Mailin’s POV

The world feels distant, like I’m standing in the middle of a dream. My body trembles, not just from exhaustion but from something deeper—a force that I barely understand. The battlefield is quiet now, the chaos replaced by an eerie stillness. Heroes are scattered, some too injured to move, others staring at the devastation left in the wake of my fight with Shigaraki.

I stare at my hands, the faint glow slowly fading. My heart races, but my mind is… numb. What did I just do? I should feel relief—we won. We stopped him. But instead, I’m filled with a gnawing uncertainty.

I try to catch my breath, but the weight of the world presses down on me. The earth feels… connected to me. Like the fire, water, and air that I called upon—they’re not leaving me. They’re still here, still part of me, as though I didn’t just control them, but became them.

“Mizuhime?”

The voice pulls me out of my daze. I look up and see Deku standing a few feet away, his expression mirroring the confusion that swirls inside me. His eyes are wide, his body tense, like he’s standing before something he can’t quite comprehend.

“You… you’re not just using your Quirk anymore, are you?”

I swallow, my throat dry. “I… I don’t know.”

Deku steps closer, his eyes searching mine for answers that I don’t have. "You weren’t just bending water. I saw you control all the elements—fire, earth, air. That’s impossible… isn’t it?"

Impossible. The word sticks in my mind like a thorn. That’s exactly how it feels. Everything about what I did was impossible. But then… why did it happen?

“I don’t know how,” I whisper, my voice shaking. “I don’t know what’s happening to me.”

Behind me, I hear Shota’s voice. “Mailin, what you did back there… it wasn’t just a powerful move. It was something else. Something ancient.”

I turn to him, my heart skipping a beat. His face is pale, and the wound in his leg still bleeds, but it’s the look in his eyes that sends a chill down my spine—uncertainty, fear of the unknown. It’s not a look I’ve ever seen from him before.

“What do you mean?”

Shota takes a breath, wincing from the pain, but his eyes never leave mine. "There’s no history of anyone—anyone with a Quirk—doing what you just did. This isn’t a Quirk, Mailin. This is something else… something that we’ve forgotten."

Forgotten. That word settles into my mind like a heavy weight. Forgotten by time… but why does it feel so familiar?

Deku’s voice breaks through my thoughts again, quieter now. “You looked like… like something out of legend.”

A heavy silence falls over us, and my stomach churns. Legend? How could I be part of something like that? I’ve always been the girl with the waterbending Quirk—that’s all I’ve ever known. But now…

I feel a presence next to me. Shota steps forward, leaning heavily on his injured leg, but his eyes are steady on mine. “Mailin, whatever this power is… you have to be careful. This world might not be ready for it. You need to understand what this is before anyone else does.”

I nod slowly, but inside, I’m still reeling. I don’t understand. How could I?

Suddenly, I hear footsteps—heavy, fast. My head whips around just in time to see Bakugou running toward me, his face twisted with frustration.

“Oi, what the hell was that?!”

Bakugou comes to a stop in front of me, his fists clenched, still vibrating with the remnants of the battle. “Since when can you do all that? What are you hiding from us, huh?!”

“Kacchan, wait—” Deku tries to step in, but Bakugou cuts him off.

“I’m not waiting! We nearly died back there, and suddenly, Mizuhime is some kind of elemental powerhouse?!”

The accusation in his voice stings, but I can’t blame him. He’s confused. They all are. So am I.

“I didn’t know,” I say, my voice barely more than a whisper. “I didn’t know I could do any of that.”

Bakugou stares at me for a long moment, his chest heaving with breath. But then something in his expression shifts—like he realizes I’m just as lost as they are. He steps back, shaking his head, muttering under his breath.

Deku speaks up again, his voice gentle but firm. “We’ll figure this out, Mizuhime. Whatever this is… we’ll find answers.”

I want to believe him. I want to believe that there are answers to be found. But the truth is, I don’t know if there are. I don’t know if this power has answers. What if this isn’t something I’m meant to understand?

“Shota’s right,” I say, my voice steadier now. “I need to figure out what this is… before anyone else does.”

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Shota’s POV

As I watch Mailin stand there, the confusion and fear plain on her face, something twists in my gut. She’s powerful—more powerful than she realizes. But the world we live in… it’s not ready for something like this. I’m not sure any of us are.

Her eyes meet mine for a brief moment, and I see it there—the weight of everything that’s just happened. She’s strong, but she’s carrying something that goes beyond anything any of us have ever faced.

What is she? What is this power?

I feel the sting in my leg and grimace, the reality of the aftermath setting in. We may have won the battle, but the fight isn’t over. Not for Mailin. Not for any of us.