Day 120, 1:00 PM

League of Villain Hideout

"What do you want to talk about?" Deku gulps. "What?"

"I just... don't get it." Shigaraki narrows his eyes and adjusts the hand on his face. "How is it that Sensei gave two shits about you? Why is it that he spared you? Why didn't he mention you? Sensei raised me all his life and to find out that I have a little brother..."

"You can keep calling me your little brother all you want, it's not going to do anything; we are not brothers."

"You can deny it all you want, Izuku-"

"Don't call me by my first name!"

"-but it won't change the fact that we are brothers." Shigaraki removes his hand from his face. "Like Michael Myers and Laurie Strode in Halloween. At least in the original and H20 timeline. And the remake." Shigaraki sets his hand mask on the table. "I've played plenty of video games but it's not often where I see the protagonist having a brother as the antagonist. It's kinda like Star Wars."

"Shut up, stop talking to me!"

"I don't think you're in any position to be making any demands. Besides, it's rude to snap at your big brother like that."

"You are not my big brother!"

"Deny it all you want but it's a fact. Show some respect to your big brother."

Deku tries breaking free of the bonds but he only ends up causing himself pain when the chains dig into his skin. "Just get to the point of whatever you're trying to say. Please, let's just get this over with."

"I'm still trying to wrap my head around this. My little brother. I only found out recently but I gotta say, I was kinda excited to have a little brother but to find out it's you... I don't know what to say. I used to hate you and wanted to destroy you... but now, I'm not so sure. Then again, just because you're my little brother doesn't mean that I've erased any of my hatred toward you. I'm unsure but I still hate you. After all, you tried to burn me at the USJ."

"And you tried to decay my teacher."

"Correction: I did decay your teacher's arm." Shigarki laces his hands together. "What is your goal now, Izuku? You and all those other UA brats went to school to become heroes. It's the zombie apocalypse and in case you haven't seen The Walking Dead, heroes are in extremely short supply. It's not like you can do an internship with a pro and go out and save people. Not like that All Might." Shigaraki smiles. "Man, our dad sure did a number on All Might."

Deku smiles. "And All Might sure did a number on our dad too."

"Sadly. You lost All Might, I lost our father so we'll both have to deal with them being gone. But you haven't answered my question; what is your goal? Do you still desire to be a hero in a world where the only rule is to survive by any means necessary?"

Deku closes his eyes and shakes his head. "No, it's not the end of the world."

"Izuku, it's been four months; I think it's safe to say that the world is over."

Deku laughs. "You know something, Shigaraki?"

"Tomura."

"I'm not calling you that. But as I was saying... Shigaraki... what is your goal? The last time I checked, you and those back-alley thugs wanted to kill All Might. And now that All Might is dead and All for One too, what is your goal?"

"I want to destroy everything I hate. I just... hate everything. I want to destroy everything that pisses me off. That was my goal from the very beginning." Shigaraki scoots closer to Deku. "You know, Stain said something very similar to what you said."

Deku's eyes widen. "Stain?"

"We met each other a few days after the sports festival. I recruited him to join the League of Villains but he refused. He went on, blabbing about ideals and convictions. Ideals and convictions are for five-year-olds."

"You're the perfect age already."

"So I've been told. And then... that piece of shit Stain goes out, and filets a couple of heroes in the dead like a sushi chef on the same night I unleash the last of my members out onto the city to cause chaos and he usurped all of the glory and media. Suddenly, the league began to grow in size after the assumption that Stain was part of the league. Everyone was believing in Stain's ideals about false heroes this, false heroes that, and it was really starting to piss me off. I was ready to send all of them off and then the apocalypse happened. The end of the world as we know it."

"And how is this my problem?"

"Have you ever met Stain?"

"No."

"He's a horrible human being. But I have to ask: as a civilian, why do you think Stain was loved and admired so much? Why did people believe in him? All he really did was destroy things that he hated and ever since All Might's death, he's been much more fanatic at what he's been doing."

Deku grunts and seals his mouth shut.

"What's wrong, Izuku, not talking all of a sudden? What, what's wrong? Was it something I said? Did I offend you somehow?" He turns his head, putting a hand behind his ear, pretending to listen. "What, nothing? How can I please you if you don't talk to me?" He sighs and puts his hand down. "I can only hope I wasn't this horrible a little brother." Shigaraki stands up and puts a hand on Deku's shoulder. He presses his palm down on his shoulderbone, leaving only his index finger up. "Once all five fingers touch, only a broom and dustpan can clean you up."

Deku gasps and his breath hitches on him. Licking his lips, he looks up at Shigaraki, sweating furiously.

"There are still some people in my group who are Stain fanatics and I want to know why."

"Shigaraki, this was before the apocalypse, does it matter?"

"It does because these are the people I'm leading so tell me what I want to know."

Deku glares at him before lowering his head. "I don't agree with anything Stain has done. He... killed people, and hospitalized people, all because he thought that heroes didn't fit his perfect image. How every hero is only in it for fame, money, or other reasons. How only All Might was a worthy hero because of his altruism."

"'Altruism', isn't that too big of a word for someone your age to know?"

"He didn't run away. He stayed strong and true to his convictions. I don't understand you but I understood him." Deku's eyes land on Shigarai's hand, with his index finger only half an inch away from touching his shoulder.

"Really?" Shigaraki removes his hand from Deku's shoulder, his eyes widening. "Wow, so that's why people worship garbage like him and All Might. Convictions." He smiles. "So... that's what people like. People like people who stand tall in their beliefs, people who continue to stand, no matter how dark or grizzly things may get."

Deku looks up at Shigaraki, panting hard before leaning back in his chair.

"If the world was still alive, my ideal and convictions would've been to prove how fragile society is without All Might but the zombies already did that job to me. But... thanks to you, I think I figured out my convictions."

"What are your convictions?"

Shigaraki's smile grows. "All Might is the symbol of peace, the personification of hope, the embodiment of the idea that no matter how difficult things may be, there will be hope."

All I've ever wanted to do is destroy everything I hate and there's not much to destroy in the post-apocalypse. Well, there is one thing I can destroy: Hope. Hope for a better tomorrow. Hope that everything will be better.

"Thank you, Izuku, talking to you has been very therapeutic. I now know what I want. While I can't destroy this world, there is something else for me to destroy. I can't thank you enough." Shigaraki clenches his fist. He zooms in on Deku's face, their foreheads nearly touching.

"In fact, you're going to be my first victim. Something of a starter antagonist, if you please."

Deku flinches and turns his head away from his adopted older brother. "Please get away from me."

"I heard all about you, Izuku. I heard that you were quirkless for the longest time until All Might showed up. I know all about his power. I know that All Might never gave you his power."

"What?"

"I know that you wanted to ask him if you could be a hero, even without a quirk. And then, when Dad comes home, he has one last supper with you and then he gives you a quirk. You get into UA, you have All Might as a teacher, but you still fail to ask him if you have a quirk. And then... All Might dies. And then the apocalypse happens." Shgaraki sarcastically shakes his head disapprovingly. "No quirk, and then when you're given one, it's a stolen quirk. You want your parents and dear dad is a villain. You want to be a hero and now, you're living in a world where there are no heroes." Shigaraki kneels before his brother. "I can see it in your eyes: you have hope that you're going to survive. That somehow, like in all the movies, your friends are going to be barging through this door and rescuing you. But that's not going to happen. Oh... and... I'm curious about something else: how is your mother doing?"

Deku freezes, his heart dropping to his stomach. "What did you say?"

"Your mother. How is she doing? Did you ever find her?"

Deku feels his heart pound in his chest like a drumset. "What did you do to my mother?"

"I brought her here so you can get closure."

Deku breathes heavily. "What?"

Shigaraki continues to smile before picking himself up. He heads to the door at the end of the room and opens it, revealing a growling creature inside.

Even after all these months, Inko Midoriya's hair remains the same color, even as a walking corpse.

"Mom," Deku gasps, "no, no, no!"

"Yes," Shigaraki laughs, "yes, yes, yes!" He reaches inside and pulls Inko Midoriya out, holding her back by the chain around her throat. "If it makes you feel better, your mother's been crying out for you. Maybe it's my ears but her growls sound like they're saying 'Izuku'."

"Mom," Deku sobs, "MOM!"

"This isn't your mother anymore, Izuku," Shigaraki smiles once more. "This is the corpse of your mother. I didn't kill her... but..."

"Don't touch her!" Deku yells. "Don't fucking touch her!"

Zombie Inko lunges at Deku, trying to take a bite of his flesh, only for the chain around her throat extending to the wall keeping her at bay. Shigaraki keeps his distance from the dead mother before heading back to his little brother.

"Yes," Shigaraki smiles, "that look in your eyes, that look of empty hope... yes... those are my goals and convictions. These, are what I'm aiming for." Shigaraki leans forward. "I want to take away people's hope, I want to shatter their illusions that even in the zombie apocalypse, there is hope. I want to see that light die in their eyes. I want to destroy hope itself." He grabs Deku's hair and grips hard. "And starting with killing the light in your head will do just fine." He releases a chain around Deku's hand and gives him a knife. "Go on, put your mother out of her misery."

Deku tries slashing at Shigaraki, only for the boy to grab his hand and decay the sleeve on his right arm. The sleeves decay and Shigaraki removes his hand just as his skin is about to be decayed. Shigaraki punches Deku across the face before tossing him in front of his chained zombie mother.

"Any other person, I wouldn't have allowed you to kill your mother but... she is our father's lover so for his sake, she deserves to be put out of her misery." Shigaraki holds his hands up. "I swear, I didn't kill your mother; I found her like this."

"Stop talking!" Deku shouts. "I'll kill you." Deku tries slashing him again, only for Shigaraki to kick him in the jaw and stomp on his temple.

"Listen here, you little run, you have two options. You can either put your mother out of her misery or I'll be the one to do it. When I kill your mother, there won't be a casket funeral. But if you do, you can give her a proper burial. After all, how many people get the luxury of a funeral in the zombie apocalypse?" Shigaraki chuckles.

"I'll fucking kill you. I'll destroy you!" Deku declares.

"Now you're starting to sound like me, little brother." Shigaraki grabs Deku and tosses him back into the chair.

Deku gets out of the chair, holding the kitchen knife hard in his hands. He tries to distract himself by looking at his evil older brother his mission fails when he sees his chained zombie mother reaching out, still trying to snap and take a bite of him.

Unable to hold back anymore, Deku's eyes land on his mother, the tear dam breaking.

"Come on, Mom, it's computer time."

Deku's grip around the kitchen knife loosens but he maintains the knife in his possession. Deku's vision blurs from the tears, the sounds around him drowning out when he begins sobbing quietly.

"I'm so sorry, baby, I wish things were different."

"No matter what, I just want you to know I'm proud of you."

"I'm sorry, Izuku, and I promise I'll support you with everything I got from now on."

Deku tackles his mother to the ground and stabs her in the brain.

"Izuku, I'm really proud of you son."

Deku stabs his mother in the brain once more, spraying blood onto the knife. Sobbing loudly, Deku drives the knife into her skull four more times before he falls off his mother and lands on his back. Crying once more, he covers his face, crying into the palm of his hands.

"Allow me," Shigaraki suddenly says.

Deku looks up. Though his vision is blurred from the tears, he manages to spot Shigaraki touching his mother's hand with all five fingers and decaying her into a pile of dust.

"You left her looking ugly in her final moments with that knife so there's no need for a funeral."

Deku picks up the knife and charges for him.

Shigaraki catches Deku and bodyslams him. He rips the knife from his hand, and decays it, before strangling the green-haired boy with both hands, leaving only his pinkies off.

"Now you know how I feel," Shigaraki hisses. "I was sad when Sensei died and now you get to wallow in my pain. I would kill you but killing you would be a mercy. Besides, there is still hope for me to destroy." He smiles. "And I think I already began destroying the hope that your friends bring."

In the Backroom

Setting up something of an infirmary, Mr. Compress and Twice (no surprise) are the only ones in the League of Villains to not receive any major bodily injuries. Big Sis Magne and Spinner sit on a bed while they cover themselves in bandages. Moonfish is still coughing up whatever mushrooms are stuck in his throat and Mustard is walking around, checking to make sure everyone is alright.

"Has anyone seen Muscular?" Mr. Compress asks.

"He's dead," Mustard says, stuttering. "I... uh... saw him turn into a big zombie before Kurogiri picked me up." Mustard removes his gas mask.

"What's got you looking so down?"

"I'm a clone," Mustard stutters.

Twice perks up. "What?"

"The real me is dead." Mustard swallows his saliva hard. "I-I saw him get shot in the eye before falling off the wall. The other clone and I were supposed to be distractions and... the real me and other fake me are both dead."

"Join the club, man," Twice says, "it's no fun being a clone."

"A-are you a clone, Twice?"

"I'm not sure. Of course, I am!" Twice smacks his head. "I mean, uh... who knows." He points a thumb up. "I know. Shut up!"

"Oh." Mustard sits on a chair. "If I take any damage, I die."

"Hey, don't worry, man." Twice goes and sits next to him, patting the young boy on the head. "It's not so bad thinking you're a copy."

"But I am a clone, you're not so sure you're a clone."

"True."

"We lost Muscular?" Big Sis Magne sits up. "Huh, I really liked that big guy."

"The problem with Muscular is that he let his bloodlust get the better of him," Mr. Compress scolds like a father. "Had he chosen his opponents wiser, he would've stood a chance." Mr. Compress strokes the chin of his mask. "Then again, if I was fighting a group like us and there was a Muscular, Muscular would be the first one I would take out."

"Hey, we still got Moonfish, right?" Spinner asks.

"Flesh..." Moonfish utters, "Should've... eaten... flesh."

Mr. Compress taps his cane against the ground. "What was with all that screaming in the other room?"

"Yeah, it sounds like someone was crying," Twice agrees. "Nah, it was someone laughing."

"Possibly. With a quirk like Shigaraki's, I would not want to be on the receiving end of whatever torture our decay leader could cook up."

1:30 PM

UA Dorms

Reaching the Heights Alliance building first, Kaminari hops off his bike after Jirou and the others dismount and run to the keypad. He types in the gate code before he hears an error sound.

"What was the combination again?"

Jirou groans. "1203, idiot!"

Kaminari presses in the numbers before the gate opens. He quickly moves out of the way and allows the vehicles to drive inside. He retrieves his bike and wheels it inside before closing the gate behind him.

Shoji, Bondo, Kamakiri, and Shishida come out of the building, watching in horror as everyone exits the car, beaten, bloody, and bruised.

"What happened?" Shoji gasps.

"The League of Villains," Kirishima pants. "They ambushed us at the school."

"We barely made it out with our lives," Manga pants.

Everyone goes inside the building while those without injury stay outside. Namely the Kamisquad (minus Mineta), Kendo, and Aoyama.

"Where's Tetsutetsu?" Kurorio suddenly asks. "I didn't see him leaving the school."

Kendo chokes up. "Tetsutetsu... he..." She immediately tears up. "He didn't make it... he... he's dead."

Kuroiro feels his heart sink to his stomach like a ship. "No. Fuck no."

"They're going to pay," Komori whispers. "The League of Villains are going to fucking pay!" she shouts suddenly before turning around and breaking down sobbing.

Kuroiro grabs Komori and pulls her in for a comforting hug.

"Tetsutetsu?" Kaminari gasps. "Oh man, how is Kirishima going to take it?"

"We got the guy who did it," Kendo reminds them, "the guy who killed Tetsutetsu, we got him. He's dead."

"You killed him?" Jirou asks.

"No." Manga steps outside, joining Kendo. "I killed him. And I don't feel bad. I don't feel bad for killing this person."

"Tetsutetsu," Kaminari repeats, "I can't believe he's gone."

"Don't tell anybody else," Kendo begs, "especially in our class; we want to be the one to break the news."

"We won't," Jirou nods, wiping a tear away.

Kendo and Manga walk back while the Kamisquad stays behind.

"Oh god," Kaminari gasps, "what just happened? We just survived another villain attack."

"This was our first villain attack," Kuroiro says, "we thought we were ready. For a long time, we've been compared to Class-1A, called B-listers because we didn't face any villains and the first time we do, Tetsutetsu dies?"

"Guys..." Jirou's eyes widen, "where's Midoriya?"

Kaminari's eyes double in size. "Oh... shit. I forgot." He races into the house building with his friends following behind. Kicking open the door, he finds the others spread all over the common area. Without any forethought, Kaminari blurts, "Midoriya's gone!"

Aoyama choked internally, sobbing his heart out but puts on a neutral expression for everyone around him.

"It's true," Iida sits up off the couch, limping slightly. "I saw Midorya get taken by the villains. I tried to save him but... I wasn't fast enough."

"I was useless," Aoyama says to himself but Iida manages to hear.

After hearing Aoyama's voice for the first time in a while, Iida remembers something during Midoriya's abduction.

"Traitor!"

Why did that masked guy call Aoyama a traitor? And there's something else.

"Hello, little brother."

'Traitor','little brother'? What the hell is going on here?

"Where is that damn nerd?" Bakugou growls, sitting up, despite having his arms and head wrapped in bandages. "Where did those villains take him?"

"We don't know,' Sero answers, purposely putting on a dry tone.

"We should've saved Midoriya," Iida chokes, "I was pinned under a bookshelf. I couldn't reach him."

"Let's go get him," Uraraka suddenly says and steps forward. "Let's go save Deku."

"That's not even a debate," Kirishima speaks up.

"Wait," Kaminari steps up, "how are we supposed to find them? Seriously, did you guys put a tracking device on the villains?"

"No," Iida answers, "but remember the fight between All for One and All Might? They raided some bar and arrested some villains. If the League of Villains is using the same hideout as before, then we have to assume that's where Midoriya is hiding."

"But that bar was destroyed," Kaminari argues. "If that bar is destroyed, then the villains probably aren't going to use it."

"It's the only shot we got," Bakugou growls, "Sparky."

"The bar was in Kamino Ward," Tsu reminds them.

"What if he isn't there?" Mineta asks the question nobody wanted to ask. "If he isn't there then we won't be able to find Midoriya. If those villains aren't using the bar in Kamin Ward as their hideout, then we won't know where the villains are. And it's in Kamino Ward, that's forty kilometers away. We'll be traveling right through zombie territory and then there's that warp guy."

"So you're saying we should stand by and do nothing, you little midget?!" Bakugou is ready to blast Mineta all the way to hell before Kirishima calms him down by putting a hand on his chest.

"Guys," Kendo screams. "Listen, we can't let our emotions get the best of us, especially right now. We have to stay calm and use our heads."

"We have to go looking for him right now," Bakugou snaps, "every minute we waste here is another minute Deku's life is at risk."

"I agree," Urarak nods. "We have to move now."

"And what about the injured people we have here?" Kendo yells. "Those who got knocked out by that one villain's poison gas, those who suffered severe bodily harm from the villains? Those who are still recovering from the factory? There are too many things happening. We can't afford to lose anyone else." Her heart pumps on adrenaline as she says her next sentence. "Tetsutetsu is dead!"

The room goes silently, so silent that an ant can be heard skittering in the corner.

"Tetsutetsu died fighting the villain who drugged our teammates with poison gas. We have to use our brains rather than our hearts. Let's focus, on one thing at a time."

"No," Kaibara cries, "no. Why him?"

Shiozaki draws a cross on her chest.

That metal boy. I'll be damned if I let the villains do anything to Deku. "Screw this shit." Bakugou storms forward. "I'm going out there and I'm bringing Deku back." He moves to the door but suffers the unfortunate fate of having pain shoot up both of his legs and making him take a tumble to the ground. "We have to go Kamino Ward, now."

"And if he isn't at Kamino Ward?" Kaminari regretfully asks.

"Then we'll keep looking for him until we find that damn nerd." He pushes himself to his knees. "We have to save that damn nerd."