Kendo's scream echoing through the forest was like a referee's whistle, signaling the end of our game and the beginning of something far more terrifying. At my hiding post among the bushes, I shot upright, every muscle in my body tensing. Beside me, Jiro had already pulled her earphone jacks from the ground, her face pale. "Vibrations... there are a lot of vibrations. Not earth beasts. These are... people. Moving fast."
It was then that Mandalay's panicked telepathic message washed over all our minds. "EVERYONE! RETURN TO THE CABIN NOW! THERE ARE VILLAINS! AVOID COMBAT!"
That message was followed almost instantly by Aizawa-sensei's cold, raspy voice over the small communicators given to a few senior students and the class reps. "This is Eraser Head. The situation has changed. All of you, first-year students, you are hereby granted permission to engage in combat for self-defense. I repeat, you are authorized to fight."
The two conflicting orders created a moment of confusion, before the grim reality hit us. Permission to fight meant Aizawa-sensei knew that running wasn't an option for all of us. He knew that we would have to fight for our lives.
The blue fire I had seen in the distance erupted higher, illuminating the night sky and painting dancing shadows of trees like giant ghosts. The sweet, strange-smelling purple smoke began to creep into the forest from the opposite direction, spreading rapidly among the trees.
I didn't panic. Strangely, in the midst of all this chaos, a part of me felt calm. This was an enemy I knew. This was a scenario I had prepared for in my mind. I immediately moved, looking for my classmates who were near my post. I found Momo, Shoji, and Ojiro gathered near a large tree, their faces tense.
"What's happening?!" Ojiro asked, his tail twitching nervously.
"We're under attack," I said in a forced calm voice. "Focus. Listen, that smoke is likely poisonous. We can't breathe it in." I turned to Momo, who looked a little pale and overwhelmed by the sudden assault. I gripped her shoulder, forcing her to look at me. "Yaoyorozu! I need you to focus! You are our most important asset right now. Forget everything else. We need gas masks. Now! As many as you can make for us and for anyone else we find!"
My direct and confident command seemed to work. It gave her a clear purpose in the middle of the chaos. She took a deep breath, and the fear in her eyes was replaced by a sharp concentration. "Got it!" she replied, and the fabric on her arm began to glow as she used her Creation Quirk.
"Shoji, use your Dupli-Arms!" I continued. "Create eyes and ears, watch from the top of the tree canopy. Tell us the enemy's movements and the direction the gas is spreading. Ojiro, you're with me. We'll be the front line, protecting Yaoyorozu while she works."
They both nodded, without hesitation. In a matter of seconds, we had formed a functional defensive unit. We were no longer just scared students; we were a team.
Far from our location, in a different part of the forest, Dabi stood casually on a high tree branch, watching the blue flames of his creation devour the trees with a bored expression. He took out a small communicator. "This is Dabi. Landing point is clear. I've started the diversion. The black smoke should be visible for miles. The backup pro heroes will be here soon. We don't have much time."
"Good," Shigaraki's hoarse voice replied. "Remember your mission, Dabi. Create chaos, and get the 'package.' Don't play around."
Dabi smiled faintly, a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "Of course. I'm always a professional." He looked down at a few students running in a panic below. 'Fake heroes,' he thought with disgust. 'Just kids playing with fire. Let me show them what real fire looks like.' With a flick of his finger, another wave of blue flames erupted in their escape path.
In another corner of the forest, in the middle of the thickening purple mist, Mustard laughed behind his gas mask. He was just a boy, no older than us, but his eyes were filled with hatred and arrogance. He was enjoying this. He enjoyed watching the students from the famous, elite U.A. choke and fall because of his gas. "Run, run, little heroes!" he sneered to himself. "Look how great your Quirks are now!" He raised his revolver, ready to shoot anyone who managed to get through his fog. For him, this wasn't a mission. It was a cruel game, and he was the winner.
Back with our group, Momo had managed to create five high-quality gas masks. We put them on, and the poisonous air immediately felt fresh again. "Good work, Yaoyorozu!" I said. "Now let's move! We have to get back to the lodge!"
We began to move as a unit. Shoji, with several eyes on the ends of his tentacles, guided us from above. "Two villains ahead, about fifty meters! They're ambushing some students from Class 1-B!"
We moved cautiously. As we got closer, we saw the scene. Two low-level thugs were laughing at two Class 1-B students who were lying on the ground, coughing from the gas.
"I won't let you!" I said. I signaled to Ojiro. We both charged forward. I manifested my Incursio gauntlets, while Ojiro used his tail to launch himself. The thugs were surprised by our sudden attack. I disabled one with a hard punch to the gut, while Ojiro used his tail to slam the other into a tree. The fight was over in seconds.
"Quick, give them the gas masks!" I ordered Momo. She quickly fitted the masks on the two unconscious students.
"We can't just leave them," Ojiro said.
"Shoji, me, and Ojiro will carry them," I decided. "Yaoyorozu, you stay in the middle, keep creating whatever we need."
We continued our perilous journey, now with an extra burden. In the distance, we could see flashes of ice and explosions. I knew it must be Todoroki and Bakugo, using their overwhelming power to clear a path. At least the strongest part of our class was still fighting.
I tried to contact Ryukyu on my secret communicator, but all I got was loud static. "The signal's jammed," I hissed in frustration. Akame was right. These villains came well-prepared. They had cut us off completely from the outside world. We were on our own.
After ten minutes of walking that felt like an eternity, we finally reached the edge of the clearing near the lodge. But the sight that greeted us was not one of safety. It was a scene of destruction. The lodge itself was still intact, but the area around it was a battlefield. I saw Tiger, the muscular hero from the Pussycats, fighting fiercely against a large female villain with a giant magnet. And I saw Mandalay, injured, trying to protect Kota from… from nothing? No. She was staring into the forest in horror.
And then, I saw her. Pixie-Bob was lying on the ground, unconscious and covered in blood, her head resting in a crying Ragdoll's lap. Near them, Midoriya stood in a defensive posture, his face pale white.
As we hid behind a line of trees, trying to make sense of the situation, a large shadow stepped out from the darkness of the forest. He was massive, his unnatural muscles bulging like clumps of meat, and a strange mask covered his face. He was dragging something in his hand. It was one of the villains who had attacked us earlier, now unconscious.
"I found him trying to run away," the muscular figure said, his voice as deep and raspy as a grindstone. He threw the villain aside as if he were trash. "No discipline at all."
His small, cruel eyes scanned the scene, passing over the injured heroes, and then they stopped. His eyes locked onto a single target. On Izuku Midoriya, who stood closest to Mandalay and Kota, looking the most heroic, the most defiant.
A horrific, anticipatory smile spread across his face. He began to walk slowly toward Midoriya, each of his steps making the ground tremble slightly.
"I like your eyes, kid," he growled, his voice echoing in the tense silence of the clearing. "The kind of eyes that say you won't give up, no matter how much despair you face." He cracked his massive knuckles. "I'm going to have fun breaking that light."