They split up. Togata said he needed to look for a certain villain as per intel to prevent the advancement of the fortress, while the rest of them headed out to help their friends.
The situation was almost hopeless. Class 1A's students were overwhelmed by the never-ending monsters and were on their last legs.
" You damned beasts! Get away from them!" Sora, covering her body in her strengthened feathers and enlarging her form to the maximum, swept at the one who headed for Uraraka and Asui.
" Sora-chan!"
" Sorry for being late!"
" Magnity Net!" Yuu created a net of lightning to block the advance of those targeting Yaoyorozu and Iida.
" Are you alright?"
" Ah…" the girl nodded, albeit she seemed exhausted and wounded.
" No matter how many we take down, more just appear…" Iida clicked his tongue just as Koda used the crystal hedgehogs to drive more monsters away.
" So unless the one creating them is taken down, there would be no end to this fight…" Yuu surmised while Thunderbird unleashed his bolts with every flap of his black wings.
" Tsk! Is there no way to deal with them?" Sora rammed into a group of them before soaring into the sky, holding a monster overhead and throwing it at another group surrounding Kaminari.
" Even if we try to reduce their numbers…" Uraraka flung the couple she had just rendered weightless in the sky, only for more to be set upon her. Asui quickly grabbed her using her tongue and pulled her back.
" There is no end to how many more they can summon."
" Still!" Yuu unleashed a bolt of lightning after the other.
" We're not giving up just yet!" Sora flapped her wings, her hardened feathers launching at the monsters and driving them back.
It was then that something, or someone, crashed into the battlefield, throwing kicks and shooting lasers before laughing out loud as if enjoying themselves.
" Is that…"
" Mirko-san!"
Several other beasts were lifted off the ground, bound by Best Jeanest's threads. " You did well holding out on your own!"
" Leave the rest to us!" Edge Shot moved into combat, followed by all other pro heroes.
Their presence brought about a new hope for the tired children. Albeit, it also prompted villains to change tactics. The monsters backed, morphing into giant beasts not unlike trees with several tentacles.
And even more small ones appeared.
" They're raising the difficulty level as well…" Yuu muttered.
" Don't give up, everyone!" Iida called.
" Of course we won't!" Yaoyorozu stepped forward, holding onto her injured shoulder.
" Go beyond…" Sora began.
" … Plus Ultra!" Shoji continued as both of them tackled the first tree. The tentacles flailed around, as if to keep them off.
" Is this the Whomping Willow or what!?" Sora complained.
" Out of the way!"
A laser beam shot right through the trunk, and the tree twisted as though in pain. Sora looked back to see Yuu standing behind a couple of Yaoyorozu's cannons, electricity sizzling around him.
" Sorry, Kaminari-san, I'm stealing your job for now!"
" I don't mind!" Kaminari shouted as he shot the smaller monsters that approached them. " I don't have much energy left. If anyone is going to charge those cannons, it's you, Seijin!"
Yuu narrowed his eyes.
" These are probably the last cannons I can produce, too. If they got destroyed…" Yaoyorozu panted, a statement of how exhausted she was.
It was at that moment that a couple of monsters leapt from behind them, and Yuu looked over his shoulder, his eyes glowing in purple as a dome of black energy surrounded them, and the beasts bounced off it.
The moment the dome faded, Kaminari shot them down.
" They won't…" Yuu assured her, his eyes trailing back to the battlefield where Shoji and Sora were holding back the tentacles of another mutant tree. " I will protect your Plus Ultra…"
And he shot again at the trunk, which resulted in the mutant plant twisting and wilting.
" Keep your tentacles away from my friends!" Sora cried as she clawed at the ones aiming for Jiro and Ashido from behind, tearing them apart.
The fight raged on and on, and all they could do was take down one plant, only for another to sprout in its place.
It was eating away at their stamina.
Just as they thought they were stuck in a never-ending loop, the plants and crawling monsters went still, stiffened, and then broke down into rocks.
" This…"
Yuu heaved a breath as he dropped down to his knees. " Midoriya-san and the rest must have done it."
There was a loud thud, and the ground beneath them began to tremble.
" It appears that Lemillion took care of the levitating Quirk user," Best Jeanest stated calmly.
" This fortress will soon collapse. We need to get out." Edge Shot informed, his paper-thin body returning to normal.
Yuu looked up at the false sky that began to crack. " Everyone, get on Thunderbird and Ryukyu's backs!" He stood up, pointing the cannons skyward. " We're blasting our way out of here!"
He poured his energy into the cords, and the cannons shot their laser, breaking the fake sky.
Ryukyu and Thunderbird flew out through the debris with class 1A and the pro heroes aboard, Sora, Tokoyami, and Hawks flying in their tow.
Yuu looked down at the crumbling stronghold, although there was no sign of their friends to be seen.
" Don't worry," Sora assured him with a smile as she drifted close to the large bird. " It's Midoriya and the rest. They will surely be alright."
Yuu nodded his head before his eyes caught the evacuees being led away from the area.
It was then that the whole fortress behind them began to shine and shudder as it reformed itself. " What's… happening…" Uraraka muttered worriedly.
" Midoriya… Todoroki…"
" Bakugo-san…"
" Focus!" Thunderbird shouted. " Don't you get it! There are still people nearby!"
Yuu's eyes narrowed at that. " You're right…"
" Our priority is to get those civilians away. We don't know what might happen with that fortress!" Ryukyu stated.
" Roger!" And they quickly made for the ground, hurrying to help with speeding the evacuation.
The stronghold continued to glow and shake as a dark mist swirled around it. Sora couldn't help but look back at it every now and then, worried about her friends still held there. " Midoriya… everyone… please do your best…"
Yuu gritted his teeth. " You're not going to lose… right… Bakugo-san…"
A series of explosions followed soon after, and the fortress came apart again, its ruins falling on the ground and breaking down into dust and sand. Barely any lumps of concrete were left.
Thankfully, the heroes managed to get the civilians away from the area affected by the fall, so no one was caught in the cloud of smoke and debris.
No one but those who were already inside.
A search mission had begun. The affected area was too large and unstable after all, so they had to move carefully. It was by sunset that class 1A managed to find their friends caught among the rubble; thankfully, none of them were seriously wounded.
" I told you I'm fine!" Bakugo shouted at Yaoyorozu, who insisted on bandaging his arms and plastering a bandaid on his face.
" With how loud you're, it's bound to be true." Yuu let a brief laugh of relief, and Bakugo snapped in his direction.
" Keep your remarks to yourself, baggy eyes!"
" What about Giulio-san and Anna-san?" Midoriya turned to ask Uraraka, who was tending to his wounds.
" Sora-chan is still looking for them."
It was then that their comms beeped, and it was said girl. " I've spotted Giulio-san and Anna-san! They're due west on a mound… Something is odd, though… they're not moving… I will go check on them."
" Keep your distance!" All Might's voice resounded in their ears. " We don't know for sure if Anna's Quirk won't go out of control again, so heed caution."
"... Understood."
Uraraka and Midoriya exchanged looks. " Let's go check on them as well."
The boy nodded.
Soon, Sora found herself joined by the whole of class 1A as they looked up at the still forms of the two, the woman entrapped in the man's arms.
Sora could see they were barely conscious.
When Anna came to, Giulio dropped to the ground, apparently completely drained, yet Sora could see he was still alive. Anna, on the other hand, couldn't tell and thought he had died, only for him to tell her off for already labeling him as dead.
As it appears, Giulio's Quirk was compatible with Anna's, which allowed it to be altered and strengthened, making it possible for him to completely neutralize the woman's Quirk and save her and everyone else.
By that logic, he was no longer bound to serve her, which Anna accepted gladly, as it would put them on equal grounds. Friends, not a master and her servant.
Sora heaved a sigh and smiled brightly at the resolution of it all, taking in the man's broad smile.
" Quite the happy ending for those two, don't you think?" Yuu asked as he approached her. He too wore a gentle smile on.
" It is. Glad that everything is over now, for everyone." Sora nodded before looking at her friend. " I still didn't thank you."
" Huh?"
The girl scratched her jaw. " For calling out to me when I was under that witch's Quirk, for stopping me from hurting Giulio-san. It was your voice that made me break out of her dream."
Yuu blinked at her before shaking his head with a soft smile. " It was nothing."
Sora looked down at her hand, clenching and unclenching it. " To think that I actually was compatible with Anna-san's Quirk… I dread to know what might have happened if you guys didn't save me back then…"
Yuu frowned his eyes as he considered something. " Say… What if… it was not your Quirk that was compatible with Anna… but the other way around…"
The girl raised an eyebrow at him.
" I've been thinking about it actually… I mean, there were several Quirks that had been compatible with her, but…" He looked at Giulio. " Was it merely fortune that saved her? Or was it fate…"
" You're talking in riddles." She complained, thrusting her fists in her hips at how mysterious her friend was acting.
" Say," Yuu looked back at her. " Anna-san's Quirk practically meddles with genes, right? So what if… what if Quirks that also meddle with genes, like Giulio-san's, are susceptible to her Quirk?"
Sora's eyes widened at that as she looked at Giulio. " So it wasn't luck… but fate… huh…"
" I'm not sure exactly, it's just a theory, seeing how far every Quirk that meddles with genes was compatible…"
" Wait a second, still, my Quirk…"
" Is at its crux a DNA-modifying Quirk… Which is actually bothering me…" Yuu looked down.
" What do you mean?" Sora asked.
Yuu breathed in as he tried to collect his thoughts. " I can't be sure just yet… It's just a speculation on my part… but…" he looked up at his friend. " A singularity… might have occurred between DNA Writer and Overmodification. A resonance of kind…"
Sora blinked at that. " What makes you think so?"
Yuu chewed on his words. " Because when you were under that Quirk, your form… Was much like your grandmother's true form…"
Sora's eyes widened.
" I doubt you realized it while you were fighting those beasts, but even your strength and speed… they increased significantly…"
" You're not implying…"
" Overmodification might have had some lingering side effect on you, Sora…"...