Prodigies - My Hero Academia

To the Rescue

Drip.

Drip.

Akechi's eyes open slowly. Drops of what is presumably water fall from the ceiling, landing on his cheek. His body is sprawled face-down on gravel and dirt. At an arm's length away, a body lays unconscious before him.  

'Bakugo..'

Bending his arms and palms on the ground, he pushes himself up onto all fours. A sharp pain shoots through his right side. Now that the adrenaline has worn off, his body is sore and drowsy. Adjusting himself to sit, dust kicks up toward his face and causes him to cough. The sound echoes off the stone walls that surround them. Upon further inspection, he quickly recognizes this is a tunnel or cave system. 

Another drop of the suspicious liquid lands on his forehead, calling him to look up toward the ceiling. He squints, finding difficulty searching for clues in this darkness. He wipes the liquid off with his thumb and brings it close to his nostrils. 

'Salt. Are we.. under water?'

Maniacal laughter suddenly booms from all directions. His heart begins to race. Arm stretching for Bakugo, Akechi grips his shoulders and starts to shake. Unfortunately, Bakugo is unresponsive. 

A single spotlight turns on at the opposite end of the tunnel. Two figures stand side by side under its warm glow. Akechi's breath catches in his throat, recognizing these two immediately as Dabi and Shigaraki. His wings unfold and arms wrap around Bakugo's chest just when Dabi points an open hand toward them. A blast of blue flame engulfs the ground when he takes flight. 

The heat is somehow nonexistent, but he dismisses this realization as it becomes increasingly obvious that he doesn't have a good grip on dead weight in his arms. The hands holding Bakugo up are starting to slip. Smoke disrupts his vision the further he soars, losing sight of the villains below.

A cool gust of air forces him to the left. The flames extinguish, and the spotlight goes out. Though he expects to hit a wall, Akechi instead continues to fly blindly forward until noticing more lights up ahead. Instead of spotlights, lamps or ceiling LEDS, these are streetlights. 

'Huh? I don't remember leaving the cave.'

Akechi decides to land while the street appears to be quiet. He sets Bakugo down on a bench, propping him to sit up so he can assess any surface level injuries.  

A knife just grazes his ear, piecing the seat of the bench. Before Akechi can turn around another knife flies right over his head and disappears into the bushes behind the bench. Giggles flood his ears when he finally turns.

"What the hell?"

There the League of Villains stand together, all eyes on him. Anger settles in his eyes thicker than confusion. The young girl with knives strapped to her thigh pounces, baring sharp fangs with a crooked smile. Instead of falling back, Akechi throws a punch and hits her directly on the nose. Next, Twice comes forward and is met with a swift kick to the side. Dabi extends an arm again, ready to attack when Akechi takes his wrist and throws him into a streetlight post. 

The last enemy standing, Shigaraki, makes a run for toward Bakugo's unconscious body on the bench. However, before he can law a finger down, Akechi beats him with a knee to the crotch. 

Shigaraki collapses onto the cement, body limp like his colleagues and not making a sound. Finding these reactions odd and a bit off-putting, Akechi leans down to analyze the situation. After he blinks once, the scene in front of him is suddenly U.A. campus. Directly outside of the Business Course dorms to be exact. He takes a few steps back, gaze climbing up the wall to the top floor apartment where the light now clicks on.