The Black Phoenix
Chapter 3: The Plan
"Hmmm…" Feeling loose and more at ease with her surroundings, Izumi lounged on the couch as she read the newspaper article. "There's no mention of my escape in the press, only the fire."
"They're playing it safe." Overhaul explained, his hands folded as he watched her, carefully now. Chronos and Mimic sat on the arms of the couch, armed and ready in case she flipped out again. "If word got out that you've escaped, then all those who want you for their own purpose will go hunting for you. The heroes want a head start on finding you first."
"Good thing you took the initiative then." She sent him a smirk and tossed the paper over her shoulder. "So… what's this elaborate plan of yours, hmm?"
"My plan is to rule the world from the shadows, and bring new glory to the Shie Hassaikai, and the Yakuza." He said broadly and earned a withering stare.
"Lofty goals, but I meant the PLAN Overhaul. You can't expect me to play your game if I don't know the rules."
"Fair enough… but I'm just a little apprehensive to fully disclose everything to you. After your little tantrum earlier I have to wonder if you're up for this." He tapped his fingers together, his eyes narrowing when she laughed at him.
"Aww, did I scare you?" She snorted and shrugged off the glare. "I don't blame you. You've every right to be scared of me, Overhaul. The entire world should be scared of me. There's nothing more dangerous than a villain who's got nothing left to lose."
"So you've stated before, but what actually concerns me is whether or not you've indeed lost everything. From the stories and videos I've seen I know you to be a woman of contradiction, someone who's always doing the wrong things for the right reason. Not to mention your track record of killing your allies when they don't meet your standards: such as Stain, Muscular, and Nakahara."
"Nakahara betrayed me, Muscular was a psychopathic lunatic who didn't like following orders, and Stain tried to kill me because I disagreed with the rules of his game." She explained with a wave of her hand. "All of those were done when I had the right to make decisions. This…" she pointed at the space between them. "... is a different matter. I'm not Queen here, I'm a pawn. I'm a disposable game piece here to play a role. I just need to know what the role is, and what rules I should follow. Simple as that."
"Are you really satisfied with taking orders from someone else?" Overhaul wondered.
"Absolutely not… but I don't have much choice in the matter." She sat upright and leaned forward, mimicking Overhaul's position. "You're King around here, Overhaul. I have no friends, no allies, no pieces to play, thus I have no power."
"You underestimate your worth. You've money, or at least the means to get some." He reminded her.
"I do… but money means little without connections, and a means to use it." She leaned to the left, cupping her chin in her hand. "Is that all you need from me, is the money?"
"That's a big part of it… but the other part is this." He tapped her temple, and made her smirk. "Your greatest weapon."
"So I've been told, but lately it's done nothing but give me grief."
"That's because you've been thinking with your heart instead of your head." He leaned back in a more authoritative position. "Cut yourself off from everything that you've ever cared about: Shigaraki, the league, your friends in the hero spectrum… anything that's ever made you question or hesitate. and think only with your mind."
Izumi raised a brow, but nodded. She closed her eyes… shut herself off emotionally as All for One had once taught her to do.
"I'm going to tell you my plan… and without emotion or backlash, I want you to tell me how I can best achieve my goal. Are you ready?" He waited for her to nod and eyed Chronos. His right hand man nodded and placed a hand on his gun, making ready to fire at a moment's notice. "I've got a drug that can temporarily erase a person's quirk… with the money you provide me I can make its effects more permanent, and have the time to concoct the anti-serum. My plan is to sell the unfinished product to the masses under a guise, let fear and chaos spread a little and finally unleash the final product to the underground markets. In time I can sell the anti-serum to hospitals and companies for the heroes for a substantial price, and since I have the only source for both, the monopoly for these products will belong solely to the Hassaikai. Making us the underground rulers of the world."
"There's several flaws with that plan." Izumi told him softly, and her eyes slowly opened. "The first being that you'll need tight-lipped security around the product. If anyone gets wind of who's truly running it, then you'll have attacks on both fronts; villain and hero alike."
"Alright…" Overhaul took note of that and nodded for her to continue.
"The second is the Hassaikai is already being monitored by heroes and police. Once you start mass producing the product it'll be harder and harder to keep your little trade a secret."
"I see…" there was something in her eyes, he noted, that made him think she already had a solution for that problem. "Lastly?"
"Lastly… why create an anti-serum at all?" She raised a brow at him. "It's as you said, the world is sick. Why not purify it completely?"
That one… he thought with some humor… was the best question.
"If we create an anti-serum, then it protects our original investment. If someone's producing the cure, why recreate it yourself?"
"Others may still try to recreate it. People are greedy, and there will be those who will poke and prod into anything and everything for the truth. You can never win 100% of the time, so you need to prepare for the eventuality that you'll lose."
"Such as?" He rubbed his chin.
"A fail-safe…" She tapped a finger on the table between them. "If your source gets found, you find a way to either make it useless, or destroy it completely. I would also play chemical warfare. Find a way to unleash a mass plague of the drug so that a huge population would get affected. The more people affected by it the better."
"I see… the whole, if I'm going down I'm taking the whole world with me, ideal?"
"Better to stalemate than to lose in my opinion." She shrugged and smirked. "Was that cold and careless enough for yah?"
"Gave me shivers…" he complimented with a chuckle. "Alright, you've passed the test. Now tell me how I should cover the holes in my plan."
"Well that's simple." She smirks and points to herself. "You get yourself a stooge."
"A stooge?"
"That's right… a ploy, a decoy… someone who will be the face of your product and handle all the dealings for you. Should anything go wrong, they take the fall, and the Hassaikai won't be touched by any of it."
"Are you suggesting that we let you handle everything? The product sales, the negotiation, and the backlash?" Mimic scowled. "Do you honestly think we'd trust you with our livelihood?"
"I don't expect you to trust me with jack…" She laughed at them. "The only reason I'm offering is because I'm your safest bet to keep these dealings quiet and untraceable. If I'm caught by the heroes they'll suspect the league to be behind it all. If I'm discovered by the villains, they'll think the Queen of Villains is looking to rise up and regain her power. There'll be no evidence that you were involved at all… and I have no reason to tell any of them otherwise."
Overhaul thought it over… rubbing his chin. The girl had a point. If she was the only one making the deals and the sacrifices then it would eliminate a good chunk of the speculation on them. The only danger would be is if they manage to pin her with the Hassaikai.
"I will agree to this, but only with a few stipulations." Overhaul decided. "The first being is we need to create a new identity for you."
"I've already got three separate identities and you want to add another?" She laughed but shrugged. "Okay, but can I ask why?"
"For your own protection. You may be taking the heat off us, but I still don't trust you enough to suspect you'll not rat on us if you get caught and put back into custody. You're not as fond of us as your last crew after all."
"Good point… very well, what sort of image do you think I should portray?"
"Something you can relate to, and that speaks to you… I want you to feel comfortable and in character when you're out on the job. You shouldn't let it feel foreign. You may be putting on a mask, but that mask is you. It's a part of who you are, and who you will become."
"Oooh, so dramatic. I like where you're going with this." She stands up and walks around the couch in order to pace. "Hmmmm… someone familiar, but not recognizable. A part of myself that not many have seen, but is close to my heart."
Her eyes searched around the room. Everything had been put to rights again, the furniture in place, the broken pottery repaired and glistening clean. To her right there was a beautiful antique mirror that she'd cracked and was now repaired and sparkling as if brand new. In it she saw her own reflection… saw the long curling hair, the freckled face full of youth, but with eyes full of maturity and experience. Emotions flickered in those eyes a moment as she gingerly brushed fingers along her unmarred skin. She'd gotten so used to seeing herself battered and rumpled that this pristine vision was unfamiliar to her.
"Hmmmm… now there's a start." She eyed the masks on Mimic and Chronos… the stark black designs brought on a sense of nostalgia. She held out her hand.
"Chronos, may I see your mask?"
The man hesitated, looking down at Chisaki who nodded and waved him back. Chornos rounded the room to her, and slipped his mask off handing it to her. She admired the design, and stroked the smooth leather along the beak. She lifted it to her face, looking herself in the mirror again. She released her quirk, the dark aura flowing around her ominously as her hair spread out. She thought for a moment that she resembled Tokoyami's Dark Shadow… a dark and dangerous bird capable of destroying anything in its path.
"Yes…" She lowered the mask with a glint in her eyes. "Oh yes now this is familiar to me." She cradled the mask to her. "I want one of my own… but I want it altered to my specifications. I'll also need a new costume, and gear. The lot of you use firearms, don't you?"
"Yes… I can teach you how." Overhaul stood and walked up behind her. He placed his gloved hand on her face, looking in her eyes through the glass mirror. " As for the costume and gear I'll need payment."
"You'll have it…" she leaned into his touch, and turned towards him. As promised she didn't touch or reach out to him, but let him make the move. He took her chin with his gloved hand, and rubbed a thumb over her bottom lip.
"Good… I also need one more thing from you."
"Oh?" her lips curve into a sly smile and she pressed a teasing kiss to his thumb. "What's that?"
"I need…" he moved his hand down and encircled her throat. "... your body."
~Sometime Later~
"You know, when you said you needed my body, this wasn't exactly what I had in mind." Izumi lay out on the cold slab with a frown. "What exactly are you looking for?"
"Answers…" Overhaul told her simply as he placed the slide with her skin and blood sample on it under a microscope. "The fire that was started in the hospital wasn't caused by my men, but by you."
"Me? I don't have that kind of quirk." she frowned.
"So you think, but…" he pulled back and lifted the slide up. "Your DNA is telling me different."
Izumi sat upright, rubbing the bandage on her arm and frowning at him. The interest in his eyes was something new to her… it should have been creepy, the way he worked, but for some reason she found it oddly attractive.
"You're saying I have another quirk aside from Sentient Aura?"
"Yes… the footage with your fight from All for One is shotty and distorted, but there's an image of him using his quirk on you. Since you still possess the original quirk he gave you, I can only assume he used it instead to give you another quirk on top of it."
"Huh…" Izumi poked her tongue to her cheek. "Interesting. I wonder what he gave me."
"I could run a few more tests and find out… but it wouldn't be very pleasant for either of us." He removed the latex gloves and washed his hands. "Better for you, I think, to experiment and find out on your own."
"Alright…" she jumped off the slab and held her arm out to him. Bracing for the pain she only flinched as the skin misshapen and healed within seconds. "Whew… neat trick." She held up her arm and admired it.
"It's useful… for a disease." He immediately scrubbed at his hands.
"Are you really that germaphobic?" She crossed her arms.
"There's several hundred theories on how quirks came to be… and none of them are the least bit cleanly." He pointed out. "The fact people worship the sick is disturbing to me."
"I can't argue with that. When I was quirkless I was so desperate for one that I sought the help from a super villain. My need for it killed my mother, and it's something I've never forgiven myself for."
She clenched her fists. She knew her case was only selective, and the results of bad judgement on her part. If she could help it, she would save others from mimicking her poor life choices… and that, she realized, was exactly her problem. Her constant NEED to save people who in truth didn't deserve it.
"Do you really have to create a cure? Why not just let the world go back to the way it was? A quirkless world…"
"Would that really solve anything?" He smiled from behind his mask and wiped his hands before replacing his gloves.
"Your goal is to bring the Yakuza back into power, right? What better way than to rid the rest of the world its source of power?"
"An intriguing idea, but in order to make that happen I'd have to create a machine that unleashes the serum like a gas. Then figure out a way to spread it to every corner of the globe. Do you know how much money and research that would require?"
"More than I can provide you, I take it." She pouted and shrugged. "Eh, it was worth divulging."
"We can shelve it for later. I may be able to come up with a prototype if the sales of the product go well… but in the meantime stick to the plan." He jerked his head to motion her to follow him. "I'll show you to your room."
"Overhaul…" Izumi walked beside him. "What made you decide to help me? There was no guarantee I'd have access to any kind of finances, so why take the risk of kidnapping me and possibly put your clan under scrutiny?"
Overhaul paused in the hall and turned his head down to her. She looked so serious in the moment that he knew he had to give her a serious answer.
"Truth be told… I admired you." He said bluntly, earning a look of surprise. "I only knew you by reputation… but I was impressed by all I heard. A teenage villain who stood up against the king of the underground and attempted to overthrow him. You're the first villain to ever successfully invade and pull off a major heist of I-Islands goods, the first villain to ever publicly execute a top hero, and you're the first and only villain that the legendary All Might has ever submitted to."
"Heh…" her lips quirked. "Sounds a little hard to believe when you string it all together like that."
"And yet you did it all. If it weren't for Shigaraki and the league betraying you, choosing All for One over you, then I've no doubt you'd have the world in the palm of your hands." There was a flicker of emotion in her eyes: anger, and a deep hurt. It intrigued him, and stirred up that unhealthy urge to touch her again. "What would you do, I wonder, if you ever came face to face with them again."
"I think we both know the answer to that already…" she turned a wicked smile to him, the hurt replaced by a crazed glee. "I'd kill them all."
~meanwhile: League of Villains hideout~
Shigaraki Tomura paced the floor holding his bandaged stomach. He'd been restless and on edge for days, and the league wasn't sure how to approach him.
"Some King…" Magne murmured to Spinner. "He hasn't spat any orders in days. Just keeps brooding and muttering to himself."
"He needs time to grieve." Spinner held his hands in a prayer position. "The loss of our beloved Queen is a detrimental one."
"I can't believe that girl tried to kill herself and take him with her. Now the world is treating her like some kind of tragic victim. We're the victims here! She's the one who-"
"Shut up!" Tomura snapped at them. "I can here you losers speaking and it's distracting."
"Forgive us, King Tomura!" Spinner bowed in apology. "We merely await your orders sir."
"My orders… I am King… shes My Queen, MINE!" He stopped and turned towards them. "Ace tells me that Karma was taken from the hospital. The heroes are trying to keep that information tight lipped so as not to tip off the public."
"The Queen lives?"
"She's not Queen anymore, but a traitor. She tried to kill me you idiot and I will not stand for it. I want her found. I want her brought to me so we can deal with her the same way we dealt with Endeavor and Nakahara. She will be tried and punished for her crimes against her king!"
"Yes sire!" Spinner knelt before him. "I shall search non-stop for her. I will not rest until she is found."
"Pass the word to the others… and tell Toga to come to me." He rubbed at his bandage again as the two hurried out. Soon after Ace walked in, hands in pockets and a frown on his lips.
"Shigaraki, can we talk?"
"Make it fast, I'm in a piss poor mood, and my relief is on her way." He scratched at his neck. "If its about your money, go see compress about more items. We've still plenty of it in the warehouse."
"That won't be necessary." He held up a hand. "I wanted to tell you that I'm resigning from the league."
"Excuse me?" Shigaraki lowered his hand to sneer at him. "Are you betraying me as well, Ace?"
"Not in the slightest, your grace. I'm doing it for yours and the league's protection." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I need to leave the country, because it would seem the heroes heavily suspect my involvement. They're already gathering a warrant to search my house and the P.O. Box I share with Karma."
"Someone ratted you out, in other words?" Shigaraki scowled.
"Fraid so… I'm pretty sure it was Broadcast. Ever since Karma's capture he's been M.I.A."
"Well that's just terrific." Shigaraki now scratched with both hands. "The pile of corpses just keeps on growing. How am I supposed to publicly execute my queen for treason without Broadcast?"
"There is someone else you can meet with, though I'm not sure how obliging he'd be." He pulled out a card and handed it to him. "His name is Tomoyasu Chikazoku, and he's a board member at Feel Good Inc."
"He works for a support company?" Shigaraki took the card between two fingers and scowled at it. "Why would I need his help?"
"He has a similar quirk to Twice, and is a highly skilled video editor and researcher. If anyone can take Broadcast's place… it's him." He handed him another card. "Here's the number you can reach me at. If there's anything I can help with from a distance, I'd be more than happy to."
"I'll hold you to that… and if you hear anything about Broadcast inform me at once. He'll swing like the rest of the traitors." He tucked both cards away as Toga skipped into the room.
"Of course, please get well soon, My King." He bowed again and Toga waved goodbye before clinging to his arm.
"I heard you're looking to kill queeny. Toga wants to help. Toga wants to spill queeny's blood." She ran a tongue over her teeth, her eyes glittering excitedly.
"We need to find her first." He pried her off his arm then snagged her chin between his thumb and forefingers. "I need you to go spy on the heroes for a time… but before you do, I need to relieve some stress."
"I see…" her form started to melt away and took on Izumi's full naked form. "I don't mind playing with you… but try not to kill me in the process, okay Tomura-kun?"
"I make no promises." He whispered on her lips and dragged her into a violent kiss, and pulled her to the ground. The hallways echoed with the sounds of screams, and moans, and Ace had to hold back a shudder as he pulled out his cellphone to make a call.
"Hey… it's me. Yeah I pulled us out of the commitment but we're both gonna need to leave Japan."
"I figured," Broadcast responded and looked down at his plane ticket. "I've already got a flight heading for London. Did you want to rendezvous at a different location, or shall I say goodbye now, my friend?"
"London is suitable, I'll text you once I touch down and we can rendezvous then." He glanced back at the hideout with a frown. "This gig was fun while it lasted… but without Karma, it's just another freak show circus."
"Hard to argue with that. For a while I forgot I was even getting paid. She had a way of making everyone feel like family." Broadcast eyed the board as his flight number was called. "Gotta go. See you in London."
"See you there, friend." He hung up and got into his car. He made one final stop to his P.O. Box, deciding to leave a farewell note for Karma. It could be the police would get to it first, but questioned whether they'd be able to crack the code.
~ Rook to E5, checked King. White moves Knight to D7, leaving Queen open for checkmate.
Good Game. ~
He supposed some of it would make sense to an outside, but the core message was there. He only hoped that somehow Karma would be able to receive it, and give him one last good show.
~Ask Briry~
Briry: I'm having so much fun with these diverse arcs. I love villain fics, even if they do tire me out emotionally.
Next Chapter: First Appearance