I turned, panic spiking. Everything about this room was off. Tomura's eyes weren't on me; they watched the monster before us, full of tension and fear. I braved a glance. AFO's gaze bored into him, burning red and relentless.
He was Tomura's master. That meant… what? I began to step away, heart pounding out a frantic rhythm.
—
Before I could move even the width of a single hair, Tomura's icy grip closed around my arm. Lightning-sharp panic jolted through me, my voice tearing itself raw in a startled yelp.
"Tomura!"
I thrashed, every muscle in my body burning with desperation as adrenaline surged. My fists swung wildly, but he was a wall unyielding, iron-strong, pinning me with one implacable arm. My heartbeat thundered against my ribs as he wrestled me closer to All for One, wrenching my wrist with ruthless efficiency.
"What are you doing?!" I gasped, my panic rising with every heartbeat. Tomura's face was a mask of determination, his eyes flat and chilling. He drove me forward as if I weighed nothing. I bucked and twisted but was hopelessly outmatched.
"Please, I don't—" My voice quivered, but All for One cut me off with a soft, sinister "Shh," as though I were a misbehaving child.
His presence was suffocating, thick with menace.
"You did the right thing coming to me."
His eyes flickered up, then back towards me. Tomura's grip tightened.
"Thanks to you, I can make this world a better place, but at the expense I needed One For All. You can rest easy knowing that omegas like you will never have to suffer again."
I struggled harder, cold sweat slick on my skin, as Tomura forcibly pressed my palm to All for One's. Betrayal twisted inside me.
'How could he?' My thoughts spiraled.
'What would All Might think?'
'How could I be so naive?'
'I'm really am I stupid omega?'
Shame and fear weighed heavily on my chest, pressing against my ribs with every breath. I was determined to maintain my power and restore it to its rightful owner. Minutes stretched into an eternity as AFO's patience wore thin. His grip tightened until my bones ached beneath his crushing fingers, and I cried out, desperate. Panic welled up inside me. I could almost see myself devoured, like a helpless rabbit cornered by a ravenous wolf.
"I'm scared! I'm scared! Tomura!" Overcome by an irrational fear, I wailed, tears streaming down my face as I pleaded for mercy. My voice cracked with the raw terror twisting through me.
Why did Tomura not take heed of my words? It was like my words lay upon deaf ears. He couldn't have used me just for my power, surely, our bond had been genuine. Every whispered promise, every gentle coaxing and protective embrace, I'd felt them all. The connection between us had to be real.
So why do I feel nothing now? Was he never truly my mate? How could he betray me, play with my heart like this?
"Give it to me!" Afo roared, his wrath radiating off him in waves.
Suddenly, pain tore through me like a lightning bolt. For a split second, Tomura's arms loosened. Instinct kicked in, I wrenched free and drove my fist straight into his jaw, hard enough to shatter the trance holding me still.
With adrenaline surging, I escaped his grasp. My breath came in ragged, desperate bursts as I felt his pheromones crackle in the air. My whole body trembled, adrenaline prickling beneath my skin as his eyes fixated on me, wild and hungry, an enraged alpha.
I bolted.
Heart pounding, I sprinted to the door, fingers shaking as I fumbled to recall the code.
936474
It worked! My heart soared when the lock clicked open.
Run!
I fought against panic, punching in codes everywhere, my mind a whirlwind. I attacked the first doctor I saw, wresting the elevator key from his hands.
Shigaraki was on my heels, a relentless shadow. I tore through the corridors, flinging furniture and debris in his path, anything to slow him down.
Then came the nomus: once human, now twisted, grotesque. My gut heaved at the sight, but fear kept my legs moving. I nearly tripped, managed to right myself, and dodged Tomura's grasp. Snatching up a metal pole, I spun around and smashed it into his shin. He grunted a small victory. I jammed the key into the elevator and pressed up, the doors shutting behind me just as he disappeared from view.
I stood, back pressed against the elevator wall, chest heaving. I felt for my quirk, and it was still there. A sobbing laugh escaped in a mix of terror and relief.
Relief that my quirk remained mine, fear at what lay ahead. As the elevator chimed, I braced myself for another ambush, certain I'd face Shigaraki's men.
But the hall that greeted me was silent. Too silent. Every sound of my footsteps and my breathing echoed eerily in the emptiness. No guards. No scents. Nothing but a void, as if everyone had simply vanished. I bolted down the corridor, every nerve on edge, slipping out a side door hidden in the wall.
Now at ground level, almost there.
Something made me swerve left. A split-second decision.
A massive fist crashed where I'd just been, sending up shards of concrete.
"Thought you could escape so easily?" Muscular sneered.
His smirk was feral. Panic seized me as debris hurtled my way. I scrambled, dodging and ducking, heart racing. Just as I prepared to unleash my quirk, a sharp pulse disrupted it. Before I could react, his blow slammed me through a wall, pain exploding across my body.
Everything felt slow, heavy. My limbs refused to cooperate as I tried to rise.
"Is that all you've got?" he taunted, voice a blur through the throbbing in my head.
I could stay and fight, but survival screamed at me: Run.
I bolted, clutching my bruised arm. He chased, close behind, whipping a sharp object toward me. I twisted aside, but a cold burn traced my leg, a cut, nothing I couldn't bear.
Almost to the main room. Through all the chaos, no one else intervened, only Muscular, relentless as a nightmare.
The main room loomed ahead!