Strays (WHM)

Part 4

Senji stood in front of an old, steel trailer house in the middle of the slums. The curtains were drawn, but she could faintly hear movement from inside. She swatted at a fly that landed on her shoulder, then braced herself and knocked on the door. No response. She knocked again, getting no response the second time.

"Knock, knock. I know someone's home," she called out, setting off another shuffle from the other side. She had pushed the old bartender until he cracked and gave her this location, as well as some other information on the boy with the bird companion. Apparently he had gotten dragged into a courier job for Humarise, with his siblings as hostages. And this rundown trailer in a largely empty trailer park was their home.

"Ugh, come on!," Senji voiced her frustration, and sucked in a deep breath. She reared her leg back, and rammed it into the door hard. The old rusted metal crunched, giving way a little bit. She reared back and kicked twice more, sending the door crashing off it's hinges and onto the floor. A cloud of dust erupted from the landing, obscuring the view from either side. Senji sent in a wave of scales hidden in the dust, locating two larger bodies and two smaller ones. The smaller ones were in a room down the hall to her right, the larger occupying the cramped room to her left.

"Fuck off!," one of the guards shouted out, coughing from the dust. His partner waved away the dirt, using some sort of wind quirk to blow it all back out the doorway. Senji coughed for a minute, and heard the two men move her way. She quickly used her scales like daggers around one of their necks, freezing them in place. The second, she rushed and slammed her fist into their jaw. They fell back, crashing through an old musty couch. He pulled himself up, reeling, and charged in while sending smaller objects flying haphazardly with his wind. Senji jumped up, onto a countertop, and slammed her foot into his throat. He fell back again, coughing up a spout of blood and wheezing from the ground.

"What a warm welcome," the girl hopped down from the countertop and sauntered across the room to the other guard. She punched him in the gut, and he slumped over her shoulder gasping for air. Just as she was about to begin her interrogation, her phone rang out. She groaned, and shoved the goon onto the nearby recliner where she pinned him down with her leg.

"What," she answered the phone. It was Endeavor, and he was in a whole different kind of raging fit this time. The grunt tried to move, but Senji pressed the toe of her shoe against his groin.

"Yeah, I saw the news. Got an update of my own. Yeah, yeah. I can find 'im. Got another lead for you, I'll send my location-Oh. Well, I'll leave it to you then. There's kids here, take 'em somewhere safe. Huh?"

"Hey," the grunt groaned. Senji glanced down at him, but went back to bickering over the phone. She was startled by a sound behind her, and she kicked the grunt's chin hard, knocking him out. She spun around, ready to attack, but saw Burnin and another of the sidekicks, Claire Voyance, stepping into the wrecked trailer. Two kids poked their heads around the corner, obviously terrified of the scene before them.

"Right, I'll leave you to this," Senji addressed the two sidekicks as she rushed out the door, then finished up her phone call. "Oh, hand the phone to Shoto."

"Hey, we're supposed to be trainin' future heroes, right?," Claire asked her colleague while the other girl rushed off.

"Yeah. But," the two heroes took in the scene before them, and processed the view when they had arrived. What was happening looked more like some type of torture or extortion than something a hero would do, even if it was to get information.

"That class is full of bad apples," Claire finished her assessment and started moving. Burnin followed her lead, picking through the mess.

...

"What a mess," Senji complained to herself as she sat in a diner across the city. She had some scales with the now wanted pair, so she knew their location. She also trusted Izuku not to act rashly, to an extent, if he knew about the situation he was in. The girl stuffed her face with eggs, chugging down some juice and toast along with it. She watched some videos on her phone to catch up to speed on what had happened during the wild villain chase earlier. There were tons of low quality videos from bystanders capturing various parts of the chase. News reports detailed a car crash, and some other incidents as well. Windows shot out on a train, cars swiped on a bridge and shot up.

"Excuse me, ma'am."

Senji looked up, halfway into a bite of ham, and nearly choked. Several police officers had entered the restaurant, and were obviously looking for her. She inhaled the rest of the ham, then dropped her fork and raised her hands up.

"What's up, officers?" Shit. Shit shit shit.

"We need you to come with us," one of them moved forward, and Senji jumped out of her chair. She sent it clattering to the floor, and her anxious grin crept its way back onto her face.

"Whatever for?," Senji slowly backed away, with the other cops moving to surround her. Other restaurant patrons watched nervously, talking in hushed tones and some even filming the scene. Since the news had all of Izuku's information, it was entirely possible they were going after her due to their relationship.

"We just have some questions. No need to fight," the officer addressed her again, in what appeared on the surface as a friendly tone. The glint in his eyes said otherwise, though. Senji's mind raced, considering her options. She spotted guns on each officer's hip, and decided to surrender for now.

"Alright," she slipped her phone into her pocket and put her hand back up. An officer behind her cuffed her hands, and they shuffled out into the sunlit street. Senji walked quietly with them until the crowd thinned, and she felt that the route they took was off.

"So sorry, guys," she lunged to the side suddenly. One of them grabbed at her collar, but got her headphones instead and she pulled out of his grasp. Another went for her tail, while the two remaining drew their guns. Senji swept the first officer's legs out from under him, then ran toward a narrow alley. Gunshots rang out, and she made a hasty shield with her scales. The impact still stung, but she didn't suffer any serious injuries. A few shots grazed her leg and the side of her face. One busted the hand off of her prosthetic, leaving a gnarly mess of mangled steel. She heard one radio in, alerting more officers to the situation as she ran and weaved through the cluttered alleys.

"Fuck! This sucks ass," she shouted, tripping over a stray cat and crashing to the ground. She rolled back up and bolted, but a bullet collided with her left arm and the sound of metal being struck echoed loudly. She glanced behind her and saw even more officers shuffling in. There was a helicopter in the distance, and the sound of a horde of wailing sirens.

Senji bolted, snaking through the alleys until she came up on a dead end. She cursed again, but didn't have time to linger on those feelings. Another shot hit her, blowing a chunk off her tail and embedding itself into her lower back. Several cops spilled into the section of alley she was in, guns pointed straight at her. They barked orders to stay put, and to turn around, which the girl happily obliged. She twirled around, facing them, with a huge smile beaming on her face.

"So sorry, boys, but I really gotta bounce," she forced her arms apart, tearing the hand off her prosthetic but freeing her arms. Someone from behind, likely with a special type of quirk, grabbed her hood. Senji slipped forward out of it, though, and produced huge feathery wings that tore through her shredded shirt. The light reflecting from the thin rays of sun temporarily blinded the men in front, and she took this opportunity to rise up into the sky where she was greeted by a helicopter and more gunfire. Using some scales as a blade, she spun around the bottom of the helicopter and around the sides. Slicing the gun barrels and the hands of the operators, before rushing off toward the horizon.