I had planned to continue writing through the summer, but God damn, I didn't realize how much I just needed a few months to just not do anything. So much for my resolution to get twelve chapters out this year! Ah well. Sorry for being late and enjoy the chapter!

Two Days Earlier

Ochako was concerned about her companions.

Midoriya was at the forefront of her mind for obvious reasons; it had been three days since Todoroki had given him back to the group and fled, since Granny Chiyo had all but physically thrown them out of her home so she could focus on his care. While she would never share it with anyone, Ochako was beginning to wonder if he would ever wake up. According to Iida, his fight with the Godling of War had left him in a similar state, but he'd apparently woken after just a day.

Despite Midoriya's circumstances being the most dire, it was Mina that she was the most worried for. She had taken the revelation that their friend was the Godling of Strength the hardest of them all. At first, she'd wondered if it was just the concern over his health and whether he'd pull through. However, if that were the case, Ochako suspected that her friend would have become less sullen and more hopeful as Granny Chiyo began to actually respond to the inquiries about Midoriya's health that they hollered from her parlor. Instead, she watched Mina sit in her rented bed or the commons of the inn, staring into space like it would part and reveal some secret to her. No, Mina had become more dejected and withdrawn as the last three days had passed. While she wouldn't speak of it, Ochako knew that she was trying to wrestle with the lie Midoriya had told them the entire time they'd known him. She had an inkling as to why; it wasn't hard to tell that something was going on between them, though it was impossible to know what stage it was at. She had suspected as much since the first night she and Mina had shared a tent together. Ochako had nearly fallen asleep when she noticed her friend sneaking out, presumably into Midoriya's tent. She'd been woken up when Mina slunk back in shortly before dawn. This had repeated every night following. What happened in the time that she was gone, Ochako couldn't speculate on. It wasn't likely to be a physical component to their relationship, as last she'd seen, just being touched by Mina was enough to make Midoriya nearly jump out of his skin.

She wanted to talk to Mina and help her through her melancholy, but she also wanted a better starting point for the conversation. Unless she acquired some new insight, she currently planned to broach the subject once they had some good news about Midoriya, since that would likely have Mina in better spirits.

In addition to the worries she had about Midoriya and Mina, she was increasingly concerned about Iida. He was somehow getting worse. The nobleman had always been stern, but since his brother's death, he'd become severe. Mean, even. Midoriya's revelation had him becoming darker still, however. The few interactions they'd had since their fight with Todoroki had been short and harsh. Ochako suspected he would get more hostile before this passed over, but she wasn't sure how to address it. The cruel irony of the situation was that the only person who would be able to talk him down was the subject of a great deal of his ire. Midoriya had been able to talk Todoroki down somehow, and the demigod had been actively trying to kill him at the time. If he could do that, there was no doubt in her mind that he could bridge the widening gap between Iida and the rest of the group.

He just had to wake up.

Ochako gloomily took a pull from the watered-down wine the inn was selling. She didn't particularly want to get drunk, but it was a tempting notion with Iida across the table glowering at the world. Still, if Mina came back with news about Midoriya from Granny Chiyo, she didn't want to be in a state where she'd have trouble understanding what was happening.

The day after they'd left Midoriya with Granny Chiyo, Ochako had been the one to take the silver key and see how their friend was doing. It had taken some doing to cajole Mina into leaving the inn to be the one to check on him today. She prayed to any Gods listening that seeing Midoriya awake, or just healed and asleep, would bring Mina at least slightly back towards being herself.

Part of her wanted to try to engage Iida. Ochako knew that he needed help every bit as much as Mina did, but the way he responded to any attempts to interact with him... Still, she should try. "So, Iida. Any thoughts on where we're headed once Midoriya is back on his feet? I know there was some talk of crossing the border, but beyond valleys, I'm not sure we ever ironed out a plan."

He tore his gaze from the window and leveled his scowl at her. "Why? Planning to help Midoriya steal the Throne out from under me?"

She hadn't been ready for him to level that amount of vitriol at her specifically. "Excuse me? What did I do to you? I understand you're angry with Midoriya, even if I don't agree, but that is no reason to tear me apart!"

"You all made it very clear who you're actually listening to. Frankly, you're lucky I haven't decided that your repeated insistence that you had no clue he was a Godling isn't all an act!"

Ochako bit her tongue. It would be very easy to fire back, but that wouldn't solve anything. It would only serve to further the damage to the group's relationships with each other. Instead, she took a deep breath, shook her head, and said, "I'm sorry you feel that way, but I have always thought of this group as a team. I don't plan to let any of what has happened change that.

Iida scoffed, but didn't press the issue. He just turned back to the window to watch for Mina's return. If she hadn't extracted a promise from both of her fellow Godlings that they would discuss news about Midoriya's condition together, she strongly suspected that he'd have gotten up and left.

Her wine didn't survive much longer in the oppressive silence that followed. Ochako stuck to her previous conviction by not ordering another, despite the fact that it'd take her another couple of cups before the weak drink would have any actual effect on her.

It had been her idea to head a little away from the inn before using the key. They'd barely come out alive against Todoroki, saved only by Midoriya's timely revelation and subsequent baiting of the demigod. While their wounds were not grievous, they hadn't all healed yet, and everyone was raw around the edges both mentally and emotionally. The last thing they needed was to draw attention from other Godlings. Ochako doubted that any other single Godling would be as strong as Todoroki was, but more than one could prove difficult. The Godling of War – B-something... She couldn't remember his name – in particular was a concern to her, since he already held a grudge of some sort against Midoriya and was ready to let that spill over and harm others merely for being associated with him.

"Finally," Iida said.

Ochako's head snapped to the window, where a downtrodden Mina could be seen approaching the door. She could feel her heart hammering in her chest suddenly; what prompted the tightness that came with it? She'd been feeling apprehensive before, but seeing the nymph had sparked something much more intense. A heavy weight settled in her stomach and a portent formed in her mind, though she knew her staff remained cloudy. She didn't need messages in the stars to tell her that something bad was coming.

Mina slipped into the inn. She drew impressively little attention from the other patrons as she walked over to slump into the chair across from Ochako. It took every thing she had not to immediately explode into questions. Ochako desperately needed the pressure in her chest to release, but she didn't want to verbally accost Mina in her withdrawn state. Unfortunately, with her jaw set and her hands firmly grasping her seat, the silence rapidly grew to be unbearable. She didn't know how Iida could stand to just sit there and stare at Mina, unmoving and damn near unblinking.

"He still hasn't woken up," the nymph said in a hoarse whisper. Ochako nearly kicked herself for not noticing her friend's swollen eyes – they were barely discolored, just a deeper shade of pink that the wizard had just written off as lighting.

"Does she know when he will?" The words came tumbling out of her mouth. She'd wanted to ask why Mina had been crying, but her heart couldn't bear not knowing if Midoriya was okay or not.

"No."

She waited on the edge of her seat for the rest of the sentence. It never came.

Iida was the one to break the silence this time. "Has she elaborated at all about how she knew he was so badly injured before we even arrived?"

"Didn't ask."

"Well, I men, she's Nighteye's grandmother," Ochako said. "Even if her specialty is healing, I'd be surprised if she didn't have any divination ability."

The horrible quietness consumed their table once again. Ochako hated it. It used to be so easy for everyone to talk. She couldn't even blame any one person for complicating the situation. Iida certainly wasn't at fault for struggling with the death of his brother, even if she wished he'd put more effort into not taking it out on them. Even lashing out at the group following Midoriya's lies was likely a result of that trauma. Mina had just had her whole perception of a person she was vary close to turned on its head, and it was clearly taking a toll on her. And Midoriya...

Well, that was a harder question. Why had he lied about being a Godling? Surely there was a very good reason. He didn't seem the type to lie and manipulate for personal gain, and he was completely lacking in ruthlessness. No, while Midoriya was the catalyst for a great deal of the problems they were having, she doubted it was his fault.

"I'm... Leaving," Mina whispered.

The words shocked Ochako out of her reverie. "What?!"

Mina closed her eyes, tears welling at the corners. "He lied to me, Ochako. I... I can't... How can I trust him? How can I trust anything?"

The wizard's jaw worked, but no words came out. She almost didn't believe this was real. Could she be dreaming? Mina, leaving?

"Well. If we're heading our separate ways, then I'll be departing as well," Iida said.

"I'm not going with you." Even through her tears, Mina's contempt for the nobleman was clear and audible.

"Obviously." His voice was much the same, less the crying. "It's best I cut any weight now. Waiting here and pacing myself for you on the road just reduces my odds of being the first to the Palace."

"Wha – So that's it? Everything we've been through, everything Midoriya has done for you, and you're just going to abandon him when he needs us more than ever?"

"He was just using us," Iida snapped.

"He was lying to us," Mina said.

The pressure in her chest had drained, only to be replaced by an entirely different sensation. Her heart hammered not with anxiety, but with bright, burning rage. "And you're going to run?" she yelled, standing up. Heads across the room swiveled to them, but she paid them no mind. "instead of giving him a chance, instead of just asking him why, you're going to scurry away while he's still asleep?"

"Nothing he says can justify this." Iida's eyes dared her to challenge him, and she rose to the occasion.

"You're just too afraid of what he's going to say! You're terrified that he'll have a reason that you can't hold against him! As long as he's wrong, your anger is righteous, is that it?!"

"He killed Tensei!"

"Stain killed Tensei! Midoriya never even came close to landing a blow on him, all the strength in the world wouldn't have changed anything!"

"He drew Todoroki to us, Ochako. We nearly died because of his lies!"

She rounded on Mina. The nymph's newfound spirit in the argument only stoked the furnace in Ochako's chest. "No, he nearly died because of his lies! We didn't suffer anything a clean bandage and hot soup couldn't cure!"

Mina looked at her defiantly, tears still streaming down her face. "I'm leaving, Ochako. You can't change my mind."

Iida stood up wordlessly, arrogantly. The smug, self-righteous superiority on his face made her want to scream.

"Fine. Fine! Go, then!" She held out her hand, calling on her magic to tear the silver key from Mina's pocket. "I'll be sure to tell him that he still has one friend in the world."

Iida turned to head towards the stairs, while Mina just tore out of her chair and walked with purpose towards the door. Ochako stormed up after Iida to get to her own room. She roughly threw into her bag what little was out of it and used the key in her door to leave.

Granny Chiyo's cabin reminded her of home. The wood, despite being older than she was by several generations, still smelled freshly cut. She closed her eyes and took several deep breaths, letting the familiar scent bring her temper down.

She felt terrible for yelling. Part of her wanted to turn around, but there was nobody to go back to. They'd made their decisions, and all of them were going to have to live with that.

The smell of the room changed as the aroma of tea filled her nose. "A shame about your friends."

Ochako opened her eyes to see Granny Chiyo setting a tray on the table. "Were you watching?"

The elderly woman nodded grimly. "Always, but today was special. I knew she was going to run from her feelings. I suspected he would take the excuse." She sighed. "I watched closely today because I hoped I'd be wrong. Poor Izuku will be devastated."

"You knew? Did Mina say something?"

"No, it was just my intuition. When you've been around as long as I have, you can read people easier than any book. Come, sit. Don't let the tea get cold."

Ochako obeyed. After she took her first sip, she asked, "Is he going to wake up?"

Granny Chiyo nodded again. "Of course he is. I don't know how long it'll be yet – he came closer to death with Todoroki than..." She paused and stared into the middle distance. "My. I think I've treated but a dozen of people that injured in my entire life. But, that's how it is with the Mantle of Strength. They always go well beyond what would cause any mortal to succumb to their injuries."

Ochako nearly choked on her tea.

"Careful, dear. Yes, I'm fully aware of who Izuku is. I've been scolding Yagi about the whole situation before he even visited the boy."

Yagi? Who was this woman to refer to the King of the Gods so casually? And she scolded him!

A sudden sense of age and vastness tugged at the edge of her perception. Ochako looked directly at the old woman and immediately realized that she had made a mistake. Her eyes were like whirlpools of power, drawing her in and threatening to crush her in their depths. She was struck with the knowledge that this woman was ancient beyond belief or reason and possessed the strength and experience to bring the world under her heel, possibly including the Gods.

"Who are you?" she managed to whisper.

Her impossibly old eyes twinkled like stars. "You can call me Grandmother."

Izuku couldn't lift his eyes from the floor as Uraraka finished telling her story. "So... They left because of the lies."

"Iida didn't. I think he just used it as an excuse. You know how unreasonable he's been lately."

"His brother died, Uraraka."

He could hear the shame in her voice. "Well... Yes, but that doesn't excuse his behavior."

Gone. How could they be gone? Despite being relative newcomers to his life, Izuku could hardly imagine it without them. Even with the recent shift in his behavior, he considered Iida his closest friend; the nobleman had taught Izuku many of the skills that had saved him thus far, and would continue to serve him through the Game and beyond. Before the death of his brother, he'd also been a bastion of morality and ethics for Izuku to look up to. And Mina...

His heart grew heavy and his stomach twisted. He couldn't say when it had happened, but she'd become incredibly important to him, perhaps even vital. A world without her coloring it may as well be gray. It hurt all the worse that he'd been resolved to get Lord Yagi to let him tell her his secret when it had been forced out. Maybe if he'd told her sooner, if he hadn't been such a coward, he could have explained. Maybe she'd have taken it better.

Why hadn't she let him explain?

He didn't realize he'd said that out loud before Grandmother responded. "She's scared. Mina had to choose between listening to you and potentially finding out you weren't the person she thought you were or running and not having to hear something that frightened her." She reached a gnarled hand up to brush away his tears. "Oh, I know, little one. It's deeply unfair to you, but it's a natural reaction to flee when you're afraid."

Izuku screwed his eyes shut, trying to will himself to stop crying.

"You'll see her again," Uraraka said awkwardly. "When we all make it to the Palace. You could explain everything to her then. Iida, too, if he'll listen..."

That wasn't enough. After sharing the ambrosia with her on that hilltop, surrounded by flowers she'd had made just for him, Izuku couldn't wait for this all to be over. Maybe it was just his emotions still being raw from everything that had happened, but he felt the ache in his heart would kill him long before then. He clutched at his chest and tried to breathe deeply. His choked sobs made it difficult. Part of Izuku chastised himself for daring to hope that that night would lead into something more, told him he was a fool for letting his guard down. Beneath the sorrow and longing, another part dared him to hope again. If he would only believe, the pain would numb, and if – when – they met again, it could be a joyous occasion.

Izuku had never had much luck with pessimism, but hope wasn't a stranger. Rather than wallow in misery, he chose to trust that someone – Mina, fate, another Godling, whomever – would see them back together sooner rather than later.

The relief wasn't immediate, but it was potent. As he put his faith in providence, the ache dulled to a moderate soreness that was easily masked and set aside in favor of more immediate concerns.

Grandmother smiled. "You don't even realize you're doing it, do you?"

Both Godlings looked at her in confusion. "Doing what?" he asked.

"Using your second mantle. You're healing yourself, after a fashion."

"Second?!"

Izuku turned to Uraraka. "Yeah, um. Lord Yagi is the God of Strength and Justice. I've got both mantles, but... I don't know what justice has become. I don't know how to use it, either." He spared Grandmother an uncertain glance.

She took a deep breath. "Well. That's something we'll need to rectify, isn't it?"

His eyes nearly popped out of his head. "But–! The Game, and, and the Law!"

"Hush, Izuku, I've been preparing to break the Law since your friends brought you here. I'm done letting Yagi send you around with nothing but your wits and the shackles he put on you, Law be damned. I won't let his foolishness kill one of the greatest Kings-in-Waiting the world has ever had."

He opened his mouth to speak, though he was unsure if he was going to protest the compliment or be embarrassed beyond reason. He said nothing, however, as he was silenced once more by a glare.

"Now listen well to what I have to say, and be ready to speak to Yagi. He'll likely be here shortly after he notices what I'm doing." Grandmother straightened her back as she sat up, her voice losing the gentle affection it normally had and taking on the quality of an authoritative elder. "Izuku, your second mantle became the mantle of Compassion when you took it up. It is why you bonded so quickly with your friends, yet also why they left you. With your kindness, you heal the emotional scars of those you comfort, bringing them through the darkness and into the light of clarity. This is the power you unknowingly used on yourself. Your heart was wounded by loss, and your compassion for your friends and yourself allowed it to do weeks, even months of mending in scant minutes. By the other edge of this blade, however, your compassion bonds you to others. You may have found yourself with fast and true friends only days after meeting them. Your kindness nurtures the bonds you share, and those you meet will reach the opinion they'd hold of you after years of kinship with greater speed than seems possible. It is why the vampire Toga's obsession with you peaked immediately. It is why Iida found you a loyal companion so swiftly. He trusted you with his life for reasons even he didn't understand, and discovering you had been lying to him was the betrayal of a lifelong friend rather than a companion of a few weeks. So it was with young Mina. Your personality would always have intrigued her, and given time, you always would have found your relationship turning to love. With the mantle of Compassion backing your words and actions, she fell deeply and madly. So attached was she that a lie which should have only stung was akin to a dagger through her heart." She leaned forward and grasped his hands. "But remember, Izuku, that even though your mantle is, in part, what caused this, it is also the vehicle by which the problem can be solved. Just like with Todoroki, choosing to address the issue directly can help them heal, even from wounds they think will never close."

"Like Tensei's death," Izuku whispered.

Grandmother's smile reached her eyes. "Exactly." Before anyone else could speak, her expression fell. "But that's all the time we have for now, I'm afraid."

Izuku felt the All Mighty's presence before the door even opened. He could tell that Uraraka could as well, from the way she paled and sank into her chair. Even from the outside – wherever outside was for him – the indignation and anger were palpable in the air. Izuku was surprised, as the door opened, to realize that he was angry, too.

Lord Yagi was imperious. He had to stoop to get through the doorframe, but he seemed no less grand for it. There was none of the kind, boisterous God who bestowed Izuku's mantles upon him in his demeanor. Instead, a King had come to mete out punishment, and he was not happy about it.

"Grandmother," he said, his voice tight with restrained fury. "What is the meaning of this?"

"You're trying to get Izuku killed," she replied flatly. "I'm trying to prevent that."

"I have done nothing but keep him alive! Do not forget it is by my grace that he is able to see you at all."

"Yagi, you couldn't identify yourself in a mirror when you get in a mood like this. Don't try to engage me in debate right now. You're just going to get angrier."

He huffed. "Fine, if that is your wish, then we shall skip directly to the verdict." He turned to Izuku. Somehow, the God's towering presence failed to make him feel small. "You broke the rules I set down for you in a show of blatant defiance."

"I–" He tried to interject.

"Be silent. I am speaking. Due to your unwillingness to accept your limitations, your privileges shall also be revoked. You will no longer be allowed to come to this home and receive healing." He held out a hand. "Surrender the key."

Izuku stared up at his God. No – his patron. He had always felt a greater pull to the temple of Lord Nezu. "No."

Lord Yagi's face froze. "What did you just say to me?"

"I said no. I'm not giving it to you. You have no right to ask for it, either." His heart pounded in his chest. His anger spurred him forward in a way it never had before. He wasn't even afraid. It was exhilarating.

"You dare to defy me?" the King of the Gods was close to breaking his composure completely, if his clenched teeth were any indication. "You insolent pup, I am your God! I command you, give it to me!"

"You'll have to take it from me by force." He didn't need to know that Izuku didn't actually have it right now.

The All Mighty's fingers curled into a fist.

"Midoriya!" Uraraka hissed. "What are you doing?!"

"Winning." Izuku stood up, the fires rising too much for him to be able to bear sitting. "He can't lay a finger on me. Gods can't interfere with Godlings during the Great Game. It's against the Law. If he harms me while trying to get the key, he'll have broken it."

"Fine," the All Mighty spat. "Keep the key, for all the good it'll do you!" He thrust a finger towards Grandmother. "You are forbidden from healing him or any of the Godlings in his clique!"

Grandmother had no reaction to the order.

"All you had to do was say nothing, Midoriya! My restrictions were not heavy!"

"So, what, you would have had me let them die?"

"You had plenty of opportunity to kill Todoroki when you broke out, before he noticed you!"

"I didn't want to kill anyone!" Why did he insist that someone had to die? Could he not see that Izuku's solution saved more lives than just those of his friends?

"As a King, you will have to be able to make hard decisions! If you lack the strength to do that, you aren't fit to be a God, much less their ruler!" The walls started to shake with the power of his shouting.

"Killing people is easy!" Izuku hollered back. "It's so easy that I did it by accident! And you know what else? I could have killed a lot of people and saved myself a lot more trouble! But I'm the one making hard decisions. Do you have any idea how hard it is to assault a fortress without killing anyone? Because barring Iida, we did that, and it was hard. You know what else was hard? Surviving long enough against a demigod with two fully powered mantles to convince him that violence isn't the answer, and I did that, too! I've also put my life on the line to attack a vampire armed with a Gods-damned chair leg! I don't just dare to defy you, Lord Yagi, I dare to tell you that every single decision I've made since getting my mantles has been harder than any decision you've ever made!" He felt powerful. He wasn't fighting with a being his superior in every regard – he was lecturing someone on equal footing.

"And how many have you spared that will go on to inflict further pain and suffering, child? What of those that they will kill and torment? What justice have you served, in all of your wisdom?" The sarcasm had a palpable force when combined with his booming voice.

"There's been nothing just about me being a Godling, least of all you, so don't start trying to belittle me!"

"I have lived and ruled for over three thousand years! Do you honestly think to speak to me about my own domains, that are as much a part of me as your hand is a part of you?" He bellowed an angry, arrogant laugh. "I would not let a babe teach me on any matter, and that is what you are to me! So do not presume, Midoriya, that you could tell me a single thing about justice that you've learned in your mighty eighteen years that I have not learned in my meager three millennia."

"Do not forget, Yagi, that inasmuch as Izuku is a child to you, so you are to me." Grandmother didn't raise her voice at all, but its edge was so sharp that it cut through the argument with perfect clarity.

Izuku latched onto the momentum she'd provided to carry his argument forward. "So since you think you know better than Grandmother, let me tell you a few things about your so-called justice. There was nothing just about the rules you made me follow. You made me lie to people who deserved the truth, and not being able to use my full strength in fights with vampires or other Godlings or whatever else didn't just endanger me, it endangered anyone I was fighting with or trying to protect. Some justice!" The God's face twisted into a snarl and he began to say something, but Izuku just got louder and bowled right through the nascent sentence. "I did everything within my power to help and protect people whenever I could, no matter the danger it put me in, and you had nothing to do with that! I would have helped them anyways, because that's who I am! The strength you gave me was never relevant, because the strength was never what made me save people!" He was crying again. He didn't know why, but he didn't let it slow him down. "And the worst part about all of this is that you knew. You knew that was who I was, and still am, when you gave me the mantles, but because of what, an arbitrary urge? Your need to be right? Some hidden malice? I don't know, but something possessed you to put these stupid rules on me instead of just giving me the mantles and the powers that came with them so I could actually use them to help people! What could you have possibly gained from such a harebrained plan?!"

"You speak out of place, mortal! My plans are not for you to know or understand, they are for you to follow and obey! Your insolence earns you nothing but my ire, Izuku Midoriya, and you will learn to respect me, or else–"

"Or else what? You'll kill me?"

With a feral roar, the All Mighty raised his fist and drove it through the table. The wooden surface buckled immediately, and his follow through left a crater of splintered wood in the floor. Grandmother's face darkened. Uraraka screamed.

"You blame me for your problems and incompetence, Midoriya, but they are your own fault. You have squandered the gifts I've given you, and you've let your foolish perceptions warp the mantle of Justice from one of the most powerful forces in the world to something bordering on useless. You accuse me of being responsible for your lies, but you told them. You say that I drove your friends away from you, but I am the only reason you ever met them! Do you think that Nezu's Godling would have let you travel with him if you'd been honest about your goal? Would you have ever gone west to be able to meet the others? Everything you have is only yours because I gave it to you, and I can take it all away just as quickly!"

"No you can't! Anything a God gives a Godling can't be taken back! You can't take the key or my right to Grandmother's healing any more than you can take back my mantles!" Something shifted inside of him, and despite being angrier than he'd ever been in his life, Izuku began to laugh. Uraraka looked at him as though he was insane. Perhaps he was. "You can't do anything to me! You have no power here! All you can do is throw a temper tantrum like some kind of deific toddler!"

Lord Yagi bristled, murder in his eyes. "Oh, you want to see power?! I'll show you–"

"ENOUGH." Grandmother's voice was louder than both of them put together. Her presence was suddenly impossible to ignore, smothering them in its grandeur. "You have disrespected me already by breaking my table and damaging my home! I'll not allow you to go farther." She gave the other God a disdainful look. "You are acting like a child. It doesn't befit a three thousand year old king to behave like that. Leave my house before I make you."

For a moment, Izuku wasn't sure what was going to happen. The two Gods stared at each other for a long, silent moment. As the tension continued to build, he had to wonder whether Grandmother was able to eject Lord Yagi. Did her age grant her enough strength to overcome the All Mighty?

Fortunately, it didn't come to pass. The King wordlessly turned and left, his expression sour. When the doors shut behind him, even the walls seemed to sigh in relief.

Uraraka didn't seem to believe it was over. She was still shrunk in her chair, appearing as small as she possibly could, furtively glancing between the door, Grandmother, and Izuku.

"I'm terribly sorry about that," the elderly woman said. "Perhaps I should have warned you more in advance. Yagi's been seething for the past five days. I expected him to storm in here, but I didn't expect you to be as incensed as he was."

Izuku hung his head. "I'm sorry, Grandmother."

"Why?" When he looked up, confused, she smiled and continued, "I'm very proud of you. The boy I met after he survived the Godling of War would never have been able to stand his ground against a God like that. You've grown so much, Izuku, and you've become so strong." She reached out and cupped his cheek. "Your mantle has nothing to do with it, just like you said. You got here with your conviction and the help of your friends. No matter what Yagi says, I know I'm looking at the next King of the Gods, and he's more suited for the job than anyone else ever was."

His face heated up and he tried to look away, but her surprisingly strong hand kept him from doing so. He never knew what to say when people complimented him, and that was a big one.

Uraraka's voice was weak at first, but as she talked, it regained its normal strength. "I'll still be here. I want to help you become King, not Iida. He's..." She thought better of whatever she was about to say. "Grandmother is right. You'll be great. I don't think anyone could be unhappy with you in charge."

A few names came to mind, but Izuku didn't challenge her on it. "Thanks, Uraraka. For that and... And for not leaving."

"Well, I didn't think that it'd be fair to leave without at least giving you a chance to explain. Not that I was particularly planning on leaving, I figure that whatever your reason was, it'd be a good one. Which..." She looked at him. "I think I got some of it during your argument, but... What, exactly, was the reason?"

He took a deep breath and considered where to begin. This would be a good dry run; Uraraka wasn't likely to leave, if what she said was true, and talking to her about it could help him refine the story so that it was more satisfying to others who needed to hear it. "The All Mighty forbade me from telling anyone. It was part of the rules that he put on me when he gave me my mantles, which were... empty when I got them. I was supposed to get my power incrementally, by doing things that Lord Yagi would do, or... maybe doing things my mantles align with, he wasn't clear. He said something about steps towards his throne? So it could be just getting closer to the Palace as well, I'm really not sure. But if I broke the rules, I..." He blinked. It was occurring to him now that he had never been told what the consequences would be, or even if there were any. "...I don't know. I guess I assumed something bad would happen. Maybe I'd stop getting power for my mantles, or... I don't know. It doesn't matter. What does matter is that I should have ignored the rules from the start and done what was right, not what I was told. I'm sorry for lying to you, Uraraka."

She looked at him with a determined dedication. With a nod and a smile, she said, "No apology needed. What's our next move?"

Izuku somehow expected her response to be more drawn out, but her confidence in him was refreshing after all of the doubt he'd been having. "Well... We head east. There are more valleys there than we can afford to search, but with your portents, maybe we'll get pointed in the right direction." He rubbed the back of his head. "It's not exactly a solid plan, but it's the best I've got."

"It makes sense to me. That's more or less how we've been operating so far – follow the information we already have and figure the rest out as we go." Uraraka gave him an encouraging smile.

If she could have faith in him, maybe he could, too. It was hard to accept after all the decisions he'd made came together to drive away the others, but there was no use dwelling on it. Being kind to himself had helped Izuku move past the worst of the hurt, so continuing with that attitude would be his best bet. "Wait... Grandmother, why..." His heart rate picked up and he had to take a deep breath. He fought the urge to close his eyes. He knew what he'd see. "I still see the man I killed, and... and worse. Why? Shouldn't my mantle have healed that by now?"

Grandmother smiled sadly. "It can't. Not while you still believe that you deserve to hurt for it."

"What? I don't..." Did he feel that way? Killing another person was a horrible thing, something he'd never wanted to do. The idea of permanently ending another being chafed at his soul. Even the people who'd wronged him didn't deserve that. They could change, become better. Who was Izuku to decide that they didn't get any more chances to do so?

"I can see it in your eyes, Izuku. You're beating yourself up about it right now. You may think you could just give yourself that compassion and the hurt will go away, but deep down..." She touched his chest, right over his heart. "You haven't accepted what you've done. If you can't forgive yourself, your mantle won't be able to help you."

Izuku pressed his mouth into a line. He knew if he didn't, his expression would betray him. It probably was anyways, but he supposed it didn't really matter. How did someone just become okay with killing another person? It seemed incredulous.

"Why don't you set out tomorrow," Grandmother offered. "It's getting late, and you should probably have a solid meal or two before you leave. I don't want you going out there with no energy and getting hurt again."

"That sounds like a good idea," Uraraka said. "You've been unconscious for almost a week."

"I feel fine," he protested. "And that means we're already behind!"

"You feel fine because of the mantle of Strength," Grandmother chastised. "You need to eat. Dinner tonight and breakfast tomorrow, then you can go."

He sighed. Who was he to argue? "Yes, Grandmother."

Mina didn't have the heart to slide on her Nectar. Sure, it would let her make a lot more progress than she'd manage by trudging along the road, but the effort was too much. After they'd left... Granny Chiyo's, Mina had slept fitfully, but at least she'd slept. For the two nights since she'd broken with the others, sleep had eluded her entirely. The only reason she'd gotten any at all was because she'd begun dosing herself with the sleeping Nectar. Even that really only worked for around an hour at a time, unfortunately. The Nectar didn't work when applied to her skin for what felt like obvious reasons. The only way Mina had gotten it to take effect was by drinking it, and she could only get so much down before it knocked her out.

She wasn't sure what her plan was. Despite everything that had happened, the position of Queen still held no interest to her. It seemed natural to still seek out the Palace, but what if she somehow got there first? It wasn't likely, but how would she know if someone else had been there already? Mina didn't even want to get the Throne by accident.

Really, that made the best option to wait at the gates to the Palace until someone else showed up and went through. Maybe if they were someone Mina really didn't like – Tenya came to mind – she'd try to stop them from going in. Still, she didn't think that she'd take it to spite someone else, even the snooty noble.

That still left the problem of how she'd find the Palace, though. There wasn't much concrete information for her to go on, and she had no idea how to go about finding more. She had mostly relied on... the others to come up with that. Her old plan, 'throw revels every night and figure it out later,' also seemed insufficient when she looked at the smoother, more purposeful operation that she'd experienced since...

Mina gritted her teeth. What she really needed was a new source of information. Or, she supposed, someone who could explain that portent Ochako had gotten. How had that gone? God's blood knows the way? It was something like that. She was mildly annoyed at herself for not remembering the exact wording. It was just like her to not pay attention to something important and expect that someone else would be there to remember it for her. It was so much easier before she was a Godling; then, she didn't have to pay attention to anything that didn't matter to her. Just one more thing on the list of what Lady Midnight had taken from her.

That was a little unfair, though. It's not like Lady Midnight had made Mina's life more complex just to vex her. She had also willingly taken the mantle, even if the Goddess had undersold how painful the process was going to be.

Mina tried to think of something else rather than on what she'd lost, but it wasn't easy. Everything was a jumble in her head, and regardless of the thread she pulled, it always seemed to tug on her Nymph magic, or her family, or the simplicity she used to have, or Ochako, or...

She scowled. He was especially hard to keep out of her mind, especially with how raw her feelings were over it. Him. Whatever. Mina set her jaw and moved forward with purpose, willing herself not to cry.

She pretended it worked.

It wasn't raining, but it may as well have been, with all the luck Mina was having starting a fire. Like everything else, she'd just relied on the others to provide warmth for her. She'd never needed a fire before becoming a Godling – in fact, she'd never have dreamed of intentionally burning something before then.

There wasn't much point in continuing. She'd just have to deal with the night's unseasonable cold and hope her blanket was enough. With a growl of frustration, she hucked the stones she'd been using into the brush, then nearly screamed.

A pair of dark eyes shone in the pale moonlight. Whoever they belonged to was very close; uncomfortably so, in fact. How had she been snuck up on so easily? She was more perceptive than that! "Wh-who are you?" Mina asked, trying to sound less scared than she was. She prepared for combat, filling one hand with acidic Nectar and the other with the sleeping Nectar. "Why are you here?"

There was a brief and uncomfortable silence before the figure rose to their feet. The silhouette suggested a man, and in the shadows, she could make out his light skin and hair. Mina was even more surprised she hadn't seen him with bright coloration like that. He was broad and seemed to have several weapons about him, though it was hard to tell what they were in the darkness. "Are you a Godling?" he asked.

"So what if I am?" She tensed her muscles and flexed her feet, ready to catapult backwards the second he moved forward. "If you're here to kill me, I've got bad news. I've fought things a lot scarier than you and come out just fine." She'd had help, but he didn't need to know that and she didn't want to think about it.

"I'm looking for a nymph Godling." He held up his hands in a gentle, placating gesture as he started moving slowly forward.

The grass at his feet sizzled as the Nectar she threw melted it. "You stay right there unless you want what's left of your body to become fertilizer."

His hands moved up and beside his head in surrender. "I'm not here to fight. Look, all my weapons are sheathed."

"...All right, fine. Keep the hands up, step into the light. One wrong move and you won't have enough left of your lungs to scream." As he stepped out from the shadows of the trees and bushes, she tried not to sound surprised as she added, "And keep the tail where I can see it!"

The man smirked. He couldn't have been more than a year or two apart from her in either direction. He listened, stilling his tail and keeping it straight down. The moonlight revealed his clothes to be what looked like particularly sturdy leather. He had a cloak which likely started off brown, but was dappled green with grass stains. A long knife rested on his belt opposite a quiver of arrows. A spear with a long, broad blade crossed his back along with a shortbow.

"What are you, some kind of hunter?"

"Godling of the Hunt," he said, sounding impressed. "Mashirao Ojiro. And you?"

She stared at him. "Mina. Revelry. Why are you looking for me?"

"Can I put my hands down?"

"No."

Mashirao sighed. "I'm part of a group of Godlings. Our leader has plans for the world after winning the Game. She gathered the rest of us behind this idea, that the world can belong to nature again. We're not going to destroy civilization or anything, but, well..." He gave her a look. "You've seen what humans have been up to. Clear cutting forests to make room for farms and cities, pouring slag and shit and garbage into rivers to get it out of their way, hunting animals just for their trophies..." He sounded particularly disdainful at the last point. "We can put a stop to that. Humans exist to be part of nature, not to exploit it."

"You say that like you aren't human."

"Not anymore." His tail swished.

"Watch it."

"Look. Shiozaki has good odds of winning with the group we've assembled. She thought you'd be sympathetic to the cause and asked me to find you and bring you to her so she could talk to you about it."

"What could she possibly tell me that you haven't already?"

"You haven't heard her talk," Mashirao said. His voice was low with respect and awe. "She paints a picture of the world that's hard to say no to." He put his hands down, ignoring her protests and the threat of her readied hand. "Are you coming? If not, I'll leave you in pace. I'm not interested in trying to force you."

The whole thing was incredibly suspicious. She'd never heard of this Shiozaki person – how was she supposed to know every human – but he said the name so naturally. It didn't sound practiced or made up on the spot. Was she who he said she was? Mina wasn't sure how to tell if this was all an elaborate ruse or a genuine offer.

She looked at the pitiful pile of sticks and grass, unmarred by even a single spark.

"I'm not above becoming the Godling of Revelry and the Hunt if you're lying to me," she warned.

"I just want to bring you to Shiozaki so you two can see whether what you want out of the future is compatible with what we want," he said. "Honest. If you don't like it, you walk away unharmed."

Mina let the Nectar she was holding slide off her hands and hit the ground with a wet slap. "Okay, fine. How far?"

"How fast are you?"

It was a very good thing that there were plants that, when consumed, gave the energy needed to stay awake. Without Nectar imbued with that quality (and a lot of it), Mina would have passed out on her feet some time ago.

The moon was low in the sky. They'd been moving at a breakneck pace for hours; the sun would be peeking over the horizon soon. Or, where the horizon would be if she wasn't in the middle of a massive forest. A yawn forced its way from her mouth as she considered how long it'd been since she'd slept, even for just the hour she'd been managing. If she stayed with these people, they'd have to either carry her or wait for her to rest before they could move.

Mashirao sniffed loudly. "Don't mind the wolves," he called back to her. "They're with us."

In the time it took Mina's mind to process what he'd said, a half dozen wolves loped out of a copse to her right and surrounded them. Even with the warning, she damn near screamed and attacked them. The animals bore no collars, markings, or armor. For all she could tell, these were wild, untrained wolves, and yet the weren't baring their teeth or trying to bite at her legs like they should have been. The one in the front howled loudly, and a chorus of answers both near and far sounded through the dark would. It made Mina's skin crawl.

"We're almost there." Mina resented the pace Mashirao was keeping. He was still moving like he'd just started running and using his stupid tail for propulsion while she'd pushed so much Nectar through her feet that they were sore from it. She only grumbled about it, however. She didn't want to complain loud enough for him to hear if she'd be joining them.

Not yet, anyways.

Mina had expected that their journey would end in some sort of clearing. That was the kind of place that... Well, that her old group had always rested. Because that wasn't what Mashirao's group did, she couldn't really pin down when they actually got there. One second she was sliding through the forest, and then suddenly the wolves were stopping, there were several trees with strange, almost building-like growths in them, and Mashirao was talking to a woman in a humble brown and white dress.

Mina skidded to a halt, nearly tripping over one of their animal escorts in the process. She frantically waved her arms to try and keep her balance, only barely not falling. The wolf looked back at her judgmentally.

"You must be Mina!" the woman strode past Mashirao, and the nymph noticed that her hair was a thick bundle of vines, several of which were wrapped around the top of her head in a facsimile of a crown. With her hands clasped before her, she said, "The Lord of the Woods blesses me with your presence! Welcome to our home!"

Mina looked around uncertainly. They lived here? "Yeah, that's me. Thanks?"

Shiozaki – or at least, that's who she assumed this woman was – was undeterred by the confusion in her voice. "I have heard tell of several nymph Godlings, but before you, only one had ever actually accepted my invitation to meet." She abruptly looked up and held her hands in the air. "Praise to you, Great Kamui, for this glorious day!" Then, as though she hadn't done that, Shiozaki looked back at her and grasped her hands. "Come, come! You look unsteady, there is a fallen tree that is excellent for sitting. My name is Ibara Shiozaki, as I am sure my servant Ojiro has told you. I–" Ibara paused. "Have I said something to offend you?"

She hadn't realized that the distaste had shown on her face. "Well... Servant?" Mina looked at Mashirao. He didn't seem bothered by it, oddly.

Ibara cocked her head to the side, confused. "Yes, he has sworn himself to me and my cause, as have several others. In this, he is my servant, just as I am a servant of the Lord of the Woods. Is something the matter with this?"

When she put it that way, it didn't sound as bad. For a moment, Mina had thought that she might have a superiority complex to rival Tenya's. "No, that makes more sense." She yawned. "Sorry, I didn't mean to..." Another one hit.

"Goodness, but you do seem tired. Are you all right?"

"I haven't been sleeping well." She shot a sour glance at Mashirao. "And he had me up all night trying to get here."

"Oh, that just will not do at all!" She turned to the hunter, who stood patiently nearby. "Ojiro, will you wake Asui? We have need of her talents."

He nodded and headed towards one of the weird tree-buildings.

"Wonderful. Thank you, Ojiro." Ibara turned her attention back to Mina. "It should not be terribly long before we have you back on your feet. In the meantime, are you well enough for me to speak to you about the vision of the world granted to me by our great Lord?"

'Our' seemed a bit strong, since Mina had never felt any particular affection towards the God, but the assumption was one she'd heard often. People tended to assume that all nymphs worshiped Lord Kamui, since he was commonly held to be their creator. "Uh, sure. Go ahead."

Ibara clapped her hands together in excitement. "You must first understand the state that the world is in. Mankind ever expands its domain. No longer do they gather in the embrace of nature; instead, forests are murdered, mountains are laid low, and rivers are enslaved to feed the hungry cities that choke them. Great forges are made in the Smith's name, belching smoke into the sky day and night, while dyeries pour their waste into rivers, poisoning them and the creatures that live within. More evils are perpetuated by every facet of human existence than I could name here." She held her hands over her heart. "I do not blame them, for they do not know better than to kill the nature that once fed them from its own bosom. I know that mankind will never return to the life they once knew, with its cruelty and hardships, but they have forgotten their place."

Mina was beginning to think that Ibara was a little crazy, even if she did make some good points.

"And so, my mother and father left the wicked embrace of civilization, living a simple life with what nature could spare, giving back for all they took." Ibara wiped a tear from her eye. "They were good and holy people, and it was a great sorrow for me to leave them for the Temple of Lord Kamui. However, I heard His call, and I knew that it was where I could best serve. I learned from man and nymph alike how to glorify His name with my works, and the protection and service we provided nature while there is a comforting memory to me. It was this humble dedication which saw me graced with Lord Kamui's own presence, and when he bestowed upon me my mantle, I saw a beautiful world in my mind's eye. The cities of man were preserves of civilization in a land overflowing with natural wonder. Flora and fauna thrived with man's excesses curbed, and only what was needed was taken. Rivers flowed clear, mountains stood tall, and trees blanketed the land while nymphs of every stripe cared for them and exulted in the health and glory of their homes."

Crazy or not, the passion that took her as she spoke was infectious. Mina understood what Mashirao meant when he said that she hadn't heard the Godling talk. She'd always had an attraction to civilization, a curiosity that needed to be sated, but she loved the natural world all the same. She'd never heard of a nymph who didn't; it was a part of them, after all. When Ibara spoke about the world she'd seen, Mina's heart swelled in her chest, even if just a bit.

Before she could go on, a short woman in heavy robes approached them. She had long hair the color of seaweed and unnaturally large, wide eyes. Her mouth had an odd shape to it which Mina found distracting, and her hands were much bigger than was normal. "Good morning, Shiozaki." She nodded to Mina. "Hello. I'm Tsu. Did you need something?"

"Asui, this is Mina, the Godling of Revelry I have been speaking of. She needs a full night of sleep. Can you make that for her?"

Tsu held her forefinger to her mouth. "Hmmm. I think so." She turned to Mashirao. "I need a squirrel."

He quirked an eyebrow at her, but didn't comment on it. "Anything else?"

She thought for a moment. "I have lavender seeds. Maybe some more kingsroot? It normally grows near mountains, but if you can find a rocky hill, there might be some."

He nodded and swished his tail as though they were part of the same motion before he slapped it hard into the ground, propelling himself up, where he caught a branch and used it to speed off into the canopy.

"A squirrel?" Mina asked, concern obvious in her voice.

"They're very twitchy," Tsu said as though that answered everything.

"Before being granted the mantle of the Great Whale, Asui was a practitioner of alchemy and physical magic," Ibara explained.

"I was a swamp witch."

Ibara's face twisted slightly in distaste at the phrase.

"I'm going to go start the brew," she said, turning to head back to her tree. She paused halfway there before looking back. "You're a flower nymph, right?"

"...Yes?"

"Hmmm. Cane toad should work, if I add in some swampglow to counteract the hallucinogen..." She continued muttering to herself as she entered the tree-building.

"What is she going to give me?" Several ingredients in whatever 'brew' she was making sounded like things Mina did not want to drink.

"She is making a potion for you to remedy your tiredness. Do not worry, it will be foul tasting, but the toad and squirrel will be strained out before you take it. Asui never leaves anything lumpy in her potions."

Mina gave Ibara a concerned look.

"I admit that they are not palatable, but knowing that the animal ingredients were not ingested does make it easier." She shook her head. "Regardless. I have shared with you the world I intend to create by becoming Queen of the Gods. Tell me, do you share my vision? Will you join with us?"

Did she? It sounded well and good – more than that, if she was being honest, it sounded gorgeous – but was that what she really wanted?

She quashed the feeling that rose in her down before it could fully manifest in her mind. "Yeah," she nodded. That part of her didn't get to have input anymore. "It sounds wonderful."

I'm very excited for this part of the story, because this is when we really get to start seeing other Godlings and getting an understanding of what's up with them. I hope you all enjoyed the aftermath of what might be the biggest cliffhanger I've ever managed to write!