22/09/2024

Thank you to everyone who reviewed, you are the greatest! (I'm late posting 'cos of life)

The Emperor's Dragon
Dragon 53 - Coming Together

Izuku sat at a table in the bar. The others weren't up yet and the bar wasn't open. Yakuni sat across from him. The young man said he had something to tell him but for the moment, they were both focused on breakfast. Kurogiri had cooked, which was unusual but appreciated, and the full breakfast of rice, fish, toast, pickles and salad was delicious.

"Uh! I never realised Kurogiri was such a good cook!" Yakuni said, as he put his chopsticks down with a pleased sigh.

"He's had practice," Izuku reminded him.

Yakuni grinned at him. Izuku was still eating and he got the impression that Yakuni would wait before speaking to him. "You can talk while I finish," Izuku told him.

"It seems rude," the young man shrugged.

Izuku sighed. In some circles it probably was rude but he didn't really care. Yakuni was loyal and that made all the difference in the world. But since he wasn't going to talk, Izuku focused on his food, chewing the last bit of fish thoughtfully before he ate the last bite of rice. He put the bowl down and set his chopsticks on the tray Kurogiri had brought the food on.

"That was good," he agreed with Yakuni's earlier statement. Izuku usually had a bowl of cereal for breakfast and so the larger meal was appreciated.

"He probably thought you needed it because of yesterday," Yakuni told him.

Izuku grinned. They'd had a training session yesterday and he had finally been able to use all the quirks the young man had gathered and copied for him. Those quirks, particularly the reinforcement, and endurance ones meant that while he was tired last night, he wasn't absolutely exhausted like he would have been without them.

And actually… given the energy requirements of his quirks, he should probably eat something more substantial than cereal every day but that was a thought for later.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" Izuku asked, getting straight to the point.

"A couple of things," Yakuni said.

"Himiko's quirk copy?" Izuku was particularly interested in that.

"Nearly done. You are right in that your father had a copy made a while back. Because of that, I know the exact age Himiko's quirk came in and can accelerate growth to just before that. So it's nearly done. The last bit is the hard bit because if I accelerate too much, we're back to nothing."

Izuku gave Yakuni a wide smile as a portal appeared on the table and scooped up the breakfast trays. Kurogiri was as efficient as always. A pot of tea and two cups replaced the trays.

"That's fantastic!" Izuku cheered. Getting Himiko her quirk back was something he really wanted, even if he thought he was getting to the stage where he could use Rewind on Himiko.

"How are you going with your method?" Yakuni asked, almost reading his mind.

"You confirmed my time estimates?" Izuku countered with his own question, reaching out to pour the tea before he handed one cup to Yakuni.

Yakuni nodded. "There's a bit of leeway with the calculations but I think you are correct. Twelve hours of charge is about 50 days worth of rewinding."

Izuku took a deep breath when he heard that. Yakuni confirmed. And that meant…

"So how do you want to heal her?" the scientist asked him before taking a sip of his tea.

He laughed. There was a bit of a maniacal edge to it but Izuku was happy. "I'm of two minds about it," he admitted. "I know that I'm going to have to use Rewind on someone but, I don't really want to use it on Himiko first."

The young man gave him a look. "Maybe give her the choice?" he suggested. That was reasonable. Far too reasonable.

Izuku sighed. "Yeah, I think so," he agreed. He wrapped his hands around his tea cup, letting the warmth seep into them. He wasn't cold, but it felt good to have really hot hands.

"Good," Yakuni said.

"What else was there?"

At the question Izuku watched as Yakuni composed himself. When the young man met his eyes, Izuku knew whatever he said next was going to be important. "I think I've got a way of getting information about Tartarus."

It was safe to say that wasn't what Izuku had been expecting. He wasn't sure what he'd been expecting actually but-

"How?" he asked but his tone made it clear he wasn't doubting Yakuni he just really meant his question.

"When I was arrested for going after Ryukyu's quirk, I was actually held in remand for a few days."

"You said that," Izuku nodded.

"That's unusual for a quirkless person," Yakuni told him why it was special. "Once they know you are quirkless, you are usually given a slap on the wrist and told to get out of there," he explained.

Izuku cocked his head slightly.

"Usually they question you fast, at least the initial round but they were really focused on this case," Yakuni explained. "It was another cop and he'd been imprisoned for helping villains, so they were making sure everything went as it should."

Izuku nodded. He understood that but he didn't understand why that meant Yakuni would have information about Tartarus.

"I met the guy," the scientist announced.

"The cop?"

"Yep. And I know which villain he was helping."

Izuku bit his lip. "No," he whispered.

Yakuni grinned. "Yes," he said, almost celebrating. He downed the last of his tea.

Izuku felt a growing sense of excitement which he quickly quashed. He had to be calm. He had to be logical about this. "Who is it?"

"His name is Saitsu and he was a Police Captain," Yakuni said. "Kurogiri knows him but probably didn't think about him for information on Tartarus because the Captain made it very clear he doesn't want to be rescued from prison."

That answered a question Izuku was about to ask so he moved on to the next. "Why would he have information about Tartarus?"

"Only the worst villains get sent to Tartarus," Yakuni said, his tone mocking enough to show what he thought of the statement. "Others get sent to a variety of different prisons but occasionally people do need to talk to those villains, usually when trying to mop up their operations, or find underlings," he explained. "So there is a facility for heroes, and Police to talk to villains in Tartarus."

It took a moment for Izuku to put the information in context. If the Police needed to talk to a villain then it was likely the Captain who had to arrange that, and even if they didn't actually know what the defenses were, when they went to Tartarus for that interview, they'd find out. They wouldn't see all of the defenses but they would see at least some. It would be a start.

"His loyalty is admirable but I might need him out for the information," Izuku said.

Yakuni nodded. "You could probably get Kurogiri to ask him once we find out exactly where he is," he suggested.

Izuku nodded. There'd be two questions that had to be answered first. How much information the Police Captain had would be the first. Any question of freedom rested on that. "Can you organise that with Kurogiri?" Izuku asked. One of the things he was beginning to understand and that management really drove home was the need to ensure his people were right for the job and to not do everything for himself. One of the books he'd read was pretty clear on that.

People are a resource. This is why your company has a Human Resources department. There are a variety of human resources. Staff, casuals and contractors. As the CEO, you cannot get attached to any of them, and must use each type appropriately for the benefit of your company. Staff are those people your company does not wish to lose. They are those you can rely upon because you cannot do everything yourself. But should there come a time when you doubt them, then it is time to have them leave. Casual staff fill a temporary requirement. Their hiring and firing should be routine. The biggest mistake most companies make is that they hire, then fail to fire.

He didn't agree with everything it said but he understood that he would need to adopt some of the mindset. The main thing though was that he had to rely on those who were close, those who he'd deem staff. Both Yakuni and Kurogiri were staff.

"For sure," Yakuni agreed. "And I think I'll have some people who will be happy to take quirks," he added the information.

"Really?" Izuku asked, looking down at his now, almost cold tea. It was still good to drink and he sipped at it.

"Yeah but it's just a few. The bosses aren't interested in helping you but there's always a few young 'uns who'll take what they can get."

Izuku grinned at the description. "Do you know how many yet?"

Yakuni shook his head. "I'll talk to my contact to find out."

"Please," Izuku agreed before looking up as footsteps on the stairs indicated that people were awake.

Himiko bounded into the room, literally skipping happily! "Good morning, Izu!"

He smiled at her. "Good morning Himiko," Izuku greeted her.

Himiko came over and sat next to him before reaching out and plucking Yakuni's refilled tea cup from his side of the table and pouring herself some tea. The liquid wasn't steaming but Izuku could tell it was still warm. She sipped at it. Yakuni didn't protest.

"What'cha doing?" Himiko asked.

"Catching up," Yakuni told her, giving Izuku a look that reminded him he had a question to ask.

"Oh!" Himiko made the noise. It was kind of sarcastic.

"Your quirk is almost ready," Izuku told her.

"It is?" she squealed happily!

"That's what Yakuni says," Izuku passed the credit.

"Another week," he told the teen before she could ask. "I want to be sure it's stable."

"Yes!" Himiko celebrated.

"Though, Dragon could do it now," Yakuni continued.

Izuku gave him a look that said without words he could have done without that little revelation.

"What? Izu!" Himiko turned her yellow eyes to him.

"I've been practicing with the quirk I got from the Yakuza," he told her. "Not the boss' quirk," he added quickly. That one was still causing him problems. It just didn't want to obey him but he was getting better at it. "The girl's quirk. I could 'rewind' you back to before that bastard shot you," he explained. He didn't mention his doubts. Himiko didn't need to hear about them and Izuku was sure she would dismiss them, trusting that he would control the quirk. He could control the quirk, he was just nervous about using it on a person. No one cared if he put fruit back to pollen!

Himiko nodded and Izuku could see that she was thinking. "Would that take Regeneration away?" she asked finally.

That was a good question and Izuku looked at Yakuni for guidance.

"I don't know," the young man admitted. "I think for safety it would be better for Izuku to take Regeneration, then rewind you," he suggested.

She nodded at that. "I wanna keep regeneration," Himiko announced.

"If you have two quirks, that could hurt you," Izuku pointed out.

"But you were asking for us to think of ways to counter weaknesses in our quirks, with another quirk!" Himiko objected.

Izuku's mind went back to that conversation. "I did, didn't I?" he mused.

"So were you going to hurt us?"

Interestingly, Himiko didn't sound betrayed with the question.

"No. I have a way for you to have more than one quirk and be okay," Izuku told her. "But how does regeneration help Transform? Remember I said to think about ways to counter the weaknesses in your quirk," he reminded her.

Himiko huffed but nodded. "I can use Regeneration with Transform and pretend regeneration is my quirk," she said after a moment.

"I don't think you can," Izuku countered. He remembered his dad collapsing and he got the impression that if Himiko's Transform allowed Dad to use his regular quirks, then he would have always had Transform activated. "I'm not sure that Transform can accept the use of a second quirk when it's active," he explained.

"How do you know that?"

"Dad has a copy of your quirk," Izuku said. "And he never used it to heal himself, The only reason I can think of for that is that he couldn't use his quirks while using Transform. So how else?" he pressed.

It didn't really matter what Himiko answered. He was happy enough for her to have a copy of All For One and to have multiple quirks. Even just having Regeneration would help because Himiko's fighting style was to get in close. Regeneration would ensure that even if she took damage, she could keep fighting. But he wanted her to think of other things.

"There is something," Himiko said slowly.

"Hmm?"

"Yesterday, we really didn't have any great ranged attacks," she said.

Yesterday he had fought them using all his quirks.

"Dabi is a ranged fighter, but you don't feel fire, and the rest of us-" Himiko shrugged. It was a surprisingly brutal assessment of the result. "I can go in close but I don't have enough strength and Twice's clones are just the same as us."

"So what do you suggest?" Izuku asked.

"Some more variety. Strength quirks! Lots of things," Himiko said, and then she downed the tea she'd poured earlier.

Izuku gave Yakuni a pointed look.

"The Doctor has the copies of the quirk that will allow her to have multiple quirks," the young man said. "But I can come up with some strength and ranged quirks," he agreed.

"Please," Izuku said with a smile.

"So I can keep Regeneration?" Himiko asked.

Izuku nodded. "I think so. As a close range fighter, it will be useful for you," he said.

"Yay!" She cheered before her yellow eyes became thoughtful. "I want you to have Transform, Izu," she announced.

"What?"

"I want you to have Transform," Himiko said. "I want you to use that quirk on me, and then take Transform before giving me the one that he's making," she said, gesturing to Yakuni. "What else were you going to do with the copy?" she challenged before he could object.

"If you took that one, I wasn't going to rewind you," Izuku admitted.

She gave him a look. "Pft! I want you to have Transform," Himiko repeated but fell silent as there were more footsteps on the stairs.

It was Atsuhiro this time. "Good morning," Izuku greeted him.

"That remains to be seen," the magician told him as he moved into the tap room. He didn't seem to be moving freely.

"Bit stiff?" Himiko asked suggestively.

Atsuhiro groaned and didn't even respond to the implications. "I'm definitely not as young as I used to be," he said.

"You aren't that old!" Izuku objected. Atsuhiro was only in his early thirties. Whisper was older but-

"Not as young as I used to be," he repeated.

"What's wrong?"

"Just stiff," Atsuhiro told him. "Yesterday was-" the magician sighed. "Intense," he finished.

"Oh," Izuku said. He'd felt fine this morning and Himiko seemed okay. "Yesterday was-" he didn't know how to finish without sounding patronising. Yesterday was just an example of the battles they'd have to go through.

Himiko got up and skipped over to the table Atsuhiro had sat at. "Ugh," he groaned, looking at her. "You don't have to show off regeneration," he muttered. "And I am aware that I will need to improve my fitness level," he allowed.

Izuku nodded but didn't say anything. None of the villains were fools. They knew what had to be done. "You are close range support by preference, aren't you?" He asked.

Atsuhiro nodded.

"Do you want regeneration too?"

"Tempting," he murmured. "Especially with how I feel," he added.

"You can have it," Izuku pointed out, remembering that he'd mentioned to Atsuhiro more than once the possibility of getting a secondary quirk. "I was serious with the suggestions," he added to reinforce his comment.

"I know," the magician agreed. "But-" he huffed and winced as he shifted on the chair to avoid Himiko poking him. "I think we need to talk as a group about our abilities."

Izuku nodded his agreement.

"If the large guy will fight for you regularly, then I don't think we need any more close combat ability, especially as I could smuggle him almost anywhere," Atsuhiro mused. "But we do need more long range fighters, and-"

"Information," Izuku finished. "On Tartarus."

"So we are going with an attack?" Mr Compress was quick to draw a logical conclusion.

"I think so," Izuku said and just saying it was making things clear to him. "We could do this but I think realistically, we will be pushed off as a violent rebellion. And that means we have to take over government if we want changes, and then-" he shook his head. "There's always the chance that others will counter any revolution. So-" he breathed the word as he thought.

"We could take out the HPSC easily," Atsuhiro told him.

"We could," Izuku agreed. "And that would help but it doesn't show society the dangers of heroes and the government would just shift the HPSC's duties to another department, or make a new agency or something."

"True," the magician agreed.

"So I think to make meaningful changes, I am going to need guidance from my father and his experience," Izuku said. It sounded a bit like an admission of failure but he hoped that Atsuhiro would see that he was being realistic.

The man sat for a few moments and Izuku watched as he closed his eyes and looked up to the ceiling. "I take it the original plan was for Tomura to do the violent change, while you oversaw the social changes or suggestions?" he asked.

Izuku started. That had been the plan but how did Mr Compress know that? "How did you figure that out?" he demanded.

"Oh, just the way things felt," Mr Compress replied, not moving his position but lifting one hand to wave away his question. "I can't say as I'm disappointed in the change of plans," he added.

"But, I can't come up with a plan-" Izuku admitted as he gulped. He'd practically just said he couldn't change society without his dad's help.

At that, Atsuhiro moved, opening his eyes and shifting to look directly at Izuku. "Was Tomura going to survive to see the new society?" he asked pointedly.

"Yes," Izuku replied firmly. "I screwed up that plan when I killed him."

Mr Compress shook his head. "I sense there was more than one plan there," he allowed. "Does the guy who incites violence survive?" He asked a slightly different question.

"Ah-" Izuku murmured as he understood what Atsuhiro was saying. "Only sometimes," he gave the answer.

"Yeah, which is why I'm not completely unhappy with the desire to raid Tartarus," Mr Compress told him. "If you go back to being the social change, then I have a much better chance of seeing the new world," he explained.

"You would hav-"

Atsuhiro held up one hand to stop his objection. "You would have tried to keep us alive, I know. But Tomura wouldn't have."

"So why'd you follow him?" Izuku demanded.

"I don't know about the others but I would have gotten far enough," Atsuhiro said. "Now though-" he smiled.

"I want you all to see the new world," Izuku said flatly, using Mr Compress' terminology.

"And since I doubt your father will see you as expendable, given the effort he went to to start Dragon's reputation, I think we will," he agreed.

Izuku took a deep breath and nodded.

"Even if a Tartarus raid will be a bitch," Atsuhiro added after a moment.

At that, Izuku laughed. "Yeah but we just have to be smart about it."

"We do," Mr Compress agreed. "And kid, after seeing you yesterday, no matter how stiff I am today, I think we can do it."

"We are going to do it," Izuku corrected.

"We are going to do it," Atsuhiro agreed.

Izuku smiled, thankful that Atsuhiro agreed but he acknowledged there was a lot of work to be done first. He would have said something more but right then, the public door slammed open.

"Help me! Please!"

-ted-

There's a lot of talk about social change here, but I maintain that while that is what Izuku says he wants, what he actually wants is something different, but he hasn't yet realised it. However, what he wants is also a moving goal because Izuku is young and unsure. I know there are people who grow up knowing exactly what they want to do with their lives and they pursue that however, other people vacillate and aren't sure and fall into things that work for them without ever really being super firm on stuff. Or if they are firm on a desire, that desire can change. Izuku is a teenager, and so he's desires are changing, and will change. Some parts will remain the same, others will vary and time will tell when he realises that.

As for the last line... yeah that wasn't meant to happen with that character. :D

Discord is on this code: TcBnRN7aDn FFN will remove links but you should be able to figure that out. There's a heap of other authors there, so come along and chat to us all! Not just about MHA.

-ted-

Loved it? Hated it? Found a spelling mistake? Let me know please!