I held my fist up high, my face practically splitting in half from smiling as the drawn out cheers of the crowd washed over me. Because I was in Level 7 the crowd was frozen in time to my eyes, but I could still see the elation on their faces, the excitement in their eyes as they cheered. I closed my eyes and imagined what they must have looked like in real time. Feet stomping, hands clapping, everyone screaming and cheering with jubilation at the conclusion to what was most likely the biggest upset in the Festival's history. When I was younger I had watched clips of pre-quirk sporting events, and imagined that the crowd's reaction was akin to the old buzzer-beaters and upset wins I had seen.

My thoughts went to my parents, and what they must have been thinking, watching from home. They were probably sitting on the couch together, clinging to each other with tears of joy streaming down their cheeks, crying and cheering and laughing together. Who knows? Maybe the rest of my family was watching too, cheering me on, the only one with a quirk in generations. Well, everyone besides my grandparents...

Sobered by the thought of my quirk-hating grandparents, I opened my eyes again, this time determined to find Chi in the crowd. I carefully scanned the crowd, turning slowly and letting my eyes linger over every section. It felt like 10 minutes to me, but in real time it was more likely about 5 seconds, but eventually I found her. My heart soared when I saw her; she had somehow gotten a seat in the third row on my left side. She had jumped out of her seat, her face red from screaming, and had both arms high in the air with a smile that may have been bigger than mine. Maybe it was the light, but I thought I saw something glittering in her eyes...I'd ask her later.

Tearing my eyes off Chi, I looked down at Todoroki. He was sprawled on his side, unconscious. A small pool of blood was forming under his head, fed by several thin streams of blood that dripped from his head, nose, and mouth. Under the blood, his face was a mess of bruises and scrapes. I couldn't be sure, but it was pretty likely that he had a few broken ribs and a concussion as well. Other than that though, all he really had were a lot of bruises, contusions, and scrapes. Besides being beaten to the point of unconsciousness in front of millions of people in the arena and watching at home, he'd gotten off pretty easy.

For a moment I felt a pang of pity for my classmate. He may have been an arrogant pretty-boy, but he was still a member of class 1-A, and I had all but ruined his chances of getting a decent internship offer. I could have gone a little easier on him…

I shook my head, dispelling the thought. Todoroki deserved every bit of what he got. He had openly declared war against Midoriya before the festival started, and said to him in front of everyone that he was stronger. Regardless of my friendship with Midoriya, the fact that he said that to a classmate was despicable. And he would be set up with a sweet internship thanks to his dad anyway, so that wasn't a factor. As far as I was concerned, he got what he deserved.

'Guess you weren't that strong after all, Todoroki. Maybe this will teach you some humility.'

Suddenly, a mental alarm began to blare in my head, warning me that I only had 10 seconds left before my quirk failed and I went into shock.

'I have to get to the ready room and drink some of Chi's spit before my time runs out!'

I could see that Midnight had begun to climb down from her seat in order to congratulate me and announce the next fight, but I didn't have time to wait for her. Spinning around, I sprinted down the steps of the ring and raced into the tunnels beneath the arena. My inner stopwatch gradually ticked down as I ran, but by the time I got to the ready room I knew I was safe. It had barely taken me a second to get from the ring where Todoroki and I had fought to the door to the ready room, leaving me with about 9 seconds left. I could have gone to the cafeteria and made myself a sandwich and still have had plenty of time.

I opened the door and strode over to my locker. As my hand closed around the handle I had a brief moment of panic, absurdly worrying that someone had found and confiscated the bottle. My heart pounded as I ripped the door open, but thankfully my sudden paranoia was unfounded. I sighed with relief and picked up the water bottle.

Unscrewing the cap and tossing it aside, I lifted the bottle to my mouth. As usual, I shuddered as the first mouthful of frothy, disgustingly warm spit touched my lips. I forced myself to swallow, coughing and gagging a little as I did.

'At least she ate some fruit before doing this.' I thought, wiping my mouth. 'Strawberry spit beats plain spit.'

Thankfully the next swallow was easier to get down, and the 3rd was even easier. I set the bottle down after my 5th mouthful, feeling vaguely queasy from the spit in my stomach and my apprehension. I hoped that Chi's healing spit would be enough to keep me from experiencing the full recoil of my quirk, but I couldn't be sure. This was uncharted territory, both in terms of my quirk and the healing power of Chi's. The last time I had Boosted to level 7 I went into a comma for 3 days, barely alive, my body almost completely shut down. The same fate awaited me if Chi's spit didn't take the edge off. And even if it did, then there was still a good chance that I would be laid out. The backlash of my quirk at level 4 was enough to render me useless for 6 hours, so I needed Chi's spit to keep it below that point. That was 3, almost 4, levels of recoil that I needed to bypass, and the odds were not at all in my favor.

During my training for the Sport's Festival, the highest I had Boosted was level 2. Chi's spit was potent enough to keep me from feeling the detrimental effects of my quirk at that level, but that was only 2 levels of recoil that needed to be dealt with, and they were the weakest levels. I was taking a huge leap of faith here. Either Chi's spit would save me, or it wouldn't. This story didn't have another ending.

For the first time since Boosting to level 7, I felt regret. Sure I had won the fight, surpassed one of the limits of my quirk, and proven to the world that I had some real potential as a hero, but it would all be for nothing if I had to drop out of the Festival anyway. I knew it was pointless to blame myself; I hadn't meant to Boost this high, it was the combination of adrenaline and desperation. Still, I couldn't help but be just a little angry with myself. Now that I could Boost without saying the trigger words, I would need to train myself to be able to control the level I Boosted.

I had another two seconds before my time limit ran out, but there was really no reason for me to put it off.

'Here goes nothing…' I thought. With a loud gulp, a released the hold on my quirk and came back down to my normal state.

My legs gave out and I crumpled to the floor, my head smacking against the floor with a sickening thunk. My entire body felt like it had been put through a medieval torture device, especially my legs. All of my muscles, from my calves to my neck, were so stiff that it felt as if any movement at all would tear them to shreds. That is, they would if I could move. All of the strength rushed out of my body as soon as I released my quirk, leaving me as weak as a newborn and what made my legs give out in the first place.

But all of that paled in comparison to the headache. It felt as icicles were being driven into my skull with a jackhammer, and any semblance of coherent thought was impossible. The baseline agony I felt from my head was bad enough, but what made it worse was that I felt my brain throb painfully with every heartbeat like it was pressing against the confines of my skull. The fluorescent lights were suddenly blindingly bright, and I screwed my eyes shut and pressed my forehead against the blessed cool of the cement floor.

Time ebbed and flowed around me as I lay there groaning, unable to think or move and barely able to breath. Each second felt like an eternity, yet the span between each agonizing heartbeat seemed to get shorter and shorter until it felt like my brain was vibrating.

As I lay there, I began to fervently wish that I would just pass out. The idea of the cold embrace of oblivion was heavenly to me: no pain, no lights, no weakness. Just sleep.

I groaned as another lance of pain hit. That tiny wish, barely even a thought, was enough to make my overheated brain protest angrily. I felt a tear trickle out from behind my eyelid. I just wanted the pain to stop.

Suddenly, I felt the muscles in my calves begin to knot and contract into a charley horse. I gasped as the muscles in my calves began to throb angrily, and I began to writhe and spasm like I was having a seizure as I tried frantically to alieve the pain in my legs. As I flopped around uncontrollably, blinded by the pain in my legs and my head, I felt one of my hands brush against something just out of reach.

My eyes flew open.

The water bottle…

I tried to crane my neck to look around, but the overload of optical information that flooded my brain as soon as I opened my eyes triggered another painful burst of pain in my skull and I quickly shut my eyes again. I took three rapid breaths, then strained with what little strength I had left to move my left arm.

My shoulder twitched, but my arm itself remained glued to the floor. I took a few more breaths, then tried again to move my arm. Nothing happened for a moment, then my arm slid an inch higher towards my head. Grunting like I was lifting my maximum weight, I heaved my arm higher. I stopped to rest when my arm was perpendicular to my head, panting and trying not to pass out from the pain in my head. Once my head stopped throbbing as painfully, I began to slide my arm further along the floor.

Slowly… oh so slowly… I slid the deadweight that was my arm further across the floor. Right as I was about to pause again, I felt the tips of my fingers brush against the side of the bottle. With an almighty groan, I reached up and wrapped my fingers around the bottle.

Now that I had the bottle in my hand, I paused to recover and get my breath back. I felt utterly spent, as if I had just tried to lift a mountain. My arm was trembling from exhaustion, and I had no idea how I was going to move the bottle now that I had it, let alone lift it to my mouth to drink.

I tried inching my body along the floor, but I didn't even try that for a full second before the combination of pain and exhaustion forced me to stop. It was clear that my only option would be to drag the bottle to myself with my arm.

I took a massive breath and with herculean effort began to pull the bottle closer. With a grinding sound that sounded as loud and painful as a machine gun being fired into my ear drum, the bottle slid closer.

"Aaaggghhh" I groaned, as the bottle brushed my head, sending another bolt of pain through my skull. I took a moment to recover from the pain, panting and exhausted, but satisfied. I had done it.

I inched one eye open, and inwardly sighed with relief as I saw that the bottle was unopened. I opened my mouth and slowly tipped the bottle down, trying not to have too much of the spit fall at once.

My eyes flew open as my hand suddenly gave out and the bottle fell across my mouth, sending nearly half of the remaining spit down my throat all at once. I choked and seized, gagging and spitting up...well, spit. My back arched as my coughing fit caused another bout of agony in my brain.

I lay there moaning, spit dripping off my face as the muscles in my calves gradually stopped contracting. I felt utterly spent. Thankfully, at least some of the spit managed to make its way into my system, as I felt my headache subside slightly. Now I could keep my eyes open without being in agonizing pain, and I found that some light thinking was doable. But, I still felt completely drained of all energy, and my muscles still felt shot.

With a jolt, I realized that if I didn't recover in the next hour, at the absolute most, that I would have to forfeit the next match. I couldn't let that happen. I refused to let that happen.

'I need...recovery girl…' I thought. 'She may be able to...fix my muscles...give me my strength back.'

Recovery Girl may have been able to help me get back into fighting shape, but it wasn't like she knew where to find me, and I couldn't go to her either. I needed someone to get Recovery Girl for me. I needed someone to come in to the room and see my state. Frantically, I thought back to everyone know knew about the physical toll of my quirk. I assumed Mr. Aizawa knew, as well as the other teachers, because they had access to our quirk registration forms. But he would be too busy with the other fights to come check on me. My parents knew, but they were at home and of no help to me there. The only other person was Chi.

She was my best bet. Hopefully, Chi would come to congratulate me on the fight and would be able to get Recovery Girl for me. All I could do now was hope that she got here soon-

Before I even got a chance to finish my thought, I heard a creak as the door to the ready room swung open. Because of the way I fell I couldn't see who had just walked in, but I could care less who it was. I sighed with relief.

'Perfect timing,' I thought.

"Hey," I murmured, barely able to make my voice audible. "Is that you, Chi?"

No one answered. I swallowed and tried again, straining to raise my voice.

"Hey… is anyone there?"

Again, no one answered. I felt a ripple of unease as the door creaked shut, and the lock slid home with a thunk. Someone had locked themselves in here with me.

"Who's there?" I said, straining to lift my head off the floor so I could see who was in here with me. I managed to lift my head about a millimeter of the floor, but that was all I could manage before my strength failed.

"I can't believe it…"

The voice sent a shiver down my spine. The voice sounded male, but it was hard to say for certain. It sounded distorted and synthesized, like how my voice sounded when I wore my helmet. But, the distortion couldn't keep the psychotic glee out of the voice of whoever was in the room with me.

Not only that, but the voice sounded… familiar.

"I just can't believe it," the voice said again. I looked around as much as I could without being able to move my head, but whoever was talking was out of my line of sight.

"Who is that?" I asked, a hint of unease in my voice. "Who's in here...who are you?"

"I thought that I'd have to fight you first," the voice continued, ignoring my question. "But apparently your little fight with Endeavor's kid took a lot out of you. This must be the backlash of your quirk...I bet you couldn't lift a finger, even if you tried. Perfect... it'll be so much easier to kill you now."

My blood turned to ice in my veins, and I struggled to keep my breathing under control. I tried to move, but it felt like my body was covered in lead. Whoever this person was, I was completely helpless before them.

"Who are you!" I demanded, trying desperately to stall for time. "Why do you want to kill me?"

There was a series of rapid thuds as whoever was in the room walked over to stand directly behind me, just out of my line of sight. A tiny puff of wind blew across my face, a fraction of a second before a boot connected the side of my head.

I cried out as my vision erupted into stars and I slid across the floor, spinning partially around. I lay there groaning, my head throbbing as a trickle of blood began to drip from my temple. After a few moments my vision began to return to normal, and I looked up at who it was that kicked me. What I saw… was a nightmare.

They wore a tattered cloak around their shoulders that was the deepest black I had ever seen, as well as heavy black boots and black pants. Around their waist was some kind of utility belt, from which hung six black spheres, each roughly the size of an apple. Next to the spheres was a dagger with a black handle. They also wore a black leather shirt that was criss-crossed by pouches and latches. The cloak was buttoned at the neck and the hood was drawn, but from the black depths of the hood I could see a single red eye glinting at me, like a spotlight.

"What, don't you recognize me?" The cloaked figure asked with a sadistic chuckle. Slowly, they reached up and pulled their hood down. I exhaled shakily.

The figure wore a matte-black metal mask in the likeness of some kind of twisted, steampunk skull. The eyes were huge, perfectly round red spotlights that glowed, and small tendrils of steam floated out from the nostrils of the mask. The mask had a massive, unnatural smile that showed jagged teeth. It was the face of a demon.

"Still not ringing any bells?" The figure said. "Maybe this will jog your memory."

After they pulled their hood back over their head, the figure reached down and grasped one of the black spheres and detached it from his belt.

"I think it's time that you and my pet got reacquainted!" The figure said, tossing the sphere into the air. The sphere hit the ground and, to my surprise, popped open at the middle with a soft popping sound. There was a rush of wind as a wave of black light emerged from the sphere, swirling and rapidly coagulating into a shape.

My heart began to beat out of control as the light took form, and my head began to pound with a renewed vigor. I knew that shape. I knew those claws...that putrid smell of death and decay...the blood-stained brown fur...those hate-filled yellow eyes…

I low growl like rocks being poured onto cement filled the room as the light finished taking form, revealing the monster it had created. My breaths whistled out of my nose at an increasing rate as I beheld the monster in front of me. It was the wolf from my nightmares, the embodiment of the terror inflicted on my by Sumisu all those years ago. Once again, I was face to face with my inner demon.

Now I knew who this masked figure was. I wrenched my eyes off the wolf and met the eyes of the figure, who was standing there expectantly.

"I know you," I managed to say. "Ryuketsu."

The figure threw back his head and laughed: a twisted, joyless sound...the laugh of a madman.

"So, you do remember me!" Ryuketsu said, clapping his hands together. "Excellent! But, I'm not Ryuketsu anymore. I go by Phobia now."

"Phobia…" I said, the bitter taste of dread thick on my tongue. "Suits you."

"Oh it more than suits me; I am the embodiment of fear itself!" Phobia said, spreading his arms wide. "I bring nightmares to life! I strike fear into the hearts of anyone who would dare oppose me! This world, this time of peace and light, it all sickens me! This world is overrun with self righteous heroes, passing judgement and stifling the shadows. I refuse to accept a world without darkness! I will kill every last hero until none remain, and I will fill the world with fear unlike any it has ever known! I will become the monster that calls this world its domain, and any light left in this world will be snuffed out!"

Phobia threw back his head and cackled.

"This world has forgotten what it's like to be afraid! Well, I will make them remember!"

I stared in horror as Phobia shook with psychotic laughter, overwhelmed by the depths of his insanity. I couldn't believe that once again I was face to face with this monster, a man who fed on fear.

Phobia's laughter stopped suddenly, and he directed his gaze back at me.

"But, all of that can wait for now," he said, any trace of laughter gone from his voice. "First thing's first…killing you."

My heart dropped as Phobia drew the knife from its sheath and stalked towards me, the wolf falling into step next to him.

"You can't be allowed to live," Phobia hissed, the wolf at his side growling as if in agreement. "You dared to stand up to your fear...you tried to overcome it. You need to learn that fear is the most unstoppable force in this world."

"Don't worry...I'll show you."

As Phobia walked closer, I truly began to realize that I was about to die. I couldn't fight, I couldn't run, I couldn't call for help. I was locked in a room with death.

I struggled mightily, gasping and fighting with everything I had to lift myself off the floor.

"Come on!" I grunted, half-crazed with panic. "Boost! Boost! Boost!"

I called out, reached for my power with everything I had...but it was no use. My quirk just wouldn't come. With herculean effort, I managed to bring my arms under me and push myself into sitting position.

"None of that," Phobia said, snapping his fingers. The wolf's eyes glinted as it darted forward and threw itself at me. I screamed as it knocked me back to the floor, pinning my arms down with its powerful forelegs. My head felt like it was splitting open, and tears of pain and fear streamed from my eyes as the wolf bared its fangs at me.

"Quirkless freak," the wolf growled, its voice a monsterous rendering of Sumisu's. I choked as the smell of its breath wafted over me: a combination of rotting meat and bone.

"Now then, how would you like to die?" Phobia asked, bending over me. "Would you prefer to be ripped apart by the embodiment of your fear? Or would you rather I carved little pieces of meat off you and fed you to him, bit by bit?"

"I-I-I-I…" I stammered. Phobia chuckled and raised his hand to his ear.

"What's that?" he asked. "Could you say that again?"

"I...I…" My tongue felt like it was covered in sand, and the words felt heavy on my tongue. I tried to swallow, but couldn't. I was drowning in panic. Phobia sighed and clicked his tongue. On command, the wolf pressed down on my left arm. I screamed in pain as the bone in my upper arm bent and then snapped like a twig under the wolf's weight.

But, the lance of pain that shot through my arm, across my chest, and into my brain brought clarity, as the pain overwhelmed and replaced the panic, and I found that I could speak again. I clenched the fist of my good arm and met Phobia's eyes, my own blazing with a newfound fire.

"I'm," I began, my jaw clenched in pain and effort. "Not afraid...of you. Kill me if you can...but I won't die in fear."

Phobia reeled back as if he was struck, as if the words caused him physical pain. For a moment he was motionless. Then, he began to tremble. It was barely perceptible at first, but quickly grew in intensity as his breaths began to come heavier and faster from behind the mask.

"You…" he spat, a cloud of steam erupting from the nostrils of his mask. "You...you...YOU!"

With a cry of rage he darted forward and kicked the wolf off me, then began to stomp and kick me with the ferocity of a wild animal.

"YOU YOU YOU YOU YOU YOU-" he said over and over again, so overcome with rage that he was physically unable to say anything else. I cried out as his heavy boot struck me over and over again, all over my body. Unable to move, all I could do was lay there and take it as Phobia stomped me into the floor.

Breathing heavily, Phobia knelt next to me and held the knife above my throat.

"Die!" he screeched, bringing the knife down.

There was a loud bang as someone pounded on the door. Phobia froze, the knife mere millimeters from the soft flesh of my throat. I let out a choked sob and shuddered violently. I took in a breath as the banging continued, but Phobia clamped a gloved hand down on my mouth, saying:

"If you so much as breathe too loudly, I'll cut out your tongue and shove it down your throat."

Without waiting for a reply, he snapped his fingers and beckoned his wolf over. He whispered something in its ear, then stood. As he did, the wolf opened its mouth and clamped down on my neck, biting down hard enough for its fangs to break skin.

Phobia crossed the room silently as whoever stood outside continued to pound on the door, his hand wrapped around another one of the black spheres. I tried to think of a way out, but it was hopeless. My brain still felt foggy from the backlash of my quirk, and my mind had gone all but blank with fear from the wolf at my throat.

Phobia froze as the banging on the door stopped suddenly. My heart dropped; I thought whoever was outside had given up and left, unknowingly leaving me to die.

The reality was infinitely worse.

"Shiamasu?" A voice whispered through the door. "Are you in there?"

I choked as a wave of bile filled my throat, my heart rate spiking.

'Please God...no…'

Phobia turned back to look at me, the red eyes of his mask boring into mine. Even though it was covered by the mask, I could feel his sadistic smile as he saw my reaction. I opened my mouth to yell out a warning, my own safety be damned, but the wolf bit down hard on my throat and stifled whatever I would have said.

With one last look at me, Phobia flicked the lock and wrenched open the door, grabbing the person on the other side and flinging them into the room before slamming the door shut.

"Well well well, who have we here?" Phobia said, practically purring with excitement. "Is this a friend of yours, Shiamasu?"

I didn't answer, staring at the person on the floor at Phobia's feet.

It was Chi.

Hey guys! I know this is a super short chapter, but I'm sorry...I just couldn't resist leaving this as a cliffhanger. I know you're all going to hate me for this, and to be honest I don't blame you, but I just couldn't resist. It was too good. I promise the next one will be nice and long to make up for it. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter though, short as it was. Ryuketsu (now Phobia) and Shiamasu meet again for their fated rematch. Who's going to come out on top? Only time will tell. Now, the reviews from the previous update(boy there are a lot):

Zerom1v: Thanks! Don't you worry about our friend icy-hot, he'll come back from this.

AnonChan1: I always love reading your reviews because of the way it shows your thought process as you read each update, and gives me a little insight into what others are thinking as they're reading. I really appreciate the thoroughness they have to offer. I hope you liked this update!

Guest: I'm glad you liked the fight! I'm really happy that the feedback regarding that fight is so positive, especially since I had Shiamasu win and not Todoroki. I was on the edge of my seat writing it, so I'm glad others had the same reaction!

Jack Redhawke (1 + 2): Yes you're right that the whole 10% thing is a myth, but I figured "what the hell, it's a fanfic. If they can make an entire movie around this myth, then I can write a story with it". Kind of a lame excuse on my part, I know. Thank you for telling me that I was missing a description, I went back and added one in. It's always tough to through in a description of the main character in a 1st person story, since no one ever really describes themselves in real life, so I hope it's not too jarring.

Yuu Sumeragi: I hope you didn't have a heart attack (thanks so much).

Lord Terronus: Hey there! Thanks for the review, I'm glad you liked the last update so much. Please don't backflip into any pools of piranhas though, that would be bad. No, you never say too much. Sorry your theory wasn't quite right, but not a bad guess. I hope you enjoyed this update. Plus Ultra to you too!

Guest: It varies person to person. Personally, I can't look at a phone while I'm in the car or on a train, I get motion-sickness.

Mr. Jack Joke: I wouldn't say in trouble just yet, but he certainly has a conundrum on his hands now that Shiamasu knows.

Guest: Am I planning on pairing Shiamasu with anyone… maybe, maybe not. Still mulling that one over.

21Orphans: Thank you for the review, it wasn't that long at all! I'm glad you agree that Shiamasu discovering Midoriya's secret isn't a stretch, honestly I never understood why no one seemed to put the pieces together.

Naruffoku (1-6): I really appreciate the thorns and roses approach of these reviews. Regarding the bauxite ore thing, I was trying to make him sound smarter to accentuate the fact that he's smarter when he's boosted, but that obviously failed. In regards to the physics of his quirk/speed, keep in mind that this is taking place in an anime universe. Kids are making ice and fire out of thin air, creating explosions with their hands, creating zero gravity, and there are people who can level cities with single blows. In our world yes, his speed would kill both himself and anyone he touched, but in the fictive universe of MHA its par for the course. Anyway, I'm glad that you think that this story improved as it went on. It's grown and developed with me, and I couldn't be happier to hear that that growth is apparent.

Whew that was a lot of reviews, but I really really really appreciate all of the feedback you guys have to offer, so thank you all so much! That's all I have for now, I'll see you all on the flipside!