"Speech"

Narration

'Thoughts'

"Horror Speech"

"ALL MIGHT SPEECH"

"Zaruba Speech"

Disclaimer: I own nothing.


At the Midoriya household, Inko sat in the living room; book in hand. Time had changed her a bit drastically from the slim woman of Izuku's youth to a portly one, rather surprising for a Makai Priestess. In her heyday, she was quite accomplished, having developed spellcasting techniques without a Madou Brush that earned her fame in the order and the eye of the father of her child. However, she was also known to be rather reckless in hunts and had gotten hurt numerous times to the point that the pain from the accumulated injuries became too much and was forced to retire. Today was one she of many where she would kick back and read one of her favorite books but, as one individual noted; she had been on that same page for several minutes and her eyes and mind seemed elsewhere. She was drawn back to earth when a small cup and saucer was placed on the table next to her, she glanced at it then to the one who place it there; a middle-aged in a neatly pressed suit and glasses with a warm smile.

"Peppermint tea, it does wonders for anxiety."

She gave the man a small smile as she took a sip.

"Thank you, Gonza. It really helps."

"I'd hazard a guess that you are concerned about Master Izuku?"

"I can't help but worry. He's had 9 Horror hunts this week alone."

Gonza winced a little at that comment before he sighed, catching her attention, and said, "Better make that 10."

Inko looked up at the butler, puzzled, before he presented his phone; which had a live news feed active.

/-nown individual waltzed on stage during the performance and took the pop idol hostage after throwing security away. Local heroes attempted to intervene until the assailant transformed into what witness describe as a "freaky bird monster." Said monster kept the heroes at bay until the sudden arrival of what appears to be a junior high school student wielding a sword. Arisu Raidou was freed while the young man fought the monster and then appeared to transform into golden armor. The battle continued up until the armored individual lit his sword on fire and set the bird assailant ablaze. It finally came to a close when All Might stepped in and ended it with one of his special attacks. However, before authorities could question the young man, he disappeared in the confusion./

The screen shifted to an image, likely taken from a cellphone, of a very familiar golden armor of a certain Makai Knight. It then changes to the young idol.

/I didn't get to see his face before he put that armor on but I think that thing called him "Garo."/

/While the heroes were victorious, many are asking "What was that bird creature?" "Who is this 'Garo?" and "Where did he come from?"/

The Midoriya matriarch's face fell. It was bad enough that a Makai Knight was caught on camera and in front of ordinary people but the fact it was her own son made it worse. The news anchor stopped for moment to listen to her earpiece.

/This just in, it seems that Japan is not the only one with a young man in armor…/

"Oh great, now what?"


"Am I here to get yelled at?" Izuku asked as stabbed his sword into the wolf statue.

"Under normal circumstances, yes, you would be, however, that is not the case this time. Your battle with the Horror Stolas was not an isolated incident, there have been other attacks in full public view across the globe. "

"Speaking of feather face, how is it that it was able to walk around in broad daylight?"

"We're not sure yet"

"Tell me something, the last thing anyone needs is Horrors even during the day!" Izuku demanded indignantly.

As this was going, All Might kept looking between the two totally lost in confusion. That maid dragged him and the boy to some remote area of the city, a wall of all places, before Midoriya held up his ring and said wall opened up into a long dark hall. If that weren't enough, they entered a room with a woman that would make Uwabami and Midnight jealous and now, young Midoriya was talking to her like she was his boss or something.

"Can someone explain what is going on here?" he asked.

The two glanced at him before Izuku gestured to the Watchdog; the latter of which turned to the No.1 Hero.

"Since time out of mind, humanity has been prey to demons of darkness known as Horrors. These vile beings enter our world through gates, created by the vices of humanity: greed, envy, despair, anger, pride, you name it. They possess those with these evils, devouring their souls and assuming their identities. They then prowl the night, searching for people to feed on."

"What does that have to do with you?"

"We are known as the Makai Order. We have been around nearly as long as the Horrors first came through. Our duty is to protect humanity from these monsters, hunting them down to the ends of the Earth. We deploy agents in the form of Makai Priests and Makai Knights."

"So then young Midoriya here, he's…"

"He has inherited the title of the Golden Knight, you could say he's our version of you."

"You'd force children to fight these monsters?!" All Might bellowed in shock.

"No one forced me to do anything," Izuku interrupted, "The choice to be a Makai Knight was mine and mine alone."

"His father, the previous Garo, originally intended to pass his armor to someone else and spare his son from this life. However, that changed," Fenris added.

"Why would he change his mind?"

"Because I'm Quirkless."

That little comment gave Izuku All Might's undivided attention.

"When I was a kid, all I wanted was to be a hero like you. Yet at four years old, my quirk still hadn't come in. So I went to the doctor's and they told me I was in the minority that would never develop a Quirk."

Izuku then held up his left hand, gazing at his ring.

"It felt like my whole world fell apart, I was picked on once all the kids found out and even their parents would say I wouldn't amount to anything. Then my dad came up to me and asked if I wanted to be a different kind of hero by becoming a Makai Knight."

"And you agreed without knowing what you were getting into?"

"I did know, he told me exactly what I would end up doing; sometimes I think my dad wanted me to say 'no' that day. But I still stand by my decision and have never regretted it."

All Might took a moment to digest everything that the young man and the woman had told him.

'These people, they've been fighting against monsters like that bird thing for so long? And this kid, their best agent and he goes into battle with nothing but a sword and his armor; hard to believe he does it all without a Quir-wait a minute!'

"Hold on, if you don't have a Quirk; how were you able to throw that monster around like that?"

"Oh that? Makai Knights are trained to superhuman levels to compete with Horrors. What you saw before was pure muscle."

'Jeez, these guys don't mess around,' the symbol of peace thought with a sweat drop.

"As you can see, Makai Knights are thoroughly prepared; with or without Quirks."

"Yeah, no kidding," agreed All Might, only to perk up in realization.

"Wait, who said that?" he asked looking around.

"I did."

Izuku sighed before holding up his left hand, pointing his skull ring at the puzzled Pro Hero.

"Hello"

"THE RING IS TALKING?!" he exclaimed, hacking up blood.

"The name is Zaruba and my thanks for getting me out of that living cesspool."

'I don't know how much more of this I can take today!' All Might thought wearily.

"While this is entertaining to watch, shall we get back to the main topic?" Fenris asked.

"Right, how was that fugly bird able to act unhindered despite it being midday?" Izuku asked hotly.

"Some of our agents and allies are looking into it now. When we have new information, we'll let you know. Another pressing matter is that the public not only saw the Horror and you in armor but others as well across the world. With our numbers stretched so thin, containing this is becoming impossible."

"And the senate?"

"An emergency meeting was called to discuss options, however, I think it's safe to say that they are seriously considering what we spoke of this morning."

'Fuck me.' Izuku thought to himself.

"And I hate to say it but I'm starting to agree."

'Fuck me sideways!'

"Sorry kid, but I'm afraid discretion is a luxury we can no longer afford."

The young man groaned in frustration. And once again, through it all; All Might was confused.

"Excuse me again but," he butted in, hand raised like a student, "What exactly is this about?"

"The subject I was speaking of to Garo here is that we may have to reveal ourselves to the public and work with the governments and Hero Agencies. It's also the reason I asked you here as well," Fenris explained.

"It is?"

"Yes. As the highest ranking Hero in the world, we would appreciate any cooperation and aid in the transition from our original clandestine position into a more open one should it come to that. "

"This is quite a lot to take in. Hypothetically, what if I turned it down?"

"We'll simply carry on without you," She said as if it were obvious, surprising the blond Hero.

"That's it? Not even gonna hold my secret hostage if I say no?"

"Please, we're not evil. And holding it over you doesn't benefit us in the long run."

"Speaking of which, you and that maid were awfully calm about seeing me like this."

"That's because my fellow Watchdogs and other members of the order already knew."

"Wait," this time Izuku butted in, "You already knew about this? How come no one said anything?"

"At the time, it wasn't important to your mission. And I figured you wouldn't have cared given your 'opinion' on Pro-Heroes."

Izuku frowned at the flippant answer.

"I'd say that concludes this meeting. All Might, do take some time to think on our proposal; we will await your answer. And as for you, Garo, run along home and get some rest. Passing out twice in one day is very concerning."

"I'm not even gonna question how you know about that, too," Izuku muttered as he turned and left, the skeletal frame of All Might following behind him.


A short walk and closing door/wall later, All Might turning around and knocking on the second part; the younger of the duo made for home.

"Young Midoriya, how exactly am I supposed to find you people when I come to a decision? That woman never explained that part."

"My guess? You come find me. You already saw my student ID so you know where I go."

'I suppose that makes sense though I better not show up in my muscle form. The last thing I need is questions of why I'm visiting a junior high school out of the blue.'

"Now if you'll excuse me, my bed is calling me," Izuku said as he pointed his thumb into the distance.

"And a mother at home who is gonna have a serious conniption about today," Zaruba added.

"You just had to say it," the young Makai Knight sighed out as he walked away.

As the two (one boy and one talking ring [still trying to wrap his mind around that) left, All Might kept his gaze on the young man. He thought back to what had happened today: what he saw, what he heard; all of it seemed too fantastic to be real. But most of all, this young man before him, with no special powers, had risked his life numerous times to protect people from evil monsters and asked for absolutely nothing in return, no recognition, no fortune; nothing. All Might felt a twinge in his heart, this boy reminded him of why he pursued the life he did in the first place. Then another thought crossed his mind…

'Is he the one I've been searching for?'


School the following day was an odd change of pace. Rather than taunting him, most of Izuku's classmates were engrossed in gossip about the 'new hero' Garo. Tons of questions flew around like: 'Who was he?' 'Where did he come from?' 'Where did he get that armor?' There was even talk how he may be one of the students here since many saw that he wore their school uniform.

"How cute, you have fans," Zaruba whispered into his ear, jokingly.

"Shut it," Izuku whispered back.

A few students, however, were casting glances at the young knight; particularly those who tended to hang out with Bakugo. The aforementioned teen was glaring, as if he was searching for something, at Izuku. It soon all came to a stop when the homeroom teacher came in.

"Alright, settle down. I know it was a rather thrilling day yesterday but it's time to get back into it."

"Hey teach, is it true that this Garo guy is a student here?" one student with a long nose asked, catching Izuku's attention.

"I don't know nor am I at liberty to discuss that."

"I heard one guy said he thought it was Midoriya," another with stretching fingers said as he thumbed at said boy.

"No way it was Midoriya, that guy had super strength and some kind of telekinesis Quirk," a third with sharp teeth added, prompting the rest of the class to laugh.

'Here we go again,' Izuku thought, rolling his eyes.


Commissioner General Tanzawa felt the tension in the air as the various ministers entered the room, the Japanese cabinet had called an emergency meeting in regards to the recent development in the spike of Horrors; even the Emperor was present. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't on edge as well, to have one of history's most terrible secrets thrown out into the open is very serious, thoughts of the concerns and panic it's no doubt causing made him fear it will only get worse. The last person to enter was not a minister but the senatorial Watchdog of the region: Amon, who sat down next to him.

"Thank you all for coming on such short notice," the Prime Minister began, "As you are all aware, there's been a number of incidents happening across the globe."

"Yes, the monster attacks and those armored individuals that fought them," The Agriculture Minister said, "Do we know anything about them?"

"I have a question as well," one of the younger ministers cut in before gesturing to Amon, "Who is he?"

"This is the Watchdog Amon, he is a representative of the Makai Order," The Minister of Defense answered, "And he is directly involved with the knights you all saw."

"Knights?"

"What's he talking about?"

"Settle down, everyone. Everything will be explained," The Prime Minister commanded.

"I am a member of the Makai Order, an organization that spans the globe with but a single mission: to defend humanity against the monstrous beings known as Horrors," Amon said.

"Horrors?"

"The monsters you have seen on the news facing our warriors, the Makai Knights. They are drawn to our world by the vices of humans. The possess those with dark hearts, swallowing their souls and assume their identity before stalking the night for more victims."

Many of the older Cabinet members remained stone-faced, having already known but the newer, younger ones seemed shocked and confused. One of them then spoke up.

"How long has this been going on?"

"Since the dawn of civilization."

"Why are we only hearing about this now?"

"In the early days, everyone knew. However, as the population began to grow in tandem with the darker human aspects, it began to become difficult to control as the Horrors began to grow in numbers. In order to combat this, we opted to erase witnesses' memories and remove evidence of the Horrors. Any we missed would be written off as making it up. Eventually, some records of Horrors became the inspiration for human myths like vampires and werewolves and such."

"Why don't we just have the numerous Heroes handle the problem?" another of the younger ministers asked.

"We learned early on that Horrors are resistant or even immune to most Quirks. Despite their still unknown origins, Quirks are still rooted in science and only something as supernatural as the Horrors themselves can harm them."

"Which brings us back to the topic of this meeting," the Prime Minister said, "Recently, Horror activity has been on the rise. The Makai Order is stretched rather thin and maintaining the confidentiality of the situation has now taken a serious blow. Not only are the numbers rising but some have even displayed abilities they shouldn't have."

Tanzawa took that as his cue to stand, "Excuse me, sir, but I believe we may have an answer to the latter of that."

"Yes, Commissioner General?"

"We managed to recover images of the Horror Garo fought before it transformed and ran the host through facial recognition. The man it possessed was small time criminal with a rap sheet of assault and robbery. What caught our attention was his Quirk: the ability to bend light and make the area he occupies dark."

"That would explain how it was able to operate unhindered in the day," Amon hummed.

"What do you mean?" asked one of the young officials.

"Aside from our weapons and spells, Horrors have only one other weakness: natural light from the sun. It severely weakens them so they stick to hunting at night."

"Indeed, and the reports of some them having extra powers they normally don't have led to our theory: that they are actively seeking out those with strong Quirks to supplement their own abilities."

"That is troubling news."

"I know, sir, however, we believe this may be only a trial run since some have either not helped or actually hinder the Horrors," Tanzawa finished before sitting back down.

"I suppose that's some comfort. The Makai Senate has decided that in order to continue with their mission, they are willing to go public and work with law enforcement and Hero agencies. As such it is very important to aid the Order in any way we can. One of the main issues is a means for them to operate without restrictions while in the field."

"Before we get into that, Prime Minister, I'd like to ask the Commissioner General something," the Minister of Education chimed in.

"You mentioned the 'Garo' individual that appeared in Musutafu, are you familiar with him?" she asked.

"Only by reputation, I've never met him in person," Tanzawa said.

"So is it true that he is a junior high student?"

"He started his third year, yes," Amon cut in.

"You would allow agents that young?" The Minister gasped.

"All knights and priests start their training young; Garo fully took up the mantle when he was twelve."

"WHAT?!"


A/N: Done and Done! I've been so swamped at work, I barely get time to work on any of my stories.