Eight: Season 3

Episode 54: Xia Knows Best

  Hanta-
  Daeva was in the doctor's hut with me helping me through my physical therapy and recovery. "Hanta!" Kirishima shouted.
  "Hmm?" I asked, looking at him with my upper body completely covered in wrap.
  "Can we talk...in private?" Kirishima asked.
  I sighed and nodded. "Clear everyone out TC." I said, and TC nodded.
  "You sure you want me to leave?" Daeva asked.
  "Yeah, it'll only be for a little bit. I'll be ok." I said, smiling at her and she quickly hugged me, shocking me, but I hugged her back.
  She blushed and then ran outside. I chuckled, smiling at her.
  "Why is your chest hurting?" Kirishima asked.
  "I just got hit by a stray attack from Akuma, I'll be fine." I said.
  Kirishima sighed, he knew I was lying. "Have you noticed the absence of a particular red head?" Kirishima asked.
  "Jade? Yeah, I haven't seen her since...we all came back to Arcadia. The last I heard she—" I began.
  "She was walking to clear her head?" Kirishima and I said, in sync.
  I gasped. "That's been just over a month now Hanta, and you know as well as I do Jade wouldn't just up and leave out of nowhere without telling anyone." Kirishima said.
  "Well, let's not jump to conclusions yet. She could be with some of the other clans." I said.
  "I've asked Kana, Aspen, Tianzo, Felix, Pherrah, Cassidy, and Archer. None of them have seen her. I even snuck into the Royal Dynasty Camp and looked for her there, nada. It's like she just vanished. I can't find her anywhere." Kirishima said.
I sighed, gripping my chest as I moved positions. "Ok." I said.
"I need to get permission to look for her Sero, she's my best friend." Kirishima asked.
I rubbed my chest. "Why are you asking me and not Shoto? He's the boss, not me." I said.
"Sero, do you want to me to tell him Jade vanished without a trace?" Kirishima asked.
I sighed. "No, no...I don't." I said, already knowing how that would play out.
"Then I need you to give me permission to look for her." Kirishima said.
I sighed. "You realize that means I'd be going behind my best friend's back, right?" I asked.
"You can't tell me that if it was Shoto missing, you wouldn't do the same." Kirishima said.
I smiled and chuckled. "Take a small team and go look for her Kirishima. Just don't get caught, I don't think any of us can take seeing another person tortured and hurt right now. We've been through enough." I said.
"We won't." Kirishima said, and I nodded.
"Just leave under the cover of night, ok?" I asked, and he gave me a thumbs up and ran out.
I sighed and tried to stand on my own. "No Sero!" Daeva shouted, catching me as I fell.
"You are still recovering from the Marking Ceremony and torture and this!" Daeva exclaimed, gesturing to my chest.
I sighed and my lips quivered. "Sero..." she began, I just buried my head into her chest, and I cried.
Daeva didn't say a word and just held me against her chest, rubbing my back. "It's ok Hanta, I'm here." Daeva said, brushing her hands through my hair.
  "Is...this a bad time?" Seth asked.
  I sniffled and took a deep breath. "No...what's up...and why are the two of you wet?" I asked, confused.
  "We fished them out of the ocean." Lilith said.
  "It's a long story." Elarza said.
  "I'm all ears." I said.
  Elarza looked at Daeva. "Is it ok for—" Elarza began.
  I looked at Daeva. "Yeah, it's fine." I said, smiling and she smiled back at me, sitting beside me as she held my hand.
  Elarza explained everything they had heard and seen in the last few hours, including about Thacia, which I thought was a myth, but now...it was definitely not. She told me about Zenthion and Jade's bond, as well as her Quirk factor. Then, she finished by speaking to me about what I feared was the truth.
  "Sero...Jade trusts you, so I trust you and that's why I'm coming to you. Tilcax said that another woman was with Jade on the coast a month and pricked her with some sort of injection needle. Then, these people showed up and took her, vanishing without a trace. I think the person responsible is—" Elarza began, but I raised my hand, and she was quiet.
  "I know who's responsible." I said, grunting as I stood.
  "Sero, you really shouldn't be standing right now." Daeva said, in tears.
  "What are you—" Seth began.
  "Someone needs to tell Shoto what's going on. He deserves to know, he's our leader. I know Jade wanted to keep this all under wraps, but this has gone too far now. If I knew all of this? I know she'd want me to tell Shoto." I said.
  "Too bad you won't get the chance." Xia said, walking into the hut and locking the door.
  I wrapped fists and lightning and then I keeled over in pain. "Agh!" I cried out.
  "You're in no condition to fight!" Daeva said, as her and Elarza helped me up.
  "Where did you take her?" I asked, breathlessly, holding my chest.
  "I took her to a special place where no one will ever find her. Your little search party won't find her either." Xia said.
  "What did you do to them?" I asked, my voice cracking.
  "I sent them the same place I'm gonna send all of you." Xia said.
  "Shoto's not as dumb as you seem to think he is. He's gonna figure out something is going on, and when he does...you're fucked, especially if you hurt her." I said.
  "And until that happens, you're fucked." Xia said, and she wrapped her hands in her purple aura and snapped.
  We all vanished and were chained in cells. "Welcome to the party." Kirishima said.
  "Is everyone ok?" I asked.
  "We're fine, as far as I can tell, this is just your typical prison, there's no guards though, but we are being watched and listened too, and if we try to escape..." Kirishima began, trying to break out of the chains.
  "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!" Kirishima screamed out.
"We get electrocuted pretty badly." Bakugo finished.
Kirishima panted. "So, we can't do anything?" I asked.
"No." Tetsu said.
"This sucks." Jax said.
"Maybe not entirely. I meant what I said, Shoto isn't as dumb as Xia seems to think he is. One way or another, he'll figure out something is happening." I said, looking up at the ceiling.
"On the bright side, Midoriya knows about everything happening right now and he's still at Arcadia with Shoto. We may still have a chance." Yo said.
"Let's hope, cause the 10 of us aren't going anywhere anytime soon." I said.
We all nodded.