Well well, hello! Chapter 5 is here! After the chaos that was Chapter 4 with 3199, we have a calmer chapter today. So... Hope you enjoy! Oh, and also, there is a lot of changes from the Foundation we know... That you will see:

SPOILER ALERT: There is some spoilers from the last episodes of Season 7, and the manga. In that case, I would suggest to watch the rest of the season, or read the manga before reading this chapter.

But before that, reviews:

hdzalex084: Thank you!

Chapter 5: Decision

/

"Hello, I'm here for an appointment with Ms. Koiso Asaka.", Izuku said as he placed his hands on the marble counter at the reception desk.

The entrance hall of the building was surprisingly large, with shades of gray, white, and black made possible by the polished stones used to construct the space. A few plants were scattered here and there, along with wooden benches and some nature-themed pictures illuminated by pale ceiling lights. It wasn't unpleasant...

Though he couldn't shake the feeling of being watched by the two security guards near the door—two towering figures in black suits and ties, with bulletproof (or possibly stab-proof) vests visible underneath, their outlines giving them away, along with holstered pistols on their belts.

The receptionist was a caucasian woman in her thirties wearing a black and white blazer paired with a skirt that fell just below her knees, and had her brown hair neatly tied in a bun. Her pale blue eyes scrutinized him through round glasses, which she adjusted as she met his gaze.

Izuku could sense curiosity in her look, though he also felt as if he were being assessed. Regardless, he maintained eye contact.

"Under what name?", the woman asked in a voice that was gentle but also slightly cautious.

"Midoriya."

The woman lowered her gaze and began typing on her computer keyboard with the precision of a pianist. She paused, nodded slightly with a quiet 'mhm', then looked back up.

"Take the elevator at the back of the hall, first floor, second door on the left."

Izuku nodded in thanks and walked in the direction she had indicated.

He couldn't quite put his finger on what kind of place this was. From the outside, it looked like a completely ordinary office building, but the interior gave off a different vibe. There was something else about it that he couldn't quite grasp.

Pressing the call button, he leaned against the wall, waiting for a moment until the faint screech of the elevator reached him from behind the metal doors. They opened, and Izuku stepped inside, pressing the button for the first floor.

It was 11:43 AM, he was on time.

The elevator quickly arrived, and as soon as the doors opened, Izuku stepped out. Alright… second door on the left…

The door was imposing, made of oak, though it looked as if it hadn't been properly maintained in a while. He knocked, then entered.

The office he walked into was relatively bare. A half-filled bookshelf, a simple desk, a black swivel chair, a visitor's chair without wheels, a floor lamp in one corner, and a plant in another. The desk was covered with mountains of paperwork, immediately reminding Izuku of the workload at his job...

A pale-skinned woman with long black hair, wearing a black suit and skirt similar to the receptionist, lifted her sharp green eyes to him. A smile appeared on her face as she stood up from her chair.

"Ah, Mr. Midoriya, please have a seat."

As he approached, Izuku noticed the dark circles under her eyes and how she was forcing a smile despite her obvious fatigue. If the six empty coffee cups piled in a corner of the desk didn't betray her state, her appearance certainly did. As requested, Izuku sat in the chair, noting its less-than-optimal condition… Anyway...

Koiso sat back down with a groan of pain.

"Alright, let's discuss-" she began, but Izuku cut her off. Somewhat rudely, to his own regret.

"I'd first like to know how you got my phone number and my name."

The raven-haired woman looked surprised for a moment before letting out a sigh.

"I'll be honest with you, it's not just your name and phone number that we have..."

As Izuku widened his eyes, she opened a drawer and pulled out a file, handing it to him. His surprise only grew as he saw that the file had his name on it.

Cautiously, throwing a wary glance at the woman, who remained completely neutral behind her desk, Izuku opened the file.

…

File: Izuku Midoriya [Pending Classification]

Name: Midoriya

First Name: Izuku

Age: 20

Birthday: July 15

Gender: Male

Height: 176 cm / 5'7

Weight: 77 kg

Quirk: Quirkless

Blood Type: O

Status: Alive

Place of Birth: Daichi Sunpu Hospital, Shizuoka Prefecture

Family: -Mother: Inko Midoriya; -Father: Hisashi Midoriya; -Grandparents: Amane and Kochiyo Midoriya, Bokkai and Misoka Uemura

Occupation: Police Officer

Education: Aldera Elementary School; Shizuokaken Police Academy

Physical Description: Green eyes, green hair, medium build, distinguishing feature: light freckles.

…

The surprise was overwhelming, and Izuku shifted his gaze between the file and the woman sitting across from him, whose face remained neutral.

"As for your phone, it was found in the database of the police station where you work, as well as your residence… It's not in this file, it's in another I don't have... Nothing too complicated.", she explained.

Izuku opened and closed his mouth several times, like a fish out of water, before taking a deep breath to regain some control over his surprise. He fixed the woman with an extremely displeased look.

"I hope you're aware that what you're doing is a massive breach of personal data, and it's against the law."

Koiso leaned back in her chair, looking at him calmly.

"We operate both below and above the law, Mr. Midoriya."

Izuku froze.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. Now that this is out of the way, let's discuss-"

The door opened, causing Koiso to glance up while Izuku turned around. A man in his thirties, also dressed in a suit, with a thick black beard, neatly combed hair, and brown eyes, entered holding a sheet of paper. He froze upon seeing Izuku.

"Yes, Thomson?", Koiso asked.

The man snapped out of his daze, approaching while casting wary glances at Izuku, making the green-haired young man wonder what he had done to earn such suspicion.

"We've had another incident… Two guys from the Engineering and Technical Service Department.", Thomson said.

The woman sighed and massaged her temples with her fingers.

"Damn it… Poor souls... What happened?"

"You'll see it in the report.", the man replied, handing over the paper. Koiso took it, and the man turned on his heels. However, just before leaving, he turned his head and said.

"Honestly... Koiso... Do you think we can keep going like this for much longer?"

The woman remained silent.

"I don't know."

Izuku turned his head, his gaze shifting between the two. It wasn't until the man left and closed the door that he focused back on Koiso. After a few seconds of staring at the door, he noticed her reading the document.

"Deaths caused by the collapse of Corridor A-21 during emergency maintenance due to structural flaws that have appeared over the past months... Shit..."

Izuku stayed silent... before clearing his throat. The woman visibly jumped but quickly regained her composure, like she had forgotten he was even here in the first place. She placed the paper on a stack of documents in the corner of the table and turned her attention back to him.

"So... As I was saying... Let's talk about our proposal."

Izuku raised an eyebrow.

"Our?"

The woman nodded.

"Yes, ours. You caught our attention after taking part of the '3199-8 incident.'"

Izuku blinked twice. What incident? The raven-haired woman seemed to notice his confusion, reached into another drawer for a document, and handed it to him.

"It's normal that you don't remember... It's an effect of the amnestic gas deployed during the operation."

At this point, Izuku was utterly lost. Amnestic gas? Incident 3199-8? What was she even talking about? For a moment, he thought she was insane, but his eyes landed on the file she was handing him. He had a bad feeling... but he took it anyway and opened it.

He recognized the place, everything about it. But... he didn't recognize the mangled corpses or the frozen creatures inside...

A wave of nausea rose, but he suppressed it.

"Wh-What- What are these things? What are you?"

The woman sighed.

"You're not even supposed to see this, and I'm not supposed to show you that, but I'd rather not hide anything from you. This way, you'll know exactly what you're getting into before there's no turning back."

Izuku slammed the table, but Koiso didn't even flinch.

"Answer me. Stop beating around the bush. Are you criminals?"

"You're jumping to conclusions too quickly, Mr. Midoriya.", the raven-haired woman replied coldly, despite her evident fatigue. She pulled another document from the same drawer and slid it across the table.

Izuku glanced at it, and once again, surprise flashed across his features. The stamp of the current Minister of Defense was on it, along with the signature of the Shizuoka prefect.

"The entire operation was approved by the government. That too is something I'm not supposed to show you… Or even have access too…", Koiso stated before rummaging through the same drawer again and pulling out a remote control. She pressed a button, and a screen unfolded behind her. Another button activated an integrated projector.

The machine sputtered before humming to life. Izuku noticed Koiso grimace.

A symbol appeared on the screen: a circle bordered by three arrows pointing inward, with small rectangles protruding from the circle near the arrow tips. Below it were three letters: SCP.

Izuku tilted his head slightly, narrowing his eyes as the raven-haired woman began to speak.

"Let's start. We are the SCP Foundation, commonly referred to as the SCPF in our field. We are a global organization dedicated to securing, containing, and protecting any entity, object, or phenomenon that defies scientific explanation. We do this away from the public eye and in utmost secrecy, maintaining what we call the Veil, along with many others."

Izuku couldn't help but glance at the photos of the frozen creatures in the incident file. A shiver ran down his spine... He didn't remember these things, but he couldn't imagine the horror or terror he must have felt facing them as part of the entry team.

Now, he understood why Sadao had gouged out his own eyes and tongue.

"For over a thousand years, perhaps even longer, possibly at the start of humanity or even the creation of our planet, our organization has contained and studied the anomalous. The Foundation has faced and destroyed gods, demons, celestial beings, fought rogue AIs, halted calamities that could have wiped out humanity or obliterated this reality, secured and imprisoned ultimate predators, contained individuals capable of leveling cities with a snap of their fingers, and restrained objects with supernatural capabilities. We operate on Earth, in the seas, in space, even outside of this plane of reality..."

The woman paused, giving Izuku time to process. The green-haired boy was stunned. Truly stunned. All of this sounded unreal... so utterly unreal. But what was being presented to him felt far too real.

His eyes turned back to the raven-haired woman, who took it as a cue to continue.

"However, for nearly two centuries, our organization has been in significant decline..."

Her gaze seemed to fill with something, defeatism, perhaps?

"Since the emergence of Quirks in this world, a result of one of our failures, governments have had more than enough to deal with, almost forgetting the paranormal world. Thus, our finances are barely kept afloat by a few string-pullers, front companies, and other means. The increase in Quirk-bearing individuals has deprived us of potential recruits..."

"Can't you recruit people with quirks to help you?" Izuku interjected.

Koiso shook her head.

"Unfortunately, no. Only a rare few have them, mostly field operatives, with some exceptions in our facilities, which suffer from a lack of staff and maintenance. Quirks, even when neutralized by technology, can interact unpredictably with contained anomalies, and the risks are unacceptable.", the raven-haired woman explained before continuing, "Some of our rival organizations seek to destroy us or absorb us.", she suddenly slammed her hand on the table, startling Izuku,"But we hold the line."

Then, just as suddenly, she slumped back into her chair.

"We hold it... but we're barely hanging on. Think of us as a person on their deathbed, ravaged by disease, fighting with their last ounce of strength to gain even a single second more of life...", Koiso raised her hands to her temples, groaning as if suffering from a migraine, "But we're in tatters. Some of our facilities are crumbling, our personnel is dwindling, and intervention forces that were once as formidable as battalions, armed with the best technology in the world, have now been reduced to regiments equipped with aging, increasingly unreliable gear. Meanwhile, our enemies and rivals grow stronger..."

Izuku listened silently. His capacity for surprise had long since been surpassed. Now, all that remained was deep concentration and attentive listening.

Koiso looked at him intently.

"Let's not mince words; there's no point. The job we're asking you to take is to join us, to become part of our organization. Your skills would be invaluable to us. But know this: one wrong move could mean your death, in agonizing pain, or worse. Sometimes, death would seem merciful compared to what you might face."

Izuku weighed the proposal carefully. Did he really want to risk his life?

"What… will happen if I refuse?", he asked hesitantly.

The woman remained silent for a moment before answering.

"You will be administered amnestics and released without any memory of this encounter."

Izuku pressed his lips together. On one hand, he was curious; on the other, he was too afraid. His gaze dropped to the file in his hands. Those creatures… The hairs on the back of his neck stood up again.

"I… I'll think about it.", he finally replied.

Koiso closed her eyes, her expression unreadable, and nodded slowly.

"I understand. Come see me when you've made your decision. I won't keep you any longer."

Izuku gave a weak smile and stood up.

"I wish you a good day."

The raven-haired woman nodded.

"Good day, and good luck."

Izuku headed to the door in complete silence, not even glancing back. He took the elevator, went down to the ground floor, and exited, still watched by the receptionist and the two guards.

There was too much to process. Actually, even what had happened during the final war seemed completely ordinary to this organization. He would definitely need time to think before making any decisions.

Suddenly, his phone vibrated. Izuku took it out. Ah, Kane. He was letting him know the movie outing would be that evening. Alright. Izuku sent back a confirmation and decided to take a walk and enjoy the outdoors while he still could.

…

"Ah! Took you long enough!", exclaimed Kane as Izuku arrived, running and dressed in a simple gray sweater, blue jeans, and a red-and-yellow cap.

"Yeah, sorry, I had to change.", Izuku apologized, catching his breath.

Ina lightly elbowed Kane in the ribs.

"Stop teasing him. So, shall we go?"

The two men exchanged glances before nodding. Yep, they were ready to go.

…

"Damn it, Kane, don't ever do that again!", shouted Izuku, still struggling to calm his racing heart. Kane had thought it would be a brilliant idea to simulate a terrifying creature while Izuku had gone to the restroom. The result was near cardiac arrest when Izuku exited the stall into darkness and saw a bizarre, four-legged figure rushing at him, emitting a high-pitched, continuous scream like some devil from the deepest pits of hell.

Izuku had screamed even higher-pitched.

And Kane was still laughing, tears streaming down his face. Ina, half-complicit, was barely holding back her laughter by biting her lip.

The laughing fit lasted a solid five minutes before everyone managed to calm down. Kane wiped his tear-streaked face, still occasionally chuckling.

"Damn… On a more serious note, I'm surprised they're still releasing Alien movies. I thought the franchise was dead."

Ina shrugged.

"Apparently not… And yet, this is their 18th one."

"They're milking the license dry…", noted Izuku, "Though, for once, they're making changes. I liked how the xenomorph wasn't the ultimate predator this time."

"That's true.", said Kane, "The soldiers actually knew what they were doing for once."

Everyone agreed on that point.

"So… uh… what now?", Izuku asked.

The trio fell silent for a moment, exchanging glances, before Ina suggested, a smile appearing on her face.

"I know a nice little bar nearby. How about we go there?"

Kane and Izuku exchanged looks, then both shrugged.

"Sure, why not."

Ina grinned broadly and led them through streets and avenues for about ten minutes before stopping in front of an entirely ordinary-looking bar. She stopped with a big smile on her face.

"This bar used to belong to a friend of my dad's. His son runs it now. Best sake in the area, I guarantee it."

"Okay, now you've got my attention. Did you say sake?", Kane suddenly perked up, clearly interested. Izuku stayed quiet, looking at the sign with a faint smile. Yeah, why not? He could use a drink after all.

They entered, and a young man whose Quirk had caused growths on his elbows resembling large plates came to greet them.

"Ina! It's been a while! Who are the two with you?"

The young woman smiled.

"Hey, Taigo! Two colleagues. We're off duty today, so we decided to have a little family outing. Got room for us?"

The young man looked around and his eyes lit up.

"Of course! What'll it be?"

"You know me by now. Let them try the best.", Ina said, casting a glance at the others that did nothing to reassure Izuku.

"Alright! One bottle of house-made sake! Coming right up!", the young man announced, heading for the bar as Ina led them to a table. They settled in comfortably, waiting for the bottle as Ina whistled softly.

"Man, this brings back memories…", Kane said quietly, his gaze a little distant as he looked around.
Izuku chose not to ask, imagining what it reminded him of, but Ina didn't hold back.

"Oh yeah? You've been in bars like this before?"

Kane nodded slowly, and suddenly the jovial giant transformed into someone nostalgic and weighed down by bad memories.

"Yeah… Sometimes way too often…"

The table fell silent until Taigo returned with a bottle of sake. He set it down on the table, using one of his arm growths to open it, and poured the alcohol into small shot glasses.

Ina grabbed hers, looked at Kane and Izuku, and said,

"Alright, listen up. This sake is homemade. It's a long process, and the stock isn't huge. But here, it's tradition… to down the shot in one go!"

The white-haired woman knocked hers back in one go, slamming the glass down forcefully. Then she elbowed Kane.

"Come on, big guy, this'll lift your spirits.", she said with a wide grin.

Izuku picked up his glass and, as instructed, downed it in one go. The sensation of the alcohol burning slightly as it went down made him cough as he set the glass back down.

The green-haired boy thumped his chest a bit as Taigo watched him with an amused expression.

"First time?"

Izuku nodded, still coughing, and managed to speak between fits.

"No… but the first time… it's this strong…"

The young man laughed and gave him a hearty pat on the back.

"Oh yeah, I get it then!"

Kane grabbed the shot glass, encouraged, swirled the liquid inside, and downed it. His eyes widened.

"Wow! Damn! This is good stuff!"

Ina glanced at Taigo, and the two exchanged a knowing smile.

Taigo refilled the glasses for the redhead and the young woman.

"If you liked it, how about another round?", Ina asked, picking up her glass again.

Izuku knew exactly where this was headed, and while letting out a few final coughs, he settled back comfortably and watched with an amused smile.

Kane shifted his gaze from the glass to Ina and back to the glass before grabbing it, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Ohohoho, now we're talking buisness!", he exclaimed, downing the shot in one go.

The moment the glass was empty, it was immediately refilled, and so on.

Izuku started chuckling as he watched the two going hard. In the back of his mind, though, a question emerged...

Did he enjoy these moments?

Yes.

Did he cherish every moment spent with his mother or his friends?

Yes.

By the seventh shot, Ina was starting to mumble something incoherent, completely drunk, while Kane struggled to maintain his dignity.

The greenette watched them with a sigh, slightly amused. The less amusing part, however, was that he'd probably have to walk both of them home... on foot.

Seeing his concern, Taigo placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry, I can host them for the night."

Izuku looked up.

"Really? Are you sure? Ina and Kane can be pretty loud..."

The young bartender waved off the comment with a casual hand gesture.

"It's fine. I've dealt with worse."

Izuku preferred not to imagine.

"Well... thanks, then."

"No problem!", Taigo replied with a smile, "You're Ina's friend, after all."

At that moment, a loud noise caught their attention. They turned just in time to see Ina practically jump on Kane to kiss him on the lips. The redhead lost all composure, completely giving in.

Taigo stifled a laugh, chuckling quietly to himself.

"Well, I think that's enough for today.", he sighed before turning to the greenette, "If you want to leave, go ahead. I'll take care of them."

Izuku glanced out the window and noticed it was getting a bit late. He nodded and stood up.

"Yeah, I should probably get going. Thanks again."

"Like I said, no problem.", the bartender replied with a smile as Izuku left the bar, casting one last glance at his two friends who were still kissing while Taigo stood nearby, seemingly contemplating how to separate them.

The cool evening breeze brushed against his face, giving him a chance to think calmly. He had managed to distract himself for a while, but now, alone, the thoughts from the interview came rushing back with force.

As he reflected, other memories overlapped...

His mother, the moments he had just spent with his friends that he cherished so much... the conversations, the things he had learned and discovered, the things he loved to do...

Then, his memories reached further back.

Suddenly, he found himself thinking about everything the heroes had sacrificed during the final war. They had sacrificed their bodies, their lives in some cases, to defeat evil, and they had succeeded in protecting the world from destruction and the reign of terror that villain... All For One, had sought.

He remembered that video, All Might charging one last time in a powerful exosuit to face the symbol of terror, before being saved by the current Lemillion...

Everything that had been sacrificed... could not be in vain. Everything he had experienced, everything he had to accomplish, could not be in vain.

Should he join or not?

What if the world fell apart because he hadn't accepted?

What if something terrible happened because one single person was missing, someone the Foundation couldn't find?

And what if that one person was him?

Was it because he was afraid? Because he was too much of a coward to enter a world completely unknown to him?

Yes, he was afraid of that darkness. He was afraid of all the unknowns in the equation, of all that abnormality.

That abnormality for which nothing could prepare him...

But did he want that abnormality to destroy the world he lived in? Destroy the dreams of children, shatter families, friendships, and deep bonds? Destroy the society he knew? Did he want to see his mother die? Or his friends?

He groaned and kicked a trash can hard, startling a few passersby nearby.

The pain in his toes helped clear his swirling thoughts.

Did he want to simply die and let everything collapse? Or save the world in an even more dangerous way, in the shadows, with no guarantee of survival…?

His decision was made.

The was only one cure to a fear, and it was to face it.

He lowered his head, inhaling and exhaling deeply, before raising it again and turning toward the opposite direction, roughly visualizing the route he would need to take to get to the office as quickly as possible.

"Screw it. No time to overthink.", muttered the greenette before launching into a full sprint.

...

The receptionist clearly hadn't expected to see him again.

Izuku noticed that she could almost draw a gun to shoot him right between the eyes. That's exactly what nearly happened when nearly slammed the door open as he entered, startling the two guards. Their eyes had widened in surprise, their hands instinctively reaching for their holsters before stopping as they saw him heading directly toward the reception desk, breathing heavily, almost in hypoglycemia, after his intense sprint.

"It's... to... talk...", the young man began, clearing his dehydrated throat. Damn, his stomach hurt so much it felt like he might throw up at any moment.

The receptionist raised a hand to stop him.

"I've been informed. Ms. Koiso is expecting you; she's already been notified of your arrival."

Izuku's eyes widened in surprise before noticing the secretary's hand pressing a button on a keyboard beside her.

"I… thank… you...", Izuku stammered as he headed toward the elevator, almost staggering. Despite his legs' exhaustion, he forced himself to stand upright. He had pushed himself too far...

The elevator arrived, and Izuku pressed the button for the first floor. Leaning against the wall, he placed a hand over his chest, feeling his heart pounding as though it would burst from his ribcage.

When the elevator reached its destination, Izuku stepped out, straightened up, and made his way to the HR office door. After knocking, he entered.

"I'll admit, I thought your decision-making would take longer.", the raven-haired woman said, standing up with a smile. She looked even more tired than this morning, her dark circles more pronounced. In fact, two more coffee cups had joined the six already on her desk.

"I thought so too, but here I am.", Izuku replied.

"Take a seat, then. I hope you bring good news."

Izuku sat down, the chair creaking under him.

"I do... I accept."

Koiso let out a relieved sigh, slumping back in her chair as she rubbed her temples before yawning.

"Just out of curiosity, Mr. Midoriya, what made you decide to accept?", she asked, looking up at him with slightly watery eyes.

Izuku didn't hesitate for even a second before answering.

"I love this world too much to let it be destroyed by some kind of abomination. If I can help stop it, then I want to do so."

"A noble reason…", the raven-haired woman replied with a slow nod, though she knew the destruction had already begun... The entire Foundation was well aware. He would find out soon enough...

The woman opened a drawer beside her and pulled out a form and a pen.

"Start by signing this. Read carefully before you sign; don't do it blindly. Trust me..."

Izuku took the form and heeded her advice, reading it carefully before starting to sign.

"Brace yourself, Mr. Midoriya; there will be a lot of paperwork…", the woman warned him.

Mhm... So, as you could read... The Foundation is in a pretty bad state...Well... Not pretty bad... Let's say... Apocaliptically (yes new word I just came up with) bad.

The reason are exposed above, so I don't think we exactly need clarifications? If you have anything to ask tho, ask me in PMs or in the reviews, and I'll clarify it at the start of the next chapter. Until then, have a good time!