[1-B] Hero Combat Training (Leon & Nagi)

A half-dozen drones had immediately broken off to follow Leon on his ascent. As he reached his maximum altitude he heard Nagi's voice ring out, telling him not to bother with capturing the drones. That had been his plan all along. Neither of them had the ability to bind the drones or otherwise restrain them, and he had a Quirk well suited for a slugfest, so it made sense. As the six drones rose toward him, Leon dove toward them, wings swept back as he let gravity take hold once again.

He sped toward them like a missile, the wind roaring in his ears, blood pounding in his head. Dive toward them, take them head on... Leon thought to himself feeling adrenaline pumping through his veins. His fight-or-flight response had kicked in, part of his body screaming to fight, the other screaming to run. He had seen so many people paralyzed by indecision, unable to choose between these conflicting feelings. Not him, and certainly not now. He was going to fight!

The first drone was nearly in striking distance. Extend my tail for reach...and flip for momentum!
Leon flapped his wings, starting a midair front flip, his tail at full extension, muscles snapping taught. The sun glinted off the bony spikes as Leon roared, his spiked tail colliding with the first drone. All of his momentum was concentrated in that one point, severely denting the drone. The struck drone was sent plummeting to the ground like a deadly volleyball spike, but Leon wasn't done. Take the next two with my claws..., he thought. As he finished his forward flip he struck out with his claws, his talons rending tears into the metal surface of another pair of drones as their power cores spluttered and failed, sending them freefalling.

The remaining three drones sped at Leon, but they were coming at him fast. Too fast, have to dodge these, he thought, using his momentum to twist in midair. The first two he successfully dodged, one narrowly passing by his head, the third, however, struck his side with a glancing blow, sliding off the scales beneath his shirt as he grimaced. Still, it felt like a punch to the gut. The pain brought the reality of the situation crashing home to Leon. There were way too many to take alone. As more drones broke off from the main swarm and flew toward Leon to replace their fallen comrades, Leon flapped his wings, arresting his fall and angling back toward Nagi, flying toward his classmate and leading the drones toward him.

"Head's up! Coming your way! I'll line them up, you knock them down," he shouted to his teammate.

Leon grinned as his classmate followed his lead, taking down the drones he'd laid out for them. Teamwork in the face of an overwhelming enemy was critical. He hung in midair for a brief moment, considering his next move. He'd seen how Nagi used her wind gusts to her advantage, combining mobility with ranged firepower. An unfamiliar tickle started in the back of his throat, sort-of like heartburn.

This would be easier if you'd just use it... A nagging thought in the back of his head. Temptation, and a temptation he had long refused. Leon swallowed hard, quelling the fire in his throat. No. Not again, never again. I won't use it. I don't need it. I refuse!, he thought to himself angrily, clenching his fists tightly.

"Hey! Nagi! I'm going to get stuck in. Cover my six, would ya?," he asked, a tone of frustration in his voice.

With a primal roar of anger, Leon sped back into close quarters with the drone swarm, pouncing on a pair of them and driving them hard into the ground. He immediately got stuck-in, fighting his way through the swarm, cutting a swathe through them with his claws and strikes of his tails, leaving rent and crumpled drones in his wake. He shrugged off drones as they struck his armored plates, even turning those into weapons with knee and elbow strikes at the oncoming drones. He'd already shown his teacher his skill in the air, now it was time to showcase some strength and endurance.