Interloper

Seven million, that was the number of people that had died in New York City. Seven million lives, of men, women and children, all snuffed out in a matter of a few short minutes. At first no one knew who was responsible for the attack, so pointing fingers at the nations involved in the current world war. And for a moment it looked like nuclear war was about to break out into the largest single act of destruction in a day since the dropping of the first atomic bombs. Nuclear fever quickly passed however, as not long after the bombing those responsible made themselves known. It began with an internet broadcast, one that quickly overtook every public channel and station as sleeper cells around the globe forcibly took control of communication centers and all began broadcasting the same thing. Flect-turn. “My fellow man. For the past century, this world has been approaching an increasingly near precipice. With the advent of quirks humanity’s blood was poisoned, doomed to cause its destruction by its very own hand. And for too long the nations of the world have stood by and done nothing to stop the inevitable! That ends today. Humarise will fulfill its purpose and protect the humans that are labeled as powerless by those afflicted with the wicked disease known as ‘quirks.’ To that end, we have developed devices that will bring about the salvation we have in mind. Ones that will cleanse the world in an overwhelmingly decisive river of blood. New York City served as its proving ground, and by all measures it was a complete success.” With one hand Flect-turn raised what looked like a tattered American flag. In reality, it was the cape of the USA’s number one Hero. Star and Stripe. The American government had been tipped off to the gas bombs some time before their detonation, it was the reason that New York City was so suddenly locked down. Unsure of how long they had to find the bombs, they flooded the city with Heroes and soldiers to look for them. Star was the only one to find any of the bombs. Upon seeing that the timer was nearly finished she flew the bomb out into the harbor to avoid having it explode inside the city, but it was a futile gesture. There were three bombs in the city, meaning that her near instant death to the one bomb she managed to get rid of was completely pointless. “Soon the bombs we have planted will be activated in over five hundred major cities across the world, containing enough gas to contaminate the winds of the Earth and completely spread across the world. When will they be activated? In five hours.” He put down the cape, but still kept it in view of the camera. “However, Humarise is not without its mercy. As an act of faith, we will show you in which cities the bombs are located. For those that do not believe in the same salvation that we do, you will have some chance to save your lives.” The image of Flect-turn disappeared and was replaced with a map of the world, red dots beginning to rapidly appear on every country across the globe. Capital cities, major population centers, economic hubs, cities of cultural significance and more. Anything that held even the slightest amount of importance had a target painted on its back. “But know this: Even if you do manage to avoid our attempts to save humanity from itself, your reckoning will still come in time. No one will be able to hide from the eyes of our salvation.” The broadcast then cut off, returning to the regularly scheduled broadcasts. Anything that was being broadcast with a live audience and host was left completely silent, with anyone present at the shows abandoning their job to run for their lives.

After Aurdel finished the repairs of his neural lace, he had moved to the final stages of his plan and raised the UNSC Chariot of Fire from the pacific. Taking it back to Japan. There he used it to completely decimate the Chinese forces that remained on the islands, battering them into submission with total control of aerial supremacy over the country and barrages of missiles and gunfire against the forces on land. But there he also learned, from a neural copy of himself, that Midoriya and Rumi had gone on a mission deep into enemy territory to rescue one person. Appalled, he’d taken one of the Longswords in the hangar of the ship and flown it straight to the mountains to rescue them. Doing so he barely managed to save them, stopping a squadron of Chinese jets from bombing them into dust at the last second. After that he flew them back to Japan and healed their injuries, only to be faced with this new threat. “What are we supposed to do?” Midoriya asked, staring at the screen in the medical bay that was playing the message. Rumi, Bakugo and Issac were also gathered there, with Aurdel having dropped off Jiro and Hagakure back at UA. “They’re… He’s threatening the entire world, and he has the destructive capability to actually back his words up.”

Aurdel remained silent, staring at the blank screen.

“There’s only one thing anyone can do, and that’s to try and get rid of the bombs,” Bakugo said.

“I don’t think that’s feasible. According to them they have five hundred bombs, scattered all over the planet. Even with an army of people it would be impossible to find and neutralize them all in five hours.”

“Possible or not, I’m not going down without a fight!” Mirko proclaimed. “This rabbit has things to fight for, and until I decide that my time is up I’m not going to give in.”

Aurdel finally spoke. “They’re bluffing, they don’t actually have five hundred bombs. Not that it matters. They’ll still have enough to destroy the most important cities and we won’t be able to find them all.”

“Then what are you saying that we do?” Issac asked, he and the other soldiers from the mountains having stuck around aboard the ship.

“I seriously doubt that Humarise’s plan is to have each bomb detonate with a separate trigger. Instead, they’re going to detonate them all using a long range transmitter in Otheon. We need to go there, find the transmitter and disable it before it can be used.”

“You make it sound way easier than it actually is. We’d still have to search across an entire country, all the while we’ll be fighting an army of sleeper cell units and defectors from other countries. Even if this ship can do a hell of a lot, it’s not omnipotent.”

“I know, that’s why I’m going to ask for help. It’ll be one of the largest collaborative efforts the world has ever seen.”

Issac scoffed, “You really think you can get everyone to throw down their weapons and play nice? After so many people have died?”

“Whenever an enemy comes to threaten the order of the world, the world unites and fights back against it. And now that billions of lives are at stake in every country, the world will unite again. And if they can’t accept it from Flect-turn’s mouth, then they will from mine.”

“You’re going to try and smooth talk them?”

“I have some past experience with speeches, so you could say that I have a way with words.”

“Well, no matter the results I’m in. I live on this planet just like everyone else, so I’ll be damned before I let some asshole kill everyone on it.”

“Same here! I’ll kick that guy's ass personally if I have to!” Bakugo shouted.

“What about things at home?” Midoriya asked.

“If we aren’t able to handle the situation in Otheon, there won’t be a home to go back to. We’ll just have to rely on those who’re going to stay behind to keep people from panicking.”

“I’m sure we can count on them.”

“Yeah,” Aurdel nodded, “Anyways. Midoriya, do you mind if I have a chance to speak with you privately?”

“Uh… sure.”

“Don’t take too long,” Mirko said, hopping towards the door. “Before I do anything I’m going to need a new leg.”

“You’ll get your leg, there’s just something I have to discuss first.”

“I’ll be waiting.” The others walked out of the room, leaving Aurdel and Midoriya alone.

He took a deep breath, “Well, first let’s get out with the obvious. How much do the others know about One For All?”

It took Midoriya a moment to adjust to the change in conversation topic, “The Chinese Colonel didn’t let slip much else other than that he knew my name and the fact that I was the ninth user. But I did bring up All For One’s name when I was questioning him, meaning they’ve probably made the connection between the two quirks.”

“And they haven’t asked you any questions about it?”

“Not yet.”

He shook his head, “I suppose it was only a matter of time before we ran into some of All For One’s associates overseas, it was how he planned to ensure his takeover went smoothly.”

“What do we tell the others?”

“We’ll decide that after we finish this mission. Speaking of which…”

“If you’re telling me not to go then-“

He held up a hand, Midoriya stopped. “Look, I already know I can’t convince you not to go. I’d have an easier time holding up the sky.”

“Would you give up on something this important just because someone told you to?”

“No, I wouldn’t. But that’s why I want to ensure that you come out alive. That’s why I have two things for you, really.”

“What are they?”

“Well, the first… it really has to do with your body.” Aurdel sat down on one of the tables, “I heard and saw the initial damage your body has taken from constant use of One For All, and I can see now how it has only gotten worse with time. Your constant deployment for the past few weeks hasn’t helped, nor did the strenuous training I put you through give your body enough time to truly heal.”

“There’s nothing wrong with-“

“Let me finish,” he stopped Midoriya again, “When I took Overhaul and knew what I had thought, it was one of the first thoughts that went through my head. At the same time I had serious reservations because of my own experience with my body being tampered with, but with time I’ve decided that it’s completely necessary. I’m going to improve your body.”

“Improve my body?”

“I went through augmentations to strengthen my bones, grow and increase muscle density to peak condition, improve blood flow, increase adrenaline production… Everything that could be done was done. Now I don’t have all the chemicals or materials to give you the same results. But I do have enough supplies to create the materials needed to improve you body, and make it consistently capable of handling One For All at one hundred percent. You wouldn’t ever have to worry about destroying your own body ever again.”

Midoriya was silent for a moment, “I… I don’t know.” He shook his head, “This doesn’t sound right, it reminds me of Nomu. They were engineered so they could maximize their strength.”

“I’m aware of how it sounds, but if easier access to your power is what’s needed then I’m willing to do it. Of course, it’s the one option I’m more confident in.”

“What’s the other?”

“In its most basic form, One For All is the granting of power. The antithesis of All For One, the taking of power. Both quirks are connected one way or another. So if I were to give you All For One, and the two were to combine…”

“I can’t do that,” he shook his head, “I don’t think it’s a good ideas. Not just because it was originally All For One’s, but because you’ve been using it as your own. The moment you understand what you and you started using it for better, for good. I don’t want to be the one to take that away.”

“With or without All For One, or really any quirk, I can and will still do my job. That’s just how I operate, no matter what the situation.”

He sighed, “I’m not sure anyone will ever completely understand you.”

“If anyone ever does understand me completely, I’d be more concerned for them than for myself.”

Despite what some may think, Aurdel was no leader. Or at the very least, a leader is something he never wanted to be. It just wasn’t in his blood. Throughout his training with the other Spartans he would follow the actions of his team, and when working with the other teams he would just quietly settle into place and only voice his concern when serious errors were made. However once he was commissioned into the navy he was given the mantle of leadership, several hundred lives under his direct care that he was to see through battle and battle. In all fairness to himself he actually did so, though he often did it in a way that caused serious levels of controversy. That was because during that time in the Navy he held the personal belief that any plan that swiftly and decisively wiped out the enemy was the one that saved the most lives. This meant using tactics and plans that the average officer candidate would strangle you to death for, as even the slightest mistake could mean that everyone involved would be dead. On one occasion that was piloting his destroyer into a group of battlecruisers, dumping his nuclear weapons in the middle of the group and then nearly burning out his engines escaping the blast range. On another occasion it mean rising tow cables to rip a corvette in half and then sling it towards the enemy line. Both examples were early in his career and nearly resulted in court martials, something that came as a result of having a then inexperienced crew at the time. He scoffed, remembering all those panels. Every time the panel would clear him, the experienced members of his crew vigorously defending him. But that was a lifetime ago. Several, if you were technical. His focus needed to be here and now. He took a deep breath and walked out in front of the camera, then nodded to his doppelgänger. Mere seconds later the switch was thrown and he was broadcasting on every signal across the planet. He gave people a few seconds to draw their attention to the screen.

“I’m sure that many people know who I am. But for those who do not know, I am going to give a reminder. I am Aurdel, the man who came to this earth from an alternate future. I have served as the pro-Hero Spartan in Japan and I have been serving as the commander in chief of Japan’s self defense forces ever since the beginning of the world war. Let me be the first to say that this war has been completely and utterly pointless.” He raised his hand and a hologram appeared, playing a video. It was one of himself, the Heroes sent to the Kunlun mountains, the surviving western soldiers, the Chinese soldiers that had defected and Zhong Tian. “In this theater, and indeed all others, the war was caused by a small number of people manipulating events to serve their own purposes. They are those who would see entire nations and people die to petty squabbles all just to satisfy their pursuit of power and pleasure. But right now that doesn’t matter. Religion, ideology, wealth, power, borders… All of those things pale in comparison to the threat the world faces together.” He took a step closer to the camera, “Look at the men and women around you, the ones sitting in the trenches opposite of you, the ones across the aisles and the ones you pass by every day. Some may be friends, some may be enemies. But all of them are, ultimately, human. They are fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, nieces and nephews, grandparents and grandchildren. They are the past generation, the current generation and the next generation all at once! And if they cannot survive there will be no past to remember, no present to live in and no future to work towards. So in good faith, I do this.” In full view of the camera he put both hands on his helmet, clicked the release and pulled it off. He then set it down on the table next to him. Aurdel could only imagine the reaction people were having after he purposefully kept his face hidden for so long. But they needed to know that he was being genuine, or else they wouldn’t support him. He tapped the table and a holographic map appeared. “In order to meet the threat that Humarise presents, I will be taking my ship along this route to Otheon.” The route appeared in the form of a red line, with occasional dots to mark points where he would slow down for a short moment. “According to the time table we’ve been afforded, by the time we arrive at Otheon there will only be around an hour and a half left before the bombs detonate. Air cover will be provided by my ship and the JASDF squadrons that have volunteered to assist in this operation. Any other aircraft that plan to join us should take off now with drop tanks or refueling tankers to make the flight, but what we need most right now is boots on the ground. Paratroopers, regular infantrymen, even Heroes. So long as you can fight I’ll readily accept your offer of help. It will then be your job to push back against Humarise’s forces, evacuate civilians from the battlefield, locate any bombs in the country and raid their headquarters. For those that cannot join us, your job will be just as important. It will be up to you to travel to the city nearest to you and search for the bombs there, then you must get those as far away from the cities as possible. Towards that point I am calling upon any and all willing civilians to help in these efforts, looking for signs of Humarise member presence and reporting them to someone who can take action. If necessary, then you are to take action yourself. But know this, anyone who tries to take advantage of this situation will be punished just as harshly as those who are responsible for what we face.” Aurdel put one hand on his helmet, then the broadcast ended.

“Do you really think this is going to work?”

He raised an eyebrow, “You’re asking yourself whether or not the plan you technically came up with will work?”

“I may be you, and you may be me, but that doesn’t mean we’re completely on the same page. Our connection got severed while you were down in the ocean, and since then we’ve been doing different things.”

“I’m aware, but you can make inferences.”

“I have been making inferences about our situation, and that’s why I’m asking. Frankly I’ve begun to think that dredging this ship out of the ocean was a mistake, it’s an even bigger one to give people who were just fighting a chance to hop on and give them a few hours to look around.”

“The rest of the world was always going to find out, it was just a matter of when and how. It’s impossible to hide something this big after all. I’m showing it to them now because it’ll be on my terms.”

“Then you’ve decided for sure to give it all to him?”

“You’re me, what do you think?” He slipped the helmet back on.

“I think that it’s a mistake. He doesn’t know how to manage any of this stuff yet, how is he going to defend himself against the rest of the world? If we-“

“I don’t plan on dying, not until I’ve managed to secure a peaceful future for him and the others. Even if I do, I think I can count on Rumi to look after him.”

“You’re involving her?”

“Don’t be a hypocrite, you already involved her when you asked her to go to the mountains.”

“I guess you’re right.”

“It doesn’t help either that you made a promise. One that was a bit…”

“Personal?”

“That’s one way to put it.”

“It was only a matter of time before something happened, we both know that. Now I don’t want to hear any complaining, since you’re the one that’ll actually get to experience it.”

He shook his head with a sigh, “You know, it’s honestly amazing that it’s only been a few weeks since we split and I can’t tell if you’re being genuine or facetious.”

The two of them laughed together. “Alright, I’ll deal with organizing everyone that comes aboard. You deal with what you need to.”

“Copy that.”

Ascension

Aurdel stepped out of the elevator into the lower hangar, looking at the men and women that surrounded him. Three and a half hours had passed and the Chariot of Fire had finally made its way to Otheon. All along their journey aircraft had been piling their way in, both transport and fighter craft. This ship that was only meant to carry a few Pelicans, a wing of Longswords and a few hundred men was now carrying approximately four squadrons of aircraft and nearly three thousand men soldiers from across the globe. Aboard were forces from Australia, New Zealand, Nepal, China, Japan, Vietnam, Australia, the Philippines, India, Pakistan, Iran, Turkey, Russia, Greece, Egypt, Serbia, Croatia, Italy, France and Portugal, with additional support coming from the US, UK, Ireland, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Ukraine, Romania, the Baltics, the Nordic countries and many others also one their way traveling independently. And they were all converging on the same point, as one coalition.

“…You know, either it’s fate or it’s just one long line of cosmic humor.”

“What is?” Midoriya asked. He stood taller now, and looked much stronger than before. It was a far cry from the image of a young boy that needed protection that he still had in his head.

“The Covenant viewed humanity as something unholy that needed to be purged, that’s why we fought and they associated us with that same imagery. But we Spartans were always a little bit different in their eyes. We charged headlong into battle against insurmountable odds, and often no matter how much we tried we could not be defeated. So out of hate, fear and respect we were given a name. ‘Demon.’”

“Demon…”

“A Demon with angels wing. When you combine that with my name, I’m not sure whether you would call all that fitting or ironic.” He stretched his back, took a deep breath and then put back on his helmet. He could see the sun out on the horizon, beginning its journey up into a new day. “Attention all air squadrons, we are above our target. Commence operation and secure air superiority over the battlefield!” The doors of the port and starboard hangars dropped open, aircraft thundering out with full afterburners. He then turned to the gathered crowd. “Ladies and gentlemen, today is a day that will be forever remembered in the history books. Not because there will be a great tragedy, but because there will be a great triumph! Today, humanity stands United. And no matter what comes after this day, nothing will ever be able to take away the proof of our greatest triumph!” The crowd cheered, spirits and weapons held high. “Now, lets go stop the end of the world!” Aurdel turned back around, broke into a sprint and then leapt out the back of the Chariot of Fire. He then looked back as he fell through the air, watching the thousands of figures leap out of the hangar.

Four of the figures closed the distance towards him, “On our right!” Midoriya shouted and Aurdel turned, wheeling his rifle around and letting a burst of bullets rip out of his rifle as one of the hostile keys blew by. The cockpit canopy shattered from the impacts, blood spraying out. “Kacchan, on our left!”

“Don’t tell me what to do! AP Machine Gun!” Bakugo scattered explosions throughout the air, creating a cloud of fire that blasted another jet out of the sky. Aurdel watched as the pilot ejected.

“Midoriya, we need a platform!”

“I’m on it!” A third aircraft closed in. This time it was an unmanned drone, one that Otheon had invested in like many other Europeans nations. It’s smoother flight characteristics made it much easier to stand on. “Smash!” Midoriya punched through the control system of the drone, blowing out the AI and forcing the engines to shut off. He then used Blackwhip on one hand to grab the jet, using the other to grab them and bring them in close.

“You know, this could have been much easier if you actually took a parachute!”

“And miss this fun?” Mirko laughed, “Not a chance!”

“You know, in some ways I think you’re more nuts than me!” He grabbed Mirko as she drifted, Midoriya kept them tied to the surface of the drone. The Chariot of Fire continued forward under the command of his copy, laying down covering fire in the air and targeting specific installations in the ground. “Midoriya, we need to slow this thing down before we hit the ground at terminal velocity. I’ll use my wings as an air break while you hold me above the drone.”

“Will this really work?!”

“Only one way to find out!”

“You know, these things are pretty soft.”

“Now’s not the time to cop a feel!” He playfully hit Mirko with one wing, then stretched them outwards. Now he could really feel the rapid cold wind passing through his wings, and odd feeling that he still wasn’t used to. And she’s enough the drone began to slow, bleeding speed.”

They passed through a layer of clouds, getting a good look of the city beneath them. Gunfire soon began passing them in the air. “How will I know when to let go?”

“Hold on…” Barrages of gunfire tore into the bottom of the fuselage, Aurdel could smell the aviation oil and fuel spilling out. “Just a little bit… Now!” Midoriya released the shattered airframe of the drone, allowing it to accelerate as they reached the threshold.

“Woah!” The drone slammed into the ground, wiping out a group of soldiers in the fireball that exploded outwards as its load of fuel and armaments exploded.

“We’ve got hostile armor down below!”

“Not for long!” Issac pulled the M41 SPNKr off his back, then leveled it against the tanks. “Suck on this you fucking wankers!” He then pulled the trigger, firing both rockets and punching their thin top armor.

“Full Cowl!” Midoriya kicked above the ground at the last second, bleeding the rest of their speed away and allowing them to land safely.

“It’s him! We can’t allow-!” One of the Humarise soldiers began to shout, raising his rifle.

“Smash!” Midoriya leapt forward, punching the man and sending the entire group around him flying.

“My turn.” Aurdel put one hand to the ground, touching the road and using Overhaul to break it apart. He then reformed the concrete and asphalt, using to crush a pair of SPAA platforms that were about to turn their guns on them.

“Luna Arc!” Mirko jumped up and came down with an axe kick, kicking straight through the engine block of an APC and sending it out of the bottom. As the soldiers rushed out the back with their weapons drawn she kicked again, flipping the vehicle end over end before flattening an unoccupied car. “Ha! This new leg is great, might even be better than my actual one.”

“I’m glad to see that you’re quick to adjust, but I’d prefer not to see you lose any more flesh and blood. At the very least try not to lose more than I have.”

“Well if that's what you’d like, then I’ll make that promise!” Aurdel moved forward and boosted Mirko, she then jumped up high and slammed down hard through another armored vehicle.

“I’ve got this!” Bakugo pushed forward as a tank rolled onto the street, boosting one of his grenade with an explosion and sending straight into the main gun. The moment it tried to fire the shell collided with the grenade and prematurely went off, flowering out the gun barrel before causing the whole magazine inside the tank to detonate. A spout of fire erupted out from the hatch.

“Come on, we need to keep up this momentum!”

Tsukauchi stood over the computer in the main room, watching the combined feed as Heroes, soldiers, police and civilians all looked for the bombs scattered across the country. With the Hero Public Safety Commission disbanded and very little government oversight due to Spartan’s handling of the situation, it was up to him and anyone else not actively searching to manage things from behind the scenes. With just how much ground needed to be covered they were absolutely strapped for manpower, as many of those that hadn’t been deployed to look for the bombs were out in the cities trying to maintain a semblance of control as public order collapsed due to fear of current events. As such, Tsukauchi had hoped that nothing else would happen that needed his attention. Hoped was certainly the right word for it. “Grrr…Tsukauchi, this is Hound Dog.”

He picked up the walkie talkie, “This is Tsukauchi, what’s the situation?”

“There’s an unknown unarmed man at the gate, he’s trying to turn himself in. He says he’s from the Shie Hassaikai and needs to speak with you.”

“The Shie Hassaikai?” He raised his head, looking at the skeleton crew he had. “Does he have any way to prove his identity?”

“I don’t know!” Hound Dog growled back, “But he says that if we don’t allow him in to speak with you, then he’s going to break in to do it. And judging by the look in his eyes he has the skills to back up his claim.”

He thought for a moment, rubbing his eyes. All of this work had been exhausting for him. “Stay at the gate, have Midnight walk him in.”

“Copy.” Tsukauchi motioned for everyone to get ready, stowing away easily accessible equipment and documents so nothing important would be lost if this was a set up. After that they retrieved their gear, arming themselves and keeping their guns at the ready. Five minutes later Midnight and the man walked in.

“It’s just like Hound Dog said. He’s unarmed and from the Shie Hassaikai,” Midnight said. “He also had this to prove it.” She tossed over a wallet, Tsukauchi caught it.

Opening the wallet he found a plaque emblazoned with the emblem of the Shie Hassaikai, one that was done in gold. “Yeah, he’s definitely one of them.”

“Now that you for sure, you must hear what I have to say.”

“Sit down first,” he motioned towards one of the chairs, then sat down in the opposing one. “Now, who are you exactly? And why exactly should I listen to what you have to say?”

“My name is Daitaian, I’m the mole inside the Shie Hassaikai. I was originally the one who tipped off the quirk destroying drug to Nighteye’s agency, I was also the one that set up the deal for Spartan to intercept and retrieve the samples from. Most recently I was the one who informed him of where to find the League of Villains.”

The sudden information caught Tsukauchi off guard. Most of what he’d just said were facts held closely to the chest by the police and government. The fact that the League had been ratted out specifically was telling, as there was only a handful of people that Spartan told what happened. Given the special emblem in his wallet this guy was someone high up in the clan, and he couldn’t imagine someone like that suddenly becoming a rat. “What exactly is going on?”

“Eri. Kai is coming here to try and take her back, and I can’t allow that to happen.”

“Trying to take Eri…? Why would you even care? The Shie Hassaikai held onto her for years and experimented on her, I don’t see why you would have a change of heart now.”

“I didn’t have a change of heart, I was always trying to get her out of his hands. It’s just until the last time there weren’t any opportunities for me to take.” Daitaian clutched his hands, “I’m related to the boss, the old one that’s still in custody.

Tsukauchi raised an eyebrow, “We already found government records for the old boss’s daughter. If you were really his son then we would have found you already.”

“No, you wouldn’t have.” He sighed, “When I was young I didn’t want any part of the family business. My father, the boss, was willing to accept it so long as I took on another identity. So I did. But in the normal world I was a complete failure. Eventually I ended up living in the gutter, meaning that when Eri ended up rewinding her father I wasn’t even considered to be given custody. By the time I cleaned up my act and returned to the clan Chisaki had already taken over, eventually allowing me to rise to a higher position than I really deserved once he figured out I was related to the boss. But then when I found out his plans with Eri… No matter how much I didn’t want to betray the organization formerly run by my father, I knew it was the only way to stop what he was doing.”

“And now?”

“I thought that I was rid of him when the Heroes put him in Tartarus, but then that escape happened and now he’s back in control of whatever parts of the clan the police failed to grab. Ever since I’ve been waiting for him to make his next big move to take him down.”

“And attacking UA to take Eri back is that big move?”

“More than that. Yes he’ll be attacking UA to take her, but he’s also having his subordinates attack prisons around the country to free their inmates. His goal is to cause as much chaos as possible to make his job as easy as possible, especially since Spartan isn’t here.”

“Damnit…” Tsukauchi scratched his chin, it was covered with stubble. He was being put in a difficult situation. “Then we need to hit him before he can gain any momentum. Midnight, which Heroes do we still have available to call up?”

“There’s only myself, Hound Dog, Eraserhead, Mic, Thirteen and Gentle.”

That wasn’t very many… “What about the Hero students?”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to let the kids get involved with the Yakuza again.”

“I don’t either, but we’re not left with much of a choice. Someone still needs to guard UA and all the civilians.”

“I suppose you’re right… We still have a few students from 1-A and 1-B.”

He turned towards Daitaian again, “Is there anything else we need to know?”

“Kai was able to restore his lost quirk with a serum he developed, so he’ll be as big of a threat as before.”

“Then it sounds even more so that we don’t have a choice…” he lowered his head, “Midnight, get them all here. We need to organize our response before it’s too late.”

Twenty five short minutes passed by, and in that time Aurdel and the others had blitzed their way across the heavily occupied streets of Otheon. So heavily in fact that not even halfway into their excursion Aurdel had already run out of ammo, instead needing to rely on the weapons he picked up from the fallen soldiers. And now here they stood at the doorsteps of Humarise’s headquarters. “Don’t allow them past us!” Another group of robed members pushed out from the front door brandishing submachine guns.

“Delaware Smash!” Midoriya unleashed a barrage of concussive blasts and sent them flying back into the building. “Let’s-!”

“Watch out!” Aurdel grabbed him by the collar and pulled him back with one hand, using his other arm to stop the others from moving forward. Less than a second later a trio of arrows bolted through the space they would have just walked into, instead lodging themselves in the asphalt courtyard. He looked up, three figures stood atop the building.

“You have good reflexes, but don’t expect to go any further. Fleet-turn’s orders were to stop you here and I fully intend to follow them all the way through.” The first was a woman dressed in a black outfit and draped in a green cape, her hand extending into a bow much like how Nagant’s arm was a rifle. The second figure was a man in a one piece uniform with a yellow steel helmet, spheres covering the knuckles of his hands. The last figure was taller than him, wearing the appearance of a demonic ogre with large horns and larger spiked bats for hands.

“Pick your targets!” They split up as the two male figures leapt down from the roof, the female archer providing covering fire as the engagement began. Aurdel raised the ground to block the arrows, only for his cover to be smashed through by the second one as the spheres he threw enlarged to the size of boulders. As a few of the boulders bounced back, the one with the demon appearance snaked them back over.

“AP Machine Gun!” Bakugo opened fire against the archer still on the roof, blasting a few arrows out of the air but primarily intending to provide suppressing fire.

“Even if you’re kids, you’re still Heroes and you’ve got to die!” Aurdel reached his hands out and touched two of the boulders as they launched towards them, shattering them into fragments before launching them back at his opponent in the form of spikes.

“Detroit Smash!” Midoriya punched the demon man, the immense power being enough to crack it's tough skin and send it flying.

“We don’t have the time to fight with you!” Aurdel shouted and distracted the man with the helmet, allowing Mirko a chance to attack from the side and kick him across the head. His helmet came cleanly only and he toppled over, unconscious.

With one down Bakugo chose to close the distance with the archer, using explosions to avoid the nearly point blank arrows coming his way. “Stun Grenade!” After closing the distance he set off a weaker explosion to blind the archer, following up with a series of other explosions to batter the woman before finishing with a right hook to knock her to the ground.

“Manchester Smash!” With a second blow Midoriya completely shattered the right club arm of the demon man, the damage being enough to transform him back into a human form with similar damage. He dropped to the ground cradling his broken arm.

Bakugo picked the archer woman up by the collar, “Now, tell us exactly where those bombs are or I’ll kill you!”

She gave a wince of pain, then looked him dead in the eyes. “For humanity’s salvation!” Unrestrained, she was able to grab one of her arrows from her boot and use it to stab Bakugo in the gut. Forcing him to drop her.

“Kacchan!” Midoriya leapt forwards to try and restrain her, but was too late. The archer had taken the arrow and stabbed herself upwards from the base of her skull, piercing all the way into her brain and killing her instantly. She flopped over dead.

“Geez, these freaks really are dedicated. They’d rather kill themselves than be captured,” Mirko commented sourly.

“Hopefully they’re not all the same way.”

“Hey Spartan!” Issac ran back out of the building, having gone inside during the fight. “I’ve been checking out all the rooms I can, but there’s jack shit here.”

“What do you mean?”

“These guys at the front door were only here to trick us into wasting our time, there’s no detonation switch or any of the bombs.”

“Damnit, we need to find out what’s going on. Fast.” Aurdel walked over to the man that Mirko had kicked unconscious, used one hand to fix the damage done to his head and then slapped him. He became conscious again almost immediately.

“What the- Woah!” Aurdel lifted him into the air, using one hand to hold both his arms behind his back. “Woah, look! I give up!”

“You’re surrendering so easily after one of your partners just killed themselves to avoid being interrogated?”

“Look, that chick was crazy! She actually believed in the stuff that Humarise was talking about, I’m only working for them because they threatened to kill me.”

“An incredulous story to say the least. But if it’s true, then would you mind explaining where everything went? The building here is abandoned.”

“There was never anything here!” The man said, squirming. “This place was just meant to serve as a distraction if the authorities ever came down on Humarise. Their actual base is hidden on an island off the coast. It’s covered in mountains with a bunch of ruins carved into the side. Flect-turns bodyguards and the transmitter to detonate the bombs are all there.”

“Did you get all that?” Aurdel spoke to the copy of himself over the comma.

“I did, I’m performing a scan now to see if there’s anything that matches his description.” They waited a few seconds in silence, “Alright, I’ve confirmed it. Heat mapping is indicating a lot of recent traffic. I’m also picking up a large power source on the island, probably what they’re using to power the transmitter.”

“How far out is it?”

“Sixty miles, I’ll launch a Longsword and board it. The subroutines I’ve set up in the Chariot of Fire should be able to handle the rest of the battle from here.”

“Load it up with additional gear and ammunition, I’m running dry.”

“Copy.”

“Hey, what about me? Aren’t you going to arrest me?”

“We’ll come back to deal with you once we’ve made sure the world hasn’t ended. Until then…” Aurdel released the man’s arms, then reeled back his right fist.

“No, wait!” Aurdel threw a single punch and knocked the man out cold, then stopped him.

“We don’t have any time to waste, come on!”

Yizdao gripped the flight stick of his aircraft tightly, staring out at the sky. “Spartan…” He muttered to himself as pushed forward, alone. Less than a day ago infiltrators had attacked his base in the Kunlin mountains. In the battle that took place Colonel Shun, the man he looked up to, was killed. He’d discovered the body while looking for any signs of his comrades, finding him buried underneath a pile of rubble and with a hole punched through his stomach. Then, as if to only make things worse, he discovered what had happened to his squadron mates. Scattered across the mountains were about a dozen or so Chinese fighters, each one bearing the same emblem. His emblem. “Spartan…” At first he didn’t know who to blame for their deaths, and for a moment he thought he would join them there in the snow.

“…This war has been completely and utterly pointless…” He listened to the broadcast on repeat as he flew towards Otheon, his anger rising every time it began again. Spartan, he was the one who had come to the mountains. He was the one that had killed the only father figure he had ever known. He was the one who had killed the only friends he had ever known. …He was the one that had destroyed the only country that he had ever known.

Yizdao looked to his sides, staring at the aircraft following himself. They were copies of the aircraft his squadron mates used, except now they were being piloted by nothing but a computer remotely linked to his own aircraft. Even in death they would be able to fight alongside him again. And this time, they would be able to take down the one man who had killed them all. He looked forwards, staring at the distant silhouette of Britain as he began drawing ever closer to Otheon. “Spartan, I’m going to kill you.”