Chapter 37: Minutes to Midnight
Breaking Rank
"…Resulting in major destruction across the region. All civilian travel to the Middle East has been suspended, and efforts are currently underway to evacuate any remaining foreign citizens back to their countries of origin. More updates to come soon."
Aurdel lay on his bed with his helmet off, staring up at the ceiling. The skin on his face felt like it was burning. When he'd been coming back from the celebration with Mirko, he'd gotten a notification on his phone. A news notification. That night he didn't bother to check what the notification was since he didn't want to ruin his mood, so he'd decided to wait until the morning. Ultimately, it would ruin his mood either way. Because it was one of the very few things he absolutely did not want to see. For some time there had been an uneasy tension in the Middle East, with US and Iraqi forces taking up positions at the border with Iran in case a conflict broke out. After a while it eventually seemed like peace would be maintained and that war would be avoided, as forces slowly began to pull back from both sides of the border. With this sign of goodwill the United States had allowed much of its garrison force in Iraq to return home to visit their families for the holidays, severely understaffing the various bases and checkpoints inside the country. So when an absolutely massive earthquake struck on Christmas Eve, there was absolutely no way for the local forces to provide proper disaster response services. Iran began it's invasion the very next day. Entering Iraq and Kuwait under the false pretenses of rendering aid to the civilian populace, their true intentions became clear within a matter of hours as rocket barrages from mobile launch platforms began hitting almost every single US controlled facility across the country. Even the carrier strike group stationed in the Persian Gulf was hit by these attacks. The death tolls were staggering. Even though he had tried to prevent this, killing the men who were behind the political and economic manipulation behind this war, it still happened. He had failed. The puppets that they had put in power were still obeying orders that were, by now, long defunct and carving their own path. The international response was immediate. Most countries condemned the invasion, and a number of NATO countries were now preparing a relief force to enter through Saudi Arabia and the Gulf. Rather surprisingly, China was really the only nation that refused to give their opinion on the conflict. Even Russia, another country which found itself in a tense geopolitical situation with the west, condemned the invasion by Iran. But all the international posturing didn't mean squat to him.
With this conflict in front of him, his mind had become split between two choices. The first choice was that he had to leave Japan, travel to the Middle East and personally intervene in the war before it could escalate any further and hopefully put an end to it. But the number of flaws that this option had was innumerable. If he were to travel into the middle of an area of conflict, one in which the authority he held was essentially non-existent, then he would without a doubt be making more than a few enemies. Both sides would treat him as an enemy combatant due to his wish to put an end to the war, meaning that before he could force any one side to stop their efforts there would need to be an absolutely massive level of bloodshed. Speaking more practically, he would be completely outgunned. The only equipment and weapons he would have available to him would be the ones he could carry on his back and stow into the bay of his pelican. Theoretically he could try and retrieve the frigate that he'd rode in on, but with the time it would take to fish a frigate out of the middle of the ocean and give it the necessary repairs the war will likely have escalated dramatically. But the largest issue with that option by far was that he would effectively have to abandon Japan, something that would have incredibly dire consequences. There were already enough domestic problems as there were, with his squabbling with the government, the League of Villains committing attack after attack and the Meta Liberation Army seemingly preparing to start a revolution. But there would also likely foreign threats too, as he had seen with posturing done by China both in the Korean Peninsula and the South China Sea. And with attention and resources internationally being shifted to the Middle East, it meant that Asia was effectively on its own if something happened. Personally he didn't want to abandon his students to fend for themselves in a country that would end up worse off than the one he was going to, especially since they were still unprepared.
His second option was to stay in Japan. In staying he would need to force his way into geopolitics, trying to find a solution that would end the current war in the Middle East and put an end to future wars. But he knew that wouldn't work. Certain people were set in their ways, and him saying a few words wasn't going to change that. At the very least he could keep an eye on things in this part of the world, and make sure that whatever would happen here in Japan could be dealt with quickly and effectively. Not to mention he would still be able to be with his class, with further education and training being something that his students desperately needed. Especially now.
He stood up from the bed, the choice he had to make was one that couldn't be taken lightly. Whichever choice he made was bound to affect the lives of millions of people, probably even more as time went on. He was about to make his choice when he looked back towards his helmet, picking up the photo that he kept on the back of the inside of the helmet. Looking at the photo, he stared in silence. There was a boy in that photo, and even now he couldn't shake the thoughts of the similarities between him and Midoriya. There was no way he could abandon him, not now. Aurdel needed to see this thing through.
A little over a week had passed since Christmas, the New Year having come and gone. In that time only a few classes had been held, with homeroom and Hero education all being run by Mr. Aizawa instead of Mr. Aurdel. With how often he'd tried to involve himself with their education in the past, it seemed irregular for him to be completely absent for so long. A quick look around the room told him that everyone else felt that uneasiness too. The news was full of footage and headlines about that war across the globe, and he couldn't help but wonder if that was at all related. Suddenly they heard footsteps, and a pair of voices traveling down the hallway. "…You don't need to do this session if you don't want to, it's not-"
"All we're doing is giving them one last talk before they leave for their work study assignments, it's nothing I can't handle."
Mr. Aizawa sighed, "Look, all I'm trying to say is that if you need some time then you can have it. I can understand that you're in a difficult situation, but there's no reason to push yourself so far just because you think it's your duty."
"Calling the situation 'difficult' is a severe understatement." The conversation stopped as they got closer, before eventually walking through the door. "Good morning everyone."
"Mr. Aurdel, everyone is seated and ready for homeroom," Ida said, trying to muster his usual energy. But even he found it hard to do so under the circumstances.
"Good. That's good." He sat back down as Mr. Aurdel walked to the front of the room, standing behind the desk. "Well everyone, you know how big of a day this is. After this homeroom you will be leaving for your work studies. And so, I wanted to say a few things to you all before you go." He paused, then continued. "First: in the time that I have known and taught this class, you have all grown tremendously. Both as people, and as Heroes. And so I want you to keep that growth going, whether that be physically, through your quirk and body, or through the compassion that you show to those around you. Second: I want you all to understand the gravity and importance of these work studies." He began to pace around the desk, "At this school, no matter how tough training may have been, and no matter how brutal the beatdowns I put you through were, you were always taught in a relatively safe and controlled environment where your life was never in any true danger. You and your classmates were always kept out of harm's way, but in the field that isn't a luxury that you can count on. Any Villain that you encounter will be trying to bring legitimate harm to you or any person you are trying to protect, so it is of great importance that you become adjusted to danger you will soon be put through on a daily basis. And third…" He stopped around the desk. "It will be solely up to you to make the most of the experience that you gain from these work studies, and as your teacher I expect you to put in the greatest amount of effort that you can achieve. The world around you is complex, and many things are always at play. Gain the knowledge you need to survive now and you will be met with great success. If you don't do that… Well, you can think of the possibilities yourself." He stood up straight, facing them. "I will now read out the list of agencies that everyone will be going to. You all know where you're going, but this will let your classmates know where you're going in case they need to meet with you. Midoriya, Bakugo and Todoroki, you three are working with Endeavor. Kaminari, Mineta and Sero, you're working with the Lurkers team. Aoyama, Ashido and Hagakure, you're with Yoroi Musha. Sato and Ojiro, you two will be working with Shishido. Jiro and Shoji, you'll be with Gang Orca. Uraraka and Asui, you are with Ryukyu. Kirishima, you're with Fat Gum. Ida, you're with Manual. Tokoyami, you're with Hawks. Koda, you're with Wash. And lastly Yaoyorozu, you're with Majestic. Are there any questions?"
At first no one raised their hands, but Midoriya raised his after a moment. "Mr. Aurdel, are you okay?" Initially it seemed like a relatively innocuous thing to ask, but what followed showed that it had more impact than he ever could have thought.
Mr. Aurdel stood there, looking forward and not moving in a long and uncomfortable silence. With his helmet it was often hard to tell what he was thinking, or if something had registered at all. But there were moments where you could tell that something had clearly gotten through to him, and they were absolutely unnerving. "All I can tell you right now is that I have a lot to think about, and a lot on my plate. Are there any other questions?" He looked around the room, no other hands went up. "In that case, there's one more thing I want to tell you about before you leave." He walked back behind the front desk, recomposed. "You already have each other's contact information, you even have the class group chat already set up. But there's something else I'm going to give you. Inside all of the suitcases with your costumes I have given you a device, here is what it looks like." He held out a small box shaped object in his hand, making sure that everyone could see what it was. "This is an emergency transponder. I know that since you'll be with pro-Heroes you'll be relatively safe, and have access to the Hero network, but this is a precaution. If you ever get into a situation where you think you're unable to handle the issue at hand, you will press this," he mimicked the motion onto a small button on the device, "When activated it will begin actively transmitting your location to me, from there I will be able to follow the transmission back and help you with whatever is happening."
Ojiro raised his hand, "Is it necessary for us to have these? With us being around pro-Heroes, I don't think we'll have any encounters that actually necessitate using it."
Their teacher again stopped to think for a moment. "Let me give you my thoughts in the form of a parable. There once was a world named Curacao, and it was under attack by the alien empire called the Covenant. In response high command decided to send in a group of soldiers known as Orbital Drop Shock Troopers, some of the best ground soldiers humanity had to offer who would literally drop from orbit in pods to rapidly advance, defend or do whatever the mission needed. But because they viewed this specific invasion as only a middling threat, they thought that the only additional battalion would be enough to help defend the planet and evacuate the civilians. That sending in anything else would be a waste of resources. Then…" He leaned on the desk, "Then they lost contact with all forces on the planet, and I was sent in a day later. Of the thousand men and women that they sent onto that planet six hundred and seventy three were dead, two hundred and twenty six were grievously wounded and needed immediate evacuation and the remaining one hundred and one others had all manner of injuries but still had to fight. Because people who had the chance to correct mistakes before they happened did nothing, because they didn't take the threat in front of them one hundred percent seriously, hundreds of thousands had died. Men and women who had families to go back to, who had all of their lives ahead of them, were all gone in only a day just because a few people decided their choices would be 'enough.'" He looked back up, "I don't think that I need to tell you all how young you are, and how much unnecessary danger you're going to be putting yourself through. But what I do want to make absolutely sure is that you know your job is not a glorified suicide run. Being a Hero does not mean taking on hundreds of Villains at the same time and dying while trying to stop them all by yourself."
"I don't want to be rude Mr. Aurdel, but isn't that hypocritical of you?" Kirishima said, "We don't exactly see how you work, but from what we have heard you throw caution into the wind on almost a daily basis. And, honestly, even though you work with Mirko you still end up doing a lot by yourself."
"It's different."
Kaminari agreed, "Nah, I think Kirishima is right. Like back when the League attacked Tartarus, isn't that exactly it? You charged full speed into a prison filled with poison gas and the country's most dangerous criminals all alone!"
"That's-"
Uraraka said something next, "Yeah! I remember when we were fighting those Yakuza guys, you went in almost completely alone! Even when their boss got giant and was crushing entire building you still-"
"It's completely different!" Mr. Aurdel had suddenly raised his voice, startling everyone else in the room and shutting down anyone from making any other interruptions. "You have the duty to come back alive to your families, to live because you have great potential and that's something that shouldn't be snuffed!. My comrades and I were made to reduce the ever increasing cost of life in war, to take the place of hundreds if not thousands of men and women on a vicious battlefield. We lived to honor the sacrifices of the dead, and we died to preserve the lives of others. My duty is to make sure that in the future there will not need to be anyone else like me!" He quickly turned away from them, trying to recompose himself. "We were the products of a concerted effort to take away and give up our lives, you still have the freedom to live yours. Don't waste it." Without another word he walked out of the classroom, Mr. Aizawa didn't try to stop him. No one tried to stop him.
For a while, they sat in completely stunned silence. "I've… never seen him like that."
"I only know as much as he was willing to tell me, but it's safe to say that he has a lot on his mind," Mr. Aizawa said with a sigh. "Something that you need to remember is that he isn't from here, he's from an entirely different time and place. One where he had to lead an entirely different life, experiencing things that most of us would consider to be horrible situations beyond imagination." He stepped over towards the desk, "However his points still stand. You should stay safe, make the most of the experience and reach out in case you need help."
And with that, homeroom was over. They were free to leave for their work studies. But it didn't feel satisfying in the slightest. Each of them went up and grabbed their cases with their costumes and gear off of the wall, eventually leaving the classroom. But they all had a moment of pause before they stopped out the door. Midoriya did too, wondering what could possibly be going on…
Fear No Evil
There was a laugh, "All Might my friend, what took you so long to come and visit me? Have we really grown that distant?"
"I'm not here to humor you All For One," All Might remained stoic in his tone and form, staring down the man restrained behind the glass. "I am only here because I was told that there was something that I needed to hear."
"Ah, so then he told you." There was a grin behind the oxygen mask.
"He mentioned that you asked him to tell me."
"Oh, I did." He gave an almost giddy laugh, "I can tell that you saw some of yourself in him, in the rigidity of his beliefs. But do you really think that he might provide your successor Midoriya the chance to truly succeed as the new symbol of peace?"
"Don't speak his name."
"But I have foreseen and planned for what is to come. The man that you see each time you go into that school is only an image he puts up, a hollow shell. One which he uses to hide his true beliefs."
"That man has done more good than whatever evil you could have ever imagined."
"Has he now?" There was an incredibly wide grin on his face now. "Even if you discount all of the violent acts he's partaken in, you should know that there's plenty you can't account for. After all, you can't follow him around. You have no way to get into his head, to know what he thinks and what he plans to do. But I know what he's after, I could feel the aura he gave off when I first saw him. That is why I chose him as my successor, and why I nudged him in that direction."
"You're lying."
"Am I now? I want you to think back to every conversation that we have had. In any of those conversations, have I lied to you?" He turned his head, "Even in a situation like this, what would I have to gain from lying to you?"
"You want me to lose my nerve, to do something irrational. That won't happen."
"But I don't need to lie to make you do something irrational, everything that you have done ever since I crushed that pathetic master of yours has been irrational. You fled overseas to 'train,' sacrificing your youth and personal life to stop something that you could have easily ignored."
"Everything that I did was for the sake of a better world, to stop you and bring peace to Japan."
"And did that work?" All For One wheezed, "After our first fight both of us were gravely injured, but you still continued your work. Now look at you. Disheveled, weak, powerless. Even now you continue to work yourself to the bone for a country that never really did care about you, all on the basis of platitudes."
"I did it because it was the right thing to do, and I continue my efforts now because it is still the right thing to do. But that's something you could never understand."
"The right thing, you say? Is that really what you believe?" All Might clenched his fists. "Then in that case allow me to tell you a story."
"I have no interest in whatever inflammatory remark you have to say."
"Some time ago there was a family that lived in the city, by all means it was a relatively normal family. However there was one rule in the household that the father forced onto his children. There was to be no talk of Heroes." All Might remained silent, "However the son idolized his grandmother, A Hero. Each time the son tried to learn more about Heroes, or even simply brought up Heroes in a conversation, he would be beaten. Eventually wild emotions boiled over, and one day the boy's quirk awakened. With no control over his quirk, he destroyed his home and slaughtered his own family all by accident in a matter of minutes. Because of that he left it all behind, forced to wander the streets."
"Why do you-"
All For One interrupted, "I haven't nearly gotten to the best part. For days and weeks he walked on the streets. Everyone saw him, the poor boy in an awfully disheveled state, but no one ever stopped to help him. Anyone that passed by said that a Hero would come to help him, but no Hero ever did.."
"But you were the one to approach him?"
"Indeed I was, and I took him in. I raised him as my own."
"Why are you telling me this? So that I will despair over this boy who should have been saved? That I should have been the one to save him?"
"All I was doing was telling a simple story, All Might, I just wanted to ask you a question about it after I finished. What do you think the boy's name was?"
He grit his teeth, "Tomura Shigaraki, he was the one that you intended to groom as your own successor. To be a new face of evil."
"Tenko Shimura," All Might's heart dropped at the surname. The feelings he felt were visible on his face. "Oh, what's wrong All Might? Have I said something to make you feel uncomfortable?"
"You… You're lying…!"
"I have never lied to you, All Might. Tenko Shimura was his name, he was the grandson of your master. I whisked him away from the streets that day. I spent years grooming him, corrupting him. Making him into the vessel that I wanted him to become. And while I was initially disappointed to see my effort nearly wasted with his death, I saw a new opportunity."
"Shut up…"
"When I fought that man I could just feel possibilities that I had with him, that there would be something to pull him towards your school. Towards your protege. That's why I gave him my power to accomplish all that he has done, and all that he will continue to do."
"Shut up…!"
"Yes, it worked perfectly. In fact you and the others met him with open arms, allowing him to teach and corrupt your very own students. You thought that despite the fact that he had killed, something that is taboo for any Hero, that he could be forgiven. Shigaraki was simply a Villain that needed to be stopped by any means. But now, look at what he has become."
"Shut up!"
"He has done all that I could have ever dreamed of out in the open, and he has the full attention of your successor. I put the man who severed your only ties to the past next to your only ties to the future!"
"SHUT UP" All Might lost his cool, standing up and knocking over the chair.
"Step away from the glass!" A voice spoke over the intercom in the room, the guns that were positioned in All For One's room were aimed at him and looked poised to fire.
"Of course, you should have already known this. After all young Midoriya can speak to the previous holders, and even as pathetic a person such as your master should have found her way inside of One For All. Or erhaps something told him not to tell you. Or maybe... Someone?"
He balled his fist before turning around. "Your influence will not reach any of us. Not myself, not Midoriya and not Spartan."
"Are you willing to lose your life to ensure that?"
"How long is it going to take you before you realize that he's not going to come over to your side?" Nine said, a fist balled up on the conference room table. "As far as we know, he might not even truly know if we exist. Much less is the chance that he would even approach us if he did."
"Ye of little faith," Re-Destro stood up. "If you don't think that he's going to approach us now then you don't have a good understanding of who we're dealing with."
"Enough of this roundabout diabolical plan bullshit. I want you tell me exactly what you're thinking."
"Very well. Spartan is very pragmatically minded, anyone who has seen any of his few public appearances will know that. However it has to be said that the man knows what he is doing, and that he also has his own agenda." He splayed his fingers, "I can't say exactly what that agenda is, as I am not him. However I do know that he plans to make radical changes, structurally, politically and economically."
"And how would you know that?"
"Because I've paid attention to every thing that he has done." He stood up and began to walk around, carefully keeping an eye on the phone on the table. "A number of the gangs that he has targeted have connections to law enforcement or local government, either directly in their membership or through bribes to local officials and precincts. He solved literal thousands of medical cold cases, helping those that were labeled to be lost causes by the medical care industry and shoved into homes where minimal effort would be put towards proper care. He shot the president of the Hero commission, putting down another corrupt official who was trying to hide their part in the previous administration."
"You think that he killed the Hero Public Safety Commission president?"
"There are very few alternative answers to the question of who could have managed such a kill. Few have the motivation, fewer still have the necessary skills and correct timing to do so. But the largest reason that allows me to say that he will make changes is because of his impact on international industry, trade and business. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that something has changed when entire boards of directors are shuffled overnight, CEO positions overseas changing hands out of nowhere with the former bosses quietly taking a vacation to the middle of the pacific. Not many other people are capable of committing such an act. Of course, you can consider all of this to be a simple thought experiment. None of this can be proven in a court of law, nor could you even take him to trial," Re-Destro paused.
"No, you can't." The phone spoke, and Nine was taken by surprise.
"You were listening this entire time?" Nine carefully prodded.
"I managed to locate this phone and bug it two minutes before this meeting began. So, yes. I have."
"Then can we have your thoughts?"
"You're a strong force, but I don't need your plans or your beliefs. I have my own. And I'm not inclined to share what mine are."
"That's fair enough. Every man is entitled to hold their own beliefs that they hold close to their chest."
"What I do need is your immediate resources. Primarily, your manpower." His voice was stern, "I already know your plans. The moment that the country is pushed to the breaking point by a crisis, your army will rise up and overthrow the government. In this time you'll try and pull every Hero you can to your side, because you know that there are a number of them that genuinely hold similar beliefs. But if you want to be anything more than king of the ashes when the country is on the verge of collapse, then you're going to help me."
"When?"
"Don't play dumb. The war in the Middle East between the United States and Iran isn't going to remain isolated forever. The rest of the west, Russia, China. Even Japan. Everyone is going to be pulled into the disaster that's coming."
"You sound certain of this…"
"I am. It's a few years earlier than when it happened on my Earth, but the situation is similar."
"Your Earth had a global war?"
Silence. "By the year twenty eighty, years of overpopulation and overuse of the limited resources had taken its toll on the planet. Nations were sending out dozens of colonization efforts to other parts of the solar system. Luna, Mars, some moons of Jupiter. But as time went on countries began to squabble over these interplanetary territories, fights broke out between opposing colonies. The first bullet was fired on Mars in twenty eighty nine, the last missile was launched on Earth in twenty ninety. Three billion people were dead, overpopulation was no longer an issue, and most of the colonies were destroyed. But it was only the first in a series of wars before humanity came together and mostly found peace with itself."
"This… is a revelation."
"Why don't you tell the world about it?" Nine asked. "Surely you must think that you have a duty to save as many lives as possible to tell the world your knowledge."
"The world almost fell into a panic when I showed them that aliens were real and that they tried to wipe out humanity. How do you think they would react to being told that humanity would nearly wipe itself out in the next twenty years in two additional world wars, followed by another set of interplanetary conflicts that would kill millions more?" It was almost hard to believe a word he said, but with the absolute confidence in which he said all of this… "I was trying to prevent anything like this from ever happening, but I failed. The only option I have now is to do what I can to minimize the casualties."
There wasn't much for them to say, Re-Destro gave a sigh. "This isn't the way that I thought the conversation would go, not by a long shot. But if things are really as you say, then I suppose that we have no other choice. A society cannot exist only in the ashes."
"Then you'll give me what I need?"
"I will, with just one provision."
"And what's that?"
"I want you to be interviewed, one in which you tell the people who you are and what you really believe."
There was a period of silence. "You'll have your interview."
"Uravity, Froppy, it's good to see you again."
"It's nice to be back."
"Hey, hey, what's with the costume changes?" Nejire immediately pounced on the opportunity to ask questions, almost as soon as they walked in. "Was something wrong with your old one? Was the equipment in it not good enough? Was there not enough protection?"
"Well, actually…" She thought back to the battles between classes, where she's had to- "A-ah, let's just say that I needed to have a quicker way to close the gap."
"Sounds useful!"
"You girls actually came at a very opportune time," Ryukyu said.
"Why's that?"
"Just yesterday we received a request for a team up from Selkie."
"Selkie? Tsu, you went to his agency for internships right?"
"Right, when I was there we tracked and had to fight a group of smugglers. Ribbit."
"You might have to do the same thing again," Ryukyu spoke with a sigh, "Selkie and his crew tried to contact a ship since it wasn't carrying the ensign of any country. After getting no response, he tried to get it to stop. But the ship managed to deploy a smokescreen using one of the crew's quirks and got away."
"Do we know the cargo they're carrying?"
"No, we don't. But the most likely guess is that they're carrying large quantities of trigger."
"Trigger… the drug that causes so many problems."
"That's right. Trigger distribution in Japan has been a problem for a long time now, and especially large shipments such as this cause an untold amount of destruction. If we can stop it before it manages to get ashore, the amount of evil that we will be able to prevent from reaching fruition will be tremendous."
"Do you think that the crew will fight back?"
"More likely than not, they will. But judging by the usual breed of smugglers that find themselves in Japan's waters, they won't be too tough to take down. The biggest problem we'll have with these smugglers is trying to track them down, since this group seems to be craftier than most."
"I'm not too sure about that," Tsu put a finger to her lip, "The last time we encountered smugglers they threatened to kill Sirius. Ribbit."
"Evil individuals will say or try to do anything once they've been backed into a corner, but in truth they don't have strength to do what they say. They'll fight back, but they'll go down just like any other smuggler." Just like any other smuggler… Uraraka and Tsu looked at each other, and couldn't help but worry.
Chapter 38: Co-Combatant
A New Approach
Midoriya walked with Bakugo and Todoroki towards the meeting spot, where Endeavor was supposed to greet the three of them. But even now he couldn't help but be constantly reminded of what had happened that morning. Mr. Aurdel had said that he didn't want anyone else to end up like him, and that his life was taken away from him. But how? Why? What exactly had happened to him to make him so vehemently against anyone being like him? It was just something he couldn't wrap his head around. "Keep walking you damn nerd, or else you're going to trip all three of us." Bakugo shoved him forward.
"Sorry," Midoriya began to walk forward again, having accidentally stopped while he was deep in thought. "Kacchan, Todoroki. What do you think happened to Mr. Aurdel?"
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"I'm not talking about recently, I'm talking about what happened to him in the past. The way that he spoke to us made it sound like there was something that happened to him in the past that negatively affected him, and that he was still carrying around whatever negative emotional baggage he sustained from it."
"Personally I think you're being too god damn invasive of someone else's life. Don't you think that if he wanted your help, then he would have asked for it? You're being a little presumptuous of your own importance if you think that you can interfere with everyone else's life just because you think you can help them."
"Bakugo…"
"Despite what's happened between us, Midoriya, I'm inclined to agree with Bakugo," Todoroki said. "It's true that there are many people who can be helped by giving them the support they need or by forcing them to face their past, even if it's something they think they don't need. But the truth is that there are some situations where trying to make someone face an aspect of themselves can make things even worse." He looked down at his left arm, "Looking back, I think it would have been very easy for me to completely relapse back then. Had I lost to you, or won against Bakugo, I would have gone back to how I was before. Bitter and cold. I suppose it just happened to be the right set of circumstances, then a bit of luck to carry me the rest of the way through. I'm not sure if you have either of those things on your side right now."
"Don't bring the tournament up unless you're ready for a rematch! Different situations or not, I still want to beat you at full strength!"
"I think that's an awfully cynical way to look at things," Midoriya said, frowning.
"It probably is, but I don't think it's unreasonable to imagine that he holds a similar belief on helping people." He rubbed the back of his head, "I guess you could call it a hunch, since at times I myself feel somewhat similar to how Mr. Aurdel feels. Or at least what he shows about how he feels."
"Then, ignoring the possibility of helping him and just for the sake of curiosity: what do you think happened to Mr. Aurdel?"
Todoroki let out a sigh, "Nobody can really say for sure, because no one really knows anything about him aside from what he's told us. Even the stories that he tells about his experiences obfuscate some things about his past. For example, I don't think he's ever told us exactly how old he is."
"That's…" Then, Midoriya was stunned. "You're right, he hasn't ever been specific with his age."
"We were able to see some of his face on Christmas, and what we saw looked somewhat weathered. He didn't look any older than someone in his early forties, though some of that could be down to the stress of combat and he could actually be much younger. The problem with that is that he said the war in his world had been going on for twenty seven years, as well as implying that he had been fighting since the beginning of the war. But that wouldn't add up."
Hearing those words, gears began to turn in Midoriya's head. Mr. Aurdel always seemed to be more comfortable interacting with his class more than he did with most adults, acting less like he was educating children and more so like he was teaching equals. On top of that, he always seemed much more protective of kids. For example: while Midoriya was horrified with what Overhaul had been doing to Eri, Mr. Aurdel had taken it almost like a personal insult. He'd also made a number of remarks related to what he thought young people should be doing with their lives, seemingly helping them at the same time experience those things. Combining all of those things together, he could only come to the conclusion that… "Was Mr. Aurdel… A child soldier?"
"I don't know, but rational deduction says that if he's telling the truth about his service then it's very likely he was made to fight at a very young age. Possibly even earlier than one might think, since I don't imagine he learned all of his current skills while he was in combat."
"That's…"
"You three are late," a stern voice stated. Given the topic of discussion, he would have almost expected it to be Mr. Aurdel.
"Late?! We're fifteen minutes early!" Bakugo shouted at Endeavor.
"Villains don't care when you choose to show up, they'll commit their crimes all the same. I intend to drive that lesson into your skulls with force if I have too," Endeavor folded his arms, a cross look on his face.
Todoroki looked Endeavor in the face, some amount of callousness in his eyes. "Don't."
"What?"
"Don't try to pretend that you're someone you're not," Todoroki said. "You don't know how to properly educate someone, so you're imitating someone else's methods to try and fool us into thinking that you know what you're doing. But it won't work." Endeavor narrowed his brow at being called out, "If you really intend to try and make up between us then do it on your own time, right now all three of us are trying to learn from the number one Hero. Not a man pretending to be someone else for the sake of appearances."
There was tense silence, as Midoriya witnessed a mix of emotions on Endeavor's face. Then he relented. "Very well," Endeavor relaxed his form, "In that case, I will treat you all as if you were any other sidekick of mine."
Bakugo beat his fist, "I wouldn't want it any other way."
"Then your lessons begin now!" Endeavor suddenly launched away from them, spewing fire to quickly propel himself in one direction. Without even the time to process it he'd thrown himself in front of a truck that showed no signs of halting, scaring the driver into slamming in the brakes and popping the front tires with his fire to increase the friction. The truck stopped mere centimeters away from the car that it was about to get into an accident with, Endeavor looked over. "There's more to being a Hero than just fighting Villains on the streets. You need to be able to stop incidents before they happen. At first you'll do this through sight and sound alone, realizing them only moments before they happen. But soon enough you will develop a sort of sixth sense for it. Now, come. There will be dozens more incidents to solve before the day is over." With that Endeavor blasted off in another direction, Midoriya, Bakugo and Todoroki chasing after him. With this their work studies had officially begun.
Aurdel walked through the many halls of the Gunga Mountain Villa, the uncomfortable sound of shoes stepping on carpet as he made his way through. He'd arrived at the headquarters of the Meta Liberation Army without his armor on. Not because he held any particular level of trust in their leaders or security, but because he didn't want to be immediately identified with them. At least not before he could get things under control. Eyes turned wherever he went due to his unusual appearance, though whether anyone could tell who he was was beyond him.
As he walked up to the large pair of doors leading into the meeting room, he looked up. His hand hesitated over the doorknob as he saw a small red object stick out from the top of the doorframe. A feather. He grabbed the feather, then pulled open the doors.
"Ah, it's-" Aurdel raised a finger, silencing the greeting. The man who'd been about to welcome him into the room suddenly became very serious. Aurdel tore apart the feather.
"I don't intend to have Hawks eavesdrop in on this conversation, like I assume he does with all your other strategy meetings."
"Allowing him to listen in on our other meetings, at least to a limited extent, allows us to misinform his own actions and that of the Hero Public Safety Commission. Though I can understand why you might not feel comfortable with him listening in on our conversation."
"Uncomfortable? You seem to have a serious misunderstanding of just how badly I dislike Hawks. Or really, how much I hate him." Aurdel cast the shreds of the feather to the side, letting them drift to the carpet. "Because of the way that I was raised, because of the way that I was trained, I believe that in life there are certain people who have the responsibility and objective duty of shouldering the burdens of others. For each person is made in a unique way, and it is up to them to use those unique traits in a way that is right and just."
"And you don't think that he is using those traits in a way that is right and just?"
"No, I do not. I think that he is lazy and selfish, the exact opposite of what a Hero should be."
The man with a mask on his mouth spoke up, "Saying that he is selfish, that I can certainly understand. After all, we know his true beliefs. But can you really say that he is lazy? For quite some time he has been saving civilians, putting down Villains and even trying to bring down this organization." He could sense something from this man.
"I say that he is lazy because you don't have the correct understanding of what the meaning of 'lazy' is."
"Enlighten us."
"Being lazy does not mean that you sit around and do nothing all day, nor does it mean that the only actions that you take are only that of your own pleasure. Instead it is a state of mind, a way of strategy." He began to pace around the front of the room, the doors shutting behind him. "If he wanted to create a situation where he was no longer needed as fast as possible, then he would have simply released everything to the public and watched as everything burned. Nobody would need him because he would no longer be wanted. If he wanted it to be as efficient as possible, he would have formed up an army of loyal sidekicks, Heroes and police and already stormed your locations across the country. The 'war' that he and the commission is preparing for could have been over and done with months ago! Instead, he chose the easiest route. The path of the least resistance." He stopped pacing, "All he chooses to do is feed information to the Hero Public Safety Commission about your movement, and try to convince other people to do his work. That's how I learned about you all, because he tried to convince me to work against you. To try and prepare my students for war. I can only assume he has done the same with other Heroes, and that's something I cannot forgive."
For a moment the room sat in silence, then the man who'd spoken as soon as he'd entered the room began again. "To know that you hold such strong convictions is a relief. Some of our members were hesitant to consider working with you, as they didn't actually know whether or not you really were pragmatic or were simply putting up a mask."
"Putting up a mask is pragmatism, though I'm ready to give up on pretending that I will play nice with the world. I am going to pursue my beliefs and ideas without making any compromises along the way."
"I see…"
Another man spoke, one with gangly limbs and long black hair that practically covered his eyes. "Either way, the real reason that you're here is to iron out the exact terms of what our cooperation would entail."
"That is correct."
"That in that case, allow me to inform you," the man quickly began typing away at his laptop, a projector and a screen quickly dropped down from the ceiling. He then began a powerpoint presentation, narrating over the slides as each point came up. "The first and most important concession is that you will publicly withdraw any support for the current government and the Hero Public Safety Commission, as well as begin a campaign of open opposition to both parties."
"That goes without saying, and is something that I already planned on doing. The only way I can keep this country out of a war is by getting rid of the institutions that will serve as roadblocks against me, and right now the Hero Public Safety Commission is the biggest roadblock."
The man looked up from the laptop for just a moment, "As part of that public campaigning, it's also necessary that you try and bring as many Heroes to your cause as possible. We intend to fully utilize the large support base that you've fostered, especially amongst mutants."
Aurdel folded his arms, "If I bring in any Heroes it only be the ones that I know I can trust or at least believe I can trust. The last thing I need is a bunch of spineless fake Heroes that only follow me out of fear, because the moment they see an opportunity to strike out and switch sides they will. And I don't intend to lead a revolution with cowards or cutthroats behind my back."
"What do you intend to do with the Heroes that you don't trust, then?"
"The Heroes that I don't trust will be forced to make a choice, one with only two options. The first option will be to willingly step down from their positions as Heroes. They can keep their ill-gotten gains and fame, but they will never work as a Hero again. Nor will they ever try to influence the country or world at large." He relaxed his arms, "The second option is a trial by fire, with every facet of their past exposed and examined. So long as they come out clean, without a blemish on their record from misdeeds or corruption, then they will be allowed to continue their work as a Hero."
"And if they fail this examination?"
"Public execution." He said this matter of factly, something that shocked the people at the table.
"Don't you think that's a little extreme?" The main speaker said, "The theoretical situation where you execute dozens, if not hundreds, of former Heroes is-"
"Firstly, I will not be told what is extreme and what is not by a group that already planned to overthrow the country, even when change could have been achieved without such means. Second," he took a deep breath, "The purpose of offering them this choice is to serve as a litmus test in and of itself. Weak Heroes will be weeded out in the beginning, as they won't have the backbone to put their life at risk to prove themselves. The ones that die later are fake Heroes, people who thought they could trick the system despite all of their wrongdoings. By the end of it, the only ones that will remain in service are real Heroes with loyalty to the people that they serve." He could sense that there was still some unease about his explanation, but they could only accept what he said. The meeting continued.
"…Well, the next stipulation is the one we mentioned previously. Your interview."
"Yes, and it's the one thing I have the most concern over. I want to know just how much you want me to make public."
"I can answer that," a woman with blue skin raised his hand, a pencil between her fingers and a notepad resting on the table in front of her. "As the woman who is going to interview you, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Chitose Kizuki and I-"
He held up a hand, "I'll learn who you all are soon enough. The conditions of the interviews, please."
"Straight to the point, I like it." She stuck the pencil behind her ear, "For the interview, there are two very important things that we want to cover our bases with. First, your beliefs and ideas."
"Just my political and ideological views?"
"For the most part, we are willing to hear out the rest of your opinions too. Just try to keep anything that might be seen as way too controversial off the air."
"Then this isn't an interview, this is just propaganda."
"Not necessarily, since it's not like we'll be distorting what you say to fit a narrative. It's just that we're trying to appeal to a certain audience and don't want to scare them off with anything too radical."
He narrowed his eyes, "You just said two contradictory sentences within the same breath."
She laughed, "Sorry, I guess that's just my traditional journalist education taking over for a moment. I'm sure you know how it is."
"Right…" Seeing that she refused to reconcile the fact that she was saying contradicting sentences, he just allowed her to continue.
"The next main topic we want you to talk about is your personal life. You know, like where you're from, what your parents are like and how you got to be the person that you are now. The basics."
He was quiet for a moment, "Do you expect me to go into incredible detail?"
"Not really. Given how illusive you are, even the bare minimum of details is more than enough. But feel free to say as much as you want. The more than I get, the better." He grumbled, bare minimum is what he'd give. "The last important thing we need you to do for the interview is to try and humanize yourself. So, when it happens you're going to have to take off your helmet and show your-"
"I am NOT showing my face," he shook his head as he spoke, making his disapproval very clear.
"Why not? The greatest way to get a crowd to be sympathetic for someone else is by showing them that they're human, that's-"
"Because you already know that people aren't sympathetic towards another person, they're sympathetic towards the symbol that they represent. And you can't lie and tell me that what I'm saying isn't true," he looked around, "Among the members of the Meta Liberation Army, it is widely known that the CEO of Detnerat is the descendant of the movement's original founder. Destro. But tell me, how many people will personally get to know him? How many will interact with him aside from listening to speeches and following orders? Very few. Even so, they continue to give their support. Not because of the man they're following, but because of the name and image that he invokes. The symbol." He took a deep breath, "So no, I will not be taking off my helmet. Not when I know that it serves absolutely no purpose."
"But-"
"Very well," Re-Destro said, "You can keep your face hidden for the interview."
"Aw, alright." She quickly scribbled something over on her notepad, "Unless you want to talk about your love life, then that's all for what you need to do during the interview."
Re-Destro splayed a hand towards him, "Before we go any further, is there anything that you would like to ask of us?"
"Yes, I would like to know all of your names and codenames for simplicity's sake. But more importantly," he pointed towards the man with the mask on his face, "I want to know who you are, and how you also have All For One."
Midoriya, Bakugo and Todoroki walked into the large building that Endeavor used as an agency. "Shoto, it's good to see you again! Looks like you and your friends didn't have any luck chasing around Endeavor. Don't feel too bad about it though, that just means you'll be working with us instead!"
"Who the hell is this?!" Bakugo asked angrily.
Midoriya quickly gave him an answer, "That's 'Burnin, she's one of Endeavor's most famous and popular sidekicks! A lot of people compare her to Mirko because of her personality, but with her unique way of fighting she really stands out from other female Heroes!"
"It's great to see someone putting respect upon the name! But don't think that'll earn you any bit of an easier time from me because of it. Now that you're doing your work studies with us that means you'll be treated just like us, full-time sidekicks. So there'll be absolutely no babying for you!"
"I don't need to be told this when we already got this lecture while we were out on patrol!" Bakugo shouted, angrily shaking his fist.
"It doesn't do you any harm to be reminded of that fact, especially since you probably had other stuff on your mind. Stuff like the fact that you were being completely outpaced and couldn't keep up at all, so you didn't do anything."
"Shut up!" Bakugo dismissed her without a retort, not wanting to feed into anything else. It was clear that part of their training with Endeavor involved getting fired up and ridiculed, something that 'Burnin eagerly played a part in. But they knew that as Heroes they needed to stay collected. Each of them had a different way of doing this of course. Midoriya could stay collected because he knew it was all part of their training, meaning that there wasn't any bad intentions behind what 'Burnin said. Todoroki seemed almost completely unphased by what she said, likely due to the fact that he'd previously met her and had come to realize that this was just another part of her fiery attitude that often came out. Bakugo meanwhile showed his own special brand of indifference towards her, visibly getting angry at her but not actually letting the remarks get under his skin. At least, that's what he thought. He could be completely wrong but just didn't know it.
"Anyways, I may as well show you to your rooms since you'll be staying with us."
"We won't be going back to our campus dorms?" Midoriya asked.
"Not at this agency you won't!" She proudly proclaimed, "A lot of crime still happens at night, so even when Endeavor isn't here we need to be on the top of our game. So we have a rotating system, where half of the sidekicks and workers stay one night and the other half stay the other night."
"But wouldn't that go against work and safety laws related to how long a Hero can work?!"
"It would! But because we have these all personal quarters on the premises, we're technically able to register this place as a residential building. It even helps the agency to pay less in taxes every year."
"Sounds like the number one Hero is being stingy to me," Bakugo grumbled, "If he wanted extra work to be done for extra cash, he should just come in and do it himself. It's what All Might would do."
"Yeah, what All Might would do…" Todoroki muttered.
"Well, one man can only take so much. Right now he pushes himself harder than anyone else in the country, and you can see just what kind of an effect that has on him. So be mindful of what you say." She gestured forward towards a door, "Here you are, you three will be sharing the same room. We won't expect you to pull night shifts since you're just students on a work study, but it'd be good to watch us work to see how things get done." With that she left the three of them, allowing them the chance to settle on.
Bakugo threw the suitcase with his costume onto one of the three beds, "This is a bunch of bullcrap. I came here to learn from the number one Hero, instead I spend all day chasing him around and not getting to do a single damn thing!"
Todoroki walked over to his own bed, "It takes some time to get used to his way of 'teaching.' I suggest that you get as much rest as you can, otherwise we won't ever be able to catch up to him."
"Don't tell me what to do!" He hissed. Then, he grabbed a spare change of clothes. "I'm taking a shower. The last thing I need to have happen is to sweat during the night and have one of his hothead sidekicks blow up half the building." Grumbling, he walked off towards the bathroom. That left Midoriya alone once Todoroki finally climbed into his own bed, quickly falling asleep.
Unable to fall asleep just yet, he quickly decided to preoccupy himself with something else. So he pulled out his phone, opening the group chat that was set up for his class. Already he could see that a few of his classmates had already begun to chat, with some even posting photos from their first days at their work studies. Everyone looked like they were having fun. Though, Mineta seemed to already have been temporarily muted. Likely for something he'd posted earlier. Curious to see if anyone was checking the chat at the, he sent a message. "Hey guys."
Not expecting an answer any time soon, he was about to put his phone down when he suddenly got a reply. "Hey Deku!" To his surprise, it was Uraraka. He typed back a response.
"How is your work study going so far?"
"Great! We didn't actually do much today, but we're going to be teaming up with Selkie tomorrow." A pause. "What about you? Did Bakugo get you guys into any trouble?"
"We didn't do much either. Any time we met a Villain, Endeavor ended up doing everything."
"That's alright. I'm sure you'll have plenty more chances to beat up the bad guys." Pause. "So where are you guys? I didn't see you come back to the dorm."
"We're actually staying at the agency building right now."
"Really?! That's cool!" Seeing enthusiasm for something so simple couldn't help but make him smile a little, "I should probably let you get some sleep then, I think we're both going to be busy tomorrow."
"Ok, goodnight."
"Goodnight!" He put his phone down onto the nightstand next to the bed, resting his eyes. It was odd to talk like this, but it was nice since it made it easy to disguise his nervousness.
His phone buzzed as another message was sent, he picked it back up. Bakugo had tried to send a message. Tried. It'd all shown up as stars. He shouted from the bathroom, "WHO THE HELL PUT ON A PROFANITY FILTER?!"
Divination
Even by the dawn of the next day, Midoriya still felt a little weary from the previous day of trying to keep up with Endeavor. Being out in the field and moving non-stop, it was a lot different from the training that Mr. Aurdel had put them through. Just the addition of constantly being on the lookout for things that could go wrong, on top of trying to make sure that he didn't cause any problems himself, added a pile of extra stressors to the ordeal. Granted, he'd sort of always known that working as a Hero would be like this. But it was still a lot to go through. And the next day, after waking up, they did it all over again.
"God damnit!" Bakugo shouted, "Almost the whole day has gone by already, and we're not any closer to learning a single thing!"
"If you haven't anything, then you haven't been paying close enough attention," Endeavor said sternly. He stood with one foot on the edge of the rooftop, looking out into the distance.
"Paying close enough attention to what? Your ass?!" Bakugo shouted, pointing a finger at him as he walked forward. "All we've had the chance to do was chase you around this city as you rush over at full tilt to beat up a Villain, then get a thirty second break before you run off to the next Villain to beat down. Do you even have any intentions of teaching us?"
Endeavor turned around, "Boy, would you rather that I slow down? That I take a few more seconds for each Villain that I defeat? The world expects me to replace All Might as the symbol of peace, and if I take even a moment to slow down then any pretenses of that peace being maintained will crumble apart. The nation itself will be at stake."
"Responsibilities or not, you still agreed to take us on as work study students."
"Then what would you have me choose? My work? Or my other obligations?"
"A good Hero would find time to do both," Todoroki interjected, coldly.
Midoriya could only watch from the side as his two other classmates seemed to unnecessarily rip into Endeavor. It's not that they were necessarily wrong with their judgment of how things were going, in fact Midoriya agreed that currently they aren't learning anything from Endeavor. It was just that he didn't believe that they would get any closer to making progress by attacking their teacher, one that seemingly reluctantly took on this task. He decided to intervene. "Guys, don't we all just calm-?" But as Midoriya spoke, Endeavor raised a hand to silence him.
He looked intense for a moment, focusing on whatever was being said to him over the earpiece he had in. "I'm on my way." Without another word he fired off of the rooftop, leaving the three of them to quickly chase after him.
"What the hell is going on now?!"
"An old man is rampaging downtown with his quirk, some notorious local Villain who prophesizes doomsday."
"And they need YOU to deal with a schmuck like that?"
"A Hero doesn't choose their battles, they take the battles that appear." The four of them practically flew down the streets, Midoriya, Bakugo and Todoroki struggling to keep up with Endeavor as he went at full force in the direction of the Villain attack.
"Run away, citizens. Run away! For I have received a message from the divine above, the end times are upon us!" As they flew, Midoriya could hear the loud ranting of an elderly man. Soon enough the Villain was within their sight. "The Archangel of wisdom and judgement has fallen upon the Earth, and with it will come our punishment for all of our sins! For the trumpets will sound and the Earth will split open, and the one who holds the keys to Tartarus shall cast in all the sinners who do not repent!" A massive ball of glass formed in the air above the main road inside the city, the man sitting at its peak. He raised his hand, "But fear not, for all those that perish before their time penance shall begin! Allow this servant to lay down his mercy!" He then drove it down, the ball of glass began hurtling towards the street below.
"Flashfire Fist!" Endeavor launched forward with his fist, driving an intense fire into the ball of glass. Quickly it began to melt where it hovered, dripping to the ground in rivers of orange. "Old man, you have a good grasp on your quirk. You must be strong. But you should know better than to try this when I'm around. I will give you one chance to surrender yourself into custody now."
"Apostle of flames, you bring nothing but darkness upon this land! This servant shall set you on the right path by handing down the judgment that you deserve!" Still not yet melted smaller spheres of glass quickly shaped themselves into a wall of glass arrows, flying towards Endeavor at high speed in a staggered line.
"Don't be foolish!" With practically a swipe of his flames he was able to melt all the arrows, but as soon as they disappeared- "He's already begun to flee?!"
Using the curtain of flames as a distraction, the old man had quickly begun to fly in the opposite direction. A number of spheres hovered underneath him to keep him moving. "The darkness you bring shall be purged, I am sure of it!"
"Your real beliefs shine through when you run from a battle!" The Villain hovered just above the ground and he flew through the streets, impressively needling his way through lamp posts, railings, cars and people that were all in the way.
"A man of your kind could never understand the sacrifices one makes for the truth!" Thinner spears of glass launched out from underneath his feet, picking up a number of civilians from the ground and launching them into the air.
"You three!" Endeavor quickly gave his order, they knew what to do.
"Right!" With no way to currently engage the Villain, they'd focus on minimizing the damage and casualties. Bakugo blasted forward, using his faster speed to quickly reach the civilian in the air. He pushed them all in the same direction and clumped them up. Midoriya then used Blackwhip, grabbing the group of civilians from the air and pulling them back down. Todoroki then used his ice to create a downward ramp, safely allowing the civilians to get back down to the ground.
"Thank you so-!" One of the civilians, a woman, went up to thank them.
"We're busy!" Bakugo shouted, "You're safe, now let us get back to work!" Then he blasted away, chasing after Endeavor again.
Midoriya quickly bowed his head in apology, "Sorry, he's just really dedicated." With that he and Todoroki began the chase again too, "I wish Kacchan would be less abrasive, it's really going to get him into trouble one day."
"For now it'll suffice," Todoroki commented, propelling himself forward with his ice path. "Midoriya, can you guess where that Villain is heading?"
He thought for a moment, quickly looking around to gather his bearings. "It doesn't seem like he's heading towards any high density areas. Not to any industrial areas either… In fact, depending on how far he goes the only thing he'll be going towards is the sea."
"The sea…" Todoroki thought for a moment, "Whatever he's planning to do, we can't let him do it. Midoriya, you're faster than me. I'll go with Bakugo to try and catch up with Endeavor and pressure the Villain that way. You go try and cut them off."
"Right!" The two of them quickly parted ways, with Midoriya veering off at an angle. If his judgment of how large the city was correct, and if they kept up the same pace for the entirety of the fight, then that meant that he should get to the beach around ten seconds before they did.
Midoriya put the pedal to the metal, increasing the percentage of One For All he was using to launch himself forward. As he did he also used Blackwhip to grab onto sections of buildings and poles to adjust his course, ensuring that he didn't faceplant at highway speeds into a brick wall.
Eventually he made it where he needed to be, Midoriya planted himself squarely on the sand. He raised his hand, preparing to let off a smash as soon as the Villain came into view. "I… Will not give up!" Soon enough, he saw flames and explosions in the distance. They were still chasing him.
Then the Villain appeared. "Smash!" He flicked his fingers, and the gloves did their work. One large compressed air blast fired forward and struck the Villain in the back, sending him flying off of the orbs he used to fly. Endeavor quickly followed up with an attack, singing the man with his flames as he dealt him a blow to the midsection. It was enough force to change his direction again, throwing him onto the beach and kicking up a spray of sand as he landed.
"That's enough, old man. You're beaten."
The Villain stood back up on his hands and knees. "You truly don't get it, I am a servant of the divine. Of the stars above. And a failure on my part is a failure for them. It cannot be allowed."
"Don't!"
"I will not fail!" Endeavor quickly went to use his flames, but the old man put up a thick wall of glass between the two of them. In the split second that he'd gained he pulled out a syringe and stabbed it into himself.
"He's boosted himself!" Todoroki quickly went to restrain him, throwing up a wall of ice to surround him. But it was too late.
"I SERVE THE DIVINE!" Seemingly rejuvenated, the old man rose back to his feet. From the water rose mountains of rocks- No, sea glass!
"Die!" Bakugo launched forward with his gauntlets, letting out a blast.
"Foolish boy!" Met with a thick block of glass, his explosion was easily able to punch into it. But all that shattered glass needed to exit out somewhere.
"Bakugo!" Bakugo quickly retreated and he was flayed with dozens of shards of glass, cutting through the material of his costume and his skin.
"FACE THE WRATH OF GOD!" Columns of glass snaked up from the ground, before being thrown at them.
"Flashfire Fist: Hell Spider!" Endeavor sliced through the columns, the residual flames slicing through the beach shore. But Midoriya realized something, when sand was superheated and melted…
"Endeavor, Todoroki! Don't use your flames!"
"Taste the River Styx!" Fresh globs of molten glass rose from the beach and swirled through the air, aiming to surround Endeavor.
"Not on my watch!" Todoroki drove a wall of ice into the air, blocking them before they could arrive and quickly cooling them back into normal glass.
"Attack simultaneously!" Endeavor quickly ordered. The four of them quickly adjusted their tactics, maneuvering to attack from a different direction.
"AP Shot: Autocannon!" Bakugo opened up with a series of rapid fire blasts, gunning down any glass projectiles that the Villain was trying to use against them.
"Heaven Piercing Ice Wall" Todoroki created a wall of ice, launching it at the Villain to keep him preoccupied from one side.
"Flashfire Fist: Jetburn!" Endeavor attacked from the front with his flames to distract the Villain.
"Take this!" Midoriya used Blackwhip, ripping a nearby solid wooden bench out of the ground and throwing it at the Villain before propelling himself forward to deal a kick.
"No!" A large explosion rippled through the air as the hot and cold air met, obliterating any glass that remained up at the time. The bench then struck the Villain, knocking out a number of teeth and the hat off of his head. Midoriya kicked through the bench, striking the Villain squarely in the chest.
The Villain was sent flying, bouncing off of the beach and onto the water. It was a few seconds before he eventually washed back up onto shore. "Crazy old coot," Bakugo commented, wiping the blood off of his face.
"The police should be here any moment, let's continue-"
"Freeze Heroes!" A number of individuals rushed out onto the edge of the beach, wielding guns.
"Are these the old guy's minions?!"
"I said-!"
"Looks like you need a hand Endeavor." A flurry of red blurs quickly shot through the air, first pulling the guns out of the hands of the men who'd just appeared before quickly dragging them into the air and slamming them back down into the ground. Hawks landed on the ground. "Though you shouldn't have trouble with a bunch of low-tiers like these guys."
"The situation was under my control," Endeavor snorted.
"Right right," Hawks threw his hands up mockingly, "It's good luck that I managed to find you anyways, I was looking for you right before I ended up getting called to respond to a distress call from Ryukyu."
"From Ryukyu?!" Midoriya was caught off guard.
Hawks raised an eyebrow in confusion at first, then lowered it. His expression became more solemn. "Right, you're classmates with those two girls."
"Did something happen to Uraraka and Asui?"
"Sit down kid, you're not gonna like what I have to say."