Chapter Text
“Game over, bitches!” Tyreen Calypso smashed the floating camera drone to the ground, smirking as she turned around, surveying the rubble she had buried the Vault Thieves under. Her muscles burned as the power she sapped from her brother Troy coursed through her, repairing the damage he had done in draining her moments before.
The pain barely registered, though, as Tyreen savored the exhilaration of victory. The Great Vault had been opened, and Pandora cracked beneath her feet. She could almost taste the eridium in the air as the mantle around the Destroyer split, the ancient horror casting off the millennia of slumber forced upon it. Soon, she would absorb it and become a living god - for now, though, it’d probably best not to be on the planet’s surface.
The empowerment from the eridium Troy absorbed made it easier for her to slip into the translucent, semi-real form of her Phasewalk, preparing to make the jump back up to her private ship in orbit around Pandora. A sudden wave of nausea swept over her as she did so, the world around her lighting up into a cacophony of light and color. Then the sensation of movement - Phasewalk always felt like she was moving, but in a controlled, direct manner, like driving a car. This felt more like free falling, rapidly careening through the sky with no means to steady herself, nothing to orient herself to.
As quickly as it had started, Tyreen found herself snapping back into physicality. The roar of rushing wind filled her ears as she hit atmosphere, the exit from her Phasewalk punctuated with a small explosion of flame.
“Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck!” Her words were torn away as she began tumbling through the air, arcing towards water miles below.
What the fuck was happening? She shouldn’t have exited anywhere near an atmosphere, yet here she was, spinning rapidly as she plummeted through the sky. She frantically attempted to stabilize, but any flames she summoned were ripped away by the wind. How did Lilith pull off those landings? There had to be some trick to it!
If there was, she didn’t have time to figure it out - the water below was rapidly approaching, and she had at most maybe 2 minutes before impact. A plan, she needed a plan....
Taking a moment to calm herself, Tyreen stopped frantically conjuring fire. Right now, her flames were her only tool - Phasewalk was a no-go, it was too soon after emerging from the last attempt to try again. But how could she use fire to stop herself from splattering against the surface of the ocean?
She could maybe try to summon enough to evaporate the water as she hit, creating a cushioning cloud of steam? She had no idea whether it would actually work, or if the steam would be dense enough to actually slow her fall at all, but she didn’t have time to debate.
A calming breath, and she once again began conjuring flames. Like before, they were ripped away instantly. ‘Fuck, I need more.’
Whatever mishap had happened with her Phasewalk, it sapped her energy - even as she forced her flames to grow, she could feel herself become exhausted. It was working, though - she was outputting flames faster than they disappeared, a small shield of fire building up around her body. She needed more, though!
Pushing herself, she felt her vision begin to swim and her eyelids grow heavier, even as her protective barrier grew larger and larger. It was impossible to see past the fire now, leaving her with no way of judging when she would hit. Curling into a ball, Tyreen pulled her fire closer to herself, knowing there was nothing left to do but keep pumping out more fire and wait for impact.
It was agonizing, not knowing. She almost found herself impatient, wishing it would just happen alrea-
WHAM!
The relative peace of Tyreen’s fiery cocoon was ripped away, the flames disappearing in an instant as a wave of steam enveloped her. She screamed as blistering pain swept across her skin, every inch of her burning from contact with the superheated vapor as it rushed up past her.
Her eyes screwed shut, Tyreen only had a moment to realize that she had slowed significantly, the steam pushing upward against her, before hitting water, and her world went dark.
XXXXX
“Captain! The impact hit 2 kilometers to the south!” Sirius, crew member of the Oki Mariner and sidekick to Pro Hero Selkie, glanced back at her boss. They had been tracking the meteor across the sky after it had suddenly appeared, preparing to jump into action when it landed. Whether it was a villain or simply a civilian goofing off with their quirk where they thought they wouldn’t be caught, it was worth looking into.
“Alright then! Mick, set a course!” Selkie stood, arms crossed, as his crew set about getting the boat moving. Following their agency’s standard method of operation for rescue, the Oki Mariner would approach the site and drop anchor while Selkie himself went and scouted things out. If he needed backup he would call for it, but otherwise they would simply keep lookout.
The boat sliced through choppy water as it sped towards the epicenter of the impact. Whatever had hit had displaced a lot of water, causing turbulent waves to emanate out, but they seemed to already be calming down. As the boat pulled closer, the real issue revealed itself - a massive cloud of steam hung above the water, preventing visual inspection of the surface.
Luckily, Selkie was well-equipped for underwater searches. He didn’t waste a moment vaulting over the handrail and gracefully slipped under the water. Clicking his mouth, the presence of another person became immediately obvious. While exact measurement was impossible with his echolocation, they seemed to be on the small side. They seemed to be fully unconscious, their ragdoll body being tossed about by the invisible currents.
Selkie plunged down towards them, gaining visual as he approached - it was a young woman, tan skin with white hair. Grabbing hold of her arm, he pulled her against him before swimming up, building up speed.
Breaching, he yelled out to his crew. “Scan for any other civilians!”
The force of his jump carried him up onto the deck, his arms cradling the white-haired girl. She seemed to be covered in first degree burns, which was no surprise considering where she had just been. Laying her down on her back, he tilted her head back and checked for breathing. Nothing. “Ren, over here!”
Selkie’s subordinate quickly ran over, already knowing why he was singled out. Rolling up his sleeves, he placed a single flat palm on her chest and pressed down, hard. His Quirk, Resuscitation, allowed him to provide instant CPR - perfect for maritime rescue missions.
After a beat, he let up the pressure, and the girl shot up, hacking up a lungful of seawater as she did.
XXXXX
Tyreen’s return to consciousness was sudden. In rapid succession, each of her senses returned to her - first was touch, as every part of her body screamed in unison, the whole of her body feeling burned and bruised. Then scent, the smell of an ocean breeze washing over her, and by the time her hearing and sight had returned, she was sitting up, vomited up saltwater splashing onto her legs.
By far the most pressing sensation, though, was her hunger. It was a familiar ache, not physical, but an almost spiritual hunger that told her she had expended all her energy.
“名前を教えてくれる?”
Tyreen started as she realized she was currently being held up by a man. Blearily turning to face him, her eyes went wide as she saw she was instead being supported by a huge seal-person. Panicking, she tried to pull away from him, only to be held fast.
“どこにいるか知ってる?”
Okay, that seal just spoke to her. She had no clue what it had said, but they were definitely words. She opened her mouth to respond, to ask if he spoke English, but doubled over in pain before she could, nausea sweeping over her. She needed to feed, now . She eyed the seal-man, who was continuing to talk at her, and grimaced - not the most appetizing meal, but beggars can’t be choosers.
Reaching a shaky hand up, she smiled slightly as he took it in his own. ‘Moron.’
A second of concentration and she felt her Phaseleech begin to take hold. A thin red stream swirled around their hands, growing in size and snaking its way down her arm, entering her chest. The seal’s eyes widened and he tried to pull away, but it was too late - Tyreen’s Phaseleech was fast-acting, and had already drained more than enough to render him paralyzed.
A moment later and his hand began to crystallize, indicating that all his life force had been totally drained and he was beginning the transformation into a husk. Her energy renewed, Tyreen began standing up, pulling her hand out of his and smirking down at him. “Thanks for the mea-”
A hard blow to her ribs sent Tyreen sprawling back to the ground. She sucked air in through her teeth, clutching her side, while her other hand instinctively went for her gun, only to find that Queen’s Call wasn’t in its holster. ‘Shit, must have fallen out at some point.’
“シリウス! 船長に何かしたんだ!”
Shit, there were others. Oh well, she was still feeling hungry - nothing but Vault Monsters ever really satisfied her hunger, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t have another snack or two.
Stumbling back to her feet, Tyreen turned to face her assailant. A tall, muscular man with short-cropped dark hair, dressed in what looked like a sailor outfit. He had his fists up, obviously ready to scrap. Tyreen raised her own fists, sparing a moment to notice that she felt somehow lighter. “Cute.”
Scrambling forward, she once again entered Phasewalk, none of the previous weirdness preventing her from circling around to behind the dumbfounded man. He was visibly confused at his opponent disappearing, fists lowering slightly. Raising her hand to strike, Tyreen reappeared in an explosion of flame, landing a blow on his neck even as he was blasted off his feet, a sickening crack indicating she had broken something.
Tyreen paused, looking down at her fists. She had always been fairly strong, but not enough to break bones with a single hit. What was happening to her?
Tyreen watched the man for a moment, the back of his uniform in burning tatters, before determining he was no longer a threat. Hearing a girl screaming, Tyreen glanced over her shoulder to see a young woman, backed up by two more men. The girl - sporting blue hair and the same uniform as the men, but with fish fins attached to her ears - charged, closing the distance between them surprisingly fast and landing a blow that sent Tyreen stumbling back. She continued rushing forward, only to freeze as Tyreen wheeled around and gestured, Phaseleech stopping the girl in her tracks.
Reaching up and massaging her jaw with her free hand, Tyreen decided she may as well try to get some answers from her. “Who are you? Where am I?”
The girl babbled incoherently, the two men behind her both gritting their teeth in anger. Tyreen sighed, and drained the last bit of power from the girl, turning her into another husk. Walking forward, she struck the remains of the girl, causing the eridium statue to crumble to the ground.
“Well then boys, are you gonna answer the questions?” She grinned menacingly at them, ready and waiting for any sort of reaction.
The two men, one burly and bald, the other bearded and blond, glanced at each other. Sweat rolled down their faces, as they wordlessly communicated a basic plan. The larger one’s fingers twitched slightly in anticipation as the other did his best to steady his breathing. Then, without warning, the two sprang into action: the bald man rushed towards Tyreen while the other turned on his heel and made a break for the wheelhouse.
The man twice Tyreen's size bore down on her, his large hands clawed and his body low. She sighed in disappointment. No answers, but at least she'd be able to have some fun. Her attacker leapt forward to tackle her, but to his shock fell through Tyreen as if she were only a projection. He hit the ground hard, dazed by the impact.
Tyreen bolted forward as she exited Phasewalk. In seconds she was on the smaller man, grabbing him by the wrist and holding him in place. Ethereal orange flames washed over him as she began to drink him dry. He opened his mouth to scream but nothing came out. Instead, a slight gasp escaped his throat just before she let him go. He froze in place as his body crystallized, her fourth victim drained.
Turning to the last man as he started to get to his feet, Tyreen smiled, an unsettling baring of teeth somewhere between playful and malicious. She rushed him, hand on the back of his neck before he had even fully righted himself.
“Sorry dude, a girl’s gotta eat,” Tyreen gorged on his soul and in just a few seconds the large man was nothing more than a hunched-over husk.
Tyreen looked around, taking stock of the scene. She was on a boat with water in every direction as far as the eye could see. Except, wait, what was that? In the distant west, a dark mound caught her eye: a coastline. Well, it was better than being stranded. She stretched high and rubbed her belly, ‘I think I've had enough to get at least to the shore.’
Just before she executed another Phasewalk, Tyreen glanced back at the empty carcasses strewn about the boat's deck and shrugged, “Should have answered my questions.”