Izuku's Game

The Tragedy of Elizabeth and Vlad Dracula

The explosion was several cars ahead of them, but the force was enough that it cracked the windows in their subway car. The girl shrieked, and Izuku felt a panic rise in his chest. This was a real threat. His first real threat now that he knew his quirk wouldn’t kill him.

Another explosion shook the entirety of the train and the tunnel they were inside and Izuku realized he needed to act fast if they didn’t want to be crushed by rubble. Mentally, he called out, 'Aniki!'

'What’s up lil’- OH. Oh shit, you’re in a tough spot!'

'Is there a way I can use the Player Home or a dungeon to get out of here?' Izuku asked frantically. Aniki hummed inside the boy’s head.

'There is, there’s a Fast Travel feature that can take you to any dungeon you have access to, but-'

'Can we use it to go back to the rabbit area? Or the forest? Hell, I’d even take the castle over this right now!' Izuku mentally shouted back. Another explosion, a car or two closer, rocked the train and fully shattered the windows causing the girl to cover her head and scream. Rubble began to hit the top of their car and Izuku’s panic grew.

'I was getting to that, lil bro… You actually can’t access any other dungeon right now since you failed the last one. You need to complete your ‘Punishment Dungeon’ before you can go to any other dungeon.' Aniki explained and Izuku bit his lip in thought. On one hand, he could escape this place with his life and the girl’s life if they went to the dungeon and the actual entrance was safe. On the other, he was about to thrust someone who didn’t know him or even the first thing about his quirk into a dungeon he had no foreknowledge of.

'If the entrance is safe… We’ll do it.'

'It is but, are you sure you want to-'

'I won’t be able to live with myself if I don’t do something to save someone in front of me, and the Player Home isn’t an option since we’d just open back up into this same spot, so open up the dungeon!'

'Alright lil’ bro, just know that you won’t be able to leave this one until you clear it or until you die like last time.'

'I’m gonna try and not go through that again.' Izuku responded, 'You can tell me more about these ‘Punishment Dungeons’ later, right now we just need to-'

Another explosion and the ceiling of the tunnel began to collapse on the subway car, causing it to groan under the stress. “GO!”

The vine-haired girl was stunned by Izuku’s shout and even more so when he grabbed her and dragged her into some kind of portal.

The pair crashed into some kind of foyer. It was well trimmed and decorated in a Gothic style with polished oak paneling, red velvet carpet and cushions, carved wooden benches and tables, and high stone walls. There was a single set of double doors, but they were shut with a locking bar in front of them, as if it were stopping something from the other side from getting through. There was also a bare section of the stone wall, seeming to be the entrance all sealed up.

The young woman grabbed Izuku by the collar and sat him down on a bench, sitting opposite him.

"I apologize for my forcefulness, but you need to tell me what is going on. Right now." She said, her face reddened with anger.

"Yeah, I definitely will, but first, my name is Izuku Midoriya." He said, holding his hand out to shake.

Ibara took his hand in hers. His hand was much larger and was rougher, and she decided that she liked his hands. "Ibara Shiozaki, nice to meet you. What is going on?'

Izuku smiled. "Nice to meet you. Tell me, what do you know about video games."

Ibara frowned in confusion. "I used to play an rpg with my cousin when he needed extra help, but always played a healer."