He Who Protects
Chapter 10
Humid air stuck to her skin like a sweat-soaked glove, an unseasonably hot day in what was formerly known as Japan. Humidity was strange since most of Terra's oceans had all but dried up over two centuries ago.
Even the climate control within the Imperial Palace couldn't allay the oppressive heat. Administrators and politicians alike, usually darting to and fro like a flock of birds, walked at a sedate pace. Beads of sweat coursed down their porcelain skin.
Tanaka thumbed the two books, given to her by the Emperor, that rested in her pocket. 'It's been more than a fortnight since we last spoke.'
She had missed their conversations and the enlightenment that followed. But it had been a fruitful respite. Tanaka had learned much from the two tomes.
This former Emperor, so shrouded in mystery, had come to life before her very eyes. She felt as if she knew him, a completely unknowable figure. He had been larger than life.
But he lived again through Izuku Midoriya. There were differences, to be sure, but one had to know the truth and know the current Emperor to see them.
He was expressive, less reserved and showed the doubt he held in himself. However, the Emperor's displays were not something easily read. The slight downturn of a lip, the hints of disdain that smouldered in his fire-white eyes, a slight wrinkle in his sharp nose.
Tanaka recalled the servitor who'd cleaned her broken glass. 'Does he dislike servitors in general or is it just this specific one?'
Sticky, wet bangs slapped her cheek when she shook her head of the thoughts. Glinting gold caught her eye. Towering figures bedecked in glistering ceramite loomed over her, their hidden eyes taking in every movement within the large room. No sound passed by their ears.
The Custodian Guard, the Emperor's guardians. The highest form of human evolution aside from the Emperor himself.
They stood above even the vaunted Adeptus Astartes. Quirkless humans, though still exceedingly rare, could be a Space Marine. The quirkless were often highly valued members of the Astartes due to their seeming immortality.
There was something in the genetics of the quirked which shortened the life of an Astartes, though it was still an extraordinarily long life span. Even entombing such an individual in a dreadnought did little to slow Death's creeping advance. It had baffled the greatest minds of the Imperium for centuries.
But the quirkless could never be a Custodian Guard, the elite caste of Astartes.
"おまえ は だれ だ 。"
Tanaka halted in her steps, her spine stiffening. Hot breath puffed against her cheek. Small pulses from crackling pops slapped against her robes. Air, coming in short puffs, strained to escape her lungs.
"おまえ は だれ だ 。"
The voice was gravelly, ancient and extremely aggressive.
"I'm sorry," she whispered in Low Gothic. "I don't understand."
Her eyes darted over to the nearest Custode, his hand tightening around his guardian spear. He didn't move, merely watched from behind his crested helm.
"I said, 'Who the fuck are you?'"
"I-I'm here to s-see the E-E-Emperor." Shivers wracked her body.
It felt as if death loomed over her.
A strong, weathered hand gripped her upper arm.
"I haven't seen you around here before." His grip tightened to the point of pain. "Let's see just who you are, yeah?"
◹†◸◹†◸◹†◸◹†◸
Ghosts of pain shot through his body as Izuku regained consciousness. Hymns and mantras faded from his mind, awareness taking their place.
The hum of fluorescent lighting buzzed in his ears. Chemicals stung his nose. Cheap linen scratched over the bare skin of his torso.
Izuku began diagnostic programs without a second thought. Information flashed through his mind's eye in a language he'd never seen in this lifetime.
'Everything checks out.' He clenched a fist, tearing cloth roared in his ears. 'I'm stronger than I was before, but not by much.'
The desire to don his armour was overbearing, as if he would only be complete once he had.
Izuku ripped the sheets off. Cold tile kissed his feet.
"How long was I unconscious?"
Black eyes framed by white fur peeked out from behind the partition.
"About four days post surgery, so a week in total." Nezu slid past the hanging cloth separating them. "Your body heals remarkably fast. Recovery Girl didn't use her quirk on you, just as requested."
"My physiology makes me remarkable at a great many things." Izuku looked down at the principal. He had grown after the surgery. "The implants boost these abilities to higher levels and make me far more resilient than before. They will allow my power to grow exponentially without harming my body or mind."
Nezu hopped onto the bed, his beady eyes taking in every inch of exposed muscle and skin.
"Interesting." The hybrid animal rubbed his chin with a paw. "Though you look a bit less than human now."
A grunt tumbled from Izuku's lips. His eyes fell on a set of UA gym clothes and he shed his hospital regalia, uncaring of the principal's observance.
"Just before the surgery," Nezu muttered, "you mentioned something. 'The Emperor protects,' I believe it was. And you've mentioned that you do not have a quirk. I must know, Mr. Midoriya: just what are you?"
"Are we alone?" Izuku gave the room a cursory glance. "All listening and recording devices inactivated? I want you to trust me, but this must remain an absolute secret."
Nezu thumbed a controller. The room's constant buzz lowered.
"I am familiar with the need for secrecy." The principal placed the controller in his pants' pocket.
Another grunt. "You knew about All For One. All Might told me a few weeks before he was killed. Before I was…this."
Black eyes widened. "I hadn't realised he'd told anyone outside of his closest circles."
"It doesn't matter." Izuku waved his hand as he stepped into his pants. "The Emperor is a figure you will not find in any textbooks. He was a being of immense power, the peak of human evolution. He lived millenia ago, during a time of unending war."
"How did he die if he was so strong?"
Izuku gave a bitter smile. "I didn't, or, at least, not in the way you are thinking."
Nezu raised a brow.
"Yes," Izuku replied. "I am the Emperor and I am not the Emperor. I am Izuku Midoriya and I am not Izuku Midoriya."
"Explain."
"The Emperor was nearly slain millenia ago." Izuku sighed as he slipped on a white t-shirt. "By his most trusted son, no less. This son, Horus Luprecal, had given his soul to the four Chaos Gods. The Emperor was the ruler of the known galaxy at that time, a guide for the betterment of mankind. He…I was a being of immense psychic and physical power, unmatched by any. But when I was nearly slain I was interred on the golden throne, a mere husk. But still a being of unmatched psychic power."
Squinting, Nezu stepped toward Izuku. His fur stood on end as he approached. "Your eyes. They are turning white."
"That means I am finally gaining power from the Emperor." Izuku stared down at his fists. "No, he is giving me his very essence. I am becoming the Emperor, but also something entirely different. He kept his promise."
"What happened after this…Emperor was interred?"
"Chaos," Izuku breathed. He stared at the partition, though he did not truly see it. "War. Unending civil war, spanning the galaxy. Humanity currently has no concept of the immaterium. Why would they need to? It was weakened following the Cataclysm which saw nearly every living thing wiped from existence. Everything the xenos and humans created were obliterated."
Nezu growled low in his throat. "You are speaking in circles, Mr. Midoriya. Please get to the point."
"Chaos is the point, Principal." Izuku summoned a multi-hued miasma of power into his palm. "This is energy from the immaterium, pure chaos given form by a psyker. You are somehow sensitive to it. To understand the Emperor, you must understand Chaos. They are both one and the same, yet they are entirely separate as well."
White fur stood on end. Static flickered between the strands. "How does this 'Chaos' work?"
"It cannot take physical form in this realm on its own." Izuku dismissed the energy with a flick of his wrist. "It is a parallel dimension of indescribable horrors. It is the home of the Ruinous Powers, the Gods of Chaos. When the Emperor was interred, the only thing he was capable of was keeping these powers at bay to save humanity from utter annihilation. He was the greatest psychic power to have ever existed, but he was weakened from his fight with Horus."
"So he lived on," Nezu muttered, "in a comatose-like state? Fighting an eternal battle from a throne?"
Izuku chuckled, running his hands down his face. "It sounds fantastical, doesn't it? I would not believe it if I didn't have his memories from those times. In its most basic form, Chaos responds to the beliefs and actions of every living thing and makes them a reality. Gods are born in this way and Chaos grows stronger. The Emperor, when he walked amongst humanity, rejected every religious belief and taught his people to do the same. Can you guess why that was his chosen path?"
"He sought to protect humanity by weakening these…Gods." Nezu pulled a comb from his pocket and began to tend to his fur. "How did he grow to become so powerful if he was stuck on a throne fighting a losing battle?"
"He became a God of Chaos." Izuku loosed a bitter chuckle. "The one thing he never wanted to be. Humanity turned to worship him as a god and the immaterium granted their wish. With every passing day, billions were converted to this new faith. In return, he became a god and grew in power. But he was limited in what he could do. He could not manifest in the physical realm. None during those times were worthy of his essence. And then? The Cataclysm. Humanity rebuilt over the coming millenia. And still, none were worthy of him."
"Until you."
Izuku nodded. "Yes, until me. Chaos is growing stronger due to the events of the last two centuries, but he does not because none know of him."
"If he withers away…" Nezu glared at the comb running through his fur.
"Humanity is doomed," Izuku replied. "He needed a way to become manifest. So he chose me. Even now he is slowly infusing me with his power, with his soul. I can feel him, hear him, talk to him. I am becoming the Emperor, yet not the Emperor. Izuku, yet not him. I am something apart from the two, an entirely new being."
Silence settled between the two. A deep ache settled in Izuku's chest. Horus's leering face flashed before his mind's eye. Regret settled in next to the pain and his stomach flopped.
"What is your purpose, then?" Nezu whispered.
"To save humanity." Izuku shook himself from the memories. "Just like I did so long ago. I must save them from something they can't fight on their own. Even now, the Emperor continues his struggle against the gods. Soon I will take his mantle."
"Do you wish to rule over humans?" Black, beady eyes glared in his direction. "Is that your primary desire?"
Izuku shook his head. "That is not my wish. I would prefer to avoid it, but I believe history may repeat itself despite my wishes."
A white-furred paw entered his vision after several moments. Izuku reached out to shake the proffered hand. 'Such a strange custom, shaking hands. I much prefer bowing.'
"Then I believe you would be the most suited to rule, should it come to that." Nezu smiled up at him. "This is a great deal to take in."
Nodding, Izuku replied with a smile, "Believe me, I understand. What do you wish to do next?"
"We train you." A glimmer flashed through the principal's eyes. "And you study. It will be extensive…and gruelling. After all, your provisional licence exam is in three weeks."