Summary:
Set in a dystopian universe- the world is split into two groups. Shouto Todoroki tolerates living with his father and following commands to learn the truth about his missing mother. One day, while on patrol, he comes across a struggling young omega with a sick child and helps them. The omega is Izuku Midoriya, and when Shouto follows him, Izuku accidentally leads him to the rebel base. Shouto returns with an army and overthrows the secret hideout, killing one of the rebel leaders, Katsuki Bakugo, who just happens to be the unmated father of Izuku's child. Shouto, feeling guilty, keeps the dark secret from Izuku as he takes the omega and the child into his family home as a servant. If he wants to woo Izuku and sire his own child, he must gain Izuku's trust without Izuku ever knowing the truth. As time goes on, Shouto struggles with the need to tell Izuku and risk losing the omega. Izuku shows Shouto the strength, power, and religious philosophy of the downtrodden while falling in love with Shouto's constant alpha affection. Shouto can do no wrong, and the alpha is his hero on earth. Izuku wants to help Shouto's find out the truth about his mother and teach the alpha how to stand up to his tyrant father.
Notes:
***Hello Everyone! I'm back with a new multi-chapter fic!
***Warnings: Language, violence, death/character death, dark themes, abuse flashbacks
***I hope you enjoy this fic! Comments and kudos are always welcomed! Feel free to chat with me on Discord or through email!
'To right the unrightable wrong,
To love pure and chaste from afar
To try when your arms are too weary
To reach the unreachable star-'
-The Impossible Dream (Sung by Jack Jones)
Chapter 1: Village #2263
The stench of damp stone and human filth permeates the air like a thick, dense fog as Shouto exits the armored black bus. His dark boots step over one of the many sludge-colored puddles on the broken street, nasty evidence of last night's thunderstorm in Village 2263. Rain and thunderstorms are constant in this part of the world, and like second nature, Shouto avoids the puddles. He prefers to patrol the Villages at night because he can't see the grime covering the damaged buildings. However, he had a bit of stomach upset last night and had to miss his shift.
Shouto and the other Street Guards disperse to their assigned streets. He has 43rd street, otherwise known as the Red Light District. All the whores sleep during the day, so Shouto didn't expect he would have to do much. This street is normal (as normal can get) during the day. As a Street Guard for the Great City, his prime job other than keeping control is to hunt down and expose any villagers that worship the Old Faith. There is also a secret rebel base somewhere in this Village, and all Street Guards are to be on the lookout for it or to report anything they find suspicious.
To Shouto, the war between religious, old and new, mean nothing to him. He is an atheist and finds the worshipping of any deity to be a waste of time. If by some chance, there is a higher being in this world, that being exists only to ensure the suffering of the human race. Shouto believes that, when the Great Cataclysm happened over five hundred years ago, sense and logic died with it. With the destruction of the Old World and society having begun anew, primitive ways of thinking and life came along for the ride. What was once a beautiful world with massive cities, lush forests, and deep blue oceans is now nothing but a dark, dense dome of depression and madness.
Shouto steps over a sleeping homeless man in his path while pushing away a ragged beggar pleading for food. Shouto is under strict obligations not to engage with or aid the poor. He lives in the Great City, a metropolitan world safely settled behind a giant wall swarming with security. The 'Village' is a name given to any slum outside the wall where rebels, beggars, whores, and thieves go about their daily struggles; hoping to one day ensure the downfall of the Great City. For generations, the people of the Great City laughed at these hopeful dreams of the poor and downtrodden, but in the last decade, the Villagers have begun to raise their own armies. They steal trucks with weapons and ammo; raid Great City bases, and may have even started their own form of government.
All of this is unacceptable. At least in the eyes of the Great City Magistrate, of which his own father is one of the Supreme Five. The Todoroki's have been a family powerhouse ever since the Old World, and Shouto has unfortunately been born into its 'impressive' history and supreme bloodline. Currently, he is the only Todoroki child of Enji Todoroki left residing in Endeavor Manor, but it's not because he likes to live there. Shouto has a private mission that he must complete before he can successfully leave his father's house and strike out on his own; he must find the truth of what happened to his mother. Enji Todoroki has a hand in the disappearance of his mother, and Shouto is determined to find out what. His father refuses to talk about his mother, reminding Shouto that he shouldn't care about her after what she had done to him.
Shouto pauses in the street to place a fingerless gloved hand over the burned right side of his face where his mother once poured boiling hot water on his skin. He was no more than a child, a little boy when she went mad and attacked him. Shouto doesn't blame here because he knows it was his father that drove her to madness. Enji Todoroki isn't the kindest of men, and if someone tells him that, Enji responds with, 'you have to be if you want to succeed in this dark world.' That is what he always taught his children. In other words, you don't get anywhere by being nice and helping others; you step over those weaker than you to climb to the top. Only the strong survive.
'You have made it this far because you are my true son and heir,' Enji's voice echoes in Shouto's head. 'Your brother and sister have failed, and we speak not of your eldest brother. You will carry on the lineage of the Todoroki name, and you will take my place one day in the Grand Hall of the Magistrates, and then you will be the strongest in the world!'
Those words are like an endless mantra; a cancer that festers upon his soul and haunts his dreams. It's a broken record. Constant and constant, the same words uttered almost every day. If it weren't for his need to discover the truth about his mother's disappearance, Shouto would have challenged his father long ago.
Be strong.
Be proud.
Destroy those weaker than you.
Seek only the best.
Marry into fortune and power.
'The world is yours to have, and the weak are stepping stones to your greatness.'
'That's why you married mother,' Shouto answers his own memory. 'To gain her family's wealth and power. She was your biggest stepping stone that helped to lead you to your greatness...all the while she sank into despair.'
"Please, help me!"
Shouto is torn from his thoughts when he hears a person's plea for help. Grabbing his rifle, he has it ready to fire and prepared to face whatever situation greets him. Shouto watches as a young man stumbles out of a doorway, shoved by another, and lands in a heap on the street, clutching something.
"I said never to come here again!" Shouts a middle-aged man in a dirty apron with his thick forearms covered in flour. "Get lost, you scum!"
Shouto lowers his rifle. Only the Villagers fight with one another. Typical. He looks at the man on the street who scrambles to his feet and confronts the middle-aged man once again.
"Please, I beg of you! He's sick and hungry! I'll do anything! Just a bit of milk?"
Shouto's brows lift when he realizes that the item the young man is holding is a small child wrapped in a dirty blanket. The man has unruly green hair, dressed in tattered rags for clothes and shoes littered with holes.
"I said get lost!" The man swings his arm at the other, and the green-haired man is forced to back away and shield the crying child. "I don't care about you or your rat of a brat! Get off my stoop!"
"Please...he's sick..." The green-haired man pleas with the shop-owner once more.
"One less street-scum to worry about!" shouts the man. "Get away from my home before I beat you and that brat over my knee!"
Shouto's world freezes. The area around him turns bright red, and there is only the three of them. He watches as the shop-owner raises a meaty hand, prepared to strike the other. The green-haired man turns away, shielding the child, and offering his back to the man instead. Everything happens slowly, and Shouto sees himself as a little boy in the arms of his mother as she struggles to protect him from the fierce, oppressive hand of his father.
"What the-?" Before the man can strike, Shouto has leaped forward to stop him. "GAH!" Shouto twists the man's thick wrist painfully, forcing him to his knees.
"How dare you strike a struggling bearer and their offspring!" Shouto sneers at the man. "He wants milk, and you will give it to him! A bottle of it. I will buy it from you." He lets go of the man, who is frightened to have been reprimanded by a City Guard.
"Y-Yes! Yes, sir! Right away, sir!"
Shouto watches the man rush into the shop, then turns his attention to the young man on the street. Wide green eyes on a freckled face stare back at him with awe and shock. Dark lines hang under those green eyes, tired and sunken in with life's hardships.
An omega. Shouto can smell it all over the man. Omega males are not rare to come by, but they are still considered exotic and unique compared to their female counterparts. One of the many main goals of the Great City is to stop the breeding of the poor. To kill omegas instead of the alphas will only fuel the alpha peasants' rage to dominate. Alphas will turn violent if all the omegas are taken from them. Any alphas they find are to be exterminated, and omegas to be brought to the Great City and given away as servants.
'We want to breed out the old religion,' Shouto remembers his tutor once explaining to him why the alphas were slain. 'We of the true faith, the Enlightened Ones, must keep the evil from breeding and spreading like a nest of rats ready to devour the world with corruption and disease. They want to destroy everything that is good and true. We keep the omegas to breed. Eventually, we will weed out all the Village alphas and create a world of divine faith!'
Genocide. Shouto was beaten by his tutor for speaking his mind and telling the truth.
"T-Thank you, sir," says the green-haired man. "My son and I are indebted to you."
"There is no reason for that man to behave the way he did," Shouto replies.
"Here! Here is the milk! Take it! Free of charge!" The man shoves the bottle of milk into Shouto's arms, slamming the door shut and locking it.
Shouto hands the green-haired man the milk. "For your son,"
"Thank you! Oh, thank you, sir! Thank you! Thank you!"
Shouto doesn't know how to react to the joyful tears in those big green eyes. It was only a bottle of milk. He barely did anything. "It was...nothing,"
"This will help him to get better. What I have for him is not enough," he looks into the squirming bundle, smiling at the child.
That same look is the one Shouto's mother used to give him before she went mad. "You...protected him before yourself," Shouto points out.
"Yes. He's my son. He's from my body and my heart. I'd give up my life for him."
"Well...you have the milk now. Stay out of trouble." Shouto tells him and begins to walk away.
"Wait! Mr. City Guard, what's your name?" the young man asks. "I want to thank you properly,"
Shouto turns to him, staring into those tried, smiling green eyes. City Guards are not permitted to tell the peasants their names, but Shouto doesn't pay attention to those little rules.
"It's Shouto,"
"Thank you, Shouto," Says the man. "And Kiriko thanks you as well!"
"Kiriko? Is that the name of your son?"
"Yes,"
"And what is your name?"
"Izuku,"
"Izuku..." Shouto makes a mental note of the name. "Where is the child's alpha father? Why is he not protecting you?"
"He...he was a drifter," Izuku answers. "I don't know where he is."
Shouto doesn't believe him. Those withered green eyes hold a secret strength behind them. This leads Shouto to assume that there is much more to Izuku than meets the eye- literally. The mention of the child's father brought about a change in Izuku's presentation. Either the father is as Izuku says, or Izuku is lying. Shouto is confident the young man is lying. But why? It shouldn't make a difference to Izuku whether Shouto knows the name of the child's father or not; unless Izuku has something to hide. The Villagers are aware of what the City Guards do to alphas and omegas when found. Shouto was so preoccupied with the scene resembling a moment of his young life that he missed one of the rules he is supposed to follow: take the omega in as a servant to breed. The omega before him should know this; unless Izuku is unafraid, which only further raises Shouto's suspicions. Izuku shows only gratefulness and not panic. Why not?
"Aren't you afraid of me?" Shouto chooses to ask him.
"I can't say that I'm not afraid of City Guards," Izuku answers, holding the child tighter. "But you helped me when you didn't need to…and you're not arresting me for being an omega."
"Consider this your lucky day then," Shouto looks at the blanket. "May I see him?"
"Oh. Of course," Izuku moves some of the blanket to reveal a toddler, perhaps over a year and a half old, with messy blonde hair, pale skin, and red eyes.
Red eyes. Wild blonde hair…and a cranky look. Why does that raise a red flag?
"The milk will give him a full belly," Izuku says. "And hopefully, he will get better. He's been sick for a while now..."
"I wish you and your child the best of luck," Shouto tells him. "Good day."
Although he is quick to leave Izuku's side, Shouto is not finished with the omega male yet. Shouto keeps out of sight, making sure the other believes that he's gone. He watches Izuku, trails him, and maintains a safe distance. Izuku looks suspicious as he cradles the child while navigating the streets. Shouto continues to follow, his assigned route forgotten. He just has a feeling about Izuku. The omega was unafraid of him. No omega should be that confident. Shouto starts to wonder if Izuku is a rebel leader, or perhaps a member of the rebellion.
Shouto follows Izuku deeper into the depths of the Village.
Izuku looks all around him, searching for signs of guards or strangers. Everything is quiet. That's a good sign. The old broken-down warehouse with half of its roof missing looms above him, its windows empty dark eyes staring down at him. There is nothing up there in those empty rooms save for debris, rats, and pigeons. His home, the rebel base, lies beneath its mossy stones. He couldn't wait to get to his bed and feed Kiriko. His son is worn out, the same as him, and the milk will have to last for more than a day. Izuku kisses his son's pale cheek and knocks on the door three times.
"What?" Comes a deep voice from behind the iron door.
"'Don't Tread on Me,'" Izuku whispers the motto of their regime, which is also the password. The door opens and Izuku slips inside, greets the door watchman and hurries to the stairs. He knocks on the stairs, and it opens for him. Tucking the bottle of milk in the blanket with Kiriko, Izuku enters their secret world.
Long before the warehouse was built, there was a prison here. The new world developed over the old one, and if you knew where to look, there is an entire ancient world beneath the streets. This is where he lives along with hundreds of others, a mix of humans, alphas, omegas, and betas. They all share the same cause; make the world a better place for the Villagers to live. Overthrow the rich, destroy the current government, and replace it with democracy. They want to do away with the caste system as well as stop the persecution of their religious beliefs, the murder of alphas, and the abductions of omegas and women. Izuku wants to help make the world a better place for himself and Kiriko. If not him, then for Kiriko, so that his son has a chance at a brighter future.
As he walks to his home, which is a jail cell like all the others, Izuku thinks about the City Guard named Shouto that helped him today. Izuku had been so concerned about the milk and his son that he didn't take the time to realize at first that Shouto is an alpha City Guard. When he did notice, Izuku started to panic, but he kept it hidden. He worried that the guard would take him in as a slave and breeder. Instead, Shouto gave him the milk and let them go. Even though the world is a dark, cruel place, Izuku still likes to believe that there is some good in it. And Shouto is proof of that.
His home consists of an old mattress covered in a mess of blankets. There's a bucket he must use to relieve himself, a tiny end table with one drawer front missing and the others crooked, and a flickering lamp. It's a miracle that they have electricity at all, and nothing can be taken for granted in this world. Izuku puts the light on to pour the milk into a stained baby bottle. Kiriko squirms on the mattress, kicking his feet and waving his little fists while making angry sounds. Izuku smiles and takes Kiriko into his arms, placing the rubber nipple against the baby's lips. Kiriko's little cranky face is alight with glee as he starts to greedily drink the milk, putting his hands on the bottle. It's a glass bottle, and Izuku can't afford to have it break, so he must hold it. When the bottle is empty, Kiriko cries and whines for more. Izuku would give it to him, but he fears that he will not get lucky with more milk. Today was a fluke. He must save the milk for later.
"I'm sorry, Kiri," he whispers to the baby, cradling the boy close and trying to soothe him by rubbing his back with tiny circles. His own stomach grumbles with hunger, and the milk is tempting. But he can't take it. Not even a sip. His son must eat first.
"Hey,"
Izuku looks up at the voice. "Kacchan!" It's Kiriko's father and one of the rebel leaders. While they are not mated, they are childhood friends. Sort of. Friends with benefits. Izuku cares for Katsuki Bakugo, whom he calls 'Kacchan' while others only call him Bakugo. Kiriko senses his alpha father and reaches out towards him.
"Where the hell have you been?" Bakugo asks. "No one has seen you all day."
"I went out begging for food for Kiriko," Izuku answers. "I got milk, see?" he points to it. "Kiriko may get better now."
"That's good," Bakugo only shows tenderness when attending to his son. He holds his finger out for Kiriko to grab at it. "We had a good raid last night. We managed to get some grain for bread, and bushels of fruit." He takes a yellow apple out from his pouch and gives it to Izuku.
Izuku bites into the apple with the same hungry greed as Kiriko. Fresh fruit is unheard of in the Village, and anything they get must be purchased or stolen. For them, stealing from the elite is all they can do. While they have a storage of food, everyone must eat, so only rations of food are given out at specific times of the day. Since Bakugo is a leader, he gets first pick of food and shares it with Izuku.
"What did you eat?" Izuku asks him.
"I had some bread earlier," he takes out the other half of the bread and tosses it to Izuku. He mocks Izuku for missing it.
"The apple is more than enough, Kacchan,"
"No. You're still fucking sick, and you need to get better," he narrows his eyes at Izuku's cough. "You make me feel like shit, you know. I love our kid…but you should have never had him. This is no life for a kid."
Izuku glares at him. "I hate that talk, Kacchan. It was my choice in the end."
"He just complicates things," he replies. "I have to work twice as hard to help care for him,"
"Well, he is half of your responsibility as you played a big part in his creation," Izuku says.
Bakugo sneers. "You were in heat. What else was I supposed to do?" He waves his hand. "I never get anywhere with you when we talk about this. I don't want you going out anymore until you get better."
Izuku turns his head away from Kiriko to cough. "Kiriko needs to eat. I can't keep pushing him off on the other mothers," he's unable to nurse, so Kiriko sometimes feeds from women that are currently nursing. But the women are reluctant to give up their milk to other babies that aren't their own. Izuku can't blame them.
"I'll make them do it," Bakugo says.
"No, don't upset the women," Izuku tells him. "I'll just…go out tonight," he lowers his eyes. "If you will stay with Kiriko…I can go out and-"
"Fuck that," Bakugo says. "You're not going to be a damn whore! I'll made sure to get milk for Kiriko. Speaking of milk, how did you get it?" Bakugo points to the glass bottle.
"I got lucky and swiped it," Izuku lies. He can't tell Kacchan that a City Guard gave it to him. Kacchan will flip his lid. Kacchan does strike out in rage if he becomes too angry, and often, Izuku has been under those solid fists and insulting mouth. But Kacchan is still his friend and the father of his child. He doesn't hate Kacchan's rough side since he understands it better than most. Only he sees the real side of Kacchan.
Bakugo ruffles Kiriko's hair, making the boy giggle. "I'll come back tonight, and you'd better be here. If I find that you have gone out to whore yourself for money, I'll slap those freckles right off your stupid face. Got it?"
Izuku nods. "Yes, Kacchan."
"Give Kiriko the rest of the milk," he says. "He'll have more tomorrow," Bakugo says this and leaves the cell.
Izuku grins and feeds the rest of it to Kiriko. Kiriko burps a milk bubble and Izuku laughs, wiping the child's lips with his thumb. "Time for bed now," He tells Kiriko and turns out the light.
The cell is very dark, but Izuku is not alone with Kiriko. As they settle under the blankets, Izuku hears the voices of the others. It's comforting to know that you are not alone in the dark. He can feel Kiriko's even breathing; the baby is asleep, his belly full of fresh milk. Izuku lets his eyes adjust to the dark so he can see the outline of his child's sleeping face. "I love you, Kiri,"
The baby coughs a few times yet remains asleep. Izuku sighs and cuddles Kiriko close to him. He wishes Kacchan would stay with them, but Kacchan is always busy with the safety of the regime. Izuku never feels right taking Kacchan away from that just to sleep with him because he wants to feel and smell the alpha's presence beside him. Izuku can't afford to be selfish because he's lonely.
He closes his eyes and tries to sleep, but it's always worse at night. Izuku wakes up each time he has to cough. His chest burns and his eyes sting. Numerous times throughout the night he sits up to rub the ache in his chest. Sometimes it awakens Kiriko, who has his own coughing fits, and Izuku must settle him back into sleep. When he has nights like this, Izuku can only turn to their god and pray for strength.
"Please save us with all your might," Izuku chants in a whispered voice through hands folded in prayer.
The Great City folk despises Izuku's god since they have their own and refuse to let anyone believe differently. No, not god, but 'gods.' Izuku's people believe in only one god; a man who, generations ago, was so strong and powerful that His fists and charisma changed the world. The story goes that there was peace during His reign in this world- but when He died, His will was so strong that it became another worldly being that now watches over them. He is known as 'The Symbol of Peace,' but everyone who believes calls Him 'All Might.'
"Please give us strength with all your might…" Eventually, Izuku falls asleep and stays asleep.
The following day, Izuku remains underground with Kiriko. He sits Kiriko in his lap while gathering in the base center with others to hear one of their priests tell a story about All Might. Izuku allows himself to close his eyes and imagine what it would be like to be All Might. He would be so big and strong! Powerful! With a booming voice that all would obey. Izuku would be healthy, too. And, he would give his life to protect everyone around him. He used to think that way, and still does, but after the birth of Kiriko, protecting his child is dearer to him than the world. If it were in his power to save everyone, he would. Right now, all he can do is keep himself and Kiriko from dying so that he can make a future for Kiriko to enjoy.
All Might could do it, but can he? No. It's not realistic. He doesn't have the physical health and strength to fight with his fists, but as he's told Kacchan many times, he can use his head. Kacchan doesn't always like to listen to plans or reasoning, being the type of alpha to attack with brute force. Maybe one day, when he finally gets rid of this ever-lingering illness, he can mirror the strength of Kacchan and All Might.
Maybe.
Suddenly, the area of the base fills with the echoing sound of a horn. Izuku clutches Kiriko to his chest while the baby screams from the loudness of the alarm. That horn means only one thing; their base has been impregnated.
'But how?' Izuku shields Kiriko from the stampede of people trying to run away and take shelter. Izuku doesn't get up to run until he sees that everyone has gone. Now is his chance to take Kiriko back to the cell. 'How did they get in? How could they have found us?'
Izuku gets to the safety of his cell and looks around the side to see the City Guards swarming inside like an army of ants; fast, organized, and relentless. Kiriko is still crying, and Izuku tries to soothe him with whispers. Izuku has to protect his child, or else he would be out with Kacchan and the others fighting to protect their people and their home.
'He just complicates things,' Kacchan's words about Kiriko echo in his head.
Izuku goes to the mattress and folds himself into a ball in the corner, shielding Kiriko in a cocoon of arms and blankets. Izuku flinches with each sound of gunfire. He can smell the smoke in the air and can hear the screams growing louder as the City Guards approach.
'Please protect us with all your might…' Izuku says the silent prayer while kissing Kiriko's head, crying tears of frustration and hopelessness.
Izuku hears the stomping of boots racing towards him. Knowing it's useless, he reaches a trembling hand between the mattress fold and takes out a serrated pocket knife. Kiriko senses Izuku's fear and his cries become gurgled whimpers mixed with little coughs and hiccups. Izuku whispers 'shh' to Kiriko, trying to keep the baby calm even when a flashlight shines inside the cell. Izuku has to shut his eyes for a moment then blinks them open to see three City Guards standing before him. Two have assault rifles while the one in the center holds out a strap of leather.
Izuku glares at them and growls, clutching Kiriko with one arm and the knife in his hand. One little blade is no match for two guns, but Izuku shows them that he intends to fight, however hopeless it is, before he surrenders.
"He has green hair and freckles," says one of them with a gun. "We can't harm him."
"This is the one?" Asks the man in the middle.
"Must be," the first confirms.
Izuku doesn't know what they're talking about. There's nothing left that he can do. The barrels of the assault rifles stare him down, and with a heavy heart, he drops the knife.
"Get up and come with us," says one of the guards. "You are now a prisoner of the Great City, and your judgment will decide your punishment."
"Don't hurt my child," Izuku begs them, though his eyes never lose their narrow glare.
"Don't give us a reason to do so. Your little hideout is no more; it's over for you, rebel scum."
'Kacchan? Where are you?'
Shouto remains at the entrance of the hideout, watching with calm eyes as the City Guards surround the secret Village. Alphas lay slain, omegas and women taken prisoner, and any religious structure or artifact are set afire. Shouto gave strict instructions to the others not to hurt the omega with green hair and freckles that has a small child. He does not want Izuku hurt. The image of Izuku protecting Kiriko is still fresh in his mind, haunting him with every waking moment. He couldn't save his mother, but he can save Izuku and Kiriko. Shouto decided, before the raid, to make Izuku a servant in his household. Perhaps it's the alpha side of him wanting to protect the helpless omega he now desires. Won't his father be shocked when he shows up with Izuku? The imagined look of shock on his father's face brings a smirk to his lips.
"Sir Todoroki! We caught one of the rebel leaders!"
Shouto raises his brows as it takes five City Guards to restrain one man. The rebel leader has a sack covering his head with ropes all around him. More rope keeps getting added as he continues to struggle. When the man is entirely subdued and on his knees panting like a wild, trapped animal, Shouto approaches him, drawing the slim sword from his belt.
"Rebel Leader; I, Shouto Todoroki, pass judgment on your crimes here and now."
"Bite my glorious golden ass, you cocksucking swine!"
Shouto isn't affected by the alpha's insults. "Using such language is the same as a defeated animal not knowing what else to do but scream or bark to make itself seem fierce while it's cornered."
"Eat shit and die!"
Shouto closes his eyes, holding the sword upright in front of him. "Do you have any last words?"
The man is silent.
"Rebel, I sentence you to death by the blade for your continuous show of anarchism, unruliness, and theft of the Enlightened Ones. May whatever god you worship have mercy upon your soul."
Without a flinch or show of hesitation, Shouto takes his sword and stabs it through the rebel's heart. He pulls the sword out and expects the man to fall forward. Instead, the man manages to stand up once more in a final show of defiance. Shouto stares at the man, his eyes wide in disbelief, only to blink when the man falls to the ground. A small pool of dark red blood slowly grows from under the twitching body.
Shouto clears his throat and says, "Have all the alpha bodies hanged from the posts leading to the Great City," it's not his will to do this, but he does have his orders. He must remain dutiful if he is to keep in good faith with his father. To further disgrace the dead by leaving them hanging from posts for carrion crows to feast on never settled well with him. Still, justice must be served, and these rebels have killed many in their raids and assaults. Not all of the City folk are guilty.
"Did you find the one with green hair?" Shouto asks one of the City Guards while they are rounding up all the prisoners.
"We did. He's unharmed, and so is the child, as you commanded."
Shouto nods. "Good. I want them brought with the other prisoners, but they are to be transported to my father's house. They must be well cared for while in transportation. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes sir,"
Shouto pulls the hood of his cloak up over his head. Before he turns to leave, he looks back at the body of the rebel leader he just executed. A City Guard pulls off the sack to mock the dead man, and then Shouto realizes now why Izuku's child, Kiriko, looked so familiar. Fiery red eyes and wild blonde hair; Katsuki Bakugo, the most wanted and violent alpha rebel of them all. Katsuki must be Kiriko's father; there is no doubt. They look exactly alike, which means…
"KACCHAAAAN!"
Shouto sees the familiar head of green hair screaming at the corpse of Katsuki Bakugo. Swiftly, he pulls his hood further over his head to hide his face and retreats from the rebel base.
"What have I done?"
TBC