Ash wakes up in her bed and stretches.
Ash: (Ah… the first weekend of the school year. We learned a lot of difficult topics this week. I'll have to spend a lot of time studying if I want to keep up, but first, a nice relaxing morning shower.)
Ash gets out of bed, grabs a fresh set of clothes and a towel, and heads to the showers.
Ash: (It’s nice that we were able to work out an agreement with the boys, it would be really awkward to have to find the perfect time to shower when none of them were around.)
Ash strips down in the changing room, grabs her towel, and walks into the showers.
Ash: (All of the other girls should be asleep now too, so I can get a nice peaceful-)
Grace is taking a shower.
Grace: Hey, White! Damn! You’ve got a nice body on you!
Ash: AHHHHHHHHHH!
Everyone gathers in the living area, with Grace sitting in the center of the room.
Eve: So… explain to me again why you’re here?
Karma: Using our showers, no less...
Grace: I heard you guys had co-ed showers! That’s awesome!
Ash: We have varying definitions of awesome...
Blair: We have a schedule so that the guys and girls are never in there simultaneously.
Grace: Aw… that’s lame! You guys are no fun!
Alexis: Probably, but modesty is a virtue.
Grace: Really? None of you girls want to check out all these muscular guys in the shower? You guys should start trusting your libido.
Awkward silence.
Grace: What? Did I say something?
Eve: Look, you’re not welcome here, okay?
Ash: Especially not in our showers…
Grace stands up.
Grace: Fine… I’ll go. Not that I’d want to come back with how lame you guys all are. I thought this class was so cool for being brave enough to have co-ed showers, I just had to check it out, but clearly, I was mistaken.
Eve: I’m glad that’s all you checked out…
Grace: Nah, I got an eye-full of White.
Ash’s face turns red.
Grace: Too bad that’s all I got to see.
Grace winks.
Blair and Eve: (She’s like a female version of Isaiah and Demetri…)
Grace leaves.
Kevin: So… why did we all need to be here?
Jace: Yeah… that seemed more like a conversation for you girls…
Eve: Shut up, jerks. We’re all here because we heard Ash scream.
Eve comforts Ash.
Eve: You alright, Ash?
Ash: I’m sorry, everyone… she startled me…
Eve: *sighs* It’s okay. I don’t get that girl at all. Who just walks into a building they don’t live in and starts using the showers?
Alexis: I know… her whole vibe is off… I haven’t had a good feeling about her since she first showed up, but then again.
Alexis turns to Saige.
Alexis: What is it with you top students and being perverts?
Saige: Great minds think alike!
Blair: Oh god…
Aaron yawns.
Aaron: Are we done here yet? Some of us like to sleep on Saturdays.
Eve: You sure you shouldn’t be catching up on work, Mr. Suspension?
Aaron: Is that a yes?
Eve stares at Aaron.
Eve: Yeah.
Aaron: Good.
Aaron leaves.
Jace: (Goddammit, I hate that guy… can’t believe I have to be on a team with him.)
Zach: (That jerk made Jace and I miss the first few days of classes. We’re swamped with work, and he hasn’t even bothered to apologize yet!)
Aaron starts walking up the stairs.
Aaron: (They can think what they want to think of me, I have my priorities, and I-)
Suddenly a bunch of canisters come flying through the windows and emit gas.
Eve: What the hell!
Zach: Where did those come from!
Justus: We’re under attack!
Alden: Don’t worry, guys! I’ll protect-
Alden inhales the gas and instantly passes out.
Alexis: It’s knock-out gas!
Hayze: Gus! Where are your gas masks-
Gus is already passed out.
Hayze: God… dammit…
Hayze passes out. One by one, each member of class 2-A passes out from the gas.
Daniele: *muffled* Nice work!
With gas masks on, Daniele, Tyson, Aster, and Yul step through the front entrance.
Aster: *muffled* That worked out well.
Yul: *muffled* The support class is beneficial for moments like these.
Daniele: *muffled* Alright, let’s get these guys moved.
Tyson: *muffled* Sure, I’ll grab-
Daniele: *muffled* Not you.
Tyson: *muffled* Rude.
Outside the dorm, Adrian, Fatal, and Ewing are watching.
Fatal: Are you sure this is the right thing for us to do? I know it’s tradition, but...
Ewing: It’s not tradition just because we do it every year. It’s a tradition because of what it teaches them. You went through this exercise yourselves.
Fatal: I know… it’s just... I still have the scars from that day.
Ewing: That’s the point. It’s supposed to give you scars. It lets you experience something you’ll never want to see in the field. It gives you a memory that will guide you in your career.
Fatal: Yeah… I’m aware, but it took me a long time to realize that.
Adrian: If I’m candid, sir. I still don’t fully forgive you for putting us through that.
Ewing: That’s fine, Adrian. I understand.
Adrian: That said, I’m glad that I get to be the one to put them through this.
Fatal is surprised.
Fatal: Really? Why?
Adrian: This exercise burnt some dark memories into my mind, but at the end of the day, I’m glad they’re just memories, and I have them. I don’t think about them a lot by choice, but I think they subconsciously guide me in the right direction. This is the most important lesson they’ll learn at U.A. I hope they take it in stride.
Hayze wakes up in a bed.
Hayze: Huh?
Hayze jerks up and looks around. He’s in an enclosed room with three cement walls. The fourth wall is made out of glass with a yellow outline. The only other object in the room is a toilet.
Hayze: What the hell?
Hayze stands up and walks to the glass wall. He looks out through the glass to see that he’s in a massive circular room with floors upon floors of rooms made precisely like his. At the center of the room is a platform over an enormous pit of lava.
Hayze: (This looks just like…)
One by one, members of class 2-A walk up to the glass wall of their respective rooms.
Hayze: (A prison.)
Silver looks around. The glass of his cell is outlined in blue.
Silver: (This must be our next exercise.)
Silver smiles.
Silver: (I’ll be sure to ace whatever we’re tasked with.)
Kevin knocks on his glass wall, which also has a blue outline.
Kevin: (This is some heavy-duty glass, not even one of my punches could break this.)
Aaron looks around and spots Wes in a cell across from his, but a few floors higher, both cells have green outlines.
Aaron: (Looks like we’re working with our mock hero agency teammates for this exercise. That’s not an inspiring group for me, but I’ll find a way to win.)
Saige inspects the edge of her glass wall.
Saige: (This cell is seemingly airtight, there isn’t even a vent to circulate oxygen into these rooms. They must not plan on us sticking around for long.)
Justus looks around at each of his classmates.
Justus: (Everyone is calm, you can tell that we’re used to these exercises by now. We’re all just awaiting our instructions. Well, except...)
Alden is slamming on the glass in his cell.
Alden: LET ME OUT! SOMEONE HELP ME!
The glass is entirely soundproof, so nobody can hear what Alden is saying.
Eve: What a tool...
Down by the platform, a door opens.
Fearmonger: Well, well, well, what do we have here?
Wes is surprised.
Wes: (Fearmonger! I haven’t seen him since my internship! What’s he doing here?)
Fearmonger walks to the center of the platform.
Fearmonger: Welcome to a special prison I’ve created just for you. I call it THE CYLINDER OF DEATH!
Fearmonger starts maniacally laughing.
Wes: (Right…)
Fearmonger: I’m sure you’re all wondering: what happened? Why am I here? What’s this exercise about? Well… I have something special to tell you… this isn’t one of your “U.A. exercises.” This is real life.
Nobody is phased except Alden, who starts balling his eyes out.
Fearmonger: Most of you have probably never even heard of me. I’m Fearmonger, and I work as a prison warden. My job isn’t to save people from villains at large. It’s to keep the ones that have been caught in their cells. You have no idea how much working in prison with a bunch of psychopaths daily drains a man’s sanity. If a villain gets put in my prison and the police haven’t given me a full and complete rundown of their abilities, I could die. I’m in danger every day I go to work, and for what? NOTHING. YOU LITTLE SHITS HAVE NEVER EVEN HEARD OF ME! How many of you think you will graduate from U.A. and be instantly famous and happy doing your job? The answer isn’t everyone!
Jace, Gus, Karma, Lilith, Ash, Blair, Wes, Zach, Demetri, and Isaiah all gulp.
Fearmonger: Some of you are going to be just like me. You’re going to have days when you nearly die, and nobody will know your name. Do you know what’s crazy, kids? Being a U.A. student will be the height of your fame and popularity for some of you. That’s a fact. This business feeds the people on top, the Colossuses, the Vulcans, the Evergreens of the world. Hell, it’s even pretty nice for the guys on the bottom. They do their cute little patrols and make bank without being put into any danger. This business SHITS on the guys in the middle! And that’s what SOME, hell MOST of you will be. You don’t want to be a middle-of-the-pack hero! IT SUCKS, and that’s what some of you will be! So, I’m here to finally be a REAL hero! I’m going to save you, kids, from the terrible future you’re destined to live! You’re either going to die here or live with your hero career in the rearview mirror.
Wes smiles.
Wes: (He should go back to acting school; he seemed like a cool dude when I worked with him. This isn’t convincing at all.)
Fearmonger clears his throat.
Fearmonger: Sorry, I don’t monologue much. I guess I should explain the circumstances of what I’m going to be putting you through. You are each in a prison cell with a bed for sleeping and a toilet for… you know. That’s all. Now, you’re probably asking yourself, “how do I get out of this cell”? Easy.
Fearmonger snaps his fingers. Suddenly, a red button with a skull and crossbones symbol in each cell comes out of the right cement wall.
Fearmonger: If you press that button, you’ll be teleported out of that cell onto this platform where you will fight me to the death. If you win, you and all your living teammates get to walk out of here perfectly fine. If you lose… well, I did say “fight to the death,” didn’t I? You each have a glass wall to look out at your classmates. I’m sure you’ve noticed that you have color-coated trims to signify the teams you were placed into for your “mock hero agencies.” Well, I’m renaming those to “survival groups!” To live through this, you’ll have to work with your teammates. Figure out a way to defeat me, for all of your sakes. The glass walls are soundproof, so you’ll need to communicate in new ways. If I catch you trying to work with a member of another team, you and all of your teammates will swiftly be killed off.
Alexis has a frightened look on her face.
Alexis: (Fight to the death? Living teammates? Killed off? We’ve never been threatened with our lives before in one of these exercises! This… this doesn’t feel right…)
Fearmonger laughs manically.
Fearmonger: Now, there is another way I’ll let you live…
Fearmonger pulls out a machete.
Fearmonger: Whatever the source of your quirk is… if you let me mutilate it from your body, I’ll happily let you walk out of here.
Nobody is phased by Fearmonger’s threats except Alexis and Alden.
Kevin: (They’re really playing hardball today… they’ve never been this brutal with their threats before.)
Fearmonger sheathes his machete.
Fearmonger: Now then, do I have a first challenger?
Aaron and Silver turn to their buttons.
Silver: Of course.
Aaron: Hell yeah, you-
A loud siren goes off.
Fearmonger: Looks like I do!
Silver: (What!)
Aaron: (Who did that!)
Alden teleports to the platform.
Alden: Oh yeah! I’m going to win this right here and now!
Fearmonger smiles underneath his hockey mask.
Fearmonger: Your quirk is fingernail growth, right? So, are you here to fight or give me your hands?
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Alden laughs.
Alden: Fight, obviously!
Alexis looks terrified.
Alexis: (He’s… he’s not wearing any of the inhibiting weights our instructors usually wear during the exercises… he’s fighting at 100% power!)
Alden grows his fingernails out.
Alden: I’m taking you down in one attack! Straight for the carotid artery!
Alden lunges at Fearmonger.
Alden: You’re going down!
Fearmonger snatches Alden by the neck and hoists him into the air.
Alden: *choking*
Fearmonger: I realize some of you may still think this isn’t real. Let me show you just how serious I am!
Fearmonger crushes Alden’s throat.
Alden: *choking* AHH!
Everyone: *gasps*
Fearmonger drops Alden to the ground as he struggles for breath, and blood pours out of his mouth and nose.
Eve: (Yeah… right… any second now, Mr. Adrian or Ms. Fatal will walk out and-)
Fearmonger kicks Alden off the platform.
Alden: *choking* AHHHHHHHHH!
Alden falls straight into the lava pit and is incinerated.
Fearmonger: That’s one down.
Everyone is dead silent.
Wes: (Wait a second… if he killed Alden… that means…)
Panic pours over the remaining students.
Wes: (This is actually real!)
Fearmonger laughs maniacally.
Fearmonger: Now that you know this isn’t a game, I might as well make it clear that you have two options. Death or Mutilation. It’s your choice. I’ll happily take another challenger now, though.
Nobody moves. They’re paralyzed with fear.
Fearmonger: Well, that’s not very fun. I wish I could say I’ll allow you to stay in that cell for the rest of your life, but unfortunately, the police and the Top 10 are looking for you. It will probably take them about a week to find you here. So, I need all of your choices pretty soon.
Fearmonger snaps his fingers. A TV Screen with a timer displaying 3:00:00 comes out of the ceiling.
Fearmonger: In three hours, if nobody has pressed their button, one of you will randomly die.
Everyone holds their breath.
Fearmonger: After that, the timer resets. We should be all done here within a few days.
Fearmonger walks back through the door he entered, leaving the students in their cells. The timer starts ticking.
Zach: (Alden’s actually dead… that wasn’t a joke... that wasn’t fake. He’s dead… and if what Fearmonger said was true. We might be joining him…)
Lilith crawls into the fetal position and starts hyperventilating while Gus is trembling. Silver clenches his fists.
Silver: (If Fearmonger is fighting at his maximum, there’s no way I can beat him! He’s a pro at the end of the day. Even with my extensive training, I can’t hold a candle to him!)
Kevin gulps.
Kevin: (I’m the only one here who could possibly think of defeating him! With 100%, I could easily wipe him out. The only problem is with that lava pit below… there’s a good chance I’ll-)
Kevin bites his lip.
Kevin: (No! Jake was willing to do it! Jake was willing to sacrifice himself for all of us! So can I!)
Kevin walks over to his button and slams it down. The loud siren goes off.
Alexis: (Huh? Already?)
Silver: (What lunatic is going to try and take him on!)
Fearmonger reemerges as Kevin is teleported to the center platform.
Fearmonger: I wasn’t expecting anyone so soon. I thought you’d let the gravity of the situation sink in a little more.
Kevin: I did enough. I won’t let you kill anyone important!
Fearmonger: So, I assume you’re here to fight?
Kevin: Of course I am!
Hayze’s eyes widen.
Hayze: (Don’t tell me…)
Kevin: 100 PERCENT!
Kevin’s skin turns blood-red, steam comes out of his ears, and his muscles bulk up even further. Finally, his eyes become bright red.
Fearmonger: That’s cute.
Kevin lets out a dinosaur-like screech, piercing everyone’s ears.
Kevin: DIE!
Kevin bursts towards Fearmonger.
Fearmonger: Ah… if only you realized sooner.
Kevin attempts to punch Fearmonger, but his fist phases right through him.
Zach: What!
Justus: Huh!
Aaron: How!
Silver: Are you kidding me!
Kevin looks back at Fearmonger with confusion on his face.
Fearmonger: Kids, kids, kids, when did I say that winning was an option?
Hayze slams his fists against his glass.
Hayze: Kevin! Your 5 seconds are up!
Kevin starts to fall to his knees as steam emits from every pore of his body.
Ash: Oh, no!
Wes: Kevin, no!
Fearmonger walks up to Kevin.
Fearmonger: That’s two.
Fearmonger spin kicks Kevin and sends him plummeting to the lava.
Kevin: (I put all that work over the summer training to avoid that exact situation… is this what they call irony?)
Kevin falls into the lava and is incinerated. The clock resets to 3 hours, and Fearmonger leaves.
Fearmonger: Remember everyone, Death or Mutilation.
Everyone is silent for a few moments before a large portion of the class bursts into tears.
Justus: Kevin’s actually dead… at 100%. He’s stronger than all of us combined… how… how can we…
Justus falls to his knees.
Silver: Well, if I’m going to die. I might as well relax while I wait for my turn…
Hayze takes a moment to collect himself.
Hayze: (Okay… maybe there’s a chance I can save everyone.)
Hayze gulps.
Hayze: (If I bring Khaos out, there’s a chance he could beat him.)
Hayze shakes his head.
Hayze: (No, I’m sure that exact thought came through Kevin’s head. He probably thought 100% was foolproof, and it probably should have been. He phased through Fearmonger, but I’m not sure that was his quirk… he’s right that I’ve never heard of him, but that leaves a hole in his story. With a quirk like that, he’d be a household name… I don’t know.)
Hayze looks up at the clock: 2:57:34.
Hayze: (Kevin may be dead, but I’ve got three hours to figure out a way to save everyone else. Now isn’t the time to worry about hypotheticals. Our lives are on the line this time.)
Almost everyone else in the class is paralyzed by fear and shock. Finally, Aaron gathers himself and looks around his room.
Aaron: (I have to figure out a way to communicate with the others in my team. They may not be that useful, but I think I can defeat him with the help of both Wes and Isaiah. Unfortunately, this room is barren. I have nothing to work with.)
Wes’ eyes are wide open.
Wes: (Since when could Fearmonger do that? His quirk is called Hell’s Calling: By ingesting his opponent's blood, he can manifest their greatest fear before them. He would use it in prison to torture those sent to solitary confinement and keep the rest of the prisoners in line. How could he have acquired another ability… unless… That can’t be the real Fearmonger! That had to be a hologram or something! Yeah, that would explain how he beat Kevin! Okay, I figured him out. Now I just need to relay that information to Aaron.)
Wes looks around and spots Aaron’s cell.
Wes: (Shit… how am I supposed to get his attention?)
Jace is lying on his bed with his head tucked into his legs, hyperventilating.
Jace: (Kevin died… and… and… if he couldn’t beat him, what the hell am I supposed to do? Kevin kicked my ass a year ago. I trained my butt off this summer, but there’s no way I caught up to him, let alone surpassed him. And If I can’t beat him myself, I have to hope someone else can. He said we could leave if one of our teammates beat him in a battle. I hate to admit it, but Aaron is our best chance at that. If Aaron can defeat him, I can live… but… but… can he?)
Hayze lifts his mattress off its base.
Hayze: (I gotta figure out a way to get Lilith’s attention. I have a plan in the works, but I need her for it.)
Saige is watching Hayze from her cell.
Saige: (Hayze has already thought of something, but it probably doesn’t involve me if he hasn’t made eye contact yet. I don’t want anyone else to die, so I’ll start working on my own plan in the meantime.)
Saige creates a remote control with a screen in the center of it in one hand and a ball with a camera inside it in her other hand.
Saige: Now, I think I’ll visit my best friend.
Saige drops the ball in the toilet and flushes it.
Saige: (I won’t lie when that clock starts to tick down. I don’t think I’ll be as composed as I am now.)
Justus and Ash make eye contact with one another. Justus nods. Ash keels over, and Justus sits down on his bed.
Justus: (Alright… now I wait.)
A few seconds pass.
Justus: Are you here?
Justus holds out his hands.
Justus: Move my left index finger if you’re here.
Justus’ finger moves.
Justus: Good. Unfortunately, with Kevin gone, it’s just Silver and us.
Justus looks up at Silver’s cell: he’s lying on his bed.
Justus: And he doesn’t seem to be taking this well.
Justus’ middle finger goes up.
Justus: I know, we’re in a bad spot right now. Our options are few, and our resources are limited. I hate to say this, but we might have to wait until more members of our class challenge Fearmonger for us to have any chance of survival.
Justus slaps himself.
Justus: *groans* I know… you’re right. We owe it to everyone to try and figure this out now before anyone else dies. I just don’t see how…
Alexis looks out at Karma, Eve, and Gus.
Alexis: (Without any paper, I’m basically useless. I wish I could do something, but right now, I have to hope one of those three will come up with a way for us to communicate.)
Alexis looks at Aaron’s cell.
Alexis: (Aaron… whatever you do… Please don’t fight him. I know our relationship has been rocky as of late, but I still… I…)
Wes focuses.
Wes: If I could just figure out a way to get Aaron’s attention.
Wes looks up at the ceiling and spots a light fixture.
Wes: (That’ll work… now I just need to figure out how to write the message.)
Wes frantically looks around his room.
Wes: (Come on, come on. There’s gotta be something for me to-)
Wes stares at the toilet.
Wes: *groans*
Wes gulps.
Wes: (Whatever, I’ve gotta get this information to Aaron somehow.)
Wes grabs the top of the toilet tank and smashes it against his wall shattering it into many sharp pieces. Wes picks up one of the pieces and holds it to his left forearm.
Wes: (Why the fuck does hologram have to be so many letters?)
Wes starts carving the word “HOLOGRAM” into his arm, grimacing in pain the whole time.
Wes: AHHH! DAMMIT!
Wes finishes carving and drops the bloody porcelain on the ground. Then, Wes transforms his entire right arm into a mirror.
Wes: (Alright, Aaron, knock ‘em dead!)
Aaron continues investigating his room.
Aaron: (Come on, there’s gotta be-)
Suddenly, a light flashes in Aaron’s eye.
Aaron: *grunts* What the hell?
Aaron looks up and spots Wes using his arm to reflect the light into his eye.
Aaron: Huh? Well, I’ll be damned.
Wes holds his bloody arm up.
Aaron: (Hologram? What could that- Wait a second! Wes interned with Fearmonger last year, right? That means he probably knows the secret of his quirk! What could Hologram mean?)
Aaron flashes back to Kevin phasing through Fearmonger.
Aaron: (Maybe that wasn’t actually Fearmonger… alright, I think I’m starting to get the picture.)
Aaron gives Wes a thumbs up.
Wes: (Good, he got the message. Now we just need to figure out how to beat him.)
Aaron immediately starts walking towards his button.
Wes: (NO WAIT! WHAT- I DIDN’T-)
Aaron places his arms together and transforms them into a howitzer cannon.
Aaron: (If he’s actually using a hologram to battle, I can attack the real Fearmonger by complete surprise!)
Aaron starts charging up his attack.
Aaron: (You think you can take me on? I’ll show you!)
Aaron headbutts his button, and the loud siren goes off.
Silver: (What?)
Justus: (Who?)
Hayze: (No!)
Fearmonger steps out.
Fearmonger: Well, I wasn’t expecting anyone so-
Aaron teleports to the center.
Aaron: HOWITZER BURST!
Aaron fires off the attack. It phases through Fearmonger and flies straight into the room he stepped out of. A massive explosion goes off in the room as smoke funnels out and engulfs the door.
Aaron: Got him!
Everyone watches closely.
Wes: YES!
Justus: (He went for the room? Why?)
Silver: (Don’t tell me that asshole actually figured something out before me!)
Alexis: (Aaron! What are you doing!)
Aaron looks up at Wes.
Aaron: I’m glad you’re useful for something outside of… making mirrors for my attacks to reflect off of.
Wes: Huh? Why did he pause?
Fearmonger starts laughing.
Aaron: Huh?
Alexis: (Oh no…)
Fearmonger emerges from the shadows unscathed.
Aaron: Wh- how did- how did that do nothing to you!
Fearmonger: Let me guess, my former intern let you know that phasing through objects isn’t my true quirk?
Wes: (Oh shit…)
Fearmonger: I bet he surmised that I must be fighting through a hologram, am I right?
Aaron: *grunts*
Fearmonger: So you thought the real me must be hiding in this room I keep walking out of, and you felt that firing your most vigorous attack into it would kill me in a heartbeat? It was a fair assumption, but unfortunately, you were working off the wrong information.
Aaron: Dammit, Wes!
Wes looks freaked out.
Wes: (What! Then what the hell could actually be going on?)
Fearmonger starts walking towards Aaron.
Aaron: (Fuck… if I can’t hit him, then I only have one choice.)
Aaron bites his lip.
Aaron: (Dad… I’m sorry.)
Aaron starts charging up another attack.
Justus: (Another one?)
Silver: (He can only fire two of those off before his arms are shot. If he doesn’t win off this next blast, he’s as good as dead!)
Alexis: Aaron! Don’t do it!
Hayze is shaking with fear.
Fearmonger: You can’t hit me with that blast, you know? It’ll be a futile effort.
Aaron: Yeah, yeah, keep telling me about it.
Wes is terrified.
Wes: (Aaron, you can’t! There’s no way for you to take him out with this blast!)
Aaron and Wes lock eyes.
Wes: Huh?
“ Aaron: I’m glad you’re useful for something outside of… making mirrors for my attacks to reflect off of. “
Wes: (Wait a second!)
Wes places his good hand against his glass.
Wes: (I understand, Aaron!)
Aaron smiles.
Aaron: This isn’t how I thought I’d go out, but if it means I can go out a hero, I’ll do it!
Fearmonger laughs.
Fearmonger: Do what? Miss?
Aaron changes his aim to point at Wes’ cell.
Aaron: NO, TAKE YOU OUT! HOWITZER BURST!
Wes transforms the glass of his cell into a mirror and reflects the blast back at double power.
Fearmonger: Huh? It doesn’t matter how powerful your attack is if it can’t hit me!
Aaron: Who said I’m aiming for you?
Fearmonger: Hm?
The Howitzer burst smashes into the platform, causing a massive explosion that clouds the entire room in smoke, making it so nobody can see.
Justus: (I see Aaron wanted to destroy the platform itself!)
Silver: (By doing that, he’ll send Fearmonger falling to his death!)
Hayze: (But that means!)
Alexis: ARRON!
Thirty seconds pass as the smoke starts to dissipate.
Wes: (We had to have got him, right?)
The smoke clears, revealing the platform is still standing.
Justus: (What!)
Silver: (How!)
Wes: (Oh, come on!)
Hayze: (Dammit!)
Fearmonger is holding Aaron by his neck. Aaron’s arms are bright red and steaming.
Fearmonger: I told all of you already.
Tears start to fall from Alexis’ eyes.
Fearmonger: Death or Mutilation.
Fearmonger tosses Aaron off the platform.
Alexis: AARON!
Aaron careens towards the lava.
Aaron: I… I lost… I’m a failure.
Aaron falls into the lava and is incinerated.
Alexis: NOOOO!
Alexis falls to her knees, balling her eyes out.
Wes: A… Aaron…
Wes falls to his knees in shock.
Fearmonger: That’s three.
Everyone is dead silent.
Hayze: I… I.. couldn’t save him…
Hayze slams his fist against his glass.
Fearmonger: Alright, everyone, the timer resets.
Fearmonger starts walking back to the room.
Fearmonger: I’ll be back in three hours unless someone-
The siren goes off, shocking everyone, including Fearmonger.
Fearmonger: Who?
Jace teleports to the platform.
Fearmonger: You ready to die?
Jace: If Aaron and Kevin couldn’t beat you… how could I?
Zach slams on his glass.
Zach: Jace! What are you doing!
Fearmonger turns to Jace.
Fearmonger: So, are you saying you choose to be mutilated? Because looking at you, I’d say you’re better off dead.
Jace: If that’s what’s best… I don’t know. There’s no way out of this mess, and the suspense is driving me insane, so, please. Whatever you do, make it quick.
Fearmonger’s eyes narrow beneath his mask.
Fearmonger: Fine.
Fearmonger kicks Jace and sends him flying into the lava.
Zach: Jace!
Angel: He just… gave up…
Gus: Jace… how could you just… do that?
Fearmonger walks back to his room.
Fearmonger: That’s four.
Fearmonger leaves.
Hayze: (Jace just gave up… he accepted that death was inevitable and didn’t want to wait for his turn. I can’t let anyone else reach that point.)
“ Lionel: Kid, the hardest part about this job is that you can’t save everybody.
Hayze: Says who!
Lionel is shocked by this response.
Hayze: When I get my quirk, I will become a hero and save everybody! Just like my parents did, just like you should have! Nobody will die anymore once I’m a hero! “ - Chapter 74
Hayze starts hyperventilating.
Hayze: (Every death that happens here is on me. I need to save everyone… I need to.)