Chapter 1: Horizon
Notes:
Ello! This is my first fic ever. Also, the longest piece of creative writing I’ve ever done! It was supposed to be a 14k one-shot prologue, but I thought chapters would be better and added more! I had written 3k in about four days, then the other 10-12k in three, crazy.
It was so fun to finally cement my loose ideas from the past several months into a real story. So much of this was not preplanned, it all went a little to the left, and it's amazing.
Hope you enjoy!
Chapter Text
Monday, April 2, 2142
“Wait, I need to ask you something!”
All Mig- Yagi Toshinori paused, even as the strain of keeping his heroic form pressed upon his shoulders every passing second. He was far beyond three hours. The desperation in the green haired child's voice called for him to risk that moment’s pause.
Despite better judgements and the screaming in his muscles, he turned his head to look at the boy again. “What is it?”
“Can someone without a quirk… be a hero like you?”
Sapphire eyes widened slightly. Without a quirk? Like All Might? His left side twinged in pain, and Toshinori swallowed down a bloody cough along with the memory. “No. Without my quirk… I-” His thoughts are cut off, as another cough bubbled up within his lung. He struggled to keep a hold on One for All. Oh, shit.
All Might plasters on a blinding smile, gathering himself to jump away before the green child before him can see Yagi Toshinori, the pathetic skeleton of a man. “I must be going, justice waits for no one!” He could tell that he put too much pressure into the jump in his haste, as the sound of cracking stone followed him.
Upon landing on a roof out of sight of the child, Toshinori immediately lost control over his quirk. Deflating into the stick like figure of his civilian identity and coughing up more blood from the aggravation of his old injury. “That was a close one! Too close…” He pat his pocket subconsciously to double-check that a villain made of slime was still secured in a bottle there. Yep. “Okay, first things first, take you to the station.” No response, perfect.
He took a moment to look behind himself, towards the section of the horizon he came from. The direction of where an underpass tunnel is. Where a child he had to leave behind was. A sense of worry and possibly dread pools in his gut. “I hope that kid will be alright…”
You have crossed the event horizon
And there is no going back.
The self you thought you were is being pulled apart
and there is nothing you can do to save it.
In a single jump, the blond hero vanished from sight, barely cracking the concrete under him as he left. Leaving Izuku under the bridge and still covered in sludge. Alone. He kneels down with the hard ground biting into his palms, and allows for a broken sob to escape.
A low, raw scream tears through his throat. Years of explosive pain and clinging to glimmering hope, an accumulating darkness of despair, finally being released like a brilliant supernova in the vast emptiness surrounding him.
He had spent as long as he could remember holding onto the belief that the number one hero, his hero from the moment of his quirkless diagnosis, would be the one, the only one, to wholeheartedly support him.
Why did All Might have to say no? Why couldn’t he have just let him hang onto that brilliant dream even if he did inevitably fail? All he ever wanted was to help people. To save them with a smile, just like All Might did.
With the disapproval of his idol… What could he do now?
What could save him from the harsh reality of the world that hated him now?
Izuku continued to cry, concrete digging into his knees. Mourning his dream as it shattered on the pavement and echoed around him within the tunnel. He’ll never be sure of how long he cried, a few minutes? An hour?
It was only until a notebook tumbled past him. His notebook. The pages fluttering in the breeze, trying to take to the air. The title forever burned into his memory, not from this moment, but from how long he had notebooks like this one.
Hero Analysis for the Future #13.
He reached for it before it moved further out of his reach with the wind. Even burned, laden with water, and covered in slime, his notebooks were his safety blanket. Always. No one could take away his fascination with quirks, not since he was five, having just been told he would never have one of his own.
Even beyond the smiling form of the Symbol of Peace, quirks were always his salvation. His distraction from everything as the world beat him down for something out of his control. Why would this time be any different?
Bakugou Katsuki watched as Deku walked into the classroom the next day, head buried within his notebook as he muttered and scribbled at ludicrous speeds. The nerd probably saw another hero fight on the way to school. “Tch.” Despite his attempts to dissuade the freak from becoming a hero and getting himself killed, he never listened to him. “Oi! Deku! Shut up!”
“Sorry, Kacchan!” He’s never actually sorry, Katsuki can tell. If he was, he would stop being a creep and finally do something else instead. At least the muttering had quieted down to only the sound of lead on paper. Soft whisperings came back every so often during their classes, but a quick, small explosive pop from his quirk, Explosion, shut the fucker up.
As the lunch bell rang, Katsuki had enough, moving to block the nerd’s exit. The coward always ran away instead of at least attempting to fight back. How does he expect to be a hero if he can’t even fight for himself? “When will you ever give up Deku?!” He was prepared for the upcoming empty, stuttering apologies. Like always.
He wasn’t prepared for Deku’s slightly blank look, his eyes a dull green, with no stutter in sight. Like the wooden doll of his namesake. “I already have, Kacchan. I’ll never be a hero.” Katsuki stiffened. What does he mean he gives up?! He never gives up!
By the time it took Katsuki to fully process the statement, the nerd was already gone. Likely hiding in some forgotten corner of the school to eat by himself.
Why does it feel like I haven’t achieved victory? I finally won… right?
Later, Katsuki would notice that the nerd’s beloved notebook that he had damaged yesterday had parts of the title crossed out. Hero Analysis for the Future #13.
He doesn’t know how he feels about it.
Since that day, he never told the nerd to shut up again.
Midoriya Inko watched her son, her baby boy. Something was different. He seemed calmer, less frantic in some way. The most relaxed she may have seen him in a long time, but there was something missing too. She couldn’t quite place it.
He wasn’t running desperately out the door. He wasn’t writing into his book with as much intensity as before. There were a few days when she could barely get him to look up from his writing, but now he seemed to be stuck more in his head than in a notebook.
It took embarrassingly long for her to place what was wrong. Too long. It took seeing Izuku’s new bedroom layout, depressingly bare of All Might merch. Something had happened to him, something broke his hero fanaticism, and she didn’t know what it was or could be.
The next time she looked her son in the eye, she finally saw what was missing. The root of what was wrong. The spark in his eyes had dimmed, something had fully broken him. Something had finally shattered his dream of being a hero.
She silently hated that she felt relief.
Her baby’s spirit was crushed, and she felt relieved. All because she couldn’t bare the thought of losing him. Was she a bad mother? She only wanted what was best for Izuku’s wellbeing. Hopefully he would choose a safer passion… She could only hope.
For now, serving his favorite meal, katsudon, to comfort him seemed like a good choice.
It took a few days for Izuku to feel human again. Days spent in a daze as he scribbled and recontextualized everything of what he knew and wondered about regarding quirks. Days with his hand nearly cramping for the first time in years as he wrote and wrote and wrote.
He was stopping by a small store with all sort of bits and bobs, snacks and treats, pencils and paint, pens and paper. It was the perfect place to get notebooks. The old shopkeeper didn’t care who or what he was, always smiling softly as he handed over his yen.
His latest notebook had been a generic thing made for homework and class notes that he grabbed while restocking school supplies at a more generic supply store. This time, though, he wanted something special, something different.
A black notebook decorated with gold stars drawn into constellations called out to him from his peripheral vision. In the center was a gold circle that expanded out with points positioned at a tilt. A smaller circle and a line cut through it. The cover for his first real Quirk Analysis notebook.
He supposed quirks were as beautiful as the stars. Each were unique and each had the power to burn so brightly, if even for a moment. One could look at them all their lives and never find all there is to know. An endless sort of discovery, always something never seen before within the infinite cosmos of possibility.
Izuku skipped home in a lighter mood than he had been in for years, this was a new phase in his life. A fresh start in a way. A step to moving on with his life after the supernova of his dream dying. He would never be a hero, that would have to be okay.
He would make it okay, even if he had to drown himself in a sea of stardust to do so.
Chapter 2: Attraction
Notes:
I understand formatting pain now, help my sanity. I'll tweak the formatting a bit more later.
Edit: I have now learned html and had much fun :D
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Wednesday, April 11, 2142
A green haired boy stood on the edge of a police line. The hero Backdraft worked on containing a man who could cover himself in flames. The Pro Hero had water spouts replacing where his hands would be, a mutation class quirk, with the ability to control the water he produced.
How was the water acquired? Could he have control of any water that mixed with his own? Was it even fully water? Has anyone ever tested that it was fully pure water, or what minerals could be in it? And his hands, how did he grab anything or eat? Why was he born with spouts for hands, anyway?
Steam rose into the air above the crowd in the street, the man on fire burned even brighter. You would think water beats fire in any scenario, but Backdraft was struggling to control the blaze.
How was the man able to burn for so long and hot? What were his limits? Did he still have his clothes under the fire? How was that even possible? Could the fire be controlled of what it burned? What mutations might he have to allow him to survive being on fire?
Izuku’s thoughts ground to a halt, everyone had mutations. Even he had green hair that would not have existed before quirks. It made so much sense that he felt stupid for not realizing it. He never actually put in the time to research the why and how behind quirks beyond the implications of what could be done with them.
If everyone possessed left over mutations that were passed on from their ancestors, who was truly quirkless? Those without quirks, yes, but mutation class existed. Were there people without quirks that were born with anthropomorphic features from their parents and were just listed as having a quirk?
What counted as a quirk? What fully determined a person’s quirk? How did quirks even come to be? How had he overlooked looking deeper into quirks themselves instead of individual ones?
It was time to change that.
You chose this
And the power of your will
Activated the inescapable attraction of your Self
And there is no going back.
Advent of the Paranormal
by Blake Cheswick, 2024
–irth of the glowing baby, Ming Xin, has hallmarked the beginning of meta-humans almost twelve years ago, there is evidence that meta-abilities started appearing long before her. Myths and legends of supernatural beings are common in folk lore all over the world and in history. It may be possible that these tales and rumors are of precursors to meta-humans of toda–
Plus Alpha DNA
by Garaki Kyuudai, 2067
–ubois’ 2041 paper, The Alpha Variable, she proposed that the Plus Alpha Elements may even be present as deep as DNA. After years of studying the DNA sequencing of both quirked and non-quirked individuals and the family trees of participants, it is confirmed that DNA does at least influence what type of quirk an individual may or may not receive.
It may even be possible to force quirk activation within a non-quirked individual if Plus Alpha Elements are present within their DNA, and they possess adequate Alpha Ener–
The Alpha Variable
by Agnes Dubois, 2041
–en Alpha became the first generation to show widespread signs of meta abilities, also known as quirks. Due to this, I refer to the changes within meta-humans compared to regular people as Alpha Elements within this paper. The presence of Alpha Elements may even extend to the DNA level, which calls into question on whether meta-humans are even human, but I digress.
So far, all test subjects have exhibited changes that benefit and hinder them in some way. The Elements that seem to enable the use of a meta-ability are Plus Alpha Elements, while the supposed drawbacks of the meta-ability are Minus Alpha Elements. I will go further into this within Section 3. Subsection E will touch on the topic of Alp–
During the Dawn of Quirks, anyone who was abnormal, with something as simple as green hair, was called a meta-human. The early term for people with quirks!
Over time, more simple mutations became the norm and accepted as the baseline for humans. The line between the quirkless and quirked became blurry, with diagnosis becoming more subjective. With the passing of generations, everyone now had genes for quirks. It was only a matter of how those genes were expressed.
It soothed something inside of him to know that no one was truly quirkless anymore. He wasn’t quirkless. He wasn’t abnormal. He just didn’t have any obvious abilities. A hundred years ago, his green hair would have been classified as a quirk. Though, no one around him would listen to that. He already knew.
What else would mark him as a meta-human?
He plunged head first into looking for the answers to his question and more.
Quirk Singularity Theorem
by Garaki Kyuudai, 2073
–hird thirty-year generation cycle since the Dawn of Quirks, we have already seen great-grandchildren of early quirk users manifest their quirks. I’ve had the pleasure of studying some of these individuals within my research, and a few are even the fourth generation within their lineage to possess quirks!
As time has progressed, quirks have gotten more complex in how they function and their effects have gotten stronger. If this trend continues, quirks may become too powerful or complex to control. Children manifesting their quirks will cause chaos and destru–
Is Doomsday Possible?
by Asakura Toshirou, 2111
–orty years since Garaki’s Quirk Singularity Theorem was released. Since then, quirks have indeed gotten stronger and more complex in following generations. Although, there is also overwhelming evidence that humanity will evolve to handle these abilities rather than self-destruct.
Mutations have been on the rise, and not just mutation class quirks! Simple emitter and transformation class quirks have been observing small mutations that seem to allow the user to handle the higher output or complexity of their quirk compared to thei–
Alpha Element Modification
by Garaki Kyuudai, 2082
–scovery of the link between DNA and Alpha Elements, also known as Quirk Factor, I have been looking into the effects of modifying DNA responsible for Alpha Elements. Part of this study was verifying that forced activations within quirkless individuals was possible, and indeed it was.
With that knowledge, I moved on to inserting DNA for certain quirks into organisms that had ample Alpha Energy, also known as Alpha Potency, then applying external pressure to force the activation. The result was less than desira–
Toogata Mirio stared at the bony skeleton of a man Sir Nighteye had requested him to meet. The blond man should eat more, that physique could not be healthy at all. The man spoke up before Mirio could attempt to introduce himself first, “Ah, hello, my name is Yagi, Yagi Toshinori. Nice to meet you young Toogata.”
“Nice to meet you too, Yagi.”
“I’m actually here with an offer at Nighteye’s insistence. You see, I’m an old hero, but my health has been making it harder and harder to fight crime. I’ll have to retire soon, and I need a successor. Nighteye here as been vouching for you, and I’ve finally come to see you for myself. Based on reports, I may not be able to find someone else more worthy of this offer in the short time I have left.”
Yagi sat leaning forward with his hands steepled and eyes nearly glowing blue from his intense gaze. Mirio didn’t fully understand the circumstances, but he could feel the weight of the offer. Sir believed that he could measure up to Yagi’s expectations and wanted him to do so.
Though, he still wanted to know what he was getting into first, “What will this entail, Yagi?”
Yagi lost some of his intensity and became quite bashful at that, “Ah, I would pass my quirk on to you. It is a strength enhancer called One for All, passing on from one holder to the next since the Dawn of Quirks. A constellation of power connected by the hopes and dreams of a long line of heroes. My mentor gave me this quirk almost forty years ago now.”
Mirio blinked, “Excuse me?!” Forget whatever extra training he had been mentally preparing for. A quirk?! “Sorry Yagi, just, how is that even possible?” This man in font of him wanted to give him an ancient, probably sacred, secret quirk. This had to be a joke.
Yagi only smiled, a sparkle in his eyes with a hint of mischief, “Quite simple! DNA transfer!”
“This is a joke.” Mirio didn’t mean to say that out loud, but the sheer incredulous of the situation tore through whatever filter he maintained. Even if the man was a friend of Sir Nighteye, he expected him to at least be serious when offering a mentorship that would likely cut into his time with Sir.
The old blond regained some of the intensity within his gaze and straightened his posture. “Young Toogata, this is not a joke. If you accept my offer, I’ll give you One for All. You are already an amazing hero. I trust you to do great things with this power. Now, will you accept?”
Inko watched as the light slowly regrew within Izuku’s eyes. He spent even more time chasing heroes recently and filling out his new notebook at a rate she had never seen before. The last time he was this fanatic over quirks was before his diagnosis, theorizing over what quirk he would have.
Even then, he didn’t have the knowledge or skill he has now to finely break apart each quirk he lays his eyes on. Izuku had come up to her over Attraction with questions she had never considered.
She would do right by him this time. That evening they learned the true limits of what her simple, weak telekinesis could do. She could hold over a dozen objects at once, controlling them independently, even if that gave her a headache. The sparkle in his eyes, the amazement at her even if she wasn’t a hero, was more than worth it.
They sat within the living room later on, watching a documentary of the Glowing Baby. She couldn’t help but be intrigued about the Dawn of Quirks alongside her son. Inko wondered where this reinvigorated deeper interest in quirks would take him.
She would be there this time. She promised herself. Promised silently to Izuku. She would try her best to foster his passion this time. Even if he rediscovered his dream of becoming a hero. Even if she had to constantly fret over his safety. She would be on his side completely.
From: Garaki Kyuudai
<[email protected]>
To: Midoriya Izuku
<[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, May 3, 2142 9:27 AM
Subject: Assistant Opportunity
Dear Midoriya,
I’ve been alerted to recent activity towards my publications. Imagine my surprise when, upon further inspection, it is from a bright young mind like yourself. It is not often that someone is as passionate about quirks as you or me. Much fewer, ones that show an interest in my area of studies!
Due to your apparent interest in learning more deeply about quirks, I’d like to offer you a position as my personal assistant. I’m not getting any younger after all! This position would require you to be present within the research facility full-time with very few vacations, and your continued schooling would be sorted out by myself and my associates.
Do think about this opportunity. I look forward to hearing from you.
Garaki Kyuudai
Ph.D. in Alpha Element Studies
Izuku sat on the roof of Aldera Junior High. Even if Kacchan had stopped bothering him and by extension the rest of his followers, he didn’t trust eating within the cafeteria with everyone else. Other classes tended to either completely ignore his existence or make fun of him.
Sometimes stealing bits of his lunch, claiming that quirks required more energy, so he didn't need to eat as much as them. While that could be true for some quirks, it was usually paired to certain diets or, rarely, an overall boost to metabolism that required frequent snacks.
He pulled out his lunch as he thought over the possibility of Kacchan requiring a higher sugar or fat intake. His childhood friend sweat a nitroglycerin like substance and glycerine could be made from fats, oils, or sugar.
Halfway through his meal, his thoughts were disrupted from a notification sound. Maybe it was a new trending post on HeroNet? Even if he wasn’t as excited about the heroes themselves anymore, HeroNet was the best place to see reports and footage of quirks in action.
Alas, there wasn’t a new top story to look over but an email. It didn’t look like a corporate email sent out of marketing or newsletters. It was an email personally addressed to him, of all people.
From: Midoriya Izuku
<[email protected]>
To: Garaki Kyuudai
<[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, May 3, 2142 12:12 PM
Subject: Re: Assistant Opportunity
Dear Dr. Garaki,
Really?! Though, I’m sure you could find better candidates than me for such a position. I’m not that special. Also, the fact you’re emailing me must mean I was correct in my theory that you might have been the child with the slower aging quirk from Cheswick’s 2024 article about the beginnings of meta-humans! Some of your public records didn’t match up with your experience or the pictures I could find of you. Ah, sorry, that may be creepy.
Getting back on track, before I could even think of accepting, my mom would have to agree to allow me to study under you and that may be a bit unlikely… Could you allow some time for me to think on this, convince my mom, and for you to be sure you want me for such a position?
Midoriya Izuku
Izuku stared at his screen. The Dr. Garaki reached out to him. One of the leading scientists in the study of why and how quirks appear. Some of his work was controversial or out right banned nowadays, but from what Izuku could find in his research so far, the work was solid and was referenced a lot if one looked deep enough within reports.
He still didn’t have a dream in mind to work towards, but this? Maybe he could be a quirk scientist. Helping to discover the full possibilities of ways quirks manifest and what causes them to do so.
Although, some of Garaki’s methods outlined in his studies did rub Izuku the wrong way. Was it really necessary to have stressed people into a life or death situation, even if they were safe in a controlled environment? Was discovering that forced quirk manifestations were real worth it?
Izuku wasn’t sure. He thinks… maybe it was… Forced manifestations are just another piece to the puzzle that quirks are. Was it possible for someone with a manifested quirk to trigger the same mechanism for forced manifestations? What would that do?
Was it bad that Izuku wanted to find out?
Alas, was he willing to leave his mother to study under Dr. Garaki? She was the only one to support him in any way. She may not have been perfect, may not have supported his dream of being a hero when he was found to be quirkless…
“I’m so sorry, Izuku!”
She may not have been the best at being there when he needed her, but she was his Mom. And she tried so hard to support him, to take care of him, even if it wasn’t perfect.
It had started with a simple cough.
That’s all it had been. A cough. It started on a day out, just him and his mother, Inko, taking a walk around Musutafu Central Park. They had just gotten ice cream from a small stand near the outer edges of the park. It was painted blue.
Chocolate ice cream for his mother, and mint chocolate chip for him. Sat together on a bench near the sidewalk watching traffic go by. The day was beautiful. Large fluffy clouds dotted the bright blue sky while a warm breeze ruffled his curls. He could live within this moment forever.
Then his mother, his world, coughed. “Oh dear, sorry Izuku. I must be getting a cold from the season change! Let’s start heading back home in a little bit, okay?” That’s all it had been.
Izuku nodded in understanding, “Yeah, okay! Hope you feel better soon, Mom!”
“I’m sure I will, sweetie. These seasonal colds are always nothing anyway. Just a few days feeling a little under the weather, that’s all.” Inko had smiled at him without a care.
They both didn’t know how fast the sickness would set in.
They had barely left the park maybe an hour or two later when, “Izuku… I really don’t feel good. Wait up. I… I need to sit down again.”
He turned around to stand next to where Inko had sat down in the grass just off the walkway. “Mom… are you okay?” People glanced at them while his mother struggled to catch her breath. No one stopped to ask if they needed help.
Green bangs curtained her face as her head was tipped down. A pale complexion covered her skin. “I-I can’t…” Panic slightly tinged her voice, “Can’t breathe…” She looked up, searching for his worried gaze. Her beautiful emerald eyes looked dull and unfocused. “Call 1-1-9.”
The world slightly faded from memory as Izuku called the emergency line and begged for help. The images are incoherent, not fully transitioning from one scene to another fluidly, but the story stays mostly complete regardless.
He can remember the dispatcher promising help was on the way. He can remember when Inko was loaded into the ambulance, squeezing his hand for comfort. Whether it was for her or for him, he’ll never know.
He can remember waiting in the hospital hallway outside her room as doctors hurried to and fro, forbidding him to enter in case she was contagious. He can remember one of the nurses handing him something to eat, or maybe it was Aunt Mitsuki?
He can remember the sound of the flat line as he hurried into the room… Only to see his mother, the only one who supported him in any capacity, not breathing. Lying within the hospital bed, as the sun set behind her and bathed her in golden light.
She looked so peaceful. Barely visible freckles like stardust on her face.
He can remember crying to himself in an empty apartment. Alone. He doesn’t know if it was days or weeks. He only remembers coming back to himself enough to think again when the landlord knocked looking for the month’s pay.
Realizing his situation, a fourteen-year-old, soon to be homeless, now completely alone. He remembers an email, an opportunity. The only one he may ever have within this unfair world.
From: Midoriya Izuku
<[email protected]>
To: Garaki Kyuudai
<[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, May 30, 2142 12:12 PM
Subject: Re: Assistant Opportunity
Dr. Garaki,
If the offer is still open, I accept.
Midoriya Izuku
Notes:
Aaaaaa so I had already titled this chapter Attraction after writing most of it and added the scene with Inko’s quirk later! Made me so happy to give her quirk the same name as the title. I didn't even plan that when starting the scene.
Also, you can decide if it was a random sickness or something behind the scenes :)
Chapter 3: Resistance
Notes:
I actually rewrote a lot of this chapter the day I posted chapter 1, and I'm so proud. I already see some improvement in myself with longer scenes. :D
Fun fact: some earlier scenes in the next chapter used to be in this one, but I moved them over and added more scenes to this one. The chapter used to be 3k lmao
Chapter Text
Saturday, June 2, 2142
A few days later, Izuku was entering the basement of Jaku General Hospital through a swirling midnight black portal with a box of his notebooks, knickknacks, and photos of Inko held tightly in his arms. He followed the short, bald man that introduced himself as Garaki Kyuudai at a slow pace.
Dr. Garaki was very expressive despite the large mustache covering his mouth and giant circular goggles framing his eyes. He was talking about his pet, an experiment named Johnny. A creature he genetically modified to give a warp quirk? Fascinating.
The part about modifying its mind to follow verbal commands based on the signature of a person’s voice? A bit unnerving that something like that was even possible. He didn’t want to know more.
The hallways were set up like a maze made of concrete and metal, it would definitely take him a while to get used to the lay-out. Their pace eventually slowed as they came up to a hallway with decorated doors.
Dr. Garaki moved towards the only one with a nameplate. “Here is my room. If there's ever an emergency, and I'm not responding, you might find me in here. Feel free to claim any room near here as yours to keep your personal items in.” The boy only nodded in response.
Izuku moved towards an unused room. The place was bleak with gray concrete as the floor, white walls, and a metal frame holding up birch panels as the ceiling. There was a western style bed already made with light gray sheets and a metal desk beside it. Still feeling slightly out of it from recent events, he just glanced over the depressing atmosphere and placed the box on the hard ground near the bed.
The doctor spoke up, “The entrance to the lab is nearby. Follow me. Best to memorize its location quickly! You’ll be spending a lot of time there with me.”
At first the mind resists,
Tries to hold on
To what it has known,
But it is futile
Because you chose this.
The entrance to the lab was behind a large steel door. Izuku wondered why it would be so secure, but his wonder wasn’t left for long when he saw the giant violet vats filled with creatures beyond his nightmares.
Many of them looked humanoid but so, so wrong. Too many eyes, teeth, limbs, all with a glass look to their eyes and the brain exposed on their head. Possibly awake within the fluid but unthinking. One even looked like a white dog that was only skin and bones. Unnatural. “The subjects here are donated from various sources. Don’t worry, who they were no longer matters. Their mind isn’t human anymore after death anyway.”
That confirmed that the humanoid ones were most likely made from humans. Dread pooled in his gut. He knew some of those studies were ethically questionable, but this… This was on another level of ethics violations.
Although, he should have expected something like this. He had to look deep to find some of Dr. Garaki’s published works. The information complied within the tests and experiments were fascinating but also very disturbing sometimes. Izuku shivered at the realization of how much wasn’t explained in detail.
The mad scientist turned to him with a serious look in his eye. “You must already understand that my research is greatly frowned upon. You've seen the criticisms. Are you truly dedicated to learning all you can about quirks? To accept the position as my assistant?”
Izuku swallowed the slight dread in his gut. While he was given a choice, he also knew that there was no going back. He had nothing left to go back to. His mother was dead, his father missing for years, and his best friend wasn’t much of a friend since they were five.
Ignoring his unease, a green-haired child makes a decision that was already made days before when an email was sent. Possibly weeks before, when a dream was shattered in an underpass tunnel. He had nothing else but this. He was worthless without this. “Yes.”
A creature with only the top half of its body took that moment to show up. It dragged itself and a large tube it was connected to at the waist along the floor at a pace it should not have been able to achieve. Some type of jar was protecting its exposed brain, while metal rods protruded into the curly pinkish flesh.
Izuku, like any sane person, screamed for his life.
The mad scientist only chuckled, “Oh, that’s just Johnny. I think he likes you!” The creature, Johnny, gave off an eerie joyful bark-like sound while wagging its waist and the tube behind it.
Later on, Izuku sat on the bed within his new, barren room. He blankly stared at the white wall as thoughts raced in an incoherent manner, as if he had no thoughts at all. Contradictory, a state of both being true until one tries to observe the stream of consciousness and snaps the subject back to a state of being.
A passing scrambled thought managed to make him look at a photo that had slipped from the box of his things earlier, breaking the spell he had been in. It was a picture of his mother and him on his most recent birthday.
They had gone to a hero convention. He was dressed as Eraserhead, an underground pro hero he had recently discovered on lesser known forums, with a full black jumpsuit, white scarf, and yellow goggles. His mom mimicked Sir Nighteye with fake rectangular glasses and yellow highlights in her hair.
He smiled at the memory, even as tears welled in his eyes. Even with all the crying he had done before leaving Musutafu, he wasn’t done grieving her. Would he ever be?
A louder sob tore from his throat that reverberated on the empty walls. Another reminder that this place wasn’t his home. The door creaked as it opened wider than the crack Izuku had accidentally left it as. Dr. Garaki looked at him with a softened expression and stepped into the space.
Izuku sniffled and watched as the old man shuffled towards him and then held his arms out to offer a hug. The boy couldn’t help himself in taking that offer and holding onto it like a lifeline. Fully letting out his anguish over the unfairness of his life while the doctor rubbed gentle circles in his back.
Maybe with time, this place could become his new home.
Since entering the compound beneath Jaku City’s main hospital, Izuku had barely left at all. He didn’t feel the need to. Dr. Garaki allowed him to explore any topic of study he wanted to while he settled.
So, he found himself scouring for documentation about all the quirks currently being used within the research subjects surrounding him, floating in large tanks. Days had been turning into weeks. Notebook after notebook, filled with his own copy of the data, along with hypotheses about drawbacks and creative applications of each quirk.
One day, the doctor had been grumbling to himself about where the papers for a particularly strong shock absorption quirk were located when Izuku called out where they should be without thinking. Dr. Garaki found it in no time after that.
The doctor gave his head a ruffle in return. He had been useful. Within the lab, he wasn’t a worthless Deku. It made him feel warm and happy. He struggled to remember the last time he felt that way around anyone but his mother.
It took a while before he made a mistake. A simple, avoidable mistake. Garaki had asked him to move vials of strange substances to another area within the facility. He may have grabbed too many at once.
A baby blue colored liquid exploded at his feet as the glass vial it was stored in shattered upon the hard ground. Despite the low hum from machines around the place covering most noises, the sound of glass breaking ricocheted loudly in the open area.
Garaki was over to the scene in an instant on his mobility scooter hooked to a track throughout the lab. A furious expression formed across his face as he took in the scene. “Midoriya.” Izuku could help from shrinking away from the harsh tone.
“The vial you just broke was a one of a kind copy of a regeneration quirk.”
Izuku paled at that. “I-I didn’t m-mean t-to! I’m sorry!”
“I never wanted to do this, but you must understand the consequences of failing to be careful with fragile items and disrespecting my requests. Johnny, send Midoriya to a conditioning chamber.”
Before Izuku could fully register what was happening, slime bubbled up his throat. He was in the underpass tunnel. A mocking voice sounded in his ears, “I’m just hijacking your body, calm down. It’ll only hurt for about forty-five seconds… Then it’ll all be over.”
In only a few seconds, Izuku landed harshly on a white tiled floor. Coughing up nonexistent fluid from his lungs. He curled up into himself to banish the memory faster. Shaking from having to relive the sensation of drowning before All Might saved him.
When he finally calmed down, he looked at the cell he was in. White tile encompassed the entire room on the floor, walls, and ceiling. Parts of the tile were stained with a reddish brown hue, and other parts had long gouges as if large claws raked against the walls.
Conditioning chamber. What could this space possibly be conditioning for? The claw marks and blood pointed towards the noumu. Were they violent when not suspended in the purple fluid they were kept in? That's a terrifying new thought.
Why had Garaki sent him here as punishment? He began to realize why as time ticked on within the room. It was boring. There was nothing to do. Nothing to see, to hear, to feel except the tile. It strained his senses until he could hear his own heartbeat.
He became hungry and thirsty, but time continued to march on with nothing happening. Nothing to mark a passage of time. Was he here for minutes? No, he was starving. Hours then? Who knows. It couldn’t be more than three days, as he hadn’t had water the entire time.
It startled him when sludge finally burst from his mouth again, and he found himself disorientated on the ground in front of Garaki. A hand comfortingly found itself in his green curls as he was shoved food and water. He leaned into the kind touch as he ravaged the protein bar handed to him.
Garaki had been kind, almost welcoming within the cold, desolate aura of the lab and surrounding compound. Now, Izuku also knew he would give punishment without hesitation if he ever messed up again. He would try his best to not make another mistake.
“Doctor.” A smooth voice rumbled throughout the lab. Even with the metallic ring that betrayed the owner’s weakness, the low baritone carried a weight that demanded respect. A dangerous edge to it, no matter how friendly its tone may be.
Lord All For One.
Dr. Garaki seemed to worship the man and had impressed on Izuku that he should give the utmost respect to his Lord or suffer severe consequences. When surrounded by nightmarish creatures created from preserved bodies and faced with the white tile chamber, he didn't have to be told twice.
Ceasing from writing within his notebook in a mostly hidden nook he had claimed as his on the main lab floor, he quietly listened. Dr. Garaki knows he likes to hang out up there, out of the way. It’s a small area, clearly some type of observation deck or old loft.
When he first discovered it, it had been so dusty that he thought no one had been up there in decades. Dr. Garaki had hinted that even he may have forgotten about the space. Perfect for a little hideaway.
He managed to spruce the space up by asking his mentor for blankets and pillows and other soft things. Short bookshelves held notebooks, pens, pencils, and some of the trinkets that he had brought with him when leaving Musutafu. He even had a string of fairy lights to give off a dim, warm glow that failed to escape his glorified blanket fort near the rafters. He had his own room, yes, but this was his space that only him and the doctor knew of.
“When will I meet that new assistant you mentioned a while back?” Upon that indirect request, Izuku quietly scrambled up from his resting position and leaped for a pole he loved using to get down from the loft. It lacked any wires or tubes wrapped around it like other support poles and columns within the area.
He landed with a quiet thud, hidden under the loud hum of electricity powering the vats and main terminal. A breathing apparatus floated leisurely behind the tall man, connecting to the center of his neck with a thick tube. Izuku moved to stand beside Dr. Garaki before bowing deeply, even with the slight anxietycrawling in his chest.
Although, when did fear and anxiety ever not buzz in his veins? “M-Midoriya Izuku, p-pleasure to m-meet you, my Lord.”
He looked like a simple, casual businessman with a three-piece suit, albeit lacking a tie. He knew the man was bound to be anything but simple. Especially when his entire head was scarred over from an old injury that should have been fatal from the looks of it. His hand was held out in the western way of greeting, or as if to make a deal, only served to sell the illusion more.
In the center of his palm sits a miniature black hole. Given that markings usually accompany the quirk factor, whatever quirk the man had was located in his hands. A test.
Izuku takes All For One’s outstretched hand.
The imposing man that only had a mouth for a face, smiled with all teeth and hummed before speaking once more, “I see he has good manners, excellent choice, Good Doctor. Well, Midoriya-kun, I shall look forward to our possible partnership in the future.”
At some point, Izuku’s duties had been upgraded. Rather than moving vials and paperwork around, Garaki now expected him to help dump solutions into the vats for various projects. The solutions held a type of germ that would go into cells and add the Alpha Elements to the subject’s DNA for a specific quirk. Another agent would be added in later to help force manifestation of the new quirk.
He had managed to swipe some blood and sequence some of the noumu’s DNA to see the difference in action. It was fascinating that a change in a couple spots in the genome helped encode for a new quirk.
Even more curious was All For One’s quirk, also named All for One. It could transfer already manifested quirks between subjects in less than a minute. Although, it didn’t change the subjects’ DNA like how Garaki’s method did. He had yet to figure out how the quirk worked.
Really it ended up more annoying than anything to him because he wanted to sequence DNA and sometimes the genes for a quirk would be there, but the actual quirk wasn’t or vice versa. He could rant for ages over how many times that has happened, but Garaki would definitely not accept any ill talk of the other ancient man.
Despite the doctor’s best efforts to encourage Izuku into designing his own noumu, he had managed to refuse every single time without punishment. Although, he couldn’t help himself from pointing out any mistakes within quirk combinations for the doctor.
As the months went by, Izuku was learning more than the mysteries of quirk factors. He had picked up tinkering as a hobby.
It had started with stealing forgotten parts to the machines littering the lab, until Garaki caught him in the act of taking screws and metal bits up to another area near the rafters. Since then, Garaki supplied him with all the metal and wire he might want. He was working on trying to make his own hologram technology.
Part of this new hobby also introduced him to programming. His mentor got excited about that and quickly enrolled him in an anonymous course for hacking. He had used the skills he was learning there to test the doctor’s cybersecurity. Due to having physical access to the laboratory’s terminal, he conquered that very quickly and found a folder full of what the doctor would later tell him are ‘memes’ and ‘vines’ from his youth. Weird old man.
After that incident, Garaki properly taught him how to use the terminal to control the laboratory, compound, and branch locations across the country. He was the only staff besides his mentor within the main lab, but other locations were manned by scientists and researchers employed by the Good Doctor and All For One.
Izuku quietly swore as he accidentally supplied too much voltage to the motherboard he was working on, again. He stood up from the floor of his workshop loft with the board in hand. “YEET!” A bang as the fried motherboard made its home in the dumpster across the lab, and then a heavy sigh from a man over a century old.
Someone was screaming. It wasn’t the normal roars, chitters, and snarling that the noumu would make when awake outside the vats. It sounded like raw terror, grating against his nerves, wanting to make him curl up in a corner till it passed.
This had happened several times before. Usually it sounded like the angry yelling or low cursing that was distinctly human. Izuku never wandered close, preferring to hide away in his room. The Good Doctor worked during those times. The maniac gleam in his eyes sometimes unsettled him, as he was reminded of how much the man is a mad scientist with few morals left in his long life.
This time was different. Garaki stood in his doorway, requesting him to come help with the newest subject. He knew he couldn’t say no. As he stepped forward to follow his master, Garaki gave him a hair ruffle. He was being useful. He still brightened at the positive touch, despite the trepidation crawling within him.
Upon arriving at the main lab, he found that it was a young woman screaming. She was chained to an examination table with her wrists and ankles. She had lilac skin and curly black hair that framed her magenta eyes. Two small horns curved up over her head just over slightly pointed ears. A pointed tail whipped around in her clear distress.
When she finally sighted them, her screams of terror quickly switched to the usual anger and cursing he often heard. “You! When I get out of here, I’ll tear ya weak shit pond limb from fucking limb. Oh great, you brought a kid this time too. What, gonna torture us both? Kid, run!”
Garaki slammed a metal stick against the table, creating a harsh ringing sound. The woman shut up for a moment after that. “The kid is my assistant, now be quiet. Midoriya, grab that yellow syringe of paralytic and inject her.” Izuku hesitated, he had never been present for this kind of project. “Now.”
White tile flashed in his memory, he really couldn’t say no. The lilac woman looked on in horror as he grabbed the syringe and worked to find a vein within her forearm. “Oh god, you’re actually working for him. How? Why? What did he do to you?”
He wanted to ignore her, to ignore this situation, but he couldn’t help in responding to her question. “He didn’t do anything to me besides give me a home. A place to belong. This is repaying his kindness.” It was true. He had nothing outside the compound. He was the useless, worthless Deku that no one wanted around. Here, he was finally Midoriya and he was worth something.
Garaki turned his attention back to them, “I thought I told the subject to be quiet, don’t encourage it.” Izuku paused at that, it. Calling this lady it right in front of her. Not even to her. Something snapped within him as his morals were deeply challenged once again. Even if she was an unwilling test subject to an experiment, she deserved to be recognized as a person. Really, Izuku had no clue what these projects involving real people involved.
“Master Garaki, what are we doing exactly?”
“Oh right, I didn’t brief you. This will be the base for a new noumu. The paralytic will stop it from squirming as much while the injections work to insert the DNA. After an hour, we can kick-start the manifestation process.”
“A n-noumu? She’ll become a noumu? As b-brain-dead as the rest?” The lady’s eyes widened at that, yet she said nothing. It felt like part of him always knew this was a possibility. That not all the noumu were dead before their use as experiments began. He never wanted to acknowledge the possibility before. He couldn’t.
Garaki responded, “Yeah.” A nonchalant tone making it seem like this was another Tuesday. It probably was, and that slightly horrified Izuku once more. “This is Subject MZ-3607.”
A small voice rose up from him, “This is wrong. She’s still alive.”
Garaki fully turned to stare him down, “Are you questioning me?” Was he? He was. The green haired boy nodded, he would say no this time. Damn the consequences. The doctor hummed, “Very well. Ruben,” A boar-like humanoid perked up from the corner of the room. “Restrain Midoriya and make sure he’s silent.”
The noumu caught him and covered his mouth from behind before he could even process the command. He could breathe, thankfully, but being at the mercy of the hulking half-pig noumu severely unnerved him.
He was forced to watch and listen as Garaki continued the experiment. At one point, he tried to fight off the noumu, but that rewarded him with his own dose of the paralytic. Forced to listen as she cried about how much it burned, as if burning from the inside out, as a quirk germ mixture was injected.
He watched as her body shivered even while under the heavy paralysis of whatever the yellow drug was. Hated that a small part of him was fascinated by the process and didn't want to look away, despite how much the rest of him protested. Saw the moment the light started to leave her eyes as claws and spikes burst forth from her hands and spine.
Briefly, he thought he was dying with her as slime bubbled in his throat till he was greeted with the sight of scarred and blood-stained white tile. Left alone with only his thoughts to accompany him. Even though he said no, it still happened, and he was forced to watch. Now trapped in this Kami-forsaken room once again.
He doesn’t know how long he was there. Didn’t check the date before the incident and lost count of how many protein bars and bottles of water were brought to him through a swirling black portal. The trash was always taken from him as he finished, likely a video feed at the terminal to monitor him.
At the end of it all, he couldn’t help but embrace the empty apologies, relax within the cold hugs, and savor the attention his master gave him afterward. The punishment was his fault to begin with for being such a useless Deku once more. He had been so good, why did he defy the only person who cared for him?
The next time something like that happened, he didn’t resist.
It was almost the new year. Izuku and Dr. Garaki sat within the lab watching ancient vines on the massive terminal screen while eating fried chicken. It was peaceful, as the hum of the purple tanks filled with grotesque creatures provided a calming background noise.
He threw a clean chicken bone at Johnny and the dog like noumu missed as it hit his face just below the jar. He blinked, one eye then the other, before remembering the bone now in front of him, swallowing it whole.
All For One had dumped a body in front of Garaki a few days ago like some sort of holiday present. Although, more akin to a cat leaving a bird for its human as a gift. Great, now he can’t unsee the man as a giant cat. His voice even nearly purrs with how low it rumbles. Better never have that thought anywhere near him, lest he wants to die. Poor little meow meow… f u c k.
Throwing another bone at Johnny, Izuku stands up to start heading back to his room. He’s clearly too tired to think properly any more tonight. Before he leaves, Dr. Garaki reaches over and ruffles his hair while smiling softly. “Have a good night, Midoriya, tomorrow I’d like for you to join me on a new project.”
Izuku smiled brightly. He would be useful.
Izuku woke up early the next morning and took the time for himself. A nice long shower followed by curling up within a soft blanket dressed in comfy clothes. A star covered notebook laid in front of him as he doodled different heroes from his Analysis notebooks.
He eventually moved on to sketching his mom. Dozens of sketches already covered the small shrine he set up within his room for her, but he couldn’t help continuing to draw her. It was a small way for him to remember her as he slowly moved on.
Kacchan was also drawn within his notebooks here and there, despite their last interaction not being that great. “Pray for a quirk in your next life!” He winced at the memory. They had been together since they were babies, practically brothers. Izuku found himself missing the angry blond. Although, Kacchan was probably happy for him to finally be out of his way.
When he started to feel hungry, he made a small breakfast of egg and crab rice balls within the small kitchen area he made for himself within the room. After that, he dressed into jeans, his old red sneakers, and a neon yellow shirt that had ‘socks’ written on it in English. There was also a white lab coat that he sometimes slipped on if Master Garaki wanted him to wear it.
Finally, in the late morning, Garaki came by to lead him to a more remote area within the compound. He had no clue what this new project would require, he silently hoped it was just managing another batch of noumu within the vats.
They slowed as they entered a room with only one large tank. Nothing was in it, not even the purple suspension liquid. He was probably needed to help prepare the area today. It took less than an hour to get the compound’s system to start pouring solution into the tank and manually run the thick cabling to control the new vat.
Once that was done, Garaki pulled out a vial that swirled with an inky black that seemed to reflect no light except for the shine of the glass. “Only one quirk for this experiment. The first phase of this project requires that we make sure this quirk can even be copied successfully. I’ve chosen the best candidate for success out of all the batches I produced for this.”
Izuku hummed to show he was listening before speaking up after a moment, “So, the project is important enough to be this remote from the rest? What’s it called?”
“Adonis. We’ll begin shortly after lunch. Go eat up and meet back here in an hour.”
Garaki left at a fast pace on his mobility track, leaving Izuku to stare up at the new project site before turning to leave as well. Lunch was a short affair that he mostly spent relaxing within his room. More doodles filled his notebook by the end of the hour, this time of constellations he found in a book.
Upon re-entering the location for Adonis, Master Garaki scurried over to him without the assist chair. The doctor reached up to ruffle his green curls, Izuku slightly leaning into the touch, as the man started speaking, “The test subject is actually quite special as well. After all, even though this is the test run phase for Adonis to prove the concept as viable, the subject will benefit greatly from this phase’s success.”
Garaki shifted his position to stand slightly behind him as he continued to give Izuku the positive attention and touch he had craved from others nearly all his life. Hugs from his mother were few and far between to truly satisfy the craving for touch, for connection. Apprehension slightly iced his bones, warning him that something was off with Garaki.
He opted to ignore the feeling, Garaki was safe. The doctor continued, “I chose the best quirk germ from the batch because I’d rather not lose this subject to a malfunction. So… let’s get you prepared for Alpha Element insertion, shall we?” The language shift was the final warning he got before a sharp prick was felt at the base of his neck.
Izuku staggered away from the Good Doctor. Confusion muddled his thoughts into an incoherent mess of betrayal and fear. He turned to look at the man that just injected him with a serum. The man he nearly saw as a father figure after all these months. A source of comfort even when he feared disobeying the man. A soft smile rested on his face, as if he was unbothered by drugging the boy with the very syringe in his hand. Why would he be?
Darkness encroached on his vision as he struggled to stay awake. The futile fight against the drowsiness over taking him by the second as he fell to his hands and knees. His master said something again, but he couldn’t make it out. His mother came to mind, he missed her so much. Would he be joining her?
In less than ten seconds since the injection, Izuku’s awareness of the world was fully snuffed out. He didn’t even feel his body slump to the ground, already entrapped within the void of medicated sleep.
Red eyes looked up at the towering gates of Yuuei High School, the best hero school in the country. A sea of people passed him by. Today was the entrance exams. A chilly breeze ruffled his spiky sand colored hair. Katsuki was the only one from Aldera Junior High here today. This is what he had always wanted. His perfect origin story. Why did it feel so wrong?
"Let’s be heroes! Together, Kacchan! The best hero duo ever!"
It had been nine months since Auntie Inko passed away. Nine months since Izuku disappeared. Katsuki was still unbalanced by the loss. Was it his fault? He had always been there! No matter how much he hated him, did he really hate him? The nerd was always nearby, a constant presence nuisance in his life. Where was he? Why did he leave him behind without saying anything? He wanted to cry.
He stepped through the gates without anyone calling out his name on his heels. Just like he had always dreamed of…
Why had he wanted this?
Chapter 4: Ignorance
Notes:
I am slightly nervous about people not liking the direction I'ma take, but this was always the prologue to a more crackish idea. An explanation for myself to how I got Midoriya in this predicament. I do admit this ended up a bit more dark than I thought... lol
If you're sticking around, then I hope you continue to enjoy my (hopefully) new take on some tropes I tend to like! :D
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Tuesday, February 26, 2143
The world came back slowly. Awareness floundering through molasses, trying to escape the sticky embrace of unconsciousness. His sight was tinged with purple as dark figures moved around outside the bubble of his universe. His chest moved to take a deep breath through his nose–
He was drowning. The thick sludge held him in place as it infiltrated his nose, his mouth, even his ears. He clawed at his mouth and throat, trying to dislodge the intruder. Trying to breathe. Every second felt futile.
–He breathed in stale air that tasted of chemicals and coughed out the purple solution always present within the giant tanks around the laboratory. A deep voice purred above where he was likely sprawled across the floor face down, “Doctor, your newest pet seems to have survived! Very nice to meet you, Yami.”
A large hand settled across his forehead, a strange sense of something looking deep within him overcame him. Before he could try to move away from the offending sensation, it went away as All For One stood up once more. “Doctor! Prepare for the next phase of Adonis if you would. We make our move this year with this splendid success of yours.”
Yami winced slightly at the headache that was starting to make itself known. Struggling to only get his hands and knees under him. How long had he been in the tank to be so weak? Low voices drifted over to him from near a terminal controlling the tank he had been in. Master Garaki and All For One discussed something he couldn’t make out.
He closed his eyes and focused back on himself. His brain felt like mush while his eyes were on fire. The headache was worsening by the second, making him want to curl up till it passed. Even his hands felt like they were being stabbed repeatably. Taking deep breaths to ground himself, he tried to push up once more.
At some point the doctor came over to him, “Yami, enough. Relax.” He felt slightly compelled to listen to his master, but he didn’t want to. He would stand. At least, that was his thought process shortly before a prick at the base of his neck was felt, and conscious thought blinked out of existence.
You chose to leave this world of forgetfulness,
Of ignorance and illusion.
You chose to remember.
Yami awoke within his room, curled up in soft green blankets on a western style bed with a metal frame. Fairy lights were strung up along the ceiling, giving a comforting warm glow that dimly lit the room enough to see objects in the low light.
The pain he vaguely remembered from before was gone. Likely from the remnants of manifesting a quirk. He remembered reading how manifestations were usually accompanied by discomfort or pain in the Alpha Element areas. Forced manifestations amplified that pain, the stress too much for the mind or body. Many don’t survive without medical care.
He continued to lay in the comfortable atmosphere for several more minutes before getting up to shower. Several pops left his unused joints as he stood up and stretched. Although, he did a double check as he passed the mirror. His appearance felt wrong, yet right. Yami couldn’t place why, though. Did he look different before?
Vibrant green irises stared back. A woman with the same shade of eyes briefly came to mind, confusing him. Who was she? He quickly dismissed the thought and focused back to how the pupils of his eyes seemed to be shaped like diamonds. Like four pointed stars. He loved the night sky.
Freckles lightly dusted the area below his eyes, faded as if he hadn’t seen the sun in a long time. Green and white loose curls framed his face as it spilled over his head. Had his hair bleached from the stress of the manifestation?
It was a little while later as he finished getting dressed for the day, in black jeans and a shirt that had humored him with ‘hat’ written in English on the front, that he noticed some type of marking on his palm that struck him as wrong yet right too. He thinks they weren’t there before.
He remembered how his hands hurt like hell when he had briefly awoken. This was likely his new quirk. A tiny perfect circle sat in the middle of Yami’s palms that seemed to reflect no light at all. Miniature black holes.
He had seen this before. On a man that towered above all others. A man almost always seen in a suit, exuding power and dominance. A man without a face except for a mouth that smiled with all teeth.
Yami had All for One.
Confusion laced his mind, how did he have that quirk? Was All For One his father? No, he refused to even entertain that idea. Was it possible he injected himself with quirk germ and forgot? He did seem to be forgetting details since waking up. Did his master do it? The last he remembered, it was around New Years.
He was missing something, something big. Too much felt wrong since he woke up. A strange feeling nagged at his mind, and he relaxed. Everything was right. Everything was okay and how it should be. The Good Doctor gave him a quirk, that is all that happened. Relax.
A green and white haired teen stepped into the main laboratory floor within the bleak underground compound. Right away, the doctor called for him to come over near the terminal. Yami followed without a thought. A light purple noumu stood off to the side of Master Garaki with horns sprouting from just above its ears and a spiked tail laying limp against the ground. It itched at his mind, but he ignored it.
“Yami, take the storage quirk from this noumu.”
Compelled to do so and on only what must have been instinct newly ingrained within his mind, he reached a hand forward and placed it on the creature’s exposed brain. Cyan and black energy floated up around him, idly twisting in the air as he marveled at it. He actually had a quirk.
“Yami.”
He focused back to the task he was given. Energy thrummed within his veins, wishing to be commanded, even though he didn’t know how to. Closing his eyes, he focused on the new feeling and willed whatever it was to become stronger. It responded by screeching within his bones, rattling his mind, protesting harshly to whatever he did. Like it tried to grab at something within him when there was only itself.
He staggered back from the pain before admitting, “I- I don’t know how.” Useless. Finally had a quirk and he couldn’t even control it. A hand landed within his curls before he could continue to spiral in similar deprecating thoughts.
Looking up, his master gave him his usual soft smile. “Then take it with you and report back to me once you do. Although, don’t take too long.” With that new directive, Yami led the small demon like noumu up to a loft space above the terminal he vaguely remembered being there.
Resolved to make his master proud, he set forth to calling All for One over and over. Pain slowly built up within his head, failure after failure. It was hours later that he finally realized that he could feel an echo of different energy from the noumu when he touched it with his quirk active.
Closing his eyes, he focused all he could on that new feeling of energy under his hand. It was a jumbled mess of sensations. His gut instinct once again compelled him to call upon All for One, as if directing it to reach for this new energy too.
Colors exploded in front of his mind’s vision. Lilac, yellow, magenta, and sky blue shone brightly within a void. Like brilliant little stars lighting up the abyss of space. It was beautiful and at the same time startled Yami enough to drop his hold on his quirk completely.
Reinvigorated by that brief success, he repeated the process and reached. The four stars illuminated the space around him as all awareness of the outside world faded away. He could move around as if he was awake within the space, but he also had an idea that he was sitting, unmoving, in the real world. Surreal.
He lightly touched the sky blue star out of curiosity. It lightly burned, the energy it emitted crackling around his fingertips as he did so. A vague sense of weightlessness accompanied the feeling. The sensations faded away as he withdrew from the light.
Out of curiosity, he touched the others. The lilac sent an unpleasant feeling around his spine and skull. The yellow made his skin buzz with a cooling effect that stung yet felt good. Lastly, the magenta pressed imaginary weight against his bones. It was fascinating.
Thinking back to the matter at hand, how would he take a quirk? So far, All for One, had been a very mentally orientated quirk. It had responded to him just willing it to do something. So, he tried again. He focused his attention on the new energy within his veins and willed it to tug at the feeling of weightlessness.
He awoke to the real world as it responded. Cyan and black energy whisked around, no longer only in the air but running through the skin and flesh of himself and the noumu. It lasted about a minute or two before a weightless feeling fluttered in his skin and steadily grew to a dull ache.
Yami had no clue if this was even the right quirk, nor how to test if it was. For now, he grabbed one of the blankets within the loft and laid down to sleep off the ache in his head and bones. He could continue experimenting another time.
The teen awoke next with barely any aches to accompany him. The noumu slightly tilted its head to the side as if to greet him, or maybe he was trying to personify creatures with hardly any autonomy left. Either way, Yami immediately began to work on using his second quirk.
Nothing prompted him this time on how to use it like All for One did. Was it because he fully manifested that quirk, while this one was gained with the use of his quirk? Did DNA actually encode instincts like that for quirk use? Interesting. If Alpha Elements existed for instinctive quirk use, then what if someone had a quirk but lacked that instinct?
He didn’t have any clue what activation would even look like. Sighing, he tried something similar to what he did for All for One. Focusing within himself with his eyes closed, he felt his quirk but also the energy of the other, a sense of weightlessness. He tried to will it to react, nothing. Surely some type of storage quirk would have a mental component? Or was this a physical one? … His master didn’t say.
Switching tactics, he opened his eyes and picked up a pencil from the ground nearby. He stared down the object intensely, mentally trying to get the quirk to respond at all. Still nothing. He groaned and let himself fall against the pile of blankets below him. Could he even use quirks he gathered with his own? Lord All For One could from what he could tell in his faulty memories.
He turned his attention back to the feeling of power in his veins. All for One sat at the forefront, a void that was strangely comforting. Nothing like the true emptiness of being quirkless that he could only now identify after having something fill that space close to his soul. The storage quirk murmured in the background. It felt as if it was inside All for One.
This time, Yami activated his quirk first, then willed the quirk inside to be stronger. It roared to life as the void of his own quirk curled around its light. The sensations were nearly overpowering. His heart leapt in his throat as he fell upwards, harshly landing in the rafters, thankfully only a few meters above him.
…
For fuck’s sake, he had the wrong quirk.
The storage quirk ended up being the one that felt like added weight. His bones felt like they turned to lead when he used it for the first time. Barely being able to move after his testing pencil disappeared with a flicker of pink light.
He finally returned to Master Garaki after another quick nap. He told him to keep the quirk as a reward for figuring out how to use All for One. Summoning and storing notebooks with Pocket quickly became like muscle memory to him in the days after.
Yami had found a notebook titled Analysis #14 that had a black cover with gold constellations connecting small stars. In the center sat a gold circle with tapered points off each end, giving the illusion of a tilt to the object. A smaller circular ring and a line parallel along the points cut through the gold to leave the original black.
He showed it to Master Garaki, asking for another copy of the same notebook. A few days later, a blank notebook was in his hands. He didn’t title it this time. It didn’t need one, as he knew exactly what this book was for.
Analysis on his own quirk and every quirk he would acquire. The black hole, stars, and constellation imagery was quite fitting. Stars and quirks were quite similar to him, after all.
“Yami, transfer that recent fang quirk to this noumu instead.”
He barely even noticed the slight compelling sense that accompanied the request, too used to the feeling and seeing no reason to resist. “Sure!” It helped that he didn’t mind lending a hand, it made him feel useful, like he was worth something to someone. Wanted.
Over the past month or two, Yami had improved his use of the transfer aspect of All for One. His time to complete a transfer slowly dwindled down to less than a minute. He could also stay aware within the real world while using his quirk.
A cyan and black glow surrounded him as he walked over to the noumu in question, climbing up to the opening in the top to reach in and lay his hand on the creature. He had transferred the fang quirk to this noumu before, and quickly identified the feeling of it to pull.
His teeth, specifically the canines, seemed to buzz as he held the quirk. If he didn’t give it to another creature within several minutes, the pain would slowly build as the manifestation started. Transferring quirks used to make him tired as well, but he’s gotten used to the feeling and ignored the tiredness that weighed on him. Slowly building a resistance to the drowsiness.
A few times, he tried messing with the quirks as he briefly had them, but quickly found out that calling for the quirks forces the manifestation. It was very fast and potentially very painful. To be honest, he was lucky that Pocket had only made him feel very lethargic rather than in pain the first time he used it.
One of the most notable times making that mistake had been with a snow quirk, the ability to summon snow around the user with a secondary antler mutation. Growing antlers within a few seconds nearly knocked him out and caused his control to slip so that he covered the entire lab floor in several centimeters of snow in his shock. He also learned that giving away a manifested quirk resulted in a similar but subdued pain or discomfort as well.
Jumping down from the raised platform behind two rows of tanks and successfully not tripping on any wires or pipes, he made his way back to his master. This time the creature was more dog-like than anything humanoid. Yami would dare say it was kind of cute how grotesque it was. The bug eyes reminiscent of a pug sold it, really.
Transferring the fang quirk did not help the creature’s case. The new teeth looked slightly crooked in its mouth, with the underbite showing one of the fangs.
A child was crying within the compound. It rubbed Yami the wrong way. Nearly every part of him wanted to go comfort them, but something in his mind was stopping him. This was probably the work of the Good Doctor. He would only get in the way. Eventually, his pager beeped as the doctor called him to come to a smaller area not far from the main floor.
The child was here, the crying quieted with his arrival. Chained to the floor by his wrists behind his back and blindfolded. It was a small boy, maybe around eight, with long gray hair. The doctor stood nearby at a desk, papers strewn around him. “This is a boy from one of the nearby orphanages. I’ve had my eye on him for a while, and I think it’s time you got a new quirk, Yami. Take it.”
“No! Please! Someone, anyone! Help me!” The visceral fear from the small boy gave him pause, even with the intense feeling of want. The need to comfort someone in need arose to the forefront of his mind. It was always easier for him to care more for others than himself.
He held out against the feeling, about to offer words of comfort before, “Yami.” The doctor’s tone was stern.
Thoughts became muddy, the sensation of weightlessness and darkness came to mind. Like how he would image floating in space would be like. When awareness trickled back, the boy was screaming in pain, begging for him to give something back. The quirk.
Terror filled Yami’s veins. He didn’t remember taking the quirk. He blacked out. What was that? Could All for One control him? Would he one day find himself forever trapped inside his own quirk? Truly brain-dead, like the surrounding creatures in the compound?
Was he turning into one of them?
Today was his birthday. Yami isn’t sure how he knows that. He can’t remember any of his previous birthdays. A green haired woman with brilliant green eyes identical to his own comes to mind. She had appeared in his mind over and over through the months since waking up with a quirk.
He even had found a hidden notebook with her face drawn in it, page after page. Sometimes broken by the sketch of a boy with spiky hair. He just couldn’t understand. Who were they? It confused him more when he would start crying over their images. Why did seeing them make him so sad?
Summoning the old sketchbook, he propped it open up against the wall on his desk, while also calling forth his quirk notebook. The incident with the child happened only a few days ago, and he learned the feeling of floating in space was actually from the new quirk.
The teen started sketching the child while he collected his thoughts. It was a teleportation quirk. If he looked at a destination and called upon the quirk, he could blink to teleport to the new location. It seemed quite limited in use at first, but maybe there was more to it?
A quirk that seems quite weak at first glance can sometimes be incredibly strong or impressive in other ways. Attraction was a good example, small objects could kill at high speed and with his mot–
What?!
No! Yami stood up and clutched at his hair in the middle of the room. He almost had it. He almost remembered. It was someone important to him, they had a weak telekinesis ability. Tears came to his eyes as he cried for someone he couldn’t even recall properly.
Something seemed to whisper in his ear that he shouldn’t try so hard to remember. That it was okay to move on. Nothing was important in the past. He should just forget. Yami allowed the calming murmur to wash over his panic. Although, when he finally got up again, he still hung onto the sketchbook.
He would never let go of this small window into his past. To who he might have been before his amnesia problems. Maybe one day he would be ready to discover whatever may lie in the shadows of his lost memories and ignore whatever instinct insisted that he shouldn’t.
It was a little past midnight, the stroll around abandoned streets within Jaku in the crisp night air was refreshing. Yami Blinked home to his room outside the laboratory within the underground compound below Jaku General Hospital.
He had finally found the courage to experiment with the teleportation quirk. Like he thought, if he imagined where he wanted to go vividly enough, he could teleport there. Although, it did seem to have a range limit.
Lighting a scented candle, he curled up within a beanbag that was almost an exact shade as the tips of his hair. He had cut it back to the usual length recently after allowing it to reach past his shoulders. Only a few centimeters of green were left on his head.
He pulled out a notebook from Pocket and started calmly drawing. The news had been holding a press conference about a kidnapped student earlier. Something about an attack on one of the Yuuei summer camps. He hoped whoever it was would be alright.
He hummed a random song to himself as he worked on a sketch of Kurogiri. The warper made of mist was so cool looking. Not to mention his quirk! His body was almost completely made of a purple mist, except for an area around his neck. He could expand the mist into large gateways to connect two points in space. It was coordinate based for some reason, but Yami had seen weirder limitations. What he didn’t know was the distance. Could Kurogiri create a warp gate to North America? What about to the moon or another planet? If he could open a gate in outer space, would things nearby be sucked into the empty abyss? What about underwater?
Eventually, he was knocked out of his musings by the beep and vibration of his pager. Master Garaki had insisted that the ancient technology was perfect for transmitting messages within the basement compound under Jaku’s main hospital. It was a signal dead zone down here, after all. His master did have a point though, neither of them ever missed a message.
‘All For One has been arrested.’ … What?
The doctor had failed to mention that All For One had injured dozens of heroes, some rendered quirkless, a few found dead in the wreckage. A walking calamity. The teen had known the power that ancient man, the ancient evil, possessed. He had just ignored the sleeping dragon.
Images could be found of a body mangled beyond recognition right before the Scourge of Kamino passed out from overexertion. Well, beyond recognition except for the very recognizable red, white, and blue of his tattered costume. The Number One Hero, the Symbol of Peace, All Might, was dead.
All at the hands of the man he followed alongside his own master. All at the power of a quirk that he shared with the Scourge. Yami felt sick. A feeling at the edges of his mind insisted that everything was okay, to just relax. He refused to fully believe it this time.
Despite the unease that had rekindled deep in his bones, Yami stayed by the Good Doctor’s side. Even through the grief and worry that tore at the man in the weeks following All For One’s capture. Where else could the teen go? Like it or not, this was his home, the only place that had accepted him that he could remember.
The Good Doctor’s voice barked out and echoed within the lab, “Yami, come transfer the regeneration quirk from Subject LS-348b to HA-496.” Like the dutiful assistant he is, he did as his master asked. He had a purpose here, it surely had to be better than leaving and being called a waste of space. A quirkless loser, a freak, a monster. That’s what he was, wasn’t it?
“Transfer this strength quirk to HA-496 as well.” As the days dragged on, a soreness creeped into every portion of his body. A headache had started a few hours ago and kept getting worse, even despite the quick rest he had requested. The new quirk caused a burning within his arms before forcing it out, into the large noumu. His head started to feel like cotton.
“Ah, let's add that new ice quirk to it too!” Yami walked to the shelves of those beings that barely held onto life but seemed to never die and reached for where the ice quirk was stored. Activating All for One once again until a massive spike of pain in his head made him stumble over. Blood dripped from his nose as he pushed off the ground where he fell. That was new.
He ignored it and tried to grab the ice quirk again, only to be met with the piercing pain once more. The doctor approached him and hummed to himself as Yami clutched at his head. “You're falling behind… My greatest creation yet… Unacceptable. Rest and I’ll prepare training for you when you wake, Yami.”
Before he could even comprehend what that statement fully meant, a prick to his neck was followed by the world fading out.
Yami awoke with a gasp, scrambling upright in whatever space he had been moved to. He had been drugged. His mentor had drugged him, again.
Wait, again? When was the first time?
The headache from before still hadn’t left him, and even trying to initiate Blink spiked the pain. The space he was in was a cell with large gouges in the floor and small splatters of blood. A vague sense that there should be white tile instead of concrete and steel. Small slits near the top allowed for light to shine through, but were too close to the ceiling for Yami to look through.
It wasn’t long before the metal walls grated against the concrete and lifted into the air. A wide open area greeted him that was bathed in bright floodlights. A noumu he had recently worked on stood before him, already covered in scars.
It had been someone with an avian quirk, with long legs, small wings, and clawed toes. It was given a speed enhancer, an electrification quirk, and minor regeneration that only boosted the healing rate rather than true regeneration like other noumu. Built for speed rather than strength.
The Good Doctor made his presence known from an observation deck a few meters up the wall. The space was caged in, so nothing within the space below could reach him. “Yami, you will learn how to push past your limits. This is for your own good. I will not release you myself, you must find a way to escape. Pyracmon, knock out Yami, do not kill or maim.”
Electricity crackled in the air as his master turned and left.
Pyracmon was on him in an instant.
The moment the avian creature grabbed him, electric shocks danced across his body, dragging him to the floor. Instinct took over as he punched the offender away, moving to get back up. Alas, it recovered quicker than him. He raised his arm in time to deflect the claws on its feet, but not without three large cuts raking across below the elbow of his left arm.
It screeched an unnatural sound. Jumping back with a flap of its white and gray speckled wings before charging at him again, even faster. He turned, stupidly, to run away from it this time, but of course, it caught him before he could even take three steps. Grabbing his shirt and throwing him into the air to add insult to injury.
Yami landed with a thud on his side. He really was worthless. The avian landed on top of him, digging sharp claws into his hip and right leg as its hands reached to strangle him. No thoughts behind its eyes as it did so.
Fear coursed through his veins at that moment. The noumu did not care if he died. The only thing holding it back was the order to not kill him. His own order was to escape. Outrunning a creature made for speed was not possible, nor was outlasting something that ignored pain and exhaustion almost entirely.
He needed a moment to think in order to use Blink. He once warped without paying full attention and ended up falling into an empty tank. Thankfully, Mocha, the doctor’s newest pet similar to Johnny with a cloning quirk, was the only witness to that event. He would have to briefly knock Pyracmon out to have enough time to concentrate with this migraine.
He grabbed at the avian’s wrists before its hands could wrap around his throat. Using what small strength he had and rolling to the side, he unbalanced it enough to knock it over. He used those few seconds to scramble away from it and survey the area. Nothing was available to use as a weapon. Not even a loose stone.
Screeching, the bird finally made it back to its feet. Eyes slightly less foggy in its fury. He had nothing to defend himself with. The only thing stored within Pocket were his notebooks, that he would rather die over than destroy, and… and his favorite pencil. The one he first used Pocket on months ago. Despite the pain even reaching for the quirk caused, he summoned the pencil in a flicker of pink light.
What the hell could he do with this? He didn’t have the time to think of a plan before Pyracmon managed to graze another shock against his body. Much stronger than before, as muscles locked up for barely a second in response. On pure adrenaline, he stabbed the noumu’s eye in response as he stumbled.
Oh, he really pissed it off now… and he was down the pencil. He only had one thing left that could take it down. Cyan and black energy began to float around him as All for One activated. It hurt so much. The pressure on his mind was excruciating, a warning of his limits.
He pushed past it all and reached for the avian, his right hand wrapping around its arm. Not ideal, the transfer would take longer, but it would work. He had only ever moved one or two quirks at once before, the creature on him had four. He reached.
In a last effort from the avian, electricity surged forward, burning Yami’s hand, but he did not let go. Whether it was seconds or minutes later, the sensation of the quirks falling into place, like stars making up a constellation, signaled that he had won. Looking over at the beast, the avian noumu seemed to lose what little shine it had in its eyes and fell to the side. Like a puppet without its strings.
The headache from earlier crescendoed and the surrounding space spun, making full thoughts nearly impossible to track. A buzz began in his feet, legs, and spine before setting alight with burning pain. It was torture. His bones, muscles, and skin buzzed with energy as well. He could vaguely recognize that he had curled into a ball on the ground in response to the overwhelming full body pain as his consciousness faded.
When he awoke, he was curled up on his bed. He still felt sick, as residual soreness pulsed in time with his heartbeat throughout his body. The headache was still present but tempered to a manageable level. The room still felt like it was spinning, though. Guess vertigo was part of his overuse symptoms, joy.
Stretching his legs and then propping himself up, he moved to stand up, but promptly fell to the floor. Now fully alert, he looked himself over. His legs were completely different since he was last awake. His toes were curved like claws, while his heel came up like a second knee. Just like the avian noumu…
He reached behind himself, holy shit. Yami had passed out with a shirt on, but the wings were small enough to fit under the loose fabric. They shifted as his attention turned to his new limbs. The sensation of touch from the feathers was so new and strange. He pulled his shirt off and tried to command the limb to open. It took some tries to move it how he wanted, but he figured it out in the end.
He relaxed the limbs and resolved to take a look at himself in the mirror, planting his palms on the ground in front of him. Surely this was just like walking on tip toes? He just has to remember to not put his heel down. He could do this. The teen almost had it when he slipped and fell to his side again.
He would stand, he couldn’t give up. His body may have changed without him asking for this, but he would move forward. He always has. He had dealt with this scenario before as well. Wait, did he ever ask for All for One and the changes subjected to him then? It had also been a choice to use his quirk against the noumu to win.
He later stood, leaning with both hands on the counter, in the bathroom, staring at his own reflection. Emerald irises stared back with four pointed star pupils. White hair tinged with green ends fell slightly in his face. Faded freckles still dotted his face despite how little sunlight he had in the last year. Scratch marks slightly tinged with white sat just above his waist and below his elbow. Around his right wrist had a pink fern like marking, likely a minor burn scar from the sustained electrical charge at the end of the fight.
His spine had a small ridge of white fluffy feathers that gradually changed to light gray as the feathers got flatter and longer. Dark gray markings covered most of the feathers, leaving a speckled look to the wings overall. He actually quite liked the coloring, it matched his hair. Small graces. When he managed to stretch out the wings to their full length, they hardly came past his fingertips when holding his arm out for comparison.
He could already tell that the wings were way too small to allow him to fly. Maybe he could glide if he was lucky. They should be able to boost his jumps at the very least. If he folded them and positioned the curve of what might be comparable to the wrist downward, crossing the wingtips at his waist, he might be able to fully hide them under his shirts and jackets if needed.
He made his way back to his bed after that, quickly grabbing a protein bar and chugging some water from the nightstand, and curled up to sleep the rest of the headache and soreness off. Master Garaki will have to make do without him today, he didn’t want to see the doctor anyway.
Since that day, dread filled him whenever his master called his name. The small insistence that everything was okay wasn’t enough for him anymore. Master Garaki had been safe, but he wasn’t. He now remembered a room with white tile that was oh so similar to the arena he now found himself in each week.
Master Garaki had caught him hoarding a couple knives and a stick like weapon, a bo staff, within Pocket after the incident. The doctor had seemed excited that he wanted something to defend himself with, and sent him back to the arena to train.
Yami did not like that arena. Although, it was useful to learn where to hit each noumu to stun them or even knock them out with the staff. He even accidentally killed one by plunging a knife into its brain. Master Garaki had been deeply upset about that and chained him to the floor of the arena for a day or two.
The staff had the benefit of being a walking aid as well. Although, with his new legs, he was fast, even before trying to test the speed quirk. He could confidently run around again without tripping too much, but some days he just couldn’t quite balance properly to walk without the stick.
He found himself wanting to go back to how things used to be. To a time he couldn’t quite remember. When a woman with green hair gave him occasional hugs that were so warm and safe and nothing like when his master had hugged him. When he didn’t have a quirk that killed the Symbol of Peace. When he had dreamed of being a hero.
He had wanted to be a hero? How did he end up here, then? In this cold, dark compound where monsters beyond what anyone could dream of were created. Where experiments that tore people apart were conducted. Where the birth of a new Demon King, All For One’s heir, was to commence. The villain that killed the Symbol of Peace.
Master Garaki’s voice reverberated against the walls nearby. “Yami, come help prepare Adonis.” The teen felt compelled to comply amidst his inner turmoil. He caught it and wondered something he hasn’t questioned in a long time, was he really that different from a noumu?
With Shigaraki Tomura occupying all of Master Garaki’s time with overlooking the Adonis project, Yami found a lot of free time for himself. He started going on walks around Jaku during the daytime, even finding a high-rise that was perfect to watch the sunrise and sunset from.
He started to frequent a few places that were kind to give him delicious food upon realizing he only had a codename to go by and no money. Likely taking pity on him. One shop even offered him a job, but he politely declined, trying to explain that he already had duties working as a lab assistant.
It had crossed his mind more and more frequently to just run away, but he was unsure. While the Good Doctor didn’t feel safe to him anymore, the compound was his home. Something also told him that he didn’t have any home to go back to within his memories. Beyond that, he carried All for One, who would want him? He was likely dangerous in the eyes of other people.
There was also that nagging feeling that compelled him to listen to Master Garaki. If he were to leave, would the doctor hunt him? What would happen if he was caught? The chains in the center of an arena and blood-stained tile came to mind. A fainter memory of being used for an experiment came to mind.
He paused from working on making a rail gun within his workshop loft in the main lab. An experiment? It… It kind of made sense, and he hated it. His amnesia at the same time as manifesting a quirk he got from the doctor was heavily suspicious now that he thought about it. A pain spiked in his head, warning him to abandon that thought. He refused.
At the same time, a large metal clang echoed from deep within the compound. A moment later, the roars of dozens of noumu rang in unison. People were yelling. The compound was under attack. His home was under attack. He abandoned his hobby project and ran for the tunnels.
Panic slightly clouded his mind. He had to find his master and ensure his safety. The first area he checked was the site for Adonis. His master was nowhere to be seen except for papers hurriedly strewn across the floor and on fire. Noumu shrieked in the distance, and footsteps thundered through the halls.
Yami turned to run for the closest exit to the hospital above. Likely, the same way his master went. He summoned a knife to each hand as he finished scrambling up the stairwell. The hospital above was mostly abandoned, all the patients and nurses were nowhere to be seen.
Only heroes should have the ability to do something like this so quickly. He stalled within a hallway as he debated surrendering to the heroes. They might be able to protect him, to help him. Would they though? After they found out what he could do? What he had helped accomplish? He doubted they would be so kind to a monster. He ran forward.
Master Garaki was shriveled on the floor in front of two heroes when he found him. It only took him a moment to recognize the bright blond in leather, Present Mic, and the one dressed in all black except for a white scarf, Eraserhead. The scarf snaked around the Good Doctor, holding him from escape, while the hero used his quirk to disable the doctor’s own.
The old man was the first to sense his presence, pausing from whatever tirade he was on to rile up the heroes to address him, “Yami, take out the heroes! Get us out of here!” Present Mic turned to face him while Eraserhead continued holding down the ancient man.
At the command, the compelling feeling welled up within him once more, but he resisted now that he was fully aware of it. Pain spiked in his head in response, but he had been dealing with much stronger migraines for so long, it meant nothing to him.
The pain actually grounded him again as his thoughts from earlier returned. It had to be some type of mind control, likely added when he was an experiment for a project… Adonis. How much was he forced to forget? How much had his mind been messed with? How much did he know about and agree to before all of this?
He had wanted to be a hero before everything happened. He knew that.
Yami dropped the knives in his hands, trying to show no harm to the heroes in front of him, and responded to the doctor, “No.” The clatter of steel on white tile only helped signal the finality in his refusal to help the Good Doctor anymore.
Notes:
So, Yami’s All for One is very similar to AFO’s. He is just baby compared to that man in quirk control. Over a century of experience would do that. I’m sure he’ll figure out more of what All for One can do in time. At least one idea I have for it won't be addressed in this fic of the series, heh.
On another note, chapter 5 and 6 have been killing me. The last chapter had to be completely scraped from what it was, cause I took 5 a little too far to the left and had a slightly different idea for how it would all end. Still aiming to post 6 on monday tho even if there's only 400 words on it rn.
Someone's already been telling me I'm insane, I know it. :)
OH right, an image similar to what Yami's legs look like (I also love this person's art): Borb
Chapter 5: Singularity
Notes:
I’ve written, re-written, and deleted so many things. Like 95% of this chapter is rewritten between posting chapter 3 and 4.
I’m still not sure if I’m fully happy with the final direction, but that's just me trying to be a perfectionist. I’m still quite proud about many aspects of this chapter. Writing has really been an exercise in my confidence and learning to be okay with imperfections sometimes.
Hope you enjoy regardless!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Saturday, March 28, 2144
A chord had snapped in his mind. A piercing pain yet relief as a pressure he hadn’t even been aware of lifted. Yami stared down at the Good Doctor as he remembered staring up at the tank that Shigaraki now floated in over a year ago. He remembered helping connect everything together before there was a pain in his neck and nothingness after.
Fury filled him as his suspicions were confirmed, “Fuck you.” Silence hung in the air as not even the two heroes, Eraserhead and Present Mic, dared to intervene. Betrayal began to trickle into the doctor’s expression, but Yami couldn’t bring himself to feel sorry. The man had deceived him for months, made Yami trust him, only to force his loyalty.
The silence wasn’t cut by anyone speaking up, but rather a shift in the air. A sense of foreboding filled the hall as tiny cracks webbed through the floor and walls, reaching for the ceiling. The smell of dust permeated the air.
The white haired teen’s eyes widened, Decay.
The hospital groaned as its foundation flaked away underneath them. A thunderous crash shook the hall as another part of the building collapsed. Someone might have shouted something, but Yami couldn’t hear it.
The blond hero placed a light hand on his shoulder, grounding him once again. “C'mon, we need to get out of here.” He let the man begin to guide him through the halls as Eraserhead dragged Garaki behind him. His home was under this hospital. His home was being destroyed. Shigaraki Tomura was turning his home to dust.
A chunk of ceiling crashed down behind them. Yami needed to focus. The building was coming down around him, and he refused to die today. He wanted to see the world, he wanted to remember, he wanted to escape this mess.
Finally aware of his surroundings once more, he caught the moment the building finally gave under them. Without any thinking or planning, his body moved on its own. All for One curled around the teleportation quirk he named Blink, activating it and pushing it to the limits of possibility. Hands with miniature black holes in the center reached out for the two heroes as his tiny wings propelled him through the air in a somewhat controlled fall.
Once he had a hand on each, he teleported with a blink of his eyes. The skyline of Jaku greeted them as Yami’s vision blacked out. His eyes hurt like hell as he pressed his hands to them and groaned. He thinks they should be on top of one of his favorite vantage points. Jaku General Hospital would be visible in the distance, just on the horizon at the base of the mountain.
A crash sounded in that direction, likely the hospital finally surrendering to gravity without the support of its foundations and the compound underneath. Vague shapes started to enter his vision as the blindness from overusing Blink slowly cleared.
A gruff voice broke the silence afterward, “Holy shit.”
“Is that the hospital? Shou…”
“Mic.”
“Eraser, we shouldn’t be alive right now, holy shit. The building collapsed on top of us. I saw it!”
“I know, Mic. I did too.”
Silence, then a hesitant, “Are you sure we aren’t dead?”
“The kid got us out.”
He startled the heroes, as he stood up quickly and leaned against the railing of the roof, wanting to see what was left of his home. Eyesight still too blurry to see the distance clearly. Despite that, he could make out a giant crater that extended deep into the earth where Jaku General Hospital and several city blocks surrounding it used to be. “Oh.”
His awareness of the two men on the roof with him faded as his thoughts slowed. He silently stared at where his home used to be. Everything he could easily remember was within that compound and surrounding streets. All of it was now dust. The only things he had left were his notebooks, the ones always stored within Pocket.
“Yami.” His name for the past year, the only one he knew, grabbed his attention. He looked at the homeless looking hero. The man sighed, “Can you tell us what happened back there? About how you ended up inside the hospital today? We’ll help you, it's the least we could do after you saved our lives.”
An opportunity, the only one he may ever have, to go with the heroes. To trust them. Could he? Would they forgive him for what he is? Forgive him for being the prototype to Shigaraki? For willingly working with the doctor? Was it willingly when he had been tricked?
A memory, not fully shaped, but the story was there regardless. He was in this situation before. No home, no family or friends or allies, nothing to his name. An offer to take him in and he accepted. That’s how he ended up in the compound, working for the Good Doctor.
History always repeated unless one learned from past mistakes. He wouldn’t make that mistake again. He couldn’t trust the heroes, couldn’t trust anyone. Yami looked down at the road below and blinked.
Drawn toward the singularity of your own will
The rules of a former world cease to exist
And the once implausible becomes the inevitable.
Yami wasn’t sure which city he was in anymore. It didn’t really matter to him. In the chaos of Jaku, he raided an abandoned corner store for food and water before setting off. After the first night of sleeping on a roof, he learned to grab a blanket, or a few, from another store the next day.
It was currently the night, constellations shown brightly overhead. Legends say that long before the dawn of quirks, people had used the stars to navigate the world. Each grouping of stars had their own name. One was Ursa Minor, the Little Bear, Arcas. While the tale of Arcas was not well known, even before quirks appeared, the tail of the Little Bear was very famous.
Polaris, the North Star.
The teen started to follow it, wishing for guidance in the chaos surrounding him. When the sun started to rise, he retreated to a hill and summoned a sketchbook in a flicker of pink light. Today’s sketch would be of the sunrise just beginning to peak over the horizon. A new day. A new beginning.
Stardust came to mind. The death of a star is terrifying, a brilliant explosion destroying everything within range, but the leftover clouds of dust will give new life to newer stars and planets and other celestial bodies. This was just a new beginning for him, and it could be beautiful if he wanted it to be. Nebulas were quite alluring.
Last time he lost everything, he became Yami. He wasn’t the doctor’s assistant anymore, he wasn’t Yami anymore. The teen may not remember his own name yet, but Mikumo would do for now. Mikumo was his. He didn’t belong to anyone, he didn’t need anyone, and his name was one he chose rather than given.
Mikumo stared up at the retreating twilight. Watching the previous darkness fade away.
After the destruction he caused in Jaku City, the villain known as Shigaraki Tomura, the leader of the League of Villains now known as the Paranormal Liberation Front, headed straight for Tartarus Maximum Security Prison. Where the Scourge of Kamino was being held after his capture in August. Together, they caused a prison break at a scale never seen before.
This was a few days ago and now villains wander the streets freely while Kamino’s Scourge and Shigaraki Tomura command the creatures now known as noumu, where are our heroes when we need them?
Mirio sat on a bench with Torino Sorahiko, an old pro hero that had trained All Might and knew about the secret of One for All, standing in front of him. Even with all his training, he failed to take Shigaraki down when it mattered most. The villain had kept pursing him, forcing him to use Permeation over and over, struggling to breathe between evasions of the man’s hands.
He was eventually forced to retreat. To choose to live another day and continue the fight later when he gathered more strength, when he mastered more of this ancient quirk. “I know that look, stop mopping. You did the best you could with what you had.”
“But-”
Torino kicked him mildly in the shin. “No buts! Focus on how you can do better in the future rather than what you should have done in the past. Carry too much guilt and you’ll break, kid.”
The blond understood, he did. “Just- argh, All For One is free again, and I couldn’t even defeat Shigaraki. Was I really the best choice?” He was staring to doubt he could live up to the legacy he now carried.
The man gave him a serious look, “No one is the best choice, kid. To my understanding, Nana and Toshinori were different from the rest of the holders by choosing their successor long before their deaths. We’re just a long line of unlucky people trying our best to defeat a demon.” Mirio stayed quiet at that.
“Now, what are you going to do about it? Throw in the towel and hand this off to someone else, or rise up to face All For One or die trying like the rest?”
Mirio stood up, fire reignited in his blue eyes, “Let’s go another round.”
Green eyes looked up at the towering gates of Yuuei High School, the best hero school in the country. No one passed him by. Today was a day like any other. A chilly breeze ruffled his fully white curls. He remembered a boy with red eyes and sandy colored hair that came up in untamable spikes.
“Let’s be heroes! Together, Kacchan! The best hero duo ever!”
He remembered being very young. Before he learned he was quirkless, before Kacchan started insisting that he was too weak to be a hero. Too weak to keep up with him anymore. He had tried to prove him wrong, following his best friend’s footsteps everywhere he went.
He remembered a tree trunk suspended over a small creek. Kacchan had slipped off, then rejected his help when he was the only one to jump down after him. Too weak for Kacchan to even accept his aid. He didn’t give up on following the explosive boy, though.
Kacchan was the only one to make it in. They had wanted to be heroes together. Mikumo wasn’t a hero. Despite the longing in his chest to follow the other boy once more, Mikumo took one last deep breath before he turned away from the Yuuei barrier. Walking into the mostly abandoned streets of Musutafu below.
Katsuki couldn’t sit still. After the prison break, Yuuei had constructed a barrier that blocked out the horizon. Principal Nedzu had more apartments built on campus and invited their families and the public to take shelter within the walls of the school grounds. He couldn’t shake the feeling that this was all his fucking fault.
If he hadn’t been kidnapped during the summer camp, the Kamino Raid wouldn’t have had to happen and All Might would still be alive. If the hero had lived, if the Scourge hadn’t been kept in Tartarus, none of what was happening right now would be happening. If he hadn’t been so hard on Izuku, would he still be by his side? He gritted his teeth. Damn it. It was not the time to be feeling sorry for himself about what happened with the shitty nerd.
Shortly after Auntie Inko’s death and Izuku’s disappearance, his mother scheduled him for therapy. Claiming that they both needed it. At first, he had resisted, he didn’t need to talk to anyone about his fucking feelings. He eventually gave in. Andou was a man who didn't give or take bullshit.
The hobo his class had as a homeroom teacher within Yuuei finally made his entrance, knocking Katsuki from any more thoughts. “Alright, students. This is confidential information, but Nedzu has agreed for me to let you all onto a live case for your information gathering unit. I will be the bridge between your class and the rest of the team on the case. You will not leave school grounds to gather information, but you will have access to nearly all sources Yuuei has access to in order to hunt down the target. Understood?”
A murmur of agreement, they knew how to keep their mouths shut. They were fucking second years, even if slightly unofficially.
“Alright, then let’s begin. Our target is Yami. First sighted during the Jaku Hospital Raid. Most of you participated at other locations, so a quick overview of events is in order. Upon beginning the raid, noumu appeared and attacked from all sides. The main strike team charged ahead in hopes of capturing the main target, Garaki Kyuudai, before he escaped.
“The evacuation team worked to get all the patients and nurses out of the building or into custody for further questioning. Once the building was clear, Mic and I found Garaki trying to flee unnoticed. At the same time, the strike team found where Shigaraki Tomura was being kept while fighting several high end noumus.
“Yami was spotted running from the chamber Shigaraki was in and then ran into us with Garaki. Garaki ordered Yami to attack us, but it refused to do so. This tells us that Yami is able to act independently, being able to think fully for itself.”
Fucking Raccoon Eyes couldn’t keep quiet, interrupting the hobo, “Wait, sensei, why did you refer to them as an it?”
The man sighed, “Because, after saving us from the building collapse as Shigaraki woke up, Yami was picked up by a store camera using multiple quirks. Besides Shigaraki and the Scourge of Kamino, only noumu have multiple quirks.”
The hologram board flickered to life at the front of the classroom. “This,” Long legs, that bent in two places, held the noumu up as claws tried to dig into the concrete tile below it. Gray, white, and black feathers covered the creature’s back. Fluffy white hair sat atop a pale face with faded freckles. Green eyes that were too familiar for Katsuki’s comfort stared to the left of the camera. “Is our target.”
The similarity between Yami and Izuku unnerved Katsuki. It had been two years since he disappeared. Two years since Auntie Inko died suddenly from a respiratory infection. His mother had gone to look for Izuku a few weeks later after she had grieved the death of her best friend, only to find an empty apartment.
The rent hadn’t been paid, and the landlord explained that he didn’t know the situation. He didn’t even know if Izuku had still been living there. Alone. Katsuki and his mother had been allowed to look through the place before it was cleaned out to rent again. His only hope that Izuku was still out there, and not dead on a sidewalk, was his missing notebooks.
The last thing he had said to him was to take a swan dive and pray for a quirk. Guilt had eaten at him for months. Oh, the morbid irony if Yami was Izuku. He didn’t want to believe it. The similarity meant nothing. Izuku had to be okay somewhere. He was always smart, even if Katsuki hated him at the time for being better than him.
The hobo stood nearby, on the lookout. It had taken a lot to convince the man to allow them to leave the gates of Yuuei to simply visit a grave. He hasn’t since the dorms were established. He didn’t want to explain to any extras why this was so important to him.
The teen stopped in front of a grave he knew by heart by now, the name Midoriya Inko written in beautiful kanji across it. He wasn’t sure why he came out to it today. He still kneeled and allowed his thoughts tumble out, similar to how the nerd would think. “I’m sorry Auntie. I- I might have seen Izuku. I hope it isn’t him. We should have been there for him sooner. I should have been there.”
He paused as he started quietly crying, “I’m sorry.” After several long minutes, a strong hand rested on his shoulder. It was time to head back to Yuuei.
The white haired teen eventually came across Takoba Beach, it was covered in trash and scrap. Mountains of refuse blocked what surely must be a pretty sunset behind it. He took the time to scramble across all of it to find a hidden, rickety dock on the other side. Waves crashed loudly against the dirty beach.
He sat on the dock and enjoyed what little of the sunset was left. The stars beginning to twinkle in the twilight above. The night sky was brighter now that the city behind him had dimmed, people running to strongholds like Yuuei in the wake of the prison break.
Pulling out a newer sketchbook, he began to draw the imitation of a black hole. Galaxies spun around supermassive black holes. Countless stars entrapped by the gravity of the monster that takes and takes. At the center, gravity becomes infinite. The singularity. The unreachable end, forever falling if one fell in.
Forever getting stronger with no end in sight. Quirks. Each quirk was unique, encoded by a randomized strand of DNA. Uncountable possibilities, not all of them viable. Each with their own weight, feeling, power. He would know. There was an entire universe to explore, and no one could see it all.
Mikumo fell asleep under the stars, to the sound of crashing waves. Thinking of cleaning the beach to its former glory. Making this his new home.
And we are live! Yuuei support and management departments giving you a first-hand look at the progression of the War for Japan!
Our heroes have made a wonderful plan to split up and delay All for One, also known as Kamino’s Scourge, and Shigaraki Tomura from teaming up! Both men hold enough power to fend off multiple heroes at once, so we don’t even want to imagine what their team up would be like!
Please, viewers, lend our heroes your support! May all of our well-wishes coalesce and come true!
He watched the screen intently, claws digging into the floor from the amount of tension held in his body. He so badly hoped the heroes won. Mikumo was holed up in his current home, an abandoned camper van hidden within Takoba Beach on the shore of Musutafu.
He had a small television propped against the wall with a few blocks of wood. Blue static flickered in the air around the room as he charged the battery that powered his home with Taser. He should probably rename that quirk, but it was kind of funny.
A hero named Lemillion had shown up to the battlefield and was successfully stalling All For One by playing a high stakes game of whack-a-mole. The hero seemed to have a quirk that allowed him to become intangible and provided super strength. A dual quirk. Very uncommon.
Though, what surprised Mikumo the most was All For One himself. Gold energy floated around him as each injury he received rewound. That was not regeneration. The man even had a face! Gone was the scar tissue, replaced with white hair and eyes shaped like his own. Makes sense, seeing as those are the features that changed within his own appearance when he received All for One.
Later on, forest green eyes would watch along with the rest of the world as All For One reached Shigaraki. The man had been rewound into a child at that point, but he did it. Shigaraki briefly resisted before a black and red light encompassed both of the All for One users and All For One dropped out of the sky.
Shigaraki’s eyes turned white, and the man smiled with all teeth. Horror gripped Mikumo as he realized that Shigaraki was no longer Shigaraki, that was All For One. While he hated Shigaraki for what he had done, for destroying his last home, no one deserved to have their mind taken over by someone else.
With a younger body modified to be unnaturally strong and over a century of experience, the heroes never stood a chance against the Demon King.
Mikumo sat on the edge of a rooftop within Musutafu. Below him was an apartment complex he finally remembers. He grew up here, Kacchan’s house used to be nearby. Down the street was a park they would play at, and the creek they would sneak into was in the other direction. He drew the building in front of him, the one that housed his first home.
He remembered and drew his room, a veritable shrine to All Might. His bed next to the window, the desk against the opposite wall, a bookshelf in the corner that used to hold his precious notebooks. Shelves upon shelves of figurines of different heroes he had looked up to. A collector's card of All Might he had gotten with Kacchan, one he had lost within Jaku.
Movement below him made him pause. Three young adults wandered and quietly talked, just barely audible to him in the silence of the abandoned city. Mikumo recognized one of them, his blue eyes were dulled with slightly matted blond hair. Lemillion, the hero who could stall All For One.
Intrigued, Mikumo dismissed the notebook he was drawing in and silently got up to follow them. Alas, he accidentally hit a loose stone, sending it careening down the side of the building where it loudly hit the pavement below. The trio looked up, locking eyes with him briefly, before he blinked in panic.
He wasn’t ready to be found by anyone. He wasn’t ready to interact with other people again. Now people knew he lived here, he had to leave. Musutafu was becoming more and more dangerous to live in as noumu and villains moved in, anyway.
The scenery was the best part about living in the wild. Mikumo frequently traveled with the moon and stars as his companions. Slowly carving out his own constellations to navigate by. His previously faded freckles shown brightly in his reflections. He passed through uncountable cities, drew their skylines, and crossed upon other nomads he found the courage to talk and trade with.
The only risk were the noumu and sometimes rogue villain which he had plenty of experience fighting against thanks to the mad doctor. Many of his knives were stained with blood after the past several weeks wandering the countryside. His staff was slightly splintered in a few places. Mikumo considered trying to create a new staff or look for one in the next dojo he came across.
Mikumo reached the top of the mountain he was climbing and waited for the sun to chase the darkness of night away. The outlines of rolling valleys below were dimly illuminated by the moon. Later he sketched vines that overgrew buildings left behind by the followers of All For One and the underground society he had heard of from the nomads.
Maybe one day he would approach them, a loneliness hung to him and dragged him down most days lately. He could remember almost everything from before he had accepted the doctor’s invitation. He was always lonely, and he should be used to the feeling, but the emptiness of abandoned cities still weighed heavily upon him. The silence sometimes oppressive rather than comforting like it used to be.
It was harder and harder to feel like he wasn’t a monster as All for One roiled in his blood, demanding to be used. His hands had started itching in the last few days. It had been months since he used the transfer aspect of his quirk. He had no reason to after the destruction of the laboratory, and he found himself scared to after the Fall of Heroes.
He didn’t want to acknowledge the quirk that he shared with that demon. Didn’t want to use the same quirk that had killed his idol, All Might. Using the quirks he collected was different. It wasn’t exactly that quirk. Although, how funny, he used to be quirkless, dreaming for a quirk. Now, he was scared to use the one he was given.
It was late. The full moon hung brightly in the sky behind him. Ever since the collapse of Japan, light pollution had dwindled. Power grids unable to be maintained by those wandering outside the control of All For One. It wouldn’t be worth it anyway. The noumu seemed to be attracted to man made light at night. It left the galaxy of stars visible in the darkness of night all over Japan.
The underground hero, he doesn’t care that heroes don't formally exist anymore, leaned against the building the rest of his group was in. Shouta had first watch since, in the words of Hizashi, he was nocturnal. The blond wasn’t wrong, but the man had forcefully volunteered Shouta’s sleep. He would have his revenge.
The wind rustled the grass poking through cracks in the concrete sidewalks and street. The sound soothing the man’s ears. That’s when he heard something scrabbling against stone. Now on high alert, he saw when a figure illuminated by the moonlight glided on tiny wings from one roof to another. Their white hair seemed to glisten in the pale light.
Their eyes briefly caught, stunning jade filled with recognition met black hidden in the shadows. Yami looked more wild since he last saw the boy, clothes clearly well-worn and even torn in a few places. Bandages wrapped around one ankle and both lower arms.
The boy that had saved his life opened his mouth and called out softly in an overly joyful and singsong tone, “Hi, thanks for checking in. I'm still a piece of garbage.”
What?
The moment only lasted a few seconds before the teen closed his eyes, shadows flickering in Shouta’s peripheral vision, and Yami was gone once again. Not even a whisper in the wind.
Mikumo had watched Eraserhead from a distance for a few days after that. He had panicked and said the first meme that came to mind to confuse the old pro. Surprisingly, it worked, since the man didn’t erase his quirks. Present Mic had come out to guard the door instead as the night rolled closer to morning. The white haired teen was quite happy to see both of them were okay.
The entire group turned out to consist of Eraserhead, Present Mic, a girl with pink skin and hair with small yellow antlers on her head, a boy with red hair and a hardening quirk, and Kacchan. Longing to just say something to the other teen came back full force. Would he even recognize Mikumo? The fear and anxiety was still too much for him to advance.
Although, despite being careful to stay out of their lines of sight, on the fourth day the girl saw him and cheerily called out, “Hello!” The rest turned, not really surprised to see him. They had known he was tailing them.
He almost blinked, but he found that he actually did want to talk to them. Being alone ate at him more and more, especially when he had watched them all hang off each other and laugh despite the bleak, silent atmosphere. “Uh… hi?” he nervously responded.
His hesitancy seemed to only make the girl smile more warmly, “I’m Ashido Mina. What’s your name?”
“Mikumo.” He watched in his peripheral vision as Kacchan seemed to give him some type of look at that.
Katsuki stared at the noumu, Yami. That had to be Izuku. The similarities were uncanny and screamed at the back of his mind. He responded to Raccoon Eyes’ question with a meek, “Mikumo” Katsuki couldn’t help but stare at him critically.
Shitty Hair decided to introduce himself next with a shitty smile, “I’m Kirishima Eijirou.”
The white haired teen had quickly glanced at him before looking away, seeming to want to ignore him… He clearly remembered something about Katsuki, did he know his own name? Well, one way to find out, “Oi, Mikumo was it?” The bastard finally turned to look at Katsuki, although he seemed very uncomfortable as he fidgeted with his hands. Just like the nerd would have done. “What does the name Midoriya Izuku mean to you?”
He watched as the other teen’s eyes widened. Widened in what seemed to be recognition. That bastard remembered and thought he could fucking hide from Katsuki after almost three years. Fat chance. Although, his own confusion surfaced as the teen’s small wings flared and hands clutched at his head. Energy crackled in the air and Katsuki remembered that even if this creature was originally Izuku, and oh fuck, it was, this was a noumu.
Aizawa stepped forward, likely about to activate Erasure on the stressed creature before them in case it attacked. Thankfully, before that could happen, shadows danced at the edges of Katsuki’s vision as Izuku, Yami, Mikumo, whatever his fucking name was, disappeared.
Damn his impulsiveness, he should have been more careful approaching what was left of Izuku.
He thought he knew everything, he didn’t. He clutched at his head as he truly remembered everything. His mother apologizing to him for his quirklessness. The teacher calling out his desire to go to Yuuei for the class to make fun of him. All Might smiling after he told him he couldn’t be a hero.
So much that he didn't even realize he was missing fell into place as if he never lost his memories. As if he hadn’t been someone else for over a year. Memories of the Good Doctor treating him so nicely after trapping him in a white tile room for days. Conditioning. The man had always planned on using him as a fucked up experiment, hadn’t he?
He remembered all the small smiles his mother gave him that he had forgotten. He remembered as the sunset bathed her in a golden light on a hospital bed. Kacchan almost destroying Hero Analysis for the Future #13. Almost dying hours later in disgusting sludge within an underpass tunnel.
Bright smiles as he and his mother went to HeroCon for his birthday one year. He had left the photo on a shrine in his room at Jaku. The shrine that was missing when he woke up with a different name. There should be a grave in Musutafu, he never visited it.
The final loose strings that had a hold over his mind fell away as he whispered, “Midoriya Izuku” to the empty alleyway surrounding him. That used to be his name. The boy who wanted to be a hero, the boy who had his dreams shattered by All Might. Yami had been born shortly after when the Good Doctor reached out to him.
He couldn’t be a hero like Izuku wanted, he refused to be a villain like Yami ended up becoming. He was Izuku, he was Yami, but he couldn’t bring himself to use one of those names.
Mikumo was the one to remember it all.
Formed by a sea of stardust made of broken dreams and homes.
Mirio woke up from another strange dream. A memory that didn’t belong to him. A feeling of hot strings coiled around his bones. Suffocating and comforting at the same time. A new quirk from the past holders. Blackwhip, they had called it. Able to be controlled by harnessing his anger, easily uncontrollable if his anger controlled him.
This wasn’t the first time he awoke with another quirk and more memories than he bargained for. Float, Danger Sense, and Smokescreen were already at his beck and call. He couldn’t train with them easily without the possibility of All For One learning about his growing strength, but he was making do with passing trips to Nedzu’s underground network.
Mirio was biding his time for the singularity, for when he could control all the quirks harbored within One for All. All For One wouldn’t know what hit him when he was ready to face the ancient evil.
A woman with periwinkle hair poked her head into the room he was laying in, breaking his thoughts. “Hey, Mirio, we made breakfast! Tamaki managed to find some eggs, so I made scrambled eggs for us.” He smiled brightly at his friends, grateful they had insisted on staying with him despite the danger.
“Thanks, Nejire! We should head out when we’re done. I want to find a mouse hole later to test a new toy.”
She practically ran into the room and jumped on him, shaking him as she excitedly asked, “Oooo, what is it this time? Tell me!”
Mirio cracked a smile, already having the perfect codename in mind for the new quirk, “It’s silly string.”
Mikumo sat on a rickety old pier. The stars shone brightly overhead, while waves crashed loudly against the partially clean beach. The teen leaned back as the universe reflected in his star shaped eyes. His white hair and wings set ablaze by the pale moonlight overhead. Claws lightly taped against the rotting wood in time with a beat only he could hear.
All for One itched in his palms and roiled in his bones. He ignored its demands to discover new quirks. It longed to pull new stars into its orbit, creating new constellations within the void of his dreamscape. The few he had were enough for him and danced beautifully around All for One, twisting into a rainbow of color along the event horizon. Pocket. Blink. Taser. Nyoom. His named quirks, along with an avian mutation and minor boosted healing rate.
After his brief run in with Kacchan and learning his old name, he returned to Musutafu, to Takoba Beach. He had spent a few days looking for the graveyard that held the headstone for Midoriya Inko, leaving flowers he picked himself and cleaning it once he had.
In less than a single afternoon, his old camper van was in working order again. Taser had quickly recharged the old battery he had left behind. That was a week or two ago now, and the chill of fall was beginning to set in. Ideally, Mikumo wanted to stay on the beach for the winter and finish cleaning it while he was in the city again.
He thought of rebuilding the pier, breathing new life onto the shoreline that was his home. A bench to sit upon as he stared into the abyss. Strings of fairy lights to dimly light pathways though the sand at night.
In the spring, he could plant a variety of flowers surrounding the grave. His mother deserved every beautiful flower he could find. She may not have been perfect, may not have been there for him, may have left too soon, but he loved her anyway.
The constellation of Aries caught his eye. The sign of change and growth. It was quite fitting.
His progress on the beach was going smoothly after returning to Musutafu several months ago. Only a small portion of the shore was covered in trash. Some of it was repurposed into small decorations, like a tree made of wire with leaves of plastic and glass in all colors, that sat close to his camper. He had even found a bucket of dull blue paint and covered the outside in the color, leaving looping spirals of the original white behind.
Planters that he found or made littered the surrounding area with flowers, small trees, fruits, and vegetables. His sunflowers had opened their blossoms a few weeks ago around marigolds that looked like the sunset and pink cosmos reaching for the sky. Mikumo had also planted a large collection of flowers around his mother’s grave, sometimes taking ones from his beach to lay at her headstone.
The coastal wind picked up and ruffled the feathers on his back. He stood on a deck that he had built over the camper as another roof to protect it and offer a vantage point. Stretching his wings, he leaped into the wind. It was never enough to truly fly, but those moments gliding in the air always felt so freeing.
Mikumo glided down to the roof a story below him. Ever since returning to Musutafu he had carved a section of the city as his territory. Most noumu now knew that entering it meant death and stayed away. Villains didn't fare much better, making his area the safest in the city.
A few wanderers had taken up home within the perimeter and had their own small, thriving community. He had thought to approach them once, but the fear in their eyes had made him turn around instead and leave some fruit and seeds nearby for them later. They probably knew he wasn’t natural. It wasn’t like he hid his multiple quirks.
On one occasion after that, he heard them call him The Tengu. He couldn’t help but laugh at how well it fit once he returned home. A bird-like yokai, a demon, if only they knew. One that had protected forests and mountains, as he now protects this portion of the abandoned and war torn city.
Coming back to the present, a noumu was sniffing along his streets as it lumbered along on three limbs. It was hunting. While he could kill it now and save who or what the beast had its sights on, he was curious as to where it was trying to go. It was a good opportunity to practice his stealth more anyway.
The noumu stopped suddenly a few blocks later as it stood to its feet and ran. A young scream sounded from the dead end alleyway it was headed towards. Not on Mikumo’s watch.
Blinking, he appeared in front of the humanoid creature while a knife flickered into his right hand with a pink light. It only gave pause for a second before roaring, Mikumo gave in yelled back at it even though it wouldn’t understand, “You really want to go? I’ll fucking go big guy.”
So predictable, it swung a large fist at him, did it even have any offensive abilities besides that speed? He dodged and grabbed the arm, using the momentum to pull the noumu to the floor. It roared once again before Mikumo plunged his knife deep into the exposed brain, aiming for the brain stem, where he knew it would kill it.
He turned to address whoever was in the alley. A child with black hair and deep blue eyes stared at him, slightly hidden behind an old dumpster. He couldn’t have been older than eight. Children shouldn’t be out in the wild. Any that were out in this mess, would have been within a group. “Hey, where are you supposed to be? Do your guardians know you’re out here?”
The boy simply stared at him. Right, he was now slightly covered in blood, and took out the creature that was chasing him in less than ten seconds. Most of the others in the city would have struggled for a minute to take any noumu down. He sighed and took a step forward, only to pause as the boy asked, “Why did you do that?”
“Huh?”
“Why did you throw yourself in front of it?”
Still deeply confused, he stammered, “T-to help you?”
“You don’t know me. Why did you do it?”
“Uh, I guess I couldn’t let it hurt someone else?”
“What if it hurt you instead, you don’t know me.”
“I would have been fine? It’s fine. I just like helping others. Saving others always feels right to me.”
“Heroes are the ones that are usually killed first. Throwing their lives away for people they don’t know.” Damn, okay.
“I’m far from being a hero, kid. I would have killed that noumu today anyway, whether you were here or not.” The boy’s stomach growled, the perfect topic change. “Hungry? I can take you back to my place or to the nearest base with other people.”
The boy was quiet for a moment before, “Your place?”
Surprised, “You don’t live here?” He had been expecting the kid to want to go back home. Or maybe they were trying to run away?
“... No.” Hmm.
“Well, welcome to my corner of Musutafu then. The locals call me The Tengu.” No recognition at the name, the kid truly wasn’t from the area. “Although, please call me Mikumo. What’s your name?”
“Kouta.”
A few minutes later and Mikumo was running through the streets of Musutafu with the soft glow of Nyoom following in his footsteps. Kouta hung onto his shoulders, while the teen supported his legs with his arms. “I thought your quirk was teleportation.”
“Ah, not quite. I have multiple quirks. One is teleportation, while another is speed, and so on.”
“Whoa.”
Mikumo cracked a wide smile as an idea formed in his mind, “Want to do something cool?”
“Cooler than this?”
“Yeah, you’ll have to hang on tight, though!”
“Sure!”
Mikumo hopped along a path he knew well that didn’t require his arms to climb. Quickly reaching the top of a building only three stories tall. Before them stretched Takoba Beach as the afternoon sun glistened on the water into the horizon. “Wow!” Mikumo continued his momentum across the rooftop, “Wait! Stop!”, and leaped into the air, small wings snapping open to catch the sea breeze.
As his claws hit the warm sand, a laugh bubbled up from the kid on his back, “Mikumo, that was so cool! Do it again!” The teen couldn’t help but smile along with Kouta’s joy. He did that. He truly brightened someone’s day for the first time in a long time. For a moment, he could completely ignore the itch in his palms.
Mirio couldn’t stop blaming himself. The loss still too fresh. It had been a simple outing, the area was supposed to have been clear. It wasn’t. He had helped Bakugou and Kirishima take Kouta out for fresh air outside the underground network. Kouta had been so excited to see the sun and fall leaves, despite the slight chill in the air. Aizawa and Shinsou were supposed to bring Eri up to join them a few hours later. That’s when it happened.
A pack of lower tier noumu converged on them, mainly targeting Mirio and then Bakugou once the monsters realized how strong the sandy blond was as well. Kirishima was the only one left to guard Kouta. The red head claimed that he secured Kouta before coming back to help him and Bakugou with the horde. They couldn’t find the kid once they had won.
Days spent searching the area for clues, any sign or remains of him. Nothing. Bakugou and Kirishima had to return to Nedzu’s current main camp to move bases again. Mirio couldn’t stay in one location for too long. No one wanted to give up searching for Kouta, but everyone had more pressing priorities. They had to leave him behind.
The eighteen-year-old stood on the balcony above his home. The sea breeze ruffled his white hair and feathers. Sakura trees bloomed in the distance as loose petals danced in the air. This was peace.
The winter had come and gone, Kouta was still living with Mikumo. He had admitted to not knowing which way he came from, and even then his family and friends had been getting ready to move base. They would never be able to find his guardians. The boy had expressed being fine with living on Mikumo’s beach. It was safe, he got to see the sun, and he thought the teen was very nice, even if others feared him.
Part of Mikumo inwardly protested. He loved having Kouta around, but the kid deserved someone better than him. Someone who wasn’t a monster, a demon. He tried to send him to the group living within his protection. The people had ignored Kouta’s existence, whispering about The Tengu’s child behind his back. He didn’t try to send the boy away again after that.
Kouta had turned eight on the twelfth of December, but Mikumo didn’t pay attention to the dates much anymore. They had celebrated sometime during the winter either way, with Mikumo finding the ingredients to make a small cake. As well as present a necklace with one of his feathers tied in thin metal.
At some point, the teen had shared his notebooks, sketches, and some of his memories with the kid. Inspiring him to make his own notebook full of sketches and the tales of people he met. One tale had been his own parents, dead at the hands of a mass murderer by the name Muscular. They had been heroes. They had left him behind trying to protect people they didn't know.
He had led Kouta to the cemetery within Musutafu and brought him to a grave surrounded by budding flowers and young trees. Midoriya Inko. He told him the tale of Midoriya Izuku. The boy who had dreamed of being a hero as everyone told him that he couldn’t, even heroes, until he broke. Until he lost his own mother. Until he was taken in by a villain.
He did not tell him more than that, let the boy form his own conclusions with time. Yami’s tale was much darker than Izuku’s. Mikumo’s was only still beginning.
“Hey, Mikumo!” Kouta knocked the young man from his thoughts. The midday sun glistened on the ocean’s surface.
“Yeah?”
“Can I fire this?” Kouta held up the rail gun Mikumo managed to make, complete this time, out of scrap metal and wire he had collected when cleaning the currently pristine beach. Coils of wire ran along both sides of a barrel, that when supplied with current, could generate a lot of magnetic force to shoot metal objects at high speed. “Please?”
“What?! No! You need an electric quirk to do so anyway.” An easy lie, he could probably find a way to connect the gun to the battery in the house. Did he want to? No. That invention was liable to tear itself apart at any moment when he powered it.
“Aww, you’re no fun anymore!”
Mikumo gasped, affronted, “I’m still plenty fun!”
“Prove it.”
About a minute of being blind after stretching Blink to the limits was totally worth dunking both of them into the ocean only a moment later. Kouta’s scream had been glorious.
Notes:
Btw, between posting chapter 4 (monday morning) and this one (thursday morning) I now have 7k on the chapter 6 doc at varying levels of complete, outlined, or needing some polish lmao :D
Also not me rereading this chapter for grammar, flow, whatever and getting it ready with html only this morning. WHICH how did I forget the heroes know he goes by Mikumo now?! I need to fix that :)Screaming cause I was 5 words off from 7777 word count this chapter, man. Wait damn, thats a lot of words. Whoops, my finger slipped!
I'm not ready for classes next week, my timeeeee where did it gooooo
So yeah, don't expect me to continue this insane pace, lol
Chapter 6: Destiny
Notes:
Fight scene, fight scene, fight scene.
EheheheBig chapter, almost 12k words, 6 different characters have POV. If you want a good break point, I recommend pausing with the scene Aldera is mentioned. That’s 7k words in, have fun! I didn’t want to break this apart into two due to the fun thing with the poem.
Also, fuck dialogue oml. I put so much in cause I realised how much I didn’t use it. This entire work is to actually write for once and push myself to write well. I neglected dialogue for 20k?! Here, eat. Enjoy.
It was always going to end this way.
There is no going back.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Saturday, April 2, 2146
Mikumo sat around the small table within the camper, drawing different flowers and constellations within a notebook. He was taking a break from the analysis he had done on the recent noumu he encountered. Trying to figure out what quirk they had after taking them down was a bit like a game.
One that he never had the answers for unless he had worked on the specific noumu with the doctor due to his refusal to use All for One as it wanted and longed for. Writing and drawing always lessened the itch to use, to transfer, to take. He hardly minded the feeling anymore, a gentle reminder in the back of his mind that he wasn’t normal.
His focus was interrupted with a knock on the door that woke Kouta up from where he slept on their bed. An older woman stood at the door as he opened it, “Tengu, please! You have to help us!”
“Huh? What’s wrong?”
The woman looked at him, shocked, for only a moment before continuing, “There's a large beast. A dog. It’s going to kill us all! Please kill it! Please save us, please save my husband.” The desperation in her voice called to him. He had to help.
Before he could answer, Kouta came up beside him and accusingly asked, “You’re going to go, aren’t you? They don’t even like you.” The boy’s composure broke as he slightly cried, “Why?”
Mikumo understood. The boy's parents died protecting other people, who then celebrated their deaths as if them dying was a good thing. It was more than helping the people within his territory, though. “If the noumu is within the perimeter, then I need to drive it out or kill it to protect you too. I’m not only going for them, but for you.”
“Please don’t go, Mikumo!”
He held back a sigh and looked Kouta in his dark blue eyes, “I promise I will come back.” The young man then smiled, “When has a noumu ever caused me trouble?” Well, Pyracmon came to mind, but Kouta doesn’t need to know about anything from the arena stained with blood. He turned back to the woman who still stared at him with wide eyes, “Where is it?”
Even Light cannot escape this destiny.
So you surrender
You let yourself plummet toward the Dark Unknown,
Falling toward the truth of what You Are.
A faint blue light trailed in his steps as he ran across the rooftops of Musutafu. The dog noumu was already within his sights. It towered at about two stories tall, with muted blue and gray fur thinning along its tail into a thin whip. Quirks already fired all around it as the beast growled, the noise rumbling like thunder in the distance.
Its eyes seemed to be unable to focus as it looked around as they bulged from its skull below an exposed brain. Large fangs poked out from the bottom jaw on one side. This was a creature he helped create… codename Boreas. The tail quickly whizzed past him before taking out the building behind him he had just been running across.
As he approached the scene, the air seemed to cool until his own breath fogged in the air. The people below him were already shivering to fight off the chill while they fought for their lives. In a flash of pink, two large knives found themselves in his grip. Go time.
Without slowing or missing a beat, he leaped from the roofs, wings opening to catch the air, claws coming down to curl into the giant canine’s fur as he continued his sprint. The sooner he took it down, the safer everyone would be. Ice shot up from the creature’s skin, great. He struggled to dodge as the noumu’s attention fully turned to him. He managed to reach the beast’s shoulders before a pillar finally caught him, launching him off its back.
Rolling in midair with the slight thrust of his wings, he managed to somewhat catch himself. He swung his right blade out, cutting deep within the flesh of the noumu’s foreleg and slowing his own fall as he landed. Blood flowed freely down from the fresh wound, partially drenching Mikumo in dark red.
His small victory was short-lived, though, as he watched the cut slowly knit itself back together. As if the noumu had never been injured. The beast let off a low growl, fully turning to face Mikumo, oh he was fucked. Nyoom activated, and he leapt back with a flap of his small wings as giant jaws snapped down where he had been standing.
He looked around for anything or anyone that could help him injure the dog enough to keep it down while he went for the brain, but all the people that had previously been slinging their quirks at it had stopped. They stood a ways away, down the road, and watched. He couldn’t help but think of hero society before The Fall. Civilians had watched and cheered as heroes fought for all of their lives.
A howl knocked him from his thoughts and he blinked to the other side of the beast as a large paw came down and cracked the concrete below it. Steeling himself, he brought forward Taser as he teleported again and again and again. Each time cutting deeply through fur and skin and muscle as he fell around on all sides of Boreas time after time. Tail and teeth and ice nearly hit him on more than one occasion.
A fight of attrition as the dog’s attacks gradually slowed and darkness creeped at the edges of Mikumo’s vision. Cuts and blood covered the creature as tingling numbness climbed up his fingers and arms. The people below only watched.
Boreas caught him with its snout, flinging him into a building as it quickly turned its head. Minor Healing hummed in his veins, while scrapes and bruises made themselves known all across his body. This had to end.
In one last bid, pink light swapped his knives out for a metal pole he collected months ago. He blinked, falling through the air above the noumu’s head. Twisting to wrap his weight around the pole and directing it downwards. Electricity hummed in the air as he brought Taser to the upper limits of what he had ever attempted.
Electricity arced across the creature’s brain as the pole buried itself deep within the soft flesh. It seized and fell slightly to the side, howling in pain, as Mikumo hung on for dear life, continuing to supply the current. Taser eventually gave out as his own nerves buzzed in protest to its use.
Slowly, Mikumo called forth one of his knives again and started the arduous task of cutting the giant noumu’s brain stem to take it out completely. Man, he could really use a nap after this. Although, of course, anything that could go wrong almost always seemed to do so around him, as Boreas whined and shakily started getting to its feet.
Tired and in a panic, his palms itched, and he gave in.
Izumi Kouta caught up with the group from the nearby settlement as they all watched the giant dog fall over. Mikumo was hanging on to the noumu’s exposed brain. The crowd cheered, and the boy couldn’t help but feel like he was back to society before The Fall of Heroes. These people were cheering as his family risked their lives for them.
The white haired man looked so tired as he continued to work on killing the creature. Kouta wouldn’t celebrate until the noumu was truly dead and Mikumo was back home with him, resting. Dark blue eyes watched the moment the dog started to get up, watched in horror as terror entered star shaped pupils.
He was there to watch as bright cyan and black ribbons grew within the air, seeming to originate from Mikumo. Twisting to connect the two beings with a string of pure energy. Weaving into and out of the noumu’s skin in a beautiful display until the creature fell to the side once more, lifeless. Mikumo falling down beside it, unconscious, as the light receded into him.
Kouta’s feet moved on their own as he raced past the people cheering and murmuring beside him. He had to make sure Mikumo was okay. The boy had never seen an ability quite like that. Whatever it did, it completely took out the noumu and knocked the white haired man out. Thankfully, he was still breathing when Kouta arrived by his side.
Slowly, other people started to approach. The woman from before at the forefront. “Do you need help?” she asked quietly. “I- I want to give my thanks and also show my apologies for not seeing the Tengu as human before. He’s just like us, isn’t he? Despite the fact he has multiple quirks like those monsters… He’s just another person.”
Before Kouta could respond, a guy who looked to be in his thirties appeared. “Don’t be ridiculous! We should kill the beast while it’s down! How long have we lived in fear of it turning on us? How long will it choose to let us live here?”
Another man spoke up, “You’re the only one being ridiculous here! It responded to our call for help. It saved us. Would we have been able to take down that hellhound ourselves?”
The bickering continued, completely unfazed by Kouta’s presence as he stood next to Mikumo. Panic creeped into his shortened breath, he needed to get Mikumo away from these people. Thankfully, a small group of other kids his age came up to him.
A girl only a few years older than him spoke up quietly as the adults started yelling, “Hey. You’re the kid the Tengu watches over, right? Want help getting him back to where you live?” He could only nod.
They had been travelling for weeks, he wasn’t sure how many. The only thing that made it bearable was eviscerating any two-bit creature that thought it could take them on. Also, having Shitty Hair and Raccoon Eyes by his side. Dunce Face was back at the main base with Nedzu to help power everything with his quirk. Sero Hanta… best to not reminisce while in the open.
Exhibitionist and Elf had to leave behind the periwinkle woman, Hadou Nejire, that had been part of their group back at the main base after bringing her for medical attention. Katsuki wasn’t about to let the blond leave again with only one extra for backup. After all, he was a massive target for All for fucking One. It was why he and the Elf couldn’t stay till their friend had healed up.
At this point, every tree, rock, and building looked the same to Katsuki. He couldn’t tell you what side of Japan they were even on. Well, until he saw three jagged towers made of glass and steel reaching into the sky on the horizon. A single bridge was still intact, while another had crumbled away from the initial attack and exposure to the elements afterward. Yuuei High School.
They were nearing the outskirts of Musutafu. He couldn’t help but long to walk through the streets below on the other side of that hill. “That’s fucking Yuuei, right?” The elf bastard muttered a soft confirmation. “Could we swing by Musutafu? There’s a few places I want to check on.” He wanted to offer another update to Inko. The extras be damned.
Exhibitionist glanced at him before speaking up with a soft smile, “That’s right, you grew up around Yuuei in Musutafu. I don’t see why not. Where are we headed?”
Ruins of buildings that were wrapped in vines passed them by. Grass grew thickly through thin cracks in the concrete walkways. Few noumu interrupted them, thinning more and more as they descended into the heart of the metropolis. The absence of noumu only made them more aware of their surroundings as they continued far past the invisible barrier.
Eventually, Katsuki stood at the entrance of the cemetery that housed Auntie Inko. Raccoon Eyes tilted her head as if to ask more about why he wanted to come here, but he never felt like explaining. Shitty Hair placed his hand on his shoulder with a comforting smile. Maybe he could just this once.
“I- This is-” Damn, he sounded like the fucking nerd. He sighed, “My aunt is buried here. I liked to visit her with updates before everything went to shit. It’s been a while since I’ve managed to even come say hello, as you all can imagine. She had a son, our age. I was an asshole to him, and he disappeared shortly after her death… I regret it.”
“Do you want us to join you or leave you be?” Eijirou was always too kind to him. It was more than he deserved. No questions about what he did or remarks about who he was before Yuuei. He appreciated it more than he could ever say.
“Yeah, you can come.”
The peppy highlighter yellow blond intruded the moment, “We’ll leave you three be then and stand guard here.”
At least it would just be him, Eijirou, and Mina. “Thanks.”
Making their way through the grave site, flowers of all kinds bloomed on the sides of the walkway. Raccoon Eyes spoke up first as they lost sight of the other two extras. “Oh this is so pretty! Although it’s strange that the cemetery is still so well kept…”
Now that she brought it up, yeah, this was strange. Shitty Hair tried to offer an answer, “Maybe someone has family buried here and plenty of time to take care of the rest of the place? The area does seem to be quite peaceful…”
“I don’t like it.” The two stared at him, “The peace. Something is wrong with it. It shouldn’t exist out here. There is always a calm before the storm.”
The trio stayed quiet after that as they continued walking along winding pathways bordered by lilies, roses, daisies, daffodils, and so many more types of flowers. A rainbow of colors passed them by as Katsuki led his friends through a route he knew like the back of his own hand.
Although, he slowed as Inko’s grave came within sight, drowning in a sea of flowers as a young cherry blossom sprouted nearby. It was beautifully looked after. The blond only knew one person who would have and could have done this. “Holy shit.”
“What is it, bro?”
“That’s my Auntie’s grave.”
“What?! So whoever has been taking care of this place also knows your aunt? That’s crazy.”
“It’s Izuku.”
Silence. “Who?” They didn’t remember their run in with Yami? Wait, it was Mikumo. Fuck. He sighed, they did have larger problems at the time, as the guy had some type of fit immediately following his cryptic question from an outside perspective.
“Midoriya Izuku, my cousin.” Quieter, “My brother.” His mom had mentioned it once near the start of high school. The two of them had grown up together, practically at the hip. It had felt right. Despite their mothers not being related, they called each other’s parents their aunts and uncles. If not brothers, they were still cousins. Family. Even if they were not related by blood.
They later returned to Elf and Exhibitionist with many more questions stewing within Katsuki’s mind. He almost wanted to ask that they stay here to catch the fucking nerd in the act so he could see the guy for himself. Alas, he knew they had to keep moving.
It was only the next day when they came across a full on settlement. The people called it New Musutafu. Mirio found it confusing as the people ran and played, and shouted throughout the streets surrounding their few city blocks of territory. They had little fear of the monstrous creatures, abominations of nature, that used to only exist in nightmares.
He tried to ask them why the city was abandoned by the noumu and the only answer they would give was, “The Tengu keeps the other monsters away.” What was the Tengu? Apparently the creature was also why villains that chose to roam the countryside rather than follow All For One avoided the city as well.
After more questioning, the party of heroes found a small portion of the people spitting hostility towards the creature. They feared it despite its passive and even somewhat kind demeanor towards the people. They described their displeasure of not being allowed to kill it when it had fallen after taking out a hellish hound that towered six meters tall and froze the surrounding air only a few days prior.
Those within that minority had begged them to kill it, to save them from it. The rest of the people had described a fight they would not have survived without the creature’s help, it had saved them. Intrigued, the group had decided to check on the creature the people had called the Tengu for themselves within the old Takoba Municipal Beach Park.
Kouta stood outside the camper while Mikumo continued to sleep on the single bed inside. It had been days since the older teen fell unconscious, and the boy couldn’t help but worry about if he would ever wake up again. Whatever the cyan and black light had been, it had killed the noumu and did something to Mikumo. Did it almost kill him too?
He wandered into the raised gardens and picked a variety of berries from their stems to eat as his lunch. At least Mikumo had taught him how to look over the plants and how to tell when they were ready to eat. He would be just fine until the avian woke up. Although, he was lonely. How did Mikumo stand the silence before taking him in?
To pass the time, he began training with his quirk again, even though he shouldn’t without supervision. It was simple enough anyway. Water Gun allowed him to shoot water from his hands, simple in nature, but even simple quirks can be powerful. They had tested if he could direct the water or increase the pressure, or even if he could shoot from other parts of his body or even from just one finger.
Kouta already had some control over the pressure he shot the water at, but when focused on only one finger, the pressure naturally increased from the smaller area. It was so cool! So far, his only drawback seemed to be needing to drink way more water. Mikumo explained that each quirk had a drawback, whether it was passive or only when someone used their quirk or even only when they used their quirk too much.
Everyone’s power had a price. Resistance to it could be trained depending on the drawback. Kouta’s drawback was a bit more serious and couldn’t be ignored. He wasn’t allowed to train without fresh water already nearby for him.
The sound of distant footsteps broke through his thoughts. Dark blue eyes looked over to the steps leading down to the beach as a group of people came into view. Dread coursed through him, it was likely the people who wanted to take Mikumo away. He quickly dove for cover and mentally readied for a fight. He wouldn’t let them take his family. Not again.
Although, surprise soon replaced his resolve. The group up on the balcony was Mirio, Tamaki, Katsuki, Mina, and Eijirou! He couldn’t help his excitement as he ran towards the stairs at high speed, “How are you guys here?!”
They all stared at him with large eyes as he climbed the stairs as quickly as he could. Mina was the first to recover and say something, “What?! Kouta?!”
“What the fu–” Mina slapped her hand over Katsuki’s mouth, cutting him off.
The bright blond that was able to use multiple quirks like Mikumo chimed in to ask, “Kouta? … How? How did you end up here?”
“Oh! Well, a noumu chased me into the city a looong time ago and Mikumo saved me! I knew Nedzu was moving base again soon and that even if he helped me look for you guys, we would probably never find you all… So I stayed here! Mikumo has been super nice and cool and amazing! You should meet him!” He paused, “Well… when he wakes up.”
Katsuki had stiffened when he mentioned Mikumo, but Kouta quickly dismissed it before the sandy blond pushed Mina’s hand away and asked softly, “Mikumo, he’s here? Holy–” Mina swatted at him, “crap.” He then burst into laughter, “Of course, he could never ignore someone in need and just fu–” another swat, “–cking adopted you!” Mina sighed as Katsuki continued, “Can we see him?”
Kouta looked to the side, “Well… He hasn’t woken up yet. He… He’s been sleeping for days. He has never needed this long to recover from a fight! … I’m scared. There was this weird light that I’ve never seen before. It killed the noumu and knocked him out.”
A few moments later, Katsuki asked once again but this time in an uncharacteristically quiet voice, “Can I see him?”
Awareness came back slowly, even then it wasn’t awareness of his surroundings. No, this was the world within his mind. Mikumo had found that the colorful stars he had taken existed within a space inside his quirk, inside his mind, inside his soul. It was hard to tell the specifics with quirks sometimes when they broke the barrier of logic or the loose pseudo-science surrounding them beyond Alpha Elements.
He stood on an approximation of Takoba Beach as the sun hung low on the horizon over the ocean. The ruins of Musutafu brokenly reached into the sky behind him. Above it all sat a black hole with stars slowly swirling around it, leaving colorful streaks in their wake. The sky beyond was looked like static as the nearly colorless void swirled in time with his own thoughts and emotions. A fuzzy, faded, cyan color would sometimes peek through along with deeper blues, turquoise, and other bluish-greens.
Many hours and many nights had been spent slowly crafting this space. It had started with the stars floating aimlessly within the void as he walked around on nothing. Sometimes when the thoughts became too much, he would allow himself to drift into this dreamscape instead and spend time analyzing the quirks or rearranging some portion of the sky above.
Looking at his personal galaxy as it twirled around above him, five new stars hung in the sky.
That’s right, he had surrendered to the itch in his palms and had pulled. He had taken quirks for the first time in two years. It… it felt good.
Maybe it would be okay to take again? He had used the Demon King’s quirk to do good. He had used All for One to save others. The avian stared up into the abyss beyond the event horizon. How had he forgotten that a quirk didn’t make someone good or bad?
It was probably when he saw the same quirk tear through dozens of Pro Heroes as if their training meant nothing, leaving them quirkless or dead in its wake.
Mikumo wasn’t like that, though. He would never use his quirk like that. The yokai were spirits, demons that were frequently portrayed as malevolent entities, not caring for the lives of others. Yet, some were also shown to be protectors, signs of good fortune, or simple entities that just wanted to exist. He may be a demon, but not all demons were evil like the Demon King.
He was starting to get tired of ignoring the itch anyway. Ignoring the truth of what he was. The sky above brightened into a glorious mix of cyan, turquoise, and blue as his resolve hardened. Mikumo knew who he was, who he used to be, what he was, and it was time he accepted the entirety of his own existence.
He awoke slowly. A slight soreness is his jaw, a new chill in his bones, warmth within his skin. Mikumo stretched his aching muscles as his claws curled in the air at the end of his bed and wings shifted under the cozy blankets draped across him. He grabbed at the soft fabric and curled tighter into a ball again.
A noise he didn’t notice previously dimmed before a child’s voice called out, “Mikumo!” He only hummed in response to Kouta. “You’re awake!” The boy started tugging on the blanket as Mikumo held tighter to it and curled up further. Undeterred, Kouta moved on to shaking him while complaining, “Come on, you’ve been asleep for days!”
“Kouta, let him continue sleeping if he wants to.” The avian jolted up at the new, soft voice in his home. It originated from a raven haired man with pointed ears that seemed to curl in on himself slightly as Mikumo looked at him.
“But, Tamaki! Mikumo surely slept enough already!” Kouta whined as green eyes turned to the other occupants in his camper home. Next to Tamaki sat a blond with blue eyes and diamond shaped pupils who looked very famili– Lemillion.
Tamaki started to counter Kouta, “And whatever happ–” Mikumo didn’t listen, though. He blinked.
He didn’t teleport far away, just to his balcony positioned above his home. He needed a moment to process fucking Lemillion, the hero that could stand against All For One and live to tell the tale. Alas, he didn’t get that moment as a high pitch scream sounded next to him, and he screamed in shock with them.
A girl around his age with pink skin and hair with yellow antlers stared at him with yellow eyes surrounded by black sclera. “You!” The only reason he didn’t immediately teleport to the nearest rooftop instead was how excited she sounded to see him. It was confusing.
“H-Huh? Me?”
“Yes, you! You’ve been sleeping for so long! Had a nice nap?”
“Uh, I guess?” That was the second time someone brought up how long he apparently had been sleeping. “Has it really been days?”
“Yeah, it has. If you don’t mind me asking, what happened? We’ve heard parts of it from the people in New Musutafu and from Kouta. Mostly about how you took out a giant dog noumu by yourself, that’s so cool!”
“Thanks?” He was considering if he would really bring up and explain All for One to her despite being a stranger or not when his musings were interrupted by a large explosion further down the shore. Probably for the best, he should tell Kouta first out of anyone, or at least have him be present.
He initiated Nyoom to begin the sprint to investigate what went off when several more explosions rang out from the air. A small speck became visible in the sky as explosions propelled it swiftly through the air. Mikumo knew that quirk, he had theorized that flight could one day be possible if the user dared to try. Kacchan.
“Kacchan?” Damn, he spoke out loud? Fuck, was he even ready to confront the explosive blond? Actually, just what were these last few minutes?! Maybe he’s still asleep and dreaming. That made more sense than this fever dream. “It’s not a dream, silly!”
Oh come on, let him dream. Kacchan landed roughly on the deck, barking out, “Oi.” in greeting. Emerald green met ruby red. He didn’t have any words for the blond, despite longing to see him again. He had avoided looking for him, except that one time Kacchan gave him his name back, out of fear. The explosive teen cocked his head slightly back and to the side, “What happened to you, Izuku?”
Izuku, he could be Izuku at this moment with his old best friend standing by his side calling him by his name instead of Deku, instead of useless, stilled further as his sight blurred. He only had one answer, “So– so much, Kacchan.” His feet moved on their own as he wrapped himself around his brother in all but blood and cried for the first time in a long time.
Later, as the sun hung low above the sea, he tells of the day his notebook was burned four years ago. Drowning as sentient sludge taunted him, All Might saving his life, the hero telling him he could never be a hero too. Falling into the abyss of quirk science, receiving an offer to be an assistant, his mother’s death within an afternoon shortly after, and his acceptance for the position within the silence of the apartment.
Recounts how kind the doctor had been, giving him anything he asked for, making him feel useful, all in exchange for following his directions, his orders. When he failed, he described the isolation of a white room and the kindness afterward. How things stayed the same until the new year, helping to set up Adonis. Of the betrayal, as the doctor drugged him, saying that he was the perfect test subject to make sure Adonis would work.
Recounts his fuzzy, broken memories at the time and a compelling sense to follow the doctor’s every word. Being forced to use his new, artificial quirk until he fell over from the pain. Waking up in a blood stained arena, forced to fight for the first time. It wasn’t the last fight in that arena. His first kill as he stabbed a noumu through the brain sometime in the months afterward.
Recounts the day of the Jaku Hospital Raid. As the walls cracked around them and the hospital crashed down. Losing his home in the wake of oppressive dust. Of saving two heroes while leaving Garaki to surrender to a fate of his own making. Technically, the first time he killed someone. Of Eraserhead’s offer and his decision to leave them behind, to wander.
Mikumo didn’t tell Kacchan everything. He left a lot unsaid. After a while, as the sun began to properly set against the horizon, the young white haired man collected ingredients for a nice dinner from his gardens. The group would stay for a few weeks at most. It would be his decision to go with them or stay here at the end of it.
They still didn’t know the full extent of what he could do, though. They didn’t fully know what he was. He was still too much of a coward to tell them, despite his confidence in himself. If he truly wanted to go, he would need to tell them the truth of what he was first.
The people who lived within his protection zone called him a demon. It was the truth of what he was after the doctor’s experiment on him. He was, truly, a demon. One with the exact same quirk as the Demon King. Even so, all the yokai were called demons, even the good spirited ones. Ones like the Tengu, a symbol of protection within the legends told by the older generations.
It was only a few days later, everyone was out on the beach as the sun shone brightly overhead. Kouta practiced with his quirk along the shore while Mikumo sat nearby, Kacchan sitting next to him. Ashido and Kirishima chased Toogata while Amajiki hid in the shade of Mikumo’s camper home.
“Hey, Kouta, catch!” Mikumo threw a strawberry to the boy as he continued eating the fruit himself. Alas, in his inattention, he bit his lip again. The longer canines from Fangs were starting to get on his nerves. The area around the cut seemed to buzz as it knit itself back together. Praised be Regeneration, Lesser Healing could never.
He had been tempted to test out his new quirks, especially the ice quirk. Elemental quirks always seemed to be the most freeing, allowing the user to reshape their limitations. The downside was how they were more prone to react to the user’s emotions. Quirk accident rates among elemental users had always been among the highest before The Fall.
Boreas had used it to grow spikes made of ice and cool the surrounding air. When it tried to bite him, its breath had been freezing. It was likely he could use it to create a frost breath-like attack, similar to his father’s fire breath. Now, that would be cool!
“Oi, what are you going on about?”
“Ah! I was mumbling? I thought I quit that years ago. Sorry.”
Red eyes stared at him, “Tch,” before he turned back to the ocean. “I didn’t tell you to stop.”
“O-oh…” Wait. Mikumo stared incredulously at the blond. Part of him knew Kacchan could have changed a lot in the last four years too but, “What?!” He actually wanted to hear his quirk analysis thoughts?
Kacchan sighed, “Look, I’m sorry for the shitty way I treated you before. My reasons for acting that way do not excuse my actions. I was a fucking idiot. So yeah, what are you whispering about over there, fucking nerd?”
Damn. He was caught. With as much innocence as he could muster, he responded with, “Nothing?”
“Oh come on! We both know that's a shitty lie!” barked the explosive teen with no bite. “I thought I heard something about Uncle Hisashi.”
“Yeah… Okay, the noumu I fought was code-named Boreas. It had an ice quirk and I think it could have done something similar to Dad’s quirk with ice!” He paused, thinking it over before continuing, “Good thing it didn’t, but imagine!”
“Of course, only you would think of a way to make something that almost killed you scarier.”
“Hey, I had it under control!”
“Passing out after the fight is not under control.”
“That only happened because I used my trump card.” Mikumo smiled mischievously.
“Oh yeah? What was it?”
Hook, line, and sinker. “Wouldn’t you like to know, explosion boy!”
Mikumo soon found himself using Nyoom as explosions sounded behind him. Both of them were laughing along the shoreline. He had missed this. He had missed his brother in all but blood standing by his side.
Although, later, he couldn’t help but ask the blond, “Are you sure that you don’t only care because I have a quirk now?”
“What? No, fuck no. Younger me was just an asshole, okay?”
“... Yeah, okay.”
This had been a mistake. Mikumo was regretting all of his life choices that led him to this moment. He had pulled out the rail gun to show everyone else since Kouta brought it up. The wire coil rails tore themselves apart as a round tried to shoot down the electrified barrel. The heat and pressure created forces similar to an explosion.
He always had known this was a possibility.
Thankfully, everyone else had kept their distance due to the output of Taser being very dangerous at high levels. They apparently had a friend with an electric quirk that would discharge it in large area blasts.
His arms hurt like hell. Burns ran up to almost his elbow, while small bits of metal and wire seemed to dig into his skin. Someone was screaming. It was Kouta. “Hey. Hey, Kouta. I’m fine. I’m going to be fine. I heal fast, remember?”
The boy only stared as the burns slowly knitted back to unmarred skin while Mikumo worked to pick the scrap out of his arms. “See?”
Disbelief and a slight bit of the panic from before bled into his tone, “You didn’t heal that fast before!”
Damn. “Ah, yeah… It’s a new development… But, I’m fine. That's what matters, right?”
Alas, he could never hide anything from Kacchan. “What do you fucking mean, a new development?! You’re still experiencing aftereffects from the experimentation that fuck face did to you? Why didn’t you say so?”
“I- This isn’t from that! I’m fine!”
“You always insist that you’re fine, even when you aren’t! Stop that!”
“I-” Red eyes seemed to plead with him, he sighed. “Okay. Before fighting the giant dog noumu, I only had Lesser Healing. It slightly boosted my natural healing rate, allowing me to recover faster. Since then, I’ve had Regeneration. True regeneration, that reverses most of the damage, if not all of it.”
Amajiki spoke up, “So the quirk got an upgrade?”
It would be so easy to say yes, but Mikumo needed to explain this, didn’t he? He found himself wanting to go with them more and more as he spent time with all of them. He had to reveal the truth of what he could do eventually. He wanted to, despite the anxiety rolling within his chest. “No.”
Toogata spoke up, “A new quirk?”
Mikumo paused for only a moment, “Yes.” He was doing this. “The doctor used me as a test for one quirk to make sure a project called Adonis would even work by using a copy of the quirk later given to Shigaraki Tomura.”
He activated his quirk, allowing cyan and black energy to swirl around him in the air. “My quirk is called All for One. The ability to give and take quirks. The exact same quirk used by All For One and Shigaraki. I couldn’t defeat Boreas with the quirks I had, so I took all of its quirks to severely weaken it, if not outright kill it. Regeneration was one of them.”
Toogata seemed to stare at him critically, that was fine, while Kacchan muttered, “Holy shit.” Amajiki leaned against the bright blond, Kouta looked like he was having a realization about something, and Kirishima looked unsure.
Ashido cut through the slightly awkward silence that followed and draped herself over his shoulders, startling him to drop his hold on All for One, “That’s so cool! How many quirks do you have then?”
“Uh, eleven? Twelve if you count All for One itself. Boreas had five.”
“That’s so manly!”
“Thank you?”
“Oi, nerd.” The explosive blond smiled mischievously, “Does that mean you were trying to figure out that ice quirk for yourself the other day?”
That's how Mikumo found himself running with Nyoom across the ocean as the surface of the water below him turned to ice with Freeze. The sun set to the west, bathing everything in a glimmering gold. Explosions sounded in the air behind him as he initiated Blink and Giant, falling into the sea from high above, splashing the blond and causing him to fall in too.
Their laughter rang across the water, where the blue star shaped eyes of the ninth holder of One for All watched, unsure of this new development. Mikumo could be a fantastic ally to have against All For One, but he could just as easily be an unwilling enemy. Shigaraki Tomura had his mind and body overtaken by the ancient evil. Was Mikumo in danger of that as well?
Hopefully they would never see the day when they have to fight two All for One holders again.
Shouta continued walking through the tunnel as his communicator buzzed, he could look at that later. Nedzu sat on his shoulders as he tapped away rapidly on a tablet. The only thing Shouta could make out from the mustelid was that he was tracking something big. Best to let him work uninterrupted.
His communicator buzzed again, he tried to ignore it once more. It was likely just Hizashi spamming him with pictures of Eri, again. At least that was the plan before Nedzu tapped him, “You should answer that.”
Never one to outright disobey the highly intelligent rat, the man finally looked at his messages. It was Amajiki Tamaki, “Shit.” Nedzu read the incoming messages with him over his shoulder. Not like he could stop the creature.
‘We have been camping out with the noumu identified as Yami for the past two weeks. He goes by the name Mikumo. To our surprise, we also found Izumi Kouta living with him. As suggested, he is quite friendly and doesn’t follow the same orders given to other noumu.’
‘I’m finally making this update due to new critical information. Mikumo was never created to be like the other noumu. His multiple quirks come from one quirk, the All for One quirk.’
‘Bakugou, Kirishima, and Ashido have managed to maintain positive relations with Mikumo post his reveal of his true abilities. How should we proceed?’
Nedzu chittered beside his ear, “This is most interesting, another All for One holder. One that doesn’t follow the man himself, at that! Tell him to bring Mikumo back here if he can. Peacefully, we don’t need another powerful enemy.”
“You didn’t know this beforehand?”
“Nope! It’s impossible to know everything, Shouta-kun! Mikumo is either very skilled at only showing what he wants others to know, or possibly neglected to use his real quirk! At the moment, I lean towards the latter being the most likely option, but be ready in case he truly is a master at deception.”
Shouta blinked, “Is this wise?”
The stoat only smiled ferally, “Sometimes large risks have the largest rewards. This is a calculated risk that I’m willing to make. We need every advantage we can get against All For One.”
Tamaki placed his communicator back in his backpack. Mikumo was curled up asleep on the floor while Bakugou, Kirishima, and Ashido took over his bed. Kouta slept on top of the noumu, probably feeling better after watching the white haired man mess around with Bakugou and the others earlier in the day.
He hadn’t fully forgotten that Mikumo could be a threat, but it had been easy to overlook his classification as a noumu when the guy had been nothing but friendly and Mirio himself had multiple quirks. Knowing that he held All for One shouldn’t have changed that, but it did. He could see it in Mirio too. They had spent so long being chased by All For One in a fucked up game of hide and seek.
Neither of them could overlook the white hair, star shaped eyes, and black dots in his palms after knowing. Really, they should have noticed the similarities sooner. Tamaki could only guess that their minds didn’t even want to consider having to face another All For One. At least Aizawa had told them to try recruiting this one to their fight against the other.
Tamaki sighed and stood up from the small dining area Mikumo had within his camper home, walking out under the night sky. Mirio was still looking out over the ocean as it reflected the moonlight. “Hey, I let Aizawa and Nedzu know of the situation. They said to recruit Mikumo.”
Mirio stayed silent for a few minutes as Tamaki sat down beside him in the sand. “I’m worried for him.” Tamaki hummed in questioning. “Mikumo. I’m worried about what All For One will do if he finds him. I’m worried about whether the noumu programming is still within his mind, or if that man could take over his body like he did Shigaraki. Is it really safe for anyone if we take him with us?”
“Nedzu surely thought of this when making the decision, all we can do is trust the Rat God.”
“... Yeah.”
When they had asked Mikumo to come with them back to the resistance led by Nedzu, he had quickly agreed. It hadn’t taken him long to collect small things he kept around his home within Pocket. The group had quickly swung by Inko’s grave to pay their final respects, likely the last time for a long while. After that, Mikumo had insisted on giving the settlement a heads-up that he was leaving.
The people had refused to listen to him, like always, so Kirishima had stepped up to tell them the basics of the situation. Some of the people had quickly turned around, approaching Mikumo for the first time ever, and begged him to stay. Kouta quickly shouted at them for only wanting the man around for taking out the noumu. They didn’t care about him otherwise, and, well, it was true.
They had been making good time. It was barely noon as they stopped near Tatooin Station to eat a small lunch that Mikumo prepared before leaving. “Hey, Kacchan, Aldera should be nearby. Want to burn it down?”
“You want to commit arson?”
“Towards Aldera? Always.”
Kirishima asked, “What’s Aldera?”
“Our shitty junior high. They treated Izuku like shit and never corrected my own fucked up behavior.” Kacchan scoffed.
“... Ah. Let’s do it then!” The brothers couldn’t help but laugh at his hesitant over enthusiasm to destroy their old school.
Toogata, their de facto leader on the journey to a ‘mouse hole’, only sighed, “Once we’re done eating.”
Only a few minutes later, Mikumo felt a shift in the air. A gut instinct honed by months of hunting and fighting creatures and villains, protecting his small corner of the world. Something was coming. Something was trying to hunt him.
The air seemed to chill as they all slowly paused from eating their meals. Toogata and Amajiki seemed to slowly shift into fighting positions while the others froze, waiting for the invisible shoe to drop. Mikumo… Mikumo wasn’t even daring to breathe.
A deep voice like honey and knives weaved through the air like silk, purring in a low tone, “Ah, Toogata-kun…” He could already see the smile that man always possessed in his mind.
Mikumo blinked.
Katsuki couldn’t believe it when Izu- Mikumo, damn it, disappeared in a flicker of shadows at the edge of his vision. That damned nerd always ran, he just couldn’t believe he would leave others behind in danger for once. Dread began to pool in his gut, Mikumo had been– No, is a noumu. Izuku had his mind messed with until he wouldn’t even acknowledge his own name was still his. He saw himself as someone else. Something else.
He wasn’t ready to face his own family on the battlefield. He wasn’t ready to watch Izuku mindlessly follow commands as if he wasn’t a person. Katsuki wasn’t a religious man, but he inwardly prayed and hoped that his newfound deepest fears weren’t about to ring true. After all, a noumu with a dozen quirks that only cared for destruction with the nerd’s intellect? They would never stand a chance.
A man with white hair and black holes in his palms stepped out onto the street. His pupils were star shaped, like diamonds, surrounded by white irises. A scar across one side of his lip. A crisp suit that lacked any tie. The Demon King that paraded around in his new body, the body of Shigaraki Tomura.
He spoke in a friendly tone, even while the pressure of his bloodlust was palatable in the air, “I have come for my brother… again” he drawled with a hint of displeasure. “Will you surrender yet? I don’t want to have to kill any of your friends here, but I will if I must for you to get the point.”
Mirio only smiled widely, just like his predecessors. Just like the previous holders of the quirk born from the demon’s brother, One for All. He could feel them standing with him, by his side. “Over my dead body, All For One.”
The ancient evil only cocked his head to the side, “No? Very well. Maybe it’s time I upped the stakes of this chase, you’ve grown too used to the rules of the game. Good thing you brought that Beast Boy with you.” He smiled with all teeth as red and black lightning filled the surrounding air. “You seem quite attached to him after all.”
“Pinky, take Kouta and get out of here. Suneater, Dynamight, with me. Red Riot, assist where needed.” Mirio wasn’t sure if he was relieved or angry that Mikumo had left the second All For One approached. He didn’t need a wild card on the field, but at the same time, the extra firepower would have been appreciated.
“My, quite a plan.” The demon flicked a finger, sending a massive gust crashing into a building near where Ashido was running. The girl quickly picked up Kouta, jumping to skate along on acid that she sprayed onto the street below her at a fast pace. Just narrowly outrunning the building crashing down into the street behind her. “Ah, how unfortunate. That would have been a two for one deal!”
Pale yellow and white lightning cloaked Mirio as One for All flooded into his veins. He leapt towards the man, aiming to kick him in the face before using Permeation to feint the attack as a hand came up to catch him. He descended into the ground, blind and deaf, at home, before becoming tangible and shooting into the sky.
All For One had barely turned to face him as he used a flick to buffet the man and launch his teammates into the sky. Bakugou immediately ignited his palms in flight as Tamaki grew wings on his back to catch the air. He watched as Bakugou let off a blast of Howitzer Impact on the man, only barely burning him before regeneration undid the damage.
The explosive blond continued the barrage of explosions as Red Riot ran in front, allowing the explosion to blast him like a cannonball through All For One as Tamaki swooped down through the air. Tentacles sprouted from his fingers, and twin scorpion tails twisted from his back. Scales and shells covered him in pseudo armor, nearly as tough as Kirishima’s Hardening.
Mirio landed and raced up to All For One while he was distracted with the three of them, punching as hard as he could before twisting into a kick, managing to launch the man into the side of a building. Rubble rained down as the demon began to laugh. “And here I was thinking you would be boring! Good show, but it’s not enough!”
He disappeared only to reappear behind Tamaki a few seconds later, “I did mention consequences for your continued resistance, yes? I’ll be generous, your last chance. Give me Yoichi, or I’ll take this friend of yours from you, too.” Jagged red and black fingers wrapped around Tamaki’s throat. Mirio froze.
“Ah, there we are. Now, give me One for All and I’ll let him go. Sounds like a good deal, yes?” The vestiges were screaming at the edges of his mind. He wasn’t fully ready for the final fight. He was still missing one quirk from reaching full quirk singularity. Gearshift. Did he play his hand, reveal his cards, for the chance to save Tamaki?
He didn’t have to choose as a white blur slammed into the Demon King. Cyan and black wisps of energy floating through the air as a few white feathers fell in its wake. Black and red ribbons reached out to join it. A dizzying dance as colors twisted around each other and the energy hummed with an unnatural reverberation in the air.
The ruined high rises of Musutafu stretched into the dim cyan and black void surrounding the teen’s dreamscape. A kaleidoscope of color spun around the event horizon of All for One. The miniature spiral galaxy hung lowly over the city, haloed by the cyan light.
Mikumo stood at the edge of the shoreline of his beach. His wings missing and his legs straight as toes rather than claws dug into the sand. This was his true form, how he looked when All for One was the only quirk he had.
Pitch black water slowly lapped at the shore, eating away at the sand. Countless colors flashed within the suffocating depths. An eclipse sat along the sea’s horizon with a crimson corona.
Bathed in the sinister light, a tall man slowly stood up on the oily water, barely leaving a ripple on the surface. It was the true form of All For One, the body Mikumo had only briefly seen before the man stole Shigaraki’s.
“What the fuck?” Pearly white met emerald green, “Yoichi?” The man’s eyes then flicked up to the sky above them, taking in the spiral of color. “No…” His gaze hardened back on Mikumo, “Who the fuck are you?”
Shoving his anxiety down, Mikumo channeled all his memories of All For One in his mind into mimicking the man. He let out a low, dangerous yet friendly chuckle as he smiled widely, “Your worst nightmare.” The black hole in the sky behind him let off a low hum as gravity shifted. The void’s cyan tinge brightened like a brilliant nebula backdrop. Stars of color previously drowning in the depths of the black ocean began to slowly rise up into the sky around the man.
“Ah, I see now.” The man smiled back with all teeth. “My, how fascinating. Despite having the same quirk, you have a vastly different landscape for it in your mind. It seems you have truly made my quirk your own. Congratulations, Yami. Or should I say Midoriya-kun?”
Mikumo didn’t dare to grace the man with any type of reaction. He didn’t feel the need to anyway. He knew who and what he was, even then, All For One didn’t know anything. That man didn’t know him. “And here I was thinking we could be fabulous business partners.” All For One sighed, “What a waste.”
Crimson flared along the horizon as the dreamscape stuttered once more, some of the broken high rises in the imitation of Musutafu toppled over from the earthquake. Inky black water reached up like eldritch tentacles that wrapped around most of the stars and plunged them back down within its depths. All the while, the water receded from the shoreline.
It rose up like towering walls of oil that blocked out what little light and color could be found within the sky behind the man. Within moments, it crashed down on the shore where he stood. Mikumo was drowning. He couldn’t tell which way was up or down as colors of every hue and shade spun around him in the dark water.
A voice laughed in his ear as he couldn’t breathe.
No.
His body wasn’t his own.
No.
He watched as Shigaraki was taken over by All For One.
N O .
Mikumo refused to lose himself again. To just be a tool for others as they stripped him of his own autonomy, his memories, his free will. Unbeknownst to him, the sky within the void crackled with brilliant blue, turquoise, and cyan. Chasing away the encroaching red and crimson. He continued to float within the abyss as the black hole encompassing his own singularity above it all sang. The pressure tearing the water apart as quirks collected into constellations.
He was running out of time to return to the surface. “It’ll only hurt for about forty-five seconds…” He could not panic. Focus. Another screech sounded out from the dreamscape that reverberated in his bones.
A hand grabbed his collar and pulled him out of the water. White eyes stared at him with venom, “You really are so much like my brother, stop resisting.”
Mikumo continued to cough the water out from his lungs as he responded, “Never.” The older teen would never follow another master again. He might sometimes go along with others, but that was his choice. He was his own, and he would die free.
All For One sneered before the dreamscape’s void like sky cracked with white and a piercing pain assaulted Mikumo’s mind. If he was standing, he would have staggered. However, the Demon King seemed to fall over onto his knees in pain. Despite all his experience over Mikumo, the teen realized that he had a higher resistance to their quirk drawback as he fell from the man’s grasp.
Another strike of pain rocked both of them as the sky above seemed to shatter. The last thing Mikumo felt before the darkness after blinding light was falling beneath the surface of the water once more as the black hole overhead chimed in time with his heartbeat. A kaleidoscope of color circled his event horizon.
Katsuki watched as the nerd tackled All For One. He held his breath as black and crimson and turquoise wrapped around and fought each other in the air as both All for One holders held a palm on each other's face. Elf had scrambled away from them a second after Mikumo’s arrival.
No one moved for several seconds afterward, at least, not until All For One slowly smiled as the energy in the air seemed to scream. Katsuki had enough and charged at the fucker. A precise explosion aimed right for the man’s throat rather than his face to not accidentally burn Izu- Mikumo. Both seemed to wince at the attack.
Before he could relay that the attack seemed to hurt both of them, Exhibitionist ran in with his own supercharged punch. The shockwave knocked Katsuki back as All For One was launched down the street once more. Twin screams of raw pain rose up from the white haired men as they were separated.
He ran for where Mikumo had been knocked over, while the others ran after All For One to continue the fight while the man’s guard was down. Blood dripped from Mikumo’s nose as he shakily got to his feet. “What did you do?!” The nerd never prioritized himself, always jumping head first into danger for someone else.
His face was slightly pale even as he smiled with a slightly deranged look in his tired emerald eyes, “He’s not used to the pain of All for One like I am.” Blue glowed around his feet before the nerd took off to join the others. Katsuki could only try to keep up, to try to make sure his brother didn’t do something stupid and get hurt.
Mikumo ignored the splitting headache as the glow of Nyoom trailed behind him, explosions signaling Kacchan’s presence by his side. He felt for the new quirks, there were so many. It was a risk to try using any of them, but a few seemed straightforward and hopefully didn’t have any secondary mutations. Perfect.
Cyan and black lightning set alight around Mikumo as he tried something new. The cold reduced the resistance electricity experienced as it flowed through objects and substances, and what do you know? He recently acquired an ice quirk. Cold snapped through the space between Mikumo and All For One as Taser surged. An arc of lightning flashed through the air, following the path Freeze carved for it.
Afterward, he slowed his pace and raised his arm to test a quirk that felt like wind and pressure. A burning sensation encompassed his arms as he forced the quirk to manifest for the first time. Mikumo waited for an opening as Toogata, Kirishima, and Amajiki bounced around All For One, attacking from all sides.
He saw his chance, and fired as Kacchan continued past him. A blast of concentrated pressurized air struck the man like a cannon, knocking him back once more as a quirk shimmered like a shield in front of him. White star shaped eyes widened and narrowed on Mikumo. “I will end you and your entire bloodline.”
Mikumo’s response came as easily as breathing, “Okay, boomer.” Bloodlust permeated the area and well, that’s when Mikumo realized he fucked up. Red lightning surged around the man as the pressure crackled. Lightning, ice, fire, dark energy and light, and all sorts of other types of emitter quirks spewed forth, all of it directed at Mikumo.
As he teleported out of the way, dark tendrils of energy wrapped around All For One and slammed him into the concrete below the roof Mikumo now stood on. Toogata flew through the air at a dizzying speed as smoke streamed behind him. Multiple quirks. Well, that certainly changed things.
Summoning his knives to his hand, Mikumo couldn’t help but join in as Strength, Nyoom, Taser, Freeze, Blink and Air Cannon responded to his call. He could deal with the headache later.
Mirio had felt the moment something shifted in his mind. Second gear came to mind as the world slowed down, or he sped up, it didn’t matter. This was Gearshift. This was the true singularity. Mikumo had distracted All For One, Mirio had an opening. He took it.
His thoughts sped along at a pace he couldn’t make sense of, but still had perfect clarity of what they meant within the moment. Danger Sense pinged each attack All For One had responded with. He sometimes saw flashes of Mikumo at the edges of his vision as the older teen also danced around the Demon King, making precise strikes within short openings even as exhaustion clearly dragged on him.
The blond doesn’t know how much time had passed when the demon roared, “Enough with this!” The man turned to catch Mikumo in his grip, and the teen was too slow to evade. An explosion rocked All For One to the side, but he seemed to just ignore it and focused on his main target within his hands.
A spark of light purple light flickered over Mikumo’s shoulder before a massive beam of light tore through the man, making him drop Mikumo again in surprise. Mirio sighed in relief as shadows flickered in his peripheral vision once more. He channeled a portion of the stored energy within Fa Jin into his next punch, while the white eyed man was still staggering.
Kirishima had caught him after he teleported a little too high in the air while escaping All For One. “Are you good, bro?” He could already feel blood running down his arm even as Regeneration knit the gash back together. The laser quirk had some serious backlash, lovely.
“Yeah, just getting tired and everything hurts.” That was honestly an understatement, but the others didn’t have to know that. He was fine with likely being chewed out by Kacchan for his recklessness later.
Mikumo moved to stand again, even as one leg tried to give out on him and the muscles around his ankles burned. The red head seemed to catch his nearly invisible stumble, “Bro, just rest. I’m sure Lemillion can handle the rest of the fight.”
“No, I can’t stand just sitting back for this.”
A light tap to his head. “None of that, man! Look, something we all had to learn earlier on was sometimes sitting back, retreating to fight another day, is the best way to win. Sometimes we have to lose the battle to win the war.”
Mikumo leaned against a wall as he took in Kirishima’s words. Sometimes you have to lose to win, huh? But what was the cost of losing? The cost of winning? … They already lost so much, haven't they? He wouldn’t allow them to lose here.
He was knocked out of his thoughts as Amajiki ran up to them, “Hey that energy blast you just did, can you do it again?”
“Huh? Uh, I mean, maybe?” It would hurt, but he could do it.
Amajiki smiled, hope in his eyes, “Great. I have an attack I normally combine with a friend, but that quirk might be a good substitute for hers. Just channel as much power as you can when I tell you to.” The raven haired man then took several pill-like capsules out of his pockets and swallowed them before his arm erupted into scales, feathers, and fur arranged in an amalgamation of many, many different creatures. It reminded Mikumo of some of the more grotesque noumu that had been hidden deep within the main laboratory.
The limbs and flesh arranged themselves into the shape of a giant barrel that had a similar shape to a bird’s head. “This is the Plasma Cannon. After you lend me some of that energy, I should have several shots with it before I need a reload. Red Riot, if you could help cover us, that would be great.”
One moment, Katsuki had been giving the Quirk Pinata a piece of his mind and a taste of his quirk. The next, Exhibitionist had curled one of his freaky tentacles around him and pulled him away from All For One. He was about to yell at the bastard before a giant lilac beam blasted from down the street, plowing right through the demon.
Well, damn. Okay. The white asshole managed to survive that. All For One stood as skin and muscle and bone crossed over one another as the injuries slowly, slower than before, knit together. Just like anyone else, that quirk bastard had limits. And he was reaching them.
Red eyes looked over to where Elf had unleashed the blast as Shitty Hair stood nearby and Mikumo stood near the barrel holding a hand to the side below his waist. The nerd had his thumb and index in the shape of a circle, while the other three were held out straight. Katsuki didn’t get what the sign meant.
All For One clearly got something from it though, as the man once again ignored everyone else and charged right for Mikumo, again. Katsuki cursed, what the hell did the nerd think he was doing?! He only just got him back, why was he being so damn reckless?
Tamaki stood as he readied the next shot of Plasma Cannon. Whatever quirk that provided the energy for that blast was powerful. He only used a fraction of the energy the All for One user had given him, and it packed nearly as much of a punch as Nejire’s at full power.
Mikumo said he had a plan to lure All For One into the direct line of fire and to fire at full blast. He was mildly surprised when a simple hand gesture had managed to make the ancient evil abandon Mirio and go after Mikumo instead.
That was also when it all went wrong. Within the blink of an eye, All For One’s fingers had extended in jagged red and black as they stabbed right through Mikumo’s abdomen. He heard the ancient evil’s voice as he seemed to purr, “You know, I’ve been wanting to test a quirk someone had apparently tried to use to kill me once. I wonder if it would have. You’re the perfect test subject.” His smile only widened before uttering with venom, “Disappear.”
He had a front row seat as Mikumo cried out in agonizing pain. Golden light seemed to encompass him as the surrounding air cracked. Tendrils of the gold swirled around as particles of white flaked off of the teen. It barely lasted a second, it felt like hours, but the sound of thunder boomed as Mikumo vanished in a flash of golden lightning.
“Ah, I should have just opened with that. It would have saved me the trouble of dealing with that nuisance.” Bakugou slammed into All For One only a moment later as tears began to stream down his cheeks.
“How dare you! I’ll kill you!” The ground shook as the red eyed blond let loose the largest explosion Tamaki had ever seen from the teen. Mirio joined in with new-found fury as Blackwhip twisted in the air, before impaling through the white haired man in an imitation of what he had done to Mikumo.
Their assault continued for seconds or minutes, he wasn’t sure, still in shock over how quickly the young All for One user had been taken out when the Demon King no longer deemed to play nice. Either way, Tamaki was still present enough to see the signal from Mirio to fire.
Unleashing the full power of what was left of Mikumo’s quirk, even he was blown back in the shockwave. Buildings crumbled around them and the road cracked from the pressure. Nothing was left of All For One when the dust settled.
Months had passed. Without All For One, the country was able to slowly start to recover under Nedzu’s guidance. Katsuki walked along the ruined streets of Musutafu as an early fall chill greeted him. Tatooin Station was still in shambles from the fight. The fight where they finally won against All For One. The fight where he lost his brother. He continued walking.
He came across the small town built within the shadow of a city, New Musutafu. The people there were thriving. Asking about the Tengu, they told him the tale of a great protector. It fit. He was tempted to tell them that the person they called the Tengu had helped take down the Demon King, but he didn’t feel like answering questions about the death of his brother right now.
Sunlight glistened on the surface of the water as it lapped against the shore of Takoba Beach. A camper sat out on the sand while plants grew in disarray around it. Abandoned. He had talked with Nedzu about building a public garden on or around Takoba. The rodent had quite liked the idea.
Continuing on, he walked through the gates of a cemetery. Traveling across a path that he knew like the back of his own hand, he soon found himself in front of a grave labeled Midoriya Inko. This was the first time he came back since the fight. A cherry blossom continued to reach for the sky nearby, as flowers still dotted the ground.
Katsuki had brought a small stone he had carved himself. It wasn’t much, but it would do for now until Musutafu was rebuilt in the future. The name Midoriya Izuku Mikumo stared back at him. Maybe wherever his brother was, he could finally rest. Life had been hard on him, Katsuki hadn’t helped.
He could only be grateful the nerd loved others too much. That he had forgiven him in the short time they had together again. That they had even found each other after the all bullshit thrown at them. The shit Izuku had dealt with even before The Fall. He deserved all the love anyone could give him, and Katsuki would make sure the world knew that Midoriya Izuku Mikumo had been a hero in the end.
Until time itself falls away
And this Light,
Your Light,
Flings itself out into a parallel universe
Where the only thing you Know
And the only thing you Are
Is Love.
Pain encompassed his entire being. Tiredness hung onto him like a weighted blanket. Even with the desire to just rest, he opened his eyes.
He saw countless stars in the sky. No, all around him. Golden light surrounded him. Twisting in the air, crackling, and flaking like stardust off of him. He was just another star in the sky. He was floating along with them. Wait, no, he…
H
e
w
a
s
f
a
l
l
i
n
g
.
Notes:
We’re here in downtown Musutafu with the latest breaking news! Reports say a flash of golden lighting struck in the middle of the street near Tatooin Station. Left in the wake of rolling thunder was a white haired man passed out in the street.
The man was reported to be looking quite injured and woke up only a few moments later looking very disorientated. Before heroes could arrive to the scene, the young man fled from the area.
If you have any more information about this incident or about the suspect, please reach out to Musutafu Police Department. Tamakawa Wakana, Musutafu, Shizuoka.
THATS RIGHT BAYBEEE it was a time travel fic all along.
If that’s not your jam then this can end as MCD if you want and ignore the scene above. :DNgl I had a few tears trying to peak through as I finished writing Katsuki’s last scene.
And I know I ended that fight kinda fast... I wanted to post this today and didn't have any ideas to smooth it out. Bet it was still epic tho, huh? :)AAAAAAA so college begins tomorrow. This should be my last year, joy.
Also, I have already helped write for a portion of In Another’s Footsteps while writing this chapter! Originally joined it to just help beta chapters and format with HTML. Literally got dragged over for Todoroki’s chapter to speedrun that for posting soon and decided to claim one scene to help out lmao
I wrote 850 words that eveningThank you all for reading and leaving kudos, comments, bookmarks, all of it! It made me so happy to see others enjoying something I created.
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