Heroes in the Dark: chapter 21

Tokoyami still didn't understand why they had him attend these meetings. He would've much preferred to be left alone. Then again, it had been several days since the…"incident," and he hadn't done much during that time except for think. And thinking can be a dangerous thing. In the aftermath of that event, try as he might he couldn't put his mind at ease, let alone get the memories out of his head. But perhaps the most aggravating thing was that it made it more difficult to consult with Dark Shadow, and he was no closer to understanding what went wrong. He hadn't turned off the lights in his room since being back.

But that was not the concern for now. Shigaraki had brought them all together again, likely to discuss plans going forward. Although this turnout seemed…somewhat meager. It felt that way, in any case: Magne was very much gone, her weapon leaning against the far wall a grim reminder of their failure, Kurogiri would no longer be able to transport them anywhere, considering how busy he was, and therefore had been absent for quite some time, and Dabi hadn't been around for a few days and had yet to arrive. Usually Dabi was in charge of him by default, but since that day Twice had taken over while the fire user was off doing his own thing. The contradicting man would come and make sure he was doing alright. Tokoyami was sure that it was because of the guilt he was experiencing after leading them into a trap that had caused so much damage. In which case, he understood that feeling all too well.

Twice stood close by, clearly quite anxious. He didn't usually stick around in the facility too long, but had been insistent on looking after Mr. Compress while he recovered and so had never left after that night, even while the others had uneasily parted ways. The magician must've had some sort of trick up his sleeve, though, because he was recovering quite swiftly. At this very moment he was being outfitted with a new prosthetic arm by a man he hadn't seen before – apparently he was named Giran and, although not a traditional villain himself, was pretty regularly involved with the League of Villains. From what he had gathered, the silver haired man was good at getting connections, but he didn't know much else about him. As for Mr. Compress, he hadn't heard much of anything from him in recent days, which was understandable. But even now the usually talkative showman was sullen and unresponsive. He'd donned a new mask at some point, which Tokoyami could only identify as a frowny face. Given the situation, it was a reasonable response.

Toga and Spinner had already taken their seats atop the old furniture and wooden boxes that lined the walls and were waiting for something – anything – to happen. But everyone was still in a period of wait.

Everyone looked up quickly when the door opened and Shigaraki finally stepped through, followed closely behind by Dabi. Whether by coincidence or because they had been discussing something, he couldn't be sure, but their appearance was certainly timely.

Dabi strode over and took a seat on a mattress-less bedframe, the old springs creaking in protest as he brought his legs up to relax. Tokoyami caught the quick glance that Dabi shot towards him, but nothing else came of it.

Shigaraki stood at the front of the room, looking out over the remainder of his league. Down five members and an arm in what couldn't have been a very long amount of time, it couldn't be easy to recognize the drop in numbers. It was half of his original forces. If that was the thought going through his head, then he was doing his best to hide it. That said, something about the way he presented himself before them felt off, like he was preparing himself for what was to be said next.

Shigaraki cleared his throat, not that it did him much good. "I hope everyone is finding themselves in good health…"

Mr. Compress scoffed indignantly at that. Toga leaned against back with a disinterested yawn. "You can cut the formalities, Tomura. What did you want us here for?"

Shigaraki gave pause, but finally decided to get into the reason why he'd brought them all here. Tokoyami could only hope that he didn't intend on involving him in anything troublesome, or else why would he even be here listening to what he had to say? He did finally sigh and began to address the group again, getting more to the point. "It's been a rough few days, to be sure. But that's no excuse to sit idle by. We find ourselves at a bit of a disadvantage, but you can except that it won't be that way for long. I've…actually been keeping I contact with the yakuza group that's run by Overhaul, and we've enlisted each other's help."

There was some uncertain shuffling as unease arose amongst the members of the League. Spinner lifted his head. "Joining up with those sick-minded gangsters? I don't see how that's going to help us spread our message. It's hypocritical!"

The Stain enthusiast went largely ignored as Shigaraki continued. "They have more than us in terms of scale, but we have more notoriety. They're already in the midst of something big, so we'll be helping them to reach their goals first before anything else can happen."

"And what does that mean for us?" Twice asked wearily.

"It means that a few of you have been chosen to be temporarily recruited into his ranks. This was the only way to settle the dispute and gain his trust. For now we are in alliance with his Eight Precepts of Death."

The feeling in the room became much more tense as everyone was put on edge. Twice seemed particularly upset by the news. "We're gonna team up with the Eight Precepts?!"

"Agh! Don't make me say it more than I have to, I already know how you feel. The plan they have is plenty promising, and we're already in agreement. Toga and Twice, starting today the two of you are yakuza."

Tokoyami shifted closer into the dark corner of the room. With conflicting emotions amongst dangerous people filling the room, the last thing he wanted was to get caught up in something unnecessary. I really don't need to be here for this. They should've left me in my room.

"Is this your idea of a joke? I'm not laughing, Shigaraki," Twice said, a warning in his voice. He stepped up to face him directly, but Shigaraki walked past him to continue addressing the League as a whole.

"They almost got Kurogiri too, but we were able to make a compromise. Well, in actuality, he is who he is, but right now he's setting about a very important manner."

Twice, tired of being brushed aside, stomped over and grabbed Shigaraki by the shoulder. "What do ya mean "promising?!" Have you gone insane, Leader? Did that mask wearin' bastard get to you?" His voice was rife with frustration and dismay. It wasn't the voice he used when thinking rationally, but the one that gave away that his mental state was beginning to split. Tokoyami couldn't help but worry about him sometimes. He couldn't imagine how being affiliated with the League of Villains would help his mental stability. Being here didn't exactly do him any good. But all that mattered now was this feeling of injustice that Twice was dealing with now. "There's no way you could forget, but that sick bastard killed Magne. He took off Mr. Compress's arm! He…He…! It was my carelessness that brought him to us in the first place!" Twice did something that Tokoyami had never seen him do before. He took off his mask, the one he claimed was the only thing that kept him together. Tokoyami realized for the first time that he didn't actually know what he looked like, but this new occurrence revealed the face of a very tired man that was maybe in his early thirties with blonde short cropped hair and wild eyes with heavy bags that helped to communicate just how well he was faring mentally. Most noticeable of all was a large and neatly stitched scar that ran perfectly down the center of his face, splitting his forehead. "I'm a human too, y'know…?! Shigaraki…! And Toga, too! Say something!"

Toga had been watching the scene unfold much like all the rest, but now she was more than happy for her own intervention as she slipped off of the old dresser she'd been sitting on to offer up her own input. "What are we to you, Tomura? To me, the League is all about…feeling good." She unsheathed her trusty knife without provocation and stepped over to Shigaraki with dance-like movements, swinging her blade all the while. "It all started with Stain. In order to make this world a little bit easier to live in, in the way I want to. If there's any way for me to do that, then I'd like to try. Tomura, can you tell me?" She was now facing the sinister man directly. With a casual wave, she had her blade line up right next to his head.

Tokoyami was surprised by how calmly Shigaraki was handling the whole thing. He showed no hint of anger or impatience, whereas is wasn't so long ago that that would've been his default response to the slightest provocation or annoyance. The leader of the villains didn't acknowledge the knife resting close to his neck. Instead, he reached up to his face, grasping onto the hand that normally conceals it. Toga was taken aback by this response. "Well, you see…" And he looked up with an expression of confident determination. Every time Tokoyami had seen his face before, it had been twisted in anger. It was jarring to see him look so normal…at least as normal as someone like him could be. No hands to conceal him, or threatening aura surrounding him. Besides the deep-set wrinkles around his eyes, horribly chapped lips, and assortment of scars, he looked like a perfectly normal person in his late twenties. Tokoyami wondered, not for the first time, what had to have happened to this man to have found him this way in life. What happened to any of these people that they would be driven to villainy.

"For my sake. And all of yours. You see, they're looking to hamper the mobility of the League. And I'm sure that they'd love to win you over, seeing you all as useful to their cause. They want to pull you in from the outside and subjugate you. From the very beginning, they haven't viewed us as equals. Twice, I told you to take responsibility for your actions, didn't I? Well, this is how you do it. I…I believe in the two of you."

Toga dropped her knife to the side, a grimace scrawled across her face. Twice pulled his mask back over his head with a shuttered breath. "So that's the plan, huh. It can't be avoided. Huh? You really backed us into a corner with this one, Leader. I just hope you know what you're doing."

Shigaraki let his gaze travel across the room, lingering over the villains that worked alongside him. "I wish I could be more certain of that. Unfortunately it's not that simple. I'm sure I could've dealt with this just fine if it were just the two of you I had to worry about, since you're more than capable enough to handle this situation. But that's not the end of it. You two will be serving active roles under Overhaul, using your quirks however he sees fit. But that's not all of it. The only way I could get him to agree to this is if I gave him another player, an npc that he could keep his eyes on while all this is happening.

Dabi narrowed his eyes suspiciously and sat up straight. "And why wouldn't you mention that sooner? Don't leave us in suspense, now," he drawled.

Shigaraki gave pause, fiddling with the detached hand he usually wore on his face. "Tokoyami will also be transferred over to Overhaul's side."

"What the hell, Shigaraki!" Spinner hissed.

Toga's knife ended up embedded in the wall behind Shigaraki's head. Twice threw his hands up in the air in exasperation. Mr. Compress moved as though he was about to leave his seat, only for Giran to snap at him, telling him to stay still.

Dabi was on his feet in an instant. "Shigaraki, why would you agree to that? You're just going to hand him over to that villain? After what he did to us?! And for what, as a bargaining chip to hang over our heads should anything go wrong? What garbage. It doesn't even sound like he's going to use him for anything, but just wants him for gloating rights. There's no way I can agree to that."

Tokoyami couldn't help but detect the irony in that. Even still, he was just as alarmed for his wellbeing as he had the right to be. The memory of the plague doctor man staring through him gave him chills. Compared to anyone else, he was appalled at the thought that he'd have to live under his control the most. He would've much preferred if he'd never see him again. But just like with everything else to happen during the past few weeks, he doubted he had much of a say in this decision.

Twice buried his head in his hands. "I was alright…with you involving just us two. But not this. You can't just tell us that you're getting the kid wrapped up in this, too, like that. He's not prepared for something of this caliber. So why…?"

"You're overreacting," Shigaraki said. "Nothing bad is going to happen. That much was already agreed upon. Tokoyami just needs to be there as a safety precaution to solidify our trust in him. He won't actually be a part of anything."

"And you trust a guy like that?" Spinner huffed.

"No. And he doesn't trust us, and that's the problem. I wouldn't have agreed to it if that had been the option, but this is just the direction the game is in going in now. That's fine, though. Because we'll be getting the most out of it when all this comes to pass."

Tokoyami stayed where he was in uncertainty. If there was nothing he could do to prevent this, then it was pointless to speak up against it. And he didn't want to say that he's used to being in these positions, because he never was. Nothing could ever prepare him for being in a place filled with the dangers of the underworld. Not for the horrific people lurking in it, or the plans of chaos being fabricated, or whatever scenes surround them. He hated to be given their attention, but he deserved the right to ask questions regarding his fate.

"I understand why you'd want a third person in this situation, but why single me out? I can't promise that I won't find a way to ruin either one of your plans. It's foolish to think that I'd so readily accept such a thing, even if the choice isn't mine. Why are you placing such a gamble on me?"

Shigaraki shrugged, acknowledging his point. "This was the only thing we could do. He was insistent on it being you, though I can't imagine why. All you're doing is staying within his reach. He knows the situation so he or someone else will always have you within their sights. You don't have to do anything. You shouldn't do anything. I can't imagine it'll be too much different than the way you are here. So just play along to his little games and you won't find yourself in any danger, you got that? Twice and Toga will be keeping an eye on you whenever possible, too. The three of you will be leaving here tomorrow, so you best be prepared for that."

Tokoyami looked down at the ground to hide his worried expression. They didn't need to know how scared he was to be joining with the gangsters. Was this another result of all the unwanted interest being directed at him? Would he always be a prize to be coveted by villains? That thought didn't sit right with him, although he understood why his idea would be true. It came as no surprise that it would come to this. But whatever happened, so long as nobody innocent was getting caught up in whatever plans they had he could keep himself at bay and try to play it smart without becoming at risk. He knew nothing of what to expect from the villains there, though.

"This is just how it ended up being, so don't think that I'm responsible for anything you end up doing. Congratulations on becoming yakuza."