Chapter 62 - Perfect Promises

Somewhere...

Dren was calculative, he's been like this since he was accepted as a Splicer. What is a 'Splicer' some would question, it's simply someone of his kind who's gifted in communing with machines, understanding and applying its worth to their own to help them evolve and grow. The Devils were his family until... his leader was overwhelmed by technology, and that led to their downfall. Justifiably, of course, sometimes Splicers dig too deep, he wasn't nearly as strong when it happened, Dren's influence wouldn't have surmounted to anything.

His fingers ran across the smooth stone surface, feeling the machine underneath, its faded brass apparatus caged inside. Time passed and he wandered, crossing paths with Houses and their ideologies. If he returned to the Devils he wouldn't feel like he deserved to ask his new Kell for forgiveness, not until he did something meaningful.

Then... it did. "I'll make it up to you, Aksiskel, I swear I will, and to you, Silviskel," He patted the cloth bearing his House's symbol. Taking a step back to admire his work, he smiled under his mask, eyes wide in wonder at the white spire of living code, rectangular and contained bar a few stray lines. "It's tempered, but I doubt they'll notice a stray conflux, yes, this will work, it will."

He crossed his arms, feeling stronger just through excitement alone. "Now then, Azuru, I hope you'll come to find me soon..." That alone made him impatient.

The day had arrived sooner than expected. Once outside UA Yuki was immediately crushed under a metal vice, the life squeezing out of her while she turned blue in the face. "M-mom, I-I can't - ack!" Yuki had fought many foes, some bringing her close to death, but it was this woman's draconic strength that would be her end.

"Hehehe, I'm so excited~!" Akame was more excited than her daughter who went limp and slithered down onto the pavement with a dazed expression. Not far behind them, Izuku sweatdropped while the third year, Mirio chuckled at the sight.

"Wow, she really looks pumped with energy!" Mirio's outburst drew Akame's sharp smile, giving the boy's a wave.

"Hey there, Midoriya, and... oh, one of the top stars from year three, Togata, right?" She pointed to in which the blonde gave a salute.

"Astute as ever, Valstrax!" He replied, watching Izuku help the muttering, dead-eyed girl to her feet. "I think she's a little worn out though."

"Aw, she's just being dramatic." Akame dismissed kindly.

"I think a rib is in my sternum and I don't think it's supposed to be there," Yuki groaned, cracking her back while leaning against Izuku. "Zuzu, protect me...~"

"There-there," He patted her head similar to how Shoto did it, to his surprise, she purred, relaxing a bit though it made him stammer a blush. "A-are y-you ready?"

"Kinda," She snapped her gaze to Mirio and her Mom. "Do you mind, I wanna coddle my boyfriend in peace?"

"Don't mind us - eh?" When Akame looked again, she found only a large stone wall held between them. Even over the wall, her puffs of frustration could be seen. "Oh come on!"

"Heh, sorry 'bout that Miss. Akame!" When Yuki and Izuku followed the voice they found the hardened student from 1-B, Jura, greeting them with a wave. "Hey there, guys, thought I'd lend an arm - or a wall in this case." He grinned ear-to-ear with Yuki's expression brightening up.

"You're the best, Jura!" She giggled while the guy nodded and turned his head, or until her face dropped in confusion. "Wait, why are you here?"

He turned again with a smile. "Isn't it obvious, I got a request from your Mom for a Work-Study-" Her's and Izuku's expression shot up with surprise. "-I was gonna surprise you later but then I saw her giving you one of her back-breaking hugs and realized I might need to skip a few steps."

"Surprise~!" Akame's voice traveled over the wall.

"Amazing, I didn't think anyone from 1-B got Work Studies since their provisional licensing exam isn't until September," The greenette blinked, trying to understand the sudden shift in change. So the ravenette flexed out his free hand, the other maintaining control over the elevated wall.

"Simple really, I was permitted by Miss Akame," He answered simply, looking a little bashful for someone his size. "It's kinda hard to put into words, even to Kendo and the rest but... I wanted to help out and she said she pulled a few strings, difference is I won't earn much more than recognition from any heroes that see me in the field, and I can't use my Quirk unless Valstrax or another hero says so - in reality, I'm quite limited."

"But... you're going to have to catch up on work, you don't gain anything from this-" Yuki was cut short of her worry by her old friend's hand on her shoulder, his smile was hard to discern whatever else he was hiding, it was subtle.

"I want to help Yuyu, please, I already had to talk the rest into letting me go," Jura remained as steadfast as always, it was really annoying back then, and was now. Yuki sighed, nodding her head with a small smile.

"Alright, but I will get the truth out of you," He finger booped his nose before the two turned away to continue their own matters. "Okay... aside from literally everything that's spiraling downwards, yes, I'm ready, a little nervous but that's just SIVA."

|What?|

Izuku regained his own gleeful composure, hand tight around his bag. "Yeah, I don't know how Sir Nighteye will react to me, All Might looked ready to refuse helping me just to avoid him."

"All Might's... a lot of things," Yuki answered breathlessly. "I don't understand the bad blood myself, he never spoke about it, just..." She leaned forward to peck his lips with a cute smile that left Izuku star-struck once more. "Do your best, 'kay? I'll hear about it later - love you."

"U-um, right! L-love you too," He shook himself clear as the pair shared a small embrace, it always made them happy to hear that word. Soon, they left with a fist bump while Jura's wall came down, "Do your best too, Yuki."

The two sides soon departed in different directions. Yuki was a bundle of nerves, but she already got a bit of good luck to go with it, and Jura was also a hefty bonus. Izuku walked with Mirio, face scrunched up but fueled by his unwavering desire to succeed.

"We'll succeed together."

"We'll succeed together."

Outside Valstrax's Agency...

"Wow, this is..." Jura bent so far back Yuki had to keep him balanced. "...really tall."

"Haha, yeah, love the views," Akame grinned innocently. "I guess that's the sky dragon in me talkin', Ryuko agrees with me," The red-eyed woman leaned closer to the two. "She tries to deny it a lot."

Then with a pat on their backs, the two stepped past the small plots for flowers. And standing by admiring the colorful plant life were two individuals. One was the Martal Arts Hero, Jin, arms behind her back. Lifting herself from the pavement was a familiar raven-haired girl with a few white locks.

"Yukino!" Yuki beamed at the similarly named girl. The rather monotone student gave a curt bow of her head, then a shadowy hand waved from over her shoulder. "Oh, and hi to you too, Velk."

"She thanks you," Yukino replied, offering a hand to the bubbly bluette. "It is nice to see you again, and..." She tilted her head like a clock to Jura who gave a wave. "..."

"Oh, this is Jura, he's an old friend from a long time ago, he's... here like you are," Yuki slowly processed. "So metal, earth, and ice... heh, quite the combo."

"Agreed," Yukino nodded, then Jin patted her shoulder. "Miss. Jin's mentor, Edgeshot requested I work under her for the duration of our Work-Study."

"It was quite the surprise, but Yukino is a very sharp girl, and her partner all the same," The praise did cause a subtle reaction from the otherwise neutral girl in the form of her hand reaching to tuck up a scarf she was wearing to cover her mouth. "Akame, when should we...?" She made a strange click of her fingers.

"Uh... give it a few minutes, gotta give these three a quick once-over of my beautiful abode!" Akame sighed, admiring the tall, white building with glee. "Ahem, let's move people!"

"Right." The trio complied with the silent ninja shadowing their movements, hands at her back.

"Don't ramble," Jin spoke, causing the Sky Comet Hero to trip through the door of her agency in front of her employees and customers. She shot up to greet the ninja tug back her hood, allowing her raven hair to flow down to the middle of her back with a few flicks of purple, even her eyes with a sharp topaz. "You have a habit of going off on tangents that, even with my training, entice me to lob myself off the nearest building."

"I'm not that bad," She attempted to defuse, Yuki just groaned into her hand at the confused looks from her friends.

"Please don't..." Too late.

"How Shota puts up with you is astounding," Jin shot like an arrow through her friend's chest. "Perhaps that is what he li-"

"Graaaah!" Valstrax lunged and promptly hit the pillar behind Jin, the ninja watching her friend slide down face-first. "Valid point..."

"Transparently," Jin hummed, motioning the students along. "Come now, I shall show you her agency while her pride mends."

"Hate you..." Valstrax groaned, Yuki slid her mask over her embarrassed face. Her Mom was beyond weird.

"-in here is what most of the floors consist of, offices," Jin pointed out. While taller than the surrounding blocks, the building was quite small so everything was divided into divisions every eight floors, bringing the building to a total of thirty-two floors. "Despite Akame's attitude, she's well organized - sometimes."

After showing off the lower division, the students followed Jin back toward the elevator. "Why is the building so tall anyway?" Jura asked, gaining a wave from Jin as she motioned to her back.

"Her Quirk influences her biology, so at times Akame exhibits personality traits to a dragon, the Dragoon Hero Ryukyu suffers from this as well," The ninja explained while a few employees moved past them quickly. "For Akame she tends to enjoy flying a lot so having an office that gives her a wide vantage point helps to stem that feeling - that, and it was once the agency of a retired hero that tutored herself and Ryukyu."

"I never heard of that?" Yuki murmured, so Jin, once all of them were inside the elevator, gazed at her Half-Fallen Godchild.

"It was never a significant agency until Akame took over before the building would be demolished, since then we've worked closely as though it were our Work Studies all over again," Jin sighed, rubbing her nape. "She's a lot to handle but the three of you will benefit from her teachings, aside from Yuki, of course."

"Were you two side-kicks then?" Yukino inquired, earning a small chuff from the ninja who stared at the blinker indicating which floor they were on.

"Me, Valstrax, Eraserhead, Ryukyu, and President Mic, we worked together often, our odd chemistry made our team unorthodox, and while the rest of us grew in popularity in one incident, Eraser preferred the silent life," That was when a shroud of unease washed over the older woman. "Hrm... I do hope Kovik does not turn out like 'Him'."

"Him?" The three murmured to themselves until the door opened.

Once on the twenty-fourth floor, the hall was short, leading to two meeting rooms on either side of the hall, a stairway on the opposite end. "The layout is a little complicated but you won't spend too much time on the office floors unless necessary."

"You're mean, you know that?" The group jumped as Akame pushed the meeting room door open with a blunt gaze. "Leaving me humiliated and defeated."

"You'd do it without my guidance." Jin shrugged.

Akame suppressed a twitch, then relaxed a pout. "You win, jerk - so, my shattered pride aside - how'd the tour go?"

"No wonder your office is a mess back home," Yuki snickered, seeing her Mom pout again which was cute. To be honest, Yuki was worried about how bad the place had fallen apart since she moved into the Dorms. That scared her greatly.

"Aren't you funny,"

"I think we'll manage," Yukino spoke for the rest who nodded with her. "It's a small but organized agency, it feels comfortably small."

Akame clicked her tongue. "Correct answer! I like my style, not just for the view but it keeps information and employees within arm's reach, helps the flow as a scouting agency," She sighed, letting them all through. "Come-come, we got work to do before I'm bullied again."

"What's a Scouting Agency? Wouldn't that be a profession?" Yuki perked up, Jin sat next to her.

"It is a variant of agency that focuses on gathering information across the country to help support and transfer incident reports across to other Pros, there are several," Jin made... several images of buildings with towers appear like radio beacons. How? Yuki would never know. "Once significant information is gathered from field reports, law enforcement or otherwise that information is given to the nearest Pro or agency in the area." The beacons gave of electric pulses, and that then alerted a chibi version of Valstrax and Jin. "It's how response time to crime is handled effectively, no matter how small."

"A web of information shared simultaneously, fascinating," Velk was eating up the knowledge while Yukino sorta felt lost about halfway but held the bare essentials.

Kovik would benefit from such an interconnected system | We should be wary of his involvements

"We really do think alike," Yuki smiled gently, then threw on her poker face, fingers taut against the table. "It's time... we have to find him before he can make any progress with whatever he took from us."

"Always a walking Wiki Jin-" The ninja felt an anvil slam into her head, "-Now then!" Akame clapped and flicked the light off with her tail appearing briefly. "If you kindly turn your attention to the board."

The first image appeared of both images from the Hosu Incident with the same, faux Fallen that attacked the city next to the Nomu. That battle took a lot out of Yuki, and it almost cost her life to win. The other images were from Kamino Ward, the devastation left by All For One before his demise at Kovik's hand no doubt from what All Might told her and Izuku.

What gave her a chill was Vosik, that posture of his overwhelming her own as Yuki before complete control fought to survive. "From both incidences, including the USJ, Kovik has sent several forms of fodder to obtain SIVA from my daughter in some degree, sadly, the third attempt was successful,"

Realizing all eyes were on her, Yuki sat up quickly. "U-um, yeah, Dren, he's probably the reason I wasn't... killed, he needed SIVA, he also admitted to sending Ravage to I-Island with that white virus." Acknowledging this, Akame turned her gaze to the screen, remote in hand.

"Which leads me to what you three will be helping us handle," Akame switched the projection to display... Kovik. Rather, it was the form Yuki had never seen before, or until her memories merged, now it was a chilling reminder. "This was an image taken by a side-kick from Edgeshot's agency,"

"What... is that?" Jura murmured while Yuki took it in with silence.

"I've never seen something like this," Even Yukino looked disturbed by the intimidating image.

Kovik was a few feet shorter than Vosik was. White under gunmetal grey to black barding for his legs. His torso was only armored around his chest, the rest white fabric, though reddish-black tassels hung from his waist. The threads wrapped up and around his collarbone like a red wire-mesh scarf. His four arms were restored say for the top right that remained flesh and bone.

His head was completely covered by a black pyramid with two red lines glowing on the front, obscuring his expression. A red glow was seen between the split seam atop the crown of the pyramid. In his hands... was an infested weapon coated in SIVA. He was rebuilt.

"Kovik, High Splicer Preist," Yuki recited for those present, her reddish-blue orbs narrowed at the sight. "He's been rebuilt and augmented with his last projects before he was culled, or supposedly until he retreated to this world."

"Excuse my interruption but I never asked, what has become of you since we last spoke?" Yukino pipped up, inspecting the girl's appearance, specifically the small scales, and coloration of her eyes. "You seem to have undergone a biological change."

That drew back the girl's rage, offering the curious ice master a smile. "I have completely merged with SIVA so my biology mutated to adopt his own. So technically I'm only half-human now, and... half of what Kovik and Dren are, Eliksni."

"But you're still as cool as ever, Yuyu," Jura gave a little pep-up for her somber mood. It was a sudden and irreversible point in Yuki's life, accepting the memories and traits of another race entirely took its toll on her mind.

"Thanks," She then nodded to her Mom. "Sorry, continue, Mom."

The woman gave her daughter a caring look, "So long as you're okay - ahem, so yes, Kovik is our prime suspect though he's completely gone off the grid, leading to our next target, Dren."

The slide changed to the Captain Splicer. That was when Jin offered her voice. "I have had some degree in locating his whereabouts, myself and my master have struggled but we've pinpointed several locations," Akame switched the slides to a pinned map of Japan. Four locations circled red. "We've located testing grounds of theirs in remote locations, the same remnant machines like Yuki's, only... different."

A new slide drew a long breath from the students. The small formation on a quarry was dead, that much was obvious, however, the pitch was a softer shade of black, and the red was gone, replaced with a dull blue tone. It was SIVA but altered.

What is this? | A new experiment with what they stole? | This could pose trouble for us

"He's trying to replicate SIVA!" Yuki gaped, shivering from the times Dren poked and prodded her coding for access. She couldn't activate or feel SIVA but his forced entry made her uncomfortable like her whole body was being felt up without her consent. Her hands clutched her biceps. "He robbed SIVA's designs from me..." "Fallen indeed."

"We're intending on sharing this information with Nighteye's agency once we've completed our scouting of the test sites," Jin explained, her hands on the desk. "Expect to be busy with me, Valstrax, and Master Edgeshot, we need to triangulate where Dren is hiding if we're to stop his production of a counterfeit to your Quirk."

"So we find their hideout, then what?" Jura asked, looking a little confused. "Not saying we can't but... wouldn't Dren or Kovik be expecting this?" That brought a curious silence toward the otherwise agreeable and complacent teen. "I-I mean, think about it, why leave evidence that's so obvious?"

"This is true," Yukino hummed, her eye shifting colors briefly. "If Harrow is working with Kovik this could be one of his schemes, to lure the enemy into a trap at the last second, he's sadistic for such things."

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Akame coughed, turning on the lights. "There's more but that'll be brought up on a later date - Meeting's over, much as I'd love to debate the very many ways he's probably gonna trick us, best we can do is play along, if we stuck to being cautious it'll give them a wider gap to plot."

"Always with the confrontations..." Jin sighed, running a hand through her hair. "If it gets the job done I suppose."

"So what now?" Yukino inquired, Akame ruffling the girl's hair in passing, leaving her brow furrowed. "Why do people do this?" She quickly sorted her messy hair.

"'Cause you need to lighten up, all of you," Akame spun at the door. "Go on and take the day off, I get it, bad guys are out there planning and here we are taking it easy, but we need to remember that stress and worry are our biggest enemies, tomorrow we'll divide and conquer, today, we rest."

Yuki just blinked. It wasn't often she saw her Mom at work, she's a hero that can be brash at times but seeing that her personality from everyday life remained unchanged was a rarity. A level of maturity was present but so was her cheerful attitude, even Jin couldn't ignore it and simply accepted it.

"You're so weird." Yuki huffed, leaving the room while the defeated form of Akame behind her.

"That hurts..." In passing, Jin patted her head. "Stop patronizing me!"

"No, I would never..." Jin drawled, her humour hiding behind her hand.

"You're laughing, I can see it in your posture!" The silverette growled. The odd shivering from the ninja evident.

"N-never, pfft," She quickly left Akame's side, the dragon woman furious.

"Don't mock me!"

Jura and Yukino shared one look and shrugged, following the woman forward. "This is a strange agency."

"A-agreed." Velk snickered.

When all was said and done, Jura and Yukino parted ways with Yuki, the girl staying back to sit atop her Mom's agency in peace. She had a lot on her mind concerning what's to come, like the apparent team-up to occur shortly with the same place Izuku was working at.

Just how many are involved, and what was it they intended to do? Did it concern Kovik and Dren? Why wasn't her Mom taking it seriously? She was but it felt so... lax. The bluette played with her mask, trying to figure out the hidden meaning. Jin didn't give off anything abnormal, though coming from the woman that agreed years ago to be her Godmother that was a ninja, hindsight it twenty.

"We'll understand more in time, we shouldn't be hasty, that much I feel myself and Velk learned painfully from Viral." Yukino and Velk's shadow agreed.

"Whatever happens we're going to figure out what they're up to, your Mom's never lied to you!" Jura smiled.

Yuki's face contorted in frustration. "I can't wait..."

*Smack*

"Ow!" She flinched, seeing the silver tail slither away, replaced by Akame sitting down on the edge with her daughter, smiling out toward the city. "..."

"You know you can't hide anything from me, Midoriya comes to mind," That only made Yuki shrink in embarrassment. "Or when you tried to hate me for months on end when I adopted you." It got worse. "Or-"

"I get it!" She snapped, turning away, "...why?"

Why indeed. Something Akame pondered for days when her little precious daughter was stuck in a coma battling her own Quirk. It grated the Pro for days of what she could've done more of, what she failed to see and act on. It was consuming for a long time. Leaning back on her hands she let out a long breath.

"I'm not pretending I understand how you feel, your emotions are all mixed, things aren't black and white, right?" Yuki didn't move, staring at her mask. "You want to hate but feel yourself hesitate, I get it, you know? How that-"

"How?" Yuki never raised her voice to her Mom, until now with anger and pain in her eyes. "How can you know!? You don't have someone's entire life drilled into your head!"

Her fingers pulled at the edges of her mask again, chest aching indefinitely. "I almost forced myself on my own boyfriend because of these stupid alien hormones! I feel my head fill with memories until I can't even recall what I was doing before - like I'm not even real anymore! And now, I'm actually conflicted about fighting, killing the person that took EVERYTHING from me!"

Akame kept a straight face until Yuki was done venting, panting, and close to outright crying. "Tch, worst of all? I lied again... I lied right to Izuku Midoriya's face about All Might - the hero I love so much, the one he looks up to like family... and I refused to say a word about how the hero that saved my life is going to die I can't stop it!" She finally screamed, not once caring if people below heard her, the heartache was tearing her apart. "I hate it! And I... I'm scared of hating SIVA... I'm scared I'll be useless!"

I understand | It is okay | I wish... you hadn't needed to burden yourself with me

"S-siva..." Yuki hiccuped, feeling his own eyes reflect off her own.

I know what you feel | You remain a part of me | And I you

"I..." She had to say it, she needed to say it before it outright buried her in guilt again. "I... wish I just died-"

"Stop," Akame finally put her hand under Yuki's chin, lifting it to face the strong conviction in her Mother's eyes. "You dumb kid, always bottling this stuff up on me..." Shaking her head, Akame smiled. "No one is expecting the world from you, either of you; Your body changed, but you are still Yuki; SIVA, he's just a part of you,"

"You are my daughter, Midoriya's quirky girlfriend, and All Might's future," That made the machinist's face soften. "If anyone can change something as fickle as the future, I'd bet it on the girl who beat it herself - you don't have to be special to do the right thing, Yuki, whatever happens, however that final confrontation with Kovik goes, I know you'll understand what to do because you're my daughter,"

She was pulled into a hug that sprung a few tears, head dipped against her Mom's shoulder. "You're my daughter and I love you even if I never birthed you or Nana," She stroked her shivering girl's head. "You're more than just the memories that fill your head, your mistakes make you human."

"...you are human too... Regret, grief, relief, anger, a need to do better, everything you are is what makes you human!"

You are Aksis, you are NOT the Archon Prime of the Devil Splicers! You are NOT SIVA! YOU HEAR ME, IF CHELCHIS WAS YOUR HERO THEN YOU'RE MINE!"

Her chest felt like caving in, she lied and hid behind so many smiles, her mask included. "I'm s-sorry..." Yuki croaked, nuzzling closer to her Mom who hummed in her ear, rocking her back and forth.

"Shh, it's okay," Patting her head she let her little girl rest for the day. After all, the days to come needed her focus. "Just relax, take a deep breath and steady your heart,"

"Mmhm," She sniffed, enjoying the soothing embrace. "I'm sorry I lied to you, Izuku, but..."

"Are you serious? After everything I told you not to do, you're doing it anyway?" Yuki gawked at All Might, clutching her cup of tea, though now she wanted to throw it over the skeleton. "Give me one reason not to burn you right now?"

"Listen, Young Azuru, I just feel he doesn't need to know!" He defended poorly. "I... don't want this to be a burden to him, my death is-"

"That's not fair," Yuki huffed, hands shaking. "I know, he deserves to know too..." Her eyes widened with worry. "If you die someday, if... If nothing works... he'll blame himself, even if I'm here, he'll never let it go."

All Might listened and considered it in silence, sighing in defeat. "I... I will tell him, give me time... and promise me you won't let a word of this get out," He didn't mean to be harsh, but his successor had a lot on his plate without All Might's own future to burden Izuku's own. "I'm sorry, but please do not speak of this with him."

"..."

"But you needed to know from him." Exhaling, Yuki lifted her head so that she sat with her Mom facing the world. "Can we really prevent it?"

"Dunno," Akame huffed, biting her cheek. "He's as stubborn as me, but so are his students," She nudged Yuki's shoulder. "If anyone can smash that future, it's you two lovebirds."

"Ugh... stop." Yuki groaned, feeling the moment shatter at her Mom's cheesy obsession with high-school romance. "Get your own boyfriend to coddle."

"I would if he wasn't so dense."

"You're no better." For the uncounted time that day, Akame felt an arrow pierce her chest.

Sometime later...

Alone on a pathway through UA, a Successor felt his world crumble, and a Mentor held back his guilt. "I'm sorry but I had to force Young Azuru to keep this from you too, that I felt was the worst choice I've made on the matter..." All Might sighed, running his hand over his forehead against the sun.

"Wait! All Might, please, about Nighteye's vision, how far into the future was it!?" He didn't care if Yuki kept it from him, right now - no, all that mattered was knowing the whole truth. If his hero, the man that taught him to become the next Symbol of Peace was dying, he had to hear it all.

All Might didn't face him, mulling it over. "Six or seven years... the further he looks the harder it is to see but his predictions are never wrong," That was the curse with Nighteye's Foresight, even vague, it felt like even a fragment would foretell everything with certainty.

"No way... then that will be this year or the next," That harsh reality dug deeper into Izuku. "You're kidding... this can't happen, it can't, I want you to live, All Might!" He held his hand close to his chest. "Do you remember what you said at the Sports Festival, the promise the three of us made?"

"The UA Sports Festival is the highlight for Heroes and Students alike, there, you must show the world who you are, and what you stand for!" He held his hand out to them. "Give them the dream of a new Symbol of Peace and Hope."

"I can't do that yet so live!" He trembled, "Until I can keep our pact, watch me tell them I Am Here, both of us! We both need you here, don't you understand!?" The hero that lifted him from his mundane life. The hero that saved a girl who believed she was a monster. He had to live to see them smile at the world.

Putting his hands on his waist All Might sucked down his somber mood. "Young Midoriya, back then when I heard I would die I accepted that as my future, I figured I'd just keep running until I got to the finish line," He didn't see the greenette's scared face.

"All Might..."

"And then when I fought All For One, I thought that would be the end of the race," He turned, a genuine, pleased smile on his face. "But then... you were there, kiddo, both of you."

"You get it? Every day I spent with you both, affected me; A Quirkless, timid boy and a girl with heart and soul, and then your Mother said for me to live so I can protect and raise you, and Akame entrusted her child's happiness to me," He lifted his hand

"When Young Azuru learned of it, and I saw how it subconsciously taunted her mind, I thought it was best to hide it, now... I see where it's taken her, and now where it'll take you," He closed his fist, bulking up slightly with a remnant of power. "So despite my future, I'll keep fighting with you both by my sides because you both have changed me! I promise I will live! I won't be killed!"

"I will mold my fate and strike down anything else that gets in our way with this fist!" He showed his heroic smile to his tearful Successor, imagining Yuki must've had the same thing on her mind. This time, however, his smile was no front. "I will keep living, regardless of what Shigaraki or Kovik have planned I won't let them end me! I will carve my own fate, that is what I have moulded into my resolve, All For One."

He reverted again in a puff of smoke, smiling pleasantly. "But you see, everything in Nighteye's prediction has come to pass so far, it's why I just can't face him, after all these years," He looked away, "I never wanted to be a shackle to either of you, my burden wasn't yours, heh, who knows, maybe I already reshaped it all into my own destiny."

"But we don't know for certain," Izuku's fire burned on and on.

"We can't let it happen." Yuki seethed, looking toward the sun

"I refuse to let it!" Izuku declared, fist risen toward All Might. "Which is why, no matter what happens-"

"We'll help him/you fight fate!" Their minds were as one from two points in time.

With a smile and bump to his Successor's fist, he gave a welcoming aura. "I'll try not to be such a burden."

To Be Continued...

Really just setting up what's to come, drama, tension, and a plan to finally strike at the heart of Kovik's plans. The timeline's gonna split as we delve into Yuki's own story. I hope you enjoyed, appreciate the support as always, seeya in the next chapter Heroes!

Next Chapter: Infernal Imperfections

Valstrax: Try not to overthink everything, you're only human.

Yuki: Yeah, but-

Valstrax: Yuki, we'll find Kovik, I promise.

Redacted: Then let me take you to him personally...

Yuki: Up next, Infernal Imperfections.

Valstrax: Go Beyond-

Yuki: -Plus Ultra.