Ochako strolled up to the familiar warehouse. It looked like any other, the sound of heavy machinery and the occasional explosion being the only signs that anything was strange about it. Ochako entered the small lobby attached at the front for visitors. Above the door was the sign "Hatsume Industries."
As usual, there was no one at the front desk. However, when she walked up to it the screen next to the front desk displayed a crude face consisting of a simple white box with two dots for eyes and a simple rectangle for a mouth.
"Hello Uraraka, good to see you again," it said with a voice that was both childish and emotionless.
"Hello Jung," Ochako said. "Good to see you too!"
"Mei's in the workshop right now," the AI said, "She's been informed of your presence and will be out here with your costume shortly."
After a sound suspiciously similar to that of a carwash in the back, Hatsume came strolling out, looking slightly less dirty than usual. Given that her hair was damp and she smelled like soap, it was probably not because she'd been taking better care of herself. In her hands was a metal case.
Ochako smiled at her. "Hey Hatsume. How are you?"
"Building lots of babies! Speaking of, I've finished your new costume!" Hatsume said, slamming the case down on the desk. She opened the case and pulled out a costume that looked like a thicker version of the current one beneath Ochako's clothes, with the addition of two pink gloves and a full head covering helmet.
"As promised, a nuclear disaster Hero Costume!" Mei said. "I couldn't find a work-around to keep your quirk working with the gloves on, but I did give it them the ability to retract if necessary. If you need to float yourself, the sleeves will also let you pull your arms to your torso so you can float and release!"
"That's great!" said Ochako. "How much can radiation can it take?"
Mei's eyes shone. "I used the levels you mentioned in your request as a baseline. It should withstand the lower levels you described for days. The higher levels can be resisted for several hours. The highest potential radiation you described would overwhelm it in minutes."
Ochako nodded. The ambient levels were what you got standing next to Godzilla. The higher levels were that of the craters left by his atomic breath. The highest levels would be if she was theoretically hit by the atomic breath. Which would also incinerate her.
"I also included high level and low level Geiger Counter in the belt so you can measure radiation along with an in-suit alarm in case it starts to fail!
"Perfect!" Ochako said. "Thank you so much!"
"Anything for a loyal customer!" Hatsume said.
A piece of paper emerged from a nearby printer. "Your invoice," said Jung. "Fortunately, it will likely be covered for you by the Hero Commission."
Ochako raised an eyebrow. "Why's that?"
"We have received orders for dozens of similar costumes from Heroes in the nearby area and beyond from the HPSC itself." Jung said. "There's a good chance they will do so for you too. Several costume-makers have been contacted, but Mei alone is capable of keeping up with the demand."
It seems the HPSC is preparing for the coming disaster. Ochako thought. If only they could do it a little quicker…
"Your costume made it even easier for me to design babies for everyone!" Hatsume said. "I can build even more adorable babies and sell them to all the Heroes in town and the Commission is paying for all of it! Hahahaha!"
"Your project has helped us immensely. You have our gratitude," Jung said.
"Your welcome Hatsume!" Ochako said. "Good luck!"
"Good luck to you too loyal customer!" Hatsume said. "Have a good day?" she said looking to Jun, who's digital face bobbed up and down in what Ochako assumed to be a nod.
As Ochako turned to leave, she heard an explosion in the back. "Mei!" another voice, similar to Jun's, said. "The fabricators have finished two more of the costumes! I'm working on the designs for three more! Also Baby #238's wiring was too volatile so it exploded!"
"Got it Pelops III!" Mei said. "I'll be right there! Keep up the good work!"
"You betcha!"
Ochako left Mei's workshop and took the next train to Mustafu. After a brief grocery detour (what, some of these places had great deals), she walked toward a familiar apartment building. While she walked, her mind returned to the topic that had consumed it for the last several days.
Godzilla was on his way to Tokyo. While he hadn't attacked a city in their lifetime, Midori had shown her the aftermaths of multiple old battles. Not only that, but Ochako had seen what he could do to an island, from the towns to the mountains themselves. If he unleashed his full destructive power…
It was hard enough to stop him in the Pacific, where their forces contained seasoned anti-Godzilla fighters, with some mainland AMF forces mixed in as support. Here though? Unless Midori and G-Force arrived before the battle ended, the main fighters would be the AMF's mainland forces.
While said forces weren't weak, and had definitely trained for this (everyone in the AMF did), few had actual experience with Godzilla. And in battle, experience could mean the difference between victory and defeat. Between life and death.
The Heroes meanwhile didn't even have training. Not for something like Godzilla He was a living natural disaster, a primal force of inexhaustible power. They, including her, were just human. Fighting Godzilla was dangerous enough when your weapons and strategy were designed for him. The Heroes had neither.
Ochako wondered what it'd be like to watch Midori's battle from the sidelines, seeing him spit death in the face without joining him.
Somehow, not being able to fight with her friends filled her with as much, if not more dread than the thought of actually fighting him.
Ochako was shaken from her thoughts by a familiar bun of green hair. Attached to it was the reason Ochako came to this part of Mustafu in the first place. Ochako waved. "Inko!"
Inko Midoriya, who'd just walked her bike across an intersection, turned. Upon seeing Ochako, she smiled. "Ochako! It's been too long! How are you?"
Ochako ran over. "I'm good! What about you? I haven't seen you in forever!"
"Oh I've been fine," Inko said. "I've been following you on the news!"
"You have?" Ochako said, her face heating up as she felt the same wave of embarrassment she had when her parents talked about her Hero work.
"Yes! I'm so happy you've been doing so well for yourself," Inko said. "Have you done anything memorable lately?
"Yeah," Ochako said, rubbing her neck. "Not too long ago I visited a group of kids for a charity event. Most of them had faced discrimination for their quirks or, in one case, lack of one."
Inko's smile faded. "Really? What happened?"
"The quirkless boy was a fan of mine. Cute kid. Mikumo was his name," Ochako said. She smiled at the memory. "I'm pretty sure I made it the best day of his life"
"That's sweet," Inko said. Her smile had a sad undertone to it. She was almost certainly thinking of her own son.
"I've been talking with Izuku," Ochako said. "He's doing good too."
Inko nodded. "He's spoken with me too. I'm glad he's happy now. But…" She frowned. "Can I ask you a question?"
"Yeah?" Ochako said. "
"Izuku's job, the one you worked with him in…"
"Yes?" Ochako said as her fingers began to fidget. She hoped this wasn't going where she thought it was…
Inko's eyes bored into her. "It's more dangerous than he told me, isn't it?"
Ochako held back a wince. Inko knew.
Ochako wasn't sure how much she'd figured out, but Inko was clearly at least aware that Izuku had lied to her about the level of danger he regularly faced. (He'd let her know it was a possibility so she wouldn't be too unprepared if he died, but made it sound like a rare but possible outcome, rather than a decently probably one.)
Ochako was tempted to deny the truth for her friend's sake, but that would be futile. Instead she simply nodded and softly said. "Yes. A lot more."
Inko sighed. She stared at the nearby ocean. "I thought so. I don't know when I figured it out, but over time it's become more and more clear to me. I wish he'd told me but...I suppose I have no one to blame but myself for him deciding not to."
Ochako raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"Did Izuku ever tell you what happened the day he was diagnosed quirkless?"
"Yeah, he said that he cried watching his favorite All Might clip on repeat, asking if he could still be a Hero?"
"Did he tell you what happened when he asked that question?" Inko said.
Ochako shook her head.
"I apologized to him," Inko said. "I didn't reassure him, I didn't comfort him, I just held him and cried. E when he clung to it like a security blanket, I never supported it. In fact, when Katsuki was kidnapped from his summer camp I even said that maybe it was better he'd been born without a quirk so he wouldn't be in that kind of danger. I'm not sure he ever forgave me for that."
"That's not true!" Ochako said. "Midori always talked positively about you! You gave him love even when no one else would. He didn't want you to know what he did because he didn't want to worry you!"
"Maybe," Inko said. "Or maybe he's worried I'd ask him to stop."
Ochako wanted to deny it, but she knew she'd be lying if it didn't sound plausible. Izuku didn't want conflict with his mom, but nothing would make him give up Godzilla. However, Ochako refused to let Inko forget how much Izuku cared for her.
Ochako put a hand on Inko's shoulder. "He loves you. In the four years we fo-worked together he always spoke affectionately about you. Between his friendlessness and his dad being overseas, you were all he had for a long time. He's always been grateful for that."
Inko smiled, tears starting to fall. "Thank you Ochako. I needed to hear that. He's lucky to have you, you know."
Inko's smile grew distant. "I remember when you first became friends. He'd never been happier than he was then, telling me about you and all the trouble you got into together. Since then he's made even more friends at his job."
Inko's smile faded. "He's so happy compared to how he used to be. That's why…I'm not sure I could ask him to stop anymore. As terrified as I am of losing him, I couldn't bear seeing him like he was when he was alone."
Ochako looked at the setting sun. "Thank you, Inko. Did he tell you that when I first called him my friend he cried so hard he embedded himself in the concrete? For the next month, I thought he had a crying quirk."
Inko let out a wet laugh. "That sounds like something he'd do. It runs in the family." Her face became serious again. "Can you promise me something?"
"What?" Ochako said.
"If the two of you are ever together again…on the job…could you please try to keep him safe? I won't blame you if something happens but-"
"You don't need to ask," Ochako said. "He's my friend. I promise, I'll do everything in my power to help him stay alive."
"Thank you." Inko hugged Ochako. "Would you like to stay the night? It's getting late."
"I'm fine," Ochako said. "In fact, I came here to ask you if you wanted to stay at my parent's house for the week?"
"Oh? Why?" said Inko.
Ochako fixed Inko with an intense stare. "Trust me. You want to spend the next week in the country, far away from the coast. Especially avoid Tokyo."
She'd probably be safe in Mustafu, but Ochako would sleep better knowing the people she cared about were as far away from Godzilla as possible.
Inko quickly nodded. "I understand. I'll go home and pack my things. Would it be ok to tell my best friend the same thing?"
Ochako nodded. "Tell everyone you can. Goodbye Inko."
"Goodbye Ochako! Be safe."
"I'll do my best." Ochako hugged her, then turned around and walked back toward the train station.
As she walked, her smile faded. She'd promised she'd help keep Midori alive.
But what could she do against Godzilla?
Toshinori marched into the building, with all the determination and purpose he'd felt bursting into a Villain's layer back in the day.
(Given that he was in a building full of politicians, that was probably quite fitting…)
Toshinori had called and requested an audience with the Prime Minister from the jet. The Prime Minister immediately agreed, the perks of being the former Symbol of Peace. Toshinori just hoped he'd listen.
Toshinori walked into Prime Minister Okochi's office. Okochi walked over and gave him a bow. "All Might."
"Prime Minister Okochi," Toshinori bowing back. "An honor to meet you."
"The honor is all mine," Okochi said. "You wished to speak to me about the animal coming here?"
"Yes," Toshinori said. "It's heading for Tokyo I've heard?"
Okochi nodded. "It is. We're doing everything we can to come to an informed decision for our response." His tone was stilted, like someone trying to perform.
Toshinori eyed the man's desk. It was covered by a mess of papers, likely materials the Prime Minister was trying to read to decide what to do. He probably couldn't understand them, but it meant he was probably trying to do the right thing. He just needed a little push.
"I understand," Toshinori said, his grip on his cane tightening. "However time is running short. I've heard the AMF recommended an evacuation?"
"Yes, we are considering it. The HPSC is discreetly make preparations for such a move, along with a possible battle."
"Due respect sir, Godzilla will be here soon," Toshinori said. "If we are to evacuate any substantial amount of people, we need to start evacuating now. I saw the monster on Scaris."
"You did?" said Okouchi, his eyes sharp with interest. "What was it like?"
"Big, powerful, and dangerous. We need to do everything we can to ensure the safety of the populace. Failing to do so in Kamino was my gravest mistake. I can even help coordinate it personally if need be."
"You will?" the Prime Minister said.
Toshinori nodded.
"Very well," he said. "I will authorize it at once. I will also arrange for you to be given a role directing the process."
Toshinori smiled. "Thank you, Prime Minister."
Now the real work begins…
Hope you enjoyed!
That Inko conversation was difficult to get right, so I hope I succeeded in capturing the right feeling. Also that bit with Mei was fun! If any of you have been consuming Godzilla content as of late, you probably recognized some of the elements there!
Anyway, Ochako and the Heroes are preparing their radiation suits, Inko is getting out of dodge, and Toshinori is finally getting that evacuation started! Hooray! (This is totally not going to be enough)
