It was three days before Mina ventured up into the Underground again.
She wasn't sure why she was so hesitant, exactly-it wasn't like the place was any more dangerous than it had been. And she sure wasn't any better off than before, either; she continued to live in her cave, even though Mina knew Mezou and Tsu would have taken her in without even hesitating. That thought was just…it was too much, too quickly. Mina could handle talking to them again, trying to slowly reestablish bonds she'd broken herself six years ago…but relying on their charity was something she refused to do. She would not be a burden, and she didn't know if she could handle the constant ache of Fumi's missing place in that house.
He should have been there. He should be teasing Mezou and Tsu like he used to, or play-fighting with Dark Shadow, or…or something. He'd been the core of their little family, the star they all orbited around. When he'd vanished-no, not vanished, died- it had torn them to shreds, sending them spinning out in all directions. Mina couldn't be around her oldest friends without Fumikage Tokoyami's shadow weighing on her heart, and that hurt.
When she finally got back to her cave after leaving Izuku, Mina had been too exhausted to even eat. She'd just curled up in her pile of blankets and tried to ignore the tears in her eyes. She'd lain there for what felt like an eternity, not grieving, but killing her own hopes. Some part of her had always imagined, childishly, that Fumi had still been alive, that he'd had a good reason for disappearing, that she'd see him again one day. In her daydreams, he'd beg for her forgiveness, she'd give it to him on the spot, and they could all be whole again. But now…now she just wanted to forget.
Mina didn't know how long she lay there, curled into a ball, systematically pushing away every memory that tore at her heart. Eventually, though, the growling in her stomach became impossible to ignore, and she decided that she would have to let time do the rest. Life went on.
However, sooner had she made her way up to the winding streets of the Underground than she found herself distracted. As she walked down a street in the commercial district of the second level, cloak and hood drawn tight to avoid standing out, she passed by a shop with several televisions in the front window. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a flash of green from the glowing screen, and something in her chest twinged.
Curious, Mina turned to get a better look, and sure enough, it was Izuku. The televisions seemed to be turned to a news channel, judging by the banners and the fact that the man Mina had once saved was behind a podium decorated with microphones. That was…confusing. It was hard to remember that Atlas was famous sometimes, after all the time Mina had spent around him down in the depths. She struggled to reconcile the broad, dangerous-looking man squinting into camera flashes with the soft-smiling one she'd spoken to on the balcony of Mezou and Tsu's home.
A moment later, Mina finally processed the words scrolling across the bottom of the screen. "ATLAS CAPTURES FINAL MEMBER OF LEAGUE OF VILLAINS AFTER NINE YEARS," they screamed, making Mina frown. That wasn't what had happened, and they'd both known it. The sound was off, so Mina couldn't hear what Izuku was saying-but he looked odd, some weird mix of frustration, relief, and shame playing across his features. Mina wasn't even sure how she could read his face so well-she got the feeling that he was doing a decent job staying composed, and not many people could have understood his emotions so well from a glance. But whatever the reason, the combination of the obvious media frenzy and the headline made one thing clear: people thought that Izuku had caught Toga. Except…that wasn't true. Toga had escaped. Was Izuku lying? Was he trying to claim the glory of taking her out, without…but hang on, Toga had escaped, how was he supposed to…
Mina shook her head, forcing herself to stop going in circles. She was really, really confused, and part of her was screaming that Izuku was proving that he was just like all the other heroes, lying and cheating for fame. But it didn't make sense, and she tamped down that thought with as much force as she could muster. Yeah, she didn't understand what was going on…but she couldn't picture the man who had been so vulnerable when he admitted to killing Tomura Shigaraki immediately turning around and lying to everyone without even having Toga to back up the lie.
Remembering how guilty she'd felt after assuming he was trying to turn her into an informant, Mina made a decision; she wasn't gonna judge him without at least trying to understand what was really going on. She owed him that much.
She turned and walked away from the televisions, swiftly finding an alleyway and scaling the side of the rough-carved building.
It was a good thing she wasn't all that far from Izuku's hero agency. Hell, maybe she could even get something to eat out of this.
Besides…she honestly kinda missed him. It would be nice to talk to him, at least.
And, of course, beat the shit out of him if it turned out he was lying. That was a given.
Izuku slumped forward in his chair, head buried in his folded arms atop his desk. It took far too much effort just to keep his eyes open.
The last few days had been a fucking mess. He'd had to give multiple press conferences, talk to reporters and police and the Hero Commission, field constant requests for interviews, and deal with friends sending him their own congratulations. Hell, even Bakugo had sent him the usual barrage of threats and bragging, mixed with an almost-grateful thanks.
None of that should have exhausted Izuku quite as much as it did-he'd done it plenty of times before, after big fights or important missions. He was an old hand at dealing with a media frenzy by now-it came with the territory. But he'd never had to deal with one that was based on a lie before. Every congratulations, every answer to a question-they all rang false, and he knew it. Izuku hated having to lie about it. Even the look in Akari's face-like he was something more than a hero, like he had hung the stars-whenever she passed by him in the hallways of Aegis ate at him, left him feeling sick with guilt. He just wanted to scream the truth-but of course, he couldn't do that.
And the worst, naturally, was yet to come. As exhausted as he was now, Izuku really didn't know what would happen once he came clean to Ejiro. His best friend had been just as busy these last few days, but once the storm passed, he would expect explanations for what Izuku had been doing during those two days in the Depths. Izuku…had no clue what he would tell Ejiro. How was he supposed to talk about Mina, or Mezou, or the battle at the compound, without giving up secrets that weren't his to tell?
Suddenly, Izuku was jarred out of his thoughts by a loud, aggressive thumping noise. Leaping from his seat, he frantically scanned for the source. Was it an attack of some sort?
At last, Izuku spotted where the noise was coming from. A cloaked, masked figure was hammering on his office window. As Izuku cautiously stepped closer, he could make out golden eyes beneath the mask, and he sighed, shoulders slumping.
It took Izuku a few seconds to open the window. As soon as he did, the figure slipped inside-leaving scorched handholds and footholds in the rock around Izuku's window-and ripped their mask off with a sigh.
"Took you long enough," Mina told him, shaking her short hair loose, then pushing a few stray curls away from her eyes. Izuku was too confused by her presence to stop himself from being entranced by the way those curls danced.
Shaking himself free of rapture, Izuku hissed, "What the hell are you doing here? You're gonna get caught!"
Mina barely even spared him a glance, instead letting her gaze wander around the room, studying it. She threw herself into an armchair in the corner without even hesitating, throwing her hands behind her head as she did so. "Chill out," she replied. "Nobody saw me come in. I made sure of it."
Izuku frowned. "Are you sure?" he asked. "There's been a lot of cameras around here lately."
Mina finally turned, meeting Izuku's gaze with one of her own. "Yes, I'm sure," she told him flatly, eyes no longer twinkling playfully. "And as for those cameras…they're why I'm here, actually."
Izuku exhaled loudly. "Of course you are," he muttered, sitting back down and letting his body go limp. "Let me guess: you heard that Toga was captured?"
Suddenly, Mina stopped looking so casual. She bolted upright in her seat. "Wait, she was caught?" she asked. "I thought you were lying about that?"
Izuku raised an eyebrow, burying the part of him that twinged at the thought that Mina already knew he was a liar. "No, she actually did get caught," he answered.
Mina's eyes went wide. "How?" she demanded. She fought down surges of conflicting feelings, refusing to sink back down into the mess she'd been the last few days.
Izuku sighed, reaching up with one hand to rub the bridge of his nose, trying to chase off the headache that had been nagging at him the last few days.
"I…don't know," he admitted, making Mina's eyes widen further. "Nobody does. She just got dumped in front of my agency like garbage. Somebody just… gave her to us."
It took Mina a moment to find her words. "Shit," she breathed at last. Her mind began to race, realizing just how dangerous things might be. If someone really had been able to make an example out of a fighter as dangerous and valuable as Toga…
Izuku nodded, chuckling darkly as he agreed, "Exactly. I've been trying to run damage control ever since."
Mina frowned. "By…taking the credit?" she asked, trying not to sound too accusing. "I don't get it."
Izuku winced. "Yeah," he admitted, sounding ashamed. "Believe me, I'm not a fan of it either. I hate lying like that."
"But you're still doing it," Mina noted. Izuku met her eyes, and found them…not unsympathetic, but not entirely free of suspicion, either.
Perhaps it was that conflicted gaze that made him rise to his feet, animated by a sudden rush of energy. "Look," Izuku said, "I'd love to keep talking about this, but now really isn't the time. Or the place, actually."
Mina raised an eyebrow. "Why not?" she asked.
Izuku crossed his arms. "Because I'd rather not get asked why I have a suspicious figure breaking into my office in the middle of the day," he replied pointedly.
Mina snorted. "You're saying I look suspicious?" she shot back.
Izuku raised an eyebrow, glancing meaningfully at her all-black clothing, ragged cloak, and full-face mask. Mina got the hint.
"Alright, fine," she decided, hopping to her feet. "There's some nice coffee shops nearby, I bet."
Izuku blinked, suddenly confused all over again as Mina crossed towards the window. "Wait a second, we can't just-" he began, only for Mina to shoot him a look.
"I think we both know there's more to this than what you're telling me," she said. "And if you don't want to talk about it here, the least you can do is buy me something to eat. Besides, you need to get out of this office. No offense, but you look like shit."
Izuku snorted. "I haven't been getting much sleep these last few days," he admitted.
Mina rolled her eyes. "Typical. Now, let's get outta here. You've got a lot of explaining to do," she told him.
Izuku frowned as Mina stepped up onto the windowsill. "Wait," he interrupted. "You can't just-"
Mina raised an eyebrow, glancing back towards him. "Jump out a third-story window with nothing to break my fall?" she asked, finishing Izuku's sentence for him. "Of course I can. And if you don't want to explain me and my suspicious figure to every other hero in this building, you'll be following me."
With that, Mina jumped out the window. Izuku rushed to the open portal, only to find Mina effortlessly hanging from the wall a few inches below, having easily melted handholds into the building.
"I hate you sometimes," Izuku informed her.
Mina grinned as she tugged her mask back on with one hand. "Well, that's just too bad," she replied. "Now, you better hurry up!"
Izuku rolled his eyes and summoned One For All. Just two or three percent would be fine for this. "Why am I letting a thief boss me around?" he asked under his breath. When the only answer he got was a flutter in his chest and a warmth on his cheeks, he decided to stop thinking about it and just jump out the window already.
So he did.
Ten minutes later, Mina and Izuku (wearing his usual disguise) were safely ensconced in a high-walled booth in the small coffee shop just down the road. Steaming cups sat untouched in front of them; Izuku disliked using caffeine as a crutch, and Mina didn't trust her body not to overreact to the stuff-her few previous encounters with coffee had ended…badly.
There was no such fate for the pastries, though. Mina attacked those savagely, ripping and chewing through them so quickly Izuku could only sit back and watch, more than a little put off by how frantically she was wolfing them down. It was like she expected them to be taken away at any second…which honestly made more sense the longer Izuku thought about it. A life like hers didn't produce calm, refined eaters.
When the pile of baked goods had been reduced to crumbs, Mina sat back, sighing luxuriously. "Fuck, those are good," she declared. "I wish I could steal those more often."
Izuku snorted, mostly at how casual Mina was talking about her crimes in front of a hero. "Probably not great for you, though," he pointed out. "All that sugar…"
Mina shrugged, leaning back in her seat and throwing her hands behind her head. She still had her hood up, though she wasn't bothering with her mask. It wasn't like there were many people in the coffee shop anyway. She replied, "Eh, I'll be fine. I'm used to eating whatever I can get my hands on, my stomach has definitely had worse. It's better than half-rotten garbage, that's for sure."
Izuku frowned. "You've eaten that?" he asked, instantly kicking himself for it.
Mina met his eyes, clearly not that offended. "Sure," she answered with a shrug. "Mostly when I was younger and couldn't defend any actual food from the bigger, stronger kids. It sucks, and I threw up a lot, but it's better than starving to death."
Izuku was quiet after that. He couldn't help but be reminded of just how different his life had been from Mina. It was like they were from different worlds. What could they possibly have in common? What could he possibly understand about her life?
Suddenly, Mina reached across the table and nudged him, snapping him out of his thoughts. When Izuku looked up, flushing, Mina grinned at him. "Stop zoning out on me, moron," she said, though it was surprisingly affectionate. Izuku sighed, returning her smile as he fully extricated himself from his thoughts.
"So," he asked, "You didn't hear anything about Toga getting captured? It's been all over the news ever since I got back to the Underground."
Mina rolled her eyes. "Once again, Izuku, I literally live in a cave," she reminded him. "It's not like we get cable in the Depths. I doubt anyone down there has heard of it yet."
Izuku nodded thoughtfully. "Well, where do you want me to start?" he asked.
"Give me the short version," Mina said. She was eyeing the last pastry, a jelly bun Izuku hadn't even touched, though it was sitting in front of him. She went to swipe it, but Izuku met her eyes, and she froze, realizing that he'd spotted her attempt. Chuckling, he slid it over to her, gesturing to indicate it was all hers.
As Mina gratefully tore into the bun, Izuku explained, "Somebody clearly wasn't too thrilled with the compound raid, so they grabbed Toga and left her tied up where we couldn't possibly miss her. She's in jail now."
Mina winced, though she had to wait until her mouth was no longer full to speak. Swallowing, she asked, "And you have no idea who did this?"
Izuku shook his head. "None," he confirmed. "I tried to interrogate her, but she just laughed at me. Said that I'd "find out eventually."
"Well, that's ominous," Mina mused, frowning thoughtfully. "Mezou told me about what Kugo said. I've never heard of any "Outcast Army."
"Neither have I," Izuku agreed, making Mina roll her eyes.
"That goes without saying," she informed him. "You are, after all, a dumb abovegrounder."
Izuku chuckled at that, recognizing the playful tone of Mina's voice. Unfortunately, the lighthearted mood didn't last.
A moment later, Izuku sighed, slumping against the booth's cushioned back. "I wish I didn't have to lie about this," he admitted, voice quiet.
Mina raised an eyebrow. "Have to lie?" she repeated. "That's awfully convenient. You get all the glory either way, after all."
"It's the truth," Izuku replied.
"It sounds like an excuse to me. You're the strongest hero there is, who says you have to do anything?" Mina shot back, clearly skeptical.
Izuku leaned his head back, staring at the ceiling for a moment as he chuckled softly. "If only," he muttered.
Mina paused, tempted to press Izuku, but knowing that she didn't want to attack him for it. Instead, she waited patiently, willing to let Izuku explain himself.
Finally, Izuku let out a deep breath, hauling himself back up until he was fully upright again. Mina tried to ignore the way her eyes tracked the rippling muscles across his torso.
"I did get glory for Toga's capture, true," Izuku said, voice quiet and oh so deep, "But I didn't want it. Glory is…I won't say it's a bad thing, but it isn't why I do this. It never has been, and I hope to God it never will be. And lying to get it just feels dirty."
Mina raised an eyebrow. Crossing her arms, she responded, "Heroics is pretty dirty, Izuku. Trust me, I've seen plenty of heroes who would gladly lie-or worse-for the kind of fame you say you don't enjoy."
Izuku's eyes narrowed, but he stopped before responding. Then, he sighed, "You know, I was about to argue…but I believe you. As much as I try to see the best in people, I know there's some real scumbags in this line of work. It's just the idealist in me talking, I guess."
Mina snorted at that; she'd never run into an idealist in her life…a living one, anyway. She pressed, "But why lie about Toga? That's the part I still don't get."
Izuku closed his eyes for a second, clearly thinking. When he opened them again, they were deep and somber, and they pulled Mina in like she was in a whirlpool.
Izuku said, "If I went up there and told the truth, I would be exposing a lot of people to danger. When villains learn that other villains have gotten one over on the heroes, they get bolder. They try to one-up each other, try attacking more often and more dangerously. That gets innocent people hurt. My job is to stop that-to protect people. I can't let my actions lead to more villain attacks."
"So you lie," Mina said, voice flat and controlled. She couldn't let herself get lost in Izuku's words, couldn't let herself trust him the way her body and her instincts seemed to.
Izuku met her gaze evenly. "So I lie," he agreed. "And I hate every second of it. I hate how dirty I feel about it, I hate how it makes people look at me like I'm something more meaningful than just a good hero."
Mina snorted. "Meaningful," she repeated. "I'm sure the Depths would agree. They hate you down there, you know. You're the symbol of their oppression, of the world that doesn't want them around."
Izuku flinched. He couldn't help it. He had known it, on some level-being a symbol meant everyone was free to decide what you were a symbol of- but it still wasn't pleasant to hear. He met Mina's golden eyes, and told her, "I don't want to be. I don't mean anyone from the Depths any harm."
Mina snorted, though the humor didn't reach her eyes. They glittered dangerously, something bright and angry making her gaze come to life.
"Tell that to the people who lose friends and family to heroes," she told him. "Tell that to all the mutants who never got a fair chance."
Izuku was quiet. What was he supposed to say to that? Mina's voice was too raw, too dark to be speaking from anything but experience. And that wasn't a thing Izuku could respond to.
Thankfully, Mina seemed to realize it, too. A moment later, she decided, "You know what, let's change the subject. This is supposed to distract you, isn't it?"
Izuku raised an eyebrow. "It is?" he asked curiously.
Mina chuckled at the confused undertone in his voice. "It is," she confirmed. "You look like you need the break, trust me."
Izuku snorted. "Well, I can't argue with that," he admitted. "So, what do you want to talk about instead?"
Mina shrugged. "Hey, don't look at me and my awful social skills," she responded. "How about…I don't know, your mysterious love life or something?"
Izuku shot a look at her. Mina met his gaze evenly, right up until they both burst out laughing, unable to contain their amusement anymore. Both tried to ignore the strange emotion in their chests as the topic came up.
"You sound like a fucking tabloid journalist," Izuku told her. "Constantly trying to figure out if I've got a secret relationship or something stupid like that. Which I don't, for the record."
Mina snickered. "I don't know, man," she replied. "I have a hard time believing a hunk like you isn't dating, like, some movie star or something."
Izuku rolled his eyes. They were both wearing enormous grins by now, humor infusing every gesture. "A plain guy like me? Never," he said.
Mina almost frowned. "You're not plain," she thought. She wanted to tell him that, but…she couldn't. Something was holding her back, some hesitation. It felt like telling him that would be crossing a line she couldn't come back from.
"Okay," she said, "No love life then. How about family?"
Izuku shrugged. "Sure, I guess," he replied. "I grew up with my mom…but I don't really talk to my dad. He's just…not a factor in my life, I guess. My mom is the one who raised me, who did all that sort of stuff."
Mina nodded, still unsure why she cared so much. A second later, Izuku seemed to have the same thought, because he said, "You know, for someone who was threatening me a few weeks ago, you sure do seem okay with casually meeting up over coffee."
Mina shrugged, searching for an answer while trying to act nonchalant. "I…can't really say," she admitted. "I guess that you're just the most interesting thing to happen to me in a while…and besides, you're pretty fun to talk to. Or make fun of."
Izuku rolled his eyes. "Of course," he muttered, before perking up again. "Although…what about your family?"
Mina wondered why the stab of pain that ran through her chest at the thought of them was more muted than it usually was. "I mean, you've met them," she replied. "The ones that are left, anyway. And Fumi is…well. You know."
Izuku froze. "Ah, shit," he cursed. "Mina, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have-"
Mina waved him off. "It's fine, really," she told him. "I'm doing a lot better than I was, now."
Looking skeptical, and relieved, Izuku asked, "Are you sure? It's only been a few days."
Mina forced herself to nod, grateful that she'd managed to mostly suppress the grief that was still coloring her thoughts. "Yeah," she assured him. "I…I'm used to it. I could…talk about Fumi a little, if you'd like."
Izuku blinked, clearly unconvinced by Mina's claims that she was okay, but also sorely tempted. At last, he made a decision, saying, "If you're sure…then okay. I have to admit, I didn't really get a lot of detail about him…just that he was important to you."
Mina let out a deep breath, gathering her thoughts. Finally, she began, "He…he was. Important to me, I mean. He was like…well, he kind of became something like a big brother to all of us. Mezou was the protective one, Tsu was always supportive but a bit distant…but Fumi was there. I trusted him. He was the first person who ever reached out to me, not trying to use me or trick me or exploit me, but because he thought I needed help, and because he knew I deserved it. For a little girl used to being bullied and hurt by the other homeless mutants, having people protect me was…it felt like a dream. Suddenly, I had people who cared."
Mina paused, forcing herself to blink tears from her eyes. She was struggling, even after nearly six years had passed since those days had ended. She was back on her own, now, but this time she could take care of herself. She didn't need to be protected.
"He was…funny," she continued after a few moments of weakness. "Or at least, the way he interacted with his quirk was. Fumi always tried to be so serious, even when we were only twelve or thirteen, but Dark Shadow was always pranking him or making jokes."
Izuk frowned. "Dark Shadow?" he asked, clearly confused.
Mina grinned, even as her eyes remained somber. "His quirk. I know, it's silly, but he named it when he was like five. It was a…well, a sentient shadow monster that lived in Fumi, somehow. It was weird. It usually did what he told it to, but…he seemed unhappy about that, sometimes. Especially as we got older."
Izuku continued to look confused about a sentient quirk, but clearly decided to worry about it later. Mina sighed, then said, "So…yeah. Fumi was probably the best person I've ever known. He had a knack for finding and helping people, even as a kid who was trying to survive just like the rest of us. Honestly…you remind me of him, in some ways."
"I…do?" Izuku repeated.
Mina shrugged. "Yeah," she said. "Fumi always got this look in his eyes whenever someone needed help. It was like he wasn't even thinking about what he was doing, just…protecting people was instinctive to him. You act the same way, sometimes. It's half the reason I know you're not like the heroes who do things just for glory."
Izuku couldn't help but smile at that. The way Mina said it finally put some of his fears to rest. He knew, then, that she really did believe him, that she was actually willing to trust him with her story.
"Thank you for that," he murmured as Mina finally fell silent. Without even thinking, his hand moved to cover hers, resting on the table.
Mina froze, her shoulders beginning to go tense, and Izuku's eyes went wide. "Shit," he thought.
Deceptively casually, Mina's eyes came to rest on where Izuku's hand covered hers, hiding pink skin from view. She smirked lazily, belying the way her body still seemed primed to explode into action at any second.
"What is it with you and trying to get your skin melted off?" she asked rhetorically. Izuku withdrew his hand like it was burned-which it would have been if Mina had had a little bit less self-control.
"Sorry," he said quickly, blushing red. "I didn't mean to-"
Once again, Mina waved him off, her shoulders slumping again as she forcibly suppressed her own blush. She had no idea what was wrong with her. She hated being touched, but that…she'd almost been okay with it! What was going on?
"It's fine," she assured him. "No harm, no foul. Just…don't do it again, okay? If you have to touch me, please just ask first."
Izuku nodded, "Got it," he replied. He was busy fighting off his own confusion and conflicted feelings. What was wrong with him? Why couldn't he get control of himself?
Mina was the first to speak again. Without even acknowledging the incident, she joked, "Man, we are really bad at this whole "avoiding stressful topics" thing, aren't we?"
Izuku couldn't help the smile that spread across his face. "I guess not," he agreed. "But still…thank you for telling me about Fumikage."
Mina smiled back. It was somber and a little strained, but it was undeniably genuine. "Thank you for letting me talk about him," she replied. "It really did help."
Unfortunately, Izuku didn't get a chance to savor the warmth that response caused in his chest. As soon as Mina finished speaking, a loud alarm blared from his phone. Both of them immediately turned to look, finding a strange caller ID ringing in.
Face grave, Izuku grabbed for it, bringing it to his ear. "Atlas here," he said as calmly as he could manage. He'd already realized it was an emergency call. The hero network hadn't been able to reach the earpiece he usually wore, so they'd gone to their second-and last-resort trying to reach him. They'd only have done that if…
The response fulfilled his worst fears. The voice on the other end was the cool, collected tone he was used to from the Hero Network operators; in his frantic worry, he barely even registered whether the voice was male or female.
"Atlas, there's been a villain attack on the seventh level of the Underground," the operator informed him, urgent but businesslike, without a single wasted word. "The heroes on the scene report that they're outnumbered but winning, though they've requested heavy-hitting backup. In addition, there has been significant structural damage to the cavern. A cave-in may be imminent."
Izuku cursed under his breath, but the operator had already hung up; they didn't need to ask him if he was coming or not. Of course he was. Izuku scrambled to his feet, already sparking with green lightning. He turned to apologize to Mina; he didn't want to leave without saying a word. Except…she wasn't there.
Confused, Izuku turned, only to find her beside him, mask on. "Well?" she demanded. "Stop standing around, moron!"
Izuku was so confused, he forgot how to think. "W-why are you-" he began, only for Mina to bolt, gesturing for him to follow. He did, and they burst from the coffee shop in seconds.
Mina barely acknowledged him as they sprinted down the street. She must have noticed Izuku's utterly lost gaze on her, though, because she snapped, "Stop fucking worrying about why I'm coming. I am, and you can't stop me."
Izuku would never even dream of doing such a thing. His mind was already running at lightspeed, determined to stop a disaster. A cave-in would kill dozens. Hundreds. He couldn't let that happen. With Mina by his side, he stormed downwards, wreathed in green lightning.
Far, far below even Mina and Izuku's destination, Mezou stood in front of the worst devastation he'd ever seen, unsure what to do, what to even say. All around him, there was frantic movement, like a kicked anthill. People were running, scrambling to find loved ones, digging through the ruins of their lives. It was madness, and Mezou couldn't make sense of it.
Before him, where there had once been one of the biggest, safest, and most "civilized" parts of the Depths, there were only ruins. The immense circular pillar at the center of the home base of the most hated and feared gang in the Depths was just…destroyed. The pillar itself was destroyed. It had once stood like the trunk of some immense tree, a hundred feet thick, four hundred feet tall, festooned with rope bridges and buildings jutting from the sides or carved into the dense rock itself. But now it lay broken on the ground, shattered into three pieces like the body of a fallen god. All those houses, bridges, and people were splintered and smashed, bits of them strewn around the cavern in every direction.
When Mezou had heard that the Claws had been attacked, his first reaction had been grim satisfaction, and perhaps even a little relief. The gang was little more than cruel brutes, extorting and bullying the residents of the Depths. Mutants were their favorite targets; timid, beaten-down, unwilling to fight back most of the time. They were the bloodiest of the gangs, and when your competition was the Ten Kings and the Tunnel Rats, that was saying something. Even so, their base had flourished into a genuine settlement, as every organization's home did in the depths; they provided safety, stability, often some sort of income in exchange for loyalty. The Claws were criminals, but they had placed entire families under their protection, seeing it as a good way to ensure some sort of respect among the Depths. And it had worked-their predations were seen more as a fact of life down here than as a threat, at least by most. Mezou had…disagreed. Strenuously. He'd fought with-and worked with, when he needed to-all the gangs at some point or other, sometimes against each other, sometimes not, but he'd ended up on the bad side of the Claws the most often. He'd relished it, even; there were few enemies as satisfying to crush as them.
And now their base had been turned to rubble in an afternoon. Mezou had needed to come see it for himself to truly understand how bad it was. The answer?
Really fucking bad. He couldn't even begin to guess at casualties, or at what it meant.
The sound of heavy footsteps approaching from his side drew Mezou's attention away from his worries. Kugo stepped up beside him, eyes and jaw set into a grim expression.
"What are people saying about it?" Mezou asked quietly. Kugo had gone to speak to some of the survivors, looking for answers. He didn't look it, but the enormous orca mutant had a way with people; perhaps it was the voice that felt too soft for such a large man, or the eyes that could radiate understanding in place of cold fury, but people talked around Kugo, in a way they just… didn't with Mezou.
Kugo shook his head, looking haggard; his injuries were clearly still affecting him, though he'd insisted on coming along. "None of them saw who attacked," he said, leaning against a rough stone wall alongside Mezou. "The most I got out of any of them was that some massive thing swooped down out of nowhere and just…smashed the pillar. Ripped it apart like it was made of paper."
Mezou shook his head in disbelief. The power it must have taken to destroy such a colossal structure so easily was…terrifying. He'd only ever seen one other person who might be able to match that sort of destruction, and it was that damn hero Mina had dragged through his front door. Watching him fight, really fight, had been…
Like watching a god swat a gnat.
Forcing aside the remnants of the stunned awe he'd managed to hide from Izuku, Mezou asked, "What about the Claws?"
Kugo shook his head. "Destroyed," he answered softly. "Every last one of their senior leadership was in that town. I watched them dig out the boss himself. What was left of him, that is."
Mezou frowned. "All of them?" he hissed. "That sounds…"
"Catastrophic," Kugo finished, nodding slightly. "The whole organization just got decapitated. Anyone capable of giving orders, anyone with the respect to make the rank and file follow-they're dead. It looks like a surprising number of the innocents got out, but whoever did this got every single one of the bigwigs. There must have been a meeting or something-and the attackers knew about it."
Mezou let out a short breath. He'd known about the odd lack of casualties-there were far fewer bodies than there should have been after the destruction of a town this size-but the knowledge that the attackers had specifically been targeting the Claws only made things more confusing."
"Could this be the work of their rivals?" he wondered aloud. "The Ten Kings have been making threats-"
"The Kings always make threats," Kugo interrupted, shaking his head. "But they'd never do something like this. The Tunnel Rats wouldn't, either. The gangs skirmish, fight each other for turf and the like, but none of them have the capability to destroy each other. They wouldn't do it even if they could-it causes too much chaos, and chaos is bad for business. Besides, annihilating a gang invites someone to do it to you."
Mezou nodded, following the logic. Then, he said, "So, you think this is aimed at causing chaos? If the other gangs start moving in on the Claws while they're leaderless…"
"It'll cause mayhem," Kugo agreed. "Bloody, violent mayhem. More people will die, especially innocents."
Mezou continued mulling it over. There were plenty of the sort that thrived on chaos and death down here-the Claws had had many of them in their ranks. Some would do something like this just for the fun of it…but Mezou got the feeling that there was a different aim here. Someone had done this for a purpose. Then, it hit him.
Standing up straight, Mezou said, "It'll cause chaos…unless someone steps in. That's what this was, Kugo. Someone creating an opportunity to be the one people turn to for stability. Take out a brutal gang, stop something worse from rising in its place-people would flock to you for it."
Kugo nodded slowly, fixing Mezou with a strange look. "It's possible," he allowed. "But who would do that?"
"Neo-Stainists, maybe? It would be an opportunity to build up support for another crusade like the League," Mezou suggested, crossing six arms across his chest as Kugo shot him a warning look.
"Unlikely," the immense man growled, sounding frustrated and bitter. "We're too fragmented for something like that. Every group has more loyalty to their leader than to the cause-and every leader has different ideas about what that cause is, if they even care anymore."
Kugo clearly spoke from personal experience. Perhaps that frustration was why he had shown little interest in rejoining a different group of Neo-Stainists. For now, he was staying with Mezou and Tsu-and earning Tsu's eternal enmity for refusing to take care of himself.
"If you ask me," the orca mutant continued, "I can only think of one group willing to take on a force like the Claws."
Mezou raised an eyebrow. "Let me guess, you think the Outcast Army did it?" he asked. Kugo nodded, making the younger man sigh.
"Kugo, we barely know anything about them," Mezou reminded him. "And what little we do know suggests that they prefer to keep to themselves in the lower tunnels. Why would they-"
"They took over my compound," Kugo shot back. "Whatever they're doing, it involves expanding and usurping established groups. No other gang would have attacked the Claws, and this fits their MO-they went for the leaders. Maybe their entire plan is the same as what they did to me. Cut off the head of the snake, recruit the rest by promising them something better."
Mezou frowned. "Maybe," he admitted. "But for now, we can't be sure. And if the Outcasts were doing that, they'd have to announce that they attacked the Claws, and they haven't."
"Yet," Kugo added ominously. Mezou sighed, taking a few steps and turning his back to the great ruins of one of the most feared gangs in the Depths. Kugo rose as well, quickly falling in beside Mezou.
"For now," Mezou continued, softly and carefully, "We're only sure of one thing. The Claws just got wiped out-and that means something big has changed."
Kugo nodded, eyes grim and distant. He murmured, "And I think we both know what comes next."
Mezou did. An attack like this meant someone was on the offensive. A war had come, and the Depths would be right in the middle of it.
They were all in danger, now.