#I also threw up from coughing so hard but there wasn't much in our stomach anyway so there's not much to clean up

[thethingything]

guess who just got violently reminded of why we have drink using a straw

[kuronanox]

Recovering - Fuegoleon Vermillion

"She's very sick right now." Owen tells Fuegoleon as the crimson lion captain sat down next to (Your Name) holding her hand. "With some rest and not much activities she will heal slowly."

"I see, thank you." Fuegoleon tells Owen as he left the two to talk.

"I'm sorry, I've been so weak." (Your Name) quietly says giving a painful smile.

"Stop being sorry, it doesn't matter if you are weak or strong. I will protect you." He tells her wiping the sweat from her forehead. She shakes her head and grab both his hands into her small ones.

"You should remarry."

Fuegoleon eyes widen, it was unexpected of her to say such a thing to him. "What are you going on about?"

There was silence in the room as (Your Name) started to cough harshly, the red blood falling onto the sheets. Fuegoleon was already up from his seat and holding her body. He rubbed her back and offered a cold glass of water.

"Let me go get Owen."

She grabbed his arm and shook her head. "It's fine, I just need to rest."

He sighed, he knew she was so stubborn.

"Why do you have to be so stubborn, even on your death bed?"

"This isn't my death bed, I'm just sick." (Your Name) argued. Fuegoleon rolled his eyes and fixed her bed sheets. "I have to go. Captain duties."

She nodded her head as he softly kissed her forehead . "Goodbye, I'll come home soon." She promised him, Fuegoleon looked back and gave her a small smile.

The following weeks passed and she was recovering slowly. There was definitely process, she no longer was coughing blood and was able to walk around without fainting. Fuegoleon didn't visit much because of work duties but Leopold would come.

"How's everything?" She asked the younger boy.

Leopold was so full of life, him and Fuegoleon were definitely opposites when it came to personalities. "AMAZING! Aniue has been training me personally!"

(Your Name) smiles, he was amazing with children.

"Sometime I feel helpless, sometimes I feel like I've failed Fuegoleon." She tells Leopold as the younger child tilted his head.

"What do you mean? Aniue loves you!" His face a little redden out of irritation. Leopold knew, there was a age gap between the two but that doesn't mean he didn't know anything.

He remember when (Your Name) and Fuegoleon were younger, about their early twenties. She use to pester him all the time, it was a one sided love at first.

When Leopold was about 7 he would see (Your Name) around the house following Fuegoleon. She was like a parasite stuck onto him. Often times he would find his brother pushing her away or calling her a nuisance because he was all about training and becoming the next captain.

"How did Aniue fall in love with you?" Leopold asked, curious on their relationship.

(Your Name) smiled and looked out the window.

"I guess time? I don't actually know. After I stopped pestering him Fuegoleon started bothering me. I guess you can say a switch flipped off."

Leopold giggled he couldn't see his older brother bothering a girl because he was always so serious. "I think brother hit the jackpot, (Your Name) older sister is pretty." He cheers her up by jumping in the air as if he won a race.

"Oh! I have to go now! Training with aniue! He's going to be upset if I'm late!" Leopold shouts giving her a kiss on the cheek before running off. (Your Name) eyes widen as she slightly smirked. "You really are growing up now."

Fuegoleon watched his squad members as they practiced their magic but his mind wasn't paying attention. His thoughts were about (Your Name) he missed her next to him everyday.

Every morning he woke up it was alone and every night he went to bed it was alone. The bed sheets weren't nearly as warm as he wanted it to be.

Fuegoleon sighed as he clocked back into reality when his men asked what they needed to do next. "Everyone good job today, get some rest."

Leopold ran to his brother and walked beside him. "Are you going to see (Your Name) tonight?"

"Tomorrow morning I have some papers to do." He flatly states as Leopold pouts, Fuegoleon was acting a little down.

"Aniue? Why is (Your Name) older sister always sick?"

Fuegoleon stops walking and sighs, this was a topic he never liked talking about. Not even to Mereoleona. He felt like he failed (Your Name) that day and onward.

"She had a miscarriage 3 years ago, we didn't tell anyone she was pregnant because she wasn't showing yet. Because of that her captain sent her onto a dangerous mission. I told her multiple times to give it to someone else but she refused."

Fuegoleon paused to catch his breath as Leopold tried to soak in the information without asking to many question.

"(Your Name) and her team called for back up and I rushed to the area, by the time I arrived half the team was dead and she was unconscious with a wound on her stomach."

Fuegoleon quickly turns his back onto Leopold, he didn't want to show his younger brother that he regretted not stopping her that day.

"Ever since that day, she stopped taking care of her health and because of her wounds were so deep she will never fully recover. I failed her that day and everyday since."

Without saying anything else Fuegoleon bid his farewell and walked to his chamber. This was a big step for him. No one ever asked him what happened to (Your Name) after. They just assumed she was just sick a lot.

(Your Name) was harshly awaken by loud screaming coming out from the building. The Clover kingdom was set ablaze, before she could run and aide Owen stopped her, but she argued with him that it's also her duty to help the kingdom.

"Trust the magic knights." He told her and she angrily laid back in bed. "I wonder what is happening."

Laying back down she looked out the window, the fire wasn't comforting like Fuegoleon, it was menacing looking.

(Your Name) started to see the flames die down after a few hours. "Looks like they settled everything."

Footsteps outside her door were rushing around, she couldn't tell what was going on but the medics were probably helping the wounded.

It wasn't until Leopold slammed her door open and he was sweating, his face full of panic. "Aniue!" He yells out of breath as she rushed out of bed and followed him.

She ran towards the bed she found Fuegoleon on, he was unconscious and his arm was gone. "How-?" She stops and covered her mouth as the tears chocked out.

Julius was there as he patted her head and took a seat beside Fuegoleon. "He did his best." He continued by handing her Fuegoleon grimoire. She gasped.

His grimoire was half gone. "He could have died and I was laying in bed the whole time."

Julius let her onto good news. "He's fine now, the only downside is when he will wake up."

(Your Name) and Leopold sat close together for comfort. "I'm calling Mereoleona to take over for now."

The following weeks were hard for her, Leopold and the squad members. There was a lot of adjustments that were made.

(Your Name) was finally back home and the good thing was that she could watch over Fuegoleon.

"I feel like our roles have reversed." She sadly smiled as a knock made her look up.

Mereoleona walked in the room with a look of disappointment in her face. "Looks like we have some guys that need to be put in their place, Fuegoleon is first."

(Your Name) just chuckles as Mereoleona cross her arms. "Whoever did this to him definitely was strong, we are a facing an huge enemy right now." (Your Name) hummed in response and grip Fuegoleon hand tightly.

Mereoleona stared at the two and recalled when they both started dating, she had never seen her little brother head over heels for nobody. "You should take care of yourself more... holding onto the past won't help the future." Mereoleona told her little sister in law.

(Your Name) smile lightly as she caresses the back of her beloved hand. "I know, I never blamed him for being late that day. It was just fate telling us we weren't ready."

"Then don't blame yourself for not being able to help him today. He wouldn't be to happy to see you in distress especially since you are sick."

(Your Name) looks down ashamed of her actions the past few years, of course she knew she was unhealthy. After losing the baby and getting a heavy wound that would never fully recover she fell into depression and started to punish herself. She blamed herself for letting her child and teammate down that day.

"I-" She paused and swallowed before speaking again "I told him to remarry."

Mereoleona roughly hits her head and yell. "BAKA! Don't take his love for you lightly!"

"YA!" (Your Name) screams and threw a hit back. "I know, I just don't want him to be stressed out anymore."

"Like I said, don't take his love for granted."

Leopold then walked into the room, he was smiling. "YEAH! Aniue love for you is bigger than this world and so is ours to yours, I know you are sick but we all know you use to be a strong magic knight before!"

(Your Name) grew flushed and chuckled, she lost a baby but right know she was surrounded with her family.  

She didn't know how long she waited for him but (Your Name) decided it was time to recover and get healthy again. She trained endlessly day and night, toning her body and magic again. She felt a sense of relief being able to be out of bed and fight again.

(Your Name) heard news that Leopold was trying to protect the people in the squad as their vice captain had been taken over by a elf. "Please let me make it to him on time. I can't lose anybody else."

Leopold was on the floor, he needed to get up, he was going to be the captain one day but his body wouldn't move. "Leopold!" She yells reaching out to him as a orange flame engulfed them from behind.

"You did well (Your Name), Leo." Fuegoleon deep voice flows out as she sees him walk out. A feeling of burden had been lifted off her chest. Of course he was there to save them when they needed him the most.

"What took so long stupid?" she lightly punches his side as he lovingly gives her a sincere smile.

"Don't worry, I made it on time." Fuegoleon reassured her as she sees a salamander next to him. "I see you picked up a new friend along the way."

He chuckled "It's a long story but we will have time later once the kingdom is back in safe hands." Fuegoleon pauses and gives a good look at her. The color was back on her face, and she gained a few pounds.

"It's good to have you back my love."

"I can say the same for you mister, looks like both of us bedridden doesn't sit well."

Leopold pushes himself in the middle. "HELLO! AN ELF IS ABOUT TO KILL US! SAVE THE HAPPY REUNION FOR LATER!"

"Ya Leo, let us adult handle the situation." She smirked as Fuegoleon and her both throw a powerful blow. "Yes, Leo don't take us for granted. We've handled worse enemies together."

Leopold just throws a baby tantrum and smiles after, he was really glad they were both back.

"(Your Name) let's go." Fuegoleon says taking her hand as she gladly accepts.

"For now, we both are broken somehow in some form but we will continue to grow together."

[dominaecaede]

Tomorrow Never Comes

Chapter 7 results: 88% chose to move quietly

〘 twitter 〙

The following story will have themes such as blood, gore, situations that may cause anxiety and major character death. If you are sensitive to any of these, please do not proceed.

[Additional warning: needle mention]

Chapter 8: Regret

Shouto peeked above his cover that he'd taken from a lab sink and observed the akuma before ducking down again. His heterochromatic eyes looked up at Bakugou and the others.

"We have to move quietly," he whispered. "If we shoot them all down, that will only trigger a hoard. This isn't a videogame, Bakugou."

"Tch." Bakugou clicked his tongue and peeked up to also see his surroundings. "Don't you think I know that?"

Deku rested his chin on his fingers as he began to think of a route. His eyes lit up in success. "There are other wash stations in the lab that we can use for cover to catch our breath. We'll have to be very careful. I'll lead."

Shouto nodded in which prompted the others to do the same. Deku peeked up once more to see if any akuma were around before proceeding. He lead the group down a path that seemed more clear towards the right of the room and everything was going well. It wasn't long until they were in front of their teacher's cage doors. A surge of confidence surged within the greenette.

"Almost there...!" He whispered.

Before he began creeping towards the cage again, there was a sudden slam coming from the group's proximity. It alarmed them, but when Dabi hushed them, he peeked up from their cover to see what was going on. Guns suddenly began firing, immediately forcing Dabi back down. From the corner of her eye, Uraraka can see almost every akuma go down with no effort and adrenaline made her heart pump rapidly. When the firing ceased and the creatures stayed dead, the sound of rapid footsteps were soon to follow.

"Coast is clear," a firm male's voice spoke out, sounding as if he were wearing a mask.

The sound of heavy footsteps soon took over their eardrums. Each step echoed within the walls of the lab. It wasn't hard to figure out that whoever made those footsteps was wearing heels. A feminine chuckle followed, and Aizawa grunting in distaste.

"Looks like you made a few friends while you two got comfortable," the voice spoke, obviously to the two men who were stuck in cages. "How are you two holding up?"

"Is that supposed to be a trick question?" Aizawa grit his teeth. "Your taunting is annoying me. I'd rather be sleeping than listen to you any longer."

"Oh, Shouta. That'll soon be arranged but it's best to not get too excited," the woman chuckled. "You two have - or should I say, had - powerful quirks. Your transformations are something worth seeing."

"Transformations...?" All Might coughed. Izuku winced at the sound as he kept listening to the conversation. "What are you planning to do with us? You know what, it doesn't even matter. Just don't hurt the students..."

"I'm touched. However, I can't promise anything. I'm sure your students know how much you care. After all, they're not very slick."

The hand of one of Clearnox's security grabbed at Bakugou's shoulder and the stronger figure yanked him up, making the blonde stand. Deku shot up automatically in panic.

"Kacchan...!"

When the greenette turned his head, his eyes widened a bit. There stood before him was a woman with short wavy blonde hair and alluring tangerine eyes. She had a seemingly polite smile but the expression in her eyes contradicted any sign of kindness she might've shown. The woman was surrounded by four armoured soldiers, including the one having a hold on Bakugou. Three of them were masked. The only one who didn't wear a mask was towards the woman's right side, and he looked like the kind of villain you'd see in an action film. The soldier's vests had Clearnox's symbol embedded into it. Deku immediately recognized who she was from all the news he's watched and realized his mother was right about having doubts.

"Yuna Hana...," Deku muttered as he raised his gun at the woman. He wore an intense expression, his emerald eyes watching her every move. "Let him go."

Yuna's empty grin smiled as she walked towards the blonde, who was trying to fight his way out of the tight grip with an angry expression much more different than usual. She stopped in front of him and pulled up the touch screen pad she was carrying.

"Bakugou Katsuki," she read from her screen. "Student of UA High School... Placed first in the sports festival? Impressive."

"Let him go!" Deku shouted again but was completely ignored.

"Let's see... Birthday: April 20th... Quirk: explosions? Interesting..." She continued to scroll on her touch screen before putting it away and reaching to grip his jaw. "Not that bad looking, either. He'd make a fine addition."

Bakugou yanked his jaw from her grip and attempted to bite her hand. "Piss off, lady."

Yuna had reacted in time, letting out an amused chuckle. "Your feisty attitude will come in handy, too. Take him to quarantine."

"No!" Aizawa had shouted from his cage. Deku aimed his gun at the soldier walking away with Bakugou and almost pulled the trigger before another one landed a punch on his jaw with brutal force, knocking tbe greenette down. Dabi had gotten up from his cover and threw a butcher knife conveniently found next to him towards the soldier who had the blonde. The knife plunged into his arm and he screamed, letting go of Bakugou. The blonde used this to his advantage and began beating him up before shooting him with his shotgun. Shouto and Uraraka stayed down but it wasn't like they weren't doing anything. The firing gave a distraction while the two-toned haired boy was thinking of a plan.

Bakugou had rushed back to Deku's side and aimed his shotgun towards the woman, the greenette doing the same.

"Let my teachers go," Deku said firmly. "I'm not afraid to shoot you."

The blonde woman chuckled. "A kid acting big and bad. That's cute."

"A fucking bullet in your face will be cute, too," Bakugou snarled.

The woman's eyes grew emotionless, her empty smile fading. A sigh escaped her lips before she simply turned towards the door she came in from. "Maybe," she finally responded. "But your chance to shoot me hasn't come just yet."

"Wait, what is she doing...?" Uraraka muttered. She was following Shouto, who was creeping towards one of the soldier's standing guard next to the cages. Shouto hushed the brunette as a response.

However, the two were stopped in their tracks when they saw Yuna holding up her watch that she wore on her wrist. She pressed something on it, they were too far to tell what it was, but a loud noise was heard from behind them. When Uraraka looked behind her, she could see that a hoard of akuma were headed their way.

"...! Shit...!" Shouto muttered.

The other boys soon noticed the hoard coming and fell back. "Fuck...!" Bakugou shouted.

Dabi didn't waste any time. He began shooting the two other soldiers through their masks before they could react. He aimed his gun towards the woman, but she was unfortunately already walking through the door with the only unmasked soldier.

"Dammit...!" Shouto spat. "We have to get the teachers out of the cages before that hoard gets here!"

"Already on it!" Uraraka nodded and ran towards the metal bars. The lock was a heavy one, and she didn't have enough time to look for a key so she found another way. "Stand back, you two!" She told the teachers. Aizawa and All Might stepped as far back as they could as Uraraka got her gun out and shot the locks. She hastened to open the cage doors and helped them out, however, All Might stumbled a little. Uraraka helped him up and the man smiled kindly towards her.

"Did you have an escape route planned?" Aizawa asked the group.

"We have to head back towards the elevator," Uraraka answered while she had All Might's skinny arm wrapped behind her neck to keep him up. "Yuna blocked the other way out."

"Then let's go!" Deku nodded.

The hoard of akuma was already charging at them and Bakugou shot some of them down to hold them off. Luckily the elevator wasn't too far ahead, but before they could all enter, All Might stumbled again.

"A-All Might...!" Deku shot back and rushed towards him. "C'mon, we're almost there!"

All Might wheezed. "Sorry... Looks like those soldiers landed some pretty rough blows on me."

Deku looked down and noticed that the white shirt All Might was wearing was tainted red. He knew his teachers were in bad shape but it's only now that he's seeing just how bad the damage was. All Might was stabbed in the stomach twice and cut up pretty bad on his arms and cheeks, along with bruises to his face and neck. Deku was horrified.

"What did they do to you...?" He whispered.

The group had gone ahead and was holding the elevator door open. They were ready to go back to the first floor until they saw that Deku was with All Might. Shouto immediately ran towards them and took one of his arms.

"Come on, we have to go. I'll help him up!" He told Midoriya.

"N-No...," All Might answered. "I'm too badly injured. I'll just slow you all down."

"All Might, you gotta try! Come on!" Deku had taken his other arm to try and hold him up. When they began running again, the teacher had only stumbled again. The panic began clouding the greenette's mind.

"No no no... Come on, we're almost there...!" Shouto heaved and pushed on.

It took a huge effort, but both boys had managed to carry All Might into the elevator. Aizawa saw how close the hoard was getting so he closed the door before they could get to the group. Uraraka sighed in relief, and Shouto and Midoriya helped All Might sit down on the ground of the elevator and rested his back against the wall.

"He's in awful condition...!" The brunette gasped. "Did they do that to him?!"

Aizawa grunted. He gripped his side and sat down. "They tried to torture us until our minds b-broke."

"Why?" Dabi raised an eyebrow.

Aizawa looked up at Dabi, then raised his eyebrows at Deku and the others. No words were needed to see that their former homeroom teacher was confused why a villain was helping. Deku only nodded, and that was enough.

"All Might and I overheard the guards talking," he began. "F-From what we heard, they were going to try and turn us into those freaks and Yuna was going to oversee the whole operation."

"And why the hell would she do that?" Bakugou asked.

"All I'm thinking is that maybe it's because of the kind of quirks we had. Otherwise why else would she take us?"

Shouto listened as he began thinking. His eyes lit up and he turned his gaze towards Midoriya. "Mutations..."

Midoriya blinked in confusion at first before realizing what he meant. Shock fell before him. "The quirks people used to have determine how mutated the experiment will become... That's what happened to Shigaraki! The reason why he looked like that was because he had a strong quirk! If Yuna was trying to turn you into those things..."

"... Then she was trying to mutate us," All Might wheezed out. "B... But why?"

Aizawa blinked. "And how did you even come to that conclusion, Midoriya? You went up against Shigaraki Tomura while we were gone?"

Midoriya nodded. "Dabi was helping us get better equipment that happened to be located at the League of Villain's hideout. We found a very deformed akuma and fought it, but we soon found out that it was Shigaraki. He was fast, too. Looked like an insect..."

"Gave me the fucking creeps," Bakugou shivered.

Aizawa blinked again and looked down. "That's insane..."

The elevator binged to it's stop and the doors opened to a familiar hallway. Bakugou helped All Might up while Midoriya lead. The group wasn't too far behind.

"This way," the greenette called out.

They reached the familiar set of stairs that lead back up to the trap door. Slowly they crept out and looked around to see if the coast was clear before continuing on their way. Shouto closed the trap door when everyone was out and let out a sigh.

"Alright, we should head back to the others and get All Might patched--"

His speech was interrupted by one of Clearnox's soldiers gripping him and covering his mouth. The others immediately got defensive and got their guns out.

"Todoroki-kun!!" Uraraka shouted in worry as she began firing at the soldier holding onto him.

"Uraraka-san, be careful! You could hit Todoroki-kun!" Midoriya spoke out.

Shouto was wriggling in the soldier's arms and trying to kick himself free, but the sound of a helicopter interrupted everyone's thoughts. The helicopter landed just in front of the group as Yuna Hana appeared from the industry's entrance.

"This is the one we need," she spoke out to the soldier. "I took the liberty of researching information on this little group. He's the son of Endeavor and Todoroki Rei. No doubt he had a strong quirk. Take him."

"??!!" Shouto made an angry muffled noise and continued to fight the strong grip holding him. His constant wriggling opened a window and he bit the soldier's hand hard. The masked individual winced and landed a hard punch to the dual-toned haired boy, making him cough out a little bit of blood.

"Icyhot!" Bakugou shouted and pointed his shotgun at the soldier, but Yuna Hana shook her head at him before he could even pull the trigger.

"I wouldn't try that," she told the blonde boy. "My men might use your friend as a shield."

Bakugou grit his teeth before noticing the other soldiers pointing their guns at the rest of the group. Shouto was weakened from the punch but he still pressed on. He wriggled some more and grunted in frustration, and this only made Yuna sigh. She walked over to the captive boy and pulled out a syringe she had in the purse she carried.

"I didn't want to use this, but you leave me no choice, young one."

She gripped Todoroki's hair and pulled it to the side to make his neck exposed before inserting the needle into it. The effects were quick and he began feeling drowsy, but even so, he fought to keep his eyes open.

"That should calm him down. Bring him in. We'll go to the center of operations," Yuna ordered.

Midoriya felt panic grip his bones. He began running towards the helicopter while gripping his weapons. Whatever that was in that syringe was strong. Shouto's vision began getting cloudy as he tried to lift his head up to see his friend. All he could see was a blotchy figure with a green head.

"Mi... do... riya...," He muttered quietly before becoming unconscious.

"No...," The greenette whispered as he watched Shouto being put into the flying vehicle. The helicopter began flying up before taking off. "TODOROKI-KUN!!!!!!" He screamed.

He heard the clicking of the other soldier's weapons and anger spilled into his veins. He screamed and began shooting at all of them, his eyes glowing with a rage that made Bakugou jump. But even so, it made the group join him. Midoriya showed no mercy as he shot every one of them down. They landed a few bullets into his arm and leg, but he didn't feel the pain over the adrenaline talking over. When the last soldier was down, Midoriya didn't even stop. He began kicking and stomping the body's face into the ground until the face wasn't even recognizable. The body's blood was even getting on his pants. Uraraka rushed towards him and took ahold of his back, holding him close while closing her eyes painfully.

"D-Deku-kun, that's enough...!" She spoke out.

Midoriya didn't seem to come back to reality until Uraraka's hold made him stop. He began shaking and tightened his fists. He knelt to to the ground and slammed his fists on the gravel, finally letting out a scream he held in. The group couldn't tell if he was crying but they weren't about to judge him. Bakugou walked up to him and put a hand on his shoulder, gritting his teeth in anger while looking up towards the direction they took their friend. All Might slowly trudged towards Deku and gently petted his head to calm him down. Both Dabi and Aizawa looked towards the direction Bakugou was.

After a moment of silence to allow the greenette to calm down, Aizawa spoke up. "We have to patch up All Might. Let's go to the others-"

"No," Midoriya interrupted. "You all go ahead. I'm gonna go get Todoroki-kun back."

The group shot up a look. "By yourself?! Are you crazy?!"

"Look, I'm going!" He stood up, making Uraraka let go of him. He began walking towards the helicopter's route. "You're either with me or you're just in my way. I don't care what you choose."

Of all the irritating things he could say that would irritate Bakugou, this one seemed to take the cake. He stomped towards him and gripped his arm.

"Oh hell no, this isn't the time to act like a reckless hero, shitty nerd!" He shouted. "We all wanna save Icyhot but we need to get All Might to safety first. Your ass is coming with us whether you like it or not!"

Deku shot back at him. "What, and stall time while they're doing god-knows-what to Todoroki-kun?! No way! I'm not failing him like how I failed saving you before!"

Bakugou gripped his teeth and didn't hesitate to sock his childhood friend right square in the jaw. It knocked him down, as to be expected from the force. The blonde knelt down and gripped Deku's shirt to make him look at him.

"You're irritating as fuck, Deku, but that crossed the damn line!" He shouted in his face. "How are you gonna save him if you can't even save your own first?!"

"That's why I said to go on ahead without me!" Deku shouted back, not caring to wipe his bloody lip.

"To hell with that! We're in this together and I'm not about to let you die without me making it happen first!"

Deku tightened his lips. Bakugou looked at him angrily before letting out a frustrated sigh. He let go of Deku's shirt before standing up. "You know what? Fine. Go. Go and play hero and get killed. But don't you fucking dare think for one damn minute that I didn't try and stop you."

Bakugou began headed back towards the group but he stopped in his steps and looked back at Deku, who was still on the ground looking at him.

"You act like we're just abandoning Icyhot. We're not that fucking stupid," he put his hands on his waist. "But we're not that smart, either. That's why if you want to actually save him and not get killed, we need time to think of a plan. You of all people should know this."

Deku looked down and furrowed his eyebrows. Bakugou had a point. He can't just swing in there recklessly. But still, the more time they waste, the more Shouto would be closer to being dead. Or worse: mutated. His train of thought was interrupted by the sight of Bakugou's hand reaching out towards him.

"Look," Bakugou started again. "We need to make sure our group is secure and we need time to think of a plan. But one thing's for sure: we're gonna shoot those damn doors down. We're gonna shoot their fucking skulls in and we're gonna save that half n' half bastard. We'll teach them not to fuck with us, but first, you need to use your damn brain. It's the only thing you're good for. So come on. Get your ass up."

Should he:

• Take Bakugou's hand?

• or save Shouto now?

[lighthenight]

Covid

It's crazy to think it's been almost two years since this all started. I took it so seriously and really isolated myself from everyone for close to an entire year, thinking about the risk it could have on my family. We left to taiwan, knowing it was the only safe haven grounds away from all this craziness. We came back to get vaccinated, thinking we could get back to normal life. Sure, we still wore masks and we avoided indoor events and dining, but we felt somewhat protected; that at least the risk wasn't as high for going out. Because yeah, at a certain point, isolating yourself for so long does take a toll on your mind, even if you're not fully aware of it. So here we are, in 2022, and covid is rampant again. All time high number of cases, vaccines not doing much to protect against infection. It really feels like all this time we did so much to protect ourselves from getting it and it's all for nothing because the virus still wins. And that's biology - viruses evolve quick but we don't evolve as fast. They equip themselves with more weapons and we manufacture defenses slower than they can multiply. Although, I am aware that we as a community isolated enough to slow down the initial spread, especially when the virus was more dangerous, and we hadn't been vaccinated yet. It's still a big toll on our mind though. Here's the deal: I'm pretty sure I got Covid. NYE, I went to an SF party with Lauren and it was a concert, much like what you'd expect. If you asked me the normal questions, Yes I wore a mask, yes I tried to distance myself, but i guess it's really hard to stop when you're around so many freaking people. Here's the breakdown of the days after (keep in mind, i'm speaking about this a week after exposure): Jan 1st: I felt perfectly normal aside from the fact that I woke up in the middle of the night feeling like my stomach hurt. Day 2: Woke up in the middle of the night nauseous and puking a little. Stomach hurt during the day and felt nauseous when I had nothing in my stomach. Day 3: Scratchy throat, and stomach continued to hurt. Diarrhea as well. Day 4: Body aches, fever, chills begin, on top of the previous symptoms. Needed painkillers to get through the day. Brain fog in the morning. This was pretty much the worst day. Day 5: Continued fever but less, chest pains when i eat too much, still some stomach pain, painkillers to help with the fever. Day 6: Sore throat, runny nose, cough, but everything else cleared up. Day 7: Feeling about 80% back to normal - just a cough here and there. My take on this whole thing is that it lasts about 6 days total of symptoms, for someone like me. The GI symptoms were the most interesting because they threw me off - I would think it's food poisoning and the stomach flu, and didn't think it was covid because GI symptoms were pretty rare for covid cases. And man this really screwed with me plans too - I was headed back to Taiwan again in 4 days, yet in order to leave, I need to test negative but I don't think I will in time. It's crazy to think this virus really does stay in the body for a lot longer than your normal cold. In the big picture, there's a lot of good news. With omicron growing in case numbers so quick, it means a large majority of people are likely going to get it, and build natural immunity to it, even when vaccines are helping mitigate the symptoms. Omicron is estimated to be the dominant variant for a while, since it is the most infectious, meaning it will beat the other variants to getting into the human population first. Omicron is seen to be a less severe variant which is also great news because people will get it but not die from it as much. The recommendation is still to be vigilant and wear masks. Covid was bad, it sucks, and it was really painful. For a couple days, I just wanted to die and not go through all the suffering. But it just was a matter of pushing through the height of the covid journey. This will be an endemic someday - we will have to live with the fact that it's here to stay. Stay healthy.

[garretschuelke]

Godan: Omega Wolf Blues, part 4

(As featured in Tuesday Serial. Read part three here)

Godan blocked the blows that the Gray Assistant rained down on him. He kicked it away, sending it stumbling into the door.

The Gray Wolf frantically looked around the room, which had a gurney, a desk that had medical supplies neatly arraigned on it, and the entirety of the walls consisting of cabinets.

“If this is a morgue,” Godan sidestepped the Gray Assistant as it lunged at him, “then one of us is in the right place.”

The Gray Assistant punched the wall in frustration. Godan took hold of the gurney ans smashed it into its side.

“Can't you guys talk?” Godan asked, slamming the end of the gurney into its stomach, pinning it against the wall.

“They can talk,” Mysta's voice came over the intercom. “but I chose not to put in a voice box in this one, since its sole function is to fight.”

“Well, good fucking job, Doc.”

“Thank you, Gareth. It's not like they have anything much to say anyhow.”

Godan pressed harder in order to keep the Gray Assistant from escaping. “I'd like to know how you know my name, but I'm more interested in know why this one doesn't tear apart as easily as your other zombies do.” He grunted and steadied himself. “Will this one reek as bad as the other when I start shredding it?”

Mysta laughed. “I don't think so. Unlike the others, I didn't infuse this one with Ruthven's cells—I infused them with yours!”

Godan froze. “WHAT?!”

The Gray Assistant pushed back, sending Godan onto the floor. It jumped on top of the him and wrapped his claws around the Gray Wolf's throat.

“It wasn't hard at all,” Mysta laughed, “you left plenty of blood behind after all your battles—on the streets, on your opponents, you name it!” Godan slashed at the Gray Assistant, who tightened his grip. “The only way I've could have gotten it easier was if you decided to donate to a blood bank.”

“Never was,” Godan struggled, “a big fan of needles.”

“Before you is the first Assistant to be perfectly infused with your essence. Should be no surprise though—he's quite familiar with it!”

Godan coughed. “What are you babbling about?!”

Oh, this will be good, Mysta thought. “For the corpse, I chose to combine your DNA with, I chose this particular one because I know it would make for a wonderful reunion.”

Mysta mentally commanded the Gray Assistant to release Godan from his grip, but to remain on top of him. The zombie did so, and sat up. Godan looked confused.

TAKE OFF YOUR MASK, Mysta commanded.

The Gray Assistant nodded. It reached over the top of its head, took hold of its mask, and pulled it off.

The face of the Gray Assistant was of someone that Godan loved like he did no one else.

It was the face of someone whom Godan was always thinking about.

It was the face of someone whom Godan felt shame over not being able to save.

It was the face of some whom Godan missed every single day.

“Haruki,” Godan muttered, looking at the calm, dead face of his lost friend and lover.

***

White Streak and Upton locked hands. Their tentacles, tangled up in each other, whipped erratically around them.

“Upton, you can't win this,” White Streak said as he pushed, making Upton backtrack.

“Oh, but he can win this!' Mysta said over the intercom. “With the completely mechanized body I've given him, there's no—”

“UPTON!” White Streak yelled. “YOU IN THERE?!”

“I don't know why you're trying to reach him—you two weren't exactly buddies. But I wiped him completely of his personality and memories. They would have just gotten in the way of him becoming my perfect android servant.”

“It's not like he had much of a brain to begin with,” White Streak replied.

“Oh, I absolutely, one-hundred percent agree with you, Agent Sanders.” Mysta made Upton unleash another tentacle. “He was a good fighter, and had extraordinary willpower.” Mysta directed the tentacle between Upton's legs and shot it upwards, hitting White Streak with an uppercut. “But he was a terrible strategist—he would have eventually led the Rudkuses to ruin with this thirst for power and vengeance.”

“Couldn't agree more,” White Streak said as Upton began pushing him back.

“You know what the stupidest think he ever did though?”

White Streak stopped himself from being pushed. “Hooking up with you?”

No, he—oh yeah, you're kinda right!” Mysta laughed. “Second stupidest thing he ever did though was not allow me to put him through the same procedure I put you through.”

White Streak's heart began beating rapidly. “WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?!” White Streak yelled, looking into Upton's eyes—dark, square slots, like his own when he was in his current transformed state.

“The explanation is simple, though the procedure wasn't—it was practically a miracle that you came out the way you are now.” Mysta sighed. “I do amaze myself at times.”

“ANSWER ME!” White Streak dodged Upton's tentacle. He unleashed another tentacle of his own, which promptly got tangled with Upton's.

“Here's the summary: I merged your DNA with that of a shapeshifting alien.”

White Streak stopped trying to push back. Upton did the same.

“It's an extraordinary creature. I acquired him along with Ruthven. I originally thought that combining the genetics of a gray space lizard would be as easy as combing Ruthven's vampire DNA and, most recently, Godan's wolf DNA. It turned out that I had ALOT of tweaking to do.”

“I guess that explains why I turn gray when I transform,” White Streak muttered.

“It kinda does. Besides the color and ability to shape shift, you haven't gained any of the aliens other bestial attributes. My Assistants haven't gained all of Ruthven's vampiric attributes, and my Gray Assistant lacks Godan's healing factor.” Mysta thought it over. “One thing I learned through all my experiments: you don't always get what you want, or expect.”

White Streak tightened his grip on Upton's hands. “So, if you would have shot Upton up with this alien shit, he would have turned out like me?”

“Yep! You surviving the procedures meant it was perfected. He might have beaten Godan if he had your shape shifting abilities.” Mysta's tone turned harsher. “He wouldn't have died like a fucking moron—losing flesh and blood through transforming, getting squashed by a helicopter...” Mysta growled. “He deserved it!”

“Talk about catching feelings,” White Streak said, grinning.

“We're done talking.” The light on Mysta's crown grew bright. Upton froze. An array of tentacles exploded from his back and wrapped themselves around White Streak. “You're mine now.”

“This is it?” White Streak asked. “I think you have too much faith in him if you think this will stop me!”

Mysta snapped her fingers. A tentacle came loose and attached itself to the back of White Streaks neck. The agent's world went black. Suddenly, he found himself in a bathroom, pants down, sitting on the toilet.

“WHERE AM I,” he asked himself. He noticed that his voice had an echo to it. He tried looking around, but his head would not move.

White Streak felt something vibrate against his leg. His body bent down, despite not making himself do so.

“WHAT'S HAPPENING TO ME?!” he yelled as he took out his cell phone. It saw he had a new text message. He saw that the person who sent it to him was labeled 'Red Seal'.

White Streak realized what was going on. “OH, SHIT,” he said, trying to get up. His body refused to move as he opened the message. “SHIT, SHIT, SHIT, SHIT...”

The bathroom door was kicked open. Two Rudkuses members entered. “Get up,” one of them said, “Upton needs to talk to you.”

White Streak heard himself yell “WHAT THE FUCK, MAN? I'M SHITTING HERE—GET THE FUCK OUT!”

The Rudkuses pulled White Streak up. One of them punched him in the face, and the other took his phone as they dragged him down the hall.

“THIS ALREADY HAPPENED!” White Streak yelled, panicking. He tried to move, and even though it felt like he was doing so, he continued to watch the floorboards pass him by.

“Man of War!” a voice said, “we need to have a little chat.”

The men forced  White Streak onto his knees. One of them grabbed him by his hair and pulled his head up. Before him, sitting in the middle of the couch, surround by other gangbangers, was Upton.

“What the fuck, Up?” White Streak heard himself say. “I was on the toilet!”

“HE'S NOT AN ANDOID!” White Streak yelled, his heat racing. “I'VE ALREADY GONE THROUGH THIS!”

“Yeah, they should have let you cleaned up first.” Upton waved his hand in front of his face as he got off the couch. “I've been having my advisor look into your operations this week,” He pointed towards Sturgill, who nodded. “after I got word that you're apparently an informant.” Upton held out  his hand. “Gimme his phone.”

White Streak felt himself hold his arms out, attempting to blast Upton. His body remained limp. One of the gangbangers tossed his phone to Upton. He felt himself begin to shake at the Rudkuses leader looked through his messages.

“There's me, there's you, Sturgill, I see some of our guys,” Upton glared at White Streak, “but who's this 'Red Seal', huh?”

White Streak heard himself claim that it was a new member who had just not been properly introduced to the inner circle of the Rudkuses yet.

“ 'New member?' That's your lame ass excuse?” Upton unleashed a tentacle, which snaked around his waist. “Guess it's a good thing that you've finally brought him in—all this info you've been giving him these past few months would be dangerous to someone on the outside.”

“OH GOD, NO!” White Streak screamed, trying to blast Upton in vain.

Using his tentacle, Upton took hold of a knife that was sheathed on his belt and threw it at White Streak.

“What is going on here?” Mysta asked herself. Through Upton, she cold see that White Streak was ensnared by the tentacles and in a trance, but a bright light was emitting from his and Upton's hands.

White Streak heard himself screaming as he looked down at the knife sticking out of his chest. It was also the first time that, even though he was filled with fear, he realized that he felt no pain.

“My source told me that you're FBI,” Upton waved his men away. “If true, you should have gotten more training before infiltrating us.”

Upton wrapped his tentacle around White Streaks neck and held him up. “Mysta's been bugging me lately about getting her a new specimen.” He pulled the knife out. “So I guess there is an upside to finding you out.”

White Streak screamed. He felt himself close his eyes, but he could still see what was playing out in front of him.

“You've lived up to your name, 'Man of War'. Upton held the knife up. “I'll miss your skills as a General, but you have to go.”

Upton brought the knife down into White Streaks shoulder. He head himself scream. “HELP ME!” he yelled as he was unable to look away from Upton's smiling face as he repeatedly stabbed White Streak. “PLEASE GOD, HELP ME!”

A white light enveloped the room. White Streaks energy beams, which had been building up while he was entranced, were let loose Upton's hands and arms were instantly disintegrated. The energy blasts then went through his torso, leaving only his head, shoulders, and legs.

Mysta screamed as her crown sent a shock wave through her body. She regained control, and through Upton, whose head was now on the floor, she saw the tentacles encasing White Streak fall to the ground.

“YOU FUCKING BASTARD!” Mysta screamed. “YOU GODDAMN, MOTHERFUCKING...”

White Streak came out of his trance. He saw that his arms were outstretched, with smoke flowing out of his palms, and that there was a gigantic hole in the wall in front of him. He heard Mysta's rantings as he looked down and saw Upton's head, squirming.

The fear that he was filled with was instantly replaced with rage. Even thought they hurt to move, Upton pointed his arms at Upton's remaining parts and, with all his might, blasted them to pieces.

“FUCK KEEPING YOU AS A SERVANT!” Mysta screamed. “I'M PUTTING YOU IN A GRAVE, AND I'LL—”

White Streak blasted the intercom. He let his arms fall to his sides, and allowed himself to revert back to his normal form.

As the last piece of metal absorbed into his flesh, and remaining gray disappeared from his skin, Daniel fell to the floor and passed out.

***

“GODDAMMIT!” Mysta yelled. She took off her crown and slammed it on the desk. She looked through her glass shield and saw Nang and Dia dodging Fold's bullets and flames.

“Two out of three should still work,” she said, leaning back in her chair. Mysta heard muffled grunting. She looked over and saw Callisto struggling about.

It made Mysta remember her backup plan.

“You just reminded me of my two other projects,” Mysta said, opening one of her desk drawers. Callisto stropped struggling and watched Mysta excitedly dig through her work until she found the folder she was looking for. “Want to see what else I have in store for you guys?”

Mysta could tell that Callisto was cursing at her. She grinned, opened the folder, and slid herself in front of her.

“Here's the first one,” Mysta tapped her finger against the file. “He's been around as long Ruthven—one of my very first projects!”

Dia bounced off the wall and got above Fold. She aimed at his head, and opened fire. The bullets bounced off his head and shoulders, only creating barely-noticeable flesh wounds. The Man of War growled, unleashing a tentacle that grabbed Dia by her waist and slammed her against the glass.

“GO, FOLD” Mysta yelled. The android aimed his flamethrower at Dia and blasted her. Callisto lunged forward, screaming.

“Calm yourself,” Mysta flipped to another file and held it up, “you still have ONE family member left now.”

Callisto froze. Her eyes widened, and she screamed even louder as she lashed out against her restraints.

“I really needed that,” Mysta said, closing the folder.

Dia slashed the tentacle with her claws. She bounced off the glass, shot over Fold, and crashed into the nearby wall.

“OVER HERE!” Nang yelled, hiding behind some debris. Dia sprang towards her. “You okay?”

“NO, I'M NOT FUCKING OKAY!” Dia looked down at her tattered, smoking clothes. “This was one of my favorite suits!”

“Whine about it to Red Seal later,” Nang closed her eyes and flattened her hands against the floor.

“I can't pierce his armor,” Dia said, looking over the debris, “and your spear can't do shit either. What now?”

“Just give me a sec.”

“Well, hurry the fuck up,” Dia reloaded, “he's turning around.”

Fold shut down his flamethrower and scanned the room. He saw half of Dia's head sticking out and began walking over.

“He's coming this way,” Dia mumbled, “fucking do something!”

Golden energy glowed around Nang, which then shot up towards the ceiling.

“What was that?” Dia asked.

“I summoned some help,” Nang said, opening her eyes.

Dia looked around. “Where? What help?”

Nang pointed upwards. Dia looked up and saw giant, googly-eyed spider hanging on the ceiling.

Dia's jaws dropped. “HOLY SHIT!”

Fold looked up at the spider.

“Say hello to Agor!” Nang stood up, smiling, and pointed towards the android. “GET HIM!”

Fold raised his minigun and fired, filling Agor with bullets.

“NO!” Nang screamed as the spider fell to the floor, convulsing.

“Some fucking help,” Dia muttered, firing at Fold “Forget that bug—we're in deep shit!”

Nang put both her hands on the bloody mess that was her partner. “I've never done it with him in this condition.” She closed her eyes again.

“HEY!” Dia yelled as Fold advanced upon them. “SNAP OUT IT AND HELP ME. BITCH!”

The same golden energy surrounded Nang and Agor. It grew so bright that Dia had to close her eyes and look away.

Fold stopped in place. His sensors tried to analyze what was going on in front of him.

“Nang!” Dia opened her eyes slightly. “What did you—”

Before her stood Nang, now sporting four extra arms, fangs that extended past her lips, and glowing red eyes. She took off her crown and dripping it on the floor.

“Wow,” Dia said, lowering her guns, “you're...part bug now?

***

“HARUKI!” Godan yelled, dodging his lovers punches. “IT'S ME, GARETH!” Godan looked into Haruki's half-closed eyes. “LOOK!” he pulled down his mask. “YOU KNOW WHO I AM!”

“No, he doesn't,” Mysta said over the intercom, “corpses tend to not have self-awareness.”

Haruki jumped back and charged at Godan, claws ready to strike. The Gray Wolf caught both of his claws, and slammed him against the wall.

“ 'Ruki,,” Godan got right in his face, “snap out of it, man!'

“I could go into specifics about how I need potential Assistant candidates to be dead first, but—”

“YOU KILLED HIM!” Godan yelled, pressing harder against Haruki.

“I was just getting to that!” Mysta cleared her throat. “As much as I've monitored you since you took down Upton, I'm not a mind reader—which would be REALLY beneficial if I was—but I really have a knack for taking educated guesses that turn out right. Considering what seems to be your close relationship with Haruki and...what's his name?” Mysta hummed. “Tuck?”

Godan looked at the intercom. “TUCKER'S HERE TOO?!”

Mysta snickered. “He may just be.” She watched as Fold began firing upon the now-transformed Nang. “Well, that's interesting.”

“FUCK YOU!” Godan yelled. Haruki freed himself form his grasp, and kicked him across the room.

“Back to what I was saying,” Mysta concentrated, now seeing through Haruki's vision as Godan dodged the zombies slashes. “I didn't kill either of your friends—they were like that went I collected them from the truck you were chasing over a year ago.

A lump formed in Godan's throat as he remembered Haruki pulling his mask up onto his face as they laid in the truck among the other dead convenience store customers.

Haruki saw his chance. He flattened his hand and stabbed Godan in the shoulder. Godan screamed, and Haruki raked his other claw across the Gray Wolf's chest, splattering blood on the floor and nearby wall.

Mysta smiled. “Haruki died in the back of that truck—in the dark, knowing that he was surround by bullet-riddled corpses.”

Haruki swiped at Godan's face, tearing through his cheek. Godan was able to dislodge his shoulder from his dead lover's hold, only to be kicked against the wall. He crossed his arms, protecting himself as Haruki tore into him.

“Again, I wish I was a mind reader—especially at the moment I was flying away with him and the others.” Mysta sighed. “Imagine what was going through his head as he felt himself slipping away.”

Godan screamed, though it was not due to the mind numbing pain that came from his shredded arms. He reopened his eyes, and saw Haruki backing away, his claws and soaked in the Gray Wolf's blood.

“God...” Godan mumbled, allowing his arms to fall to his side. “Goddammit!”

“Can you imagine it, Gareth?” Mysta asked. “Can you imagine Haruki dying, alone and broken? Can you imagine him dying, thinking that you're coming to save him?”

Haruki lifted his claws up, then swung them downwards, spraying droplets of Godan's own blood at him. Godan cringed. Haruki charged at him.

“Or what if, as he died, he realized that you weren't going to be able to save him?”

Godan bent his body to the left, and flattened his right hand. Haruki was upon him, claws ready to strike simultaneously. Godan closed his eyes and, with a pained yell, whipped his right arm. His flattened hand swiped across Haruki's face.

“I'm probably wrong, but imagine how much, at the moment of his imminent death, he hated you for getting him into this situation—for not saving him like you said you would!”

Haruki covered his eyes and grunted loudly as he wobbled around the room.

“Good save there,” Mysta said “I may not have been able incorporate your healing factor into them, but your genes are magnif—”

A loud explosion from outside the morgue cut off the intercom. Godan stood up and watched as Haruki blindly thrashed around the room.

“ 'Ruki,” Godan gasped, holding up his arm, which shook as he tried to activate his healing factor. “I...I...” he clenched his fist. “SHIT!”

Haruki stopped moving and removed his hands from his eyes. He breathed heavily, squinting in the Gray Wolf's direction.

Godan began to cry. He swallowed, and took some deep breaths.

Haruki, blinking rapidly, wobbled towards him.

Letting out a cry, Godan charged at Haruki, claws at the ready.

***

Moments before, as Mysta taunted Godan, Nang continued to dodge Fold's bullets by crawling along the walls at blinding speed.

“WHAT'RE YOU DOING,” Dia yelled from behind the debris, “WAITING FOR HIM TO RUN OUT OF BULLETS?!”

Nang jumped onto the ceiling and aimed two of the arms she grew after fusing with Agor at Fold's  gun arm, shooting out two streams of thick, heavy webbing.

Fold looked up, aimed both arms at Nang, and fired. The webbing engulfed the bullets and covered his gun arm.

“SHIT!” Nang yelled, jumping off the ceiling as the fire blast made contact. She aimed the other two newly-grown arms at the flamethrower and fired. Without hesitation, Fold aimed the flamethrower at Nang and fired. The webbing and flames connected. Nang landed on the floor, and increased the volume of her webbing. Grunting, the android increased the power of his flames.

“And here I thought she'd be tearing him apart by now,” Dia said to herself as she dug through her utility belt. She check all the compartments and discovered that she still had two explosives left. “Should be enough.”

She looked over the debris and saw that Nang and Fold continue to struggle against each other—the streams of webbing and fire nearly covered the entire area.

“Nang!” Dia yelled, holding up the explosives.

Nang leapt to the side and continued to fire webbing. Fold swung around and blasted them with flames.

“NANG!” Dia yelled again, waving the explosives back and forth.

“WHAT?!” Nang yelled. “I'M BUSY HERE!” “Web him up, and I'll get him with this!”

Nang nodded. She rolled to the side, allowing Fold's flames to overtake her webbing. She launched herself back into the air and, aiming all six of her arms, shot webbing out of all of them at Fold.

Dia activated both explosives. “Hurry up, I'm about to toss them!”

Fold struggled and roared as Nang covered completely with webbing. She bounced herself of Mysta's glass shield and landed behind the debris.

“Took you long enough!” Dia said, throwing the explosives at her target.

“Sorry,” Nang wiped off her forehead, “I got caught up in all the action.”

The first explosive latched itself onto Fold's chest, and began beeping loudly. The second explosive, which Dia aimed at the android's head, sailed over and landed on Mysta's glass shield.

“Whoops,” Dia muttered.

“What?” Nang stood up. “What happened?”

The explosives went off within seconds of each other. Pieces of Fold went flying everywhere. Mysta's glass shield shattered—the power of the blast brought down her entire platform.

“That happened,” Dia replied.

As the smoked cleared, Dia saw Callisto still hanging on the wall, head down.

“Sis,” Dia noticed the wound on the side of head. “CALLISTO!”

“No...” a voice came from the platform wreckage. Freeing herself from the debris, Mysta, covered in ash and cuts, stood up and leaned against the wall. In her hand was her crown, which was shortening out. “NO!”

“Damn, she's pretty resilient for an egghead,” Nang said.

“GODDAMN YOU!” Mysta yelled, whipping the crown across the room. “THIS ISN'T OVER!”

“Yeah, we're ending this!” Dia said, aiming her guns at the scientist.

Mysta put her hand into her lab coat. Dia unloaded on her. Mysta slammed against the wall as Dia kept firing.

Nang noticed that the mound that was Fold's body began to move. It toppled over, and Fold's head, still operational, began mumbling nonsense.

Dia emptied both guns. Mysta slid to the floor—a blood trail covering the wall behind her. Grabbing her spear, Nang leapt over the debris and brought it down onto Fold's head.  The mechanized gangbangers jaw dropped, and it ceased mumbling.

“CALLISTO!” Dia yelled, running past Nang and standing below where her sister hanged. “HEY, WAKE UP!”

Nang hopped onto he wall and climbed up to Callisto. “She's still breathing,” Nang said, examining her, “the explosives just knocked her out.”

The door next to them opened. White Streak walked out. “You two all right?” he asked, looking around. “What did I miss?”

“We're good,” Dia said, holstering her guns.

White Streak looked at Mysta's body. He grumbled.

“She gave us no choice,” Dia said.

White Streak nodded. “I doubt she would have allowed herself to be taken alive, anyway.” He looked up at Nang and Callisto. “How's she doing?”

“Just knocked out,” Nang replied, taking hold of Callisto after she freed her from her restraints.

White Streak looked her over. “What happened to you?”

“I fused with Agor. Remember, I was telling you about it awhile back that we were working on perfecting it.”

The door behind them, which led into the tunnel that brought them to the lab, began cracking loudly. They turned around, and saw the door slowly being forced open.

“Jesus Christ,” Dia upholstered her Desert Eagles, “what now?!”

Two claws emerged from the opening, allowing the figure to have a better grip on the door, and continued pushing. Sparks flew, and the figure screamed as the door smashed into the wall.

A naked man, covered in blood and other fluids, stood in the middle of the doorway. “Godan...” he mumbled, breathing heavily.

The side of Dia's neck began to ache. She shivered.

The man looked up, his eyes filled with rage.

“GODAN!” Lord Ruthven screamed.

Dia cursed, and began shooting at Lord Ruthven. Her guns clicked. White Streak shot two tentacles at the vampire. He wrapped Lord Ruthven up and slammed him against a nearby wall. Nang shot webbing out of all her hands, covering everything but his head.

“WHERE'S GODAN?!” Lord Ruthven yelled. “I'M GONNA  KILL THAT—”

Nang landed in front of the vampire and knocked him out with a punch.

“We'll deal with you later,” Nang said, rubbing her fist.

“Where is Godan?” White Streak asked.

Nang's eyes widened. She ran to the other side of the room. She put all her hands in between the morgues sliding doors and, with one heave, opened them.

Looking in, she saw Godan on the floor, mask less, cradling Haruki's body.

“Gareth,” Nang said as she watched Godan cry into Haruki's chest.