July Catch All

[inheritance]

WHO: Izuku & others
WHERE: Around the town!
WHEN: Throughout July
WHAT: Quests and a bunch of other things, probably
WARNINGS: None for now!

Comments

damian pls

[inheritance]

[Even though it looks like Damian was about to protest, he took Izuku's hand in the end! Izuku beams at him in response.]

Oh, good point. Neither of us have had to fight this way before, so we might forget and let go accidentally, too!

[He pats around his belt until he pulls out a thin rope from one of the compartments.] This should work.

help him

[bittybat]

[Damn. He was going to get a rope out of his pockets. Is Izuku trying to compete with him on being Robin? HM? IS IZUKU TRYING TO BE THE NEXT DICK GRAYSON?]

Don't tie your dominant hand. [He pauses thoughtfully for a second.] Your Quirk. Give me the details of what it's like when it comes to combat.

he'll do his best

[inheritance]

[Competitive much??]

Oh! Yeah, I guess I never actually told you the specifics. I can fire off wind pressure attacks with my hand now. [He holds up his right hand and wiggles his fingers.] But for close combat, I use my legs to fight, mostly!

[bittybat]

[Hmmmm. For a moment, Damian is thoughtful again. While he enjoys being in charge, he can also assess the need to kind of... "utilize" stronger allies to serve the purpose to keeping him from dying while he needs to do work.

He's still in charge anyway. He's calling the shots.] Here. [He offers Izuku his right arm, bringing his left around to help with tying the rope. He's ambidextrous, so it won't matter, though when it comes to this quest, he's going to have to be the one to steer Izuku's strength.]

I'll guide you. Just don't kick me, and don't let go of my hand.

[inheritance]

[For his part, Izuku just takes it all in a stride, using his right hand to help Damian tie the rope around their joined hands.]

Should I warn you when I'm about to kick or fire off an attack?

[Considering Damian's experience and good judgment, Izuku doesn't feel like letting Damian take the lead is anything to be alarmed about.]

[bittybat]

No. I'm not sure how intelligent it is, but I'm not going to take any chances. It's going to have multiple heads.

[There. They're now tied up. This is stupid. And a little dangerous. But listen. He twists his hand and, sigh, links their fingers so he can hold Izuku's hand.] Let's go.

I'll know when you're getting ready to use an attack. Trust me.

[inheritance]

Right... like the one in Greek mythology. [At least he's still been doing his reading, despite how busy and chaotic things have gotten.]

Okay, let's go! The quest post doesn't say where the chimera is, but we could look for unusual tracks to find it.

[bittybat]

Probably near the forest or inside of it, if anything. [Fine. With their hands and arms now tied together and clasped. He'll just start walking, trying not to drag Izuku if he can help it. He actually doesn't walk particularly fast or slow.]

What all do you know about chimeras?

[inheritance]

[Izuku takes a moment to recall the details, keeping pace with Damian without trouble.]

The chimera's a combination of lion, dragon, and goat--um, some of descriptions of the animal parts vary, though. Some stories have the chimera with a snake tail. It's strong, fast, and can breathe fire.

[bittybat]

Good enough. Sometimes, the snake part is the snake's head. We'll have to be careful of both the front and the back.

[Alright. THIS IS FINE. He'll just scour the ground and the lower portion of trees for some kind of indication a chimera had been present.] Do you think it's a sign?

A lot of the animals in the forest already could be called chimeras. They're a conglomerate of other animals meshed into one.

[inheritance]

You're not wrong. [Izuku keeps his voice quiet as they walk, eyes checking the ground frequently for clues.]

The quests, though... any time it asks us to fight something, it's usually the creature from the fairytales and myths we're more familiar with. So even if the rest of these animals are technically chimeras, I think the one we're looking for is the one we were talking about before.

What do you think it's a sign of?

[bittybat]

I don't know. Maybe it's a boss. A big chimera after fighting some of the smaller ones. I don't know if the ones in the forest could be called mythological, though, you're right. They're more, like... test subjects.

[He stops suddenly, probably jerking Izuku now that their arms are tied. He raises both of them when he points off to their right, deeper into the woods.] Look.

[Some of the brush and lower hanging limbs have been damaged, almost as if being walked through by something larger. Bigger than the two of them anyway.]

I have screencap evidence!!!

[inheritance]

[Izuku looks up, clearly bothered.] You don't really think they're test subjects, do you?

[But, oh, a reply will probably have to wait, since it looks like they're nearing their target.

Izuku squints down at the ground below the broken branches, searching until--there! Wordlessly, he points at the tracks. It's a set that looks like a large feline's in the front and then... something large and reptilian in the back maybe?] I think we found it.

[bittybat]

[Hm. Looks like they did find it. Damian glances back up, searching the horizon of the forest line, listening.] It could have been passing throu--

[The hair on the back of his neck stands when the low, trickling growl comes from behind them. Oh.] Watch it! [He's too reactionary and headstrong, and hopefully Izuku doesn't react as fast but go in the opposite direction.

With their arms and hands linked, he tries to jerk Izuku down and to the left in case the chimera tries to lunge or sweep an attack.]

[inheritance]

[It could've been a disaster, but somehow, they both manage to jump in the same direction to avoid the chimera's swipe at them.

As he's falling to the ground, Izuku kicks out with his free leg to push the chimera back with the wind pressure he created.]

Looks like it's the dragon variation that we got this time! What now?

[bittybat]

First, don't be an idiot and panic. [Fear is the world's worst wrecker of Doing. With time gained because of Izuku's kick, Damian can look over the animal and the area quickly.] Secondly, you're going to do the attacking, and I'm going to do the steering.

You use me, and I use you. We have to keep our weight balanced when we're attacking so you can get momentum. [There's so many heads HELLO.] Destroying the heart would be the best bet, but the heads are going to get in the way.

But if we destroy all the heads, it'll still be dead. You decide.

[inheritance]

Got it. [Izuku narrows his eyes at the chimera.]

Let's aim for the heart instead of taking each head down one by one. If I boost my speed with my quirk, I should be able to dodge the attacks from the head.

[A burst of flame comes their direction, and Izuku tightens his grip on Damian before jumping out of the way, green energy sparking all over his skin as he activates his quirk.]

Do you have anything like a dagger on you?

[bittybat]

Guns and swords or daggers are typically off-limits. [So... no... sadly. He should probably make a knife. A sword. But then his dad would be disappointed. He at least makes a bow?] But I have my batarangs.

They're for throwing, not stabbing. You'll cut your hand otherwise, and I don't think their length will be deep enough to get through the hide for the heart.

[Without resistance, he goes where Izuku leads. He doesn't jerk away from the energy, but it garners some regard. It reminds him a little of the Flashes.]

Do you know the pounds per square inch of the pressure you can apply? I don't need data, just an estimate of force. Do you think you can crush the chest cavity in on itself?

[inheritance]

[Huh... they are? Izuku makes a note of that--he supposes it makes sense, with the way that Damian said Batman and the other quirkless heroes in their world operated.

Jump, jump! Izuku keeps moving as the attacks come, careful to keep Damian close all the while. The chimera's pretty quick on its feet, just like the stories had said, but it becomes clear that Izuku's enhanced speed is more than enough to outmatch it.]

I don't know the exact numbers, but... I'm pretty sure I can. [Especially with the new metal additions to his boot.]

[bittybat]

Good.

[The next time they have a second to stop and recalibrate, Damian makes sure his grip is still tight and unwavering.

The chimera is a conglomerate of animals, a mutation. He feels a little bad being so gung-ho about destroying it. The clones of himself, the failed ones, he released onto the island weren't animals... but they were mutated, and most people would be disgusted at their sight.

But they shouldn't be killed. They couldn't help who they were.] I changed my mind. Don't kill it.

The body belongs to only one of the heads. The lion. See if you can hit the head just hard enough to knock it out.

[Ha ha. Controlling a powerful ability. No pressure, right?]

[inheritance]

[Izuku spares a glance over at Damian again, smiling slightly. As prickly as he tries to be, he really is a huge softie, isn't he?] Alright, no killing it.

If I hit it with enough wind pressure, I should be able to knock it out. The only thing is, it'll probably knock all of them out, not just the lion's head.

[bittybat]

Even better. [HE'S NOT THAT MUCH OF A SOFTY... He's just... a soft for freaks and monsters because he feels like one, too.] Let's go.

Keep an eye out for the fire breathing. I'll watch the other heads and keep them away if they try anything. If you need to swing around for momentum, just go, don't ask. I'll follow up.

[inheritance]

Hold on tight! [And with that, Izuku launches himself from branch to branch before jumping straight up into the air, just above the chimera.

As he flips himself, he adjusts his power output to 30% for just long enough to kick downward, using the momentum from his flip to increase the power of the attack.

The wind pressure hits the chimera dead on, making the trees around them bend away slightly.]

[bittybat]

[Not knowing what to expect, Damian simply goes along for the ride, gripping Izuku's hand and keeping their elbows tight so their arms aren't somehow broken by the bindings. It's too easy how he's lifted up into the air, how Izuku jumps around with him. Reminds him a lot of Jon's kind of powers.

Izuku hadn't been lying, not that he thought as much after meeting Kirishima and seeing the hardening Quirk in action. Quirks were abilities.

When they start to fall, Damian carefully tucks himself into something more streamlined, offering them more velocity and power. It's hard trying to split his attention between soaking up what he can see of Izuku's power and watching out for the other two heads. The closest one gets a swift, quick kick to make sure it stays back, and then he braces for a landing.]

Not bad. Your calculations.

[inheritance]

[Thankfully, using 30% in such a short burst doesn't hurt him too badly, and Izuku's able to land as smoothly as possible. When the dust clears and he sees the chimera slumped over, all three of its heads limp against the ground--the chest still moves with shallow breath, though, and Izuku sighs in relief.]

Thanks, Robin! [Now that he knows he's kept his promise, Izuku can smile at him brightly.] Yours, too. It was incredible how you matched everything I did without me even saying anything!

[And he means all of it, of course. Izuku holds up their hands, still tied together with rope.] So... the chimera's down. That means we should be able to head back to town and take this off, right?