Once Again From Better Days

Plagueface turns to Izuku first. Eri's hands hold on a little tighter, but her face is set in determination.

With the fusion, plagueface's injuries have also disappeared. He launches himself at Izuku and his form blurs. Katsuki dives toward them as soon as he registers the fact that Izuku is in danger again, but an explosion of rubble makes him skid to a halt. He shields his eyes and focuses his attention on the rest of his senses. 

Dust settles on his skin, and he resists the urge to cough. With the din of battle, it's impossible to pinpoint Izuku by whatever he's yelling at plagueface. He sets his reflexes on a hairpin trigger. His instincts haven't failed him yet. There's a shift in the air, and the hairs on his arms stand on end.

Katsuki directs an explosion through the cloud of dust. A heavy footfall makes the ground shudder. He manages to dodge most of plageuface and send a blast into his face, but one of the extra arms catches him in the side, and Katsuki flies backwards. 

Crashing into walls is never fun. His left shoulder throbs but nothing feels broken. Aside from a few minor cuts, he's not even bleeding. Another explosion from his palms propels him back into the midst of the fight and lands near Izuku.

His feet barely find purchase on the uneven ground, when it splits open. Fault lines converge on a single point a short distance away where plagueface stands. As Katsuki prepares to launch himself again, a light catches his attention. It's bright but warm, and Katsuki turns his head just enough to see Eri glowing. Some of the dirt and bruises fade from Izuku's face. Just as Katsuki starts to wonder about it, another, more sinister something catches his eye.

Plagueface is on the move again. His dark form a growing shadow, encroaching on Eri's light. All of his focus is on Eri, still glowing in Izuku's arms.  Izuku tears his gaze away from her, but a moment slow. Katsuki has already closed half the distance between them, and his explosions can reach farther than his arms. 

He concentrates his power in one palm, smaller and smaller until he can't force it to condense any more. He lets it fly. It shoots like a laser beam, hitting the mutated body of their opponent in the middle of his c.h.e.s.t. The point of impact erupts into fire and smoke, and plagueface is hurled in away from Izuku. His form breaks apart in midair. Discarded limbs of his subordinate fall to the ground with a thud, but Overhaul looks annoyingly in one piece.

The villain isn't entirely unharmed. His short hair is littered with bits of rubble and the sweat that drips down his face clears a path through the dust settled there. His feet come to a stop by the unconscious body of the arrow-haired man. The carrying case rests by his still-outstretched hand. Katsuki avoids glancing at it in the off chance that plagueface hasn't seen it.

The light behind him brightens. "Stop trying to kill Deku!" Eri calls, her voice scared but determined.

The words sound wrong to his ears, but at first, he doesn't know why. The realization makes him turn. His eyes meet Izuku's for an instant, just an instant, and a million questions tumble through his mind. He silences them, because they're in the middle of a fight, but even that split second of distraction gave plagueface enough time to reach the unconscious man and the case.

The sounds of flesh ripping open and binding together makes him flinch. Sinews wind and unwind. And joints form in places they shouldn't be. Katsuki gathers another explosion in his palm, but when he aims it toward plagueface it ends up blocked. The new mutant that stands in front of them is more terrible than the last. It is all sharp edges and spikes, and Overhaul's human face is nowhere to be seen.

Nighteye gets to his feet. Behind him, Katsuki catches a glimpse of a bit of Togata's blond hair through the gaps in the rubble.

"You're a nuisance, pro hero," Overhaul says in a voice that echoes first within his own monstrous form and then within the walls of the underground room.

The words echo a moment long, and Katsuki swears he can see a spike of rock launch from the ground and pierce straight through Nighteye's abdomen. He blinks. The spike drips blood, but Nighteye isn't fully impaled by it, though it took a piece out of his side. His suit is slowly being dyed red, but he manages to stay standing.

Katsuki registers the sound of Izuku's voice echoing as well. Screaming. Too similar to the screams he hears in his nightmares–his memories.

The ground rumbles. Pieces of rock start to fall from the ceiling, and with a mighty crack the structure gives out. 

"Get Lemillion!" Izuku yells, and Katsuki looks over in time to see him pulling Nighteye out of the way.

The noise of the ceiling caving in is tremendous. Even the ground beneath his feet is unsteady. He uses an explosion to clear the way. In the midst of all the ruckus, he doesn't hear the sound of a gun being reloaded. He doesn't see plagueface take aim. But he does hear the shot when it's fired. He freezes in the middle of hefting Togata onto his shoulders.

All he can do is watch as Nighteye twists his battered body to shield Izuku. He seems to fall in slow motion. Izuku, arms already occupied with Eri, only manages to catch half of the pro hero's weight.