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Lazarus looked down at the building, her helmet zooming in and identifying entry points and surveillance cameras. She was actually a bit disappointed. They had managed to capture Dynamight, of all Heros, and yet their hideout was severely lacking in any kind of decent security. She had been hoping for more of a challenge.
Glancing over, she eyed Repose. Her friend had impeccable control of her quirk, but Arashi could still feel the subtle echo of rage coming from Natsuye. Neither of them were particularly afraid for Bakugo’s safety, but the fact that the building hadn’t exploded already was a bit odd. Granted, the three of them had been patrolling together, so he was probably just waiting for them to show up. That, and Arashi knew Bakugo very much enjoyed watching his wife work. She could understand, watching Deku in action was a favorite of hers.
“So, on a scale from one to ten, how stupid do you think these guys are?” Lazarus asked, the visor on her helmet popping up. Her purple eyes almost seemed to glow in the low light, reflecting like a cat in the dark.
Repose lowered her binoculars. “Oh, we haven’t encountered stupid like this since Denki on any written exam.”
Lazarus snorted, visor going back down. “They don’t even have patrols,” she said, gesturing. “We could just walk right in!”
Beside her, it was Repose’s turn to smile, the expression made eerie by the steeliness of her gaze. They might not be scared for Dynamight, but that was still her man, and they’d dared to lay hands on him.
“And Deku’s not here so…”
Repose didn’t have to see Lazarus’s face to know the expression she was sporting was baring her very sharp teeth. She could see the other woman’s shoulders flexing, fingers fluttering at her sides in anticipation.
“As long as you leave at least a few for me,” Repose said. “C’mon, let’s get down there.”
000
Bakugo blinked, staring silently at the two shrouded figures on the screen. The one in black towered over the one in grey, masked face upturned towards the security camera. He would know those silhouettes in his sleep, he would know them half-blind. In his younger years, it would have hurt his pride, needing to be rescued. But now… now he was old enough to enjoy this.
His laughter caught them off-guard, two of them actually jumping at the outburst. “Oh, oh you’re fucked,” he cackled, relaxing where he was bound.
“Pff!” the leader scoffed. “A healer and a B-grade psychic? You’ve had too many concussions.”
“You know who they are… and didn’t bother to do any research?” It was Bakugo’s turn to scoff. “You know the only thing keeping Lazarus on a leash is Deku, right?” He made a show of looking around. “And I don’t see the nerd anywhere. And you… you thought it was a good idea to fuck with me when the one I go home to can make you so fuckin’ scared your heart stops?” His grin took on a more familiar feral edge. “Lazarus is going to tear this place apart with her bare hands, and Repose will have you too busy shitting yourselves in fear to stop her.”
A resounding crash echoed somewhere above them, like a door being blown off its hinges. There was muffled gunfire, then screaming… and then silence. Bakugo laughed again as the goons scurried to arm themselves, only to stop dead in their tracks as a sense of deep, gut-clenching dread descended over the room. Bakugo felt it roll off his mind like water, and the familiar, gentle caress of Natsuye’s comfort.
The leader managed to get his helmet on, and the shaking of his limbs seemed to lessen. The helmet would have offered complete protection from an actual B-grade psychic, but that wasn’t what Natsuye was. She was worlds beyond that. Some of the other goons actually looked liked they’d pissed themselves, and Bakugo laughed when there was another round of screaming, this time just beyond the door.
The leader lunged, a gun in each hand as he let loose a hail of bullets through the door, filling it with holes. There was a curse beyond the door, and Bakugo recognized the annoyance in Arashi’s voice. He used his weight to scoot the chair a few inches for a better view. The door flew off its hinges a moment later, narrowly missing the leader. He started shooting again, a huge black shadow walking through the bullets, body jerking slightly with each impact.
Then the leader was screaming, clutching his shoulder and his hand coming away bloody. “Is it just me, or do villains get more stupid every year?” Lazarus said, voice tinny through the modulator on her helmet. “You know I could have thrown every one of those wounds back at you, right?”
One of the leader’s guns dropped, and he tried to level the other at the smaller figure stepping around Lazarus. But his hand froze on the trigger, the weapon starting to shake. “I wish I could give them the benefit of the doubt,” Repose said, her voice softer, but edged with such malice that even Bakugo shivered. “But they went and kidnapped him. That says enough about their intelligence.”
‘God it’s hot when she gets mean,’ he thought, making a mental note to show his gratitude several times over when they god home.
“You doing okay, Sweaty Palms?” Lazarus called, and Bakugo could just hear her smug grin.
“Just taking a break and letting you two have some fun,” he said. “I know you don’t get to have much fun with the nerd around.”
Arashi waved a hand, and the leader stopped shaking, patting his shoulder in confusion. “You… healed me?” He still sounded petrified, his goons all slowly looking around as the veil of dread seemed to lift slightly.
Lazarus removed her helmet, cracking her neck as she let it drop on the floor beside her. Slit-pupiled purple eyes reflected eerily in the dim light, and her grin was full of unnaturally sharp teeth. “Yeah, it’s no fun giving you a handicap. And like he said, Deku isn’t here.” She cracked her knuckles, advancing on him with sure, heavy steps. “If you would, Repose?”
Natsuye pulled out her phone and did something, all of the security cameras in the room erupting in sparks before the red lights died. “If you did even a little research, you’d know Lazarus can heal any injury. So… if she were to get, lets say… rough with you… she could ensure that no evidence was left behind.” Her voice was practically a purr.
“That’s… you can’t do that!” one of the goons yelled, his fear of Lazarus trying to override the fear Repose was pressing down upon him. He leveled his weapon, and Arashi leaped. Bakugo knew the power of her jump had shredded the muscles and tendons in her legs, but it let her cross the space in seconds, delivering a staggering hit to the man’s chest with her elbow.
“No, I shouldn’t do that. But… no one here will stop me.”
Lazarus was known for her bright, encouraging smiles, for taking pictures with excited children and letting them climb all over her like a jungle gym. She was known as a protector, a champion of the weak. No one but her closest friends knew just how vicious she was capable of being. True, some villains had accused her, but there had never been any evidence of actual misconduct.
And Repose… she was easily the most terrifying hero a villain could meet in a dark alley. Those that underestimated her for her small stature soon found themselves beaten and bound and on their way to the police. Bakugo couldn’t have been more proud of her.
“I won’t tell if you won’t,” Repose said, rolling her shoulders.
“My lips are sealed,” Lazarus murmured, turning her uncanny gaze on the leader. “You ready to see what happens when you try to hurt my friends?”