A Tarnished Hero

Chapter 31: Surface Tension

Izuku blinked as the all-encompassing void swallowed him once more. The feeling of falling was abundant, his limbs waving in the air as he tried to right himself, only to feel like he was traveling in space without a space suit.

There was no up or down, no left or right. Only darkness and the screaming of one very familiar ash blond that was lost to his vision in this damned void. He couldn't get a sense of direction as to where Katsuki's voice was echoing, his voice trailing from anywhere and everywhere.

A few minutes later, Katsuki's scream died and he worried that the being — quite possibly the Greater Will but there was no proof yet — that was transporting him, Blaidd, and Patches back to the Lands Between held no love for the ash blond and decided to nuke him out of existence.

That was a scary thought, and something he hoped didn't come to pass.

It wasn't until much, much later that he finally saw a speck of light in the distance, and the more time passed, the brighter it got. He didn't know how long he had been here, and he didn't care. He was just glad this void was finally coming to an end.

The void shrank back against the light. The inky darkness, once suffocating to look at, now banished as an afterthought, the warm glow of the light cascading across his skin. It felt like he was in pure bliss, and just as sudden as it arrived, it left.

Replaced, the bright light was with a smattering of green, blue, brown. The weightless sense of his body gone as he plummeted to the wet surface below.

"Ah shi-" Izuku wasn't able to let out a curse before he faceplanted against the water, a giant splash echoing along the area littered with critters startled from the sudden change. Izuku groaned, spitting out the dirty water that entered his mouth and wiped them off his face with his hands.

Three more splashes followed and Izuku quickly surveyed his surroundings. Three figures lay prone against the water, one of which had his bald head glinting underneath the sunlight not unlike a tiny island with little people in mind.

Snorting at the mental image, he shrugged it off in favor of rushing towards one of the three who wasn't supposed to follow them back here. Thankfully, the water was just knee high and not enough to hamper his movement from helping that ash blond to his feet.

"Ah... Fucking hell..." Katsuki groaned, his palm against his forehead. Breathing deeply, he let out a sharp breath as he opened his eyes. "Fuck... Did another fucking villain get the drop on me again...?"

"As much as I would've preferred that, no, you weren't transported here by a villain." Izuku replied as he slowly got Katsuki back to his feet. "Welcome to the Lands Between, home to the deathless and insane, although the latter might not be applicable to everyone."

"... The fuck are you talking about...?" Katsuki glared at Izuku, only to blink when he saw what lied behind him. His mouth gaped as he stumbled back, shock passing through his eyes. It was something Izuku had the fortune to see when they first met again during the USJ incident, and seeing it again made him curious.

Looking behind, he saw the giant corpse of the dragon he had killed prior to his return, its chest gaped open as dozens of insects littered across its decomposing flesh. He could see the inner chest cavity, blood already dried as the water underneath lapped across its dull scales every now and then.

"Oh, I was wondering why the dragon didn't show up." Izuku mused. Last he saw the dragon, it was also being sucked into the portal like he was, so to see it here was a bit of a surprise.

Looking back at Katsuki, Izuku saw him staring at the corpse of the dragon, eyes trembling as a glob of saliva slid down his throat.

"Is... Is that what I think it is...?" Katsuki asked and Izuku nodded.