Ok so for anyone who might have a gripe about how strong cid is in this chapter please remember i said dude was strong in chapter on he's literally on a watch list due to his quirk. Also the next few chapters like maybe 4 or so are going to focus on the fall out of the usj and cids past unless yall really don't care then let me know.
Chapter 13: pushed to the brink
Cid's eyes swept across the massive facility locking. The lines of distance lit up everywhere, connecting him to everything his eyes landed on. He didn't hesitate.
His focus locked on the Flood Zone first. A large boat bobbed in the churning water — Izuku, Tsuyu, and Mineta fighting off a handful of water based villains. Cid focused on the lines between himself and his classmates, shrinking the distance in a single thought.
With a soft pop, the trio appeared right beside him.
One moment they were mid-battle. The next they were standing on solid ground, dripping wet and stumbling from the sudden shift.
"Wha—?!" Izuku yelped, One For All still crackling faintly around his arm.
Tsuyu tilted her head, tongue flicking out once in surprise. "Ribbit… Cid?"
Mineta just screamed and panicked.
Cid didn't explain. He was already looking elsewhere. Across the complex is the group of Momo, Jiro, and Kaminari fighting back-to-back in the Mountain Zone against a group of villains. Another thought. Another pop.
The three appeared beside the others, Momo's creation staff still raised, Jiro's earjacks ready to plug into the ground, Kaminari sparking with electricity.
"Cid?!" Momo's eyes widened. "How did you—?"
He ignored her and kept going.
Todoroki was next. The half-and-half student was in the Landslide Zone, massive ice attacks going off and he was actually using his fire to hold off a group of villains that looked like they were specifically grouped together to counter him as well. There were a few scattered 1-B students fighting beside him so he was doing much better then cid had been earlier. Cid shrank the distance between them all and himself.
They materialized in front of him, Shoto's was still steaming, and the others were breathing hard.
He pulled Uraraka and Iida from the edge of the Mountain Zone, both battered but alive. Then Shoji from the Downpour Zone perimeter. Then Tokoyami and Dark Shadow from a shadowed corner of the Fire Zone, the bird-headed boy exhausted and covered in smoke but still standing.
The questions came fast, voices overlapping in confusion and relief.
"What the hell is this?!"
"Cid, your eyes—!"
"How are you doing that?!"
He didn't answer any of them. His nose had started bleeding from the strain of processing too much information his eyes fed him, a thin trickle running down his lip, but he ignored it. The lines were everywhere now, connecting him to every visible part of the facility. He kept pulling — more 1-B students, a few scattered 1-A members — bringing them all to the central plaza entrance in rapid succession. Each warp took a fraction of a second, but the mental strain built fast. His head throbbed. Blood dripped from the corner of his left eye now, mixing with the nosebleed, but he refused to stop.
The only zones he couldn't reach were the ones completely obscured from sight, the Fire Zone, the sections inner parts of the collapse Zone, and the Downpour Zone. He couldn't see the students inside them, so he couldn't lock on and pull them to him.
But he had most of them now.
The rescued group clustered around him, breathing hard and staring at Cid clad in his compression shirt and at the blood covering Cid's face and chest. The questions came fast, voices overlapping.
"What happened to you?!"
"Where's Aizawa?!"
Cid wiped blood from his face with the back of his hand, voice low and steady despite the dizziness. "Later. We're missing people in the Fire, Collapsed, and Downpour Zones. I can't see them from here. I need to go get them ."
Before anyone could argue, a massive explosion rocked the entrance behind them and the doors flew open.
All Might had arrived.
The Symbol of Peace crashed through the doors like a comet, muscles gleaming under the dome lights. His usual bright smile was gone, replaced by a hard, focused expression that made the entire class straighten instinctively. The air itself seemed to shift around him, the weight of his presence pushing back against the fear and despair that had been lingering in their hearts.
Cid glanced back at him, both eyes still glowing. He saw the seriousness etched on All Might's face and spoke without hesitation, voice low but carrying clearly across the group.
"Be careful," he warned. "These guys have planned counters for me and Todoroki, they studied us enough to know our weaknesses. They definitely have something in place they think can stop you too."
All Might's eyes flicked to Cid, then widened slightly in surprise. The boy who had spent the entire time he knew him drifting through classes with half-lidded eyes that radiated boredom and minimal effort was now standing there bloodied and serious like he was on a mission, cloak gone, compression shirt torn and soaked dark red across the chest. Blood streaked his face from his nose and the corners of both eyes, yet his stance was steady, the glowing pattern in his eyes stood out. All Might blinked once, clearly taken aback by the change in cid.
Before he could speak, Cid continued. "I'm going to get the others."
All Might moved instantly, one massive hand reaching out to stop him. "Young Kageno, you're in no condition to—"
Cid disappeared.
One moment he was standing there with the rescued students clustered around him. The next he was gone, the air popping softly where he had been. All Might's hand closed on empty space, his eyes widening further in shock at the fact his student just disappeared.
Cid reappeared high in the air above the Collapse Zone, the wind whipping past him as he fell. The mist and broken buildings below were still thick, but his new eyes cut straight through it. The shimmering lines of distance connected everything — every piece of rubble, every student fighting for their lives, was laid bare for him to see. He landed lightly on the roof of a fallen skyscraper, the impact barely registering as he focused.
He spotted Yui fighting with her classmates. She looked exhausted but otherwise okay. 'That's good,' he thought, a small flicker of relief cutting through the pain. 'At least she's okay in this whole mess.'
He raised his hands as if to focus, pointing out at the destroyed city before him.
Any building or debris blocking line of sight between him and the scattered students in the zone collapsed inward, shrinking rapidly until entire sections of rubble vanished or compressed into harmless pieces of rubble. The zone remodeled itself in moments — pathways clearing, sightlines opening, the chaotic landscape altering under his power. The students below looked up in awe and confusion as the giant debris simply disappeared around them.
Cid didn't wait. He shrank the distance between himself and each group, pulling them to his side in rapid succession, then expanded the space again to bring them all straight to the entrance plaza. They materialized beside the others in bursts of displaced air, stunned but alive.
He moved to the next obscured zone without pause — the Fire Zone. Flames roared, but his eyes pierced the smoke and heat. He shrank obstacles, compressed distances, and warped the surviving students out in the same efficient pattern. Then the Downpour Zone, where torrential rain had turned everything into a blinding curtain. The lines still guided him. He cleared what he could see, pulled the last scattered students free, and folded the space one final time.
When Cid reappeared at the entrance with the last group, the entire group of both classes were together — battered, bleeding, and wide-eyed, definitely traumatized, but alive. The entrance was crowded with survivors, the air thick with the sounds of heavy breathing and shocked murmurs.
Cid staggered the moment his feet touched the ground. The rapid, repeated use of his new power had pushed him far past his limits. His nose bled freely, fresh trails running down his chin. His eyes stung, blood leaking from the corners as the strain finally caught up. The shrinking he did on his chest wound even undid itself opening it slightly, a warm trickle soaking through his torn compression shirt once more.
He fell to his knees, panting hard, one hand pressed to this face trying to stifle the pain in his eyes and brain, while the other braced against the concrete to keep himself upright.
Yui saw him arrive and was already moving.
She broke from the cluster of stunned classmates and ran straight to him, dropping to her knees beside Cid without a word. Her hands hovered for a split second, unsure where to touch without hurting him more, then settled gently on his shoulders, steadying him as best she could. "Cid… stop it. You're bleeding so much — oh god, you need to stop, you're going to kill yourself!!"
The rest of the class remained frozen a few steps away, eyes locked on the still form wrapped in Cid's cloak. Toru. The white gloves peeking out from beneath the black fabric were the only thing that let them know who it was. No one spoke mina, Ururaka and Tsyu were openly crying over their friend's death, Kirishima looked like he was trying to hold it together but clearly looked shaken along with most of the class. The weight of what they were seeing pressed down on them like the world itself had collapsed.
Cid tried to push himself up anyway. His arms shook, muscles straining against the blood loss and the reopened wound. "I have to help him," he muttered, voice rough and low. His glowing eyes flicked toward the center of the plaza where All Might was locked in combat with three massive Nomu. The Symbol of Peace wasn't winning, but he wasn't losing either — Aizawa's quirk was erasing their Quirks whenever he could get a clear line while keeping one red eye locked on Shigaraki and Kurogiri at the same time. The fight was brutal, the Nomu were vicious, and All Might's punches shook the ground when the 2 forces collided.
Yui's grip tightened on his shoulders. "Cid, no. You're hurt. You can't—"
He forced himself higher, knees scraping concrete, but his body betrayed him. The world tilted violently. He crumbled forward, the strength leaving his legs all at once. Yui caught him frantically, arms wrapping around his torso to keep him from face-planting. "Cid!"
His hands hit the ground, fingers digging into the concrete hard enough to leave shallow grooves. Blood dripped from his nose and the corners of his eyes, mixing with the fresh stain spreading across the ground below him. "I promised," he growled through gritted teeth, trying to push up again. "I promised to save all of them… I can't just sit here…"
The words came out like an obsession, forcing his body to obey even as it screamed at him to stop. His arms trembled, the grooves in the concrete deepening as he tried to rise one more time.
Right then, three figures sprinted past him.
Bakugo, Todoroki, and Izuku.
Bakugo blasted forward with a roar, Todoroki's ice and fire trailing behind him, Izuku's green lightning crackling across his body. They didn't hesitate — they ran straight into the fray to support All Might, joining the chaotic battle against the Nomu.
Cid's glowing eyes followed them, stunned for a split second.
Yui's voice cracked beside his ear, tears already falling freely down her cheeks. "Look, Cid… they're helping. You don't have to push yourself anymore, they'll help all might ,you can rest now." Her arms tightened around him as she pleaded for him to stop, pulling his head firmly against her chest in a desperate hug. "If you keep going you're going to die!! Please… just stop."
The words hit him harder than any attack.
He felt her heartbeat against his temple, fast and frantic, her tears soaking into his hair. The fight still raged in the plaza behind them, but for the first time since this whole thing had happened, Cid let his body go slack.
The tension drained out of his shoulders. His clenched fists loosened. The glowing pattern in both eyes flickered once, then dimmed as exhaustion finally won. He sagged fully into Yui's body.
She buried her face in his hair crying
Yui suddenly felt a warm stickiness spreading across her uniform almost immediately. She pulled back just enough to look down, and her breath caught. Blood—Cid's blood—was soaking through her shirt where his chest pressed against her.
"Shit, Cid… you're still bleeding," she whispered, voice breaking. Her hands moved frantically, pressing against the wound, trying to stem the flow. It wasn't enough. The blood kept seeping between her fingers, warm and relentless. "Momo! Snap out of it—I need your help! Please!"
Momo stood frozen a few feet away, eyes wide and unseeing, still staring at Toru's body. The words seemed to jolt her back. She blinked once, twice, confusion clouding her face for a split second as her mind caught up. Then her gaze shifted to Yui's voice and landed on Cid—bloodied, pale, barely conscious in Yui's arms. Momo's expression shattered into horror.
She rushed over without another word, creation sparking already. "I'm coming!"
Kendo and Tokoyami followed a second later, Kendo's face pale but determined, Tokoyami's Dark Shadow flickering at his shoulder.
Yui kept pressure on the wound, her voice frantic. "We need something to stop the bleeding! He's losing too much blood!"
Momo nodded sharply, her Quirk activating. She created thick bandages, handing them off as fast as she could. Kendo helped apply pressure while Tokoyami used Dark Shadow to hold Cid steady while he watched the area due to knowing nothing about first aid.
Yui focused on keeping Cid awake, her arms wrapped around him, holding his head against her chest. "Stay awake, Cid. Please stay awake. You can't close your eyes right now."
Cid's voice was weak, barely above a whisper. "I'm sorry… I couldn't save her…"
Yui knew exactly who he meant. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she shook her head. " It's not your fault, Cid."
He kept rambleing, the words slurring and coming out jumbled. "It is… if I had just tried harder from the start… if I hadn't been so lazy… if I had taken it seriously sooner… she'd still be here…"
Yui stopped him firmly, voice loud and breaking through the haze. "It's not your fault!" The words stunned him into silence for a moment. Tears ran down her cheeks, a small hiccup escaping as she hugged his head tighter to her chest. "It's not your fault. You did the best you could."
Then they heard it—the sound of feet hitting the ground outside, multiple sets running fast. The teachers were rushing in, pro heroes arriving in force.
Cid's eyes fluttered. The world grew heavy, the edges blurring. He tried to fight it, but the exhaustion and blood loss finally won.
He slipped unconscious in Yui's arms, fading completely as his head lolled against her shoulder.