Quest for Fire
Unbeknownst to the Hero Students visiting I-Island at that very moment, Thomas Azure and his team were on the verge of a breakthrough. He had gathered together Stephanie Mulberry, who needs no introduction, Bertram Brown, a white wolf Faunus Irishman with a black leather jacket over a suit of Kevlar armor, and Henry Forrest, a tank of a man with brown hair and a brown beard that was trimmed short. He wore green armor that looked like it was made of wood and stone, and on his back, he carried a mighty, twin-bladed axe. "So, what we here for today?", Bertram asked, "I have papers to grade and some leads on the leak case to follow up on". "I know, Bertram, but this is more important", said Thomas, his even voice betraying a sense of zeal not seen since his bout with Gentle Criminal. "How is this more important?", asked Henry. "Why, the answer is simple, my dear Dr. Forrest", smiled Thomas, "We're about to fling the floodgates wide open, starting with the Number 2 Hero, Endeavor".
Thomas turned the lights off and turned on a projector, which showed the vile image of the Flame Hero. "I know we're all sick of hearing t, but, as you know, around the time of the Sports Festival, Midnight informed me, as a WHA agent, that one of her students was possibly being abused". "Is this when you tried to investigate personally?", asked Henry. "Yes, but the Grimm attack in Hosu distracted me", said Thomas, "After the incident with Gentle Criminal and La Brava, I realized that I was missing the bigger picture." He clicked his pointer, changing the photo to that of the HPSC headquarters. "Think about it, guys", said Thomas, "We've been keeping track of student assignments, looking for who leaked the identities of the Sports Festival contestants, looking for potential allies, and now, looking into a domestic violence case. All of which lead back to the reason we're here: the Hero Public Safety Commission."
"So you're saying that the HPSC is relevant in all of our ongoing problems", said Stephanie, "I thought we already knew that". "Yeah, but this is the missing piece of our macabre puzzle", said Thomas, "I realized this in the shower, actually. If the HPSC was willing to let one of their bureaucrats bribe one of the WHA's auditors, what other shit could they be hiding?" "A simple form of logic, but not one without a point", said Henry. "Here's the real kicker", smiled Thomas wickedly, "Endeavor is always going on and on about his son. Why doesn't his wife also join in the praise?" No one said a word, letting the question hang uncomfortably in the tense air. "The answer is obvious", said Thomas as he changed the photo again, this time of an old legal document, "Midnight informed me of Endeavor's use of a Quirk Marriage, something declared illegal in the nation of Japan for over forty years".
"Where did Midnight get this information from?", Bertram asked. "She told me that Shoto Todoroki told another student whose identity she insisted remain anonymous", said Thomas. "She fears that this student may be a target of reprisal", said Bertram. Thomas nodded. "So, what does HPSC have to do with this, again?", asked Stephanie. "I think they know what's going on", said Thomas, "Would be pretty bad if their All Might replacement was breaking the very law he's sworn to protect". "Yes, it would", said Bertram, "So, what's our next step?" "Endeavor himself is out", said Thomas, "His children would be in danger if we were to speak with them. Obviously, that leaves just one individual left"…
"His wife", said Stephanie. "Exactly", said Thomas as he pointed towards her. "Wait, wait, if his son is away at the moment, wouldn't he visit his wife in the asylum?", asked Bertram. "I'm glad you asked", said Thomas, "I had a distraction put in place just for such an emergency". "What distraction?", asked Henry. "Well, I can't take all of the credit", said Thomas, "Steph, tell them all about it". "Midnight, Vlad King, Hound Dog, and I drafted up a proposal to turn UA into a boarding school", said Stephanie, "Nezu is holding a parent-teacher conference now". "And Endeavor is one of the parents attending", said Bertram, "Pretty sly, you two". "Thank you, thank you, we'll be here all night", said Thomas, "That's a lie; we're heading out". "Finally", said Bertram as he got out of his chair, "Where are we going?" "To the one place Endeavor would never think to look for us", smirked Thomas.
Out in the auditorium, Nezu wiped his brow before taking to the stage to address the gathered parents. As he got in front of the podium, he was able to catch sight of Inko, Ishiro Yaoyorozu, Aoyama's parents, Ochako's parents, and, ugh, Endeavor. The Number 2 Hero was hard not to notice, considering most of him was on fire. This would probably be a long night. OK then. "Thank you for coming here tonight, ladies and gentlemen", smiled Nezu, "As I'm sure you're aware, I sent out an invitation to tonight's parent-teacher conference to discuss with you the possibility of UA becoming a boarding school".
Midnight observed the proceedings as she got a text from Stephanie that read: "Heading out. Keep flame face busy, please". That shouldn't be too hard. "So, if you all have any concerns, please voice them now", said Nezu. At that moment, Inko made her way to the microphone. "I have concerns about how the school is handling the safety of its students", Inko said firmly. Midnight took note of the clamor in the auditorium and silently thanked the Gods Aizawa wasn't invited to the meeting. Petty as it was, Midnight relished seeing Nezu nervously prepare to address these concerns over multiple villain attacks. It almost made up for having to keep 50% of the plan afloat.
Elsewhere, Team THBS was driving around in Thomas' van. The rainy Tokyo streets felt almost empty as the van veered to the right and passed by several storefronts. "So, where exactly are we going?", asked Bertram. "Look no further", smiled Thomas as the van came to a stop several blocks away from the Endeavor Agency building. "Steph, you're up", said Thomas. Stephanie pulled up her mask and disappeared in a puff of smoke. "This was you master plan?", asked Henry. "Wait for it", said Thomas slyly.
Just then, Stephanie reappeared in another puff of smoke. "Great job, now help me roll down the windows", said Thomas. "Yeah, the smoke is starting get into me eyes", said Bertram as he opened the windows. "Well, excuse me", said Stephanie, "It's not my fault my Quirk has an aftereffect". "Anyway, what are we looking at here?", asked Henry as the van began to start. "Way back when the Grimm attacked Hosu, I had the foresight to tail him to his Agency when the Internships were starting up", said Thomas, "I put a thumb drive in his mainframe database with some of the same spyware I used to purge Dr. Watts' virus from the Mantle systems. When we get to the safe zone, we'll know all of his dirty little secrets". "So would he just have his wife's location on file like that?", asked Henry. As Stephanie booted up her purple laptop and put the drive in, she smiled beneath her mask. "Yes", she said.
"This guy", snorted Bertram. "Well, you know what they say", said Thomas, "Sociopaths are like dragons and people are their gold. They hoard them close and out of sight". "And it doesn't get more out of sight than Fujitani Hospital", said Stephanie as Thomas made a left. "That certainly explains a lot", said Henry, "Do you think they'll allow visitors?" "I should hope so", said Thomas, "When we do get there, remember this. It's probable that she saw the news recently of what happened on I-Island, so we need to tread carefully".
"Agreed", said everyone. "What if she asks anyway?", asked Henry, "Fujitani Hospital is no Bedlam, you know. The patients probably know what's going on outside of it". "Then we do as Heroes do", said Bertram, "We assure her that her son is alright". "There's still the matter of Lady Nagant", said Stephanie, "Do you think she's connected somehow?" "Unlikely", said Thomas as the van stopped at a red light, "The only connecting thread is the HPSC. It's a dubious connection". "We'll circle back to Lady Nagant after this", said Bertram, "I don't think she's going anywhere".
Not going anywhere was also what Nezu was doing as he fielded questions from the concerned parents. "Not counting the recent incident at I-Island or the Sports Festival cyber attack, the school has been subject to four different incidents where the students were put in direct harm", said Inko, "I guess my question is how making UA a boarding school is going to diminish these encounters". "I would also like to add that you continue to employ one Shota Aizawa despite his involvement in a near-death of a student last year", said Endeavor, "From what little my son has spoken of the man, he's still up to his false expulsion tricks". Now, this was something Midnight wanted to hear as Nezu gripped the podium.
"As I have stated in the court proceedings, I would take responsibility for Aizawa's actions should he go too far", said Nezu. "And how far is too far?", asked Ganma Asui, a toad Faunus who was also Tsuyu's father, "If a student nearly dying isn't enough, then what is?" "He is on his final chance", stated Nezu calmly, "So far, aside from his lies, which I warned him about at the beginning of the year, he has followed my instructions to the letter". "What if he's hiding his misdeeds?", asked Mrs. Aoyama. "He would do well not to do such a thing", said Nezu, "Should I find out he did anything to put the students of UA in such danger as you suggest, he won't like the consequences".
"And as for the safety of our students", he continued, "I will take full responsibility should another incident occur." Midnight thought that sounded like some famous last words, but it calmed the parents down enough. "All in favor?", asked Nezu. The final tally of raised hands seemed to indicate the plan was ready to move forward, though Midnight couldn't help but think that her boss didn't do all that good a job of reassuring the concerned parents of his plan. All Might, for all his inexperience, could've pulled it off better, but now, Midnight was thinking of her daughter. She had nearly seen Momo die at the USJ, then again at I-Island. The path of heroism is fraught with danger, but at some point, the danger would become too much. Midnight had already seen it. Momo had been having nightmares since the end of her time in middle school, but after the Sports Festival and her encounter with Himiko, they had become intensified. Something had to be done about it.
Elsewhere, Team THBS had just arrived at Fujitani Hospital. "So, what's our plan to break in this time?", asked Stephanie. "Well, visiting hours end in about thirty minutes", said Thomas, "OK, get the costume trunk. I have an idea". Bertram almost shuddered as Henry pulled out the costume chest. "There's no way this will work", he muttered.
"I can't believe that shit actually worked", said Bertram as he and the others were lead down the hall. "You have about fifteen minutes", said the orderly as he opened the door, "You'll have to excuse Mrs. Todoroki. She's not used to being interviewed by the press". "I'm not worried about that", said Thomas, "I've had my fair share of shy interviewees. Just let my team and I handle this". With that, the false reporters entered the living quarters to find a kindly looking woman with white hair. No one spoke as the door closed behind them. "Mrs. Todoroki, my friends and I wish to ask you some questions", said Thomas. "I was told you were from a newspaper", said Rei, "Which publication do you serve?" "The World Heroes Association...Daily", said Thomas, though judging by how Rei's eyes widened, it was safe to say that she got the message.
"Is Shoto alright?", she asked softly. "Your son is safe, ma'am", said Henry, "He fought valiantly along with his friends and saved a great many lives". "That's good", said Rei, "I can't bear to see him hurt again. Not after…" Her mind seemed to wander into the dark memories of hated eyes and boiling water. "We're here to ask about your husband", said Stephanie, "A student has trusted us to help your son in anyway we can, but we need to know what he does behind closed doors".
"He wasn't always this way", said Rei in a hushed tone, beckoning Thomas to come closer, "Enji is blinded by his own ambition. There's no denying that, but his ambition only grew after what happened to our eldest son, Toya." "What happened to Toya?", asked Thomas. "He...expired", shuddered Rei, "He nearly burned down all of Sekoto Peak. Enji had considered him a failure, but he tried very hard to gain his respect. It is because of that that we have only a lowly piece of his jaw left. He started pushing Shoto to that very same brink from the moment he was born. I tried to help him. T...that's why I…" "Did he hurt you as well?", asked Henry. Rei took a few silent moments to breathe. "I won't say his hands didn't find me, for that would be untrue", she said, "Make whatever conclusions of that you wish". "One last thing", said Stephanie, "Did the HPSC ever know about this?" "They had to", said Rei, "I've sent exactly seven reports of his behavior".
"Thank you for your time, ma'am", said Thomas. As he reached for the door, Rei grabbed his wrist and pulled him in close. "When you do what you will, I ask of you this", she whispered, "In spite of the evil he has and will commit, I know that deep in his heart, he's still a good man. Promise me that you will save that good man when you destroy his foul greed and envy". "I'll do my absolute best", smiled Thomas, "You need not worry, Mrs. Todoroki". "Thank you", sighed Rei in relief, "From the depths of my withered heart, thank you".
Soon after, Team THBS arrived at UA, relatively safe despite the lingering paranoia that Endeavor might have found out about their plan. "So, what do you guys think?", asked Thomas. "I think the HPSC definitely knows", snarled Stephanie, "Seven reports and...nothing". "I agree", said Bertram, "We should look through their archives later tomorrow, in case they still have them on hand". "Wouldn't they be just as likely to destroy them?", asked Stephanie. "Physical papers, maybe", said Bertram, "But I bet me bottom dollar those reports in their computer database. They have to be".
"Speaking of databases, we still need to find the leak who blabbed to the school board about UA's plans for the Sports Festival", said Henry. "Yeah, that", said Thomas, "I'm beginning to think it might be a legitimate filing error. How else are we unable to find something this simple?" "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm parched", said Bertram, "Since I have a feeling we're going to be up all night, I think I'll have a small cup o' coffee". He opened the door into the teachers lounge, where Midnight was finishing up using the copier. "Hey guys", she said, "Don't mind me, I'm just finishing up with printing these worksheets".
"Take all the time you need", said Thomas, "We're almost finished with the Endeavor case. By the way, how did the parent-teacher conference go?" "It went fine enough", said Midnight, "Left us with a lot to think about. Either way, Cementoss is already starting the design and construction of the new dorms". "Did Endeavor say anything about the dorm system?", asked Stephanie. "No", said Midnight, "He seemed to be in support of the change. His only reservation was of UA's continued employment of Aizawa". "That's not a surprise", said Bertram as he wiped some coffee from his mouth. "Tell me about it", said Midnight, "One of the parents even suggested that he might be hiding worse transgressions". "How would you feel about that?", asked Henry. "The same as I felt when I testified to recommending him for a teaching position", sighed Midnight bitterly, "Disappointed in him, ashamed of myself. That's all there is to it. Anyway, I'm done now". She then pulled a card out of the copier.
"What's that?", asked Thomas. "Oh, this?", said Midnight as she held up the card, "This a key card for the faculty, for when we print out stuff like tests or rubrics. It helps keep a record of what we use the printers and copiers for." "We didn't get those", sighed Thomas. "Well, you are still teaching assistants", said Midnight, "I have to take care of this now. Have a good rest of the night, you guys". "Uh, yeah, same here", said Thomas as he took a seat. He took a deep breath and looked to the ceiling. "The ultimate solution to our riddle, and it was right under our noses", said Thomas. "Don't beat yourself up over it", said Henry, "We all expected something of a higher caliber of intellect". "The only question now is this", said Stephanie, "Is it who we think it is?" "Could be", said Thomas, "But I don't want to get an innocent into trouble with the law. We need to play this cool and that means taking our time and not jumping to conclusions. We need more hard evidence to remove any doubt in anyone's mind that the leak is, in fact, 100% guilty".
Unknown to everyone, Kurogiri and Dr. Merlot had arrived to the old bar, where Ojiro and Dabi were waiting. "Did you see that shit on the news?", asked a panicked Ojiro, "The ape thrashed your guys". "A heavy loss, but a necessary one", said Kurogiri, "While the Green Gorilla could power through the likes of Wolfram and Godzillo, I would be very hard pressed to see how he withstands the next phase". "What about Endeavor?", asked Dabi. "Patience, my son of suns", said Kurogiri, "We almost there. When the time comes, Endeavor will fall". "And when exactly is that time upon us?", asked Dabi, letting small, blue embers fly from his hands. "Soon", said Kurogiri, "We're in the endgame now. All we need is for the final puzzle pieces to fall into place. Then, we go to war"…
To Be Continued…