Droid Army General
Chapter 1
"I'm sorry kid," All Might solemnly answered, "but you can't be a hero without a Quirk."
"Fuck you, too," Izuku kindly replied. Tears were beginning to form at the corners of his eyes, but he refused to let them fall. He was going to tear this guy a new one first, then he'd bawl his heart out. Priorities, bitch.
"That's, uh, not the response I was expecting."
"Yeah? Well, you're not the hero I was expecting."
"I-"
"You what? You thought that I was just going to take that on the chin? Just walk it off? Not only did you shoot down my dream, but you butchered my last hope of ever being - hell - anything more in life. You're telling me that what everyone in my life has ever said is true? That I'm too weak. That I should never strive to be something greater. To just accept my lot in life. That I should… You didn't even listen to what kind of hero I wanted to be. How I planned to do it. So… yeah. I'm pissed."
"Oh, um. Sorry. I didn't realize…"
"..."
"...can I walk you back home? I understand now that you might not be having such a good day. Also, I accidentally jumped a couple of kilometers away from where you were walking."
"I think I'd like to be alone right now."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah."
"It's really no trou-"
"I'm leaving now."
Izuku swiftly opened the door to the roof and bolted down the stairs, eager to get away from the man he'd looked up to for the majority of his life.
His life.
What a life it was. Tormented by all of his peers, neglected by his teachers, abandoned by his father, and now rejected by his idol - the Number One Hero himself. His own mother didn't believe in him, although she still cared for Izuku. At least he had his companions.
Even if they weren't human.
XXXXX
"I'm home," Izuku muttered as he opened the door to his apartment.
"Izuku!" His mother called from the living room.
"General!" A collection of high-pitched robotic voices chorused after her.
As Izuku embraced his distraught mother, a trio of figures emerged from different parts of their home to check on the young teen. Tall, lanky, tannish metal bodies with blue paint. His trusty companions, the B1 Battle Droids.
"Izuku, I was so worried about you!" Inko cried. "I saw you on the news with Katsuki and that sludge villain and then I saw you charge him and I- I-!"
"Don't worry, mom. See? I'm fine. I'm right here, perfectly safe," he assured her. As the gates of the Midoriya dam opened up, Izuku continued to hold his mother while looking towards the droids.
"We tried our best to comfort her, sir, but she couldn't relax without seeing you for herself," said the middle one. Although Izuku had officially designated him as OOM-10, they'd all taken to calling him Athos.
"Thanks for trying anyway, guys."
One of the other droids, Aramis, gestured towards the television, which was still going over the fight. "That was pretty scary, sir. I know you want to be a hero and everything, but charging villains with only a bookbag isn't a great strategy."
"Hey, but he did land a pretty good hit, huh? More than any of the other Pros did until All Might showed up," the third droid, Porthos, countered. "Made that slime guy cry with only a notebook!"
As the three of them talked over each other and his mother cried into his shoulder, Izuku was hit with a realization. Porthos was right. He'd done more than any of the Pros there. He'd only delayed the villain, but the heroes? They did nothing.
With the exception of All Might, but fuck him. Kind of. Ok, he wasn't that bad, but Izuku was still bitter.
The teen looked to the television, then to the droids, and scowled.
Fine. I don't need to be the same kinds of heroes they are. I'll take my own path. Yeah. I'll show them that there's a world of difference between us.
XXXXX
Later that same night, Izuku gathered every functioning battle droid he had available in his workstation. He'd convinced his mother to allow him to set up shop in the guest bedroom with the promise that he'd clean it out if someone were to come over. So, there he stood with several droids, each of them towering over himself. He would've had more, but Kacchan had the annoying tendency to blast them whenever he found them, despite Izuku's best efforts to improve their armor.
He cleared his throat to get their attention. As they looked at him, he did his best to fit the title of General. He wasn't sure why they chose to call him that, but he'd do his best to live up to their - admittedly low - expectations. "Battle droids," he called out. Then he winced, because he remembered his mother was still asleep in the other room. He brought it down. "Battle droids, listen up. I've… I've gathered you here because I intend to tell you that there's been a, uh… well, there's been a change of plans."
Nailed it.
"You're all aware of the battle I was in today." Nods and indiscernible chatter rang out around him. "However, I've yet to tell you that before that fight, I met the number one hero, All Might."
There were gasps of amazement by this reveal. Izuku always found it odd when they made that noise, considering they didn't have lungs, but he pushed it to the side. Their presence was the only thing that'd kept him from going insane.
I am still sane, right? Oh, fuck it. A healthy psyche never would've gotten me far in life anyway.
"What was he like?" Athos asked.
"A prick."
"I knew it!" Porthos exclaimed.
"What a punk," Aramis agreed.
"Okay, he wasn't that bad," Izuku relented. He knew that All Might wasn't intentionally trying to hurt him. The big guy was simply trying to keep Izuku safe. After the Sludge Villain had been defeated, he'd even tried to come and talk to Izuku. The reporters had kept him busy, though, and Izuku was all too ready to just get home. The hero hadn't been able to find him after he'd disappeared. "But he still told me that it's impossible for someone without a Quirk to become a hero."
"Well, that was pretty unheroic of him," said Athos. "So, what now?"
"Now?" Izuku grinned. "Now, we prove him wrong."
The droids took the declaration well.
"Oooh, I like the sound of that!" Said one.
"All right, General, stick it to the man!"
"Is it dangerous? I don't like danger," whined another.
"Aren't you built to fight villains?" Asked Porthos.
"Sure, but I'm not programmed to like it."
"Huh, I wonder why I did that," Izuku mused. He shook his head a second later. "Right, focus!"
"Roger, roger."
"Roger, roger."
"Roger, roger."
"Good. Before we begin, I want to know something…" The poor attempt at a strong general gave way and Izuku hunched in on himself timidly. "Are, uh, are you with me?"
The chorus of "Yeah!" and "Roger, roger!" were heart-warming, but Izuku had to cut them off lest they wake his mom. He smiled brightly. "Alright. Alright. Awesome. Now, let's get started."
XXXXX
The plan was simple: become the next Symbol of Peace.
Wait, crap, no, that's a goal not a plan, Izuku realized.
The goal was simple: become the next Symbol of Peace. Okay, that wasn't exactly something that a person would call simple, but shoot for the moon, right? The plan was… well, at least there was a plan.
The first step was to expand their operations. Izuku needed more battle droids. In order to make more droids and to house all of them, he was going to need space. A base of operations. A headquarters.
Enter, Giran. The man was a miracle worker, so long as he could be found and boy was he elusive. He had to be in this line of work, but the broker took it to another level with the aid of his Quirk. However, it wasn't impossible to get in contact with him. It'd be bad for business after all.
The guy had no qualms dealing with a kid like Izuku. All he asked for in return was the help of his droids from time to time. Despite their less than intimidating appearance, they were exceptionally strong and durable. Both qualities were sought after in Giran's profession. The teen had consulted his companions about the offer, and they accepted it.
So, Izuku kept a group of droids on standby to help Giran whenever he asked for it. In return, the broker gave him his headquarters. It was a large abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of town, far away from the usual patrol routes of the local Pros. Dilapidated it might've been, but Izuku didn't care. It would serve his needs. He'd work there for hours on end, however he'd still return home to rest. His mother missed his company. He made sure to always leave a pair of droids there to make sure she wasn't too lonely.
Now, the second step in his plan was a bit more complex. His battle droids needed weapons. The simple answer would be to ask Giran for some guns, batons, and other nice things like that. The next simplest answer would be to make them himself.
No, that wouldn't do. Izuku was in this all the way. Plus-Ultra.
He decided to build something completely new; something that was versatile enough to fit all his needs. The villains of the modern day were unique, even amongst each other. Some were hard led stronger than Quirkless people, their bodies just as fragile against a machine of metal. Others, like that monster, Muscular, needed a more heavy-handed approach. Thus, the obvious answer to this conundrum were blasters.
That was the obvious answer, right? It was getting harder to tell what a normal person should be thinking recently. His sleep schedule had taken a bigger hit than the one that ripped out All Might's lung. There were just so many ideas popping up in his head, how could he go to bed with them all buzzing around?
Now, the third and arguably most important step, was to use these resources to create the greatest army the world had ever seen. Izuku's very own droid army. Why did he need this? Because it was necessary.
His conversation with All Might was a life-changing one, but there was some good to come of it. The number one hero was losing his power. He was down to just three hours a day, not even a full work shift! Izuku knew that once that power was gone, society would fall into chaos. In fact, it might come about earlier. All it took was for a couple of keen-eyed villains to notice that All Might was hardly ever around anymore. Once that happened, then the people would need someone to put their faith into.
Enter, stage right, Izuku humorously thought. Yes, the boy was Quirkless, and scrawny, and small for his age, and… okay, there was a lot that was left to be desired, but Izuku wouldn't be alone when he stepped in to save the country.
He swung around in his swivel chair to examine his new headquarters. Fifty freshly made, quality guaranteed B1 battle droids were hard at work constructing the next batch. Meanwhile, the veteran group of fifty more battle droids were split between patrolling the warehouse and… acquiring the resources they needed.
Swinging back around to face his new desk, Izuku got back to work on designing his latest project: the B2 series Super Battle Droid.
Oh yeah, he grinned to himself, it's all coming together.
XXXXX
The E-5 blaster rifle. He chose the word Blaster as a bit of a nod to Kacchan. The guy was always telling Izuku that he'd blast his droids, so he decided to spin it on its head and use it for himself. It was shaping up to be quite the weapon, too!
With selective power settings including lethal, stun, and sting, it was the perfect tool in this crazy world they all found themselves in. The lethal setting was capable of obliterating even the strongest of armors, while the sting option could be used as a reliable deterrent against softer opponents. The stun ability, however, was truly a marvel. It could incapacitate well and above the average opponent within reason for up to an hour, depending on their constitution.
It was light, too. Coming in at only a little more than two kilograms, a normal person could wield the thing, let alone his physically superior battle droids. Its small detachable magazine could store five hundred rounds, reducing the strain on logistics.
It was perfect…
Izuku huffed. Maybe a few more modifications.
XXXXX
On this day, Izuku has learned two things. One, the difference in making a handful of battle droids and a whole army of them was significant. Even if he were to construct them using basic materials like aluminum or steel, it'd still require a lot of supplies.
That wasn't the case.
Part of the issue was the material he used to construct his droids. Izuku had the misfortune of knowing Kacchan, a natural born hybrid of a honey badger and a thermobaric bomb given human form. Over the years and scrap piles, he'd come up with a rather unique composite armor that he now used in all of his inventions. Dura-Steel was more resistant to everything he could think of; heat, cold, pressure, physical attacks, ballistic weapons, explosives, everything. Not impervious, but better.
It was terribly costly to produce enough Dura-Steel for a single battle droid and that didn't even take into account the other materials he needed. Between their processors, sensors, communication equipment, and the tools necessary for building them, he was burning through his supplies at breakneck speeds. That didn't even take into account the resources necessary for making the power sources.
Unfortunately, that was merely the beginning of his problems.
The second thing he found out was that trying to make an army of battle droids - and he did mean an army - was kind of hard to keep a secret. Both from the heroes and the villains. When acquiring the resources he needed, the teen had attracted some unwanted attention. Come to think of it, any attention was unwanted at this stage, but that was a side note. He had other things to worry about.
"Sorry, but, uh, I don't take walk-in appointments. If you'd like to reserve a time with me, talk to Athos over there," Izuku nervously laughed. The only reason he was brave enough to squeak a few words out was because of his greater numbers. He'd constructed quite a few more battle droids over the months and they were rather protective of their creator.
"I truly am sorry for barging in on you like this, but I simply had to speak with you," said the creepy bird mask wearing weirdo.
"You simply had to meet a fourteen-year-old kid in a secluded warehouse against his will? Pretty sketch."
"You watch your tone you-"
"Enough, Kurono," the man chided. His lackey immediately withdrew and remained silent by his leader's side. "I understand that I've caught you off guard. Again, I'm truly sorry. I know for a fact that if someone showed up in my base without warning then I, too, would be upset."
"Does that mean you'll leave and we can have this discussion somewhere else at a different time?"
"No."
"Well okay, fuck you, too."
"It's important that I see your headquarters here. I need to see you at work to gain a better understanding of who you are. I'm sorry, but I… hmph, I'm starting to sound like a broken record at this point, eh? That doesn't matter. I'll be as polite as you want me to be because I know that you have potential. I want to harness it."
That piqued Izuku's interest. An investor? He could work with that. "You want to support me?"
"In a way, yes. I want you to work for me. I've got big plans for the future, you see. To see it come to fruition, I need manpower. Do you see where I'm going with this?"
"Hm. Okay, I can see the benefits."
"I'm sensing a but."
"What do I get out of it? You have a goal, and that's nice, but I have my own priorities, too. Will you support them?"
"All I want you to do right now is make some more of those robots of yours for me. It seems like your goal revolves around making an army anyway, so what's the harm in sparing a few for my sake?"
Izuku tossed the suggestion around in his head for a second. Then he glanced at each of the droids around him. Not once during their entire conversation had they lowered their blasters. Fifty E5 rifles, all set to stun, were poised and ready to strike. He asked the nearest droid, his trusted friend, Athos, for his opinion. "What do you think?"
"I don't like them, General."
"General?" The man that the leader had called Kurono parroted. He was quickly shushed.
Izuku took the droid's answer in stride and returned his attention to the people in front of him. He was about to decline their offer when Athos quickly spoke up again.
"But if this is what it takes to further the plan, I'll do it."
Izuku looked to Athos again, to confirm what he'd heard. The tan and blue droid nodded an affirmative. All around him, the other droids let out a string of "Roger, roger".
The leader of the trespassers clicked his tongue in amusement. "So, is that a yes?"
Izuku gave one last cursory glance to the droids at his side before nodding. "You've got a deal, mister…?"
"Just call me Overhaul. And trust me, you won't be disappointed."
XXXXX
Overhaul had kept his word. Izuku was most certainly not disappointed. The first shipment of supplies came a day later. A token of goodwill, as the Yakuza leader said. Izuku put it all to good use.
It'd been one month since then. In one month, his forces had blossomed. Izuku stood in front of a legitimate army. One thousand B1 series battle droids. That was a battalion. A battalion! He had an actual fighting force on his hand. Plus, he was able to use the last bits of the supplies to construct a full squadron of ten B2 series super battle droids. Each of them was outfitted with a built in retractable twin blaster repeater and a wrist mounted rocket launcher.
Sure, the B2s weren't nearly as personable as the B1s, but they weren't meant to be. They were the heavy hitters, the bruisers, the tanks.
Oh! Tanks! Every good army has tanks! I'll have to make some one of these days, Izuku thought giddily.
That excitement was muted in an instant when he remembered what day it was. Izuku had an employer now and that employer had set a quota for him.
Does this count as child labor? Better question, would the creep even care if someone pointed it out to him? Probably not.
Overhaul made it clear. Izuku could still work towards his goals, but he had to give the Shie Hassaikai a portion of the droids. A good amount too.
"First and second companies!" The teen called out. Four hundred synthetic voices dutifully responded.
"Sir!"
"Overhaul will be here within the hour. You're to depart with him to his base and assist him in whatever business he requires. Watch out for one another. I'll see you all again soon."
"Sir, yes sir!"
Izuku looked to the commander of the two companies. OOM-9 was his name and despite all attempts by both Izuku and the others to give him a nickname, he refused to respond to anything else. He was professional and duty bound. He would lead the four hundred droids during their time at the Shie Hassaikai compound.
Izuku leaned into the droid, the yellow painted highlights singling him out. "You know what to do if things get out of hand, yes?"
"Affirmative, General."
Izuku smiled. "Good. Carry on, then."
OOM-9 saluted and turned back to his troops. As he ordered them about, Izuku walked back towards the six hundred droids who got to stay with him. So many to house, even with almost half of them leaving. The warehouse was starting to get crowded. They'd need to start establishing other locations - outposts, safehouses, bunkers, the whole nine yards. They were an army now. It was time to start setting things up.
As Izuku inspected the front row, he smiled to himself. Sure, Overhaul was his boss now, but that didn't mean he was really in command.
XXXXX
"First it was the Yakuza, and now this League of Villains. Does privacy mean nothing to you?" Izuku growled. Or at least he imitated what he thought was a growl. It didn't have the same effect.
"Hey, come on, kid. Those Shie Hassaikai guys have turned out to be a real boon for you. Don't say I'm wrong!" Giran laughed.
"Hmph. Two steps forward, one step back with them. I've got myself a decent sized group now, but then they up and took half of 'em!" Izuku's eyes darkened. When he next spoke, he really did growl. "They better not be mistreating them."
"Easy there, kiddo, easy there. I'm sure they're fine. You told me that Overhaul was practically kissing your ass if it meant he got you to willingly work for him. I don't think he's gonna cause any friction between the two of you if he can help it."
Izuku sighed but decided to change the topic. "At least you're here this time. You know how awkward it was having those creeps show up in the middle of the night at my base? With their matching plague doctor cosplays on and everything? It took every ounce of my self-control to not just have my droids blast those dinguses to ashes."
"I'm glad you didn't. Overhaul's a tough one, and I like having you around, kid. You make for good entertainment!"
Izuku grumbled a noncommittal reply and Giran laughed. Several minutes of silence passed before something finally happened. A swirling vortex of shadows rippled at the fabric of reality. In response, the sounds of blasters charging up could be heard as Izuku's security detail formed up around him.
"That's them," Giran clarified.
Izuku waved the droids down. They lowered their weapons but remained in place. Two B2 super battle droids took up positions on either side of him. They stood menacingly at attention, daring anyone to try their luck.
A figure coalesced from the warp portal. They were made from the same shadowy material as the gates, though they had two wicked glowing yellow eyes for Izuku to make contact with.
"My name is Kurogiri, and I'm here to cordially invite you to the domain League of Villains. Will you accept?"
Izuku looked at Giran. The man gave an easygoing grin. Izuku shook his head and addressed Kurogiri. "I accept."
"Good. Please, step into the portal when you're ready. You've been permitted to bring the entirety of your security detail with you. It is the League's wish to make you as comfortable as possible during your stay."
Izuku was impressed. Kind of. It was certainly a step above the spine-chilling moment he'd experienced with the Shie Hassaikai, but that didn't mean he liked it. Giran had made it clear that this was an offer he wasn't supposed to blow off.
The droids insisted on going through first to sweep for threats and Izuku allowed them. A minute after they entered, one of them popped back out to tell him that everything was fine. Giran laughed and walked through the portal without a care in the world. With a deep breath, Izuku stepped through as well to greet the members of the League.
"What the B-Rated horror movie fuck is that?" Izuku whispered in fear.
"Okay, not the best first impression," Giran whispered back, "but really, you just gotta get to know the guys-"
"So, you're the one who Sensei wants to be my Player 2?" The hand-fetish creep slurred. In his hand… the hand that was attached to his body… in his original hand was a glass of alcohol.
"For the love of god," Giran muttered.
"Did somebody call?" A haunting voice mockingly resonated throughout the bar. Izuku felt like a hand had reached into his chest and wrapped around his heart. The hand hadn't squeezed, but it remained there, reminding him who was in charge. His droid companions immediately took note of his condition and swiftly circled up around him. The B1s examined him head to toe in an effort to figure out what was wrong with their leader. Meanwhile the B2s were actively searching for a threat that they could target.
Izuku tracked the voice to a TV set up in the middle of the room. On the screen was a block of text that said AUDIO ONLY.
A sane individual would've shut the fuck up and given this… entity their undivided attention. Izuku had taken his sanity out back behind the shed and shot it dead months ago.
"Did he just indirectly refer to himself as-"
"Just go with it," Giran laughed. Izuku was beginning to realize that the man's laugh was not one of good natured humor but was instead similar to the one that a person made when they realized that this is what their life has come to.
He could sympathize with that.
"Hello, yes, I'm, uh," Izuku stumbled through his sentence. Any previous sense of professionalism had crashed and burned the instant he set foot in this lion den.
Oh well, in for a penny…
"I'm the General," he blurted out.
"The General?" Creepy hand-guy mimed. "General of what? You're little toy soldiers over there? Bunch of plastic trash. You oughta just throw them in the garbage where they belong."
Operation kick this guy in the dick is now a go.
"If they belong in the trash, then you belong at the bottom of the ocean, with a cinder block tied around your legs and the crustaceans picking at your bloated flesh."
Silence reigned in the bar. Kurogiri had stopped cleaning the glass he held and was staring directly at Izuku. Giran - who'd taken a seat in one of the booths across the room - sat up straight in his seat and Tomura... well, was stuck in the same position only with wide eyes. Izuku felt that metaphorical hand around his heart loosen its grip before letting go entirely.
"Oh," the voice over the TV purred. Purred. "I knew you were interesting from the moment I heard of you, but this is a flavor of discord that I haven't tasted in decades! Oh, what a treat."
That went well.
"Can I kill him, Sensei?" Handy Man begged as he clawed at his neck. Taking a better look at the man's complexion - what little he could see - Izuku was positive that the man was in desperate need of a spa day. "Please, Sensei! Can I kill him?"
Not well, not well!
Registering the hostile intent of the creep sitting at the bar, the B2s took aim with their wrist mounted blasters, though they waited for Izuku's order.
"Calm yourself, Tomura, please, calm yourself," the voice gently soothed the villain. "General, I ask that you tell your… troops to stand down. Tomura won't harm you. You have my word."
After everything that just happened, Izuku was tempted to tell the guy where exactly he could shove his word. But it appeared that the voice had a calming effect on not just Tomura, but Izuku as well.
Odd, he thought. Is this his Quirk? The ability to manipulate the psyche of others through his voice? Or does he just command that much power?
"Stand down," Izuku ordered. His droid security force immediately complied. Whatever effect the voice had on him, it didn't extend to his companions.
Food for thought.
"Good, good," the voice sighed. "Thank you, General. I appreciate your patience. Tomura is still learning what it means to be a villain. Ah! Where are my manners? You've already introduced yourself, but we've yet to extend the same courtesy. You've already met Kurogiri. The young man you see before you is Shigaraki Tomura. He's my protege! As for me? Well, you may call me Sensei."
A chill ran up Izuku's spine at the name. Sensei. A teacher? He's teaching this Tomura guy how to be a villain? Eh, it's not the strangest thing in this world. Hell, it's not even the strangest thing in this city. I'm making an army of droids to usurp the heroes in their job of protecting Japan. I guess I can cut them some slack.
Izuku bowed. "It's a pleasure to meet the two of you."
"Oh, but the pleasure is all mine. Go ahead and show your respect, Tomura. It's only polite."
The blue haired menace glared at Izuku for a moment, but ultimately obeyed. "It's a pleasure to meet you, General," he snarled.
Definitely need to keep an eye on him.
Izuku cleared his throat. "So, uh, hmm, to what do I owe the pleasures? Did you have a need for my services or is this more of a networking thing?"
"It's an invitation," Sensei answered. "The League of Villains is a small group now, but we're rapidly growing in power. There are several gangs and freelance villains who've already joined our cause, but you? You would make for a grand addition to our side. I've been keeping tabs on you, General. From a motley crew of a handful of your companions to more than a thousand in just a few short months. Your work is impressive- no, that doesn't do you justice! Your work is an inspiration."
Oh fuck, Izuku panicked, he's buttering me up. What's he gonna ask for? What the hell are you talking about, Izuku, you already know what he's going to ask for! It's the same thing everyone asks for!
"Sensei, I'm flattered," Izuku admitted. He truly was. His heart swelled at the praise, even though he knew there was an ulterior motive behind it. "But my droids… they're not products. They're… my friends."
Tomura scoffed from his seat and Izuku made the conscious decision not to order the B2s to use their wrist rockets. "I can't just sell them out for a cause they don't believe in."
"Hmm, have you not already provided the Yakuza with hundreds of them?"
Izuku winced, "Respectfully, Sensei, that's different."
"How so?" Tomura barked. "What, are they better than us? You like creepy ass bird masks, is that it?"
"Hell no! Those guys are nasty."
"You're goddamn right they're nasty! So why work with them and not us, huh?"
"They're supplying us with what we need to further our goals."
"Eh?"
"I need resources to make droids. You know, building materials. I can't just make them out of thin air. They're the reason I was able to make a full battalion, even though they demanded almost half of them in return."
"So, what? If we gave you more of the materials you need to make your tin soldiers then you'd join us?"
"Um, maybe?"
"… really?"
"Yeah, like I said, we're only working with the Yakuza because they supply us. We don't like them or believe in their cause, whatever it is."
"… that's all you want? Is to be able to make more droids?"
"In the short term? Yeah. Well, I'd also like a little bit more than that, if it's not too much trouble, you know. It's getting kind of crowded at HQ, so we could really use some other bases and outposts to set up in."
"…we have all of that."
A smile as bright as the sun shone on Izuku's face. "You do!"
"This is… a lot easier than I thought it was going to be. Was my speech skill higher than I remember?"
"I think this is a case of barter, but I'm not too sure. Anyway, so, um, is that a deal then? We work for you, and you supply us with more than what the Yakuza is? Plus, we also get those outposts?"
"Sensei?"
"I see this as an acceptable bargain. You may go ahead."
"Alright, this is going pretty smoothly."
"Uh huh, sure, now what do you want us to do?" Izuku asked.
"I want to kill all the heroes in the world and tear down this disgusting society that worships them."
It was at that moment that Izuku remembered that he was talking with Villains. As in, the ones who oppose the heroes. Now, not all villains were bloodthirsty killers, but these guys right here? They'd probably go out of their way to slip a combination of polonium and laxatives into a hero's meal. Just to add insult to injury.
"That's, uhh," Izuku draws out as he thinks of how to rewind the past thirty minutes. "That's a hell of a goal! Hehe, um… have you considered not doing any of that or at the very least, not killing every hero you come across?"
"No."
"Ah! Well… we have a bit of a problem here."
Tomura went right back to glaring at him. "And what's that?" He said through gritted teeth.
"Me and my buddies, well, we aren't exactly big fans of the whole killing thing."
"You're a General."
"Yes!"
"Of an army."
"Indeed."
"Of droids."
"The Droid Army!"
"…that guy to the right of you has a rocket launcher on his arm."
"Ah, ha ha… that he… does…"
"So does the guy on your left."
"It's, uh, oh, how do I say this without it sounding weird? It's standard issue."
"You made all of them with a rocket launcher on their arm?"
"Yep!" He popped the P.
Silence.
"You're going to give us every single one of those tin cans that you have. Then, you're going to make us more. A lot more. Thousands more. We're going to use them to tear down this whole fucking country - down to its bedrock if we need to. We'll hunt down every last hero who escaped my wrath, and I'll use those special fucking wrist rockets of yours to shove up their asses and turn the moon cherry. Pie. Red."
"See, but we don't want to do any of that, so I think we're just going to take our leave now. Thank you so much for having us, but I think it's best for everyone if we go our separate ways now-"
"General."
The sensation of the hand was there again. It was slightly muted now. He'd had a moment to brace for it.
Sensei spoke in a tone that said he wasn't quite disappointed, though it was toeing the edge. "Come now. We've yet to work together. How can you be so sure that we won't get along? It'd be such a waste to lose your talent. Just one mission. Is that too much to ask?"
Aramis, ever his reliable friend, leaned over and asked him, "Do you need us to intervene, sir?"
"No, no, I'll be fine," Izuku assured him. The teen took in a series of deep, slow breaths. As he regained his faculties, an idea started to take shape in his mind. "A single mission. That's all?"
The hand removed itself from his presence once more.
"One mission. I promise."
Izuku looked at Aramis and the rest of the droids. "What do you say?"
"You're our leader, sir. We'll follow you anywhere."
Izuku smiled defiantly. "Very well, League. A joint operation. Just one, to see how we work together."
"Finally!" Tomura whined. "Kurogiri, take them back. We'll come by to pick up your droids on the day of the attack. We still need-"
"Me too."
"Eh?"
Izuku locked eyes with Tomura and dared him to say no. When he didn't say anything else, the teen continued. "If my soldiers are to go into battle, then I must be the one to lead them."
XXXXX
"So yeah, I got strong armed into working for some other villains. Is there anything you can do about that? Maybe like, I don't know, what's the villain equivalent of arresting someone for extortion of a minor?" Izuku genuinely asked.
"Killing them," Overhaul deadpanned.
"… I'm caught between a rock and hard place."
"Well, I can't get mad at you for something like this. It was definitely out of your control. Still, this is a problem for me…"
"I mean, this is a problem for a lot of people, but yeah, I can see how this personal, um, screws you over."
"Exactly. Grgh," he grunts. "I'm not sure how to deal with this now, so you'll just have to do as they say. I'll find a way to get you out of their grip, though. I need you to keep making those droids for me."
"Not my idea of a good time but dealing with you has been better than dealing with the League and it's only been a day since I met them." Izuku let out a groan as he rose from the couch. There was more he wanted to talk about, but his legs were getting jittery. He needed to walk around. Especially in a creepy place like Overhaul's compound.
It was one of those days when Izuku wanted to check on his droids under the Shie Hassaikai's care. So far, there was nothing to worry about. They simply helped perform menial labor alongside the other Yakuza members and made supply runs. Still, it was good to see them.
"Hey, by the way, on the topic of goals and stuff, what exactly is your whole schtick? I probably should've asked beforehand, but I was just too excited at the thought of finally making my army with your supplies."
"Understandable. Well, you've been a good enough employee, I guess I can bring you in on the big plan. Here goes; I want to erase all Quirks."
Huh. Interesting. It's certainly nefarious, but he's no Tomura Shigaraki.
"You want to erase them? Like removing Quirks from existence? How?"
"It won't be easy. I've already sacrificed so much to get where we are now. The Yakuza used to be a dying breed; you know? Most of them still are, but I've been able to get the Shie Hassaikai to bounce back for now. It's not enough, though. We need something - a miracle."
"If you want to erase all Quirks everywhere, then yeah, you're going to need something like a miracle."
"And we were given one."
What?
"Get back here!"
Izuku snapped to face the direction of the shouting. His personal trio of B1s, Athos, Aramis, and Porthos all circled around him. They weren't armed within the compound, but they wouldn't let that stop them from protecting their General.
"Damnit," Overhaul muttered as he got up.
Izuku poked his head out from behind Porthos. He caught sight of a small girl dressed in tattered rags racing down the hallway. The look on her face said it all. She was a prisoner here.
She needed to be rescued.
Overhaul started walking towards the child, but Izuku ditched caution and ran right towards her. He caught her in his scrawny arms and checked her for any other signs of harm. He cursed internally when he spotted bandages all along her arms.
And here I thought the Yakuza might be a better option than the League.
"Eri," Overhaul calmly addressed her.
The girl - Eri - went deathly still in Izuku's arms. She looked up to him with big, crimson eyes that begged - begged - for something. Anything. She needed a miracle-
Izuku didn't like that train of thought.
Nope. That's not it. It's just a coincidence. Yep. That's all it is. Coincidence.
"Hey, there, wild child!" Izuku greeted her with one of his beaming signature smiles. "My name Midoriya Izuku, what about you?"
She gripped his arms with tiny ferocity. "…"
"What was that? I didn't really hear you."
"Her name is Eri," Overhaul said. He stood off to the side with uncaring eyes, like the big bag of sour feces that he was.
"Eri? That's a wonderful name!" Izuku said enthusiastically. "Hey, why don't you come sit with me and Overhaul for a bit? We were just talking about some boring adult stuff-"
"You're not an adult."
I'm going to put that man's head on a spike… and then use that head-spike combination to scrub the latrine.
"Come on, we might not be fun, but I'm sure that between Athos, Aramis, and Porthos, they can keep you entertained!"
"That's not our purp-!" Aramis tried to say until he was smacked upside the head by Athos.
"Our programming makes us the perfect guardians for all ages!" He cheered.
Izuku smiled at Eri then turned to Overhaul. "Come on, what's the worst that can happen?"
Overhaul glared at the two of them. He shifted his focus to the Yakuza member who'd let her escape. His gaze promised an agony that was only ever depicted in legends of old. He looked back at Izuku and Eri. "Fine, but only until you leave. Eri's a clumsy child and shouldn't remain outside her room for too long."
Izuku introduced Eri to his three guards and the four of them hit it off about as well as three battle droids and an abused child could.
As they talked, Izuku walked back to Overhaul. "A miracle, huh?"
Overhaul looked down on the Quirkless youth past his intricate plague doctor mask. "Indeed. A miracle…"
"…"
"You're a creator. An artist of your craft. A man on a mission, too. Surely, you can understand the… desperation one feels to achieve something that they've built their entire character upon. Don't you?"
Izuku closed his eyes and sighed. "How does it work?"
"Eri's Quirk is unlike any that exists. She can rewind an object or even creature to a previous state. She can even go so far as to rewind them to a point in their time where they don't exist."
"So, you take samples of her body to create a drug that rewinds a person's body to a point in time where they didn't have a Quirk."
"Think about what we can accomplish with this curse of hers. We can undo this disease-ridden society, once and for all. Restore the world to the way it was meant to be, with the Yakuza back in their seat of power."
"No, I see that. I do. My only concern is that… I just… have you possibly considered, I don't know, not using Eri as a human smoothie maker for your Quirk Erasing Bullets?"
"No."
Okay, it's time to kill the Yakuza.
XXXXX
Leaving that shithole without Eri was, without a doubt, the lowest point of his life. He did everything he could before that, however. He suckered Overhaul into giving her a clean set of good clothes, a full meal with a desert, and a promise to visit with some of the other droids that were stationed at the Yakuza compound. The leader of the Shie Hassaikai had complied because Izuku needed to be willing to work in order to provide him with a droid army.
It wasn't enough. Any option that ultimately ended in her remaining there would never be enough. He needed to save Eri. This was why he built the Droid Army. Even before his fit of spite against All Might, Izuku had designed the first ever B1s like Athos, Aramis, and Porthos to be his champions for the weak and in need. This was what they were made for. It's what he himself was made for.
It wouldn't be enough.
He loves his B1s and B2s, and they could definitely overwhelm the rank and file of the Shie Hassaikai, but the Eight Bullets were a different story. They were Overhaul's elite. Each one of them could probably take on a hundred battle droids by themselves. Then there was the bastard himself. With his Quirk, he was worth an entire battalion.
So where did that leave Izuku? With a realization. He was General of the Droid Army, soon to be the greatest army in human history… and all the best armies had their own special forces.
Izuku practically slammed into his desk as he opened a new file and started designing something special. Something elite.
The first BX series Commando Droid was constructed twenty-four hours later.
XXXXX
Izuku nervously waited for the phone line to connect. He'd already been sent to voicemail once and he was kind of pressed for time. The attack on the Shie Hassaikai compound was scheduled to go down in… two minutes. Everyone was in position and ready to move. The only loose end was Izuku with this damn phone.
Yeah, he was pushing it.
He was so caught off guard when someone finally did pick it up that he froze and forgot to speak.
"Hello?" A tired male voice asked.
"…"
The man sighed. "I'm hanging up now."
He does. He hangs up on Izuku at the most crucial moment of his life to date. Oh shit!
The young General quickly realizes his mistake and immediately redials him.
A beat.
Two beats.
Three beats.
A click signaling an answer. "Whoever this is, I want you to know that I do not find this amusing. If you continue to call me, I will contact-"
"Sir Nighteye!" Izuku blurted out.
"…how did you know who I am?"
"There's an old Yakuza compound in the city disguised as a group of office buildings. It's controlled by the Shie Hassaikai. You and a few other hero agencies started investigating them a couple of weeks ago."
Izuku checked the time. Thirty seconds. Crap, crap, crap!
"Who is this-!"
"There's about to be an attack on the compound and you need to get over there in order to arrest all the villains and take them to prison."
"Young man, slow down and tell me what's going on-"
"I'm the General of the Droid Army and I'm the one who's attacking the Yakuza."
"Excuse me-?"
The sound of rolling thunder could be heard as the ground beneath him shook. "That's my queue!"
Izuku snapped the phone shut, threw it on the ground and ordered his B2 security detail to blast it. Unfortunately, he didn't specify what he wanted the droids to blast it with. He only realized his mistake when he looked over to see the massive figures aim their wrist rockets at the defenseless flip phone and reduce it to subatomic particles.
Izuku decided soon afterwards to change his protection detail to only BX series Commando Droids.
XXXXX
This was it. The first battle that the Droid Army fought. The Battle of the Shie Hassaikai Compound. One thousand B1 battle droids, one hundred B2 super battle droids, and two squadrons for a total of twenty BX Commando droids versus a hundred and something Yakuza thugs. Those weren't all the droids in the army, though it was most of them. The rest were being kept back at HQ.
Back at the battle, however, things were going swimmingly. The key to any strategy, military or not, was to keep it simple. So Izuku kept it as simple as he could. There were two main groups of B1s. There were the four hundred already inside the compound, who were being kept up to date real time with the rest of the army due to their built-in communicators - a feature that Izuku had kept from Overhaul. They would attack the Yakuza from behind their lines, completely disrupting the enemy's ability to mount a proper defense. Blaster or no, the B1s could still put up a hell of a fight against an unsuspecting opponent.
Simultaneously, the other large group of six hundred B1s with the accompanying fifty B2s would arrive using stolen cargo trucks and assault the main gate. Since they were armed with blasters, they'd blow right through any Yakuza resistance and make their way further down into the compound where they'd meet up with the first and third group, incapacitating any who got in their way.
The third group had the hardest job. It was made up of all twenty BX Commando Droids he currently had. They're mission was twofold: eliminate the Shie Hassaikai leadership and secure Eri for extraction. The third team would infiltrate the compound via the underground tunnels which had been mapped by the B1s already inside and wireless transmitted to all of them. They would arrive well before the assault began and start tracking their targets, figuring out ways to neutralize them in the most efficient way possible.
Izuku fully expected the third group to suffer the worst losses, if not a total mission failure. So, he made sure to equip the Commandos with a few new tricks and toys when designing them. Thicker armor comparable to a B2s, enhanced sensors, superior agility, strength, speed, voice mimicking, Vibroswords, and thermal detonators.
When walking through the confines of the compound after the battle had ended, Izuku realized he might've over done it. The Eight Bullets of the Shie Hassaikai were beaten into such a bloody pulp that Izuku honestly couldn't tell their front from their back sides.
Defeating the Yakuza was only a steppingstone in the Droid Army's true mission at the Compound. After walking through the labyrinth for several minutes, Izuku found their goal.
Eri was swaddled up in a big fluffy blanket and was being held in the arms of a BX series Commando Droid while the other nineteen patrolled the area for the umpteenth time. When her eyes landed upon Izuku, she beckoned him over and gave him the fiercest bear hug her arms could manage. Izuku promptly returned the sentiment.
At the end of the eleven-minute-long battle, all one hundred and twenty-eight Shie Hassaikai members had been incapacitated, while Izuku's Droid Army had suffered a total of seven B1 casualties.
By the time the heroes and police arrived on the scene, the Droid Army and Eri had disappeared down the underground tunnels. Overhaul, Kurono, Irinaka, the Eight Bullets, and all the low-level enforcers were apprehended by the end of the day. The Droid Army arrived back at HQ only an hour later.
XXXXX
Taking Eri to his mother seemed like the most reasonable choice for Izuku. Of course, he and reason hadn't seen eye to eye since kindergarten and their relationship had only become more estranged since then, so what did he know?
Oh yeah, he knew how to build an army of droids capable of wiping out an entire base of villains within a matter of minutes. Fuck you, reason.
He stopped outside the door to his house with both squadrons of BX Commando droids and a sleepy child in tow. The General of the Droid Army briefly considered how to explain everything to his mother.
"Fuck it," he muttered. "I'll wing it."
He opened the door with as much confidence as he could muster and announced himself. "I'm home!"
"Oh, you're back early!" Inko called out. "We're in the living room!"
His mother and a pair of B1s watched the group shuffle into the living room with an amused expression. "Oh my, are they a new model?"
"Yeah. I'm calling them the BX series."
"They look capable!"
"Yeah… yeah, they are."
"Oh! Who's this?"
"This is Eri."
"Hello, Eri, how are you?"
"…"
"That's okay, I know it's scary talking to new people," Inko said with a soft smile. She shifted her focus to her son. "Izuku, what happened? Where did you find her?"
"I launched an attack on a villain base a little while ago and rescued her. Can we adopt her?"
Inko's face never dropped as she internally screamed at the top of her lungs. Eri had obviously had a very bad time and didn't need any explosive outbursts right now. "That… was… very kind of… you."
"Also, I'm probably not going to be around for a bit. Since I attacked a villain base. I'm going to go live in my headquarters with my army of droids now, otherwise the Pros will come here to arrest me. I'll leave a few droids to keep you guys safe."
Inko was trying her damndest not to put her head through a wall right now. She'd known her son had a personal grudge against a little thing known as reality, but she'd never expected him to up and use his skills to make an army of his droids.
Oh well, at least that meant he'd be safe, right? All of Izuku's creations had this strange fierce, unwavering loyalty to him and these new droids looked particularly menacing.
Izuku beckoned a full squadron of the Commando droids over with a wave. Then he turned back to his mom. "They'll keep you safe. I'm gonna grab some things from my room before I leave. I'll be back in, uh, probably not anytime soon, but I promise I'll be back, okay?"
Inko pulled her son into a crushing hug, then quickly invited Eri to join them. They stayed like that for several seconds before Izuku untangled himself. He cleared his workshop of his items and made it presentable for Eri since it would now be her room now. With everything he needed, he gave a somber farewell to the two before he walked out the door.
Staying at home wasn't really an option anymore for Izuku. After the battle, he figured that the Pros were going to be a lot more invested in bringing him in. He'd never tried to hide his B1s before, so people were going to start calling in to give the authorities information once the news covered it all.
He was able to remain anonymous enough because he hadn't done anything big like that before. The cat was out of the bag now, though. Japan would know that he had an army, and he was willing to use it.
XXXXX
"You told me there'd be a thousand of the tin cans," Tomura muttered. His hand reached up to scratch at his necks and Izuku had to physically turn away lest he stare too intently. "This ain't a thousand. This is barely a hundred."
"Yeah, well, things happen," Izuku snarked. "Not sure if you noticed, but we kind of fought a battle the other day. Lot of my troops are at HQ getting patched up after scraping the Shit Hassaikai- oh, sorry, the Shie Hassaikai off the bottom of their boots."
That was a lie. He didn't want to bring so many droids because he wasn't on the side of the League. He didn't want to win this battle, but he was still compelled to join.
Tomura kept tearing at his neck like a cat at his favorite scratching post, but at least he wasn't whining anymore. He and Izuku had a rocky relationship, but they could always bond over beating the asses of some lower-level punks. Especially if said punks were the yakuza.
"Anyway, when are we leaving? I've got better things to do, you know."
"In a minute!" Tomura snapped. "Any minute now, any minute."
Izuku decided to not poke the Quirk enhanced rabid bear anymore. He instead looked to his troops. One hundred B1 battle droids and his now personal squadron of ten BX Commando Droids. He grinned wickedly upon seeing them.
Oh yeah, they're keepers, he proudly thought. He reckoned that each of them could tangle with any Pro Hero below the top ten and have at least a fifty-fifty shot of winning.
He then looked down to the object he held in his hands. His new helmet had been a spur of the moment creation. It wasn't his idea, either. The captain of his guard, ND-5, had insisted that the General wear some form of protective armor in anticipation of the attack on the USJ. Izuku made the thing in an hour. He didn't even bother to paint the thing. It was a bone white helm with a faceplate that looked suspiciously like a skull now that he thought about it, and a pair of long, thin fins over his ears. The fins housed an advanced communications network that would allow him to keep in contact with his troops a hundred kilometers away.
The rest of his attire wasn't nearly as sophisticated. He was covered in thin plates of Dura-Steel that covered the more vital points of his body. It wasn't too thick either, just enough to shield him from small stuff.
As Izuku examined himself, he noticed the other villains holed up with them in the League's bar. They looked tough, but appearances could be deceiving. Izuku wasn't too sure how they'd fare against a Pro Hero school. Especially if Tomura was telling the truth and All Might was there.
Izuku had made it clear to his troops that under no circumstances were they to allow the hero students or teachers to be killed. They were ordered to do what was necessary to prevent any losses of life, even if that meant fighting their "allies".
A familiar swirl of black and purple mist preceded the entrance of Kurogiri and…
"What the fuck is that!" One of the gang members yelped.
"Took the words right outta my mouth," Izuku muttered.
From the warp portal emerged a nine-foot-tall humanoid with bulging muscles, an exposed brain, and a bird beak.
"Is that why you hated the Shie Hassaikai? They had the same look as your friend here?" Izuku tried to quip, but the quiver in his voice took any and all heat out of it.
Tomura ignored his call out, yet he still turned to Izuku. He might not have been able to see his full face, but the teen knew that the villain was giving him his creepiest smile. "What do you think, General? My Nomu here's worth more than any number of your rusty tin cans. He's going to do the impossible today and kill All Might."
His declaration spurred the other villains in the room to life. They cheered on this Nomu with vigor. One even held out their hand for a high five, but the beast merely stood there, unwavering. Izuku scowled. What is that thing?
Questions for later. Kurogiri announced that it was time to leave and then opened a massive portal for all of them to move through. Tomura was the first one to pass and if his posture was anything to go by, he was making a hell of an entrance.
Izuku rolled his eyes and donned his helmet.
XXXXX
So. Things were happening. No one was happy. Not even Izuku.
All Might was a no show, and the hero students were proving to be more than a match for the villains that Tomura had brought. The guy had officially graduated from whining to full on bitching, yet he was arguably the second most well off of them all. Izuku was the first.
Eraserhead was getting his annual checkup with the new anesthesiologist, Nomu. The beast guy seemed to favor the old ways, as he was currently helping the Pro find out what concrete tasted like. The other teacher, Thirteen, was taken out when Kurogiri pulled an Uno Reverse Card on them. Then, the mist villain threw a whole bunch of students all around the USJ in a decent attempt to divide and conquer.
The low-level villains that Tomura hired were getting their asses handed to them on a rusty lead platter because nobody bothered to check what the students' Quirks were. Kurogiri had dropped the obvious fucking frog girl in the water zone.
Yeah, real smooth there numbnuts. He could still hear the villains in the shipwreck zone crying for mercy.
As it turned out, when you back an enemy into a corner and threaten to kill them, they're not going to hold anything back. Add that to the fact that some of them can apparently freeze entire mountain tops frozen solid in seconds, and you've got a disaster on your hands. All thirteen of them, in the case of Mr. Handsy standing next to him. Who could've possibly foreseen that?
Izuku did. Except he'd kept all that to himself because he was actually rooting against the villains. So he should at least be somewhat happy, right?
No, of course not.
Izuku had made the second dumbest mistake of his entire life when he'd decided to stand next to Tomura to oversee the battlefield. Therefore, he was at ground zero when Kurogiri returned and told them that one of the students had escaped and was going to get the teachers. It could've been worse for him, though. He could be Kurogiri.
Tuning into the comm chatter from his B1 battle droids, Izuku found them experiencing the traumatic stress in post-traumatic stress disorder. It turned out that Bakugo was in Class 1-A, and oh boy he remembered the B1s from his time back in Aldera. Except he wasn't happy blowing them up anymore. Now, he was so furious about the idea of Izuku being here that he'd reverted to animalistic howls and tactics. If the reports were right, he'd fucking bitten the head off of one of his droids. That shit was Dura-Steel. How the fuck?
When Izuku recollected that particular droid and repaired him, he was taking him off the frontlines for a good long vacation. He deserved it, damnit. All of them did. These kids were putting up a better fight than an entire base of yakuza!
Another wave of terrified shouting made the General sigh. He'd programmed the B1s to feel fear so that they could better empathize with the people they were helping. Yeah, it wasn't the smartest move in hindsight, but he was a kid at the time. Now Bakugo was going to be haunting their every waking moment. A shadow of a demon lurking behind every corner.
Not even his personal squadron of Commando Droids were enjoying this. They saw their General becoming more and more depressed, yet they had absolutely no idea how to cheer him up. He'd designed them to be his elite soldiers who could overcome any obstacle with grit, cunning, and brutal efficiency. But how were they supposed to strategically strike down secondhand embarrassment?
No one wanted to be here anymore. Neither the students, nor the Pros, or the villains, or Izuku's forces were getting anything out of this. They were all miserable now and it just fu-
"-cking sucks!" Tomura raved.
Damnit, I can't even tell my own thoughts from his ranting. Izuku decided that at this point, he'd risk death if it meant he could be excused from this purgatory. "Hey, League," Izuku drawled. "Why are we here?"
The leader of the League didn't respond. Izuku decided to dig his grave a little deeper. "All Might didn't show, and he was, like, your one objective. Your villains suck, except for Nomu over there. My troops don't have the numbers to carry their slack, and apparently the Pros have reinforcements on the way. So why the hell are we still here?"
Tomura stopped scratching at his neck. Then, he slowly turned to face him. When their eyes finally met, the villain asked him in a low, scratchy voice, "Is that your official recommendation, General? Just abandon the battle?"
"Yeah."
"…it was such a good plan."
"Was it really?"
"Kurogiri! Prepare to warp us out."
"Of course, Tomura," the poor mist man answered. Izuku was honestly shocked that the guy was listening. He figured that the villain simply tuned out the rest of the world as soon as Tomura started ranting at him. It's what Izuku would've done.
Speaking of things to do. The leader of the Droid Army tapped the commlink on his wrist. "All units fall back to the main plaza. Collect the fallen for repairs. Make it quick, we're leaving."
"Roger, roger!"
"Roger, roger!"
"Roger, roger!"
Izuku sighed in relief. He didn't like deploying his droids for the fruitless causes of villains, but they had a purpose here - protect the students through indirect means. Not an easy task, but he had faith in them.
A bloodcurdling wet snap caught his attention. He glanced at Eraserhead. The man had just gotten his arm shattered after Nomu gripped it a little too hard, but he wasn't dead, thankfully. Izuku would've stepped in if it got too far.
Okay, he would've had his Commandos step in. There wasn't a chance in hell that Izuku would be able to do anything against Nomu, but his Droids most certainly could. It didn't matter how tough the guy was, Izuku's personal squadron was armed with blasters and vibroswords. He was confident in their abilities.
"Before we leave, though…"
His skin crawled listening to the way Tomura said that. The hell is he think-
"Let's ruin All Might's pride."
When Izuku turned around to find the villain, he realized that he was already gone. The teen whipped his head around to locate the menace and found him on the opposite end of the plaza, near the water of the shipwreck zone. His hand was outstretched towards a-
Oh, fuck no!
"Stop him!" He shrieked as he pointed at Tomura. A pair of Commandos took off at dizzying speeds, but Izuku knew they wouldn't make it time. Tomura placed his hand on the students. Their heads would disintegrate just like it did with Eraserhead's elbow. Izuku was powerless to watch…
Nothing. Nothing happened. Well, nothing happened when Tomura touched the students' faces. A lot of things happened when his Commandos reached Tomura. The two seized him by the arms and launched him back towards the center of the plaza. Nomu blurred from atop Eraserhead - who was somehow still conscious and using his Quirk - and seemingly materialized behind Tomura to catch him.
The young villain flailed in Nomu's grasp but didn't have time to berate Izuku as the doors to the facility exploded inwards. All eyes were locked on the figure who entered. The Number One hero strolled in with a noticeable lack of his trademark smile.
"You're safe now," he boldly said. "Why? Because I am here!"
"Oh no," Izuku whispered.
"Oh yes!" Tomura growled.
A group of villains who hadn't gotten bodied by Eraserhead's earlier beat down decided to charge All Might. It didn't take a genius to see where that was going to go. Izuku clicked his comm unit.
"All units, get your asses back here! All Might has entered the facility-!"
Captain ND-5 pushed Izuku down to the ground with such force that it drove the breath out of his lungs. The clanging of metal shocked him back into his senses as he looked up from concrete. One of his Commandos had been sent flying through the air. The two who'd protected the students in the water had met an even worse fate. They were reduced to bits and pieces that were now scattered across the plaza. The students themselves had been moved to a safer location across the plaza along with Eraserhead.
The rest of Izuku's squadron surrounded him on all sides, physically shielding his prone form with their bodies. Their blasters and vibroswords were up and pointed at a singular individual.
All Might.
Izuku hadn't even seen him move. He just… what the hell?
"A legion of robotic soldiers? You must be the so-called General of the Droid Army."
"Wuh?" Izuku wheezed.
A metallic hand took hold of his arm and pulled him back to his feet. "Are you injured, sir?" ND-5 asked.
"Uh, I just need to catch my breath."
"What's so special about him?" Tomura seethed. "I'm the one who organized all of this! I'm the one here to kill you! You should keep your focus on the real threat!"
"Is that so?" All Might asked. "In that case, I'll just have to bring you both in!"
"Nomu!"
The strange creature bolted straight towards All Might and the number one hero was more than willing to meet the challenge head on. They bombarded each other with a series of blows that left shock waves. As the two titans duked it out, Izuku looked at the tattered remains of his forces that began to trickle into the plaza. Yeah, I ain't touching that with a thirty-foot pole.
As the battle raged on, Izuku instead tended to his troops. He took little note of what was happening behind him.
They were a mess. Their Dura-Steel Armor had done a fine job of holding up against whatever the students had thrown at them, but there was a limit to what they could shrug off. Scrapes, cuts, dents, gashes, missing limbs, frozen limbs, electrical damage, fucking teeth marks. The list went on and on. Of the original one hundred B1s that he'd brought, less than half that number had returned in operational order. The rest had been carried in by their comrades. Of his own personal squadron, two of his Commandos had been absolutely scrapped while a third was badly damaged.
"What a damned mess," Izuku grumbled. He was in the middle of jury rigging a B1s arm back on when the battle reached such an explosive point that he couldn't possibly ignore it.
He watched in fascination as All Might started flinging Nomu around like he was a kid playing with a cool new toy he found. The central plaza looked like it had been hit by a bombing run. The whole thing culminated in All Might punching Nomu so hard that he was sent flying out of the USJ like he'd hit a freaking home run.
All Might posed for them. He actually put his fist across his chest and smiled like he was in a photo shoot. Izuku glowered at the sight. Where was that heroic attitude several months ago, huh? No! No, I can't think about that right now. Gotta retreat.
"Tomura, get us out of here," he whispered. The villain didn't move. He simply stood there in disbelief at the spectacle they'd all witnessed. "Tomura!"
The blue haired menace finally hunched over and snarled, "He cheated."
I'm going to fucking throttle this nincompoop.
"Sensei lied! He said that All Might would be weaker, but he isn't! He isn't!"
"You've been bested, villain!" All Might triumphantly pointed at them. "Surrender now, you have no chance at winning."
As the smoke started to clear, Izuku could see the steam emanating from the hero. His demand was nothing more than a bluff. Now's our opportunity, it's time to leave!
Then Kurogiri pointed the same thing out to Tomura. A nefarious smile grew upon the villain's lips as he prepared to charge the All Might.
Not again! Izuku was about to order his droids to incapacitate the villain when gunshots suddenly rang out. Several rounds tore through Tomura's arms and legs, sending him to the ground in a heap. He cried out in agony, but his voice was drowned out by the clang of more bullets hammering upon his droids.
Izuku's squadron dutifully shielded him from fire. The rounds smashed uselessly into their Dura-Steel bodies. Not even the B1s were at risk from pistol caliber rounds.
The heroes were here.
"Kurogiri-!" Izuku shouted. He didn't have the chance to say anything else as he and his troops were enveloped in the warper's mists. They fell a short distance to the floor of the League's hideout.
The Commandos immediately scanned the area for threats. When none were found, they allowed Izuku some breathing room. The teen sat up on his haunches and looked to his remaining troops. He relaxed upon seeing that Kurogiri had warped them all back to the bar. It was crowded now, but he was grateful to the warper. His gaze finally landed on the writhing Tomura.
"What was that about my troops being worthless tin cans?"
"Ahhhh!"
"Bet you wish you had a few watching your back right about now, huh?"
"Why didn't they protect me, too? You had plenty!"
"You had it under control."
"I did fucking not!"
XXXXX
Izuku flopped down into his chair at Headquarters. "Well, that's an hour of our lives that we're never getting back."
His troops were quick to voice their agreement. A chorus of groans and whines emanated from all around him. From the B1s, at least. His Commandos remained stoic.
The General of the Droid Army looked over his forces. The entirety of his forces. More than two thousand B1s, three hundred B2s, and twenty BXs, which included his personal squadron. Most of them were in their compact hibernation mode and stacked upon shelves to make more room, but that only helped so much in this small warehouse. It wasn't just the droids either. Their factory was here, too. Not to mention all of the supplies for constructing more droids, their storage space for weapons, spare parts, and a small fleet of moving trucks. Headquarters was officially too small. They desperately needed to start branching out.
Loathe as he was to admit it, Izuku knew that finding the League would benefit him. Even though their joint operation was a failure, Sensei had made good on his word and compensated the Droid Army for their services. The location of several hideouts had been handed over to Izuku along with full authority over them. They were the property of the Droid Army now. He'd give the order for various groups of B1s to start moving in a few days.
For now, it was time to lay low. Two big battles in the span of a week meant that he had a lot of people looking for him right now, no doubt about it. Especially when one of those battles took place at the legendary UA academy where All Might was now working. As far as Izuku was concerned, it was a decent trade off.
In the meantime, Izuku had a new project to work on. He needed a chain of command. Athos, OOM-9, and Captain ND-5 were the only droids in his army who displayed any form of leadership skills. An impressive feat considering that he'd neglected to program any of them with those skills in the first place. It was something that'd completely escaped his mind. He had to fix that mistake before he started sending his forces out to their new outposts.
Izuku swung around to face his computer and opened a new file. He'd give this new series of a droid a completely different designation. The T-series Tactical Droid was created soon after.
Author's Note: The first three droids you see are canon, though we only know the name of one of them - that being OOM-10. They're part of R2D2's reprogramed team of battle droids that helped the Republic during the attack on the Citadel in the Clone Wars TV show. I gave them the names of the Three Musketeers because their dying words are the legendary quote, "all for one and one for all". I wanted to include them instead of using completely original characters because they deserved so much better than what they got in the show.
OOM-9 and ND-5 are also canon characters. I'm pretty sure OOM-9 is the first ever named battle droid. He was the leader of the droid forces during the battle of Naboo in the Phantom Menace. ND-5 is featured in the upcoming game, Star Wars Outlaws. I've known him for less than ten minutes and I would absolutely die for him.
Finally, Izuku's helmet is an homage to General Grievous.
Also, this won't be a long story. I just wanted something fun to write while I'm working on my writer's block for my other story.