Pariah || BNHA OC

Burning Up

TW: Graphic violence

The blaze in front of him was brilliant enough that if it weren't accompanied by hellish screaming, Yuta would've stared at it until his retinas burned. The horrid noise brought to his attention that the squirming lit mass opposite of him was the clone of Alter that’d grabbed him by the neck.

She clawed at the ground with what parts of her fingers hadn't melted off. Pale, freshly grown flesh tore its way through her scorched skin. Whatever healing factor the look-alike had only added more fuel to her torched body. A low hiss filled the air from the sprinkler system failing to put her or his wings out.

"You made me…" Yuta pressed against one of the cell doors until his shoulder blades felt like they'd be crushed. The narrow hallway could be widened ten times and it still wouldn't be enough to get away from the familiar smell of burnt flesh. He held a hand to his chest. The lingering rawness around his neck where he'd been strangled persisted. Combined with the screaming, the stench, it should've been enough to batter and overwhelm his senses. Yet his heart was steady. His breathing, only slightly shallow from the fire devouring the oxygen in the tight space, was as well.

Like popping a knuckle or laying on the cool side of a pillow, letting his wings reach a fever pitch and ignite felt… relieving. A repulsively casual thought given the situation. The other three look-alikes glared at him once they'd had their fill of seeing their writhing friend, he doubted they had pure thoughts either.

The smoldering scales covering his wings illuminated the hallway in a golden glow. The ceiling lights flickered off, the heat from his wings melting the bulbs. Knowing what he was capable of should've been enough of a warning for them to back down.

It wasn't.

"Don't." Their hands were shaking and so were his. They could close the gap, hack him up with the bone weapons protruding from their arms and legs. He couldn't hesitate. So he didn't. Flapping his wings dislodged his scales. It lingered in the air as if they were hundreds of fireflies, right for the look-alikes to run into as they rushed him down. A centimeter. An inch. The scales melted straight through their skin, muscle, bone, leaving tiny, incandescent holes where they landed. The scales turned an infernal red then exploded, detonating like fireworks and spreading embers in all directions.

Fire ate away at the walls where the spray of sparks landed, exposing the wiring and piping beneath. Humans were made of far less durable material. The look-alikes collapsed after one step. Watching them regenerate the chunks of flesh burned and melted from their bodies sickened him more than if he had straight killed them. Condemning them for their involvement in the prison attack only helped stomach the suffering he inflicted. At least until he could turn away to avoid seeing it, and had walked far enough to not hear their screaming.

"A beautiful display! Should've used your Quirk when we first met." He still couldn't get away from Instar's incessant taunting through the PA system. At least, until he found the control room or whatever she was nesting in. "Had you killed me then perhaps none of this would have happened."

An alarm on the wall blared. The barrier that rose from the ground, cutting off the rest of the hallway, wasn't needed to make Yuta stop. If she had anything to do with the planning of the prison attack, any death or injury whether it be the staff or the heroes aiding, was on him. He had the opportunity, the impulse to get rid of her then but he didn't.

There was still time to correct the mistake.

His wings fluttered, fanning the heat radiating from them. Smoke rose from their scales as he primed them. They sizzled once blown on the door. Yuta shielded his face from the liquid metal that sputtered forth. Its exterior drooped and fell away, enough for him to force his body through.