled. "Okay, guys, finish up eating, then we can head in, find ourselves some nice parking spots, and parooze to our hearts' content!"
"""YEEEAAAAAH!!!"""
As Awase drove past the open gate and into the streets of the city, Momo wondered something. "Melissa, you said that this city was one of the three Magical Capitals of the world."
"Yeah, Ketsubutsu-Seiai City is on the eastern continent of Orientem, while Isamu-Seijin City is located at Centrum, the continent between Orientem and Occidens, where we are," Melissa explained. "All three cities are independent from the nations surrounding them, due to the fact that so much knowledge is gathered in one location, but they do have… differences."
"Differences?" Awase asked.
"Ketsubutus-Seiai City is open to everyone, with both magic users and non-mages able to live in the city. Yuuei-Shiketsu is less open. Non-mages are able to visit, but they can't live here, plus, you need to know the password to find this place. And Isamu-Seijin does not allow non-mages whatsoever, with any discovered facing criminal prosecution, and possibly death."
"That sounds quite… discriminatory," Momo said, frowning.
"I think the logic is that if non-mages live in the cities, then soon enough, they'll stop being places of magic, and start just being ordinary cities," Melissa explained.
"That's an extreme logical leap for basically allowing muggles to get shot," Awase said.
"I know, and those policies somewhat reflect on their cities. Ketsubutsu-Seiai is prosperous, with the least amount of crime, while Isamu-Seijin has robbers magically stealing from some of its citizens, and cults hiding in the shadows. Meanwhile, Yuuei-Shiketsu is in the middle."
"There's a crime problem here?" Kirishima asked.
"Not exactly. Cults aren't as plentiful here as they are in Isamu-Seijin, but they pop up every now and then. Then again, there are rumors that this city was built on the remains of one of the old Demon Lords, so that's bound to attract people," Melissa explained.
"On a lighter note, why are their names so odd?" Momo asked.
"Each city was founded by two masters of the arcane, so their names are used for the city names. For example, Isamu-Seijin was founded by Isamu and Seijin, while Yuuei-Shiketsu was founded by Yuuei and Shiketsu, and so on and so forth," the angel answered.
"Each of the cities was founded by two magic users?" Kirishima asked.
"The old legends say that the six of them once used to be a group, living gods unparalleled in the ways of magic, but something happened that made them all split ways," Melissa said. "Then again, they could just be old rumors and fairy tales. There have been many calamities and world-changing events, so most records of ancient history usually end up lost."
"That's so sad…"
"Mmm… Oh, Awase, stop here, that's a good spot."
"All right, everyone!" Momo said. "You've been split into teams of three! Your missions are to learn all you can about magic, while also attempting to recruit anyone you can for Operation Cultural Integration. You've also been given a small budget of gold coins to spend. Magical items, spells, information, whatever it is, make sure that it's worth it. Understood?"
"""YES, MA'AM!!!"""
"Also, make sure to have fun!" Melissa added on. "That's very important!"
"Pfft, sure thing, Mom," Tsuburaba joked, making Kaibara chuckle.
"I want you all back here in six hours. Good luck," Momo said.
Katsuki couldn't believe he was stuck with the Frenchie and Monoma of all people.
At least Shitty Hair and the Lieutenant were tolerable. These two blond idiots were either completely self-absorbed with themselves, or complete brown-noses.
The only plus side to being stuck with them was that they weren't interested in conversation, unlike some certain losers who think that no one will know their hair is obviously dyed.
The three of them walked into a magic shop one of the locals told them about. Apparently, for a small fee, the owner would check them to see if they could use any magic.
Sounded like a scam, but whatever would help him survive in this world.
"Ah, welcome. I am Jurota Shishida," the store owner said. He was a demi-human, with fur all over his body, and a nose that reminded Katsuki of a dog or bear, but mostly a bear, given the round ears on the top of his head. He was also wearing a pair of glasses.
"Hello, I am Neito Monoma, and these are my companions. The spiky-haired one is Katsuki Bakugou, and the pretty boy is Yuga Aoyama. I take it this is Shishido's Spell Palace?"
"Indeed it is. My boss is currently out, but I am more than happy to assist you lovely gentleman with whatever you require," Shishida answered. "So, what brings you here today?"
"We heard that you can check to see what sort of magic someone has," Monoma said.
"Indeed, that is correct," Shishida said. "With a small fee, I am able to ascertain what sort of magic you gentlemen are able to use, and direct you to some proper tutors, if you'd like."
"Sure thing, that sounds nice." Monoma paid the fee for the three of them, using the gold Yaoyorozu gave them, and they then began. "Well then, how about we start with you, Aoyama?"
"Of course, whatever it is, it will shine," the French man said. The blond placed his hand on the magic crystal for a few seconds, before a couple of colorful sparks lighted up inside it.
"Ah, I see," Shishida said. "It appears that you have Personal Magic. Specifically, in the ability to create some sort of… powerful rays of light, and using them as projectiles."
"What does he mean…?" Aoyama asked.
"Lasers," Katsuki said. "He means you have lasers, numb-nuts."
"Oh, that's cool," Monoma said. "I guess it's my turn."
The second-in-command of the SREU placed his hand on the crystal ball, and pretty soon, sparks of green and yellow lights made themselves known.
"A second type of Personal Magic," Shishida said. "It appears that you're able to copy some of the spells of others, provided you can touch them, and actually know how they work."
Seriously?! That's frickin' OP! Katsuki thought to himself. "All right, my turn!"
The explosive blond placed his hand on the crystal ball, and after a few seconds, some lights popped up, as usual. However, when Katsuki looked at the demi-human's face… it was carefully blank. Almost like he was shocked deep inside, and was now calming himself.
"What?"
RRRRR… PING!
"Dude! That guy just turned that other guy into a bunch of cats!"
"Sato and I saw the same thing as you, Awase," Rin said. "And I'm still confused."
The three of them had to admit: This place was weird, all right. It might have been due to the fact that all the locals here were wizards, but this place felt like walking in an alien world.
So far, they had seen people turning into clouds after drinking potions, random dudes jumping into portals, others turning invisible, random assholes shooting energy projectiles in the air, teleporters, they even saw someone fucking astral project their soul out of their body!
And they still didn't know how any of that shit worked.
"I wonder if there's any magic that can make my food tastier…" Sato wondered.
"Maybe, let's ask those guys over there," Awase said, pointing to a crowd.
"What are they all looking at?" Rin wondered, as the three of them made their way through the crowd. And as soon as they made it to the other side, Rin whispered, "Oh, what the fuck?"
In front of the crowd, laying there in the middle of the street was a corpse.
"Stand aside, citizen!" a blindfolded mage said. "This is an active crime scene!"
The three of them backed off into the crowd, as they watched what they figured were the local authorities conducting their investigation. The dead body looked like it had exploded from the inside out, with parts of the bone visible alongside the flesh, one of the eyes had popped out of the socket, and a pinkish-purple substance seeping out of the body, almost like blood.
As one of the blindfolded mages began drawing a chalk outline around the body, the three soldiers could hear the bystanders whispering amongst themselves.
"They say that the poor bastard died in the early morning…"
"Some sort of magic experiment gone wrong?"
"Maybe some cultists did something to him…"
"Go on about your business!" one of the investigators shouted, as a large ethereal red circle with a diameter was conjured right in front of them. "Move along, nothing to see here!"
Ochako entered the building alongside Kinoko and Kodai, to find a cross between a tavern and a hotel. In short, an adventurers' guild that you'd find in your typical role-playing game.
The receptionist, a woman with blue hair, fin-like ears and webbed hands, greeted them. "Greetings, travelers! I am Sirius. What business do you have here today?"
"Hi there! Um, we were told you conduct magical aptitude and affinity tests?"
Sirius nodded. "That is correct. There is a small fee, but after that, we can proceed. If you'd like to further your interest, I could also redirect you to certain magical guilds afterwards."
"That's nice of you, but we should do the initial test first," Ochako said.
"Of course," Sirius nodded, as she pulled out a crystal ball. "Simply put your hand on the crystal, and the lights it produces will give you a reading, which I will gladly interpret for you."
The three soldiers of the SREU nodded in understanding, and paid the initial fee to the receptionist. Looking at each other, Kodai asked, "So… who wants to go first?"
"Ehh, I guess I'll do it," Komori said, as she put her hand on the crystal ball.
The three of them watched for any sign of light coming from the crystal, anything at all. And then, after around fifteen seconds… a small spark of light brown appeared.
"Fascinating…" Sirius said. "It appears to be some sort of Personal Magic. Tell me, is there anything you have that is a special sort of interest to you? A hobby, perhaps?"
"Well… I study plants for a living. Oh, I also love mushroom puns!"
"I see. Then, I would recommend you see one of the visiting druids."
"We can discuss what comes after once we're all done," Ochako said, and Sirius gave her an understanding nod. "Anyways, I guess it's my turn now. Let's see…"
Ochako put her hand on the crystal ball, and pretty soon, purple-and-black lights appeared.
"Oh, wow!" Sirius said. "It's mostly Elemental Magic, specifically of the dark variety, but instead of the usual shadow techniques, it appears that you're skilled in gravity-based magic."
"Oh, wow, really? And what's the rest of it read?" Ochako asked.
"Gravity magic from the other categories of magic, including two high ones from the Level Magic category, but the rest of it… you'll have to find those out for yourself, sorry."
"Congratulations, Occhan," Kodai said. "You're overpowered."
"Thanks, I guess, uh… Yui-chan?" Ochako said. "Anyways, your turn."
"Mm," the black-haired woman hummed, and placed her hand on the crystal.
In an instant, the entire room was engulfed in a bright light.
"And you're sure that this disguise is working?" Momo asked.
"Of course. Unless I purposefully reveal myself, everyone will think I'm human."
Momo had to admit, it did seem somewhat convincing. Gone were the wings on Melissa's back, along with parts of her armor. So, at the moment, she just looked like an average human.
"Uh, question: What's with the glasses?" Kendo asked.
"Oh, these?" Melissa gestured to her spectacles. "I think they look nice."
"All right, now that we have that out of the way, I suppose that we should look around for anything useful," Momo said, as she scanned the city streets.
"Keep back! Cultist! We have a cultist coming through! Keep a wide berth!"
"What's all that commotion?" Kendo asked.
The three ladies looked towards the main street, where they saw two blindfolded mages escorting someone in a purple robe, their hands cuffed in chains.
"Melissa, who are those blindfolded mages?"
"They're the Auctoritates," she answered. "They're basically the city's law enforcement."
"Any particular reason they're wearing blindfolds?" Kendo asked.
"From what I heard, their eyes have been imbued with powerful magic that can potentially end someone's life," Melissa said. "So, I think the blindfold is there to make sure they don't misuse their power. Plus, it's aesthetically fitting to the whole "justice is blind" thing."
"I see… and who exactly are they hauling off?" Momo asked.
"A cultist," she answered. "We would use the term "dark magic user," but that would reinforce negative stereotypes of mages who used dark-based magic and their fellow associates, so we went with cultists. It also helped that the magical ones are as fanatic as actual ones, and as sinister, too. They're responsible for a majority of crimes within the Magical Capitals."
"What do they exactly do?" the black-haired woman asked.
"They perform unethical rituals, such as summoning demons and devils, for the sake of power or destruction. When it comes to rituals that require sacrifices, their subjects are typically unwilling abductees that don't survive their practices. It's considered the civic duty of all within the Magical Capitals to hunt them down when the Auctoritates aren't available."
The more Momo learned about magic, the more complicated it seemed to get.
Eijiro didn't know why, but he had the sneaking suspicion he was being followed.
Every now and then, from the corner of his eyes, he would see a flash of pink, mixed in with a bit of yellow and black. But when he turned around, whoever they were, they either disappeared behind an alleyway or within the crowd. Clearly, they didn't want to be seen.
"Hey, guys, wanna parooze around the shopping district?" he asked Kaibara and Tsuburaba. If they went indoors, there was a good chance that their bogey wouldn't follow.
"Yeah, sure," Tsuburaba said. "How about this one?"
Eijiro looked up to see a sign with… a bunch of shapes? Triangles, rectangles, ovals, and a couple of non-linear lines. They were probably symbols representing something.
"Yeah, sure, why not?" he said, as the three of them walked through the door.
The place was full of wands, shields, chests, potions, robes, and a few other curious antiques. A magic item shop, Eijiro figured. As the door closed behind them, they could see a short, gecko-looking lizard pop his head up from behind the counter. The shopkeeper, most likely.
"Welcome, brothers!" the turquoise lizardfolk said. "Rapt Tokage has spells for mages of all varieties! No need for memorization, incantation, or hard-to-find dragonshit!"
"Oh, is that true?" Eijiro said, keeping an eye on the window.
"Yep! All you need to do is pop open one of these babies and… TA-DA!" Rapt said, as he opened up a purple bottle, causing pink lightning to shoot out of it.
"Okay, that's super cool," Kaibara whispered to Tsuburaba.
"We even have a bottle return program and all that shit! So, whazzup?"
"Hmm… you got anything that can make our dicks bigger?" Tsuburaba asked.
Eijiro sighed, but hey, he could no longer see whoever was following them.
Ochako walked into the empty field with floating rocks and buildings.
She had to admit, the place was pretty sound: An empty field far away from the main city, completely dedicated for the development, usage and training of extremely powerful magic and spells, especially those that could potentially pose a danger to the city itself.
While she was technically alone, she wasn't that far off from her designated team. Komori was alongside her in the field, just somewhere where she could practice her magic in peace, while Kodai was inside one of the various floating buildings, being trained by her own tutor.
Sirius ended up saying that the magic the three of them were learning could have potentially disastrous results, so she ended up calling several different guilds and telling them to head to the "Agros Magic Training Fields," or the "Agros Fields," for short.
In all honesty, Ochako was just expecting a flat plane with lots of tall grass, not some sort of environment where reality itself seemed to be crumbling around her. Oh, sure, her little area was nothing more than floating rocks and buildings, but on her way there, she could have sworn she saw the landscape shifting around her, from giant trees being grown in an instant, to water itself defying the laws of physics, to random shit just spawning in out of nowhere.
"Who dares encroach within my domain?"
Ochako snapped out of her thoughts when she saw someone above her. Literally. She was standing on top of one of the various boulders that was just floating in midair.
She was… unnaturally beautiful. That could be said for a lot of the locals in this world, but this woman was… something else. She was wearing what Bakugou would describe as your stereotypical "sexy witch" outfit, including the staff with a crystal on top and a large hat, but the part about her that seemed so… otherworldly, definitely had to be her face.
She looked human, all right, with the well-defined physique of a woman. But her hair was short and dark, the majority of it a navy blue, but there was also a part of her that was blonde. She knew that thanks to Hagakure that humans could have multiple natural hair colors in this world, but it was still amazing every time she saw it. And her eyes… they may have been dirt-colored, but they looked like they held the secrets of the universe within them.
"I ask again… who dares encroach within my domain?"
Ochako snapped out of her stupor when the being floating above her asked that question again. Right, she was within a region full of all-powerful magic users that probably didn't like to wait, she'd better start talking before the witch in front of her got some ideas.
"Um, sorry to intrude, but I came here looking for a lady by the name of Anan Kurose. Sirius-san sent me here, she said that I'd be able to learn gravity magic from her?"
"Is that so?" The floating witch kept her poker face, but a part of it suddenly shifted. "Wait… that mana… hmm… you have potential, yes… very well… I shall tutor you…"
Ochako's eyes snapped open. "Wait, are you Anan Kurose?!"
"Am I not standing above a group of rocks that refuse to listen to gravity?" the witch asked. "However, if you require more proof, then I shall give it to you… CAVEM NIGRUM!!!"
Suddenly, a hole teared open within space itself, as a literal black hole appeared behind the woman. Ochako screamed, as she felt herself floating off of the earth and getting sucked in alongside the floating rocks, however, before it happened… She was back on the ground.
The black hole was gone. And the witch was right next to her.
But now that Ochako looked at her… he could see that this was no human.
She had pointed ears, along with sharp translucent wings on her back. From what the brown-haired soldier had heard from Shield, that meant that the woman in front of her was a fairy, a race capable of living for centuries. Which meant lots and lots of experience.
"Does this serve as proof of my status?" Kurose asked.
Ochako now knew for a fact that these lessons were gonna be interesting.
Momo looked around her group of soldiers as the sun was setting. The majority of them looked exhausted, but she could see a couple of smiles on some of their faces.
"Okay, time for a status report," Momo said. "What did you learn?"
"That I am Death, destroyer of worlds," Bakugou said, with a very creepy smile.
Okay, Momo decided not to touch that with a three-meter pole. She looked over to Monoma, hoping that he had something more comprehensible to share with the class.
"We visited a magic shop that checked us to see if we could become wizards," the blond explained. "Oh, by the way, I need to touch any of you that do have magic."
Momo decided to ignore Kendo's sputtered coughs after hearing that.
"Well, me and Kosei hit the jackpot," Kaibara said, as he pulled out a yellow bottle. "BAM! A potion that makes your dick bigger when you recite the words and apply the cream on –"
"OKAY! That's enough out of you!" Kirishima said, as he placed his hand on Kaibara's mouth, and pulled out a blue bag. "But we did have some extra money left over… so we also got this."
Momo inspected the bag. "Wait… is this another bag of holding?"
Kirishima smiled. "Yeah! I figured that if the eggheads back at the base didn't cut it open to see how it works, we could use it to store even more stuff during our expeditions!"
Momo smiled. "Well, I'll make sure to put in a good word for you, Kirishima. Next?"
"I may or may not have accidentally become a goddess," Kodai answered.
Momo stared for a few seconds before talking again. "Komori? Uraraka? Answers, please."
"Okay, so we might have done the same thing as Bakugou and found a lady who checked us for magic!" Uraraka spilled. "Turns out, Komori can make mushrooms spawn out of nowhere, and I have the power over gravity, and Kodai… she might have taken her healing to the next level?"
Melissa's eyes widened at that. "How powerful is she?"
"I can heal any wounds," Kodai answered bluntly. "I can cure diseases, prevent instant-death attacks, and even resurrect the recently departed. Not even death can stop me now."
Everyone simply stared at the black-haired woman, with a few of them even slowly backing away. Momo, meanwhile, watched as Melissa's face shifted into existential horror.
"Oh, fuck," the disguised angel whispered. "You guys are harboring an Ultimate."
Kendo's head quickly spun back. "I'm sorry, we're harboring a WHAT?"
"Ultimates are the best of the best when it comes to their magic's aspect," Melissa explained. "The founders of the three Magical Capitals were considered that by historians. The rulers of the Todoroki Empire are called that over their masteries of fire and ice. Both the past and current Demon Kings are in the same league. In short, beings that could be considered living gods, and also have the potential to ascend and become legitimate gods themselves."
Everyone stared at Melissa in shock for a few seconds, before looking back at Kodai. Yeah, no, even Momo was having a hard time comprehending what she just heard.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Awase shouted. "If that's the case, then how come civilization is still standing?! Wouldn't all of these overpowered mages have decimated everything by now?!"
"Well, it's mostly because of two reasons: One, they're magic users, and two, they're magic users," Melissa explained. "For the first reason, mages still need time to strategize and call upon their spells. Theoretically speaking, Aoyama would still be able to kill an Ultimate with a sniper rifle if he was from a distance. Plus, anti-magic still exists. Trap them in a barrier of that stuff, and the only thing they would have left would be their natural abilities and Skills."
"Question: Why was the second reason the same as the first?" Awase asked.
"Because, while for the first reason, I was referring to their physical abilities, for the second reason, I was referring to their careers. There are other people with other talents, like making food, or running a government. The smarter Ultimates know this, so they protect those weaker beings from outside threats in exchange for goods and services that they themselves can't do."
"So, they act more as feudal lords instead of outright tyrants," Bakugou figured.
Well, that was comforting for Momo. At least now they knew that the living equivalents of atomic bombs in this world weren't usually so keen on annihilating everything just for the funsies.
Still, she hoped that nothing else today would cause her adrenaline to spike.
"Hey, wait a minute," Tsuburaba said. "Where the hell is Sato?"
Goddammit, spoke too soon.
"Shadow demons, search the entire city."
Shihai Kurorio remained silent as he watched his summoned monsters fan out into the streets of Yuuei-Shiketsu City. It had taken the dark elf weeks to arrive, he was gonna make sure he left no stone unturned. He didn't want to anger his master by being careless with his search.
If Melissa Shield was in this city, he would know by the end of the day.
In the meantime, Shihai figured he'd take to the roofs. It'd give him a better view.
I will find her… I shall earn the Demon King's favor… I swear it!
Author's Note: Yes, the chapter title is a reference to Adventure Time, sue me.
For those of you who don't know, Jurota Shishida is the furry guy from Class 1-B; in this universe, I've given him that black leathery nose that dogs have, along with bear ears, just to emphasize that he's a demi-human. Sirius is one of Selkie's sidekicks, except this time around, her fish-like ears are real, and she has a few more aquatic traits. Rapt Tokage is from MHA: Vigilantes, and since he was already a lizardman, he pretty much looks the same as his manga counterpart, just with medieval clothes. And Anan Kurose is the wonderful Thirteen, except now she has swapped out her astronaut suit for a witch one, plus, she now has elf ears and fairy wings. Also, at least one of these new characters is gonna show up again! In the meantime, it's comment reaction time!
threeque: Hey, welcome to the party, I hope you've enjoyed the chapters you've binged on so far. Thanks for all the positive words, but I guess there aren't that many people who are interested in my kind of AU. Still, I'm glad you've been keeping up, from the reveal of Mina, to the rabbit incident. Hope you'll be here for all future updates!
And now, for the last bit of shilling…
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 17: The Tomb of Gigantomachia
Summary:
The crew goes out to find Sato, who is being held by a cult as part of a ritualistic sacrifice. Momo and friends crash the party, and everyhting goes haywire, from Sato somehow becoming a Demon Lord, to people dying, and then Bakugou deciding to pull a Megumin. And while all of that is happening, others in the city are look for them...
Chapter Text
Chapter 17: The Tomb of Gigantomachia
"This doesn't make any sense!" Rin shouted. "He was with us the whole time!"
"Then you better start to make sense of it!" Momo growled. "I split you all up into groups of three to make sure that this wouldn't happen! And you still somehow managed to lose someone!"
The sun had set a long time ago, but Momo was still as wired as ever. Sato was missing, and everyone had been searching around the area for the last twenty minutes.
"I made it so simple," she groaned. "Three people to stick together… and yet…"
Both Awase and Rin felt like shit for fucking up something so simple. That was usually Kaiabra's and Tsuburaba's faults! Still though, they kept looking around where Sato was last seen.
Uraraka whispered, "Hey, if it makes you guys feel better, we didn't follow protocol either…"
"No, it doesn't make us feel any better," Awase hissed. "In fact, it makes us feel worse."
"Wait, what do you mean that you also didn't follow protocol?" Melissa asked.
The two of them jumped at the angel's sudden appearance, but Uraraka calmed herself. "Our magical tutors were at different locations in the Argos Fields, so the three of us had to go our separate ways for a couple of hours. Oh, but please don't tell Yaoyorozu –"
"Too late, I heard all of it," Momo deadpanned.
Watching Uraraka jump up into the air when she realized Momo was behind her was somewhat amusing, but there was still work to be done. "Melissa, why is that relevant?"
"Look, Sato doesn't seem like the kind of guy who would get lost in the crowd because he was doing some window-shopping," Melissa explained. "If that was the case, then half of your squad would have gotten lost from each other already, especially those that went to the Argos Fields."
"Which implies that he didn't wander off…" the raven-haired woman realized. Turning back around, she asked, "Rin, Awase, did either of you see anything weird during your trip?"
"You mean, like, aside from the usual magic shit? Uh, yeah," Rin answered. "We found a corpse in an alleyway. The guy was super mutilated! And he had this purple shit seeping out of him!"
Momo didn't like the way Melissa's face morphed into concern. Again.
Rikido Sato groaned. He felt like he had an immense hangover.
Opening his eyes, he looked around to see that he was in a chair, and in front of him… he had no idea where he was. It looked like he was underground, but there were… giant ribs all around him? There was even a massive spine lining up with the chair he was sitting in. And hanging on one of the left ribs was a… giant heart? Which was oozing some purple stuff.
He may have not been a medical expert like Kodai, but he had a sneaking suspicion that if he turned around, he would be looking at the base of a giant skull. In fact, it seemed like someone probably must have made their place within the insides of some dead giant.
At least the lighting from the orange-red tiki torches all following the spine allowed him to see that he was surrounded by five hooded figures, all of them wearing purple robes. Shit…
"""""Gigantomachia… Gigantomachia… Gigantomachia… GIGANTOMACHIA!"""""
Yeah, no, it was time for him to get the fuck out of here.
Sato immediately got up from the stone throne they had him in, and was ready to –
"Habuko, restrain him," a female voice said.
One of the hooded cultists' eyes immediately flashed a bright yellow, and before he knew it, Sato couldn't move. He fell back down to the chair, limp. Looking back at them, he now saw that their eyes were now radiating some sort of pink energy from underneath her hood.
"Romero, I thought you managed to knock him unconscious."
"I did, Kashiko!" the male cultist growled. "It's not my fault he's built like an ox!"
"Both of you, stop it now," another female voice said, pulling down her hood, and revealing a monocle-wearing woman with blue eyes and periwinkle hair. "Apologies, but I suppose introductions are in order. I am Saiko Intelli, the leader of the Cult of Gigantomachia."
Yeah, no, Sato did not like one bit of what the crazy lady said.
"You see, long ago, the first Calamitous Beast was in service of the previous Demon King. When he was slain by the Hero of old, the scholars Yuuei and Shiketsu hid his body away to suppress its power, but even death could not contain his power," Intelli said. "His ichor leaked out, and the source was finally located by us. And now, provided that you are the right vessel, shall surpass your humanity, and lay waste to the city above, as the Demon Lord reborn!"
What the fuck…? Sato thought to himself. These guys are insane!
"But we need to prepare before we can offer you the ichor," Intelli said. "Habuko, Kashiko, make sure he stays here. Dadan, Romero, get the chalice. This time… it will work!"
Rikido Sato had a sneaking suspicion that this was how he was gonna die.
"A cult?" Momo repeated. "You think Sato was kidnapped by a cult?"
"It would make sense," Melissa said. "The three of them were in an area where a cult was operating. There's a good chance that a cult abducted him for a sacrificial ritual."
"Yeah, there goes any chance of me sleeping tonight," Monoma whispered to Kendo.
"Okay, let's assume that you're right," Momo said. "How do we find them?"
"I have two spells on me, one can detect evil and the other can detect magic," Melissa explained. "If he really was abducted by a cult, then due to their nature, they would have massive amounts of both. I use my magic, we find their hideout, and save Sato."
"Okay, I guess we're doing this," Momo said. "Monoma, Uraraka, Bakugou, Aoyama, Komori, Kodia, Kirishima, you're with me and Melissa. Everyone else, go find and inform the local authorities of what's going on. The Auctoritates, the mayor, whoever, just find them."
"If you guys can't find any of them, contact Sirius at the local magic guild or Anan Kurose-sama at the Argos Fields," Uraraka said, handing them a piece of paper. "Here are the addresses."
"Okay, we can split our group and tell everyone what's going on," Kendo said.
Nodding, Momo grabbed her assault rifle. "All right, let's go save our fucking cook."
Eijiro had that sinking feeling again. The one where he was being watched.
A part of him wanted to rule it out as paranoia, but after what had happened to Sato, he couldn't. And to make matters worse, it was nighttime. Which meant that if there actually was something in the shadows, it was much easier for it to sneak up on him.
"Psst, Shield," he whispered. "How much farther?"
"We're almost there," she whispered back. "It's inside the Argos Fields."
Unlike most of the ladies on his team, Eijiro didn't enter this place with his group, and the weirdness of it was starting to get to him. Abandoned buildings, massive floating crystals, all sorts of stuff just lying around due to the magical training of some wizards.
"Shield?" Yaoyorozu whispered.
"We're here, it's inside this hole," the blond angel whispered.
Even with the limited light, Eijiro could make out a few things. Such as the fact this hole was man-made, with shovels, and a ladder. Whoever was down there made sure that no one found out about this place and that, by some miracle, if they did, they wouldn't bury it again.
"All right, everyone, climb down, but do it quietly. Who knows how many there are."
Climbing down the ladder wasn't that much of a problem. The real problem was that their flashlights could potentially give them away. Still, though, they made their way down, and reached an underground tunnel, one full of… giant bones? What?
"Look." Melissa pointed to a lit torch. "Someone was here recently."
"Everyone, turn off your flashlights," Yaoyorozu whispered. "We have light down here."
They followed her orders, as they silently moved through the tunnel. They were soldiers, they were trained to move like shadows, even while carrying heavy weaponry.
But not even trained soldiers were ready for what they saw next.
Bakubro best summed it up with his choice of words: "What. The. Fuck."
From where they were standing, Eijiro could see… a giant skeleton. He and the others were all on some sort of balcony level, and they had a good view. The entire place was some sort of… oversized coffin. The walls, the ceiling, the tunnels, torches, sure, it all made it seem like people would walk through here, but… the twenty-five meter long skeleton said otherwise.
"What the fuck did we just stumble upon?" Monoma whispered, in horror.
"Oh, no…" Melissa whispered in horror. "It's the tomb of Gigantomachia."
Everyone looked at Melissa in a mix of existential horror and morbid curiosity. Eventually, Yaoyorozu was the one who bit the bullet. "I'm sorry, who exactly is Gigantomachia?"
"Gigantomachia was one of the old Demon Lords, powerful beings in service to the Demon King. He was killed centuries ago by Nana Shimura, but… I never thought that one of the Magical Capitals would be built upon his remains," Melissa whispered.
"How bad are we talking here?" Kodai asked.
"It's said that when he was smaller, he was the old Demon King's personal bodyguard. But when he became bigger… he became the ultimate weapon. A giant capable of walking through entire cities without even noticing that they were there. A monster capable of going toe-to-toe with even a group of Ultimate-stage magicians. A living calamity, one so powerful, that he created a new title for unique and powerful monsters known as… the Calamitous Beasts."
"And… What exactly does being a Calamitous Beast entail?" Aoyama asked.
"Calamitous Beasts are one-of-a-kind animals, monsters that are feared throughout the world for their unstoppable rampages that rarely leave survivors. If the Ultimates are the top of the magical world, and the Demon Lords are the Demon King's most inner circle, then the Calamitous Beasts are the animal kingdom's equivalent to such powerful beings."
Oh, wonderful, more existential horror, Eijiro thought to himself.
"Hey, everyone, look!" Uraraka whispered, pointing down towards a throne with…
"Holy shiitake, it's Sato!" Komori whisper-yelled. "We gotta help him!"
"Shh, listen!" Yaoyorozu whispered, pointing at the group of cultists.
Eijiro looked down at the cultists. Two of them were girls with grayish hair and some sort of glasses, one of them was a dude with gray hair, one was a bulky guy with brown hair, and one… was a bipedal snake-woman with orange hair. Huh. At least they were diverse.
"""""Gigantomachia… Gigantomachia… Gigantomachia… GIGANTOMACHIA!"""""
Eijiro watched as the lead cultist used some sort of blue force field magic to cause a punch og purple goop from the giant heart to float towards the chalice next to Sato's throne.
"Now, become the most powerful of us all," the monocle-wearing cultists said, pushing the chalice up towards Sato with her magic. "And usher in a new age of terror."
Sato, meanwhile, was trying to turn his face away from the chalice and keep his mouth shut, but it was only a matter of time until he was forced to drink that purple ichor.
"That's this, I'm stopping this," Aoyama said, standing up, extending his hand, and –
BREEAM-POW!
…shot a ray of bright blue-and-white light directly towards the cultist's head.
BREEAM-POW!
Sato watched in surprise as that Saiko lady's head got blasted off by some sort of giant blue laser beam, before looking up towards the balcony to see… "GUYS!"
"HEY, SATO!" Kirishima called out. "WE'RE HERE TO SAVE YOU!"
"HAVE YOU PEOPLE NEVER HEARD OF THE ELEMENT OF SURPRISE?!"
"Oh, sorry, Bakubro!"
"DON'T CALL ME THAT, SHITTY HAIR!"
"INTRUDERS!" the other gray-haired cultist, Kashiko, shouted. "SEIZE THEM!"
The cultists began firing off spells at his friends, as Sato watched as his squadmates jumped down from the balcony and started… firing off their own spells?! No way!
Interestingly enough, even Lieutenant Yaoyorozu seemed a bit shocked.
Regardless, his teammates kept fighting, using both magic and guns to fight off the cultists. The bad guys might have had more experience, but his squad outnumbered them.
He could breathe easy, knowing that his friends were here to save him –
"Oh, no, you don't!" Kashiko growled, as she grabbed the chalice, and forcefully opened up Sato's mouth. "You are going to drink this, even if it's the last thing you ever do!"
As Sato was drowned with ichor, the last thing he noticed was that it tasted sweet.
"What the…? You all know magic now?!" Momo shouted.
"Yeah, our tutors for the day produced some excellent results, really worth our money!" Monoma answered, as he fired off a laser beam identical to Aoyama's. "Pretty sweet, right?"
"I think I'm just going to stick to guns…" Momo answered honestly.
"ARDUUS MISTER FUNGUS!" Komori shouted, as she summoned… a giant, light-brown mushroom man, with limbs and a face. "Pleurotus eryngii, if anyone's curious."
"THAT'S SO MANLY!" Kirishima shouted. "I got one! I CAST… FIST!"
WHAM!
"Kirishima, you just punched someone," Kodai said.
"I know! Check this out! MAGIC PUNCH!"
WHAM!
"You just kicked the cultist while they were down."
Kirishima smiled. "That's what made it so magical!"
Momo wanted to groan, but at least there was a bright side. Kodai and Bakugou were sticking to guns, while Melissa was dealing with the snake woman who paralyzed Aoyama with her glare, while Uraraka was using her magic to lift rocks into the air and launch them at the cultists.
In short, they were tearing through these enemies.
Making sure to shoot one more cultist with her assault rifle, she made her way towards where Sato was being held hostage… only to see him being forced to drink from the chalice.
"SATO, NO!" Komori screamed.
"Shit, we're too late," Bakugou cursed.
The empty chalice fell from the cultist's hand, clattering to the floor, and, for a single second, everyone was silent. They had no idea what was going to happen.
RRRRR…
Then suddenly, Sato's stomach began to rumble, and he buckled down in pain. "Hngh…"
"Sato?" Momo called out to him, as his body began to morph…
"Dabudabujuiba…" Sato's body began toi morph around, like something was trying to crawl around under his skin, and he began speaking gibberish, before suddenly growing in size. His clothes burst off of his body, as orange fur took place. "JUBJUBJAW!"
"Mon Dieu… what happened to him?" Aoyama whispered in horror.
"What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck…" Uraraka kept repeating.
In front of them wasn't Sato, but a monster. Standing at eight meters tall, with four arms and massive claws, four eyes with yellow sclera and pitch-black pupils, and a split-open mouth with razor-sharp teeth. The only thing that still remebled Sato was the hair and bodybuild.
But other than that, they were staring at an orange-furred kaiju.
"YES!" the gray-haired cultist cheered, on her knees. "Oh, glorious Gigantomachia! Destroy the fragility of daily life within the magic world! Your faithful servants are here to –"
FWOOM!
Whatever Sato was now, it was clear that he wasn't interested in what the crazy lady had to say, as he summoned a black-and-red stream of fire, with added blue-and-black lighting, and lodged it at her. Nothing happened for a few seconds, until the cultist started burning red.
"Hot… HOT… TOO HOT, IT BURNS! HELP! SOMEONE, HELP! AAAAAA –"
POOF!
Her screams only stopped when she became nothing more than a puff of smoke.
"HOLY SHIT!" Kirishima screamed. "HE FUCKING EVAPORATED HER!"
Momo stared in horror at the thing in front of her. That thing wasn't Sato, not anymore. Gritting her teeth, she shouted "OPEN FIRE!" and proceeded to shoot at the monster.
If there really was a God, she'd ask for forgiveness once this was all over.
Eijiro didn't want to do this, but he still ended up pulling the trigger.
It hurt him knowing that he was shooting Sato. He didn't know the guy personally, but he seemed pretty chill. But now… no, he couldn't think like that. The last time he hesitated when ordered to kill, it ended up haunting him for a good long while. Not again.
Still, it hurt him to have to fill him with bullet holes.
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!
"GO!" Komori ordered her summoned mushroom monster to attack the monstrous Sato, with the fungus creature jumping towards the big guy's face. Unfortunately…
"SKREEEEE!"
…it was at that moment the orange kaiju decided to scream, which engulfed the mushroom into a kaleidoscope of blue light, breaking the summoned creature down into nothingness.
"Okaaay… well, that happened," Monoma deadpanned. "The fire from his palms evaporates people, while his screams basically erases you from existence. Good to know."
"All of you! Lay down suppressive fire while we all retreat!" Yaoyorozu yelled.
That was a good call, in Eijiro's opinion. Even if Kodai now had the ability to resurrect the dead, the redhead figured that there was a good chance she needed the person's body to do that. And since all of Sato's attacks so far left no corpses behind, that would probably mean perma-death.
It was time for them all to get the fuck out of here.
Unfortunately, it was also at that moment that Eijiro's body stopped moving.
"None of you are leaving here!" the snake-like cultist shouted, as she held Eijiro hostage, while her brown-haired buddy shot some sort of magic stream towards the giant Sato. Said Sato, unfortunately, simply redirected the attack back towards the guy, splattering his brains.
Yeah, no, that was gonna traumatize Eijiro. "Ewww…"
"Is now really the time for this?!" Bakugou shouted towards the snake lady. "We're all trying not to die down here! Is trying to trap us all with this monster really worth getting killed?!"
"YOU SHALL ALL BECOME SACRIFICES TO THE GREAT GIGANTOMACHIA –"
WHACK!
Before she could even finish her sentence, the snake cultist was knocked out by something. Eijiro looked back to see that she was knocked out by the butt of a spear, belonging to…
"It's all right. You are safe now. I am here."
…a masked woman, with curved yellow horns, pink skin, dark eyes, and a tail.
"It's you," Eijiro whispered. He recognized that being.
The creature he spared back in Musutafu. The one that rescued him and Bakugou from the warrior bunnies. And judging by her voice, the one that warned him about the medusa.
"You all need to leave here, now," the masked woman said.
"And why should we listen to you?! Who the hell are you, anyway?!" Uraraka asked.
"That's not important right now. What matters is that you all escape!"
Everyone didn't know what to think. On the one hand, the newcomer saved their squadmate, but on the other hand, both Eijiro and Bakubro knew that this lady was a wildcard.
"ROOOAAARRR!"
Eijiro's blood froze when he heard that roar. They forgot about Sato! While everyone was busy with the hostage situation, they turned their backs on the kaiju! Now that his injuries were healed, he was going back on the offensive, swinging his giant hand down –
"ACIDUM SAGITTA!"
Before anyone could react, the masked woman lifted her pink hand and cast a spell, sending a bolt of green acid firing towards Sato's hand, causing the monster to recoil in pain.
"ROOOAAARRR!"
"WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!" she shouted. "GET OUT OF HERE!"
"You heard the lady!" Yaomomo shouted. "Hurry! While Sato is still in pain!"
The rest of the team agreed, and quickly made their way to the exit, as the giant orange monster was still recovering. Well, all of them, except for… "Bakubro?"
The spiky blond didn't turn back, but he did speak. "If that giant fucker breaches the surface, this entire city will be dealing with a Godzilla knock-off. I gotta make sure he dies here."
"Bakugou, what sort of magic could you even do to kill him?!" Yaoyorozu shouted.
"Something that's probably gonna get me killed in close quarters," he said. "Dead Eyes!"
"My name is Kodai!" the black-haired girl shouted.
"Whatever. If you recover my body, make sure to resurrect me. Got it?"
With all that said and done, Bakugou began to chant ominously, as several bright yet ominous-looking colors began conjuring up in his hands. Melissa, meanwhile, nearly had her eyes pop out of her skull with realization. "We need to get out of here. NOW!"
"Mea ultima exitium magicae…" Bakugou kept chanting, as the wind and colors around him became more intense. Even the mutated Sato paused at what he was doing.
"RUN!" the masked woman shouted. "HE'S CASTING –"
"EXPLOOOOOSIO!"
The last thing Eijiro Kirishima saw was Death, destroyer of worlds.
The first thing Momo saw when she opened her eyes was Kodai's face.
"Give me a status report."
"Everyone is alive," the black-haired medic answered. "Melissa and I drained all our magic making sure you all remained that way, along with reviving anyone who keeled over."
Momo got up, groaning. "Ugh… what happened?"
"Apparently, Bakugou's magic is creating apocalypse-level explosions," Kodai answered. "He fired one off point-blank at Sato's gut, causing him to expel all that ichor he drank. Thankfully, Sato's burnt corpse remained intact, so resurrecting him was possible."
That… was actually really good to hear. "And Bakugou?"
"He barely survived. Third-degree burns all over his body, but he'll be back to normal in a day," Kodai said. "Sato will need a week. Resurrecting someone really strains their body."
"And the others?"
"Kirishima's eardrums burst, but Shield was able to patch him up," the medic answered. "Interestingly enough, our masked savior was giving him a lap pillow. But… she's gone now."
Momo gave Kodai a funny look. "Gone?"
"She left. Uraraka was contacting the others over the radio, and Rin said Bakugou's explosion was big enough that everyone in the city saw it, and he mentioned that the Auctoritates were on their way. Our mysterious masked lady sneaked away when no one was looking afterwards."
The gears in Momo's head were spinning at that mention. Was the masked woman a criminal? If so, why did she help us? What's more, why did she care about Kirishima so much?
Momo shook her head. Questions for later. "What about the others?"
"Monoma was the only one who remained conscious after the explosion, aside from myself and Melissa. He went around copying everyone else's magic while they were still knocked out."
"Wait, that's how he was able to copy Aoyama's lasers?" Momo asked. "By copying them?"
"Mm-hm. Apparently, the reason he was asking to touch some of us earlier was because he needs physical contact to copy spells, not because he suddenly became a perv."
Momo secretly prayed that Monoma wasn't another Ultimate in disguise.
In the end, the City of Yuuei-Shiketsu had a small celebration afterwards.
The local head honcho of the city was a guy by the name of Enma Kannagi, who looked like a cross between a stereotypical wizard and a hobo, while also wearing a blindfold, implying he was also a member of the Auctoritates. Still, he apparently climbed the ladder high enough to be running the city, while also recognizing Momo and her squad as public heroes.
When asked by Kannagi if they wished for any reward, Momo explained their current situation: The Collibus Hills was under the JSDF's control, and she wanted locals of this world to inhabit the soon-to-be town. Kannagi agreed to those terms, and sent a few high-ranking mages and shopkeepers towards the base, including Uraraka's personal tutor.
And with that, it was time for them to head to their newest location.
"So, where to next?" Momo asked.
"We're going north," Melissa answered. "To the city of Portus."
Awase nodded, and the LAVs left the gates of the magic city.
Shihai Kurorio couldn't believe what he just saw.
The fallen angel herself got into the beastless carriage, and left the city.
The dark elf has sent a bunch of shadow demons everywhere, both him and Kurogiri. Sure, the smokey-looking dude may have been a shadow demon himself, but he was also a Demon Lord, he had seniority between both the lesser demons, and to a degree, Shihai himself.
But that last one was mostly due to their age difference.
Still, the white-haired dark elf couldn't believe his luck. If he played his cards right, he could maybe be seen in a more favorable light by the Demon King over Kurogiri, at the very least. The shadow demons under his command informed him of what was going on at Yuuei-Shiketsu. He really didn't expect to find anything, but lo and behold, he hit the jackpot.
Melissa Shield herself, accompanied by the otherworlders.
She may have disguised herself as a human, but Shihai knew her face, she couldn't hide. He was overjoyed over finding her, and pulled out a communication crystal.
"Kurogiri, it's me. How fast can you create a portal?"
"Give me your coordinates," the shadow demon replied. "What happened?"
Shihai smiled. "I found her, Kurogiri. Melissa Shield… I found her."
"Is that so…?" Kurogiri said. "Very well. Tell me everything she was doing and who she was with… I shall inform the King. In the meantime, follow her. We can't lose her again."
"With pleasure," the dark elf said, as he himself headed out. It was hunting time.
Author's Note: Was it obvious that I saw Oppenheimer while writing this?
For those of you who may not know, these last two chapters were inspired by Wizard City from Adventure Time, both the location, and the Distant Lands episode. If you want a visual description for Demon Sato, just look up an image of Peppermentepi (second version), and place Sato's features over Peppermint Butler's. In terms of other lore-building, Calamitous Beasts are basically any unique boss-level monster in any fantasy story, such as the White Whale from Re:Zero, or Astel, Naturalborn of the Void from Elden Ring; basically monsters that don't have an actual population, since they kinda aren't supposed to exist in nature… kinda like kaijus, actually. Also, Monoma is basically Rhya from Black Clover, so that's bound to be a problem in the future. Anyways, let's move on from the existential dread, to the comments!
Hansledane: Yeah, I've liked the idea of magical cities for a long time, and I was glad to have incorporated it here. Anyways, Setsuna is more of a governess than a general in terms of "Demon Lord," but that's just some semantics that will be explained later. I'm not really planning to do much with Kaibara and Tsuburaba's potion, but maybe I could add something funny. Trust me, between Anan and Kodai, there are gonna be a lot more Ultimates coming out of the woodwork soon. I'll also be trying my best to incorporate more of the Demon King storyline into the main plot, so wish me luck!
Psychro (Guest): Glad you love the story, but I ain't changing "parooze."
valkrus: Yeah, the wording here is a bit weird, so I'm just gonna ignore it for now.
threeque: Of course you got mentioned, you commented! I'm glad you've enjoyed everything so far, from the scenes with Melissa and Izuku, Aizawa's suffering, Yotsubashi jinxing things, Monoma's antics, the sidequests, and even laughing at the Wonder Idiots and their shenanigans, along with Bakugou basically being Oppenheimer now. Thanks for the support, and I hope to see you commenting in all future chapters!
And now, for the last bit of shilling…
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 18: I Will Find You, and I Will Kill You
Summary:
The City of Portus, an hub of marine tourism, economic trade, and as Bakugou and his group figured out soon enough... pirates. Teaming up with the bard Denki Jiro, they work together to save his beloved wife, all while a third party follows closely behind them. Get prepared for lots of nautical nonsense and extreme violence!
Chapter Text
Chapter 18: I Will Find You, and I Will Kill You
"Wow, I can smell the saltwater from here…" Kendo murmured.
Monoma nodded. "Yeah, this is an actual Mediterranean climate…"
Katsuki also murmured something positive, but he couldn't be bothered to recall what it was. He was too busy looking at all the weird fish that the locals were selling here.
"I'm glad you all think so highly of this place," Melissa said. "Portus City is a hub of commerce due to its ports. Ships from all the other continents and archipelagos come here, resulting in exchanges of goods, services, cultures and peoples. Truly, a wonderful city."
Yeah, Katsuki could see that. Out in the distance, he could see a bunch of wooden ships, like the ones used in those Pirates of the Caribbean movies, just sitting there, out in the open blue, where the ocean just kept going until the horizon. It actually looked kinda nice.
Hence why he was immediately suspicious of this place.
"I get the sinking feeling that there is a dark side to this," Yaoyorozu said.
Katsuki had to agree with his dark-haired leader on that front.
"Unfortunately, yes," their guide said. "This place is deep in Imperial territory, and thus, practices several human supremacist ideals. Such as slavery and trafficking, for example."
"That's so not manly!" Shitty Hair shouted. For once, Katsuki was in agreement.
"Sadly, that is the reality of the situation. I do hope that your country will change that policy if they ever occupy these lands," the blonde angel said. "In the meantime, this place is an excellent tourist destination, meaning that travelers come and go from here."
"Which also means that we can find even more candidates for Operation Cultural Integration!" Yaoyorozu beamed. She was still invested in that little pet project of hers?
"That's good to hear," Kendo said. "Plus, there we can get a few pictures and souvenirs from this place. That poster over there said that there's an aquarium in the city, along with a seafood market, and a built-in canal system, like the one in Venice! And an underwater district?!"
"The underwater district is actually for species that require water to live comfortably," Melissa explained. "Merfolk, aquatic elves, dagons, tritons, scylla, undines, gillmen, nice folks like those. However, you can visit that district with either a gondola or with magic."
"Holy shit, mermaids are real?" Tsuburaba gasped.
"Yooo, this place is awesome!" Kaibara cheered.
Goddamn horndogs, Katsuki thought to himself.
"Well, this entire place sounds lovely!" Yaoyorozu said, turning to everyone else. "All right, we're splitting up into three teams, I want you all back at the cars before sunset. Bakugou, you're in charge of one team, take Melissa, Kirishima, Kodai and Aoyama with you."
Fuck, Katsuki cursed. Of course he was paired up with Shitty Hair.
"I'm with Bakubro? MANLY!"
"Monoma, you're with Kendo, Uraraka, Sato and Komori," the lieutenant continued. "And finally, I will be keeping a close eye on Awase, Rin, Kaibara, and Tsuburaba."
"Wait, what?!" Kaibara shouted. "Why us?!"
"Because the last time I left you unattended together, Sato was abducted by a magic cult, or the four of you were about to be used as rabbit sex slaves, or something else equally stupid!"
Oh, wow, she's actually learning from her mistakes. Nice.
"Wait, why am I stuck with these idiots?!" Rin asked. "I hate them, too!"
"Because I figured that keeping your little "Chaos Corps" together and under my supervision will make sure that there will be no further fuck-ups," Yaoyorozu said, as she turned to everyone else. "That goes for all of you! No more getting dragged into conflict! No more being surrounded by the local fauna, no being captured by bad guys, no more nothing! Am I clear?"
"""YES, MA'AM!!!"""
"Good. See you all in a few hours."
Eijiro had to admit, this city was pretty dope!
Bakubro started them off by heading towards that aquarium Kendo mentioned from the poster, and they ended up getting some nice pics from there. Long brown fish, frogfish that could walk on the seafloor, they even had this weird yellow fish on display that could talk to people!
Melissa called it an "awakened animal," which is a type of animal that gained intelligence after being blasted with magic. She even recounted one time she met a giant tortoise that served as a church's pope, and another time she met an awakened antelope in a forest!
But apparently, the talking antelope threw racial slurs at her. Yikes.
Still though, the talking fish was nice! And after that, the group went downtown to the docks, to see the locals haul a giant monster fish out of the water. Which of course confirmed the existence of sea monsters in this world to both Eijiro and the rest of Bakubro's team.
SO MANLY!
Anyways, now they were walking through the streets, as Melissa kept dropping some cool trivia on them, like how not all of Portus City was actually on solid land!
"Madmoizelle Shield, what do you mean by that?" Aoyama asked.
"Well, while the majority of the city is actually built on solid land, there are parts of it that are just docks connecting to one another, right above the water!" Melissa explained. "And even farther out, people have built small artificial islands and boat homes all through the water!"
"Wow. Amazing," Kodai said, as monotone as ever.
"Yeah, yeah," Bakubro said. "I suppose this place is somewhat charming –"
"FUCKING DAMN YOU ALL!!!"
"- and the charm just died. Great."
Eijiro, along with the rest of the group, looked over towards the direction where the shouting happened, to see a man yelling at some Imperial soldiers. All of them instinctively knew not to draw attention to themselves, as they kept their ears open to the scene.
"FINE! GO BE USELESS ELSEWHERE! I'LL DO THIS MYSELF!!!"
As the Imperial soldiers made fun of the man, he stomped off, making some offensive gestures with his hands. As he walked towards their direction, the redhead looked at him in detail.
Yellow hair with a black mark on part of it, almost like a lightning bolt. He was also wearing some interesting clothes, like a jacket with a fur collar, and a tricorn hat, the one British soldiers from like three centuries ago wore, with a feather stuck to it. He also had a lute on his back.
And most interesting of all, was the weird-looking pistol strapped to his side.
Eijrio could practically feel the frustration radiating off this guy as he walked and swore, "Fucking Imperials, always lounging about, thinking they're better than everyone else…"
"Um, excuse me?" Melissa called out to him. "Do you need any help?"
"Wait, Shield!" Bakubro sputtered at that. "It's none of our business –"
"Huh?" But it was too late. The man with the black-and-yellow hair turned to see them, and suddenly… his eyes widened, like he recognized Eijiro and the others. "Arms of Fire…"
"God fucking dammit, not again," Bakugou groaned.
"Wait, what?" Eijrio was confused. "What does he mean by –"
"THE ARMS OF FIRE!" the man shouted, as he tackled Bakugou into a hug. "I can't believe it! My luck has truly turned around! Good sirs, please, hear my request! I am in need of –"
"GET THE FUCK OFF ME!!!" Bakugou shouted, shoving him off.
"I apologize for him, he has a bit of a temper," Melissa said, helping the stranger back onto his feet. "Anyways, my name is Melissa Shield. And who might you be?"
"Ah, right! Where are my manners?" the man chuckled, as he removed his hat, and bowed. "I am Denki Jiro, a bard! I travel from city to city with my wife, entertaining folks for a living."
"Well, nice to meet you. This is Kirishima, Kodai and Aoyama, and over there is our temporary leader, Bakugou," Melissa said, introducing the others. "Now, you said you needed help?"
"Ah, yes, yes!" Jiro said, panicking again. "My wife, Kyoka, has been kidnapped by pirates!"
Eijiro, along with pretty much everyone else in the group, had a reaction to what the yellow-haired bard said, sans Bakugou, who seemed to keep his straight face.
"Wait, pirates actually exist here?" Eijiro asked.
"Yes, Shitty Hair, pirates actually exist in a crime-infested city near the sea. Who knew?" Bakugou sarcastically asked. "Except Shield literally told us about it when we got here."
"All right, calm down. Could you tell us what race your wife is?" Melissa asked.
"She's a dagon," Jiro answered, and Melissa cursed in response.
"Do tell, what is a dagon, exactly?" Aoyama asked.
"They're a subspecies of merfolk," Melissa answered. "They have human bodies, but their ears are fin-shaped, they have webbed hands, and can both survive on land and underwater."
"Oh, I know them!" Kodai said. "Back in Yueei-Shiketsu, Sirius-san was one of them!"
"Wait, why is that relevant?" Eijiro asked.
"Because she's genetically related to mermaids," Melissa explained. "Their tears are ingredients to alchemical potions, and it's said that their flesh can help one achieve immortality. Similar potions have been made with the blood of elves, so they tend to be hunted, too."
Oh, now Eijiro understood. This was essentially the same reason why rhinos and elephants back on Earth were hunted, for traditional medicines. Only this time around, they were talking about actual people. "Wait, shouldn't the local authorities be on the case?"
"I tried to report it just now, but they ignored me. Those Imperial bastards laughed me off," Jiro answered with a growl. "Tch, some law enforcement they turned out to be."
"Then that means that it could also be slavers." Everyone, sans Denki Jiro, looked at Melissa for an explanation. "Ah, um, in this country, slavery is legal, and encouraged when it comes to humans lording over other races. If they kidnapped her and sold her into slavery, then as long as there were no witnesses to the abduction, then it would be perfectly legal."
The small squad took in what Melissa said, before shouting in disgust, Eijiro included. That had to be the single most unmanly thing he had ever heard of! What the fuck?!
The redhead could hear Bakugou mumble, "Great, so she either is cut to pieces to become ingredients for a potion, or something even worse happens," in Japanese behind him.
Yeah, he had to agree with Bakugou, this was super bad.
"But wait, why are you asking for our help?" Kodai asked.
"You're the Arms of Fire, are you not?" the blond musician asked. "The tales of your weapons have spread far and wide across the lands! Even my wife and I have sung them!"
Bakugou growled. "Look, I don't care if some ancient story makes us seem like heroes –"
"They're not ancient! At least, not the new ones," Jiro said. "Tales of your exploits travel fast! Rescuing a damsel from a cave-in, liberating a village of minotaurs, we have even received the news about you defeating a cult that worshiped an old Demon Lord last week!"
Oh, wow, news really traveled FAST around these parts.
"I have heard of the firepower your group carries! You annihilated an entire deployment of Emperor Todoroki's army within two days! You are far more powerful than my magic ever could be!" Jiro said. "Look, if it's a matter of payment, I'll give you everything I have, my –"
"No," Bakugou said, flatly. "I refuse."
Everyone looked at Bakugou with a mix of shock, disgust and anger.
"What?!"
"No!"
"Bakugou, what the hell, man?!" Eijiro shouted.
"Listen to me, you idiots!" Bakugou yelled. "Lieutenant Yaoyorozu said she didn't want us to get involved in any shit! Absolutely none! And I'm pretty sure that taking on an army of pirates to save someone counts! Besides, we're a foreign government in the middle of hostile territory, we can't just shoot our guns here and not have the Imperials here think it was an act of aggression, especially if their Emperor is as big a piece of shit I think he is! So the answer is no!"
"So, we're seriously not going to help?" Kodai asked, angry.
Bakugou turned back to the blond musician. "Sorry, pal. We can't help you."
"What?" Jiro fell to his knees. "No! Please, I'm begging you! Help me! Please –"
Bakugou began to walk away. "I'm sorry, but my decision is final, we can't –"
"PLEASE SAVE MY FAMILY!!!"
The space around them suddenly quieted down, as Bakugou halted in his place. Eijiro didn't know what happened, but for some reason, the spiky blond stopped walking, his face… unreadable. Slowly, however, he turned back around towards Jiro.
"What did you just say?" he asked, quietly.
"My family," Jiro said, standing up, tears in his eyes. "My wife is pregnant. We just checked up with the local healer this morning. It's a girl. But… why? Why do you care –?!"
Before Denki Jiro could even finish his sentence, Bakugou had already grabbed his assault rifle strapped to his back, and asked, "Where are these fucking pirates?"
Getting onto the pirate base was the easy part.
All the team had to do was rent one of the local gondolas and row it towards where Denki pointed, which happened to be one of the bigger artificial islands farther out.
Sure, there were a few minor problems. Such as the fact that sharks and a couple of other big fish tried to snack on the boat, but a few bullets were enough to scare them away.
The bigger issue was stealth. No one's weapons were the "quiet" kind, and without knowing how many pirates there were, they couldn't simply go in guns blazing. The first step of the plan was to enter one of the island's ports quietly, to make sure not to alter the guards.
So far, so good. They got in without any issue.
The real problem was finding where anything was in this absolute maze.
Once they tied up their boat and made it to the stairs, they realized that every room on this island was a mess. It was built like a fortress, but one with the aesthetic of a steel mill. Every room was filled with assorted metals, making up different parts of the room.
The brown weathering steel was used for the floors, girders used for the stairs and towers, even some oddly-painted metals served interior decorating purposes.
In short, an eyesore, and a confusing one at that.
"All right, the first guard we see, we interrogate them," Bakugou whispered, as he and the rest of the crew quietly stuck to the walls. "They're bound to know where everything here is."
"Speaking of, where is everyone?" Kirishima asked. "It's like a ghost town…"
"They're above us," Melissa answered. "I can see their auras. Most of the pirates are on the floors above us. The few pirates on sea level were elsewhere when we docked."
"Guess we got lucky when we weren't detected…" Kodai whispered.
"Which means that there's a good chance they'll spot our boat if they keep patrolling around the ground floor," Bakugou realized. "We've got ourselves a time limit."
With that understanding, the group kept moving from room to room, looking for the stairs that would take them up to the next floor. Eventually… They found the right room.
Bakugou smiled. "Bingo. Shield, where are the pirates now?"
"A few of them are on top of us, the rest on the next floor are in the other rooms," the angel replied. "We'll be at a disadvantage the moment we walk up those steps."
"All right, we need a plan. We still have the element of surprise…"
As the two of them thought of something, Aoyama and Kirishima looked around the room. It resembled the other ones, minus the large stairwell and the… treasure chest.
"Oh? What's this?" the Frenchman said.
Over at the wall was a large chest, like the kind that was used to store massive amounts of gold in those old pirate movies. It had a wooden red build with golden trimmings. Fancy.
"Why would they leave this out here? With no protection?" Kirishima asked.
"Perhaps these pirates were arrogant enough to believe that no one would ever dare infiltrate this fortress, non?" Aoyama suggested. "I wonder what's inside…"
"You really think it's a good idea to steal from them?" the redhead asked.
"Non, non, don't think of it as stealing, Monsieur Kirishima," the blonde said. "Think of it as, ah… liberating this stolen treasure from some filthy rogues. We could try and return it all, and if we can't find their rightful owners, we simply bring them back with us for archeological research. And besides, the less funding these pirates have to commit their crimes, the better."
"I guess that makes sense…"
"Excellente," Aoyama said, as he approached the chest.
Meanwhile, Kodai was chatting with Denki, as the black-haired soldier was doing her best to make sure to keep the blond musician calm. Despite her personality, she was still a doctor, and she had to comfort her patients, even if their injuries were not of the physical kind.
"Don't worry, we're simply preparing for the next step of our plan."
"I understand. Still, I thank you for doing all… of… this… " Denki trailed off, as he looked towards where Kirishima and Aoyama were, his face turning pale. Suddenly, he pulled his pistol out of his holster, and shouted, "GET AWAY FROM THAT THING!!!"
"Huh?!"
"What the –?!"
With little to no warning, the bard's gun charged up with small sparks of yellow lightning, as he fired three bullets into the treasure chest, while Aoyama and Kirishima ducked out of the way.
BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!
"Dunce Face, what the fuck?!" Bakugou shouted. "Why did you –?!"
"HISSS…"
Everyone's attention turned back towards the treasure chest, which suddenly opened, with two massive blue claws coming out, followed by six legs, antennas, and two pale eyes.
Kirishima's eyes widened in confusion. "Huh?! Some kind of hermit crab…?"
The giant blue crustacean tried to lunge at him and Aoyama, but not before getting stunned by yet another round of bullets, this time courtesy of Bakugou's handgun.
BLAM! BLAM!
"Get away from that thing, you idiots!" he shouted, as he turned towards Denki. "Oi, Dunce Face! What the fuck is that thing?! Some kind of wannabe mimic?!"
"Close! It's a type of crustacean that uses other objects as a shell to protect itself!" the blond said, as he kept shooting at the giant enemy crab. "The pirates must have left it down here as a trap for intruders! Try to hit the inside of the chest! Aim for its weak abdomen!"
"IT'S HIDING ITS ABDOMEN IN THE CHEST, I CAN'T SHOOT IT!!!"
"Bakugou, we have bigger problems!" Shield shouted. "PIRATES INCOMING!!!"
"Fuck," he cursed. "All right, Shield, you and Dunce Face take care of our clawed friend over there! Kirishima, Aoyama, Kodai, we're gonna kill some fucking pirates!"
Everyone nodded, and immediately went to work. The angel grabbed Denki and told him to keep shooting the crab, while Bakugou and his three soldiers formed a perimeter around the stairwell, their guns ready to shoot anyone that appeared in view.
Tsuyu Asui had no idea what was going on.
One minute, she was quietly trying to sneak on board the main pirate ship that was docked on the artificial island, and the next, some sort of racket alerts the pirates on the ship to something, with a bunch of them rushing back towards the island to investigate it.
Whatever. If that meant less pirates, the better.
Now, she just had to figure out where they were keeping the prisoners…
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
"HOW MUCH LONGER?!" Bakugou screamed, as he kept shooting.
Most of the pirates were fairly easy to take care of. They just charged in with their swords, and were immediately shot dead. The ones armed with pistols were slightly harder to take care of, and those with magic ended up having to get blasted by Aoyama right away.
The ash blond honestly had no idea how long they could keep it up.
BLAM! BLAM!
"Done!" Melissa said. "Denki and I just took down the giant crab!"
As the blue crustacean keeled over and died, Kodai shot the last of the pirates, and Bakugou shouted, "All right, there goes our stealth! Time to go in, Rambo style!"
"I have no idea what that means!" the angel said
"IT MEANS KILL THE BAD GUYS WITH EXTREME PREJUDICE!!!"
"Okay, that, I understand!"
"You want us to be super racist?" Aoyama asked.
"What?! No!" Bakugou shouted. "It means to kill everyone with extreme violence!"
The group proceeded to rush up the stairs, shooting every pirate they came across. Given how this still technically qualified as an uphill battle, Bakugou's was somewhat matched to the pirates, one had massive firepower, while the other had home field advantage.
However, given the fact that the JSDF soldiers were disciplined and trained for years, while the pirates were more of a loose band of marauding murderers, it was only a matter of time before all the naval bandits in the surrounding area were shot down into oblivion.
The fact that a literal angel was on the JSDF's side also helped.
BOOM!
Blasting their way out of one of the steel doors, the gang made their way up to the roof of the watery fortress. The area around them was flat and metallic, somewhat reminiscent of the helicopter pad back on Earth, but with nothing but ocean all around them.
"Guess we're at the top floor," Kirishima said.
"All right, where to now?" Bakugou asked Denki.
"One of these ships has her hostage, I'm sure of it," the electric-haired man said. "My money would be on the biggest of the fleet before us… aha! Down there! I can see her!"
Bakugou squinted down at the biggest pirate ship below them. It was a massive wooden boat with sails, all the wood painted in a black-and-red aesthetic, with a dash of purple. He could see people down there, but he didn't exactly bring his reading glasses with him.
"Aight, guess I'm trusting you on this. How do we get down there?"
"Over here!" Kodai called out to the others.
They turned around to see some sort of wooden basket on the roof with them, but attached to some sort of… wire? "Is that supposed to be some kind of zipline?" Aoyama asked.
"Or a crude elevator, or maybe a ski lift," Kirishima said. "Can it fit all of us?"
"Doubt it," Melissa said. "I can carry two of you. Who here's the lightest?"
Everyone immediately looked towards Aoyama and Kodai.
The black-haired girl simply glared at the others. "Rude."
"Not my problem," Bakugou said. "Shield, grab her and Frenchie."
Melissa nodded, as Bakugou, alongside Kirishima and Denki, went towards the makeshift lift. "Either of you have any idea how to operate this thing?"
"Can't be that hard!" Kirishima said. "It's just a pulley system, right?"
"All right, Shitty Hair, you figure out how to operate that thing, make sure we don't crash into the sea," Bakugou said. "Dunce Face and I will keep our guns out and ready."
Denki nodded. "Mm. Good call. Don't want the pirates to cut the line."
Getting on the wooden lift, Kirishima quickly figured out how to operate the system pretty quickly, as soon enough, the makeshift ski lift began to move down.
"Sooo… how's that gadget of yours work?" Kirishima asked.
"My weapon?" Denki said, brandishing his pistol. "I have a Skill that allows me to generate a bit of lightning, not enough to use offensively, but enough for me to charge my weapon."
"That sounds like a custom job," Bakugou said. "Who made –"
"HEADS UP! WE'VE GOT PIRATES!"
Bakugou cursed, but immediately got into battle mode. "Shield! We'll take down the ones trying to cut the line, you make sure the rest of them don't shoot us down!"
"Got it!" the angel said, performing aerial maneuvers.
BLAM! BLAM!
Both Kirishima and Bakugou took aim at the pirates below them, making sure to only shoot the ones that were firing at them; they didn't want to accidentally shoot the hostage.
Shield, meanwhile, kept dodging the arrows that were being fired from the crossbolts, while Aoyama and Kodai tried to shoot some more pirates, until eventually…
BAM!
As the lift crashed down onto the wooden boards of the ship, the three men began to fire at any pirate that was still standing, while Shield dropped the two soldiers in her arms down to the floor, and began to fight off the rest of the evildoers.
BLAM! BLAM!
"KYOKA!" the bard shouted. "Kyoka, are you there?!"
"Denki?"
Everyone looked towards the portside and the bow of the ship to see a tied-up woman. Short dark purple hair, webbed hands, fin-like ears, and a slight curve around the lower half of her dark dress, indicating that she was still early into her pregnancy.
"KYOKA!!!" Denki shouted, as he rushed towards his beloved.
As Kodai killed the last of the pirates onboard the ship via a neck snap, she took a look towards the Jiro matriarch. "Hm. Fish-like characteristics, just like Sirius-san."
"I'm so sorry I couldn't come sooner, the local authorities were useless!" Denki, meanwhile, was busy untying his wife. "Are you alright? They didn't hurt you did they?! I'm so –"
"I'm all right, just a little bruised," Kyoka said.
"Guess they didn't wanna "damage the merchandise," huh?" Bakugou asked.
"Denki, who are these people?" Kyoka asked.
"Ah, yes! These are the Arms of Fire! They helped me –"
"For the last time, we're not the Arms of Fire!" Bakugou corrected him. "We're just hired muscle! And save the talking for later! Preferably after we've escaped the pirate-infested island!"
Aoyama agreed. "He's right, we have to get going!"
"Uhh… guys?" Kirishima called out to the others. "Look up."
Everyone looked up to see that someone was on top of the ship's mast. A woman wearing a green jacket and hat, who had long green hair, a funny-looking face, and… light green skin?
"Who the hell is that?" Kodai asked.
Before anyone could say anything, the newcomer grabbed one of the stray ropes and swung off it, performing a few acrobatics before she landed on the wooden floor.
BAM!
Everyone got a better look at the woman now that she was on the same floor as them. Light brown pants, knee-high black boots, a green leather jacket with golden bling on it, and a black pirate hat on top of her green hair that screamed "Jack Sparrow wannabe."
But her skin tone was… off. It was a light green, and if that wasn't enough to tell the soldiers she wasn't human, then her webbed hands and uncanny valley face definitely did.
"Ahoy there, maties. My name's Captain Tsuyu Asui, ribbit. And who might you be?"
Author's Note: I was going to make a "May the 4th be with you" joke here, but since I'm posting this a day early, I kinda can't. I guess I could point out that it's Orthodox Holy Week, but I also doubt any people are observing that, so whatever.
Anyways, in terms of worldbuilding, I've introduced the musical power couple, Denki and Kyoka Jiro! Yes, in this reality, Kaminari took Jiro's family name, and is very much prepared to blast someone in the face if anything is to happen to his wife. Speaking of his wife, the "dagon" race is actually from the Arifureta anime, so you can basically just imagine Jiro with fish fins in place of her ears, webbed hands, and you're good. The giant hermit crab of death was inspired by Delicious in Dungeon, and the design for our surprise cameo from Tsuyu Asui came from, ehh, I can't believe I'm gonna say this… the Monster Musume online game. I swear I've never played it, I just scrolled around the wiki for character designs! Anyways, let's just move on to the comments now, shall we?
Storm: I'm glad you find this to be such a fun read. Hope you stick around!
VinHD15: Okay, yes, technically speaking, Bakugou is a nuke rather than the guy responsible for creating them, but I wasn't exactly trying to be accurate with my analogy; I was just trying to explain that the blond very much knows how to use this new weapon, and is very much willing to see it through, while also calling himself "Death."
valkrus: Fixed the typo, thanks for calling it out.
And now, for the last bit of shilling…
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 19: Yo Ho Ho, It's a Pirate's Life For Me
Summary:
Bakugou, along with the rest of his team, decide to work together with Tsuyu Asui to liberate the Jiro family from the evil clutches of pirates! From giant orca men, to tieflings wielding spears, massive explosions, and the ever-watching eyes of Yaoyorozu, these guys are gonna have to make it right in the nick of time, or die trying!
Chapter Text
Chapter 19: Yo Ho Ho, It's a Pirate's Life For Me
Katsuki Bakugou was a very cautious man.
Not paranoid, because that could potentially be worried about things that aren't threats and cause him to get isolated from potential allies. So, cautious, but not paranoid.
That's probably not how his current teammates were seeing him.
Especially considering he currently had a gun pointed at some random pirate lady.
"BAKUGOU!" Kirishima shouted. "What the fuck?!"
"What?" Katsuki asked, rhetorically. "She's obviously a pirate!"
"A pirate that hasn't even raised a weapon at us!" Melissa argued. "Look, minus the Jiros, it's still a five to one. We'll be able to stop her before she can even try anything."
The ash blond grumbled, before putting his rifle down.
Melissa looked over to the frog lady. "Sorry about him, ah, Asui-san, was it?"
"You can call me Tsu, ribbit. And it's fine. Can't trust a lot of people around these parts."
"Speaking of people, who, and what, are you exactly?" Aoyama asked.
"Ribbit, I already said, I'm Captain Tsuyu Asui, and I'm a bullywug. But when it comes to my occupation… I guess you can say that I'm an abolitionist of the marine variety."
"Abolitionist?" Kirishima asked.
"They're people who favor the abolishment of certain practices or institutions, such as capital punishment, but in her case… It's slavery," Kodai said. "She's an emancipationist."
"Got it in one, ribbit," the green-haired pirate said.
"Hold up, hold up," Katuski said, grabbing his Monster Manual, and reaching the page he was looking for. "You said you're a bullywug, right? A frog-based demi-human?"
"That's correct."
"You don't look anything like the illustration in my book."
The others took a closer look inside the manual, and yeah, Katsuki was right. The bullywug in his book was an anthropomorphic frog, while the lady in front of him looked like a human, just with light green skin, webbed hands, and a really funny-looking face.
"I dunno, that drawing kinda looks like my dad, just bald," Tsu said.
"Well, why do you look so different?" Katsuki asked.
"Do all humans look the same, ribbit?"
"She's got you there," Kirishima said.
"Not now, Shitty Hair."
"Wait, you said that you were an emancipationist?" Denki asked. When Tsu nodded, his smile increased. "That's wonderful! You can help us escape this pirate-infested island!"
"Sure thing, but I'm still technically a pirate, ribbit," the frog-like demi-human said. "According to the government, I'm just stealing the cargo of others, even if those others are also pirates."
"People aren't cargo," Kodai flatly said.
"I agree with you there, ribbit, but I still profit every time someone is freed."
"Really? How so?" Aoyama asked.
"There are several groups out there that would very much like to see the Imperial slave trade ended, ribbit. They've also posted several rewards for those who actively dismantle the trade or who free slaves. It's more than enough to send my little siblings to a good school."
"Awww, that's so sweet!" Kirishima cooed.
"Okay, you're a pirate with a good head on your shoulders and a motive to help us, whatever," Katsuki said. "The question is, how the hell do we get out of here?"
"Hmm… do any of you know how to steer a ship, ribbit?"
"Bakugou, this is Yaoyorozu, come in, Bakugou," Momo said into her walkie-talkie. "Bakugou? I'm radioing in to make sure that everything's alright. Please respond."
"Oh, hey, Yaomomo!" Kirishima's voice came through. "What's up?"
"Kirishima, where is your commanding officer?"
"Oh, he's, uh… steering a boat! Uh, yeah, we decided to head out to the open water with some locals! Bakubro can't talk right now, he's, uhh… cosplaying as a pirate! Yeah!"
The raven-haired woman squinted as she heard that. "Katsuki Bakugou. Cosplaying as a pirate? Are we talking about the same Bakugou? Bad attitude? Shouts a lot?"
"Uh, yeah! He's full of surprises today, huh? Anyways, gotta go, bye!"
"Okay…? Bye to you, too, I guess…?" Momo said, as she put down the radio. "That was weird. Still, I'm sure that they can handle whatever trouble they've gotten themselves into…"
In terms of believable lies, Kirishima got a five out of ten, in Momo's opinion.
Buuut, unless they decided to radio her for help, Momo would leave them alone.
In the meantime, she still had a lot of tanning to do.
"Hey, guys!" Awase shouted. "They're selling cotton candy on the pier!"
Actually, tanning could wait. Momo was feeling a bit peckish right now.
"You think she bought it?" Kirishima asked.
"I'd say fifty-fifty," Aoyama replied.
"OY!!!" Katsuki shouted at them. "WHO SAID THAT YOU COULD CHAT?! WE'VE STILL GOT A SHIP TO RUN! LOOSEN THE SAILS! HEAVE UP THE BRACES! AHAHAHA!!!"
"You think he's gone mad with power?" Kirishima asked.
"SOMEONE START PLAYING THE SOUNDTRACK TO TREASURE PLANET!!!"
Kodai nodded. "Definitely gone mad with power."
As the waves crashed against the wooden hull of the massive ship they had commandeered, Katsuki could feel the salty air hitting his face. This was fucking awesome!
"Huh, you can actually smile."
The ash blond looked over to see that Shield was addressing him.
"Who says I can't smile?" Katsuki asked.
"I never said you couldn't, it's just that… I've never seen you do it," the angel answered honestly. "Every time I've seen you, you're always scowling, or grumpy, or angry…"
"Okay, okay, I get it! Look, it just takes a lot to make me smile, okay?"
"Like steering a massive pirate ship you stole towards freedom?" she asked.
"Like knowing that a plan you actually came up with is working, and pretty soon you and your squad is going to make it out in one piece," Katsuki corrected her. "Like knowing that you'll get out of this alive and be able to come home to the people you care about…"
The explosive blond snapped out of his thoughts to see that Shield was still looking at him, but now, it was different. "You've never told any of us you have people you care for…"
"Maybe… I'll tell you about them when this is over."
Melissa smiled at that. "Yeah, that'd be nice –"
BOOM!
Suddenly, the ship stopped moving, jerking as its speed dropped to zero. The majority of its passengers fell to the wooden floor at the impact of suddenly stopping.
"Kyoka, are you all right?!" Denki asked.
"I'm fine, nothing serious," the pregnant woman answered back.
"What the hell just happened?!" Kirishima shouted.
"Oi, Asui! Did we hit a reef, or something?!" Katsuki shouted.
"Not possible, ribbit! We're still too far out to be anywhere near the shallows!"
"ROOOAAARRR!!!"
Before anyone could say anything else, something suddenly erupted from the water, launching themselves up towards the deck. They were massive, an anthropomorphic orca wearing a red coat with golden buttons, dark pants, leathery belt, boots, and a massive sword.
"Merde, what kind of demi-human is that?!" Aoyama gasped.
Before anyone could respond, several other regular-sized pirates emerged from the water and boarded the ship, all of them demi-humans of the aquatic variety. From anthropomorphic fish, eels and sharks, to things like octopuses, crabs, and even walruses and anemones!
"Shield?"
"Bakugou?"
"Is it just me, or did all the pirates we killed on the island seem to be exclusively… land-based races?" he asked the angel. "Like, humans, and maybe the occasional beastman?"
"No, it turns out there was a reason for that."
"Shit…"
"Itsukaaa…"
"What is it, Neito?"
"How would you feel about… a pearl necklace?"
The orange-haired woman sucked in her breath, as she looked at her boyfriend. "Neito, please tell me you didn't spend our limited funds to buy something from a gift shop."
"I, uhh…"
"Monoma, this is Yaoyorozu. Come in, Monoma."
Quickly grabbing his walkie-talkie, Neito said, "Hey, Lieutenant! What's up? Doing good? I hope so! Quick question: It's cool for us to buy souvenirs from here, right?"
"What? Yeah, sure, whatever, I guess. Look, we're heading out in an hour. I want you to gather your group and meet us at the LAVs. Can you do that, or are you… um… busy…?"
"Busy? Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, I can personally assure you that absolutely no one in my group has gotten themselves into any kinds of shenanigans," Neito said. "No kidnappings, no monsters, nothing. We've just been going around the town, and seeing the sights."
"Oh, thank God. Anyways, see you in sixty minutes. Over and out."
"See you then. Over and out."
"You never answered my question, Neito," Itsuka said.
Oh, shit.
Eijiro didn't know what to do.
Bakugou's orders were to form a kill circle, to protect the civilians. Made sense, given that they were currently surrounded from all sides by pirates. But now what?
Neither side is making the first move. The pirates have superior numbers, but we have better firepower, Eijiro analyzed. Why isn't Shield attacking? Trying to size up the boss?
"I must say, for a bunch of strangers, you are quite the pain in the tail," the killer whale of a man said. "You went through all of that trouble for one dagon? Consider me impressed."
"Kugo Sakamata…" Asui hissed.
"Oh? You know who I am? You must be an abolitionist, then."
"And you're the orcinus who went toe-to-toe with the Leviathan, and made it out alive," the bullywug said. "Have to admit, I never pegged you as an Imperial lapdog, ribbit."
"I AM NOT A…" the walking killer whale began to shout, before he calmed himself down. "We are partners. I provide the slaves, and the Empire provides me with money."
"So, what? You're a privateer?" Bakugou asked. "Don't those guys usually attack enemy merchant ships, not kidnap civilians? Then again, this is the Empire…"
"I'm simply going where the money is," the pirate captain said. "I'm a businessman."
"You're a monster, that's what you are," Denki hissed.
"Oh?" Everyone looked towards the man with the electric hair, with his comrades shocked at what he just said, and with Sakamata, curious. "And who exactly are you?"
"Denki Jiro. I'm the guy whose wife your goons kidnapped."
"Ah, yes! The financier of this little rescue operation, no doubt! Tell me, little mercenaries, how much did this… minstrel… pay you? Ah, it doesn't matter. Whatever it is, I'll double it!" the orca-looking demi-human said. "And all you have to do… is walk away."
"Go fuck yourself, Free Willy," Kodai spat.
It was at that moment Eijiro could see the red within the giant demi-human's eyes, clearly angry. "Alright, then. Men, kill anyone who resists! The rest can join the dagon as slaves –"
WHAM!
Before any of the aquatic pirates could follow their captain's orders, something jumped up towards the ship, and slammed their spear on Sakamata's huge orca head.
Something pink.
It's that girl again!
"SHITTY HAIR, FRENCHIE, OPEN FIRE!!! SHIELD, TAKE DOWN MOBY DICK!!!"
The redhead quickly snapped out of it, as he obeyed his commanding officer's orders, and began filling the pirates that were surrounding them with lead.
This was bad. This was very bad.
What was it with Eijiro and getting himself constantly into danger?! First it was the medusa, then those warrior bunnies, then the cultists, and now he was taking on an army of pirates?!
"AAAAA–"
WHAM!
As Mina slammed the sharp end of her spear down on another berserker, she watched as the other humans in Eijiro's squad made quick work of those sea-faring thugs with the help of their bizarre weapons, before using her acidic magic to kill another pirate.
"HEY, LADY!"
Mina turned to see that Eijiro was making his way towards her. If they were alone together, she would have been overjoyed, but now was not the ideal time for this.
"You don't have much time –"
"NO! I wanna know who the fuck you are!" Eijiro shouted. "I wanna know why the fuck you've been following me ever since you helped the Empire attack Musustafu! Answer me, NOW!"
"BECAUSE I CARE ABOUT YOU!"
She could see from his eyes that Eijiro was thrown for a loop. "What?"
"I care about you, Eijiro Kirishima," the tiefling told the human. "And if you care about your teammates and the bystanders caught in the crossfire, you're going to get off this ship."
Melissa grunted, as she clashed swords with Kugo Sakamata.
She knew she had the advantage, for the time being. She was faster, and capable of flight, but she had limits, and the orca man she was fighting knew that, He was doing everything in defense, hoping that Melissa would exhaust herself, and then go for the kill.
And Melissa couldn't even go all-out because the others were still on the ship. She couldn't sink them, but she needed a way to get past the pirate captain's defenses.
"SHIELD!"
"I'm a little busy right now, Kirishima!"
"Doesn't matter! I've got a plan!" the redhead shouted. "Just keep your radio on! Just keep Captain Sakamata busy, and when I shout "now," you launch yourself to the sky!"
"This is a stupid fucking plan, Shitty Hair!" Katsuki shouted.
He had no idea which part of this was more insane: The fact that Shitty Hair's nameless stalker rented her own boat to reach them, or the fact that Kirishima's plan was actually her's.
"Does it really matter at this point?!" Kirishima asked, as he threw Aoyama into the boat. "Kodai, make sure that the Jiros are as close to the boat's center of gravity as possible!"
"Got it!"
WHACK!
As Asui finished knocking out another one of the pirates who was getting too close, she jumped into the boat with everyone else. "What about your angel friend, ribbit?"
"I told her to fly away as soon as I shouted!" Kirishima explained. "Bakubro, go!"
"For the record, I think that this is a stupid plan," Katsuki grumbled, as he made a ring with one of his fingers, while extending out both of his arms. "Mea ultima exitium magicae…"
"WE'VE GOT MORE PIRATES COMING OFF THE SHIP!" Denki shouted.
Grabbing the radio, Kirishima shouted, "SHIELD, FLY AWAY! NOW!!!"
That was Katsuki's cue.
"EXPLOOOOOSIO!!!"
The last time Katsuki fired off that spell, his entire body was burned and he nearly died. But that was because last time, he was using it as a suicide attack. Now, he had shaped his hands into a funnel-based cone, and had directed his shot right towards the massive ship.
BOOOOOOOM!!!!!
On the other side of the magic spell, Katsuki was doing his best not to fall off the boat at the sheer might his hands were producing, while the rest of his squaddies were doing their best to make sure their civilian friends weren't getting whiplash from the sheer speed.
In short, Katsuki had just helped the boat temporarily turn into a rocket.
As the ash blond watched the massive pirate ship sink to the bottom of the ocean thanks to the hole he blasted into it, he could feel the boat everyone else was on was beginning to slow down. And right on time, too, considering that they had just reached the shoreline.
As the boat slowly let the tide push it towards the sand, everyone remained silent, while Kodai healed everyone's possibly shattered eardrums. Once that was done, Asui spoke up.
"You guys are crazy, ribbit. But in a good way."
Eijiro breathed a sigh of relief as he saw Melissa fly down to the shore.
"Glad to see you made it out alive," he said. "And Sakamata?"
"Food for the local krakens, along with the rest of his pirate crew," she said. "I gotta say, that plan you came up with to use Bakugou's explosion magic was as amazing as it was risky."
"Ah, it actually was the masked tiefling's idea."
"Her again? Well, I guess I should be thanking her, then. Where is she?"
"She ran off as soon as the boat hit shore. I'm sure we'll meet up with her again."
The angel said nothing, as Eijiro watched the Jiro couple thank Bakugou.
"I cannot thank you enough for what you did, Bakugou-sama!" Denki said, as he kept hugging his wife. "We are eternally in your debt! If there is anything we can do for you –"
"Actually, there is something."
Eijiro watched in curiosity as Bakugou pulled out a piece of paper, wrote something on it, and gave it to Denki. "Sell whatever you can't take with you, use the money to buy yourselves a carriage, go to the Collinus Hills, and give this paper to a lady named Nemuri Kayama."
"The Collibus Hills?" Kyoka asked. "Are you sure –?"
"Trust me, it's safe. The JSDF, I mean, the Arms of Fire, occupy that area. You can get yourselves jobs, a home. Have a life and raise your kid somewhere safe."
Both Denki and Kyoka were silent, as tears left their eyes. Eventually, the yellow-haired bard gave the ash blond a soft smile. "Thank you, Katsuki Bakugou. Thank you for everything."
Eijiro couldn't help but smile at what he was seeing. Feeling someone tapping his shoulder, however, he looked behind him to see Tsu standing there. "What's up?"
"You guys are different. And weird. I think I like you."
"I see…" the artificial redhead said, giving the bullywug a soft smile. "Well, if you ever wanna hang out with us again, we can set up a nice place for you at the Collibus Hills –"
"Let me stop you right there, ribbit," she said. "We may have stopped Sakamata and his gang, but there's still a lot of people out there that need help. And besides, I still have siblings I need to take care of. Maybe when they've graduated, then I'll consider your offer."
"Alright, just… take care of yourself, alright?" Eijiro requested.
"Of course," Tsu said, as she walked away. "See you around, ribbit."
"I honestly thought you would have been delayed." Momo is actually quite surprised when she sees that Bakugou's group made it back to the LAVs at the designated time.
"Delayed by what?" Aoyama nervously asked. "Certainly not by pirates."
"Not that we actually went up against any pirates," Kodai added.
"And certainly not to rescue a pregnant mermaid," Kirishima said.
Yeah, no, Momo wasn't buying it for one second. Bakugou and Melissa were at least smart enough to keep their mouths shut, but their teammates dug their graves.
Whatever. It was a long drive to the campsite, she had more than enough time to review all of their camera footage from their body cams on the way there.
As it turned out, they got caught.
Yeah, forgetting about the body cameras on their uniforms was a bit of a goof, but they were in a high-stress situation, so it was natural for them to commit such a mistake.
Unfortunately, Lieutenant Yaomomo found out about their little escapade, and proceeded to chew out the five of them for what they did until she eventually got tired.
Then she had Monoma do it.
After that, the group had arrived at their campground in the forest near the city outskirts, Eijiro silently watched as Bakugou set up his sleeping bag in the middle of the grassy field.
"Ugh… Shitty Hair, if you've got a question, just tell me already."
"Oh! I… uh, I guess I've been wondering about why you decided to help the Jiros. And why do you always have your nose in your book? And… maybe a few other questions."
"Rrrr… fine. I guess I can answer your questions. But only one."
"Okay, let's start small: Why did you join the JSDF in the first place?"
The ash blond gave Eijiro a funny look, before he crawled into his sleeping bag. "We'll, as far as you and the personnel files are concerned… I just like to blow things up."
"Come on, Bakugou, give Kirishima the truth," Melissa said. "I can still detect lies."
Bakugou groaned, but relented. "Ugh… my parents are both fashion designers, pretty big ones, too. Big enough that I could live comfortably for the rest of my life without lifting a finger. The problem is, I hated that. I wanted to achieve something of my own. Problem was, nothing I ever did ignited a spark in me. Sure, whatever I did I was great at, but nothing was my passion. So, I just settled at becoming a magazine model, and let my life slip out of my fingers."
Eijiro remained silent, as he listened to his friend's story.
"When I was seventeen, my folks were doing a spring magazine shoot for this "prom" thing, you know, the one the Americans throw, they even managed to rope in my girlfriend, and all the other models were like, "Does this make me look fat?" or "Do I look good in this?" Stick figures with puffy lips, I swear. I went out the back to breathe for a bit, and there must have been this gas leak next door, because the next thing I know… BOOM! No more Turkish laundromat."
Melissa snorted, as Eijiro smiled. The exaggerated hand gestures Bakugou was making were pretty amusing to watch, and even now Momo stopped to see what was going on.
"It was like a sign from God! I knew my calling. Problem is, blowing stuff up is kinda illegal without a license, so the next day, I enlist, and join the JSDF's demolition course."
"How'd your family and friends take it?" Eijiro asked.
"My dad was like, "Fine," and my mom was glad I was getting off my ass. And as for Camie… She's my wife now, with a brat on the way," Bakugou said, before his eyes suddenly turned sharp. "Which is why if it comes down to it, I won't hesitate to betray any of you for the sake of my own survival. I'll get out of this world alive, and see my kid, whatever it takes."
"Okay, that's slightly disturbing," Momo admitted.
"I dunno, I think it's kinda manly…" Eijiro said.
Even Bakugou was confused at that notion. "What makes you say that?"
"Well, you may not show it, but you care about people, given that you were willing to break the rules to save the Jiro family," Eijiro said. "Plus, that book of yours has helped us out in a bunch of scenarios, so even if you were only reading it to make sure that you made it out of here alive, the knowledge in it helped out all of us. Plus, you're a dad who actually wants to see his kid, so you're clearly not an asshole, you're just a nice guy with a rough exterior!"
"Okay… that last part raises a few questions on your part, Kirishima," Momo said.
"Yeah, I'm with the Lieutenant on that one," Bakugou said, before his eyes suddenly widened. "Shit! I almost forgot! Lieutenant, you watched all of our recordings, right?"
"No, I had a limited time, so I just skimmed them."
"Okay, well, after today's little adventure, Dunce Face left me with one last piece of info," the ash blond said. "You know that weird electric gun he had on him during the rescue?"
Momo nodded. "Yes, I did see him fire it during the recordings."
"Yeah, well, he told me where he got it from," Bakugou said. "It's a kingdom south-west from here, apparently the locals have been merging magic and science together."
That caused Momo's eyebrows to get raised. "What's this place called?"
"Dryadalis," Bakugou said. "The kingdom of the elves."
Looks like they knew where they were going next.
Author's Note: One last place to visit, and then the second arc is over!
For those wondering, yes, the big pirate captain was Gang Orca, I had him as an orcinus, just like Sadeena from Shield Hero, so basically just imagine Gang Orca in a pirate outfit and with a tail, and you're good. Side note, the cotton candy is a reference to the sweet "fluffy," from the Re: Zero world. Also, Bakugou's backstory (inspired by Vinny from Atlantis: The Lost Empire ) has been revealed! Now, everyone knows why he carries around that book with him: It increases his odds of survival, and his chances of making it back home to his family. But enough about that! Now, it's time for the comments!
Shin: Yep, Tsu is a bullywug. I'm glad to see that someone understands to appreciate certain kinds of media without having to feel shameful about it. And I totally agree on not playing games that mainly involve microtransactions. Grind all the way for me! I'm also glad that you enjoyed the fact that I'm using multiple things for inspiration, so I'm pretty sure you're gonna enjoy plenty of the future chapters to come, so keep commenting!
artist_of_words: I'm glad you think I'm doing such an amazing job, especially with turning Tsu into a pirate captain (legally speaking)! I hope you stick around to see everything else I've created! Now, to answer your last question… while, yes, all of the characters who are gonna appear are from MHA, I'm not sure if everyone is gonna appear. I think the answer might be "yes" due to the fact I've written up to chapter twenty-seven at this point, so there's bound to be a bunch of new characters that show up, so I'm sure your favorite character is gonna show up… eventually.
VinHD15: I'm just as confused as you, buddy.
threeque: I don't know whether to be impressed by your previous comment due to it being blank, or just confused. Anyways, in case you're wondering, the racist antelope was from Disenchantment, so there's a good chance it was always racist, with or without magic. Denki's design was an homage to all of the fantasy-based MHA fanart out there, and you're indeed right that Bakugou decided to rescue Kyoka due to her reminding him of Camie. Also, Aoyama's line was actually a last-minute thing to add some more meat to the chapter, and I'm glad I added it, just for your reaction alone. And yeah, you should be scared for Kyoka's sake. Also, I'm glad someone figured out Asui was supposed to be Captain Jack Sparrow! Glad I managed to catch you during your actual May 4th!
JesseRoot20: That is correct! The talking fish from the last chapter was indeed Lehman from Arifureta ! Good eye! Stick around, and you might see some more camoes!
And now, for the last bit of shilling…
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules!
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 20: Kingdom of the Elves
Summary:
After rescuing the Jiro family from pirates, the SREU follow the lead they were given, and head to the Elven Kingdom of Dryadalis. Before even reaching their city, the team discovers that this nation is far more different than anything else they've encountered. There's a genius in this kingdom, and her eyes have caught notice of the SREU...
Chapter Text
Chapter 20: Kingdom of the Elves
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Awase asked. "This info did come from Bakugou."
"I know that can cause you to be skeptical, but I have seen the recording myself," Momo said. "And given what Melissa has told me, such firepower shouldn't be possible yet."
"Please remember that I haven't been towards the southern portion of the continent for some time now," Melissa chimed in. "So there could have been some major changes."
"Meaning that we have no idea what we're walking into," Awase groaned.
Momo had to admit, that part was true. Aside from the fact that this was a kingdom composed of elves that had been merging magic and science together, they didn't know anything else.
Despite that, they stayed the course. Sure, this expedition would delay them from returning back to the Collibus Hills for a few weeks, but she figured it would be worth it. If the rumors were true, then it was her squad's duty to investigate these potential allies.
BUMP!
As they kept driving through the dirt road, going up and down the grassy hills, the LAV suddenly jumped before returning back to the road, shocking everyone in the vehicle.
"What was that?!" Kirishima asked. "Some kind of speed bump?"
"No…" Awase said, as he kept driving. "Guys, take a look outside!"
Momo took a look outside to see… a brick road?
"Kirishima. Radio the other LAVs. We're stopping."
Kaibara took the sample of the road he picked off up to his face, inspecting it. "Mm-hm, just as I figured. Volcanic ash mixed with lime. In layman's terms, Roman concrete."
"So, while not hyper-advanced, an architectural feat, nonetheless," Momo figured.
"Actually, this shit right here is way more resistant to stuff like say, salt, than modern-day concrete, and the lime caked into it will also re-seal cracks if water ever seeps in. All, in all, it can be argued that this sort of mix of concrete is more effective than our modern mixes."
"How tough is that stuff, actually?" Kendo asked.
"An elephant could be running at full speed across one of these roads, and they wouldn't even crack," the brown-haired soldier said. "This shit's gonna last for thousands of years."
"Impressive," Uraraka commented.
"Yeah, not only that, but given how wide this road actually is, the center part is not only big enough to have two of your LAVs next to each other, but there's still enough space on both sides for a designated pedestrian walk! Whoever oversaw this is a genius!"
"Think it was the Empire that constructed it?" Monoma asked.
"This road in particular? No, we're way outside their territory, this is definitely one of the local elves," the geologist said. "But given that we only just got onto this road, that means that they stopped construction, for some reason. Maybe a lack of funds? I dunno."
"I see," Momo said. "Guess we'll have to ask them when we get there."
"Hey…" Melissa said. "What's that over there in the distance?"
Momo looked towards where their angelic guide was looking to see… multiple tall things in straight lines? Actually, they were parallel on one side of the road or the other.
Driving further up the road, the SREU stepped out of their vehicles once more to see that two different things were actually on either side of the road, one after the other.
These things were street lamps and holed trees.
"Oh, now I get it!" Kaibara said. "These lamps were supposed to be used further down as a border between the main part of this road and the sidewalk, while also lighting up both of them when it gets dark! And I guess the trees are here to let people know where the sidewalk ends?"
That's a pretty valid theory, Momo thought to herself.
Taking a closer look towards the lamps, Momo saw that they were tall, black, and metallic, oddly reminiscent of street lamps used in Victorian-era London, or during the American 1800s. However, there weren't any candles inside the glass, or even an electric lightbulb!
Instead, it was just… a big green ball of moss.
"Komori, you're the plant expert," Momo said. "What's your assessment?"
"They're probably some sort of strand of bioluminescent moss that lights up when it gets dark, shroom," the brown-haired girl said. "These elves must be really environmentally-focused fellas to not use oil and such for this. I like it. They might be my kind of people. Real fun guys."
"Did you just make a mushroom pun?" the raven-haired woman asked.
"You can't prove anything."
"Ugh, whatever," Momo groaned. "Anyways, what about the trees?"
The trees themselves were… exceptionally weird. Their trunks were hard to describe, like fences made of wood, or stilts growing up from the ground and then merging with one another. Or maybe even drilling holes into the trunks and training their cores, who knows?
All Momo knew was that these trees were weird as fuck.
"I honestly have no clue," Komori said. "These aren't like anything found on Earth. I honestly don't understand what evolutionary advantage would having a cage-like body possess."
"Maybe it's something that we can't perceive?" Rin suggested.
"Something we can't perceive…? Wait a minute, I got it!" Tsuburaba exclaimed, as he ruffled through his backpack and pulled out a small black device. "Let's see if I'm right…"
"What's that?" Sato asked.
"It's a hand-held frequency detector," Bakugou said. "It's a device capable of different groups of sound-based frequencies on the spectrum, since we can't hear all of them."
Everyone stared at the ash-blond in silent shock.
"What? Why the hell are you all acting surprised?!" he barked. "I'm a guy who works with fucking explosives! Knowing how they affect my hearing kinda comes with the territory!"
"Many apologies," Aoyama said. "It was merely surprising –"
"HOW THE FUCK IS HAVING A BRAIN SURPRISING?!"
"Will you guys shut it?!" Tsuburaba barked at the others, as he stuck his device into the hollow inside of the tree. "Alright, let's see here… Aha! I was right! I was actually right!"
"What is it?" Momo asked.
"These trees are emitting a sonic frequency of somewhere between 40 and 60 Kilohertz!" the meteorologist explained. "I think that they're doing it from underneath their trunks…"
"Oh, I get it," Kodai realized. "Humans can only perceive up to 20 Kilohertz..."
"But animals can hear higher frequencies," Rin continued. "Frequencies high enough that it's unpleasant enough for those animals. These trees must have evolved that ability to scare off potential predators, and then the elves used to to create artificial barriers."
"Fascinating," Momo said. "Komori, get a sample of the tree bark."
"You got it!" she cheered, grabbing a bag and scalpel.
"Hey! What are you doing over there?!"
Before Komori could get a sample of the tree, however, everyone's attention was shifted to the voice that called them out. Looking out towards the distance, they could see a woman wearing an odd dark outfit and cloak, her head sporting mint-green hair and… pointed ears.
"Holy shit, it's an elf," Kaibara whispered to Tsuburaba.
"I asked you a question!" she shouted again. "What are you doing to that tree?!"
Quickly switching to Latin before an incident could happen, Momo said, "I'm sorry! We don't mean any harm! We were just collecting a sample! We're an expeditionary group!"
The green-haired elf squinted her eyes at them. "Expeditionary group?"
"That's correct. We're peaceful explorers, people of science."
"Science, huh?" the elven woman said, as she took a closer look at the group, her eyes stopping for a second at Melissa, before she said, "You're not with the Empire, are you?"
"No, not at all!" Monoma chimed in. "We hate those guys just like everyone else!"
"Hmm… and where exactly is it you are planning on going?"
"We are searching for the Kingdom of Dryadalis, specifically the capital city," Momo said. "We are curious about your nation's recent endeavors on merging magic and technology."
"Alright," the green-haired woman said, before pointing towards the road. "Keep following the road, and you should make it to the capital city of Summus before the sun sets, if your bizarre carriages are anything to go by. When you reach the gates, tell them Beros sent you."
"Thank you so much!" Momo bowed, before telling her crew, "We're leaving!"
"What?!" Komori cried. "But what about the tree sample –?!"
"We can come back for it later, when the scary elf lady isn't around! Let's go!"
As the others rushed back into their vehicles, with the LAVs speeding off towards the city, they didn't look back to see the green-haired elven lady, Beros, scowling at them.
As the LAVs kept driving through the paved road, they began to see more and more things populating the grassy hills beside them. Starting with, of course, buildings.
"Whoa! Guys, check out these weird-ass buildings!" Sato pointed out the window.
As Itsuka kept driving, she took a peek out of her sideview to see what her colleagues were ogling at, and sure enough, it was the elven settlements just outside the big city.
Except they didn't look like anything she had ever seen before.
Though she would never admit it out loud, she had watched fantasy anime as a kid, and honestly, who didn't? They were all Japanese, so watching anime was just as natural for them as it was for American kids to watch Nickelodeon. It was just that fantasy-based anime, especially stuff like isekai, had a particularly bad reputation, so she kept it to herself.
Regardless, in such shows, elven homes were always deep within forests, their wooden hut-like structures either being nestled within the branches of trees, or carved within them.
But the homes out here were these curved structures, reminiscent of igloos or vases, and every other curved shape in between, with a basic white color, followed by brown stripe-esque patterns. She wasn't sure if these homes were made of some sort of wood or some kind of ceramic. Hell, if she squinted, she could see that even the window bars had leaf-like patterns!
Aside from the weird coloring and the fact that it didn't seem like they used any sort of brick to create their homes, the fact that they were just sitting on the grassy hills, with minimal use of dirt roads or rock walls as fences was somewhat odd, as well. It was all so… alien.
Then again, we are in a whole other world, Itsuka thought to herself.
"Kendo, it's Kirishima," her radio crackled to life. "Heads up, we've arrived."
"HOLY SHIITAKE!" Komori yelped. "Look at the gate alone! Someone take a picture!"
"I'm already way ahead of you!" Rin shouted, grabbing the camera.
Itsuka had to admit, she liked that the seating chart for the LAVs changed every now and then. She couldn't imagine having both Bakugou and Tsuburaba with her all the time. Plus, Komori and Rin were a nice change of pace. They sure did seem to like the architecture.
And boy, was the architecture for the front gate alone something to behold.
It didn't do the typical medieval castle thing from the old history books where the walls to the capital were ridiculously high up, but also they weren't high enough for mana-enhanced people to just jump across the wall. It was just the right size. But the shape and color…
The shape was a fancier version of the regular open-air pattern of sniping bricks, but with ledges, and a central pattern that showed where the big gates were, extending that part of the wall forward, and showing off the insignia of the Dryadalis Kingdom, all while all of the bricks on the wall were of a bright pale yellow, making Itsuka feel all warm inside.
Man, psychologists are right, yellow IS a happy color!
Momo was impressed with the front gate of this place alone.
Three meters tall, and also being wide enough to have two carriages, or two cars, to go in two opposite directions, as if it was just a road underneath a tunnel, while still being enough space for pedestrians on both sides of the road. Major props to the architect behind this.
"Hello there! Please step out of your vehicle to get through security!"
Snapping out of her thoughts, Momo saw a slightly older elven gentleman calling out to her. He had dark blue hair and eyes, with a uniform that made Momo think of a knight.
Stepping out of the LAV and with her comrades following behind her, Momo said, "Hello. I'm Lieutenant Momo Yaoyorozu, head of the Special Region Exploration Unit."
"I see…" the elf said. "Well, I'm Tensei Iida, just a humble knight in service of the crown, even if I'm just doing something as trivial as border security. Identification papers, please."
"Identification… papers?"
"Uhh, Lieutenant? What's he talking about?" Kirishima asked.
"Shut up," Bakugou whispered back.
"Do you not have identification papers?" the elven knight asked.
"I'm sorry, but no. We are explorers, we've never been to your nation before. We do have IDs from our native homeland, but I'm not sure if those will work here," Momo said.
Iida nodded grimly. "Then I'm sorry, but we can't let you through –"
"Wait! I, uhh… we were told to say… that Beros sent us."
Momo watched as the knight's face went from apologetic, to sudden shock, before he reeled it back into a mix of understanding and stone-cold neutrality. "Lady Beros sent you?"
"Uh, light green hair? Seemingly permanent scowl? Ring any bells?"
Tensei Iida remained silent for a few monuments, before he said, "Please excuse me, I have to go report something. My colleagues will let you through, but please stay near the gates."
"Umm, okay?" the raven-haired soldier said.
Iida nodded in understanding, before he suddenly left his post and ran off.
"What the hell was that about?" Bakugou asked.
It had been a few minutes since Iida's colleagues had directed Momo and her team towards the other end of the gate and into the city, but really, they were still at the checkpoint. Them moving was just to make sure they weren't blocking the flow of traffic through the small bridge.
"Why do you think he looked so spooked?" Awase asked.
"I don't think it was spooked," Monoma said. "More… alarmed."
"Well, the point still stands that, from their point of view, we're nothing more than outsiders with no legal documentation," Melissa said. "We're completely unknown to them."
Momo didn't like it, but she had to agree with that. It was the equivalent of a Japanese foreign affairs officer having to deal with a bunch of people who, say, came straight out of America during the 1900s, completely unaware of how modern bureaucracy worked.
She really couldn't blame that elf.
"They are right over there, ma'am!"
Momo, alongside the rest of the crew, snapped into attention, as they saw Iida coming back, alongside an entire squad of knights, being led by a woman, presumably a captain.
She was an elven woman with a mature body underneath her light armor, short purple-and-pink hair covering her ears, and a blank face that gave Beros' mug a run for her money.
"Alright, may I have your attention!" the elven woman called out. "I'm Kaina Tsutsumi, captain of the royal knights! You have been summoned by Her Majesty to the palace! Take all your valuables with you, but your weapons and vehicles shall be temporarily confiscated!"
"What?!" Bakugou shouted. "Are we really letting her do that?!"
"We don't have much of a choice," Momo said. "Their queen apparently has taken a fancy to us. We don't comply, and we could potentially cause an international incident. The Empire is already our enemy, we don't want to make a second one through these elves."
"Rrrrr… fine. But I'm not gonna like it."
As Momo and her crew were escorted through the city, she couldn't help but look at the architecture all around her. This wasn't what she was expecting when it came to elves. In fact, she honestly didn't think she would see such sort of buildings in a fantasy world.
Everything here looked like it had come from Victorian London, only that there was no trace of trash or pollution anywhere. Every now and then, she would see a carriage being pulled by a ground dragon, but there weren't so many that it caused traffic jams.
All around her, she saw elves walking around the streets, minding their own business, all of them… actually dressed how she expected elves to be dressed. But none of them carried any bows or arrows whatsoever! Just a walking cane here, or a parasol there, or a…
"Lieutenant, do you see what some of those knights are holding?!"
Momo sighed, as she looked over to her mechanic. "No, Awase, I didn't. What is it?"
"They've got bayonet rifles! Like, actual fucking rifle guns!"
Momo took a closer look at one of the knights, and sure enough, he was holding an old rifle with a knife attached to the muzzle. "Huh. I guess that confirms our suspicions on where Denki Jiro got his weapon. They are certainly advanced. Good eye, Corporal –"
"Hold the fucking phone, is that a newspaper?!" Awase exclaimed.
Before Momo could do anything, her mechanic dashed towards an elf that was sitting at a nearby outdoor cafe, and asked, "Excuse me, sir, may I have a look at that?!"
The elf, probably a bit shocked, gave his paper over to Awase, who examined it. "Look at this typography… they had to have used a printing machine… HOLY SHIT, PHOTOGRAPHS?!"
He ran back to the group, shoving the paper into Momo's face. "Awase –"
"Look at this!" he exclaimed. "They have mass-produced printing presses and photographs! Do you know what materials are needed to create photos, even black-and-white ones?!"
Momo sputtered, "Okay, yes, I admit, it's somewhat impressive, but that –"
"Wait, wait, shhh!" Awase said, holding his hand to his ear. "Do you hear that? Music."
Momo and the others kept quiet as they heard soft music playing. Looking up, they could see a bronze funnel coming from a nearby building, as if it was a public gramophone.
"HOLY SHIT, THEY HAVE RADIOS?!" Awase shouted. "Do you know how advanced that sort of shit is?! They would have to know about electrical charges undergoing acceleration, and –"
"Oi! Stop harassing the public with your shouting!" Captain Tsutsumi shouted at Awase. "If it weren't for my explicit orders, I would have cut you down the second you ran!"
"I'm sorry, please forgive my subordinate!" Momo immediately replied. "It's just that he was amazed by all the things your city has! It's been a while since we have seen such –"
"ENOUGH!" Tsutsumi barked. "If I wanted to listen to some talk on and on for hours on end, I would have stuck around the rookie knights looking for a quick promotion! Now get moving!"
"Yes! Of course!" Momo yelped, as she quickly grabbed Awase.
"Awase, please stop nerding out," Melissa said. "I'm pretty sure some of the knights thought you were making a break for it when you ran to get that paper. I really don't want you to get shot."
Entering the throne room felt like a big event. And well, it was.
The room itself was massive! From the dimensions of the room itself, to the huge red carpet that went from the door all the way to the throne, and it was all so fancy! The walls were decked out in a pale yellow, almost white material, all while golden partners adorned them, and Momo was pretty sure that the floor below them was marble, or something close to it!
But the main attraction was certainly who was sitting on that throne.
Besides the throne was a man that resembled Tensei Iida, albeit younger and wearing glasses. He was clearly a knight, given that he was covered in heavy armor and had a massive sword hilt on his side. He was probably the queen's bodyguard. And as for the queen…
She was an elven woman wearing a long dress of blue and white. The main part of her dress was white, with dark blue adorning her chest, the center of her abdomen and skirt, along with the sides. Within the dark blue, there were patterns of gold separating it from the sky blue patterns the dress shared, all while the queen wore jewelry around her neck.
But the queen herself, she was a case all on her own, even without the dress.
She had golden eyes that seemed to look right through Momo's soul, her hair was pink dreadlocks that were short enough to show off her elven ears. And her crown resembles a thin laurel wreath that Roman emperors used to wear, only, instead of plants, it was solid gold.
Momo was a rich girl, she never denied that. She was born into wealth, but… for the first time in her life, she felt as if there was someone who could even surpass her in terms of money.
Getting down on one knee and placing her hand to the floor, Tsutsumi hailed her queen. "Your Majesty, my comrades and I have brought you the outsiders as you have requested."
"Excellent work, Lady Kaina," the pink-haired queen said. "Knights, please leave us. Do not worry for my safety, as both Sir Tenya and Lady Kaina shall remain for my protection."
The rest of the knights silently bowed to their monarch, as Momo and her comrades watched them leave, closing the large doors behind them, leaving the SREU with the queen.
Everyone was silent for what was actually a moment, but felt more like an eternity as the elven queen examined them silently from her throne. But then, there was a giggle.
"Hehehe…"
Then, laughter. Loud laughter.
"HAHAHAHA!!!" The queen had broken out into a manic smile, as she jumped out of her throne, landing right in front of Momo and her squad. "This is amazing! An entire squad of non-Imperial humans just rolled up to my kingdom, and armed to the teeth with technology centuries ahead of the entire world average! Somebody pinch me, because I must be dreaming! WHOO-HOO!!!"
Momo couldn't help but let out a small "What the hell…?"
"Queen Hatsume, please!" her knight called out. "We don't know if these humans are –"
"Tenya, for the last time, when we're in private, call me Mei!" the pink-haired elf said. "And besides, it's not like these fine folk are actually going to do anything! Isn't that right?"
"Uhh… no," Momo said. "We're peaceful explorers, men and women of science –"
"SCIENCE, YOU SAY?! Well, why didn't you say so?! Wait, wait! Let me introduce myself!" the queen said, bowing. "Mei Hatsume! Queen of the Dryadalis Kingdom, inventor, and the genius behind the recent nation-wide industrial revolution and age of enlightenment!"
"Hold up, you're the one behind all of that advanced stuff?!" Awase exclaimed. "The printed press, the guns, the paved roads, the lamps, the goddamn radio, all that was you?!"
"That's right!" Hatsume said. "I poured my blood, sweat, and tears into every single one of my babies, and even more time and effort into introducing them to my citizens!"
"Well, in that case, I should probably reintroduce ourselves," Momo said. "I'm Lieutenant Momo Yaoyorozu of the Japanese Self-Defense Force, and this here is my squad, the Special Region Exploration Unit. Our mission is to find out all we can about your world on behalf of mine."
"Lieutenant, eh? So, a soldier," Hatsume said. "It makes sense, I suppose. You're all wearing identical uniforms, and from what I was told by Beros, had lots of weapons to turn over. But from a whole other world?! Wait, don't tell me! The Collibus Hills Gate, am I right?"
"I don't suppose that was an experiment of yours gone wrong?" Momo asked.
"Ha-ha! Good one!" Hatsume laughed. "But, no. I wasn't responsible for that, nor am I aware of who is. Still, I was quite fascinated with stories of such an experiment going horribly wrong, but with such unexpected results! And look! Beings from the other side! Here, in my castle!"
"Well, I'm glad you find us so fascinating – Wait, did you say Beros?" Momo asked.
"Indeed she did."
Everyone turned around to see the green-haired woman from before standing right behind them. "WHAT THE HELL?! How the fuck are you here with us?!"
Beros stared at Bakugou before saying, "I'm a member of Queen Hatsume's inner circle. I have access to her private teleportation circles. Meaning I don't have to stay stuck in customs."
"The queen's inner circle?" Aoyama repeated. "Then that means –"
"That Tensei came to us the second he was told that Lady Beros sent you to our gates," the knight, Tenya said. "My mistress has an obsession with finding new magic and technologies for her to experiment with, and she sometimes sends out her best knights to go investigating."
"Yeah, I would totally go myself, but I can't. Gotta run the kingdom and junk," Hatsume groaned. "But it's fine! Because you're all here now! So tell me… who's the smartest one here?"
Everyone in the squad was silent for a few seconds, until someone, that someone being Awase, suddenly spoke up, raising his hand. "Uhh, I'm my team's mechanic. I'm in charge of maintaining our vehicles, so I know how to do some other tech-based stuff, as well."
Hatsume was silent for a few seconds, before she suddenly shouted, "THAT'S BRILLIANT!!! OKAY, YOU'RE STAYING WITH ME! WE'RE GONNA MAKE SO MANY CUTE BABIES!!!"
Momo's jaw dropped as the elven queen manhandled her mechanic, Tenya came up to her and whispered, "When she says "babies," she means her inventions, not actual children."
"Oh, um, yeah, thanks for the heads-up."
"So, tell me! How do your vehicles operate?!" Hatsume asked Awase, like a kid hopped-up on sugar. "I've been trying to create a self-perpetuating mechanism for long-distance travel, so that my citizens won't be forever reliant on beasts of burden or teleportation magic!"
"Oh, um, see, vehicles in my world moved based on on internal combustion engines –"
"Wait, wait, hold up!" Monoma called out. "What about the rest of us?!"
"Hm? Oh, yeah, you guys are guests here in the castle for the next week or so! You can go exploring my kingdom tomorrow, or whatever. Beros, Kaina, show them to their rooms!"
"Of course, Your Majesty," Tsutsumi bowed. "Beros."
"Kaina," Beros replied, indicating the two really didn't like each other.
As Awase watched his squaddies get escorted out by the two lady knights, he could see Hatsume jumping up and down in excitement. "Now… you and I are gonna be great partners!"
"Uh, yeah. I look forward to making "babies" with you."
It was just for one week.
How bad could this possibly be?
Not one bit, he thought to himself with a smile.
Author's Note: Just one reply for this week? Alright…
Shin: I remember a story my middle school history teacher (or maybe it was the substitute, I'm not too sure) said that back in his day, one of the players called their character "Captain America," and every time one of the other characters had to call out his name, the immersion was ruined. I also have younger siblings, but my relationship with them might be a bit more strained. But as for the media we secretly enjoy, I think that you have better composure than I do, because I think now if someone insults the stuff I like in front of me, hands are gonna be flying, so… I salute you.
As a special announcement, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 21: Flying Boats
Summary:
During their stay in the Elven Kingdom of Dryadalis, the SREU has had the chance to experience a multitude of things, from frozen confectionaries, motion pictures, and much more. But no person has been impacted by their visit more than Awase. So, what happens when this visit comes to an end...?
Chapter Text
Chapter 21: Flying Boats
"So, you figured out how to transmit sound through electronics?" Yosetsu Awase asked, as he examined the metallic microphone the elven queen had given him.
"That's right!" Mei Hatsume said. "During one of my experiments, I found out that these usually invisible currents could be used when charged. After that, I just had to find the modulation signal that would allow the frequency to be carried. The materials I used were…"
"...an electric oscillator that would impress the information on the carrier, while also amplifying it in the transmitter, which then demodulates it, extracting the original sound."
"Yes, exactly!" the pink-haired elf said.
It had been four days now since the SREU had arrived in the capital city of the Dryadalis Kingdom, and four days since they had been hosted as guests by Queen Hatsume.
During that time, Yosetsu had always been by the pink-haired queen's side, as she presented him with each and every one of her inventions, allowing the bandana-wearing soldier to compare them to his world's equivalents, much to both her and his delights.
Sure, they would usually be under the watchful eye of the queen's personal knight, Tenya Iida, and every now and then either Kaina or Beros, but honestly, they didn't say much. They mostly watched as their liege interacted with the Japanese mechanic, and honestly…
Honestly, this was the most fun Yosetsu had had in years, and he didn't want it to end.
"So, what baby is next?" he asked the elven queen.
Momo Yaoyorozu had to admit, this was a nice change of pace.
After the insane three weeks that was the rest of her second mission into the Special Region, it was nice to simply parooze some quiet streets, without having to worry about insane cultists, labyrinths trapping her teammates, or Bakugou going rogue to kill some pirates.
Instead, she could simply relax, and admire the view of this city.
"Oy, Yaomomo! Look! They have ice cream!"
Momo perked up when she heard Kirishima's nickname for her. That meant they were friends, right? She wondered if she should also give him a nickname… perhaps…
"Kiri, what are you talking about?"
Nailed it.
"That elf over there! He's selling ice cream!"
Momo looked over to where her redhead friend was pointing, to see an elven man was indeed behind a stall, with several pointed-eared children surrounding said stall.
"I want sprinkles!"
"It's so cold and sweet!"
"Wonderful!"
Huh, I guess they are selling ice cream, Momo thought to herself. Looking over to Kirishima, he was silently staring at her, his eyes almost as big as a puppy's. Seriously?
Sighing, she pulled a coin out of her bag and gave it to him. "Go ahead."
"YAAAAAY! THANK YOU!"
The spiky red-haired man took the coin and rushed up to the stall, as Momo quietly followed behind him. She was curious about how they managed to recreate the frozen treat here…
As Kirishima finished up his order, Momo asked, "How was this accomplished?"
The vendor said, "Well, it's pretty fascinating, actually! One of the scientific journals Queen Hatsume published was that certain chemical compounds would freeze when added to water. So, that got me thinking, what would happen if I froze up some milk?"
Momo nodded along to what the man was saying. It made sense. Both calcium chloride and sodium chloride would reach freezing temperatures if water was added into the mix. So, it stood to reason that someone would experiment around with it to see what it could freeze. The vendor probably added sugar and a few other ingredients, and boom, ice cream.
"So, this is your idea entirely?" Momo asked.
"Ah, no. A few friends of mine also had a hand in some parts of it. One of them came up with the idea of an edible bowl, while the other added fruit on the side. Then one of my more business-savvy friends thought we could sell this, so he commissioned some carts."
The raven-haired woman nodded along to that. It was rare for any successful entrepreneur to have done everything on their own. Walt Disney had an entire army of animators, sound designers, distributors, and so much more for even one of his earliest cartoons.
Momo smiled at the sight before her. Sure, from the looks of it, they could only sell vanilla now, but with the scientific advancements and technological freedoms Hatsume was giving her citizens, she was sure they'd have several more flavors in no time.
"You know what? I'll have one, as well," Momo said, handing the elf a coin.
It was always a good idea to support small businesses, after all.
The two of them continued down the street, both of them with ice creams in their hands, Momo savored every single bit of ice cream that she scooped up with her wooden stick.
Kirishima, meanwhile…
"Mmm, so good!" the redhead said, as he wolfed down another spoonful. "So cold!"
"Don't eat it so fast," Momo chuckled. "You'll get a brain freeze."
"I ain't scared of no brain freeze!"
"Alright, alright, but be careful and try not to accidentally bite down on the stick. You could end up getting splinters on your tongue, and I certainly won't be pulling them out."
"Oh, yeah, good call. Maybe I'll just scoop it up and lick it, you know like a popsicle. I mean, the sticks do resemble the ones everyone back on Earth uses to hold them."
Momo had to agree on that front. The flat wooden sticks that came with their ice creams did indeed resemble the ones used for popsicles. That did actually make her wonder how long it would be before the elves thought of the idea of ice-cream-on-a-stick?
Ehh, questions for later, she thought, as she ate the cherry that came with hers.
"Sooo, you think the bowls can be eaten?" Kirishima asked.
"The vendor did say that they were edible," Momo said, as she examined her bowl. "But even if he didn't, I would say yes. Given their smell and texture, it's safe to say that the bowls holding our ice cream are indeed made out of some sort of hard, golden pastry."
"Oh, so they're waffle cones!"
"Close. I'd call them waffle bowls, but even then it's a stretch. Their structure is thicker and more rudimentary, plus, they lack the signature square patterns of actual waffles."
"Okay, so they haven't perfected their waffle bowl formula yet!"
"My thoughts exactly," Momo said. "Still, given time, I can safely say that they will get better at it. And who knows? Maybe they'll create the waffle cone while they're at it…"
"Ha-ha! Now that would be a future I would look forward to!" Kirishima smiled.
Momo couldn't help but smile alongside him.
"A digital camera?" Hatsume said, as she eyed the device. "How does it function?"
"It works the same way as the ones you have here, but instead of creating a physical photograph, they store the image on the camera itself, and you can print them later, if you want," Yosetsu said. "You can even record video on them, no film required –"
"REALLY?! You have got to show me how that works!"
"Indeed," Tenya agreed. "Such a method would alleviate production costs immensely!"
"You have got to tell me more about this!" Hatsume begged.
Yosetsu was more than happy to oblige.
"This is so fucking stupid," Katsuki growled.
"Shh!" Kendo shushed him.
The spiky blond had no idea what he did to deserve this. Actually, no, he did know. He led his subordinates on an unauthorized mission to save a musician's wife, and he would fucking do it again if given the chance. And Lieutenant Yaoyorozu had to deal with that in some way.
So, as punishment, and to ensure that he wouldn't pull another stunt like that, Katuski was currently being babysat by the power couple that was Kendo and Monoma.
And the two of them had decided to go on a movie date. Ugh.
Now, granted, Katsuki had nothing against romance, he was a married man himself. However, both him and Camie really didn't do this sort of thing. When it came to dates, they were more of the "climb a mountain" variety, rather than "watch some cheesy princess movie."
It also didn't help that the movie was in black and white.
"Why the fuck is this in grayscale?" Katsuki asked, as he grabbed another handful of popcorn. "We literally saw a live news broadcast two days ago that was in color."
"It's because the news broadcast was televised using magic crystals, while this movie was filmed on an actual camera," Monoma explained. "And quit hogging the popped corn!"
"I still refuse to call it that," the ash blond said.
"Too bad, you're not the one who invented it in this world," Monoma said.
"Shh! Both of you!" Kendo whispered.
Katsuki grumbled, as he kept his mouth shut, and watched the movie. Hopefully, it would be more creative than the garbage Hollywood was pumping out these days.
"So, fuel is removed when the percentage of neutron absorbing atoms becomes so large that a chain reaction can no longer be sustained and then is cooled for several years in on-site spent fuel pools before being transferred to long-term storage," Yosetsu said. "But yeah, through this, we potentially have a sustainable energy source that reduces carbon emissions!"
"That sounds amazing!" Mei squealed. "Nuclear power sounds so awesome!"
"Yeah, it is," the bandana-wearing soldier said, before his face turned serious. "But it also has the capability of doing a lot of bad… Chernobyl, Fukushima, Three Mile Island… those were all places that were harmed by nuclear power… and those were just accidents…"
Mei's pointed ears seemed to dip when she heard that. Even Tenya and the other two bodyguards were now paying attention. "Could you tell me what happened?"
Yosetsu was quiet for a moment, before he said, "Our world's first go at nuclear power was during a war. A big one. Soon after the discovery of the fission process, it was realized that a fissioning nucleus can induce further nucleus fissions, thus inducing a self-sustaining chain reaction. And governments all around the world wanted to weaponize it. One of them managed to do so, and… dropped their weapons on two of my nation's cities. It killed thousands."
The elven queen was silent, as the soldier continued.
"On paper, it seemed like the right call; the war ended in those moments, but… We discovered something new in the world. A potential new energy that could have provided free electricity to the poor, or help reduce pollution, but no, we thought of how to use it to kill each other first –"
Before he knew it, he felt Mei's arms wrapped around him.
"I'm so sorry."
Yosetsu didn't say anything for a few seconds, but then said, "I know that you really want to help your people advance further, but… could you do me one favor, Hatsume?"
"Yes?"
"Be better than we were."
"Of course," she said, letting him go. "Do you feel better now?"
"Heh. A bit," the spiky-haired mechanic said, wiping a few stray tears away. "I know it sounds kinda hypocritical to be a soldier while opposing certain weapons, but…"
"No, don't say that," the pink-haired elf said. "Your kind of thinking is the kind I want to do for my people. To create new technologies to help improve their lives, not to make them worse. Honestly, if anything, the way you talk, it's kind of inspiring."
"I, uhh… heh. Thanks, Hatsume."
"Please… call me Mei."
"Oh. Okay… then you can call me Yosetsu."
On the sixth day of their visit in the city of Summus, Momo and the rest of her crew were summoned to one of the bigger royal courtyards by Queen Hatsume.
"I hope you've all been enjoying your stay here," the pink-haired queen said.
"Indeed we have," Momo said. "But, we have to get back soon. We were supposed to return to our base by tomorrow, and people are going to begin asking questions…"
"Ah, yes! That's actually why I called you here! It should be arriving right about… now."
Momo and the others were confused at what she meant. Looking around, she didn't see anything. Just the grass, the nearby halls of the palace, and some big shadows…
"HOLY SHIT, WHAT THE FUCK?!"
Hearing Tsuburaba's scream of shock, Momo immediately looked towards where her meteorologist and several other members of her team were looking, only to see a…
Wait a minute… IS THAT A GIANT FUCKING BOAT?!
Descending from the skies above them was a wooden ship, like the kind explorers used to sail on during the olden days but… different. Sleaker. Maybe it was the fact that this ship was designed for the skies rather than the seas, but… it had some interesting additions.
For starters, both the front and lower sides of the port and starboard were decked out in these four massive blue crystals that were glowing, most likely the ones responsible for allowing this vessel to defy the laws of gravity. Aside from that, there were also giant crossbows planted into the wooden decks of the ships. Oh, and the underside of the hull came with wooden stilts.
The design itself is also interesting. The sails were to the side, and the colors of this ship, besides the base wooden brown, were a navy blue for the bottom of the hull, alongside red markings from top to bottom, and finally, a golden plating around the red and the edges.
All in all, a fantasy-looking ship, perfect for a fantasy world.
The ship landed in the middle of the courtyard with a gracious thud, as the giant blue crystals stopped glowing, while the elven team that was operating it stepped out, with mechanized wooden stairs popping out of the ship's port side to help them get off.
"Holy shit, that's amazing…" Uraraka whispered.
Momo had to agree with her on that one. Even if this vessel was never as fast as a plane, it would still allow someone to reach their destination faster than on foot. Wait…
"Is this… is this for us…?" the raven-haired woman asked Hatsume.
"Yep-yep! I had a few of my designers overhaul the bottom area of the ship in order to create a lower level to store your land vehicles in. It may have sacrificed a lot of the cabins, but you should all still be able to sleep if you share," Hatsume said. "So, whaddya think?"
"I… I don't know what to say… Why…?"
"Two reasons, actually," the eleven queen said. "I know for a fact that I'm the reason you wouldn't be able to make it back to your base by the time your superiors gave you, since you've been staying here per my request. I figured that this could help you get home faster."
"I see," Momo said. "And the second reason…?"
"I wanna ally with your nation."
The Japanese woman did a double-take when she heard that. "What?"
"You heard me correctly. I wanna ally with the nation of Japan," Hatsume said. "My time with your mechanic has been… amazing. I've learned so many new things. Plasma displays, three-dimensional printing, nuclear energy, the internet… so many amazing things. I know that in your pursuit of knowledge, your world has done some really bad things, but… with your hindsight, my people are going to make sure that we don't fall into the same pitfalls as you did. All while learning so much knowledge, that it'll take centuries for us to ever finish it."
Momo was silent for a bit. The idea of giving this woman information about the sciences and technologies of her world was… an interesting one, to say the least. Of course, there were things that were going to remain top secret, such as nuclear weapons and such, but… Hatsume didn't seem interested in those sorts of things. Everything Momo had seen within her kingdom, it was done for the betterment of her people. To live happier and easier lives.
And that was a cause that Momo Yaoyorozu could get behind.
"So, I take it that this ship also doubles as a demonstration of what you can do?"
The pink-haired elf nodded at that. "Yeah. I wanna show the Japanese government that my nation is a worthwhile ally. That by combining both my people's culture and magic and your world's advanced sciences… we all stand to make a change for the better."
"Hatsume, this is a generous gift…"
"Ah, ah, ah! I won't have any of that!" Hatsume said, wagging her finger. "I insist that you take this ship! And if it makes you feel any better, it's an older model, anyways."
The young lieutenant blinked at that. "It is?"
"Yeah, these days we are developing smaller ships, with plant-based organic frames, and powered by spirits," Hatsume said. "Way faster than this old relic over here."
Momo couldn't help but laugh at that. "Hahahaha! Okay, then! On behalf of the Japanese Self-Defense Force, I humbly accept this gift, and look forward to a future together!"
"Hell yeah, that's the spirit!" Hatsume said, slapping Momo's back.
As Yosetsu Awase watched everyone else packing their things into the massive from above in the palace veranda, he felt… content, for the first time in his life.
At first, he didn't know why, but ever since he began talking with Hatsume, he felt himself becoming less and less jaded. When he first met the elven queen, he was a bit intimidated by her, but slowly, as the days passed, he looked forward to seeing her talk.
Seeing such a brilliant woman in action, watching as she explained her newest invention, swapping ideas with her, it all made him feel so alive… and happy.
He wanted to stay here. With her.
When he was assigned to this mission, Yosetsu was a bit apathetic, maybe sour about the idea. After all, he was just a mechanic. What good would that be in a world where people could summon lightning at their fingertips and dragons flew above the skies?
And while hanging out with Rin and the Monsterfucker Duo was somewhat stressful, he had to admit, they made decent friends. Hell, his conversations with Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, Kirishima and even Shield were nice, it really didn't compare to when he was with Hatsume.
Call it desertion, but Yosetsu wanted to stay here. Maybe he could convince Yaoyorozu to let him stay? That was for later. Right now, he needed to talk to Mei.
Walking into the room with the veranda, Yosetsu's eyes widened at Mei's beautiful dress. It was still the same blue and white dress adorned with golden jewelry, and while nowhere near as good-looking as her inventor outfit, it was still a work of art to the mechanic's eyes.
"So," she started. "You and the others will be heading out soon."
"Yeah, they will," Yosetsu said. "But… I don't think I want to go with them."
"What? Like, you want to stay here?"
"Yeah, I do," Yosetsu said. "Mei, you're amazing. You're a genius inventor, even without recreating things that already existed in my world, you're super nice, and great to be around! These past six days have been amazing, and… I think… I think I might love you…"
The mechanic stayed silent, as Mei opened her mouth. "Yosetsu…"
"Yeah?"
"I already have a boyfriend."
Yosetsu could feel his heart plummet and shatter as he heard that.
Fuck. He didn't see that one coming. Wasn't royalty supposed to have some kind of official courtship? Now that he thought about it, would he even be allowed to date her? Shit.
He needed to salvage this quickly.
"As a sibling! I meant as a sibling!" he lied. "Or like a really good friend!"
"Oh! That's what you mean!" Mei gasped. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to assume…"
"No, it's perfectly fine! I should have worded that better…"
"Yeah, that one's on you…"
Yosetsu tried to ignore the sting of that comment. "So, uh… who's the lucky guy?"
"Oh, it's Tenya!"
"Your knight?" In hindsight, that actually made sense. He was constantly guarding her, so they had plenty of time together. Yosetsu really should have seen that one coming…
"Yeah, he's great! But we're trying to keep our relationship private, for the time being," Mei said. "Anyways, you were saying something about not wanting to leave here…?"
"Uh, I mean, yeah! This place is… great… so great…" the bandana-wearing man said. "But, I know that the rest of my squad needs me, and I would be a fish out of water here, so…"
"Yeah, I don't think it would have worked out," Mei said. "I mean, with how long we elves live, it would have been something like how long you humans live compared to dogs…"
If you listened closely, you could hear Yosetsu Awase's happiness slowly die right there.
"But yeah, we can be friends!" Mei smiled, as she offered her hand.
Yosetsu smiled as he took her hand. "Yeah. Friends."
"Okay, you're good, you're good, you're good… and stop!"
Momo watched silently as Komori instructed Kodai in parking the last of the LAVs into the inside of the ship. Good enough park job until they arrived back to the base.
"Is that everything?" Sato asked.
"I believe so," Kaibara said. "Is there anything else we need to do?"
"Just make sure that we don't leave anyone behind," Rin said.
Momo nodded at what the team zoologist said. She knew that Monoma, Kendo and Bakugou were with Kirishima on deck, Aoyama and Uraraka were here with herself and Melissa, and Tsuburaba was still by Kaibara's side, which only left… oh, he was coming now.
"Ah, Mousier Awase," Aoyama said. "How was your farewell to Queen Hats–"
"I don't wanna talk about it," Awase said, as he marched towards the ship.
Komori didn't look convinced. "Uhhh, are you alright, dude?"
"Yeah, perfectly fine. Let's just get out of here already."
"Okaaay…" Melissa said. "Well, that happened."
Yep. There was definitely a story there. But that was for later.
Right now, it was time for them to go home.
After making sure that everyone and everything was on board, Momo had Kendo man the wheel of the ship, as the blue crystals began to glow, sending them into the sky.
Looking down from the palace courtyard, Momo could see Queen Hatsume and her royal staff waving them good-bye, which she and the rest of the SREU more than reciprocated.
Flying far overhead of the palace and out of the city, seeing everything from a bird's eye view was kind of amazing. Sure, Momo had seen out of the window of a plane before, but this brought a whole new perspective to it all. And to top it all off…
"WHOO-HOO!!!"
…watching Melissa fly like a gracious bird was worth every second of this trip.
Melissa Shield smiled, as she felt the wind blowing past her hair.
It had been a while since she was able to spread her wings like this, to fly this high up. In fact, it hadn't happened ever since she was cast out of the upper planes by her creator… The day she met Momo and the rest of the Special Region Exploration Unit.
Shaking her head, Melissa reminded herself that it didn't matter now. She was her own person, now free to do whatever she wished. She would help Momo and her squad on their missions, and then she would make her way towards the edge of the continent, back to him.
Cruising alongside the flying ship, Melissa smiled as she saw that everyone was enjoying their first time flying through the skies. Even that sourpuss Bakugou had a soft smile on his face.
However, there was one person that seemed to be brooding.
Awase.
She may not have known what had happened within those palace walls before they left, but Melissa had enough of a woman's intuition to make an educated guess.
Lowering herself back down to the deck of the ship, she landed gracefully, before she walked up towards the spiky-haired mechanic, who was simply staring out into the view.
Placing her hands on top of the wooden railing like he did, she asked, "You good?"
Awase didn't say anything for a bit, before he asked, "Did Yaoyorozu put you up to this?"
"No, actually. I'm doing this out of my own free will."
The bandana-wearing soldier simply hummed, not saying anything else.
"Okay, I know I might not seem like the best person to talk to you right now, but I can kinda relate to what you're going through," the angelic blonde said.
Awase looked up to her. "Really?"
"Kinda. I may have never been rejected, but I do know what it's like to be hit with such a big curveball in life. When I was younger, I thought that doing my job was all that mattered. But then, I fell in love and was cast out. My entire world was turned upside down."
"Oh, yeah? And how did you manage?"
"I met a bunch of people. A stoic woman with black hair, a manly dude who wants to make everyone happy, an angry blond with a soft side, and a bandana-wearing dude who's one of the smartest guys I know. And I'm happy to call all of them my friends."
Awase was quiet for a few moments, before he chuckled. "Thanks, Shield."
"Anytime, Awase."
Mirio Togata walked out of the tavern, and walked towards the outside of town, where Nejire and Tamaki were waiting for him. "So, are we ready to go?" the blue-haired witch asked.
The blond warrior nodded. According to his calculations, it would take them at least two months on foot to get from where they were to the capital of Daemonium; more than enough time to train and get stronger, before they eventually reached the end of the continent.
"Then we should get going…" the elven archer said.
"Yeah," Mirio said, gripping One For All's hilt. Yagi Toshinori gave him this sword to fulfill his mission. Hisashi Shigaraki may be gone, but as long as his son was sitting on that throne, the world would never be at peace. It was the duty of Mirio and his party to end this.
"Let's go kill ourselves a Demon King."
Author's Note: Sorry, Awase.
Anyways, for those wondering, the ice cream came from Goblin Slayer, the movie theater from Disenchantment, and the flying boat from Vox Machina. Those are all of the references I feel like talking about, so you can guess for the others. Comment time!
Shin: Okay, sooo… Awase may not have gotten completely jinxed when he teamed up with Hatsume, depending on your point of view. I've never heard of Thundarr the Barbarian, but the premise does sound a bit interesting. Glad to see you had fun with your D&D sessions, I usually crack jokes at mine as well, calling the warforged cleric in our party the Terminator, and having my character overall acting like he was isekai'd.
KaoriA (Guest): Awesome, a new reader! I am interested in how you stumbled across my story, perhaps you were using specific tags, or saw that I was promoting it on one platform or another? Regardless, I'm glad to see you enjoying the story so far, especially with the setting I've created. Getting into the writing mood is pretty hard, yeah, but once you get into the flow, you're set. I hope you enjoy everything that's coming soon!
VinHD15: Ohhh… sorry for destroying this prospective ship. I would try to comfort you, but the truth is, I haven't written anything about the Chaos Corps getting any, sooo… hopefully you'll be satisfied with the main ships that are coming soon?
Ashxdream (Guest): Oh, sweet! Another newcomer! Glad you found this good! And yeah, it sucks that Kota lost his parents again, but trust me, between what happens to him in this story and towards his counterpart in Megethos, I think he'll be fine.
MuffinMcGuffin: Glad to see you've caught up! In all honesty, the whole GATE thing was just a way to allow a crew of modern-day people to find magical Skull Island, but I'm still glad to get so many positive reviews. And I think you're gonna like what happens to our characters next time (it involves Tartarus, mercenaries, and a couple wars).
Quanto: Yeah, Mei making machines was pretty much a given here.
As a special announcement, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 22: Aizawa's Horrible, Very Bad Day
Summary:
The SREU has come back from their month-long expedition once again, only this time around, they do so in style. Well, from their perspective, at least. To Shouta Aizawa, when he saw the flying boat, it almost gave him a heart attack. It seemed like it was time once more to listen to whatever insanity Yaoyorozu and her team got themselves into this time...
Chapter Text
Chapter 22: Aizawa's Horrible, Very Bad Day
WHAT IN GOD'S NAME?!
Shouta was just walking outside of his office with his mid-morning coffee, when he saw A GIANT FUCKING BOAT FLOATING DOWN FROM THE FUCKING SKY!
"First the angel and now this?!" Shouta shouted. "What's next, a dragon?!"
It was at that moment that Shouta Aizawa threw his hands in the air. This shit might have been ridiculous, but at least some of the Colibus Hills budget was spent on those anti-aircraft missiles. But that didn't mean much when the flying boat was armed with giant harpoons.
Speaking of, why wasn't it shot down the moment it was spotted?
Then his answer came in the form of Momo fucking Yaoyorozu walking towards him with Nemuri and Hizashi, while the giant boat was now being unloaded of LAVs.
Yaoyorozu saluted at him. "General Aizawa –"
"Meet me in my office in four minutes," he quickly said, before turning around. "I can't deal with this shit without my coffee. And maybe lots and lots of alcohol."
"Sir? You requested me?" Yaoyorozu said, as she entered Shouta's office. "It's been four minutes. I'm ready to give my report. Sir? Are you still mad about… that?"
Shouta glared at her while drinking his coffee. Eventually, he opened his mouth.
"YES…" he said, with as much venom as he could. "We almost launched anti-aircraft missiles at you. But to be honest, what would you expect? We are a military base, not a bar that you can just walk in on… especially not while commanding a flying giant boat in the sky."
"Well, we did think of that possibility. So we radioed in ahead of time with General Kayama. We also made sure to land outside of the base, so you wouldn't shoot us."
Aizawa's eyes started to twitch at that.
I t was an hour before Shouta went outside for his usual morning walk.
"Hey Shouta, I need to tell you something," Nemuri said, entering his office.
"What?" he asked, not taking his eyes off his coffee.
"Uhh… shit, I forgot," Nemuri hissed. "Well if I don't remember it then it's not that important."
If Nemuri wasn't the same rank as him, Shouta would have made her do the dishes for a month.
"Sir…? My report?"
Aizawa could have snapped his head at the speed he moved his head towards Yaoyorozu.
"Go on please," he said with a forced smile, as he went back to drinking his coffee.
"The first major incident we had was about a week into our mission, when several of my team stumbled across an underground maze, which wasn't abandoned, only looked like it was."
"Oh well that doesn't sound too bad. You guys were trained for exploring mazes."
Yaoyorozu nodded. "Yes, that was good fortune. Just like how it also happened to be good fortune that the minotaur we encountered was friendly!"
"Hmmm, that's good so far," Aizawa said, trying to ignore the fact about the minotaur. I mean, he knows that gods were real and that there are giant snakes so yeah, that's normal nowadays?
"Her name was Pony Tsunotori, and her guardian happened to be the former chieftess of the underground minotaur village. Unfortunately, as soon as she noticed our weapons, she begged us to save her people from some… monster."
"And you guys denied her right?" Aizawa said hopefully, but he already knew what the answer was. They were a military of a foreign government, they couldn't interfere with –
"Unfortunately, we couldn't. She recognized what guns were, sir. She knew what we were capable of because of them, and was under the impression we were summoned heroes."
Aizawa let out a groan. "Couldn't you guys just shoot her? I have to write down reports about your exploits, and give them to the higher-ups, and that's harder than it sounds."
"Sir, I know you're in a bad mood, but what you suggested is still murder, possibly an assassination, and it would mean leaving her people defenseless against the monster."
"Right, sorry."
"As it turns out, the minotaurs were being terrorized by some blue-horned cyclops, who was scaring them away from their main fishing grounds," Yaoyorozu continued explaining.
"And you guys decided that fighting a monster that allegedly scared off minotaurs, like the ones from the old Greek myths, was a good idea, because…?" Shouta asked, his tone dead serious.
"Because we weren't the first Earthlings that had arrived there. Apparently, a long time ago, some Texan got isekai'd here, and his gun was what made him a hero to the minotaurs. When they saw us, they thought we were the second coming of their savior."
"What is this, Konosuba?" Shouta grumbled to himself. "Also, the fact that there could be other humans from our world stranded in this one should be researched some more."
"My thoughts exactly," the black-haired woman said. "We made an agreement that if we dealt with their monster problem, some of them would arrive in the town you've been building here for the last month to answer some of your questions."
Shouta had to give her credit, Yaoyorozu knew how to hustle.
"To make the long story short, as it turned out, bullets didn't exactly kill Minotaurus. He had some defensive magic on him, and was pretty tough, overall. "
"Ahh, I see. That's where you guys ran away, right?"
"No, Bakugou charged at it with a pack of C4, screaming bloody murder."
Because of course he did. "Was he off his meds?"
"No, he did it at my command," the younger soldier told her superior. "He set the explosion off, and we were able to see its body glitching, like he came out of a video game with bad graphics. The only thing that stayed solid was the medallion around its neck."
"Hmm, I guess that you came to the conclusion that it was its weakness."
"That's what we figured. We managed to get the medallion off of its neck during a divebomb, breaking the illusion," the black-haired lieutenant said. "The giant blue cyclops with horns was gone, and in its place was… a gnome, with some purple curly hair."
How did…? Shouta quickly shook his head. "Just go on."
He was too baffled to say anything else, nor ask any further questions.
"The gnome got lost in the maze, and ended up using his medallion to scare away the minotaurs," Lieutenant Yaoyorozu said. "Once they realized they were duped, they strung him up, and my crew ended up taking him with us towards the exit."
"If you can, I'd like to meet the gnome later," Shouta said.
"Already done, sir. He let out some sob story about how no one treated him seriously when he was small, and that he wasn't going to hurt anyone. I told him to come here and get his life in order," the raven-haired soldier said, adding, "His name is Minoru Mineta, by the way."
"Oh, he will get his life in order alright."
"Anyway, our next… misadventure occurred at the magical capital of the continent, Yueei-Shiketsu City," Yaoyorozu explained. "According to Melissa, there are only three entire cities that are either dedicated to the studies of magic, or inhabited only by magic users in the whole world, and we just happened to visit the one on this continent."
"Hmmm…" Aizawa seemed to think about something for a while and then he said, "Is there a chance for people of our world to learn magic or did you guys not manage to get an answer?"
"Oh, we managed to get answers, all right. We spent the first half of the day learning all we could about magic. Monoma can copy magic, Uraraka can manipulate gravity, Kodai can use some healing spells, Bakugou can let off explosions, and Aoyama can fire off lasers."
"Hmmm, good the more power you guys get the less I have to worry about…" Shouta cut himself off before he could finish that sentence. "That is great… We will send a special team to try and establish further contact with the mages. How did your stay go?"
"I would advise you to take some precautionary measures," Yaoyorozu said. "We learned the hard way that these sorts of cities are breeding grounds for cults."
Shouta seemed to shiver at that, with his eyes glazed. He knew what it was like to deal with fanatics. Shaking himself, he said, "We will heed your advice."
"The good news is, there is one less cult in that particular city, mostly due to the fact that our appearance miiiiight have had something to do with their destruction."
Shouta groaned. "How much?"
"How much what?" Yaoyorozu played dumb.
"How much property damage did you guys cause?"
"We only destroyed one catacomb! But in terms of dead cultists… all of them."
Aizawa seemed to wait for a sec and then he spit out his coffee and started coughing.
"How many?"
"All of them," she blankly said. "They all got killed."
"How?"
"Apparently, they had been kidnapping civilians from the past few weeks, forcing them to drink the blood of some ancient dead Demon Lord. They all resulted with the victims' bodies exploding from the inside out, and blood seeping from their bodies," Yaoyorozu exposited. "Then they kidnapped Sato. We searched for him, and busted into their lair, fought them, and then watched a cultist force the blood down his throat. The good news is, it didn't kill him!"
"And the bad news?"
"He grew four eyes, sharp teeth, long hairy legs, and basically became a giant-sized monster whose sole desire was to murder everything. So, we ended up fighting a war on two fronts. We had to take care of the cultists, without getting killed by Sato."
"Is… is he alright?" Shouta asked.
"Kodai was able to restore his body after Bakugou blew the entire place sky high. There won't be any serious downsides for the remainder of his life. The rest of us were also able to make it out of there alive, albeit we had help from a stranger."
"Why didn't you guys come back as soon as that happened for a check up?" Shouta asked. "For all we know you guys might have gotten a disease or worse gotten cursed!"
"Sir, Kodai is an expert in the field of medicine without her newfound magic, both she and Melissa are capable of reviving the dead every now and then, so we were fine. Also, the mentality amongst the crew is that we're some sort of suicide squad to test if this world is safe or not, so we're kind of not expecting to come back unless our one month time limit is up."
Aizawa seemed to flinch at those words. "You're right, Lieutenant," he said in a blank voice. "Sorry for getting panicked, I wasn't being rational."
"It's fine. But yes, in summary, that was the first two weeks of the mission."
"What happened next?" he said still in that blank voice.
"We decided to go north. Up there, we reached a coastal city, whose main economic strengths seem to be their seafood and that their docks happen to be traveled by ships from various continents, making it a strong economic hub," Yaoyorozu continued.
"Hmmm… did you manage to mark the location?"
"We did, it's on the north center of the map," the black-haired soldier said. "The unique terrain around it allows it to have a Mediterranean climate."
"Hmmmm… quite unusual."
"Yes, quite. I decided that the team would split up into various groups, and we would gather information, attempt to recruit some of the locals, and overall, relax a bit."
"Hmmm… let me guess," Shouta said with a sigh. "Did something happen?"
"Yes, but this time, it was not my fault,"
"Yeah… right," he said, giving her a blank look that said "Yeah, I believe you."
"No, seriously, it was an unauthorized mission that happened behind my back," Yaoyorozu said. "If you want to blame anyone, it's Bakugou, Kirishima, Melissa, Kodai, and Aoyama."
"And please remind me of your role, Lieutenant," Shouta said.
Yaoyorozu seemed to shrink at that. "I won't leave them alone unsupervised again, sir…"
"As you should," Shouta said, nodding. "So what happened?"
"The five of them were out and about, doing their jobs, when they heard a cry for help."
"That they should have ignored…" Shouta grumbled, before adding, "I'm going to have a talk with all of your team an hour after this report is done."
"Actually, sir, in this case, it was a good thing they heeded the call," Yaoyorozu said, defending her team. "Someone was actually in distress, and they checked it out."
"And I'm sure that it put your team in a situation with all of your lives at risk."
"How did you know?"
He gave her an "Are you serious?" look.
"Anyway, the cry for help belonged to a local, a bard by the name of Denki Jiro. He and his wife, Kyoka, were musicians who sang for various clubs in the city. They also happened to be a mixed-race couple, with Denki being a human, and Kyoka being a merfolk."
Aizawa had the image of a yellow rat listening to music with an MP3 player, before shaking his head. He still needed to act like he gave a damn about this shit. "Hmmm… go on."
"His wife was abducted by pirates, sir. Sadly, merfolk are one of the highest sought-after races in the black market," Yaoyorozu said.
"And why is that?"
"A number of reasons. Their beautiful singing voices, their natural beauty, the idea that some of their body parts can work as medicine, multiple reasons," she explained.
Shouta nodded along at what Yaoyorozu said. "Hmmmm… we need to keep this part a secret so, tell your little group of renegades to not tell anyone else about it."
"Too late, sir. We all found out about their little "rescue mission" because the idiots forgot to turn off the new body cameras you provided us with," Yaoyorozu said.
"Great," Shouta grumbled, putting his hand on his face. "Now we need to worry about people trying to bring back slavery or capture otherworldly creatures…"
"Yes. Since Bakugou was the one in command, he initially denied Jiro's plea for help, despite Kirishima and Melissa's protests. But then, Jiro added something in his last plea."
Aizawa's left eye twitches after hearing that. "Why didn't they listen to Bakugou? He for once used his brain and everyone ignored it."
"Well, apparently, not for long. As it turns out, Kaminari's wife also happened to be pregnant. So, he said something along the lines of "please save my child/family," Bakugou did an instant one-eighty, and was ready to burn and slay the kidnappers."
Aizawa facepalmed. "So he has a hero complex…?"
"You might want to check his file. Anyway, they rented a gondola, and secretly infiltrated the pirates' stronghold on some man-made island a bit out of the port," the Yaoyorozu continued the story. "They also managed to fight off some pirates and crabs, while they were at it."
"If I didn't know any better I would have thought you guys were making things up…"
"Bakugou and his team were almost successful at rescuing Kyoka, but at the last minute, the ship they commandeered was stopped dead in the water. From there, they were caught and boarded by the pirates, a bunch of aquatic demi-humans, and their captain."
Aizawa only blinked and started thinking of ways to teach them a lesson.
"From the recordings I saw, the captain… was an unpleasant character. He was an orca-like demi-human, extremely tough, an expert with the sword, and cruel. I think the men nicknamed him "Gang Orca," after they all watched the recordings."
"You know I usually question myself how you guys survive all of this most of the time…"
"It's usually dumb luck. But in this case, someone rescued the rescue team."
"And who was that?" Shouta asked, with narrowed eyes.
"Two individuals. The first one was some pirate vigilante named Tsuyu Asui, who accompanied the team, as she was planning to save some trafficked demi-humans. She's actually a bullywug, and good with a sword, given how she fought the pirates," Yaoyorozu said.
Shouta scratched his chin, thinking. "Hmmmm… maybe we can invite her to join us... It would take a lot to convince the higher-ups, but having someone like her would be good."
"The second individual was some masked woman who also helped us rescue Sato from the cultists last week. Pink skin, yellow horns, a mask, but I could see her yellow eyes from behind the mask. Incredibly dangerous with a spear," Yaoyorozu said.
"Hmmm… The locals had informed us of a person like her loitering around the base when your team was here, but most of the people thought of her as a rumor."
"Kirishima didn't say anything, but I saw his face. He looked like he saw a ghost."
Shouta nodded along to that. "Hmmm… he needs to be questioned later."
"Yes, sir. Regardless, everyone managed to escape before sinking the pirate ship, while the masked woman disappeared. Bakugou also ordered the reunited couple to pack their belongings, get carriage, and come to base, saying they could start a new life there."
Shouta sighed. "I will have the paperwork ready, but you just put a target on our heads… well, a bigger target than we already have, given who we're dealing with."
"Understood, sir. Side note, has there been a hospital established yet?" Yaoyorozu asked. "Or are we planning on moving them to a Japanese hospital when the child arrives?"
"We are working on a facility near the "New Home" project, for this sort of thing."
"Understood. Shall I continue?"
Shouta nodded. "Yes, go on."
"For the final week of the mission, we decided to head south, as the map we acquired said we would be going to a nation of elves by the name of Dryadalis," she clarified.
"And how did that turn out, Lieutenant?" he asked.
"We immediately faced complications when we reached the capital city of Summus, and were blocked off by the local guard for not having the proper paperwork."
"You should've just come back home or gone the other way at that."
"Actually, it turned out good for us."
Shouta paused at that, before asking, "How so?"
"We were immediately taken to their queen, Mei Hatsume. Apparently, she was the one responsible for the concept of identification paperwork within the region," the Yaoyorozu girl said. "In fact, she is single-handedly responsible for starting an industrial revolution within the elven kingdom, and she wanted to see the technology we had with us.."
"Wait, you guys had your guns with you, didn't you?"
The younger soldier nodded. "Yes. She instantly recognized what they were, and how they functioned, along with the rest of our equipment. She's made some herself."
"Great, what's next? Is she gonna make nukes?" Shouta asked sarcastically. "We had to deal with magic and now this…"
"Sir, their capital city was amazing. Cobbled roads, lamp posts on the streets, printed press, indoor plumbing, glass windows, elevators! They even had ice cream!"
"Ice cream? Are we sure they hadn't somehow stolen human tech before?"
"NO! Those were all Hatsume's ideas! To these people, she's a genius! She managed to combine magic and science to make all of this! The only person in the group who could understand what she was saying half the time was Awase!"
Shouta was taken by surprise over Yaoyorozu's enthusiasm. "O-okay…?"
"Sir, she figured out we came from the gate just from how we looked and talked alone. She spent the last few centuries learning all she could, and when her parents died, she immediately overhauled her entire kingdom," the black-haired woman said.
Shouta thought over what that meant. "Hmm… we may be able to advance our own technological systems if we manage to come in contact with them."
"Well, then it's a good thing that she initiated first contact! She spent the entire week with Awase, and this airship we have was a gift from her," Yaoyorozu said. "She wants an alliance with us, and this is the sort of thing she's offering us, as a start."
"Hmmm… go on?"
"Sir, the only reason the Imperials haven't dragged off all the elves as slaves already is because Hatsume's inventions are keeping them away, for now. She knows that the Emperor uses information blackouts to keep his control, and she wants our two nations to work together to keep him from gobbling up any more territories," Yaoyorozu said.
"Ugh… I was afraid you were going to say something like that."
"Sir?"
"What I'm going to say is classified, Lieutenant," Shouta said. "After the Musutafu Incident and the SREU's first official report, the Japanese government has been debating how to deal with this… new world. Option A is to attempt and engage in diplomatic meetings with the Special Region's governments, including the Empire. Option B is to send all of us back to Japan, seal the gate, and pretend that it never existed. And then there's… Option C."
"What's that?"
"Scorched Earth. An army with the sole task of destroying the Special Region."
Yaoyorozu remained silent at that.
"Surprised? I was too," Shouta said. "Sadly, Lieutenant, we are a military force beholden to the government. We have to take care of all problems as efficiently as possible."
"Doesn't this seem… excessive?" Yaoyorozu asked.
"In any normal situation, yes. However, we're dealing with evil otherworldly magical beings who can destroy continents and bring back the dead with just a few words."
"Evil…?"
"Oh, so you haven't heard of them?"
"Heard of who, sir?" Momo asked.
"You guys might be our first exploration team, but we've deployed others to every place you've visited trying to gain more information," Shouta said. "Some rumors your friends Uwabami and Hagakure have heard of are about some maniacs seeking to turn this entire continent into a wasteland. Naturally, it freaked every politician and military man back in Japan."
"Oh… so… how's Uwabami doing?"
"That information is classified."
"Let me guess: She moved here?"
If by "moving here" you mean "prodded with medical tools to understand how she works," then I suppose that's a yes, Shouta thought to himself. "You could say that."
"I see," Yaoyorozu said. "Well, if that's all, my report has ended, sir."
"Understood, Lieutenant. You're dismissed."
As she walked out of the door, Yaoyorozu looked back. "Oh, sir… I have a question."
Shouta raised an eyebrow at that. "A question?"
"Why did you insist on us to run away most of the time whenever I give you these reports? We're soldiers, fighting is part of the job description," the black-haired girl said.
Shouta Aizawa didn't answer Yaoyorozu, as his mind had drifted elsewhere.
He remembered arguing with the Prime Minister at not sending Yaoyorozu and her initial team into the unknown. He didn't care if anyone above him thought he was sentimental just because Yaoyorozu was his personal student. They were in their twenties, all of them. They all had their whole lives ahead of them, they shouldn't risk them in some completely unknown territory.
Despite that, he couldn't argue with orders from above him. Every single member of the SREU had graduated from basic training. Soldiers ready to be used by government officials who never liked showing their faces, just hiding behind the facade of national pride.
Truth be told, no one in the country would truly care if any of those kids died. With the exception of the daughter of the Yaoyorozu conglomerate, none of their families would be a serious threat to the JSDF within the court of law or public opinion. A simple visit to their next of kin, a line of "They died a hero," and life would move on. There would be someone else to replace them on the Special Region Exploration Unit. New soldiers were being trained in Latin, after all.
It wasn't right, but Shouta didn't have lots of options. He couldn't leak anything to the public. All they would care about would be the angels, monsters, magic, elves, not about the young soldiers risking their lives out there. It wouldn't help change anything.
Shouta may have been a general now, but he was still just another soldier, just another tool of the government. As was Hizashi, and Nemuri, and… so was Oboro.
He remembered when he and Oboro were younger. Deployed off to the coast of Somalia to deal with pirates. It was a joint effort along with the militaires of several other countries, including China, Australia, Ukraine, South Korea, and even a few members of NATO.
On paper, it sounded like a good cause. Protecting ships with relief supplies for nations who needed it from pirate attacks sounded like a valid reason to use military force.
But that was when Shouta Aizawa was still a young idealistic idiot.
One of the missions required ground troops to escort a destroyer from the Maritime Self-Defense Force, and Shouta's squad was up. A few previously successful missions and recently promoted to First Lieutenant, Shouta felt like he was invincible that day.
He was dead wrong.
He should have seen that ambush coming. You couldn't exactly tell who was the enemy and who was just a civilian, not until they shot you in the back. Shouta and the rest of his squad should have died that day, but… a real hero was made that day in the form of Oboro.
He kept on fighting, inspiring everyone else who was on his knees to keep fighting, too. There were explosions, rubble flying, Shouta couldn't remember what had happened that day clearly. His body only cared about keeping him alive, and then… it was over.
His squad had won, but… not everyone made it out alive.
The smile on Oboro's body was something that would stay with Shouta forever.
Oboro saved everyone that day, and he didn't even get posthumous recognition from the higher-ups. He was just another number. Another person to throw into the meat grinder.
Many years had passed, and Shouta moved up the ranks, along with Hizashi and Nemuri. But he had become a pessimistic ass after everything he had seen after Oboro's death. Politicians caring more about reputation over duty, officers in other's pockets, it all made him miserable…
But then came Momo Yaoyorozu.
When he first met her in basic training all those years ago, he thought it was some sort of bad joke. The daughter of one of the wealthiest families in Japan, deciding to become a grunt? He figured she'd be out of there by the end of the day. But instead… she persevered.
She had talent. Wherever she didn't she honed in her skills. But the thing that intrigued Shouta most was the reason she joined… She just wanted to make the world a better place.
She could have gone into law. Or politics. Even education. All of those would have let her help others, too, but she preferred to get her hands dirty the old-fashioned way.
"No reason, no reason at all," he lied. "Just the paranoia of an old man."
Yaoyorozu didn't seem fully convinced, but she still nodded at what he said.
As she closed the door behind her, Shouta Aizawa vowed that he wouldn't let his prized student die. He wouldn't let anyone in the SREU be murdered in this hostile world.
He wouldn't let another Oboro Shirakumo happen. Not on his watch.
Within the halls of the Demon King's castle, Kurogiri sneezed.
He wasn't sure what caused it, considering that he wasn't cleaning anything, so no dust could have gone into his nose. Perhaps someone was talking about him? It was possible.
He knew that Kuroiro wanted to be promoted, despite the fact that he was a member of one of the most powerful inner circles in the world. Perhaps the dark elf simply wanted to prove himself better than the shadow demon. That would explain his odd work ethic and eagerness to use the shadow demons the young master granted both himself and the dark elf.
Perhaps it was his liege. When Kurogiri informed him that Melissa Shield was spotted at Yuuei-Shiketsu City, he demanded every detail, and once it was confirmed that she was indeed traveling with those JSDF soldiers, the Collibus Hills was indeed the most likely location of their base. And it would explain why young Izuku would mention his name: He was the one who explained to him just who exactly the Japanese Self-Defense Force was.
Even decades later, his old life as Oboro Shirakumo was still helpful to him.
Author's Note: And with that, the second arc has concluded.
So. Both of these arcs have basically given you a rundown of all the background characters within this lovely fantasy world, all while sprinkling crumbs in the background. Now that that's done all that's left is the rest and relaxation episode, and then the real story can begin, featuring the Todoroki Royal Family, the Demon King and the Hero, and the true villains of this story, regardless of what world they're from.
Shin: I was actually expecting a bigger reaction from the readers on what happened to poor Awase, but I guess one person's reaction is still better than none. Yeah, the ice cream scene was totally lifted from Goblin Slayer, I literally said it during my last notes. Also, I will be doing my best to keep dropping more scenes between Mirio the Hero and Izuku the Demon King in the background, because both of them are gonna play big roles in less than twenty chapters from now. I might watch Thundarr at some point, too.
valkrus: Fixed all the typos. And you will see more of this story, I promise.
Honey- (Guest): Glad you find this to be that good! Anyways, here's what happened in this chapter, the reader now understands why Aizawa is such a mess! Yay!
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 23: Rest and Relaxation
Summary:
The SREU are enjoying their time back at the base, while the rest of the world schemes. From the President of the United States, to the owners of the biggest Japanese companies, to the Todoroki children and the agents of the Demon King. It seems like everyone is ready to make their move, and they all involve the Collibus Hills...
Chapter Text
Chapter 24: Rest and Relaxation
Pony Tsunotori walked up to the first green men she saw. "Greetings, friend! I am here to repay a debt on behalf of your leader, the Arm of Fire by the name of Momo Yaoyorozu!"
The two green men stared at her in silence for a few seconds.
"Did she not tell you? Perfectly understandable, she is quite a busy woman from what I could tell!" the minotaur said. "Well, to put it in the simplest terms, Lady Momo and her allies liberated the fishing grounds of my home village from a terrifying monster, and, in gratitude, a portion of my people have come to help build this magnificent city of yours!"
Still nothing from the two men.
"I, uh… the people I have brought with me will be arriving within the hour! I simply went ahead to check things out here… make sure everything's ready. We promise to work hard…"
It was only then did the soldiers decide to speak.
"Hey, Shindo, am I seeing what I think I'm seeing?"
"A cowgirl speaking gibberish? Yeah, you are, man."
"Huh. Weird."
Momo Yaoyorozu looked at the initial buildings with a bit of pride.
After her report to Aizawa was completed, she and the rest of her team were given some time off for the week to head back to Japan and spend time with their families and friends (or in Momo's case, to go shopping), but when they came back… they were kinda grounded.
For the next two weeks or so, the Special Region Exploration Unit was forced to stay at the Collibus Hills base. Apparently, according to Aizawa, the higher-ups wanted to make sure that the other teams secured the previously visited territories first before the SREU could head out again. But in Momo's humble opinion, that was, as Bakugou would put it, bullshit.
First, aside from the nearby wilderness inhabited by the likes of Uwabami and Hagakure, the majority of the places the SREU visited over the last two months were practically impossible to reach, for various reasons. The first, and most obvious, was distance.
The continent of Occidens was roughly the size of Europe. Technically, it was slightly bigger, as the continent itself was roughly in the shape of an isosceles triangle pointing towards the west, so it was more or less able to cover most of Europe if placed on a map.
It took Momo and her team a little less than a month to go from the center base of that triangle in the east, all the way to the bottom of the continent, or, at the left side of the triangle, where the Kingdom of Dryadalis, taking in account all of the stops they did during that trip.
Hell, the only way they made it back to the Collibus Hills on time was by using a literal airship, and even then, they didn't stop for any brakes; they flew on straight through the night.
So, just trying and stationing soldiers in Hatsume's elf kingdom alone was somewhat of a tall order, even if the pink-haired queen was more than willing to ally herself with Japan. Another two thought experiments were Yuuei-Shiketsu City and Portus City.
Yueei-Shiketsu was somehow easier to deal with, despite the fact that it was literally hidden from those who didn't know the password. Assuming that Momo handed the JSDF the password to the city, there was still the matter that it was an independent territory. None of the four big nations had any military presence within the city, not even the Todoroki Empire.
And that made sense given that it was a Magical Capital, and the only one located on the continent. It was a central hub of magic, in terms of both the academic pursuit of it, and the commercial use. They somewhat had a monopoly on the trade secrets of magic itself, so none of the nations were stupid enough to try and take over the place.
Sure, it was kind of weird. It would be the equivalent of Kyoto University claiming sovereignty independently from the nation of Japan just because it was that good of a college, but in the case of Yueei-Shiketsu, they could actually back up that claim. So all the JSDF could really do was visit the area every now and then, and maybe try to persuade some of the local mages to move to the Collibus Hills. And that would still be easier than dealing with Portus City.
Portus City was smack-dab in the middle of the Todoroki Empire's territory, right between the city of Endeavor and the Collibus Hills, in terms of distance. It also happened to be a really big economic hub, due to both the fact that it was an open sea port, and the slavery. And given that foreign soldiers already showed up there once, the Imperials would be on-guard now.
Now, theoretically speaking, the Japanese Self Defense Force could possibly annex Portus City, but that came with its own problems: One, annexation according to international law back on Earth, was illegal. And two, even if Japan managed to convince the rest of the world to do it, either by claiming that "international law doesn't exist in an alternate dimension" or under the guise of "abolishing slavery," that would come with the risk of all-out war.
Annihilating the basic Imperial soldiers wouldn't be that much of a problem. The JSDF already did that when they first repelled the invaders in Musutafu, and they pushed them back even further to take all of Collibus Hills for themselves. But this time around, Japan wouldn't be seen as a defender, but as a potential invader, and the idea of having civilians watch as the military used bombs and tanks against spears and arrows left a sour taste in her mouth.
But that would be a better alternative than the idea of the Emperor of Flames showing up.
After their battle with the Cult of Gigantomachia, Momo had asked Melissa a bit more about the local Ultimate-level mages. And apparently, the current emperor, Enji Todoroki, was dubbed as the "Emperor of Flames" by people due to his magical prowess. Some of the feats she listed off about the guy was that, one, he dueled his soon-to-be wife in an event known to the populace as the "Day of Red Earth and Sky," and two, he fought against not only a Calamitous Beast and won, but also managed to survive a battle against the previous Demon King.
Apparently, that last one was supposed to be a big thing.
So, yeah, unless Japan was ready to experience the second coming of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings, Momo figured it was a good idea not to mess with the country ruled by the guy capable of turning the fucking sky red with his powers.
And that wasn't even without Momo going into detail about the Saltu Jungles! Mostly because she hoped no one would be insane enough to try and enter Usagiyama's territory. Ever.
Where was Momo going with this? Oh, right, the higher-ups said they wanted a better grip on their currently explored locations. Well, half of their options were immediately out, which only left Uwabami's mushroom forest, the Corallium Forest, Hagakure's crystal mine, and the Palus Village, with three of those places already being visited by other JSDF personnel.
So, that only left the Palus Village. And even before reaching the labyrinth entrance, they would have to deal with the swamp outside infested with giant leeches and crocodiles.
So, yeah, logically speaking, the reason for the SREU staying on base was a bit suspicious, but whatever. At least the rest of her squad seemed to be enjoying their time at the base.
Apparently, the rest of the soldiers at the Collibus Hills were already familiar with the insane exploits of "the Dungeon Crawlers." When she asked Kayama about the nickname, the dark-haired general said it was either that, or "the Adventurer Squad."
Still, it was nice to feel appreciated. At the very least, they weren't being treated as some sort of joke group, but more like… some local cryptids. And given some of the stories she heard that were either passed along by word of mouth or missing some context, it sorta checked out.
First, Kaibara and Tsuburaba's quest of having sex with every known race in the Special Region and getting their own monster girl harem seemed to have made them into somewhat of celebrities amongst the male population of the JSDF. Who could have guessed?
The next one was concerning Kodai and the fact she could now cure any ailment with her magic (and even revive the dead), there were a few nutjobs talking about her secretly being some kind of goddess. It also didn't help the fact that Melissa was hanging around the SREU, making people think that the team's guide was an angel in service of the "Goddess of Healing".
And then there were those rumors about a certain pink woman with a spear hanging around the outskirts of the base. No doubt Kirishima's secret admirer…
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu?"
"Hm?" Snapping out of her thoughts, Momo saw that one of the lower-ranking troops was approaching her. "Yes? Am I needed somewhere, Private?"
"Uh, yeah, General Aizawa wants you? Something about some… cow ladies?"
Katsuki Bakugou had to admit, when Yaoyorozu had an idea, she went all-out.
At the moment, he watched as his commanding officer was bringing out the welcoming committee for the Tsunotori girl and her minotaur buddies. Seemed like someone forgot to tell the checkpoint guards that newcomers were gonna be showing up soon.
So now, Yaoyorozu was there to clean up the mess. Hopefully, all of the details would be ironed out before any actual residents arrived… Hey, wait a minute…
Getting up from the porch seat Katsuki was sitting at, the explosive blond squinted his eyes to see a carriage arriving, one being dragged by a big green, dinosaur-looking lizard.
Guess that thing's a ground dragon, he figured. But who is –?
Jumping off the porch and past the Lieutenant's group, Katsuki ran up towards the ground dragon carriage, and smiled. "Well, I'll be damned. Denki Jiro in the flesh."
The electric bard smiled. "Ah, Bakugou! You're really here!"
"Of course I'm here, Dunce Face! I told you that this place is being run by my guys! Now come on, I'll show you where you can park your dragon, then we get the grand tour."
"We truly can't thank you enough," Kyoka said.
"Ahh, don't mention it. Us parents gotta stick together."
"Mr. President, he's here."
That was music to Sam's ears. Tapping the intercom, he said, "Send him in."
As one of the security guards opened the door, President Samuel Abraham stared at the man who walked into the Oval Office. Tall, bulky frame, ash blond hair, and a smile on his face.
The President of the United States was now looking at Goto Imasuji, one of the most notorious mercenaries in the world. His guys were the ones you called when you needed a job done and with no witnesses left… for the right price, of course.
Imasuji strutted through the office like he owned the place, his smug smile never leaving his face. Plopping himself down on the seat across from the President's desk, he opened his mouth. "Heh, I gotta admit, when your boys tracked me down, I was kind of worried."
"If you are referring to your record, rest assured, it won't be discussed," Sam said. "In fact, if things go correctly, I might even be able to make it as if it never existed to begin with."
Imasuji's smile somehow got bigger upon hearing that. "Is that so? I get paid, and as far as NATO is concerned, I'm a perfect little boy scout. You must be quite desperate."
The older of the two men refrained from responding to that last comment. "What you're about to hear is classified. Not even my Secretary of Defense knows about this. Understood?"
"My lips are sealed, old man. Client confidentiality, or whatever," Imasuji said.
"Good." The American President sighed, before he began. "Over the past few months, we've been getting reports about what's been going on with the JSDF on the other side of the gate. They've been moving building materials and construction equipment to the Special Region. At first, we thought that they were improving on their new base, but that's now false. They've been actually working on the construction of a town. A civilian town for the locals."
"Really?" Imasuji was intrigued by that. "They're holding hands with the local monsters?"
"Something like that," Sam admitted. "From what we can tell, this idea was officially proposed by Lieutenant General Aizawa, and was approved by the current DIET members, though it still isn't well-known to the general public. The idea behind is that the locals of the Special Region will begin to trust Japan, and eventually result in possible negotiations with the Empire."
"And you don't want that, do you?"
"Not exactly," the President said. "While negotiations with the Empire are a possibility we are interested in, I don't want Japan to be the face of the world to these people. Hell, I would have picked fucking Britain as a better choice, but at least it's not Russia or China. Still…"
"Yeah, I get it. Big old America doesn't like the idea that someone else might have a shiny new toy that they don't," the mercenary said. "So, whaddya want me to do about it?"
"I want you and your team to enter the gate and make sure that Operation: Cultural Integration fails. I want it to fail so badly that when the international community hears about it, they will demand that the Japanese government hand over the gate to someone else."
Imasuji nodded along. "And that someone else being you guys, gotcha."
"Yes, precisely."
"Any specific way you want my guys to do it?" the blond mercenary asked, as he stood up from his seat. "Gas the locals? Maybe set off some bomb? Or just plain shoot everybody?"
"I don't care how you do it; in fact, don't even tell me how you plan to do it," the President said. "The less I know about it, the less likely someone will trace this back to the White House."
"So, I get to do a job where I can do it however I want? Sweet," Imasuji said, as he walked out of the office with a smile. "I appreciate it. As will my bank account, Mr. President."
"Oh, and Mr. Imasuji…" the older man called out, before the mercenary could leave through the door. "If you screw this up, there will be more to worry about than your lack of payment."
"No worries, old man!" Imasuji saluted him, as he closed the door behind him.
Rikiya Yotsubashi didn't see this coming. But he really should have.
Hanabata and Chika were politicians and businessmen respectively, not experts in fantasy worlds. So, when this month's report fell into his lap, he probably should have expected some of the elements to interest his two lackeys. But to this extent…?
"... you want to replicate magic, like they literally turned one of the soldiers into an evil god, and you wanna fuck around and find out about that?!" Chikazoku yelled at Hanabata.
"If it'll turn me into a giant, flying, fire breathing lizard, then sign me the fuck up!"
"Pay attention, both of you!" Rikyia ordered his subordinates. "Now, on the other side of the spectrum, they have flying boats and magic guns, so it can't be all that bad, right?"
Chikazoku still had more to say to Hanabata. "The report said that there were a large number of corpses due to the attempted ritual... Still wanna try and turn into a dragon, Hanabata?"
"I... can settle for a crow," the politician simply said.
"Like… a talking crow? Because talking animals aren't uncommon there." Rikikya shook his head. They were getting distracted. "Moving on, we have a few more sapient races to go over."
Hanabata raised an eyebrow at that. "Such as?"
"Minotaurs, gnomes, demons, merfolk, elves, and their potential hybrids…"
"Hold up... demons? As in the kind that come from Hell?"
The Detnerat CEO shook his head in response. "No, apparently those are devils. Demons come from some place called "the Abyss." It's kinda like DC and Marvel."
"Well, let's hope that we don't meet the Demon King then…" Chikazoku grumbled.
"Apparently, their kind isn't on good terms with the majority of human nations in their world, as well. Not just with the one human nation in Occidens, but with all of Mundus."
Hanabata nodded at the logic. "Makes sense."
"Their kingdom is one of the four superpowers of the western continent, along with the Todoroki Empire, and the Kingdom of Dryadalis," Rikiya explained. "The fourth is just a bunch of wilderness that is mostly controlled by that Usagiyama woman and a few others."
"Are the elves like the ones from Lord of the Rings, by the way?" Chikazoku asked.
The big-nosed CEO frowned at that. "No. They're far worse."
"Worse, sir?"
"How bad are we talking?" Hanabata asked.
"Their Queen has kickstarted their own version of the industrial revolution. Radios, printed newspapers, indoor plumbing, street lights, border patrols, ice cream, all that jazz."
"That doesn't sound so bad…"
"They aren't exactly prime "cargo cult" material," Rikiya said.
"Regardless, would it be possible to sell some of our technology to them?" Chikazoku asked. "This could still open up a new source of revenue, even if it is a small one."
"Thankfully, yes. My source says that their queen apparently gifted Yaoyorozu's squadron with that airship as a sign of friendship between their kingdom and Japan, so there's a good chance."
"I say we show them how to cook some good food. We'd make a fortune off that. Get ingredients for sandwiches, get some condiments like Natsuki-brand mayo, and we'll be swimming in money like ol' Scrooge!" Chikazoku smiled.
"Brilliant!" Rikiya clapped his hands, before his expression became serious again. "However, their queen is smart, so chances are, she might end up demanding equal treatment for her people. If that possibility occurs, do you think you'll be able to lobby in their favor?"
"Just tell me what to do, and I'll get it done," Hanabata said.
Rikiya nodded. "Good man. Now, moving on to the other subject matter…"
He could already see Chikazoku's face go pale. "Oh no…"
"Oh, yes, indeed. It seems as though the elves aren't the only potential goldmine in our midst, gentlemen. The only problem is that they'll be even harder to try and acquire."
"Oh?" Hanabata was curious now.
"Up in the northern part of the Todoroki Empire, there is a seaport city by the name of Portus, and it is a major economic hub due to the amount of goods that come in."
Chikazoku knew it was too good to be true. "So, what's the catch…?"
"Pirates."
Hanabata groaned. "Of course…"
"So what's stopping the local military from suppressing them?" Chikazoku asked.
"As it unfortunately turns out, due to the fact that the Todoroki Empire is a human supremacist nation, the practice of enslaving other races is encouraged." Rikiya felt sick just saying that. "So… the pirates may or may not sell their captives to the Imperials."
"Can the military be convinced to wipe them out, Hanabata?" he asked.
"The pirates have a big enough influence that one man, rather than going to the Imperials, requested the aid of Yaoyorozu's squadron to save his wife."
That's rather unusual, and probably against the mission. Why did they take it?"
"According to the report, Lieutenant Yaoyorozu had her squad split up into teams of three to explore the city. The team responsible for the rescue operation was under the command of Sargeant Katsuki Bakugou, and included their angel guide," Rikiya explained.
"Bakugou? I didn't know that hothead could lead a mission…" Hanabata said.
"The good news is that their mission was an overall success, and the reunited couple has already arrived at the new settlement being built around the gate."
"I sense a but coming…" Chikazoku said.
"Buuut Lieutenant Yaoyorozu did end up citing them for insubordination, even though they argued that she technically never gave them such an order not to do it."
Hanabata nodded at that logic. "Not surprising."
"Think we could drum up support for further expansion by using their stories?"
Rikiya nodded at Chikazoku's question. "It could very well be done. Aside from being the Yaoyorozu heiress and Aizawa's personal student, First Lieutenant Momo Yaoyorozu is also responsible for leading the counterattack during the Musutafu Incident, so she and her band of morons could make quite the potent poster children for manifest destiny."
"Including the angel who's guising around those idiots," Chikazoku laughed.
Hanabata frowned at that. "Boss, don't you find the timing too coincidental?"
The other two looked at the politician, questioningly.
"I mean, not even an hour after the group gets to leave the area to explore the world, they run smack dab into an "angel"? I don't know about y'all, but I get a bad feeling whenever I think about her... and whoever she got with. How do we know she isn't just using Yaoyarozu's squad, and then she's gonna get them killed once she's done with them?"
"Honestly? Not our problem. If she does end up doing that, it'll be Aizawa who will have to deal with her, and we'll still be sitting here, in the safety of Deika City."
Chikazoku meanwhile, had a differing thought. "It would tank the reputation of the gods, though."
Rikiya shrugged. "Maybe. But then again, they did banish her. Maybe the whole "fell in love" thing was a convenient lie to hide whatever crime she actually committed, who knows?"
"She still hasn't given anything about her alleged lover?" Hanabata asked.
"At this rate that crackpot theory of it being the Demon King might come true," Chikazoku said. Rikiya remembered making that joke back during their last meeting.
"The only things that came out of her mouth are that he's male, and that he lives on the western side of the continent. Everything else is assumptions made by Yaoyorozu and her cronies."
"Sir, what territory is on the western side of the continent?"
Rikiya wasn't sure why Chikazoku asked that, but since he seemed genuinely concerned, the Detnerat CEO decided to play along. "The Demon Kingdom — Ohh…"
Oh, fuck. This was a potential landmine they were sitting on.
"Actually... If her lover is the Demon King, then that might not be a bad thing for us."
Both Rikiya and Chikazoku stared at Hanabata. "Elaborate."
"Simple, if the angel and Demon King are in love, then it may look good for our people if a group of humans is escorting her safely to his kingdom, then that may paint us in a good light in the king's eyes," the political head of the Hearts and Mind party said.
Rikiya thought it over. "Yes… But if we do tell Aizawa, he might end up jumping the gun, due to how Japan portrays Demon Kings…We can't let him know this yet, it's far too risky."
The other two nodded. Having subordinates who listened to you truly was a blessing.
"On another note, there is something I learned that is of great interest…"
Both Chikazoku and Hanabata straightened up. "Go on…?"
"During their second outing, one of the first things Yaoyorozu's group did was assist in the liberation of a village of minotaurs from a monster that took over their fishing waters. However, the interesting part of that is that the only reason they were asked to do so was because the daughter of the chieftess recognized their weapons," Rikiya said.
"Is there more to this?" Chikazoku asked.
"When asked about it, she said that a long time ago, they were visited by some human hero that hailed from the "Land of the Lonely Star," and he wielded one of the mighty "Arms of Fire," the same ones that Yaoyorozu's group was carrying. Pretty interesting, don't you think?"
It didn't take a genius to figure out that this "Land of the Lonely Star" could be interpreted as the "Lone Star State," or that the "Arms of Fire" could be translated as "firearms."
The proof of that was seeing Hanabata's eyes widen in shock.
"Wait... so, you're saying that something like this has happened before...?"
"Apparently, yes. The human in question was respectfully buried by the minotaurs centuries ago, and Yaoyorozu's group just so happened to resemble their ancient hero."
The three of them were silent for a moment before Chikazoku said, "I did mention evidence of possible previous cases of isekai in the last meeting, right, Yotsubashi-san?"
Rikiya smiled. "Yes, you did. But this… this is concrete."
Moe Kamiji knew she would be doing a lot of questionable things in the name of love. Spying, playing both sides, and eventually overthrowing the Emperor, stuff like that.
What she didn't expect Fuyumi, the love of her life, to do was ask Moe to fly straight to the Collibus Hills to deliver a message to the Japanese. Alone. With only her wyvern.
Looking down below the clouds, Moe could see her destination. It appeared that Japan had decided to settle near the gate, given the new houses being constructed.
Landing her wyvern down near the front of the settlement, the first thing Moe saw was the diverse amount of residents. Minotaurs were constructing some of the buildings alongside humans, a medusa wearing some odd contraption on her eyes was talking to a pregnant dagon, and she was fairly sure that she saw a gnome giving orders to some of the builders.
Getting off of her wyvern, Moe examined the area around her. A few of the men around were wearing green, which apparently meant they were soldiers, so she should ask them –
SHINK!
Moe stayed absolutely still, as she felt the edge of a sword softly press on her neck.
"I'm going to only ask this once," the person with the sword said. "Why are you here?"
Looking towards her, Moe could see that the woman had blonde hair and blue eyes, along with white wings on her back. It was said that the Night-Haired Warrior had an angel companion…
"You wouldn't happen to know someone by the name of Momo Yaoyorozu… would you?"
Lady Yaoyorozu,
Over the last few months or so, we have observed the exploits of both you and the army you represent, and truthfully, we are amazed. The stories that have been coming and going through our nation have been nothing less than astonishing. Rumors that you were responsible for sending our Imperials running with their tails between their legs, thwarting the revival of a Demon Lord, and many more have made you a living legend.
You have been cordially invited to the city of Endeavor, the heart of the Todoroki Empire, for an event we refer to as the Ranking, where our father promotes and demotes those in his service depending on their yearly performance. However, please know that our father is unaware that we have sent you this invitation, as his stance on your nation is quite hostile. If everything has gone according to plan, General Kamiji will meet you when you first arrive.
We hope that you agree to come. We know that the invasion prompted by our father was condemnable, but he does not represent every individual within the Empire, especially not every individual in power. We merely wish to speak with you, in hopes that the Todoroki Empire and Japan are able to work together, and avoid any more bloodshed between the two nations. Please decide soon, as the Ranking begins in two days after you receive this letter.
We look forward to forging a new future with the Night-Haired Warrior.
Fuyumi & Shoto Todoroki, Princess and Prince of the Todoroki Empire
"Is this legitimate?" Aizawa asked.
"Yes. It has the royal seal and everything," Melissa said, as she handed him back the letter. "I'm also gonna go out on a limb and say that the "Night-Haired Warrior" is a nickname for Momo."
"My hair isn't that dark…" she mumbled.
"And where is the messenger now?" Aizawa asked.
"Already left," the angel said. "But she did provide me with the disguises before doing so."
"I refuse to wear a fucking toga," Bakugou spat.
"Fine, then you can stay behind on the ship," Aizawa said. "Yaoyorozu, this is a direct order. You and the rest of the SREU are to grab your shit and leave for the Todoroki Empire's capital immediately. I want you gone from here in less than two hours. Am I clear?"
"Crystal, sir."
Eri was just finishing up her rounds when the call came in.
Well, it wasn't exactly a call, as that would mean that someone was actually "calling" her or something was "calling" to her. It was actually a message, but whatever.
Her big brother had confirmed that Melissa Shield was indeed with the otherworlders, as per Kuroiro's discovery. Which meant that they were based at the Collibus Hills. As she quickly transformed and took to the skies, she went over the most recent version of the plan.
The young dragon's new instructions were as follows: Go immediately to the Collibus Hills, learn everything that she could, and get out of there without anyone knowing she was there. Oh, and contact the Demon King as soon as the angel made herself known there, if possible.
By her calculations, Eri should be there by the end of the week.
Hopefully this mission wouldn't be a total drag. She'd love to meet a cute boy there!
Author's Note: Okay, so, if you read the previous version of this chapter, you would know that was down on the normal day I would be posting this (Friday), and has only come back now. I do apologize for the inconvenience, and while I can't do anything to prevent it from happening again, I will try to make sure that the chapters are ready to be posted a day before they're supposed to go live, just to be ready. Just in case.
Anyways, this chapter was pretty chill in terms of worldbuilding. Well, with the exception of the US President hiring an evil mercenary, the fantasy world's politics, and the fact that this isn't the first time Earthlings have been here. Anyways, comment time!
Shin: It's only a matter of time before Kurogiri meets up with Aixawa and friends again. And yeah, you're right about the kind of weapons people are gonna be dealing with when it comes to fighting against magic users. And while scorched earth tactics are distasteful, they can be used by others during the heat of the moment.
Honey- (Guest): Aizawa's hair is probably gonna have a bunch of white strands by the end of this story, and the core of his problems will definitely involve either Yaoyorozu, some sort of armed conflict, or both. And I'm not sure if you're referring to not seeing Midoriya or if you saw him and you don't understand what he's doing, sooo…
DarlingSherlock: Glad you like this alternate universe so much. Stick around, because there will be a bunch of them after this story is over, and they'll be just as crazy!
valkrus: Okay, both versions of the last chapter have been edited.
NickThePick: Yeah, pretty much.
muxen_mep: It was a bit of a challenge to find a role for every single character, but I am pretty satisfied with the end product. And Mineta is totally a gnome; too short for a dwarf.
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 24: First Impressions
Summary:
The SREU has arrived within the heart of the Todoroki Empire! While part of the time goes in covertly, multiple things happen! Eijiro Kirishima and Mina Ashido finally meet properly, while Momo comes across Shoto Todoroki, who she defends from his father, and gets sent to Tartarus for her defiance! Some first impression, huh?
Chapter Text
Chapter 24: First Impressions
The SREU left in less than two hours, all right.
After receiving a letter from the literal royalty of the Todoroki Empire, they all immediately packed their essentials, tossed everything into the airship, and flew north-west.
Flying at top speeds, they made it to the city of Endeavor with a few hours to spare.
Well, technically, they didn't land smack-dab in the middle of the city. They would have probably been shot down by the local law enforcement the second they were spotted. Plus, even if they weren't, the second they saw JSDF uniforms, the Imperials would have opened fire.
So, they landed the boat at the outskirts of the city. In the middle of a forest.
Stepping out of the forest, Momo looked towards the horizon to see how the Todoroki Empire looked. The best way she could put it was… dichotomous. The small houses and stone walls that surrounded the city looked somewhat standard for their technological level, but…
Inside was a different story. Even with binoculars, there was only so much Momo could see, but even with that little information, she could tell a few things, given that the city seemed to be built on an elevated plane, so she could see a few things past their defensive walls.
Hmmm… Momo analyzed what she saw. Given the different kinds of architecture, I'd wager that they separate the communities between social and economic classes…
"Uhh, Lieutenant?" Kirishima called out to her. "What do we do now?"
Snapping out of her thoughts, Momo looked back at the rest of her team. "Well, unless the Ranking happens in the middle of the day, then we probably still have a few hours before it begins. We should probably figure out how to establish contact with the –"
"Hello."
"JUMPING JELLYBEANS, WHAT THE –?!"
Quickly brushing off the near-heart attack she just had, Momo took a look at the newcomer. A woman with green hair, wearing silver armor, and carrying a spear. How the hell was she so sneaky?! And better question, how did no one see her coming up from behind?!
Momo decided to play the diplomacy card. "Who are you?"
"Interesting choice of accent," the newcomer softly said. "Ahem, anyways! I am General Moe Kamiji… and I'm assuming you're the Momo Yaoyorozu, the Night-Haired Warrior, yes?"
Great, that nickname again. Momo suppressed the thought, as she said, "Yep, that's me. First Lieutenant Momo Yaoyorozu of the JSDF. And over there behind me is my crew."
Kaibara waved at the green-haired woman. "Hey, were her crew. 'Sup?"
"Hey, Melissa, quick question: Why didn't you let me know she was here?"
"I didn't detect any malicious intent from her," the angel told Momo. "And besides, I already met her once before, when she delivered the letter back at the Collibus Hills. So, she's cool."
"Hm? Oh, I see…" Kamiji gave everyone a look-over, before her eyes settled on Melissa. "Fascinating… an actual angel. I thought I was seeing things when you had your blade on my neck, but I guess not. It appears that there is indeed some truth to the rumors going around."
Melissa yelped slightly, before using her magic to hide her wings.
"Yes, excuse me, about those rumors, we've only heard a fraction of them," Aoyama cut in. "Maybe you tell us some of them? You know, figure out what's true or not, yes?"
"Well, they say that you were captured by Usagiyama's tribe of warrior-bunnies, impersonated a few local deities, accidentally summoned a Demon Lord, sexually harassed a medusa, stole a number of magical artifacts while nearly destroying Yuuei-Shiketsu City…"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Rin shouted. "We didn't even do half of that shit!"
Yeah, while some of those rumors were blatantly false, Momo could see how they could come to exist: A few local "deities" were probably the Arms of Fire, but they were mistaken for those guys, her team didn't willingly impersonate them. Accidentally summoning a Demon Lord and the looting of magical artifacts was probably something that happened while they were busy fighting the possessed Sato, and her team ended up getting the blame for it.
But the rest of that stuff? Ehhh, there might have been some more truth to those.
Shaking her head, Momo decided to get back to actual business. "So, Kamiji-san; I suppose you're the one representing Princess Fuyumi and Prince Shoto Todoroki out here?"
"That is correct, madame," the green-haired woman said, as she pulled a sack out from behind the bushes. "I'm here to sneak you and a few of your companions into the city."
"And how do you plan to do that? Also, what's inside the sack?"
As it turned out, Momo's answer to both her questions was "disguises."
Inside the sack were a handful of outfits that the upper-class of the Todoroki Empire wore. The base outfit was a bunch of white togas with some patterns, followed by a secondary, more colorful, sash worn diagonally around the body, and a leather belt keeping the outfit together. While they couldn't exactly bring any heavy weaponry with them, the togas were at least baggy enough to let them hide their hand-held radios, handguns, and knives, so small mercies.
Unfortunately, General Kamiji was only able to sneak out about seven outfits in total, meaning that, aside from herself and Monoma, the rest of Momo's team would have to draw lots.
The other five people joining them would be Bakugou, Komori, Awase, Sato, and Tsuburaba. Melissa had also insisted on coming, saying that her armor could allow her to play the role of a foreign bodyguard to "Lady Yaoyorozu and her entourage." Her words, not Momo's.
Eventually, Momo relented, allowing the angel to join them, wearing the disguise she used to hide herself back at Yuuei-Shiketsu City. Kendo was now in charge of making sure the airship and the rest of the team was fine within the forest, while the others headed into the city.
The trip inside was already planned out. Kamiji had brought a beast-drawn carriage out of the city to bring in Momo and her small team, and a fancy one, at that. Their base color was a fancy red, with some black and gold lacing the outside. And the inside was covered in comfortable pads to sit in! As a Yaoyorozu woman, Momo knew quality when she saw it.
All they needed to do now was enter through the main gate.
"These boots are way too loose…" Bakugou grumbled next to her.
"You could have gone with the sandals," Awase said.
"And risk getting a rash on my feet? No, thanks."
"Stop talking, both of you," Monoma ordered. "We're almost at the checkpoint."
Momo looked out the open window, and sure enough, she could see the walls of the city right in front of her. She stayed quiet, as she saw an Imperial soldier approach the carriage. She trusted Melissa and General Kamiji would be able to get them inside with their words alone.
"General! Good afternoon. Uh, who are these people you're escorting inside?"
"At ease, soldier. This outskirts countess is a dear friend of Princess Fuyumi. I am escorting her and her entourage of lesser nobles so they may attend this evening's Ranking."
"I see. And the, uh, armored woman next to you?"
"The countess's personal bodyguard. She insisted on coming with us."
"Very well, then. Please proceed inside."
"Thank you."
The inside of the city was nothing short of astounding.
As the horned horse pulled the carriage, Momo and the others could see all around them various architectural marvels. Despite using less-advanced materials than Hatsume's kingdom, let alone the modern world, the Todoroki Empire had managed to make their capital city look just as aesthetically pleasing, if not even more. And this was still the commoners' district!
The bridges alone looked to be made of marble, their bottoms curving upward to serve as tunnels beneath, while the buildings all around them had painted roofs to signify where they were. And the closer they got to the palace, the fancier the structures got!
Massive green towers, rounded blue homes, street gardens, aqueduct systems, decorated walls, hell, Momo was pretty sure she saw a replica of the goddamn Colosseum! And all of these were appetizers compared to the main course of the palace their eyes were receiving!
The home of the Emperor of Flames was a mix of white and gold, with the main building having a massive round dome, multiple spires, and columns upon columns stacking up on one another. And that was just the main attraction! All around them, there were mansions connected to the big castle, every shape of non-euclidean geometry used to build these golden palaces! If Momo had to guess, the value of this place eclipsed her family fortune a hundred-fold!
"Holy shiitake…" Komori whispered.
"These guys are fucking loaded…" Tsubuaraba whispered.
Momo remained silent as she marveled at the structures out of her window. So much so, that she didn't even notice they had arrived at their destination until the carriage stopped.
"We're here!"
Stepping out of the carriage, everyone looked around at their new location. A large grassy field next to the palace, with a lake on the other side. Perfect for garden parties.
"Momo Yaoyorozu?"
Turning back around, Momo saw a woman around Kamiji's age approaching them. She wore a pink-and-gold vest, showing off her long white sleeves, as it trailed off into a white dress. A silver tiara adorned her head, but the most eye-catching thing about her was her white hair mixed with red streaks, and the gray eyes behind odd spectacles she wore.
"That would be me. And you are…?"
"Ah, of course! Where are my manners? I should have known you wouldn't be able to recognize me…" the woman said. "I am Fuyumi Todoroki, princess of the Todoroki Empire. Hi there!"
"I must admit, when we first heard about how your armies decimated our men, we feared that we had unleashed a great evil!" Fuyumi cheerfully said, as the others followed her and Kamiji through the halls of the palace. "But I am glad to see that wasn't the case!"
"Uh-huh. Yeah, about that, you said something in your letter about wanting to bring our two nations together?" Momo asked. "Were you serious about that?"
"Oh, very serious! Both myself and my brothers want nothing more than for our father to stop his constant expansion within the continent! Do you know how many kingdoms –"
"Sister?"
Fuyumi turned to look towards the adjacent corridor, as did everyone else, to see the owner of that voice. "Ah, Shoto! You're right on time! We have some very important guests!"
As the younger brother talked to the older sister, Momo couldn't hear anything. She was too busy focusing on the man's appearance. Clearly, he was around her age, and wore a similar outfit to Fuyumi, just instead of a pink vest, it was blue, and we wore white pants instead of a dress. Oh, and he wasn't wearing any glasses like his older sister.
But his eyes… wow. They were heterochromatic, one of them gray, the other blue. Aside from that, his hair was split down the middle, with one side being pure white, and the other, completely red. All in all, he was quite handsome… but what drew Momo's interest the most was the scar on the left side of Shoto's face, smack dab on top of his blue eye.
SMACK!
"Ow! What the –?!"
"Girl, focus," Melissa whispered. "They're talking."
"...I apologize, but it seems like Natsuo needs some help with tonight's preparations," Fuyumi said. "Not to worry, you're all in good hands with Shoto! I'll see you all again in a few hours!"
And with that, the SREU was left alone with Shoto Todoroki.
"So…" Shoto started off. "I take it that you're the infamous Momo Yaoyorozu."
"Who? Me?" Momo's cheeks turned red. "Well, I wouldn't use the word "infamous", but…"
"It was a simple "yes" or "no" question."
"Oh, okay, wow. No need to be rude about it…"
"Oh. I… apologize. Social interaction is not one of my strong suits," Shoto said. "Anyways, we can continue this conversation as I escort you to your temporary quarters."
"Sure thing," Awase said, as the group followed the peppermint-haired prince. "So, you can't talk well? I guess then your looks are double-useful, keeping all them ladies distracted…"
"Actually, I'm quite single. In fact, all of my siblings are, at least to the public. My father doesn't know this, but my sister and General Kamiji are in a secret relationship."
Momo thought over what he said. Given that Fuyumi apparently went behind her father's back with that relationship, it made it sound like it was unapproved. She needed more intel. "So, Todoroki-san, is there any reason that you and your siblings haven't been married off yet?"
"My father respects personal strength above all else. He isn't going to make us court some other country's nobles for the sake of an alliance when he can simply conquer that country."
"No wonder your country's one of this continent's superpowers," Bakugou grumbled.
"Yes. Every time he wants to expand his borders, he challenges the strongest warrior of that country to a duel. That's how he conquered my mother's homeland."
Monoma sweated a bit at that. "He can't be that bad, right…?"
"Hmph. If my father were to find some foreigner of both great status and personal strength wanting to marry one of us, he wouldn't hesitate, just to gather even more power."
"Jesus, talk about father of the year," Awase joked.
Momo thought over what the younger Todoroki just said, while cross-referencing it to everything else she knew about the Todoroki Empire, and it painted a bleak picture: The Emperor of Flames valued personal strength above all else. Whether he personally acquired it within his family or nation didn't matter, as long as it was under his command. And the only way he'd let his kids marry was if their suitor was someone whose genes were good enough.
Now it made sense why his own kids were now willing to talk with the "enemy." And the answer was kinda depressing. Right now, Momo felt like giving Shoto a hug. Poor guy.
"Hm? Hey, uh, what's that frozen spire over there?" Komori asked.
Everyone looked towards where the botanist was pointing, to see one of the gold-and-white towers of the castle, except… it was frozen. The main body was covered in ice, while the main chamber on the top had spikes of ice shooting out through its roof. If Momo had to describe it, it was like the Fortress of Solitude was trying to break out from some tight space.
"Those are the quarters of the most powerful ice user in the Empire," Shoto explained. "A woman said to have been struck with madness by the Emperor and locked up in that tower."
"He locked her up just because of some mental health issues?" Sato asked. "That ain't right."
"No, he locked her up because she poured boiling water on my face."
Everyone choked on air as soon as Shoto finished his sentence. "WHAT?!" Tsuburaba shouted. "Why would they let a sociopathic woman like her near you in the first place?!"
"She's my mother," Shoto deadpanned.
"OHHH… oops."
The peppermint-haired prince remained quiet, as he stared at the meteorologist.
"Please don't chop my head off," Tsuburaba asked.
"I wasn't planning on doing that," Shoto said. "Anyways, once you're all settled into your quarters, you'll be given some evening wear to change into for the night."
"We're attending the Ranking?" Momo asked. "I thought this was strictly business."
"It is," Shoto said. "But for now, we need to keep up appearances. Plus, I'm not exactly sure how to explain to my father why there are a bunch of complete strangers in the guest rooms.
Made sense. They needed to pose as nobles, so they needed to attend the event. Plus, Momo wouldn't mind knowing how Shoto looked in some nicer attire, so… win-win, in her book.
The sun was setting within the borders of both the city of Endeavor and the surrounding woodlands. As the walls encircling the capital of the Todoroki Empire lit up by the torches, the SREU kept their lights off, as per Kendo's instructions. No need to draw attention.
And besides, even once the sun was gone, there was still plenty of light for them to see. Eijiro could still see the forest he was patrolling perfectly fine. No need for flashlights yet.
Still, it would be pretty dark soon. The artificial redhead knew that Kendo had ordered him and the others to maintain a perimeter around the airship until Yaomomo got back, but…
Suddenly, Eijiro heard something. Whistling? Looking around, he didn't see anyone doing anything of the sort, but then he heard more. Like chirping? Dust spreading around? He didn't know how to describe it aside from the fact that it was faint, like a whisper.
Eijiro looked around for the source of that sound, when something lunged out from the forest. It almost gave the soldier a small heart attack, but he calmed down as soon as he saw what it was. It was small, no bigger than a segment on one of his fingers, floating around in the middle of the air, shining brightly, like a firefly. Except… even he could tell it wasn't one.
The aura around this thing was red, a soft glow, like a light. But he could see that this thing's "physical" body was white, just a tiny ball of pure white. Was this thing completely made of light? Was this a spirit? He had overheard Melissa saying once that spirits were creatures made of mana, completely different from ghosts. He took a closer look at the little guy…
THWIP!
…only for it to fly off into the forest.
"Hey, wait up!"
He didn't know why, but Eijiro followed the small red light. He could still hear whatever weird chirping it was making as it flew, but he could also now hear… music? It was soft, like someone was playing a violin… No, it had more life than that, like someone was playing an… ocarina…
As Eijiro kept chasing the little red spirit, with music now in his ears, a second spirit appeared, a blue one, that flew alongside the red one, making Eijiro run faster after the two of them. The music in his ears continued to grow, now adding soft percussion into the mix.
The soldier kept running after the spirits, only for more of them to appear. Green, orange, purple, yellow, an entire swarm of these dancing lights appeared, one by one, until he there were so many of them he was chasing, that it looked like he was going after a swarm of multi-colored fireflies, and as he kept going, more sounds were added into his ears.
Charango, clarinet, angklung, guitar, mandolin, woodwinds…
The Japanese soldier dropped his heavy weapon and took off his helmet and threw away his padding, they were all slowing him down. The only things that were still on him were his green camo clothes and the boots on his feet, as he kept chasing after the spirits.
All around him, the forest was glowing, as if it was alive. He didn't know whether it was supposed to be like this, or whether the spirits themselves were making this place glow as if it was bioluminescent, but he didn't care. He needed to keep following them.
As Eijiro kept chasing them, more and more spirits appeared around him, but they weren't the balls of glowing light as before. They were older, of a higher plane, they had bodies. They had limbs, eyes, tails. They could have resembled anything, from flaming horses, to cats, some of them could even pass for humans. It was like something straight out of Avatar!
The spirits kept guiding the soldier, until they had made it to the center of the forest. There, he came across a steep slope in all directions, leading to a bottom. If it wasn't for the fact that there were plants and water all around this decline, Eijiro would have been reminded of the Blood Snake's Pit. There were even tree trunks acting as bridges encircling the entire thing.
And then, in the center of the pit, standing on one of the wooden bridges, she was there.
It was the girl in the red mask. She was there, in the center of it all, no longer carrying her spear, but now playing an ocarina. She may have been playing an instrument, but she was the maestro, the composer of this symphony. She danced and swayed on top of the natural bridge, glancing between Eijiro and a few oddly-shaped stumps located on the trunks.
Eijiro slowly climbed up to the horizontal tree trunks, examining the shape of these odd trunks, somewhat flat at the top, but wide, like cones. As the music softly played up, realized what he was supposed to do with them, as he raised his bare hands up, and slammed them down.
BOOM!
His hands sounded like thunder, as they kept slamming onto the drums in rhythm with the rest of the music, the masked woman's ocarina making it sound like the wind was all around them, the rest of the instruments of the first making Eijiro forget about everything but this moment. The two of them were here, playing for all the spirits of this forest to watch.
As the violins of the forest ramped up, Ejirio slowly stopped beating the drums, as he climbed even higher up on the bridge, hearing the sounds of the ocarina die down. He approached the masked woman, holding her as she spinned the two of them around, and then…
…he removed her mask.
The sclera within her eyes were black, her irises yellow. Her skin was a bubblegum pink, her hair was an even lighter shade of that pink. She was in no way human, her pointed ears, the curved yellow horns in her hair, and the long lizard-like tail decorating her behind, those were just a few more features that gave away her true nature, along with her eyes and skin color.
But Eijiro didn't care.
To him, she was beautiful. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever encountered. The woman he spared back in Musutafu, who had followed as he went into this strange and wondrous world, ensuring that he and his comrades remained alive. The woman who wore a red mask and fought with a spear, but still had so many more secrets for him to share.
But for now, there was only one secret the Japanese soldier cared for. Looking straight into her black-and-yellow eyes, he softly smiled, as he opened his mouth, and said…
"Eijiro Kirishima."
The pink woman smiled at those words, as she also opened her mouth.
"Mina Ashido."
And with that, the two of them kissed, surrounded by the spirits of this forest. They embraced one another, knowing that they would no longer remain apart from this night onward.
Momo adjusted her dress as she made her way into the grand hall.
The new dress she was given by the maids was a pretty fancy one, which was appropriate, given the event she was attending. Red base color, with a purple-and-gold corset, along with some orange decorations on the side and, of course, a boob window.
Because why not?
"Alright, stay frosty, boys and girls." She looked at the rest of her crew, and saw that everyone else, sans Melissa, was wearing fancy, but far more simple, outfits. "Just because we're not in our usual gear, doesn't mean that we can't still come prepared. Is everyone armed?"
"Yep." Monoma nodded, his outfit making him look more like a butler than a guest. "We've all got our sidearms concealed. If things get violent, we should be able to handle ourselves."
Momo nodded. "Good. Alright, soldiers, let's… go mix and mingle."
The grand hall itself was massive, big enough to fit dozens of guests, along with whatever catering they were providing. Limestone-colored tile floors, mahogany walls with portraits all over them, massive marble statues, potted plants, tapestries, and a throne right at the end of the room, this place just screamed wealth. And yet, it still wasn't the throne room.
Just a place to host guests.
This has definitely got to be some kind of subtle power play, Momo thought to herself. Enji Todoroki was a rich and powerful man, and he made sure the rest of the world knew it. Gold, status, power, military strength, magic skills, this man had it all in spades…
Suddenly, the talking crowds instantly died down, as trumpets could be heard playing. From where Momo was standing, she could see General Kamiji again. She guided her hand to the main entrance, and… oh, shit. She was rolling out the figurative red carpet.
She saw both Fuyumi and Shoto enter the room, along with who she presumed was their brother, Natsuo. Their outfits were fine, but Shoto's especially… hot damn. But they quickly made their way to the sides of the throne, as the big kahuna himself entered.
Emperor Enji Todoroki was, as Kaibara and Tsuburaba would say, an absolute unit of a man. He was easily the tallest man Momo had ever laid eyes on, and definitely the bulkiest. But all of that muscle was hidden beneath the man's red-and-black robes. Odd choice of colors, as that did make it look like he took a dip in a volcano. Maybe it was an intimidation thing. That would definitely explain the crown full of metal thorns that was adorning his head.
The Emperor of Flames made his way towards his throne slowly and gracefully, and once he sat down, people applauded. Sure, Momo had seen videos of dictators having their cabinets applaud when they performed some minor athletic feat like they were Superman, but come on.
The big boss of the Todoroki Empire slowly raised his hand, and the entire court went silent. "I thank you all once again for being here. As the ruler of our great land, it is good to see our people so dutiful in our want to grow stronger, to become the best of the best!"
Momo clapped along with the rest of the nobles, as she took in what the Todoroki patriarch said. A collective want to grow stronger? She'd like to see that up close in person. Speaking of which, it seemed like Shoto was having a hard time maintaining a straight face around his old man. But given what she had heard about him, that was perfectly understandable.
"We shall begin the Ranking soon, but for now, I ask you to remain patient as the last of my vassals arrive. In the meantime, please, enjoy the banquet prepared for… you …?"
Momo's blood went ice cold as she saw Emperor Todoroki's gaze stop on her. His speech slowed to a halt as his turquoise eyes squinted towards her, as if he was trying to figure out if he had seen her from somewhere before. Shit! She was so stupid! She should have stayed hidden behind the crowd like the others, but her curiosity got the better of her –
"And remember, even for tonight, our works shall never be done! We will keep finding new ways to go further beyond! We are the destiny of this world! WE ARE THE TODOROKI EMPIRE!"
…and just like that, it was over. Momo felt like she could breathe again, as the Emperor of Flames stopped looking at her and finished his speech, to the cheers of the nobility. Despite that, she knew she needed to get out of the room. She needed to go, now!
As the nobles all around her scattered to either grab food or socialize, Momo immediately power walked towards the door. She knew she couldn't run, that would instantly blow whatever cover she had left. If Shoto and Fuyumi could figure out that Momo was the "Night-Haired Warrior," then that meant there was a good chance that their father –
"Excuse me."
Fuck. Even without turning around, Momo knew who that deep voice belonged to. Slowly, she put a smile on her face, and turned around, as she came face-to-face with Enji Todoroki himself. From the corner of her eyes, Momo could see that Melissa, her team, and all three of the Todoroki children were all staring at her motionless, not knowing what to do.
But their expressions all said the same thing: You're fucked.
"I don't recognize you," he said. "Do you have an invitation?"
"Uhhh…" Momo could feel the sweat coming down onto her brow as she tried to think up an excuse. "Like, on me? No. I mean, have you seen how small dress pockets are?"
"Right…" Emperor Todoroki wasn't buying it. "Let me rephrase: Who invited you?"
"I did!" Both Momo and Enji turned around to see Shoto quickly run up to the raven-haired woman. "She's the daughter of a noble, who I'm interested in courting, so I invited her."
Hold up… courting?! That was oldspeak for trying to get with someone romantically! Sure, Momo thought Shoto was a good-looking guy, but… wasn't this going a bit too fast?!
"Oh, really? Is that so?" Enji asked. "What house is she from?"
It was now Shoto's turn to realize that he fucked up. Momo hated bad guys that actually looked over their paperwork. They couldn't bullshit their way out of this one, so…
"Nunya," Momo simply says.
Enji, along with everyone within earshot, gives her a funny look. "Nunya?"
"Nunya business." Everyone stared in silent horror at what Momo just said, as she just continued rambling. "I mean, does it matter what house I come from? Shoto loves me for who I am, and that's something that is far more valuable than any title or house name."
Shoto stared at the black-haired woman in amazement. His father, meanwhile, stared at the black-haired woman as if she was a problem. "Are you being serious right now?"
"About as serious as your horrible international policies," Momo mumbled. She immediately realized that those words were still audible to the two Todoroki men, and…
"Heh. Heh-heh," Enji laughed. "I see. You're no noble. You're a comedian."
He was laughing. Enji Todoroki, ruler of an entire empire, was laughing. Momo internally breathed a sigh of relief. Her cover was safe. She could use this to get on his good side –
"Guards! Send her to Tartaurs."
Fuck.
"Oh, my God, his sauce is fucking amazing," Sato said, as he kept dipping the bits of his beef into the bowl. "Anyways, you're Natsuo, yeah? The second-youngest prince, or something?"
"Uhh… your leader is being hauled off by my father's guards," the prince said.
"Yeah, yeah, later. Dude, you gotta tell me, do you know how your cooks made this sauce?"
A uthor's Note: Sorry for the delay. Hope this chapter was worth the wait.
Alright, so in terms of inspirations, the city of Endeavor was modeled after the capital of the Empire from the GATE anime, while the clothes of the Todoroki family were modeled after some fantasy art of them I found on Pinterest. But that's all small potatoes. The real main course with this chapter was the dance between Eijiro and Mina. For those wondering, the entire scene was based around the song Woods of Mystery (Lost Woods) by ThrophanyRemix. If you want to time the music to the scene, the 3:19 minute mark would be when Eijiro slammed his hands down on the drums. Here's the link for y'all, watch?v=5niOf54X_iM , and now for the comments!
VinHD15: Dude, we were there when Infinite made that reference during our writing role plays. Then again, it was several months ago, so it's understandable you forgot. And if you don't believe me, you can always check our message logs.
valkrus: Fixed all the spelling errors.
Honey- (Guest): You were right about the last chapter being the calm before the storm, as the storm has officially arrived! Momo and friends listened to the letter, and looked at how that went! We'll be seeing more of everyone's favorite Demon King and angel soon, same with Eri and her soon-to-be boyfriend! But until then, see you next time!
MostOfYouNeedTherapy: Okay, yeah, Japan definitely committed multiple atrocities during the second, but given that he's more a man of science than military, he'd think of it more through a humanitarian lens than that of a strategic one.
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 25: The Prison Break from Hell
Summary:
Tartarus: In the old Greek myths, it was a place where the gods locked up their enemies. In this world, it's where Enji Todoroki locked up all who stood against him, with the newest inmate being none other than Momo Yaoyorozu. But her comrades and the Todoroki children refuse to let her rot down there, even if it means possibly losing one another...
Chapter Text
Chapter 25: The Prison Break from Hell
Itsuka Kendo had one job: Make sure that the position of the ship and the squad within the outskirts of the city was not compromised. And thankfully, it didn't happen.
Unfortunately, things still went wrong, regardless.
And that began when Lieutenant Yaoyorozu's team went inside the city with Kamiji, and then came back with Kamiji, two of the Todoroki children… and no Lieutenant Yaoyorozu.
Fucking wonderful.
After some quick introductions, Neito, her annoying yet lovable boyfriend, was the first one to ask the big question. "So. What exactly happened to the Lieutenant back at the party?"
The prince with the half-and-half hair, Shoto, said, "My father sent her to Tartarus."
Despite knowing this already, Awase still gulped. "Tartarus?! You mean the realm of the damned?! Home of the monsters?! The place no man ever returns from?!"
Melissa shook her head. "No, the real Tartarus is out on the edge of the world, if you believe in the notion that the world is flat. He's not sending her there."
"Oh, phew." Sato breathed a sigh of relief, as did a few others.
"He's probably referring to the prison the emperor made. The underground prison with the lava moat, monstrous guards, and where the idea of personal hygiene is a joke."
Okay, it was now Itsuka's turn to panic.
"HOW IS THAT BETTER?!"
"Because we might actually have a plan to rescue Yaoyorozu," Neito said.
Okay, that got Itsuka's attention. "And that plan would be…?"
If Momo was gonna rate this place, she'd give it two stars, at best.
Tartarus, or as her now-fellow inmates nicknamed it, "The Prison of Agony," was a hot mess. Literally. The structure itself was dangling above a pool of lava bigger than the prison itself, the only thing keeping it from taking a dive into the molten liquid being the massive chains attached to the walls, keeping the entire place balanced like some kind of sick trapeze act.
It had been less than an hour since she had arrived, and the only positive thing she could give this place was that Emperor Todoroki was an efficient dictator. The second the big man ordered his guards to take her away, she was placed into a prison convoy, not even given due process or a trial by jury. She was just grabbed, processed into the system, and sent here.
Arriving in Tartarus, it was safe to make the fair assumption that this place was designed with the aesthetic choice of "abandon all hope, ye who enter here." Aside from the fact that the entire prison was above fucking lava, the drawbridge that allowed access to the hanging fortress was around sixty meters in length, on had to be activated from the lever located next to volcanic wall, meaning that the only people who had access to it was the guards. That also meant that any prisoners who tried to use it would have to be newcomers who weren't trapped on the "floating" island, which was pretty much impossible since they were being escorted inside.
The second thing that made Momo believe that this place was designed with the explicit purpose of breaking the spirit was the architecture. The massive doorway leading into the underground volcano looked like a giant mouth with sharp teeth, and the level to activate the drawbridge looked like the head of a dragon. Sure, she could have probably written that off as the interior decorator being a bit of an edgelord, if it wasn't for the fact that once she arrived at the prison doors, the inside of them were covered in massive spikes.
Aside from the fact that these giant wooden doors were locked from the outside by a massive barricade bar with yet another dragon design, the inside of the doors were covered with spikes, meaning that if someone tried to forcefully open the doors, they'd most likely die.
Then she looked around the prison, and… it wasn't what she expected. The inside was massive, granted, but she figured it would have been designed to be cramped. Then again, the races of this world came in multiple sizes, so that probably wasn't feasible. But what surprised her most was the fact that all the prisoners… They were just walking around.
None of them were behind bars, and only a few of them were chained to the wall or locked up in a gibbet a few meters above her head. But another thing that struck her as odd was… the complete lack of guards. But then… who would have chained up the other prisoners?
And that's when it hit her.
The other prisoners.
What the Emperor of Flames did was construct a soul-crushing environment where escape was nigh-impossible, dumped whatever criminal, dissident, or political opponent who pissed him off in here, and then… just left them to their own devices.
Did the inmates just create their own society within the walls of this place? Looking around, she could see a few of them huddled around some tables, some of them were just lying around the walls sleeping, and one or two of them throwing up into barrels, as if they were drunk.
Did this place actually have goods like alcohol? They clearly had food and water, since they were all still alive, but did they have non-essential foods like sweets, and similar luxuries such as, say, books to keep themselves entertained, or dice to play some games with?
If that was the case, then that could explain why some of these inmates were chained up; thieves and more violent offenders needed to be locked up for the safety of others, and since there were no guards here, it meant that the other inmates would have to do it.
Okay, so, since escape was pretty much a bad joke here, the inmates decided to make do and develop their own mini-society in here, with their own laws and practices? Momo figured it was certainly possible. However, there was a nastier, and far more likely alternative.
Momo had watched a couple of prison shows and movies when she was a teenager, and if they were anything like real life, it meant that in order to survive in a place like this, inmates would band together to form gangs, and press newcomers to join them, or else.
If that was the case, then that could mean that those poor souls currently in cages and in chains were either rival gang members that majorly pissed some big fish off, or were some loners that decided to not join any side, and suffered the consequences.
For the moment, Momo decided to play it safe. She'd stay observant, keep her distance, and if someone approached her with a brochure about how things worked around here, she would accept it with a grain of salt until she could either confirm or disprove any claims. If this was a society created by those Enji Todoroki hated the most, fine, great. But if this was some sort of "survival of the fittest" gang mentality dump, she'd make sure to sleep with one eye open.
Momo wasn't stupid, she was aware of how conventionally attractive she was, and she was still wearing the evening dress that she was provided with for the party. If this place was as lawless as her cynical side speculated, then there was a pretty good chance that some creep here might end up acting on some pretty nasty impulses of theirs.
Thankfully, the guards didn't perform any search before throwing her in here, so she still had both her pistol and her knife with her. She doubted that her radio would be able to work down here, but hey, at least she'd be able to defend herself. Plus, she was more than willing to dig through a dead man's corpse to pull out her bullets, she only had a few of those, and it would make for a pretty good intimidation tactic to anyone who might have a similar idea.
She knew how to deal with cretins and shady organizations thanks to her family. She managed to get through Aizwa's hell training, and she survived for months on end in this monster-infested world. This prison would be her bitch by the end of the day, she just knew it.
Now, the only question was… who would she go talk to first?
Well, those two demon-looking fellows over there are as good a start as any… Momo figured, as she went up to the two inmates and asked, "So… what are you in for?"
Shoto Todoroki wasn't sure what to make of this plan.
Yes, it had potential; if they pulled this off correctly, not only would they be able to liberate Yaoyorozu, but also every single person that his father had ever locked up. However, the biggest problem with the plan was also the first step: Getting near the drawbridge.
While he never went inside the prison itself, Shoto and his siblings had visited Tartarus before when they were younger. So, yes, it was possible for them to show up and not make the guards suspicious, but not many other people would be able to do the same thing.
So, if this was going to work, they would need to get in quietly without his father knowing, get everyone out fast, and make sure that they don't leave any guards alive as witnesses.
Easier said than done.
Both he and Fuyumi got prepared back in the palace, while Moe and the SREU got themselves ready back at their airship. Clothes that were both regal and capable of surviving combat in a superheated environment? Check. Packed supplies and coins for when both he and Fuyumi inevitably go on the run? Check. Sword that is both decorative and deadly? Check.
Stepping out of his bedroom, Shoto could see that his older sister was also prepared to disappear, and potentially become a fugitive. Natsuo had agreed to stay out of this to make sure the Empire kept running while the two of them were away, and to keep their father off their trail.
Such a nice older brother.
"Ready?" Fuyumi asked.
Shoto nodded. "Ready as I'll ever be."
Katsuki Bakugou did not like this.
For one, he, Copycat, Shield and Mushroom Girl were the only ones that were accompanying the Ice Princess and Prince Zuko into this suicide mission to discount Mount Doom. Headband, Big Lips and Monsterfucker #2 were ordered to stay back at the airship with everyone else.
Katsuki wasn't sure if this was because the latter three didn't have any magic, but if that was the case, then why not swap them out with people who did? Or would the guards be aware of everyone who was at the Ranking party, and they didn't want to draw suspicion when three of the guests suddenly don't resemble how they were a couple hours ago?
The blond shook his head. Whatever, that was some minor semantics. The second thing that was setting him off was that he still needed to be wearing the damn monkey suit from the party. He understood that they needed to maintain their cover, but it was somewhat hard to move while his combat uniform was underneath it. Yes, they took off their costumes, all got into their combat uniforms and then put on their costumes again, because they weren't stupid enough to go into what could be described as an active volcano while wearing sandals.
At least Prince Zuko was understanding enough to understand that modern JSDF combat boots were far more firm and snug than whatever leather garbage the Todoroki Empire considered fashionable these days. And besides, the peppermint-haired pretty boy figured that the second they started the escape plan, they'd remove their disguises regardless, so taking off some sandals just to put on their combat boots would be a waste of time.
But speaking of escape plans, the first stage had just begun.
According to Green Hair, the guard change at Tartarus occurred at midnight, so the rescue team went in five minutes after that, to make sure the previous guards were far enough away that they wouldn't hear anything, and that the new guys would not be able to register that anything was off just yet. Now all they had to do was just… walk in like they belonged.
Ice Princess took the lead, acting like she was just taking her bourgeois friends on a tour of their max-security prison, walking down the hallway, until the group exited out of a doorway… and towards the outer walls of a literal lake of lava, and the prison hanging above it.
"What are you doing here?"
Katsuki stopped staring at the edgiest fortress ever to see that one of the guards was actually doing their fucking job. He could also see why Shield called the guards here monstrous, given how they had multiple arms and ugly faces, emphasis on the ug.
"Oh, I'm simply giving our friends a tour of the place…" Ice Princess began to stall, as she signaled behind her back for everyone else to get into position.
Looking around, Katsuki counted at least six guards, two of them keeping an eye on the drawbridge lever, and the other four patrolling around the prison itself. The blond decided to be proactive and headed toward the one farthest away, while the others all picked their target, with some of them even asking questions about the place to keep them distracted.
"NOW!"
"What –?!"
BLAM!
In an instant, Katsuki pulled out his sidearm and popped the guard in the face, while the others killed theirs using a mix of either their weapons and magic, with the most notable kills being Shield decapitating one of them with her sword, and Prince Zuko piercing a third with his ice.
Fucking metal.
"All right, in less than twenty minutes, two guards are going to come down here to make sure everything is secure. We have until then to get the prisoners out of here," Ice Princess said, as Katsuki and the others removed their costumes, leaving only their uniforms.
"Okay, Shield, you and Bakugou fly across the lava and blow open the door," Lieutenant Copycat said. "The rest of us will meet you there once we get the drawbridge lowered."
"On it," the angel said, grabbing Katsuki. "Hold on tight."
The explosive blond did just that, as Shield revealed her massive white wings again, and flew over the lava like a bird, before gently landing onto the prison, next to the massive doors.
"Aight, stand back, this is gonna get loud…"
The blond angel held up her hand. "Wait, hold on!"
"Huh?! Whaddya mean by that?!"
"Look at this brick over there," she said, pointing at a red brick the size of two cinder blocks. "I think it's loose. If we can pry it open, we can tell everyone inside what's going on."
"Ugh, fine! But hurry!"
Shield nodded, as she knelt down, and pulled the block right out of the wall.
"Bakugou, you think you can blow the door towards the outside?"
Katsuki smiled at what he considered child's play. "Hell yeah."
Melissa squeezed through the opening she made, and stood up as soon as she made it to the other side. Needless to say, the conditions of this place were… deplorable.
Prisoners in cages, some of them hanging from the ceiling, while others were just laying on the floor, either asleep, passed out, or… no longer among the living. And the entire place was only lit by the light of the lava that pierced through the barred windows, like, holy fuck.
It looked like something her would-be father-in-law would have approved of.
But enough about that! She had a job to do!
"LISTEN UP, ALL OF YOU!" she shouted, gaining everyone's attention in the vicinity. "That door is about to be broken down, and when that happens, I want all of you to stay away from it until the explosion is done! Once the smoke clears, I want all of you to tell everyone that the door is gone and that you're all free! Congratulations, you're all getting out of here!"
She ignored everyone's murmurs and shouts, as she shot through the prison, searching every corner and corridor for her friend. "MOMO! MOMO, WHERE ARE YOU?!"
"Melissa?"
The blond angel turned around to where she heard the sound of her friend, darting towards the corner to look into a room, to see Momo and a few other inmates… rolling dice on a table?
Wait a minute, were they playing Liar's Dice?
"Melissa?" Momo stood up from her table. "What are you doing here?"
"What am I…?! I'm here to rescue you! We're here to rescue you! What are you doing?!"
"Hold on, we?! Who else is with you?!" the raven-haired woman asked.
"Bakugou, Monoma, Komori, and the Todoroki siblings!" Melissa shouted. "Look, can you tell your prison buddies to finish this game up later? You know, before the guards show up!"
"Oh, right!" Momo said, before she looked at the two demons sitting next to her. "Apologies, Shoji and Kamakiri. Perhaps we can continue this game later at the Collibus Hills?"
"Works for me," the six-armed demon with the gray hair said.
"We'll see you there!" the green demon with the mandibles exclaimed.
Momo nodded as she looked back towards Melissa. "Okay, now let's go."
Momo ran through the halls of Tartarus alongside Melissa and several dozen prisoners, all of them now rushing towards the main area, shouting in various languages, all of them excited at the prospect of freedom. Some of them were even freeing they're caged brethren!
Good to see that no man was being left behind.
BOOOOOM!!!
The raven-haired soldier looked towards her angelic friend. "Bakugou?"
Melissa nodded. "Yep."
The two of them kept running, as more inmates from all races and walks of life joined them. Creatures with long snouts, giant slugs, three-eyed men with green skin, dwarves, more creatures than there were inside the pages of the Monster Manual.
Making their way back towards where Momo was dumped in the first place, the young soldier could see that the spiked doors that held her in were now reduced to rubble.
"Alright, ladies and gentlemen, and monsters of all ages!" a familiar voice said near the entrance. "If you could please walk out of here in an orderly fashion, that would be greatly appreciated! The drawbridge will be coming down soon, so please be patient!"
"Bakugou!"
"Hey, Lieutenant." The blond waved at him. "Good to see you, too."
"So, I take it that Monoma is leading this operation?"
"Nah, he's just following the Ice Princess's orders. She and Prince Zuko are helping us bust everyone out of here, while the middle kid and Green Hair keep the big man busy."
"Again with those nicknames –"
"THE DRAWBRIDGE!!! IT'S COMING DOWN!!!"
Everyone looked up to see the massive pillar of stone slowly fall from the other side of the volcano, before suddenly landing with a soft boom on their side.
BOOM!
"ALRIGHT, ALL OF YOU, LISTEN UP! WE'VE STILL GOT TEN MINUTES BEFORE THE GUARDS SHOW UP! I WANT YOU ALL TO WALK, NOT RUN! AND IF I SEE ANYONE PUSHING, I SWEAR I'M GONNA THROW YOU INTO THE LAVA MYSELF!!!"
The now-liberated inmates all complied with Bakuogu's orders, as they, along with the members of the SREU, crossed the drawbridge, some of them believing this to still be a dream.
PLOOM!
However, before anyone could make it to the other side, the lava beneath the drawbridge surged upwards, almost as if it was alive. The lava reached the empty side of the bridge, before receding, revealing a golden monster, one with the body of a wingless dragon, with two tentacle-covered snake-like heads, which had spikes rolling down its neck and back.
"SKKRHEEEYAAAAA!!!!!"
"What the hell is that?!" Momo shouted.
Melissa shrugged. "I'm guessing that's probably the warden of Tartarus."
"Yeah, well, whatever it is, it's in our way!" Bakugou shouted, as he pulled out his pistol. "EAT LEAD, YOU DISCOUNT KING GHIDORA-LOOKING MOTHERFUCKER!!!"
BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!
The bullets flew straight towards the massive two-headed monster, hitting the beast, but not damaging it. In fact, they just… melted… as the metal went into their body.
Melissa simply stared in shock. "Is that thing… made of lava?!"
"Huh," Bakugou deadpanned. "Evidently, it eats lead."
"NYYYAAARRRGHHH!!!!!"
As the monster approached, Momo's brain was going a hundred miles a minute trying to figure out how to kill this thing. They couldn't use Bakugou's magic, the explosion could potentially send all of Tartarus into the lava below. Maybe Melissa would be able to –?
""CAELESTIS GLACIES DENTEM!!!""
SHUNK!!! SHUNK!!!
Two giant piles of spiked ice ruptured up from the drawbridge, piercing the body of the molten beast, causing the monster to squirm in pain, as the affected areas turned to stone.
"HOOOARYYYYYYRRR!!!!!"
Momo looked past the behemoth to see that, on the other side of the drawbridge, Shoto and Fuyumi were the ones responsible for the ice, as they prepared to launch more spells.
"GUYS! LOOK OUT!"
FWOOOOOM!!!
The snake-like heads of the lava creature figured out who was responsible for its pain, as it launched a barrage of fire towards the Todoroki siblings. Thankfully, neither of them were hit, as two of Komori's summoned mushroom creatures took the blow for them.
"We need to keep that thing occupied so they can hit it with more ice!" Momo said, as she looked at the creature… to see that the places the ice touched looked like they were… brittle. Then, she had an idea. "Bakugou, shoot at where I'm gonna shoot!"
"What?! What are you talking about –?!"
BLAM! BLAM!
Momo fired her shots from her own handgun, hitting the stone and causing it to break apart into pieces, falling off the creature, and making it stop attacking the Todoroki siblings.
"Ohh… I get it," Bakugou said, as he smiled, aiming his gun at the monster.
BLAM! BLAM!
"NYYYAAARRRGHHH!!!!!" The beast roared at the two tiny humans that were damaging its body, as out of their mouths came a torrent of flames aimed right towards them.
FWOOOOOM!!!
"NO!!!" Before the flames could reach, however, Melissa jumped forwards, raising her fists towards the top of her body like an X, and taking the brunt of the flames. "ARRGHH!"
"MELISSA!!!"
"DON'T WORRY ABOUT ME!!!" she shouted, as the flames died down, revealing her burned body. "That's right, ugly. Pay attention to me, and not the iceberg that's forming right above you."
"GIGAS' GLACIES FLOE!!!"
BOOM!!!
"Too late."
"HOOOARYYYYYYRRR!!!!!"
The oversized block of ice landed right on top of the molten monster, as steam erupted from the creature's body which was slowly turning into stone, its twin heads howling in pain, as soon enough, the steam was gone… leaving only a rock-like carcass on the drawbridge.
"Ughh…" Melissa collapsed on the floor, as Momo and Bakugou ran to check on her. Most of her skin was covered in second-degree burns, some third-degree; she was a wreck.
"Don't worry, we're gonna get you to Kodai, she'll fix you up, right as rain!" Momo said, trying to comfort her. The blond angel smiled at that, before she passed out in Momo's arms. "Shit…"
"Come on, we gotta go! We've got less than five minutes before the guards show up!"
Momona's shouting prompted all of the inmates to hurry along across the drawbridge, as Momo carried Melissa back towards the entrance, heading out of the underground with the others. But she turned around, and saw that Bakugou wasn't moving along. "You coming?"
"Yeah, I will, just as soon as I blast this medieval Guantanamo Bay all the way back to Hell," the blond said. "This place isn't gonna lock up any more folks, not when I'm through with it."
"Bakugou, we don't have time, the guards will be here any minute…"
"Then the faster you get out of range, the faster I'll be able to get out of here, then."
Momo was silent for a few seconds, before she said, "Don't die."
The explosive blond nodded. "Trust me, I'm planning not to."
As Katsuki watched Yaoyorozu and the rest of his motley crew disappear from his eyesight, a small part of him was wondering what the hell was going on with him?
Heroic sacrifices weren't his thing, his whole "thing" was getting the fuck out of there alive, regardless if the others made it or not. But… that was probably a lie, wasn't it?
He never left anyone behind, and while he might be able to dismiss that as a lucky coincidence, he couldn't ignore what happened with the Jiros. He didn't have to accept the rescue mission, but he did because… what? Because it was the right thing to do?
Deny it all as he wanted to, but he just couldn't stand seeing others suffer. Maybe that was why he was destroying this place here and now, so no one else would have to suffer. Because he didn't want his kid to be born into a world where such things still happen, or anyone else's kid.
Ah, hell. Katsuki smirked, as he conjured up his spell. So much for the "tough guy" act…
"EXPLOOOOOSIO!!!"
Momo reached the airship a few minutes after Bakugou caused the earthquake with his explosion magic. She didn't hear the cries or shouts of any of her comrades, she merely zoomed in on Kodai, before placing Melissa down besides the team's field medic.
That was fifteen minutes ago.
"How is she doing?" Momo asked.
"She'll be out for a few hours, but she'll make a full recovery," Kodai said.
The raven-haired heiress nodded, as she then addressed the rest of her team. "We can't stay. We destroyed their prison and have caused city-wide chaos. We need to leave right away."
"What about Bakugou?" Uraraka asked.
"He knew what he was doing. I tried to stop him, but we all know how bull-headed he can be," she said, making sure not to use the past tense when referring to their demolition expert. "He'll find his way back to the Collibus Hills. Katsuki Bakugou's the toughest out of all of us here. It eats at me to leave him behind, but if we don't leave now, we'll be discovered soon."
"You all heard her!" Kendo shouted. "Let's move out!"
As the rest of her team scrambled to get the airship ready, Momo went to address Shoto and Fuyumi. "I need someone back at the Empire whose going to have our side –"
"Moe and our brother, Natsuo, will be here," Fuyumi interrupted her. "We're coming with you."
That threw the JSDF officer for a loop. "What?"
"My sister is planning to talk with your country's government, to appeal to them to help us take down our father, and establish a ruler far more friendly to Japan," Shoto explained.
"Wait, you two are planning a coup?"
"We've been planning a coup for the better part of a year now," Fuyumi said. "We have allies. We just need one more in the form of the strongest military we've ever come across."
Momo sighed. Of course. The whole "work alongside" thing from the letter was actually just code for "help overthrow our tyrannical father," because of course it fucking was.
"Ugh, fine. Welcome aboard, Your Highnesses."
It was morning when Katsuki finally breathed a sigh of relief.
After he had blasted Tartarus straight into the center of the earth, he had to hightail it out of there right away. He knew that if the Imperials caught him, he was a dead man, but there were now even more pressing concerns, such as the consequences of his actions, because while he did intend to sink Tartarus, he didn't intend for it to start a fucking earthquake.
Luckily, the lava spewing out of the streets, combined with the Tartarus escapees running around and the panicked civilians were enough to get local law enforcement off his back, long enough for him to run back into the woods where the airship used to be.
He knew that the others left without him. Honestly, he expected them to, so it wasn't that big of a deal. He was a trained soldier, he knew how to survive out in the woods. Sure, it might take him a while, but he'd be able to make it back to the Collibus Hills in no… time…
Katuski had to rub his eyes to make sure he wasn't seeing things, but sure enough, nope, he was still seeing Kirishima, of all people, sleeping in the middle of the forest, buck-ass naked, while also spooning some pink woman with horns and a tail, who was also naked.
"What the actual fuck?"
Author's Note: Yep, the gang is officially separated, something that will be a running theme for all future chapters to come! Well, for the time being, that is.
Okay, so, in terms of references, we have a couple of them. This version of Tartarus was actually inspired by that one episode of the old Dungeons and Dragons cartoon from the 1980's, specially the episode, "Servant of Evil," where you can find how the prison looks, along with its monstrous warden. And now, it's time for the comments!
valkrus: Yeah, Momo has had enough crap from this world, so she might begin to vent her frustrations, especially when their aimed towards acceptable targets.
Honey- (Guest): I have always wanted to tell a "Nunya" joke in real life, and while I have finally managed to achieve that (I think), it was before I wrote this chapter.
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 26: An Address to the World
Summary:
Many things have happened after the destruction of Tartarus, from Yaoyorozu and her allies being called back to Japan to testify before their government, to one of the Demon Lord, Eri Shigaraki, arriving to the Collibus Hills and befriending one Kota Izumi, it seems that this is going to be an eventful week for all...
Chapter Text
Chapter 26: An Address to the World
Shouta Aizawa groaned, as he took in everything that Yaoyorozu told him about. So, the mission went pear-shaped, that much he figured. Trying to have secret peace talks behind the back of a country's supreme leader tended to have that effect. But the rest of this shit…?
Apparently, the Todoroki siblings had planned a coup to overthrow their dear daddy, with both their nation's military, and international allies backing it. However, it wasn't enough. From the reports they were given, Enji Todoroki was a monster on the battlefield. They wouldn't be able to take him down unless someone with a massive amount of firepower decided to join the fight.
And then the Japanese Self-Defense Force walked in.
The children of the biggest menace on the continent figured that the JSDF was their magic bullet to win their little war, and given how the SREU made a name for themselves in less than two months, finding a way to contact them was as easy as pie. So, they approached them under the pretense of "peace talks," only to have them fall apart before they could even start.
The way Tartarus was described to him, Shouta would have assumed that the architect behind that place was also the mastermind behind some of the worst prisons on planet Earth, but it was somehow even worse than that, because for as inhuman and pure evil the those were, they at least didn't decided to keep their prisoners suspended above a literal pool of fucking lava, left to fend for themselves with less than minimal supervision from the guards, and have the place guarded by some sort of two-headed monster from, quite possibly, the literal pits Hell itself.
So, yeah, when your government is compared to those that considered the proper treatment of prisoners as a joke, and somehow the latter was preferable, you know you've fucked up.
And then there was the breakout. While Shouta was glad to know that Yaoyorozu spent less than a day there, he still hated the fact that Bakugou decided to stay behind and do a reenactment of Pompeii. On the one hand, sure, it meant that no one would ever be subjected to that human rights violation ever again, but on the other hand, his actions apparently caused an earthquake along with some volcanic eruptions, but that wasn't even the worst part.
The worst part was that Bakugou was left behind.
Looking up from the report, Shouta met the eyes of his prized student. "We'll have Bakugou declared missing in action, but we won't inform his family just yet. We don't want to cause them unneeded stress only for him to pop back up a few days later. However, I can only delay that for so long. If he still doesn't turn up by the end of this… I'll have no choice but to inform them."
"I understand completely, sir," Yaoyorozu said. "And Kirishima?"
Right, there was also that problem to deal with. On their way back from their botched mission, the squad noticed that Kirishima wasn't on the airship with them. They weren't sure whether he slipped away to track down Bakugou during all the chaos or if he somehow disappeared even earlier, but for whatever reason, he wasn't with the team during the extraction.
"He'll also be declared missing in action as of now," Shouta said. "There's not much we can do for him now. All we can do is hope that both he and Bakugou are on their way here now."
He could see his protege wince at that. Yeah, he understood the feeling completely. Still, she maintained her professional stance and asked, "What happens now?"
"Now? Two members of an opposing nation's royal family are seeking an audience with our country's government. Additionally, several of our reports and findings about this place have been leaked to the public while you were gone, we're not sure how," Shouta infomed her. "Chances are, in a few days from now, the National Diet will have an investigation and hearing that will be televised nation-wide, concerning both your past and current missions. Not only that, but they'll probably also hear the Todoroki kids' pleas for military aid and put a vote on it."
Her eyes widened at that. "A hearing? You mean…?"
"Yep. Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, gather your most trusted teammates and allies, locals included, put on your fanciest clothes, and head on back to Japan: You're all about to take the stand."
Flying over the clouds, Eri scanned the world below, as she finally found what she was looking for. After two months of searching, she finally reached her destination: The Collibus Hills.
Could she have gotten there faster? Sure, if she didn't stop to sleep every night, but she needed rest; she wasn't exactly an airship that could traverse the entire continent in just a few days. No she was a dragon, she needed food, and more than that, she still had a job that needed her to check on the surrounding regions before she could go on her big brother's mission.
Contrary to popular belief, the Demon King didn't just constantly sulk around his dark castle plotting his next evil scheme; he was an actual leader, with an actual nation to govern, and in order to do that successfully, he needed people to do the on-the-ground work.
And that's where the Demon Lords and the governed territories came into play.
Sure, traditionally speaking, the primary purpose of the Demon Lords was to carry out the personal orders of the Demon King, which mostly involved military operations, but they were capable of actually running a government. Hell, the main jobs of Tenko and Nedzu were administrative, not combat. And the governors of Daemonium had the responsibility of taking care of the various different regions within the country, sometimes with the help of the Demon Lords, especially now when everyone can feel that something is… off.
It certainly wasn't the arrival of the Japanese people, but it did happen around the same time. It was as if something awful had come back, something that she hadn't experienced since…
Eri suppressed the thought. It wasn't time to think about it now. Izuku gave her a job: Go to the Collibus Hills, investigate the people there, and get out without making a scene. Quickly, she landed in one of the nearby grass plains, far enough that no one near the place would set off the alarm; dragons were known to make any settlement they were near extremely nervous.
Thankfully, even at her young age, she had gained the power needed to change her appearance. In a blast of magic that lasted for mere seconds, her bluish-pink, butterfly-like wings disappeared into her back, the spikes all over her body receded, her tail was gone, the horns on her head shrank, and white her scales changed into soft, almost pale, skin.
Gone was the large flying reptile, now replaced with a girl seemingly in her mid to late teens. She had red eyes and long, white hair flowed from her head, with the only things proving that she was not human were the two small, curved horns on the top of her head.
Looking down, Eri smiled to see that her clothes were still intact. She had to admit, magical thread was pretty awesome. She remembered back in the earlier years that her normal clothes would be destroyed every time she transformed, leaving her naked. Talk about embarrassing.
Still, she gave her current outfit a quick look-over. Short pink dress that went down to her knees, blue sash and bow, and excellent-quality hiking boots. Looks like she was ready.
Looking over the horizon, she could see where there was now a settlement. Her feet began to move, as she made her way towards the town, ready to begin her mission.
"I have to admit, this architecture is quite impressive…" Fuyumi murmured.
Shoto nodded along. "I agree, this place is so… otherworldly…"
Momo rolled her eyes as the two Todoroki siblings admired the buildings all around them. Eight in the morning, and the sun was already up. Sure, summer may have technically ended, and the days were indeed getting shorter, but it was still early fall, it wouldn't be cold just yet.
But with the lighting they currently had, she could understand how, from their perspective, this place seemed like the closest thing to Heaven. Buildings made of steel and glass all around them, clean and flat streets, and colorful technological wonders of every kind.
Or as Momo understood them, billboards and stop lights.
The last three days were a bit of a madhouse, as Momo scrambled to figure out who exactly would be going to Tokyo, and how much would they need to prepare for. Naturally, both the Todoroki siblings and Melissa would be coming, but Aizawa told her they needed a few people from the Special Region to act as character witnesses for the SREU.
So, Momo ended up bringing Pony Tsunotori and Denki Jiro alongside them. Originally, she wanted both of the Jiros to come with them, but the blond bard insisted not to add any more unnecessary stress to their unborn infant by bringing Kyoka to the other side.
Aside from that, Momo and a few more members of her team taught a quick crash course in Japanese basics for their guests, with the Todoroki siblings absorbing the knowledge best. While Momo and her team would be acting a bit as translators when it came to the Diet, it would be imperative that they at least knew the basics, in case of an emergency.
Also in the event of an emergency, Momo picked six members of her team to also act as a security deal for the witnesses. Both in order to ensure the paparazzi didn't try anything funny, along with making sure no maniac would attempt any sort of assassination whatsoever.
So, in total that was five locals from the Special Region, alongside herself, Monoma, Kendo, Awase, Rin, Kaibara and Tsuburaba acting as translators, guides, and guards.
Well, they actually wouldn't be completely alone.
"Ah, you're here; perfect."
"Hm?" Momo and a few of her subordinates returned around to see a man in a hat and jacket, along with a couple of police behind him. "Who are you? Public security?"
"Close," the man said. "I'm Naomasa Tsukauchi, a member of the National Defense Intelligence headquarters. My associates and I are here to escort you and your colleagues to the National Diet building in one piece. You know, avoiding the press, and all that."
"I see," the black-haired woman said, as she noticed the large gray bus pull up. "Melissa, tell our friends to take a seat inside, I have a few more things to say to our friend here."
The disguised angel nodded, as she gestured to the others to head towards the bus, while Momo walked up to Tsukauchi. "If you're with Intelligence, then you probably know who I am?"
"I did a little research," Naomasa said, pulling out a notebook. "You're the daughter of the Yaoyorozu conglomerate, who decided to go into the military. From there, you were top of your class in the course for basic officers. When Aizawa took notice of you, he sent you to become a Ranger, and then Special Forces. I have to admit, that's quite impressive. But… why?"
"Why what?" Momo asked. "Why did I decide to join the JSDF?"
"Yes, that," Naomasa said. "I don't mean to be rude, but you were born in the lap of luxury. And given your school records, it was clear that your family's empire would be in good hands when you inherited it. So, why did you leave all that, just to become a soldier?"
Momo just shrugged, as she turned around, and climbed into the bus.
Kota Izumi hated this stupid fucking place.
Less than four months ago, that stupid gate appeared in the middle of Musutafu, with those asshole bastards pouring out from the other side, killing everyone in sight. And now the government decided to build a town here to… what? Sing kumbaya with them?!
Fuck no! They should be sending the JSDF out there to wipe those monsters of the fucking map! Because of them, hundreds of people lost their families! Because of them… he…
Kota shook his head. It didn't matter. Killing them wouldn't bring back his Mom and Dad, and he had to accept that. And while he was grateful that Aunt Shino took him in, did she really have to bring him along here? Sure, he understood that she was a colonel in the army, and that for some reason, Aizawa wanted to talk to her about this place, but… come on!
He knew they were family, but he honestly didn't think the army would be dumb enough to bring a teenager here, one with, you know, a phone capable of recording shit. Then again, he heard that Yaoyorozu already left here with some of the locals for some kind of press thing, so maybe by the time he went back home, everything he took a pic of would now be public knowledge.
Yaoyorozu… he liked her. She was the one everyone was giving credit for fighting off the bad guys in the initial attack, but… she was also there when he was alone in that crowd of people. She was the one that tried to help him find his folks, even if it was too late.
To be honest, she deserved to be a national hero. Maybe this is what that press thing is about, now that he thought about it. But he wouldn't know until he got back home.
In the meantime, he had to hang around this dump while his aunt was done discussing whatever it was with Aizawa. What was he supposed to do in the meantime, just walk around the town near the base? He'd seen enough monsters and fantasy creatures watching Lord of the Rings as a kid, he didn't need to see more of them, thank you very much.
Maybe he could ask one of the local soldiers what the point of this town was, anyways…
"Salve!"
Kota turned around to see… a girl. From the looks of it, it was some chick around his age, wearing a pink dress with some blue accessories. Kota would have immediately written her off if it wasn't for the fact that she had white hair, red eyes, and two horns on the top of her head. So, given her odd appearance and language she used, she was clearly a Special Region local.
While Kota had a severe dislike for the Special Region in general, he wasn't a complete asshole, so rather than his first instinct of yelling slurs at the girl, he just tried to ignore her. Unfortunately, when he turned back around, she was still there, staring at him.
"Umm… go away?"
The girl actually had the audacity of giggling, before saying, "Tu es bellus."
Kota didn't actually know what the local language was here, so he couldn't exactly tell if he was being made fun of, so he figured that getting angry at her was probably not only a waste of time, but would probably make him look like a dick to everyone nearby. Sighing, he said, "Look, lady, uhh… I. Don't. Speak. Your. Language. So, maybe find someone else, okay?"
"Meum nomen est Eri Shigaraki. Quid est tibi nomen?"
Okay, he understood when someone was given him their name. So, even if what she was saying was complete gibberish to him, he had enough context clues to understand that she was probably asking for his name. "Why am I doing this…? Ugh. I'm… Kota Izumi."
Looks like he made himself a friend. Even if he couldn't understand what she was saying.
The bus ride to Tokyo only lasted for a few hours, but somehow, it felt like it was somehow both as fast as a travel montage in a movie, and as long as a real-life American election.
In terms of being mercifully short, both Pony and Denki (they insisted Momo used their given names), were completely mesmerized by everything they were looking at, always asking questions about how those giant images on the buildings could be moving, or what that small two-wheeled thing that just sped past them was, or what kind of food there was.
In terms of being painfully long, Momo had to deal with the constant bullshit the Chaos Corps quartet was doing. Specifically, showing Shoto the wonders of the internet.
On paper, it sounded like a good idea: It was a global network that provided a variety of communication and information for billions on Earth, while also providing niches for private, public, government, educational, commercial and entertainment interests.
Unfortunately, much like socialism, when it came to the real world, such good ideas usually ended up corrupted, and resulted with someone becoming politically radicalized.
While Momo and Fuyumi talked about the government, Kendo showed Pony the wonders of American history, and Monoma showed Denki all the genres of music Earth had to offer… Awase, Rin, Kaibara and Tsuburaba decided to show Shoto the wonderful world of YouTube.
And, unfortunately, if Momo knew one thing about the platform, its algorithm was designed to make sure viewers stayed on the platform for as long as possible. And given that there were now four people trying to show a person new to YouTube everything, it would be a mess.
Sadly, she was too busy with Fuyumi at the time to prevent the disaster.
It started innocent enough, with some do-it-yourself indoor swimming pool video, followed by some life hacks, and then by chiropractic sessions, but then quickly devolved into something in a language Momo didn't understand, followed by content farms, car crashes, a video on the Bermuda Triangle, and finally, into the hellish rabbit hole that was conspiracy theories.
By the time the bus was in Chiyoda City, Kendo was lecturing the four idiots on the dangers of misinformation, while Momo had to now explain to Shoto the delicate socio-political issues of the Middle East, along with how, no, jet chemical trails aren't turning the frickin' frogs gay.
Thankfully, that didn't last long, as the bus pulled into the National Diet's parking lot, where everyone unloaded. Momo gave everyone a quick reminder to let her do most of the talking, and when they are addressed, to be very careful with their words. And just in time, too, as one of the most powerful men in all of Japan just strolled up to them as soon as she was done talking.
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu. And I see that our guests of honor are also here," the current Prime Minister of Japan, Yokumiru Mera, said, as he bowed before the five of them. "On behalf of the Japanese government, we welcome you with open arms, in hopes of a better future."
Momo quickly translated what he said to their guests, with Fuyumi replying in acknowledgement. With the small introductions out of the way, everyone walked towards the building, as Momo noticed that there seemed to be more parked cars than usual.
"Prime Minister, should we be expecting a full house?" Kendo asked.
"Even more than that," Mera admitted. "When word got out that this particular session would be heard, the international community demanded eyes and ears within the room. Eventually, we relented, allowing representatives from the United Nations to be in attendance today, along with having cameramen from every major news network from all around the world inside."
Wait… WHAT?!
Fuyumi must have noticed Momo's face become pale, as she quickly asked if everything was alright. The raven-haired soldier nodded, as she explained to everyone how, instead of simply addressing Japan, now the eyes of the entire world would be watching them.
No pressure.
"Over three months have passed since the Mustafu Incident," the woman announced into the microphone, and to the cameras. "Today will be the first question-answer period of the Diet. Several witnesses have been invited to testify, including members of the JSDF…"
The woman was drowned out, as the doors to the main legislative room opened up, with cameras flashing and reporters starting to demand questions from those entering. Everyone, from the most powerful of world leaders, to the most average of citizens, was now watching.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we will now begin questioning the witnesses."
"I'm going to be as straightforward as possible," one of the members of the Diet, Koku Hanabata, said. "The Self-Defense Force has given us multiple reports regarding what can best be described as "near-death experiences," involving several of the local wildlife within the Special Region, which could have potentially led to the deaths of multiple soldiers."
"First Lieutenant Momo Yaoyorozu."
The black-haired woman stood up from her seat, and walked up to the stand. Bending down towards the microphone, she said, "Yes. We had several… monster encounters."
Several members of the Diet murmured amongst themselves, as Hanabata continued. "And what do you mean by that? Your subordinates could have died, along with the civilian woman you have been using as a guide. Couldn't you have done more to protect them?"
"Sir, all the members of the Special Region Exploration Unit are trained soldiers who are well-aware of the potential risks that come with the occupation," Yaoyorozu explained. "Additionally, while Melissa Shield is indeed a civilian, she is a trained fighter who knows more about the Special Region than all of us combined; she does not need protection."
"So, then, are you telling me that the SREU couldn't fight them off?"
"No, I'm saying that different creatures require different methods in order to successfully combat them. I mean, bullets can only do so much when the enemy you're facing is covered in two meters of muscle and fur, while also being capable of evaporating you," she said. "In fact, for a more clear picture, I would like to request Private First Class Hiryu Rin to the stand."
The members of the Diet allowed that, as Rin made his way to the stand. "Uh, yeah, so, as the zoologist on the SREU, I have observed that multiple organisms within the Special Region seem to have taken to various evolutionary plans which would have placed early humanity at the bottom of the food chain, including Cope's rule of gigantism. Our current theory is that something within the Special Region allows the local life there to mutate exponentially, creating several new subspecies and unique creatures in the span of a few thousand years rather than a few million. To put it simply, we adapted. Using standard military protocol against something that violates the natural order of our world would have been reckless. You can't simply fight off every creature you encounter with the same weapon, unless it's something capable of wiping out entire ecosystems, and I'm sure that the Diet would disapprove of something like that… right?"
"Very well," Hanabata said. "I'd like to call Melissa Shield to the stand."
The blonde woman, concealing her wings, stood from her seat, as she took the stand. Unless Hanabata decided to ask about her lineage, there was no need to let the whole world know.
"Do you understand Japanese?" the politician asked.
"Yes," Shield answered. "I can speak it fluently."
"Then let's get started. I'd like to take a moment to address how, as a civilian, you are currently in the care of the JSDF. Do you have any restrictions within the Collibus Hills base?"
"I have travel restrictions, yes. I'm advised not to leave the base unless on a mission, but those are more like suggestions. I can leave whenever I want, and your soldiers can't stop me."
Hanabata pried further into that. "What do you mean by, they can't stop you?"
The blonde woman answered, "The soldiers and weapons of the JSDF are physically incapable of stopping me. I can leave their base whenever I desire. I help them because I choose to."
"Really? If you're as powerful as you claim, then how can we trust you?"
"I can assure you, sir, I am an ally of both Yaoyorozu, and your nation."
After that line of questioning, Hanabata called someone else to the stand. "I'm a minotaur from the hidden Palus Village. I'm the daughter of the chieftess, Kau Redi… Pony Tsunotori."
Hanabata stared at the woman across from him. "I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I have to ask you this… are those horns, ears, tail, and other bovine-esque features of yours actually real?"
After being provided with a quick translation by Yaoyorozu, the horned woman nodded, wiggling her ears. "Sure! These are my horns, ears, and tail! Would you like to touch them?"
The cameras flashed and the people in the room were in an uproar, as Tsunotori kept swishing her tail around, until the main speaker told everyone to quiet down. Hanabata steadied himself again, as he asked, "Tsunotori-san, the report says that the SREU helped drive off an… enemy of yours… from your village home. Did you witness them actually do the deed?"
"I and the rest of my village saw the aftermath of their heroic feat, yes."
Hanabata sighed. "Very well, then. The next witness, please!"
"Denki Jiro, would you please take the stand?"
The man with black-and-yellow hair, wearing some odd, yet formal, clothes walked up and took the stand. "Please state your full name," Hanabata asked, as Yaoyorozu translated.
"Denki Jiro, formerly Kaminari."
"Please tell us what your life is like in the town around the Collibus Hills base."
"Oh, that's an easy one. When I wake up in the morning, I take care of my wife's needs and cravings, and then I do a couple of odd jobs around the place, from performances to training and information dealing, and then come back home to Kyoka, and then go to sleep."
"What do you mean by "your wife's needs"?"
"We're expecting. My wife is pregnant, sir. I insisted that she doesn't work for a bit."
"Oh, congratulations," Hanabata said. "Moving on, one of our reports states that you asked for the help of a few members of the SREU, while they were in the city of Portus, against their orders. Is it safe to say that your request resulted in them going on this unauthorized mission?"
Jiro's face seemed to be sour at that. "I don't understand the meaning of that question."
"According to the report, a small set of the SREU soldiers, led by Sergeant Major Katsuki Bakugou alongside Melissa Shield, used their weapons while in a foreign city within the borders of a foreign country, an act that could be misconstrued as an act of war," Hanabata said. "The SREU was essentially hired by you as if they were nothing more than mere mercenaries! What could have possibly possessed them to risk both their lives and the mission for you?!"
Once Hanabata was done talking, Yaoyorozu slowly turned towards Jiro, as she leaned in and whispered the translation. Everyone in the room could see the man's face shift between multiple emotions in a single minute: Shock, confusion, surprise, and then finally, anger.
Everyone watched intently, as Jiro then seemed to whisper something back to Yaoyorozu, who nodded and said something again. Once the two were done conversing, Jiro angrily looked back towards the members of the Diet, leaned into the microphone, and shouted in Japanese –
"WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!"
The feedback from the microphone caused everyone, from the members of the SREU and their guests, to Hanabata, to the Diet, to the members of the United Nations to wince in pain. Once the feedback ended, Hanabata looked dumbfounded, as he asked, "Huh? Excuse me?"
"You heard me, buddy," Jiro hissed, as Yaoyorozu translated.
Hanabata began to sweat. "Now, I'm not sure what could have upset you that much –"
"Oh, really? Then let me explain it to you in a way you can understand!" the man said, as the raven-haired soldier next to him began to translate as fast as he spoke. "My wife and unborn child were abducted by pirates, who intended to sell them into slavery! And because the Todoroki Empire is a human-supremacist country, I couldn't exactly go to the Imperials for help!"
Hanabata, and the rest of the Diet, balked at that. "Uh, I –"
"Oh, I'm not done talking yet!" Jiro barked, as he kept going. "The only ones who helped me were the SREU! They came alongside me as we infiltrated the pirate stronghold, killed as many of those bastards as we could, rescued my family, and brought down their whole operation in a single day! All while the local law enforcement didn't even bother to lift a finger!"
"I'm sorry, I –"
"Katsuki Bakugou and his allies saved my family that day, and all they wanted in return was for us to come back to the Collibus Hills to build a better future with them! Their story will be sung and passed down from my family and from every bard in the region, while you and the rest of you fat politicians will be remembered as just another faceless bastard we had to deal with! The SREU, the Dungeon Crawlers, the Arms of Fire… THEY'RE OUR HEROES! "
As everyone in the room remained silent at what just happened, Yaoyorozu guided Jiro back to his seat, as she then went back and leaned into the microphone. "I should take this opportunity today to let the Diet know that multiple sources have confirmed that the Todoroki Empire does indeed practice slavery, along with the imprisonment of political opponents and dissidents with no due process, and have no respect for sovereign borders, which they constantly invade."
Hanabata shook his head, as he focused back at the moment at hand. "Is that so?"
Yaoyorozu nodded. "Yes. However, that being said, these practices are ordered and carried out by the minority of the ruling classes, led by Emperor Enji Todoroki and a large percentage of the military, and do not reflect every citizen within the Empire. As requested, I would like to now ask Princess Fuyumi Todoroki to take the stand for the final testimony of the session."
The room murmured at the sound of that, as a woman with red and white hair, wearing a vest that many would consider something a royal of the modern age would wear, stood up, and walked towards the stand. "I apologize in advance for my accent," she said, in Japanese. "I began to learn your language three days ago and, while not completely fluent, have been able to write a speech that should be understood not just by your nation, but by every nation."
The room died down, as Fuyumi Todoroki took a deep breath, and began.
"My father met my mother on the battlefield," she began. "The lands of the Himura Clan were merely another conquest for my father, but one he considered his greatest achievement, as this was the place where he would meet, for the first time in his life, someone capable of defeating him. The two of them clashed, and their battle was so devastating, that the locals have referred to it as the "Day of Red Earth and Sky" for years on end. When it was over, the Himura people belonged to the Todoroki Empire, and my mother was made Empress, not out of any genuine love, but because my father respected her power, and wanted it for himself."
"When it came to succession, it was a constant battle. Whether it was because I was the oldest child after we lost Touya, or because Natsuo was the oldest male heir, or because our youngest sibling, Shoto, was the strongest of the four of us, it didn't matter. To our father, we were merely tools to be used, either as weapons to be deployed on the battlefield, marriage offers to anyone who would be able to make our nation even more powerful, or simply next-in-line, to rule his Empire as his legacy. Eventually, that sort of lifestyle broke our mother, who poured boiling water on Shoto's face, and was then locked in a tower by our father to this very day."
"With my older brother gone and my youngest one scarred, I decided that enough was enough. I began to conspire to overthrow my father alongside Shoto and Natsuo. We knew that we would never be able to confront our father at the time, so we waited for the right time to strike, and prepared for when that day would arrive. As the years went by, we gathered more allies, from those beyond our borders, to those within our own ranks, such as the woman I love, Moe. But then… one day, we hear stories of an army capable of repelling our father's armies that came from the Collibus Hill Gate; an army that had sent its soldiers into our continent, but… rather than act as conquerors, like how the Empire did, they acted as liberators, as heroes."
"We heard tale of Momo Yaoyorozu, the Night-Haired Warrior that traveled with a celestial companion from place to place, fighting against some of the most legendary beings in our world, from Demon Lords to the undead, fierce warriors and misbegotten pirates; we knew they were our greatest hope. When my father imprisoned Lady Yaoyorozu, we worked together, both my rebellion and the SREU, to rescue her and bring down Tartarus, and now, I am here, as far away from my home as I can be, with only my youngest brother, asking you to help us!"
"As the Princess of the Todoroki Empire, I ask of you, please, help us! Help us end my father's cruelty and his mentality of the strong lording over the weak! Help us put an end to the Imperial madness of endless conquest and wars! Help us bring about a new age of compassion and kindness! HELP US BRING TOGETHER OUR TWO WORLDS, AS ONE!"
The thunderous applause Fuyumi heard was certainly a positive response.
Watching the recording of the meeting, Rikiya Yotsubashi had to admit, he was impressed. "Well done, Hanabata. It seems that we managed to gain an unexpected ally, thanks to you."
"I did my best to rile up the musician as best as I could; though, I might have lost a few popularity points due to coming off as insensitive," Hanabata admitted.
"True, but thanks to his outburst, along with Lieutenant Yaoyorozu's juicy bits of information, the whole world now knows what sort of nation the Todoroki Empire is truly like," Chikazoku said. "This will make Japan's assistance in the princess' coup appear far more justified."
"Indeed," Yotsubashi said, smiling. "Just imagine it: Japan and the Empire, a strong alliance built on the foundations of freedom, friendship, and of course… economic growth! Perfect for both Detnerat and Feel Good, Inc. to swoop in with their new Special Region-based products!"
Chikazoku grinned. "Yes, yes. Business will soon be booming!"
Author's Note: Okay, so, depending on where you are in the world, this chapter might be coming out a day earlier, but it was either that or a day later, and the choice was a pretty easy one. Anyways, I hope that this chapter was enjoyable for y'all.
So, to recap, Momo and friends have testified before the whole world (which may have resulted in military action against the Todoroki Empire), Eri has arrived at the Collibus Hills and has met Kota (I told you he'd be relevant), and the old rich dudes are gonna be making a profit. And speaking of profits, it's time for mine… the comments!
valkrus: Let's look at this from his perspective: He has been constantly second-guessing whether or not he should have let the so-called "monster" from Musutafu leave, and during that time, said "monster" has been saving his life for a reason he himself couldn't understand (as he believed he didn't deserve it). When he finally got a chance to talk to her without running away, it finally hit him that, while she did save his life as payment for sparing her's, she began to care about him on a more intimate level, and he began to realize that he kinda felt the same way. Anyways, after what was essentially months of bare-minimum contact, it's sorta understandable that the hormone would take over by that point. Also, I fixed the typo (I can't believe I goofed up like that again). See ya.
Honey- (Guest): Momo's slowly becoming desensitized to everything this world can throw at her (for now), but I honestl;y have no explanation for Kirishima's antics outside of a bad case of love. Hopefully all future chapters will be as funny as the last one.
GreenBoy9000: The coup's coming soon, please bear with me for now.
Zeref78: No.
VinHD15: Pretty much. Expect a child by the end of this story.
aba (Guest): Oh, trust me, the first two chapters are absolutely nothing compared to the insanity the rest of the story is. Let me know at what point you are now!
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 27: Be Prepared
Summary:
Bakugou, along with Kirishima and Ashido, get a ride back towards the Collibus Hills. Meanwhile, Yaoyorozu and her team head out to take down the Emperor of Flames, while said Emperor is heading off into battle. While that is happening, Imasuji and his mercs move in the shadows, and there's love abound!
Chapter Text
Chapter 27: Be Prepared
Katsuki Bakugou wasn't sure what to make of the sight before him.
Oh, he certainly understood what he was seeing in front of him: Just Kirishima sleeping naked on a bed of grass cuddled up to some pink monster girl. He understood that. The problem he was currently having was with the why and the how of it all.
Looking around the forest floor, the blond could see a couple of things. Aside from Shitty Hair's scattered clothes, along with those of his lady friend, there was also an ocarina, which was pretty irrelevant, and a red mask along with a spear, which were far less irrelevant.
Looking back on his memories, Katsuki could clearly remember two or three times where a certain masked woman with a spear came to the rescue wherever he was in certain imminent danger. Actually, now that he thought about it, in every single one of those memories, Kirishima was with him, so that probably meant she was saving his life, and Katsuki's was just a bonus.
Okay, so, weird monster girl has been following the team all across the continent and saving Shitty Hair's bacon on multiple occasions, cool. But… why? Why did this random woman care for someone that wasn't even part of her world? Ehh, maybe Kirishima knew.
Moving on to the second question: What exactly would possess Shitty Hair to abandon his post, wander into this forest, and then stay there long enough to make Yaomomo and the rest of the squad assume that searching for him was a lost cause?
Now, the obvious answer was right in front of him: It was pink, had a tail and horns, and was currently using Kirishima's chest as a body pillow, but there was no way it was just her, right? There was now way that Kirishima, a trained soldier, would have left without verifying anyone on the team, just to go into the middle of the forest to get his rocks off. Right?
However, now that he thought about it, maybe this wasn't the first time they did this? Given how she always showed up to save Shitty Hair before, maybe she was always near them, and the two of them met when no one was looking. Like, maybe when everyone was asleep, Pinky over here would sneak into the camp and leave in the morning before anyone woke up.
Well, if that was the case… THEN THAT WAS EVEN WORSE.
Kirishima could have potentially compromised the safety of everyone in the SREU all for the sake of some pussy! The only way Katsuki would even think this could be remotely okay was if someone of a higher rank was aware of this, and actually allowed the horned girl to visit her boyfriend every night, while notifying anyone who was on guard duty not to shoot her!
Would Yaoyorozu seriously allow this?! He knew this squad was an exploration team in the name of science, but would she really potentially compromise the safety of everyone on the mission for the small chance of gaining some insider knowledge on… what, exactly? The mating rituals of a human and a who-knows-what? Seriously, what even is that thing?
It was at that moment Katsuki's intrusive thoughts decided to pay him a little visit by making his imagination conjure up the image of Lieutenant Yaoyorozu recording Kirishima and Pinky doing the deed for "science purposes," while everyone else was sleeping. Oh, God, he felt sick.
Was Shield in on this? She seemed like the romantic type, and given that this world hasn't exactly invented TVs or the internet yet, she wouldn't understand the concept of smut. Katsuki suddenly felt even more sickened as his mind began to imagine Kaibara and Tsuburaba being in on this, too. They sometimes kept watch during the night? Would they have seriously allowed a potential enemy into the camp just to partake in some fantasy-based voyeurism?!
No, he needed to stop thinking like that. Taking a few deep breaths, Katsuki calmed himself. He was probably still on the adrenaline high of sinking Tartarus and running from the Imperials, making him paranoid as shit. Yeah, that was probably it. If he thought about it critically, then it would make more sense that Kirishima meeting up with Pinky over here was just a one-time thing, and not a constant problem that someone else was keeping him blind to.
For now, Katsuki decided to just stick with the facts he knew for certain: He was alone in these woods, in enemy territory. Kirishima was with him, along with a girl who he trusted enough to be sleeping naked with her, with no defensive clothes or weapons on him whatsoever. And this girl was the same one who saved Kirishima's life on multiple occasions, so there's that, too.
Now… What exactly was he supposed to do?
Wake them up? Yeah, waking them up was probably a good start.
"Now, lastly, regarding the treatment of war prisoners," Prime Minister Mera spoke. "We have approximately one hundred soldiers from your country detained."
Yaoyorozu translated what the Prime Minister said to Fuyumi, who nodded along. It had been a few hours since the address to both the National Diet and United Nations had ended, and Fuyumi and Shoto, as representatives of the Empire, were escorted to a private room to discuss peace talks with the Japanese government, with Yaoyorozu acting as a mediator.
"We are prepared to start sending some of them back to you; before or after the change in power, that depends on you," Mera continued. "Feel free to offer a list of priorities."
"And what will that cost us, exactly?" Shoto asked.
Yaoyorozu relayed the question, to which Mera answered, "Oh, nothing money-wise, of course. However, we might end up asking for a few concessions, mostly to operate within your borders. Anyways, the names of the POWs are in here, feel free to have a look-over."
Shoto took the notebook that was offered to him. "Give us some time to look."
The black-haired soldier translated once more, as Mera nodded at that. "Very well, then. It looks like we're done for today. Thank you for coming, it was a pleasure to meet you today."
Both Fuyumi and Shoto stared in curiosity as Mera extended his hand, before Yaoyorozu quickly explained, "It's how we greet each other here. Go ahead, take his hand."
The peppermint-haired woman nodded, as she extended her own hand, before the two sides reached together, and shook. "I hope this is the start of a long relationship together."
With those last words from Mera, the meeting ended, as the two royals were being escorted back to the bus. "Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, I must ask… Do you think they will help us?"
"With your revolution?" the black-haired officer asked. "Maybe. We probably won't get a reply for a few days. Declaring war, even to aid another nation, usually takes time."
"But what do you personally think?" Fuyumi clarified.
"Personally? I seriously hope so."
The first thing that Eijiro Kirishima felt was a splash of water hitting his face.
One moment, he was pleasantly enjoying the warmth of his sleep, and then the next, he felt a cold slap that smacked him back into the world of the living. Through his still-blurry vision, he could see Mina scrambling to her feat. Oh, no, were they under attack?!
"Rise and shine, Sleeping Beauty!"
Nope. This was much worse than an attack.
"BAKUBRO?!"
"Don't shout too loud, we're still in enemy territory," the blond said, as he put down the bucket he was holding. How did he even get that? "Oh, and could you please get some clothes on?"
Eijiro looked down to see that, yep, sure enough, he was still naked from last night. He immediately went as red as his air, as he ran to grab all of his clothes.
Five minutes later, he finished tucking in the last piece of his shirt into his pants, as he saw that Mina was just about done with her outfit, too. Boots that went up to her shins, jacket, pants, jacket, leather arm bands; the only thing she wasn't wearing now was her red mask.
Good. It hid way too much of her beautiful face.
"So," Bakugou said, his face simply radiating with disappointment. "Wanna explain to me why exactly I found you cuddling up with the personification of the color pink, while in the nude?"
"Uhh… you wouldn't believe me if I told you."
He could practically hear Bakugou's eyes narrow. "Try me."
"Okay… here goes nothing, I guess," Eijiro sighed, before he took a deep breath. "So, I was patrolling around the forest as instructed, when I saw a tiny red spirit flying around the place. I followed it, and a bunch of more spirits showed up, and the forest started glowing, and music was playing. And then I found Mina in the middle of some kind of concert where she was playing the ocarina, and I joined in with the drums, except they were actually not actually drums but tree stumps, and then we danced, we kissed, we made love, it was the best night of my life –"
"Okay, stop. I didn't need to hear all of that," the blond said. "So, just to recap: You abandoned your post to chase some living lightbulb across the forest, and didn't come back because you were too busy getting laid, and then sleeping until noon after you got laid. Is that accurate?"
"Uhh… I feel like you skipped the part where I joined the chorus of the spirits –"
"I don't wanna hear anything about whatever hippie new-age bullshit the two of you did before fucking!" Bakugou barked. "And you know why? Because it doesn't matter! We're both stuck here now, when it only should have been one of us, and guess what?! It ain't you!"
"Wait, what do you mean stuck here?!" Eijiro asked. "What happened to Yaomomo?"
"She's perfectly fine, Shitty Hair, everyone is. It's just that they're currently back in Japan by now, while the two of us are right next to the capital city of this world's biggest asshat!"
"WHAT?!" Eijiro shouted. "Yaomomo abandoned us?!"
"She didn't abandon you, dumbass, you just weren't there when they left!" Bakugou then sighed, as he sat down at a nearby stump. "Alright, sit down and get comfortable, I'll give you a quick play-by-play of what happened. You can ask your girlfriend if she wants to hear."
"Oh, right!" Eijiro said, turning around. "Hey, Mina, this is my buddy, Bakugou –"
"I know who he is, I've seen the two of you argue before," Mina said. "And I would very much like to know what exactly it is you're talking about. Preferably, in a language I understand."
"Oh, whoops!" Quickly turning back around, he said, "Hey, can we maybe talk in –"
"Yeah, fine, whatever!" Bakugou exclaimed. "Just tell her to sit down already!"
Well, a few days had certainly passed.
Once the initial meetings were done, Momo had decided that everyone deserved a bit of a break, so they decided to tour around Tokyo for a bit. Of course, they did that while under the watchful eye of Tsukauchi and his squad of cops. They couldn't be too careful.
Naturally, the Todoroki siblings, Melissa, and the others were enamored by everything Japan had to offer, from things that appealed to the eyes, such as arcades and movies, to the things that had a bit more of a one-time novelty, such as karaoke and amusement parks, to even something as silly as those gacha machines that were next to every convenience store.
Thank goodness that Momo was as rich as fuck, huh?
Anyways, after a few days of shenanigans there, it was time to head back to the gate. They made their way through with the most recent batch of soldiers, heading straight towards the Collibus Hills base. While the others reunited with their friends and family, Momo…
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu."
"General Aizawa."
…met with her boss.
"I'm assuming you saw the televised broadcast?" she asked.
"I did," he said. "I thought it could have used a bit more showmanship, but I think it got the point across. The base narrative of the Todoroki Empire needing Japanese aid is out there, and now people are debating whether or not we should assist them in the Princess' power grab."
"What's your verdict, sir?" Momo asked.
"Keep your airship up, and your soldiers ready, Lieutenant. Just in case."
She knew exactly what Aizawa meant by that.
"So, the Emperor of Flames locked up Yaomomo in Tatratus?" Eijiro repeated.
"Yes," the blond angry human confirmed.
"And you guys did a prison break with the help of the royal kids?"
"Yes!"
"And you stayed behind to sink Tartarus into the lava, and are now on the run –"
"FUCKING YES! I already told you the story once! No need to repeat it!"
"You don't have to shout at him!" Mina barked. While she was appreciative that they were speaking in Common, it didn't mean that she wasn't part of the conversation.
"A, nante kuso kamisama…" the angry blond man, Bakugou, if she heard Eijiro correctly, cursed something in his language, before switching back to hers, all while trying his damndest to pretend to be calm. "Look, lady, we can't stay here. The Imperials are gonna be looking for us, we need to go. And the Collibus Hills, the one guaranteed safe place in this entire continent, is two months away via walking distance. We can't waste time talking about –"
"Wait, you need to get back to the Collibus Hills?" Mina asked. "That's easy!"
Bakugou looked at her as if she was joking. "Easy? Easy how? We don't have an airship –"
"Airship travel isn't the only way to cross the continent, silly!" Mina said, as she got up, and pulled out her gemstone from her jacket. "There are plenty of ways of getting around!"
"Uh-huh, sure, and what's the weirdly-shaped wood?"
"This, my rage-induced friend, is a gemstone broadcast," Mina explained. "It's a magical artifact capable of sending out messages with a mix of different magics. I know someone who can help us get to the Collibus Hills in less than a week… provided the right price, of course."
"I'm sure that the Self-Defense Force could foot the bill!" Eijiro said.
Mina grinned as she saw Bakugou seem to seethe at that last comment, but kept that to herself. "See? Come on, just let me call them, and we can be out of here in no time!"
The blond groaned for quite a long time, but eventually gave up. "Fine."
"YAY!" Mina cheered. "Best brother-in-law ever!"
"What the –?! Shitty Hair and I aren't even related!"
"Don't worry, bro!" Eijiro said. "You can be my best man! It's the same thing, right?"
"WHAT?! NO!!!"
Shoto and Fuyumi were missing.
Enji was fully aware of that. While he may not have noticed it during the chaos of when Tartarus fell, now that things have quieted down, he noticed that, not only did they not respond to his summons, they were also nowhere in the palace, their quarters or otherwise.
If Natsuo knew where they were, he wasn't telling him. And it was unlikely that General Kamiji knew where they were, either. Regardless, he still knew where to start looking.
His network of spies was top of the line. He knew that information was power, that was why he controlled the flow of it to the common citizens; the less they knew, the less of them tried anything stupid against him. Despite that, there would always be something that would slip through the cracks, and sometimes, that would prove useful, even to him.
The most recent rumor to come into Endeavor was one of a woman with hair the color of the night. There were stories of a warrior who made his armies run screaming, one who traveled in a green uniform, accompanied by an angel. A member of that ancient order, the Arms of Fire, back from legend. He was also able to place a name to this figure…
Momo Yaoyorozu. The Night-Haired Warrior.
Enji could already picture her now: Wielding a great weapon that could reduce his forces to ash, her viridian armor looking like something that came straight from the other side of the world, a pale face that hid the mind of a fighter, with dark hair, flowing like the wind from her… ponytail…
The girl from the party. The one that he sent to Tartarus.
Now that he thought about it, it was quite suspicious that Tartarus fell the same night a woman from unknown origins was at the Ranking. A woman that didn't say where she came from, instead telling him off. Clearly someone who wasn't afraid to make an enemy of him.
Would it be too far to say that she would take his children to taunt him? She clearly wasn't afraid of him, and she had enough power to not be afraid of his troops. Would it be true that she had enough power to overtake both of them? Some sort of declaration of war?
Well, if a war was what she wanted, then a war is what she would get! Thinking back to Kamiji's previous reports, he knew that his forces were wiped out back at the Collibus Hills Gate. And a woman as strange as Yaoyorozu could definitely originate from there!
And if he was wrong, well, he could interrogate the locals once he got there.
"GENERAL ONIMA!!!" Enji yelled out to his subordinate. "PREPARE ALL OF OUR WYVERN RIDERS! WE FLY TO THE COLLIBUS HILLS IMMEDIATELY! WE RIDE TO WAR!!!"
Katsuki couldn't believe he had actually agreed to this bullshit.
After providing both Shitty Hair and his tiefling girlfriend (yes, she told him what race she was) with the summary of what happened last night, he conveyed to them in the nicest way possible (by his standards) that they couldn't stay here, unless they wanted to be discovered by the Imperials, and most likely subjected to whatever torture their normal criminals got.
Actually, now that he thought about it, given that he was responsible for sinking their greatest prison, he might be an even more notorious criminal than usual, which meant that, to them, he was probably more deserving of some of their more painful forms of torture. Yikes.
Not wanting to be part of that whatsoever, Katsuki urged the two idiots that it was time to get the fuck out of here, and run as fast as they could back to the Collibus Hills. And that was when Ashido (he refused to use her personal name, she wasn't his friend) suggested using her magic jewel or whatever to call for what he could only assume was the magical equivalent of an Uber.
She promised them that if her contact showed, they'd cut down their two-month trip across the continent down to two weeks, at most. Logically, it meant getting home faster, so he agreed to it, but made sure to keep his eye out for any funny business.
Such as the fact that they were currently waiting out in the middle of the open.
"Is he gonna show or not?" Katsuki asked. He really didn't feel comfortable standing around in the middle of a grassy field, where Imperials could easily spot them a mile away.
"Don't worry, he was near the area!" Ashido said. "He'll arrive soon!"
"Yeah, Bakubro, have a little faith in her!" Kirishima added.
Katsuki wanted to shout at Shitty Hair that he literally only learned this woman's name for the first time ever less than twenty-four hours ago; all the other encounters between the two of them were usually commands to each other in the middle of life-or-death scenarios. Sure, that made her slightly more trustworthy than most, but not to this degree, come on!
Of course, it wasn't like the red-haired idiot would listen. He was completely head-over-heels for this chick. It wouldn't surprise him if the two decided to elope the second they made it back to the Collibus Hills base, Aizawa's rules and regulations be damned.
"He's here!"
What? Katsuki looked around, and she didn't see any carriage around. All he could see was the tall grass that was beginning to get covered by a massive shadow overhead… wait a minute. Quickly looking above him Katsuki saw – OH, MY GOD!!!
Above the three of them was a giant raven, its wings three meters long, at least, and flapping them with enough force to cause the grass around them to blow through the wings. However, despite being able to easily make a meal out of any of them, it didn't swoop down like a bird of prey, instead, gently landing down, as… a rider came off of its back.
The figure was as tall as the three of them, and stood like a man. However, instead of a man, the rider was… a bird. Well, to be more accurate, they had the head of a raven, with hands that resemble bird-like claws and feet which acted as talons. So… a bird-man.
"Boys, this is Fumikage Tokoyami! He's an adventurer, just like me!" Ashido said, as she approached and hugged the giant raven. "And this beastie behind him is Dark Shadow!"
"Uhh… can't he say his name for himself?" Kirishima asked.
"I don't think so," Katsuki interjected. "I think I've read about these guys before, he's a kenku. They're like parrots, they can't say anything they haven't heard before. Am I right?"
"Yep yep! He's a selective mute!" Ashido said. "Say something, Tokoyami!"
"Revelry in the dark," a deep voice came out of the raven-man.
"See?" Ashido smiled, before turning back to her friend. "Anyways, Tokoyami, we need your help getting back to the Collibus Hills. Do you think Dark Shadow can take us?"
The raven-haired man thought about it for a few seconds, before he shook his head, as he rubbed the fingers on his hand together, while his mouth made a clicking sound.
Katuski instantly understood what that meant. "Money? You want money, yeah?"
Tokoyami nodded.
"Well, that's not a problem, then," the blond said. "Our bosses back at the base will be more than willing to pay, and if you're not satisfied with the coin, I'm sure that you can make a deal with one of the locals in the town that's being built. Are you interested in magic?"
The kenku's eyes rose at that, as he gestured to Katsuki to continue.
"Well, several mages from Yuuei-Shiketsu City have agreed to move to the Collibus Hills, along with a crystal miner, a couple of bards, and several minotaurs! I'm sure that a thriving town would greatly benefit from the labor of such a big and strong bird!" Katsuki said, as he waved towards Dark Shadow. "And such services would be greatly rewarded, yes?"
Tokoyami thought it over, as his claws scratched the underside of his beak. Eventually, he nodded, saying once more, now with fervor, "Revelry in the dark!"
Katsuki seriously hoped that meant yes.
General Aizawa was right.
Within less than a week of Fuyumi Todoroki's address to the whole world, the Japanese government had agreed to aid her and her siblings' attempt to overthrow their father, stating that this was a matter of defending the security of both Japan, and the entire world.
Now, when most politicians usually say that, they forget to mention the other motivations why they would maybe want someone in an enemy nation to become ruler of said nation, especially if they were far friendlier to the politician's country, as opposed to the previous ruler of that nation. The main motivators are resources, territories, and whatnot.
Most wars were about one country fighting to take what the other country has. And if the United States taught the world anything, it was that overthrowing the head of a nation, even one that has legitimate legal status, and putting in charge someone far friendlier to your country, was, while a complete dick move, potentially beneficial if you played your cards right.
The best case scenario was that the original leader of your target country was a complete monster, kinda like Enji Todoroki. If that was the case, then your nation could be seen as heroes in assisting in the revolution. Additionally, once the new guy is in power, they are more likely to be allies with your country, which means an increase in trade, along with both nations having each other's back in times of conflict. Theoretically speaking, it was mutually beneficial.
However, the more likely scenario was that the original leader was either a well-liked or democratically-elected leader which directly conflicted with your country's agenda. If that was the case, then there was always one of two options: One, actively destabilize the country and then swoop in to "save it." Or two, supply a radical minority with weapons and supplies, and when they inevitably overthrow the current party in power, hope and pray that they look more kindly upon your nation, and as a bonus, don't become complete monsters.
Unfortunately, most of the time, the new party in power do become a bunch of complete monsters, if they weren't already that to begin with. Human rights violations, unprovoked wars, maybe a few other things you might not agree with, and soon enough, you now have two new options: One, you leave that country's ruling government alone, in hopes that they can still act as a beneficial ally to you. Or, two, you try to overthrow them like you did the last one.
Regardless of whichever two outcomes occur, your country's public will still be mad at you, regardless of what you do. If you choose the former, they'll criticize you for leaving all of those people to suffer at the hands of the monsters you yourself were responsible for putting in power simply because they more easily complied with your agenda. If you choose the latter, they'll criticize you for trying to interfere in a foreign country once more, citing the last time you did that.
The moral of the story was basically this: Don't overthrow other people's governments.
Now, obviously, there were exceptions to that rule. During times of war, winning countries would usually have the legal right to occupy any lands they took over during the duration of the war, and even then, they would have to be required to return all of the land they occupied, as claiming it as their own would constitute a war crime. Despite that, what happens to the people of the previously-occupied country is completely up to them. If their pre-occupation government was seen in a negative light, then the newly-liberated country might attempt to make themselves better, or even try to mimic and ally with their former occupiers.
This was the sort of outcome the Japanese government was hoping for. Kinda.
While it was true that they were technically going to war with the Todoroki Empire, they were still helping a percentage of the locals in overthrowing their current regime in favor of a new one. It was a mix between the first concept of destabilizing a nation from the shadows, and the latter of outright occupying the nation. They would indeed be establishing a new order with Fuyumi as the leader, but as soon as the fighting was over, the JSDF would leave, with the only exception being anyone who chose to stay behind to help with the rebuilding efforts.
At least, that's what Aizawa told Momo during their last meeting half an hour ago. However, Momo knew how history usually played out, so, while she indeed hoped that this would be a quick and easy operation, she prepared for the more realistic outcome.
She informed the rest of the Special Region Exploration Unit that they would be heading out into battle in less than an hour, so they were now in the process of getting the airship ready. Their mission was twofold: Their first priority was to assist the Todoroki siblings in defeating their father. Their secondary mission was to find and rescue Bakugou and Kirishima.
Momo could already hear the helicopters and planes preparing to take off. They wouldn't leave until the Boat-Boat (yes, that is what they decided to call the airship, they voted on it) was in the air; it had the Todoroki siblings onboard, and with them, their ace in the hole against Enji. Momo figured it was time for the captain to make her way to the ship…
"Yaoyorozu, a word?"
…or maybe not just yet. Momo turned around to see General Kayama standing there, with an expression on her face that was hard to place. "Is there something the matter?"
"Before you head out, I wanted to ask you something," she said. "About Todokroki."
Momo raised an eyebrow at that. "Oh, which one?"
"The younger of the two, Shoto," Kayama clarified. "He's around your age, yes? We also received reports from several of your subordinates who were at the Ranking party alongside you that he tried to cover for you by saying that you were a lady he wanted to court –"
Momo's face instantly turned red as the older woman said that. "It's nothing like that! I mean, sure, he's conventionally attractive! But, he's a prince of a foreign nation –"
"Yaoyorozu –"
"Oh, look at the time, gotta go, bye!" Momo dashed off towards the airship the second she finished that sentence. Stop blushing! You don't have a crush on Shoto… right?
Goto Imasuji remained quiet, as he watched the jets and choppers fly off along with… a wooden boat? Christ, this place really was batshit crazy. No wonder the President wanted it so badly.
The blond mercenary tugged at the stolen JSDF uniform he was wearing. Fuck, these things were annoying. He didn't know how those Japs were able to wear these things, it made him feel like a caged up animal. He probably should have asked the guy he took this from before slicing his throat. Oh, well, maybe he's having a laugh at Goto's expense in the afterlife right now.
Keeping the fake eye on his left side hidden under a hat, Goto walked through the makeshift town the Japs made along with the people of the Special Region. Heh, "people," as if. All he saw were a bunch of freaks and monsters. He was gonna enjoy tearing this place to shreds.
But he couldn't do it right now. He had to make sure that first, the JSDF forces that were leaving right now would be far enough away that they wouldn't be able to turn back until after their little fight was done. And even before that, he and his crew would have to disable the base's communications so they wouldn't be able to call for help from the other side.
"Boys, it's Imasuji," he radioed in. "We've got twenty-four hours before the party begins. I want all lines and connections cut before that happens, understood?"
"Understood, boss."
"Copy that."
"Roger."
Goto smiled. By this time tomorrow… the massacre would begin.
As Shoto Todoroki walked through the interior of the airship, he placed his hand over where his heart was. It felt tight again, but oddly enough, it only happened when he thought of Yaoyorozu.
Maybe I'm developing some sort of medical condition?
Shoto looked up to see Kodai of all people walking towards him. That was good news, maybe she knew if there was a cure for this ailment. Quickly explaining his situation to her, Kodai nodded, before telling him to go into Yaoyorozu's personal quarters, and wait there.
I'm not sure how this will help, but whatever… he thought to himself.
Author's Note: Fun fact! Tomorrow is the one-year anniversary of the Dungeon Crawlers, so if anyone's interested, I'll answer any and all questions regarding my work!
Anyways, back to the behind-the-scenes of this chapter. So, yeah, I made Tokoyami into a D monster, and I turned Dark Shadow into that one giant bird that grabbed the Chosen Undead in the first Dark Souls game. And now, for the comments!
James Birdsong: Thank you for the compliment… of course.
Kavaliro_Sureya: I have never seen Vegeta's Sacrifice. Sorry.
GreenBoy9000: Of course I would reply to your comments, I reply to (almost) everyone's comments! Anyways, I hope you've enjoyed this chapter, because after this, all bets are off! So, grab that popcorn you were talking about, and watch the coming chaos unfold…
MostOfYouNeedTherapy: Yeah, Shoto Todoroki being a conspiracy theorist is a pretty big part of the fandom, kinda like Midoriya crying all the time. I actually took a look at your fic, and I have to say, not bad. I look forward to the next chapter of it.
valkrus: Ugh. Fixed the typo. Again.
Honey- (Guest): You better be scared for this mission; things are gonna go down…
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 28: Love and War
Summary:
As the SREU and their escorts head out to deal with the Todoroki Empire, Momo has to deal with her feelings for Shoto. Elsewhere, Eijiro has a heart-to-heart conversation with Mina, while back at the Collibus Hills, Imasuji's attack has brought Kota and Eri closer together... in one definition of the word or the other...
Chapter Text
Chapter 28: Love and War
Momo was not overthinking this.
Okay, she was lying to herself. Momo was definitely overthinking this.
But, why wouldn't she? Before her team left, General Kayama had basically pulled her to the side to basically talk about boys. Well, just one boy. Shoto. But what was so amazing about him? Sure, his eyes may have mesmerized her when the two of them first met, and he may have had a backstory that made Momo want to hug him, and he tried to protect her from his father by claiming she was a countess Shoto was interested in courting, and broke her out of Tartarus, although that last one might have been more Fuyumi's plan, but still –
Oh, my God, I have a crush on him.
How did she not notice? How the fuck was she this dense, it made no sense! This was real life, not those saucy romance novels and fanfics she read as a teenager where the hot idiots basically danced around each other's feelings for hundreds of chapters on end…
Wait a minute.
Was that what she was currently doing right now? Did Kayama see this coming from a mile away and attempted to just skip to the ending where the hot idiots fucked? No. No, no, no, she was probably overthinking this, there was no way that Shoto had feelings for her.
Right?
The raven-haired soldier sighed, as she looked out from the port side of the airship. The sun was beginning to set, and it would still be a whole day until they reached Endeavor City. She figured that rather than squirm around for the next twenty-four hours, she would confront Shoto directly about this and get it off her chest. If he didn't like her, fine. If he did like her, then…
…well, she'd cross that bridge when she got there.
Looking around, she could see that everyone was going about their usual ship business. Awase was on the wheel, with Kendo, Monoma, and Fuyumi making sure their bandana-wearing mechanic-slash-navigator was staying on the right course. Uraraka and Aoyama were manning the massive harpoon cannons on either side of the ship. And Kaibara and Tsuburaba were running around, playing tag, while Rin was chastising them about it. Which meant that everyone else was inside the lower cargo bay with the LAVs, or in the corridors. Including Shoto.
Good, everything was still normal. So, naturally, no one would be suspicious if the captain decided to retire into her own personal cabin at the moment –
"Lieutenant."
JESUS CHRIST ON A UNICYCLE! Momo jumped, as she was startled by Kodai, who had seemingly spawned in from nowhere. Holy fuck, that woman was full of suprises.
Okay, okay, time to act cool. "Ah, Sargent Kodai. Is there something you need –?"
"I know you're looking for the Todoroki prince," the medic bluntly said.
"Oh, really?" Momo began to sweat a bit. "How can you be so sure…?"
"Even without telepathy, Shield can read your mind."
Momo looked out towards the open skies, staring straight at the blonde angel who was currently soaring through the air like a majestic bird, before looking back towards the airship and waving at everyone. God, Momo was super tempted to shoot her down right now.
Instead, she simply grit her teeth. "So, the two of you are having conversations about your senior officer behind her back. How wonderful. And you care, because…?"
"He's in your quarters."
If humans could bluescreen, Momo would have crashed right now. "What?"
"I decided to speedrun this, so I told him you wished to speak with him in your personal cabin," Kodai said. "He's waiting for you there as we speak. Also, here, take some of these."
Kodai pulled something out of one of her many pockets, and handed them to Momo's still-limp palm, as the young heiress opened her now-full hand to see… a bunch of condoms.
"Wha…? Kodai, why…?"
"I am many things, Lieutenant Yaoyorozu," Kodai said, her expression as blank as ever. "A pervert, a degenerate, and a sexual deviant of all manner, but what I am first and foremost is a medical professional. And as such, I will always make sure all of my patients, including you, have access to the necessary medical care, including those needed to practice safe sex."
"KODAI! I DON'T NEED THESE! IT'S NOT LIKE I'M GONNA GO GET LAID –"
Momo immediately clamped her mouth shut the second those words exited her mouth. Looking around, she could see everyone on the airship staring at her. Wonderful. She could feel her face turning a different shade of red with every passing second. Time to improvise.
"ALL OF YOU, BACK TO WORK!!!"
If the scrambling around and sudden increase of casual whistling was any indication, it seemed like that worked. Especially after seeing Kaibara and Tsuburaba hit each other's heads in an attempt to run out of the main deck as fast as humanly possible.
But deep down, Momo knew her reputation had just taken a major hit.
Eijiro felt the wind flow past his hair, as Dark Shadow flew through the skies.
It had now been a little over a day now since Tokoyami had agreed to give him, Mina and Bakubro a lift back towards the Collibus Hills, and for the most part, it was a quiet ride.
Bakubro was busy asking Tokoyami a bunch of questions, probably trying to figure out the limits of the birdman's vocabulary. He really wasn't interacting much with him or Mina, but that was probably because he was still disappointed in Eijiro abandoning his post.
Now that the artificial redhead thought about it, that was kinda his fault, wasn't it? Sure, the local spirits might have lured them to where Mina was playing the ocarina, but he was the one who decided to chase after it. The only thing he didn't understand was… why?
But he figured there was one person who did know.
"Hey, Mina I got a question…" he called out, getting the attention of his tiefling girlfriend. "Why were all of those forest spirits so interested in getting the two of us close together?"
"Well, for starters, you have a good soul."
The redhead thought over that answer. A good soul? Him? He didn't see it. Yaomomo was a good person, same with Shield, and pretty much everyone else on the team. Ehh, except maybe Kaibara and Tsuburaba, those two were probably gonna go to Hell.
But Eijiro himself? Yeah, he wasn't convinced. "And the other reason?"
"While I am an expert in acid-based magic, and have combat prowess with a spear, another one of my talents is a minor spirit affinity. I can call out to them for help." Mina seemed to look down, almost as if in shame. "And… I asked them to find you. So… I could apologize."
"Apologize?" the Japanese soldier repeated. "Apologize for what?"
"For the attack on your city! I was low on money, and it seemed like a quick and easy job! I didn't know we'd be hurting innocents, or how dangerous you actually were –"
"Whoa, whoa! Calm down, it's cool! It's totally okay –"
"No, it's not!" Mina cried. "I willingly worked with the Empire for some… coins! I should have died back there, just like the others, but… I didn't… you… you spared me…"
Eijiro remembered that day. While to everyone else, it was the Musutafu Incident, the event that started this entire mess, to him, it was the day he decided to show mercy on an enemy. Scooting closer to the crying Mina, he asked, "Can I share something with you?"
The pink woman looked up at Eijiro, with tears in her eyes.
"For months on end, I wondered whether or not I did the right thing, letting you go. I felt like I wasn't a real soldier, or even a real man, but at the same time… it didn't sit right with me to shoot someone who was clearly surrendering," Eijiro said. "Like, I know what the right call would normally be, but this was a completely unforeseen scenario. I didn't know what to do. So, I just went with what felt right in my gut. And I'm glad I did, even if it felt wrong at the time."
Mina remained silent, as she kept listening to his words.
"And then, you showed up again. I never really understood why you did that. I figured that I was the big, mean soldier with the scary weapon that insta-killed people, and that you'd wanna run away from me as far as possible. So… why'd you keep coming back?" he asked.
"I guess… I felt indebted to you," Mina softly said. "I almost died back there, and for such a stupid reason. I didn't really value my life like I was supposed to, and I think a part of me knew that you would show yourself in my realm soon. So, I… I took it upon myself to protect you. I owed you my life, and I would make sure that you would keep yours."
Eijiro was silent for a moment, before saying, "Well, then, Mina Ashido… consider your debt settled. You don't have to look after me any longer. You're free now to do whatever you wish."
"Then… what I wish to do… is stay with you," she said, hugging him.
The redhead chuckled at that. "Yeah, I figured as much."
Momo walked down the ship's corridor, making her way towards her personal quarters. The truth of the matter was, the airship was quite small, and could only comfortably hold about twenty crew members, at most. So, while the rest of the crew was either bunking it up in their own smaller rooms or sleeping in the cargo area, Momo had a room all to herself.
Getting there wasn't that big of a trip. She just went through the door behind the wheel Awase was steering, and went straight on through, first door to the left. Past those rooms were the limited quarters for the rest of the crew, shared lavatories, kitchen, a brig, and then downstairs led to the cargo area, where supplies and the LAVs were currently located.
She remembered the first time she walked into the captain's room once they left Hatsume's airspace: The room itself was six meters to six meters in dimensions, with a window on the far side to admire the view, and curtains to cover it up whenever the captain felt like sleeping in. It came with a desk and dresser, but the crown jewel of the cabin was the luxurious-looking bed that took up more than a fourth of the space in her room; clearly a sign of status.
Only this time, when Momo opened the door, she saw that Shoto was in her room, standing around as if he didn't know whether to sit down or to just look out the window.
"Oh, uhh… hello," Shoto greeted her. "You wished to speak with me?"
"Uhh, well, technically, I wasn't planning on confronting, well, uh, more like talking to you just yet," Momo stuttered. "But I was eventually persuaded by Kodai and Shield to… yeah…"
Smooth, Momo. Smooth as sandpaper.
The dark-haired soldier figured that she should probably sit down before further embarrassing herself in front of literal royalty, as she quickly made her way towards the side of her bed, and sat off there. Which then Shoto proceeded to mimic, sitting down right next to her.
This was not the plan. Hell, she didn't even prompt him by patting the side of the bed next to her or anything! He just plopped down next to her. Wow, she could feel the heat coming off him…
No! Bad Momo! Focus! Coughing into her fist, she looked out the window, to see the last of the sunset begin to fade away. "Quite the view, isn't it?"
"Indeed," the red-and-white man said. "I've heard legend that when there's a green flash that shoots up from the sky during the last glimpses of sunset. Quite rare. Most have never seen it, and some… some say it signals when a soul comes back to this world from the dead."
Huh. Momo wasn't sure how an optical phenomenon was able to tell when somebody came back to life, but given their team had two healers capable of reviving the dead, she figured there might be some truth to that. "This world is certainly full of amazing things…"
"Yes, but so is your world," Shoto said. "Your colleagues have shown me a plethora of amazing things. Images with sound and pictures, like the ones mages use, are everywhere. Metal carriages without the need for beasts to draw them. I also discovered some… very choice drawings of my older sister your world's artists decided to create."
Oh, no. Momo didn't need to be an expert on the internet to know what Shoto was talking about. After her address to the world, Fuyumi Todoroki was a big celebrity now, so naturally, there would be lewd art about her. She just couldn't believe that Kaibara and Tsuburaba (deep down, she knew it was them) would be stupid enough to show said art to her younger brother.
Thank God for Shoto Todoroki's emotional resilience, or everyone would either be a popsicle or a piece of charcoal right now. But… was it emotional resilience, or… suppression?
"Shoto… I've noticed that you always speak in such a calm and collected tone, and while it is impressive, I do have some questions," Momo said. "About your emotions, I mean."
"What is there to talk about?" he asked. "I can still feel joy, anger, sadness, it's just… hard for me to express them. Father always had his focus on me, to make sure I was his masterpiece. He didn't leave me alone like he did Natsuo, and I didn't have someone to hold on to like Fuyumi, and Touya… I was on my own. I learned how to… keep up the mask, the facade –"
Shoto stopped talking, as he felt two arms wrap around his body. "I'm sorry," Momo said, as she kept hugging the scarred man. "You shouldn't have gone through that, you or your siblings."
"Your… sympathy is appreciated, but on that topic, there is something on my chest," the heterochromic prince said. "Literally. It's making it a bit hard to breathe sometimes."
Momo quickly let go, her worry spiking. "Oh, my goodness! Are you sick?!"
"I'm not sure, but… it's only been happening recently, after I met you, actually," Shoto confessed. "It was at its worst when my father had you locked up in Tartarus, but now, it only mostly spikes up whenever you're near me. Plus, I think that whatever is causing this, might be giving me more symptoms, like, giving me stomach discomfort, sweaty palms, a stiff…"
As Shoto kept lifting off the different symptoms he had been recently experiencing, Momo kept her expression carefully blank. While it did make her look calm and collected on the outside, on the inside, she was a mess. She knew what these symptoms were: Chest pains of the beating heart, butterflies in his stomach, sweaty palms from feeling hot, these were all symptoms of…
L-L-L-LOVE?!?!
Momo could feel the blood rushing to her face right now. There was also a good chance that her eyes would start to dilate, and that her voice would get higher. No, she couldn't be seen like this. She was a member of the JSDF, dammit! Momo needed to look like she was in control.
Coughing into her fist once more, she made sure her voice was as deep as possible (a bit of a tall order at the moment), looked back towards Shoto, and said, "I believe I might know what is ailing you. Furthermore, I believe I might have… the proper remedy to help you."
Holy fuck, I can't believe I'm actually gonna do this…
"Really?" Shoto looked at her with mild surprise. "That's good to hear… thank you."
"Okay, so… close your eyes and stay still."
"What?"
"Please, just do it!"
Shoto seemed confused by the request, but decided to comply, closing both of his eyes. Momo kept her breathing slow and calm, because she knew if she thought about what she was gonna do, her heart just might explode out of the raven-haired soldier's chest.
Slowly, and making sure her hands weren't trembling by any considerable amount, Momo placed them on Shoto's cheeks. The peppermint-haired prince seemed confused by this, but kept his eyes closed. This was it. She slowly leaned in towards his lips and…
Their lips touched. Holy shit, their lips actually touched; Momo had never had a kiss on the lips before. Sure, she had seen them in movies and stuff, but she never knew how they were supposed to feel. Seconds later, and Momo wondered what she was supposed to do now. Should she go in deeper? How did people actually do that? Use her tongue? Maybe, but –
OH, FUCK! Shoto opened his eyes, and Momo knew she was officially screwed. Their lips quickly parted, and the black-haired woman's brain was now going a hundred miles a minute. How would Shoto react? Would he hate her? Wait, he technically didn't consent to being kissed by her, would this fall under sexual harassment?! That's it, she blamed Kayama for this –
"That… was an amazing cure," Shoto said. "Can we do it again?"
Momo didn't even wait five seconds before connecting their lips again.
Kota was starting to get used to this place… somewhat.
With the majority of the JSDF forces now gone to kick whoever's ass, most of the people who were still around were either the upper-ranking officers who were more busy with meetings than actual combat, or some low-grade soldiers who have been relegated to guard duty.
The other people who were currently around here were all of the locals, naturally. Minotaurs building houses, wizards setting up shops, that one guy always fretting over his pregnant wife… Now that Kota thought about it, maybe he should really figure out how to speak Latin.
Sure, he and his aunt would be leaving her by tomorrow, but if this Aizawa dude decides to have another bigwig meeting that was gonna last for days on end, there was a good chance that Kota would once more be dragged along by Auntie Shino. He didn't want to have to play charades with every single person here every time he wanted directions to one place or another.
Still, he was glad he'd be out of here soon enough. Back to Japan, and back to relative normalcy. No more wizards, or monster-looking guys, or white-haired girls with horns…
Speaking of annoying menaces, where the hell was Eri? She didn't spend most of her time harassing Kota, the black-haired teenager had seen her talking to some of the other locals, and even attempting to communicate with the Japanese soldiers here, but most of the time, she was next to him, like she was a crow and Kota was the shiniest thing her eyes had ever laid upon.
She didn't seem to be at the general store, or the tavern. He highly doubted she was anywhere near the JSDF buildings… maybe she was next to the magical gate? Kota did know that visitors passed through quite a lot, so maybe she wanted to see the thing in action –
BOOOOOM!!!!!
An explosion rang through Kota's ears, as he was knocked back by the blast. It was instant, but he saw one of the army trucks next to the gate suddenly flip over, like a bomb was placed underneath it, or something. His ears hurt, but he could hear people screaming –
BOOOOOM!!!!!
No, not one explosion; multiple. There were several blasts going through, all of them hitting a major part of the Collibus Hills. The first one was next to the gate, the newer ones struck the main base, followed by some of the buildings that were built for the locals. Everywhere Kota looked, he could see smoke, and he could still hear the terrified screams and –
BANG!
…gunshots. Kota could hear gunshots.
Turning his head around, the cap-wearing teen could see a bunch of people wearing JSDF uniforms shooting at the locals, sending everyone in a panic. What the fuck was going on? They were supposed to be the good guys, why were they shooting at innocents –?!
"KOTA!!!"
The teenager barely recognized his aunt as she pulled him out of the main street. All he could see around him were some people dressed as soldiers killing indiscriminately. One of them shot a fellow trooper, while another threw a canister of… oh, God, was that tear gas –?!
"Kota, I need you to listen to me! We're under attack! I'm not sure who they are, but they're not with the JSDF! They're just… wearing our clothes! Please, run! I need you to get out of here, run as fast as you can! I'll come look for you when it's safe, so, please –"
"What?!" Kota shouted, his mind finally registering what the hell was going on. His aunt was coerced in soot and wounds. "NO! You're hurt! You need to get out of here, with me –"
The brown-haired woman shook her head. "I can't. I need to stay here, to protect you. Listen, I promise you, I'll be alright. Now, please, promise me, you'll run and hide, okay?"
"Aunt Shino, I can't lose you, too! I can't leave just you behind –"
"KOTA, PLEASE!!! YOU NEED TO GO, NOW!!!"
The black-haired teen remained silent for a moment, before he weakly nodded his head, and turned tail. He ran, like a fucking coward. He could hear the cries of everyone, being hunted by those monsters, and he left his aunt behind, just like… just like his parents…
He wasn't sure how long he ran, maybe a few minutes at most, but by the time he stopped running, he could no longer hear any more screams. Any explosions that were going off now we're just far-off noises, like thunder in the distance. Looking at his surroundings, all Kota could see was the grassy plains, some forests creeping in from the distance, and turning back around… the entirety of the Collibus Hills base in flames, smoke filling the dark sky.
"Well, well, what have we here?"
Kota turned around to see a tan man with equally brown hair and eyes smiling at him. His uniform looked Japanese, but his accent definitely wasn't. That man wasn't a soldier.
"And here I thought Imasuji was paranoid to have me patrol out here for survivors, but looks like the boss was right once again," the merc said, as he brandished a sword. "Now, most people would give a quick and painless death to a whelp like you… but I ain't like most people."
Kota immediately bolted, knowing what that man was talking about. Unfortunately, he was tackled down before he could reach any distance, and pinned down into the grass.
No… please… not like this! Someone… anyone… Please save me!
"Whoo-wee, we got ourselves a fighter!" the brown-haired creep said, bringing the sword closer to the teen's face. "I'm gonna enjoy slicing your skin off like a potato –"
WHAM!!!
Before Kota could even comprehend what was happening, he suddenly felt a lot lighter. In fact, the merc wasn't pressing down on his body anymore. Getting up from the grass, he saw…
Eri?
It was Eri, alright, but… she looked different. Her horns were bigger, there were claws where her hands were supposed to be, and there was a pair of pinkish-blue butterfly-esque wings on her back, along with a white tail full of white scales and spikes trailing out from her dress.
But the thing that was the most different about her was her face. No longer was she wearing the expression of a bubbly girl, now… she looked pissed. No, beyond pissed. Furious, even.
The merc, however, didn't seem to get the memo, despite the fact that the newcomer literally removed her from on top the boy near-instantaneously. "What the hell? Some kinda chick –?!"
SLAM!
In a flash, with Kota barely registering it, Eri lifted her hand and smacked the merc's face, sending blood and teeth flying. The brown-haired goon screamed in pain, but that's when used her other arm and sliced the man's leg clean off, followed by a kick to the head.
For the next thirty seconds or so, the same cheery girl Kota had met less than a week ago was now finding new and creative ways to break the mercenary's body, without even giving the man time to let the current pain dull the last one. Punches to the chest, the breakage of bones, making limbs explode in geysers of blood, seemingly nothing was off the table. All Kota could do was watch in silent horror as Eri created an orchestra of screams with that man.
Eventually, the thirty seconds ended, and Kota nearly threw up. The man no longer had any limbs, there were multiple massive holes all over his body, and the top of his skull was clearly caved in. And yet despite that, he was alive, and able to speak. "You… fucking… bitch…"
Eri simply remained silent, as she began to… grow bigger. The black-haired teen kept watching in silence and confusion as Eri's hair receded, with massive horns taking their place at the top of her head. She grew a snout, and sharp teeth, and her skin all over became scales.
"D… dr… drag…"
Dragon. The red-eyed girl was gone, and in her place, was a massive monster of legend, one that walked on all fours, had massive leathery wings, and a tail. In short, a dragon.
The giant white beast stepped on the dying mercenary with one of her hind legs, rubbing it into the grass like you would when stepping on a cockroach, before her head turned, and her eyes zeroed in on Kota. The teen tried to run, but he was far too exhausted, and the behemoth right behind him was far too big, able to catch up to him in just a few quick dashes.
He could feel her claws wrap around him, hard enough to make sure he wouldn't move, but not so hard that she'd break his bones. And then, he felt the sheer weight of the wind overcome him, as the white dragon's wings spread, and she took to the skies, flying off.
By the time Kota passed out from the screaming, the Collibus Hills were long gone.
Momo Yaoyorozu woke up surrounded by warmth.
Looking around, she could see the ceiling of her quarters, the desk and dresser to the left of her, alongside the door, and to the right of her, the draped window, and Shoto…
Holy crap, Shoto!
The black-haired woman quickly did a double-take, as she saw that, yes, Shoto Todoroki was still in her bed, and yes, he was wrapped around Momo, and yes, they were both naked.
The memories from last night immediately came flooding back to her, as she remembered that, once Shoto asked for that second kiss, they went at it, followed by immediately stripping down, and… wow. Kodai made the right call in giving Momo all those condoms.
She seriously doubted that there were any left from last night.
Speaking of last night, she severely doubted she would be able to move without any sort of pain today. Like, her hips were seriously aching her, and all of the hickies littering her neck and below were gonna be noticeable to everyone, unless she decided to wear her entire combat uniform, and she knew those were gonna be annoying every time she brushed up against something.
Despite that… totally worth it.
During the long twenty-six years of her life, Momo didn't understand the appeal of sex. Yes, she understood it was needed for the continuation of the species, but she didn't understand, in the modern era, why people obsessed over it, recreationally-speaking. In her opinion, all someone needed to feel good was their hand, some saucy reading material, and they were golden.
Boy, did she realize now how wrong she was.
As it turned out, what really mattered was the partner someone had. She theorized that if they had the right amount of compatibility, they could turn such an activity from good to absolutely amazing, and both Shoto and her just happened to be the right kind of partners.
…As both of them had no idea what to do.
Not to get her twisted, but it was somewhat understandable that two (former) virgins would have no idea what the hell they were supposed to do. Especially when their brain cells were checking out for the evening due to the fact that their minds were currently focused on getting as much of the happy brain chemical that came from fucking into their system as soon as possible.
Thankfully, the two of them were both determined enough and had enough brain power combined, alongside a basic understanding of biology and sex ed was enough for them to get going. Once that was done, they went at it all night, testing every position and move possible.
And now, she was enjoying the morning after the fact. Shoto was still wrapped around her waist, eyes closed, and… wait, was he purring? Like a cat? That was so cute!
Momo simply stared at Shoto, with a soft smile, staying incredibly still, as she believed any move she made might possibly wake him. However, she didn't account for her mesmerized sigh, which immediately caused Shoto to open his gray and blue eyes.
"Morning."
"Oh, I'm sorry," Momo apologized. "I didn't mean to wake you."
"It's fine. It just means I get to see more of your beautiful face."
Momo could feel herself blush already. "So… yesterday happened."
The peppermint-haired prince nodded. "That, it did."
Momo was silent for a moment, before she asked, "Do you regret it?"
The red-and-white man shook his head. "No. Not at all."
The raven-haired woman smiled softly at that. Oh, she really was in love, wasn't she –
SLAM!
"LIEUTENANT YAOYOROZU, MA'AM!" Kendo shouted, as she slammed open the door. "We have a –" Kendo immediately covered her eyes. "Oh, my gosh, I'm super sorry!"
"Kendo?!" Momo yelped, covering her body with the blanket. "What are you doing here?!"
"There's an emergency, ma'am!" the orange-haired woman explained. "Our jet fighters have spotted enemy wyverns on the horizon! Also, congratulations, ma'am, about –"
Momo didn't pay attention to what else Kendo said, as she immediately leapt out of bed, and grabbed all of her clothes scattered around. In less than sixty seconds, she was in her basic military outfit, running out towards the main deck of the ship, where everyone was.
She could see them, out in the distance.
Multiple small dots littering the sky. She knew that Kendo had already told her that it was wyverns… and there was only one group she knew that rode those beasts into battle.
The Todoroki Empire had just arrived to battle.
Izuku Midoriya was sitting on his throne, thinking about what his next move should be, when Eri came into the room. Ah, had she returned from her mission already? Except…
…she was clearly holding something in her arms. Oh, boy…
"Eri, what do you have there?"
Author's Note: Hooray for the progression of couples in my story! Momo and Shoto are now officially an item, Eijiro and Mina have reaffirmed their love for each other, and Eri has abducted Kota! Well, technically, it was more of a rescue, but still.
So, in terms of some in-universe lore here, Eri is a unique "one-of-a-kind" dragon. Due to how the mana exponentially mutates all life in the Special Region, anything super-sensitive to the stuff experiences evolution on a music faster timetable, hence why Eri is basically a cross between Seath the Scaleless and the Ancient Dragon Senessax here. She's got the physical appearance of Seath, but with healthy eyes and working legs, along with the red lightning attack of Senessax (that will appear later). I also tried to add some lore from Re: Zero on how the spirits of this world work, as that will be a surprise tool that'll help Eijiro later. Also, for those wondering, that thing about the green flash of light being a person coming back from the dead is a reference to the third Pirates of the Caribbean movie. But that's enough of that! Now, it's time for the comments!
Shin: I'm glad to see somebody here knows what a kenku is. I was somewhat wondering if I should have just called Tokoyami a "birdman," as that would be easier than potentially calling him a race unknown to the general populace, but seeing that one person got the reference, then I'm good. I also remember seeing Gaijin Goomba during the old days of Game Theory, but I didn't go out of my way to see any of his personal videos, unless the topic was something that I was really interested in, so I never knew that he had a D campaign. Glad you also liked Dark Shadow's appearance. Imasuji and his group may have begun their attack now, but the big fight will be happening later on.
Quanto: Hut? Are you referring to, like, Jabba the Hutt? But I understand Zorzal (though I think he's much worse), so I think you're going to enjoy what happens next. And also, yeah, I don't want the Americans anywhere near an undeveloped world like this.
VinHD15: Let me guess… this is a Jujutsu Kaisen reference?
GreenBoy9000: I hope you enjoyed this popcorn appetizer, because the next chapter is the entree! And make sure to bring the Dark Souls soundtrack with you!
valkrus: Ugh. One of these days, I'd just like a non-typo comment from you…
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 29: The Many Establishments
Summary:
The fight against the Todoroki Empire has begun, and everyone has their own thing to deal with. While the fighting is going on far away, Kota Izumi has found himself in the realm of the Demon King. Meanwhile, in the heart of the battle, Melissa reminisces on why she is wielding a sword in the first place...
Chapter Text
Chapter 29: The Many Establishments
Momo could count about a couple hundred of them in the sky.
This wasn't the plan, this was totally not the plan. The whole idea of bringing all of these fighter planes and the airship was to catch the Emperor of Flames by surprise, by having him deal with both the Japan Air-Self Defense Force and the members of Fuyumi's revolutionaries.
But it seemed like Enji Todoroki decided to throw that all out the window by sending his aerial army straight towards them. If his flight path was right, they would be heading straight to the Collibus Hills. They had no choice but to fight him head-on right here, right now.
"Melissa, think you can take them down?"
"They're wyverns. If true dragons are like peregrine falcons, then the bird equivalent for a wyvern would be a pigeon," the angel said. "The real problem is Emperor Todoroki."
"Understood," Momo said, as she turned on her radio. "Attention, all air units, this is Lieutenant Yaoyorozu! The enemy is here! Prepare for battle, and be ready to fire at my command!"
"SOUNDS AWESOME!!!" Yoarashi blared through the comms. "Ready when you are!"
Several more fighter pilots agreed with Yorashi's sentiments, while behind her, Fuyumi pulled out a small, wooden device. "Guess we were doing this early then… Natsuo, Moe, come in! Can you hear me? Father has just intercepted mine and Shoto's escort back home! We're about to battle him! Gather our allies within the city, and begin the revolt, now!"
"We read you loud and clear, sister! We're starting now!"
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, I just gave the signal for everyone in the capital to begin the uprising!" Fuyumi called out to her. "If we can defeat my father here, then our victory is assured!"
Yaaay, no pressure.
A few seconds later, Shoto scrambled out of the inside of the ship, his clothes half-crumbled, as he witnessed the massive wyvern army approaching their forces. "Oh, dear."
On that, Momo could agree. Quickly signaling Shield to advance, she grabbed her radio once more and said, "MEMBERS OF THE JASDF… ADVANCE ON THE ENEMY!!!"
The first thing Kota Izumi noticed when he opened his eyes was… how dark everything was. It wasn't pitch black, no. It was more like… he was inside a building with minimal interior lights, and there was no light coming through the windows because it was in the middle of a storm.
Or maybe a massive eclipse was blotting out the sun? Who knows?
The point Kota was trying to make was that it was dark as fuck, and not in the natural kind of way when it's night time. Wait… now that his eyes were adjusting… Kota could clearly tell there were lights in here. He could see his shadow. So why the hell did everything look so dark…?
The walls. They were covered in… obsidian? Some equally dark material? All the lights around the area were dim, too. Like, they were bright enough for Kota to see his own shadow, but not bright enough to make this place look like a normal room back home.
Where the hell was he?
"Eri, quid ibi habes?"
"O frater magnus! Kota haec est; eum servare possumus?"
Kota could feel his throat close up, as he heard a familiar voice. Looking up and to the closer end of this… grand hall thing he was inside… he could see Eri, once more in her "human" form (save for her horns), and she was talking with… a man sitting on a throne of bones.
No, wait, this was no man. He had two curved red horns on the border between his forehead and green hair. Not only that, but everything else about him also screamed "monster." Despite the seemingly harmless freckles on his face, those viridian eyes of his seemed to be cold and calculating, as if they saw everything; and the way he was sitting on that throne of bones as if he was an unruly teenager despite appearing in his mid to late twenties, combined with the fancy, yet dark clothes he was wearing, gave off the impression that he was above all this.
It didn't take a genius for Kota to know that this guy was some serious bad news.
"Hominem? Exspecta… Non iterum…" the green-haired demon said, as he stood up from his throne of bones, and approached the sitting Kota who tried to scramble away.
Unfortunately, the older man who was walking happened to be a lot faster than the teeanger who still had his ass on the floor, and quickly grabbed him. Kota wasn't sure what was gonna happen to him, but he was mildly surprised when the man just said, "Lingua adeptio."
The demon's green eyes suddenly glowed bright, as Kota somehow felt both sleepy and like he was having a headache for a few seconds, but then… it was over. "There, that should do it."
"Huh?" Kota looked up to see the demonic man as… slightly less intimidating.
"What's the matter? Elven cat got your tongue?" he asked.
"I can… understand you…" Kota slowly said.
"Yes, that is usually how that spell of mine works," the horned greenette said, walking away. "I am able to grant you full understanding of other languages, and vice-versa. Though, I must admit, this "Japanese" you speak is quite fascinating. And oddly familiar, too…"
"Uh-huh…" Kota nodded. "Right… Wait, who exactly are you?"
"Oh, right! Where are my manners?" the man said, slightly bowing. "Izuku Midoriya, crown monarch of the Kingdom of Daemonium… better known as the Demon King."
It was at that moment that Kota Izumi understood he was completely screwed. On the bright side, he now understood why this guy was ringing off so many alarm bells before. Dark castle? Check. Clear non-human lineage? Check. Both a nonchalant attitude and an aura of fear simultaneously? Check. Clothes that make him look like a royal edgelord? Double check.
Yep, Kota had seen enough anime to realize that this guy was indeed a Demon King, through and through. Well, mostly. The majority of classic anime depicted these kinds of guys as massive grotesque monsters, not as a medieval e-boys with horns, but, semantics.
Kota decided to play this one safely. "Uhh… Kota Izumi?"
"Well met. Anyways, now that we can understand each other, to business," Izuku Midoriya said, clapping his hands. "How exactly did you end up catching the eye of my little sister?"
"I'm sorry… your sister? You mean the… dragon?"
"Adopted sister," Eri cut in. "There's also Tenko, who is kinda older than us, but he's also adopted, so Izuku got the throne due to being the only actual blood heir…"
"Okay, I think I got the picture," Kota said. "Also, I have no idea."
Midoriya sighed at that, as he looked over to his little sister. "Well…?"
"Sooo… you remember how you gave me the mission to investigate Collibus Hills?" Eri said, immediately setting off several flags in Kota's head. "Yeah, I met Kota there, thought he was cute, and then the place suddenly got attacked, so I saved his life and brought him back here!"
That seemed like an extreme summary of those events, in Kota's opinion.
"You thought he was…?" the Demon King trailed off, as he suddenly put his hands on his face and groaned. "I see. So, you picked up another stray. Planning on expanding your collection?"
Kota was starting to get nervous. Stray? Collection? Am I some kind of pet for her?!
"I mean, I do want him as a friend, but I was thinking of… something more?"
Something more? What does she mean by…? Oh, my God…
This dragon… had a crush on him.
Kota was absolutely mortified. This monster that ripped apart a grown man in seconds, without needing to fully transform… was interacting with Kota, a completely normal teenager, as if she was some kind of blushing schoolgirl. This creature of legend, that could probably trample entire armies without unleashing whatever Godzilla breath it had… wanted to date him.
How the hell was he supposed to say no?! If he ended up rejecting her, she'd probably reduce him to nothing more than an etch mark in the sidewalk. And if she didn't kill him, she'd probably go crying to big brother, and then he'd have the Demon King on his ass! And what would happen if they went steady?! Kota could already feel the phantom pains of his crushed pelvis on his future wedding night. No matter what route he chose, he was already screwed.
"Something more…?" Midoriya, meanwhile, seemed to have understood what his younger sister was insinuating, and went into Big Brother Mode. "Eri, you're too young to have a boyfriend!"
Kota's eyes seemed to fill with hope as he pumped his fists. Yes, yes, yes!
"I'm a hundred and seventeen! I can make my own decisions!" Eri argued.
Kota shook his head vigorously. No, no, no!
"He'll be dead in a few decades from now! What will you do then?"
"I'll just find a spell that will change his race to a dragon!"
NO, NO, NO!
"Even if you managed to find it, eventually, he'll still be human before that!" Midoriya argued, waving his hand towards Kota. "You don't know what diseases he's carrying!"
Okay, wow, rude. It was at this moment Kota decided, "fuck it, he wasn't afraid of death" and raised his hand. "Uh, do I get a say in this? And if so, can I vote to go back home?"
Both the older and younger siblings looked back at Kota, before Midoriya remembered. "Right, Eri said the Collibus Hills were under attack. Hey, kid, what exactly happened?"
Kota was silent for a few seconds, trying to recollect his thoughts. "It… it all happened so fast. One minute I was walking down the street, the next, a bunch of explosions went off. There were people running and screaming, and I saw people dressed as our soldiers attacking. My aunt told me to run away, as fast and as far away as I could… I probably wouldn't have made it…"
The black-haired teen slowly stopped, as he realized that… he almost died. If Eri wasn't there, he would have been killed by that merc back there. Despite saying he wasn't afraid of death a few moments back, the truth was, Kota was still quite scared of it. He had already seen so many people die. His parents… all of those people… and now… his aunt might be among them…
Kota couldn't tell it yet, but he fell to his knees and began crying. The only thing that made him realize what he was doing was when Eri knelt down and hugged him. Midoriya, on the other hand, his face looked… sad. "I'm truly sorry for the ordeal you had to endure."
"I just… I just wanna go back home… I wanna see Auntie Shino…"
Midoriya nodded. "I understand. I'll… send someone there to investigate."
Kota looked up in tearful confusion. "What?"
"Young man, I cannot in good conscience send back a teenager to what has been described to me as essentially a warzone," the Demon King said. "I will send one of my subordinates there to give me a full report on the matter. If they deem that the situation has been resolved, then I will send you back. But until then, I insist that you stay here, as my sister's… guest."
"So, basically, I'm a refugee," Kota surmised.
"That is one way to look at it, I suppose," Miroiya said. "That being said, as long as you are here, you are entitled to the same rights as the rest of us. Tell me, what's your age?"
"Uh, I'm sixteen years old?"
"A late adolescent by human standards," the green-haired demon said. "I see. I'll go get the paperwork ready, then; you shall be enrolled at the Academy. Displaced or not, you are a young soul who still needs an education, and a place to establish relationships with your fellow peers."
"Academy?" Kota asked. "What, like, I'll be going to a demon high school?"
"Yes, well, while the majority of the school population is indeed my race, our doors are opened to all walks of life," the Demon King said. "Now, your age would put you in the same grade as Eri, and while I loath to do it, I believe that she can help guide you around your new life."
The hidden dragon's eyes widened at that. "Wait, really?! You mean it?!"
"Unfortunately, I do," Midoriya said, as he began to exit the throne room. "I'll pull some strings to make sure he's in the same class as you. From now on, he will be your responsibility, Eri."
"Oh, thank you, Nii-chan! Thank you!" Eri exclaimed, as she hugged Kota.
As the black-haired teen kept getting squeezed by her, Kota figured that, even if his life was kinda shit recently, he had to admit, he could have ended up doing a lot worse, especially given that this place was the home of the Demon King. Still, though…
He seriously hoped this didn't mean he was now engaged to their princess.
Melissa began to fly farther and farther from the side of the airship. By the time she was in front of the Japanese flying machines, she couldn't make out Momo's figure on the ship.
"This is Melissa Shield, come in, over" she spoke into her earpiece.
"This is Momo Yaoyorozu, I read you loud and clear, Melissa, over."
"Glad to hear it. I see the Empire's forces ahead of us, and closing in," she said, scanning the skies. "I can't make out where in the group Enji Todoroki is. What are my orders?"
"Lead the fighters and take out all of the wyvern riders, over."
"Understood, Momo. Over and out." Melissa quickly switched the channel to the open frequency. "Attention, all of you! We're about to engage the enemy. We hit them fast, and we hit them hard. Those knights on the wyverns are capable of magic, so be on your guard, over."
"UNDERSTOOD!" Yoarashi shouted. "LET'S SHOW THEM WHAT JAPAN'S MADE OF!!!"
Melissa nodded, as she kept her flying calm and straight. She didn't have any long-ranged magic herself. Her entire design was melee, more specifically, with her sword. All she could do right now was lead the charge, and then take out as many that were closest to her.
Steady… steady… wait for Momo's signal.
"MEMBERS OF THE JASDF… ADVANCE ON THE ENEMY!!!"
Now.
She launched herself forward, her wings propelling her like a shooting star. Several of the wyvern riders prepared their magic and fired, but she was too fast for them. Any of them who weren't chopped down by her blade ended up being shot down by the fighter planes.
It had officially begun.
She quickly made her way through more of the wyverns, as they began to swarm and scatter like a bunch of bees. Melissa knew their main method of attack was to magically bomb anyone down below; they really ever had to deal with an enemy from the sky. However, every once in a blue moon, the Todoroki Empire would have to deal with someone who could fly like them, and their main method of attack was to shoot them before they could even get close.
Against massive foes like dragons and airships, that tactic works, on paper. They would have to tweak their method during the real thing, dodging enemy attacks, but then keep blasting at the enemy until they plummeted to the earth. But the difference there was that, for as powerful as dragons were, one of them couldn't stand up to a thousand wyvern riders, no matter how strong they were. In the end, they would be overwhelmed by the enemy's sheer numbers.
"Death by a thousand paper cuts," as Momo would aptly put it.
However, in this scenario, their strategy was flawed. The enemy fighters were flying in F-15 Eagle fighter planes. These things were designed to fly fast, and carry lots of fire power. Not only that, but the pilots flying them were trained to know when to attack and when to dodge, and while the Todoroki Empire knew how to do the same, their methods were less advanced.
If Rin were with her right now, he would probably make an analogy to tuna schools. Tuna were some of the biggest fish in the world, and one of the top predators in the ocean. Yet, despite that, they still swim in schools. Naturally, there was safety in numbers, as the tuna could easily gang up against slightly smaller fish. However, those schools of tuna would be doomed if they crossed paths with a pack of great white sharks. The sharks were bigger and meaner, and enough of them would be able to destroy the tuna school, despite the tuna's numbers.
There were hundreds of wyvern riders in the sky. There were less than twenty F-15s coming in. If both sides were completely equal, then the F-15s would be screwed. However, wyverns were animals, small dragons with limits on speed, just like every other creature on the planet. The F-15s were machines that, while could indeed break down, would be able to reach speeds far greater than any wyvern could ever dream of. Additionally, while the wyvern riders could blast spells, they weren't as uniform as the weapons these fighter planes possessed.
All of these aerial mages had unique spells, which, while dangerous, also meant that each of their training had to be unique, and to a smaller degree, undisciplined. Earth's soldiers all had the same training, the same tactics, they all acted as one. Plus, with all of them being able to understand each other through radio, they could coordinate far better than Emperor Enji could ever hope to accomplish by screaming his orders. And while the Imperials might manage to destroy a few of the planes, they certainly wouldn't be able to get all of them.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
From behind her, Melissa could feel the intense heat of both magic and technology duking it out, as the F-15s dodged and blasted all of the front offense mages out of the sky. The uniformed rows of flyers had now been scattered in a panic, all of them trying to figure out how to deal with this new enemy. Which made them easy pickings for her.
She made her way towards the center of the army; the outside would be constantly bombarded by the F-15s, and Melissa figured that, as a close-quarters fighter, her talents would be far better used by causing a panic from the inside. Maybe some of the Imperials would get so scared that they'd fly out into the open. In the ocean, when a marine predator swims into the middle of a school, the fish in the middle of the school would panic, and make a break for it. They end up leaving the school, then they get snagged by any waiting predators. If the Imperials tried to do the same, they would be shot down the second they left their cluster.
Melissa quickly noticed one of the Imperials was getting wise to her and tried to snipe her with some stones he conjured from thin air. Child's play. She quilt deflected every single one of the stones, before piercing the mage right off of his wyvern. Now, who was next…?
Four wyverns were closing in on her, all of their riders shooting magic bullets. Pedestrian magic. A few more blocks from her sword, and then a quick dodge from one of them trying to spear her, and she was safe. The wyverns flew past her, leaving their riders vulnerable from the back, and… a quick toss of her sword bisected all four of them.
Quickly flying down, she grabbed her sword, somewhat annoyed by the fact that she couldn't just call it back to her. However, her emotions quickly changed when she had to dodge a giant fist of water, followed by a yellow circular light of death. Another dodge, and –
BOOM! BOOM!
"DON'T WORRY, SHIELD! WE GOT YA COVERED!!!"
…Yoarashi just stole her kills. Oh, well. Plenty to go around.
Despite the carnage and chaos going on all around her, Melissa was… excited. No, not just excited. She could feel her heart beginning to beat faster and faster. She knew it had been a long time since she actually put her back into a fight, in part because of how much her powers had been drained, but this… this fight… it made her feel alive once more!
As she kept on slicing apart more and more Imperials, she tried to remember when the last time her heart beated like this. And for the life of her… she couldn't. Sure, her heart had beaten fast before, but that was usually either due to the stress Momo's team caused her, or wherever she was thinking of her beloved, but… never during combat. The closest thing she could feel to this was the first time she sparred with her darling, and before that… before that…
She remembered it now. It was her last mission. Melissa Shield was one of the newest angels to be created by the gods, but she was one of their best works. While most of her celestial brethren were around as early as the first years of their world, she was the youngest amongst them, just a little under four hundred years old. She was basically a construct; angels didn't reproduce, despite the fact they were biologically capable of it. Each and every one of them was made. And they existed for one purpose: To carry out the will of the gods.
And she carried out every mission she was given to the letter. Annihilate opposing armies, lead those who were worthy out of disaster, announce the creation of new heroes, act as an executioner, save someone from certain death, she did whatever was asked of her, and she felt… nothing. She didn't feel any joy, or anger, or anything. Wherever she was assigned a mission, she went and did it, and then waited for her next assignment.
And then her next assignment came to her.
It was an assassination job. She figured it would be easy enough, she had killed others before. But she was informed that her target wasn't like anyone she had dealt with before: They said he was malevolent, ruthless, power-hungry, sinister, a psychopathic individual with twisted ideals. She was told that if he were to live, the world would be plunged into darkness.
So, under the cover of night, she flew down to the earth. There was a storm raging that night when she arrived at his fortress. Sneaking in and avoiding all of the guards was child's play for her. She quietly entered his bed chambers, unsheathed her sword, and then –
"If you're here to kill me, could you please do it quickly? I have a meeting in thirty minutes, and I'd prefer to skip it. Also, do whatever you wish to me, but please don't touch my family."
Melissa was confused on a number of levels. First, he knew that she was here, and not only that, but he was aware that she had been sent to kill him. He didn't resist, as she had seen so many others do before. No fighting, no pleas, no trying to bribe her. He just sat there.
The blonde angel tried to disregard the irregularity, as she approached him. She lifted her sword, ready to have it pierce his heart, but… she hesitated. Even in the darkness, she could see that his face looked… sad. And for the first time ever, Melissa Shield felt an emotion.
Sadness.
Melissa put her sword down, much to his confusion. He asked why, and truthfully, she didn't know. She didn't know why his face affected her as it did, but she wanted to know. Melissa asked him why he looked the way he did, and the answer he gave her… was saddening.
His parents had died recently, and now, he was forced to take their duties upon himself. An entire nation was looking up to him, to be some sort of larger-than-life figure, one that the entire world hated. He had the responsibility of reuniting his broken kingdom, having to walk in his parents' footsteps, despite the fact that he didn't believe he had what it took.
So many big things, all of them piling up. A normal person would have broken down a long time ago, and yet, he was still there, hiding them behind a facade of calm. That night, Melissa Shield didn't kill anyone… Instead, she held him for as long as the stormy night lasted.
When the morning came, the young man had explained to those in his castle that Melissa was his guest. Most of them were wary of her, but accepted their ruler's wishes. And then, when breakfast came, Melissa tasted the first delicious thing she had ever had in her life.
Angels didn't need to eat. Sure, they could do so, but there was no point for them. Melissa didn't realize how wrong that was until she took her first bite of the sweet and syrupy morning pastry she was offered. After breakfast, she was given a tour of the castle, and the surrounding areas around them. She was amazed; all of these people, working, living. Some of them did so for themselves, others did so for those they cared about, and some for the greater good.
Melissa understood how the government worked, but she never saw it in action. She never saw the people living their lives, she never saw the world outside of just being a place. She never truly experienced life, until the man she was supposed to kill showed it to her.
This man, who was so deep in his own despair, yet still took the time to show her all of the wonders of the world. He introduced her to so many wonderful people, he told her about the stories of this world, tested her skills in both the sword and in magic, and then, one day…
…he took her to see his parents' graves.
For as much light as there was in this world, there was darkness. For the longest time, Melissa had seen people as nothing more than objectives and obstacles. As just numbers and statistics. She never saw them as people who lived, who had their own hopes and dreams, their own fears and anxieties, opinions and emotions, stories to tell, and scars they had to carry.
In front of those tombstones, he told her everything. He came from a legacy of evil and zealotry, and for the longest time, his home was ruled by someone who was feared by all outsiders. His parents were killed in what the rest of the world believed to be an act of heroism. But to him, it was just another part of the seemingly endless cycle of violence. They may have been seen as monsters by the rest of the world, but for him, those were his parents, and he loved them.
That was why he wasn't afraid to die the night the two of them met. He knew that there was a chance someone would come to finish the job. And when that time came, he hoped that his life would be enough to bring about an end to it all, to usher in a new age of peace.
Somehow, Melissa doubted that, and she made it known. She told him that there would always be suffering in the world, and his death would have robbed his kingdom of their king. By the end of it, Melissa confessed that she was glad to have hesitated, because without him, she would never have experienced emotions, tastes, experiences, all of life, for the first time ever.
And most importantly of all, love.
By the end of their tearful confessions (followed by a few long sessions of crying and nights of passion), their love was official. This kingdom of his needed a queen, a symbol of unity, and while Melissa was more than happy to oblige, she had something to take care of.
She promised that, no matter what happened to her, Melissa would return to him, and she left. Melissa returned back to the heavens, to her angelic brethren and her creators, and told them of everything that had happened: How the man who she was supposed to kill was no great evil, how the world down below offered much for everyone, but… no one listened.
They called her a traitor for abandoning her duty, for laying with what they perceived as a monster. Some of them looked at her in pity, like she had been manipulated or brainwashed. The gods themselves had declared that they would have to try again.
Melissa was outraged, and she told them that they were all wrong. He wasn't a monster, her beloved was just a sad and lonely man who needed to let people back in. His people had committed acts of evil before, she couldn't deny that, but with him at the helm, she genuinely believed that they could become a force of good, she had seen it herself.
They shouted even more names at her, and it was at this point that Melissa realized the truth: These gods that had created her and her kind were merely insecure beings who sent out the angels to either eliminate what they perceive as problems, or to "help" those to keep worshiping them. They didn't care about her, or anyone but themselves. for that matter. The angels were merely slaves for the gods; immortal tools that would never understand the joys of life.
She damned the gods. She cursed them, renounced them, and warned them that if they ever dared take a hair off of her beloved, she would hunt them down to the ends of time.
In response, they deemed her "fallen," cast her out of the heavens, and slowly but surely, her wings would change from the bright glow of white, to those as black as coal.
But she didn't care. When she crashed back down into the dirt, she came across Momo and the rest of her new friends. Those amazing soldiers from another world had more virtue in them than all of the gods combined. She joined them on their cause, and with each adventure they had together, she could feel her powers slowly return to her, growing ever stronger.
As she chopped down more and more of these Imperial scum, Melissa Shield smiled. She was truly free now, and when she was reunited with her beloved, she would be unstoppable.
Momo let out a low whistle, as she witnessed the scene before her.
In just under a half hour, a small group of F-15s being led by a single angel managed to eviscerate over half of the aerial units that the Todoroki Empire had bright with them.
Meanwhile, Momo, and the rest of the crew just hung back on the airship, taking down the occasional stray wyvern with their massive harpoon cannon, or with Aoyama's lasers.
"This is going a lot smoother than I expected," Monoma said.
"Yeah," Kendo agreed. "Makes you wonder if the big guy even showed up –"
"YO, WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!"
Tsuburaba's shout grabbed everyone's attention, as Momo ran to the front of the airship to get a better look at what was in front of them. Inside the massive dogfight of wyvern riders and jets, a massive yellow circle with… weird-looking runes… had suddenly appeared.
"No," Shoto whispered. "No, he wouldn't use that with so many –"
"What?" Momo looked back towards her boyfriend. "Shoto, what is that –?!
The next thing Momo knew, the entire sky was engulfed in fire.
Melissa could only watch in silent horror as half of the F-15s were reduced to moment slag and were sent down plummeting to the sky. It was nothing short of a miracle that she wasn't in the blast zone when it went off, as she was chasing around one speedy wyvern.
"WHAT IN GOD'S NAME WAS THAT?!" Yoarashi shouted into the comms.
Melissa already knew the answer to that. Scanning around the suddenly more clear skies, she found who she was looking for. And sure enough, he was staring right at her.
"Everyone," she called in. "Retreat to the outermost area of the battle, now. Focus on the wyvern riders, and if you value your lives, stay as far away from me as possible."
"What?! Why?! What's going on?!"
"It's the Emperor of Flames. He sees me, and he's closing in."
Melissa knew that she was in for a really bad time now…
Author's Note: The war between the JSDF and the Todoroki Empire ends in the next chapter. But that is for later. Now, we've seen the relationship of wyverns in this world, the first truly in-depth interaction with the Demon King, and Melissa's backstory!
So, lore time! When writing this, my friend was encouraging me to have Kota get enrolled at what he was basically calling an homage to Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun, and eventually, I gave in. Additionally, I've seen a lot of anime where angels are capable of biological functions, despite the fact that such a thing doesn't make any sense both in D , and, I'm assuming, the Bible. So, I tried to make sense of how angels would actually exist, and my current theory is that most of them are made, not born. Essentially, an artificial species capable of expanding their numbers, allowing me to both have my cake and eat it, too. I might tell y'all more at a later time, but for now… comments!
Shin: Thank you for your words of encouragement. I got the Fifth Edition Starter Set back when I was in middle school, but I never got into Magic: The Gathering. I also noticed the various races you were talking about, so I gotta ask, would you know the names for every kind of race out there, specifically the animal-themed ones? Because I can't just call them all "lionmen" this, and "pandafolk" that; that can only work for so many races before it starts getting redundant. One more thing, I have never seen a single episode of Yu-Gi-Oh, much less played the card game, but I understood that reference. Nice going.
valkrus: If I ever get one chapter where I'm in the clear, I think I'll die happy. And I'm not angry with you, it's more of a… competitive rivalry. Think of me as MatPat and you as Scott Cawthon, and you've got a pretty good idea. Anyways, ahh, you got me again! And with a familiar word, no less! Oh, well! Mark my words, I'll win one of these days!
MostOfYouNeedTherapy: In my mind, each of the dragons looked slightly different, but now that I looked it up, it's kinda thrown me off by how similar they all look. But if it's that much of a gripe, you can just focus on the fact that Eri's appearance as a dragon looks like a Seath the Scaleless who isn't blind and horribly mutated from the waist-down.
VinHD15: I mean, I get the reference (probably), but I didn't see you post it anywhere. I searched the words "cursed," "speech," and "user" in both the Writing Trio and our direct line, but nothing. Did you maybe post a gif that I don't remember seeing?
DarlingSherlock: The bad guys always seem to show up at the most inopportune time. A quick question, when you said "King Explosion Murder Bakugou," were you referring to one of the things he did during the previous chapters, because he was barely mentioned in the last one, much less do anything noteworthy. Ah, well. Hope you liked this chapter!
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 30: Coup D'etat
Summary:
The battle between Melissa Shield and Enji Todoroki (accompanied by his monster of a wyvern) begins, all while Endeavor City falls to the Todoroki siblings. Not only that, but by the end of the fight, the Todoroki matriarch also makes her appearance, and Momo experiences several different emotions and temperature fluctuations all day...
Chapter Text
Chapter 30: Coup D'etat
"WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK WAS THAT?!"
Momo hated agreeing with Kaibara right now, but yeah, what on God's green earth was that?! One minute, they had almost twenty F-15s in the sky, mowing down wyverns and digging magical attacks like a boss, and then the next, a massive explosion erupted, and over half of their planes were sent falling towards the ground as molten slag.
"Shoto, Fuyumi, did your father –?!"
"He did," Shoto answered. "He unleashed an eruption of crimson death upon everyone in the vicinity. Allies, enemies, everyone. He must be getting really serious now."
The black-haired woman gulped at that notion. If this was the Emperor of Flames when the gloves were off, then it was understandable why he was such a tactical menace.
The sky filled with the loud hum of machines, as Momo watched the rest of the F-15s retreat from anywhere near the blast zone, and began cruising behind the airship.
"Second Lieutenant Yoarashi, come in! What are you doing…?"
"We just got orders from Shield, ma'am!" Yoarashi answered, his usual boisterous volume gone. "She'll handle the big red bastard, we're to stay as far away from their dogfight as possible!"
Momo didn't like the idea of leaving Melissa on her own against such a clear societal menace, but she understood why it had to be done. "Alright, just clear out as many of the wyvern riders as you can! As soon as you're done with that, be prepared to receive your new orders!"
"Roger, ma'am! I just hope you know what you're planning…"
"Yeah," the raven-haired soldier whispered. "Same here."
Melissa could see the Emperor of Flames clearly now.
Despite the fact that he was one of the most powerful men in the world, he couldn't fly. Melissa was sure that if he used his fire-based magic creatively, Enji Todoroki would be able to prevent himself from falling, but actual flight that he could do subconsciously? Not a chance.
In order to use magic that could allow you to fly, the most popular methods were the following: Spells that allowed flight, spells that negate gravity, a mix of earth, wind, and light magic, full-blown wind magic, or the usage of an outside force, with a dash of magic sprinkled in. If the Emperor of Flames wanted to try to fly without any help, his best bet would be the last option: Using something else, and potentially using his own mana as a boost.
Several kinds of mages already use such a thing: Witches imbue their brooms with mana, allowing them to fly. The elves have their magic crystals and spirits that allow them to travel via airship, and Melissa has seen a few mages use translucent boards, and she had heard a tale or two about some mages being crazy enough to use something like crystals or light to fly.
Enji Todoroki was not using any of those options. A broom would not only burn up if he tried an attack like the one he just pulled off, but frankly, it would look ridiculous. The elves would never grant him an airship, not even a small one for him to ride into battle, plus, the majority of those were still made with wood. And since all of the other methods Melissa listed off required other types of magic, the Emperor of Flames wouldn't be able to use them by himself.
So, his choice of transportation was a red wyvern. Much like their bigger cousins, the red dragons, these beasts were immune to fire, with a couple of them even capable of either generating it or covering themselves in flames, depending on the breed. However, unlike the red dragons, red wyverns had a few key differences: Physically speaking, dragons had four limbs and two wings, whereas wyverns only had two legs and two wings. Additionally, and probably more importantly, true dragons were actually capable of thought and speech (and sometimes magic), as opposed to wyverns, who were just animals (with a few glaring exceptions).
Because of that, the Todoroki Empire had figured out how to tame and domesticate wyverns. There had been a few legends every now and then about someone riding a dragon like a steed, but what those stories left out was that the dragon allowed the usually very squishy person to ride them. The Empire was smart enough to know that was a fickle idea, so they did the next best thing, and raised wyverns. Just like the domestication of any other animal, the best results usually result when they have an owner, even as hatchlings. They'll form a bond, and then once they're big and ready, the Imperial soldiers would have a flying steed of their very own.
The catch was the quality of the wyvern. While there were dozens, if not hundreds of different breeds all across the world, the most common ones were the common copper-colored ones. Sure, on occasion, higher-ranking officers might get a prettier color, like a bright blue wyvern, but the majority of riders got the ones with the tan scales. And since those were the most basic of wyverns, they don't come with anything special: No breath attacks, no resistances, nothing.
Enji Todoroki's wyvern was anything but basic.
For starters, the creature he was riding was fucking massive. For perspective, most wyvern species, from head to legs, were only about as long as two horses; the tails aren't included in the equation because, aside from not coming anywhere close to the actual mass of the wyvern's main body, they also came in various lengths due to breeder's selection. The red wyvern that the Emperor of Flames commanded, meanwhile, was several horses bigger and longer than any other wyvern, hell, it was almost big enough to rival actual dragons! To put it to scale, one of the talons on its toes was bigger than Melissa's body, from the head to toes. That meant if the creature really wanted to eviscerate her with its feet, it was actually viable to do so.
The next thing was to make this monster a specimen above all other wyverns were the amount of spikes this thing was covered in. Sure, the standard wyvern also had spikes trailing down from its head to its tail, but those things only had one row going down their backs, maybe three for some of the higher-quality beasts. This thing had spikes EVERYWHERE. Melissa could easily count at least five rows of sharp scales on it back, and there were even more of them everywhere else. Its entire neck was covered in them, it had them growing out of its underbelly, a couple on the wings, hell, the only place it seemed to not be covered in spikes were its legs. You know, the place with the giant sharp claw-toes that could kill her.
Oh, no, wait, she just noticed a bunch of tiny spikes on its hind legs, wonderful.
And then to top it all off, this thing had red scares that reminded Melissa of the color blood had, along with at least two pairs of horns adorning the top of its head. Seriously, did Emperor Todoroki see a red dragon, say "I want that," and then bred the most armored-out monster he could imagine as compensation when he learned it wouldn't be feasible to actually try and ride a red dragon?! Because not even red dragons were covered in this many fucking spikes!
Melissa dashed away any thoughts of this guy maybe compensating for something with his choice of steed, as she saw that he was approaching, riding on the top of the beast's neck, his hands wrapped around its horns, as if he was riding a Harley Davidson.
Yes, Momo had shown her pictures.
The giant reptile flew in close, and then suddenly stopped, flapping its wings in mid-air. She knew what was going on now. There was a tradition on the continent that, when two people of incredible strength were about to fight, they would give their name to the other. Now, not everyone followed that tradition, it wasn't a straight-up rule, but Melissa did appreciate that the Emperor of Flames was adamant of using it. It meant he acknowledged her strength.
"I recognize you," he spoke. "From the Ranking. You didn't have wings back then."
"Yeah, it's called a disguise," Melissa retorted back.
"So, this was an organized infiltration of my home," the redhead said, his eyes narrowing. "You have my children. Return them to me now, and your punishment shall be minimal."
"You make it sound like we kidnapped them. They went voluntarily."
"Is that so?" He didn't believe her. "Regardless, I shall have them back once you and that raven-haired leader of yours burn. I am Enji Todoroki, the Emperor of Flames."
"Melissa Shield, lover of the most powerful man in Occidens."
She could see the human's eyes widen at that. Good, that meant he knew who she was referring to, and who he was dealing with. "So be it. PREPARE TO DIE, MONSTER!!!"
Momo watched anxiously as the battle in the sky began.
Emperor Todoroki had brought some huge-ass monster as his ride, easily six times larger than the rest of the wyverns in his army. And worse than that, it could breathe fire like a living flamethrower, as that was the first thing the creature did once the battle started.
Right now, all that she, or anyone else could do, was watch as Melissa flew past the winged behemoth, dodging any attack the beast made. They couldn't interfere. If Yoarashi or any of the other pilots tried to shoot that thing, there was a good chance that Todoroki would launch some kind of long-ranged fire spell that would shoot everyone out of the sky, like a laser.
Most of the crew was currently silent as they watched, which allowed Momo to overhear the long-distance conversation Fuyumi was having "Natsuo, how is our progress going?"
"Most of the city is ours! We're securing the palace now!"
The white-and-red woman nodded, as she quickly approached Momo. "Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, our coup is almost complete back at Endeavor City. All that's left is our father."
"Uh-huh…" Momo half-said, as she was spending most of her brain power watching the fight in the skies. Melissa was doing a lot of dodging, and seemed to be only going in for attacks that would provoke and anger the red wyvern. What was her plan? Was she trying to lead the Emperor of Flames away from the airship? Where could she be leading them…?
"Wait a minute, Fuyumi. You said that Endeavor City is pretty much yours, right?"
"Well, ninety percent of it," the princess said. "But essentially, yeah."
Momo's brain was now turning faster than before. The last time her team went to Endeavor City, it took them less than three days. If the Imperials hadn't just attacked them, they would arrive at the capital by this afternoon. Quickly rewatching all of the attacks Melissa was doing right now, and then doing the math, she would be sending Emperor Todoroki back home in a little over an hour. But would she really be able to hold out that long? He was nigh-unstoppable…
"For the first reason, mages still need time to strategize and call upon their spells. Theoretically speaking, Aoyama would still be able to kill an Ultimate with a sniper rifle if he was from a distance. Plus, anti-magic still exists. Trap them in a barrier of that stuff, and the only thing they would have left would be their natural abilities and Skills."
That old memory of Melissa back at Yuuei-Shiketsu City hit Momo like a truck. Of course! Mages, even Ultimate-level ones, still had limits! Okay, time to think! Since the man was using a wyvern to fly, that probably meant he was incapable of flight himself. And if Melissa kept attacking the wyvern, he would be forced to use his magic to defend it! Use enough of it, and there was a good chance he would run out of mana, leaving him essentially defenseless!
Melissa was trying to turn this into a battle of endurance!
"Everyone, listen up!" Momo called out to both her squad and into the comms. "Melissa is trying to wear out Emperor Todoroki and lure him back to Endeavor City! We're gonna follow them from a distance, and the second we see that man truly weakened, we take him down!"
"READ YOU LOUD AND CLEAR, YAOYOROZU!!!" Yoarashi whooped.
Momo nodded, as she looked back at her crew. "Awase! Keep the ship steady and clear of the battle! Uraraka and Aoyama! Make sure those harpoon cannons are ready and aimed at Emperor Todoroki at all times! Everyone else… keep your weapons ready."
As everyone quickly rushed to get their jobs done, Momo looked back at the sky. The black-haired woman seriously hoped Melissa would be able to pull this off.
" ERUPIT IACULUM!!!"
FWOOOM!!!
Melissa dodged a second javelin of flames by flying above it, as she kept her gaze steady on Emperor Todoroki and his giant wyvern. In the back, she could see Momo's airship and the remaining F-15s following her, but not attacking just yet. Good.
It had been twenty minutes since their fight had begun, and for the majority of it, bit by bit, Melissa had been using hit-and-run tactics to try and send the oversized reptile falling. So far, she managed to cut off a tip of its tail with her sword, but that was mostly it.
The Emperor of Flames had figured out what she was trying to do, and had now retaliated by using his magic to try and turn her into a cooked angel. Great. All she needed to do now was lure the guy back towards the city, all while trying to get him to drain his mana.
She knew he was being conservative with his magic. That massive burst before their battle must have taken a lot out of him, but it was more than enough to send several military-grade planes plummeting downward. Melissa certainly didn't want him to use it again, but she knew that if he could, he would. She has been exhausting his wyvern, and a few more good hits would send it crashing. If Melissa was in his position, he would unleash the sun on her again the second she got close. Which meant that he was either unable to do it, or it would take too long.
The second option was a valid concern. The last time he did it, a massive magic circle full of runes appeared. The last time he managed to get so many targets was because they were too busy taking on the wyvern riders. If he tried to do it now in the middle of a clear sky, Melissa would immediately notice, and fly out of its range, making it a waste of mana.
Enji Todoroki was a brute, but he clearly had a strategic mind.
At the current moment, the two of them (the wyvern was on Enji's team, so, one person) were in a high-stakes game of chicken: If Melissa tried to close in and cut him down, Todoroki would blast her with his flames. If the wyvern tried to burn her, she'd dodge and cut off another piece of its body. If Todoroki tried to burn her, she'd dodge again, wasting his mana. All the "players" knew what they were supposed to do in case the other tried to attack them.
The key of this game was speed: Were your reflexes fast enough to manage to deal some damage without getting hit? Or would you be too slow at dodging and get hurt?
However, Melissa did have both an extra requirement to win the game, along with what could be considered an ace up her sleeve: The extra requirement was that she slowly lure Todoroki back to his capital city, all while tiring him out. That meant that she would need to actively provoke him to keep draining his power, all while trying not to get burnt in the process.
The potential ace up her sleeve was the Dungeon Crawlers. While her crew weren't always the sharpest of tools, Momo was a bright woman, and Melissa could safely bet that she understood what the fallen angel's plan was. So, Melissa would keep on fighting Emperor Todoroki, and the second they reached the capital and he was out of juice, Momo and friends would shoot him.
All she needed to do was trap Emperor Todoroki right where she wanted him.
Easier said than done.
"I admire your tenacity," the redhead said. "However, it is ultimately pointless. I suggest you surrender and die quietly. Removing you from your life will be a boon to the world."
"No…" Melissa grunted. "If you wanna win… YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO KILL ME!!!"
"So be it," the Emperor of Flames said, as he narrowed his eyes towards the fallen angel, before bringing up yet another fire spell. "Intempestivo… Crepitus… Disperge… IECIT!!!"
Back into the fray, Melissa figured.
Rei Himura could hear the sounds of buildings collapsing even in her room.
It seemed like her childrens' little power struggle against their father was being met with some resistance. It made sense; he is the most powerful human on the continent, both magic-wise and in terms of status, there would no doubt be people loyal to him until the very end.
Still, she had to admit, it was somewhat impressive that her little babies had organized this without their father ever figuring out. Truly, they had grown up.
Which made Rei somewhat bitter that she missed out a major chunk of their formative years. Sure, she got the occasional visit, but she was still stuck in this little tower of hers, with the only thing keeping her occupied being practicing her magic and whatever gossip she heard.
Speaking of gossip, the things that Natsuo brought her to hear, wow. She honestly didn't expect Fuyumi and Moe to be a thing, but if they were happy with their choices, then who was she to judge? But the prospect of little Shoto having himself a girlfriend? That, she needed to see.
Hmm… If this coup went off without a hitch, then it would be more than likely that Shoto would be here, presenting his sweetheart to the masses without fear of repercussions from his father. Rei would definitely want to see that, and well… It has been a while since she left her room…
Getting up from her bed, Rei picked up the frost-imbued scythe she used to wield back when she was the Mistress of the Himura Clan in the north. Even after her defeat at Enji's hands, she kept to serve as a memory of the lands she once ruled, even if she didn't need it.
She was an Ultimate, her magic in the ice unparalleled. She didn't exactly need a weapon to help her fight, but more options was always nice. Plus, her scythe looked cool as hell.
With her scythe now in hand, she quickly froze off the door in her room from its hinges. Heavy metal doors would work against normal prisoners, but honestly, the only reason Rei ever stayed in her room was because she wanted to. If Enji really wanted to make sure that she never escaped, he could have sent her to Tartarus, where her ice magic would be completely useless. Ehh, she figured that deep down inside, he still cared about her. Somewhat.
Now then! Time for the Empress of Ice to go find her children…
Forty minutes.
Melissa had spent another forty minutes on this seemingly endless cycle of luring the red wyvern to where she wanted it, feeling from her spot every time either it or Emperor Todoroki decided to attack, and then attacking during whatever small window of opportunity she had.
Fuck, her wings were tired.
However, she needed to be persistent. The wyvern was on the edge of collapsing now, and she could see that they had made it back into the walls of Endeavor City. All the fallen angel needed to do now was lure them towards the palace, and then help Momo finish them off.
Which meant it was time for more dodging. Fun.
The wyvern sent another plume of flames towards her direction once more, causing Melissa to have to steer clear of. Flying towards the back where the wyverns wings were, she dived down in an attempt to rip some holes in the massive monster's wings, when –
"CALIDUS BRACHIUM BARRAGE!!!"
Crap, he noticed her. Several rods of fire left Emperor Todoroki's body, as they shot out in every which way. Thankfully, Melissa was no longer anywhere near the wyvern by then.
"What the…?!"
"Looking for me, asshat?"
Emperor Enji looked back up towards the sky, and saw the fallen celestial right back to where she was before his wyvern attacked. "So, you can teleport," he sneered.
"I could have teleported whenever I wanted," Melissa lied. Yeah, no, she was completely talking out of her ass right now. Ever since she got cast out of the heavens, her magic was limited. Whatever tricks she used during her adventures with the Dungeon Crawlers usually took a lot out of her, so the only things she could reliably do were "punch hard" and "fly."
Her teleportation right there was just a one-time gag. It'd be impossible for her to even consider trying it for the rest of the day. Right now, she was just hoping that the Emperor of Flames didn't call her out on her bluff, maybe have him thinking twice about what spells to use.
"Come on, whatcha waiting for, a personal invitation?!" Melissa shouted, extending her arms horizontally in a sort of intimidation tactic. "I'm right here! Come at me, bro!"
The wyvern obliged, as it began chasing her around the air once more. Huh, it seemed to be more pissed off at her rather than focused on obeying its master's orders. Good, she could use that to her advantage. Melissa kept flying, and flying, avoiding all of the fire attacks on the way, until… She saw the round dome of white and gold, with multiple spires and columns.
They had arrived above the Emperor of Flames' palace.
Melissa smiled. "Gotcha."
THUNK! THUNK!
Before he even had a chance to figure out that this was a trap, two massive harpoons shot their way into the wings of the red wyvern. The massive creature roared in pain, before it suddenly began to descend towards the ground. Melissa wasn't sure how they pulled it off, but her friends on the airship managed to hit both of the wyvern's joint bone areas in the wings, right between the ulna and humerus bones, the same kind the humans had in their arms.
That was essentially the equivalent of shooting an arrow through a man's elbow joints: It was painful, and you didn't need to be a doctor to know that there's a good chance some serious damage was just dealt to your arms' abilities to move. Now, normally, with enough healing and physical therapy, the damage could be fixed, and your joints could be good as new.
If you managed to live long enough to get the proper health care, that is.
With those joints out of commission in the red wyvern's wings, all it could do right now was fall in style until it suddenly died of impact the second it hit the ground. Sure, there might have been a possibility that the red wyvern would survive the fall, but given the fact that heavier objects with more streamlined bodies hit terminal velocity faster, along with the fact that Melissa was high enough to see all the people down there look like ants, and that possibility began to drop.
Emperor Todoroki, meanwhile, knew exactly what to do the second he felt his steed begin to plummet. He leaped from his falling beast, chanted some spell Melissa was too exhausted to remember the name of, and was suddenly now glowing orange, as if on fire.
No, wait, scratch that, he was the fire. Whatever the hell that spell was, it seemed to have merged him with his own fire magic, turning him into some kind of orange monster. Whatever the spell turned him into exactly, Melissa could feel the heat emanating off of him as he got closer to her. Oh, he was planning to take her down with him, wasn't he?
BLAM!
Well, a bullet to his head seemed to have other plans.
"Excellent shot, Aoyama."
"You are too kind, Lieutenant."
As Momo watched the Emperor of Flames' go crash down into his own palace, the black-haired woman sighed in relief. It seemed like Melissa's plan worked, thank goodness. Still, Momo wanted to even the odds of success a bit more, so while Uraraka fired one of the harpoons into the wyvern's wings, she swapped out Aoyama with Sato for the second gun.
And thus, she gave Aoyama the pleasure of sniping the Emperor out of the sky himself.
Momo looked over to the other end of the airship's bow, and saw the Todoroki siblings watching their father's body plummet down to the earth, the expressions on their faces… It was honestly quite hard to tell what they were thinking. Still, this was their father. Even if he was awful to them, he was still their parent. The raven-haired soldier took it upon herself to talk to them. Walking up towards them, she prepared what she would say to them –
"He's not dead," Shoto said.
Come again?
Momo shook her head in disbelief. "What? But, we shot him –"
"Look," Fuyumi said, as she pointed down.
Momo looked over the bow once more, the color in her face draining when she saw Enji Todoroki's body spin mid-air, creating a mini fire tornado, and basically piercing through the domed roof of his own palace, before the flames dispersed, leaving a hole in the roof.
"How… how…?"
"That spell he used merged his entire body with fire," Shoto explained. "That bullet you shot at him most likely melted by the time it reached his skin. The impact was probably enough to cause him pain and a nasty headache, but not enough to pierce through his skull."
Wonderful, so their big bad was probably not dead. Momo sighed, as she quickly grabbed her walkie-talkie and said, "Attention everyone, this is Lieutenant Yaoyorozu. Prepare to land."
Both the soldiers on the airship and the remaining pilots in the F-15s prepared to land in the palace courtyard, as Momo discussed strategy with Fuyumi. Apparently, they received word that both Moe and Natsuo took care of the city, and were ready to storm the palace.
Good, we could use the two of them, Momo thought to herself. "Kendo, you're in charge of everyone who's staying behind at the airship and the pilots. Myself and the resistance leaders, along with a few members of the squad are gonna take care of the Emperor."
"Understood, ma'am!"
The airship descended down into the palace courtyard with little fanfare. The members of the rebellion were more impressed with the F-15s. Still, they were welcoming the foreign aid, and Melissa was especially glad that she could now lay down on the airship deck.
The fight against the red wyvern tired her out completely. Kodai said that she'd be fine by the end of the day, but that was all of the fighting she would do for today. Now, it was Momo's turn (along with the rest of her team) to finish off the Emperor of Flames for good.
According to Fuyumi, the room where her father crashed into was the throne room. It looked the same as the guest room the Ranking party took place less than two weeks ago, just smaller, and with far fewer decorations. That meant that only a small squad of elites would be going in.
Aside from all three of the Todoroki siblings and Moe, the ones going would be Momo, Monoma, Uraraka, Aoyama, and Kodai. Any more people and the room would get crowded.
When they got to the throne room, sure enough, there was a massive hole in the roof letting the sunlight in, and Enji Todoroki was there, limping next to his throne, and holding a sword. He looked like a mess; his head was bleeding, one of his eyes looked punched-out, and by the way he was standing, it seemed like several of the bones in his limbs were busted.
And yet, despite all that, everyone was still on their guard.
"Shoto… Fuyumi… Natsuo…" Enji rasped out, as each breath he took sounded laborious. "My own children… willful traitors, one in all… Touya would have never done this… and YOU."
Momo blinked. "Me?"
"I could see Fuyumi and Natsuo doing this on their own, but Shoto? You must have done something to influence him," the redhead hissed. "I remember you from the Ranking. The "countess" my son was interested in courting. Yes, you must have seduced him –"
"Alright, that's it!" Shoto shouted. "Momo did not "seduce me" until last night!"
Everyone stared at the peppermint-haired boy, as Momo's face began to burn. Emperor Enji, on the other hand, seemed to be flip-flopping between confirmation and confusion. "What?"
"You heard me! Momo did not seduce me until last night!" Shoto repeated, ignoring all of the looks he's getting from everyone else. "In fact, before last night, she was nothing but kind and professional to me! In fact, she was the nicest woman I ever came across! And maybe that had to do with you isolating me during my formative years, but I like to think that she simply brought me out of my shell! She showed me the amazing things her world had to offer: Massive towers that breach the sky, technology that eclipses magic, and even saucy puppet shows!"
Momo looked back at Monoma, who simply said, "He watched Avenue Q back in Japan."
She was gonna kill Kaibara and Tsuburaba when she got back.
"But that's not all! Momo showed me kindness and friendship! She showed me that strength isn't about power, but rather the ability to retain your ideals during times of struggle! Do be willing to help those around you to do the right thing! THAT'S WHAT TRUE STRENGTH THIS!!! Momo Yaoyorozu of the JSDF, of the Dungeon Crawlers, and the Arms of Fire, taught me that!"
Everyone was silent, and somewhat amazed at what Shoto had said. Well, everyone except his father, who, in anger, raised his hand in anger and shouted, "AUGUE!!!"
Several things happened in the last few seconds. A small ball of fire, almost like a mini-sun, was conjured from the Emperor's hand, sent flying straight towards Momo. The black-haired soldier could see the fireball shooting towards her. She could see from the corner of her eyes everyone turning towards her in a panic, some of her allies trying to run over to her to intercept the fireball, or to push her out of the way, but they couldn't. It was as if the world slowed.
Oh… so this is how I am going –
"CAELESTI GLACIES DENTE!!!"
SHHHK–BOOOOM!!!
Before anyone could figure out what happened, a massive semi-formed wall of ice appeared from the left, taking the hit for Momo. The ice evaporated into steam as soon as the fireball landed, and as the wind blew all around Momo's face in a tiny faux explosion.
"What?!"
"Stand down, Enji."
Everyone looked towards the left, to see a newcomer had entered through the door on the side. A woman with long white hair and gray eyes, wearing a dress that looked like the cross between a gown and a fur coat, and armed with a massive scythe covered in ice.
"Rei?! What are you –?!"
Before the Emperor of Flames had a chance to finish his sentence, the white-haired woman swung her scythe again, causing ice to spawn from the floor, covering Enji Todoroki's entire body, save for his neck and above. "Enji, it's over. Surrender with dignity."
The red-haired man stared into the eyes of the white-haired woman for several seconds, as everyone held their breath, until Emperor Todoroki sighed. "I yield."
"Uhh…" Momo leaned towards Shoto. "Who the heck is that?"
"Rei Himura. The Empress of Ice," Shoto said. "And… my mother."
Oh. Momo's future mother-in-law was a total badass.
"Hey, Kosei," Sen called out to his friend. "Did you just get the feeling that…"
"...that Lieutenant Yaomomo is mad at us?" Kosei said. "Yeah, I felt it, too."
"Huh," Sen said, as he and Kosei kept guarding the airship outside. "Well, shit."
Author's Note: The Avenue Q references will come back in a future chapter.
Now, in terms of references, a lot of the magic used in these last few chapters were actually spells from Black Clover, with their names just translated from English into Latin. The red wyvern Enji was riding in this chapter was actually the Hellkite (or Bridge) Wyvern from the first Dark Souls game. I also drew some inspiration from Crossbreed Priscilla, and maybe Sister Friede from the third game (to a lesser degree) for Rei. But that's enough blocks of text for this chapter; let's move on to… the comments!
Shin: I've done internet deep-dives before as well, thought mostly out of boredom, not insomnia; I usually just lay in bed when that happens. I'm not really looking into the lore and naming schemes of MTG since I don't know what kind of world it is; is it like Pokemon? Is there a canon story, maybe a TV show? But D works for me. And I understand the pain between the two different kinds of kobolds. Until next time!
GreenBoy9000: Enji pulled up in the last chapter, and was solemnly defeated in this one. Guess that's what happens when you've got an angel on your side. I think Enji would be more angry about the fact his kids turned against him, but the loss of his wyverns was kinda their fault, too, sooo… Hope this chapter lived up to your expectations!
MostOfYouNeedTherapy: I actually haven't watched the anime, but from the pieces I've seen, I can safely say there's no way Kota will ever get to Iruma's harem levels.
VinHD15: Glad to see you're so excited for the very thing you were pushing for. Also, I finally found the reference you were talking about, and I can safely say that I hate it.
valkrus: HAHAHA! I've got you! The JASDF actually stands for the Japanese Air-Self Defense Force! HAHAHA! But anyways, I was actually referencing Jojo's "Yes-No" meme, not KSI. Now, let's see if I can make a streak out of this error-free chapter…
Honey- (Guest): ARE YOU STILL EXCITED AND SHOCKED?!
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 31: Angel Battle & Demon School
Summary:
After the successful coup, Momo and her team headed back to the Collibus Hills. However, on their way there, someone from Melissa's past attacks them. Meanwhile, Kota is getting situated in both living in the realm of demons, and attending on of their schools, with the help of Eri and her friends. While all that happens, the Demon King plots...
Chapter Text
Chapter 31: Angel Battle & Demon School
The coup against the old establishment of the Todoroki Empire was over.
While Momo and her team ended up taking on both Emperor Todoroki and the nation's air force, Princess Fuyumi, Prince Natsuo and General Moe Kamiji led their men in a revolt against the Emperor of Flame's most loyal men, and by the time the SREU arrived, it was over.
After the deus ex machina that was Rei Himura, the Emperor of Flames surrendered peacefully, and was currently being looked over in an anti-magic cell in the palace's basement. As it turned out, there was always a dungeon down there, so Tartarus was just something extra.
The capital city of Endeavor was secured, and with Enji Todoroki in custody, the rest of the Empire would fall in line soon enough. With the fighting over, the rest of the day was reserved for celebration, or as Momo preferred to think of it, getting embarrassed as hell.
Sure, she had heard a few of the legends that started to pop up about her exploits as the Night-Haired Warrior, but now they were starting to get ridiculous! She overheard one of the rebels tell his buddies that she fought Emperor Todoroki in single combat, that she battled against a lich, or that her angelic companion was someone she rescued from the Demon King!
Now sure, a couple of tall tales that gave her a bit more street cred would have been embarrassing enough, but what was more so embarrassing was Rei's doting.
"My goodness, you are so cute!" Rei squealed, pinching Momo's cheeks. "Shoto really found someone wonderful! Oh, let me know when you have grandchildren, I want to –"
Pinched cheeks aside, Momo was happy to see Rei really trying to reconnect with her family. It was good to see that not everything Enji Todoroki touched was damaged beyond repair.
Anyways, the festivities went on, with dancing, bonfires, feasts, and an informal coronation ceremony making Fuyumi the Empress of the Empire (provisionally speaking), and publicly announcing her partnership with Moe. Which was followed up by an intense make-out session between the two of them during the party, that Kodai was way too into.
By the time the night grew late, everybody was off to bed. In the morning, the hard work of reconstruction would begin, and Momo would have to leave for the Collibus Hills once more. Looking out of the window within her temporary quarters, she sighed.
KNOCK, KNOCK.
"Enter."
Momo was half-surprised to see that it was Shoto, of all people. Good thing she decided to start in Latin, then. The communications barriers between them were still somewhat annoying.
"Shoto… did you need anything?"
"I just wanted to thank you for everything. With giving us a voice in your world, for helping us overthrow our father, and for… showing me that I was capable of feeling love."
Momo could feel herself turning red once again. "Shoto… I don't know what to say…"
"Maybe we don't need to say anything tonight?"
Oh. Momo knew what he was talking about. "I don't have any more of the –"
"Already taken care of," Shoto said, as he pulled out a stack of condoms. "Kodai gave them to me. I know my mother already wants grandchildren, but even I know that's too fast."
Wow, Shoto was learning fast. Momo was actually happy to see that.
Kota had to admit, this place was… interesting, to say the least.
When Midoriya signed him up to attend the local high school here, he wasn't exactly sure what to expect. Maybe a dark fortress full of guards? Nah, that sounded more like a prison. And for as many jokes as people could make, schools and prisons were still different.
Truthfully, while the outside of the place seemed all gloomy and shit (that seemed to be the running theme for this entire region), the insides of the school were actually quite fancy. Large glass windows, straight wooden tables, painted walls, chalk boards, it was like someone tried to imitate a high school back from Earth, but did so using supplies found on this world.
A nice surprise, and all, but the fact of the matter was that he was still the new kid in school. Sure, the semester was technically beginning (if Kota was back home, summer break would already be over), but he was still a stranger in a strange land, trying to fit in. He didn't know jack about anything local teens were interested in, let alone the subjects they were studying!
His plan was to keep his head down, study everything he could to at least get a passing grade (and possibly fit in), and hope to God that this would all blow over soon enough.
Walking through the halls of this place, Kota was somewhat at awe of all the funky-looking people here with him. They were all students like him, the uniforms gave it away, but he was pretty sure that none of them were human. Some of them were more obvious, looking like anthropomorphic animals, while others looked like humans but with weird skin, and some could pass off as human, save for one dead giveaway or another, like horns or pointed ears.
Despite that, Kota knew he was in the minority here.
Still, he steeled himself, and entered the class he was supposed to be in, according to the schedule he was given. Class 1-A, taught by Sansa Tamakawa…
The first thing that Kota noticed was that his teacher was a cat.
Well, that wasn't entirely accurate. His teacher had the features of a cat. He was still roughly built in the shape of a man, standing upright, wearing clothes and such. The only difference really was the fact that he had the head of a ginger tabby cat, paws, and a tail.
The black-haired teen tried to remember what sort of species that would make him. Well, he wasn't a girl, so a… catboy? Nah, that sounded off. Plus, he wasn't exactly sure if those that looked more like kemonomimi were like a different subspecies or just had different genetics overall. Maybe he should just play it safe and call him a tabaxi? What if –
"Ah, it seems that you have arrived," Tamakawa said. "Everyone, this is Kota Izumi, he will be joining our class today and for the rest of the semester. Go on, introduce yourself."
Oh, fuck. Okay, he could handle this. Just something all classes do during their first day. He quietly walked up to the front of the class, cleared and throat, and –
"Hey, everyone! As you just heard, this is Kota Izumi! He's a human I rescued back at the Collibus Hills, and he'll be staying here for the foreseeable future! Also, he's mine!"
Goddammit, Eri. The white-haired girl just seemingly appeared out of thin air (metaphorically) and crashed his chance to make a half-decent introduction! And what the hell was this "mine" thing?! Was she really gonna be parading him around like her boyfriend?! Wait…
This could actually work to his advantage. He was the new kid, so he wasn't gonna be liked. Plus, he was human, which he was pretty sure was a minority around here, so there was a good chance he would be doubly unliked. If everyone here knew about Eri being the Demon King's little sister and a dragon already, then her just claiming Kota as hers just gave him a shield. Sure, people might still talk behind his back, but hey, he'd still be alive.
Kota had watched Mean Girls before. And even if half the stuff in that movie was horribly outdated, the idea that the popular kids in school were the top dogs and their words were law… that still had some merit to them. All Kota needed to do right now was just play it cool, don't attract any unwanted attention, watch how the rest of the school interacts with Eri, and play it by ear depending on the situation. If things went to plan, he'd be left the fuck alone.
"Glad to see you're also with us, Miss Eri," Tamakawa said, his voice mildly unamused. "Both of you, please find your seats and settle in, class is about to begin."
Kota obliged, and plopped himself into one of the last open seats. Unfortunately, the last open seat happened to be next to his, and Eri sat herself down on that one. Wonderful, now Kota could always tell from his peripheral vision that the dragon chick was staring at him.
Honestly, things could be a lot worse.
With that out of the way, Tamakawa turned to the chalkboard. "Alright, kids, open your textbooks to page six for the introductory chapter, The Primary Elements of Transmutation…"
Such as that.
When morning arrived, the SREU was up and ready to go.
After another night of mind-blowing sex between herself and Shoto, Momo had decided to sleep in a bit, that was until Kendo knocked on their door again. Everyone else was already awake, with the F-15 pilots getting their planes running, and Momo's team preparing the airship.
Quickly getting dressed, they made their way to the outdoor courtyard, where all of their vehicles were ready to depart, and the rest of the Todorkis were saying their good-byes.
"And be sure to visit when you're officially engaged…"
"Yes, mother," Shoto said, for, like, the third time now.
"Don't forget to invite us to the wedding!"
Momo could feel second-hand embarrassment from where she was, and she was on the airship stairs, so, a few yards wavy from the courtyard where Shoto and the rest of his family were, but still very much within earshot. She was so embarrassed, she couldn't even explain to Rei that at the moment, her love for Shoto was mostly physical, and nothing much else.
Anyways, that could probably be saved for their next visit.
With all the good-byes said and done, the F-15s took off, as the airship slowly elevated itself from the ground and into the skies, while Melissa simply stretched her wings and flew.
Time to head back home.
It was official: Kota's favorite period was lunch.
Not that the other classes were bad, per say, it's just that the topics were… alien. Which made total sense, this was an alien world, even if there weren't any spaceships or sci-fi monsters from beyond the stars. The people of this… he was gonna assume it was an alternate dimension… they just had different priorities, and that included what they were teaching in school.
For example, several of the classes were a different flavor of magic, depending on what you were good at or interested in. But because Midoroiya had signed up Kota to all of the classes Eri was attending, he was basically thrown into the deep end before he could even know how to swim. The good news was that panic was a good motivator to get people to learn.
During one of the various magic classes during the first block of the day, Kota was trying to do… what he assumed was a spell. Seriously, there were so many subcategories of these goddamn things that he had no idea what the difference between enhancement and divination was, and at this point, he was kinda too scared to ask. Anyways, he was trying to do a simple spell that was supposed to create a stream of water from his hand, nothing too special. Well…
…it kinda resulted in him creating a massive hose of water instead. Like, the stream of water he created was somehow four times bigger than what firefighters had in their hoses.
People got seriously wet, a couple of them got pissed, but Eri seemed over the moon about it. Apparently, the reason Kota's water stream was as insane as it was came from the fact that he had an affinity towards water-based magic. Eri's affinity (in her human form, at least) was apparently time-based magic, so she knew when someone was good at certain kinds of magic.
So, yeah. First day of school, and Kota was already a novice wizard.
The non-magic classes were a bit bizarre as well. Alchemy was basically chemistry but with even weirder shit and far less safety when it came to making potions, and history was kinda useless to the kid who wasn't even a part of this world. Like, seriously, did Kota really look like he'd care about whatever heroics Nana Shimura did during the time she was alive? No.
But then came lunch, and thank God, it was normal.
The food wasn't that far off from what Kota had seen being served in American colleges; there seemed to be sandwiches that were trying to mimic Earth-based delicacies, burgers included, steamed potatoes with butter and mayo in them (that was a surprise), and even beef with salads. Buuut… for every food that Kota understood, there were five that he wouldn't dare eat. These included deep-fried giant frog legs, rainbow-colored unicorn bacon, poached dodo eggs, and apparently, the cabbages in this world had eyes and could fly, so, yeah, no.
Anyways, Kota was pretty content with eating his normal food for normal people and being left the fuck alone at his own table, but that's when Eri showed up with her friends.
"Hey, there!" she said, sitting down next to him. "Enjoying your lunch?"
"I was," he grumbled, before resigning himself to his fate. "Who are your friends?"
"Allow me, Eri-chan," one of her friends said. She would have resembled a teenage human girl with light brown pigtails, if it wasn't for the fact that she also had red horns on her head, bat-like wings on her back, and a stereotypical devil tail. "I'm Mahoro Shimano, and I'm a succubus."
"And I'm her brother, Katsuma Shimano," the second friend said. He looked just like his sister, except for his short curly hair. "I'm an incubus. Well, I mean, we're actually both the same species, but it's like the whole rooster-hen thing, or maybe bull-cow thing…"
"I get the concept, girls are succubi, boys are incubi," Kota said. Katsuma seemed like a bundle of nerves. "Come to think of it, I think I saw you during class once or twice."
"Oh, you noticed me? That's great!" Katsuma seemed to brighten up at that. "I'm really trying to stand out more, and to let people know that I'm here with them, and that I exist, and…"
"Katsuma, you're starting to mumble again," Maharo told her little brother.
So, someone who was both anxious and tended to descend into mumbling, Kota figured. Looking over to Maharo, he thought over what to say. "So… a succubus, huh?"
"Before you ask, no, I'm not gonna invade your dreams and fill them with whatever degenerate desires you want," Maharo said. "I mean, I could, but still! That's a harmful stereotype!"
Ouch, looks like Kota might have touched a sensitive nerve there. He needed to fix this, quick. "Well then, it's a good thing I'm already taken," he casually said, nursing his drink.
Eri's smile seemed to get wider when he said that. Quickly trying to change the subject he said, "I saw your brother in my classes, but I didn't see you. Are you an upperclassman?"
"Yeah, I'm a senior," Maharo said. "Katsuma and the rest of you are basically freshmen, but I'm gonna be graduating this year, same with Asui. Speaking of which… where is he?"
"Right behind you, ribbit."
Kota, along with the others, turned around to see two more newcomers. One of them was an older teenage boy with dark green hair partially covering his face (which had light green skin), and the other was a younger girl who had the same colored hair, just in low pigtails, showing off her green skin completely. If it wasn't the color of their skin that told Kota they weren't human, then the weird shapes of their faces and their webbed hands definitely did.
"You must be the human kid hanging out with Eri that everyone's talking about, ribbit," the boy said. "I'm Samidare Asui, a bullywug. And this here is my little sister, Satsuki Asui."
"Hi! Nice to meet you!" Compared to the older brother's calm and cool demeanor, the younger sister seemed just about as excitable as Eri. "I saw you in some of my classes, too!"
"I see…" Kota said. "So, then, it's safe to assume that you're in the same grade as me, and that your older brother is a senior like Maharo here. Are you one of Eri's friends, too?"
"Yep!" Satsuki said. "Well, actually, our older siblings know each other from some business deals they were making, so we ended up going to the same school as Eri here –"
Yeah, Kota could see the picture. Midoriya probably had some job for their big sister, and said big sister enrolled her little siblings at the same school Midoriya's little sister was. Kota wasn't exactly sure if that was a viable business strategy, but whatever.
"So, uh… bullywugs?" Kota said casually. "Some kind of… amphibious race?"
"Mm-hmm! We're frog people!" Satsuki said, way too cheerful. "You dad actually looks more like the standard bullywug, just with hair, but we all got more from our mom's side, and –"
"You got a problem with us being frog folk?" Samidare asked, his visible eye narrowing.
"No, no, just making small talk," Kota calmly said. "Still the new kid, after all."
"Oh, yeah! Everyone was talking about the new human kid hanging out with Princess Eri!" Satsuki said, sitting down. "Where are you from? Some think that you're a runaway from the Todoroki Empire, while others think that you're from beyond the continent! Well?"
"Where am I from?" Kota repeated. "Uhh… I'm from Japan?"
"Japan?" Katsuma looked at him in curiosity. "Where's that?"
"It's an island nation to the east. Actually, you wouldn't find it on any map, since you have to get through the Collibus Hills gate. We're next to China, one of the superpowers of the world…"
As Kota began to talk, he noticed that everyone at the table was paying close attention to what he was saying, almost amazed. Now that he thought about it… it made sense that he would attract the attention of others. He was basically a foreign exchange student, just instead from another country, he was from a completely different world. Might as well make the most of it.
"...I'm assuming you guys don't have cars here?"
"Cars?" Maharo asked. "What are those?"
"They're these metal machines that we can drive around everywhere! The engines inside them shoot, well, a bunch of tiny rounds of fire that cause movement, no horse needed! We also have planes! Big metal tubes that fly through the sky, like big metal birds! And…"
As Kota told all of his newfound friends about the amazing things his world had to offer, he wasn't worried anymore about being the new kid. No, now, he felt at home.
The wind was calm today, as Melissa flew alongside the F-15s.
She really did enjoy the feeling of flying. Like a majestic bird, her wings spread out as far as they could, the air gently blowing past her, and now, she was no longer alone. Aside from Momo and the others on the airship, Melissa also enjoyed the company of the plane pilots, too.
Not only that, but she did also feel more energetic than she did yesterday. That was probably because yesterday, she spent a lot of energy fighting the Emperor of Flames, mostly trying to avoid getting hit by his monster of a wyvern or from any fire attacks Todoroki himself might have fling. But after a good night's rest she felt like her old self again, ready for action!
The good news was that there would be no fighting for today. Momo had strict orders to head straight back to the Collibus Hills as soon as their fight with Emperor Todoroki was over, and that was what they were doing. The last couple of days were spent in the air, and in less than an hour, they would be back home. Hmm, what should I do first when we're back? Maybe –
KRAK! KRAK! KRAK! KRAK!
It happened instantaneously; literally. In less than five seconds, several lightning bolts came down from the clear skies, striking half of the F-15s, and sending them careening towards the ground. It was such a jarring change from less than a minute ago, that Melissa didn't even notice the slow change of the skies around her, from a bright blue to blue gray.
Someone had just manipulated the weather with magic to strike down those planes.
"Melissa Shield."
She knew that voice. The fallen angel looked above her, to see him floating there. He wore minimal armor, mostly white robes, with hair the same color as Bakugou's, only more wavy and messy, with golden-brown eyes staring right into Melissa's very soul. But the most distinctive thing about him were his white wings, so white they made Melissa's look dark.
He was an angel, just like her… only not fallen. Still in the service of the gods.
"Keigo Takami…" Melissa hissed.
"So, you do remember your seniors," Takami said, as he flew in the same position, almost as if floating. "I know it's been less than six months, but I really didn't have that high hopes for you."
Melissa clicked her tongue. Despite seemingly being the perfect emotionless little soldier of the gods, she could still detect the sense of superiority within his voice.
"You killed them," Melissa said, looking down towards the ground.
Takami didn't even bother denying it. "I did."
"Why? They were foreign soldiers, they had nothing to do with this."
"Because they were in the way," he said, as he unsheathed two katanas from behind him. "I would say guilt by association, but that wouldn't be entirely truthful, now would it?"
Melissa already knew what he was planning: To kill her. Despite the fact she was completely outmatched, however, Melissa Shield refused to go down without a fight.
Unsheathing her own sword, Melissa hissed, "You're gonna pay for this."
And so, the two celestials clashed in the sky.
"EVERYONE, ARMED AND AT THE READY, NOW!!!"
This was bad. This was very bad. One minute, everything was calm and quiet as the airship flew through the sky, and then a few seconds later, lighting strikes half the remaining F-15s down, and Momo can see Melissa preparing to duke it out with another angel.
This had come completely out of nowhere, and right after everyone was still feeling the high of victory against the Todoroki Empire. In under five seconds, this blond bastard with pigeon wings made the giant flame attack Enji Todoroki did look like a fucking joke. There were only five F-15s in the sky, and none of them seemed to be able to do anything right now.
Momo couldn't exactly blame them, either. She would be scared shitless as well, if she just saw half of her buddies get struck down in less than ten seconds by a guy they didn't even see coming. But scared shitless or not, she had a job to do, and that was to protect everyone.
"Shoto, do you have any spells that could maybe help here?"
"I have the same spells as both my parents, but I'm not sure if they'd even reach him," Shoto said. "Even if they managed to hit, we might not even hurt him, just make him angry at us."
That wasn't a good sign. Grabbing her radio, she called, "Yoarashi?"
"Still kicking, Yaoyorozu! Can't say the same for everyone else…"
"I know, and I'm sorry, but we honestly had no idea that this was going to happen! Regardless of that, we can't let this cretin get away with this!" Momo said. "We need to help Shield!"
"Say no more, Lieutenant! Me and the boys are itching for some revenge right now!"
As the rest of the Dungeon Crawlers prepared their weapons and magic, Momo nodded. "Same with us, but first, we need a plan. And hopefully, one that Melissa can use to her advantage…"
The lighting strikes could be heard from miles away.
However, for Eijiro and the rest of his friends on top of Dark Shadow, those sounds were pretty instantaneous, which indicated they were pretty close by. They had been traveling through the air for about a week or so, and today was the final stretch of their travels.
Bakubro had let Tokoyami know that the Collibus Hills were about an hour away from where they were, and the kenku seemed glad to know that they would be arriving at their destination soon. But now these lightning strikes seem to have not just his, but everyone's attention.
"Uh, is it just me, or did the sky suddenly get a bit darker?" Eijiro asked.
"No, it definitely did," Mina said. "I think magic is at play here."
Both Eijiro and Bakubro looked at each other. They had experienced magically-changed weather before, and that usually meant only bad things. Quickly looking over to their aerial coachman, Bakubro said, "Tokoyami, fly towards the source of that lightning."
The raven-looking man looked at him like he was crazy.
"Trust me! I think we know who might be involved in this!"
Tokoyami just groaned, but pointed Dark Shadow towards the source of the sound. Eijiro gulped. Man, if it is Yaomomo and everyone else, I seriously hope they're okay…
SHINK! SHINK!
Melissa dodged two of Takami's katana attacks. He had the ability to make his swords fly, and honestly, Melissa found that to be a bit of bullshit. He could already rig himself to explode in solar energy, blind someone with his stare and turn invisible, did he really need flying swords?
She tried to dive in with her one sword swipe, but before she could even physically hurt him, the katanas flew back into his hands, and he was able to defend himself. So not fair!
At the rate this was going, Melissa would run out of stamina without even using any of her trump cards. The fight against Emperor Todoroki took a lot out of her, but this was somehow even worse. If something didn't happen soon, she was gonna die, no questions asked.
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
Takami's angelic body suddenly jittered in an unnatural fashion, as Melissa recognized the holes that were beginning to riddle his physical form. She knew those were the bullets that came out of an F-15's six-barrel cannon, along with the occasional shot from an assault rifle, which meant that both the planes and the airship were doing what they could to take Takami down.
"Shield, do you read me?! Come in!" Melissa's earpiece blared to life.
"Momo!" she called in. "What are you doing?!"
"Saving your ass, that's what! Now, how can we take this guy down?!"
Right. They could argue later. "He's an angel, like me! He's gonna be resistant to your weapons, but there's a limit! Just keep blasting him until I can find an opening to –"
BOOOOOM!!!
Before she had a chance to finish, Melissa was blown back by an intense wind and light, as were the F-15s. She knew that light came from Takami, but she didn't think he'd use his searing burst attack so far away from any target. However, before she could question it any further, he sent his two katanas flying into the windows of two of the planes, killing the pilots.
"Insignificant insects…" he growled, before staring into the eyes of a third pilot, blinding them, and sending them crashing to the F-15 next to them, effectively taking out four pilots in total.
Eijiro could only watch in horror at what he and his team stumbled across.
At first, he was overjoyed to see the airship; that must have meant Yaomomo and the others were okay. And seeing all those F-15s together was also a good sign, until he saw that four of the five of them suddenly went crashing down into the ground below them.
A closer look showed that Melissa was being attacked by some angel dude, who was now trying to bring the last F-15 down, but was being stopped by a pissed-off Melissa. The redhead honestly wasn't sure if Shield would be able to save everyone from that madman…
"We gotta help 'em," Bakubro said. "Tokoyami!"
"Revelry in the dark?"
"Fly us as close as you can without us getting spotted!"
As the kenku did just that, Mina asked, "What are you gonna do?!"
"Something stupid," Bakubro said, as Dark Shadow pulled in closer. Once the giant raven stopped, the blond lifted his arm, pointed it towards the hostile angel, and began chanting, "Tenebrae nigriores nigro, obscuriores tenebris… Mea ultima exitium magicae…"
Eijiro immediately understood what Katsuki was doing. "WAIT, WAIT, WAIT –"
"EXPLOOOOOSIO!!!"
Momo knew they were probably gonna die.
This angelic cretin had just wiped out four more F-15s, and was now fighting Melissa on top of Yoarashi's plane. They couldn't even shoot at them without fear of hitting –
BOOOOOOOM!!!
Before she could even finish her sentence, Momo and the rest of her crew felt the sensation of a strong wind blow past them, as a massive pillar of fire just came out of nowhere, hitting the hostile angel, and, if Momo saw it correctly, absolutely incinerating him.
Unfortunately, the pillar also happened to touch Melissa, Yoarashi's plane, and the airship. Which meant that all three of them were careening towards the ground.
She could see that Yaorashi was trying to do some sort of emergency landing before his plane inevitably crashed into the forest, and the wind around them ended up sending the unconscious Melissa into the main deck of the airship, but they were still crashing, too.
"EVERYONE!!! BRACE FOR IMPACT!!!"
That was the last thing Momo shouted before the airship hit the ground.
Izuku was in his study, reading from one of his tomes, when he received the message.
"And you're certain about this, Kuroiro?" the Demon King asked. "This so-called JSDF's base is the same one that Kota had to flee from. It's where Melissa comes and goes from?"
"Yes, sir. I predict she will be back soon. But if she is unaware of the attack…"
"I understand. Inform Kurogiri to go there immediately."
The dark elf bowed in respect before disconnecting the magical mirror's transmission. A few moments later, he could hear the doors behind him opening. "Big brother!"
"Ah, Eri." Putting on a smile, Izuku greeted his sister. "How was school today?"
Author's Note: Remember how Melissa said that some other angels might come after her back in the third chapter? Yeah, that small bit of trivia has come back.
Now, for some of the behind-the-scenes trivia, the good from the magical lunch Kota was eating at school came from a bunch of different shows. The rainbow-colored unicorn bacon and poached dodo eggs were from Disenchantment, the deep-fried giant frog legs and flying cabbage comes from Konosuba, and the hamburgers and potatoes are from Re: Zero. I got the inspiration to make Katusma and Maharo an incubus and succubus because of the monster's artwork in the fifth edition Monster Manual, it made me think that they were siblings. I'm pretty sure that there's some trivia on a few other characters, but I'll save it for later. For now, we've got some comments to get through!
Shin: Okay, I think I get it, given that D also has canon books. MTG basically has a large complex lore like Dark Souls or Star Wars, which would make most outsiders go mad, such as myself, given that the only thing I really understood from anything you said was that we the players are part of the lore, and my brain immediately made me think of Portal Masters from the Skylanders franchise. But also like the brian children of FromSoft and George Lucas, it makes sense that there would be some maniac out there that created a full-dive lore video. Maybe I'll check it out when I'm working, or bored.
GreenBoy9000: Yep, Enji's will to fight is done for, as is the majority of his composure! While a camera to record all that would be funny, I think it was better to have him surrender with dignity, especially as he will be returning, but I'm not telling you when.
valkrus: HAHAHA! YES! Now let's see if I can keep up that streak…
FictionInfinity: Fuck off.
Holythicc: I wanna ask who told you that… so I can break their legs.
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 32: Ghost Town
Summary:
After managing to survive the airship crash, the SREU are reunited with their missing comrades and make their way back to the Collibus Hills. Only once they arrive there do they realize that something has gone horribly wrong, and it's only after escaping do they manage to come across the survivors and their resistance...
Chapter Text
Chapter 32: Ghost Town
"Alright, who's not dead: Sound off."
"Ugh…"
"My head…"
"Dammit, I think my dick is…"
Momo could hear multiple groans and complaints from several of her subordinates, but truthfully, she knew that anyone who was actually dead would just be revived by Kodai, so right now, she was basically just doing a headcount of anyone who was still able to work.
The airship was damaged superficially, thank goodness. It seemed like the fight tore the wood off the hall, sending a bunch of their supplies hurtling down towards the ground, but nothing vital was destroyed. Momo was sure that if the JSDF tried hard enough, they would be able to recreate the mast and sails, but the giant crystals used to make the boat fly? Yeah, no.
Regardless of how bad the damage to the airship actually was, it wasn't gonna be flying anymore today. The explosion that happened during angelic battle overhead didn't just knock them out of the sky, it knocked everyone out of the sky, including the last of the F-15 pilots.
Man, Aizawa was gonna be pissed…
"Any idea what that last-minute explosion was?" Kendo asked.
Truthfully, Momo did have a few ideas on who helped them turn the tide of battle in the last second, but right now wasn't the time for theorizing. "We need to get to Yoarashi's downed plane. It's about a half hour walk from here. We need to make sure he's not dead."
"Got it," Monoma said. "I'll tell every able-bodied guy here to get ready to hike."
"Good," the black-haired woman said, as her two subordinates spread out. Walking around the wreckage of the airship, Momo could see that Kodai was already healing anyone with serious injuries, while Shoto was holding Melissa. "Let me guess… she exhausted herself?"
"Completely," the peppermint-haired prince said. "I think that battle against her fellow angel drained more out of her than her battle against my father did. It was just so… intense."
Yeah, that made sense to Momo. Whoever that nutcase was, he was definitely more powerful than Melissa. He brought down all of the remaining F-15s during the battle, and even then, most of his focus was still on Melissa. Who even was he? Maybe an angel with a grudge?
Momo knew that Melissa had warned them that there was a chance other angels would be sent to assassinate her, it was literally one of the first things she said when they met, but… this? This was overkill. Or maybe that was just what happened when an angel fell?
There were several instances where Momo was certain that skills such as teleportation, weather manipulation and monster summoning would have come in real handy, skills that Melissa had said she had. But she rarely ever used them, usually relying on her sword and wings instead. Maybe due to her status as a fallen angel, she needed to preserve her power consumption?
It would make sense: No longer working for the gods, she would probably be cut off from their divine power. But she could still build it up over time, as evidenced by the few times she did use some of her more high-level powers. But since using them took so much out of her, she needed to be conservative and play her cards strategically, not just spam them continuously.
Now, Momo wouldn't call Melissa a glass cannon, per se. She was still able to defend herself against most threats that would absolutely pulverize a squishy human such as Momo, but that also didn't mean she was invincible, she had limits, just like everybody else.
It just so happened that those limits tended to be people who had the power to make Chernobyl look like a fucking joke. Hopefully, they wouldn't run into any more of those kinds of people.
"How are you?" Momo asked Shoto. "Physically, I mean."
"I'm alive, and with minor bruises," her boyfriend said. "My body is a lot tougher than the average human's, so the crash only gave me superficial injuries. And since you're alive, my mental health is also fine. I should be able to carry Shield as we walk back to the Collibus Hills."
As much as Momo would love to coo at that second-to-last thing Shoto said, her mind was more inclined to agree with the last thing he said. Thanks to the battle, some of the precious supplies that fell through the hull were the LAVs. She could see that one of them landed close to where the airship crashed, and since Awase was taking a look at it, that might be a good sign.
Walking over to where he was, she asked, "Does any of it look good?"
"Good? Absolutely, not!" Awase exclaimed, as he slammed the dented hood back down. "The intake's got a thirty torque tolerance that's been blown, and the combustion valves need a new ring slip! And that's just the small stuff! The manifold and the distributor caps are wrecked, and when I found it, the engine was on fucking fire! THE CAR WASN'T EVEN RUNNING!!!"
As the raven-haired soldier watched Awase break down crying, two things ran through Momo's mind: One, her team's mechanic personally modified all of their vehicles, so to him, seeing them wrecked like this would be like seeing your child be horribly maimed, and crying would be is a completely natural reaction. And two, the LAVs were kaput. They would have to walk.
As soon as Kodai was finished healing everyone, Momo broke the unfortunate news that they would be walking back towards the Collibus Hills. The good news was that they were extremely close, so they'd be within the town by tomorrow morning. But before they could do that…
…they needed to check up on Yoarashi's downed plane.
As much as Momo would have loved to go and check on the other F-15s to see if their pilots were alive, they couldn't. They were too far away to get to them on foot, and thanks to the airship crash, their food and supplies were dangerously low. They could only go to one of the crashes, it happened to be the one that was on their way to the Collibus Hills.
They couldn't save everyone, that was the reality of their line of work.
Still, everyone did as told, grabbing backpacks, scrounging up whatever measly supplies, weapons and personal belongings they could carry with them, and headed out.
The terrain around them was the same open fields of grass and patches of forest as the first time they left to explore this world, only now, the sky was covered in clouds, as if to say that the battle that just took place was a tragedy that shouldn't have happened. Momo wondered if she was just being melodramatic right now, but honestly, she could really use a distraction.
She just hoped that Yoarashi being alive would serve as the perfect one.
Locating the plane crash wasn't that hard, all they had to do was follow the plume of smoke coming out of the middle of the forest. The harder thing to do was figure out where inside the forest the plane had fallen, but between Uraraka and Tsuburaba, they had a good guess.
They made their way through the trees, and soon enough they could see the crashed plane, but… there was something else there, too. Momo gave a hand signal for everyone to stop moving, quietly lower themselves to the forest floor, not make a peep, and listen.
"I don't think I can save him…"
"Well, could you ask your pet spirits to help him?"
"They're not pets! They're equals! And Eijiro would have a better chance at that…"
"You heard her, Shitty Hair. Make with the spirit hippy shit."
"Bakubro, I'm not trained to do it on command!"
Shitty Hair. Bakubro. Momo only knew two people who called each other that…
"CORPORAL KIRISHIMA! SERGEANT BAKUGOU!"
"Huh?! Lieutenant Yaomomo?! Is that you?!"
Momo immediately got up from where she was, and ran out of the trees and into the small clearing that was within the forest. The first things she noticed was the absolutely wrecked F-15, along with some pink woman with a tail, a giant raven, and an anthropometric crow-dude.
The second things she noticed were Kirishima and Bakugou, alive and well.
"Lieutenant Yaomomo!" Kirishima hugged her. "You're actually here!"
"You're alive, you're both alive!" Momo cried, before she realized something. Slapping Kirishima, she yelled, "You idiot! Do you know how worried we were?! You just disappeared on us!"
"Hey, don't slap him!" the pink woman with horns and a tail scolded her.
"Wait, and who is she?!" Momo asked, before looking at the birdman. "And who is this?!"
"Revelry in the dark!"
"Alright, sit down, Lieutenant," Bakugou said. "You're in for a weird story…"
After the initial reunion, Kodai immediately got to work in healing Yoarashi. By the time she was done reporting that he'd be awake after they'd get back to Collibus, it was already dark.
They ended up camping for the night at the plane wreck.
The fact that both Kirishima and Bakugou were alive was a highlight that rivaled the tragedy that occurred earlier in the day, if not outright eclipsed it. The explosive blond said that he promised that he wouldn't die, and that was exactly what he did. Kirishima's disappearance was actually a complete mystery, but now everyone knew what had happened over the campfire.
Momo was somewhat annoyed that the reason Kirishima went missing in the middle of the Todoroki Empire was due to a mix of spirit shenanigans, magical music, and the universal emotion of horny. However, she did manage to calm down a bit when she heard the full story.
Mina Ashido was some traveler down on her luck and needed quick cash, so she signed up to do mercenary work for the Todoroki Empire, specifically, being one of the monsters that showed up during the Musutafu Incident. Now, the raven-haired woman would normally be more upset at that, but given that she, one, didn't kill anyone, two, seriously felt bad for it, and three, saved Kirishima's life (and everyone else's by association) multiple times after he showed her mercy which eventually lead to romantic feelings, Momo decided to be a bit more lenient.
Speaking of romance, Momo did introduce Shoto to Kirishima and the others. Tokoyami didn't say much, Kirishima might have made a comment about how his feelings for Ashido developed over the course of months (while it took less than two weeks for Momo and Shoto to fuck), while Bakugou asked if that now made Momo a soon-to-be princess of the Todoroki Empire.
Apparently, the answer was yes.
"Wait, if she's a princess now, do I have to kneel?" Kirishima asked.
"Yes, of course you have to kneel," Shoto said.
Kirishima did so, as Momo said, "I'm not comfortable with that."
"Dude, why'd you do that?" Bakugou asked.
Kirishima stuttered a bit. "What, but, he said –"
"It was a joke," Shoto said, slightly smiling. "Gotcha."
Anyways, after everyone discovered that Shoto actually had a sense of humor, Momo also realized that, if something were to happen to the rest of Shoto's siblings, then that meant she actually had a shot at becoming the Empress of an entire country. She had literally been on this mission to scout an alien world for less than six months, what the absolute fuck.
Ashido, meanwhile, had an expression that made it look like Christmas had come early. She was apparently a huge romantic, and she somehow managed to get Uraraka, Kodai and Komori to cheer her on, and even telling Momo to come visit everyone when she had kids. Traitors.
Anyways, after that embarrassment, Bakugou decided to share the story of how he came across Kirishima and Ahsido after he destroyed Tartarus, the two of them sleeping naked in the middle of the woods. Naturally, Kaibara and Tsuburaba asked for pics, and the two of them got slapped for that. The story continued with Ashido summoning Tokoyami and his pet giant raven, Dark Shadow, to give them a ride back to the Collibus Hills, before coming across the airship being hounded by the enemy angel, which Bakugou promptly blasted into smithereens.
"Wait, so the massive circles of fiery death were your doing?" Rin asked.
"Yep," Bakugou said, finishing up his measly dinner. "Wasn't gonna let that Kentucky Fried Douchebag kill you all, so I unleashed an explosion on him. The recoil did knock Dark Shadow out of the sky, and we managed to land here. Still, though, I can't believe only Inasa survived."
"Inasa?" Momo repeated. "Oh, right, the wedding!"
Everyone looked towards the explosive blonde, who cursed. "Crap. Alright, full disclosure, this pilot is a friend of mine from high school, and the best man at my wedding."
"Is that so?" Aoyama said. "Then it is good fortune we saved him."
"Yeah," Bakugou said. "Though… I'm guessing the other F-15s got wiped."
Momo had a feeling that Bakugou knew the answer already. The only sounds that could be heard were the crackling of the wood in the fire, as everyone tried to think of a new topic. Eventually, Kirishima swooped in and saved everyone from the awkward silence.
"So, I might have the potential to contract spirits!"
Momo raised her eyebrows at that. "Really?"
"Yeah, so, Mina told me that I had a pretty high affinity, so if I could contract one, I could use magic! She also said something about them liking me for having a good soul…"
"Huh," Kaibara hummed, before asking, "Do I have a good soul?"
"Dude, you have me as a best friend," Tsuburaba said. "What do you think the answer is?"
Both of them were silent for a bit, until Kaibara said, "Yeah, we're definitely going to Hell."
The meteorologist agreed with the geologist. "Oh, without a doubt."
"And given that it's a fantasy world, Hell might actually be real here," Awase said.
"With you three here, it already is," Rin grumbled.
Eventually, as the conversations went on, the fire began to die down, and once the crew helped Sato clean up the empty ration trash, they got ready to sleep. Mats were set out, guard shifts were organized, and pretty soon, everyone was ready to embrace the night.
"Alright, whoever's got guard lookout duty in the early hours of the morning, don't freak out when you see a pink thing next to Kirishima, and definitely don't shoot it."
"Bakubro, Mina's not a pet!" Kirishima shouted back.
"Right… and Camie loves me for my approachable personality."
As Momo ignored the ever-quieting racket all of her subordinates were making, she laid down on her mat, when she felt someone lie next to her. "Shoto, not tonight, we have no privacy."
"I know. I just… want to hold you."
"You do know that my mat is made for one person, yes? It'll be uncomfortable."
"With you by my side, I can endure," the peppermint-haired prince said. "Plus, due to my magic, my body releases heat and coldness at a superhuman rate. I can make it less uncomfortable."
Aww, how cute, he was offering to be her body pillow with built-in temperature control.
"Alright, go ahead."
The last thing Momo felt before she drifted off was the purring of a warm Shoto's hug.
A fog had rolled in by the time everyone headed out of the woods.
Or, at least, Momo hoped it was a fog. She had seen enough ash and brimstones during her first week in the Special Region to not want to have to deal with it again for the rest of her life. The initial battle against the Todoroki Empire was so one-sided that it left the entire area around the Collibus Hills as a wasteland, and Momo didn't want to experience that again.
Everyone kept their eyes peeled for anything that might jump out at them. While the fog did exist, it wasn't so bad that the group was walking around blind, but it still existed, and mixed together with the sporadic trees and the cloudy skies, visibility was a bitch.
If there was one positive of walking together right now, it was that Tokoyami was with them. While Dark Shadow may have still been unable to fly at the moment due to yesterday's fight, the massive bird was still big enough to carry the two unconscious members of the group.
So, while Melissa and Yoarashi laid across the giant raven's back, Tokoyami gently rode his steed through the fields, as everyone else partolled alongside them, protecting the big bird and their unconscious allies. Slowly, they made it through the hills, out into the open fields, until finally, they could see the outskirts of the town Tsunotori's people were… building…
"Oh, my gosh," Uraraka whispered.
Momo could only stare ahead at her creation, this vision she had to help bridge the gap between the two worlds. It was burnt, reduced to burnt wood, and the quiet...
The black-haired soldier felt sick. It was too quiet. There was no noise, no one talking, complaining, trying to rebuild. It was like they were looking at a ghost town. Momo barely registered Shoto's hand on her shoulder, trying to calm her.
"Maybe there's some survivors…?" Sato wondered.
Yes, survivors. There had to be. Looking back towards her team, she said, "All SREU members who can use magic, with me. Everyone else, stay at the border of the town, guard up."
Everyone quickly got into their teams. Shoto gave Momo a quick "be safe," as she, along with Monoma, Bakuogu, Uraraka, Kodai, Komori and Aoyama advanced towards the seemingly abandoned town, while the others kept their distance, weapons at the ready.
"What happened here…?" Komori whispered.
"And where is everyone?" Bakugou whispered back.
Both of those are equally valid questions, Momo thought to herself, as her team walked through the desolate town. Barely anything made a sound. Not even the scavenging birds, who flew around the last time something like this happened here, were making a peep now.
"We need to find General Aizawa," Momo said.
"General Aizawa, Kayama, anyone," Monoma replied.
There was a sudden gasp, and footsteps. Everyone ducked behind one of the wrecked ruins of the alleyway as if on instinct. They were trained soldiers, not complete idiots. They didn't want to imagine it, but there was a good chance that the town was attacked. If so…
Quickly peeking out from the debris she was hiding behind, Momo could see that the figure walking down the street was human, a man with blond hair. He was carrying an assault rifle, but it wasn't a JSDF soldier, the uniform was completely off, both in texture and color.
Two more men wearing the same outfit walked down the street after that, as Momo connected the dots. "I think I know what happened… and we need to get out of here. Now."
The others nodded in unison, already figuring out what probably went down here. Making sure no one was around, the got out of their hiding spaces, and quickly made their way to –
There was a sharp gasp. Kodai.
Momo turned around to see what had happened, and… froze. Everyone else turned around, as well, and what they saw littering the street was enough to make anyone's blood run cold.
There were bodies. Tens, dozens of them, there were bodies everywhere.
Despite being burned, bloodied, and overall damaged in such horrible ways, Momo recognized several of them. Most of them were wearing JSDF uniforms; they were everyone's comrades. The rest… they were people from the Special Region, civilians. She recognized the minotaurs that came with Pony to help build the town, entire families of people, women, children…
All of them now piled up in what was basically a mountain of broken bodies.
"What is this hell?" Bakugou hissed.
Momo agreed with the blond on this. This was inhuman, like something straight out of a Holocaust picture. Who could have done this? Those men, the weapons they carried… all signs pointed to them being from Earth. But why would they attack here? For the gate?
She knew that the gate, and the world beyond it, was something a lot of countries would love to get their hands on, but to go so far as to do this? What sort of monster would –
"HEY!" Everyone turned around and realized they had been caught. Two more men, one bald and one with greasy hair, had their weapons pointed at them. "What are you –"
BREEAM-POW! BREEAM-POW!
Two blue lasers went between the mens' heads, killing them instantly, as Momo turned to see that Monoma and Aoyama were the ones responsible. "We need to hurry, before –"
"WE HAVE INTRUDERS!!!"
Too late. More armed guards were running towards them, most likely alerted by their comrade's shouting. Uraraka along with the two blonds prepared more spells to fire, while Momo and the others aimed their guns. Looks like they were fighting their way out of here.
Uraraka quickly slammed her hands into the ground, as she began to prepare a spell. Momo knew they were gonna need to buy her time, as she, alongside Kodai, began to lay fire down at anyone who was showing up, with several bullets going through the bodies of any bastard who showed up. Some were smart enough to hide behind the debris, but most…
BLAM! BLAM!
…not so much.
Komori, meanwhile, summoned one of her massive mushroom monsters that immediately charged towards the first bad guys it saw, sending several goons flying with its punches, all while Aoyama and Monoma kept sniping others with their laser magic.
"SPELL'S READY!" Uraraka shouted. "Get ready to run when it lands!"
Momo didn't know what the team astronomer was talking about, until a black-and-purple hole opened up above them, sending tiny meteorites crashing down in front of them. As the bad guys were busy either running away or getting squashed, Momo and the others made a run for it.
"We need to tell the others what happened!" Momo said, as she and the others shot their way through this mess. "We have to get out of here, and come back with reinforcements!"
"Like who, the Todoroki Empire?!" Monoma asked, as he blasted another cretin. "Who just took down their military, remember?! And Hatsume is too far away to ask for help! It took us a month to get to her last time, and we were driving back then! How would we get there now?!"
"Tokoyami!" Momo answered, as she shot another guard. "We could send someone on Dark Shadow to her place, tell her what's going on here, and ask for her help!"
"Yeah, if we manage to survive for that long!"
The seven of them ran as if the Devil himself was chasing them, as they saw the entrance of the town, where the rest of their party was still waiting for them. "RUN! IT'S A –"
BLAM!
Momo felt herself fall, the wind running past her body.
Pain shot through her entire body, but the place where it hurt the most was in her left leg. She didn't know if the bullet went through her thigh, but she was pretty sure that it broke her femur. Collapsing in the mud caked with ash, she could feel blood start to leak out…
"MOMO!!!"
SHHHK–BOOOOM!!!
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
Momo wasn't sure what was going on right now, her face was still in the dirt. But given how cold it suddenly got, it was safe to assume that Shoto made a massive wall of ice to prevent anyone else from getting shot, and the evil goons were now trying to shoot at it.
Before she knew it, Momo felt the sensation of someone picking her up and carrying her princess style, and given that she could see flames flickering on one side of said person's arms, it was safe to assume that it was Shoto. God, she really hoped it was Shoto.
"I'M GONNA KILL THEM!!!"
"LATER! YAOMOMO NEEDS MEDICAL ATTENTION!!!"
"FINE! ALL OF YOU, START RUNNING!!!"
Momo was starting to get disoriented. Was it the blood loss? It was probably the blood loss. The world around her seemed to be spinning, as she could see everyone running for the hills, Tokoyami pushing Dark Shadow to go faster, the sounds of bullets getting quieter…
She could see everyone running towards the closest tree line they could find. She wanted to warn them that it was a bad idea, that would be the first place the bad guys would look for them, but… God… the pain… At least Shoto was pretty to look at… why did he look so scared…?
"Hurry, you need to hide! This way! Get moving!"
"General Aizawa?!"
Huh…? Oh… General Aizawa was here, too… gooooody…
When Momo opened her eyes again, she could tell she was underground.
"Oh, good. You're awake."
Looking around, she saw that Kodai was sitting next to her. Momo was sitting in… well… dirt. But given that her leg only feels like it had a bruise, that was a plus. "How long?"
"Twenty minutes," Kodai said. "Minor blood loss. The bullet went through your leg, thankfully, so no having to fish around to find it. Just had to cast some healing magic, and voila."
So, she was out for twenty minutes, huh? "And… where exactly are we?"
"I'll show you," Kodai said, as she offered her hand.
Momo took it, as the team medic pulled her up, and brought her out of the "room." This entire place was making Momo think of the trench bunkers from World War I, and that was not…
"Well, look who came back to the land of the living."
Her thoughts immediately cut off when she heard that voice. She couldn't believe it. He was alive. He looked worse for wear, but he was alive. "GENERAL AIZAWA!"
Momo didn't care that she had just been recently injured, and she didn't give a damn about protocol right now, as she lunged at Aizawa as fast as she could, and hugged him, as she bawled her eyes out. Her mentor was alive, the old man who trained her was safe.
A part of her thought that she was hallucinating from the blood loss when she heard his voice, and an even darker part of her thought that he was already dead, and her wounds would result in her joining him in the afterlife, but this… this was the best thing that had happened to Momo all day long. After coming back to the Collibus Hills to not just find it deserted, but to have the bodies of innocents all piled up, and then to get shocked, to have her hopes up about…
She didn't dare let go of her teacher, afraid that he might disappear the second she did.
"Good to see you too, Lieutenant," Aizawa softly said, as he hugged her back.
After calming down a bit, Momo awkwardly let go of Aizawa, and sat down on the makeshift stool in the small room. She could walk, but standing for too long was probably not a good idea for Momo right now, as she was still recovering from having a bullet in her leg.
Now that their reunion was over, she then asked, "Where are we…?"
"A little hideout me and the few remaining survivors came up with," Aizawa said, as he opened a door into another room, as the two of them walked in, revealing more survivors.
Momo could see that the new room was supposed to resemble a mess hall, but it was small, with only a couple of long, but thankfully occupied, tables, full of recognizable faces.
Pony Tsunotori, Mineta Minoru, and Denki Jiro were all there, and all of them armed with JSDF weapons. "When those bastards attacked us, their goal was to leave no survivors. Unfortunately for them, we are more resilient than that. A couple of mages that survived the initial attack were able to make a few trench bunkers for us, with Yamada and Kayama running the other ones."
"You're coming up with a counterattack plan…" Momo realized.
"Yup," the general said. "The bad news was that, until today, most of our fighters were volunteer civilians. But now that you and the rest of your crew are back, we're pretty much fifty-fifty."
Fifty-fifty? That was awful. That meant that even with fifteen more Japanese soldiers, there were so few of them that the majority of their fighting force was still composed of the civilians they were supposed to protect. "This is all my fault… I led all those people to the slaughter…"
"No, this isn't your fault," Aizawa said. "The fault lies squarely on the shoulders of these mercenary bastards. They showed up while you were gone; I'm pretty sure they planned it so that you wouldn't be able to turn back and help us fight them off. You didn't do this. All you did was try and give the people of the Special Region a chance at a better life."
"We'll fight alongside you." Momo looked up in surprise towards the Jiro patriarch. "Ah, I have been studying your language. I was able to understand a few words here and there…"
"I'm sorry for what I've dragged you into," Momo apologized.
"Your comrades saved my family during our darkest hour," the blond bard said. "You tried to give us a safe home. My wife is at one of the other shelters, alongside Hagakure-san and the others. And as long as she lives, I'll fight alongside you to protect my new home."
Momo could see that the minotaur and the gnome were both nodding along to what the bard said. She had given them all a home, a chance to make something of themselves.
It was time for them to take it back.
Momo looked back at General Aizawa. "Alright, what's the plan?"
"I've already been informed of how your battle against the Todoroki Empire went, and the condition the airship is in; we can't afford to turn tail and run. The mercenaries have the gate hostage, so we also can't expect any reinforcements from Japan," the older man said. "Plus, thanks to these mercs, all our supplies are dwindling, so time is of the essence. We can't wait for Shield to be up and functioning at one hundred percent. We need to make a move soon."
The heiress of the Yaoyorozu conglomerate thought over what they could possibly do. Well, first, she would need to know who was able to fight, and what they could do. Plus, she needed to know where exactly all of these mercenaries are operating from, but for now…
"Um, I have an idea," Momo said. "If I'm correct about this, we might be able to get some help from the outside without costing us a fighter, but I'll need some more data."
Aizawa looked at her in interest. "What's this idea?"
Author's Note: Yeah, this might have been one of the darkest chapters of the whole series. Think of episode fourteen from the first season of Re: Zero combined with the fifth episode of The Legend of Vox Machina, and you've got the picture.
On a lighter note, I was hinting throughout the series that Yoarashi was one of the few people Bakugou personally knew, and now it's officially confirmed, yay, and Kirishima has a spirit affinity! If any of you have seen Re: Zero, then you might know where this is going. That's all I've got in terms of lore for now, and up next are the comments!
Shin: Okay, thank you for the crash course on MTG. I don't think I'll ever get invested in it, but I'm glad to see that there are people who love it. Talk to you next time.
GreenBoy9000: Enji's not about to return, he'll come back in a few chapters later down the line, like, months into the future. And yeah, of course Momo would interrogate Melissa about what happened, that's why I had her knocked out. Melissa can't say anything if she's not conscious. But don't worry, she'll wake up… eventually.
AlphaLycanroc55: Ah, a fellow writer! I'm more than happy to tell you how I come up with my spells, but fair warning, the process itself is a bit… underwhelming. Basically, I first think of what sort of spell I want my character to cast in what scenario, while also referencing any spells I've seen in any official media, like in Overlord or as you said, Black Clover. Once I know, I take the official spell's name, put it into Google Translate, turn it from English to Latin, and then use the Latin translation. I hope that helps you.
valkrus: YYYEEEEESSS!!!!!
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 33: Yaoyorozu vs Imasuji
Summary:
The JSDF and residents of the Collibus Hills, with the help of the recently returned SREU, work together to rid their home of its unwelcome visitors. As everyone fights, Melissa wakes up and aids in the battle, but during the end of the confrontation between Yaoyorozu and Imasuji, the angel is taken away by a Demon Lord...
Chapter Text
Chapter 33: Yaoyorozu vs Imasuji
As it turned out, Momo's idea was about half-right.
The original plan she presented was to send Dark Shadow away to Dryadalis so Tokoyami could tell Hatsume and the rest of the elves of what the fuck was going on. Sadly, there were a few flaws with this: One, since Dryadalis was on the other end of the continent, it would take him roughly a week to get there, which the resistance didn't have. And two, Dark Shadow was able to fly and Tokoyami could use magic, which would give the resistance an advantage.
Momo argued that Dryadalis could come to them with relief aid alongside weapons to take down the mercenaries, and if the resistance didn't last that long, then Hatsume and her elves could at least avenge everyone at the Collibus Hills. Additionally, Tokoyami wasn't that powerful of a mage: The most he could do was blind people with smoke and fire some dark crystals.
Eventually, Aizawa relented and sent Tokoyami to play messenger to Queen Hatsume. With that out of the way, the actual plan on how to take back the city now had to be thought up.
Bakugou's suggestion of blowing up everything to hell with a magical explosion was immediately ruled out; even in the state the Collibus Hills were in, they were still people's homes. Thankfully, Tsunotori was able to come up with a less catastrophic strategy: She and her minotaurs (it was gruesome to think she was now the last one here) helped in the construction of the town, so she knew how all the routes connected and where they were located, to a much better degree than either the JSDF or any of the mercenaries. This would give them the advantage.
The petite minotaur's idea was this: Every single lane in the town followed into one of the bigger main lanes in one of the four cardinal directions: North, south, east, and west. These four major streets all had exits that lead to the outside world, and in the north-center of the town was the JSDF base and buildings, and right above those, was the gate to Japan.
The plan was to have four separate teams at each of the town entrances, and make their way to the center, killing any mercs they came across. Once they all met up together at the center, they would storm the military base together, and hopefully, take back the gate.
Was this plan flawed? Absolutely. Were people gonna die? Without a doubt. But there was one thing Momo and her team could do to reduce casualties: Scout the enemy's movements.
Momo had been trained in the Ranger Course, which meant she knew how to do reconnaissance and mountaineering. Taking a small team with her, they spent all of yesterday observing the patrol patterns of the mercs, and what sort of weapons they had on them.
Their scouting mission actually did bear some fruit: Their weapons seemed to be a mix between military-issued assault rifles, handguns, and a few various personal weapons that most sane armies in the world had abandoned, such as, say, customized mustard gas grenades.
Yeah, the grenades happened to be Momo's first clue at who exactly they were dealing with. A few hours later, she also encountered a bald guy with way too many knives across his uniform, and Momo immediately recognized him from an old file Aizawa had lying around on his desk: Moonfish; no other known identity, just a mercenary going by the name Moonfish.
Remembering the other files on Aizawa's desk and following their train of logic, that meant the guy with the gas grenades and steel helmet was Mustard, and, while she didn't see the others, it was safe to say that the likes of Magne, Rappa, Nemoto, Tengai, Hojo, and Tabe were here.
Which meant that the leader of this little operation was none other than Goto Imasuji.
Momo read the file on him the most. Born in Japan, but moved to America when he came of age, and became one of the most infamous mercenaries in the world. Not because of whatever firepower he carried with him, but because he had the highest job completion to failure ratio of Japanese mercs, and also because of his sadistic personality. As in, "murders children for fun" kind of personality. Momo was fairly sure that the man became a mercenary just to fund his lifestyle choice of hunting whoever he felt like hurting, especially JSDF officers.
Yeah, after reading his file, Momo had heard a few rumors and urban legends here and there about Imasuji's immense hatred for the Japanese Self-Defense Force, and by extension, most of the world's militaries, who hated him in kind. She didn't know why, but she just always just assumed that Imasuji was fully aware of the concepts of good and evil, and he simply hated that the world's militaires tried to play the good side. There were also rumors that he hated one officer in particular, but Momo never knew who it was. It was probably Aizawa, in her opinion.
Despite that, the international community hasn't been able to press charges, much less arrest the man. Officially speaking, he has never done anything illegal, as Imasuji's paper trial was always well-hidden, and whatever governments around the world could find wasn't incriminating. Plus, the UN couldn't exactly use rumors as evidence to convict a man, and no witnesses were ever present to speak up about the things he might have done.
Mostly because there were never any witnesses found.
Anyways, sadistic international criminals aside, they did also learn of the patrol patterns of the mercs, along with the perfect time to jump them without getting spotted. Now, traditionally, the best time for an ambush would be in the dead of night, around four, but no one he really had night vision, so the next best option was at the crack of dawn: There would be enough light to see, and several of the mercenaries would still be groggy from waking up so early.
With that, Momo and her small team went back to the trenches, and told Aizawa everything they found out. His face looked like he had just bit into a sour lime when she told him that Imasuji was most likely responsible for the atrocities recently committed, but he still kept it professional, and relayed all the info to the other people hiding all around the Collibus Hills' forests.
Kodai had gone around every stronghold during the last few days, healing everyone she could to tip-top shape, which increased their numbers considerably. Unfortunately, while Yoarashi did wake up, the same couldn't be said for Melissa. Kyoka Jiro offered to keep an eye on her while her husband and the rest of the resistance went off to fight, and Momo accepted.
Now, it was game time. Everyone was up and awake eight hours before the big moment, preparing themselves. There was a good chance a lot of them wouldn't come back.
Despite that, they were still gonna fight.
The first phase of the plan went without a hitch.
As it turned out, having multiple mages, demi-humans, and who-knows-what-else fighting alongside trained soldiers of the JSDF made whatever punk-ass mercenaries that came across them regret every signing up to take this job. Between Kurose's black holes, Uwabami's petrification, Shoto's ice, and so many other surprises, none of them stood a chance.
Another small bonus was the fact that magic, alongside monstrous physiology and unarmed combat, was nowhere as loud as bullets. So, the chance of any of the mercs lounging about in the main military base hearing the gunshots was lowered significantly.
Meeting up in the center of the town was slightly harder. They were able to use Hagakure's illusions to make them all invisible, but it was only a matter of time before they would have to split up to take back the base, along with dropping their cover. So, they decided to use it as best as they could for now, getting themselves ready to take back the JSDF base.
They silently made their way towards the base… and it was a total wreck. Broken windows, burnt walls, Momo was pretty sure she even saw some graffiti there. The only thing that still seemed to be standing was the metal fence and the entrance checkpoint.
"Hmm…" Aizawa analyzed the area around them. "The checkpoint's definitely gonna be guarded. "We could burst through the front, it has the biggest doors, but if we're too loud, we'll be fish in a barrel. Maybe we could use a distraction to draw the guards away…?"
Momo looked over to her boyfriend. "Shoto, can you create some distractions?"
"There is one long-range spell that, if I use continuously, might be able to cause some heads to turn," he said. "However, I also do have a mid-range spell that would create a bigger spectacle with only one use, but it might end up affecting the path towards the building."
Momo thought over what he said. Beyond the metal fence was the base in its entirety. The original plan was to split into three teams and have two of them surround it while the third went to the gate. But if what Shoto said about his attack was true, then he would end up creating an iceberg in the middle of one of their paths. Maybe he could place it elsewhere…?
"What about the roof?" Ashido suggested. "Could you create your ice up there?"
"That is doable, yes," the peppermint-haired prince said.
The roof? Momo supposed that could work. It would definitely cause a few heads to turn, but it still wasn't far enough to lead the guards away from the fence. They needed more. Maybe something that could send the mercs into a panic? Something that… isn't really there…
Momo looked over at their potential trump card. "Hey, Hagakure…"
Goto Imasuji loved it when he won.
He had done his job, as asked. Once the media found out about the horrible tragedy that happened here under the nose of the JSDF, the President of the United States would be able to weasel himself into getting control of the gate, and Goto would be handsomely paid.
And all of that while enjoying the screams of innocents! Bonus!
Sure, a few of the details were still a bit sketchy. Goto knew that he and the boys just had to keep the Japanese military forces on the other side of the gate out of here until big powerful America could take matters into their own hands. Once that was done, Goto and his fellow "terrorists" would "surrender peacefully" and be taken to "Guantanamo Bay."
Fat chance. If he smelled even the slightest hint of a double-cross, Goto would let the whole world know that it was President Samuel Abraham that sent him to commit this wholesale slaughter. He wasn't stupid. Goto was smart enough to know that, even if he did get locked up for life in some prison, just shouting through the bars who his employer was would fall upon deaf ears. No, he had a back-up plan in case the plan went to hell in the form of a little hard drive.
Being a mercenary was a dangerous career choice; there were no people you could trust. However, there were people you could rely on to do what you wanted them to… for the right price. So, he had two of his associates, some European assholes by the names of Anna Scerbino and Giulio Gandini (he was pretty sure the two of them were fucking) to hold on to his precious hard drive. They owed him a favor, and he was now cashing in: If President Sam sent him to prison after this, the drive would be sent into the internet, and everyone would know that the leader of the free world was the one who gave him the order to burn this place down.
Hell, they had the order to release all the evidence he had in the event that he just up and died, regardless of how the mission went. Goto just liked hurting others, simple as that. And to be able to strike a blow like that to the goddamn President? He couldn't pass that up.
Anyways, that was future Goto's problem. Right now, present Goto was enjoying putting his feet on top of General Aizawa's desk. It made him feel like a cool businessman. And he was pretty sure Aizawa was an ex of that Sosaki bitch (he was still pissed that she somehow got away), so rubbing his ass on her former boyfriend's seat felt like a personal victory. All he had to do now was wait, maybe kill Sosaki if she popped up, and get then become rich beyond all –
BOOOM!!!
What the hell?! Goto fell off the chair, as the entire building seemed to shake for a few seconds. Outside, he could hear his goons shouting about something, but he wasn't sure what. Looking out the window, he saw something massive flying around, roaring, and shooting fire.
IS THAT A FUCKING DRAGON?!
Momo couldn't believe her plan actually worked.
It was a long shot, one that only complete idiots would have fallen for, but it was all they had. So, really, thank goodness for Imasuji hiring complete morons for this operation.
The plan was pretty simple: Shoto would create a mountain of ice spikes on the roof of the main military building, grabbing everyone's attention. While they were distracted, Hagakure would drop the invisibility spell around them all, and instead conjure up an illusion of a dragon. A big and scary dragon that would fly around and cause a panic amongst the mercenaries.
With the mercs completely in a panic, the resistance would bust through the front gate, kill any of the bad guys currently distracted by the fake monster above their heads, and then split into their three teams to take back the base. Naturally, there were some issues with the plan, such as, one, wouldn't the mercs question why none of them saw the dragon coming, and, two, wasn't the iceberg similar to the one that intruder made a few days back?
Thankfully, it seemed that all of the mercenaries were scared shitless of the dragon. Momo had to admit, it looked pretty realistic. While it had the build of a traditional dragon, it had a few distinct differences, such as its back and limbs being covered in fur, its face looking like a skull, and having crooked horns. It sort of resembled a mix between an undead bat and a dragon.
Regardless of the flaws in the plan and Momo's artistic critiques, the dragon worked, and no one noticed how the font gate was broken down, or the multiple newcomers that began killing any mercenaries in sight. "Alright, we'll split up here!" Aizawa said. "You all know what to do!"
Momo, along with the rest of the resistance, nodded. They had been split between the three generals: Momo herself was going to be under the command of General Kayama, alongside Kendo, Sato, Tsunotori, and a few others, and would take back the inside of the building.
Before they headed off, Momo called out to her boyfriend, "Be careful."
"I will," Shoto said, before adding, "Be sure to kick some ass."
The black-haired soldier smiled at that. "I will."
Shouta Aizawa, along with the rest of his team, ran as fast as they could towards the gate.
When this all began, he had to admit, he was not a fan of this. Magic, dragons, alternate dimensions, it was all bullshit to him. He liked things in perfect order, to make sense, and then this place shows up and wrecks that all. But now…? Ehh, he had gotten used to it.
Which was why he was so pissed off at these mercenaries right now.
His face may not have shown it (mostly due to the sleep deprivation), but he was pissed. He had finally gotten used to the idea of this fantasy world, and things were going well: They had created a town, the Todoroki Empire wasn't gonna be a problem, and they had a potential economic boon with the Dryadalis Kingdom. Everything was going smoothly…
And then those assholes decided to fuck it all up.
All of that unnecessary death and suffering, sending him and everyone else into hiding underground, like a bunch of rats. There were few ways to genuinely make Shouta Aizawa mad, and these mercs managed to do it. Their prize? As soon-to-be kick in the balls.
TINK! TINK!
As the team managed to see the gate near the horizon, two grenades fell in the dirt in front of them, releasing a bunch of gas. Aizawa knew whose trick this was. Mustard…
"A frontal assault? Really? I can't believe you thought you could win with such a sad strategy," the helmeted merc said, his voice modulated by his gas mask. The man was casually walking up to them, handgun out, as more mercs followed behind him. "Shouldn't you be smarter than that, Aizawa? Ah, it doesn't matter. Soon, my toxic miasma will touch your skin, and –"
"URARAKA! KUROSE! NOW!!!"
""CAVEM NIGRUM!!!""
Two black holes suddenly appeared in the middle of the battlefield, and began sucking in the mustard gas, along with a couple of the mercenaries who got too close. Shouta knew it was a gamble to have both their gravity mages in his party, but it was safe to assume that Mustard would only use his gas attack in an open place, so his fellow mercs wouldn't be affected.
Glad to see that that gamble paid off.
Honestly, he wasn't sure what to make of Anan Kurose when she first arrived at the Collibus Hills. According to the reports, she was some kind of fairy that had lived for centuries, which was unnerving enough, but another thing that made Shouta feel a little concrete was the fact that whenever he was out and about, she would be following behind him, watching him.
He would have assumed Kurose was a stalker, but then during the attack, she saved his life by blasting a couple of the mercs with her magic, before getting a bullet to the abdomen while the two of them were running. Maybe she had some kind of crush on him?
Regardless of what it was, she was on Shouta's team along with Uraraka, and now, Shouta was glad that the stoic fairy lady was on his side. At least her magic saved them from the gas.
Mustard, meanwhile, was absolutely livid. He not only lost his trademark attack, but also several of his groupies. Plus, his preferred weapon of choice didn't even hurt them. He pulled out his handgun to try and shoot someone in his frustration, buuuuut…
BREEAM-POW!
"Thank you, Private Aoyama."
"You're very much welcome, General," the blond Frenchman said.
"Uhh…" Mustard raised his hands into the air. "I surrender?"
"Smart choice," Shouta said. Looks like the gate was theirs once more.
Hopefully, everything was going smoothly for everyone else, too.
Dodge, hit, dodge, hit. That was the routine Eijiro was beginning to fall into; dodge the enemy bullets with a mix of parkour and luck, and then try to hit them back, either using his gun or his fists, depending on how close the enemy was to him. So far, it seemed to work.
"Alright, this corner of the building is secure," General Yamada said. "Bakugou, Yoarashi, you're with me. Kirishima, Ashido, you guys stay here and keep the place secure."
"Understood, sir!" Eijiro gave his superior a salute.
"Don't die," Bakubro said in Latin. "Either you."
"Hey, he actually acknowledged me!" Mina cheered.
"SHUT UP! No I didn't!"
With the rest of the group now turning the corner, both he and Mina were now guarding the south-western area of the military base. It was relatively quiet (they could hear gunshots all over), but the two of them weren't talking. They were still on high alert.
There was a chance that any second now, someone could attack them –
"ACIDUM SAGITTA!"
Eijiro felt the sensation of Mina's hand pushing his face, and the rest of his body, towards the ground, as a knife suddenly flew towards where he was just standing. Thankfully, his girlfriend launched an arrow made of acid towards the knife, safely dissolving it before it hit her.
"WHOA! Look at that! The lizard babe can shoot some really noxious stuff, huh?!"
How the hell did these guys get the drop on us?! Eijiro took a good look at the two mercs that just showed up; one of them was a big dude, with wavy brown hair going all the way down to his neck, and the other guy was a bald creep with way too many knives on his person.
The redhead knew who they were. "Kendo Rappa and Moonfish…"
"Oh, shit! You actually know us!" Rappa said. "I mean, yeah, I guess we're pretty well known, real identities or not, but whatever! Here's how this is gonna go down: Either we use guns and magic to kill each other, or we use fists! Or, well, in Moonfish's case, blades. Your choice!"
The soldier looked back to his girlfriend. She had no gun to speak of, and he was pretty sure magic wouldn't be able to react fast enough to bullets. "I choose fists and blades!"
"SWEET! I'm taking you on!" Rappa pointed at Eijiro. "Moonfish, you wanna…?"
Moonfish pulled out his two swords and muttered, "I'll cut her up real nice… flesh…"
Yeah, that totally wasn't concerning. As Moonfish started to look more and more like a Deadpool wannabe, Eijiro looked over at Mina, who nodded. "I get the basic gist of what we're doing."
The artificial redhead nodded, as he backed up to one side of the building, leaving plenty of space for his girlfriend to spear Moonfish in the face, as Rappa turned to face him.
Melissa woke up to see that she was… underground?
The last thing she remembered was that massive blast that incinerated Takami, her head hitting something, and then… something about crashing? The planes…? The airship –
"Please, don't move," a familiar voice said, holding her down. "You just woke up."
"Huh? Jiro-san?" Melissa looked over to see the pregnant Jiro matriarch next to her. "Where are we? And while I'm on the subject… Where is everyone else? What happened?"
"You've been out for a few days," Kyoka said. "Your comrades were able to return you back to the Collibus Hills, but… something bad happened while you were all gone. These men appeared with weapons… slaughtered everyone in sight… we had to flee… But with the Arms of Fire now back, they've all left to retake the Collibus Hills. They left me to look after you…"
Someone attacked the town? Momo and the others left to stop these invaders? No. She couldn't stand by and do nothing. Melissa got up, to the dagon's panic. "Stop! You need to rest –"
"I've rested enough," the fallen angel said. "Now… where is the door out of here?"
BLAM! BLAM!
"Excellent shooting, Mineta!"
"Thanks, I've been practicing!"
Momo wasn't sure if that meant he'd been practicing before everything went to shit, or that he got incredibly good with a gun while she and the rest of the SREU was away, but General Kayama was right about the gnome's shooting being praiseworthy.
With those last shots, both Tengai and Tabe were dead, and the top hallway was clear. At the moment, the rest of Momo's team was busy taking on the rest of the mercenaries that were still on the floors below them, but still no sign of Imasuji. Which left only one place…
"General Kayama, permission to scout the roof?"
"Granted, Sosaki," the older woman said. "But take Yaoyorozu and Tsunotori with you."
Right, her. Colonel Shino Sosaki. She was the fourth-highest ranking person right now, as anyone else who wasn't either Aizawa, Kayama or Yamada was dead now. Momo remembered seeing her back before she left for Japan with Fuyumi and the others, something about a meeting between all of the high-ranking officials. But… she was pretty sure she also saw her before that, too. Like, before Momo departed for the Special Region… but when…?
Her thoughts snapped back to reality as the brown-haired woman ordered her and Tsunotori up to the roof with her. They walked up the stairs that led up to the roof, opening the door, and the three of them walked in to see ice everywhere. The majority of Shoto's iceberg was still in place, but it seemed like somebody shot chunks of it off in a panic. Maybe someone was here?
The three of them remained silent, as they slowly walked around the roof, trying to see if anyone was here. Hagakure's dragon illusion was starting to disappear, and the sounds of gunshots were beginning to quiet down. Maybe that was a sign that this was over –
BLAM! BLAM!
"AAAIIIIIEEEEEEE!!!!!"
Momo turned around in horror as she saw her friend fall to the floor, her breath escaping her body as she saw the two bullet holes in the minotaur's stomach. "PONY!!!"
Before she even had a chance to run to her friend, a punch hit Momo squarely in the jaw, as she fell, tumbling towards the edge of the roof. "Well, I have to hand it to you, you're a bigger pain in the neck than I ever thought possible. You even surpassed Sosaki in that category!"
Momo looked up to see a man wearing one of the mercenary outfits, covering his massive build, with blond hair adorning the top of his head, and an eyepatch covering his left eye.
"Goto Imasuji…"
"You know me? I'm flattered," the man said. "And you must be Momo Yaoyorozu, the rich bitch that somehow became the mascot for the JSDF's recruitment posters! What, you don't know about those? They started printing them out after your little stunt in Musutafu…"
Momo grunted, as she got back up on the roof, only to see Colonel Sosaki down, just as much as Pony was. "Oh, her? Don't worry, she just took a bullet to the knee, she's still alive… but she'll wish she wasn't once I'm through with her. But first… to take care of you…"
Shit, this was bad. Momo could see her handgun tossed to the side of the roof, and not only that, but Imasuji just tossed his, too. Looks like they were doing fisticuffs. Despite the fact that this guy was clearly out of her weight class, Momo had no choice but to take on Imasuji.
The black-haired woman threw a bunch at the mercenary, who simply grabbed her fist in his hand, and then sent it back into her face, essentially doing the whole "stop hitting yourself" joke, only less funny, before Imasuji proceeded to kick Momo in the stomach, sending her reeling.
"I consider myself an even-tempered man, it takes a lot to get under my skin," Imasuji said, as Momo struggled to get back up. "But congratulations, you just won the solid gold cup!"
Looking up, Momo could see that the mercenary pulled something out of his pocket. A really, really, big knife. "You know, I didn't always look like a pirate," Imasuji said, pointing at his eyepatch. "This was Colonel Sosaki's handiwork. Came across her on a mission, tried to kill her, she gouged out my eye, and I barely escaped. So, when I got the job to wreck this place, you wouldn't believe how overjoyed I was to see her back here! But first… I gotta deal with you."
Momo may have been on all fours, but she was still skilled enough to evade Imasuji's wild knife slashes, as he kept monologuing. "I'm not too sure what the relationship between the two of you is; maybe you babysat her kid one time, or maybe you're her boyfriend's top student, but whatever it is, I know the two of you are related somehow. I just know."
The young woman dodged another slash, as Imasuji's knife embedded itself into the floor. "I wonder what sort of face Sosaki will make when she sees how I've torn you to pieces? Heh, even if I am wrong about the two of you having some sort of connection, she's still your superior, I know she's gonna feel awful when she learns she failed to save one of her subordinates!"
As he pulled the knife out of the wall, Momo quickly thought fast and snatched a small spike of ice. "Oh, what's the matter, Yaoyorozu? Tired?" Imasuji asked, as he grabbed her by the throat, and lifted her into the air. "BECAUSE I'M JUST GETTING WARMED UP!!!"
SHUNK!
"YAAARRGH!!!" Imasuji roared in pain as Momo jammed the ice spike into his shoulder, causing him to drop her. The black-haired woman quickly scuttled away, as Imasuji fell down on all fours, and began crawling towards her like he was a possessed gorilla. "You little bitch –"
SLASH!
"AAARRR!!!" Imauji suddenly screamed in pain again, as Momo turned to see Pony, whose blood was still leaking out of her abdomen, having just thrown her ax at the mercenary.
"You leave… Momo alone… you bastard…"
The mercenary hissed in pain, as he stood up, removed the ax from his shoulder blade, and stared down the injured minotaur. "That's it! I'm turning you into hamburger meat!"
"No, you won't."
"Huh –?!"
SLASH!
Everything was quiet for a moment. Momo was still holding onto Pony, who had just collapsed from pain after she sent the ax into Imasuji, but she could see that someone else was with them. Someone who had just wounded the mercenary in a way that made him pause.
Wait… blonde hair… white wings… a bloodied sword…
"Melissa…?"
The angel smiled. "Momo… I'm glad to see you're not dead."
Imasuji, meanwhile, just stood there. It looked like a mix of confusion and pain, when he suddenly looked down towards his pants and saw a massive red stain… and nothing else. It looked like a surgical strike, completely clean, almost as if there was never anything there.
"YAAAAAARRRRRGH!!!!!" Imasuji suddenly screamed like a banshee, as his arms dove straight towards his waist, trying to hold in the blood that was now spilling. Momo looked around the roof, as she could see the mercenary's… ahem… frank and beans… now on the floor. Honestly, Momo had no idea Melissa was capable of something so brutal. She must have been pissed.
Imasuji, meanwhile, kept screaming. "AAAAAAAAAA!!!!! AAAHAAHAAA!!! AAAAA–"
"Shut up."
SLASH!
Melissa slashed Imasuji across the chest, almost bisecting him, as the blond mercenary tumbled off the roof, and fell five stories down, onto the ground. "AAAAAAAAAA–"
SPLAT!
Momo stayed silent, as her mind tried to comprehend what just happened. However, instead of asking questions, she hissed in pain. Right, she was getting her ass handed to her before Melissa showed up. God, she really wished Kendo was on the roof with them.
"Keep her still," Melissa said, as she began to heal Pony. "She'll be fine."
A few minutes later, the angel did the same for Colonel Sosaki, but both she and the blonde minotaur were out of it. The pain really did them in. Momo, who had the least amount of injuries, was the last to be treated. "I apologize for sleeping in for the last few days…"
"No, it's fine," Momo said. "But… that angel… who was he –?"
"Ah. We've finally found you… Melissa Shield."
Before they even knew what was happening, a creature of black smoke and yellow eyes suddenly appeared, and grabbed Melissa. In the span of a few seconds, Momo watched as what she could only describe as a demon of shadows engulfed the angel. "MELISSA!!!"
In less than five seconds, Melissa Shield was gone.
Momo's knees gave in, as she fell to the floor, tears in her eyes.
She had just lost her friend. And she didn't even know what to do.
Pony, on the other hand, who saw the whole thing, only whispered one thing.
"D-D-Demon Lord…"
When Melissa opened her eyes, she was in a dark room. A massive dark room that she was familiar with, along with some familiar-looking individuals, eyeing her from all around.
The Demon Lords.
A mass of shadows with yellow eyes. A wererat. Two people with humans, who at the very least, looked human. A dark elf. A demon with various animal characteristics. And with them…
…a man with green hair and eyes, standing closest to her. He could be mistaken for a human, if it wasn't for the fact he possessed two red horns atop his forehead. And given what he was wearing, it was safe to assume that this was none other than the Demon King himself.
All Melissa could do was stare as the green-haired demon approached her. When he reached her, he knelt down… and embraced her in a warm hug. One that she gladly reciprocated.
"Izuku..." she whispered. "It's… really you…"
The demon smiled. "Welcome home… darling."
Author's Note: HAPPY THANKSGIVING! Anyways, the majority of Imasuji's crew here consisted of Shie Hassaikai goons, some of Wolfram's lackeys, and what I dub the "M-Crew" of the League of Villains (Mustard, Moonfish Magne). Now, for the comments!
Tykronos: Trust me, there's gonna be a lot more Atlantis references in the future.
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 34: Melissa Gone
Summary:
As the JSDF cleans up the mess that was left after reclaiming the Collibus Hills, Momo stews in her thoughts concerning Melissa. It isn't until the elves come to help that the raven-haired soldier steels her resolve to save her angelic friend, now armed with a new skyship and a futher understanding of this world and its inhabitants...
Chapter Text
Chapter 34: Melissa Gone
Mei Hatsume couldn't believe what she had heard.
One of her precious babies had been beaten and battered! Oh, and the entirety of the Collibus Hills was overtaken by some very bad people, and Yaoyorozu and her friends were now leading a resistance that might end up in their deaths if Mei didn't arrive soon.
But the baby part was more important!
That thing was a third-generation modified Halruaan skyship, preserved for both historical significance and reserve usage! The crystals keeping that thing afloat had the potential to lift an entire island into the sky for the next few thousand years! That baby was one of the last descendants of the astral ships, airships capable of leaving their world's atmosphere and venturing into the Astral Sea! You know, the place where the stars themselves resided!
AND SOME IDIOT ENDED UP SHOOTING IT DOWN?!
Deep breaths, Mei, deep breaths. The pink-haired elf calmed herself down, as she remembered all of the facts. If she was going to blame someone, it would be the angelic asshole that tried murdering Melissa, and destroyed all of those amazing flying machines the JSDF had with them (SHE WAS GONNA SKIN THAT MOTHERFUCKER ALIVE). Bakugou only did what he had to do in order to save his comrades, and the damage to the skyship was minimal, cosmetic, even. They would be able to repair it in no time. That is, if anyone was still alive to use it.
Yes, the elven queen cared for the skyship. It was a magical marvel from an era of lost knowledge long ago, and one of the only wooden ships left that wasn't torn apart in order to figure out how to reverse-engineer the process. It was, by all means, a relic, but one she gave Momo Yaoyorozu as a sign of good faith between the nations of Dryadalis and Japan.
But that didn't mean it was more valuable than peoples' lives. Good people that, as much as Mei may not be able to show it, she cared about. She knew that her personality was a bit… weird (Tenya had explained that to her), so she knew that she may come off to strangers as someone who only cares about progress, but the reason she does what she does was… well… to make sure all the people she cares about are able to live happy lives.
She created force fields around her cities and weapons to arm her soldiers to protect her people from their more dangerous neighbors. She invented printed news and radio to educate and inform them. She helped bring about the creation of moving pictures and ice cream to bring them joy. And she wanted to do all of that with Japan, as well.
Yes, the destruction of one of their last skyships would be devastating, but what would be the point of inventing and creating new things if there was no one around to use them?
That's why when Tokoyami informed her of what was going on, she assembled her fleet immediately. Her personal ship was designed for non-combative use, yes, but that didn't mean she couldn't bring with her as many soldiers, weapons, and supplies as possible.
The rest of her fleet had weapons, but they were also packed with a little more. While the earlier generation skyships were made of wood, the current weapons were either a mix of wood and metal, with the even newer generation mostly of metal. That included their flight methods, so now instead of solely relying on magic, they now included rockets to generate thrust.
Awase may have inspired her for that last part.
A few new features also included some of them no longer having the need for sail masts, and some of them even incorporating entire panes of glass on several different walls, instead of a small viewing window for the captain's quarters. However, both her personal ship and several in her army had a few common traits, such as sail-like wings on the side and on the backs of their ships to make them aerodynamic and allowing for easier maneuverability, and…
Oh, shit, she got distracted again, didn't she? What was she thinking of?
Oh, right! Yaoyorozu and her friends still needed her help!
Yeah, so, Mei brought her personal knights and bodyguards with her, along with several boatloads of soldiers that were armed to the teeth with bows, rifles, and an assortment of magical-based weapons, several of which were of her design. Hopefully they weren't too late…
Tokoyami pointed them towards the direction of the Collibus Hills, and Tenya, bless his soul, did his absolute best to keep Mei from getting distracted by all the crashed planes in the ground as they got closer and closer to their destination. And what they found was… a mess.
Even without any previous frame of reference, Mei could tell that this looked like something straight out of a warzone. She could see that the sky was still gray from smoke, probably meaning that whatever fires happened were only put out recently. The buildings were a wreck, though, it was good to see there were some people starting to work on rebuilding. Despite the fact that everyone looked like ants from up above, Mei could at least make out what some of them were doing. Several of them seemed to be leaving the ruins of the city…
Mei honestly couldn't blame them.
Ordering Kaina to find them a place to land nearby, Mei's personal skyship began to descend towards the empty plains next to the destroyed town. Exiting from her ship, Mei could hear the panicked shouts of people, probably thinking they were being attacked again.
"Wait, wait!" she called out to them. "We're here to help…"
It had been a week since Melissa disappeared.
One second, she was there, having just woken up, saving Momo's life from Imasuji and healing Pony, and then the next, this mass of shadows just showed up, grabbing her, and essentially making her disappear off the face of the world. And she couldn't even go save her.
There was still a lot of work to be done repairing this place. With all of Imasuji's mercenaries either dead or detained, Aizawa was able to establish contact back with Japan, and the rebuilding had begun. The higher-ups were trying to make sure that the true scale of what happened here didn't become public knowledge. In Momo's opinion, it should be public knowledge, not because she believed the JSDF was incompetent for allowing these monsters in, but to have the world be angry at those bastards, and find out who was responsible.
There was no way in hell Imasuji and his crew did this for kicks. No, they were hired to attack this place, but the question was, from who? It had to be someone who paid them well enough to walk in one of the most heavily-guarded places in Japan, while also running the risk of being trapped in the Special Region once everyone found out what had happened, and the standstill began. So, someone with both money and power, that could pull the strings unseen.
That didn't exactly narrow it down. Momo was a Yaoyorozu, she grew up learning about all the slimy shit rich people were up to. And politicians weren't exactly better; ones that actually cared about helping the citizens they were supposed to represent were few and far between, with the rest of them seeing their political offices as a chance to line their pockets.
There were too many people who were able to pull off a stunt like this, and right now, Momo couldn't really think about it. There were whispers that the Diet was thinking about removing General Aizawa from command of the Special Region, under the pretense of incompetence. Naturally, this pissed off several people, including Momo's squad and the few survivors of the Collibus Hills, who knew Aizawa did the best he could during an unexpected catastrophe.
A few Japanese government officials even showed up to take a look at what had happened, to get reports on all of it, and to see whether or not Aizawa, and by proxy, Kayama and Yamada, were actually fit to be running this operation. There were several unofficial testimonies and investigations into multiple people, but so far, no official decision had been made yet.
Momo was pretty sure that some people asked her opinion about this, but she honestly couldn't remember. The rebuilding efforts were hard enough on their own, as was the newly strained relationship with the government, but what was on the top of her mind… were the dead.
Over one hundred Japanese soldiers and Special Region locals were massacred by these mercenaries. Originally, they were planning on burying them all, not in a mass grave, but in their own individual grave, all of them next to each other, like how Amercians buried their soldiers. However, Kodai interjected, saying that she could resurrect all of them.
After that, there was a debate between General Aizawa and the newcomer Japanese officials on the ethical implications that came with that revelation. Setting aside the massive religious implications that meant for their world, the debate discussed two key points: One, who would be revived, and, two, if this was done, what would this mean for the rest of the world? Because, people were bound to find out about Kodai's abilities, and there was a chance that entire nations and influential people would demand her presence to bring back their loved ones, and there was even a greater chance of her being condemned by others for what she did. There was also the issue that those who died never consented to being revived, unlike the SREU.
Aizawa ended up pointing out that those who died also never consented to being shot, and that reviving them was the right thing to do, legal and social norms be damned. The general ended up telling Kodai to bring back however many she was comfortable with, regardless of who they were, preferably if the mercs who actually did this ended up getting revived last.
Momo had a sneaking suspicion that Kodai would have brought back everyone regardless of what the final verdict was, but despite that, she had Aizawa's approval to get started. She began with the civilians, families with children, before working her way to soldiers. Unfortunately, due to the fact that they were now one holy woman short with Melissa gone, Kodai ended up feeling responsible for all of their lives, so she ended up reviving and reviving, all day, every day, for the last week, with little to no breaks for food or drink. She ended up having to be ordered to go to and get some mandatory sleep, so as to not collapse from exhaustion.
To those who had recently come back, the knowledge of them and their loved ones having been dead for a while was a bit hard for them to come to terms with. General Kayama was offering mental health services and talks to anyone who was willing, but those were few and far between. The majority of people simply packed up and left. Honestly, Momo couldn't blame them; they were offered a better chance at life here, and what they got was a bullet to the back.
Once Kodai finished up with the civilians, she moved on to the soldiers. The majority of them were freaking out over what they saw on the other side, and several of them outright quit the JSDF right then and there. They turned in their weapons, and just walked through the gate. A few of them stuck around for questions, but most of them just up and left.
One of the more depressing topics was how the bodies of the deceased were treated. Momo saw the corpse mountain the first time around, but what she didn't know was that, while the mercenaries were carrying them to one place, they also raided the pockets of the dead, and even took some of their clothes, probably thinking that what they were carrying was valuable. Yeah, no, that was a blatant war crime, even if you removed the fact that these soldiers for hire were killing unarmed civilians along with soldiers. It also meant that the recently revived would have to look for their property, while others came back essentially naked.
And yet somehow, they were the lucky ones. According to Aizawa, several of the buildings were bombed in the initial attacks, meaning that several of the deceased were nothing more than smithereens. Kodai said she'd be able to revive them, too, but the bigger problem was the issue that they couldn't properly identify the bodies. Some of them were burned beyond recognition, while the only thing that remained for others would sometimes just be a disembodied hand.
There was a pretty good chance that several people were blown into so many pieces that Kodai wouldn't be able to find a piece of them to start the resurrection process. Momo, along with several others, seriously hoped that maybe those people just escaped the carnage, and were simply declared as missing. Speaking of those who were missing… Kota.
Momo remembered Kota. He was the teenager she met during the Musutafu Incident, the one who lost his parents. The same one she saw at the small memorial made at the side of the gate, where he and Colonel Sosaki, along with so many others grieved for their loved ones.
Momo felt so stupid. She had seen Sosaki before the Collibus Hills, she was Kota's aunt! And she brought her nephew here during the meeting for all the high-ranking officers.
"I'm not too sure what the relationship between the two of you is; maybe you babysat her kid one time… but whatever it is, I know the two of you are related somehow. I just know."
Imasuji was right. Momo was connected to Sosaki somehow, and that somehow was Kota. From what Sosaki told her after the fight, the teen looked up to her, said he was a huge fan of Momo's. All that did was make the black-haired woman feel even worse. She wasn't able to keep his parents safe, and now, the poor kid was probably out in the woods, afraid.
Or, as her intrusive thoughts would like her to know, maybe eaten by a bear.
Momo sighed. She hadn't even done any actual hard work today, and she was tired. And she hated herself for being tired, all while everyone else was working their asses off.
With the mass exodus now happening from the Collibus Hills, the few remaining soldiers had their hands busy with not only safely escorting those leaving out of the Collibus Hills, but also with the rebuilding efforts and orienting the newest batch of soldiers from Japan to how things are done around here. All while Momo just sat in her room, staring at the ceiling.
After the initial shock of Melissa being swallowed up by a physical embodiment of darkness wore off, Momo tried to get some answers from Pony, who kept muttering the phrase "Demon Lord." Eventually, after snapping her out of it, she asked both her, Shoto, and a few others about what had happened, and the general consensus was that Melissa had been abducted by a servant of the Demon King, specifically, the shadow demon known as Kurogiri.
KNOCK-KNOCK!
"Ugh," Momo groaned. "Shoto, I appreciate you trying to comfort me, but I…"
"Hate to break it to you, but I'm not your boyfriend, Lieutenant."
Momo let you a small yelp of surprise, as she saw General Aizawa behind her now-open door. Quickly jumping out of bed, she quickly cleaned herself up, and stood at attention.
"At ease, Lieutenant," Aizawa said. "Anyways, how are you feeling?"
"Freely speaking, sir? Like shit."
"I know that feeling all too well," the older man said. "Unfortunately, I'm afraid that the JSDF is in need of your services once more. Your distress call was received. Think that you're up for it?"
Oh, right, Hatsume, Momo thought to herself. "Yeah… I think I'm up for it."
Walking towards one of the bigger warehouses with General Aizawa, Momo noticed that several members of infamous Dungeon Crawlers were also heading in the same direction. Hell, even Kodai was following. Which either meant that she had finally finished reviving every decent soul that kicked the bucket here, or that Hatsume was just that important of a visitor.
Nah, who was she kidding? It was definitely the former. If Kodai refused to eat and drink while working, there was no way in hell that she would stop her work just because Queen Hatsume showed up. She must have just finished with the soldiers, and figured that all the dead mercs deserved a few extra hours in Hell before deciding whether to even bring them back.
Momo, along with the few other soldiers that were following her, walked through the warehouse doors. These actually used to be the hangars of the F-15s, but since they were all destroyed now, it was being used as a replacement base of operations until the actual base was restored.
In the center of the massive hangar was a table, with one side hosting not just Hatsume, but also her personal entourage and Tokoyami, who seemed to be staring at a bunch of golden coins in his hands. Huh, guess Hatsume must have paid him for his services…
She was actually kind of glad to see that. Between the combined efforts of delivering Bakugou and Kirishima back to the Collibus Hills, participating in an impromptu battle against an angel, having to escape a bunch of evil mercenaries and then going straight to the Dryadalis Kingdom to ask for help, it was good to see that someone was getting their money's worth.
Hopefully, Dark Shadow was also compensated with a large bucket of birdseed, or something like that. Momo wasn't a bird expert, she'd have to ask Rin what giant ravens ate later.
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu!" Hatsume waved at her. "Glad to see you're not dead!"
That's one way to start a conversation. "And I'm glad to see you, too."
Momo looked around to see that Shoto, Ashido, and a few other Special Region locals like Tsunotori and Mineta were also a part of this meeting. She wasn't sure if Hatsume and her elves were aware of who Shoto was and what he was doing here, so she decided to stay silent.
Shoto, on the other hand, decided to do some small talk while he waited.
"So, you're the Queen of the Elves," the peppermint-haired man said. "As a prince of the Todoroki Empire, I would like to apologize for everything my father did while in power."
"Huh? You're a Todoroki brat?" the pink-haired elf asked, completely oblivious to how she phrased her question. "I didn't know you guys teamed up with Japan."
"My siblings and I worked together with them to overthrow my father," Shoto said. "My sister is now the ruler, and I came back here to live out the rest of my days with my girlfriend."
"Your girlfriend…?" Hatsume looked at both Shoto and Momo, before she ended up connecting the dots. "Oh, congratulations! Glad to hear a positive in this sea of recent tragedy!"
"Yeah, yeah, we're all happy about that one silver lining," Aizawa said, as he looked around to see everyone in attendance. "So, just to summarize for everyone present: Yes, the Collibus Hills was attacked by a bunch of mercenaries from our world. Yes, we did indeed call for help from the Kingdom of Dryadalis, and thank you for responding. However, while you were preparing to head out, we managed to take back our bases and homes, and are now in the process of rebuilding. I'm not trying to blame anyone, I'm simply stating the official facts."
"Perfectly understandable," the younger of the Iida brothers, Tenya, said. "While we do apologize for our delay, we have come bearing supplies and tools that can assist in your reconstruction efforts, along with weapons and magic that can prevent a repeat of such a tragedy. While what you went through was indeed a horrible event, we can hope that this aid and partnership will strengthen the bond between Dryadalis and Japan."
"We're grateful for your help," General Kayama said, slightly bowing.
"At the very least, I'm glad to see that all my friends are still in one piece," Hatsume said, as she looked over Momo and her crew. "Hey, where's Shield? Is she busy doing something?"
Everyone was silent for a few seconds, before Momo decided to bite the bullet. "During the end of our resistance campaign… something showed up, and took her away. Tsunotori, err, the minotaur on my left here, was also there. Pony, you called it a… Demon Lord?"
"He," the blonde minotaur corrected her. "Kurogiri, from all the stories I heard, is a he. And yes, I'm pretty sure it was him. Crazy mass of shadows, featureless eyes, deep voice. It matched all of the stories I heard about him from my village. But… none of us ever saw him. We just knew him from the stories; a Demon Lord that had been around for a century or two, quite a while."
"More than enough time for people to make stories about him," Bakugou surmised.
"Maybe you could tell us something?" Momo asked. "Anything would help."
Hatsume was silent for a moment. Even her entourage, from the Iida brothers, to Kaina and Beros, they all looked around as if Momo had just uttered some sort of taboo.
Eventually, Hatsume spoke up. "Alright, we'll tell you what we know for certain. But I have to warn you, aside from a spotty history, the subject matter is a bit… grim. Still up for it?"
That wasn't even a question for Momo. "Anything to get our friend back."
The elven queen nodded, as she began her tale. "To put it in the simplest terms, your friend has been abducted by one of the highest-ranking members of the Demon King's army. I'm sure that at some point Shield explained this to you, but that man's inner circle of that man's court consists of some of the most fearsome warriors, cunning strategists, and secretive infiltrators."
"Sounds dangerous," Monoma said. "And the Demon King himself?"
"Hard to say," Hatsume said. "Over the past decade he has ruled, he has been given many titles: The Green Demon of the West, Scourge of the Howling Coast, the Emerald King, the Symbol of Evil, stuff like that. But he's nothing compared to his predecessor."
"I'm sorry, what?" Kaibara blinked. "The current big bad had a daddy?"
"A crude way of phrasing it, but yes, he had a daddy," the pink-haired elf said. "I think a history lesson would help give some context here… There are multiple races that inhabit this world that originally never came from here. Satyrs, devils, even elves originally started out elsewhere… and demons were no exception. Millennia ago, maybe even longer than that, a portal from their world opened up at the very end of this continent, on the west. They were native to an ever-evolving engine of infinite depths, which had them act as an instrument of oblivion."
"The Abyss," Bakugou murmured, as all eyes looked at him. "What?"
"How did you know about that?" Beros asked.
"Uhh… read it in a book," the explosive blond calmly said. Momo swore to God, if Bakugou was referring to his Monster Manual, she was gonna lose it. Like, seriously, how the hell was that thing so damn accurate? Was Gary Gygax some sort of psychic, Jesus Christ!
Hatsume and the others seemed to accept that. It didn't seem like anyone was gonna ask what sort of book Bakugou was referring to, so hopefully, no one would find out that a guidebook for a tabletop game was, at the moment, the best source of knowledge for the JSDF. Small mercies.
But what Hatsume said piqued Momo's curiosity. Several of the races of this world originally started off from elsewhere. It was already pretty well-established that the Special Region was most likely not located in the same universe as Earth (or if it was, most likely on the other end of the universe), but despite that, there were humans living here. In fact, there were multiple races here that, until four months ago, were considered to be nothing more than fictional.
Additionally, several of them came from human mythologies. Minotaurs and medusas came from the Greek mythos, angels came from the Abrahamic religions, and while Momo hadn't seen any real ones yet, dragons here seemed to follow the evolutionary bodybuild of how they were depicted during the High Middle Ages. But… all of these were human creations, right?
Momo figured, with the new information Hatsume gave them, that she could come up with a few theories on what is going on: One, as crazy as it sounded, maybe at some point in time, all of these fantastical creatures were on Earth, and arrived here thanks to one of these aforementioned portals, before disappearing. Unlikely, given that there would be at least some more physical evidence of their existence outside of just ancient drawings.
Yes, humans hunted lots of things to extinction, but they usually kept some kind of evidence of their kills. If they did indeed hunt the visiting creatures down, there would at least be a stuffed dragon head or preserved angel wings hanging around in some museum. Additionally, Momo seriously doubted a bunch of humans from the medieval period would be able to kill something as powerful as a dragon. Yes, humanity was pretty well-known for their ability to kill, but that was mostly due to their modern weapons. She seriously doubted a bunch of peasants armed with spears would be able to do much damage against an angel, much less an entire group.
So, that leaves her with theory number two, humans simply made up all of these creatures and, coincidentally, the portals that brought everything to the Special Region just happened to choose the most well-known and modern interpretations of these creatures. That sounded pretty lame compared to her last theory, but there was at least some evidence to back up her claim.
First, the fact that humans existed here. Rin had made it pretty clear during their first outing into the Special Region that multiple creatures feasibly couldn't exist out here naturally, especially when their environments were taken into account. His current theory was that something in this world (maybe magic) was able to accelerate mutation in these creatures, so fast and in so many diverse ways, that new species were evolving at an exponential rate. It was like how Hollywood interpreted what happens to an animal that gets too close to nuclear radiation: It becomes monstrous, rather than the more realistic option of it getting cancer and dying.
Momo agreed to the theory, but now she was adding something else to it: The humans in the Special Region did indeed receive mutations from whatever is in their world (Shoto was a perfect example, with his unnatural hair and eye colorations, and arguably, his ability to use magic), but they didn't naturally evolve here; they came here from Earth. Or, at the very least, a parallel version of Earth. She would argue that, due to their architecture and names, along with the fact that everyone here speaks Latin, the Todoroki Empire seemed to be inspired by both Roman and Japanese culture, but she was pretty sure someone in the annals of history would make a note about a massive portion of the population disappearing, sooo… yeah.
Momo's verison of Earth or a parallel Earth aside, the humans in this world originated from a version of Earth. The most concrete evidence they had was the fact that Tsunotori, along with her tribe, mythologized a Texan man with an M4 carbine assault rifle, spawning the legend of the Arms of Fire into this world, along with Hatsume's desire to reverse-engineer that tech.
Speaking of reverse-engineering, whatever wizard created the Collibus Hills Gate was probably doing the same thing: They were trying to create their own version of the portals that randomly brought in various races from across the multiverse. And while a controlled version of their experiment failed, they managed to make the basic principle work, given that the gate became well-known for randomly spewing out who-knows-what from wherever it connected to.
Okay, so, this world was a mish-mash of various other worlds, which supercharged the local wildlife down their own unique evolutionary timeline, with some people mythologizing the process, and others trying to recreate it. Cool. The only question now was how everything managed to get here in the first place. Portals into other universes didn't occur naturally…
A small part of Momo thought that maybe it was the gods that Melissa used to serve that might have been responsible for it, but she brushed it off. Yes, several deities in several mythologies weren't all-benevolent, and given their status it was possible that they would be capable of doing such a thing. However, Momo wasn't entirely sure if Melissa didn't have anything to do with this. Sure, she was banished from the heavens because she fell in love with a Special Region local, but that implied that, if her gods were responsible for this, then she didn't call them out on this huge violation of ethics, either because she didn't know it was a bad thing, or because it didn't matter much to her, as say, making kissy faces with some random dude.
Defying your boss for the sake of love was one thing, but doing that while ignoring (or being unaware of) a bunch of major bad things they were doing prior to your little defiance not only shows a new layer of your true self, but it also made your true self look problematic.
No! Melissa was her friend! She wasn't gonna start suspecting her of anything bad now! Especially when she has just been kidnapped by a pawn of the literal Demon King!
"Momo?" Shoto shook her shoulder. "You've been spacing out."
"Huh?" Momo snapped back to the present. "What did I miss?"
"Tsutsumi-san ended up asking a few more questions about the book Bakugou had, and Tsuburaba ended up spilling that it was a guidebook belonging to a roleplaying game."
WHAT?! Momo was in her head for two minutes, at most! Looking around, she could see that the elves looked kinda pissed, Bakugou was yelling, and Hatsume looked distraught.
"...IF IT WORKS, IT WORKS!" the explosive blond shouted.
"Our entire cosmology was reduced to a marketable game for socially awkward adolescents…" Hatsume said, her face making it look like her soul had long departed her body.
When this meeting was over, she was gonna strangle Tsuburaba. But right now, Momo needed everyone to get back on track. "Uh, Hatsume? You were talking about the old Demon King?"
"Huh? Oh, right, right." Hatsume snapped out of her depressive state, as she continued, "Anyways, as I was saying, in the Abyss, the longer a demon lived there, the more powerful it became, with the really older demons beginning to boss around the smaller ones, calling themselves Demon Lords. At some point, they found a way into our world, through summonings, or possession of mortal bodies, before eventually just opening a portal themselves, and taking over the western front. By the time our ancestors managed to take care of the situation, a number of demons had now made Mundus their home, and one of them, Hisashi Shigaraki, crowned himself as the absolute Demon King of their new world."
"I'm assuming he wasn't a nice person whatsoever," Kendo deadpanned.
"You'd be assuming correctly," Hatsume said. "However, instead of plunging the rest of our world into darkness, he was stopped, as someone had opposed him. A man by the name of Yoichi, pure of heart and soul, forged a sword capable of slaying the old Demon King. Though he was killed in combat, he managed to pass his sword, and his power, down to his successor. This tradition carried on for eight generations, until the most recent Hero, a human by the name of Toshinori Yagi, aided by his party, was able to slay Hisashi Shigaraki eleven years ago."
Momo nodded along. "Okay, so, from what I'm understanding, the big bad Demon King was killed over a decade ago, and his successor… is the one who sent Kurogiri to abduct Melissa?"
"It would make sense," Hatsume said. "While everyone else was scrambling thanks to the Todoroki Empire's antics, Shigaraki's son has spent the last decade or so rebuilding his father's broken kingdom in the background, so the demons are bound for a comeback now."
"So, why would he need Shield?" Bakugou asked. "Some kind of evil ritual?"
"Ritual, power theft, or straight-up eating her, whatever he's planning, we can assume it's bad," Momo said. "But I'm not gonna sit around and let him do it. We're gonna go save her."
"Uhh, how?" Awase asked. "Our airship is in the body shop, remember?"
"Actually…" Hatsume spoke up. "We might be able to help with that."
"Whoa," Uraraka said. "What are we even looking at?"
Momo had to agree with her astronomer on that one. What even was this?
Hatsume and the elves brought them out to a field where four vehicles were now parked. They were small, the main body of each one rightly the size of a minivan, in the body shape of something that looked like the mix of a boat and a small plane. Momo was leaning more towards the plane option, given the fact that above the main body, there was a massive set of wings, like those of a plane, and at the tail end, there was a smaller, secondary wingset.
But the weirder part was that this thing was made of plants.
No, she wasn't joking. The outside of the entire plane-thing was composed of green leaves, with only the smallest hint of metal keeping everything together. A closer inspection also revealed that the inside of the ship was composed of wood, including, but not limited to, the steering wheel, dashboard, gear lever, and even half of the seats, with the other half being velvet.
"These…" Hatsume spoke, as she waved her hands towards the vehicles. "Are the newest generation of skyships! I was talking about them back before you left my kingdom, but they're finally done and ready! Spirit-empowered flight, smaller designs with longer wingspans for faster travel, and best of all, thanks to Awase… THE NOW HAVE ROCKET BOOSTERS!!!"
The mechanic gawked. "Wait, seriously?! You figured out how to make them?!"
"INDEED I DID!" the pink-haired elf exclaimed. "Well, kinda. I may have cut some corners using magic, but hey, it's more environmentally-friendly that way! Anyways, by my calculations, I think you should make it to the capital of Daemonium by the end of the week, if you leave now!"
They packed up and prepared to leave in under thirty minutes.
There were four of these new souped-up skyships, and each one of them was capable of holding four people. Meaning that, minus the extra seat Melissa was gonna take on the way back, there was an extra place for one more party member. It was a choice between Ashido and Shoto, but in the end, Shoto was chosen due to his bigger arsenal in magic.
"Please, come back to me alive," Ashido said, hugging Kirishima.
Kirishim held her close. "Don't worry, babe. Of course I will."
Momo watched the scene with a soft smile, as she climbed into her skyship. Sure, they were going armed to the teeth, but they were still gonna go up against the Demon King. She really did hope that they would make it out alive, but a part of her was also thinking realistically.
"Hatsume, please take care of everyone here. We're counting on you."
The elven queen nodded, while General Aizawa gave Momo a salute of respect. Giving him one back, Momo looked over to Awase, as she said, "Corporal, you may start the engine."
Awase nodded, as he pulled the lever, the engine began to blared to life, and the green skyship took to the air. The other three followed behind her, as the magic of the spirits trialed off their wings, and the Collibus Hills got ever so smaller and smaller.
"Hold on Melissa," Momo whispered. "We're coming to save you!"
The blonde angel collapsed on her side of the massive bed, her breathing laborious and sweat rolling down her body, as a result of what she and her beloved had done together.
"Hah… hah…" Melissa panted heavily. "Izuku…?"
The green-haired demon looked over to the fallen angel. "Yes…?"
His breath left him, as she grabbed her beloved and climbed on top of him.
"Again."
"Yes, ma'am."
Those two would be at it for quite a long time.
Author's Note: My apologies for the last-minute smut, but I needed something to pad the page length, and I couldn't help myself after I imagined Momo fearing what sort of horrors Melissa was in, only to have the jump-cut of her banging the Demon King.
So, now you know some more lore about this world. I always wondered how, evolutionary speaking, there were always multiple races in these sorts of fantasy worlds. For this story, I decided to go with Gate's version stating that every race originally came from another world, and that they just adapted to this one, while adding the multiple planes thing from Dungeons and Dragons. I also tried to add some more background lore to it to make it seem more plausible than just random teleportations and portals. I'll talk more about the lore at another time, right now, we've got a couple of comments to see!
MostOfYouNeedTherapy: Ironically enough, I wrote this chapter back during the summer, so your prediction of Kodai needing to resurrect basically everybody on her own was completely spot-on, since I didn't just add this out of the blue as a last minute thing. I don't know whether I should be impressed by your skills, or somewhat disappointed in myself for coming up with something that predictable. Eh, I'm gonna go with the former.
valkrus: …Crud. Well, you got me on that one. Well played.
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 35: Good Guys and Bad Guys
Summary:
Melissa and Izuku keepo enjoying each other's company, while Kota and Eri still try to survive through high school. Meanwhile, Momo and the rescue party come across the newest wielder of One For All, and forge an alliance with them. All while that is happening, Shinso run to warn everyone of an impending calamity...
Chapter Text
Chapter 35: Good Guys and Bad Guys
Melissa's eyes opened. Looking at the light peeking through the curtained window, she could tell that it was late in the morning, almost noon. Izuku would be off to work right now…
Would be. Looking next to her, she could see her beloved laying beside her, his hands wrapped around her arms. He stirred, opening his eyes, and smiled. "Morning. How are you feeling?"
"Better with you here," Melissa answered. "You should be working right now…"
"I've been working myself to the bone ever since you left; I'm just making up for all the lost time," Izuku said. "And besides, I'll return to running the country… in a few more days."
Melissa giggled. "Alright. But let's at least leave the bedroom today."
"Sure, we can have dinner in the dining room tonight," Izuku said. "But for now…"
As the demon embraced the angel, Melissa felt true bliss once more. This is paradise…
"Hey, there you are!" Katsuma smiled, as he walked up to Kota and Eri, before noticing how they looked. "The two of you look pretty haggard. Like you were up all night…"
Technically speaking, Katsuma was correct. Kota had been assigned Eri as a partner for this week's project, and they finally managed to complete it last night.
Said assignment? Transmute an egg.
Apparently, transmutation was one of those magics that, while recommended to have natural talent in, any muggle dumbass with the right wand or grimoire could be capable of pulling off, which, thank God, because Kota had absolutely no talent in it, whatsoever.
Unfortunately, Eri didn't have any talent for it, either.
Sure, the two of them could technically take the easy way out and simply use a basic spell to color their assigned egg like it was Easter, but for some inexplicable reason, Eri had a desire for their egg to surpass all of the other groups'. Sooo… they might have cheated… a little.
"Huh, that's your egg?" Katsuma asked, inspecting it closer. Its white shell had been replaced with green skin, covered in spikes, eyes, a mouth, and it also now came with two legs.
"Yeah, but don't touch it," Eri warned him. "It's a little… unstable."
"Unstable? Wait, did you use… dark magic?" Katsuma whispered.
Oh, shit. Was it that obvious?
Okay, so, yes, Eri might have dragged Kota along in raiding her big brother's personal library of magical books and tomes, and they may have found a spell that was flashy, but also kinda… evil? It was the Demon King's collection, they should have known what they were getting into.
"Shh!" Eri placed a finger to her mouth. "Be. Cool."
"Mr. Izumi, Miss Shigaraki, since the two of you are talking, perhaps you two would like to share your assignment first?" Tamakawa-sensei called them up to the front.
Kota wanted to argue that he wasn't the one talking in class, but he decided to keep his mouth shut. The two of them walked up to the front of the class, presenting their cursed egg on top of its plate, as the egg began to do backflips and talk in a disturbing voice.
"̶̡͂I̶̓ͅ ̸̘͐a̶͚͝m̵̨̌ ̶̆ͅt̵̬̅h̵͚́ë̴̳́ ̶̹͛n̸͖̈u̷̽͜t̶̩͐r̷̯̓i̶̖̇t̴͖͒ỉ̶̭ȯ̷̞u̶̬̐s̵͇͑ ̶̹͘š̴̮h̶̲̄ả̷̻d̶̞̆o̷̼̊w̶̩̔ ̸̰͆t̸̘͛h̴͙̀a̴̠̓t̵̮͂ ̴̻͑l̵̞͆o̶̝͆o̷̢͛m̵̢͗s̶͈͝.̴̑͜.̸̘̑.̵̫̐ ̵͘ͅo̸̙̽v̶͖͝e̷̟̿ŕ̶͓ ̷̘̀y̶͚̓o̷̲͌ṷ̶͂r̵̖̍ ̷͙̈́b̸͍̆ŕ̴͍ḙ̸̽a̴̜͝k̴̻̆f̶̮̈́a̷͔̒s̴̢̀t̶͙̄.̵̰̚"̴͙̓ ̷̦̀
Tamakawa squinted at the egg. "This is unexpectedly… interesting."
While everyone else in the class began to whisper, Kota was sweating bullets, praying to get back to his seat. Please give us an A, please give us an A, please give us an A…
Unfortunately, their cat-like teacher seemed to know what was going on, as he calmly grabbed a pencil from his desk, and then gently poked the side of the egg with the eraser-end.
The moment the eraser brushed up against the egg, its shell began to glow, and its eyes went dark, and it began to scream, "̴͉̈́Ĩ̵͉ ̵̬͛G̸̦̈R̴̥͠O̸̼͗W̴̞̌ ̸̡̐T̶͕͗O̶̼͆Ơ̷͖ ̶̫͠L̶͉̍A̴̭̔Ṛ̸͌G̴̉͜E̶͔͛ ̵̹͝F̷͓͆Ȯ̸̝R̵̩̅ ̴͔̾Ẅ̴̞́H̸̬͑A̴͎̐T̵̥̈ ̶̹̔Ỳ̵̨O̴̲̽Ȗ̷̳ ̷̢̿C̵͓̆A̶͉̓Ḽ̷̋L̴̦͆ ̶̮͗S̴̳͋P̶͕̈́A̷̓͜C̴̟̑E̴̻͗-̷̫͐Ṫ̵̨I̶̬͝M̸̨̔Ê̷̺!̴͔̔!!!̷̲̓!̵̠̄"̸̗̉
Yeah… that was probably a bad sign.
The egg kept screaming, as the shell exploded into several pieces, revealing a small spiral of darkness at its center, before pulling the eggshells back in, spawning a bunch of different shapes and colors, before pulling those back in, as well, and then…
POOOOOM!!!
…it exploded, sending green slime all over the classroom.
Eri tried to look innocent. "So… is that a B or…?"
"Detention. Both of you," Tamakawa-sensei simply said.
Fuck.
Mirio Togata breathed in the fresh air around him. He knew that once they entered Daemonium, there was a good chance that he wouldn't have this kind of luxury for a while.
It had been several months now since Yagi had given him One For All, with the mission to end the Demon King bloodline once and for all. And while he may have set out with his friends to do that right away, the actual logistics of getting there were a bit more complicated.
For starters, they were traveling on foot. Sure, they could buy some mounts, or even have Nejire try to perform a teleportation ritual, but Mirio had two reasons to take the long way there: First, training. He knew that, while he was powerful now (especially with One For All boosting his power), there was no way he was as powerful as Izuku Midoriya when he first started.
If the two of them battled when Mirio first received the mythical sword from Toshinori Yagi, he figured he might have been able to get at least a solid, possibly fatal, blow in before getting absolutely destroyed by the Green Demon of the West. Traveling by foot allowed Mirio to have plenty of opportunities to get stronger, either through training or monster-hunting.
While it was true that the world is now a much safer place compared to back when Hisashi Shigaraki was in charge, that didn't mean it was completely safe. Wild beasts, giants, the undead, and monsters of all kinds still roamed the lands, tormenting innocent villagers. Defeating these monsters not only allowed for a safer world, but also helped him get stronger.
Another reason, and frankly, a little bit more selfish, was that, aside from helping those who couldn't help themselves, it was that Mirio was taking his time getting there. While it was true that Mirio needed to get stronger, the Demon King wasn't leaving his castle any time soon, so he figured it would be nice to enjoy the journey, rather than obsess with the destination. And besides, while defeating the Symbol of Evil definitely qualified as a "big picture" thing, it wasn't everything. The little things in life mattered… like stopping to smell the roses.
Or in this case, stopping to smell what might be the last fresh air you ever smell.
"We're almost there," Tamaki, the blond's best friend, said. "After tomorrow, we will officially be in the Demon King's domain. We should arrive at his coastal fortress within a week."
"Great to hear that! Oh, hey, hey! Do you think that the local demons will attack us on sight?" Nejire, the ever-hyper witch, asked. "I wonder if they'll even recognize us…"
"I hope they don't," the elven archer replied. "Crowds make me nervous…"
Mirio couldn't help but chuckle at his friends' interactions. It was exactly these small sorts of moments that he lived for. It was kinda ironic, considering that back when he was a kid, all he wanted to be was a Hero, slaying monsters and saving the world. And now that he got his wish… he realized that being a Hero, a legendary one, wasn't all life was about. Life was about the experiences you share with those you care about, the memories you make along the way.
Which was why Mirio needed to do this.
While he and his friends would be able to travel the world with little to no danger and live their lives in peace, that couldn't be said for everyone. There were countless people out there who weren't able to defend themselves, who couldn't know if today would be their last day, who were unable to follow their dreams, all because of the Scourge of the Howling Coast.
Well, no longer. Mirio had the power, he had the determination; he and his friends would destroy the Demon King, and save the world. Because that is what Heroes do.
All they needed to do now was reach Midoriya's stronghold.
Despite it being only a few decades, Kai Chisaki felt like he was gone for eons.
Time in the Nine Hells was meaningless. It was an eternity of suffering with no end, designed to keep damned souls tormented until the end of this world, and possibly further into the next one.
Kai was fully-aware of what he did to deserve such wretched punishment, but he didn't care. He had devoted his entire existence to creating mountains of broken bodies, and that was what he was going to do. And his newfound allies, the Enlightened Evil, were going to help him.
A newfound alliance created by his trusted aid, Kurono, along with one of his old rivals, Garaki, with dozens of powerful groups and individuals uniting under their banner of pure evil. Truthfully, it was an intriguing concept: Rather than all of them working by themselves in the hopes that they manage to overthrow this world's three biggest superpowers on their own, this alliance would give them more of a fighting chance, to achieve their goals of ultimate darkness.
It was a good thing that several of their members' goals already aligned with his: Flect Turn wished to flood the world, and Kai was perfectly fine with that; no land meant no living land creatures, and exterminating the oceans afterwards was simple enough. Chizome Akaguro, the Great Spirit of Murder only wished to kill, making him the perfect blade. Chitose Kizuki was an anarchist, and Kai was thankful to her for getting his soul out of the Nine Hells.
But all of them were, in the end, expendable. As were the others.
Maguma Iwata and his followers simply wished to prove that they were better than the Todoroki Empire in terms of power. One of their newer members, Geten, and the rest of the surviving Himura Clan, wished for vengeance upon both the Enji Todoroki and Rei Himura. Nine, meanwhile, simply wished to be more powerful than the current Demon King.
Izuku Midoriya… hard to believe that brat was now the Demon King.
While it wasn't that big of a shock to learn that the old Demon Monarchs were both slain by Toshinori Yagi and the rest of his party (they had it coming), what was truly fascinating was seeing their son manage to keep their kingdom from collapsing. Then again, perhaps Kai should have known that there was more to that creature than meets the eye. After all…
…Izuku Midoriya was the one who killed him in the first place.
Kai would make sure that the green-haired demon would suffer for his impudence, but that would have to wait. For now, it was time to talk strategy with the Enlightened Evil.
While his body had improved from how it was before his revival, it was still a mess. Missing skin exposed bone, organs dripping out of various holes, he definitely was no longer like how he was back when he was alive. His body was weak, and it still needed time to grow stronger.
Thankfully, with all these newfound agents, he had plenty of time to spare.
Looking around this table, he could see everyone of importance was already here. With Kurono off to the side acting as a scribe, they were ready to get to the meat of this meeting.
"You have all been growing stronger, I can see that," Kai said. "I have been growing stronger, too. While it may have been difficult, I have been getting used to my new body."
That part was true. However, what he wasn't telling his "comrades" was that, aside from regaining the original two types of magic he was born with, his new lich physiology had granted him several new spells, reaching up to the ninth level. They were all insects to him now.
Perfect when I no longer have any use for them, he thought to himself.
"But the time for training has come to an end," he continued. "Now is the time for planning. Rumor has it that the Todoroki Empire has gone through a power struggle, making them weak. What's more, there are whispers of a new Hero coming to end the young Demon King."
"So, what? We let them take all the glory?" Nine asked.
"Nine…" the lich sighed. "In the wild, the animal that wins the three-way fight is the one that kills the survivor of the other two, after it has been exhausted from winning its last fight."
"We are not beasts," Akaguro hissed. "We are beyond them."
Ah, yes. The bloodlust-filled spirit that believes itself to be above all other creatures. "Not to worry, Great Spirit, there will be plenty of chances to prove your superiority."
"And what exactly are you suggesting?" Flect Turn asked.
"I suggest we start by breaking down their pillars of support," Kai said. "Without his Demon Lords and other subordinates, the Demon King is nothing more than a child on a throne. The Todoroki Empire has just thrown their all-powerful leader into a cell, and his government is now under the control of his daughter and general, both of them from the island of Lesbos. And without all of her fancy toys and protectors, the Queen of the Elves is simply a madwoman."
Geten narrowed his eyes. "You want us to remove their armies."
"Exactly," Kai said. "While I'm sure many of you would find that distasteful, the fact of the matter is that we are outmatched. The only way we can hope to succeed is not by facing off against their forces, but to cripple them and reduce them to nothing more than cornered animals."
"Cornered animals that can still destroy entire continents," Iwata grumbled.
"True, but they'll be alone, while we all have one another. Alone, we couldn't do anything, but now… well… this is why the Enlightened Evil was created in the first place."
Kai knew that Mei Hatsume posed no physical threat, and while Enji Todoroki was formidable, enough of them would be able to kill them. No, the true threat was Midoriya, he was just as dangerous as his father. But luckily, Kai Chisaki knew how to kill him now…
Kota sat in his chair, nervous as hell. It was late in the afternoon, almost evening, after he and Eri had sat through their first detention of the week. Now, sitting in the castle's dining room, the two of them waited for Izuku to arrive for dinner, where he'd learn about their screw-up.
The black-haired teen sighed, "I wish I could disappear."
"Oh! Well –"
"No. We're not doing any more magic," he cut off Eri, before she even had the chance to say anything else. "But seriously, how are we gonna explain this to your brother?"
"Oh, so what?" Eri said. "All we did was use one of the spells in his private library to try and get an easy grade, no big deal. And besides, it was my idea, I'll get the brunt of it."
"Yeah, but I was there, so… guilt by association?"
"Don't worry, I'll just tell him that you tried to stop me, and – Oh! Here he comes!"
The two teenagers immediately tried to play it cool, as Izuku walked into the dining room, with a smile on his face. The green-haired demon looked as calm as he usually did when he sat down, which only placed the Japanese boy and disguised dragon even more on-edge.
Oddly enough, the two of them hadn't really seen Izuku in the past week. They heard around the castle staff that someone important was here, perhaps some governor, but they hadn't seen anyone new, nor had they seen the Demon King. Until tonight, that is.
In all honesty, Kota was hoping that this would last up until their detentions were done with, but it seemed like fate had other plans. Good thing that he and Eri were prepared, then.
Well, as prepared as they could be with only a couple of hours.
"Ahh, what a wonderful day…" Izuku said, picking up his fork.
"Mm-hm!" Eri nodded, as she tried to act calm.
As Kurogiri came and served them their dinner, Kota calmly drank from his chalice, trying his best not to look like he was hiding something. So far, so good. But then…
"Izuku-nii, we got a week's worth of detentions," Eri quickly said.
Kota nearly choked on his drink. What the hell was that?! And what was this "we" shit?! What happened to Eri taking her fair share of responsibility?! This made them sound like equals!
Izuku nodded, as he ate his dinner. "Uh-huh…"
Eri kept babbling, "We went into your private library, even though I know you told me that place was off-limits, we used dark magic to make our egg look cool and get an easy A."
"That's great to hear…" Izuku said, with a smile.
Both teengers looked at one another, then back at the Demon King. He wasn't angry, not even freaking out. He was still wearing that dopey smile and eating his dinner.
"Okaaay…" Eri said, as she decided to do the ultimate test. "Izuku-nii, Kota-kun knocked me up, and the two of us are gonna run away to raise the baby out in the wilderness."
"ERI, WHAT THE FUCK?!" Kota shouted. "Sir, she's making that shit up, please don't kill me –"
"Huh?" Izuku looked up from his dinner. "You said something?"
"Wow, he really is out of it," Eri said. "Big brother, are you alright?"
"Yeah, of course I am, never better!" Izuku said, giving the two of them a weak smile. "I'm just a bit tired from, uhh… governing… that's all… And I'm happy… Like, really happy…"
"Okay, this is starting to get creepy," the disguised dragon said. "What's going on?"
"Not to worry, Eri. He really is just tired. Though, I'm also glad to hear he's happy."
Kota looked over to where this new voice had come from, to see a winged woman in a dress, with wavy, blonde hair and blue eyes. He didn't recognize her, but Eri sure seemed to.
"Melissa!"
Huh, the night sky really is different here…
Mirio had heard stories of how the sky in Daemonium was different from everywhere else in the continent. While the night sky was usually a dark blue sheet sparkling with stars, out here… it was a dark purple, with clouds that never rained covering most, if not, all the stars.
Just another unsettling quirk of this place. Just like how this place seemed to barely have any thriving vegetation, but unlike a normal desert, this place was nothing more than… gray rocks and a few dead trees here and there. Guess tourism isn't big here…
"Guys, stop," Tamaki whispered.
"Hm? What is it?" Nejire asked.
"I hear something. It's loud and fast. It's coming our way."
Mirio looked around to see what was coming towards them. While the sun had indeed set already, there was still enough light to immediately see four dots appearing out of the sky, and getting faster. Judging from where Tamaki was staring, those were the culprits.
Some kind of pack of dragons? No, they don't sound like that. Mirio couldn't get a good look at what that thing was. "Nejire, can you use one of your spells to get a closer look?"
The blue-haired witch nodded, as she quickly whispered a small chant, and then stared right at the four dots, and then gasped. "Uhh, Mirio? You're never gonna believe this…"
Momo had to admit, when Hatsume does something, she does it right.
It had been six days since the SREU set out to rescue Melissa from the clutches of the Demon King, and they had managed to cross more ground in those few days than they had in the last few months. Not only that, but these skyships were amazing, even outside of speed!
While it was truly impressive how fast these magical machines were going, the more impressive thing was how they were built. The seats were quite comfortable, yes, but the magic these things were installed with was something else entirely. Even going at top speeds, the wind resistance wasn't affecting them, almost as if they had invisible windows!
"Awase, how much longer until we reach our destination?" Momo asked.
"Calculating in a couple of factors, such as touching down for the night and keeping our speed at a cruising altitude, we should be able to make it by sunset tomorrow," Awase answered.
"Excellent. Alright, let's slow down for now. We should land for the night…"
"Roger that," Awase said. "Uraraka, radio in to the other squads."
"Sure thing," the astronomer said, as she picked up her walkie-talkie.
As the brown-haired woman signaled the others to start landing, Momo looked down at the landscape below her. This was nothing like the Collibus Hills, the Saltu Jungle, or even the Rupes Desert. The land below them was dull, and seemingly dead.
Aside from a few leafless trees, there seemed to be no signs of life whatsoever. Well, except for that thing that was flying straight towards their skyship… Wait, what?
"Hi there!"
Before she could even figure out what she was looking at, Momo was now staring at her mysterious flying object, which was… a flying blond man. A man armed with a massive greatsword, and dressed in shining armor, a cape flowing behind him.
Naturally, Momo let out a surprised yelp.
"AAAAAHHHHH!!!!!"
Okay, so it might have been more of a scream, but come on! There was a man flying in front of her, and he was armed! Then again, maybe she should have been a bit more calm, because now everyone else was shouting through the radios and reaching for the guns.
"WHO THE HELL IS THAT GUY?!"
"I DON'T KNOW, SHOOT HIM!"
"NO, WE'LL HIT OUR OWN SHIPS!"
Thankfully, before anyone lost control of their respective ships, or worse, shot at one another, the flying guy backed away from the skyship, clearly regretting startling its passengers.
Momo's breathing slowed down as she saw that the flying man was descending down, and not using that massive sword of his to send her and her team crashing down into the earth, but she was a bit confused at the hand signals he was making. "Shoto, do you know what that is?"
"He's telling us to follow him," the red-and-white prince said. "I think it's a trap."
"If it's a trap, we'll blow it sky-high," Bakugou said, over the radio.
Momo nodded, as she gave Awase the signal to land where the blond man was leading them, as the squad followed them down to the ground, where two others were waiting.
Once the engines were turned off, everyone stepped out of the skyships, to get a better look at the strangers. Aside from the blond warrior, there was an elf with dark blue hair, and armed with a bow, along with a human woman, who wore a stereotypical witch outfit, and had a staff.
Adventurers, clearly, Momo thought to herself, before she put on her diplomatic face. "Greetings. I am Momo Yaoyorozu, of the Japanese Self-Defense Force."
All three pairs of eyes seemed to widen at that, as the blond man said, "Hold on, as in Lady Yaoyorozu, the Night-Haired Warrior? Leader of the Arms of Fire? That Yaoyorozu?"
Momo internally sighed at that. "Yes, we are the same."
"Oh, this is amazing! We've heard tales of your adventures for the last few months!" the blond exclaimed, before calming down. "Ahem, I'm Mirio Togata, the newest wielder of One For All!"
"Time out, did you say One For All?!" Shoto asked.
"Uh, yeah, that's right," Togata said.
"I see…" the peppermint-haired royal said. "Clearly we got off on the wrong foot. Why don't you and your companions stay with us? We have more than enough food for all of us."
"Well, that is mighty generous of you," the blond said. "Thank you."
"No, no, no… thank you." As Shoto finished talking, Momo wasn't sure what angle her boyfriend was playing here, but whatever it was, his princely skills were clearly showing.
Kota watched in a bit of morbid curiosity, as he saw Eri go from being concerned about her older brother, to jumping up from her seat at the table, and hugging the blonde stranger.
"I'm sorry, I think I'm missing something here."
"Oh, right, I totally forgot!" the white-haired teen said. "Melissa, this is Kota Izumi, he's my boyfriend. Kota, this is Melissa Shield, my big brother's angelic fiancee!"
"I am not your –" Before Kota could finish saying that he wasn't Eri's boyfriend, something else caught his attention. "Hold up, did you say that she was Midoriya's… angelic fiancee?"
"That's right," Melissa said, as she extended her wings. "I'm an angel."
Kota took another look at Izuku, to see that his clothes were a bit wrinkled. Suddenly, the tiredness and the stupid smile on him made a lot more sense. Wow. The Demon King was fucking an angel. Kota promptly fell back into his chair. "I'm gonna need an explanation…"
Melissa nodded, as she sat down in the chair next to Izuku, and said, "Well, long story short, I was sent to kill him, couldn't do it, fell in love with him, and… yeah, I guess that's it."
"Yeah… I don't think that's enough context for me."
"Perfectly understandable," Midroya said. "I will gladly give you the full story, but first… what was this about you and Eri getting a week's worth of detentions because of dark magic?"
OH, COME ON!!!
Momo drank the last bit of her canteen, as she looked across from the campfire. Mirio Togata and his companions seemed to be enjoying the food Sato had cooked, given how they were too busy stuffing their mouths to talk, so she supposed that was a positive.
Still, she wondered who exactly these people were. She had heard stories of legendary Heroes (with a capital H) in this world before, but never any about some magical sword. Shoto clearly knew who they were, as evidence of insisting they stay for dinner, so clearly they were big, but how big exactly? The black-haired woman figured now was a good time to ask some questions.
"So… who exactly are you?"
"Well, to put it in the simplest terms, I'm the newest holder of One For All," Togata said, as he showed off his sword. "It was forged centuries ago, and has the ability to give its wielder the Skills of its previous holders, along with granting them the strength of a godling."
"I have to admit, that is quite impressive," Momo said. "However, I am curious as to why I have never heard of you, Togata-san, despite the fact that you have heard of us."
"Ah, well, I'm afraid that, compared to your exploits, my adventures have been on the local level, especially from before I received One For All. But all that will change soon enough!"
"Oh, yeah?" Bakugou raised his eyebrow. "And why's that?"
"We're gonna kill the Demon King!" the blue-haired witch, Hadou-san, exclaimed.
While everyone had varied reactions to that, from choking on their food, shouting what, or even staring blankly, Shoto wore a different expression. "Well, isn't that convenient…?"
"Huh?" The shy archer, Amajiki, looked up from his food. "Why is that?"
"Well, you see, one of our comrades, an angel, was abducted by one of the Demon Lords, and we have reason to believe she is being held captive in the Demon King's castle."
"WHAT?!" Togata shouted. "Does that monster know no boundaries?!"
"We feel the same," the scarred prince said. "Now, by ourselves, we might have a chance of rescuing her, and by yourselves, you might have a chance of killing the Demon King…"
"...but if we work together, we could achieve both our objectives!" Togata finished Shoto's sentence. "Very well! We accept this team-up between us and the Arms of Fire!"
Ah, Momo realized. So, that was Shoto's angle.
Hitoshi Shinso ran as fast as his legs could carry him.
It had been several months ago that Midoriya had summoned him and the other Demon Lords for an urgent meeting. He had peered into that green magical fire he kept in his study, to see that his former assassin-turned girlfriend had been cast out of the realm of the gods.
Naturally, the Demon King sent out his top brass to go looking for his woman, with Hitoshi's job being to inform the regional governors of Melissa Shield, and to keep his ears open about any clue of her whereabouts. But when he arrived in the north, something got his attention.
The locals there told him of a bunch of strangers coming and going from the Badlands, an area within Daemonium that was filled with nothing but toxic swamps and vile wastelands. Now, that was immediately suspicious to Hitoshi, as there was only one reason people would willingly go to such a shithole, and it was so no one would see whatever they were doing.
Deciding to be proactive if this was truly a threat to the crown he served, Hitoshi made his way to the Badlands, plugging his nose for days on end so he wouldn't die from the smell, until eventually, he stumbled across a fortress. A fortress under the watch of hundreds.
Sneaking in wasn't that big of a problem. Aside from the fact that Hitoshi was trained in the art of espionage, he had his magic that would allow him to hypnotize anyone who caught him, including making them "forget" that they ever saw him. However, the bigger problem was what he had discovered tonight within the walls of this fortress. The Enlightened Evil.
A unified front composed of the world's most vicious murderers and deviants, that in itself would be a problem, not only because of who they had recruited, but also due to the current political climate going on. But what made it worse was the de-facto leader of this group.
Kai Chisaki.
This was bad. This was super bad. He had heard of the legend of Chisaki around the castle, the only man that the Demon King ever truly hated, and for good reason. But there was more to that story… Izuku Midoriya, the Symbol of Evil… was afraid of Chisaki. Also for good reason.
If he was seeing things correctly in that meeting, that monster was truly back, and he needed to warn everyone. And fast. Because if Kai Chisaki got his way… all would be lost.
Author's Note: Oh, yeah. It's all coming together.
The whole "egg monster" scene with Kota and Eri was inspired by the Wizard City episode of Adventure Time: Distant Lands, Chisaki's lich design is based on Zombie Shredder's from TMNT 2012. There's a bit more, but I'll move on to the comments now…
Shin: Yeah, any of the traumatized expressions any Konosuba characters make (especially when they're still smiling) is basically what Mei looked like, in my opinion. Unfortunately, you're gonna have to wait for Momo's reaction to Melissa banging the Demon King until the next chapter comes out. Also, I can't provide you with kobolds as of writing this, much less Tucker's. Hope everything else makes up for it!
JesseRoot20: Thank you for the compliment! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!
StormPhoenix7567: Yeah, that last cut was pretty genius on my part, but I do have to ask… where's the comma? Because without it, I can't tell if you were using "fucking" as an adjective or a verb, and it's the small stuff like that that'll linger in your head weeks.
GreenBoy9000: Thirty seconds into the song, and I understood what you meant.
valkrus: Fixed it. Also, maybe add some commentary with your callouts next time, eh?
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 36: The Demon King
Summary:
Momo and her unit, along with the Togata and his companions, have finally reached Izuku Midoriya's palace. They split into two teams, both of them encountering faces both new and familiar, ending in a battle against the Hero and the Demon King, and the warning of an evern greater threat on the horizon...
Chapter Text
Chapter 36: The Demon King
It wasn't long before they found the Demon King's castle.
To be honest, spotting it among his city wasn't that hard. All they needed to do was look for the massive castle of petrified darkness next to the coastal cliff with a dozen or so spires.
Seriously, what the hell was up with the architecture? Momo was pretty sure she had seen this sort of "dark ominous castle" vibe before in some fantasy anime she half-watched as a teenager. So… the question here was if art was imitating life, or was life imitating art?
No time to answer that philosophical question. Melissa was somewhere in there, and she needed to be saved. Looking towards Togata, she asked, "Okay, what's the plan?"
"It'll be easier to avoid capture if we split up into two teams," Togata said. "Our most combat-oriented group goes through the front, everyone else gets the back."
Tsuburaba raised his hand. "Uh, I'm all about getting that backdoor, if you know what I mean –"
"Oh my fucking God," Monoma muttered.
"- but is it a good idea to split up the party? Just asking."
"This place is no doubt guarded," Shoto said. "If our main fighting unit shows up at the front door, the enemy will come for them, making it easier for the second team to sneak in."
Kaibara nodded. "Okay, fair point."
"Alright, once we're past the front, my party will lead the main assault to the Demon King's throne room, where we'll fight him," Togata said. "Everyone else with us will deal with any of his minions that show up, and then proceed to search the castle for your friend."
"Cool. So, who's on what team?" Kirishima asked.
As soon as Momo saw the secondary team leave for the backdoor, she looked back towards who remained here. Aside from Togata's party and Shoto, there was still herself, Monoma, Bakugou, Kodai, and Uraraka. Everyone else had gone with Kendo.
So, while they may have split the two groups evenly, this front door team consisted of the Hero and his allies, along with the most powerful mages in the SREU, Shoto Todoroki, and… herself. Yeah, if Momo of all people was the weak link, then their party was definitely overpowered.
"So, how do we go in?" Kodai asked.
"Wait," Togata said. "Tamaki, what do you see?"
The elf narrowed his eyes, and said, "I see the Chimera, guarding the front gate."
Chimera? Momo had heard that name before when Melissa was battling Usagiyama back in the Saltu Jungle. "Is it a three-headed monster, with each head being a different animal?"
"What? No. He's a demon by the name of Chojuro Con. He has a wolf-like head and body, hands and feet like those of an avian, and a reptilian tail," Togata explained. "He's one of the most dangerous melee fighters alive, and a member of Midoriya's inner circle, a Demon Lord."
Okay, that was somewhat bad news. Melissa had compared Usagiyama to this guy back when they were fighting, which meant that only Togata had a chance of beating him. But the problem with that was that if the two of them started fighting, their cover would be blown.
"Okay, how do we get past him?" Monoma asked.
"I can take care of both him and the front gate," the blue-haired witch, Nejire Hadou, said. "But I'm going to need some kind of diversion to keep the Chimera busy while I work my magic."
"I've got this." Kodai stood up and walked towards the front.
"Kodai, no – Aaaaand, she's gone," Momo sighed.
Chojuro Kon, better known as the Chimera, was bored.
Of all the Demon Lords, he was the one stuck guarding the font gate of the palace. Sure, it definitely beat whatever administrative garbage Nedzu and Shimura did that basically made them glorified governors, but Chojuro was a warrior! He wanted some action!
"Yoo-hoo…"
Hm? Chojuro looked down to see… a black-haired human? What was she doing here? And why was she… looking at him with those kinds of eyes, and… blowing kisses at him?
"Uhh… can I help you –?"
"CATENA DRACO FULGUR!!!"
The last thing Chojuro Kon saw was white.
Itsuka balanced her way on the rocks, her and the rest of the team trying not to fall down into the sea below them, as they did their best to be as stealthy as possible.
Crouching down right across from the back gate of the castle, she signaled Aoyama for visuals, as the squad's sniper pulled out one of his scopes to get a better look.
"Hmm… no guards," he said. "So, either they're cocky or this is a trap."
"My money's on cocky," Awase said.
Kaibara, meanwhile, chuckled. "Heh-heh. Cock."
"Shut up, all of you," Itsuka ordered. "Okay, we should probably wait for a signal –"
BOOOOOM!!!
"Like that one?" Rin asked.
"Uh… yeah. That'll do."
It was official in Momo's book: Witches are no joke.
After Kodai's distraction (which was basically just flirting and blowing kisses at the Chimera), Hadou did indeed work her magic. And by magic, it was a lighting-based spell that not only took out the Demon Lord guarding the entrance, but also the front wall of the gate.
Monoma let out a low whistle. "Damn, these guys aren't playing around."
"Yeah, no shit," Uraraka agreed. "I can't even see a burnt corpse."
That was true, Momo couldn't seem to find the charred remains of the Chimera anywhere, which would either mean that he managed to escape or that he was completely atomized.
"Follow us!" Togata said. "His throne room should be in the center of this castle!"
Momo and the others followed Togata through the halls of this fortress. While the walls of this place looked like they were made from obsidian, there were actually plenty of things that betrayed the status of its inhabitant. Floors covered in elegant red carpets, massive golden candelabras that seemed lit with unnatural candles, and marbled columns all around.
"Something's not right," Bakugou muttered. "Where is everyone?"
That was a good question. Despite how massive this castle was, the only person they had seen so far was one of the Demon Lords. Where were the rest of them? Hell, where were the lower-level guards and the maids? And more importantly… Where was Melissa?
"There!" Amajiki pointed to two massive doors. "He must be behind there!"
As it turned out, the elven archer's assessment was accurate, because as soon as they approached the giant doors, they just… opened up… and revealed the throne room.
The room was massive, almost as if it was designed to hold a massive battle within it, rather than a royal court. The darkness seemed to be just as pervasive as it had been for the rest of this godforsaken region, but somehow, Momo could still see in front of her.
And in front of her sat a horned man atop a throne of bones. His clothes were almost as dark as the room itself, only showing a hint of purple to give away their royal origins. Minor golden patterns were on these clothes, making the creature wearing them seem all the more regal. But the black-haired woman knew better. Those red horns that curved upwards, and those glowing green eyes that seemed to be expecting them, showed her that this was no man.
"So… you finally showed up," the Demon King said.
Itsuka and the others moved through the corridors as fast as they could. The distraction provided by the explosion would only last for a few minutes, at best. After that, there was a good chance that the whole castle would be on-guard for any further attacks.
Or, at least, that would be the usual route, if there was actually anyone here.
"Where the hell are all the monsters?" Sato asked.
"It is kinda weird that this place is empty," Komori agreed with him.
"Doesn't matter," Itsuka said. "We need to keep an eye out for –"
The orange-haired woman, along with the rest of her party, came to a halt at one of the larger rooms, as they came across two of the locals. One of them was a woman with red eyes and two horns next to her long, gray hair, while the other was… just a black-haired dude?
"What the hell?" the black-haired guy said. "The JSDF?"
Kirishima blinked. "Wait, that guy knows who we are –?"
"INTRUDERS!!!" The red-eyed woman, however, wasn't having any of it. Her body began to flare up with red lighting, as she began to chant some kind of spell. "ANTIQUA –"
"WAIT, WAIT, WAIT!" The black-haired stranger waved his hands around. "Eri, these aren't intruders! I mean, technically they are trespassing, but they're the good guys!"
Yeah, no, it was official: Itsuka didn't know what the fuck was going on.
"DEMON KING!" Togata shouted. "I'VE COME TO FINISH THIS!"
"Oh?" The green-haired demon smiled. "Then let us finish this… HERO!"
The red-horned monster stepped off of his throne, and the battle began immediately. Amajiki launched an arrow from his bow, while Togata immediately charged in.
"VIS CREPITUS!" With a chant and a flick of the Demon King's hand, both the arrow and the Hero were pushed away, in a fashion that made Momo think of that one movie franchise with the space wizards. What were they called again? Jedi? Didn't matter, they were still in a fight!
Togata, however, didn't relent, as he used one of his various Skills to fly straight back towards the viridian-haired monarch, swinging down his sword with a battle cry. "RAAAA—"
"BELLATOR PERFECTUS! CREARE MAIORA ITEM!"
A metallic clang was heard throughout the room, as the Demon King now had in his possession two greatswords, whose hilt decorations were so massive, twisted, and sharp, they made Momo think that they looked more like some fancy short-staffed tridents, rather than swords.
"Not bad," he said, still blocking Togata's latest attack. "Not bad at all."
"GLACIES GLADIO!!!"
Looking towards the right, everyone saw that Shoto had summoned a sword made of ice into his hand, intending to strike the Demon King from the back. But before he could land a hit, two massive, bat-like wings broke out of his back, knocking Shoto off his balance.
"He was just hiding those under his clothes?!" Monoma shouted.
"MAGICAE SAGITTA!!!"
Hadou's bolts of color flew from her staff straight towards her target, who jumped up into the air. Momo could definitely see how a flying Demon King was now kind of a problem.
"Great, he's got air superiority!" Bakugou growled.
"Do you all still have the will to fight?" the Demon King asked, as he floated in the air. His response came with a barrage of bullets from Momo and Bakugou, causing him to have to block them with his swords. "I'll take that as a yes. My turn! FLAMMAE GEHENNA!!!"
In an instant, yellow-and-green flames (with a hint of orange and a few other colors) engulfed the area all around them, temporarily blinding the entire room. Having become adjusted to the darkness of the Demon King's domain, suddenly having these flames appear out of this air was like having a flash grenade go off in the middle of a pitch-black room.
"...Lieutenant? PONYTAIL, OPEN YOUR FUCKING EYES!!!"
"Huh?" Momo opened her eyes to see that the flames were still there, and… Bakugou was in them?! But wait… he was perfectly fine? "What's going on? What happened?"
"These flames are fake!" Uraraka said, walking through them. "An illusion!"
"Our big bad villain used them to flash-bomb us, before grabbing Togata, and flying through the ceiling!" Monoma said, pointing up to the massive hole in said ceiling.
Mirio Togata wasn't sure how it happened.
One second, he was engaged in combat with the Demon King, and then the next, he had been launched out of the castle, and was now flying in the space above it. He remembered the fire, along with the pain of hitting some kind of wall, but that was all. He was here now.
"There. Now we can have a proper fight, without any… distractions."
Right across from him in the sky, he could see Izuku Midoriya staring into his eyes, his dark wings flapping to keep him in flight, and with both of his greatswords still in his hands.
"Amazing. It seems that the sword was not satisfied with my parents."
Was… was that some way for him to try and get sympathy from Mirio?! Outrageous! How many families had the Demon Kings destroyed?! And he was trying to play that card?!
"Don't ever try to paint yourself as the victim here!" Mirio growled, pointing One For All at him. "I know what sort of monsters the Demon Kings are, and I'll make sure your line ends here!"
"You'll try," Midoriya said. "Can I at least know the name of you, new wielder?"
"Mirio Togata," the ninth wielder One For All said. "Now… BLACKWHIP!!!"
A mass of dark tentacles erupted from Mirio's free hand, heading straight for the Demon King's face and wrapping around his head. The blond clenched his open fist, sending the tendrils, and the Demon King, towards him and his blade. Perhaps I can end this quickly –
No good. Midoriya used his swords to chop the dark tendrils, freeing himself. Trying again, Mirio used Smokescreen, filling the dark skies with the purple mist. A quick direction change from Fa Jin and and overall speed-boost from Greashift sent him towards Midoriya's back, and –
CLANG!
"Nice try," the demon said, blocking the sneak attack. Another swing of his dual swords came, which Mirio only managed to escape with Danger Sense. "You're a novice at this."
Good, he took the bait. Playing dumb, Mirio asked, "What are you talking about?"
"It's clear to me that you have never used your newfound Skills together. You keep switching between them, making your reaction times slow down," Midoriya said. "Pathetic."
"Oh, yeah?" Mirio asked. "Then let's see you do better!"
"Gladly. Watch and learn," the green-haired demon said, as his body began to glow with magic. "Corpus Effulgentis Berylli… Benedictio Magia Caster... Infinitas Wall... Sanctus... Vita Essentiae... Maiorem Potential... Libertas... Falsa Data, Vita... See Per…"
So, that's how he does it, Mirio realized. While the previous Demon King was known for his flashy and devastating attacks, his successor had a more strategic mind. He was casting every sort of defense and buff on himself, stacking them one on top of the other.
All of those last attacks back in his throne room, they were just theatrics! But why? To minimize the damage to his home? Was he just that confident he would survive? Who's to say he wouldn't? With how he was still going, Mirio would need all of One For All's power to…
…wait a minute, that could actually work.
"Paranormalis Intuitio... Major Resistentia…. Chaos Pallium... Indomitabilitas…"
Mirio began to summon Fa Jin within his limbs, while wrapping them with Blackwhip to reinforce his muscles. Looking back at Midoriya, who was still casting more magic on himself, making him even more of an immovable object. Well, two can play at that game, Mirio thought to himself.
It was time to make himself an unstoppable force.
If Mirio's calculations were correct, then One For All wouldn't break from the attack he was preparing. However, that didn't mean Midoriya was gonna give in from it. If he was going to take him down, he needed to apply all the pressure he had on one place.
"Majoris Felicitatis… Potestas Draconica... Maiorem Hardening..."
He's still going? It was hard to believe that someone who physically looked in their twenties had that many spells at his disposal, but that was demons for you. As Midoriya kept enchanting himself, Mirio added Gearshift into the mix, hoping that Skill's speed would tip the scales.
The preparations were almost done. If this was gonna work, Mirio would have to strike at a single point. An attack of this power would usually be devastating, destroying entire mountains, or worse. But that would be a waste of power, all of it needed to go into killing him.
Rather than letting all of the power explode out of him like a waterfall, it would all go into a focused point of Mirio's choosing. He had moved his limbs enough for Fa Jin to be used at its peak, Blackwhip covered his whole body, and Gearshift was ready to go.
He was like a deadly spring. All that was left… was for the ball to be ready.
"Auram Maiorem... Effusio… Penetrare... Magia Clypeus Major... Mana Essentia," the Demon King said, finishing the last of his spell-casting. "There! Now let's see you try and –"
The spring was launched.
"What the hell do we do now?" Bakugou asked.
That was definitely a good question. In all honesty, Momo had no idea. Both their biggest weapon and their main enemy were gone. Maybe Hadou had some sort of spell capable of flight? Could Shoto use his flames to propel himself in the air? Would it even matter?
If this was anything like the movies and books, then the Hero and the Demon King were the only ones who really mattered. The rest of their armies and party members were just extras and side characters to be thrown into the meat grinder by the sadistic writers and authors of those franchises. Having two other combatants up in the sky might only make things worse…
No, the SREU came here for one thing and one thing only: Saving Melissa. While defeating the Demon King would be nice, it wasn't their main mission. Sure, they agreed to help Togata take the guy down, but they were both gone now. If push comes to shove, she and her team could leave Amajiki and Hadou here to take care of the guy if he popped up again, but –
"Momo?"
The black-haired woman, along with everyone else in the throne room, turned around to see… Melissa. But it wasn't just her, it was also the backdoor team, and… "KOTA?!"
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu?!" the teenager yelped. "You're here, too?!"
"What the…? What are you doing here?! Wait…" Now that Momo was getting a better look at the newcomers, she noticed that Kota wasn't alone. There was some Special Region local with him, and Melissa… was wearing a dress? Okay, best to start with one question at a time.
"Who the hell is the chick with the horns?" Kodai asked.
"Oh, hi, I'm Eri!"
Hadou, meanwhile, was on-guard. "Dragon… that's a dragon…"
"What?!" Monoma exclaimed. "But… she looks like a teenage girl!"
"Of course!" Bakugou snapped his fingers. "She's polymorphed!"
"Wait, she's a polygamist?" Tsubuaraba asked.
"No, you dumbass, he said that she's a polytheist!" Kaibara said.
"Neither of those words you said are what that means, you goddamn pair of bozos!" Bakugou snapped. "She's a shapeshifter! She just looks like a demon right now!"
"Let me guess, you got that from the Monster Manual, as well?" Rin asked.
"It hasn't let me down thus far!"
"Could you all please stop with the nonsense?!" Momo shouted, before rushing over to Melissa. "Are you okay? He didn't hurt you, did he? Did he force you to wear this?!"
"What, this?" Melissa gestured to her dress. "This is just my evening wear… wait a minute, back up! What are you doing here, who are these people, and why is there a hole in the ceiling?!"
"Oh, these guys?" Awase asked. "They're Amajiki and Hadou. They're with the –"
POOOOOOOOOOMMMMM!!!!!
A flash of light hit everyone, as the Demon King's throne was absolutely annihilated. Everyone was blown back by the shockwave of whatever it was that just hit them, and anyone who stared at the intense pillar of light would have been blinded for a few hours after that.
When the lightshow died down, Momo could feel her ears ringing. Standing up from the floor, she looked over to the source of the light, to see a crater had been left, with… a half-naked Togata, smoke coming off of his body, and beneath his foot… was the Demon King.
Or at least, it resembled him.
To be perfectly frank, he was seriously hurt. Aside from the overall burns on his body and the mangled limbs, there was a massive wound running across his chest, from his shoulder, all the way down to his waist. Hell, the slash was so bad, that a closer look revealed to Momo that his insides, specifically his still-beating heart, were completely exposed to the open air.
"Oww…" the demon groaned.
Monoma gasped. "Oh, shit, he's still alive!"
"Time to end this," growled Togata, as he lifted his sword, and –
"NO!"
CLANG!
Before Momo's eyes could even register it, Melissa teleported towards where Togata was, summoned her sword, and was now blocking One For All from finishing off the Demon King. To make this even more insane, her white angelic feathers… began to turn black.
"If you're gonna kill him…" Melissa hissed, "...you're gonna have to kill me, too."
Wait a flipping minute. Momo's brain went into overdrive as she suddenly began to connect the dots. Melissa never confirmed Bakugou's question that her lover was a human. She fell in love with someone that the gods condemned her for, resulting in her status as a fallen angel. The fact that the Demon Lords, a group supposedly taking orders from the Demon King, had one of their members abduct Melissa the second they found her… all of that could only mean…
"TOGATA!" she called out to the Hero. "STAND DOWN!!!"
"NO! WE HAVE TO KILL HIM, HERE AND NOW –"
POW!
A flying kick to the face knocked Togata off-balance, as everyone looked up to see Eri, now with claws, wings, and a tail, looking utterly pissed. "Stay the fuck away from by big brother."
Momo had no idea how she managed to move that fast, but that clearly showed her that Midoriya was just playing around with them. She needed to resolve this quickly, or else everyone in this room was dead. "Everyone… stand down. That's an order."
Her soldiers hesitated, but after a few seconds, their weapons were lowered. The Hero and his allies had looks of betrayal, but Momo didn't care. "Kodai, help Melissa heal… him."
The black-haired woman nodded, as Melissa simply said, "Thank you."
Thirty minutes later, Izuku Midoriya was healed from his injuries sustained during the fight. His sister also brought some clothes for both him and the half-naked Togata to wear, while Midoriya used the last bit of magic in him to directly translate everything that was being spoken.
"I have to admit, that is quite the handy spell," Momo said, staring off the conversation. "It's definitely more convenient than having to constantly switch between languages."
"Yeah, sure thing," Midoriya said. "Okay, so, for starters, I understand what One For All and his buddies' beef is, but who are you guys? And more importantly, why come after me?"
"Your living shadow abducted our friend!" Komori answered.
"Kurogiri? He told me that he picked Melissa up from some kind of warzone…"
"...That is technically true," Momo admitted. "At the time of the incident, we were wrapping up our fight against the mercenaries. However, it was still wrong of him to do that!"
"Okay, don't blame Kurogiri for that one, that's a bit on me!" Melissa said, her wings still black. "I was just so happy to be with Izuku, that… I kinda forgot to tell you guys that I was okay."
"So, this is the guy you've been banging," Kaibara said.
"Your friend was in league with the Demon King this whole time?!" Togata spat, before looking at Melissa with contempt. "I can't believe you'd betray us to this world's greatest evil!"
"I just can't believe my Monster Manual lied to me!" Bakugou half-joked.
"No, you don't understand! I love him!" Melissa said. "I gave up all I had to be with him!"
"...Is he really that good in bed?" Kodai asked.
Momo's cheeks immediately went red. "KODAI!"
"What? If she's willing to go as far as to be cast out of paradise for this guy, he must be amazing, so who's to say I'm not gonna jump for him, too?" the medic asked.
Bakugou, meanwhile, bonked her on the head. "Down, girl."
Togata looked like he was now having an existential crisis. "Wait, you're not evil?"
Midoriya face-palmed, and sighed. "Of course I'm not evil!"
"But… you're the Demon King."
"Yeah, I'm the guy who's trying to rebuild the crumbling remnants of my parents' crumbling empire!" Midoriya said. "I'm a full-time monarch! I don't have time to be evil!"
"How are you not evil?! YOU LITERALLY SAT ON A THRONE OF BONES!"
"Yeah, wyvern bones!" Midoriya added. "Put to sleep ethically, as their meat was used to feed the poor and their skin was to make quality leather! The only "evil" thing about it is that I didn't waste a single part of the animal! Go on, ask me what happened to the wyvern dicks!"
As Togata remained silent, Hadou asked, "Isn't it kinda offensive towards you?"
"I'm a high dragon, wyverns are lesser dragons! That's like saying an ostrich and a sparrow are the same type of bird!" Eri said, clearly offended. "Or a peregrine falcon and a pigeon!"
Togata, meanwhile, still wasn't convinced. "But… you're a demon."
"And you're a human! But who barged into whose home trying to kill who?! Hmmm?!"
"But… your dad was evil…" Togata whispered.
"Yeah, and my uncle was a Hero! Hell, he was the one who forged your sword!"
"WHAT?! That's impossible! One For All was forged by Yoichi –"
"Yeah, Yoichi Shigaraki, my uncle, and brother of Hisashi Shigaraki, my father!" Midoriya said. "And sure, my dad might have been a prick, but he was still decent enough to adopt my sister after rescuing her from, guess what? Oh, that's right! An evil human!"
"And the other demons that were terrorizing the lands?" Togata asked.
"Former subordinates of my father!" Midoriya said. "I only have three other demons in my direct employment! Everyone else is of a different race! Hell, Hitoshi and Tenko are humans themselves! Or did you just assume that all demons know each other?!"
Ooohhh… Momo internally cringed at that.
Togata was once again stunned into silence, as Midoriya continued. "Look, I get it. My dad was a villain to the rest of the world, but I'm trying to do better. Yes, I might not be perfect, but my imperfect rule is better than just killing me and leaving my country in chaos. Like it or not, demons are here to stay. So, can you at least wait to see what I do before you kill me?"
SLAM!
Before Togata had the chance to answer, the doors were slammed open, as a purple-haired human came in, shouting, "BOSS! WE HAVE TROUBLE!"
"Huh? Hitoshi? What's going on?!"
"CHISAKI IS BACK!"
Author's Note: Yep, the big reveal has happened, and now the big bad has also been revealed! I'll talk about the behind-the-scenes stuff (like the architecture, the throne of bones, and some of the character interactions) later. Right now, comments!
Honey- (Guest): Originally, I was gonna keep the twist a secret up until now, but I added the Melissa scenes to pad out the page length. I'm glad I did it, though, as without them, I wouldn't get such hilarious comments as yours. And while I might not have gone into detail about it here, yeah, Melissa kinda did forget about everyone else (add?).
DarlingSherlock: I will always shout out the commenters (at least when I see them), and I'm glad for your confirmation regarding everyone's favorite explosive magician. Anyways, as much as I would love to claim credit for the eldritch egg joke and your soda-related accident, I can't. I lifted that from the Wizard City episode of Adventure Time: Distant Lands, so, legally speaking, that's their joke, not mine. I will, however, claim credit for you laughing at Melissa and Izuku getting steamy. That was all my idea.
Shiroshio4: In my personal opinion, I might have gone a bit too fast with the Melissa reveal in favor of the verbal smackdown Midoriya gave Togata in this chapter, but I do genuinely hope that whatever meager reactions I wrote are sufficient for you.
valkrus: Busy, huh? Given that you have two whole weeks to reply, I guess that must make you a major workaholic, or something along those lines. Anyways, hopefully, this chapter is also typo-free, but for some reason, I seriously doubt it…
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 37: New Alliances
Summary:
Upon the learning that his old nemesis was back, the Demon King dropped all pretenses and requested an alliance between himself, the Hero, and the JSDF. When Momo came back to inform her superiors and their allies of what was happening, they immediately accepted, and began getting to work on saving the world...
Chapter Text
Chapter 37: New Alliances
Momo had never seen someone's face ever become this pale from the utterance of such a few words. It would honestly be somewhat impressive, if it wasn't for the fact that the person who was now pale with fear was the so-called Demon King of this realm.
Coming from him, it was just concerning, because if there was something that made Demon Kings afraid, then chances were pretty good that it would make everyone else afraid, too.
"Hitoshi, please stop joking," Izuku Midoriya said, in a low whisper.
"I'm not joking!" the purple-haired human exclaimed. "I saw him! He's a lich, and he's working with a bunch of bad people! Like, devils and sorcerers, and the Great Spirit of Murder!"
Well, that settled it. If Bakugou's sudden shift in facial expressions didn't tip her off that this Chisaki guy was bad news, the words like "lich" and "Great Spirit of Murder" definitely did. Momo watched Adventure Time as a kid, she knew liches were fucking terrifying.
But still, given the fact that Momo had no idea who this "Chisaki" fella is, she couldn't be completely afraid of him, not yet. She needed some context first. And she knew where to get it.
"Midoriya?" Momo looked over to the Demon King. "Care to fill us in?"
"...Kai Chisaki is a human. Or, given this new intel I've just received, was a human," Midoriya slowly started talking. "He was, to put it mildly, completely insane. He hated magic, he hated the chaotic nature of our world, he just… hated life. So, he made it his goal to destroy it all."
"Wow. A couple sentences in, and I already hate the guy," Monoma snarked.
"Hold on, I've heard of Kai Chisaki before, during my time as an apprentice witch. He was some kind of necromancer, right?" Hadou asked. "But I thought he died like, decades ago."
"He would delve into all kinds of magic, any magic that would allow him to accomplish his goal, necromancy included. Plus, he was born with two different unique magics, being able to manipulate both the earth, and modify his own body," Midoriya said. "So while he may have hated magic, he knew that it had its uses. In a way, it sort of made him a hypocrite."
"So, a hypocritical misanthrope with a sadistic obsession to end all life, with a dash of mad science sprinkled in," Bakugou summarized. "What a wonderful monster this world created."
"Bakugou's sarcasm aside," Momo cut in, "I would assume that no one would let this stand. If Chisaki won, then everyone would lose. Someone must have put a stop to him."
"Oh, someone did," Midoriya said. "Me."
Everyone blinked in surprise, as Togata asked, "You?"
"Surprised?" Midoriya cheekily asked, before getting serious again. "Yeah, I took him out. And I'm glad I did, not just for the greater good, but because it gave me a little sister."
Momo blinked in surprise, before she connected the dots. "Eri?"
"Yeah, I was… Chisaki's prisoner," the white-haired girl said, rubbing her arms.
"What?" Uraraka balked at that. "What would he want with you?"
"I dunno, she is a dragon," Sato said. "Maybe he wanted her to wreak havoc across cities, or maybe eating them will give you powers? Who knows, we could take turns guessing?"
"Could you guys maybe not?!" Kota asked, holding Eri closer.
"Actually, what he was planning to do with her was something much worse," Midoriya said. "He was planning to use both her and another dragon to power some kind of doomsday device. Word got to me, and I invaded his lair, destroyed the device, and freed the dragons. Eri ended up getting adopted by my parents, and Ryuko Tatsuma is now a close ally of ours."
"Okay, that's all well and neat, but how is he back?" Awase asked.
Midoriya looked over towards his subordinate. "You said he was now a lich?"
"That's right," the purple-haired man said. "His skin was rotting, and he's got some new magic on him… lich magic. The kind where evil fire and insta-death spews out of his body."
"Well, there's our answer," the green-haired demon said. "He's a lich. His soul must have escaped eternal damnation and found a home in some kind of phylactery, rejuvenating his body to the point where he could actually use it to move around again, given that it's decades old."
"A phylactery?" Tsuburaba raised his eyebrows. "Like the kind Jewish men wear?"
"A different kind of phylactery," Bakugou corrected him. "One used to store a soul."
"Exactly," Midoriya said. "And since it doesn't have to be on the lich's person, he can hide it anywhere. If we can't destroy the phylactery, we can't destroy the lich for good."
Okay, the Yaoyorozu heiress could see the problem now. They were dealing with a monster who planned to bathe this entire world in death, and who was nigh-impossible to kill. It was like having to deal with the persistence of Michael Myers mixed with the ambitions of Adolf Hitler.
Actually, scratch that. Hitler at least cared about Germany. This guy absolutely didn't give a fuck for any living thing whatsoever. This guy was more like… Ultron, from those Marvel Comics.
A cross between the undying nature of Michael Myers and the misanthropy of Ultron.
That was a horrifying picture, indeed.
"What also concerns me is these newfound allies of his," Melissa said, her black wings nervously fluttering every now and then. "Shinso, what can you tell us about them?"
"They've got some power-hungry mage by the name of Nine, a real tough guy, who claims he can manipulate the weather," the purple-haired human said. "They also have a triton by the name of Flect Turn, he wants to drown the whole world, and there's the Great Spirit of –"
"Hold up, back up," Kaibara spoke up. "What was that about drowning the world?"
"Pardonne-moi, but I think it would be best if we went back to the beginning," Aoyama suggested. "What exactly was that about a weather-manipulating mage, exactly?"
"I think I know who they're talking about," Melissa said. "Remember the cave-in?"
"You mean the one where we met Hagakure? Sure, we got trapped in there because of the… lightning… from the… storm…" Komori's voice slowed down, as she connected the dots.
"Holy shit," Kirishima whispered. "You think that was him?"
"Maybe," the fallen angel said. "It was definitely caused by magical means, and while I'm sure there are a few wizards out there capable of weather-altering magic, there are far less of them that would use it so carelessly or maliciously. There's a good chance it was… Nine."
"That's a really stupid name," Uraraka mumbled. "But what's his deal?"
"I think he wants to prove that he's the very best in the magical world," the purple-haired man said. "But he'd never be able to beat the boss, so he's decided to overthrow him."
"Oh, I get it," Amajiki said. "He couldn't win fair and square, so he decided to do the next best thing: Get rid of all the competition, so he'd have to win by default."
"That's… a pretty good analogy of it, yeah."
"Okay, so what about this Flectonious Turner guy?" Kaibara asked.
"Ah, I think I might know this one," Shoto said. "So, to summarize it really quickly, tritons are basically aquatic elves; blue skin, maybe a couple of amphibious features, but just as bad in dealing with foreigners as the old Todoroki Empire. From what I just gathered, this Flect Turn character joined this alliance… Wait, Shinso, do they have any kind of name?"
"Uh, yeah, they're calling themselves the Enlightened Evil."
"Thanks. So, yeah, he joined the Enlightened Evil hoping to achieve his goal of flooding the world, making it an ideal place for his fellow tritons and whatever fish friends he has. But if the big boss of the Enlightened Evil is a lich… then that might just be an empty promise."
"I don't know," Rin spoke up. "A lot of land-based creatures can't swim, and way more of them need at least some land to survive, so wiping out all non-aquatic species could help Chisaki, since it wouldn't just exterminate everything that lives on land, but such a worldwide environmental disaster would eventually impact the ocean life, as well."
"That might be true, but even then, there would be some life that would continue without any adverse effects. Deep-sea creatures and monsters that don't ever see the surface, any aquatic civilizations, like mermaids and tritons, they would all still be alive," Shoto explained.
"So, lich boy would just give the blue man what he promised, only to later stab him in the back," Bakugou summed it up. "Alright, who are the rest of these Enlightened Evil assholes?"
"Well, there's Chizome Akaguro, the Great Spirit of Murder," Shinso said. "He's legendary for being a centuries-old spirit that, while human in appearance, is completely monstrous."
"Yeah, I've heard a bit about him," Kirishima said, causing everyone to look at him. "Uh, my girlfriend said I might have a spirit affinity, so I asked the locals what they knew about them."
"Well, I seriously doubt you could form a contract with Akaguro," Shinso said. "Even if you had the proper affinity, he would eviscerate you the second you two made eye contact."
"I'm not so sure," Midoriya said. "Sometimes, the shiniest diamonds are in places you never expect to find them. We should test his affinity first, before making any assumptions."
"Right. Anyways, the Great Spirit of Murder is only in it for the kill. It's nothing short of a miracle he's been able to restrain himself around his new comrades," Shinso said. "After them, we have Garaki, he's basically a shittier version of Chisaki, but also alive, weaker… and fatter."
"Okay, so a human necromancer that doesn't have the same magical arsenal as Chisaki."
Shisno nodded at what Komori said. "Right on the money, miss. Garaki is still a human, a really old one and versed in dark magic, but still a human. We kill him, and he dies for good."
"Alright, how many upper-echelon guys do we still have?" Monoma asked.
"We have Chitose Kizuki, Maguma Iwata, and Geten –"
"GETEN?!" Shoto shouted. "You're sure about that?!"
"Uh, yeah, pretty sure?" Shinso said. "Ice magic, light hair, big coat?"
"Shoto, do you know who they are?" Momo asked.
"He's someone from my mother's side of the family," the peppermint-haired prince said. "When my father annexed the lands of the Himura, many members of the clan were lost to the wind. Guess it would make sense that some of them would want revenge, but this…?"
"Is extreme, I understand. They probably don't know what Chisaki's true goal is."
"Or maybe they just don't care," Midoriya said. "But what Todoroki said does bring up an interesting point… how many subordinates does each faction possess?"
"Faction? Aren't all of these guys on the same team?" Sato asked.
"Only on paper," Melissa said. "Chisaki wants to end all life, Flect Turn wants to drown the world, Geten wants revenge against Shoto's father. All of them, with the exception of Akaguro, probably have minions to carry out their wishes. Before becoming the Enlightened Evil, they would still be carrying out their goals, but they wouldn't be able to do all of this by themselves."
"She's right," the green-haired demon said. "I remember Chisaki having a bunch of lackeys the last time around, his biggest being a guy by the name of Kurono. There's also a good chance that there are other surviving Himura members following Geten, and for all we know, several tritons agree with Flect Turn and there are other power-hungry maniacs in league with Nine."
"So, it's not just the big bosses we need to worry about," Kendo summarized.
"Wonderful," Kodai sarcastically murmured.
"Thankfully, we at least know a little bit about our enemies," Midoriya said. "Hitoshi?"
"Right, well, aside from Geten, we also have Chitose Kizuki, an oni. If I heard correctly, she managed to sneak into the Nine Hells and retrieve Chisaki's soul for his resurrection."
"Makes sense," Midoriya said, nodding. "Devils wouldn't break their own rules like that. It had to have been an outsider; but we can't ignore the possibility that some devils might be involved."
"Hold up, are we just ignoring the fact that Hell is real?" Tsuburaba asked.
"We can deal with that revelation later, dude," Kaibara said.
"Anyways, the last of the big members is Maguma Iwata, a human mage with exceptional fire magic," Shinso said. "He would be considered the best… if the Todorokis didn't exist."
"God fucking dammit," Bakugou cursed.
Yeah, Momo could agree with that sentiment. This guy was basically a watered-down version of Nine, but rather than wanting to be at the top of the magical world… he just wanted to beat the mean politician who doubled as a shitty husband and father. Jesus Christ…
"Well, at least we now have a basic rundown of their motivations and what they might be capable of," Midoriya said. "Now, the question is… will we stop them together?"
"Huh?" Momo took a double-take. "Wait, you want to form an… alliance?"
"I suppose that would be the proper term, yes," the Demon King said.
"Uhh… you do remember that we were trying to kill you less than an hour ago, right?"
Midoriya simply chuckled at what Monoma said. "Well, in your defense, you thought that I abducted your friend. And besides, this new threat is far bigger than any of us."
Momo had to agree with Midoriya on that one. If Chisaki won, everyone would die. This was no time to be angry at one another over small stuff, they needed to think of the bigger picture.
"You can count Japan in," she said. "We'll fight alongside you to defeat this evil."
"Glad to hear it," the Demon King said, before turning to the Hero. "Well?"
"I don't know…" Togata said. "I don't know what to think anymore…"
"I can understand that feeling," Midoriya said, sympathetic. "I was lost and directionless for quite a long time, myself. But you have something now that I was too blind to see."
"And what is that?" the blond asked.
Midoriya extended his arm. "A hand reaching out to you."
Mirio Togata, along with the other members of his party, looked at the hand for a bit. But eventually, the Hero took the hand of the Demon King. "Alright. Let's save the world."
"Great!" Midoriya said. "We're going to need all the help we can get, so I'm going to start by contacting the rest of the Demon Lords! Nedzu and Tenko are out doing administrative work, but I do know that Kurogiri will be back here pretty soon, and Chojuro is still here…"
"Wait," Kodai cut him off. "Chojuro, as in, the Chimera…?"
"Uh, yeah, why? Did you guys knock him out while storming my castle?"
In Momo's opinion, Kodai's face said it all.
Midoriya couldn't help but stare dumbfounded at what was left of his bodyguard.
Which, if Momo was seeing it correctly, was pretty much nothing.
Hadou had really gone above and beyond when it came to dealing with the guard and the front door. Aside from the massive hole in the wall that the main party used to enter, the lighting spell she used also left behind a small dust shadow now permanently etched into the ground.
Like the rest of her Japanese countrymen, Momo was taught as a child what it looked like to have a person's shadow permanently etched into a wall. The only difference here was that magic was used rather than an atomic bomb, and that the shadow left behind was much bigger.
Now, while it was true that there were more powerful Demon Lords among his ranks, Chojuro "Chimera" Kon was best known for being the most physically imposing without any magic, if the intel Togata gave Momo and her team was any accurate. Stronger than a hundred men, and with his massive sword, he was the most proficient warrior in his ranks. And yet…
…Kodai was currently scrambling to find any piece of the demon's charred remains.
Momo couldn't help but awkwardly cringe. From the descriptions Togata and his companions gave her of the Demon Lord, it was safe to say that there was probably a speck of dust or two of the Chimera left, but it would be a while before Kodai found anything. And Midoriya…
Well, at least he wasn't angry about it. Or, to be more accurate, his face made it look like he was going through the five stages of grief simultaneously. But he wasn't saying anything, so that was probably a good sign. Or, at the very least, he was choosing his words carefully because he knew that he couldn't alienate his newfound allies in his fight against the Enlightened Evil.
"I'm not mad…" Midoriya slowly said. "I'm just… disappointed, I guess…"
Honestly? That could have gone worse.
"Anyways, while your… healer… attempts to revive my subordinate, we should probably talk about our strategy, Lieutenant Yaoyorozu," the Demon King said. "I have no doubt that Prince Shoto will be able to convince the Todoroki Empire to aid us, and from what I understand, the Elven Queen is a close ally of yours, but there are more people we can call to aid us."
"There's other nations on this continent?" Momo asked.
"Not exactly, I was referring to the regional governors of my kingdom," Midoriya said. "There are six of them, and along with the Demon Lords, they are my top assets. Their provinces have, if not the sufficient manpower, then the sufficient firepower to help us in our fight."
"Can't you go rally them yourself?" Momo asked. "You're their ruler."
"That is true, but that is a double-edged sword. I have to stay here to coordinate with the Demon Lords and form a base army," Midoriya said. "I also believe that your squad, while somewhat destructive, is a good representation of your JSDF. They can act as liaisons between our two armies. I will even send letters ahead of time to notify the governors of their arrival."
"I suppose you do know best…"
While the two of them kept talking, a mass of shadows appeared behind them, startling Momo. That darkness… those yellow eyes… those could only belong to one creature…
Midoriya smiled. "Ah, Kurogiri. You're back, and just in time."
"Of course, Master," the shadow demon said. "And who are your… guests?"
"We're friends of Melissa's," Momo said. "You know, the angel you grabbed?"
Kurogiri nodded. "I see. I apologize for any unwanted stress I may have caused you, but you must understand, I had my instructions: Find and retrieve Lady Shield –"
"Yeah, yeah, I know, "get Melissa and Izuku together," or whatever," Momo cut him off. "Look, next time you have orders like those, it wouldn't kill you to just explain the situation, alright? It would have definitely saved us the trouble of coming here to try and resource her."
"I… will try to do that in the future," Kurogiri said. "But I do have a question…"
That got Momo's curiosity. "Oh? Well, go ahead, I guess."
"Do you know anyone by the name of Shouta Aizawa? Or perhaps Hizashi Yamada?"
"HUH?! How do you know the names of the Generals?!" Momo demanded to know.
"Generals? They've really been promoted that high up? Amazing!"
"Kurogiri, I think it's best if you tell her," Midoriya said.
"As you wish," the living shadow said, slowly donning a more humanoid form, and even a fancy butler outfit. "While I do go by Kurogiri these days, I used to be called Oboro Shirakumo. I was a human in the JSDF alongside my friends, before dying and getting reincarnated here."
Momo could feel her jaw drop. What the shadow demon said… It was game-changing. Sure, thanks to Tsunotori, they knew that people from their world (or at least a parallel version of it) could get isekai'd here, but someone from their place and time which was familiar to them? And when did this happen? Did the timelines even match up? Kurogiri looked like he was older than Midoroya, but who knows what the average lifespan of a demon was? And how old was General Aizawa when his friend died? Maybe it was a different Aizawa from an alternate universe –?
"Yaoyorozu?" Midoriya waved his hand in front of her face. "Are you all right?"
Snapping out of her spiral, she asked the Demon King, "Did you know about this?"
"What, that Kurogiri used to be from another world? Sure. He helped me recognize who you were with by your uniforms, and explained a few things about your world's culture…"
Unbelievable. Izuku Midoriya, the fabled Demon King of this world, was potentially aware of things such as rap music and video games. Actually, now that Momo thought about it, it would explain why he was totally chill around her and the rest of the SREU. But still…
"If it's not too much to ask, I have a request," Kurogiri said.
"A request?" Momo repeated. "Uh, sure, lay it on me…?"
"May I please come with you to the Collibus Hills?" Kurogiri asked. "The last time I was there was for business, but it would be nice to see my old friends again. Especially Nemuri…"
"Okay, before I let you keep lusting after General Kayama, I hate to tell you that we don't have any room for you on any of the airships," Momo said, pointing back towards the others.
While Momo was talking to Midoriya Kodai was busy trying to revive the Chimera, the rest of the squad was busy getting the airships ready to fly back towards the Collibus Hills.
Due to how few seats they had, Melissa wasn't coming back with them, but Kota definitely was. No matter how much Eri complained, Colonel Sosaki would have skinned Momo alive if she ever learned that her nephew was left behind within the Demon King's domain.
"I know we'd be flying back towards where you are when we start rallying the governors, but we can't waste time on requests like these," Momo said. "We don't know when the Enlightened Evil could begin their operations, so we need to go from location to location as fast as possible –"
"Uhh… madame? You do know I can teleport all of you, yes?"
Momo blinked, before looking back at Kurogiri. "You can do what now?"
"My magic allows me to teleport to any place I can imagine, along with others," Kurogiri explained. "That was how I was able to retrieve Lady Shield the last time we met."
"You can do that… with our vehicles?" Momo asked for clarification.
"If you pass them through my gate, then yes."
Momo smiled. "I believe… that maybe we can work something out."
There was a hint of a smile on Shouta Aizawa's face this morning.
Normally, such a thing would never exist. Hell, the concept wouldn't even register in his mind. Being constantly swamped by paperwork and snot-nosed bureaucrats who don't understand people who do good just because it was the right thing was what he had to deal with on a near-everyday basis, and when he wasn't, it was usually because of some disaster.
But seeing everyone rebuilding after the attacks, it gave him hope for humanity. No, not just for humans, but for elves, dwarves, fairies, minotaurs, gnomes, and whatever else existed in this world, for living beings everywhere. What was supposed to be a massacre to rid the Collibus Hills of these people, became a rally cry for the people here to build a better life.
Shouta normally didn't walk around the town the Special Region locals were building, but he had been making efforts to visit it this week. The people there… Many of them experienced hardships they shouldn't have. Shouta and the rest of his people were soldiers, trained to deal with the horrors of war. But when push came to shove, those who decided to make this place their home took up arms and defended it, and now, they were rebuilding it, too.
For being such a pessimist, Shouta had to admit to himself, it was nice to see that people were able to move forward from something like that, and to build their lives up. The construction of the residential buildings for families like the Jiros was coming along nicely, the magic shops would be back in business pretty soon, and in the streets, there was… a portal…?
Unless the constant all-nighters Shouta was pulling for work had begun to have an adverse effect on his health, he definitely wasn't imagining the dark circle, full of black spots, and what he could only describe as "blood red," forming in the middle of the empty road. He also had half a mind to warn everyone of another attack, when the first "invader" came out of it…
"General Aizawa? Boy, am I glad to see you."
Shouta rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't dreaming. "Yaoyorozu?"
The ponytailed soldier waved at him, as the four skyships Queen Hatsume had loaned them for their mission were pushed through the gate by the SREU. What was even weirder still, a familiar-looking teenager came through the gate, along with some white-haired girl.
"Oh, hey, Aizawa-san."
"Kota? Where the heck have you been, kid?! Your aunt –"
"Yeah, I know. Look, it's a long story, I'll explain it after this…"
Before he even got a chance to ask what "this" meant, Shouta watched as the evil-looking portal collapsed in on itself, before a dark, smoke-like demon appeared. Given Tsunotori's description from a while back, Shouta instantly guessed that it was the Demon Lord that grabbed Melissa. He began reaching down towards his sidearm, before the damnedest thing happened…
"Hello, Shouta," Kurogiri said. "How is Sushi?"
Momo honestly didn't expect to miss sitting in these military chairs the base had. But then again, after sitting in those skyship seats for nearly a whole week, her butt wanted something new.
The official report on Melissa's rescue stated that it was a complete success. And given that Melissa walked around the Collibus Hills for a few hours before having Kurogiri send her back, no one would be able to argue against it. However, it wasn't all fun and games.
The first order of business was to explain what Kurogiri was talking about. Convincing Aizawa that the Demon Lord that teleported in front of him was actually his long-dead friend was actually a bit harder than convincing Generals Yamada and Kayama. The blond was the first one to accept the truth, and was overjoyed to see his old friend. The others, though…?
To be perfectly frank, General Kayama slapping Kurogiri with tears in her eyes was not something Momo had on her "Weird Shit of the Week" bingo. There was also a bit of angry screaming on her part, before eventually talking some shit out, and then… kissing him? Momo wasn't sure how kissing a living shadow worked, but whatever floated Kayama's boat.
Aizawa was the hardest of the three nuts to crack. He wasn't outright denying the idea that Kurogiri and Shirakumo were one in the same, but he was always throwing out a bunch of tests at the poor demon. Like, what color did Shirakumo dye his hair in high school (blue), what item did he loan to Aizawa as a teen (goggles), and where he died (off the coast of Somalia).
Momo would have called it out as being a bit ghoulish, but they needed the evidence to convince Aizawa that Kurogiri was who he claimed to be. And while Momo doubted that her commanding officer was fully convinced, he believed the claims just enough to pacify the other two generals, and allowed everyone else to move on to their next challenge.
Said next challenge happened to be the Kota-Eri situation.
While it was true that Colonel Sosaki was extremely overjoyed to learn that her nephew wasn't killed by one of Imasuji's goons, she was less-than-thrilled that Kota's savior technically kidnapped him. It also didn't help that she was the little sister of the Demon King.
The only thing that prevented this from becoming a potential segment on the Dr. Phil show was the fact that Kota's testimony helped Eri's case here. Midoriya was kind enough to give Kota a place to stay in his castle, while also enrolling him at the Special Region's equivalent to a high school, allowing him to socialize with some people his age, along with getting an education. Momo wasn't sure if it could translate to an Earth-based education, but it was the thought that counted. It also didn't hurt that the two of them were… sort of dating? Kinda? It was weird.
Colonel Sosaki eventually relented, which was a good thing, too. Kota had decided to stick around with Eri, which meant that either he would be staying in the Special Region, or she would be immigrating to Japan, and Momo didn't have the time to deal with that. She was busy enough dealing with an upcoming war, legal proceedings based on the romantic passions of teenagers were something she couldn't waste time on. And speaking of the coming war…
The actual report Momo shared with General Aizawa was also shared with Queen Hatsume and her inner circle, along with a few trusted locals in the Collibus Hills during their closed-door meeting. She explained to them how Melissa was actually romantically engaged with the guy everyone assumed kidnapped her (that one was still on Midoriya), while also quickly glossing how she and her team almost helped the Hero and his party assassinate the local monarch of the region, before getting to the important stuff about the lich planning to annihilate all life.
"...You have got to be fucking kidding me," Aizawa groaned.
"Unfortunately, I am not," Momo said, just finishing up her retelling of the events.
"So, what are you planning to do?" Hatsume asked. It was still nice to see that Midoriya's translation spell was permanent, as that meant now Momo didn't have to constantly switch between Japanese and Latin. "I know I'm going to assemble my military, but you…?"
"Shoto and I are going straight to Endeavor City tomorrow to tell his family," Momo said. "I've already assigned each member of my squad to notify a different governor of Daemonium, per the Demon King's instructions. General, I trust we can count on the JSDF to aid us?"
"I seriously hope so," Aizawa said. "Imasuji's attack made our reputation take a big hit, and the politicians back in Tokyo may not believe us. Let's just hope that your report scares the crap out of them just enough that they actually loan us enough firepower to stop this Chisaki guy."
"I can notify my people back home," Tsunotori said. "The minotaur warriors will stand with you. I can also have them call out to all of our other contacts to help us. You should do the same."
Momo nodded. "I'll see who we can get. Hopefully, they'll be enough"
"And if they aren't?" Kurogiri asked.
"Then, I guess you should hope that you'll be reincarnated again."
Talking things over with the Todoroki Royal Family went pretty well, in Momo's opinion, but there was no time for celebrations, there was work to be done. And that meant leaving Shoto behind to head back to the Collibus Hills, and receive the newest assignment from Aizawa.
The assignment in question involved splitting up the SREU to head over to the various domains ruled by the Demon King and to inform his subordinates of the current situation, while also keeping their eyes peeled for any members of the Enlightened Evil.
Momo was given the order to send four soldiers of her choice to the first location, while also carrying some items at Midoriya's request. She went with Monoma, Bakugou, Kirishima, and Rin. Meanwhile, she and a few others had a different mission up north.
Momo was getting a funny feeling that it would be quite a while before she and the rest of her team would be all together. She hoped that they would stay safe while they were gone…
"Yo, Lieutenant?" Awase knocked on her door. "We're heading out."
"Understood," she said, grabbing her bag. Their new mission began… now.
Author's Note: Once upon a time, I had thought of a story of a teenage Aizawa getting summoned to a magical world to act as a babysitter for a younger Midoriya, while all of Aizawa's friends would be summoned Heroes that were supposed to kill the current Demon Queen (Inko). Obviously, that never happened, but if you squint a little, you can see that with Kurogiri's That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Demon adventure.
So, time for some lore! Chisaki's two different kinds of magic are one, generic earth-based magic from your flavor of isekai, and two, the magic of Dante Zogratis, you know, that one bad guy from Black Clover. Theoretically speaking, those two should be able to mimic the Overhaul Quirk fairly close, but we'll see. Now, for the comments!
Shin: Yeah, if anything, the scene with Mirio and Izuku was basically a recreation of the opening scene of Maoyuu Maou Yuusha, especially during the part where the Hero asks about all the people the demons brainwashed, and the Demon King basically says, "Get caught doing something wrong, and say demons brainwashed you." An excellent Eri pun, even if unintended, and Momo is indeed smart, hence why she's the leader of this band of misfits in the first place. Kodai will always need a bonk on the head for her behavior, but you'll also know why in a few chapters. Yes, the spells used by Midoriya were literally taken from the Overlord fight, all I did was translate them to Latin and be done with it. I actually had to look up what SOL and JWF, and while I might have gotten the message, I'm not sure I still have the actual meaning behind those abbreviations. But in short, yeah, Chisaki is a menace that everyone needs to fight against together.
nonae105: I'm taking that as a major compliment. 'Nuff said.
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 38: The Lizardman
Summary:
The first move against the Enlightened Evil is to make sure everyone knows they exist. And so, Monoma, along with his small team consisting of Bakugou, Kirishima, and Rin, head to one of the Demon King's territories. Unfortunately, they arrive a little too late to warn the locals, but are still more than able to kick some Evil butt...
Chapter Text
Chapter 38: The Lizardman
Shuichi Iguchi greedily gasped for air, completely exhausted.
He and his tribe managed to hold off the first attack from those ice mages, but it was only a matter of time before they came back, and when that happened… they were doomed.
Looking around, he felt like he could have thrown up. All around him were the frozen remains of his fellow warriors, pieces of them falling off due to how bitter the frost was. The survivors were already clearing the shallow parts of the lake from their bodies, and the civilians…
It wasn't right. They were caught completely by surprise. These humans simply showed up, froze the lake, and launched their attack. It was mere luck that the soldiers who were on-duty were able to evacuate anyone in time, while the rest of the troops armed themselves.
But that just ended up sending more lizardfolk to their deaths.
This wasn't supposed to happen, damn it! The Demon King's communication mirrors were supposed to have arrived already, but something was holding them up. Was this attack not an isolated incident? Were the rest of the territories under enemy attack, as well?
"Sir! There's something coming over the horizon!"
Shuichi looked over to where his subordinate was pointing, to see that, up in the sky, there was a dot. And judging by its size, it was approaching their home, and fast.
"Get all non-combatants to the shelters!" the lizardman yelled, as he gripped his sword. "And prepare for a possible attack! They could already be back, for all we know…"
He hoped it wasn't them, but if it was… they'd be ready.
"Why are we the ones delivering this?" Rin asked.
Neito Monoma rolled his eyes, as he explained the situation once more. "Lieutenant Yaoyorozu gave us a direct order from Midoriya: Deliver these giant-ass mirrors to the lizardfolk and inform the local governor of the Lacus Lake of what's going on with the big-ass alliance against –"
"- the Enlightened Evil, we get it," Rin. "I was asking why us, specifically?"
"Aw, what's the matter?" Bakugou asked. "Too pooped out for any more adventures?"
Neito could agree with Bakugou's sentiment there. Despite the fact that, thanks to Hatsume's newest skyships, they could now travel through the entire continent in a matter of days, the things they've experienced here in the last few months were honestly kind of draining.
In less than six months, they had participated in multiple battles against the Todoroki Empire, experienced several near-death experiences at the hands of the Special Region locals, broke into the most dangerous prison ever, took down some murderous mercenaries, fought the Demon King, and we're now going on missions trying to prevent the literal end of the world.
And all of that with just about two weeks worth of vacation sprinkled in the mix!
So, yeah, Neito could understand that the squad was starting to get a bit drained. Bakugou may have been the most vocal about it, but it's starting to affect the others, too. At least Neito had Itsuka with him most of the time, so the drain wasn't as bad for him. Wait a minute…
Yaomomo has Todoroki, and Kirishima has Ashido. Meanwhile, Bakugou, a married man, is the most cranky out of all of them. Was there perhaps some sort of spectrum based on the distance between two partners, and how it affects their mood? Yaomomo and Kirishima are usually close to theirs, followed by himself and Itsuka, all of the bachelors within the SREU, and then dead last was Bakugou, whose spouse was in a whole other dimension. That… actually made sense.
It would also explain why Kaibara and Tsuburaba were such obnoxious menaces. They're always the ones who want to get laid, but to no avail. Constantly working without having any sort of meaningful relationship, or even sex, is bound to get them to act up. And since Awase and Rin are always close to them, it's begun to rub off on them, too, as seen by Rin.
I wonder if General Aizawa would listen to what I have to say…?
"I'm just saying that I'd rather be back at the Collibus Hills. You know, the only place where there seems to be nothing crazy going on?" the zoologist said. "I mean, do you have any idea on why the only place that is completely normal in this world is the place with the magical portal?"
"Probably the same reason why the area surrounding it only has flora and fauna identical to the ones native to our world," Bakugou reasoned. "It's been deemed the safest place?"
"You mean the place that was a literal war zone twice?" Kirishima asked.
"I guess so," the demolition expert said. "Though, I have to admit, I kinda hated that it did that. It made me half-expect that the rest of the world would be on the same kind of standard, instead of having to deal with oversized mushrooms, plants with eyes, and talking animals."
"Don't forget about the bioluminescent butterflies, four-winged birds, man-eating plants, reptomammals, animorphs, reptobirds, racist wildlife, and various other creatures that could be considered offenses in God's eyes," Rin said. "Or, at least, so I've heard."
"Yeah, I was about to ask about those," Kirishima said. "I do remember seeing some four-winged birds back at Usagiyama's place and man-eating plants at Uwabami's, plus Melissa told me about a racist antelope once, but those other ones sounded a bit made up."
"...I may have interviewed some of the people migrating towards the Collibus Hills," the zoologist said. "There are a lot of animals out here that we haven't seen yet, and given their descriptions… I would be happy if I never saw them for as long as I live."
Ah, well, that explained to Neito why he found Rin crying, "WHY WAS THAT BIRD WEARING A SUIT AND TIE?! AND A HAT?!?!" that one time. Poor dude must have heard some wild things.
Then again, Neito would probably have slowly begun having a mental breakdown if he earned a degree in some kind of science, only to have the irrefutable laws of said science to be casually broken in front of him on multiple occasions by this world. It would be the equivalent of Kaibara being a geologist, and then seeing a rock talking to him: Completely mind-shattering.
"Did you have to remind me?" Bakugou groaned.
"Well, I'm sorry, I can't help that I'm here!" Rin waved his arms. "It's not my fault that Yaoyorozu decided that this was a fitting punishment for being there while her boyfriend got corrupted!"
Oh, right. After their battle with the Emperor of Flames, Yaomomo has asked Neito what exactly he and the other boys took Shoto to during their night out in Japan, back when Princess Fuyumi was addressing the UN. Unfortunately, they took him to see a showing of Avenue Q…
On their way back towards the Collibus Hills, Momo asked her boyfriend what exactly he meant by "saucy puppet shows" back when he was confronting his father, and well…
"So, is your world also racist towards demi-humans?" Shoto asked.
"What? No!" Momo said, trying to explain that one musical number from the show to her boyfriend. "They were being racist towards other people! Demi-humans don't exist here!"
Shoto nodded. "So… "Chinese" isn't some kind of monster?"
Momo smacked her own face. "No! Rin is Chinese, you've met him!"
"But… he looks just like you."
Momo's face went pale. "SHOTO! That's racist!"
"Huh, so the song was right. I guess everyone's a little bit racist…"
"SHOTO, NO!"
"I was telling you, you should have taken him to see a Marvel movie…"
"That would have overloaded his brain!" Rin argued.
Bakugou laughed. "Oh, and singing "The Internet is For Porn" wouldn't?!"
"Wait, is that why she sent you here?" Kirishima asked.
"Kinda. Apparently, since Kaibara and Tsuburaba were the main offenders, they're getting the harder mission. But since I was there and didn't stop them, I stuck with you guys."
"Wel, I wasn't in Japan at the time, but given the context clues, I'm assuming that Bakubro also knew about it," Kirishima said, as Bakugou nodded. "What about you, Monoma?"
Neito looked back at the redhead. "What about me?"
"How did you get relegated to this job? Didn't you tell Yaomomo about what happened?"
"Oh, I did, but only once she already found out," the blond said. "And since I didn't do anything to stop them, my punishment is to oversee this mission, and by extension, you idiots."
"I see…" Kirishima said. "Wait, then why am I here? What am I getting punished for?"
"Oh, I don't know, how about abandoning your post in the middle of hostile territory to get laid, and making everybody worry about you for over a week?" Bakugou said. "Just saying."
"Hey, Mina is a treasure, and I will defend her until the day I die!" Kirishima barked. "And besides, it wasn't all that bad. We managed to rescue you and fight that angel, didn't we?"
"True, which is why you're here and not serving out whatever punishment the two Monsterfuckers are getting," the ash-blond said. "Anyways, how long until we –?"
THWIP!
"AHH, WHAT THE HELL?!" Neito screamed. It happened so quickly, that there was more surprise than there was pain. Looking down at his shoulder, he could see that there was an arrow sticking out of it… and he was beginning to black out…
He could feel himself losing control of the skyship, as the others yelled and Bakugou quickly scrambled to try and steer them out of the flurry of arrows that were now flying through.
He was getting… so… sleepy…
When Neito opened his eyes, he was surprised to see a giant lizard next to him. No, wait, they were kneeling on two legs, they were clearly a sapient species. Looking down, he could see their hands over where the arrow was on his body, glowing. Healing magic…
"WHAT THE FUCK IS YOU GUYS' PROBLEM?!"
Looking up from where he was laying down, Neito could see Bakugou yelling at a bipedal reptile in clothes, a lizardman, with green scales, and some sort of purple, feather-like hair going from the top of his head down towards his back, like a spiky and upright horse's mane.
"We apologize!" the lizardman said. "We thought you were –"
"You thought? YOU THOUGHT? There was clearly no thinking going on there!" Bakugou kept shouting. "It's a miracle you didn't scratch the skyship's paint job, much less kill any of us!"
"Come on, Bakubro, you know you're just exaggerating now –"
"SHUT IT, SHITTY HAIR!" Bakuogu yelled at Kirishima, before turning back to the lizardman. "You're lucky the communication mirrors survived that landing, you know that? If Midoriya found out that you shattered his magic items, it'd be your ass on a silver platter, not mine!"
"Alright, Bakugou, knock it off!" Neito called out to him, as he stood up. His shoulder still hurt like hell. "You scared him thoroughly. Now, I'm assuming you're the governor of this region…?"
"Ah, yes, that's right," the lizardman said. "I'm Shuichi Iguchi, chieftain of the lizardmen, and governor of the Lacus Lake region, with the power vested in me by the Demon King."
"Great. Well, I'm Neito Monoma, the guy who's in charge of this mission. We were sent by your Demon King to deliver these communication mirrors, and to send you a message."
"What sort of message?" Iguchi asked.
"A call to arms. Some group calling themselves the "Enlightened Evil" is planning to end the world, and most of the nations on this continent are rallying their troops, including Daemonium. So, I suggest you report to your nearest military base quickly," Neito explained.
"While we would heed the call to arms under normal circumstances, we can't right now," the lizardman said. "Our homes are under attack by humans with ice magic."
"Of course…"
"Hold up, did you say humans with ice magic?" Bakugou asked.
"Yes. We thought you were them. That's why we launched our arrows at you."
"Did they have light hair, wear winter clothes?!" Bakugou pressed.
"Uh, yes! Why? Are they the Enlightened Evil?"
"Yeah. Geten's faction, maybe even the big man himself."
"That would mean that they've already begun their campaign," Neito realized. "They've already deployed their forces, to take down each of the nation's pillars, their support structures."
"Including you guys," Rin told the lizardman chief.
"What do we do?" Iguchi asked.
The strategy was fairly simple, but given the limited time they had, it was good.
According to the info Iguchi gave his team, Geten and his posse, while strong, liked to play with their food a little too much. They decimated the majority of the lizardman's fighting force before Hiryu and the others showed up, but left without wiping out the rest of the warriors and the civilian population. Geten had left to let them squirm before putting them out of their misery.
The team's zoologist knew that these Enlightened Evil guys were bastards, but this was just insulting. The Himuras were beaten by the Emperor of Flames, and while he understood them wanting revenge, that didn't make it right for them to become the same bullies towards the lizardmen. But thankfully, their arrogance would be their downfall.
As the least combat-oriented member of the team, Hiryu was the one sent deep into the forest, to act as a scout and contact command the second he spotted Geten and his minions making their way towards the village again. While they did catch the lizardfolk off-guard with their first attack, Monoma had predicted that they would reach the lake the same way as last time.
The marshlands of the Lacus Lake were surrounded by several forests and swamps, and having an army march through them would be way too time-consuming. Knowing what they did about ice mages thanks to the Todoroki family, Monoma knew that they would either use their ice to either decimate the woodlands, or to create platforms to move above them.
It ended up being the latter.
Hiryu had heard the familiar sound of ice being created out of thin air long before he even saw the bastards. The second indication that they were heading his way was when the air got colder and the small pools of water around him began to freeze. And then, he saw them.
They were moving on frozen slides and floors, which moved through the marshlands. The figures matched the description of the Himuras they were given by the youngest Todoroki, and judging from their direction, they were heading right towards the Lacus Lake.
"Phantom Thief to Long Weizi, the enemy is on the move. Over."
"I read you, Long Weizi," Monoma's voice crackled over the walkie-talkie. "Follow the enemy and notify me once they breach the perimeter, and be sure they don't spot you. Over."
Hiryu nodded. "Understood. Over and out."
Eijiro took a few deep breaths, as he waded through the water.
Monoma had just received the message from Rin that the enemy was on their way right now. If they played things the same way as they did last time, then they would freeze the surface of the lake, not just to allow themselves to walk, but to also slow down the lizardmen.
However, things would play out differently this time around.
The lake was huge, but the edges of it were also shallow. Like, shallow enough for Eijiro to be in the water, but for it to be unable to reach up to his shins. The modus operandi of these guys was to freeze the center and deep areas of the lake, thus setting the rules of the battle.
However, they didn't bother with the edges of the lake, because anyone could wade through them. Not only that, but given how massive the lake actually was, it would be a waste of mana to freeze the whole thing, even if it meant catching anyone deep enough in the water.
Monoma's plan was basically as followed: Keep to the sides of the lake, where Geten and his lackeys wouldn't see them, while Iguchi and the rest of the lizardfolk stood at the far end of the lake, armed to the teeth, as to keep the Himuras distracted. Once the ice mages passed the SREU and headed straight for the lizardmen, go from behind and blast them.
Well, that's how it ended. The original plan was more, well…
" Okay, everyone, here's the plan: We'll sneak behind the enemy lines, and shoot them from the back. And remember, they're dangerous, so use extreme prejudice," Monoma said.
"You want us to be racist towards them?" Eijiro asked.
The blond soldier shook his head. "I've made that same mistake myself, but no. "Extreme prejudice" means killing them as violently as possible; I just said it to sound cool. I expect to see the amount of actual prejudice coming from you to be non-existent."
"Oh, okay."
Yeah, in all honesty, the final plan was much more detailed.
The artificial redhead snapped out of his thoughts as the air around him got a lot colder. Looking out towards the top of the lake, he could see people coming out of the woodlands.
White hair, winter outfits, ice magic… it's them, alright.
The water in front of them immediately froze, and they walked forward like it was a bridge. At the other end of the lake, Eijiro could see Bakubro signaling him to move forward now. Slow and steady, as to not make any splashing noises, the two of them got closer to the ice.
It made Eijiro on-edge. Even through his boots, he could feel the biting cold. No wonder the lizardmen got creamed during the first attack. As the two soldiers reached their respective side of the ice platform, Eijiro pointed towards it, and then towards the Himuras.
Bakugou shook his head. That was a no on getting themselves up to the ice platform. Alright, it was probably for the best to keep their distance. For all they knew, Geten could still manipulate the ice underneath them, and skewer the two JSDF soldiers to death.
Nodding at Baugou's signal, Eijiro lifted up his assault rifle, aimed, and…
Shuichi swallowed, as he watched the cold ones return.
So far, Monoma had predicted their movements correctly. They didn't even bother to hide their presence, they just froze the lake again and marched. They probably thought that their last attack was so demoralizing, that Shuichi and his people would have just given up.
That wasn't entirely false. Sure, it was demoralizing, but they wouldn't just roll over and die. The lizardfolk would fight to the last man, and now with the help of their newfound allies, they had an actual chance at winning. Speaking of their new friends, Monoma was still adjusting his arm.
"How are you feeling?" the lizardman chief asked.
"That arrow has pretty much made using my right arm useless until I can get back to Kodai, but I can still use magic with my left," the blond human said. "After the opening salvo, I should be able to snipe the majority of these guys. They just need to get close enough…"
"And if Geten manages to evade all of your ranged attacks?"
"Then I guess Bakugou will have no choice but to use his secret weapon…"
Geten could almost feel a smile creeping up on his face.
Their first campaign against the lizardfolk was a huge success. Seeing all those pathetic creatures charging towards him with their weapons, only to collapse into pieces from the cold of his ice magic… it made him feel something deep down inside. Perhaps happiness?
No, he would feel true happiness when the Todoroki Empire was nothing more than a frozen wasteland. When all of those within its borders were reduced to nothing more than cold statues, forever asleep, and yet never allowed to decay and move on to the afterlife.
Joining up with Kai Chisaki and the rest of the Enlightened Evil was an excellent play on his part. They would be more than happy to send him any support, should he request it, and all he needed to do was take out a few of their measly enemies for them. But not only that, none of them cared to interfere with his goals. After all, none of theirs interfered with his.
Honestly, he couldn't care about the specifics of their goals. The Enlightened Evil was a marriage of convenience, and once Midoriya, Hatsume, and Todoroki fell, the divorce would arrive. But until then, Geten and his followers would enjoy plunging those who dared oppose them into their hellish blizzards. Such as these lizardmen, who were just standing around.
Perhaps they realized that it was futile to fight. That would make sense. After all, most of their forces were decimated a mere couple of hours ago. Geten would have enjoyed freezing all of them back there, but his followers needed to regain their strength. It was sad, but they simply weren't as powerful as he was. Not that these pitiful reptiles would ever know the truth –
BLAM!
One of his followers suddenly fell, dead and bleeding.
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!
More of that thunder erupted, and more of his servants perished. Whatever this noise was, it was causing his people to die. Was this the lizardmen? How were they doing this?!
One more of his followers fell, but the way they fell… it was almost as if something pushed them. And… was that a hole in their back? Turning around, Geten saw two humans, both of them carrying some sort of metal things, where the noise was emanating from.
It was them! They were the ones responsible for this!
"YOU SHALL PAY FOR THIS!"
"Welp, guess he noticed us," Bakubro sighed.
Yeah, that was a bad sign, in Eijiro's opinion. On the flipside, though, they managed to mow through the majority of this guy's goons. Monoma's opening shot was enough to get them off their game, and then the wide attack from him and Bakugou took care of most of them. The only ones that were left were now Geten himself and a couple of the surviving henchmen.
BREEAM-POW!
And since Monoma was now sniping the small fry with Aoyama's lasers, it meant that Geten was Eijiro and Bakugou's priority. "Alright, dude, what's the name of the game?"
"SHOOT THE FUCKER UNTIL HE DROPS!"
"Works for me!" Eijiro smiled with a thumbs-up.
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!
"FAC GLACIES: PROTECTOR!"
Aw, crud. Geten manifested some sort of ice shield to protect himself. Eijiro would have been worried if it wasn't for the fact that the shield was actually pretty nice. Was that a flower pattern? He could make a killing using his ice as art! No, wait, focus! Gotta take down the bad guy!
"Okaaay… do we have any other ideas?" Eijiro asked.
"Yeah, DODGE!"
SHIIIIINK-BOOOM!
The two Japanese soldiers did so, and right on time, too, as a flurry of ice spikes shot towards them, freezing the nearby water in the lake and creating a cool mist in the air.
"This fog…" Bakugou muttered. "Shitty Hair, I have a plan."
"Lay it on me!"
This fog was an unexpected side-effect, but no matter.
The cold didn't affect Geten, he had a natural immunity. But for those simpletons who dared assist the lizardmen, it would cover their bodies until it chipped at their flesh –
BANG!
Geten recoiled in pain as he felt his shoulder give out. What was that?! There was something lodged in his upper arm, he could feel it. Quickly summoning his ice, Geten placed it on his wound to stop the bleeding, and give him some relief, but he still couldn't move his arm!
"Aha! I knew that silhouette was you! Couldn't hide in your fog!"
Geten looked up to see that red-haired bastard, no longer carrying his massive weapon, but rather, a smaller one. "You… How could you survive the mist unscathed?! TELL ME!"
"Oh, believe me, I'm not unscathed," the redhead said, showing off his frost-covered arms. "I had to drop my assault rifle due to the pain, but my hands can still hold smaller weapons!"
"You insolent… GLACIES GLADUIS!" Geten summoned an ice sword on his still-working arm, and pointed it towards his foe. "You shall not receive a quick death from my magic."
"Oh, you're gonna stab me with that thing? I'm honored," the green-wearing man said, before pulling out a small knife. "There, now we can both do melee, it's a fair fight."
"BASTARD! YOU MOCK ME!" Geten roared, as he charged at the human. The cretin jumped back from the swing of his sword, moved to the left, and just stayed there. What –?
BLAM!
Geten could feel something warm escape his throat. Oh… it was blood. His blood. Looking behind him, he could see the blond human, holding his weapon, as the frost covered his hands. As he collapsed down to the frozen floor, he could hear the red-headed one speaking.
"You underestimated your opponents. You treated the lizardfolk like flies just because you had better firepower than them, but you also attacked them without warning. That shit was unmanly. We figured it would be fitting if you died to the very same unmanly tricks."
How dare they…? Geten tried to summon a final spell, to send this place into an eternal blizzard, but… he couldn't… he was just so tired, and everything was going black…
And then… Geten felt colder than he ever had.
The ice began to clear up a few days later.
Bakugou had suggested using his magic to speed up the process, but Neito vetoed it. They didn't want to cause an ecological disaster bigger than the one Geten already had.
In the span of those few days, the communications mirrors were set up, and they were able to report straight to the Demon King's place. The reports that Geten was defeated came in, and Midoriya notified Iguchi that the army would be coming in to fortify the Lacus Lake.
Overall, it was safe to say that the mission was a success. The frostbite from Geten's magic was still eating away at Kirishima and Bakugou's hands, and Neito still couldn't feel his right arm. A quick visit to Kodai would make them all feel right as rain. It was time to go.
"I can't thank you enough for your help," Iguchi said.
"Not a problem. Just be sure that the next time you see something flying towards you, make sure it's an enemy before you try and shoot it down, okay?" Neito asked.
"Ha-ha! Of course! We'll see you on the battlefield!"
Neito nodded, as he stepped into the passenger seat of the skyship. Rin was the only one who still had both of his arms unscathed, so he was in charge of driving them back to base. As the skyship took off and the lizardfolk waved at them good-bye, Neito was thinking.
He was thinking that, when this was all over, he would take Itsuka somewhere to relax and unwind. He wasn't sure where yet, but wherever it was… there would definitely be no snow.
Momo and her team stepped out of the LAV, as they silently stared at the marvel of naval warfare that was now sitting in the docks of Portus City. Looks like when Fuyumi said the Self-Defense Force would have the Empire's support, they weren't joking.
She could hear Awase gushing about how this was a modified JS Muroto ship from behind her, but Momo was more interested in how this thing managed to get through the gate. Did the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force bring this thing in pieces and then assemble it? That was the most likely answer, given it would be hell to carry it all the way to Portus.
"Lieutenant Yaoyorozu?" Momo stopped staring at the colossal ship, as she noticed a bulky man wearing a captain's uniform approaching her. "Captain Yawara Chatora, reporting for duty."
Momo wasn't prepared for him to salute her. "Uhh, I'm pretty sure you outrank me."
"That may be true, but you have far more experience dealing with the Special Region, and, if I'm speaking frankly, having the Hero of Musutafu seems a bit wrong to me."
The black-haired woman rolled her eyes at that. She figured that was the title the Japanese public gave her. Moving on from that, she examined the ship, and… is that…?
"Hey," Denki Jiro greeted Momo, giving her a casual wave.
Author's Note: One bad guy down, plenty more to go. Now, for the comments.
Shin: Okay, I am familiar with SNAFU, but I'm not too sure if there is any Japanese military jargon (I looked it up, and so far, I found nothing). If Bakugou is gonna say anything, it's gonna be his standard array of f-bombs and curse words. The whole "Kurogiri is Oboro" thing may have been hinted at by me across the story, yeah, but they were few and far between, so I don't blame you for not picking up on it. Ryukyu's gonna show up a few chapters down the line from now, so look forward to when that happens.
valkrus: Alright, I fixed the typos. With that out of the way, regarding your question, Flect Turn (along with the rest of the Enlightened Evil) are self-serving individuals, with most of them only working with Chisaki because of his influence. But that doesn't mean they're stupid. They're fully-aware of what he wants, it's just that they believe, one, Chisaki won't backstab them until their big enemies (Midoriya, the Todorokis, etc) are all taken care of, and two, Chisaki won't backstab them until they get what they want. Will the lich honor their bargain? Well, you'll find out as you keep reading...
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 39: Isana
Summary:
As Monoma and his team come back from their mission, they learn from Aizawa that Yaoyorozu and her select team have headed off for their own mission, along with a volunteer. Momo and her team (and their civilian guide), meanwhile, have to uncover a mystery that involves a sea monster...
Chapter Text
Chapter 39: Isana
Katsuki silently watched as Monoma gently flew the skyship down towards the Collibus Hills' runway. He was sure that the Lieutenant would be happy to hear that the four of them took down one of the upper echelons of the Enlightened Evil. Even if it was a minor guy.
Still, the fact that four soldiers, with the help of a tribe of lizardmen, managed to take down an insane wizard that, while not close to the Empress of Ice's power, was still a formidable adversary, especially when he was being backed up with an army of mages.
"You think taking down Geten will help get Yaoyorozu off my case?" Rin asked.
"You mean for the whole Avenue Q thing?" Shitty Hair asked. "Maybe."
"Off your case or not, it's still important we let her know," Monoma said, as he powered down the magical engine of the skyship. At least Katsuki could agree with his superior on the front.
Jumping out of his seat and landing on the paved road, Katsuki looked around for any sign of a welcoming committee. Oh, sure, he could see plenty of people, both from Japan and the Special Region, working around the platform, but none of them were familiar faces walking up to them to hear their reports. Actually, scratch that, he could see General Aizawa walking up now…
"Lieutenant Monoma," Aizawa greeted the commanding officer of their small unit. "I take it your mission to deliver the mirrors to the lizardmen of the Lacus Lake was a success?"
"Uh, technically, yeah. But we may have done a bit more," the blond said.
Aizawa raised an eyebrow at that. "Oh, really? Do tell."
Shouta Aizawa sat down at hearing all of that.
An unexpected attack from the Enlightened Evil was not on his bingo card for this week, but he was at least glad to hear that Monoma and his team managed to take down Geten. He would have to inform the Todorokis as soon as he could, but otherwise, a net positive.
Even if Geten was a small fry relatively compared to the rest of the monsters he was hanging out with, one less weapon for the Enlightened Evil to use was still one less weapon. Not only that, but they also managed to defend one of the Demon King's regions. Nice.
"I'm sure there will be some kind of commemorative event for all of this once the crisis at hand is resolved," Shouta said. "But for now, I'm afraid a simple "good job" will have to suffice."
"Figures," Rin grumbled.
"Hey, it's still better than nothing," Kirishima argued.
Bakugou rolled his eyes. "Whatever. When can we tell Ponytail?"
"If by "Ponytail" you mean "Lieutenant Yaoyorozu," then you won't be able to. At least, not in person," Shouta said. "She left yesterday, alongside Corporal Awase, Privates Aoyama, Kaibara, and Tsuburaba, following our maritime warfare branch, along with their volunteer."
"Volunteer? What volunteer?" Monoma asked.
"That electric friend of yours."
Shouta could already visualize the brainpower Bakugou was using to try and figure out who he was referring to, but miracles do exist, as he suddenly put two and two together.
"Wait, are you talking about Dunce Face? The singing mermaid fucker?"
"...That's one way to put it, I suppose," Shouta said. "But, yes. Denki Jiro volunteered to assist Lieutenant Yaoyorozu on a sudden mission that required their presence up north."
"How far north are we talking?" Kirishima asked.
"Way beyond the continent, and into the open ocean," Shouta explained. "About a day after you left, the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force sent one of their smaller battleships through the gate. Naturally, it was in pieces for the transportation process, but with the help of the elves and Awase, I'm sure they were able to piece it back together at Portus City. Sound familiar?"
"Hey, yeah, it is," Kirishima said. "Isn't that the place where –"
"Where absolutely nothing happened," Bakugou cut off the redhead. "Right?"
"Huh? Ohh… Yeah, nothing happened. We were just touring a nice city, and we didn't get into a gunfight with pirates in order to save a pregnant lady. That definitely didn't happen."
"You're both terrible actors," Monoma deadpanned.
Shouta agreed on that front. "If I wanted to reprimand the two of you for your part in that vigilante mission, I would have done that a long time ago. But since your little excursion did yield fruit, and it was, morally speaking, the right thing to do, you can stop trying to cover it up."
While both Kirishima and Bakugou deflated slightly at that, Rin decided to ask a smarter question. "Okay, but why are they going out to see? And in a JMSDF ship, no less?"
"Well, I'm sure you remember from the strategy meetings that one of the Enlightened Evil's upper executives is Flect Turn, that guy who wants to flood the entire world, yeah?" Shouta asked. "Well, we figured that it would be a good idea for us to be proactive and look for him. And since most ships in this world are still wooden, we decided to go with one of our own."
"Makes sense," Bakugou said. "It's much harder to sink a metal battleship than it is to sink a wooden galley. But why is Jiro there? Shouldn't he be with his wife right now?"
"While it's true they aren't too far off from the delivery date, Denki Jiro actually volunteered to help Yaoyorozu and the others. Apparently, he went on tour through the northern archipelagos there once, so he knows the layout of the place," Shouta explained. "But as for personal reasons, I'm not too sure. But then again, I'm not an expecting father, unlike someone here…"
"Unlike…?" Bakugou snapped towards Kirishima. "Shitty Hair, did you rat me out?!"
"WHAT?! NO!" the redhead shouted.
"You do know it's not a crime to be a parent in the JSDF, right?" Rin said.
"SHUT UP, NERD!"
How the Special Region Exploration Unit managed to succeed when it was composed of these irrational maniacs was a mystery Shouta Aizawa figured he would never answer…
The fog around the sea somehow managed to make both the sky and the water look like the same shade of gray. At least it didn't look as bad as the green fog of the Mushroom Forest.
Still, Momo was half-expecting the waters around here to be as nice and sunny as they were when she and the rest of the SREU visited Portus City the first time. And for a little bit, yeah, it was. But a few days into the open water, and this pea soup of a fog had rolled in.
"Oof. We finally reach the waters near the Insulae Isles, and it's so cloudy, you can't see jack," the electric-haired bard said. "Sorry for the subpar welcome, Yaoyorozu-san."
Momo smiled at the musician. "It's fine, Jiro-san."
"Ah, ah! Remember, around these parts, I'm Kaminari-san."
Right. One of the stipulations of Denki's agreement to help them on this mission was to refer to him by his maiden name. Apparently, he was paranoid that the Enlightened Evil could have spies, and thus, didn't want them to track down his wife and child through their family name.
"Apologies, Kaminari-san," Momo corrected herself. "Though, I have to admit, I do find it kind of odd that you were willing to help us, especially given the danger that this could present."
"Well, I'm still human, so while my family might be able to live in a world entirely submerged under water, I definitely couldn't," the man with black-and-yellow hair said. "And that probably goes the same for most of the world's land-loving population, human or otherwise."
"An excellent point," Momo said. "Come on, let's head inside. There's nothing out here."
Kaminari nodded, as he opened the heavy metal door that led to the inside of the ship. As Momo walked through, Kaminari closed the door behind him, and the two of them walked down the metal corridor to the cargo bay, where everyone else was currently hanging around.
The cargo bay itself was massive, in Momo's opinion. It could easily fit a few dozen cranes, vehicles, and even a few extra floors of space within the bay, but for now, it was making itself home to a makeshift moonpool, along with a few experimental submersible vehicles.
Hatsume and her elves provided the "sub-pods" as she named them, four mechanical vehicles powered by a bit of magic and steam engineering, courtesy of Awase. The vehicles themselves were designed for underwater combat in the event that Flect Turn or any of his ocean-affiliated comrades were to attack, all of them armed with the teeth torpedoes and harpoons.
In all honesty, they somewhat bore a resemblance to giant bullets that somehow found themselves in a steampunk universe. They were round, covered with brown metal and littles fins, with their fronts showing off their tinted windows, revealing their small cockpits.
From the report Momo received, each sub-pod was capable of being operated by two people inside of them, one of them to man the steering, while the other handled the weapons. But they were able to work with only one pilot, should the need arise. Good, she thought to herself.
There were only six of them that would be taking the sub-pods into the field should the need arise, and Momo had a feeling they would need all four of them in the event a battle went down. Plus, if one of them was destroyed, it lowered the chances that two people would be killed, rather than the guarantee if only three of them were to be deployed at any given time.
Let's save those grim thoughts for later, Momo thought to herself, as she approached the sub-pod Awase was currently tinkering on. "How are things on your end?"
"Oh, I've been keeping myself busy, modifying the fins and torpedoes here," Awase said. "But you might wanna check up on the others. I think they'll die of boredom soon enough."
"Oh, is that so?" Momo chuckled.
"Yeah, it is!" Tsuburaba shouted from the corner. "We've been on this boat for almost a week, and we've found nothing! No squids, no lobsters, no jellyfish, and no sea monsters!"
"Well, we're gonna be out here until we reach the Insulae Isles, and even then, we're still gonna be searching for any sign of the Enlightened Evil's aquatic division," Momo retorted.
"Um, about that…" Kaibara raised his hand. "Why did you pick us for this?"
"Aside from the fact that you're qualified to man these vehicles, I figured that a week out in open sea would be torture for a geologist," Momo said, smiling. "And even if the skies right now are cloudy, I get the feeling a meteorologist wouldn't enjoy being underwater for hours on end."
"All of this because we wanted to watch Avenue Q for some laughs?" Kaibara gulped.
"...You are one spiteful lady, you know that?" Tsuburaba asked.
"Maybe this will teach you to think twice before taking my boyfriend to watch something so vulgar," Momo said. "Honestly, couldn't you have just rented Citizen Kane on HBO?"
"I would rather have these torpedoes explode on us right now and paint the walls with our blood than have to pay for anything that isn't on Netflix," the meteorologist said.
"Hey, if you don't shut up, you might just get your wish," Awase said, as he closed the cap on one of the torpedoes. "Every time you guys talk, it breaks my concentration."
Aoyama, meanwhile, was enjoying the free entertainment from the sidelines, with a bit of cheese, before deciding to join the fray. "You know, I was quite sure that Les Miserables was also playing back in Tokyo at the time. You could have taken Todoroki there."
"I'm pretty sure that if Todoroki saw that shit, he would have thrown himself into the ocean," Kaibara said. "Not sure why, but I think that you French dudes find pain funny."
"We find everyone's pain funny but our own," Aoyama said, as he bit into his cheese.
"Well, we're here to stop the Enlightened Evil from causing any more pain," Momo said. "Or, at the very least, do a bit of damage control if the rumors we heard back at Portus are legit."
"Rumors?" the Frenchman repeated. "Je didn't hear any rumors."
"That's because you were too busy looking pretty," Awase grumbled.
"The rumors Yaoyorozu is referring to are that there's something that's attacking ships in these waters," Kaminari interjected. "The survivors say it was a sea monster, and a big one, at that. It might be one affiliated with the Enlightened Evil, and that's the last thing we need."
"I'd argue that the last thing we need is a lich hellbent on the end of all life in this world, but I understand what you're saying," Kaibara said. "Given how many creeps are rallying behind Chisaki, I guess it's a good call to be proactive and take them down before they strike."
Momo nodded. "Yeah, it's –"
BOOM!
The hull of the ship began to shake, water from the moonpool rose and sank as rapidly as the shifting tide, as the six humans inside tried to maintain their balance.
"Something's got the ship!" Awase shouted.
CREAK…
"And from the sound of it, it's ripping open the launch doors!"
As the sounds from the moonpool got louder and louder, Aoyama dropped his lunch on the floor. He ran after it, but he was too slow, as it bounced into the water. "MY CHEESE!"
BOOOOOM!
Out of the water erupted a massive arm, bigger than anything Momo had ever seen before. It looked like it was the length of Gigantomachia's, but instead of belonging to an already-dead skeleton, its owner was of living flesh and blood. Dark blue skin covered the arm, with five massive, fat fingers on the end, reaching out of the water, as if trying to grab something.
Momo knew they had found their sea monster.
"...You can have it," Aoyama said.
"GET TO THE SUB-PODS!" Momo shouted. "Awase, we need that thing out –"
"Coming up," the bandana-wearing mechanic cut her off, grabbing a grenade out of his jacket. "I may have raided Bakugou's bunk while he was gone, and now, boy, I'm glad that I did!"
Removing the pin from the grande, Awase tossed it into the moonpool, causing the water to erupt in the explosion. However, the grenade did manage to work, as it caused the massive hand to sink to the depths, as Momo and the others ran to their assigned sub-pods.
As Kaminari plopped himself into one of the seats, Momo closed the hatch up adobe before doing the same. Outside their window, she could see the mechanisms to launch the sub-pod working for the others, as their railings lifted them up, before launching them straight into the moonpool. But as the railing lifted up their sub-pod, the two of them could hear cracking.
"That's not good," Kaminari gulped.
SNAP!
The railing fell back down to the floor, and before Momo even had a chance to cancel the launch, the sub-pod was already flying across the cargo bay, before scraping one of the nearby walls, and then, crashing into the moonpool, where it began to sink.
"It's pulling at the starboard side!"
"Where's Yaoyorozu and Kaminari?!"
"I didn't see them launch!"
"Guys! Are you there?!"
Momo ignored the radio chatter as she tried to stop her sub-pod from sinking any deeper into the dark ocean. There was water leaking into the cockpit, and their power supplies were shot. All she could do was pull levers and punch buttons, praying something would work.
"Come on, back-up batteries…" Momo hissed. "Time to back up!"
"Hey, it's lighting up! I think we can use the radio!" Kaminari said, as he pushed the button, tuning into the open channel. "This is Kaminari! We're on back-up batteries, we're sinking fast, we have no propulsion, we've got major leaks, and the window is cracking!"
"This is Awase, so listen up!" Momo nodded, as she began to follow his instructions. "If the valves are stuck, you can reroute the water by flushing the pressure tubes and –"
"Guys, we've got bigger problems than the water reaching up to our necks!" Kaminari cut Awase off. "We're about to hit an undersea mountain! You guys need to come get us, NOW!"
As much as Momo hated to admit it, Kaminari was right. Now wasn't the time for repair manuals, and even if it was, she highly doubted they'd be able to repair this experimental tech. All they could hope for now was to get rescued before crashing into the undersea mountain, and hitching a ride on the other sub-pods before the one they were in sank to the bottom.
"Okay, we're on our way, now!" Kaibara shouted over the radio.
Looking out of the window from Kaminari's side, Momo could see the mountain he was referring to. It was massive, completely covered in wrinkle-like patterns, with a crevasse full of… white spikes? Wait a minute… was the crevasse moving? Almost as if it was a… mouth… opening…
Momo's heart froze as she realized what those white spikes were. Teeth. That wasn't a crevasse, that was a goddamn mouth, and those wrinkle-like patterns were actual wrinkles. Creaking her head up towards the top of the window, Momo saw that those wrinkles led to…
…an eye. A massive eye, its iris red, and staring down at her sub-pod like it was lunch.
"That is not a mountain," Momo whispered in horror.
Kaminari immediately understood the underlying message of what Momo was saying, and began to panic. Slamming the radio button, he shouted, "GUYS! WHERE ARE YOU?!"
"Don't worry!" Tsuburaba's voice came through. "We've got you covered!"
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Momo saw the flashing explosions of bright blue through her cracked window, and breathed a sigh of relief. Suddenly, she held on to her seat as the impact of the explosions sent her sub-pod spinning away from the monster, before being grabbed by two of the other sub-pods' harpoons.
"Watch the cracks!" Awase called in. "We don't want to make them worse!"
"Not a problem," Aoyama said. "But where is the monster?"
"It swam off before we could blow it to bits!" Kaibara growled.
"PHEW…" Kamiari let out a massive breath he was holding in, as he slumped back on his seat, almost as if he was melting. "We're alive… Is this what you go through every day?"
"As soldiers?" Momo asked. "No, it's mostly every other day."
The water around their windows became lighter and lighter, before eventually, their sub-pod managed to reach the surface. Even if there was no sun to greet them, the daylight and depressing fog all around them was much better scenery than the ocean, in Momo's opinion.
Opening the hatch, the two of them made their way to the unoccupied sub-pods, with Kaminari going to Aoyama, and Momo going with Awase. And right on time, too, as the second they stepped onto the stable pods, their own began to sink back down into the dark waters.
"...That's not coming out of my paycheck," Awase deadpanned.
Momo nodded, as she quickly tuned in to the JSDF's radio frequency.
"...the creature buckled two of the hull plates. We'll need to make repairs." Momo could tell from the voice that it was the ship's captain. "SREU, if you're in trouble, I'll send a unit for you."
Momo quickly pressed on her walkie-talkie. "Don't worry about us, Captain Chatora. We're all still alive. Just worry about reaching Navale Island and making those repairs. Kaminari has told us that there's a fishing village over at Piscatio Island. We'll be there once you finish repairs."
"Understood. Stay safe out there, Lieutenant Yaoyorozu."
Momo nodded, as she pocketed her radio, and looked over to Kaminari. "Uh, yeah, Piscatio Island should be a few hundred meters northeast from here. We'll be within the hour."
"Great, let's get to shore as soon as we can," Awase said.
"What's the matter, Yosetsu?" Kaibara laughed. "Afraid to play with the sea monster?"
"No, I don't mind the sea monster, but I really don't want to be here when the bombs on Yaoyorozu's downed sub-pod hit bottom," the mechanic said, closing the hatch.
Momo, along with everyone else, quickly scrambled into their sub-pods after that.
Reaching the shoreline was as easy as Kaminari said it would be. When the water became shallow enough for everyone to wade through, they got out of their sub-pods and made the rest of the trek towards the beach. They also tied some rope around the sub-pods so they wouldn't drift away, while also hammering down the rope on the beach with some metal stakes.
"There, that's the last of them," Tsuburaba said, as he put down the hammer.
Momo nodded, as she inspected the foggy shoreline. Aside from the sand and the rocky cliff, all around them were abandoned fishing boats, their wood decaying from neglect.
"I guess fishing hasn't been too good lately, oui?" Aoyama asked.
"That's not surprising," Kaminari said. "No doubt that monster devoured all the fish."
"Then why is it still here?" Awase asked.
"It probably doesn't eat fish anymore. Look at the village up there," Kaminari said, pointing up to the cliff. "They definitely don't want that thing showing up at dinnertime."
That certainly painted a grim picture for Momo. As she and the rest of her crew made their way up to the village, she wondered why Kaminari looked so upset. Yes, she knew that he had been to this place before with his wife, but why did he seem to care so invested?
After about fifteen minutes of walking up, they managed to reach the elevated cliff where the village was situated. Wooden houses all around, and even with the fog prevalent, Momo could see all of the locals rushing into their homes and closing the windows at seeing them.
"Not real friendly, are they?" Aoyama joked.
Momo didn't really comment, as something vile infiltrated her nostrils, forcing her to cover her nose. "Ugh, what is that smell?! It's like rotting fish! Kaibara, have you not –?!"
"Hey, don't accuse me!" the geologist said. "I've bathed! Well… recently."
"Calm down, Lieutenant, it's not Sen," Tsuburaba said, touching a local statue covered in gunk. "I'd say it's more likely that we're smelling all this mildew. Everything is wet from the fog."
"...But you do probably need a bath," Aoyama said to Kaibara. "Actually, both of you do."
"Everyone, stop. I hear footsteps," Kaminari said. "We've got company."
The six of them tensed up, ready to pull out their weapons, before calming down after seeing a couple of the locals stepping out of the fog. Still… quite the strange welcoming committee…
While the two men next to the main person seemed like normal humans, the man in the middle looked… odd, in Momo's opinion. He was dressed in a fine dark suit, but it was covered by a light purple cloak, and weirder than that, half of his face was covered in something that reminded her of one of those old diving helmets, except covered in barnacles.
"I am Isana, the magistrate of this town," the man said. "What is your business here?"
So, he's a local official, Momo thought to herself. "Hello, I'm Momo Yaoyorozu –"
"I doubt there is anything on Piscatio Island that concerns you," Isana cut her off.
"Oh? And what about your town pet that nearly sank our ship?" Awase asked.
The half-masked man remained silent for a moment, before saying, "Your ship will be repaired at the docks of Navale Island. You should leave soon. The roads are treacherous after dark."
Momo was about to say something, but Kaminari beat her to it. "I'm sure they can start repairs without us. We thought we'd stick around a while and… enjoy the scenery."
"Navale Island has excellent views," Isana said.
Kaminari narrowed his eyes. "All the same… we'll stay."
Isana let out a low growl, before he and his posse turned around, and began to walk away, but not before saying, "The Jiros are the innkeepers here. They'll give you rooms for the night. A ground dragon carriage will take you to the bridge from here to Navale Island tomorrow."
And with that, the half-masked man disappeared into the mist.
"I've seen that fella before someplace. I think under a rock," Kaibara joked. "I'm not sure what Rin would say, but he reminds me of a leech, or a worm, or maybe a salamander…"
"Come on," Kaminari said. "I know which building here is the inn."
Momo felt instantly warmer as soon as they walked through the door.
The raven-haired soldier wasn't sure if it was the lack of sunlight or the bad vibes that Isana guy was giving them, but despite the fact that these islands were supposed to be in a Mediterranean climate, she couldn't help but feel like there was a shiver going down her spine.
Or maybe it was just the fact that this inn had a lit fireplace in their small lobby.
"So, how come you know so much about this town?" Awase asked.
"You'll see…" Kamiari said, before bellowing out, "KYOTOKU? MIKA? I'M HOME!"
The lobby was quiet for a few seconds, before Momo and the others heard some fast approaching footsteps from the back, and out came… an old dagon couple. A man with long blond hair and a woman who looked like Kaminari's wife, but older and with classes.
""DENKI!""
The two of them lunged at the musician, hugging him, while everyone else just stared. But after a few seconds, Momo figured it out: These were Denki Jiro's in-laws, Kyoka's parents.
"Okay, you can stop now! Seriously, you're choking me!" Kaminari yelped, before pushing himself off his in-laws. "Uhh, I've got some friends for you to meet. Kyotoku, Mika, these are Yaoyorozu and her party; the nice old old lady is Mika, and her husband here is Kyotoku."
"It's nice to meet you," Momo said, bowing. "We're soldiers from the JSDF's Special Region Exploration Unit, but most of the locals here might know us as the Arms of Fire."
"The Arms of Fire?! Wicked!" Kyotoku said, before smacking Kaminari on the head. "Boy! Why didn't you tell us in your letters that you were now hanging out with celebrities?!"
"Huh. Two minutes; that's a new record…" Kaminair grumbled, rubbing his head. "Actually, about that, there's a reason we've come here… Can we sit down?"
"Of course," Mika said. "Make yourselves at home. I'll make us some drinks."
About twenty minutes later, everyone was situated around a table.
While the drinks were being made, Kaminari told them a story that, during his childhood, he would visit the island during the summers to spread his music, and that he would fall head over heels for a local dagon girl. The two of them eventually grew up into a traveling musical duo.
Naturally, the parents of said dagon girl weren't too thrilled about their daughter running off with a human boy, and after bunch of back-and-forth yelling, Kyotoku and Mika would accept the fact their little Kyoka was a grown woman and that she loved Denki, on two conditions: One, once they were married, that Denki would take the family name Jiro, as Kyotoku did when he married Mika, and two, that after their annual musical tours, they would visit Piscatio Island.
"So, why the hell isn't our daughter with you, huh?" Kyotoku asked.
"Well, she couldn't make the trip," Denki said. "Aside from the fact she's pregnant, we –"
"YOU KNOCKED UP MY LITTLE GIRL?!" he roared, smacking Denki's head again.
After calming down a little, Denki told his in-laws about how the expecting Kyoka had been kidnapped by pirates, and that with the help of the SREU, they managed to save her. He also told them about how they decided to retire for a bit to raise their daughter, only for Denki to volunteer in helping the JSDF in both kicking the mercenaries out of their new home in the Collibus Hills, but also in accompanying them here to stop the Enlightened Evil.
"...I see," Kyotoku said, before bowing to Momo. "Thank you. You may not have been directly responsible, but your subordinates helped my worthless son-in-law in saving our daughter –"
"HEY, I HEARD THAT PART!"
"- and our future granddaughter. We are forever in your debt."
"It's fine. Saving people is natural in our line of work," Momo said, nursing her drink. "But if you really wish to repay us, then you can tell us about this place. From what we've heard from the three of you, Piscatio Island sounded like a paradise. What the heck happened?"
Mika's face became grim. "It happened less than six months ago. There's a darkness around that Isana, and that shadow has dimmed all that was once good here. Denki, you made a good call by not bringing Kyoka here with you. It's no place to raise a little one. Not anymore."
"We would leave if we could, but our inn is here, our whole livelihood," Kyotoku said. "We're not young anymore. We can't go around the world singing in taverns like the good old days, our home is here. But things won't get better, they won't change until its power is gone."
"Its?" Momo asked. "You mean the sea monster?"
Mika stood up from her table, and Kyotoku followed suit. "We will prepare your rooms for the night. But, please, Denki, if you wish to ever see Kyoka again… leave as soon as you can."
And with that, the old couple went up the stairs, leaving the others alone.
"...They really gotta work on their tourism industry here," Tsuburaba murmured.
Sitting in the grassy fields underneath the blue skies of the Collibus Hills, a woman with fin-like ears and purple hair softly rubbed her belly, while looking over the horizon.
Kyoka sighed, as she quietly prayed for her husband's return.
Author's Note: The story for this (and the next) chapter comes from the first segment of Atlantis: Milo's Return. If you know, you know. Now, for the comments!
Guest: I've watched those two anime, as well, and they pretty much were the direct inspiration for any lizardmen characters I've written, past and future. Lizard Priest is kinda weird for me, like, I love his personality, but why does he have horns? I always thought that was more of a dragonkin thing. Sorry for getting your hopes up, but Tsu isn't coming back anytime soon. And while it is indeed traumatizing for scientists to see their work metaphorically (and sometimes literally) get thrown into the garbage, I can assure you that the magical world does follow some kind of logic that people can study.
Honey- (Guest): Well, somebody was on a commenting streak while I wasn't looking. I'm not sure what part made you laugh out loud during the thirty-sixth chapter, but I will agree that Midoriya is pretty similar to his canon-self here. The only real difference I can think of is that he can also be malicious, not just benevolent, he just prefers the latter. I'm gonna assume that the "SM" stands for "so much," because that was the only thing I found that made sense in the context of Aizawa freaking out. Also, I have no idea who you'd be calling to help you with your accidentally-racist Shoto problem.
CozyFox: I have no idea how you were getting vibes of Japan being summoned to another world when the main plot device is a gate connecting the two worlds. But maybe you're just saying that it was giving you isekai vibes, which in that case, makes sense. Especially considering the context that the elven industrial revolution is under way.
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 40: The Curator
Summary:
Momo and her team (along with Denki) keep investigating the mystery of Piscatio Island, and its connection to the local magistrate, Isana. What they discover is a horrifying truth involving the local sea monster, which the locals have dubbed "the Curator." It's not up to the team to end this monster once and for all...
Chapter Text
Chapter 40: The Curator
Late in the evening, after the sun had set, but before the moon rose, the only things that were visible within the fog were whatever the lights from the villager's windows were illuminating outside, such as the nearby statue, and a light that Isana was carrying with him.
As soon as the half-masked man passed the statute, Momo and the others quietly got up from their hiding spot. "Come on," she whispered. "Just follow his glowstone lantern."
The plan was straightforward: Once it got dark and all the local villagers were relaxing in their homes, the team set up a small perimeter in the town square. As soon as Isana passed by, going wherever he was going… they would just follow him, and then… have a little chat.
And by chat, mostly questioning, followed by detainment if they found anything incriminating. They would get physical only if he was deemed that dangerous. For all they knew, he could be some sort of monster in disguise, hence why they were bringing their pistols with them.
Quietly walking through the fog and away from the village, the six of them couldn't help but hear… sounds. They couldn't make out what they were exactly, but the best way to describe them was as messed-up honks, like if someone was strangling a goose. But eventually, the sounds became deeper, and more ominous, almost like… ancient chanting?
"Where is that coming from?" Kaminari wondered.
"Better question, what is it?" Awase asked.
Aoyama gulped. "It is something unnatural and unholy…"
"Nah, it's probably just a bird," Tsuburaba said. "A very big, gooney bird."
The roar could be heard in the distance, not close enough to send them into an immediate panic, but enough to make the others look at the now-nervous Tsuburaba questionably.
"Or a, uh, puffin," he suggested. "With a very upset stomach."
While the meteorologist tried to imitate Rin's zoological expertise a bit more with the others, Momo listened to the fog. It wasn't roars or wails to her, they were… whispers?
"I think it's voices…" she said. "I can't make out what they're –"
"Wait, where's Isana?" Kaibara asked.
"His light is gone!" Aoyama exclaimed.
Momo snapped out of her thoughts to see that the others were right. All she could see in front of her was fog and the ever-fading twilight. Wonderful. Who knows how many yen were spent to create their experimental subpods, but the JSDF couldn't budget for some flashlights.
Actually, scratch that. Night-vision goggles would be more effective here.
The problem was that their team had neither. Momo rubbed the sides of her temples, as she groaned, "We could be walking in circles. We better head back to the village."
"And which way would that be?" Awase asked.
Momo ignored the ethereal chatter in the distance, as she began looking around for any sign of the village… bingo. "Over there. Head for the lights, before the fog closes in again."
The fog was making them look a bit grainy, but she could definitely make out multiple yellow tentacles in the distance. As she and the others quickly made their way towards the lights, before Kaibara called out to them, "Just a moment! Listen to the gravel…"
"Not a good time for your rock fetish, dude," Awase said.
"But this is decomposed granite, which would mean we're headed for the – CLIFF!!!"
The second Kaibara yelled "cliff," Momo could feel the earth beneath her give way, sending her sliding down. Thank goodness for the geologist's warning, as that allowed Momo and the others to center their gravity towards the natural-forming wall they were sliding down. Had he been too late, five of them would now be tumbling down into a free-fall to their deaths.
Unfortunately, that didn't mean they were out of the woods just yet. With the exception of Kaminari who managed to avoid the cliff entirely, everyone else was still sliding down the slope. And it would only be a matter of time before the slope became a vertical drop.
Kaibara, the prepared bastard he was in all things rock-related, pulled out two hand-sized pick-axes and stabbed them into the side of the cliff, allowing him to stop his descent. Everyone else managed to stop their slides, as well, in the cases of Momo and Awase, by grabbing onto any protruding rocks, or in the case of Tsuburaba, by grabbing ahold of Kaibara.
Aoyama, however, ended up getting the short end of the stick, as he kept sliding down, nearing the vertical drop, until eventually, his feet landed on two included stones sticking out to the side. Even from where she was, Momo could tell that it was a struggle for him to stay still.
"I'm climbing down to you, Aoyama, stay where you are!" she called out to him. Despite the fog, she could see which rocks were safe for her to climb down towards where her colleague was. Probably had to do with the fact that the rocks were right in her face.
"Be careful, Lieutenant!" Aoyama called out to her.
"That's good!" Momo said. "Keep talking to me!"
"Hey, if we can all talk, I'd like to ask about why the hell we were led off a cliff?!"
"We were heading towards the village lights…" While Momo would have usually written off such a stupid question any other time, Awase did bring up a good point: Why the hell were the village lights beyond the cliff. Looking out towards the distance, she could still see them…
Wait a minute.
She could still see the lights, but that's it. She couldn't see the houses, the roads, nothing that would be illuminated by the lights. Taking a closer look at the little yellow squares in front of her, her jaw dropped when they suddenly shrank down and dissolved into nothingness.
"Uhh… I guess there's more going on here than sea monsters…"
"Oh, great, somebody is doing magic, and illusionary magic, at that," Tsuburaba groaned, having seen the same phenomenon as Momo. "I fucking hate illusionary magic."
Momo slowly made her way down to where Aoyama was, climbing down each large stone meticulously, so as to not fall. When she reached the last giant rock, she kneeled down, and tried to reach her hand out to the sniper, as Aoyama tried to do the same.
"I can't reach it!" the Frenchman called out. "I'll have to jump!"
"Don't jump!" Momo yelped. "I'll just climb down!"
"There's no room, I have to jump!"
"Private Aoyama, I am your commanding officer, and I order you not to –"
WHISH!
"Huh?" Momo stopped yelling at Aoyama to look at what landed next to her. Rope? Not just any rope, but a rope long enough that it was heading up all the way to the top of the cliff…
"I've tied it to the local statute, it should be long enough to reach down to where you guys are! Tell Aoyama and the others to start climbing that!" Kaminari yelled from the top of the cliff. "And please hurry! I didn't ask permission from the locals to take their rope supply!"
Kyotoku Jiro was helping his wife set the table for dinner for their son-in-law and his guests. After showing them all to the rooms they would be staying at, the Yaoyorozu lady and her colleagues headed out, saying that they would be doing some investigating.
A part of him wanted to call them fools for even trying to go up against the magistrate of Piscatio Island, but if they really were the Arms of Fire, then there was a pretty good chance that they could free everyone, in which case, he'd tell them to give Isana hell!
But, in the meantime, he and Mika would at the very least be the best innkeepers these soldiers will ever know. Not just because it was their job, but because they were Denki's friends.
Sure, he may not like Denki as much as his wife did these days, but he still cared for the boy. The two of them may not have liked their daughter's choice in partner initially, but she was a grown woman and she could make her own choices, and soon enough, they warmed up to him. And given that he volunteered to help make the world a better place for their future granddaughter, it was clear to the two of them that he was a good man, through and through.
I wonder how he'll like dinner tonight, Kyotoku wondered. I bet he –
"AH!"
The sound of a plate shattering was heard, as Mika dropped one in a fit of shock, her eyes looking at something behind Kyotoku. Turning around, the blond dagon saw… Isana.
"Gather the possessions of the strangers… and burn them."
No. Kyotoku didn't want to believe this. Isana wouldn't have... He didn't –
"What's the matter, Isana? Think we've got fleas?"
The old dagon couple, along with Isana, turned around to see Denki and his comrades enter the main hall of the inn. "Gee, you seem surprised to see us," their leader, Yaoyorozu said.
The magistrate of the island simply narrowed his eyes, before walking out of the inn. "Definitely a worm or a leech," the brown-haired one, Kaibara, said. "Salamanders are too cute."
Kyotoku breathed a sigh of relief. He's alive. Denki's alive. Our boy is alive.
"Tell us more about Isana and his relationship with this sea monster," Denki said.
Mika shook her head. "It is an old wife's story. A folktale. Nothing more."
"We want to help, Jiro-san. Please, trust us on that," the raven-haired human said, approaching Mika. "Lives have been taken at sea… and I suspect in this town, too."
Kyotoku sighed, as he decided to speak on the town's behalf. "A while ago, the fish left the sea. The town was in danger of dying. A bargain was struck, the souls of the people for the life of the town. The town is provided for, but no one can leave, and the sun has not shown since."
Yaoyorozu gulped. "And what's the name of this… creature?"
"...The Curator."
Kyotoku was right, the sun hadn't shown itself.
Sure, there was technically daylight the following morning, but not a single sign of the sun; it was constantly being blocked by the clouds above. With the intel they had gathered from last night, Momo and the rest of her team were now exploring the beachside of the island.
"Folklore or not, there is a connection between the Curator and this town."
Kaminari nodded at what the black-haired soldier said. "Isana hands out food and supplies from somewhere, but there's no docks for ships to arrive here. Maybe… a hidden cave?"
"I could search," Awase said, holding up another explosive he stole from Bakugou. "Thanks to what happened back at Hagakure's cave, I know my way around demolitions… a little."
"HA! The answer is staring at you right in the face!" Kaibara said. "Look at how this igneous boulder has been futilely disguised as sedimentary rock! They might as well paint a road sign…"
The geologist approached the side of the massive boulder, searching for something within the cracks of the cliffside… and then everyone heard a click, as he pulled down… a lever.
RUMBLE…
The boulder moved to the side, revealing a tunnel. Clever.
"The rocks look exactly the same to me," Aoyama said.
"Yeah, but you weren't raised by naked mole rats," Tsuburaba joked.
Awase laughed. "Oh, yeah, that would explain sooo much."
As Kaibara gave them the finger, all six of them headed inside the tunnel. It was dark and wet like any other cave, but with the added bonus of it smelling like dead fish. Not only that, but the deeper in they got, the bigger the space became. Looking at the sides, Momo could tell that someone had constructed a tunnel within this cave system. An often-used tunnel.
Stealthy making their way deeper inside, the team halted at the sign of two open wooden doors. Peeking inside, Momo and the others could see men stacking a bunch of crates near the edges of the walls. Quietly, the six of them entered the room and hid behind the stacked crates.
Kaminari placed his hand on one of the wooden crates. "I recognize these boxes," the electric blond whispered. "They're used by merchant ships to transfer their cargo. These are…"
"... the boxes from whatever ships that have been sunk," Aoyama realized.
Momo nodded along at the implications of that. Quickly peeking out from the crates, she noticed how massive this room was, from the tall ceiling, to the massive pool of ocean water at the end of the cave, heck, it was big enough that someone could make it a tourist attraction! She knew beach-goers that would love to swim in a naturally-formed indoor pool! But… the water…
Why is it bubbling?
As the others spotted what Momo was staring at, the still water of the pool began to have bubbles in it. The bubbles became bigger, as more of them breached the surface, until finally… a massive blue hand, with familiar fat fingers and dark blue skin emerged from the pool.
The sea monster. The one the locals had dubbed "the Curator."
Momo took a closer look at the ungodly hand that attacked their ship, and noticed that it was holding something. The monster's hand slowly and gently made its way towards the shoreline, where it opened its palm… and dropped off a bunch of wet crates, before submerging again.
Momo whispered, "I think Isana might be controlling the Curator…"
"How?" Awase asked. "Table scraps and a newspaper?"
"I don't think it's table scraps," Aoyama said. "Remember the light magic that was used to almost lure us to our deaths? I think that Inasa might be a mage, and if that's the case…"
"...Then he might be able to do more than just make illusions," Momo said. "He could be using some kind of mental power to enslave the creature, telling it what ships to attack. If our theory is correct, then we need to find Isana and have him break his connection to the Curator."
"How do we break his concentration?" Tsubuaraba asked. "Tickling him?"
"Maybe a loud noise?" Kaibara suggested. "Or maybe if we just straight-up kill him?"
"Why don't we ask him ourselves?" Kaminari spoke.
Momo and the others broke off from their huddle, as they peeked out of the crates to see that Isana was near the body of water. He seemed to be shaking the seawater out of his hair, as one of his lackeys was handing him that light purple cloak he always seemed to be wearing.
Was he having a morning swim with his pet monster? Momo wondered.
"ISANA!!!"
Momo and the others felt their blood run cold as they witnessed what felt like slow-mo for them, Kaminari jumping out from behind the crates, roaring Isana's name out, and tackling the man. Guess him threatening Kaminari's in-laws was a good way to piss the bard off.
"Fuck," she whispered, before yelling, "Help Kaminari fight off any resistance!"
The others rushed out of their hiding spaces, engaging in combat with Isana's lackeys. Momo herself had the displeasure of being thrown to the ground by a guy twice her width, before kicking him off with her boots, while Kaibara and Tsuburaba were tossed to the side by a few of the other minions like a bunch of ragdolls. Meanwhile, Aoyama used his sharpshooting expertise to wound anyone who got too close, and Awase… pulled out another grenade.
"Uhh, Awase?" Momo called out to him. "Do you even have a target in mind –?"
"ALLEZ, DOUX JÉSUS!!!"
Everyone looked over to where Aoyama was to see what caused him to scream in such a panic, only to see the French sniper staring at the man Kaminari had tackled down into the ground a few moments prior. It appeared that Isana's metallic mask broke when he crashed, and…
Oh, my God, I think I'm gonna puke, Momo thought to herself.
The left side of Isana's face was completely disfigured. Where one side had a fair-skinned human face with black hair, the other side was a dark blue, almost gray, rubbery texture of a skin, with white hair. His left eye was massive and red, not even looking in the proper direction, almost as if it was trying to crawl to the side of his skull, like, where his ear was… except there wasn't any ear she could see. The two sides of his mouth barely looked like they connected, with one side being human, and the other being a gaping maw full of sharp teeth.
"Ugh…" Tsuburaba cringed. "Now it's hard to tell which end he craps out of…"
"Rrrrr… ENOUGH OF THIS!!!" Isana roared, as he tossed Kaminari off of him like he weighed nothing. Awase was quick to catch their comrade, but everyone else could do nothing but watch as their enemy rose back up, staring at them. "You should have left when you could…"
"And leave the villagers in your hands?" Kaminari asked. "No way in hell!"
"Ah, yes… Denki Kaminari… or should I call you Denki Jiro?" Isana said, as his face tried to mimic a smile. "How is your dear Kyoka, by the way? I hope her pregnancy isn't too straining…"
"Keep my wife's name out of your fucking mouth," the blond hissed.
Crap, this is bad, Momo thought to herself. Isana knew about the Jiros, which meant that there was a chance the Enlightened Evil did, as well. What's more, it looked like Kaminari was about to blow a fuse. She needed to do something. "Hey, ugly! What exactly are you?"
"Oh? Curious, are we?" Isana stopped taunting Kaminari, and stared directly at Momo, something which she did not enjoy one bit. "Why tell you… WHEN I CAN SHOW YOU?"
Isana's body begins to move and contempt in unnatural ways, his back arched in what could only be described as painful, as he… begins to grow. He grew so much that all of his clothes burst off of him, save for his cloak, which seemed to become fused with his body. The rest of his skin turned into a dark blue, the hair on his body disappeared, and his arms turned from looking humanoid to becoming fat and blue, just like those on… the Curator… Oh, no…
"Alright, fuck this!" Awase hissed. "EAT GRENADE, BITCH!"
"NO, NOT AT THE MONSTER!" Kaibara yelled. "AIM FOR THE CAVE CEILING!!!"
The bandana-wearing mechanic paused for a second, but pretty quickly did as he was told by the geologist. In a matter of seconds, an explosion reverberates throughout the entire cave system, as rocks and boulders begin falling down towards the Curator.
"RRRUUUUURRRAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!"
The creature howls in pain, as it retreats back to the massive pool of water behind it, something Momo catches on. "Get to the sub-pods! We have to stop the Curator from getting out!"
The six of them ran off, heading straight back to the wooden doors… only to see them blocked by more of Isana's henchmen. "That's it! I have had it with you barbarians!" Aoyama yelled.
Grabbing Kaminari's weapon from his holster with one hand and using his own pistol in his other, the blond Frenchman systematically shot at every goon's knees with his bullets, sending every single one of them to the cave floor, screaming in pain, in a matter of seconds.
"There, no we don't have to fight our way through." While everyone else stood slack-jawed at what they just saw, Aoyama returned Kaminari's weapon back to him. "Here you go."
"Oh, uh… thanks?"
In Momo's opinion, it was probably for the best that they moved on.
The water was much clearer than yesterday.
The darkness from the last sub-pod deployment seemed to be absent. Momo didn't know if this was because she wasn't panicking over the fact she could drown, or because she couldn't see the Curator right now, but for whatever reason, she could face the issue with clear sight.
That being said, it didn't mean that the waters weren't dark. The deeper their sub-pods went, the darker the ocean got, no matter what Momo's mental state was, so hopefully, knowing what they were dealing with now would give them an advantage over what they were facing.
As the three sub-pods reached the bottom of the local trench they had just entered, Momo radioed the others. "Talk to me, Kaibara, we've gotta find that cave exit. Our best chance of trapping the Curator, if not outright killing him, is to seal him inside. We got anything?"
"It's too dark to see," the geologist said. "Fire the magnesium flares."
"What?! NO!" Kaminari shouted. "We have to sneak up on it, not –"
Too late. Two magnesium flares were shot by Aoyama's sub-pod, sending the light blue spheres off into the darkness of the sea, and revealing… the Curator. He had already gotten out.
However, the monster didn't think light was capable of reaching these depths, causing it to momentarily pause in shock, for just enough time for Momo to get a good look at it.
The overall body structure resembles that of a sperm whale, albeit with a dark blue color rather than a natural gray skin. Its upper teeth looked like massive needles, while its bottom jaw was full of wide, triangular teeth. It had limbs, like a person, only that they were the same fat fingers Momo had seen before, but now covered up all the way to its shoulders and back in a protective layer, one reminiscent of the cloak Isana always wore. And its eyes… those red irises…
Momo had to stop staring at the beast, as the light of the flares began to die down, and the Curator returned to reality, trying to grab and bite down on the sub-pods. All of them performed evasive maneuvers, as Momo yelled, "Stay clear of the hands and teeth!"
"Yeah, no kidding," Awase said. "I'm gonna take a shot!"
Momo watched as Aoyama and Awase's sub-pod moved in towards the monster, dodging and weaving through its hands, which were trying to crush the submersible. However, in the last second, the Curator waved its hand towards them, sending the water pressure in their direction, causing the sub-pod to change course the second it fired two of its torpedoes.
BOOM! BOOM!
"Putain!" Aoyama cursed. "It's no good! We can't line up a good shot!"
"We're on him," Kaminari said, as he took over the controls, sending himself and Momo's sub-pod down towards the sea monster's gaping maw. "Open wide… It's feeding time."
Kaminari managed to press the button and launch one of the torpedoes, but was knocked back by the Curator, as it dodged yet another attack, and roared at them.
"WATCH OUT!" Momo yelled at everyone. "MONSTER ON THE MOVE!"
The whale-like abomination began to sink its arms into the bottom of the trench, before launching itself up into the water, further propelling itself with its tail. All the three sub-pods could do was try to move faster than the Curator, and avoid its hands anytime they got close.
Climbing out of the trench, the sub-pods made their way to relatively open waters. And by open, it was more accurate to say a crag-infested mountain range, forcing them to dodge and weave between the undersea pillars, while also avoiding the Curator. Momo could hear the creature's roars behind them, as it kept trying to bite them, as the sub-pods made their way out of the crag fields and to the empty ocean floor, taking turns anywhere they could to slow it down.
"We're down to our last shot!" Awase yelled.
"As are we!" Tsuburaba followed.
"Head back to the beach!" Momo ordered. "We've got to get on dry land!"
She knew when a fight was as good as done. She wasn't going to risk the lives of her soldiers, Kaminari included, on some minute chance that they might be able to hit the Curator with their remaining torpedoes. No, they needed to get back to the surface, contact their reinforcements, and try again later with a whole battlecruiser's worth of soldiers and weapons.
However, that's when Kaminari notices something.
As they make their way up the sea mountain that holds Piscatio Island above the water, Denki Kaminari spots something down on the side. A sub-pod. The one he and Yaoyorozu first used yesterday when the ship was under attack from the Curator, and sank to the bottom.
The same sub-pod that never fired a single torpedo.
The moment Denki noticed that sub-pod, it seemed like the whole world stood still. As if it allowed him the time he needed to assess the situation and make a decision.
From the moment Denki Kaminari was born, he wasn't all that good at thinking. He was a bard, a man of art, not a thinker. Kyoka usually handled the finances between the two of them, having learned how to do so from her parents. He was never able to use his magic, so he had to compensate by purchasing a firearm capable of running on what measly power he had. He wasn't the one who came up with the strategy to rescue his pregnant wife, Bakugou and his friends were the ones who did that after he had begged them to help him. And the only reason he came along for this mission was because he was familiar with the surrounding areas, something he only managed to do after visiting them year after year, all of his life.
But what he lacked in smarts, he made up for in heart.
He had sung his heart out ever since he was capable of playing the lute. He had given his heart to Kyoka, to spend the rest of his life with her. He knew that he needed to defend his life and family, so rather than pouting over the fact he sucked at magic, he got himself a weapon he could learn to use. And when Kyoka was abducted, he asked for help from others because he knew his own limitations, and even if he had to go at it alone, he would have. Hell, he even helped retake the Collibus Hills because of how much he owed the JSDF and their allies.
And now, he had to make another decision. He came on this mission to stop a monstrous group of villains from destroying the world he had traveled across, to keep his family and friends safe, and now, an opportunity had presented itself. Was he going to let it slip past him?
"No."
Taking the controls from Yaoyorozu and turning the sub-pod around, Denki headed straight for where the downed one was. "ARE YOU CRAZY?! WE'RE HEADING RIGHT AT IT!!!"
"We're heading for our old sub-pod," Denki corrected her, pointing out towards the front window. "It's got a full load of torpedoes. We can blow them all at once, and take him down."
Denki could see the world seemingly slowing down again, as Yaoyorozu thought over his decision. He looked her straight in the eyes, and when she looked up to him, she nodded.
"Let's do this."
Out the side windows, Denki could see the other sub-pods double-back and regroup with theirs. With all three of them heading straight for the sunken pod, and the Curator charging straight towards them, they would only have one shot at this. Closer… closer… NOW!
Clicking the button, Denki launched the last torpedo they had, as the other two sub-pods did the same, all of them not aimed not towards the creature, but at the explosives it was about to swim under. The torpedoes followed the line, and… a massive explosion blinded Denki Jiro.
BOOOOOOOM!!!!!
When his eyes came back, he could see a massive stream of boiling water and bubbles in front of his window, along with… the corpse of the Curator, slowly breaking apart.
"Huh, well, I'll be damned," Yaoyorozu said, smiling. "We actually did it."
"Yeah…" Denki said. "Thanks for trusting in me."
"Of course. Now come on, let's head back to shore."
The speed at which the weather changed around the island was practically comical. In less than twenty-four hours after the death of the Curator, the sun shined once again.
It was late the next morning, and Momo couldn't help but admire the drive of the villagers living on the island. Without the constant fear of Isana and his goons lurking at every corner, the locals were now leaving their homes. Artisans began working on their crafts out in the open again, housewives were out shopping, people were painting the walls of their homes and the hulls of their fishing boats in vibrant colors, and children were outside playing tag.
Kaminari smiled at the scene. "Oh, yeah, this feels more like home."
"Oui. The curse is lifted, the fish are back, and the mildew is scrubbed away," Aoyama said.
Awase nodded. "So, if something stinks now, that would be…"
"IT'S THE FISH!" Kaibara shouted. "Stop covering your noses around me!"
"Still, it's nice to know that we made a difference," Tsuburaba said. "With the Curator gone, the ships can come back to trade, and the people can come and go as they please. Who knows, maybe Kyotoku and Mika will visit us at the Collibus Hills when your kid is born, Denki?"
Kamnari nodded. "Yeah, that'd be nice, Kosei. But still, I can't help but wonder…"
"Can't help but wonder what?" Momo asked.
"What exactly was Isana's plan here?" the blond asked. "He played both the roles of the monster responsible for driving the fish away and the magistrate responsible for supposedly saving the town, for what? Just so he could rule over a town? LIke some kind of tyrant?"
"That is a good question," Momo admitted. "Maybe it had something to do with his name, Curator. A person who guards objects in a museum… Maybe there was something here that he didn't want anyone to find? Though, with his lackeys disappearing before we came back…"
"Yeah, we don't have anyone to tell us," Kaminari sighed.
"Don't worry, I'm sure we'll figure it out… friend."
"Friend, huh?" Denki Jiro smiled. "I think I like that. Thanks, Yaomomo."
"Anytime, Jiro."
Beneath the waves, Flect Turn clicked his tongue. The Curator failed. While his loss wasn't that big of a deal, he was more concerned with those responsible for it. Those otherworlders…
They were no doubt led by that Yaoyorozu woman. Word of her deeds had spread even to the bottom of the trenches. And while the aquatic demi-human had to admit, her exploits were impressive, and at the end of the day, she was just a human. And humans could still drown.
He would make sure they would all drown.
Author's Note: And with that, this two-chapter story comes to an end! The rest of the arcs will mostly be one chapter (with few exceptions), so you all won't have to wait!
For those who don't know, the Curator is a Villain from one of the MHA arcade games, and was based on a character from one of Horikoshi's previous works
Shin: You're right on the money when it comes to Bakugou, mostly because I have no idea how he would actually react, but what you said does make sense. Of course Denki would free his wife's hometown, that's what most people would do in such a scenario (I hope)! I actually didn't know that Lizard Priest's horns were a sign that he was getting closer to becoming a dragon, I thought it was just a stylistic choice by the author.
Honey- (Guest): Everything was funny and silly to you? That's better than I ever dared to dream of! Wonderful! Also, I'm gonna assume the second comment on this chapter is also from you (given it has an identical name), so just read the chapter to find out what I meant by the creature's power, and let there be more creeps given to you!
VinHD15: HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! Lemme know how ya liked your gift!
valkrus: Okay, yes, I know that I was inspired by Atlantis: Milo's Return for this mini-arc, but I was referring more to the plot and the props. Characters are strictly MHA, hence why there wasn't an actual kraken here (since Innsmouth is too tiny), but instead, a different character played the role of the kaiju-sized sea monster from the franchise. Also, fixed the typo. Guess it's back to level one of this game, for me.
Grieflord_101: I'm glad you love this series! Unfortunately, I don't know how to allow people to add my stories into their collections. Could you maybe guide me through it?
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 41: Alchemists and Raiders
Summary:
As Kendo and her team explored the Rupes Desert, they came across not just a dwarven alchemist (and their giant hamster), but also what they beleive could be the lair of one of the members of the Enlightened Evil. Meeting up with Monoma, they create a small team to investigate inside the mysterious tomb...
Chapter Text
Chapter 41: Alchemists and Raiders
Itsuka Kendo surveyed the area around them.
There had been reports that one of the members of the Enlightened Evil had set up their base somewhere around the sandy areas of the Rupes Desert. Now, technically speaking, the SREU had visited this desert before (back during their first expedition), but when they went through it, they had gone down the southern region, where there wasn't a single grain of sand.
And up on the northern end, well… there was sand, just not a lot of it. She wasn't a geologist, but if Itsuka was gonna guess, she figured that there was less than a foot of sand between her and the rocky floor she was familiar with during her last expedition. So, thankfully, anyone who decided to cross this region wouldn't need to alter their tire pressure to drive through here.
But that being said, she couldn't find anything but sand and the occasional rocky crag poking through. Hatsume's elves had reported seeing some sort of ziggurat around here with some seriously bad vibes, but Itsuka had some serious donuts about whether or not that structure belonged to anyone from the Enlightened Evil, much less anyone malicious.
Aside from the fact that she hadn't even seen it, there were no reports of anyone inhabiting the place, not even going in and out of it. Also, these sorts of structures tended to be the tombs of historical figures back on Earth, and she didn't like the idea of either her or anyone else on her team accidentally tomb raiding a structure that should probably be left alone.
"Alright, I think we can mark off this spot from the map."
"About time," Komori huffed. "I feel like I'm gonna wilt away out here!"
Uraraka gave her a funny look. "Can mushrooms even wilt away?"
"Yeah, after you harvest them," Sato said, handing out some water bottles to everyone. "What I'm more interested in is the fact that Komori self-identifies as a fungus."
Komori narrowed her eyes. "You got a problem with that?"
"No, I just figured you'd identify as a plant, given you have a whole botany degree."
"Well, both plants and fungi can wilt, so –"
"Will you guys stop?" Itsuka asked, as she put away her binoculars. "Come on, we've still got a few more places to check. All the elves gave us was a general location of this supposed "tomb," and I'd rather not spend another night out in this scorpion-infested desert. Let's get going."
"Would two giant scorpions even count as an infestation?" Kodai asked.
Itsuka didn't even bother entertaining the medic's question, as she entered the passenger seat of the LAV. The rest of her team followed suit, as Sato took the driver's seat, and the other three took the back. And with a quick start of the engine, they were off again.
As the desert sands blew behind them from the speed of the LAV, the orange-haired woman wondered how long she had truly been out here. Logically, she knew it had been less than six days, but her spirit made it feel like she had been here for at least a year.
The only things that they were able to do out here were drive, look around the sands for something, constantly remain hydrated to not die out there, and sleep with one eye open during the cold nights so no nocturnal predators would be able to break into the heated LAV.
In all honesty, Itsuka was ready for a change. Any kind of change.
"Uhh, Sergeant Kendo?"
"Mm? What is it, Sato?"
"There's something ahead of us."
The orange-haired woman snapped out of her half-awake fantasies and looked ahead to see that there was… a wooden vehicle, a wagon, ahead of them. Judging from the man that was waving them down, it looked like he was in need of some roadside assistance.
"Alright, let's stop next to them," Itsuka said. "If he needs help, we help him. If it's a set-up for a bandit attack or some sort of monster that creates illusions, we kill them. Simple enough."
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Sato said, as he stepped on the breaks.
Stepping out of the vehicle, Itsuka took a good look at the situation in front of her. The wagon in front of her seemed to be one of those prairie schooners that the pioneers used to travel the Americas a couple centuries back (she took an American history elective back in college), if the wooden frame and cloth bow above it were anything to go off of. And it looked like one of the wheels on the man's popped off, causing it to go off-balance. Seems simple enough.
"Need a hand?" Itsuka asked, as she looked over to the driver.
He was short. Not as short as Mineta, but definitely below the human average. Despite that, he had a bulky frame, which somehow complimented his short, ice-blue hair and nervous expression. He also seemed to be dressed as some sort of cross between a cowboy and a wizard, if the tall broad-brimmed hat, along with the trenchcoat and belt buckle were any clues.
"And who do I thank for coming to a poor dwarf's rescue?"
He's a dwarf? That certainly explained his height and build, but Kendo didn't think that was an option due to the obvious lack of a beard. It was probably best that she kept that part to herself.
"WHOA! Is that a giant hamster?!"
Itsuka looked over to the front of the wagon, to see that the creature pulling it was, yep, a hamster. A nine-foot-long hamster with a mix of white and golden fur, that seemed to be a mix of confused and terrified at the sudden cuddle session it was getting from the three girls.
"He's so fluffy!"
"Mm. He's cute."
"He's adorable!"
"He has a name and it's Yuwai," the dwarf said, before turning back to Itsuka. "Anyways, my name is Nirengeki Shoda. And… you must be a member of the JSDF, aren't you?"
"Uhh, yeah," the orange-haired woman said. "How did you know that?"
"I remember seeing you at the public award ceremony back at Yuuei-Shiketsu. You have my thanks for taking down the Cult of Gigantomachia," the dwarf said. "Anywho, I heard about the economic opportunities at the Collibus Hills, and decided to try my luck there, but…"
"...your wheel came off," Itsuka said. "Don't worry, we'll do what we can."
Well, they certainly did everything they could.
The orange-haired human, Kendo was her name, admitted that they weren't experts on vehicles, much less beast-drawn carriage, but they claimed to know how simple machines worked, at least. All they needed to do was re-tighten the wheel and axle, and…
"There!" the big-lipped man said, wiping off some sweat. "It's done!"
"Thank you, my tall friends!" Nirengeki said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a jar of one of his concoctions. "As a token of appreciation, I would like you to have this! Holy water!"
"Holy water?" Kendo repeated. "What's it made of?"
"Water, insect jam, liqueur, salt, sugar, along with slime liver and mint, for taste!" Nirengeki said proudly. "While it may not be as elegant-looking as the holy water you can purchase from a church, I do believe that it should have the same effects as the genuine article!"
"Ah, I get it," Kendo said, snapping her fingers. "You're an alchemist that's been trying to reverse-engineer how the clergy makes theirs, and you want us to test this out."
Nirengeki gave a half-hearted chuckle at that. "Yes, if it's not too much to ask, I would like your personal thoughts on it, should you ever use it. After all, as a soon-to-be resident of the Collibus Hills and your neighbor, it's in everyone's interests that our products are the best they can be…"
"Alright, alright, arm successfully twisted," Kendo laughed. "We'll let you know if we use it."
"Excellent to hear!" Nirengeki said, as he quickly climbed back up to the seat of his wagon, grabbing his reins. "Well, until next time! Come on, Yuwai, off we go! Hyah!"
With a whip of his reins, his giant hamster got the message, and began pulling his cart again, off the Collibus Hills, leaving the humans behind. Fame and fortune, here I come!
"Well, he was certainly a nice fellow," Uraraka said.
Itsuka looked over towards the back of the LAV. Kodai was still staring at the jar of holy water in her hands like it was the coolest thing she had ever seen, despite the fact that Itsuka was pretty sure holy water wasn't supposed to glow, much less have rainbows mixed with the deep blue.
Hell, water wasn't supposed to have such a deep blue coloration unless you were in the middle of the ocean. And considering they were in a desert, the water in that jar should be a regular clear. Speaking of which, wasn't holy water just supposed to be water that was blessed by a religious figure, with a pinch of salt added in for flavor? By all accounts, it seemed like Shoda mixed together a bunch of different shit when the original version seemed a whole lot simpler.
Why? Was he trying to get rid of some sort of monopoly the local religions of the world had on holy water? And if the answer to that was yes, then again, why? The dwarf was an alchemist, he had dozens of other potion options he could make, what made holy water so special?
Itsuka knew that she needed more info.
"It's so pretty…" Kodai whispered.
"Is it? No offense, but it kinda looks like he just stuffed a bunch of gem-shaped candies into a jar full of bubble mix, dumped in some blue paint, and called it a day," Sato said, still driving.
Kodai looked at Sato like he just said something insulting. "Aren't you supposed to be a chef? Isn't your whole policy not to judge something by its looks, but by how it tastes?"
"We're not taste testing that," Itsuka said, putting her foot down. "Holy water isn't meant to be drunk by people back on Earth, and I'm pretty sure the same rule applies here. Also, I wouldn't recommend drinking something whose ingredient list includes a jam made out of bugs."
"Why not? Insects are worshiped by various cultures and religions. Not only that, but Shoda said that he added mint slime liver and mint "for taste," implying that it can be consumed."
"That's another thing!" Itsuka pointed out. "Slime liver? As in the organs of a gelatinous monster that would try to eat us if it had the chance? That would be basically using a bear back home! I'm pretty sure he was just throwing stuff at the wall and seeing what would stick."
"Are you accusing him of being a snake oil salesman?" Komori asked.
"Not exactly. I do think that he's an alchemist, just like he claims, but I think that he might actually be an amateur alchemist," Itsuka answered. "He said that he was a dwarf, right? Well, I didn't see a beard on him, nor did it look like he had shaved recently, implying that he isn't a full-grown adult just yet. He's probably still learning the ropes, experimenting with what he has, kinda like a college student mixing together some chemicals to learn what they do."
"Now you're sounding like Bakugou," Uraraka snorted.
"No, I'm not –"
"Uhh, Sergeant?" Sato spoke up. "You might wanna take a look at this."
Itsuka looked back to the front window of the LAV, and her jaw dropped. Quickly motioning for Sato to stop the car, he did just that, and the orange-haired woman opened the door.
Stepping out a few more feet from the vehicle, Itsuka kept staring in astonishment at what she was seeing, as the others exited the LAV and followed suit. Out in front of them, a few hundred meters away was a ziggurat. While it may have been less than half the size of the Pyramid of Giza, it was far more extravagant. There were massive, bird-like statues on each side of the square-shaped architecture, golden balconies, giant curvilinear triangles functioning as glassless windows, and round pillars of marble standing above the staircase made of ivory surrounding the entrance, almost as if they were inviting people to come in. And yet…
Itsuka couldn't help but feel unsafe. This structure in front of her, despite looking so extravagant, gave her the vibes of something decrepit and dark. Now she understood what those elven scouts were talking about when they believed that a member of the Enlightened Evil set up shop here, they would be the only ones who would willingly make this place their base of operations.
This wasn't some kind of palace… It was a goddamn tomb.
"Radio in for backup," Itsuka ordered. "Now."
Neito Monoma was excited to see his girlfriend again.
What he wasn't excited for was seeing her in the middle of hostile territory.
About a day after he and the others came back from delivering the magic mirrors to the lizardmen (and killing Geten in the process), there was a new mission waiting for them, one that involved the rest of their team at the Rupes Desert, and it involved a ziggurat.
Lieutenant Yaoyorozu and the rest of her team weren't able to come due to the fact they were still doing whatever nautical nonsense they were up to, so, the only ones who could come to Itsuka's aid were himself, Bakugou, Kirishima, and Rin. So, in total, out of the fourteen members of the SREU, four extra soldiers were coming to aid the five that needed help. Sure, why not?
Landing down the skyship as far from the Ziggurat of Bad Vibes TM as they could, Neito stepped out to see that Aizawa didn't bother sending Itsuka's team with one of the skyships, but just with an LAV. And sure, he supposed it made sense: The area they were in was the north-eastern portion of the Rupes Desert, as opposed to the south-western area where they found the Corallium Forest, which was only a two-day trip as opposed to a whole week, but still…
Slapping his face, Neito dawned a face of professionalism, and walked up to the rest of their team. "First Sergeant Major Kendo, it's good to see you and your team are alive and well."
Itsuka smiled. "About as alive and as well as we can be, Second Lieutenant Monoma."
The two of them shook hands and hugged, allowing them to drop the professionalism and return back to their usual state of casualness. "Alright, so, about this ziggurat…"
"You felt it too, didn't you?"
"Absolutely," Neito said. "It's already giving me the creeps, and I'm not even inside it. I wouldn't even be surprised if the bricks from this place were made from solidified human blood."
"That's a jolly thought," Rin deadpanned. "So, what's the plan?"
"I'm going in," Itsuka simply said.
"What?!" Neito exclaimed. "No way!"
"The scouting team needs a leader, I'll be going into potentially dangerous territory. If anything happens, it's better that it happens to me rather than the highest person in command –"
"Well, as the highest person in command, it is my responsibility to ensure the safety of those below me. And even if it means pulling rank, I'll make sure that nothing happens to you –"
"Neito! You've already proven yourself. It's my turn now. Please."
The blond stared into his girlfriend's teal eyes. As much as he hated to admit it, she was right. He already proved he could handle himself against the Enlightened Evil (even if it was Geten), it would be hypocritical of him not to give her the same chance. But that didn't mean that he wasn't going to give her the biggest advantage he could. "Alright, you can go in. However…"
After some deliberation with her boyfriend, Itsuka and Neito came to an agreement: He would give them thirty minutes to investigate the inside of the ziggurat with her makeshift team. The roster ended up being composed of her, Bakugou, Uraraka, Kirishima, and Rin. Everyone else would stay outside to act as a secondary team in case anything went wrong, which included giving Monoma the choice of either going in to save the others or to call for backup.
It was actually kind of odd for the two of them to argue about mission details like this. Most of the time, Yaoyorozu or someone of a higher standing would give out all the orders, and everyone else would just follow. And during active combat, there was always that one guy you had no choice but to listen to, despite the fact they sounded completely batshit insane.
The argument about who would go in was a mix of both scenarios. And while their arguments may have been sloppy in comparison to the popper military protocol they were supposed to follow, love did have a degree of compromise with your partner about wants and needs.
Itsuka wasn't sure if that was an apt comparison, but she really didn't care. Walking up the ivory stairs, the orange-haired woman took a quick peek inside. The inside of the corridors seemed to have been constructed with some sort of golden material, but it didn't possess the same luster as the actual element. However, the statues inside did seem shinier, with green runes on them.
Maybe they're emeralds? It's a shame that Kaibara isn't with us…
"Remember, thirty minutes," Neito said. "And be sure to radio in constantly."
"Yeah, yeah, I know," she said, quickly giving him a peck on the cheek. "I'll be fine."
"You better be," the blonde chuckled. "Good luck."
The orange-haired woman nodded, as she turned around to look within the dark entryway. The others were ready and were now waiting for her. Sighing, she took the first step…
"Kendo, hold on," Kodai said, the jar of holy water in hand. "Take this with you."
The martial arts expert looked at the glowing concoction. As much as she wanted to refuse, she knew it was better to be safe than sorry, so she reluctantly took it. "Thanks, Kodai."
"Mm."
And with that last interaction out of the way, Itsuka and her makeshift team slowly walked through the first corridor of the ziggurat, as Neito and his group headed back down the stairs and towards the LAV and skyship. Tucking the holy water into her back pocket, Itsuka kept walking through the corridor, taking in every detail of the architecture. It looked so mythical…
"HOLD IT!"
Everyone suddenly froze, as they looked at Bakugou.
"Look at the walls," the demolition expert said, pointing towards a bunch of small, triangle-shaped holes. "If we step on the wrong tile, a bunch of darts will come flying out."
"And… how do you know that?" Rin asked.
"Seriously?" Bakugou gave him a funny look. "You never watched Indiana Jones?"
"Okay, let's just assume you're right, Bakugou," Kirishima said. "What do we do?"
"Not step on the wrong tiles, obviously," the ash-blond said, pointing down at the circle-shaped tiles. "But then again, they could be designed to catch your eye, so when you avoid them, you accidentally press on the tile that triggers the trap. If only Monsterfucker #1 was here…"
"You mean Kaibara?"
"Uhh, I have a suggestion," Uraraka said, raising her hand. "We could use magic."
Everyone looked at her, as Itsuka asked, "What kind of magic?"
"Well, I've been training with Kurose-sensei to gain some more spells, and one of my new ones is able to negate the effects of gravity," the brown-haired astronomer explained. "If we apply it correctly, you could just push yourselves off the ground like you're on springs, and then…"
"...we make it to the end of the corridor without triggering any of the tiles."
"Yes, exactly!" Uraraka said. "So… Do we go with that?"
The orange-haired woman nodded.
"Okay, here we go… Murak!" A light purple field of energy enveloped everyone who Uraraka tapped while she chanted for a second, before suddenly it disappeared… and they felt lighter.
"Aight, I'm gonna test this out," Kirishima said, bending his knees. Before anyone could tell him to hold on, he launched himself forward, gliding through the air like some kind of weak rocket, before slowly coming back down to the floor, and on the other side of the corridor.
"...Well, I guess that's one way to know how it works," Rin deadpanned.
One by one, the other members of the team jumped across the ancient hallway, making sure to both not step on the tiles or accidentally scrape the ceiling, as they reached the other side.
"Okay, part one done," Itsuka said, as the spell faded.
The five of them continued on their way, noticing that there was now a fork on the road. The door on the left was sealed, and the door to the right was opened, revealing another corridor after a small set of stairs and… a bunch of skeletons lying in the middle of the floor.
"Alright… place your bets now if they're gonna rise up and attack us."
"Uhh, Bakubro, I think that these guys might have died tomb raiding this place."
The blond looked towards his friend. "What makes you say that?"
"They all have the same injury," Kirishima said, pointing towards their skulls. "Look, they all have holes on the top of their heads, almost like their skulls were all bashed in by something…"
"Something from above…" Itsuka realized, as she looked up. "Another trap."
"Great," Rin groaned. "So, what's this one's gimmick? Another pressure tile?"
"Probably," Bakugou said. "But given that these skeletons are just lying not just in the middle of the floor, but also on the sides, that probably means that the entire ceiling is rigged."
"So, we die the second we set a foot in," Itsuka surmised. "Uraraka, could you…?"
"I could probably use another Murak spell on all of us, but I don't think it would be as effective, especially considering how small this corridor is compared to the last one," the astronomer said. "Plus, there's walls surrounding these doorways. It'll be a lot harder to make it through."
Itsuka nodded at that logic. During the last trap, all they had to do was get across. In this one, they had to do that without touching the sides, and even then, they didn't know that wouldn't prevent the ceiling from just opening up and dropping blunt-force death upon them.
"There is a different spell I could try using," the chestnut-haired woman said. "It should theoretically pull in whatever traps there are into its orbit, before… exploding."
Everyone looked towards Uraraka, before quickly backtracking out of the stairwell, and into the safety of outside the doorway. Once that was done, she was given the signal to cast.
"Gravitatis missilium…"
Out from her hands came an orb of purple and white light, flying through the middle of the corridor, as massive spiked balls and sculptured stalactites falling out of the ceiling and getting caught in the orbit of the light, and when it reached the end of the hallway…
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-POW!!!
…it exploded, sending debris everywhere.
"Well," Itsuka coughed. "That was very effective. Well done, Uraraka."
The five of them walked through the now-destroyed trap and towards the next room. And the next one. And the next one. In every room, corridor, and hallway, the pattern was the same: Stop, identify the trap, disable the trap, and then move on to the next room, repeat.
"Hey, it's been fifteen minutes," Neito's voice came through the radio. "How're you doing?"
"We're fine," Itsuka radioed in. "We're just speedrunning through this tomb."
"Alright, well, be careful. Over and out."
BOOM!
Itsuka tucked away her walkie-talkie, as she watched Bakugou disable another trap with a small explosive. When the wall was blasted, a massive boulder rolled through, hitting the wall.
"Okay, see that?" Bakugou said. "That shit was in Indiana Jones."
Rin gave the demolition expert a funny look. "A big… round rock?"
"Kaibara would have your head for that one, dude," Kirishima chuckled.
The five of them kept walking, until eventually… they reached a massive room. It was bigger than even the initial corridor. There were stairs on every wall, all of them in the direction of something within the middle of the room, that was sitting on a floor that was hanging over a seemingly bottomless chasm. And the only way to get across for Itsuka and her crew was the single bridge, and right above it, on the ceiling, was a rectangular, box-like trap.
"I bet it's live snakes," Bakugou said.
"Let me guess… that was also in Indiana Jones?" Rin asked.
"Hey, look at you, you're learning."
"Hmph. Well, if there are live snakes in that box, then I guess it's my time to shine," the zoologist said, as he took off his shoe, and threw it at the first tile he found on the bridge.
KLANG!
The mechanism triggered, and the box above them dropped an enormous pile of snakes, all of them with red, yellow, and black colors. "Okay, everybody, step away from the pile."
"What are they?" Kirishima asked.
"Those are coral snakes," Rin answered. "If they bite you, you'll die. Painfully."
"Okay, how do we get rid of them?" Itsuka asked.
"Well, there are a number of ways we could do that," Rin said. "We could wait for them to slither off, or we could shoot them, maybe throw them off the bridge with a stick…"
"Uhh, I might have something that'll make it painless for them," Uraraka said.
"You know what? Sure," Rin said. "Just make sure to keep your distance."
"Right!" Uraraka slowly walked towards the pile of snakes, but made sure to stay far enough away from them so they wouldn't attack, as she cast her spell. "Cavem nigrum…"
"Huh? Hey, wait, isn't that spell the –"
In an instant, a small black hole appeared above the bridge, sucking up all of the snakes (and some of the bridge tiles) within its gravitational pull, before simply… disappearing.
Everyone stared in astonishment at what just happened, as Rin looked back and forth between Uraraka and the now-snakeless bridge. "You… crushed them in a mini-singularity…"
"It was quick and painless!" Uraraka defended herself.
"You took my shoe with them…"
"You can get a new one once we're back at base, come on," Bakugou said, as the five of them pushed onward, getting past the bridge, and making it to the heart of the ziggurat. In the center of the room was a golden casket shaped like a man, and somehow, all five of them knew that the bad vibes they had been getting this whole time were emanating from there.
"...That's a sarcophagus," Bakugou said, before quickly pulling out a cigarette lighter from his pocket. "Shitty Hair, you got any of that Axe Body Spray on you? And don't lie to me."
"Oh, uh, yeah, here," Kirishima said, handing it over. "Why do you need it?"
Hoyo Makihara could feel the scarce sunlight hitting his face. There was only one reason for there to be light shining down on him. Someone had opened his sarcophagus.
Opening his eyes, he expected it to be Nine, the mage who promised him a position in his new world order should the mummy help him, but instead, he comes across five humans, all of them dressed in matching uniforms. They obviously weren't part of the Enlightened Evil.
"You dare disturb my slumber…?!" Rising from his sarcophagus and charging up his curses, Hoyo watched as some of their faces contorted with fear. Good. "You will all die –"
"Yeah, no."
FWOOM!!!
"AAAGGGHHH!!! WHAT THE FUCK?!?!" Before Hoyo could even finish his sentence, the blond human lifted up two cans, one of them spraying some kind of gas, and the other igniting it aflame. Hoyo's mind screamed in pain as the flames kept burning his face, and to make matters worse, they were somehow traveling to the rest of his body. How is this possible?! HOW?!
"Dude, that is not how you use body spray!"
"Shut up, Shitty Hair, it's better than how you've been using it!"
BODY SPRAY?!?! WHAT THE HELL IS BODY SPRAY?!?!
"Bakugou, stop, you're hurting him!" the orange-haired woman yelled, as she picked up a jar full of a glowing substance. "Holy water is a liquid, right?! This should put out the fire…!!!"
HOLY WATER?! WAIT, WAIT, WAIT –!!!
Hoyo felt the burning sensation of the holy water splashing his face and chest, the liquid eating away at his flesh, the steam of the water and the fire coming together to fill the air with one of his weaknesses. He could feel it reaching his heart… Damn, he should have put it in a jar!
"I'm melting… I'M MELTING!!!"
"I'm melting… I'M MELTING!!!"
As the clothed man screamed in pain, Itsuka could only watch in horror at the realization that, one, the holy water Shoda gave her was potent, and two, it just made the situation worse.
"I BLAME YOU, GIRL! I BLAME YOOOUUUUU…"
The mummy pointed his finger at her, before the body melted away completely, and his voice went silent. The only things left behind were whatever wrappings and jewelry he was wearing, and the five soldiers who stared at their handiwork with varying expressions.
"You had holy water on you?" Bakugou asked. "Nice going, Kendo!"
"...I just murdered that man," she whispered.
"Nah…" Kirishima shook his head. "When it's an accident, it's called manslaughter."
That didn't make her feel any better. But now, it was official: When they got back to the Collibus Hills, Itsuka was going to have a long chat with a certain dwarven alchemist.
Author's Note: I don't remember clearly, But I'm pretty sure I was gonna use the entirety of the "I'm melting" from the Wicked Witch, but decided against it since it didn't completely fit. Also, yes, I did use the manslaughter joke from Monster House.
So, the first half of the story came from one episode of the 2011 Thundercats show, with the traveling potion-maker the gang was chasing after. The second half (story-wise) was the opening scene from the heist episode of Rick and Morty, with the architecture of Maru from Disenchantment. And for those curious, the giant hamster is a reference to the giant space hamsters from D , while the holy water the gang got in this episode is directly lifted from Dungeon Meshi. Why did I make Shoda a dwarf? Well, physically, he's the most stocky of the cast, and given that he's only 5'5'' and whatnot, I figured, why not? Besides, this fantasy world could use a little bit more diversity. And of course I made the Villain known as Mummy into an actual mummy. Anyways, comment time!
Shin: Kaminari always comes in clutch. Also, thanks for clearing up the whole lizardman horns theory of yours. Now that I think about it, I remember seeing Gabiru from TTIGRAAS (the slime isekai) having horns… along with a mane of fur…? Feathers…? Whatever, you get the point. I'm ready to move on to a different discussion, ya dig me?
Juliasimon77: …Are you trying to entice me into an art collaboration?
Tykronos: The Curator was actually a reference to the Kraken from the second Atlantis movie, from how it behaved, down to the fight and its death. Close, but no cigar.
Grieflord_101: Okay, you should be able to put my work in your collection now!
valkrus: Flect Turn is gonna be around for a while, so prepare to feel uncomfortable for a long time. I also hate to break it to you, but Stain isn't gonna be here for a while, either. I also fixed the typo in the last chapter, but I did notice the accidental pun it made.
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 42: The Greatest Show
Summary:
After dealing with ice mages, sea monsters, and mummies, the team is ordered by Aizawa to take one night off to have fun. That very same night, a circus arrives in town, ready to entertain the masses. But between the jesters and trapeze artists, there is also a mystery brewing, involving the stolen belongings of the audience and one of the performers...
Chapter Text
Chapter 42: The Greatest Show
The saltless air wasn't something Momo had ever expected to have taken for granted, but after almost a week of being out at sea, she was glad to be returning to the Collibus Hills.
As the skyship slowly landed back down on the runway, Momo and the others watched Kaibara, Tsuburaba, and Awase step out from their aerial vehicle, and we're now waiting for herself, Aoyama, and Kaminari to do the same, something she was more than happy to do.
"Ah, finally, solid ground that isn't a steel ship or an island surrounded by miles and miles of ocean," the raven-haired woman said, as she tapped her foot on the pavement. Looking over to her temporary mission comrade, she said, "I thank you for your help, Kaminari-san."
"Please, Kaminari-san is my father's name, you can call me Denki."
"Oh. Well, I guess you can call me Momo… when we're off-mission."
Denki scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, I figured. If I ever do go on one of these missions again, I'll probably take back my old family name. But until then… Hi, I'm Denki Jiro."
Momo snorted at that. "Nice to meet you."
"Okay!" Awase clapped his hands. "I filled out the paperwork with Yoarashi, he and his buddies we'll roll the skyships into the hangars. I'm ready for the debrief with Aizawa, you?"
"I'm ready for that myself," Momo said. "Let's see what General Aizawa is up to…"
"I'm sorry, what do you mean by you exorcised the mummy?"
That was not something Momo was expecting to hear when she got to Aizawa's office. From the looks of it, she could see Monoma, Kendo, Bakugou, Kirishima, and Kodai there. She wasn't sure if this was all of the culprits, but she was fairly sure that they were the key players.
Did she believe that what Aizawa asked was absolutely ridiculous? Yes. Did she believe that it happened? Also yes. Come on, this was her unit, the SREU, they were talking about. If she heard rumors about one of them magically transforming into a dragon to bang another dragon, she would believe them, no question asked, because those were the people she rolled with.
"It means we removed that undead creep's spirit from the world, mostly with fire and holy water," Bakugou said. "The fucker practically melted like he was the Wicked Witch of the West!"
"Don't smile about that!" Kendo shouted. "It was horrible! He was screaming in pain!"
"And it would have been us if I didn't act fast enough!"
"Oh, by setting him alight with flammable Axe Body Spray?"
"Mummies are weak to fire, it's Fantasy Lore 101!" Bakugou argued. "I had to make sure we didn't give him the chance to curse us with a plague or some kind of incurable disease!"
Kirishima scratched his head. "I dunno, we could have at least talked to him…"
"Yeah, that went out the window as soon as he opened his eyes and the first thing that came out of his mouth was "You will all die," Shitty Hair! Or did you not hear that part?"
"Can we please stop with the shouting match?" Aizawa asked. "Now, in summary, because of your actions during your Lara Croft LARPing session, you indirectly eliminated the source of negative vibes the elven scouts picked up from the ziggurat. Negative vibes that were most likely affiliated with the Enlightened Evil. Yes? Well, then I don't see any problem here."
Kendo blinked at that. "What? But, General Aizawa –"
"I understand that you feel regret for your actions. However, last I checked, there isn't a spell that allows someone to time travel – Bakugou, don't answer that," the old general said. "While that death may have been preventable, what has happened happened, and in my personal opinion, your lives are worth more to me than that of some random mummy. Understood?"
"Yes, sir."
"Good. Now, if you still feel bad about what happened, I recommend you visit General Kayama for a psychiatric evaluation. In the meantime, you're all dismissed, I have to speak to Lieutenant Yaoyorozu about her report," Aizawa said, looking straight at Momo.
The five soldiers turned around and left, with Monoma and Kodai giving a quick wave to Momo, as she was left alone with Aizawa in his office. "That sounded tiresome."
"You don't know the half of it," the old man sighed. "I presume yours is just as bad?"
"Ehh, it's somewhat hard to tell, given that, while my team did take down a sea monster, our methods weren't anywhere as memorable as using flammable deodorant and holy water."
"Oh?" Aizawa raised an eyebrow. "Well, go ahead, start from the beginning."
"Yes, sir."
"It's official: You're all getting the night off."
Momo blinked at what she just heard. "Could you… repeat that?"
"No, your ears aren't clogged, Yaoyorozu, you heard me correctly," Aizawa said. "In the last week, your team has managed to take down a member of the Enlightened Evil and his followers while aiding the lizardmen, removed a potential member of the from the Rupes Desert, and killed a sea monster that had a stranglehold on the northern seas, while also removing a potential piece for the Enlightened Evil to try and recruit. Do you know what that means?"
"That… we're doing a lot of good?"
"That you're doing a lot of good with no breaks," Aizawa said. "I'm not a slave driver. I don't only authorize vacations when I am legally required to by the labor laws of Japan. I can order you to take it easy for a single night. And that's exactly what I'm doing. I'm ordering you to take it easy."
"Oh. I see…"
"The entire world isn't going to end just because you decided to not work for a single night," the black-haired general said. "Look, I know from some hearsay that there's a circus coming for a visit tonight at Collibustown. Why don't you and your unit go there? As civvies."
"I guess… that wouldn't be too bad…?"
"Glad to hear that. Go have fun. Dismissed."
Interestingly enough, everyone was on-board with the idea.
A night on the town seemed like just the thing everyone needed to relax before returning to their usual life-or-death missions tomorrow morning. So, Momo told them to meet her up at the base of Collibustown, and walk around before heading to the visiting circus troupe.
As she was waiting for the others, Momo looked around. Her idea of having a town where both Japan and the locals of the Special Region were able to co-exist seemed like a pie-in-the-sky idea six months ago, but now, after all this time, it had become a reality.
All around her, the Yaoyorozu girl could see people walking through merchant stalls as they sold their wares, creatures of varying sizes pulling around carts and wagons, taverns full of patrons, and people building and making repairs on their homes. Hard to imagine that this all didn't exist half a year ago, and that there was a time this entire place was the site of a massacre.
I guess you can't stamp out an indomitable spirit…
"Yo, Yaomomo!"
Momo turned around to see that Kirishima was the first one to arrive, wearing something other than his uniform, and he wasn't alone. Wrapping her arms around him was Ashido.
"Oh, so you're making this a date night?"
"You know it!" the redhead said. "Shame that Todoroki couldn't make it…"
"Yes, he is still quite busy with his siblings," Momo sighed. "And besides even if he wanted to come, this is only happening for tonight so he wouldn't be able to make it. Shame, really."
"Ah, don't worry!" Kirishima smiled. "They'll always be a next time!"
"Yeah, unless we all die tomorrow to the enemy."
There's only one person I know who has that brand of optimism. Momo turned to another direction, to see Bakugou walking towards them. "I'm surprised you joined us."
"Hey, I already said I was on-board when you pitched this idea a couple hours back, didn't I?" the ash-blond said. "And besides, I've got a sneaking suspicion something's gonna go down."
"As paranoid as ever, I see."
Rin. One by one, everyone joined up with their group, with some of them bringing along some friends they made during their time at the Special Region. Eventually, as the sun began to dip over the horizon, they made their way towards where the giant tent was.
Overall, it wasn't as impressive as the ones Momo went to see as a child, but then again, these people didn't have the same aesthetic capabilities as those of 21st century Japan, and the circuses Momo went to were the top of the line. Only the best for the Yaoyorozu heiress.
Momo internally cringed. Oh, God, that sounds so pretentious…
Still, it had some charm to it. The tent was roughly fifty meters in height, with blue and orange colors decorating the fabrics. Little round lights were flying all around, most likely made with magic, and there were posters featuring the acts outside the entryway.
"Oooh, I bet this is gonna be good," Komori cheered.
Kodai nodded. "Mm. Haven't been to one since my mom took me."
"Think we're gonna see any clowns?" Tsuburaba asked.
"Nah, you'd make them look bad in comparison," Kaibara joked.
"Yeah, well, if I'm a clown, then you're the entire circus."
"Mm, I do wonder if we are going to see a mime," Aoyama said.
"Why would you want to see a sad French clown?"
As everybody laughed, Momo purchased the tickets, and the group was ushered in. Walking up the stands, the black-haired woman could see that it was a full house. Plenty of people she recognized were sitting in the long seats, from Tsunotori and Mineta, to the Jiros, to even… General Kayama and Kurogiri? Well, that's a surprise. The point she was trying to make was that it seemed the majority of the Collibustown residents were here for the show tonight, including some of the members of the JSDF, and those Momo didn't recognize.
Quickly sitting down in the first open seat she could find, Momo watched the others scramble to sit down as well, and then… the lights dimmed. From the darkness, a single spotlight lit up, and in the middle of the circus pit, was a blond man dressed up as some kind of… jester?
"Ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages!" the jester announced, loud enough to be heard by everyone. "The Circus of Laughter is proud to present… the Sultan of Smiles, the Crown Prince of Chuckles, the Grim Tickler himself, the star of our circus… MR. COMPRESS!!!"
A second spotlight came to life, as out from the back came a giant, flightless bird, almost like an ostrich completely covered in pink feathers, running all around the pit, as on top of the bird was a man in an orange-and-black outfit, wearing a white mask, and a tall hat with a feather.
Guess that must be Mr. Compress, Momo figured.
Jumping off the giant bird, the masked man gave a bow to the crowd, before the flightless avian ran off, turned around, and began to charge at Mr. Compress. The clown seemed to be expecting it, however, as he suddenly pulled out a red cloth out of nowhere, as if he was a matador, egging the bird further. The pink bird ran towards him, into the red cloth, and –
BOOM!
– exploded into smoke and confetti.
"Whoa! No way!" Uraraka gasped. "How'd he do that?!"
"I have to admit, that was pretty impressive," Monoma agreed.
That seemed to be the sentiment amongst most of the audience, as Momo saw everyone either laughing or cheering at the man's antics, including herself. "If you love clowns, this is the place to be!" he announced. "You're going to leave laughing, that is a Mr. Compress guarantee!"
The rest of Mr. Compress' acts were standard circus fare, from dancing around with some volunteers, juggling balls while telling jokes, sawing pretty ladies in half, and throwing pies at whatever poor clown was in his general direction. Not bad, in Momo's opinion.
And then the trapeze act came on, and, hoo boy.
The floor suddenly lit up in a blue light, as glowing pink ribbons, the size of platforms, erupted from the ground, and from the roof of the tent, a tall man with a goatee jumped down, alongside a short woman with red pigtails, both of them wearing matching purple suits.
"Ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages! Put your hands together for the world's greatest trapeze artists! THE GENTLE CRIMINAL, AND HIS LOVELY ASSISTANT, LA BRAVA!!!"
As the two acrobats kept falling down, inching ever closer and closer towards the ground, they suddenly grabbed two glowing hoops that appeared out of nowhere, and began spinning around in the middle of the air, before suddenly doing several flips, and landing safely.
"We thank you, Collibus Hills, for inviting us here!" the tall man, Gentle Criminal announced. "I suggest that those of a weak constitution leave now, as even the slightest mistake, will send myself and the lovely La Brava plummeting to our deaths! Now, on with the show!"
Well, that certainly raised the stakes, Momo thought to herself.
In the end, the two trapeze artists made it out unscathed.
It was clear to Momo that those two were professionals, as they flew through the air, danced a waltz on top of a tightrope, before using that same rope as their own makeshift trampoline, and then doing yet another freefall, which ended in them getting consumed in confetti...
FWOOSH!
…which bursted into flames.
"THAT WAS AWESOME!" Kendo cheered.
"HELL YEAH, IT WAS!" Awase agreed.
Momo clapped along with the rest of the audience, as the trapeze artists bowed one last time before the adoring crowd. They were certainly good, on par with the performers of Cirque du Soleil back home, but nowhere near the same budget and number of performers. But she wasn't going to spoil the fun of everyone else by nitpicking some minor details.
All in all, the trapeze act was certainly a step up from Mr. Compress' hour-long routine. It was clear to Momo that this circus knew what would excite the crowd, and they saved the more thrilling acts for the latter half of the performance. Now, I wonder what's next…
"FLAMING DEATH!!!"
The music from the orchestra suddenly got more intense, as everyone's eyes snapped to attention, looking straight towards the blond jester, only now, he was wearing a black-and-white suit, and all around the pit, there were duplicates of him. Exact ones, down to the last detail.
"I hold in my hands, the spear!" the jester said. "The spear that decides whether the star of our show, Mr. Compress, lives or dies this very evening! In a few short moments, my doubles will have the stage ready, and when that happens… Mr. Compress shall appear… bound!"
Oh, I get it, Momo realized. They're doing a Houdini.
Right on cue, the masked man was rolled in on a cart by two of the jester's clones, his arms, legs, and upper body completely bound in chains. And on the other side of the tent, two more of the clones rolled in… a giant crossbow on wheels, pointed right at Mr. Compress.
"In a moment, I will set this speat aflame, and place it within the crossbow, right across the bound Mr. Compress, aimed straight to his heart! The crossbow will be triggered when this bell's chime is heard, in thirty seconds from when Mr. Compress begins to try and free himself! Our star's only hope of survival is if he manages to free himself, in less than thirty seconds!"
"Oh, this is either gonna be really good… or really bad," Rin said.
Monoma snorted, "Relax, I'm pretty sure they won't let the guy die."
The Yaoyorozu heiress had to agree with her second-in-command on that one. Aside from the fact that there were children here, and seeing a man getting speared would be absolutely horrifying, it would just be bad for business. These people came here for some thrills, not to see someone die. If they wanted to watch that, then they'd go to a Todorokian gladiator arena.
Yes, those were real, she asked Shoto.
The blond jester walked to the crossbow, putting in the spear, and setting the tip alight. "The stage is ready, our brave Mr. Compress has been bound, his time starts… NOW!"
The music became a drumroll, as everyone watched Mr. Compress twitching around with his bounds, the chains shaking, but never coming off. Let me guess, he's going to suddenly take them all off at the last second? Momo wondered to herself. That is such a cliche...
Momo held her tongue, though, as everyone was dead silent, watching the act. The only sounds that could be heard were the drums of the orchestra and the rattling of the chains. Ten seconds past, and not a single lock fell, then another ten seconds passed, the chains getting louder.
This guy is totally faking it. Momo could already see it now: Mr. Compress was making the chains get louder so it would make it seem like he was getting more desperate. It was probably to trick the skeptics in the audience into having them think he was in actual danger.
He's fine. He's completely… fine… right?
The last ten seconds were here, and Momo could practically hear everyone mentally counting down. The chains became even louder, as suddenly, one his hands was free, and –
THWIP!
At the very millisecond the crossbow went off, the music stopped. Everyone watched as the flaming spear was launched, goring from across the circus pit, straight towards its target –
THUNK!
– through his hand, and the tip appeared again, right out of his back.
Momo could feel the color leave her body. The man had been skewered. Everything was quiet for less than a second, and then… she could hear Mr. Compress' voice.
"AAAAA–"
"KODAI!!!" Momo shouted to her team's medic.
"Mm!" Kodai nodded, as she leapt to her feet. "Out of the way, this is an emergency –"
"-HA!" Mr. Compress shouted, as his hand suddenly moved, and the spear… wasn't even through his chest. In fact, it wasn't even poking out from any part of his body. With a better look, everyone saw that one end of the spear was in his hand, and the other, in his other hand. It was almost as if his hands were the openings of a tunnel, and the spear had just… passed through.
And then, with a wave of his hands, he made the ends of the spear… disappear.
"Ta-da!" The masked man bowed.
And the audience cheered.
"...HE'S DONE IT AGAIN! MR. COMPRESS HAS CHEATED DEATH YET AGAIN!!!" the jester cheered, causing the orchestra to suddenly bring back the upbeat and triumphant music. Confetti fell from the top of the tent, and the audience began to cheer even more.
"He's… okay?" Momo weakly asked, sitting back down.
"Holy shit, I did not see that coming!" Kaibara yelled.
"Dude, same!" Tsuburaba agreed. "I thought he totally died!"
"THANK YOU, THANK YOU!" Mr. Compress said, as he kept bowing.
As the people of the Collibus Hills left the circus to go back home, Momo and her friend group exited the tent, walking towards the town, laughing and talking all the way there.
"Man, remember when that Gentle dude wrapped a cloth around his waist and swung around the whole place!" Awase said. "That was so cool! And the fire-breathing he did mid-way!"
"Yeah, that was impressive," Rin said. "How he managed not to burn any of us is beyond me."
"I'm more amazed that he didn't burn the cloth he was holding on from," Sato said.
As the others kept talking about how amazing the show was, Momo couldn't help but smile. Even if she herself was impressed by the acts, it didn't matter. She was there with her team, her friends. Sharing this experience with them was what mattered. And if they enjoyed it, good for them. She was more than happy knowing that they gained some new memories together.
"Yaomomo! YAOMOMO!"
"Huh?" Snapping out of her thoughts, Momo turned to see that Tsunotori of all people was running to her, along with… Mineta? Interesting. "Hey, Pony, did you enjoy the show?"
"Yeah, yeah, it was fine, whatever. But we've got a serious problem?"
"Problem?" Momo repeated, her face getting serious. "What kind of problem?"
"Our stuff is missing!" Mineta said, as the gnome jumped in anger. "We got robbed!"
"Huh? Robbed? By who?" Kirishima asked. "And what are you missing?"
"That's the thing, we don't know!" the blonde minotaur said. "One minute, we were enjoying the circus, and then the next, our coin pouches were empty! And I heard it's not just ours!"
"Really? Who else got robbed?" Kendo asked.
"A bunch of people!" Tsunotori said. "And it wasn't just their pockets that got cleaned out!"
"Yeah, it was homes, too!" Mineta exclaimed. "A lot of them are missing their cash, the Jiros said that some of their jewelry went missing, and the crystals Hagakure mines have just vanished!"
"Missing items? Homes ransacked?" Bakugou looked at Momo. "You don't think…?"
"Yeah, I'm jumping to the same conclusions," the black-haired woman said. "Only problem is the means and the timing. How could the circus performers rob everyone when they were too busy entertaining us? Not only that, but they managed to both pickpocket people who were watching the show, but also ransack their homes without anyone reporting any break-ins. How?"
"Perhaps I could be of some assistance."
Momo and the others looked to see a familiar shadow demon, along with his date. "Hello there, Kurogiri. I didn't think you'd take a day off, much less go on a date with General Kayama."
"It is fortunate that both those things happened, though," Kurogiri said. "While we were watching the performance, I felt something I am quite familiar with. Something… incriminating."
Momo narrowed her eyes. "And what sort of something is that?"
Atsuhiro Sako removed his mask and put it back on his wall, where the rest of his masks hung. Each one had their own face, their own story to tell, their own performance to live through vicariously. And the infamous Mr. Compress would help them do that.
As the magic lights dimly lit his wagon, he looked in the mirror to only see his handsome self staring back. Perfect, as usual. Looking down at his desk drawer, Atsuhiro slowly pulled out the spoils of what he gained today. Coins, jewels, oh, they were all so pretty! And all for him…
KNOCK-KNOCK!
That was odd. He wasn't expecting company. Bubaigawara was busy commanding his shadow clones to break down the tents so they could pack up and leave, and Tobira and Aiba were most likely staring into each others' eyes like lovesick puppies. Who could this possibly be?
Hiding his ill-gotten gains, Atsuhiro got up and walked to the side of his personal wagon, opened the door, and saw… two beautiful young women. "Ah, hello there. And you are…?"
"Hi, Mr. Compress!" the one wearing a black ponytail said cheerfully. "I'm Momo, and this is Itsuka! We were super big fans of your show! We just wanted to see more of you!"
"Oh? Well, you flatter me, my dear!" Atsuhiro said. "Come on in…"
As the two girls walked in, Atsuhiro closed the door behind him. "Wow, you've sure got a lot of masks in here! Do they help you with your magic acts?" the orange-haired one asked.
"No, no, my dear!" the brown-haired man said, as he sat down on one end of his bed. "They are simply for style! The real magic behind my acts is misdirection and sleight of hand!"
"That's amazing!" the dark-haired one, Momo said. "Is that what you did with the spear?"
"Yeah, that one was super scary!" Itsuka said. "How'd you escape from that one?"
"Now, now, a magician never reveals his secrets!" Atsuhiro said, but quickly saw the two of them beginning to pout. "Well, maybe I can… as long as you promise not to tell anyone!"
The two girls looked at each other, nodded, and smiled. ""We promise!!!""
"Alright then! So, my secret is this, the Item Box," Atsuhiro said, as the silver portal appeared before his hand. "It's a Divine Protection that allows me to open up portals into my own personal pocket dimension. That's how I am able to make things appear and disappear, and by opening my Item Box on two different ends, that was how I let the spear pass through me unharmed!"
""Wow, that's amazing!!!""
"Thank you, thank you," Atsuhiro said. "Now, tell me… what secrets are you hiding?"
Both the orange-haired and black-haired woman looked at each other smiling, and nodded. As they slowly unbuttoned their shirts, Atsuhiro took in the sight of… wires?
Wait a minute, were those recording devices –?
SLAM!
"GET ON THE GROUND, NOW!!!"
Shit.
All in all, a successful sting operation.
Thanks to Kurogiri's assistance, Momo was able to figure out that the perp was using some sort of ability to warp space in order to steal people's possessions. Not only that, but after reviewing the abilities of each of the performer's, there was only one person Momo reasonably deduced was capable of such a thing, all thanks to him being a cocky artist and just having to keep their audience on the edge of their seats with a flaming spear, of all things.
Not only that, but Kurogiri's natural talent for teleportation gates and warping was able to help Momo confirm her theory. All they needed to do after that was get a confession from their main suspect, and the rest of her crew would be able to move in and detain the perp.
Hence, hers and Kendo's "honeypot wearing a wire" routine.
By the end of the night, the JSDF was able to return all the stolen property to its rightful owners, and now, they were in the middle of launching a criminal investigation into the Circus of Laughter. Which was actually going to be somewhat of a problem, as now, Momo had to figure out under whose jurisdiction did this case fall under: Japan's or the Todoroki Empire's?
Ehh, problems for tomorrow. Right now, they had more pressing matters.
"YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME!" Mr. Compress shouted, as Bakugou and Kirishima dragged him towards the local jail. "I KNOW MY RIGHTS! I DEMAND TO SPEAK TO A LAWYER!"
"How the hell does he know about that?" Monoma asked.
"No idea," Momo said, as she looked over to the other end of the street, where Kodai and Komori were walking back. "Hey, guys. I take it you managed to return everything?"
"All down to the last spore!" Komori saluted her.
"That's good to hear," Momo said. "Now, about –"
"THIS IS UNLAWFUL IMPRISONMENT! I'LL SUE EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU!!!"
"Bakugou, could you please shut him up?!" Momo yelled. "I can't even… huh?"
Before the Yaoyorozu heiress could continue her sentence, she watched in bewilderment, as Kodai ran up to the unmasked Mr. Compress, and began examining his face.
"Uhh, Kodai, what are you doing?" Momo asked.
The blue-eyed woman ignored her commanding officer's question, as she let go of the brown-haired man, looking shcoked. Momo could even hear Kodai whisper, "It can't be…"
"Umm…" Mr. Compress was as confused as the others, but unlike Kodai's companions, he decided to try to get some answers. "Young lady, do I know you from somewhere –?"
"Atsuhiro Sako," the team medic said. "That's your name, isn't it?"
Momo, along with the rest of the team, stared at Kodai in surprise. They figured that Mr. Compress was a stage name, but how the hell did she know the dude's real name?
"Yes, what about it?" the kleptomaniacal magician asked.
Kodai gasped, covering her mouth, before asking, "Dad…?"
Momo could feel her brain pause.
What.
Everyone else's brains also paused for a moment, trying to figure out if what they heard was reality. But no one more so than the thieving performer, who was now closely examining Kodai. Mr. Compress blinked for a few seconds, before he opened his mouth and said one word.
Or, more specifically, a name.
"...Yui?"
There was a few seconds of silence, and then –
"""WHAAAAAAAAAAT?!?!?!""
– everyone screamed their lungs out.
In all honesty, an appropriate response.
Author's Note: I'm a sucker for a few of the most iconic "they're related" theories in the MHA fandom, such as Inko being Nana Shimura's daughter, and the ever-popular Dad For One. But one that I particularly like is Yui Kodai being the daughter of Mr. Compress.
So, of course, I did it here. It'll be explained in detail in the next chapter, but for now, all you need to know is that Mr. Compress "abandoned" his family, and it resulted in the pervy personality that Kodai hides before her kuudere archetype. For those wondering the jester is actually Twice, and the bird Mr. Compress rolled in was a filolial from Shield Hero. As for the circus acts, the first one was inspired from Zombozo's debut in Ben 10, the trapeze act was from Madagascar 3, and the flaming spear was a mix between the Flaming Death from A Bug's Life and the Chinese circus from the Sherlock series. Now, I might have lost track of some of the comments, so if you don't see yours, I apologize.
valkrus: Well, it looks like season four of Rick and Morty had a few decent ideas in it, if my copied scene was able to make you laugh. But I am claiming the majority of the credit for Mummy's death, as the Wizard of Oz is in the public domain. Until next time!
Aren (Guest): Glad you liked the first chapter. And sure, you can ask me something.
Anyways, as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 43: Hatred and Care
Summary:
As Kodai was left behind to deal with her father, Momo and the rest of her team went to a nearby mountain to recruit a powerful ally. However, both their skyships were knocked out of the air, separating the team into two groups, and with a dragon and a giant blaming the other. Who should they trust?
Chapter Text
Chapter 43: Hatred and Care
The winds blowing past Momo's hair were somewhat therapeutic. While they were nowhere near as loud as they would normally be, they were still powerful enough to keep her focusing on them rather than spiraling down whatever thoughts popped up in her mind.
Once more, she had to give credit to Hatsume and her craft. Despite the fact that the skyships were open-roofed, the wind resistance basically disappeared the second it even got close to the ship, allowing them to travel at near the speed of sound, without having to worry about any real-world issues, such as their skin getting shredded by the intense speed, and whatnot.
However, that didn't mean it was completely issue-free. As mentioned before, they weren't going deaf by how much wind they were hitting with such great speeds thanks to whatever magical protective barrier Hatsume installed in the skyships, but the wind was still hitting them just enough that they would have to raise their voices if anyone wanted to talk. Just a little.
That didn't mean it stopped anyone from trying, though.
Kirishima coughed. "So, umm, about last night…"
"I don't think anyone is in the mood to talk about that," Momo said. "There's a reason only eight of us are on today's mission, and I think we should accept that, and just move along."
"But come on! Kodai's dad has been living here for the past –"
"Kirishima, it's none of our business," Momo said. "Last night was enough of a hassle already, so let's leave Kodai's family life to her, respect her decision, and drop it."
"Okay…"
"Lieutenant, we're approaching the mountain," Awase said.
"Glad to hear that," Momo said. Looking straight ahead, she saw the large, forest-covered mountain, with the top of it exposed to reveal a jagged peak. She could definitely see how it was the home of a monster. "Well, let's at least hope they're half as hospitable as Midoriya –"
"LOOK OUT!!!"
Komori's scream sent everyone on the skyship at red-alert. Scanning the mountain, Momo immediately recognized the danger heading towards them: A giant boulder.
Unfortunately, she couldn't do much about it, as it was a motion parallax.
For those who don't know, a motion parallax is a trick of the eye where objects that are further away appear to move slower than they really are. Most people can only really break the effect if there is something heading directly for them. And in Momo's case, that meant that the giant boulder that was getting faster was getting closer to their faces in a matter of seconds.
"AWASE, EVASIVE MANEUVERS!!!"
The team's engineer grabbed the wheel and tired his best to steer the skyship out of the boulder's flightpath, but sadly, several factors were against him, most notably the fact that, due to the motion parallax, the ever-speeding boulder was now right in front of them.
BOOM-KRAAASH!!!
Momo could tell from the sound alone that the underside of the skyship was most likely wrecked now. If it wasn't for Awase's piloting skills, they would be all dead at the moment, so, silver lining. Unfortunately, they couldn't think about that, as they began to lose altitude.
"BRACE FOR A CRASH LANDING!!!"
"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!" Bakugou shouted.
"I don't know!" Neito yelled back. This was bad, this was very bad. Yaoyorozu's skyship had just been clipped by a giant boulder out of fucking nowhere, and were now making an improsvised landing at the mountain. "Okay, we need to follow them and make sure that they –"
"INCOMING!!!"
Oh, fuck, what now?! Neito quickly scrambled to look around to see what the hell Uraraka was warning them about, only to suddenly see a spew of red lightning coming right towards –
CRACKLE!!!
Bullseye.
Opening his eyes, Monoma breathed a sigh of relief to see that no one was roasted alive by that, but his heart immediately plummeted as he saw sparks of red electricity crackling all over the skyship's controls. "Aoyama… please tell me that this vehicle is still working!"
"THE ENGINE'S DEAD!" the sniper yelled. "ALL WE HAVE IS THE STEERING!!!"
That was bad. They'd crash into the ground in less than a minute. Scanning the environment, Neito found what he was looking for, and yelled, "THERE! Try to steer us into this clearing!"
"Okay!" Aoyama nodded. "EVERYONE, HOLD OOOOOONNN!!!"
Yui stared through the cell bars at the man she recognized as her father.
Hard to imagine that he looks pretty much the same as the last time she saw him, maybe slightly older. She just wrote that off as some weird time synchronization between the two worlds. Looks like that was one more tally for the "different dimensions" theory.
"Mom said you abandoned us," Yui said.
"Technically incorrect," her old man said. "I was just going out to get some milk…"
"You're not helping your case here."
"It's true!" he argued. "You were a growing girl, you needed all the calcium you could get! So, when I noticed we were out, I headed towards the nearby shop, and… I ended up here."
"Where you've been for the last seventeen years."
"Seventeen years?" He raised an eyebrow at that. "I thought it was around fourteen –"
"Time moves differently between dimensions," Yui explained. "Or, at least, it used to, before the gate synchronized them. Now, an hour here is the same as an hour back in Japan."
"I see… I guess I have a lot to catch up on."
Yui narrowed her eyes into a glare. "Yeah, I guess you do."
Looking at their downed skyship, Momo asked, "Can you fix it?"
"In all honesty?" Awase asked. "No."
Well, that's just great.
Despite all logic pointing to them having to be dead, Momo and her team managed to somehow safely land. Specifically, the team's mechanic was able to steer their dying skyship towards the side of the mountain, where there just so happened to be a natural-forming platform.
That didn't mean that their skyship was damage-free.
Overall, the top half was still salvageable. The underside was a wreck. Momo figured that they must have damaged it further after the boulder did, as they slid into the rocky platform.
It was honestly a miracle that they didn't tear through the hull.
After quickly making sure no one was suffering blunt-force trauma or any kind of injuries, they quickly scavenged whatever supplies they could manage, with thankfully, their weapons all still being intact. Radios, cooking supplies, and other items? Ehh, not so much.
"Monoma, come in, do you read me?" Momo spoke into the least-damaged radio, and got no response. "Okay… So, either this thing is broken, or Monoma's team didn't make it."
"I'd like to believe the former," Awase said. "Here, lemme see if I can repair it."
"You can repair a walkie-talkie, but not our ride home?" Kirishima asked.
Awase glared at him. "Okay, first, our ride home is using tech that's merged with magic, something I can't do. Second, I actually have the materials to fix the walkie-talkie. Third…"
"Okay, okay, sorry!" Kirishima waved his hands. "I'm just antsy is all…"
Komori asked, "You're worried about Bakugou and the others, shroom?"
"Yeah." The artificial redhead nodded. "I hope they're okay…"
"Down there in the forest? I truly doubt it."
That wasn't any of us. Momo and the others turned their heads to the source of that voice, in the mouth of the cave. Sensing that it was being watched, the voice stepped out to reveal…
A dragon.
It was a dragon, a gargantuan one.
Its scales had the color of desaurated human skin, giving it almost a gray appearance, with horns that poked out of the top of its skull. Meanwhile its wings were golden, almost angelic in shape, and going from the top of its neck to the base of its tail was a golden-gray mane.
Holy shit, Momo thought to herself. She could feel the dragon staring right at them, as Kirishima's jaw dropped and Komori whispered some sort of prayer. Quick, snap out of it.
Quickly shaking her head, Momo walked towards the massive creature. "We don't mean any harm, and we apologize for intruding into your home! We were forced to make a landing –"
"Because of the giant boulder, yes, I saw that," the dragon said, her voice surprisingly soothing, as it was booming. "Then I believe it is safe to assume that you're not with Takeyama?"
"Takeyama? Who's that?" Awase asked.
"Yuu Takeyama is the giant who has been laying siege to my home for some time now," the dragon explained. "She's the one who threw that boulder at you. Tch, typical giant behavior."
"Siege?" Kirishima repeated. "Wait, are you, like, the victim of a home invasion?"
"Something like that," the dragon answered. "Why does it matter to you?"
"Our friends are down there. If that giant lady you're talking about was willing to throw a boulder at us just for flying overhead, then if she caught them walking around…"
"Squish, squish," Komori said, stomping her boots for emphasis.
"I see. I suppose that is a problem," the winged behemoth said.
"Right. But I think we can help each other," Momo said. "You want an invader of your land, and we want to save our friends. We have weapons, we can help you fight Takeyama off."
"That is an… interesting proposition," the dragon said. "What is your name?"
"Momo Yaoyorozu, of the Japanese Self-Defense Force."
"Very well then, Momo Yaoyorozu," the dragon said, standing taller than before. "In the name of the Ruby Dragon, Ryuko Tatsuma, we have an agreement… Let's kill ourselves a giant."
Momo nervously gulped. "Uh, yeah, sure, let's do that."
"Did we see where they crashed?" Uraraka asked.
"Yeah, it was close to that cave opening," Bakugou said. "I saw it on the side of the mountain; there was a natural platform in front of it. Chances are, that's where they crashed."
Neito examined their skyship. The damage done to it was minimal, but it was no longer responsive. Whatever that red lightning was, it short-circuited the inner workings of their vehicle, and fried all of their gadgets, weapons and communication devices included.
There was no way for them to go home and set up a rescue party.
"So, what do we do?" Uraraka asked.
"We find the others," Neito said. "Gather whatever food we can carry in our bags, and prepare to hike up that mountain. Let's hope that they're still alive and well."
"Inside that mountain? I truly doubt that."
That wasn't any of us. Neito and the others suddenly saw a shadow covering the very sun, as they turned their heads to the sky, where their eyes laid upon… a giant of a woman.
Physically speaking, she looked like a typical Special Region human. Blonde hair and magenta eyes, while also wearing an outfit that was both fantastical and color-coordinated.
But such comparisons ended when you took her size into account.
To call her huge was an understatement. Neito did a couple of quick calculations in his head, and the blond soldier figured out that, even if you stacked five really tall people on top of one another, it still wouldn't reach her height. Hell, she was crouching down to look at them.
Holy shit, Neito thought to himself. He could feel the giant staring right at them, as Uraraka gulped and Bakugou's hand seemed ready to unleash an explosion. Stop this, now.
Quickly snapping out of his stupor, Neito raised his arms at the giant. "We don't mean any harm, and we apologize for intruding into your home! We were forced to make a landing –"
"Because of the red lightning, yes, I saw that," the giant said, her voice surprisingly soothing, as it was booming. "Then I believe it is safe to assume that you're not with Tatsuma?"
"Tatusma? Who's that?" Uraraka asked.
"Ryuko Tatsuma is the dragon who has been attacking me," the giantess explained. "She's the one who spewed that lightning at you. Tch, typical dragons and their breath attacks..."
"So, you're just an innocent giant in all this?" Bakugou asked.
"Giant? Little man, I am no mere hill, or cloud, or even storm giant," the woman said, annoyed. "I am a voninjotunen, or as your kind likes to call me, a titan, the pinnacle of all giants!"
"And that's very impressive, indeed!" Neito said, hamming it up, as he glanced at Bakugou with a look that basically translated to shut the fuck up. "So, if I am understanding this right, our friends are inside that mountain, which happens to be home of that dragon you dislike?"
"Dislike is a bit of an understatement, but yeah," the titan said. "Why?"
"Well, since our friends might be in danger now, I was thinking that maybe we could join forces," Neito said. "I mean, a titan, taking down a dragon shouldn't be a problem for someone as obviously powerful as you, and especially when you have our magic assisting you!"
"Yes… you're right…" The blonde titan nodded along at what Neito was saying, before looking back down at the group. "You're the leader, right? What's your name?"
"Neito Monoma, of the Japanese Self-Defense Force."
"Very well then, Neito Monoma," the titan said, standing taller than before. "In the name of the Lady of the Mountains, Yuu Takeyama, we have an agreement… Let's kill ourselves a dragon."
Neito nervously gulped. "Uh, yeah, sure, let's do that."
"Are you certain that this plan will work?" Tatsuma asked.
"Positive. We have the advantage," Momo said. "The giant will have to fight an uphill battle, and between you and our weapons, she'll tire out before she even reaches the top."
"And once that happens, you can fly down there and finish her off," Awase added.
"Mm." The dragon nodded. "You have my thanks, little ones."
"Yo, guys!" Kirishima shouted. "Giant's approaching, twelve o'clock!"
Momo didn't need a pair of binoculars to see that her colleague was right. Out of the treeline came a massive blonde woman, heading straight towards the base of the mountain.
"Alright everyone, wait for the second she starts climbing up, and then open fire!" Momo ordered, her own assault rifle aimed right at her enemy. "Steady… FIRE!!!"
BREEAM-POW!
Before any of them had a chance to shoot, a blast of light hit the side of the mountain, forcing Momo and her to retreat. "Magic?! You didn't tell us that she could use magic!"
"She never used it in any of our fights!" Tatsuma exclaimed.
"Then who's firing magic at us?!" Komori shouted.
"I don't know, man, I can't see them!" Kirishima yelled.
This was bad. If there was someone aiding Takeyama in taking the mountain, then their strategy was in jeopardy. "Start firing at the giant! If she falls, maybe the enemy mages will retreat!"
"Read you loud and clear, Lieutenant Yaomomo!"
"Everyone, hold on tight!" Neito shouted.
"WHAT DO YOU THINK WE'RE DOING?!" Bakugou screamed.
As Takeyama kept climbing up the mountain, the humans riding on her shoulders kept firing volley after volley of magic towards the top, in hopes that they hit the dragon. The only one who wasn't using their magic was Bakugou, as the plan called for him to be their failsafe.
"Ow, ow, ow!" Takeyama hissed, as she began swatting her hand around.
"What's going on?!" Neito yelled.
"Something's hitting my fingers!" Takayama answered. "They're fast and painful!"
"Think they're some sort of projectiles?" Aoyama asked.
"Yeah, maybe! Could Tatsuma be throwing rocks at us?!" Uraraka wondered.
"Well, whatever it is, they're clearly dangerous!" Neito said, as he looked towards the titan. "Takeyama, I'm sorry about this, but we need you to keep blocking those projectiles with your hands. I know they're painful for you, but they're probably lethal to us! Please understand!"
"Say no more!" Takeyama said, as she kept climbing up the mountain.
"So, you just blinked, and… you were here?" Yui asked.
"That pretty much sums it up," her father said. "There was no magical portal, no god telling me to save their world, I wasn't even hit by a truck! One moment I was walking down the street, I rubbed my tired eyes for a second, and then… I find myself in the middle of a forest."
"But you adapted," Yui said. "You got good at being a crook."
He couldn't even deny that. "Well, yes. Shortly after arriving here, I discovered my neat little Divine Protection, and with my flair for the dramatic, I ended up becoming quite the showstopper at the Circus of Laughter, robbing people blind while also putting smiles on their faces."
"Until you ended up getting caught last night by my commanding officer."
"I was tricked, I say! She was flirting with me, I couldn't help myself!"
Yui simply looked at her old man in disgust. "You damn old perv…"
Something was wrong, Momo could feel it.
As the black-haired soldier kept shooting down at the giant and magic casters, she couldn't help but listen to that nagging voice in the back of her head telling her that she was making a huge mistake. But what could possibly be the problem? Her enemy was clearly the giant and…
…the magic casters.
Her eyes winded, as she quickly took a look at one of the blasts that had just erupted next to her. Those blue-and-white lasers… they looked just like the ones Aoyama –
Oh my God, what have I done?
"EVERYONE, STOP FIRING!!!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. Dropping her gun and running towards the flattest slope on the side of the mountain, running straight towards the giant. "STOP FIRING! WE'RE SHOOTING AT OUR OWN TEAMMATES! STOP!"
"...SHOOTING AT OUR OWN TEAMMATES! STOP!"
"Huh? The fuck is making that noise?" Bakugou asked.
Neito looked around, scanning the mountains, when he saw something from above. Sliding down one of the less-angled slopes was someone running down towards them, their arms flailing around like a loon's. "...Uraraka, hand me a pair of binoculars, would ya?"
"Yeah, sure thing," the astronomer said.
Taking the binoculars, Neito took a closer look at who was running towards them. Black hair in a ponytail and wearing a JSDF uniform… Wait a goodman minute, that's Lieutenant –
"An enemy!" Takeyama hissed, raising her fist, and –
"TAKEYAMA, STOP! THAT'S NOT AN ENEMY! THAT'S YAOMOMO!!!"
"Huh?"
Takeyama, along with the rest of her allies, stopped what they were doing, as they watched Yaoyorozu running towards them, screaming, "TIME OUT, EVERYONE! TIME OUT!!!"
"Quoi?! That's Madmoizelle Yaoyorozu?!"
"Huh, guess it is a small world, after all."
"How many was it? Six? Eight? Twenty-four? Seventy? A hundred?!" Yui asked. "How many women did you flirt with, kiss, sleep with here?! How many times did you betray Mom?!"
"Yui, calm down –"
"Do you have any idea what it was like?!" she asked, shaking the bars. "Hearing whispers from the adults about being a child out of wedlock, the result of two stupid teenagers not being safe, being called a bastard by the other kids?! Mom thought you ran away, and now, to see you…"
"I… know that it's hard for you to know that…"
"To know what, Dad? That you moved on? That you never actually held a wedding with Mom like you promised her?! And, what? Because you were stranded in another world? I…"
"...Yui?"
"A part of me wonders if the reason I am who I am now is because of what happened," the black-haired woman whispered. "That the fucked-up personality that I hide behind my "quiet medic" persona is because deep down, I wanted someone to give me attention. Because my mom was too busy crying over a man I only remembered through old photos..."
"...Yui, I'm –"
"Save it for when I care," she said, as Yui Kodai left the room, crying.
A few minutes after Momo was done roleplaying as a headless chicken, she was able to reunite the two teams back together, and was now having a serious talk on the side of the mountain.
Momo ribbed her temples, as she asked, "Okay, so… what exactly happened?"
"We saw you guys get clipped by the boulder and crash near here," Monoma answered. "We were gonna follow you, but some kind of red lightning struck us down close to Takeyama."
"You forgot to mention the part that you sided with her," Awase said.
"Hey, you're the ones that sided with the dragon!" Uraraka huffed.
"Yeah, because she isn't the one who threw a boulder at us!"
…Momo was starting to see a pattern here. Unfortunately, before she could say anything, both the titan and the dragon charged at one another, screaming and roaring respectively.
The two giant monsters engaged in an impromptu wrestling match to the death, as the tiny humans watched in shock and horror. Tatsuma tackled Takeyama into the ground before the titan kicked the dragon in the underbelly, sending her flying. Taking to the skies, Tatsuma unleashed a bolt of red lighting from her mouth, frying the surrounding areas.
CRACKLE!!!
Aoyama gasped. "That lightning…"
"So, she was responsible for knocking us outta the sky."
"But that would also mean that the boulder was from…"
Takeyama ran towards where Tatsuma was flying around, and grabbed her tail, sending her crashing down into the earth again. The dragon swiped her claws at the titan's face, getting a few scratches in, before Takeyama grabbed the claw and proceeded to pummel Tatsuma's face in with her free hand, before finally striking the dragon's back with both her fists.
In a roar, Tatsuma grabbed Takeyama with her claws, lifting her into the air before suddenly seeding her crashing down. The dragon flew back down, as the giant regained her footing, grabbing her opponent and pinning her down, the two of them now back to wrestling.
"They're gonna kill each other!" Kirishima yelped.
"I say we let them," Bakugou said. "They both attacked us and withheld the truth of what happened, just so they could use our desperation to make us soldiers in their fight."
While the raven-haired woman could agree with Bakugou's thinking, she shook her head. Their mission here was to gather allies, and that was exactly what Momo was gonna do.
"Bakugou, get their attention."
The ash-blond gave his commanding officer a funny look, before he understood what she meant, smiled, and began chanting, "Mea ultima exitium magicae…"
"Everyone else, I suggest you cover your ears!"
The others did as Momo commanded, as they watched the sky begin to darken. The dragon and the titan were still busy battling one another, so they never noticed when –
"EXPLOOOOOSIO!!!"
BOOOOOOOM!!!!!
A massive eruption thundered across the skies, as fire and heat rained down the nearby mountain range. The blast was so intense, that even the two kaiju-sized monsters stopped fighting to witness it. And when it was over, and the two seemed to be ready to continue –
"STOP FIGHTIIIIINNNG!!!!!"
– Bakugou shouted from the top of his lungs, gaining their attention.
"Now," the explosive blond said, dangerously quiet. "You are both going to be quiet, and you're both going to listen to what my commanding officer has to say. Ponytail, the floor is yours."
"Uhh, thank you, Bakugou."
As the medical officer of the SREU stepped out of the local jailhouse, she could hear everyone around her yelling about something. Looking up into the skies, Yui saw a giant dragon flying overhead, as it carried two damaged skyships in its claws, but… she didn't care.
Slowly walking over to Aizawa's office, she was able to hear Yaoyorozu talking about some sort of feud between a dragon and a giant, one that resulted in the team being used as proxy soldiers, before Bakugou was able to force the two monsters to listen to Yaoyorozu about how Chisaki was a threat to everyone, thus securing both their help, but… she didn't care.
Walking near the hangars, Yui even saw the dragon herself. Majestic beautiful wings of gold, a mane running down her back, and horns that seemed to be able to pierce any and all flesh. What was even more impressive to everyone was when the dragon suddenly polymorphed into a blonde woman wearing a red-and-gray qipao. But… she didn't care.
She didn't care about how the great Ryuko Tatsuma regaled the nearby soldiers with tales of how she assisted the current Demon King, rescued the lovely Princess Eri, or about her ongoing feud with the titan named Yuu Takeyama. Yui Kodai… simply didn't care.
As she sat down on a nearby bench, the sun had already begun to set. She wondered if she would just stay there for the rest of the evening, her tears having run dry long ago...
"Hey, Kodai?"
Yui looked over to see Yaoyorozu walking to her. "Are you doing okay…?"
The medic thought it over for a bit before she answered, "No…"
Yaoyorozu nodded. "Well, okay. I won't pry about anything, but, if you want to talk to me, or any of us, our doors are open. We'll always listen… We care about you. Don't forget that, okay?"
"We care about you."
Those words rattled in the black-haired woman's head long after Yaoyorozu departed. They cared about her. And after a long while… Yui decided that she cared about them, too.
But, despite that… it still didn't make her feel any better.
Author's Note: Yeah, Kodai is getting her own mini-arc.
Some behind-the-scenes trivia is that one of my friends was obsessed with the idea of Ryuko being a gem dragon from D&D , specifically a ruby dragon, while I was more interested in making her look more like one from Elden Ring. So, giving her the title of "Ruby Dragon" was my compromise. Let's see what comments we have…
Shin: I was aware of Kodai's costume being a reference to Ultraman and whatnot, but I fail to see how that aligns with her being related to Mr. Compress, unless you were just saying that because you just wanted to share some trivia with me. I hope the rest of their reunion lived up to your expectations. And I'm glad you enjoyed the mummy-killing!
Grieflord_101: Sorry, man, but I don't see the collection invitation anywhere. Are you sure that it needs my approval to go through? And if so, where exactly should I be looking?
VinHD15: You thought of Vitaly? I mean, sure, both of their acts involved fire and high-speed objects, but those are the only comparisons I can think of.
valkrus: AHA! It's true that I made some typos, but I have also spotted a typo in your very own comment! You called Yui "Yuki"! HA! But in all seriousness, the reason I have double quotations in some sentences is my personal way to show that multiple people are saying the same thing. You may not like it, but I've gotten used to it. Also, I'm writing it as "Collibustown" as a reference to Chinatown and other such urban enclaves.
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 44: Spooky Scary Skeletons
Summary:
Aizawa orders Momo and her team to drag Kodai with them on a mission, in the hopes that it would shake the black-haired medic out of her funk. They comply, and bring her to a manor owned by Himiko Toga... a manor that happens to have a host whose reflection can't be seen in mirrors, and dolls that move around at night... Spooky.
Chapter Text
Chapter 44: Spooky Scary Skeletons
"C'mon, Kodai, this will cheer you up…"
"No, I don't wanna."
Momo sighed in exasperation. She knew that ever since the whole circus thing, Kodai had been a bit… melancholic? No, that wasn't the right word… apathetic? Something like that. Look, the point was, that Kodai wasn't the same lovable, quiet, and slightly sex-crazed medic that the SREU had come to know and love, and in all honesty, it was getting problematic.
Specifically, it was getting problematic for General Aizawa.
With the most powerful healer in the JSDF's employ (Melissa was still with Midoriya) in such an emotional funk, it made each and every mission the SREU went out on more dangerous than ever, especially now when they were trying to contact the Demon King's allies, while also taking down any members of the Enlightened Evil they happened to come across. Hell, they would have died of friendly fire during their last mission, if it wasn't for Takeyama's giant fingers.
So now, Momo was trying to drag Yui Kodai out of bed.
"Come on, Kodai, I already told you that we all care about you, nngh, and this is how we're showing it," the Yaoyorozu heiress grunted, as she tried to pry her friend out of bed. "We're gonna go on a nice, nghh, life-threatening adventure, and you're gonna get your mojo back…"
"Lieutenant… I appreciate what you're trying to do," Kodai sighed. "But as much as I care about you guys, too, I can't find it in myself to go with you… just leave me here…"
"Okay…" Letting go of her subordinate, Momo decided to do the next best thing. "Kendo, Kirishima, Sato, grab her sides, we'll carry her together on the count of three."
"Wait, what…?!"
Kirishima gave her a thumbs-up. "You got it, Yaomomo."
"Hold up, wait, let's talk about this…"
Kodai's words fell on deaf ears, as the other three went to their respective positions. Once they were all in place, they looked to Momo, who nodded. "Okay, one, two… THREE!"
They immediately lifted the team medic into the air, carrying her towards their destination. Or, at the very least, began to carry her. As it turned out, even with four people, getting her on the move was quite the challenge. "Jesus, girl, what do you eat…?" Kendo wheezed.
"Tomatoes," Kodai said. "They go straight to my hips."
"Are they gonna be here anytime soon?" Kaibara asked.
"Be patient," Shouta groaned. "These things take time."
"We're not complaining, sir," Tsuburaba said. "We know that coaxing Kodai out of her slump is important, we're just… not sure our dragon friend has the capacity to wait."
Shouta looked over to the currently polymorphed dragon, Ryuko Tatsuma. Despite the fact that, at the moment, she looked like a blonde lady in a dual-colored qipao, he was fully-aware of what her true form actually looked like. She was massive and with wings… and given how two of the skyships were currently in the shop, one of the few reliable modes of aerial transportation.
Monoma had taken the rest of the skyships down to the south to grab another one of Midoriya's subordinates, taking the rest of the SREU with them. That meant that the only people who would be going to visit Toga's domain today were Yaoyorozu, Kendo, Kirishima, Sato, Kaibara, Tsuburaba, and… Kodai, provided that Yaoyorozu managed to get her out of bed.
He pitied the girl, he really did. To know that your supposedly deadbeat dad was actually iseaki'd here instead of running off was bad enough, but then to top it off with realizing that hating and spite were for nothing must have really stung. Shouta knew a similar feeling, in believing that Shirakumo was dead, but instead, had been reincarnated here.
The problem with that was, Shouta had grieved and then moved on, only to be caught by surprise with the sudden appearance of Kurogiri, while Kodai never let go, just bottling up her personal grudges inside that quiet demeanor of hers, and letting it twist her personality to whatever it was when no one was looking. So, when she finally got her sudden reunion with her father, her first instinct was joy, followed by anger, apathy, and now this depression.
Shouta could relate, sure, but there were differences between their own experiences that he wasn't the right person to talk with her about this. And even if they did have identical experiences, Shouta wasn't exactly the ideal person to have a heart-to-heart with.
Hopefully, Yaoyorozu would be able to help Kodai on this mission.
Tatsuma yawned, "What is taking them so long?"
Before he had a chance to answer, he heard a familiar voice saying "left, right, left, right." Turning around, he saw Yaoyorozu and the other three were carrying Kodai, like they were some group of amateur paramedics. They really had to resort to that, huh?
The four soldiers kept marching for a bit, before finally reaching Tatsuma, and dropping Kodai right at her feet. "Oh, thank God it's over," Kirishima wheezed, before keeling over.
"Kodai… as a cook and nutritionist… I recommend you limit your tomato-eating habits…" Sato gasped. "There are a lot of… health issues… with eating too many of them…"
"Fine. Maybe I'll eat something that'll make my boobs bigger," Kodai said, her tone as flat as... actually, it was flatter than usual. "Maybe then, somebody will actually love me."
Yeah, no, I'm not touching that. Shouta looked over to Tatsuma, who was still in her human form, and said, "Well, they're all here now, so I suggest you start…"
"Yes, yes, I know," the blonde woman said, before dropping to her knees. The wind picked up around them, as everyone stepped back a bit, while Tastuma suddenly became bigger and more scaly, wings popping out of her back, and red lighting circulating her body.
Huh. I guess that's kinda impressive to watch, Shouta figured.
As soon as Tatsuma was done with her transformation into a majestic dragon, the young soldiers proceeded to climb up on her back. Oh, yeah, they were gonna be rising in style. Looking over to the pavement, he could see that Yaoyorozu was still with Kodai, though…
"Come on, Kodai, get up," she said. "We're riding a dragon, and –"
"Okay," the medic said, immediately shooting up into the air and standing tall.
"...Wait, seriously?"
"You already carried me this far, I'm not gonna make you climb something while carrying me, that's a bitch move," Kodai explained. "Plus, riding a dragon is… kinda cool."
"Oh, well… that's good to hear, actually."
The two raven-haired soldiers climbed up the dragon, and when everyone was nice and secure, she took off from the landing platform, and into the skies. As the old man watched them get smaller and smaller in the distance, he chuckled, "Dragon riding… never in a million years…"
The first thing Momo noticed when they reached the Toga Domain was how cloudy it was. The skies were covered in an oppressive gray, more so than even Midoriya's palace.
Landing down on the nearby town where Governor Toga's own castle resided, she and the others could see that, while the area surrounding the Demon King gave off an aura of magical malice and darkness, this place gave one of death and decay. Though, as soon as they entered the town, Momo could tell that it wasn't actually affecting the residents, it was just… the vibe.
Where the Todoroki Empire had a mix of Roman and Japanese influences, and the capital of Daemonium looked like what would happen if the concept of chaos decided to try its hand in architecture, the town here, Inmortui, was more Hungarian-inspired with their buildings. It actually reminded Momo of Piscatio Island while Isana controlled it, only with less fog.
"Are you the members of the JSDF?"
Momo and her team (plus Tastuma) turned to see a woman around their age, but… yeesh. Much like most of the people in this fantasy world, her hair color was an unnatural gray, almost silver, but that's when the familiarities ended. Her skin was pale, and her blue eyes made it seem like she hadn't slept in days. But most interesting of all was the fact that she wore a fancy dark vest with a white shirt, signifying to Momo that she was some sort of attendant.
"Yes, that's us," Momo said. "And you are…?"
"Reiko Yanagi, a humble servant of Himiko Toga," the gray-haired woman said, bowing. "Come with me, please. My mistress is expecting you. Your rooms have already been prepared."
The team followed the pale woman, all while Momo kept picking up weird vibes from this place. Ugh, if Bakugou was here, he'd probably already know what tropes are at play here…
The black-haired woman shook her head. Her genre-savvy subordinate wasn't with her right now, so she was on her own. Besides, from the messages they received, Midoriya already vouched for this Toga lady. And with Tatsuma with them, they'd be fine… right?
As they left the town, the party walked up the road towards the castle, and… yeah, it was just as Momo had expected. Where the palace of the Demon King was alien and asymmetrical, yet somehow still elegant, this place seemed like a stereotypical haunted mansion. The towers were tall and dark, and overall this place reminded her of the Castlevania games.
She obviously wasn't going to say that in front of their host, though.
Eventually, they reached the gates of the castle, where a cemetery greeted them, along with two people at the front steps of the castle: A blonde woman with golden hair and eyes, along with a taller, buffer man, with spiky gray hair, both of them wearing fancy clothes.
The woman, however, was clearly wearing something fancier than the man, who, given his similar outfit to that of Yanagi, was safe to assume was also a servant. The blonde, meanwhile, wore a red-and-black dress that exposed her shoulders and collarbone, along with those fancy little gloves the nobility always seemed to wear in movies, plus a choker and earrings.
"Welcome, welcome!" the blonde lady said, clapping her hands and smiling. "You must be the otherworlders Izu-kun mentioned! I'm Himiko Toga, and this here is my butler, Sekijiro Kan!"
Momo bowed. "Thank you for having us."
"Sure thing!" Toga said. "Now, come on in, dinner's getting cold!"
Dinner was an… interesting affair.
That was mostly due to the fact that neither Himiko Toga nor either of her attendants ate. Momo knew from her years to being the Yaoyorozu heiress that such an act usually signified she was more concerned with the comfort of her guests, so Momo made sure to have extra.
While she may have known that, the others, not so much. Then again, they were more focused on their meal, and the… interesting decorations that were on the dining room walls.
Aside from the long, white dinner table, there was a lovely fireplace, a chandelier, torches, lit candelabras, and a massive window of stained glass. Despite all of those sources of light, however, the room still felt a little dim. Momo just wrote it off as her being used to modern electricity and lights capable of brightening an entire room, as opposed to just… this.
Momo decided it was best not to think about that. They were guests in this castle, and comparing it to back home would be insulting. And besides, she had things to do, as while the rest of her crew was enjoying dinner and wine, Momo was talking business with Toga.
"Of course we'll help Izu-kun and you fine folks with taking down these Enlightened Evil fools!" the blond woman said, laughing. "I'm just the ruler of this little region, he's the ruler of this entire nation, after all! If he tells me to jump, I will only ask him how high! Bwahahahahaha!"
Momo nervously smiled. "Well, that is good to hear…"
"Lieutenant. The painting."
"Huh?" Momo looked over to Kodai to see what she was talking about, as the team's medic pointed to one of the portraits on the wall. It wasn't anything too special, just the painting of a fancy man with white hair, though… Momo was a bit unnerved by the eyes.
It's almost like they're watching me... She shook her head. Now wasn't the time for stuff like that, and especially not for entertaining Kodai. She could always do that later.
"Anyways, I suggest you all head off to bed," Toga said, standing up. "Tomorrow, you can return home, while my forces and I will convene with the Demon Lords to discuss our strategy."
"Thank you for having us," Momo said, bowing lightly.
"Of course," Toga said, flashing a smile. "Reiko will escort you to your rooms."
Night had come faster than anyone could have predicted.
Most of the SREU slept fairly easily in their guest rooms, and why wouldn't they? The beds were lovely, and with a full belly, drifting off to sleep wouldn't be much of an issue… well…
Maybe it would be an issue for one person.
Sen Kaibara shifted in his guest bed. Dinner was fine, whatever, their host was a bit creepy, and he was more than ready to go fall asleep, but… there was one problem. I gotta pee…
THUNK!
"Huh?" Turning around to look into his guest room, Sen figured he'd see something that had fallen off the shelf to be the culprit of that sound, but instead… nothing.
Shelves were fine, table didn't suddenly break, the doll was still on the chair –
Wait a fucking minute.
There was a doll sitting in his room's chair. It seemed like an ordinary kid's toy, just some blonde doll with a dark blue dress and bonnet, but… its face was straight-up nightmare fuel, the typical pale porcelain face and human eyes that came straight out of the uncanny valley.
And what's worse, those big blue eyes… were staring right at him.
Sen instantly turned to face the wall, as his brain went into panic mode. That doll was not in his room when he entered, much less when he went to bed. It was official: This was an Annabelle situation. He had never seen those movies, so he had no idea how to fight off such a thing. Maybe if I can't see it, it can't see me? It's better than nothing, I guess…
As he tightened his eyes shut, pretending to be sleeping, his other senses got enhanced, as he heard the sounds of… skittering? He prayed to every deity that he knew of that it was just a mouse running across the floor and not that goddamn doll moving around. The skittering got louder and louder, and eventually… he heard something jump on his bed with a thump.
Fuck. Time to face the music, Sen realized. Slowly, he opened his eyes, and saw that it wasn't a creepy doll that was on his bed, staring into his soul, no… it was actually a dozen of them.
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"
Sen jumped out of his bed like a cracked-up rabbit, dashed straight for the door, slammed it open, and ran through the halls, screaming like a loon, all while he heard the laughter of children right on his heels. Hazarding a look, he turned to see the dolls…
Oh, fuck me. They can FLY?!
"HEEEEELP! SOMEONE! ANYONE!"
What do I do, what do I do, WHAT DO I DO?! Sen screamed in his mind, as he kept running from the floating dolls. These things were clearly possessed and out to kill him! Were they ghosts?! If that was the case, then he needed something like an exorcist…
Wait a minute. The last time they dealt with ghosts was in the Corallium Forest, with those dead adventurers, and Melissa exorcized them! But since Melissa wasn't with them anymore, that meant that the only other person who could help them was someone with her powerset. Someone who was capable of healing, which meant… I GOTTA GET TO KODAI, NOW!
Zooming in on the end of the hallway, he saw a door. Earlier in the evening, that Yanagi chick showed everyone to their rooms, and if his memory was right, Kodai's room was the last room to the left, before the corner. Running even faster than before, he grabbed the knob –
"KODAI, SAVE ME!"
– opened the door, got in –
"HURRY, THERE'S A…"
– and closed it behind him, quickly enough to see that… Kodai wasn't here.
Rather, in her bed, was his best friend and bro, Kosei Tsuburaba.
Now, naturally, neither of them were expecting the other, so when the two of them locked eyes, they both did the only normal thing they could: Scream like a couple of banshees.
"AAAAAHHHHH!"
"AAAAAHHHHH!"
After a solid ten seconds of screaming at each other, they both ran out of breath, and were able to recognize one another. "Jesus, man, you almost scared the piss out of me…"
"Speak for yourself, why don't you?!" Kosei yelped, getting off the bed. "What do you think you're doing, barging in here like a maniac?! You know this is Kodai's room, right?!"
"Uh, yeah, I knew," Sen said. "So, what are you doing in it?"
"A bunch of dolls started moving around in my room, so I came here to see if Kodai could keep me safe… and maybe guard the door outside the bathroom for me," the meteorologist said.
COPYCAT! Sen shook his head, knowing there wasn't time for any of that right now. "If Kodai ain't here, then she's probably… man, I don't even know… where would she… oh, fuck…"
Kosei gave Sen a funny look as he trailed off, only to notice that his geologist of a friend was staring at something behind him. Slowly turning around, Kosei paled as he saw… an army's worth of dolls right outside their window, twitching, as if trying to break in.
Time to run screaming again.
Yui Kodai walked through the halls of the castle, bored and aimless.
Yaoyorozu had brought her along because they wanted to cheer her up, and sure, the novelty of being in a castle was fun… for a little bit. But then it wore off, and she was back to thinking about how she wasted so much time thinking about her family situation for so long.
Did it truly even matter now? Did it matter why she became a medic (so no one has to feel abandoned)? Did it matter that there were people who cared about her (they'd leave her)? Did it matter that her father was back (it wouldn't fix her family)? Did anything matter (no)?
Walking into one of the many rooms of the castle, Yui found herself suddenly warmer. Looking around, she noticed there was a fireplace inside this… study? Yes, it appeared to be a study, with shelves of books, a mirror, couches and… the mistress of the castle.
"Oh, hello there," Toga said. "Would you like to have a seat?"
Yui figured there was nothing better to do, so she sat down on the sofa across from the blonde woman. The woman seemed to be sipping something from a goblet, as she was reading. How she managed to read by firelight was beyond Yui. Maybe the mirror reflecting it helped?
Turning to the mirror, Yui looked to see if it gave her better lighting. The black-haired medic could see the room, and her own reflection, but… not Toga's? Huh. How curious.
"So, what's eating you?" she asked. When Yui gave her a look, she sighed, "Come on. When you've lived for as long as I have, you tend to develop a knack for reading people."
"I see…" Yui said. Sighing, she answered, "I don't have a good relationship with my… family. And now, I've been wondering if I've wasted so much time thinking about it…"
"Thinking about it, huh?" Toga murmured, her yellow eyes meeting Yui's blue ones. "Let me guess, you're wondering if you should walk away from it, if you can even fix it or not, and whether or not it's a lost cause? Basically, you have no idea what to do… at all?"
Yui meekly nodded.
"...You know, I used to be in the same situation as you."
"Really…?" Yui asked.
Toga nodded. "Oh, yeah, my parents fucking sucked. I ran away from home, about a decade later, I'm basically at the lowest point of my life, and then… I met someone."
"Izuku Midoriya?"
"Yeah! Anyways, he helped me get back on my feet, gave me a job, and over the decades, I was prompted to the point where I now rule over this whole region," Toga said, her face becoming soft. "I love him, for everything he gave me… even if he doesn't love me back… And even if I know it'll never happen, I'll keep supporting him, because, well… that's love for me."
"Why are you telling me this?" Yui asked.
"Because it's clear to me that you need to stop focusing on family shit," Toga said. "And sure, maybe you'll spiral back to think about it, that's human, but you still need to focus on everything else in life! You can't cling on to the past, you're far too mortal to deal with that! You'll turn to dust in the blink of an eye, and you'll suffer doing it because in those last moments, you would look back and realize that you were hanging on to that shit rather than living."
Yui thought about what Toga said. She made… a lot of good points. But there was something that was bothering her. Toga talked like she had lived for a very long time, despite appearing to be the same age as, say, Bakugou. And the lack of a reflection in her mirror…
Looking at her cup, Yui asked, "What… are you drinking?"
"Blood," she said, calmly. "Human blood."
Sen sighed. He couldn't believe it.
He lost to Kosei at fucking rock-paper-scissors. And now…
"Uh, are you still out here?"
"Yeah, I'm still at the door."
…he had to wait for his friend to finish before he could go.
They managed to outrun the dolls before they flooded Kodai's room, and during their mad escape, they managed to find one of the guest bathrooms. Only problem was, there was just a single toilet, and neither of them wanted to share. Hence, rock-paper-scissors.
"Are you sure you're still there?" Kosei asked through the door.
Sen grumbled, "I said I'm here, dude!"
"But is that really you? How do I know you're not a ghost?!"
"OH, MY GOD!" Sen shouted, as he banged on the door. "WOULD YOU HURRY THE FUCK UP?! OR I'LL PISS MYSELF TO DEATH AND COME BACK TO HAUNT YOU!"
"I'm trying but… nothing's happening!" Kosei whined through the door. "I think it might be because of the quiet… Could you maybe sing something? The louder, the better."
"No way in hell am I gonna stand out here, in the middle of the night, singing –"
CREAK…
The rest of the words died on Sen's throat as he heard a noise at the end of the hallway. Slowly turning his head, his worst fears were confirmed, as he saw a whole bunch of dolls peaking their heads out from the corner of the hall, their eyes staring right into his soul.
"OPEN UP! KOSEI, OPEN UP!" Sen screamed, banging the door.
"Don't scare me like that! I know, I know, you need to go, but just have to wait!"
"THIS AIN'T ABOUT THAT ANYMORE! WE'VE GOT A BIGGER PROBLEM OUT HERE!"
"STOP POUNDING ON THE DOOR ALREADY! DON'T RUSH ME!"
Sen turned the knob desperately, as he watched the dolls begin to leave the corner and slowly walked towards them. "HOLY HELL, THEY'RE COMING! OPEN UP, DAMMIT!"
By some insane miracle, the lock broke and the door managed to open, revealing a small bathroom where Kosei was standing above the toilet… and his pants down.
"AAAAAAAAAA–!"
"WE'RE LEAVING!" Sen didn't care if he saw his bro's dick and balls right now, he just grabbed Kosei's hand, and made a run for it before the dolls reached them.
"Blood, huh?" Yui asked.
Toga nodded. "Yep. You've got a problem with it?"
"Considering you're working for Midoriya, I'm not too worried," Yui said. "From what I saw of him, he's the sort of ruler that preaches coexistence. I don't think he would condone you using another race as livestock, which means… that you were given this blood willingly."
"Oooh, you're a smart one!" the blonde vampire said, smiling. "Yeah, you're right on the money. I get a supply of blood from some willing donors from time to time, and Midoriya's research has shown me a way to preserve it, so it always tastes like it's fresh! Is that gross for you?"
"No. You're a vampire, blood is part of your diet. It's just in your nature."
"Aww, thanks!" Toga smiled even wider, showing off her fangs. "I really like you!"
A knock on the door interrupted their conversation, as Kan entered the room. "Forgive me for interrupting your lounging, mistress, but there is a matter that requires your attention."
They could hear the dolls outside the door.
Kosei and Sen had managed to find a storage room to hide in, but they knew it wasn't gonna cut it. It'd only be a matter of time before those porcelain pricks found them here…
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Right on cue, just as Sen figured. As the noises outside the door got louder, he gulped. "Crap, we'll have to make a run for it. When I open the door, you haul ass, you got it?!"
As Kosei nodded to the plan, Sen reached the door. They had no guns on them, so they couldn't defend themselves against these things. All he could do now was hope that they were still light enough to be tossed to the side like normal dolls. Or, if he was less fortunate, that it would take them a while to kill him, but long enough to buy enough time for Kosei to escape.
With how his night was going, he was betting on the latter.
As he reached for the door knob, he screamed, "BRING IT ON, YOU EVIL BITCHES!"
"Private Kaibara, stop this at once!"
"Huh…?" Cautiously opening the door, Sen and Kosei saw that in the hallway was… Lieutenant Yaoyorozu, along with Kodai, the Toga lady, and her butler, Kan. "Where are the dolls…?"
"If you're referring to Yanagi's toys, Kodai already took care of them," Yaoyorozu said, pointing to a bunch of the creepy dolls that were hugging Kodai. "Kan-san brought us here because Tatsuma and the rest of our team were complaining about the noise you were making."
"Noise?!" Kosei balked. "Yaomomo, this place is fucking haunted!"
Yaoyorozu sighed. "Sit down. You're in for a bit of an explanation…"
As it turned out, the castle was not haunted. Actually, scratch that, it was haunted, but none of the local ghosts were responsible for the dolls moving around that night.
In reality, the one responsible was the gray-haired lady, Yanagi. Apparently, her magic allowed her to telekinetically move objects, along with transferring her consciousness into a bunch of different objects, such as portraits and dolls, allowing her to see and hear through them, and more importantly, move them around as if they were her own body.
She and the rest of the castle's residents had gotten so used to having her dolls patrol around the area, that they had forgotten to inform Momo and her team of their existence. Additionally, she apologized to Kaibara and Tsuburaba for scaring them like she did.
Anyways, with that out of the way, everyone had gotten a good night's sleep (as best as they could after that fiasco), and in the morning, the SREU was ready to head out.
"Come back to visit when this war is over!" Toga waved them off.
Surprisingly, Kodai waved back. "I will!"
As they reached the outskirts of Inmortui, where Tatsuma was transforming back into a dragon for everyone to ride on, Momo looked at Kodai. "Are you feeling better now?"
"A little, thanks," she admitted. "And sorry… for being a pain before…"
"Hey, it's fine," Momo said, chuckling. "We're a team, remember?"
"A team…" Kodai repeated. "Then… where are we off to next, Lieutenant?"
Momo laughed. "Hehe, well, I guess we'll have to ask General Aizawa, won't we?"
And so, with the powerful flap of her draconic wings, Tatsuma flew back towards the Collibus Hills, where the SREU would be assigned to whatever next mission they were given.
But whatever it was… they would do it together.
As a team.
Author's Note: According to the original folklore and from Dungeons and Dragons, vampires aren't outright killed by sunlight, only burnt by it. So, if provided with enough sunscreen and shading, vampires would be able to hang out in the daytime. So, yeah, that would explain why Toga was able to be seen outside of her mansion.
If anyone watched the Futurama episode featuring the Were-Car, then you can imagine all of the architecture in the Toga Domain being basically the first half of the episode. The town is a more spacious version of the Robo-Hungarian city (maybe with a bit of Whitestone from Vox Machina in the mix), and the mansion is basically a clean version of the mansion from The Honking mixed with the manor the cast of Konosuba lives in. Speaking of that anime, the haunted dolls were from that show, while the method of how they moved around came from the protagonist of How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom. Speaking of Yanagi, I originally planned for her to be a ghost, but I didn't really like that, so I just went with her being a magical human. Kan was also gonna be a vampire, but I changed it to him also being a human. Now, for the comments!
Cpp1997: While I would say that it had Kodai's arc running parallel to the current mission, the two of them pretty much become one in this chapter. Another part to disappoint you with is the fact that Kodai is the only kid Mr. Compress has, despite his many romantic conquests. Sorry to shoot down something you were looking forward to.
Greiflord_101: Alright, so, I've talked to some of my friends regarding this issue, and none of them have said anything about it and they don't know what to do, either. Every time I look in my inbox, all I can ever see are the comments, kudos, and stuff like that, but nothing regarding your collection request. I would recommend that you try and talk to me directly on my Discord channel, or maybe let me know to whose email you are sending the requests, because other than that, I have no idea how to help you.
valkrus: HAHAHA! Yes! Not only did you blunder your comment, but my previous chapter was free of mistakes! But why do I get the feeling that this victory won't last…?
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 45: Everybody Walk the Dinosaur
Summary:
Two teams are sent to the same archipelago, but to the southern and northern islands. On the southern mission, Monoma and his group are looking for Setsuna Tokage, while the northern mission has Bakugou looking for Ryo Inui. But both teams are gonna have some trouble with the locals...
Chapter Text
Chapter 45: Everybody Walk the Dinosaur
"How many different governors does this island have?"
Neito once again rolled his eyes, looked back at Komori, and said, "Technically speaking, the Tropicus Islands are an archipelago, so there's hundred of unnamed islands in these waters. However, the ones we are most interested in are the big northern and southern islands, Septentriones and Meridiem. They're ruled by Setsuna Tokage and Ryo Inui, respectively."
As the blond recited the mission brief that everyone was already supposed to know (come on, guys, seriously) he looked out and down towards the oceans below him. Unlike the northern seas that Lieutenant Yaomomo visited, the southern ones looked warm and inviting, most likely due to the fact that they were located way closer to the equator than the Insulae Isles.
The seas below him were a gentle aquamarine, instead of an oppressive deep blue he heard about from Aoyama's account of his previous nautical adventure, the islands that passed by were a healthy mix of green and yellow, of plants and sands, and the skies, wow…
This seemed like a nice lie back and catch some suns once Neito hit retirement age.
"Why are two governors needed?" the brown-haired astronomer asked.
"Dunno, but according to our ever-trustworthy demonic ally, we're gonna need to get into contact with both of them if we wanna have a chance to defending this region from –"
"ACHOO!" Midoriya sneezed. "Ugh, I think someone was thinking about me…"
"Are you sure that's how it works?" Melissa asked.
"According to Kurogiri, yeah."
"- from the Enlightened Evil, yeah, we know," Uraraka groaned, as if she was sick.
"Yeah, I'm getting pretty tired of those assholes, too," Neito said.
"You think it's a good idea to only have us here?" Komori asked.
"With Yaomomo and Itsuka dealing with their own mission back on the continent, we've got to be smart about how we split up the test of our team," the blond answered the botanist's query. "And unfortunately, that means leaving the other team's command to…"
"Oi, Headband, how long 'till we get there?"
"It's Awase, sir, and we'll get there when we get there."
"Just give me an estimation," the blond growled.
Unbelievable. First time he was given command during an official mission, and Katsuki's lumped with the sassy engineer, the animal nerd, and the French creep. Just unbelievable.
"The waters here are truly beautiful…" the French creep, Aoyama, said.
"Yeah, they definitely are," Awase agreed. "Definitely better than Piscatio Island…"
"I'm pretty sure any place would be better than Piscatio Island, from the accounts you gave us," the animal nerd, Rin, said. "Though, I have to admit, I am a tad bit curious about what sort of fauna we'll find here. Tropical areas like these tend to be quite biodiverse…"
"If you wanna stop and play with the monsters, that's your funeral, but the rest of us are gonna complete our mission, and get the fuck out of here," Katsuki said, as he eyed the islands below him. "Ugh, this place already reminds me of the Saltu Jungles, and we haven't even landed…"
"Well, brace yourselves, because we're about to," Awase said.
"Fan-fucking-tastic," the explosive blond grumbled.
Neito took in a deep breath of the air. It was… so clean.
No pollution from cars, buses, motorcycles, or the like. No factories for miles, no sign of human civilization as far as the eye could see. This place seemed so… untouched by man.
Despite its appearances, he knew better. He knew there was someone living on this island. Someone powerful enough that the Demon King gave them full reign of this place.
And it was his job to find them. Well, him and his team.
They landed in the first grassy field they could find. They considered landing on the beach, but they weren't too sure if the skyship wouldn't sink into the sand or roll into the ocean, so they opted for the more stable option. An open clearing, with trees and a valley next to them.
"So," Komori spoke up. "Tokage Setsuna…"
"Yeah, do we have any ideas of how we're gonna find her?" Uraraka asked.
"The only info we got from the higher-ups is that "she'll find us," whatever the hell that even means," Neito answered. Looking towards the jungle trees, the blond soldier said, "Let's go through there, maybe we'll be able to see her if we have a better view of the valley."
The two scientists followed their squad leader, leaving the skyship alone, as they made their way to the trees. The jungle was thick, just like the one in Saltu, where the trees reached up so high that they nearly blocked out the sun. They could hear random animals making random sounds, and, more annoyingly, the giant mosquitoes were trying to make a snack out of them.
"Ugh, come on, fuck off!" Uraraka hissed, waving off one of them.
"Holy shiitake, they're the size of my pinky!" Komori yelped.
Yeah, that was an unpleasant thought. Though, given the sort of hellhole this world could be, Neito figured they should be thankful they only grew to the length of a human finger.
Quickly making their way out of the trees and away from the oversized bloodsuckers, the three of them reached the other end of the jungle, where Neito was able to feel the sun on his skin again, and he could see the grass down at his feet, along with the… giant… footprint…
Quickly rubbing his eyes, the blond soldier did a double-take, and yep, sure enough, there was a massive footprint right in front of him. If he took one step closer, he would have probably tripped and fell from how deep it was. This thing was massive, bigger than any other track he had seen. If he wanted to, he could probably stand inside it. What could have made this…?
There was something huge on this island, no doubt about it. He wasn't a math genius like Awase, but from what he remembered back in school, in order for something like this footprint to exist, the creature's body must have been proportional to its feet. This thing looked like the print of an elephant, only bigger, and uglier. Are there giant mutant elephants on this island?
"Uraraka, Komori, check this out," he called out to them, but… nothing.
Looking up, Neito could see that the two of them were still next to him, but… they were staring at something ahead of them, if their wide eyes and gaping jaws were any indication. What could they be looking at that made them – SWEET BABY JESUS CHRIST ON A UNICYCLE!!!
Way ahead of the three soldiers were a pack of animals, minding their own business and simply foraging on the nearby plants, but their sheer size was more than enough to confirm to Neito that they were the ones responsible for the footprint. These aren't elephants…
They were bigger, way bigger, with long necks and even longer tails. Their massive feet held their titanic bodies up, as their thick necks connected to their majestic heads, each one busy grazing on the vegetation around them. Neito knew what these things were. Hell, every person on Earth knew what these things were. These were the original rulers of their planet, these were the stuff kids' dreams were made of, these were the thunder lizards… these were…
These were genuine, honest-to-God, dinosaurs.
Katsuki and the others made their way through the forest.
He decided that it would be best for them to make it to the village this Ryo Inui guy was overseeing on foot, rather than land smack dab in the middle of it and risk getting the skyship shot down. He didn't want a repeat of what happened with the lizardmen.
The forest itself looked… kinda weird. It was a mix between a jungle and what a stereotypical Western forest looked like. Maybe it was some kind of weird-ass dry rainforest?
In all honesty, he wouldn't know. That mushroom girl, Komori, would probably know, she was the one with the botany degree. I'd totally trade her for Rin right about now…
THWIP!
"Eh?" Katsuki, along with the others behind him, turned around to see what just made that noise, and saw that Awase… was now wrapped up in a bunch of vines.
"Uhh… guys?"
YANK!
"HEEEEEEEEEELLLLLPPP!!!!!!!!!!"
"AWASE!!!" Rin shouted, as he and the others watched their mechanic suddenly get pulled off the ground like some kind of fish on a hook, reeled straight into the treetops.
As the other two idiots started to panic, Katsuki looked above, to the trees. Whatever the hell that was, he doubted it would be content with just nabbing Awase. Pulling out his assault rifle and scanning the area, he noticed that a bunch of vines were moving towards –
"LOOK OUT!"
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
Unleashing a bunch of bullets on the vines, the rope-like plants were reduced to smithereens, as Katsuki yelled, "SHOOT ANYTHING THAT LOOKS LIKE A LIVING ROPE!!!"
Aoyama and Rin nodded, pulling out their weapons. While the blond was still looking around for their captured engineer, he noticed more of those blasted vines incoming.
Looks like their arrival to the village would be a bit delayed.
Holy shit. That was the thought that was going through Neito Monoma's brain at this very instant as he kept staring at the herd of sauropods in front of him. Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit –
No! Now is not the time for this! Neito shook his head, snapping out of his single-minded thoughts. Now that he was done babbling like a madman within his mind, he quickly tapped Uraraka and Komori on the shoulders. "Come on, guys, snap out of it…"
"Huh?!" Uraraka looked at him like he was crazy. "But, they're… dinosaurs!"
"I know, I know, but we still have a job to do!" Neito said. "Look, we can look around for Tokage Setsuna while also admiring the dinosaur-themed view, but we have to get going."
"Okay, okay," Komori said, as she snapped a few more pictures.
The three of them made their way through the valley, looking around for any sign of this "Setsuna Tokage" woman, while also admiring the dinosaurs from a safe distance. Even if these things were herbivores, they were at least ten times the size of a human, and Neito had seen enough cartoons of elephants freaking out over mice to err on the side of caution.
As docile as they may appear to be, they probably never saw a human before. For three of them to suddenly show up in their grazing spot would be the equivalent of a bunch of bugs you've never seen before showing up in your kitchen. And to make matters worse, if one of the bugs ran up to you and touched your foot, even if it was harmless, there was a good chance you'd panic and bring out the heavy boots to kill it. And Neito would rather not be stomped.
Hence the current "look, don't touch" policy. He may not be a zoology expert like Rin, but even he knew that going up to a wild animal in their natural habitat was probably a bad idea.
Still, as the three of them moved along, he couldn't help but watch them in curiosity, mixed in with a healthy dose of caution. Actual, living dinosaurs. Not some animatronics in a theme park, no CGI crap from whatever new Jurassic Park sequel Hollywood pumped out, but alive and breathing dinosaurs. He had so many questions, like… what kind were they looking at?
Brachiosaurus? No, they're not that big. Apatosaurus seems more likely, but I can't be sure until I bring an expert here, Neito thought to himself. Man, I wish Rin was with us…
"AWK! WUUUG…"
Suddenly, one of the dinosaurs raised its head and began to moan in some kind of panic, causing all of the others to stop grazing and begin to whip their heads around like crazy. Neito looked over at his squadmates and asked in an angered whisper, "What did you do?!"
"We didn't do jack squash!" Komori hissed. "They started freaking out on their own!"
Neito looked around, trying to figure out what was going on. Why would a bunch of animals start panicking, and why did it look like they were looking around, almost as if trying to find something? Suddenly, he realized what was going on. They're being hunted…
Something was out here. Something that would cause the gargantuan reptiles to sound the alarm, warning the rest of their herd of some sort of impending attack. But by what?!
"RRR… RRR… HRRRAAAAA!!!"
Neito's blood ran cold as he and the others heard a roar. Turning their heads slightly to the side, they saw a newcomer walking into the valley. It was a dinosaur, a two-legged one, and by the looks of its teeth it was predatory. Neito knew that it wasn't a T. Rex, its overall body was too small and its hands were too big; plus, it had these horn-like fins on the top of its head.
Despite knowing it wasn't the infamous tyrant lizard, it didn't make Neito feel any safer. He could see the sauropods, despite being way bigger than their would-be predator, begin to huddle up with each other and whip their tails around as some sort of defense mechanism. Now was probably a good time to get out of here, while it was still busy with the long-necked –
"RRR… RRR…"
Oh, fuck me in the ass. The blond turned to see more of the same meat eater come out of the proverbial woodwork. Looks like those things hunted in packs. They slowly approached the terrified herbivores, backing off to not get tail-whipped, when one of them…
…turned around, looking right at the three humans.
At the three, small, and most likely, delicious, humans.
"Uhh, sir…?" Uraraka called out to him.
"Mm-hm. Time to run."
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
Ammunition was running low. These vines were fucking relentless, and if Katuski's hypothesis was correct, then as long as they were in these woods, there'd always be more of them.
They'd be captured like Awase if this kept up.
Katsuki hated to do this, he really did, but if they were to have even a chance of saving their mechanic, they needed to get out of this alive. "WE'RE RETREATING, FALL BACK!!!"
"WHAT?!" Rin shouted. "WHAT ABOUT AWASE?!"
"WE CAN'T SAVE HIM IF WE'RE ALSO CAUGHT!!! WE NEED TO GO, NOW!!!"
"TO WHERE?!" Aoyama yelled. "WE'RE SURROUNDED!!!"
"OUT OF THE FOREST! WE GOTTA MAKE A BREAK FOR THE VILLAGE!!!"
With a destination in mind, the two subordinates nodded, as they followed their leader. The three of them ran like hell, shooting at any vines that got in their way. They kept running through the forest, heading straight for where the density of the woods became lesser and lesser…
"KEEP GOING! WE'RE ALMOST THERE!"
…and then… they leapt out of the woods.
Katsuki heaved a big breath, as he aimed his weapon straight at the forest, waiting for the vines to rush out of the woods and nab him. But… nothing. It seemed like his theory was correct.
"So, they only stay within the trees…" he rasped out. "Good to know…"
"Uhh… Bakugou…?"
"Hm?" Katsuki turned around to see what the new problem was… only to be met by several beast-like demi-humans, all of them pointing their spears at him. "Well, fuck."
As it turned out, running from dinosaurs was no easy feat.
The reptilian bastards were fast, and watching their buddies fall dead the second a bullet hit their vitals didn't seem to discourage them. If anything, that made them come at the trio even harder than before, even after the three of them made it back into the jungle.
Unfortunately, due to the fact they were currently being chased by bloodthirsty dinosaurs, they weren't the best navigators during this high-adrenaline scenario. Which meant rather than heading straight back to the grassy field and the skyship, they kept running through the dense jungle, until they eventually reached a tench with only a dead tree acting as a bridge.
"Oh, you have got to be kidding me," Uraraka sighed.
"Afraid not," Neito said. "Hm? INCOMING!"
"HRRRAAAAA!!!"
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
The soldiers shot off any of the dinosaurs that tried to lunge at them, but there were just… so fucking many of them. And to make matters worse, due to how heavy those Jurassic jackasses were, they made the dead tree begin to roll, causing everyone to lose their balance.
"Aw, shit… HOLD ON TIGHT!!!"
As the dinos kept trying to nab the soldiers, the further into the makeshift bridge they got, and the heavier it became, until eventually… it rolled right into the wider end of the trench.
"I PREFERRED THESE FUCKERS WHEN THEY WERE EXTINCT!!!"
The dead tree fell into the abyss, taking both humans and dinosaurs with it, as it kept falling upon vines and the sides of the chasm, slowing its fall suddenly every now and then, before eventually… hitting the dark, colorless, and seemingly lifeless, bottom.
"Ugh…" Komori groaned. "I feel like I'm on a bad trip…"
Uraraka nodded. "Me, too…"
As the two of them regained their bearings, Neito scrambled to see what was going on. It was dark, so the first thing he did was dive into his pack and pull out a flare. Setting it alight, he could see that they were at the bottom of the trench, along with a couple of the carnivorous dinosaurs. Thankfully, it seemed as though they were slowly recovering, so it gave them some time.
"Hey, come on, you two, we gotta get outta here before –"
CLICK-CLICK-CLACK…
Neito didn't recognize that sound. It didn't sound like the noises a fleshy creature made. It sounded hard, stitled, like something that wore armor made. Like an exoskeleton…
Turning around, the blond soldier came across a fresh new sort of hell: Bugs.
Giant bugs, all of them peeking their heads out of the cracks and crevices within this trench, and all of them coming out for the chance to have the first bite out of what just fell down for them.
He could see crickets the size of his face, a couple of massive arthropods that looked like the cross between a millipede and a crab, some sort of tailless scorpions, and everything that seemed like it both lacked a vertebrae and was a violation to both God and Satan.
"HRRRAAAAA!!!"
Neito whipped back around to see one of the dinosaurs trying to climb out of the trench get grabbed by a giant, crab-like claw that was within one of the holes in the walls, only to suddenly get dragged inside it. Another one was ripped apart by the scorpions, bits and pieces of it tossed around, and a third was being bogged down by what looked like those giant leeches from Tsunotori's swamp but with somehow more teeth, feasting on the dino's insides.
That's going to be us in a few minutes, he realized.
Neito quickly ran back to Uraraka and Komori, grabbing the two of them by the shoulders. "Uraraka, cast that floating spell you've got on us, we gotta make a break for it."
The brown-haired astronomer nodded, casting the light purple field of energy on them, before it disappeared yet again, before they all jumped sending themselves up into the air.
As the three of them made it out of the abyss of death, Neito did some quick calculations in his head. The right side of the trench was closer to them, so if they used some momentum and managed to time it right, they'd be able to land there as soon as the spell ended.
"Okay, just follow my lead," he said, as he began swinging his legs. Uraraka immediately caught on to what he was doing and copied him, before being followed by Komori. Their legs kept going back and forth and back and forth, until eventually… "Okay, cancel the spell… NOW!"
The weightlessness subsided, and gravity took back its grip on them, as the three soldiers came crashing down on the jungle floor, as opposed back to that hellish chasm. "Oh, thank God…"
"That's a clever use of magic, I have to give you that!"
Huh? Neito and the others looked up, and saw that the source of this new voice was… a woman. A green-haired woman with light green scales close to her shoulders, a toothy smile, and wearing what could best be described as the most realistic jungle woman cosplay ever.
"Now, admittedly, I would have swooped in on a vine and saved you from those pests with some handy-dandy fire, but looks like you didn't need me. Good on you for that!"
"I'm sorry, but… who are you?" Neito asked, between breaths.
"Oh, right, I forgot to introduce myself!" the green-haired woman said, before she got up and bowed. "Setsuna Tokage! I'm caretaker of Septentriones Island! Nice to meet ya!"
Katsuki and the rest of his team were escorted right into the village. Thankfully, they got to keep their stuff on them, so it wasn't like they were being held prisoner this time around.
Still, even if they weren't being treated as badly as they were with Usagiyama and her posse, this was a cold reception, just like with the lizardmen. While it was true no one shot arrows at them just yet, he could still see the looks the villagers were giving him and his crew.
But eventually, they made it to the governor's house, nothing too fancy (just a wooden villa), with no issue. And waiting for them at the front door was the big man himself, Ryo Inui.
The villagers of Just like the Meridiem were all demi-human, with varying degrees of it showing. Some of them looked human, with the exception of having animal ears and a tail, just like the iconic kemonomimis back in Japan, and from there, they would add more features until eventually looking like anthropomorphic animals. Ryo Inui fell into the latter category.
He was a big guy, way taller than Katsuki. He had the appearance of a dog, with a long snout full of sharp teeth and a huge mane of golden hair growing behind him. His entire body was covered in fur, with the majority of it being a less-saturated golden color that made it look like he had tan skin, along with black stripes going down his arms (and bright golden ones on his wrists). He also seemed to wear minimal clothing, probably to not overheat himself.
He also happened to be glaring right at Katsuki and his crew.
Then again, that could be his resting bitch face, the explosive blond thought. He had one himself, and it took a lot of effort to keep it in, so he wouldn't blame the guy for that.
"So…" Inui huffed out. "You must be the otherworlders."
"Yeah, that's us," Katsuki said. "Your boss sent us. Told us to deliver you a magic mirror along with a message about some upcoming meeting, it's all in the letter I'm carrying."
"Magic mirror? I don't see you carrying anything," Inui said.
"It's not with us, it's back on our skyship," the demolition expert answered. "The last time we arrived at one of these villages, we almost got shot down. Didn't want to repeat that."
"So, you landed and made it here on foot," Inui surmised, rubbing his hand below his chin. "That would also explain why you came out of the forest screaming like a bunch of lunatics."
"Uh, yeah, about that," Rin spoke up. "Is there a reason the forest attacked us?"
"There is," Inui answered honestly, before tilting his head with curiosity. "But why are you all so curious about it? Surely, you're smart enough to not go through there again."
"Yeah, no, we kinda have to; our buddy is still back there."
Inui stared at them for a good five seconds, before asking, "...Your buddy?"
"That's right, those vines grabbed one of us," Aoyama said. "We have to rescue him."
The dog-like demi-human was silent for a few seconds, seemingly analyzing everything he had just been told, before slowly putting his hands over his face, letting out every single curse word he could think of, before just giving up and roaring furiously, like a wild animal.
"AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!"
In all honesty, Katsuki could relate to that.
"Sorry for the mess," Tokage said. "I've been meaning to clean up…"
"It's fine, you probably weren't expecting guests," Neito said, as he and his crew walked into the treehouse's living room. It was kinda disorganized, but after all the shit they had to deal with earlier in the day, this place was looking a lot like a luxury inn right about now.
Still, it was kinda annoying to know that the lady they were looking for was well-aware of the life-threatening situations they were in, and didn't do anything. Sure, she was kinda right that they were able to handle themselves, but it was the principal of the matter, dammit!
Taking a deep breath, Neito calmed himself and decided to be professional about this. "We bought a communication mirror and a letter from the Demon King. He is requesting that all of his forces join the right against the Enlightened Evil, yours included, Tokage-san."
"The Enlightened Evil? Yeah, I know about them," Tokage said, dropping her smile. "In fact, I could use your help to take down one of their members causing trouble around here."
"Wait, one of them's here?" Uraraka asked. "Which one?"
"A bone devil going by the name Leviathan," the green-haired woman answered. "He's been trying to get his hands on The One That Stops the Waters, trying to weaponize him."
"The One That Stops the Waters? What kind of name is that?" Komori asked.
"It's the name I've given to the massive bladeback saurial that lives on the island," Tokage answered. "He's more than twice your height, with gray scales that cover him from snout to tail, his back covered in these wavy blades, and his intimidating red eyes can make you freeze in fear. His feet are so large that he is able to cause the earth to shake and the waters to stop."
Huh. That description gave kaiju vibes to the blond man. But that name…
"Okay, for the sake of not stopping to use his full title every single time, my friends and I are just gonna use a shorter name for this guy," Neito said. "How does Godzilla sound to you?"
"Monoma, are you serious?!" Komori asked. "Do you wanna get sued by Toho?!"
"Fine, fine, we'll just call him Godzillo, then. Does that work?"
"Sure, it has a nice right to it," Tokage said.
"Wonderful. Anyways, since we're here, we'll help you keep this Leviathan guy away from Godzillo," the blonde said. "That's a JSDF promise you can count on!"
Tokage smiled. "I'll hold you to it, then."
"A dryad?" Rin repeated.
"That's correct," Inui said. "A couple of them live in the forest around us. As long as we don't trespass into their territory, the two of us live in harmony. That is, until you came along."
Katsuki internally cringed. He knew what dryads were. They were the protectors of forests and trees. So, aside from getting annoyed that some outsiders came stomping into their turf, it probably got extra-pissed with all the high-tech equipment they were carrying around.
It was probably why it attacked Awase first. He's a mechanic; aside from probably having the most gadgets on him, he was a complete master of machines, which were pretty much the antithesis to the nature of dryads. "Okay, so, how do we get our buddy back?"
"I'm uncertain," Inui said. "This is the first time outsiders such as you entered their forests. And while it is true that you were unaware of the dryads in there, you also attacked them."
Yeesh, no wonder this guy was pissed, Katsuki thought. Aside from having just technically violated the agreement with their neighbor, Inui just couldn't let Awase die without incurring Aizawa's (and by extension, Midoriya's) wrath, meaning that in just a single afternoon, Katsuki unwittingly added more work to a problem that could have easily been avoided.
"Well, what do we do now?" Aoyama asked.
"Now? Hope that one of them comes here to negotiate," Inui answered honestly.
That's not a very hopeful idea, Katsuki grimly thought.
Author's Note: I honestly didn't know that there was a new Godzilla x Kong movie coming soon (along with Jurassic World: Rebirth), but I think the timing for them, along with this chapter's theme was one happy little coincidence.
A two-in-one mission! Starting with the southern island, it was pretty much one giant reference to the King Kong movie from 2005. Seriously, from the giant mosquitoes, to the running of the dinos, to the insect pit, the entire island was basically Skull Island minus the giant apes. There was even a Kong: Skull Island scene that happened on the northern island with the vines that grabbed Awase. Speaking of the northern island, the demi-human village might have been a reference to Doldia Village from Mushoku Tensei, I can't recall correctly. I also can't recall correctly if the scene with Setsuna explaining the situation on her island was a reference to Steven Buschemi's most iconic scene from Spy Kids 2 (if you know, you know). There are more references abound, but most of them can be saved for the next chapter. It's time to move on to the comics!
avilasamantha: Is this AI? This seems too eloquent to be a human.
Aaiko marchel: Yeah, same with you. Seriously, what's the motive?
VinHD15: I think Toga's love might be platonic in this universe. But I'm not too sure, I didn't focus on it too much. Funnily enough, I was considering having Kodai and Nejire betting bagged by Midoriya along with Melissa, but I decided against it. This version of Midoriya is loyal, and he can always get with the other girls in the other TOP stories.
Tykronos: You know, when I posted the last chapter, I thought people would be commenting about how the dolls were creepy, or how spooky this chapter was. I didn't think that a good portion of y'all would be interested in Himiko Toga's love life.
valkrus: Your comment is both joy-bringing and intimidating…
ATTENTION! I have created my own website where I've posted a bunch of my art, so, if you're interested in seeing that, visit https/eowen5./!
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 46: The Green-Haired Women
Summary:
Monoma and his team make sure Godzillo doesn't end up in the hands of the Enlightened Evil, with the help of a green-haired woman. Bakugou and his team, meanwhile, have to negotiate for the release of their other teammates from the clutches of the dryads, that are being led by a green-haired woman. Huh, what an odd coincidence...
Chapter Text
Chapter 46: The Green-Haired Women
Leviathan patrolled around the lake, in search of the beast. His intel had told him that The One That Stops the Waters slept within it, but this place was so massive and murky he couldn't see anything. Yes, he was able to see in the dark, but not in the muck and lake water!
Not only that, but flying would be a waste of time, too. This entire lake had the same shade of mud water, he wouldn't be able to tell anything apart. So, for now, all he could do was wade through the waters. But even with his height, at some point, it'd no longer be feasible.
How did he end up doing a job like this? He used to be a taskmaster and interrogator of the Nine Hells, a creature of the law, so why the hell was he now supporting a bunch of anarchists that wanted to turn the world into nothing more than an apocalyptic wasteland?
Chitose Kizuki. That was who to blame. The oni woman was charismatic enough to dive into the Nine Hells to retrieve Kai Chisaki's damned soul without being skinned alive on the spot by any of the local devils. Though, in truth, the higher-ups let her take it, and while they were at it, even had Leviathan show up to her as a sort of "summoned minion," to keep tabs on her.
In short, she was a maniac. Then again, everyone in the Enlightened Evil was one form of crazy or another. The only reason they all tolerated one another was because they needed each other to take down the main players in the world, if any of their own goals were to succeed.
In short, they were all willful traitors the second they achieved their collective goal. While he could respect some of them due to their utilitarian principles (even if they emphasized more the means to spread their misery, rather than the true ideals of utilitarianism), at the end of the day, they were all still bad people who would burn in the darkest pits of the Hells upon death.
It was only a matter of time before Leviathan and his comrades would get their hands on them and torture them for all eternity. But for the time being, he had to listen to their orders. Even if said orders were to go to some far-off island in search of an oversized lizard.
And for the moment… he still couldn't find anything. Looking around, all he could see was water, muddy shores, jungle trees, and some sort of beam of light heading his way – Wait, what?
BREEAM-POW!
"A direct hit."
Neito smiled. Looks like Uraraka had some good eyes on her. Then again, she was an astronomer, so he figured that being able to see faraway stars was a requirement for her.
The plan was pretty simple: Head straight towards where Godzillo was sleeping, and camp out until Leviathan showed his ugly mug. Once Uraraka told him that he had a clean shot, Neito would fire off an Aoyama-brand magical laser and headshot the motherfucker.
"That was pretty cool, not gonna lie," Tokage said. "Congrats on the kill."
"Well, you pitched in to help," Komori said. "If you didn't have your dinos stir up the mud at the bottom of the lake, then Leviathan wouldn't stay in the same place for so long."
"True, true," the green-haired woman said. "Guess the credit goes to me!"
"Hey, she didn't say that," Neito spoke up. "This was team effort –"
BOOMFFF!!!
Their bantering died the second they heard something erupt out of the water. The thing leapt through the air, before landing a few meters away, sending ripples through the lake.
Neito gulped. Oh, shit.
Less than twenty feet from their position was a white monster, almost three meters in height. He had long limbs, with red fingers that were half the length of his legs. Spikes covered him, from the top of his head down to his back (which had insect wings), all the way to his skeletal tail, ending in a scorpion stinger. His yellow, pupiless eyes were staring right at Neito and his crew.
Leviathan opened his mouth, revealing his long teeth, and said, "DID YOU HONESTLY THINK THAT MAGIC WOULD HARM ME? I WILL DESTROY EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU!!!"
Neito gulped again. OH, SHIT.
Katsuki didn't like the idea of sitting around and doing nothing.
He had always been proactive, ever since he was a little kid. It was kinda the reason he was great at everything he did, but it was also the reason he was so desperate to find something fulfilling during his youth. Thank goodness he learned about the wonders of explosives.
But despite having a satisfying career as a demoman, he was still the same proactive nutcase he was as a brat. Which is why the current situation was driving him insane.
Inui told them that all they could do was hope that the dryads came to them to negotiate the release of Awase. That meant that his subordinate's fate was literally in the hands of someone else, and there was nothing he could do about it. It absolutely pissed him off.
He tried to occupy his mind by doing some work. Heading back to the skyship the long way around and delivering the conversing mirrors to Inui and his people, but they were done with that pretty soon. He also tried gathering some intel, but that route was also short.
Aoyama and Rin figured that there was nothing to do, so they talked to the locals about more casual things, and experienced their culture, as if this was a vacation to Hawaii.
Idiots, Katsuki internally griped. But then again, maybe they're onto something…
"CHIEF!"
Or not. The ash-blond looked out towards the sound of the yelling, to see one of the villagers, some lady with cat-like features, running towards Inui. What's all this about?
"Did something happen?" Inui asked.
"One of the dryads is at the border of the forest! They wish to speak!"
"Is that so?" the dog-like demi-human said, as he turned to Katsuki. "Guess it's your lucky day."
The explosive blond instantly understood what he was talking about. Jumping up from the porch of the wooden house, he rushed out and looked around for Aoyama and Rin. It wasn;t too hard to find them, and he quickly grabbed his two remaining soldiers from what they were doing.
"Hey, I was drinking that!"
"Monsieur Bakugou, you're being a wee but forceful!"
"Too bad," Katsuki said. "Vacation's over, time to get back to work."
"RUN, RUN, RUN!!!" Neito shouted.
"WE'RE RUNNING, WE'RE RUNNING, WE'RE RUNNING!!!"
This was bad, this was very bad. Their plan didn't work. That skeletal bastard had some sort of immunity to magic. And to make matters worse, their bullets were only slowing him down, not killing him! They'd be way out of bullets before they even managed to wear him down!
Come on, Monoma, think! Why didn't his face melt the second he got hit with my laser?! Is he immune to heat-based attacks? Neito asked himself. And if that's the case…
He had a theory. But he needed to test it.
Neito stopped running, much to the surprise of the others, as even Leviathan slowed down in curiosity. "OH, WHAT'S THIS? GIVING UP ALREADY? I'LL SHOW YOU –"
"CAELESTIS GLACIES DENTEM!!!"
SHUNK!!!
Using one of Todoroki's spells, the blond summoned spikes of ice out from beneath where Leviathan was standing, hitting the bone devil, but not piercing him all the way through.
As the insect-winged monster shook off the ice, Neito started running again. Okay, so heat doesn't affect him, and physical attacks only slow him down, the same with ice…
He also had a sneaking suspicion that whatever gear Tokage had on her wasn't gonna do a lot of damage on this creep, either. They were going to need something far more powerful…
That's it! I've got an idea!
"Tokage! We need you to wake up Godzillo!" the blond shouted.
"WHAT?! But he's looking for –"
"I know, and we won't let him take control, we just… need him to go towards the big guy!"
The green-haired woman mulled it over for a few seconds, before changing direction, and running not just away from the bone devil, but from the squad, as well.
I seriously hope that was a yes…
After getting their weapons, Katsuki and his squad followed Inui and his escort towards the boundary of the forest, where the dryad was supposedly hanging out.
"There," Inui said, pointing at the trees. "I see him."
Katsuki squinted. The hell was he talking about? All the blond could see were a bunch of trees… oh, wait. He was blending into his surroundings. Yeah, that made sense.
Taking a closer look, Katsuki could actually see the dryad now. He had a human-esque figure, with the whole two arms and two legs thing, but his "skin" was the bark you'd see on a tree. Interestingly enough, he also seemed to have a head of "hair" made from red leaves.
"Greetings, Ryo Inui."
"Greetings, Shinji Nishiya."
The dryad, Nishiya, looked over to Katsuki and his crew.
"Oh, uhh, greetings, I am… Katsuki Bakugou."
Nishiya narrowed his eyes. "I take it you're the ones who intruded on our lands."
"Technically speaking, yes, bit I can assure you, it was an accident –"
"That is for Shiozaki-sama to decide, not you," Nishiya said, turning around, and walking into the forest. "You may follow behind me. But leave your weapons with the villagers."
Katsuki hated the idea of leaving his guns back, but if he wanted to gain the trust of these dryads, then he had to do as he was told. "Come on, guys, let's… get this over with."
Giving up their weapons to Inui and his escort, the three soldiers walked into the forest, following the dryad. Katsuki gulped. Hopefully, we won't be turned into plant food…
He had watched Little Shop of Horrors before, he knew what was up.
Leviathan leapt up into the air, using his wings to buzz through the sky like an oversized bug, before speeding back down towards Uraraka, his claws ready to shishkabob her.
"YOU SHALL BE THE FIRST TO DIE!!!"
"ARDUUS MISTER FUNGUS!"
Leviathan's claws went through flesh, alright, but to his confusion, it was not that of a human. Rather, it was the mushroom creature Komori had summoned with her magic.
"Thanks, that was a close one!" Uraraka said.
"Don't thank me yet, shroom! We're not out of this just yet!"
"She's right!" Neito said. "We gotta keep going!"
The three of them kept running, as the Leviathan, still busy, was tearing apart the mushroom monster that was blocking his way. They had been at this for fifteen minutes now, and honestly, Neito was starting to feel a little tired. Come on, Tokage, how much longer?!
"GUYS, OVER HERE!!!"
The Japanese soldiers looked over beyond the lake, to see Tokage somehow standing on top of the water, waving at them. How is she doing that? Neito wondered. Questions for later.
"How are we gonna get to her?" Uraraka asked. "We can't swim that fast!"
The blond knew his fellow soldier was right. Leviathan would catch up to them long before they even made it to Tokage, and while wading all the way there might be faster… no…
"Don't worry, fam, I've got you!" Komori said. "CURSUS MISTER FUNGUS!!!"
Colorful wisps of smoke appeared on the ground, as suddenly, a massive mushroom, one that was taller than a man, with arms, legs, and a smiling face, grew before them.
"Russula albonigra," the botanist said, climbing up to the mushroom's cap.
"Guess your mushrooms have saved us once again!" Netio said, as he and Uraraka quickly climbed onto the cap where Komori was, as the fungus ran into the lake water.
The mushroom went fast, powering through the water as if its legs were the propellers of a speed boat. They even made that familiar buzzing sound. Wait a minute…
Turning around, the blood left Neito's face, as he realized it wasn't the mushroom that was making that buzzing sound, but rather, Leviathan's wings, as he was flying towards them, having thoroughly ripped apart the previous summoned fungus. "COME ON, GO FASTER!!!"
"HE'S GOING AS FAST AS HE CAN!!!" Komori yelled.
Leviathan smiled, as he got closer. "I'M COMING FOR YOOOUUUUU!!!"
Hurry, hurry, hurry! Neito mentally begged, as the mushroom seemed to inch towards whatever mass Tokage was standing on in the middle of the lake. Hold up… standing?!
That's how she was doing it! She was standing on something, maybe a submerged piece of land… But if that was the case, then judging from the speed the mushroom was swimming towards it… the second it would stop… "GUYS, WE'VE GOTTA JUMP!!!"
"ARE YOU CRAZY?!" Uraraka shouted. "WHAT ABOUT LEVIATHAN?!"
"JUST TRUST ME!" he yelled, grabbing their hands. "ON THREE, WE JUMP! THREE!"
The two brunettes shrieked, as Neito jumped into the water, with them following. The mushroom kept speeding towards the submerged mass, crashing into it and splattering. Breaching for the surface, Neito gasped for air, as he looked around to see what happened.
"What the hell happened to one and two?!" Komori yelled.
"No time," the blond explained. "Quick, where are Tokage and –"
"AARRGGHH!!!"
The three soldiers snapped their heads back towards their supposed destination, only to see that Tokage had been stabbed in the abdomen by Leviathan's stinger. Grabbing her with his arms, Leviathan laughed, before he removed his tail from her belly and tossed her aside.
Tokage made a splash next to Neito, as the blond swam to her, getting a hold on her to make sure she didn't sink. "Shit! Guys, I think he paralyzed her with some kind of venom!"
"HEHEHE…" Leviathan laughed. "NOW, IT'S YOUR TURN – EH?"
RRRRR…
Whatever he was standing on bubbled and began to move, as Leviathan stumbled into the water. Emerging from beneath the murky waves came a massive creature. It had dark gray skin, a long tail with fin-like spikes, and red eyes. In all honesty, it looked like the GhidoGoji, the Heisei Godzilla design from Toho's 1991 movie, Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah, in Neito's opinion.
Well, there's no doubt about it, Neito thought to himself, as he saw the titanic creature stare them down. The One That Stops the Waters has definitely earned the nickname of "Godzillo."
Walking through the forest together, the three humans and dryad were silent. On the human side, they had no idea what to say to the dryad, and on the dryad side, well…
I have no idea what he's thinking, Katsuki realized. Given his wooden demeanor (heh), that he was serious and all-business like, but for all he knew, that was a facade…
According to the Monster Manual, dryads were shy and reclusive, only showing their faces to interlopers if they liked them. Sure, the ones that attacked them earlier never did show themselves, but that wasn't exactly what Katsuki meant. And besides, he was pretty sure they had some kind of magic that could have convinced him and his men to turn around and leave.
But if not, then… Why attack them? Sure, they technically breached their area, but they were only passing through, it wasn't like they were loggers looking to chop down some of the trees. And none of them littered either, all they did was leave behind their footprints.
Eh, questions for when we eventually arrive.
"We have arrived."
Oh, well, isn't that convenient?
The three humans stopped moving, as they looked around, as if waiting for someone to appear to them. Eventually, they noticed that one of the trees began to shift, as if something was coming out of them. Must be using the trees to move around, Katsuki realized.
He had read about this ability of theirs. They were able to move around the first using trees as some sort of portals, merging with one tree on one side of the forest, and then coming out of another one on the other side. He watched as the dryad emerged from the… tree…
Katsuki's brain froze.
Emerging from the tree was a dryad, alright, but she was… different. Sure, her limbs seemed wooden, like Nishiya's, but that's where the similarities ended. Her hair was long and green (most likely vines), but she also had a human face and body. Her ears were pointed, giving away that she wasn't one, but it still kinda threw Katsuki off that she had fair skin like a person.
And sure, maybe he'd be able to chalk that up as a sort of racial variation, like how Asui didn't look like the typical bullywug, but his reasoning, along with the rest of his higher brain functions ceased the second he looked down and saw… that she was wearing absolutely nothing.
"OH MY GOD, PUT SOME CLOTHES ON!!!"
He instantly covered his eyes, before looking over to his subordinates to make sure they weren't ogling the lady like a bunch of pervs. Good, they all covered their eyes, too.
"Clothes? We are dryads, we do not have a need for clothes," she said.
Right, the whole "one with nature" thing, Katsuki internally groaned. Deciding to play mediator, he said, "I understand that, but we would like to look at you while talking, as eye contact is indeed a form of politeness, so for the sake of civility, we ask for this small compromise."
"Very well. You may open your eyes."
Katsuki slowly opened them, as he turned to see that… very little had changed. Technically speaking, she was still in the nude, but now, she had some leaves covering her chest and lady bits. The blond figured that it was better than nothing, but that did make him wonder… was Nishiya letting his… wood… hang out this entire time? Because Katsuki didn't see it.
Maybe he was wearing some sort of wooden cup that kept his thing in? But if so, why? These dryads clearly didn't have a sense of shame, so, why do that while visiting the village? Did they have some sort of rule where they play by the home's rules? Like, if it's a clothes-wearing society, you put on clothes? If that was the case, he certainly hoped he wouldn't have to strip…
Actually, it's probably best not to bring this up. Katsuki kept his professional appearance, as he said, "Thank you for having us. My name is Katsuki Bakugou, I'm from the Japanese Self-Defense Force. You may know us by our more well-known nickname, the Arms of Fire…"
Katsuki trialed off as he noticed the somewhat annoyed look on her face. It… probably wasn't a good idea to mention the "Arms of Fire" in front of a couple of forest-loving dryads.
Despite the blunder, it didn't seem to cause any irreparable damage. "Well met, Katsuki Bakugou. I am Ibara Shiozaki, caretaker of the forests here on Meridiem Island."
"Thank you for giving us the chance to speak with you, Shiozaki-sama," the blond said. "We also apologize for intruding on your beautiful home. We were totally unaware that this was your –"
"Whether you were aware or not is completely irrelevant," Shiozaki said. "If you wish to have your comrade returned to you, or to even return alive yourself, then answer truthfully."
Katsuki didn't like the sound of that, but he knew he had no choice but to play along.
"Of course," he said with a strained smile. "Please, ask your question."
"What do you know about the Enlightened Evil?"
"I AM THE LEVIATHAN!" the bone devil roared. "I AM ONE OF THE TASKMASTERS OF HELL, AND A MEMBER OF THE ENLIGHTENED EVIL, AND I COMMAND YOU TO – ACK!"
SLAM!
"OUCH! WHAT?! NO!"
SLAM!
"WHY?! HELP! STOP!"
SLAM!
"MY FACE!"
SLAM!
"YOU SUCK!"
SLAM!
Neito watched in a mix of shock and intrigue as he watched Godzillo basically do to Leviathan what the Hulk did to Loki back in the first Avengers movie. How the hell was the bone devil supposed to get Godzillo to serve the Enlightened Evil, if he couldn't even get the big guy to stop using Leviathan's tail as a string to basically play paddle ball with the jungle floor?
"I raised that boy."
"HUH?!" Neito looked down at the green-haired woman he was holding. "You're okay?!"
"Yep!" Tokage said, smiling, as she showed off some of the green scales on her body. "One of the perks of being a yuan-ti pureblood… is that you're immune to being poisoned!"
"Then why didn't you say anything?!" Uraraka asked.
Komori nodded along. "Yeah, you made us super worried!"
Tokage grinned. "Well, I am part reptile, and Monoma's hugs were pretty warm…"
"Just so you know, I have a girlfriend," the blond quickly said. "Anyways, I think Godzillo is just about done playing with Leviathan. Which means it's now time for the final step…"
"Oh, right, that big plan of yours," Tokage said. "What exactly was it?"
"Well, I realized pretty early on that Leviathan was completely immune to the effects of certain kinds of magic, but only somewhat resistant to a couple others, along with physical damage falling into the latter category. So, while we couldn't kill him, we could hurt him."
"And you planned on using Godzillo for that?" Komori asked.
"Yeah, I figured that he'd be at least powerful enough to put up a fight against Leviathan, or at the very least, slow him down," Neito said. "And that's where Uraraka comes in."
"Me? What could I do?" Uraraka asked. "He's immune to magic…"
"He's immune to some magic, most notably, anything that produces heat or light, like fires and lasers. However, I noticed that the ice had an effect on him, so I theorized that he was weaker to the cold. So… what could possibly be colder than the darkness of space?"
"That… actually makes sense," the brown-haired astronomer said. "Black holes are supposedly extremely cold, almost reaching absolute zero. And even if that doesn't work, he'd be so close to my spell that he'd be sucked in and crushed, regardless. We just need to be close to him…"
BOOOOOM!!!
Almost as if on cue, Godzillo sent the bone devil, who now had his ass thoroughly beaten, slamming down back into the lake, right next to the Japanese soldiers and Tokage.
"Well… isn't that convenient?" Uraraka said, raising her arm. "CAVEN NIGRUM!!!"
"Oweee…" Leviathan groaned, as he lifted his head from the water, only to see himself… getting pulled into a black hole. "Huh?! No, wait, wait, wait – AAAAAHHHHH!!!!!"
"Anyways, thanks for helping me," Tokage said, ignoring Leviathan's screams. "I'll totally respond to Midoriya's summons and help you guys take down the Enlightened Evil!"
Neito smiled. "Thanks, any help we can get is – Hold up, summons?"
"Uh-huh, it was in the letter," Tokage said. "Wanna read it?"
"...Yes, please."
"What do we know about the Enlightened Evil? Plenty," the ash-blond answered. "It's being led by this asshole lich, Kai Chisaki, you might have heard of him? Anyways, their entire organization basically consists of people who wanna watch the world burn."
"Are you being literal or metaphorical?" Shiozaki asked.
"A little bit of both," Katsuki answered. "While they won't be actually burning down the world, if they do succeed, all life will pretty much end, including both yours and this island's."
"...I see. So the spirits we're telling the truth," the dryad whispered.
Spirits? Yeah, that makes sense. Katsuki's reading material had told him that dryads and spirits were linked, so it made sense that the dryads in such an isolated place would know about current events, thanks to whatever passing spirit showed up. "But we'll be fighting them."
"You? You're going to fight the Enlightened Evil? By yourselves?"
"Not by ourselves," the demolition expert said. "Along with the JSDF, the Elven Kingdom of Dryadalis, the reformed Todoroki Empire, the Demon Kingdom, whose territory you're currently living in, plus the Hero and his party, are all working together to stop these guys."
"I see. So then, you coming through our lands…"
"...was unintentional, yes," Katsuki said. "We were delivering the news to Governor Inui, but decided to err on the side of caution since he didn't know us. The last time we landed in one of the Demon King's territories unannounced, we almost ended up killing each other."
"That is… understandable," Shiozaki said, snapping her fingers.
Suddenly, several vines came down, containing a bound up Awase, who was squirming. With another snap of her fingers, the vines released him, dropping him to the forest floor.
"Awase!" Rin ran up to his friend. "Dude, you good?!"
"Gotta pee…" Awase rasped. "Holding it in… for so goddamn long…"
"We apologize for this misunderstanding," Shiozaki said. "You are free to leave. If you or the Demon King require anything from this island's dryads, please do not hesitate to ask."
"Thank you," Katsuki said, bowing.
"THEY'RE BACK!"
The villagers cheered to see the men in green come back, with one more than they came in. It was clear to them that the dryads had been merciful to the foreigners today.
"Merci, merci," Aoyama thanked the cheering crowd. "You are all too kind."
Katsuki rolled his eyes, as he took a seat on a nearby stump. He was ready to leave this bullshit of a mission behind him and head straight back for the Collibus Hills, pronto.
"You came back," Inui said, mildly impressed. "How was it?"
"Let's just say… that if I somehow manage to live up to one hundred… it would still be two hundred years too early for me to see another green-haired woman," Katsuki said.
Inside a tavern within the nautical city of Portus, a female bullywug (dressed as a pirate) was nursing her drink, when she suddenly had a random thought cross her mind.
"Hmm…"
"Mm? What is it, Captain Asui?"
"I told you to call me Tsu, ribbit," the frog-like girl told her drinking buddy. "But as for your question, I don't know why, but for some reason, I have the sudden urge to visit the Collibus Hills… and pester the absolute hell out of a blond guy I've only ever met once."
Author's Note: Godzillo giving Leviathan the beatdown of a lifetime was actually a reference to the classic mode of Baby's Nightmare Circus (aside from the obvious Avengers bit). If you go onto YouTube, you can find several videos of players beating up a bald baby man. If you see that, you're golden. And yes, Asui thinking about going over to the Collibus Hills was a reference to Sandy kicking SpongeBob's butt for being sexist in that one episode. Of course, Bakugou isn't that kind of a dick, but whatever.
For those curious, yuan-ti purebloods are basically snake people that can pass off for humans, with some minor exceptions, like some scales here and there, or some snake-like eyes. I figured Tokage would be an excellent candidate for that. Bone devils are basically canon Leviathan, but with insect wings and a giant barbed tail, so that one was relatively easy, too. Now, as for dryads, I kinda used two different versions. For Shiozaki, I used a more human-like appearance, like with Kii from Monster Musume, while for Kamui Woods, I just went with their whole "skin made of bark" appearance. But anyways, I've got two comments, and I'm gonna reply the hell out of them!
Shin: While I may have the first volume of the light novel, the majority of my experience with Goblin Slayer is the anime and a handful of fanfics. And I'll agree with you that dinosaurs are conventionally cool, given how many movies, toys, and other products have been made around them. Hell, even D&D added them into their world, so I figured that they're cool to be here. But I gotta admit, I didn't think there would be a Jurassic World crossover with Magic the Gathering, of all things, considering one franchise is sci-fi while the other is fantasy, but if D&D can have spaceships, then what the hell do I know? Let me know if there are any other crossover cards as out there as… well… that.
valkrus: I was kinda looking for an excuse to add Godzillo since he's basically a Calamitous Beast (unique monster native to the fantasy world I've been writing, might have mentioned it before), but for most of the time, I had been imagining him as an overgrown bladeback saurial (basically a stegosaurus demi-human from D&D), but when I watched the second season of Goblin Slayer, I saw the giant, gray-skinned monster with blades on its back, and was like, "Oh, I can just have Godzillo in that form." And I'm glad to see that I have no typos again, so I'm gonna enjoy this streak while it lasts…
ATTENTION! I have created my own website where I've posted a bunch of my art, so, if you're interested in seeing that, visit https://eowen5.myportfolio.com/ !
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, https://twitter.com/ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 47: The Summit
Summary:
Blind Justice, the allied army that was made to go up against the Enlightened Evil, has been assembled. Now, the leaders of each faction, the Todoroki Empire, the Demon King, the Kingdom of Dryadalis, the Hero's Party, and the JSDF, have all gathered at Endeavor City for a summit. Little do they know, however, they're not alone...
Chapter Text
Chapter 47: The Summit
"It's a summons," Aizawa explained. "To meet at Endeavor City."
Reading over the letter he gave her, Momo understood the gist of it. Basically, in the last couple of months after the Hero and the Demon King put their beef to the side to fight the Enlightened Evil, they had been gathering allies to help them when the time came to save the world. Momo already knew about that part. Heck, the JSDF helped in assembling some of the troops.
Momo and her team had been meeting up with the various governors that overlooked the Demon King's domains, while also recruiting any powerful allies and defeating any dangerous foes they came across. But it seems like all their hard work had finally paid off.
This letter was a summons directly from the Todoroki Empire itself. Apparently, there was a summit to be held in their capital of Endeavor between the various factions of this makeshift alliance, in order to discuss strategy, and everyone who was anyone was invited.
"So, you're going?" Momo asked her old mentor.
"Correction, we're going," Aizawa said. "The last paragraph states that the leaders can each bring a maximum of two subordinates into the meeting. I only need one."
"Any reason it's me, specifically?"
"Several, actually. You're the leader of a semi-mythical band of heroes, and several of your missions have gone down as legends in the public consciousness. In short, you're a symbol of the Japanese military's power, both here and back home. Additionally, you have a positive relationship with the majority of the leaders who will be attending, including our hosts."
Yeah, I figured as much. Momo resisted the urge of rolling her eyes. Being dubbed the "Night-Haired Warrior," leader of this current incarnation of the Arms of Fire gave Momo a pretty big rep, one that was only increased with every major victory they achieved. And being Shoto's lover did give Japan a better relationship with the Todoroki Empire than what they initially had…
Here I am, suffering from success, she internally signed. "When are we leaving?"
"Tomorrow morning. Shirakumo will show up to teleport us there."
Tomorrow morning came way too soon, in Momo's opinion.
She didn't bother telling her squad where she was heading. This would just be, as Bakugou would usually put it, a "boring-ass meeting run by a gaggle of politicasters and throttle-bottoms," or something like that. Though, she might have been using her own vocabulary for that.
Anyways, stepping out of her personal room, Momo wasn't dressed in anything too fancy. This was still an active mission, so rather than bringing out her formal uniform she would wear while meeting with politicians or being publicly promoted, she opted for something more… casual.
Specifically, the classic camo jacket and pants officers wore while on-base, along with the optional hat. Momo also brought along her pistol with her, just in case.
As she walked out of the building and towards the hangar, she saw that General Aizawa had the same idea as her, but decided to forgo the hat, and instead tie his long hair in a manbun. Good to see that even after all the years, she still knew the inner workings of her old teacher.
"Good, you're right on time," Aizawa said. "Shirakumo should be arriving in… ah."
The two soldiers a bit ahead to see the familiar dark portal opened up before them, as the living mass of shadows responsible for this magic appeared. "Ah, Shouta, you're here."
Aizawa saluted the demon. "Hey, Oboro. Yaoyorozu will be coming with us."
"As expected," Kurogiri said. "However, before we depart, I must inform you that for the meeting, I shall be addressing you by your deserving station. Formalities, and all that."
"I understand," Aizawa said.
"Excellent to hear that, sir," Kurogiri said. "Now, please follow me."
The Japanese soldiers did as they were instructed, following the shadow demon through the dark portal, and coming out the other side, to… a massive room with a round table.
The room itself was pretty fancy, with the material covering the floor and walls being some sort of cross between gold and marble. There were no windows, with the room being lit up using oversized glowstones, rounded and polished, to act as lights. The table and chairs were made from the same material as the room, with the chairs also having green cushioning.
Fancy, Momo thought to herself, as she looked around. We're the first ones here.
"Here you are, sir," Kurogiri said, offering Aizawa a seat.
"Thanks," the old general said. As he took a seat, Momo stood behind him. Well, more accurately, behind his seat, and sort of next to the one that was made for Fuyumi. While she was very much closer to Aizawa's, she wanted to get as close to Shoto as possible.
Well, at the very least, Momo hoped that was the seat Fuyumi was gonna sit in, because she honestly had no idea which one it was. Maybe Shoto would take the initiative and gesture to his older sister to take a seat next to Aizawa, just so the two could be closer together…
Man, I really miss him…
It had been almost a month since she last saw him, and it was getting to her. Some would call her horny… but it wasn't just that! She enjoyed being around Shoto, and loved everything about him. She loved his awkwardness, his kind heart, his beautiful face, his massive –
Oh my God, I am horny, Momo realized in horror.
"Hey."
"EEP!" Momo felt like her skeleton was about to jump out of her skin as someone touched her shoulder. Turning around, she saw that it was none other than… "Shoto?!"
"Uhh… surprise?"
"Please never scare me like that again…" Momo rasped out, as she looked to see that Fuyumi was also here, taking her seat next to Aizawa. "It's good to see you again."
"Likewise," the peppermint-haired woman said. "Here's to a productive meeting."
Momo nodded, as Kurogiri appeared once more, with two more familiar faces entering the room through his gates. A green-haired man with red horns, wearing clothes that could be described as both dark and fancy, and an armored blonde woman with black wings.
Sitting down across from Aizawa on the round table was none other than everyone's favorite Demon King, Izuku Midoriya, who had brought Melissa along with him.
Does she count as a subordinate? Momo asked herself. Sure, in history, kings tended to outrank queens, but that was mostly hierarchy stuff, it didn't mean that the king could give out orders to the queen. Or maybe Melissa volunteered to come as some sort of shield for Midoriya?
Please don't let this be some sort of master-servant kinkplay…
The next person to step out of the magical gates was someone Momo didn't recognize. He was easily the tallest guy here, roughly, what, six foot five? Regardless of his height, he was intimidating, with a dog-like appearance, along with minimal clothing, that made Momo think that this would be what would happen if a golden retriever got horribly mutated and decided to stop being man's best friend. Interestingly enough, he didn't bring any subordinates with him.
I wonder why that is, Momo thought to herself.
The next people to come out of the darkness were familiar faces to Momo. The elven queen, Mei Hatsume, along with her trusted knight, Tenya Iida. It had honestly been quite a while since she saw those two, almost as long as she hadn't seen Shoto. Must have been keeping busy.
Yeah, that would make sense. They most likely went back to their domain to inform their citizenry of the oncoming threat, while also having Hatsume go wild on all sorts of magical weapons she might have been craving to make this entire time, and now finally had a reason to do so. But they clearly gave her time to clean up to look presentable during this meeting.
Momo looked down at what she was wearing, a standard JSDF uniform, prioritizing utility over appearance, and frowning slightly. I guess looks are just as important as power…
"Eh?"
Looking towards the source of the disturbance, Momo and the others turned to see that Togata and his two companions had shown up, much to Melissa's surprise.
"Oh, hey," Togata greeted them. "What's up?"
"...What's up is that you brought two people with you," Melissa said.
"Well, yeah, they're both my companions," the blond man said, as he gestured to both Amajiki and Hadou. "And besides, I see that some people here didn't choose to bring anyone."
Is she trying to pick a fight about how many "attendants" someone brought with them? Momo wondered. She could understand that if this was a bunch of unallied parties coming together for the first time to broker peace or something; having more attendants would mean a better chance of making it out alive if things turned violent, but they were all friends here… right?
Midoriya sighed. "Melissa, leave them alone."
The fallen angel sputtered. "But –"
"The rules clearly stated that everyone could bring up to two members of their own faction," the green-haired demon said. "Just because the Hero did so doesn't mean that he's weak and needs them, or that he's planning on having them kill us all. So, please… just drop it."
"I… of course," Melissa said, before turning to Togata. "My apologies."
The blond Hero chuckled. "It's all good!"
With that conversation out of the way, Momo actually wondered something. If each person could bring two members of their faction… Why didn't everyone? Sure, this venue was Fuyumi's so this place was naturally crawling with Imperials, so maybe that's why she didn't bring Moe and only Shoto, but what about the others? Was it some sort of power move on their part?
Maybe they're trying to show that they don't need any subordinates to win whatever theoretical battle could happen, Momo figured to herself. Or maybe they just don't have any…
Anyways, that was beyond the point. Time to focus again.
After that small scuffle, the next group to show up was Himiko Toga and both of her attendants, Kan and Yanagi. "Hey, look at that," Togata laughed. "She also has two attendants!"
Melissa pouted. "Okay, okay, I get it…"
Momo wasn't sure if it was a good idea for the Hero to make fun of the Demon King's beloved while said Demon King was in the room, but if Midoriya was annoyed by that, his face didn't show it. I guess he really wants this alliance against Chisaki to succeed…
Though, she was slightly curious whether he would vent about it behind closed doors. Midoriya clearly spent a lot of time and effort looking for Melissa, so it was obvious he cared about her a lot. So, why were the two of them acting like an apathetic master and zealous subordinate?
Maybe there was some sort of emotional mask the two of them were wearing right now, and Melissa's slipped when she saw Togata and his party. The guy did try to kill her man, so it would make sense for her to be wary of him, even if Midoriya wanted to move on from that…
Plus, with how much Midoriya was afraid of Chisaki, he'd be pretty desperate to make sure this alliance worked, but to be willing to let transgressions, even minor ones, towards his girl slide?
Ehh, maybe the two of them would talk about it behind closed doors once this was over and vent to one another. Or maybe they'd angrily fuck their frustrations away after this meeting…
Momo internally groaned. God, my mind is in the gutter…
"I take it you're with the JSDF?"
Momo and Aizawa turned around, to see another person coming through the portals. He looked like an anthropomorphic lizard, one covered in green scales and what Momo assumed to be purple feathers acting as hair. Given Monoma's report, this guy would be…
"Shuichi Iguchi," the black-haired woman said. "You're the leader of the lizardmen."
"That's correct," Iguchi said, before bowing. "I apologize for my mistreatment of your subordinates, and thank you for saving my people from Geten and his minions. I am grateful."
Mistreatment of my subordinates? Oh, right, the accidental friendly fire incident when Monoma and his team first landed in their domain. "It's alright. What happened is in the past."
In all honesty, given the amount of times soon-to-be friends and allies had attacked the JSDF in this world, such incidents were pretty much an afterthought, especially since no one ever seemed to die from them. Plus, she really wanted to be friendly with Midoroya's people.
A slight towards one of them would be a slight towards him, after all.
"Such generosity!" Iguchi said, standing up and smiling. "As expected of Lady Yaoyorozu!"
Momo felt a tic of annoyance forming on the side of her head. Again with this "Lady Yaoyorozu" shit. She honestly felt like she left that sort of life behind when she enlisted in the JSDF…
Guess I'm a highborn wherever I go… she internally sighed.
The last two people had arrived through Kurogiri's magic. The first one was a green-haired woman who was wearing something that looked like it came straight out of one of the Shanna the She-Devil comics, in Momo's opinion. And the second one was… no way…
Momo recognized that woman. She was a rabbitfolk with brown skin, white hair, and red eyes, wearing golden armor with patterns reminiscent of the ancient Aztecs, and a red cape flowing behind her. She also carried with her a halberd Melissa was all too familiar with.
"Huh?" The rabbit-like woman noticed Momo. "Hey, I recognize you!"
That bitch. She was the demi-human who almost violated four of Momo's subordinates. She and her lackeys were the ones who ran Momo and her team out of the Saltu Jungles.
What the hell was she doing here?! And armed, no less?!
"Rumi Usagiyama…"
"And you remembered my name! Good for you!" Usagiyama said, brandishing her weapon, as Momo pulled out her sidearm. "I promised that I'd hunt you down, bitch, and now I –"
Oppressive darkness.
That was the first thing Momo thought when she felt what she did. Both her and Usagiyama stopped pointing their weapons at each other, and slowly looked towards the source of what was making them want to give in to their basic instincts and run for their lives.
Everyone else was also looking at the direction of the source, as they saw what could best be described as a flame of pink energy exuding out of Midoriya's body, while the green-haired demon simply glared at the two women. Was he… releasing some sort of aura?!
"Cease."
Both the black-haired human and the white-haired rabbitfolk dropped their weapons. As the metal clattered to the ground, the flames dissipated… and everyone relaxed.
"Thank you."
"What… the hell… was that?!" Usagiyama shouted.
"I was simply instilling fear on you to make sure that the two of you wouldn't kill each other," the Demon King explained. "Please do not force me to use it again. I don't like doing it."
Momo took a deep breath. "Why… is she… here?"
"I invited her," Midoriya answered. "She is the ruler of the Saltu Jungles, which act as a buffer between our nations and the Badlands, where the Enlightened Evil are presumed to be hiding. Please set aside whatever grievances you have with her until after the conflict is over."
"...Very well."
"To prevent any further incidents, I insist that all weapons are to be handed over for the time being," Kurogiri said. "They shall be returned to you at the end of the summit."
Momo nodded, as she and Aizawa handed over their sidearms, while Usagiyama handed over her halberd, Melissa and Iida gave their swords while Fuyumi and Shoto gave their rapiers, Amajiki his bow and arrows, Hadou her staff, and Togata gave up One For All. Iguchi and the green-haired woman, Tokage, handed over their spears, Yanagi a wand, and Toga…
…however many knives she managed to fit inside her dress.
"He's in that building," Nine said, overlooking the city below.
"How can you be so sure?" Kurono asked.
"I can sense his mana from there," the white-haired man said.
"Then we know what we need to do," Kizuki said, as she looked towards the imperial palace from the hilltop they were standing on. "We hit them hard, and we hit them fast."
"This battle is as good as over," Iwata agreed.
Demon King Izuku Midoriya, accompanied by Melissa Shield.
Hero Mirio Togata, accompanied by Tamaki Amajiki and Nejire Hadou.
Empress Fuyumi Todoroki, accompanied by Prince Shoto Todoroki.
Queen Mei Hatsume, accompanied by Tenya Iida.
Governor Himiko Toga, accompanied by Sekijiro Kan and Reiko Yanagi.
Governor Ryo Inui, accompanied by no one.
Governor Shuichi Iguchi, accompanied by no one.
Governor Setsuna Tokage, accompanied by no one.
Chieftess Rumi Usagiyama, accompanied by no one.
General Shouta Aizawa, accompanied by Lieutenant Momo Yaoyorozu.
These ten groups were the leaders of the provisionally dubbed "Blind Justice," consisting of the major superpowers of the Occidens continent. Okay, granted four of them were direct subordinates of the Demon King, but they were able to act as individuals because, one, Midoriya didn't micromanage them, and two, they were all either powerful enough or had enough assets to make them more than just nameless background nobles.
Yeah, Momo was looking at you, pre-Fuyumi Todoroki Empire.
Meanwhile, the rest of the members were pretty self-explanatory. Mirio Togata was automatically given a seat due to being the current wielder of One For All, essentially making him this world's equivalent of Superman. Todoroki and Hatsume were the leaders of their respective nations, and while the Japanese Self-Defense Force only had the Collibus Hills as their territory, their military might and connection to this continent's superpowers got them a seat at the table.
"I'd like to start by thanking you all for heeding the call to action," Midoriya began. "Additionally, I thank Empress Todoroki for offering her nation's capital as our meeting place for today."
"Of course," Fuyumi said, bowing slightly. "We humbly accept hosting you all."
"Great," Midoriya said, scanning the table. "It looks like none of us could find Touya, so he won't most likely won't be attending our meeting. Guess my prediction was spot-on…"
"Hold on, did you say Touya?" Shoto asked.
"I did," the green-haired demon said. "He's the fifth governor of my territories, but he doesn't own any land. He mostly wanders around the country, solving any problems he comes across. I can barely track him, so I figured getting an eleventh seat for today would be a waste."
Momo wasn't sure if just giving up on an asset like that was a smart move on Midoriya's part, but she held her tongue. She wasn't presenting Japan today, Aizawa was.
"Now, I'm pretty sure we're all aware of the reason behind this unprecedented meeting," Hatsume said. "The warnings about the organization known as the Enlightened Evil –"
"An organization I've never even seen," Usagiyama said. "How do we know it's real?"
"It's real," Iguchi said. "One of their members attacked my home."
"Yeah, same here," Tokage agreed.
"The dryad guardians of my island's forest informed my people that we had a problem," Inui said. "Given how their interactions with the otherworlders went, I'm inclined to believe them."
"Oh? Did your boss tell you to say that?" the rabbitfolk asked.
Toga narrowed her eyes. "Are you implying that Izu-kun would do such a thing?"
Usagiyama shrugged. "Hey, he's a Demon King, I wouldn't put much past him."
Okay, wow. Momo wasn't sure if that was supposed to be prejudiced, or if Midoriya just having that title was enough for people to be automatically suspicious of him, but Usagiyama had some massive balls to say something like that in front of said Demon King and his subordinates.
Melissa alone looked like she was ready to slice the rabbit in half.
"They're real," Aizawa cut in. "Several members of the JSDF have confirmed sightings of various members of their organization, even taking down a few of them."
"And I have no reason to believe Midoriya would lie about this, much less the JSDF."
Momo internally smiled at what Togata said. He was seen as a respected member of society by everyone, regardless of nationality, so his words carried a lot of weight.
"Now that we've moved on past that," Fuyumi said, "Let's actually discuss –"
"HRRK!" Togata suddenly clutched his head, as if in pain. "Danger…"
"Danger? What is he talking about?" Inui asked.
"Danger Sense must be going off," Amajiki said. "Mirio, where –?"
"FROM ABOVE!" he yelled, looking up towards the ceiling. "IT'S COMING!"
Everyone looked up towards the ceiling, trying to figure out what he was talking about, when Midoriya suddenly got up, raised his hand into the air, and started chanting.
"Magicae Scutum, Maior Magicae Scutum, Scutum Murum, Protegens Orationis, Lux Scutum, Scutum Absolutum, Crystal Glacies Scutum, Pelagi Deus Clipeus!"
"Yaoyorozu, what's he doing?!" Aizawa asked.
"He's casting magic –"
And then, everyone saw white.
"An excellent opening salvo," Kurono said.
Nine admired his handiwork. He was able to annihilate a fourth of the famed Imperial Palace, the fabled home of Enji Todoroki using only a single spell. He would be able to do much more when Garaki completely fixed his ailing body. But this was good progress, indeed…
"Wait…" Nine said, taking a closer look. "Of course he's still alive…"
"You can sense his mana?" Iwata asked.
"It's lessened. He must have used a spell to save himself."
"Then let's go in and finish him off, while we still can," Kizuki suggested.
"Agreed," the white-haired man said. "Send in the undead."
Momo was sure she was going to die here.
One second, Midoriya was spamming every sort of magic he could think of inside the room, and then the next, everything Momo could see was engulfed in lightning.
It was unreal. The bolt itself was so massive, that it seemed like it was made from several smaller, normal-sized, lightning bolts fused into one. And when it landed, it just didn't dissipate. It just kept coming down and down, as if pushing all its power into trying to destroy them.
Hell, the only reason it didn't turn all of them into burnt smithereens was because of Midoriya's magic. Momo was able to mentally translate in her mind that word, "scutum" from Latin into Japanese, realizing that it meant "shield." Midoriya was able to figure out from Togata that an attack from above was happening, and summoned every kind of protective spell he could.
The end result was that everyone was physically safe, only being momentarily blinded from the lightning that was trying to fry their faces a few moments earlier. The same couldn't be said about the outside of the room… and a lot of the castle. It had all melted down.
"Holy shit…" Tokage whispered. "What the hell was that…?"
"FUYUMI!!! SHOTO!!!"
Out beyond the melted slag and rubble, the middle child of the Todoroki children ran towards his siblings, hugging them. "We're fine, Natsuo," Shoto said. "But what the hell happened?!"
"We're under attack!" Natsuo shouted. "A horde of undead!"
"Undead?" Midoriya repeated. "So, someone capable of powerful magic, and a necromancer. If you ask me, that sounds like Nine and Garaki… the Enlightened Evil."
"Shit," Fuyumi cursed. "Natsuo, what's the status of the palace?"
"Countless members of the staff, soldiers, and visiting nobles were killed on impact," Natsuo said. "Our parents are safe, Moe is on her way to make sure they don't get killed!"
"Good," the peppermint-haired woman said, as she looked towards the others.
"I'm guessing this summit is over?" Hatusme asked.
"Pretty much," Fuyumi said. "We're all gonna have to fight."
As the Empress of the Todoroki Empire said that, a familiar mass of shadows appeared where the (now melted) doors used to be, as Kurogiri looked around the area in surprise.
"Uhh… what happened here?"
"We were attacked," Melissa said. "We need our weapons."
The shadow demon nodded, as he returned everyone their blades, firearms, magical weapons, and anything else designed to kill. "Shall I also bring reinforcements to the battle?"
"Head for the Collibus Hills, our army should be on standby," Aizawa said.
"Understood," Kurogiri said, as he disappeared once more.
"Okay…" Shoto said. "Let's hope we can survive that long."
Momo nodded in agreement.
Looking over to the rest of the people in the room, Fuyumi said, "I know none of us intended to fight today, but we have no choice. The Enlightened Evil is here, and if we don't –"
"You don't need to keep talking, I was already convinced when those fuckers tried to firebomb us," Usagiyama said. "Just tell me to go already so I can make some heads roll!"
"Pretty violent, but I'm glad to see you so enthusiastic. You're free to…" Fuyumi didn't even have a chance to finish her sentence, as the white-haired warrior bunny left the room, armed with her halberd. "Okay… uhh, the rest of you are also free to go and, as they say, kick some ass."
Momo nodded, as she, Shoto, and Aizawa headed out.
"A summons?" Kirishima asked.
"Yeah, that's what the letter said," Monoma answered. "Apparently, the reason Midoriya had us running all those errands for him was to get his lackeys all in one place to strategize."
"I guess that makes sense," Uraraka said.
"But why didn't they tell us?" Kodai asked.
"Maybe it was implied during all our missions?" Bakugou suggested. "I mean, I remember giving the lizardman his letter after dealing with Geten, but that was an afterthought, really."
"Yeah, I guess being in constant danger really messes with your perception."
"Perception of importance, maybe," Kaibara replied to Tsuburaba.
"Maybe we accidentally suppressed any mentions of it due to trauma," Rin suggested.
"I wouldn't be surprised," Komori said. "Those giant bugs were horrifying…"
The soldiers all stopped talking to one another when they suddenly saw a dark portal open in front of them. "Oh, good, you're all here. Get your weapons, there's an emergency."
"Kurogiri? Wait a minute, what kind of emergency?" Sato asked.
"Endeavor City has been attacked by the Enlightened Evil," the shadow demon said. "Gather as much firepower as you can, I need to warn and transport our other allies."
As the skies above began to grow darker, Touya Todoroki looked over towards the horizon of his old home. His old home that was currently up in smokes. That doesn't look good…
During his travels, he had heard whispers of some kind of evil sect dedicated to the perpetual suffering of the world. In all honesty, it sounded like something he would have joined if he hadn't come across Midoriya first. He certainly wanted to make the Todoroki Empire suffer…
But he wasn't cool with letting the rest of the world die with it. After all, he was living in this world. So, he figured he would have to stop it. Problem is, he had gotten a bit lost during his travels, so he had no idea how to report back to the Demon King.
But he did know where Endeavor City, his old home, was, given where he currently was. So, he figured he would go there to establish a frame of reference and head back to Daemonium. But it looks like something had decided that the capital city needed to burn down…
That lightning storm is definitely magical… he thought to himself, looking at the sky. He didn't like the idea of someone else destroying the Todoroki Empire… someone not him.
"Great, looks like I'm helping my family…"
Author's Note: But you guys weren't expecting Mirko to show up again, huh? Well, that just goes to show how serious of a threat the Enlightened Evil is. Everyone has a stake in this, especially now that they've begun their assault. But that's a discussion for later…
A little fun fact, the summit was inspired by Walpurgis from the second season of TTIGRAAS (the slime isekai), and the spells Midoriya used were all from other media. The only criteria I had for them were to have the word "shield" in them, and they were in.
Shin: Why does every brand these days have a multiverse thing going on? Sure, it worked for comic books and anime because their audience had already been well-adept to the inherent insanity those genres have, but MTG? Seriously? I myself had a hard time swallowing the fact that Dungeons and Dragons of all things had a multiverse, but I kinda accepted it because, one, they didn't do so many crossovers that it started looking like Super Smash Bros, and two, it kinda makes sense for the game to have a multiverse if you consider the fact that every campaign players play is in its own separate continuity. And sure, maybe I can see a couple of those properties fitting in in something like MTG, but… Spider-Man? Warhammer 40K? Those are beginning to break my suspension of disbelief. But whatever, if you enjoy it, good for you, but it's not my cup of insanity. Also, I didn't originally plan for Tsu to show up again, but I needed something to add to the word count. And now… I have to find a way to actually incorporate her into the story…
ATTENTION! I have created my own website where I've posted a bunch of my art, so, if you're interested in seeing that, visit https://eowen5.myportfolio.com/!
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, https://twitter.com/ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 48: War on All Sides
Summary:
With the Enlightened Evil attacking Endeavor City, the member of Blind Justice have to fight for their own survival. Facing off against zombies, hostile mages, zombie ogres, murderous Great Spirits, and zombie dragons, everyone, whether they be the most powerful of Demon Kings, to the lowliest of soldiers, has to give it their all to win...
Chapter Text
Chapter 48: War on All Sides
Enji Todoroki was napping when he heard the blast.
The loud crack of thunder shook him out of his bed, as he looked out the window to see… that everything was in ruin. Wonderful. Less than six months since he was overthrown by his children with the help of those foreigners, and everything had already gone to pot.
As he watched the city he so painstakingly built and maintained be destroyed by a magic attack, the former Emperor of Flames debated what to do next. He could try and break out, but… why would he do that? His cell was underground, within the lower levels of the palace. His only window to the outside world was the small gap in the ceiling that he looked up from, and unless this place was hit by a flood or a gas attack, nothing would manage to breach his room.
CLICK!
Turning to look towards his cell door, the red-haired man saw… his wife and general opening his cell door. While Kamiji looked like she was looking around the corridor to make sure no one attacked them, Rei looked straight at him. "Congratulations, you're getting out early."
"...I'm assuming it's not for good behavior?"
"No, it's because, for all your flaws, you still happen to be one of the most prominent mages in the land," Rei said, brandishing her scythe. "And we could really use your help right now."
"Do I even want to know what happened?" Enji asked.
"Your daughter was hosting a summit between all the major powers of the continent, in order to discuss how to save the world from a certain evil," Rei quickly explained. "Said certain evil decided to crash the party. Now, will you help us and redeem yourself, or not?"
Redeem himself? Enji honestly didn't know that was an option, but if things were as severe as his wife was saying they were, well… What choice did he have? "Alright, I'm in."
"Glad to have you on board," Rei said. "Now, let's go find our children."
The first thing Eijiro noticed when Kurogiri sent them out of his magic was how desolated the capital city of the Todoroki Empire looked. When he first came here all those months ago, the place was amazing, but now? It looked like it just came across a calamity.
Which might actually be a bit appropriate, now that he thought of it. The Enlightened Evil were basically calamities given human-ish flesh, and they had just attacked the city.
Looks like it was time to send them back where they crawled out of.
"Alright, here's the plan," Monoma called out to the others. "We're splitting up into teams of three! We all go in different directions to try and locate any survivors, and kill any hostiles."
"Works for me," Uraraka said. "How're we splitting up?"
"We have no idea what we're dealing with here, so we're splitting out mages as evenly as possible," Monoma said. "I'm leading one team, and taking, ugh… the Chaos Corps."
"I think he means us," Tsuburaba whispered to Kaibara.
"Of course he means us!" Rin said. "But I still resent that nickname!"
"Wait, why us?" Awase asked. "We've got no magic."
"No, but mine can make up for the four of you," Monoma said, smiling cheekily. "And besides, I get the feeling that keeping you together will give me some kind of advantage."
"Alright, what about the rest of us?" Kendo asked.
"You're leading Uraraka, Komori, and Aoyama," the blond said, before turning. "And… I can't believe I'm gonna say this… Bakugou, you're taking Kirishma, Kodai, and Sato."
"Why did you sound like you were in pain saying that?" Kodai asked.
"Because I'm putting two of our most problematic, and magically gifted, team members in one group," Monoma said. "Let's hope that Kirishima can hold you back a little bit."
With Bakubro in charge? Kirishima thought to himself. Yeah, fat chance.
"Alright, let's go kick some ass!"
"""RIGHT!!!"""
Everyone had split up into their own small teams.
Fuyumi had gone with Natsuo to help their parents and Moe, while Midoriya and Melissa took to the skies to see where the enemy was. The various governors of the Daemonium territories all teamed up, while Usagiayama went solo, while Togata and his friends also headed out.
Which left Momo with Shoto… and General Aizawa.
"You sure you shouldn't have gone with your siblings?" Aizawa asked.
"While it is true they're not as powerful as I am, I trust that they'll play it safe," Shoto calmly said. "Their goal is to head towards where our parents are, not kill all the enemies. If they encounter any on their way, they'll most likely freeze them in place, before quickly moving on."
That made sense, in Momo's opinion. If they stopped to fight every single enemy they came across, they ran the chance of getting swarmed. Speed was their ally right now.
"And besides… you're both here."
Momo looked towards her boyfriend, feeling her cheeks warm up a bit.
"You're both leaders of the JSDF. Plus, neither of you have magic, and while your weapons are impressive, they can only get you so far if, say, a zombie dragon shows up."
Aaaaand, the warmth of her cheeks just died.
Leave it to Shoto, of all people, to masquerade his pragmatism as something romantic. Then again, Momo was the one who fell for the picture definition of the word "blunt," sooo…
"Come on," Aizawa said. "Let's see if we can thin their numbers."
"Right!" Momo said, as the three of them headed out.
Itsuka and her team ran through the ruins of the city, shooting any zombies they came across in the head. Because of course there were goddamn zombies, why the fuck not?
She figured long ago that it was best not to try and apply the logic of her world in a place like this; she didn't wanna end up like Rin. But she also didn't really care about advancing her career unless she had a personal reason, like either to help Neito, or to prove herself.
Really, as far as she could care, life was an optional RPG, and this world was just a mandatory level she had to play in order to get the rewards she really wanted. And so…
"Guurgh…"
"Ya want brains?! Too bad, how 'bout an ALL-LEAD DIET?!"
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
Their process was fairly simple: Itsuka and her team brought down the armed ones first, followed by any that were wearing some sort of protective gear, and finally, they dealt with the regular mooks. Yeah, getting bitten would suck, but getting stabbed could be worse.
Getting a sword or a spear to the guy would send them crashing down into the dirt, incapacitated, or maybe even worse, alive. So, if bleeding out from the wound didn't do you in, getting eaten alive by zombies certainly would, and Itsuka figured that would be way more painful. At least if she got bit, she could still put a couple more rounds in those undead fucks before she became one herself, or, if she was super lucky, maybe Kodai could cure her.
But she wasn't gonna test that theory, as this was an active warzone, and she didn't feel like waiting around for Kodai to maybe cure her of zombism. So, killing them all as strategically as possible was vital, starting with the most dangerous ones, those carrying weapons.
"Okay, that should be the last of them here," Uraraka said.
"Keep your eyes peeled, there could be more of them," Itsuka said, as she scanned around the plaza… there. A couple meters away from them was a lumbering undead. A big one.
Heavy armor, carrying a mace, and given its stature and body type, probably not human. The orange-haired woman looked at her team and asked, "What do you guys make of it?"
"Pretty tall, I'd wager it's a zombie ogre," Komori said.
Makes sense. Itsuka saw a couple of them back during the Saltu Jungle expedition, but Komori was even closer to them, thanks to Kodai. She'd probably be able to tell.
"Heads up, it's coming this way!" Uraraka yelled.
Itsuka focused, as she saw their target charging towards them. She had seen a couple of zombie movies as a teenager, so she knew that not all zombies were slow; but she did figure that the armor the zombie ogre was wearing probably didn't help with his turns, so…
"Alright, spread out, and get some debris between you and the ugly bastard," Itsuka said. "Don't let him charge at you in a straight line, keep moving and keep forcing him to turn."
"You got it!"
The three of them took three different directions, with Itsuka staying right in front of the ogre's line of sight. The fat undead ran towards her, swinging that mace and of his, and –
WHOOSH!
– she dodged and rolled. Looking back, she noticed that the ogre was turning a bit faster than she predicted, meaning that armor was lighter than she initially assumed. That would make her job easier. Pulling out her handgun, she aimed it above the ogre's eyes, and fired.
BLAM!
The monster stumbled for a second, before regaining its footing. Kendo shot a few more bullets right where she aimed the first, and then, when she reached her sixth shot… it collapsed.
"Huh," Uraraka hummed. "Guess it must have a thicker skull."
"Probably," Komori said. "Luckily, we know how to deal with them now."
Itsuka nodded. Hopefully, this was the worst that they'd have to deal with. But if not… well, her team hadn't used any of their magic yet, and they were willing to go down swinging.
That was just the SREU way.
"INCOMING!!!"
Neito was glad that he had the most people on his team right about now, because that meant he had more lookouts. Including ones that looked up into the sky every now and then.
Because without Rin's warning, they wouldn't be able to get down to avoid the giant fucking zombie dragon that wad coming cashing down like an airliner for the damned. Seriously, between the rotting flesh, back plates, and splitting jaw, this thing was straight-up ugly.
"RRRUUUUURRRRR!!!!!"
Neito wasn't too sure if that thing had some kind of telepathy to hear those insults, 'cause it looked pissed. Or maybe this dragon had a resting bitch face, he honestly couldn't tell.
"Uh, how are we gonna kill this?" Kaibara asked.
"Start with the wings! We can't let it fly!"
The four of them listened to the blond, unleashing a bulletstorm on the wings of the undead creature, only for that to do… barely a scratch, as the monster took off again.
"Okay, time for a new plan."
"And that would be?" Tsuburaba asked.
"RUN FOR IT!"
His team made a break for it as the zombie dragon kept flying above them in a menacing fashion. What made matters worse was that Neito noticed it turning its head upward, before suddenly flicking it back down, spewing a purple mist from its mouth. Poison.
"COVER YOUR FACES!"
His subordinates did as told, while Neito tried to figure out what to do. Having a giant-ass dragon here was bad enough, but one that had a gaseous attack? Even worse. If that mist spread elsewhere, there was a good chance that his allies would breathe it in.
Actually, scratch that, the chance of that happening was pretty damn high. The majority of the enemy's forces were undead, and he had a sneaking suspicion that those guys couldn't be poisoned. Meaning anyone affected would be alive, as in, him and his friends.
Hell, he didn't even know if just being next to the purple gas was enough to get them afflicted with whatever sick shit it was carrying. Sure, he told his men to hold their breaths, but would that even be enough to prevent them from catching who-knows-what? Ahh… fuck it.
Neito knew that they had to deal with the zombie dragon, now, before it had a chance to spread its sickness further. They could check with Kodai later if they were infected or not.
But how the hell were they gonna be able to take that thing down? Bullets were out of the question, and Bakugou wasn't here to blast it all the way to Hell, so… what?
Come on, Neito Monoma, you've watched zombie movies before, think! What else can you do besides shoot them in the head? Decapitation? No, too big. Maybe I could burn it…?
Ehh, he didn't have many other options.
"GUYS! KEEP IT BUSY, I HAVE A PLAN!!!"
His squad didn't even ask questions, knowing that now was the time for action. Laying down cover fire, they shot at the zombie dragon, as Neito used the gravity manipulation spell he got from Uraraka to launch himself towards the dragon's face, his fist hurtling towards it –
"SPIRALIS FLAMMA!!!"
– and his hands erupted in fire tornadoes.
Thank you, Todoroki, you wonderful Prince Zuko knock-off.
Her home was in ruins.
No, it wasn't just the palace she grew up in. The entire capital seemed to be burning, and if not, then at least being reduced to rubble by the hordes of undead and insane mages.
Fuyumi Todoroki honestly didn't think she ever had a chance at becoming the ruler of her father's country. She wasn't the oldest, she wasn't the most magically gifted, she wasn't even a boy. But, she still tried. She still tried and studied and trained on everything she could, from general knowledge and politics, to strategy and warfare, even pushing herself in magic.
She figured that, even if she never received the title of Empress, she would at least be able to make the changes he wanted to, with the help of whichever brother was on the throne. But then she had the crazy idea of overthrowing her father, something she actually succeeded in.
And where did this get her now? The ideal world she wanted to build had been reduced to dust and decay thanks to a handful of lunatics. There was a very real chance that she would die here, as the last ruler of the Todoroki Empire. But despite that… she wouldn't give up.
If there was one thing that she had to admit, it was that her family was full of stubborn fools. Her father was a prime example of that. But that trait wasn't exclusive to Todoroki men.
Hence why she and her little brother were currently freezing their way through every single madman and zombie they came across. When it came to the stubbornness of a Todoroki, these idiots had a better chance of making the sun rise in the west than swaying the sibling duo.
"DURATUS!!!"
Natsuo blasted more frost from his fingers into the faces of their opponents, as Fuyumi cut and slashed the heads of these brain-eating losers. Sure, she could use magic, but why waste precious mana on some lowly sods when a sword would be just as, if not more, effective?
"How much farther?"
"We're almost there!" Natsuo said. "They should be –"
BOOM!!!
Dust from the rubble blew past their faces, as someone launched down into the ground in front of them from above. As the dust settled around them, a man in heavy armor could be seen. Heavy armor, pale skin, and orange hair. In all honesty, he looked like a sickly version of their father. However, thanks to their recent intel, the siblings knew exactly who he was.
Fuyumi hissed, "Maguma Iwata…"
"Oh, you know me? Excellent, this will make my job much easier."
Natsuo raised an eyebrow at that. "Your job?"
"Yes… My job of destroying Enji Todoroki, starting with his beloved children!"
Ah, so that was his grudge. A man who should have never been given magic, most likely of the fire variety, now uses it to put to rest his fragile ego, by killing some rival who was better at it than him. Or, more accurately, starting with said rival's family, just to make them suffer.
If he was even half as good as their father, Fuyumi and Natsuo would have to be careful.
Chitose Kizuki didn't recognize the woman in front of her.
From their understanding, the ones who would be attending this summit were the Todoroki family, the elves, the otherworlders, the Hero, the Demon King and his lackeys. There was no mention of some white-haired, chocolate-skinned rabbit woman carrying a giant halberd.
"Whose side are you supposed to be on?"
The rabbit lady snorted at the question. "No side but my own."
"Oh? Are you like us, perhaps?" Chitose wondered. "The Enlightened Evil –"
"Nope, lemme stop ya right there," she said, raising her hand. "I don't give a shit about what you guys are doing. But the green-haired fucker had me come out here to some stupid-ass meeting to talk about your boys club, only to have you fucks wreck the place. Now, I'm pissed."
Chitose's smile fell. "So, you won't join us?"
"Did you even listen to a word I said, ya blue bitch?"
"..I'll take that as a no."
The white-haired rabbit smiled, as she branshided her halberd. In all honesty, Chitose wasn't impressed. Aside from the fact that she herself wielded a spear, Chitose Kizuki was an oni. That meant she had access to the magic of her people. She could heal any wounds she sustained, and if she was in a real bind, cast darkness or invisibility, and then fly away to safety. What could this rabbit do? Jump around while swinging a very big blade. Hilarious.
This duel would be over in an instant.
Izuku took to the skies with Melissa almost instantly.
He already didn't like the Enlightened Evil. They brought back the misanthropic prick who tortured his little sister for the sake of omnicide, while also allying themselves with the most fringe of loons so they could plunge the world into anarchy. They were a threat that needed to be dealt with. But then they had the audacity to try and kill Melissa, his angel…
Hahaha, yeah, no. It was time for them to die. Painfully.
The demon and fallen angel overlooked the ruined landscape before them, surveying the terrain that surrounded Endeavor City, hoping to find something. Lo and behold, they managed to track down the source of the lightning, right where a white-haired man was sitting pretty.
Nine. It had to be him; the human sorcerer that had it out for Midoriya personally. The magic emanating from him certainly fit the profile, and that smile he had… so fucking smug…
"I was wondering how long it would take for you to get here," he said.
"Funny, last time we met, you fled at the sight of me," Melissa said.
"I wasn't… functioning at my best at that time. If we had fought, I would have surely lost," Nine admitted. "But now things have changed, and I'm more than ready to end you both."
"Charming," Izuku said, as he stared at the bastard. Summoning his greatswords, he looked over to the blonde love of his life, armed with her own sword. "We take him down together."
"Right," Melissa said, nodding. And then… they flew in.
Izuku was a cautious demon. Losing both your parents and being the ruler of your own nation would do that to you. He never did anything that didn't require his personal touch. He was prepared for anything Nine would do, any spell he was ready to counter.
What he wasn't ready for, however, was for another player to show up.
Jumping out from the bushes Nine was standing behind was someone Izuku recognized. Long white hair, styled like the hands of a clock, leaking out from their sides, while their face hidden behind a plague doctor mask and hood. Hari Kurono. Chisaki's second-in-command.
This was a trap, and they fell for it.
"CHRONO STASIS!!!"
Well, that was over quickly.
Rumi admired her handiwork. She never thought she would have to take down an oni, but she went and did it. Laying down in the ruins in front of her were the dismembered remains of the blue-skinned bitch, the only thing remaining intact for her head being her horns.
Disarming her was the hard part. Compared to Rumi's halberd, which was powerful but heavy, the blue meanie's spear was painful but fast. But her strategy made up for it: Sneak attacks, going invisible to stab her opponent, weakening them, a battle of attrition, really.
That strategy would have worked for anyone who didn't have heightened senses. Fortunately, just like the rest of her people, the rabbit part of Rumi gave her excellent hearing.
All she had to do was time her blocks and attacks based on the sound of the oni's footsteps. The bitch never had to deal with an opponent who was able to hear exactly where she was, so while she may be able to sneak up on humans, that technique did jack shit against Rumi.
When it seemed like their battle was a lost cause, because after a few minutes, the oni had seemingly given up and tried to fly away. A quick discus toss of Rumi's halberd, and her legs came crashing down into the ground, as the rest of her now-legless body followed.
She might have been able to regenerate them, sure, but that just gave Rumi the excuse to go all-out. She proceeded to wallop the poor bastard as the purple-haired hoe swung at her violently, before Rumi decided enough was enough and put her out of her misery.
Her method of execution?
Wrapping her thighs around the oni's head and squeezing.
Rumi let go as soon as she heard the skull crack, and began to wipe the blood off her legs, when she heard a guttural roar a distance away. Looking up, she noticed a zombie dragon flying around, before its head was suddenly incinerated by some blond dude's magic.
Well, so much for going after a bigger target.
Ah, well. She was sure there were plenty of more worthy foes around.
This was bad. This was very bad.
No matter how many walls of ice Fuyumi created, Iwata would keep melting them away with his flames. The only reason she and Natsuo were still standing was because this nutcase was nowhere near as powerful as their father. But that didn't mean he wasn't dangerous.
The only reason Fuyumi's coup was successful was because they managed to tire out her father before they fought him. Melissa was fast enough to dodge any magic he used, and Yaoyorozu's team was able to get a few good licks in, sending crashing down straight into the palace's throne room. When they finally confronted him, he was running on fumes.
If they just walked into the throne room one day and told him to surrender, they would have been reduced to a crisp. And now, that very thing might very well happen to them.
They had to have been running this cretin's mana reserves low, but the same could be said for Fuyumi and Natsuo. There was a very good chance that whoever made the next move could very well decide the outcome of this battle. Both sides acted to make their move, but…
"CRYSTAL GLACIES SCUTUM!!!"
Before either party could do anything, someone else did. Massive, snowflake-shaped structures appear out of thin air, separating Fuyumi and Natsuo from Iwata, and growing.
Fuyumi recognized the spell, but she wasn't the one who cast it, and a quick look at Natsuo's face made it evident that he didn't cast it, either. And that voice wasn't Shoto's, so –?!
"CALIDUS BRACHIUM PURGATORIUM!!!"
An explosion of blue flames appeared from behind Iwata, incinerating him. The heat was so intense that the ice shields that appeared a few seconds earlier had begun to steam. Thankfully, before the heat got any more intense, the spell ended, and the air began to cool down again.
Fuyumi hazarded a look towards their savior, and saw a half-naked man with black hair and patches all over his body. She would have mistaken him for an undead if it wasn't for the smug smile and the cocky posture he had while holding his blue-and-black staff.
"Looks like I came just in time to save ya."
"And… who exactly are you?" Natsuo asked.
"Ah, right, introductions," the man said. "I'm one of the governors of the Demon King that was invited to this summit, sorry for coming late. Anyways, I'm Touya, nice to meet ya."
Oh, this was the guy that Midoriya was talking about earlier. Touya, huh? Wait…
Fuyumi took a closer look at the guy. His eyes were the same color as their father's, spiky hair, and fire magic. But to also have the name of her older brother… No, no fucking way…
"You have got to be kidding me…" Fuyumi groaned. "Touya?!"
Eijiro wasn't sure why, but he was definitely getting therapy after this.
But the reasons behind his desire to visit General Kayama once their mission was over might have to do with the amount of zombies that were around him and his team. Like, no joke, there were enough of these walking corpses to fill a Tim Burton movie, what the actual fuck.
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
"HAHAHA! BACK TO THE PIT OF HELL YA CRAWLED OUT OF! HAHAHA!"
Well, at least Bakubro seemed to be enjoying himself.
Their small team kept mowing through the rows and rows of German bedtime stories, from humanoid zombies to oversized animals, to… what Eijiro was pretty sure was a dinosaur. Regardless, they kept shooting all of them in the head, to make sure they perma-died.
Eijiro honestly thought that shooting zombies would be easier than shooting live opponents. He had done it plenty of times before, like whenever he played Call of Duty as a kid, what made it so different now? Was it because they were real? Because he could smell them?
Maybe I should ask Mina about this later…
"Danger! Danger! Danger!"
Huh? Who said that? Eijiro looked around to see who was talking to him, but none of his teammates were even looking towards him. And besides, that didn't sound like any of them.
"Danger! From above!"
Looking up, the initial redhead scanned the sky, and saw… a man? He definitely looked like one; a black-haired dude wearing mostly black and gray, with the exceptions of his red scarf and tanned mask, who was just… floating in the air, and looking down at… Eijiro?
This guy was dangerous? Eijiro tried to figure out who this guy could possibly be. He looked human, but the vibes he was giving off were so… murderous… Wait a second…
A human-like appearance but with the murderous vibes of a heartless monster. A member of the Enlightened Evil, most likely. And given that he was staring right at Eijiro, someone who has a confirmed spirit affinity… that could only mean that this was… Chizome Akaguro…
The Great Spirit of Murder.
And he was staring right at Eijiro Kirishima.
Oh, shit.
BLAM! BLAM!
Itsuka shot the last of the zombies in the head, before she caught something from the corner of her eyes. Looking to the right, she saw one of Kurogiri's portals manifesting.
"Hey there," the orange-haired woman said. "I take it that our back-up's here."
"That is correct," the shadow demon replied. In a matter of seconds, legions of elven warriors, armed with spears and firesticks, along with basic ground soldiers of the JSDF, and the Demon Lords themselves, all of them passed through the portal. "They are yours to command."
"Wait… me?" Itsuka repeated.
"Indeed," Kurogiri said. "You are one of the few soldiers in the area that knows what the situation here is, along with being one of the few all three of these factions know and respect."
"Respect?" the orange-haired woman repeated. "I don't know about…"
"Come on, Kendo, just take the compliment!" Uraraka shouted.
"Alright, alright!" Itsuka said, as she looked over to those soldiers. "Aight, here's the sitch…"
Author's Note: The first official battle against the Enlightened Evil has begun. There's gonna be a few more chapters of this, and then comes the final battle!
We've only got one comment this time around, but hey, a job's still a job.
valkrus: Dang, three of them. Guess I got cocky.
ATTENTION! I have created my own website where I've posted a bunch of my art, so, if you're interested in seeing that, visit https://eowen5.myportfolio.com/!
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Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 49: Twists and Turns
Summary:
Everyone, everywhere, is preoccupied. Those who trapped the Demon King and his beloved with magic are trying to kill them, while their closest allies are trying to prevent that. Elsewhere, a solider comes face-to-face with the Great Spirit of Murder. And somewhere else, a family is reunited... kinda...
Chapter Text
Chapter 49: Twists and Turns
If it was anyone else besides Neito Monoma, they would probably be scared out of their mind right now. Okay, granted, he was a bit nervous, but he was pretty sure he was making good progress! The zombie dragon was still a tough fighter, but as long as he didn't bite at Neito, the blond figured he could keep blasting it point-blank with his flames as long as he held on.
Monoma decided to respond with his own fire, as he prepared one of the most powerful fire spells he knew for the zombie dragon's face. "Have a taste of your own medicine!"
"RRRUUUUU–"
"VERMILLION NOVEA!!!"
PWOOOM!!!
A pillar of fire exploded in the middle of the monster's chest, as the zombie dragon moved around wildly, its head shaking, as if hoping that it would throw off the Japanese soldier from its face. As the fires began to move more across the body, Neito knew it was time for him to get off of it. He didn't wanna get burned by his own magic, and besides…
…he had another spell he wanted to try out.
"And now, for my next trick... Freeze, bastard! SINE FINE GLACIES MORSIBUS!!!"
With a large wave of his arm, Neito combined the ice magic of the Todoroki family with the portal-creating magic he copied from Kurogiri (because of course he did) and covered the dragon in thick spiky ice, which kept growing and growing all over its body.
"He's frozen!" Neito shouted at the others. "Blast the motherfucker!"
"No, don't! I'm on it!" The others did as their commanding officer said, holding their gunfire, as the blond focused the explosion magic he had copied from Bakugou, but… After observing the demoman use it so many times, Neito had learned a few things. As it turned out, the effectiveness of the explosion depended on the length and passion of the incantation.
Meaning the longer it was, the more powerful it would be. However, he didn't need this one to be powerful. Neito just needed it to shatter the ice, and the dragon within it.
Which meant, all he needed was the minimum requirement.
"EXPLOOOOOSIO!"
BOOOM!!!
A small beam of death and destruction hit the dragon, as Neito had fired an explosion similar to a Final Flash, only smaller and more controllable. Yes, he had seen Dragon Ball, he wasn't embarrassed to admit it. Especially when it gave him results like this.
The ice melted, evaporating into steam, the rotting skin and muscles were gone, reducing the zombie dragon to just a walking mass of bones and whatever measly sinews kept it together. The soldiers waited for it to move again, their guns aimed, but… it just collapsed.
"...And stay dead."
"We can take it from here, boss," Tsuburaba said.
Neito Monoma nodded and ran off to help the others.
Izuku was in a time loop. He didn't know at what point he figured it out (as he was reliving the last few seconds before he got trapped), or how he figured it out (perhaps being a Demon King made him immune to these sorts of mind manipulations) but somehow, he did.
And he came to the horrible realization that both he and Melissa were trapped.
He was so stupid. He should have seen it coming. Kurono's magic was TIME MANIPULATION, of course the fucker would have trapped him in a time loop spell.
He and his beloved angel were trapped charging in, weapons and magic at the ready, expecting Nine, not a time bubble. He recognized the spell, Chrono Stasis. It basically trapped its targets inside a ring of numerals, making its victims relive the moment they were in over and over.
Except, for whatever reason, Izuku was able to break out of it. Mentally, at least. He was still very much frozen in mid-air. He seriously hoped there was a way out of it, 'cause if not, they were both screwed. If he could grit his teeth right now, he would, as he thought, I will not have us suffer for eternity! Even if it takes me a thousand tries, I will find a weakness!
"…Wow, that actually worked?" Kurono asked.
Nine nodded. It would seem so.
Izuku couldn't even scowl as Nine. Meanwhile, in the other time bubble, Melissa was screaming inside her mind, begging, Please, not like this... not when I finally reunited with him!
"Welp, would you like to do the honors?" Kurono asked.
"I believe I would. Being the one to end the Demon King would make quite the title."
Nine began manipulating the clouds above as a storm soon formed, with every hand gesture he made resulting in the clouds getting darker. This was it, wasn't it? This was how they died –
"SLAAAAASSSHHH!!!!!"
"GET BACK!" Kurono shouted.
The two mages jumped back as the ground they were standing beneath exploded in debris. As the dust settled, they saw… the Hero, Mirio Togata, with his sword, One For All.
Well, this is... unexpected, Izuku mentally deadpanned.
"I figured you evil-doers would try to take down our strongest members first," the blond human said, pointing his sword at the two villains. "Sure, Yaoyorozu and her team are impressive, but taking down a Demon King? You scumbags just couldn't resist, now could you?"
"No, I guess we couldn't," Kurono admitted. "How could we?"
Nine meanwhile, asked, "Why are you defending him, Hero?"
My question exactly. Izuku knew that he had a lot of power, so it made sense to save him, but for Togata of all people to do it? He would have thought that the One For All wielder's bias against Demon Kings would at least cause him to hesitate a little, but…
"Isn't it obvious? I'm a Hero. Saving a person in trouble is just common sense!"
While Izuku was shocked that the Hero was going out of his way to save him, he couldn't help but respect his resolve and moral compass. Perhaps there is hope for humanity yet.
Nine, meanwhile, was unimpressed. "Hmph. Then I'll kill you, too."
"Good luck with that. I don't know how to die," Togata said.
The weather-manipulating mage shot out some magical lasers at the Hero, who deflected them with his sword, and the two of them engaged in their own battle.
Still gotta find a way out of this... Izuku thought. How do you escape a time loop?
Elsewhere, the former Emperor of the Todoroki Empire and his Queen made their way through their ruined city, searching for their children. "SHOTO!!! FUYUMI!!! NATSUO!!!"
"I'm sure they're fine…" Enji said. That did little to help Rei as she kept screaming for her children. "Alright, umm, I know this might sound somewhat rude coming from me, but please stop shouting. I'd rather not have every undead within earshot coming for us."
Rei knew Enji was right, but her worry persisted.
"I'm sorry, I just... I know they can defend themselves, but…"
"But you worry for them. I may have never done it, but… I'm starting to understand it."
"How do we find them?" Rei asked. "Is there some way to track them?"
"I would say "follow their path of destruction," but given the state our city is currently in, that doesn't exactly help," Enji said, as they kept walking. Any zombie they encountered was immediately frozen or incinerated. They were going to find their children… if it killed them.
Eventually, they reached a somewhat desolated spot, where they heard… a conversation?
"…yeah, so, Midoriya may not have been able to heal my body completely, but I won't die. Plus, scars are pretty much superficial, so I don't need any further healing. I'm good now."
"Well, that's good to know. Hopefully you're being more careful with your fire."
"…Do you hear that?" Rei whispered, recognizing the second voice.
Enji nodded. "I do."
"Har-har, I see that becoming Empress hasn't dulled your dry sense of humor, sis."
"And there's that old snarky attitude. No doubt about it now."
"Fuyumi and Natsuo…!!!" The two ran in to see Fuyumi and Natsuo sitting on some rubble and talking to a man with lots of burn scars, who was sitting on a bigger rock.
"Hey, sis, look!" Natsuo tapped his sister's shoulder.
"Mother! Father!" Fuyumi gasped, as she ran to her parents.
"Hm? Oh, you're still alive," the mage deadpanned. "Great."
While Enji kept his distance, the smile on his face was enough to convey that he was happy to see them, as Rei embraced her children. "Oh, thank goodness you're both alive!"
"Oh, sure, just act like I don't matter, why don't you," the scarred man said.
Enji looked over to the scarred man. "Who are you…?"
"Mother, Father, I know this will be hard to believe, but I assure you it is no deception…" Fuyumi said, as she turned around towards the scarred mage. "Would... you like to do the honors?"
"Yeah, sure, but first thing's first, I've gotta take care of something…" the stranger said, jumping down from the rock, and clearing his throat. "Ahem! I, Touya Todoroki, firstborn prince of the Todoroki Empire, hereby abdicate my right to the throne, blah, blah blah, it's all yours now, sis."
Enji and Rei's mind grinded to a halt at the nonchalant reveal. This was… Touya…?
Natsuo smacked Touya's back. "Stupid big brother…"
Fuyumi, meanwhile, sighed in annoyance. "No tact at all…"
"Heh," the eldest Todoroki chuckled. "I so did not miss you guys."
Evidently, Rei was the first one to regain her voice. "Touya...?"
"…Hey, Mom," the firstborn said, before suddenly getting smothered, as Rei wasted no time in bringing her eldest son into a tight hug, while crying tears of joy at the fact he was alive.
Enji, meanwhile, has a lot to process.
Eijiro Kirishima stared at the eyes of the Great Spirit of Murder flying above him.
He didn't know how long he had been doing it, but Chizome Akaguro had been staring at the human below him for just as long. I feel like he's gonna kill me if I even move...
"Shitty Hair, what are you…? Oh."
Bakubro immediately stopped asking questions, as he and the rest of the team saw the man flying above them. Eijiro knew that if they didn't do anything, they'd probably die. So, for now, he decided to play it safe, as he gave the Great Spirit of Murder a small wave. "Hey…"
Akaguro was silent for a moment, before saying, "Your affinity is… quite high…"
"Uh... my what?"
"Your spirit affinity," Kodai whispered.
"Uh-huh... and how does that help me...?"
Bakubro groaned, as he got close to Eijiro and whispered, "Shitty Hair, I'm gonna be honest with you, I think the only reason that thing hasn't reduced us all to ribbons is because of you."
"Me?!" the dyed redhead yelped.
Sato looked over at Bakubro, and asked, "You're thinking it's a spirit, yeah?"
The explosive blond nodded. "Seems that way, yeah…"
"Okay… what do I do now?" Eijiro asked.
"The hell if I know…"
Eijiro took a deep breath. He wasn't sure if bullets would be able to affect a being made of pure mana. For all he knew, it would just make him mad, resulting in everyone's deaths.
And besides, were bullets even the right call here? Was violence in general? He was supposed to be a man, yeah? Well… Being a man didn't mean he had to kill. Mina taught him that.
So maybe…
…maybe he could talk things out.
Looking at the Great Spirit of Murder, he asked, "So... what exactly do you want?"
"To kill. To spill the blood of humans. But you… you fascinate me. Why is that…?"
"I don't know what to tell you, man. I'm still trying to figure out this magic stuff."
"…Why?" Akaguro tilted his head in curiosity.
"Eh?" Eijiro titled his head in confusion.
"Why do you do what you do?"
"Uh... to help people? Protect them?"
"Why do you wish to protect them?"
"Because I don't want to see people getting hurt."
Akaguro narrowed his eyes. "No one is that altruistic."
Eijiro narrowed his own eyes and frowned in disapproval. "Well, it doesn't matter to me whether or not you believe it, but I do. That's my reason, and it's all the reason I need."
The Great Spirit smiled, and all of a sudden, Eijiro (and the others) felt like a full-blown aura of power was exuded. The dyed redhead couldn't help but shout, "WHOA!!!"
"If you truly are the man you claim to be, then you shall not be afraid of death."
Eijiro could feel his legs shaking, but did his best to hide his fear behind a smile. "As one of my favorite video game characters said, "Death can have me when it earns me," pal!"
Chizome raised an eyebrow, before suddenly lifting up his hand. The others remained frozen in fear, but Eijiro… he could see where the hand was gonna swing down. On him.
Gotta time this right...
The world seemed to be moving in slow motion… but Eijiro focused on everything and everyone that mattered to him. The fate of this world. The Dungeon Crawlers. His friends, his squad.
Bakubro… Yaomomo...
Mina…
He had to live… FOR ALL OF THEM!!!
AND SOME HOBO MURDERER AIN'T GONNA BRING ME DOWN!
"KIRISHIMA!!!"
SWING!
Eijiro opened his eyes… and saw everyone staring at him. Looking around, he saw that there was a massive split in the ground where he was a second ago. "Huh…?"
"…You actually did it," Akaguro said.
"Did what?"
"You conquered death."
"I... did?" Eijiro asked.
"Yesss… which means… you are worthy."
"Of what?"
"Of entering into a contract with me."
Eijiro's eyes widened at that. "Oh, so... we become partners?"
"If that is what you desire," the Great Spirit said.
"Well, if you're offering to help, sure thing."
Bakubro sighed, as he grabbed Eijiro. "Hey, uhh, quick chat for a sec?"
"Yeah?" The red-haired soldier was dragged to the side by his friend.
"I don't trust that thing," the explosive blond whispered to Eijiro. "If you're gonna enter into a contract with it, don't make yourselves equals, make it work for you."
"Okay...?"
"Mm," Bakubro grunted in approval, nodding. "Treat it with respect, don't abuse your newfound power, but for the love of Christ, don't give it the chance to turn on us."
"Got it." The red-haired soldier turned around, back towards the waiting Great Spirit.
"Have you made your decision?" Akaguro asked.
"Uh, yeah," Eijiro said. "I'm down to… contract…?"
Chizome's smile somehow got wider at that. "Excellent."
Eijiro smiled, before he quickly turned back around to his friend. "Oh, Bakubro…"
"What?"
"Back when I was almost gonna die… you called me Kirishima."
"What? No way, get your ears checked, man."
"Ha!" Eijiro laughed. "Sure man, sure…"
"Alright, where were we with you…?" Kurono drew a blade and prepared to cut Izuku's head clean off. Nine was preoccupied with Togata in the air, so he had to step in.
Uh-oh. Izuku still couldn't move. This was bad.
"I've heard tales that claim the Demon King cannot be killed by mortal means…" the masked villain said. "Let's see what happens when your head is severed from your body."
Kurono's blade approached Izuku, but before he could even breach the time bubble…
THWIP!
…the knife was shot out of Kurono's hand by a flying arrow. An elven arrow.
"...Uh-oh," Kurono whispered, as he turned towards the trees to see –
"Nice shot, Tamaki!" Hadou praised the archer.
Amajiki blushed at the witch's compliments. "Don't mention me…"
Kurono glared at them from beneath this mask. "Tch. The Hero's party…"
Now this was gonna be a challenge for him.
Momo surveyed the ruined area around her. This place was a real wreck, just like the conference room, just like all the others. "Can't go anywhere without something going wrong…"
"Heh," Aizawa let out a mirthless laugh. "Sounds like something I'd say…"
Momo just groaned a bit as she kept surveying the area.
"No signs of movement, I take it?" Shoto asked.
"None," Aizawa said.
"That's… disappointing. I was hoping that at least someone survived all of this…"
Momo looked over to her commanding officer. "Any radio contact?"
"A little. Shirakumo apparently warped your subordinates in, on zombie duty."
That was some good news for Momo to hear. "Great…"
"Mm. So, we've got zombies, and the asshole that blew up the palace… and who knows what else. That's…? Hm?" Shoto looked over at something, before shouting, "LOOK OUT!!!"
Momo and Aizawa immediately backed up as Shoto sent up a magical wall of ice, but the ice exploded into tiny pieces, as it was sliced up by a snake nest's worth of red hair.
"Yikes. Bad hair day?" Aizawa asked.
"Look who's talking," the culprit said.
"Touche."
Momo looked over to see that the one controlling the mass of red hair was a woman. She'd mistake her for human, if it wasn't for the small, bat-like wings on her back.
A demon? Momo wondered. Could be a devil, for all I know…
"I take it you're with the green men that overthrew the Emperor of Flames?" the red-haired woman asked. "And… oho, is that the Raven-Haired Lady, I see?"
"If that's whatever the Enlightened Evil calls me, then sure," Momo said. She wasn't gonna correct the bitch with her actual title. For all she knew, one of the villains could have some kind of magic that erased her from existence if they knew her name, titles included.
"Well, since I'm in the presence of a living legend, I might as well introduce myself," the red-haired woman said, bowing. "I am Kiruka Hasaki, of the Enlightened Evil."
"I would say "Nice to meet you", but I'd be lying," Aizawa said.
"Hm. Raven-Haired Lady, does this… unhygienic vagabond… speak for you?"
"In this case, he does," Momo said.
"Thanks, I guess?" Aizawa said, half-insulted by the interaction.
"You're welcome," Momo said, before looking at Shoto. "Fire at will."
"You got it, babe," Shoto said, as he immediately launched a plume of fire at Hasaki, who dodged out of the way of the attack, as she launched her hair in retaliation.
"Duck!" Aizawa shouted.
Both he and Shoto hit the floor, but Momo was too slow, getting caught by the hair. She struggled with all her might, but the tendrils kept her in the air. "Shit!"
"Aww, what's the matter? Don't like being hung upside-down like a butchered pig?"
Momo glared at Hasaki. "Sounds like you have experience."
The red-haired woman blinked for a second, asking… "What?"
"I mean, you do seem like the type to enjoy degradation, especially with that outfit."
"W-w-what…?!" Hasaki's face went red with embarrassment. "SHUT UP!"
Aizawa and Shoto looked at each other, realizing that they could use this to their advantage. The black-haired general went first, saying, "Doesn't sound too convincing."
"I'LL KILL ALL OF YOU!" Hasaki launched a flurry of hair spikes in a rage, intending to skewer them all, as Shoto immediately raised a thick ice wall to block the spikes.
While the red-haired woman was distracted, Momo, who was still hanging from one of her head's appendages, tried to reach up to her holster. Aizawa, meanwhile, noticed Momo reaching for her gun (while still being a hostage), and decided to keep playing the distraction card. "So, who's the guy you pay to satisfy your fantasies?! Bet he's a real piece of work!"
"YOU SHUT YOUR MOUTH!!!" Hasaki screamed.
Aizawa smiled, as he said, "No, I don't think I will!"
Todoroki joined in on the ragging, saying, "I bet it's that loser, Nine. You know, that sad mage trying to measure up to the Demon King, of all people. Like that'll ever happen…"
"Sounds about right," Aizawa said, wearing a shit-eating grin.
"YOU KEEP HIM OUT OF THIS!!!" Hasaki roared.
Aizawa's eyes widened with glee. "Ah, so it is him!"
"I'LL KILL YOU!!!"
While Aizawa and Shoto were keeping Slice's attention on them, Momo was escaping her confinements. She managed to wring one of her hands out of Hasaki's medusa-like hair, and went straight for her holster. Come on, dammit… Reach… your… gun…
Momo grunted as she finally reached for her weapon, and was finally able to grab it. Lifting it up, the black-haired woman aimed her pistol at Hasaki's head. "Hey, devil bitch."
Hasaki looked up. "Huh?!"
"The haircut's free of charge."
"Wha–?!"
BLAM!
Momo fired her gun, and Hasaki couldn't react in time as the bullet pierced her head. Red blood mixed in with the red of her hair, and in a matter of seconds, she collapsed to the ground.
"Heh. Wait, shit, gravity —"
BAM!
…Momo then found herself face planting into the ground, as well. As it turned out, when she killed Hasaki, all of the hairs lost control of their motor functions, dropping Momo.
"…Ow," the black-haired woman groaned.
"You good?" Aizawa asked, popping up from his hiding space.
"I could kiss where it hurts," Shoto said.
Momo blushed. "I mean... if you're offering…"
"Yay," the peppermint-haired prince said, as he got over to his girlfriend.
Aizawa, meanwhile, sighed and looked away.
BLAM! BLAM!
Itsuka nodded in silent approval as she watched the platoon of elves she had taken command of take down all of the local undead. Unfortunately, this was a stop-gap solution, at best.
There were still thousands of these bastards roaming around, which meant that the necromancer or whatever Kurogiri called the guy controlling these things was still out there.
She really hoped that someone took down the undead manipulator pretty soon. Not that her team was in any actual danger, but just because she didn't wanna deal with this all day.
Author's Note: If you'd like to know what the zombie dragon Monoma took down looked like, watch Shield Hero. Also, for clarification, whether Hasaki was a human with devil blood running through her or an actual devil, I'll leave that up to reader's interpretation. I'll tell you some more trivia about her next time. But for now… the comments!
valkrus: You are the only one commenting right now. I think summer is when people are the least active, but don't quote me on that. Also, I fixed the last chapter's typo.
ATTENTION! I have created my own website where I've posted a bunch of my art, so, if you're interested in seeing that, visit https://eowen5.myportfolio.com/!
Anyways, back to the regular old shilling…
I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, https://twitter.com/ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 50: End of the Siege
Summary:
The siege of Endeavor City is over. From Kurono being betrayed by Chizome, to Garaki's undead being destroyed by Kodai, and Nine being defeated by the combined forces of the Hero and the Demon King, the last remnants of the Enlightened Evil are dealt with. Now, the good guys are going to take the fight straight to the final boss...
Chapter Text
Chapter 50: End of the Siege
Nejire Hadou and Tamaki Amajiki kept launching their magic and arrows at Hari Kurono, who kept slowing down and speeding up time to avoid the projectiles with his magic.
The hooded villain kept manipulating the mana around him, creating an area where all the enemy spells would get caught in his time bubbles. Unfortunately, it didn't work on arrows, and he was running low on mana. This is starting to get annoying...
Suddenly, Kurono felt the blowing of winds, as he looked behind him to see Chizome Akaguro touching down next to him, thank goodness, as Kurono said, "Nice of you to finally join."
On the other side of the battleground, Nejire's eyes almost popped out of her face. She recognized that spirit, as she looked towards her friend. "Oh, crap, Tamaki, I think that's…"
"Oh, no…" The elven archer knew who their new opponent was, too.
"That's right!" Kurono said, laughing at the witch and elf's fear. "We've got the Great Spirit of Murder on our side! And now that it's two against two, you're both in deep —"
SLASH!
The mage and the elf both had their jaws drop, as they watched Kurono's head fly off his body. Chizome Akaguro, meanwhile, stared at his fallen ex-comrade in contempt. "Pathetic."
"What the heck?!" Nejire shouted.
With Kurono's death, Izuku and Melissa were then freed of the time loop, as the blue spheres disappeared. Looking at the spirit, Izuku rasped out, "I have… several questions…"
"Likewise…" Melissa had to agree with her fiance there.
"It's okay! He's with us!"
The blonde angel looked over to the shrubbery to see… Kirishima popping out of the bushes. Melissa slowly connected the dots, but she couldn't believe it. "Wait... don't tell me…"
Kirishima chuckled. "Yeah, guess that whole "spirit affinity" thing ya told me about was legit…"
"Well, I'll be damned," Izuku said. "I didn't think you would ever get a contractor, Chizome."
"Mmmmm…" The Great Spirit of Murder merely glared at the Demon King.
Melissa helped her demonic fiance get up, and after everyone was sure they were unharmed, there was a silence for a few minutes, before Nejire asked, "So... now what?"
There was a low rumble in the sky, as everyone looked up to see two differently-colored comets duking it out. Right, there was still a battle between Togata and Nine going on.
"…I've got a score to settle," Izuku said, unleashing his wings.
"I'll come with you!" Melissa said, following behind her beloved.
Up in the air, Mirio Togata kept battling Nine, with magic and Skills flying around like crazy. With every laser Nine blasted, Togata dodged, but with every slash the blond swung, the wizard would just block it with a barrier. C'mon... there's gotta be a weakness in his defense.
"NIIIIIIIIIINE!!!!!"
Mirio saw Nine's face turn pale, as he felt a great sense of dread as something, or rather someone, was blitzing straight at him. Someone with a very familiar voice.
He looked down, as he saw the Demon King and his angelic bride, flying towards them with their wings and swords out. Almost instinctively, the blond used Float to get out of the way, as the demon and the angel began their own battle against Nine.
Mirio chuckled to himself. "Well... a Hero knows when not to interfere."
Elsewhere, the Todoroki family (minus Shoto, of course) were being given the short version of what had happened to Touya, which, needless to say, wasn't pretty.
"By the gods…" Rei whispered, covering her mouth.
"It's not as bad as it looks…" Touya casually said.
"Are you certain?" Enji asked, concerned. "No constant pain?"
"Oh, now you care," Touya said, as he glared at his father. Enji didn't even try to retort to that, as the eldest Todoroki child looked over to the rest of his family. "But anyways, yeah… I'm fine."
"I... this is a lot to take in…" Rei admitted.
"HEY! Guys, look, it's Touya-kun!"
Touya's facial expressions shifted to one of serious discomfort, as he recognized that voice from beyond the ruins. "Oh, great, it's her…"
Natsuo gave his older brother a funny look. "Who's her?"
The answer turned out to be Himiko Toga and her lackeys, Kan and Yanagi. The vampire rushed over to the eldest Todoroki child and squeezed him in a tight hug, which was kind of funny to look at, but also questionable, as Fuyumi asked, "Hang on... is this...?"
"Yep-yep! The last governor of the Demon King! The roaming flame mage, Dabi!"
The rest of the Todoroki family was silent at Himiko's declaration, as that was something they already knew, thanks to Touya. Toga was kinda twenty minutes late to the party.
"...I was gonna ask if this was your girlfriend," Natsuo said.
Touya gave his younger brother the finger. "Man, fuck you."
"So... how do you two know each other?" Fuyumi asked.
""Midoriya,"" both the vampire and Touya said at the same time.
"Ah." That was more than enough of an explanation to Fuyumi.
BLAM! BLAM!
Neito Monoma was busy taking down a few more roaming zombies on his own, when a few of them got blasted with what he recognized as elven bullets. Looking up from where the bullets were sent flying, he saw Hatsume and Iida shooting and slashing. "Huh…"
He didn't know Hatsume was packing heat, but he figured that it made sense. If her knight was ever out of commission, she needed a way to defend herself. And she didn't seem like the type to have a bow and arrow, even if they were part of her elven heritage.
"I see you're getting creative," Neito said, as he approached them.
"Oh, what, the pistol?" Hatsume asked, showing off her piece. "I mean, I saw the version your lieutenant had, and well, the creative spirit got a hold of me, heh-heh…"
"Uh-huh, yeah, whatever. Just keep shooting."
Hatsume gave him a thumbs-up. "Sure thing. Tenya, keep slashing!"
"Understood!" Iida said, as he slashed some more zombies with his sword, while his pink-haired girlfriend and the blond otherworlder kept blasting the undead with their bullets.
As that was going on, Monoma's team made their way towards the palace's ruins. Compared to how Endeavor City was last time they were here, this place was an absolute wreck.
Climbing through the rubble, they made their way through the now open-hair corridors, going through each door, as Awase asked, "Knock-knock. Anyone alive? Or dead?"
Kaibara, meanwhile, looked around. "Huh. No people... No zombies…"
"Somehow, that's even more unsettling," Awase admitted.
"Hey, maybe it's finally over?" Tsuburaba asked with hope.
The bandana-wearing mechanic wasn't convinced. "Keep your guard up."
Rin rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, we've got it…"
The soldiers kept cautiously moving through the somewhat standing ruins, looking for any signs of life... or undeath, opening each door and every door they came across.
"Hm?" Awase opened one of the creaking doors, and froze. "Holy shit…"
"What?" Kaibara asked. The team looked over to the end of the room, where they saw a mountain of zombies, with none other than Rumi Usagiyama sitting on top of them.
All four of the men recognized the warrior bunny who had her tribe nearly assault them, but… they couldn't really point their guns at her. One, Setsuna Tokage was with her, which meant Usagiyama was an ally. And two, she had killed all those zombies, which… holy shit.
"Damn…" Kaibara let out a low whistle. "Someone's pulling a Sukuna."
"And you all took your sweet time getting here," the white-haired warrior bunny sardonically said, getting down from her pile of zombie bodies. "You're supposed to be soldiers?"
"Oh, my apologies," Rin sarcastically said, as the other three soldiers looked at the zoologist like he was insane. "Fighting legions of the undead wasn't something we were trained for."
"Oh, yeah?" Tokage asked. "What about mortal men?"
Awase nodded at her. "If it bleeds, it dies."
"Then I suggest you guys start looking for the necromancer responsible for this."
"I think we can do you ladies one better," Awase said, as he pulled out his walkie-talkie. "Yo, Bakugou, I bet you and your team can't find the necromancer making the zombies."
"WHAT?! OH, IT'S ON, YOU RAG-WEARING BASTARD!!!"
"Okay, he's on it," Awase said, looking back at the others.
"You might wanna call Kurogiri to teleport a few of our allies away, while you're at it," Tokage said. "If that crazy healer girl of yours is with that Bakugou fellow, then there's a good chance she'll use her powers to wipe out every undead in the city… which would include Toga."
"Oh, yeah, good call," the mechanic said, grabbing his radio once more.
Kyudai Garaki examined the sight before him. Nine had done a good job reducing the city to rubble, and now, the rest of the Enlightened Evil, along with the necromancer's undead began to pick off survivors. In short, everything was going according to plan.
Smiling to himself, he said, "This couldn't have gotten better, if you ask me."
"Oh, yeah?"
"Indeed. Now, who goes there?" If he was surprised at the fact someone found him, he didn't show it. The old man took a look at the intruders. Some blond with an attitude, a quiet-looking girl, and some muscular guy with fat lips. He recognized their green uniforms.
It also meant that Garaki was unimpressed.
"More of those "otherworldly soldiers", eh?"
"Yep," Bakugou said. "Now who the fuck are you?"
"Kyudai Garaki. Grandmaster Necromancer, at your service."
"Grandmaster?"
"The highest rank a Mage can reach in a certain class, Necromancy in my case."
Kodai nodded in realization. "Ah, an Ultimate."
"Different wording, same meaning. Now, if you don't mind, I have a job to do," Garaki said, as he mentally commanded some of the nearby undead to take care of these fools.
Garaki wasn't scared of their little fire sticks. Sure, they could now down his minions, but there were so few of those little toys, and oh so many of his summoned undead. And even if these soldiers shot him here and now, it would just mean that there would now be thousands of undead roaming the city without anyone to control them. These fools would be eaten alive in a matter of minutes. Not like that wasn't going to happen here and now.
Shame, though. He liked talking to them.
"A job to do? Yeah, so do we," Bakugou said. "Glass Face?"
Kodai nodded. "On it."
Garaki raised an eyebrow, as the golden aura suddenly shined from the black-haired woman's hand. What exactly is she doing…? Wait a minute… is this —?! NO!
"SACRUM RURSUS IMMORTUI!!!" the black-haired woman roared, unleashing a golden beam of light into the sky that washed over all the hostile undead in the region, burning them away.
Garaki went completely slack-jawed. "No, no, no… IMPOSSIBLE!!!"
Bakugou smiled. "That word doesn't mean anything anymore."
"So, do we shoot him or arrest him?" Sato asked.
"If he fights back, shoot him."
Kodai gave her commanding officer a thumbs-up. "Mm. You got it."
Momo, Shoto, and Aizawa kept walking through the ruins, as they heard a rumbling throughout the air, before they noticed a multi-colored battle going on in the sky. "The hell is that?"
"I think that's Midoriya and his girl…" Shoto replied to Aizawa.
"Then let them handle it. Focus on what we can do," Momo said. Shoto nodded, before the raven-haired woman observed the battle. Aside from Midoriya and Melissa, she recognized the third fighter... The weather wizard back from their first expedition, who caused the cave-in.
Momo's eyes narrowed at that, something Shoto instantly recognized.
The peppermint-haired prince couldn't help but think, Well, he's a goner.
Looking back at the others, Momo said, "Alright, I think I've got a plan."
Aizawa gave her a skeptical look, but Shoto eagerly asked, "Yeah?"
"Indeed. Have you ever heard of the "ant vs elephant" analogy?"
"...No," the peppermint-haired prince said.
"Jesus fuck…" Aizawa groaned. "Just tell us your plan, Yaoyorozu."
Up in the air, Nine created another barrier and tendril, blocking yet another sword strike from the Demon King and thwarting the angel. While it worked for now, his reserves were starting to deplete. Dammit! This is why I DIDN'T want to go up against them without Kurono!
Still… he could make this work.
Being as powerful as he was, the green-haired demon was no doubt complacent. No one ever challenged him, so he never bothered with improving his technique.
And the angel was a glass cannon, running out of ammunition. Powerful, but with clear limits. Without her connection to the gods, she would run out of fumes soon enough.
All Nine needed to do was predict their movements, adapt to their attacks, and then kill them when he caught them by surprise. A battle of attrition... let's see who succeeds.
BANG!
WHAT?! Nine felt a white-hot pain unlike anything else, as he looked down and saw a hole in his foot. Looking through the hole in his foot, he could see a black-haired woman, one of those soldiers in green. He was shot by a woman?! With a firestick?! THOSE DAMN SOLDIERS!!!
HE WAS GOING TO FRY THEM WITH HIS LIGHTNING THIS VERY INSTANT —
SLICE!
…What? Time slowed down for Nine as he felt a searing pain coming from his arm...
... or what was left of his arm.
"…Gotcha," Melissa said, wielding her bloodied sword.
Nine was silent for a few seconds, as the dots in his brain connected. The pain from his foot and arm was replaced with an ever greater rage, as he scrambled, "You... BIIITCH!!!!!"
The clouds above became darker, as Nine launched a torrent of lighting towards the angel, planning on striking her down, consequences be damned. She tried to dodge, but…
KRAAAK!!!
…she was wearing metal armor.
"MELISSA!!!" Izuku screamed, as he watched the angel fall to the earth.
Despite the green-haired demon's anguish, Nine still laughed. "And now… it's your turn."
Izuku turned towards the mage, and hissed. "How dare you…?"
"I'VE GOT HER!" Shoto, seeing the angel plummeting down, used his ice magic to create a slide of ice to catch her, as she slid her down to a pile of snow to cushion her fall.
"Shit!" Momo cursed, as he looked over her friend. "Melissa, talk to me!"
Melissa groaned as she barely opened her eyes. "That... hurt…"
The skies above them kept getting darker. The auras of the Demon King and Nine were getting brighter. As the two upper echelons of the magic world duked it out in the sky with even greater intensity, everyone down below watched. Everyone except for Momo. "Damn it…"
Aizawa said, "For what it's worth, it was a nice plan, Yaoyorozu."
Momo nodded weakly. "Well... he's down an arm."
"I think Midoriya and Togata can handle the rest."
"Understood," Momo said. No more insane plans.
Mirio launched into the fight once more, heading straight towards the weather-manipulating mage. Staying out of the fight was a stupid idea. Because of inaction, Shield was injured, and now Midoriya was charging in like a mad dog. "YOU'RE GOING TO PAY!!!"
"YOU'LL DIE FIRST!" Nine yelled at the green-haired demon, launching another bolt of lightning, which Mirio was quick to block with One for All's blade. "YOU AGAIN?!?!"
"Yeah, me," the Hero said.
Midoriya couldn't help but chuckle. "Twice you've saved my ass now…"
"Don't mention it," Mirio said. "Now, let's take him down."
"Right!" Midoriya nodded, as the Demon King and the Hero immediately rushed in and started their full-on assault on Nine, unleashing all of their power in a massive display of color.
The battle that was happening in the air was so intense, that the array of colors it produced were bright enough for everyone across the ruined city to witness…
Touya couldn't help but let out a low whistle at the sight. "Well, damn."
"That's… the Demon King…" Enji had heard stories of his power, but he had never seen it up close. And now that he was… he realized just how small he was in comparison.
Rei, meanwhile, agreed with her husband. "The Demon King and the Hero…"
"And they're both our allies," Fuyumi said, with a smile on her face.
"Hard to believe…" Natsuo admitted.
"Yeah. But we better pray they win," Fuyumi said, as she and the rest of the Todoroki family continued to watch the battle up above them in the heavens in silence.
"Holy shit…" Kaibara whispered, as he and the rest of the team hanging out in the palace watched the three different comets of vast different colors duke it out in the sky.
"Dang…" Rin said. He really could enjoy some popcorn with this.
Tsuburaba, meanwhile, looked over to Kaibara and said, "Ten bucks says they all die."
Awase just sighed, as he continued to observe the battle alongside everyone else. He seriously hoped Togata and Midoriya pulled this off… for everyone's sake.
The Hero and the Demon King battled Nine, their swords breaking through his magic. They were almost done, they were in the home stretch now. Nine's body was crumbling, but it was still radiating crazy levels of mana, blasting off every and any spell the mage had.
The human and demon sliced through artificial dragon constructs, concentrated beams of lights, walls of solidified mana, magic-cancelling attacks, everything and anything Nine threw at them, just to make sure they got close enough to make sure he couldn't see them coming.
Launching forward with all his strength, Midoriya could see it. Almost there…!!!
Come on… Togata grit his teeth, swinging his sword. GO BEYOND…
PLUS ULTRA!!!
No one knows what spell was cast.
It could have been one of Midoriya's, or it could have been several of them. Perhaps it combined with one of Togata's attacks, whatever it was. But the end-result was clear.
An artificial sun was created, followed by silence… and then a thunderous roar.
The tsunami of mana-infused light washed through the entire city, washing through everyone, like a strong wind, but as soon as it arrived… it was gone. They had done it.
Melissa couldn't help but smile at the sight. "Way to go…"
As the sky cleared, free from Nine's thunder and lightning, everyone watched as the man and demon floated down to the ground. Midoriya looked around, asking, "Is everyone okay?"
Momo nodded. "For the most part."
"She'll need a healer," Shoto said, as he held the still-injured angel.
"You shouldn't have done that…" Midoriya said, looking at Momo. The black-haired woman just lowered her head, knowing her plan provoked Nine into nearly killing Melissa.
Melissa, however, placed a hand on Momo's shoulder, smiling. "It's fine…"
"Just rest, dear," Midoriya said, as he picked up his bride from Shoto. Before walking away, he looked over to Momo. "Look, I'm sorry for what I said, it's just that…"
"I know," she said. "Love does… crazy things to all of us."
The green-haired demon nodded, before he and everyone else moved out.
A few hours later, and the rest of the allied armies that had been warped by Kurogiri (alongside any friendly undead that had to evacuate the city due to Kodai) to the remains of Endeavor City were making sure the repairs were underway. The soldiers began removing the bodies and rubble, as the leaders discussed what to do next. While also interrogating Garaki.
As for the Dungeon Crawlers themselves, they were given one of the least-desired rooms in the palace, specifically to heal Melissa. They were all quietly observing, as Kodai removed her glowing hand from the angel. "Okay, all her injuries are healed. She just needs rest."
Aizawa breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Kodai."
"Now what?" Tsuburaba asked Monoma.
"I heard from Fuyumi that Bakugou was enlisted along with a few others to… "talk" to Garaki."
"I see," Momo curtly said. Everyone knew what "talk" actually meant.
Everyone was quiet for a bit, before Kendo cleared her throat. "So, uhh… Kirishima?"
"Yeah?"
"Umm… watcha got there?"
"A cup of water," the redhead said, as he took a sip of his drink, not realizing that Kendo was referring to the Great Spirit of Murder that was standing right behind him.
Kaibara sighed. "Still a lovable dumbass, I see…"
Shoto grimly nodded. "To think he managed to contract the Great Spirit of Murder…"
"Oh, yeah, he totally did!" Hadou said, the witch bouncing around her part of the room with her usual brand of energy. "We saw him decapitate Kurono, freeing Midoriya! It was crazy!"
"Damn…" Aizawa was kinda impressed by that.
Amajiki nodded. "Yeah, it was pretty bloody…"
"Hmm…" Akaguro grunted in annoyance, unamused by everyone treating him like some kind of novelty item or curious-looking zoo animal. But that ended quickly, as the doors to the room opened, and Bakugou, alongside Fuyumi, Hatsume, and Midoriya entered the room.
"Oh, hey. How did it go?" Kirishima asked.
"We know where Chisaki is hiding," Midoriya said.
"Great. So, we go after him?" Monoma asked.
"Yeah. We were lucky to have Midoriya and Togata here. Without them, we all would have died with a single strike," Fuyumi said. "We can't let them catch us by surprise like that again."
Momo nodded in agreement. "Let us know when we're ready to head out."
For the next few days, the team rested back at their base, as the rest of their allies prepared from their remaining outposts. Unfortunately, time was now up, as Momo prepared her equipment and met with her team. The raid was about to begin.
"Are you alright, Lieutenant?" Aoyama asked.
"As alright as I can be."
Kendo smiled. "Glad to hear it."
"Is everyone ready?" Momo asked Uraraka.
"Yes, ma'am. Just waiting for General Aizawa."
"Excellent."
As the rest of their allies gathered, from elves to demons, Shouta Aizawa arrived soon enough, walking in and standing before the soldiers, who in turns stood at attention.
"Alright, listen up," the black-haired general said. "You're all about to head into enemy territory. Your opponents will be both extremely dangerous and massively overpowered in comparison to you. This is going to be a horrible battle, and some of you may not even come back alive."
Momo frowned, but internally nodded. That's what war is, unfortunately.
"...Which is why I'm coming with you."
Momo was surprised for a few seconds, before she smiled. "We understand."
"We do?" Awase asked.
"We do," Momo said, glaring at the mechanic.
"Alright, I guess we do…"
"Alright, let's head out," Aizawa said, as Kurogiri's recognizable dark portal appeared in front of them, and the soldiers began to march through it. The final battle was upon them.
Let's do this.
Flect Turn watched in silent horror at the sight that was Kai Chisaki.
They were the only ones left. Sure, they had a handful of named minions left between the two of them, but they were the only leaders of the Enlightened Evil remained. And it was only a matter of time before the united front under the name of Blind Justice would come knocking.
That was something Chisaki was counting on, as the lich's body morphed into… something unrecognizable. Something… that made Flect begin to doubt his own devotion to this cause.
Still, the triton shook his head. It's too late to back out now…
Author's Note: Fun fact, the spell that Kodai used to wipe out the remaining undead was the same spell Aqua used to nearly kill Ainz in the first season of Isekai Quartet.
valkrus: Fixed, fixed, fixed, get some new material.
Kristin Soogyunista (Guest): Glad to see I've got a new reader, and one that leaves such positive reviews, to boot! For clarification, Hagakure (the one who was singing) is a human here, she was just singing that song as a reference; actual dwarves will appear much later in this story. I have no idea what a "jujuju" is, but I guess I'm happy to see that you're excited for the first overarching storyline, and for all of the TodoMomo.
So! You all know I have created my own website where I've posted a bunch of my art, so, if you're interested in seeing that, visit https/eowen5./! And I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, /ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 51: Finale's Opening Act
Summary:
Everyone around the continent prepares for what could be their final hours, as the Blind Justice alliance reaches the Badlands, the secret location of the Enlightened Evil, ready to bring them down, once and for all. Of course, no plan ever survives first contact, something everyone is going to realize the hard way...
Chapter Text
Chapter 51: Finale's Opening Act
Uwabami tended to her new mushroom garden within the small plot of land the JSDF has graciously provided her with on the outskirts of the Collibus Hills. In all honesty, it was probably the least they could do after their so-called "scientists" poked and prodded at her.
Like, seriously, couldn't they just take what she said about medusas such as herself at face-value? Did they really need to conduct so many tests and scans?
Eh, whatever. It was all in the past now, and the benefits were definitely worth it. She was able to keep the quiet life she had back at the mushroom forest, but now with the added bonus of being able to go see other people in town, and not turn them into stone thanks to these sunglasses. Heck, there were even talks of her becoming a model for magazines!
All in all, things were good. And… she seriously hoped they stayed that way.
Uwabami wasn't out of the loop about what had been happening these past few months. She knew that there was a grand alliance of some kind to take on the Enlightened Evil, and if the word she received was accurate, they had already left to end the threat once and for all.
Tending to another mushroom, she sighed. "Please win this for us, Yaoyorozu."
Enma Kannagi, the overseer of Yuuei-Shiketsu City, watched the latest group of young mages practicing their spells, most of them unaware of the battle that was about to commence.
Oh, sure, it was far away from their city, and all three of the Magical Capitals had upheld their long-standing tradition of being completely neutral in any and all conflicts… but the blindfold-wearing wizard couldn't help but think about how this could affect them all.
The Magical Capitals of the world were all centered around their schools of magic, their knowledge and isolation being their strengths. They offered the secrets of the mystic arts to all who worked hard to seek them out, and they never allied with any one nation. But because of that, it meant that, while individual mages could partake in outside affairs, the cities couldn't.
Kannagi couldn't just send a squad of Auctoritates to go assist Momo Yaoyorozu, even if she and her teammates did help bring down a cult that was hiding within the walls of the city. All the leader of Yuuei-Shiketsu could do was hope that they would succeed in defeating Kai Chisaki.
Hope they succeed… and prepare for if they fail.
Yuuei-Shiketsu had existed for millenia, as did all of the Magical Capitals, and they had all existed through calamities and world-changing events. This would be no different.
Still… he really hoped they would win. Kannagi really liked Yaoyorozu and her little friends.
Eri Shigaraki watched over the demon troops Izuku had left behind to defend Daemonium, alongside the two Demon Lords her older brother had left in charge. Apparently, it was to protect all of the citizens in the event that he and everyone else failed at defeating Chisaki.
It did make sense, in a morbid sense. For all of his grandstanding and his "I'm so smarter than everyone else" attitude, Chisaki was as vengeful as he was cruel. If by some freak accident he did manage to defeat the Demon King, the first place he would raze to the ground would be the very nation Izuku so desperately tried to rebuild. He was a spiteful bastard like that.
"Tenko, Nedzu, I'm going back to my room. Summon me if I am needed."
"Your wish is our command, princess."
As the two remaining Demon Lords bowed in respect, Eri left the observation tower, and headed back inside the castle. She wished that she could fight alongside her brother, she really did. But even if he didn't forbid it… she didn't know if she could handle seeing Chisaki again.
Eri frowned. Unbelievable. Her, a dragon, afraid of a walking corpse –
"Hey. Are you doing okay?"
The princess snapped out of her thoughts, as she looked up, her red eyes seeing a familiar teenager with black hair smiling at her. Then she immediately dove in for a hug. "KOTA!"
"Yep, it's me –! Ack! Eri! Too tight! Can't breathe…"
"Sorry, sorry, sorry!" Eri apologized, letting go. "But, wait, what are you doing here…?"
"Well, I may have asked Kurogiri to warp me here before he sent Yaoyorozu and your brother to go fight that lich bastard… and I may have done that without my Aunt Shino knowing."
Eri was stunned for a moment, before she giggled. "You're a bad boy, Kota-kun."
"Well, I learned from the best," the human teenager said. "So, what's eating you?"
"...It's that obvious, huh?"
"I would be a pretty terrible boyfriend if I couldn't even tell that something was bothering you," he said. Kota ignored the shocked expression on Eri's face upon hearing the word "boyfriend," and asked once again, "So, what's bothering you? Is… is it the lich dude, Chisaki?"
"...Yeah," she said. "I can't face him. Not because Nii-chan forbid it, but because –"
"Because nothing," Kota cut her off. "You were a kid when he experimented on you. Anyone in your shoes would be absolutely terrified of that bastard. You don't need to explain yourself."
Eri was silent for a few moments, before her eyes began watering, and she embraced her human boyfriend into a second hug, one much softer than the previous one. "Thank you..."
"You can thank me with something else," Kota said, his expression serious. "You once said something about a spell that could turn me into a dragon. I want you to perform it on me."
The polymorphed dragon's eyes widened. "What…? Why…?"
"Look, I might be a teenager, but I'm not stupid. I saw the army your big brother left behind. I know he's afraid that he'll lose, and that army out there is gonna be the only thing left standing between Chisaki and you," he said. "Also, Katsuma and Mahoro told me on the way here."
The white-haired princess made a mental note to smack those two traitors later, but right now, she had a bigger issue to address. "Why? I thought you were against such a thing…"
"I'm not against it if it means I'll be able to fight for you," Kota said. "Plus, you're a dragon. You guys age for centuries, and there's no way in hell I'm gonna leave you alone for that long!"
Eri stared at Kota for a moment, before smiling.
The draconic princess had fallen in love with this human boy all over again.
"WHAT?!" Denki yelled. "What do you mean we can't join you?!"
Everyone else in the room, from Ashido to Hagakure, to Tsunotori and Mineta, to even Tokoyami (who couldn't actually say any words) all were incensed by what they had been told.
"Sorry, man, General Aizawa's orders," Yoarashi answered. "He said no civilians."
"But we're trained!" Tsunotori responded. "We know how to fight! We've fought before!"
"And while we appreciate what you did, what happened with Imasuji and his mercenaries shouldn't have happened," the pilot said. "And aside from that, we need you guys here."
"Here?" Mineta asked. "For what?"
"In the event that Collibustown needs to be evacuated," the Japanese soldier said. "Look… I'm not supposed to say this to anyone, but there are orders from the top… If Chisaki makes it here, our job is to take everyone from Collibustown across the gate… and then destroy it."
"...So that Chisaki can't follow us back to your world," Hagakure realized.
"Exactly. No one is supposed to know about this, but I'm trusting you guys to keep it quiet," the pilot said. "I know we'd be basically damning your entire world to Chisaki, but we just can't risk him coming over to ours. So, we'll save as many of you as we can, but only those we can."
Everyone else had various expressions of horror on their faces, but Denki understood. Kyoka was due to deliver their little girl any day now, and as much as the blond would want to sail to Piscatio Island to grab his in-laws, he would never make it in time if Chisaki won.
He had to prioritize those who were in front of him. "We understand."
"HUH?!" Mineta looked at him like he grew a second head. "We understand?!"
"We can't save everyone," Denki said. "But we can save everyone here."
"Thank you," Yoarashi said. "Tell everyone to begin packing their things, just in case. You're all well-known members of the community, they'll all listen to you. Well, except maybe Mineta."
As the gnome balked at that statement, Ashido nodded. "We'll tell them."
Everyone else nodded, and even Tokoyami said, "Revelry in the dark…"
"Thank you," Yoarashi said. "That's all I'm asking for…
As he and everyone else left the room, Denki frowned. Going through the door, he grimly thought to himself, We can't save everyone. But Yaomomo, Bakugou, and the others can…
He prayed to the Arms of Fire, the Dungeon Crawlers, to save them all…
Marching through Kurogiri's portal, Momo took in the sight of the Badlands.
This place reeked of rot and decay. All of the trees here had withered and died long ago, and honestly, it was a miracle that they were even able to grow there in the first place. The sun didn't shine here, but unlike with Midoriya and Toga's domains where life was still able to grow, the repercussions of having the skies covered in smog that actually showed.
How anyone could see twenty feet in front of them, she would never know.
Despite that, the armies kept marching through, keeping their guards up for whatever attack Chisaki had planned for them. But… there was nothing. Sure, there was the occasional undead roaming around, but a quick spell from Kodai was enough to kill it, and that was it.
Momo gripped the handle of her rifle even harder. Where is he…?
"HOLD!"
The sound of Togata's command made everyone freeze, looking around for any sign of an attack. But there was still nothing. That was until… Momo's feet began to wobble.
She could see it on the faces of her fellow soldiers, they had no idea what was happening. The ground was moving, and… rumbling. Something was coming, something massive!
"FLOOOOOD!!!"
Kai Chisaki watched from up above as the waters of the northern sea made their way through the Badlands, washing away all of his enemies. Their initial assault had worked.
Oh, sure, lots of them would be dead from this, but not all of them. Midoriya was way too tough a bastard to be killed by a measly flood, and Togata was the wielder of One For All, he wouldn't go down easily, either. Which is why it was time for him to begin the second part of his plan.
Floating back down to where Flect Turn and his remaining minions were, Chisaki took stick of them one more time. There were the Serpetner twins, Rogone, Sidero, Dictator, Starservant, Insmouth, Haizono, Kazetani, Kunieda, and whatever undead reserves Garaki left them.
"You all know what to do. Divide and conquer. Go."
And with that simple command, they all left.
"I have done my part," Flect Turn said. "Now it's time to do yours."
"I couldn't agree with you more," the lich said, as his body began to… change.
"There you are! Momo, you gotta get up!"
"Huh…? What…?" Momo opened her eyes, to see that… she was wet. Not only that, but given the taste in her mouth, this was ocean water. "Shoto, is that you…? What happened…?"
"Flect Turn, that's what happened," the peppermint-haired prince said, as he picked up his girlfriend from the ground. "He must have used some forgotten spell to send entire waves of water into the continent. Anyone who hasn't drowned is being picked off, one by one."
As the black-haired woman shook her head and gathered her bearings, she looked around to see that their armies were getting creamed. Zombies biting at members of the JSDF, skeletons slashing at even soldiers, all in all, it was a mess. "Great, so it started without me…"
"That's what you're upset about?" Shoto asked. "You've got some weird priorities…"
"Don't get me wrong, it is upsetting that we're getting our asses kicked, but the game has just begun," Momo said, grabbing her gun. "Let's see if we can even the score a little."
Shoto nodded, as the two of them started blasting, magic and bullets and all.
BREEAM-POW!
Aoyama blasted the head off another one of the zombies, as Uraraka canceled her anti-gravity spell, allowing the Frenchman to land safely back down. "Many thanks, madmoizelle."
"Thank me later, right now we need to regroup, and – DUCK!!!"
Aoyama did as he was told, narrowing dodging a spiked club. A quick blast of ice from Natsuo's magic made the enemy shutter, allowing the blond to get out of range and take a good look at their attacker. An oni, given by the horns and red skin, height, and overall bad attitude.
"He's not with any of us!" Natsuo said, sending a wall of ice at the enemy.
BOOM-KRAK!
The red oni decimated the ice walls with his clubs, but before he could attack the trio, a woman with a familiar set of orange hair dived from above, delivering a kick to the monster's head.
"Sergeant Kendo!" Uraraka smiled. "Good to see you're still kicking!"
"A bunch of water isn't gonna take me out! Now, who the hell is this asshole?"
"My name… is Rogone…" the oni huffed. "AND YOU'RE DEAD!!!"
"Not gonna happen!" Uraraka yelled, casting out a spell. "GRAVITAS CREUI!!!"
A spiraling black ball of gravity left the brown-haired soldier's hands, sent flying straight towards Rogone, who had to dodge, at the cost of losing one of his clubs. "Rrr… you bitch…"
"Yeah, that's us," Kendo said, smiling. "Now come get some!"
Shihai Kuroiro popped out of the shadows beneath the two skeletal warriors, delivering a flying kick to one of their skulls, and kicking the other one right in the vertebrae. Unfortunately, because these things had no sense of pain, they recovered pretty quickly. Shit.
The dark elf's magic was based on the manipulation of shadows, such as traveling through them. And while he technically could use offensive spells, they weren't exactly his strong suit, hence why Shihai preferred to use knives and sneak attacks. Unfortunately, in this particular scenario, knives and sneak attacks do jack against an enemy that can't fall for them.
"Demon Lord" my ass, I can't even handle a couple of skeletons! Gritting his teeth and brandishing his knife, Shihai prepared to go all-out on the boney undead, when –
WHAM! BAM!
– a giant, walking mushroom beat him to it.
The dark elf couldn't believe what he was seeing. "What the hell…?"
"Oh, hey! You're one of Midoriya's guys, aren't you?"
Shihai looked over to see a brown-haired woman controlling the mushroom monster. She was one of Yaoyorozu's squadmates, right? "Uh, thanks for the help… Komori, isn't it?"
"It is, shroom! But my friends can call me Kinoko!"
Getting a better look at her, the dark elf felt his cheeks heating up. Her smile was absolutely adorable. Not just that, but her brown eyes are so pretty, and her figure… daaaaamn…
"Are you alright? You didn't hit your head, did ya?"
"Wha…?" Shihai asked, before he quickly snapped out of it. "Um, no! I mean, I'm fine!"
"That's fung-tastic! See what I did there with that pun? Anyways, I'm sure you noticed that everything's kinda gone to hell, so I think it'd be better if we teamed up! Whaddya say?"
"I completely agree," Shihai said, following behind her. "I'm Shihai, by the way…
"I know, I read your file. But it is nice to meet you!"
She said that it's nice to meet me… Shihai thought. This is amazing!!!
"FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, LEAVE ME ALONE, DAMMIT!!!" Eijiro screamed, as he was chased by a zombie ogre. However, despite his panicking voice, the situation was under control.
The plan was pretty simple: Eijiro was the bait, and his spirit –
SLASH!
– was the trap.
Looking behind him, the artificial redhead nodded at the sight of Chizome Akaguro standing over the beheaded undead. "Okay, we're three for three! Thanks for the help, man!"
"Of course," the Great Spirit of Murder said. "I am honored to serve."
Deciding to ignore that comment for now, Eijiro grabbed his soaked radio, and began pressing some buttons, praying that it'd work. "This is Corporal Eijiro Kirishima, can anyone hear me?!"
"Kirishima, this is – we read – fuck!"
"Bakubro, is that you?!" Eijiro asked. "I can't hear half of what you're saying!"
"Water – separated – messed with our equipment! Where are you?!"
"I don't know, everything looks the same! I'll try to come find you!"
"SHITTY HAIR –!!!"
With that last insult, the walkie-talkie died out. Pocketing it (he wasn't about to litter), the Japanese soldier looked over to his contracted spirit, and said, "Let's go find our friends!"
"SHITTY HAIR, DO NOT TRY AND COME FIND US! Do you hear me?! Hello?!" Katsuki yelled into his radio, before throwing it. "Dammit, the water made these things fucking useless!"
"What do we do now?" Sato asked.
"I'll tell you what we're gonna do, big guy," Katsuki said, grabbing his assault rifle. "You see those dead fucks heading towards us? We're gonna make them dead again!"
Sato nodded, and the two of them charged straight into the enemy.
The big-lipped chef unleashed the power of a glock onto the necks of skeletons, absolutely obliterating them, while the ash blond simply decked any zombie that got too close to him into the face, before shooting the faraway ones, and then stabbing the downed ones in the head.
As the two of them kept their act up, they noticed that they weren't the only ones doing their part. Up in the air, they noticed a familiar blue-haired witch launching magic at the walking corpses below her, as an angel flew next to her, and also started going ham on them.
"Hey, are those…?"
"Yeah, they are," Katsuki said. "Shield and Hadou."
Shouta Aizawa let out a stream of swears under his breath, as he smacked the water out of his ears. He was never a big fan of water, but now, he very much did not like the stuff.
"And they say water gives life…" he grumbled to himself, as he got up, and began looking around the area. He had no clue where everyone else was, who he assumed got washed up in that magical flood like he was. Absolutely wonderful. Now he had to go looking for them.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here?"
Shit, the black-haired man mentally cursed. He recognized that tone. It was the tone of a punk who believes they found their next victim. Which meant… that was a bad guy.
And sure enough, one look at the dude pretty much confirmed it. A sadistic smile and murderous eyes hiding behind a golden mask with horns, some kind of easy-to-move-in suit with the most minimum of armor, and carrying way too many of those iron grenade bombs. You know the ones, the black, round ones that you think of when you see a cartoon bomb.
"Who the fuck are you supposed to be?" Shouta asked.
"You can call me Sidero," the masked man said. "I'm gonna be the one to blow you up."
The old general glared at the maniac, reaching for his sidearm… only to feel nothing. Shit. It must have gotten lost during the flood. All he had on him was his combat knife.
Deciding "screw it," Shout pulled out the knife. "You're gonna try, punk."
Melissa swung her sword down on another undead, before looking up. This was an unequivocal disaster. There were so many more reanimated corpses here than there were back during the assault on Endeavor City, and to make matters worse, she barely found anyone…
Oh, sure, she found Hadou, which tallied up to… one person. Whoopde-fucking-doo. Meanwhile, she had absolutely no idea where everyone else was, or what their –
"SHIELD! HADOU! DOWN HERE!"
Both the angel and the witch looked down to see two soldiers waving their hands, trying to get their attention. Which, in fairness, worked, as they both touched down to meet them.
"Bakugou! Sato! Man, you have no idea how good it is to see you!"
"Yeah, same…" Bakugou said, before pulling out his gun. "Hold that thought."
BLAM!
Melisa didn't even have time to react, as the demolition expert shot a ghoul that was approaching behind her square in the face. "Anyways, we were saying?"
Nejire chimed in, "You were saying that you were glad to… oh, wait. Get down."
The two Japanese soldiers did as they were told, as the witch suddenly summoned a bunch of magical arrows, which went flying into the heads of a couple more approaching ghouls.
"Huh, there's a lot of these guys here," Sato said.
"You said it," Bakugou said, before turning back at the two ladies. "So, I'm assuming the blue fish guy was responsible for that flood, but what about the zombies and shit? I know that liches are able to make them, but I thought Garaki was their ace in the hole when it came to that."
"He was," Nejire said. "From what we learned, Chisaki wasn't a necromancer back when he was alive. What our unlovable lich specialized in back when he was still living was earth-based magic, along with his own form of magic capable of reshaping his own body."
"...Which means that he was able to not just heal himself from any attack, but also turn his body into whatever sort of physical advantage he needed," Melissa realized. "Fuck, no wonder Izuku had a hard time with him when he was younger. Chisaki knows how to use his magic."
"And now that he's a lich, he's got even more toys in his arsenal," Bakgou deadpanned.
"Admittedly, that is a problem," the blue-haired witch said. "Which means that we need to find his phylactery as soon as possible. We break that, and there's no way for him to recover."
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
"Augh!" Shota hissed in pain as the heat and shrapnel from the latest lobbed explosive reached his face. He had been doing a good job of avoiding them, but he was now getting tired.
And this Sidero guy was absolutely crazy, refusing to let up no matter how many serious cuts and stabs Shouta had managed to inflict on the guy. He was like an evil version of Bakugou with zero self-preservation instincts, using his explosives as some kind of ranged fighter.
"HAHAHA!" Sidero laughed. "You're on your last legs, boyo, I can see it!"
"See this," Shouta growled, as he gave the maniac the bird.
"Cute. Let's see if you can still do it when your hand is – HUH?!"
Much to both Sidero and Shouta's surprise, a black portal opened up beneath the masked lunatic's feet, causing him to slip and fall. As he fell, the portal immediately closed up, causing Sidero to be sliced in two, dying instantly, as out of the portal came a shadow demon.
"It was fortunate I found you in time, Shouta," the mass of shadows said.
"Obroro… you have no idea how glad I am to see you right now."
"I can imagine," Shirakumo said. "It's looking pretty bad out here. Shall we…?"
"Yeah, call in our reinforcements," Shout said. "Bring in the giant and the dragon."
Mirio Togata, the wielder of One For All flew through the air using Float, looking down at the once-flooded planes of the Badlands, picking up anyone he could see with Blackwhip. So far, the only person he had managed to find was Tamamki, and that was an issue.
He couldn't see anyone who wasn't already engaged in combat or getting killed by the living corpses, much less anyone he actually recognized. Sure, he could tell who was on whos' team, but their names? Recognizable faces? They had all been washed away by the flood.
To think that the Enlightened Evil would actually go ahead and pull such a stunt like this… Then again, they were planning the end of the world, so he really shouldn't have been so surprised.
"You see anything down there, Tamaki?"
The elven archer shook his head. "None of the commanding officers, Mirio."
"It's okay, we can keep looking! Just keep your eyes peeled!"
"Okay…" Tamaki said, as he squinted across the horizon, before he noticed something. "Hey, Mirio? Remember when Aizawa said we'd be having a titan and a dragon as back-up?"
"Uh, yeah," the blond Hero said. "Why?"
BOOOOM!!!
"Our back-up has arrived."
Mirio's eyes went wide, as out near the horizon, he spotted said titan and dragon absolutely wrecking the undead army. Amping up the speed on Float (with a little help from Gearshift and Fa Jin), the blond made his way towards their gargantuan reinforcements.
"Lady Takeyama, Lady Tatsuma, it's good to see you both!"
"Good for you, perhaps!" Takeyama said, as she stepped on another squad of ghouls. "But I find it shameful that you called us for such small fry! What, were your armies too weak to –"
SHIIIIINK!!!
"YAAAAAAAHHH!!!" the giant woman screamed, as Mirio looked down to see the earth had erupted into spikes, piercing her foot, and causing her to fall down in pain.
BOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!
"What the heck…?" Tamaki whispered in horror. "Who did this…?"
"Chisaki, that's who," Mirio said in anger.
Kai Chisaki watched in amusement as the enemy soldiers were skewered by his magic. His spells capable of manipulating earth were never this powerful back when he was still a living, breathing, human. He could only pierce one target at a time with such a technique.
But now?
He was able to pierce hundreds.
"Chisaki."
The lich turned around to see who addressed him. A young man, with green hair, just like his eyes, and red horns. Diamond freckles, and a black outfit that screamed royalty. Not only that, but he also wore an expression of pure hatred, aimed directly at Kai.
"Midoriya," the lich said, smiling through his rotten mouth. "You've grown."
"And you're still alive," the Demon King growled. "But I intend to correct that."
"You're going to try," Kai said. "You're going to try… and you're going to die."
And with that, both monsters launched their magic at each other.
Author's Note: Fun fact, when writing this, I was using the battle against Thordak (from the third season of Vox Machina) and the final battle from Avengers: Endgame as references on how everything should go. Of course, I added a few extra scenes to make sure everyone will show up (which will happen), so it's not exactly one-for-one.
We've got the final members of the Enlightened Evil (which consist of canon Villains, so if you want to know what they look like, just look them up on the wiki) standing against Blind Justice, as the rest of the world hopes for the best, and prepares for the worst. Kota becoming a dragon is a nod to my friend's idea of having Rin become a dragon in order to hook up with Ryuko, but that fell through. Speaking of my friend…
VinHD15: Glad to see that you've caught up! I'll admit, Curious' death was by far one of the funniest I ever wrote, though, I have no idea what's so funny to you about Touya. I can understand if it's maybe a family exhaustion thing or maybe something about Toga, but other than that, I've got nothing. And if you're referring to Midoriya and Togata versus Nine as the boss fight, then I totally agree with you that it was epic (I did write it with that intention). And now you know what's up next: The final battle of this story!
valkrus: As I said before (I'm pretty sure I've said it before), double-quotations is just the way I write multiple people saying the same thing at the same time. Anyways, I fixed the rest of my typos, but you might wanna add some more to your comments. We're reaching the endgame, and soon, we won't be able to play our little game anymore.
So! You all know I have created my own website where I've posted a bunch of my art, so, if you're interested in seeing that, visit https://eowen5.myportfolio.com/! And I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, https://twitter.com/ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 52: Straight-Up Pandemonium
Summary:
We now show what everyone else has been up to since the flood separated the allied armies. Mainly, they've been fighting for their lives as whatever is left of the Enlightened Evil's minion pool begins to run dry. Now only that, but our main heroes also begin to close in on where Chisaki and Midoriya are having their epic battle...
Chapter Text
Chapter 52: Straight-Up Pandemonium
"CALIDUS BRACHIUM PURGATORIUM!!!"
Enji unleashed the full might of the spell against all of the undead that surrounded him, engulfing himself, the zombies, and the entire nearby area into an explosion of blue flames. Once the spell wore off, Enji decided to ignite his fist and start punching the survivors.
As he was doing that, the patriarch (and former head) of the Todoroki family wondered why he was here. Oh, sure, he understood the reason: Blind Justice (stupid name, but whatever) needed as much firepower as possible to take down the Enlightened Evil, and a man with an Ultimate-level usage of fire magic was a shoe-in for this sort of operation. He got that much.
What he didn't understand is why they even decided to trust him on this.
Yes, he was powerful, but he was also a prisoner. The only reason he even helped fight off the first attack by the Enlightened Evil was because Rei let him out of his cell in the hopes that they'd find their children together. And he can confidently say that they found all of them.
Including the one they had no idea was still alive.
Touya may have been back, but between their reunion and this battle, Enji's firstborn had made it expressly clear that he no longer held any love for his homeland, and only helped in driving off the enemy because of obligation, along with whatever pity he still felt for his family.
So, bad parenting, check. Authoritarian rule, check. Just being an overall unlikable man, definitely a check. So, why didn't they just throw him back into his cell? Was he really that useful? Or was this some sort of opportunity at redemption? Were they really trying that?
And more importnalty… did he even deserve such a thing?
"Oh, great. Of all the people that spell could have come from, it had to be you."
Enji frowned. He recognized that voice without even having to turn around. Looking to his side, he was glad to see that Touya had survived the flood attack, but it still hurt the former Emperor of Flames to see those scars all over his son's body. Just another thing he was at fault for.
"I take it you haven't been able to find your mother or your siblings?"
"Nah, and given you're asking that question, it's safe to say that you haven't been able to find them, either," Touya said, the tone of his voice being his usual mix of casual and bitter.
Regardless, Enji nodded in response. "Then we shall look for them together."
Touya lifted up his staff, pointing in a random direction. "Lead the way, old man."
Yui Kodai dodged another sword swipe from the blue-haired maniacs, her body doing lots of self-healing in order to make sure she didn't die of a thousand metaphorical papercuts.
When the ocean water came rushing in, the medic was able to remember a few basic details from anatomy class regarding a human's boner necks and lungs. First was that the bones that made up your neck were easy to break, along with the ones within the collar bone. So, she kept her head down and essentially curled up into a ball, to make sure that no giant rock or dead tree that the flood pushed her into would result in her death. The second thing she knew was to not panic, thus preventing her lungs from burning up all of their oxygen too quickly.
Forcefully calming herself down while being several meters underwater was a bit of a challenge, but she was able to do it long enough to orient herself. Then, when the waters became relatively calmer, she spat out a quick air bubble to see where it went, and followed it to the surface.
With her own survival now secured, Yui made her way across the battlefield, healing anyone who wasn't in fighting condition, and purifying any hostile undead she came across until they were nothing more than ash. As much as she wanted to revive the soldiers who drowned, she needed to conserve her magic. She had no idea what state her friends were in, or even how many undead were lurking in the area, so she couldn't be frivolous with the stuff.
Of course, her conservation of mana was also helpful when she suddenly got ambushed by these blue-haired assholes. Oh, sure, they looked pretty, and were even nice enough to introduce themselves (their names were Ena and Dio, weirdly enough), but the second they pulled out their sword-whip things, any pretty boy privileges they had vanished.
"NYAHAHAHA!!!" one of the blue-haired bastards (she couldn't tell them apart) laughed, as their sword lost its form and suddenly became a metal whip again, striking at Yui's body.
"Stop!" she shouted at them while dodging another slash. "I'm a medic!"
"A medic?" Ena asked, tilting his head. "You're not a fighter…?"
"No," the black-haired woman said. "I can only heal, not kill."
"Oh," Dio said, before his smile became even bigger. "That makes things easier for us!"
Yeah, that was kind of what Yui was expecting. She knew that some assassins from another world probably wouldn't respect the terms of the Geneva Convention (and from her own experience playing video games, it was a legitimate strategy to kill the enemy healer first to make shorter work of the actual enemy combatants), but it was worth a shot. And besides…
…it gave Yui enough time to be rescued.
SLAM-BOOM!!!
"HUH?! What the –"
"Now, lookie what we've got here," a dark-skinned woman with white hair and rabbit ears said, smiling. "A pair of blue-haired yuan-ti purebloods, both of them wielding a heavily-bladed urumi that can also double as longswords in each hand… you're the Serpenter twins, ain't ya?"
"Oh? Someone that knows of our reputation? And who are –"
"Shut it, snake boy. The name is Rumi Usagiyama," the warrior bunny said, readying herself and her halberd into a combat stance. "And I'm gonna be the one to skin you both alive."
Okaaay, very dark, and most likely a war crime, but Yui would take what she could get.
Moe Kamiji ran across the battlefield, kicking skeletons in their faces and spearing ghouls with her… well, spear. And so far, she was making some damn good progress.
Too bad she couldn't fuckign find anyone!
None of the Todorokis were anywhere near here, and as Fuyumi's… partner… it was her job to keep her safe! Gritting her teeth, she began running faster than before, unleashing a plume of green flames from her hands onto a group of unsuspecting zombies, and then –
SMACK!
Moe felt the wind get slapped out of her lungs, as she looked up from the dirt she was thrown into, to see… a really ugly guy. Like, she had no idea if this camel-faced, long-nailed, goggle-wearing motherfucker was some kind of demi-human, or a devil, or what.
"What the hell are you supposed to be?" Moe asked.
"None of your business! NOW DIE!"
The green-haired woman gripped her spear, preparing to take a stab at the charging attacker, when… it suddenly got very cold. Something both she and her enemy had noticed.
It was at that moment both of them heard footsteps. Turning around, Moe's jaw dropped as she saw a familiar set of red-and-white hair, and an outfit that had been ruined by the flooding. Oh, and her expression was one beyond pissed. But despite that, Moe was smiling.
"Fuyumi…"
"Huh? Wait a minute, that's Empress Fuyumi Todoroki?" the camel-looking creep said. "Well, it's a pleasure to meet royalty! My name's Tsumuji Kazetani, of the Enlightened Evil –"
"Did you hit my girlfriend?"
Kazetani blinked, looking confused. "Uhh, what? Did you –"
"I asked… Did. You. Hit. My. GIRLFRIEND?!"
Oh. It was at that moment Moe realized why Fuyumi was wearing such an angry expression. She wasn't angry about the flood. Fuyumi was angry because someone hit Moe.
Kazetani began to sweat. "Hey, wait, let's talk about this –"
"DIE," Fuyumi hissed, lifting up her hand.
"WAIT, WAIT, WAIT –!!!"
As she watched Fuyumi throw a bunch of different ice spells at Kazetani, keeping him conscious for each one to hear his screams, Moe began feeling a little bit wet beneath her legs.
And she knew for a fact that wasn't because of the earlier flooding.
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
"YEAH, COME GET SOME, YA UNDEAD FUCKS!!!"
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
"WHAT HE SAID! THERE'S PLENTY FOR EVERYONE!!!"
Sen Kaibara and Kosei Tsuburaba were currently having the time of their life. Oh, sure, they got separated from the rest of their squad due to the flood, but hey! They were shooting zombies, which they were both pretty sure belonged to the Enlightened Evil, so… good job on them?
Plus, if they treated it like one of those arcade shooters, it seemed a lot less scary!
"MAGICAE TORMENTI FLOS!!!"
"Huh –?! Kosei, GET DOWN!!!" Sen yelled. Both of the soldiers hit the floor, and not a second too soon, as a yellow beam of light flew above them, vaporizing the remaining undead.
"Uhh… what the hell was that?" Kosei asked.
"So, you both survived."
Both the geologist and meteorologist looked up to see a man in… well, the weirdest drip sitting on top of a flower. Like, seriously, what the hell? The shoes and pants were normal, sure, but the upper half… There was a yellow hood, and on top of it was a purple hood. And was that supposed to be a suit and tie on his midsection?! And those eyes… Did he smoke weed, or something? Because humans weren't supposed to have eyes like those normally.
Not only that, but the plant he was on top of was so… phallic. Like, seriously, if the mass of vines weren't so girthy and veiny-looking, then maybe they wouldn't notice that the top of the flower was a pink tip that curved upwards that shot out a yellow beam of death.
"Greetings, otherworlders. I am Kinueda of the Enlighted Evil –"
"Hey, I've got a question," Kosei said. "Why are you riding a penis?"
"...What?" Kinueda sputtered, before he revered. "This is a plant. My magic allows me to –"
"A plant that looks like a penis?" Sen asked. "Because, those are clearly veins –"
"Those are vines!" Kinueda shouted. "It's not a –"
"Dude, it shot magical laser piss at us, it's totally a penis," Kosei said.
"WILL YOU STOP SAYING PENIS?!" Kinueda yelled.
"Why?" Sen asked, as he began to smile. "Are you… afraid of the word penis?"
"WHAT?! NO, I'M NOT AFRAID OF THE WORD –"
"Penis, penis, penis, penis!" Kosei chanted.
"STOP THAT –!!!"
BANG!
The screams from Kinueda stopped as blood leaked out from the bullet hole in his head. Before he could even comprehend what happened, he died, and his corpse fell from his plant.
"...In all honesty, it really does look like a penis," Sen said, pocketing his handgun.
"Yeah, totally…" Kosei agreed with his best friend. "Wanna touch it?"
"Gay," Sen instantly said, before adding, "But, yes… but only out of curiosity!"
Itsuka grit her teeth, as she held Rogone's forearms into place.
The orange-haired woman held her ground, but it was an inevitability. The red oni was nearly twice her height, and even if she was the greatest martial artist in the world, skill could only take her so far against monsters like him. There would always be someone stronger out there…
…and Itsuka was honestly fine with that.
"Your willpower is impressive…" Rogone said, as he applied more and more pressure. "But I am inevitable. You will lose your grip, and when you do… I'll pummel you into smithereens…"
"That's… not… gonna… happen…" Itsuka wheezed out.
"Oh? Do you truly think that you can beat me…?"
"I… know… I can't…" she said, smiling. "But… they can…"
"Huh –?"
BLAM! BLAM!
With two well-placed bullets aimed right for the back of his head, Rogone's brains came spilling out. Itsuka let go of the forearms and ducked out of the way, letting his corpse drop.
"Thanks for the distraction," Uraraka said, pocketing her sidearm.
"And thanks for finishing him off," Itsuka said. "Though… you could have done that sooner.."
"Ah, but if we moved too quickly, he would have noticed us," Aoyama said.
"Fair enough," Itsuka said, stretching. "Man, that did a number on my back…"
"Don't worry! I'm sure that if we find Kodai, she can patch you up!" Uraraka said.
"Yeah, but first we've gotta find her. Come on, let's move out…"
Melissa stabbed another ghoul, before she proceeded to lift it up with her sword, and then throw it off. Looking back at the rest of her team, she asked, "How's everyone doing?"
"Just peachy," Bakugou joked.
"Ha-ha," the angel sarcastically laughed, before she noticed something… out in the distance. A mass of blue, coming towards them… oh, no, not again. "ANOTHER FLOOD, INCOMING!!!"
"NO!" Nejire shouted, as she began to fly. "I'm gonna hold it off! Find Flect, and stop him!"
Before anyone could protest, the blue-haired witch had blasted off like a rocket, casting every kind of spell she could think of that could hold off the second flood. Melissa turned back to Sato and Bakugou, and said, "Any ideas on where our water mage could be hiding?"
"Maybe in a hole?" Sato suggested. "Since he's some kind of aquatic elf, he wouldn't need to worry about drowning, right? He could stay hidden underground, and no one would be able to find him since they'd all be too busy going to high ground to avoid getting wet, yeah?"
Melissa nodded at the idea. "That could actually work –"
FWWOOOOO!!!
"AGH!" Melissa yelped, as she felt a plume of sand get into her eyes. And she wasn't the only one, as Sato and Bakugou also covered their eyes on instinct. "What the hell –?!"
"It's a magic user, it's gotta be!" Bakugou yelled. "GO! We'll handle them!"
"How?! You can't see through all of this!"
"And neither can you! But you can fly! Find the blue bitch and kill him!"
The blonde angel had to admit, her friend was right. Flapping her black wings, Melissa took to the air, getting out of the sand, and shouting, "Don't get killed down there!"
Bakugou laughed. "Please! Like a little sandstorm is gonna kill us!"
"Hey, guys? What's going with you?"
Mei Hatsume had no idea what had happened to her forces. One minute, they were out there, kicking zombie ass and defending their beautiful queen, and then the next… they're moving their limbs slowly, and their faces are in a daze, as if something had possessed them.
"Tenya? Kaina? Beros? Tensei? Can any of you hear me?!"
"Apologizes, my lady, but none of your attendants are available at the moment."
"What? Who said that?!" Mei shouted. "Show yourself! NOW!"
"As you wish," the voice said, and with a magical glow, a figure appeared before her. He was a hunchback with a white face, beady little eyes, and wearing a purple cloak. "I must admit, I wasn't too fond of using a cloak of invisibility, but it truly was effective in snaring your allies."
"And you're gonna release them," Mei growled, pointing a firearm at the hunched creep.
"Ah, ah, ah! Dictator says," the white-faced mage said, as the rest of the elves shuffled in front of him. "And he says you're welcome to try and shoot me… as long as you're comfortable letting your precious little subjects take the bullets for me first! So, what's it gonna be, queenie?"
Mei gulped. There was no way in hell that the pink-haired elf would shoot her own people with the weapons she had created, but she knew if she didn't do something, Dictator could just command the other elves to rip apart their own queen, or something equally worse.
"Tick-tock, tick-tock, queenie! What –?"
"Hey, clown face."
Both the elven queen and the Enlightened Evil minion stiffened at the voice, Mei looked behind Dictator to see one of Midoriya's Demon Lords, specifically the human, Hitoshi Shinso.
"EH?" Dictator turned around, angered. "Who dares –?"
"Dominari." Shinso's eyes glowed brighter than normal, while Dictator's went from a sickly yellow to a bright red, and his angered face relaxed into a smile.
"Hey there, friend," Dictator said. "What can I help you with?"
"Release everyone that is under your control," the purple-haired man said.
"You got it, buddy," Dictator said, smiling. As the hunchbacked little man did as he was told, Mei watched in fascination as her subjects were released from the villain's hypnotism.
"Whoa! What the –?"
"Am I back…?"
"That felt weird…"
"Queen Hatsume! Are you alright –?" Before Tenya could continue, however, Mei had already wrapped him in a hug. "Umm… my liege, we are in the middle of a battlefield –"
"Shut up, you idiot, and let me hug you," Mei said. "Your queen commands you."
"Oh, uhh, very well…" the elven knight said, hugging her back.
"Okay, what the hell happened to us?" Kaina asked.
"Long story short, this piece of shit caught you with his mind control," Shinso said, pointing at the still hypnotized Dictator. "Fortunately, I was here to override him with my own magic."
"Great," Beros said, as she pulled out her bow. "Let me shoot an arrow up his –"
"Actually, I've got a better idea," Shinso said, as the human Demon Lord pulled out a dagger from his belt, and then handed it over to Dictator. "Hey, buddy, could you do me a favor?"
"Sure!" Dictator said, nodding vigorously. "Anything for you, friend!"
"Thanks," Shinso said, smiling, before suddenly saying, "Please kill yourself."
Mei's jaw would have dropped to the floor if it wasn't attached to the test of her head. And to make matters worse, she had no time to prepare or even cover her eyes, as Shinso's command was instantaneous, resulting in Dictator slitting his own throat with enthusiasm.
In a matter of seconds, the hunchback bled out, falling dead onto the floor, as the purple-haired human simply wiped off his bloodied blade, before putting it back into its sheath.
Looking at the expressions all the elves had on their faces, Shinso asked, "What?"
"That… was pretty hardcore, dude…" Tensei slowly said.
Shinso nodded. "But you have to admit, it was pretty damn effective."
Mei couldn't really argue with that.
Rei Todoroki blasted another one of the charging ghouls with a chunk of ice, making sure to keep those flesh-eating monsters away from the unconscious soldiers behind her. And if any of these undead got too close, then they would have to answer to her frost-imbued scythe.
Unfortunately, she couldn't keep this up forever. She was only one person against a horde of undead, and she was currently protecting… ten people, last time she counted.
She could really use some help right about now…
"SCAFFOLD SANGUINIS RECENTIS!!!"
SPLOOOOOSH!!!
…and in the strangest way, her prayers were answered.
A pool of blood appeared beneath the feet of the charging undead, causing them to stop, and begin lapping it up, before suddenly, several bubbles of blood left the pool, hovering up in the air, transforming into crucifixes, and restraining all of the ghouls in the area.
"Hey, hey! You're the ex-queenie of the Todoroki Empire!"
Rei looked over to the side to see that her savior was a blonde woman, one with yellow eyes and fangs. And given what she just did with the blood, she was most likely a vampire.
"I take it that you're one of the Demon King's servants?"
"Yep yep! Himiko Toga, at your service!" the vampire said, as she looked over to the pile of unconscious people. "Hey, you found my friends! And some of the Japanese soldiers…"
"They're all alive, either passed out from the lack of air during the surprise flood, or they knocked their heads on something. I've been keeping the undead off of them, but…"
"...it's a stop-gap solution, I get it," Toga said. "Well, hopefully, they'll wake up soon."
Rei hoped so, too.
Konako Haizono smiled, as she watched the enemy get divided.
She didn't know that the blue guy was gonna unleash another flood, but hey, if it got rid of the witch capable of dispersing her sandstorms, then she wasn't gonna complain. And to make things even better, the fallen angel took off per the request of those otherworldly idiots.
Now was the time for her to strike.
The sand blinding them would act as a cover for Konako to sneak in, and stab the two of them to death. They'd never even see it coming. The white-haired woman had been trained by the greatest of shinobis herself, Shinya Kamihara… before Konako had killed him.
Thanks for the lessons, sensei, the white-haired woman thought to herself in amusement. She slowly approached the sandstorm made with her magic, pulling out her short katana –
"NOW!"
What the –?!
BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA-BRAKA!!!
Pain erupted from Konako's stomach, as she looked down to see that her belly was now riddled in holes. She collapsed to the floor, as her magical sandstorm died down. How…?
Looking up, she saw the blond man come out of her dying sands, and…
Are… are those goggles?!
That was the last thing Konako Haizono thought before she bled to death.
"Nngghh…" Neito Monoma groaned, as his eyes slowly opened up. What happened…? The last thing he remembered was hitting his head on a rock as the waters took him…
Wait a minute… waters…? The flood!
"ITSUKA!" Neito snapped up, looking around and seeing… a bunch of other people laying unconscious behind him. Some of them he recognized as subordinates of the Demon King, while the others were members of the JSDF, and even some from his own squad…
"Don't let up! We can't let them reach the others!"
"Yeah, yeah, I already know that! Sheesh!"
Nieto looked up ahead to see the vampire lady that Midoriya had hanging around him, Toga, unleashing some magic against a horde of zombies, along with his… "Lady Todoroki!"
"Huh?" Rei turned around and gasped. "Monoma-san, you're awake!"
"Hm? Oh, hey, the soldier is up. And he didn't even need a kiss from his princess…"
"Ha-ha, very funny, Toga," the blond-haired man said. "What's going on?"
"To summarize, the flood knocked all of you out, and we've been keeping you safe since," Rei said, slashing another ghoul with her scythe. "Could you try to wake up the others…?"
"Oh, yeah, totally! I'll see what I can do!" Neito said, as he went over to his knocked-out comrades. "Okay, let's see, who to wake up first… Tokage… Rin… Inui… Chimera, perfect!"
Neito then began slapping Chonjuro Kon in the face as fast as he possibly could.
"Huh… for a ninja, she was wearing very little," Sato said, examining the body.
"And that right there is why bikini armor makes absolutely no goddamn sense; it leaves all of your vitals exposed," Katsuki replied. "But in this case, it worked to our advantage."
Katsuki had figured that someone was blinding them with the sand before Melissa left, hence why he had her leave to go find Flect Turn; in order to make his plan work. It was a pretty simple one, actually: When they were clear of Melissa, Katsuki and Sato would put their backs to each other, and then start shooting into the sandstorm in hopes of killing the mage responsible.
The fact that there was some white-haired bitch now lying dead at their feet was proof that their plan had actually worked. Looks like the male-gaze ninja was sneaking in to stab them while their invisibility was nonexistent, given the fact that she had an unseathed knife next to her.
"By the way, Bakugou… when did you pull out those goggles?" Sato asked.
"Had them in my pack," the demolition expert said. "Figured they'd come in handy if the enemy launched some sort of gas attack. Didn't think I would need to pull them out for a sand–"
KRAK-BOOOOOM!!!
"...What the hell was that?" Katsuki asked.
"I don't know… but I think it has something to do with that."
Katsuki looked over towards where Sato was pointing, and saw, over the horizon, by the Badlands' mountain, fire, lighting, and a tornado happening, all at the same time.
"...One guess at who's responsible for that," the ash blond said.
Mirio examined the battlefield below him, as he kept flying alongside Tatsuma, while still carrying Tamaki via Blackwhip. There were already so many dead… the flood combined with the spikes had wiped out a good chunk of the armies that came with them already.
But he couldn't mourn for them right now. There were much bigger problems to deal with.
KRAK-BOOOOOM!!!
There. He could see them now.
Flying above the summit of the dead mountain, amidst the powerful winds, the viridian lighting and emerald flames, far above their initial destruction, and both of them glowing like the most unnaturally-colored shooting stars, were two of the most powerful beings in the world.
The ruler of all demons, Izuku Midoriya, and the most vile lich, Kai Chisaki.
"Tamaki, I'm gonna drop you down here. It's too dangerous for you."
"What?! Mirio, what are you going to do?!" the elf asked.
"I'm going in."
Author's Note: There was originally gonna be a joke about Kodai not needing to worry about being killed since she was a medic, only for the enemy to announce to kill the healers first, resulting in a deadpan stare from Kodai. Obviously, that didn't pan out, but the spirit of that joke kinda seeped into this chapter as I was writing it.
The Serpernter twins, Gusty Boy, Kinueda, Dictator, and Dusty Ash have made their debuts, with most of them promptly being killed. Also, if you go to the Black Clover and Overlord wikis, you can find most of the magic that was used in this chapter there.
Gravel_Charge: Yeah, I've been having problems with YouTube channels using my stories without permission. But let's move on to something happier! Kota becoming a dragon was something that my friend (kinda) suggested, you can check out the previous Author's Notes for the full context. Anyways, I'm glad to see that you came across my story once more, and I'm even more glad that you're looking forward to the rest of it!
GreenBoy9000: Here's the second part of Armageddon! Have fun!
SHIFT004: I would ask why you're commenting on the latest chapter despite not having reached it, but I don't want you to stop, so… keep reading! It's totally worth it!
valkrus: I didn't know that "grandstanding" was actually one word, so that one's on me. But other than that, it's just the standard array of misspells that annoy me to no end.
So! You all know I have created my own website where I've posted a bunch of my art, so, if you're interested in seeing that, visit httpshttps://eowen5.myportfolio.com/! And I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, https://twitter.com/ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
Chapter 53: All the Pieces, Coming Together
Summary:
As the worlds keep on turning, he last of the Enlightened Evil falls, as both Innsmouth and Flect Turn fall. All that is left now is Kai Chisaki, as Midoriya, who has just been joined by Togata, do battle against the lich. But unbeknownst to almost all, Momo Yaoyorozu is about to join in the final battle...
Chapter Text
Chapter 53: All the Pieces, Coming Together
Anna Scervino put another bullet into Valdo Gollini's head, before she looked over at her partner-in-crime, Giulio Gandini. The two mercenaries had just finished up sending the entire Gollini crime family to Hell, when Anna remembered something. "Hey, Giulio?"
"Yes, Anna, what is it?"
"Remember when that Japanese merc, Imasuji, gave us some hard drive containing dirt on the American President? Weren't we supposed to publish that if he ever got thrown in jail?"
Giulio paused for a moment, before saying, "I think it was in the event that he died…"
"It was? Shit, we completely forgot about it," Anna cursed.
Mina Ashido felt sick to her stomach.
She wasn't sure why exactly. Was it the nerves of knowing that Eijiro and all his friends were fighting for them? That she couldn't fight alongside them? That the world could end today?
That they had to tell their friends and neighbors that they might have to pack up and leave for the other side of the gate? That they'd be damning the entire world to suffer under Chisaki?
The pink-skinned woman didn't know, but whatever it was, it was enough for her to rush towards one of the office bathrooms within the JSDF building and puke her lunch out.
As she was almost done hurling, however, she heard a knock on the bathroom door. "Mina? It's me, Denki. I know this is technically the girl's bathroom, but I just wanted to make sure you were okay. A couple of us saw you rush in, and I know that there's a lot of pressure on us…"
"I'm fine!" she retched out. "I've just been feeling under the weather for a bit…"
"For a bit?" Denki's voice through the door spoke. "For how long, exactly?"
"I dunno, a month now, maybe two… why?"
"...Mina, could you please open the door? I need to make sure of something."
The tiefling wasn't sure what was going on, but she opened the door, letting the man with black-and-yellow hair in. "Alright, question one, have you noticed yourself getting… bigger?"
Mina blinked at what he said. "What, you mean like… fatter?"
"Kinda?" Denki said. "More like… any growth around your stomach area."
"Now that you mention it, yeah," Mina said. "What's going on?"
"Oh, boy…" Denki whispered to himself. "Okay, last question, and I know this is gonna be embarrassing, but please be honest with me. Have you and Kirishima been… intimate… lately?"
"WHAT?!" Mina's face blushed into an even deeper shade of pink. "What makes you…?!"
But then, slowly, the tiefling's embarrassment was overcome by realization. She is constantly throwing up. The extra weight she had put on. She thought those were just her adjusting to living a quiet life in Collibustown and the stress from the possible end of the world…
But she had been intimate with Eijiro a lot. They had been together even since before the coup to take down Emperor Todoroki. Which would mean that at some point, she and Eijiro…
"Mina…" Denki spoke in a calm tone. "I think you should go see a doctor. Like, right now."
Of course. Leave it to an expecting father to be the first one to figure it out.
"BAKUBRO!!!"
"...You have got to be shitting me," Katsuki said, as he and Sato saw a certain redhead and their contracted spirit running down to them from the hills. "Kirishima, you dumbass –"
"Man, I was so worried about you! When the radios went out –"
"SHITTY HAIR, YOU MORON! I TOLD YOU NOT TO COME AND FIND US!"
"You did? Sorry man, my radio cut off while you were yelling at me."
If looks could kill, the entire world would be a desolate wasteland with the look Katsuki was currently serving. But eventually, the explosive blond sighed. "Fine, whatever, you and your murderous fanboy are already here, so you might as well help us get to Chisaki."
Akaguro narrowed his eyes on him. "Murderous fanboy –?"
"Hold up, we're gonna go and fight Chisaki?" Kirishima asked. "I know we've got the Great Spirit of Murder with us, but I don't think him and three regular dudes with guns are gonna cut it."
"We're not gonna fight him head-on, moron!" Katsuki snapped. "We're gonna try to find where Chisaki hid his phylactery, while Midoriya and who-knows-who-else keeps him distracted."
"Wait, what makes you think his phylactery is anywhere near here?"
"Two ideas: One, he's a paranoid bastard that won't feel safe unless the thing's on him. Two, the lich is such an egotistical bastard that he doesn't think he needs to hide it, since victory's his."
"You sure know how to make a convincing argument," Kirishima said. "Alright, I'm in!"
"Great. Just follow my lead, and make sure you don't yourself killed."
"Not planning on dying today, Bakubro!" Kirishima said, smiling. "Mina's waiting for me!"
"WAKE UP, WAKE UP, WAKE UP!" Neito kept yelling, as he slapped the face of the monstrous Chonjuro Kon over and over again, but to no avail. The demon refused to wake up.
"Maybe try a different tactic!" Toga suggested, as she kicked away another one of the encroaching zombies, allowing the Todoroki matriarch to freeze it away.
"Alright, alright, think!" the blond soldier told himself. What could possibly wake up an unconscious Demon Lord? A loud explosion? Doable, but he had seen the damage caused by them, and such destruction just wouldn't be worth it. Freezing their body? It might wake them up in a panic, but it could just as easily lead to hypothermia. Healing spells were out of the question, there was nothing physically wrong with him, he just wouldn't WAKE THE FUCK UP!
"ANY DAY NOW, MONOMA-SAN!" Rei shouted, slashing another undead with their frost-covered scythe. "I would like to return to my children in one piece, PLEASE!"
"I'M TRYING, LADY, I'M TRYING!" Neito screamed. Unbeknownst to him and the others, however, a certain zoologist next to him was only pretending to be unconscious.
Why was that? Because Hiryu Rin saw something approaching them.
And if that something realized it was being watched, then it was all over for them.
Innsmouth the mindflayer observed the tasty humans from a distance, as he slowly made his way towards them. With all of the undead rushing at them, and their desperation to keep their unconscious allies safe, they would never see him coming until it was too late.
The mindflayer could already taste the delicious human brains within his tentacles. He wondered if the Todoroki matriarch's brain would be as frozen as her magic, and he was curious to know if an otherworlder's brain would taste any different. He never had a vampire's brain before, and while the idea of an undead brain didn't sound all that appetizing, he wouldn't knock it until he tried it. Oh, and the demon and yuan-ti brains were also going to be interesting!
Innsmouth wasn't too worried about being spotted, either. The blond otherworlder was too busy trying to wake up his unconscious comrades, while Lady Todoroki and Midoriya's personal attack vampire were both too busy defending the knocked-out from the hordes of the undead. And even if he was spotted, he had a few tricks to make sure they didn't try anything funny.
As a member of the illustrious illithid race, Innsmouth possessed several psionic abilities. If those dumb apes even thought about attacking him, he would throw at them one of the various powers he had at his disposal. He could dominate or charm them into a false sense of security, teleport away from their attacks, or even telekinetically hold them in place! The sky was the limit!
Hell, he didn't even bother reading any of their minds, he could use his own two eyes to see that they were all panicking. He probably started with the blond idiot, not only to make sure the other soldiers didn't wake up, but to also remove the weak link from the group. Without him, the other two wouldn't know that there was any danger until Innsmouth sneaked up from behind them!
Joining the Enlightened Evil truly was a stroke of brilliance on his part. The rest of his colony, even his own siblings, they were all too busy thinking about "bringing order to the universe" and "achieve racial supremacy," but here Innsmouth was, having already feasted on the brains of several Imperial soldiers, and now ready to gobble up some more delectable treats! Chisaki even promised him he could eat the Hero's and Demon King's brains once they were dead!
Oh, if only my siblings could see me now! Innsmouth thought to himself. Karasu, Tonbi, Monko, you would all be envious of the brains I'll be feasting on tonight! Just a little closer, and –
BLAM!
BLAM!
"WHAT THE HELL?!" Neito yelled.
"WHAT'S GOING ON BACK THERE?!" Toga shouted.
"NOTHING! JUST GIVE ME A MINUTE!"
"WE'RE RUNNING OUT OF TIME HERE!!!"
The blond rolled his eyes at the vampire's whining, as he turned back to Rin.
Neito wasn't sure what the heck happened, but one minute, he was still trying to find a way to wake up Kon, and then the next, Rin, who was supposed to still be unconscious, pulls out his pistol from his side and shoots an octopus-headed guy right in the middle of his face!
"Please tell me that thing is dead," Rin said.
"Uhh, yeah, people who are shot square in the brain tend to die, and even then, I don't need to be a medical whiz like Kodai to tell you that Squidward over there is a hundred percent dead," Neito told his squadmate. "Speaking of which, why the fuck did you do that just now?!"
"Came to a couple minutes ago, saw out of the corner of my eye that the mindflayer was approaching us," Rin said. "Had to pretend to still be unconscious to catch him off-guard."
"Mind flayer? What the heck is a mind flayer?"
"Brain-eating squid people," the zoologist replied. "They can read minds, but they've also got superiority complexes, so I had to make sure he would be cocky enough not to try and read anyone's mind. If he realized I was conscious, he would have mind blasted us, or some shit."
"How the hell did you know all that?" Neito asked.
"I read Bakugou's Monster Manual while he wasn't looking."
"Seriously? I thought you said that book was for nerds and the socially awkward."
"Yeah, turns out, it's a really interesting read once you give it a shot," Rin said.
"Oh," the blond soldier said, before shaking his head. "Well, since you're now back with us in the world of the living, maybe you could help me out here. I'm trying to wake up Kon, but –"
"It's not working, I know. I saw you slap him in the face," Rin said, as he scooted over to the unconscious Demon Lord. "Hmm, while he may be chimeric in nature, since he's got the head and main body of a wolf, I think that he might also have the same pressure points as actual canines. All I gotta do is find the right nerve cluster to pinch, and that should wake him up…"
Neito watched as Rin flipped Kon's body over, examined the muscles on the back of the Demon Lord's neck, before placing his hand over one specific point, and pitching, resulting in –
"YOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWL!!!!!" In a matter of seconds, Kon's eyes shot open, as the chimeric demon screamed in pain, before looking around at his surroundings, narrowed his eyes in anger, grabbed his weapon, and proceeded to charge into the horde of undead, roaring.
"Wow… that was… very effective…" Neito stared.
"YEAH!" Rin cheered. "ZOOLOGY, BITCH!"
Momo breathed in and out, as she stared at the corpse in front of her.
The raven-haired woman honestly could not believe how insane that battle was, and a part of her somewhat doubted she was actually alive after all that, but no, there she was, still standing. And in front of her was the dead body of the bearded elderly man dressed as a monk.
The nutjob who was calling himself Starservant.
Momo's legs still felt like jelly. It was one of the longest-fought battles she ever had.
This guy was somehow tougher than Imasuji, maybe even tougher than Usagiyama. And she had Shoto with him. Who knows what would have happened if she was by herlsef…?
"Who would have thought… that bubbles could be so terrifying…"
"That's… magic for you…" Shoto rasped between breaths.
"I can see the mountain where Chisaki is…" Forcing her legs to move, Momo grabbed her boyfriend's hand, signaling for them to keep moving. "We need to get going…"
"Right…" Shoto gasped. "Just… let me catch my breath…"
The black-haired soldier groaned. "Shoto…"
"Just give me five minutes… please…"
"...Okay," Momo said, just as her legs gave in.
Melissa flew over the battlefield, trying to figure out where Flect Turn could be hiding. At the moment, all she could see was soldiers and undead fighting one another above the wet Badlands, something which really didn't help her. Maybe he really IS in a hole…?
The more she thought about it, the more Sato's throwaway logic about the evil triton hiding inside a flooded hole began to make more and more sense to her. But where…?
There. A large, circular hole, too perfect to have naturally formed in this environment, about the diameter of a normal human. The size was both small enough to not really be noticed, but also big enough for a humanoid to enter and hide in it comfortably. But in order to be sure…
The fallen angel dove down, her black wings shining when the few rays of the sun reflected off of them, speeding through the air like an otherworldly missile, before they folded in on themselves… and Melissa dove into the water with the grace of an Olympic swimmer.
SPLOOOOSH!!!
As the air bubbles floated past her eyes, Melissa's eyes adapted to the dark, her celestial nature allowing her to see within the near-black waters as if it was a sunny day. THERE!
She found him. Deep in the middle of this artificial trench was a being with blue skin, webbed hands, and a mean-looking face. To the untrained eye, could be mistaken for an aquatic elf, but there were a few key differences. One was the lack of pointed ears. The second was that they had fins on their arms and legs. Another difference between the two races?
An aquatic elf would never be caught dead pulling off such an evil scheme.
Well, that last one probably wasn't accurate. Not every racial characteristic could account for the behaviors of every individual within that race (there would always be outliers), and not every individual reflected their entire race. If that was the case, then everyone would still be fighting demons as opposed to the currently multi-racial organization that was the Enlightened Evil.
Sooo… hooray for not completely-racist maniacs?
Whatever. Melissa kept swimming down to where Flect Turn was, ready to grab him, but… she could feel herself slowing down. Narrowing her eyes, she saw that Flect had planted himself firmly into the bottom of the hole, and was most likely using magic to keep her away from him.
This was gonna be a problem. She wouldn't be able to hold her breath for much longer, and if she went up to the surface to breathe, Flect might escape, or worse, try to drown her.
She couldn't teleport him out of here, that spell only worked on herself. Summoning a monster may force Flect to fight it as a distraction, but then what? She also seriously doubted that any of her spells would work while she was underwater. She needed that stuff gone…
And then, an idea hit her.
Unsheathing her sword, she threw it as hard as she could straight towards Flect. Seeing his surprised face, Melissa shot up to the surface immediately. While the triton was busy manipulating the water to avoid getting speared, the fallen angel breached the surface, and after taking in a deep breath, she shouted, "IMPERIUM TEMPESTAS!" at the top of her lungs.
In a matter of seconds, the weather all around the Badlands changed, as it went from endlessly cloudy, to windy, to suddenly having a tornado appear in the middle of the battlefield. And in the eye of the tornado was Melissa, and the flooded hole Flect Turn was hiding in.
The tornado picked up the water within the hole, scattering it into droplets and leaving Flect completely exposed, as the wind picked up and blew him into the sky. Melissa, as an angel, took to the skies with grace, her wings controlling how she flew within the tornado.
Grabbing her flying sword and sheathing it back into its scarabed, she narrowed her eyes on where Flect was screaming like a madman, and dove in. If he had remained calm, then maybe he would have figured out he could still manipulate the water inside the tornado, but no. It made sense that the man who tended to use attacks such as "flood everything" lacked the imagination needed to adapt in such a scenario. As she grabbed him, all Melissa could think was, Too bad.
Now, she needed a way to get rid of him. Stopping the tornado and letting him drop was a good idea, but he might have recovered and summoned a different water-type spell to save himself at that point. But then, she noticed two people outside of the tornado's range.
Enji and Touya Todoroki? Ohh, this is gonna be good…
Flect Turn was feeling sick to his stomach. Which made sense, given that he had just been launched into the air and thrown around like a ragdoll by these vicious winds.
But he was also sickened by how all of this turned out.
This wasn't fair, none of this was fair! The disgusting air-breathers above had existed for far too long! He was supposed to be the one who would flood the world! The one who would bring about a new age of oceans! The one who would send Chisaki into his watery, and final, grave.
Instead, he was sent flying into the clouds by the Demon King's mistress, someone who should have stayed in the heavens, who should have not fallen down to the earth just to… to… fornicate… with Izuku Midoriya, of all people! This seriously could not be his undoing!
Then, he felt his clothes being grabbed by someone with incredible grip strength. Forcing his eyes open despite these brutal winds, he could see the fallen angel herself, as she held onto his collar with her hand. Even with his eyesight being ruined by the wild winds, he could tell that on Melissa Shield's face was an expression that best translated to "good riddance."
Flying out of the tornado she had created, he could tell that she was canning the battlefield for something, but for what?! Her eyes then widened, as if she had found what she was looking for, before screaming, "HEY, TOUYA! SPECIAL DELIVERY FOR YOU AND YOUR DAD!!!"
Touya?! Who's that?! And what does she mean by –
Before his thoughts even had a chance of forming, the fallen angel threw him, as he plummeted straight towards the ground, screaming, before he crashed into the wet Badlands below.
The impact broke his bones, the friction burned his skin, the loose dirt got into his eyes, and his teeth cracked by how tight he was clenching his jaw, but Flect somehow managed to survive. He needed to find a healer. Yes, if someone was to repair his body, then maybe he could –
"Huh, would you look at that? I guess Shield wasn't lying."
"Indeed. This must be Flect Turn, the one responsible for the flooding."
It took all the strength he had left to lift up his eyes in order to see, but Flect did it. He screened his shattered neck up to see… a young man carrying a staff, with black hair and scars all over his body, and… the former Emperor of the Todoroki Empire, Enji Todoroki, himself.
He couldn't move. His jaw was broken from the crash landing, he couldn't summon any of his spells. He couldn't move his arms, either. He was at the mercy of the two fire mages.
"I'm gonna fry this fucker. Whaddya say, old man?"
"I think I'll join you, Touya," the Emperor of Flames replied.
NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO! Flect screamed inside his mind. WAIT, WAIT, WAIT, WAIT –
"SPIRALIS FLAMMA!!!"
"ERUPIT IACULUM!!!"
Years later, when people would recall Flect Turn's legacy, they would be reminded how, for a brief moment during the battle, the smell of fried fish could be detected by everyone.
"Izuuukuuuuu…"
The entire world had gone dark. No, it was more than just dark.
It had gone pitch fucking black.
Izuku felt cold, so cold that he could see his own breath. And the voice in his head, the one that belonged to Chisaki, was tempting him, telling him to give in so he could receive the warmth.
There couldn't be a more obvious trap.
He wasn't sure what sort of cursed magic this was, but Izuku was sure of the fact that it was supposed to control his body. Chisaki whispering in his ear was supposed to lull him into submission, to allow the damn lich to puppet the Demon King's body as he pleased.
But the green-haired demon refused to give him such a victory.
Despite not knowing how this spell worked or what its name even was, Izuku knew how to overcome it. Through sheer force of will, combined with his warm love for Melissa, the demon was able to not give in to Chisaki's calling, screaming, "GET OUT OF MY HEAD!!!"
"YOU ARE A JOKE TO ME!" the echo of Chisaki's voice shouted back, as out of the darkness came the green flames. Izuku took them head-on, refusing to be burned by something so evil. Using the love he felt for the angel once more, Izuku shielded himself against the flames…
"NYYYAAAAAAAAAARRRGHHH!!!"
…and shattered the darkness. Light had returned to the world.
There. In front of him, on the other side of the mountain top, was Chisaki, in all his ingloriousness. His eyes were empty, leaving only tiny lights as evidence that he was still "alive." The flesh from the lower half of his face had disappeared long ago, exposing his teeth and gums for the world to see. The same could be said for his arms, as the closer you got to his wrists, the less meat there was, until even his skeletal hands had no muscle covering them.
Izuku immediately unleashed his wings and launched himself towards the lich, his fists imbued with mana to better turn the monster into a pile of ashes. Slamming his body into Chisaki, the two of them took to the air, as the undead mage did their best to throw the Demon King off, while the Demon King put all their power into making sure the mage went back to being dead.
"HAAAAAAUGH…" Chisaki rasped out, as a smoke-like substance escaped his mouth, hitting the green-haired demon square in the face. It was another one of Chisaki's tricks, with this one's gimmick being that if Izuku breathed the smoke in, he would crumble into dust.
Izuku refused to play any part of Chisaki's game, as he held his breath, before throwing the lich towards the side of the mountain. Not that it did him any good, as his body reformed once again. And to make matters worse, Chisaki decided to alter his body once more.
More mass was added to his chest area, making him not only bigger, but bulkier, to the point where he was at half the height of a giant like Takeyama. Not only that, but he sprouted a second pair of arms. The process itself was disgusting, as Izuku could see the flesh underneath whatever skin was left with Chisaki shift and move breath. Truly revolting stuff.
But he still won't back down.
Swooping down to where Chisaki was now on the mountain, Izuku summoned his blades, and engaged the monstrous lich in one-on-one combat once more. They had been doing this song and dance for a while now, and the pattern was always the same: First, they would unleash their most devastating magicks upon each other, then, engage in an aerial battle, Chisaki would pull out some kind of new trick, Izuku would overcome it, duke it out using their swords and fists, before having another bout of magic, rinse and repeat. It was seriously getting annoying.
The last time Izuku fought Chisaki, the young demon had the advantages of not being alone during the fight, catching Chisaki by surprise, Chisaki not having as many powers as he does now, and the fact that Chisaki was actually dead when his body was destroyed.
But now? There was none of that here. The lich was expecting Izuku, who, thanks to what Flect Turn did, was alone in dealing with Chisaki, and wouldn't be able to kill him until his phylactery was found and destroyed. So all Izuku could really do was keep him from pulling off another army-destroying spell, like the one that knocked Takeyama out of the battle.
Though, that didn't mean that Izuku had been completely occupied with holding off Chisaki during the fight. He had been keeping an eye open on everything Chisaki was doing, from the new moves he was pulling out, to how he was behaving during the fight.
And the green-haired demon now had a suspicion of where the phylactery was.
Dropping his swords and enhancing the mana in his legs, Izuku launched forward once more, but instead of grabbing the giant-sized Chisaki, he patted his clothes. There! In his pocket –
"SOMNUM."
A sleeping spell.
The world went black all around him once more, and the cold returned. Izuku couldn't move. He was frozen. He was powerless. All he could do was close his eyes, and drift off –
"ONE FOR ALL… SLASH!!!"
After making sure Tamaki was dropped off somewhere safe alongside Lady Tatsuma, Mirio flew back through the skies, making a direct beeline for where Midoriya was fighting Chisaki.
In all honesty, Mirio felt completely out of his depth here. When he was given One For All by the previous Hero, he thought it was going to be pretty straightforward: Defeat the evil Demon King, save the world, and then spend the rest of his life defeating monsters and traveling throughout the lands with his best friends at his side. But that could be further from the truth.
The Demon King, while considered a symbol of evil by many across the world, was actually a person behind the title. A young demon that just wanted to stabilize his crumbling home, and wished for the love of his life back home. Said love of his life was being accompanied by a bunch of people from another world, with one of them dating the son of the Emperor of Flames, while also being friends with the Queen of Dryadalis, and all of the nations were coming together to defeat and evil that Mirio's predecessors had never even faced.
Toshinori Yagi may have faced off against Hisashi Shigaraki, Nana Shimura may have defeated Gigantomachia, Yoichi Shigaraki may have forged One For All itself and begun the fight, but absolutely none of them could hold a candle to the insanity Mirio was facing at this instant.
Mirio knew that Chisaki was a powerhouse the moment he turned the entire earth against their armies, shooting spikes so big that they made even a titan fall, but what he was seeing now was just plain ridiculous. Midoriya was facing off against a giant, four-armed, fleshy abomination, with nothing more than some enchantment magic and a pair of swords… and then…
…he just dropped the swords and drove straight towards Chisaki LIKE A MORON!!!
This was the Demon King he was warned about? Oh, sure, he was menacing when Mirio faced him the first time around, but after actually getting to know the guy, he seemed more like a tired dad mixed with suicidal idiot, given his general attituded and the stunt he just pulled!
And was he feeling up Chisaki?! Seriously? Oh, aaand he's being rendered unconscious. Looks like it was up to Mirio to save the day, as he grabbed his sword, swooped down, and…
"ONE FOR ALL… SLASH!!!"
POW-BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
The blast of the attack would have been enough to send Chisaki over the edge of the mountain top, if it weren't for the fact his creepy flesh fingers had grabbed onto the edge, but that was a problem to deal with later. At the moment, Mirio was more focused on Midoriya.
With the lich preoccupied, Mirio swooped in, and gabbing the young Demon King, the latest wielder of One For All shook him awake, as he yelled, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
"Huh –?!" Midoriya snapped out of the trance. Good. "What…?"
"HELLO?! Fight of our lives? Fate of the world is at stake?!" Mirio shouted, pointing at Chisaki, who was getting back up, before looking back at Midoriya. "Get your head back in the game!"
"I AM! I mean, I was!" Midoriya sputtered. "I figured out where his phylactery is!"
Momo and Shoto could see the chaos of the ultimate battle happening at the top of the summit. Swords and magic, both arcane and unholy, were blasting in a kaleidoscope of colors, as Midoriya, the recently arrived Togata, and Chisaki, duked it out over the fate of the world.
But the black-haired woman refused to let them go at it alone.
"We need to get up there," Momo told her boyfriend. "I think you might be able to create an ice ramp to get up there, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to hitch a ride with you that way –"
SCREEEEECH!!!
Before she even had the chance to come up with a plan, an LAV pulled up in front of Momo and Shoto, as the window rolled down to reveal none other than Awase. "Need a lift?"
"Coroproal, you have no idea how glad I am to see you…"
"Yeah, well, imagine my own surprise when I woke up to Monoma's mug telling me that the flood knocked me out," Awase said. "Luckily, I was able to salvage this LAV and drive up here."
"You think you can drive us up to the summit of the mountain?" Shoto asked.
"No can do," the mechanic said, opening the door. "I may have made it drivable, but the damage done to the payload capacity of the LAV is still there. It can only hold two people, at most. So, tell you what: You two take the car up the mountain, and I'll hike back down to the others."
"...Awase, are you sure about this?" Momo asked.
"Yeah. I'm a mechanic, not a monster-killing superhero," the bandana-wearing soldier said, giving his superior a thumbs-up. "You go save the world, Lieutenant. We're all rooting for you."
Momo gave him a soft smile. "Thank you, Awase."
Author's Note: Yep, that plotline regarding President Sam is coming back now! And also, Awase (and Monoma, kinda) coming in clutch, as we are approaching the finale!
VinHD15: I've never actually seen someone physically hurt themselves under Shinso's control in any fic. And pretty privilege isn't gonna save you if you're rotten to the core.
valkrus: A lot of people who were supposed to make an appearance in this story didn't, given how soon it's coming to an end. Maybe I'll make some side stories for them?
So! You all know I have created my own website where I've posted a bunch of my art, so, if you're interested in seeing that, visit https://eowen5.myportfolio.com/! And I'm pretty sure as you all know now, I have also made a Twitter account to post my art, so if anyone is interested in checking it out, https://twitter.com/ErnaloreProf is the link.
If you want more content, visit my Discord, the link is /3PFYSt8Dqz. You can chat with others, post memes, fanfic recommendations and prompts, role play, fan art, and we even have a writer's corner now! I'll also drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! Also, if you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! Just please make sure to follow the rules.
Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!
- Ernalore
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