In the Shadow of Revenge

Chapter 3

Mei couldn't believe she was about to do this, as she prayed that Tenya wouldn't wake. They had to come out, there was no saving them, to leave them would only continue to cause him pain, she rationalized. She decided to start with the left leg first,beginning with a pipe that had been nearly flattened, its shiny metal dulled by blood. Zeroing in, Mei activated her Quirk for a closer look. The skin around each of the mufflers was puckered and red, split open in some areas. A few of the pipes even wobbled due to the extent of the damage, she hoped that at least would make them easier to remove. With a grimace, Mei yanked, tugging the first muffler loose as it fell onto the mattress with a wet squelch, blood splattering onto the sheets. Mei did her best not to gag at the bits of flesh and tendon that clung to the removed bit of engine. One down, six to go.

Out went another, which was quickly followed by a third. Pushing her dreadlocks back, Mei scowled and surveyed the remaining four mufflers. They weren't as loose as the others, and the flesh was taut where dried blood had sealed it to the metal. Taking a deep breath, she grasped the tweezers once again and hooked them around the top of the leftmost pipe, wincing as the tugging was met with pressure and the tearing of skin. To her horror, as she was pulling out the last few inches of the pipe, Tenya moaned, his voice a breathy agony from the bruises encircling his throat.

"I-it's okay, Tenya. It's almost out, go back to sleep" Mei whispered in a panic. These pipes had to come out of him now so that they could regrow before infection set in. The rest of the muffler freed itself from his calf at last, and another tiny whimper escaped Tenya's cracked lips.

"There's only three left now, it'll be okay, I promise" Mei desperately tried to soothe, "I'll do it as quick as I can, all right?"

When the next pipe had been a third of the way removed, tears had begun to run down Tenya's cheeks, his eyes still clenched firmly shut. Mei fought the urge to cry tears of her own as well, she felt as if she were torturing him, much like those who had done this to him in the first place, even though she was just trying to help him. She had to get this over with and soon. The rest of the pipe came out with thankfully not too much resistance. The next was not so fortunate however, it caught against his skin tearing the flesh with a sickening sound that would surely haunt Mei's dreams that night. At that, Tenya gasped, his eyelids fluttering. Oh please, not now Mei pleaded internally, as she now knew that she had to proceed quickly. There was only one muffler remaining and Mei grasped it as tight as she could in the hopes that it could be removed in one go. With a singular steadfast yank, the muffler jerked itself free, blood spraying outwards. That was when Tenya's eyes finally opened, the bright red of his irises clouded by fear and pain, as he released a horrible heart wrenching wail that quickly devolved into sobs.

"S-s-stop please, Spinner, I-I-I'm sorry, d-don't hurt me, Tensei please help me, I-I'm scared", Tenya begged his gaze fixed on a space to the left of Mei with no recognition of her presence, before his eyes rolled back into his head and he collapsed back into unconsciousness.

At that, Mei's heart shattered, he sounded so broken, when he used to be the most stubborn and fierce person she knew. He had looked right through her, as though she were his tormentor, and she might as well have been. She had driven him to the point of tears, as he begged his dead brother to save him.

She swept the mufflers into her tool box to study before she moved back to disinfect and wrap Tenya's legs, struggling to loop the bandages around his swollen calves. Once his legs were sufficiently cleaned, she gently pulled the tarp out from under him, and covered him with the blankets again.Then she reached up and with a shaking hand, wiped the tears from his eyes, resting her hand on his cheek.

"I swear Tenya, I'm going to help you, y-you'll be running out of here in no time, I promise. You might just be the toughest baby I've ever had to fix, but it's okay, I've been asking Power Loader for a more challenging assignment for weeks. I-I just wish this wasn't how I got it. Now you get some rest now, and I'll have you speeding along before you know it, o-okay?" Mei spoke softly yet with an air of desperation as she swatted a solitary tear back from her face, and walked out the door to find Recovery Girl.

Instead she was met by the fiery stare of one Bakugou Katsuki, his fists clenched at his sides.

"Oi Gears!, Is Shitty Glasses alive in there?" He demanded, scarlet eyes alight with fury.

"W-what?" Mei stammered in shock.

"We all heard the screaming and now fucking Deku and everyone else are panicking, and I just want some goddamned peace and quiet already, damned nerds!, So let me know if he's fucking alive or not okay?" Bakugou yelled, his voice shaking the floor.

Mei was startled by the outright display of aggression, but she saw through it for what it really was. He was afraid for his classmate, but just too headstrong to show it.

"Be quiet!," Mei whisper-scolded "You'll wake him! I had to remove his engine mufflers before they got infected. He woke up in the middle of it and that's why you heard the screaming. I-I-I'm not going to lie to you, it's, it's really bad" Mei silently cursed her terrible bedside manner, "But I'm going to try my hardest to make sure he recovers!" she added.

"You fucking better, Gears, I'm watching you." Bakugou declared sternly, though he was careful not to yell as he slunk back downstairs.

Mei rolled her eyes, and collapsed, exhausted against the door as she waited for Recovery Girl, her gaze fixed on the blood that still stained her hands.