Death. Destruction. Calamity. Evil overtaking. What was once a thriving district is now a collapsed pile of rubble. With each day, criminals and villains gained more control over the streets, and the heroes meant to stopped them were stretched thin. This society was thought to be overflowing with heroes, but that was not the case. As peace dissipated and gave way for anarchy, and the public took out their fear and blame on their protectors, the heroes hung up their capes and resigned. They were not more than celebrities who acted for recognition and praise. This society was overflowing with fools that chased petty dreams. That is how it crumbled so quickly.
Those that remained had little to no glory or fame to earn, yet they still put their lives on the line. They were the true heroes of this society. A shame their numbers weren't half of what they used to be. As it stands, Japan is covered in dark clouds with no sun in sight. The only light in the sky to be found was one that belonged to neither side. An enemy of both. The vigilante that created the first cracks of this hero-saturated society. He flew through the skies at high speed, inspiring dread to everyone who saw him.
This figure clad in a black tattered cloak was known as the Green Devil. He perched upon an abandoned building that provided a decent view of the ruined city. Off in the distance was a massive scuffle with more buildings collapsing and plumes of dust rising. 'More rabble on a rampage, huh?' he thought as he jumped off the building, leaving his viridescent flames in his wake.
"THIS IS OUR TURF, PUNK!!" A massive red kaiju-like creature yelled with his green twin. They both had scaley exteriors and muscular physiques. "NOT ANYMORE, SHITHEADS!!" A four-armed giant yelled. Their titanic clash shook the entire area and kept ground bound heroes at bay. Fortunately, the civilians had been evacuated.
Closing in on the two was a lady dragon and her periwinkle student. "Citizens are evacuated! Now's your chance, Nejire-chan!" she told her ward. "Gotcha!" The long-haired girl held her hands out and aimed for the clashing titans. Her targets were the kaiju brothers, two birds with one stone. Golden streaks of energy spiraled around her wrists as she fired her attack. "50% Output: Nejire Wave!" A widespread wave of energy shot from her hands and directly at the scaley duo. Despite being just half of full power, the young heroine caused them to fall to their knees.
The four-armed giant realized he had more company. "Damn heroes!" he picked up a large chunk of fallen concrete and aimed at the dragon and energy quirk user. However, the two of them noticed something approaching behind his back. It was coming at blistering speeds. "TAKE THIS!" As Four Arms threw the huge projectile, the heroes were already out of the way, their attention split between him and the rapidly approaching figure.
Four Arms looked back to see a sight that made him lock up in fear. The Green Devil. The kaiju brothers raised their heads and stared like deers caught in headlights. The devil's emerald green wings instantly expanded in length, and two more grew from his lower back. He flew right past the giants, his wings carving through their bodies without a hint of effort or pity. Four arms was sliced in half and lost his lower left arm. The kaiju brothers were decapitated. Their mountainous bodies fell to the ground with loud thuds, blood covering the streets.
The four-armed one was still alive, but in immense pain. "Ah! My organs! Stay in there! Stay in your home! Daddy needs you!" he cried as he desperately clung to life. The dragoon hero and her student hovered above the bloodshed with horrified expressions on their faces. Ruthless, cold-blooded efficiency. The Green Devil shows no mercy. They looked behind them to see him with his normal-sized wings flying further away.
He looked over his shoulder. He only saw her briefly, but Izuku was sure the blue-haired one was a hero student given how young she looked. 'You must be kidding. They're so desperate that they're dragging students out to fill they're ranks?' he thought bitterly, but he couldn't deny she had an amazing power and knew how to use it.
Izuku's attention was taken by a group of cop cars patrolling the streets. He dove down and deactivated his quirk. He walked through the rain in a black cloak and combat boots. He came across a puddle and stared into it for a moment. A scarred, tired, stone-faced, white-haired boy stared back at him. As the rain fell on his head, it washed away the hair dye. Izuku covered his head with his cloak's hood. He kept his hair white to remind him of Rei, and keep away the memories of his family.
He walked in the direction of a shelter for the locals of this destroyed metropolitan area. He wasn't planning to attack anyone, just sit outside of it and take a quick breather. However, he heard something unsettling going on in the alley.
"You know, as a hero, I think I deserve compensation for escorting you here." A wearing a tight blue bodysuit said. His eyes were devouring a petite girl with short purple hair and aux cord ear lobes. Her ears shot up defensively, but the "hero" only chuckled. "I wouldn't do that if I were you, sweetheart. You attack me, you'll be labeled as a villain. How would your parents react to that?" The girl grit her teeth furiously. She was in a tough spot.
However, as the scumbag was about to touch her, he suddenly gasped and felt an unimaginable level of pain. The purple-haired girl reeled back at what she saw. The almost rapist was brutally pierced from the back and through to his stomach with a controlled fire blade covering the hand. The man vomited blood, and was tossed aside by the Green Devil. Kyoka looked in shock at her demonic savior.
He stood in front of her with his hand covered in blood and viscera, but was unbothered by it. His feet were alight with his quirk, and his eyes, and lower mouth were obstructed by his fire. He had a pair of large, glowing wings on his back, illuminating the dark alley. His hair was standing on end and seemed to be glowing green, matching the color and appearance of his quirk. Kyoka stood frozen in fear of the being before her. After what she had seen him do in front of her, she was essentially paralyzed. Through the flames, she could make out green pupils boring into her soul before they turned to the corpse.
"Take a good look," he spoke in a gravely, serious voice. "This is the side of heroes you don't see on TV." Kyoka listened to his words, although she didn't want to, they struck a cord in her. Her ears perked up as the sirens of police cars approached. The Green Devil raised his hand and pointed it at her. Kyoka could only tremble more violently, still unable to move or speak. The pupils she saw in the Green Devil disappeared, and were hidden behind a pure white veil.
"Nothing is black and white in this society." he said before hitting her with a strong blast of green fire. She was knocked down to the ground and let out a terrified shriek. However, she didn't burn, nor was she overcome with fear or dread. The flames were warm and harmless. They lingered around her like a blanket, and she still couldn't make her legs move from the filthy alley.
'Nothing is black and white...' she remembered his words. She looked at the corpse of the scumbag that nearly assaulted her, and the flames of the menace that saved her. The police found her and escorted her to the shelter without a hitch. She wouldn't forget her encounter with the Green Devil. Once she had recovered from the shock, the police were shocked to hear from her what happened.
Meanwhile, Izuku was back in the sky, searching for any villain's throat he could get his flaming hands around. This had become the norm for him. Fly around, hope to get ambushed by a hero or villain that could be useful to him. The villains would be murdered, the heroes horrifically injured. In very rare cases, saving people, whatever remained of his soul would come out at these times. But he still had the blood of countless on his hands. But he couldn't let himself be weighed down by guilt. He still had a mission to complete.
...
The scale of destruction was beyond words. No words could describe it. All Might, Teleki, Tsukauchi, Izumi and Bakugo were looking at something straight out of a nightmare. There were dead bodies strewn across the ground, utterly decimated. There lied broken, cremated corpses, the stench of death filling the air as the rain attempted to wash away the blood. They knew who did this, the green embers made it obvious. But the truly horrifying part? Amongst the pile of mutilated villains were also heroes and police.
A large squad of villains was rioting, and the remaining heroes were attempting to get them under control. But then, as they sent a signal for back up, He appeared. Tsukauchi was haunted by the screams and final breaths of his comrades over the radio before everything went static. Izumi and Bakugo were itching to get a taste of hero work, and joined All Might and Teleki as their unofficial sidekicks. It was also a two-day late birthday gift to Izumi. A gift wrapped in blood, destruction and death they were useless to prevent. Their first time being heroes, and all they felt was helpless weakness.
"Ah...! Ah...!" The faint gasps alerted the five to the sole survivor of this carnage. A man with destroyed armor, jetpack and blaster. The Buster Hero: Airjet, and he was in serious condition. All Might picked him up out of the rubble he was buried under. "Don't worry, it's going to be oka-" All Might stopped when he felt something warm spilling on his hand. He saw a great deal of blood. The kids and Teleki were horrified.
"It... happened so fast..." Airjet weakly said. "He... even when... all of us targeted him... we couldn't touch him... His moves were... so precise... so devastating... he's a monster..." Tsukauchi told him to stop talking and save his energy, but Airjet persisted. "Something changed in him... there's no... reasoning with him anymore... He's merciless..." He finally passed out.
"Dammit..." Katsuki growled while clenching his fists and willing his body to stop shaking. He and Izumi were going to take this guy down. They can't be afraid of him. Still, the dread that crept up on them persisted. "He'll pay. We'll make him pay." Izumi repeated, desperately trying to fool herself. The thing that kept her going was a foreign feeling. Something deep inside is urging her to find the devil. Inko stared up at the sky as if searching for a reason to hope. All she found was cold darkness.
The Symbol of Peace placed his hand on his wound and grit his teeth. 'What a heartless monster! How could anyone be so callous!? I'll find him and end this nightmare once and for all, no matter the cost! No one else will suffer! We'll show this devil that we are still here!'
Tsukauchi had a very different opinion on the matter than his friend. He was the one burdened with the knowledge of who the Green Devil is and what drove him to be the monster he is now. He wanted so desperately to scream it in their faces that this is the result of Toshinori and his family's mistreatment of a once gold-hearted boy. The pent up frustration, heartache and stress caused him to be the only one who shed tears that day. 'Something changed in him... Izuku... what happened to you?'
Two Days Earlier
Izuku's 15th Birthday
Things had started to look up for the Psycho Flames user, as much as they could, anyway. He got word of All For One's possible hiding place. With nothing to lose, he followed the tip. It lead him to an abandoned warehouse. And to no one's surprise, it was full of his target's villainous pawns, including ten nomu. It was 50 to 1, and he stood drenched in blood and breathing heavily. Not a single ounce of useful information from those puppets, it infuriated him.
"Izuku Yagi!"
Izuku froze and whipped around behind him. At the back of the warehouse, on the wall above several cremated, mangled, dismembered corpses was a TV with audio only. Izuku recognized the voice from the phone call he eavesdropped on, and they knew his real name. There's no doubt about it. He is the mastermind. Izuku approached the monitor, walking across the sticky, red substance that covered the floor. "All For One...!"
"Yet another impressive showing, my boy. Yet, all such a waste of effort. Why do you hunt me? Seeking atonement? Revenge for your grandmother? You can tell yourself that, but you are far from the noble hero you once envisioned yourself to be one day. This society that threw you away, you desire its destruction. You're a clever boy, you understand that to build something truly better means tearing down what came before, but not everyone can accept this truth. That is why you were buried."
Izuku clenched his fists. This was clearly an attempt to get him to join All For One. Although he wouldn't allow himself to fall for the Demon Lord's words, he couldn't deny that he made some compelling points. More than anything, he did want this world to change, if only he could live long enough to see it through.
"Before you get the urge destroy this place in its entirety, ask yourself, what happens after you achieve your goal of destroying us both? What are the odds someone finds your little journal? We may go down in history, but your family is clearly keeping your story hidden from the world, as will the heroes. How many others down the road will commit the same atrocities you've witnessed in your life? Despite everything you've done so far people like Bakugo and Yagi are still uplifted, and no one knows the suffering you've had to endure. Not even your parents."
"...Izuku Yagi is dead." The Green Devil said quietly. All For One smiled wickedly, though it couldn't be seen.
"Let me tell you a story, one about a person society attempted to erase from history as it will you. Long ago, when humanity was in shambles due to the rise of quirks, there was one man with the power of a god. He could take and give quirks. He used his gift to bring peace and unity to Japan, and planned to do the same to the world. However, his brilliant vision was thwarted by self-righteous imbeciles that called themselves heroes. A terrible war against the divine leader and his enemies broke out, it waged for over a hundred years, to this day."
"For so long, it was an era of impenetrable darkness, the faint light of hope only to be swiftly snuffed out drove the people further into unease. The conflicts between the opposing forces ruined countless livelihoods. There was no sure safety for anyone. A time defined by suspicion, resentment, intolerance and as you've no doubt seen, barbaric conflicts."
The devil felt his heart beginning to beat harder the more he listened. "Where are you going with this!?" he demanded to know, despite dreading the answer.
"There was only one power in existence that could stand up to the dark god, one cultivated for generations, and I'm positive you know what it is. One For All. And now that power is in the incompetent hands of your dear sister. Are you starting to understand?"
"This world is a far cry from the one you endured just a year ago. No heroes to save you. And this time, the era of darkness will not be overcome. You have massacred a good deal of my forces, yet the heroes still hunt you. For what, enacting justice the justice they preach? You have a choice, continue to destroy yourself and others only to end up a forgotten martyr, or make the smart choice."
"This isn't your world anymore either." The devil growled.
"And yet, its course has been so easy to predict. Ask yourself, isn't it odd that I haven't come for you myself? You're an annoyance, yes, but not worth getting up and eviscerating myself. I still have many friends to do it for me, including Kurogiri, who can have you brought to my doorstep in an instant. The truth, my boy, is that you've only diminished a fraction of my power, and I am still in control of this game. How does it feel to know that, through all your efforts, you're ultimately powerless to reach your monumental goal. Perhaps Izuku Yagi is still breathing after all. Or should I say..."
"Deku."
BOOOM!*
The monitor in the warehouse exploded suddenly, consuming the interior in a fiery shockwave. Izuku stood motionless and whethered the blast. When it subsided, the corpses of those he murdered were mostly reduced to ash, and the "skeleton" of the warehouse was all that remained. He was barely scratched by the blast, but his psyche suffered a critical blow.
The ringing of the explosion looped in his head. He was far too familiar with it. All the horrible memories he's tried to buried came back with vengeance. The devil clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug into his palms and made them blead. 'I will have your head!'
Elsewhere
All For One was smiling widely to himself. 'It's almost too easy to manipulate broken hearts. Now he will double down on his pointless efforts to find and destroy me. The more active he is, the more the heroes will attempt to stop him, which means more hopeless battles the public has to watch. The ocean of despair will continue to rise, and these false heroes will fall with no hope of getting back up.'
'Whether or not he comes to his senses or he succumbs to exhaustion, I doubt the heroes will execute him, at least not before learning his true identity. The whole in Toshinori's stomach will be the least of his worries!'
...
From bad to worse. "I strongly advise you to get further away." Endeavor said to Mr and Mrs Yaoyorozu. "With all due respect, Endeavor, I have every intention of seeing this. My daughter was kidnapped and is being held for ransom by my former employees, so I'll see this through." Mr Yaoyorozu felt immense guilt for what had happened to his daughter, the thought of being responsible for her situation tormented him.
His wife placed her hand on his shoulder. "Please bring our Momo back to us." Endeavor nodded. "We will, you have my word." With that, the flame hero left to join his team. In a clearing in the middle of the forest they were in was a small mansion where the former Yaoyorozu employees had called. They demanded an absurd amount of money and partial ownership of the company in exchange for the daughter. If not, they would never see her again. 'They'll die if they lay a finger on the girl!' Endeavor thought.
The man empathized with Mr Yaoyorozu's plight, though their situations were entirely different. They both felt responsible for their children's suffering, so he resolved to make this right. It was also an attempt to quell his own guilt and shame. He, along with Hawks and Ingenium, planned to neutralize the kidnappers before they could further harm the girl. However...
When Endeavor came to the mansion, it was suddenly on fire. The flames overtook the building almost instantly, roaring with the ferocity of an inferno. Mr and Mrs Yaoyorozu saw it from the distance with horrified looks. The flames were green, filling everyone with greater fear.
BOOOOOM!!*
The mansion exploded in a massive burst of flames with no hope of survivors. "MY BABYYYY!!" Mrs Yaoyorozu cried in anguish.
Moments Prior
"Gurgh!" A man released a blood-curdling grunt as he was brutally pierced by a green fire blade. 'That makes twenty.' the Green Devil thought as he massacred every person he came across with unrestrained cruelty. He was more driven than ever to cull the scum of Japan after All For One's words got to him. Any heroes who faced him, he doesn't always intend to kill, but he will if necessary. He kept his power on a small scale, not opting for a full blown display unless truly threatened.
He came across a hallway where two men were talking. "Grr! This is just fucking perfect perfect!" one of them yelled in frustration. "What is it?" the other one asked. "The Yaoyorozu girl escaped! Not only that, she's fighting her way out!" the other one looked surprised at that. "Are you serious? I thought she was just a spoiled girl?" "Clearly not! On top of that, most of the others aren't responding! Let's go stop her before she ruins everything!" They left, but Izuku stayed frozen at the mention of one word.
'Yaoyorozu...' He remembered, how could he forget? The only person that helped him with his demons from Aldera. The person who let him vent about his painful life. The kind soul he snapped at for trying to help him. For the first time in months, his heart felt a sliver of warmth, before going ice cold. The men he had murdered were kidnappers. His mind was filled with thoughts of Yaoyorozu being tied up, taken, the fear running through her. In that moment, he resolved to do one thing. 'I'll kill them all.'
Momo was forced to fight her way through the criminal compound, armed with a bo staff and shield she created with her quirk. Thanks to the training she received from her instructors, she was capable of holding her own against the men, having knocked out a dozen single-handedly. Despite being vastly outnumbered, the difference in skill allowed her to push through.
Still, Momo had suffered a few blows, but nothing too serious. Sweat drenched her forehead and she was quickly losing stamina, having nothing to eat for the past 24 hours was taking its toll. She's just thankful she sprung into action before her kidnappers got any twisted ideas. "You bitch!" a voice yelled from behind her. Momo crouched just before a metal bat could strike her, and followed up with a sweeping kick. The man fell on his back with a thud.
"Gotcha!" Another from her blindside lunged at her. Momo rolled out of his way, positioned herself behind him and delivered a strong kick to his back, making him crash on his comrade. Momo was panting and clutched her bo staff and shield, her legs were about to give out and she could feel the oppressive hand of exhaustion about to take its hold on her.
Suddenly, an explosion occured from above her, and the floor she was standing on gave way. She fell to the bottom floor and landed on her back painfully. She tried to pull herself up, using her staff to help her stand, but when she opened her eyes, she fell down all over again. In front of her was a living viridian fire, that she had been told was one of the worst encounters she could ever come to. "G-Green Devil..." she whispered.
Behind the fire, Izuku's eyes were carefully analyzing her. He could tell she was exhausted, her thermal energy made it clear she was terrified of him. Her clothes were torn in places, but nowhere to sully her dignity. Her hair was loose with locks sticking out, and she had multiple scrapes, bruises and cuts. Still, she pushed through all of that and attempted to stand up, though she only rose to one knee. 'Brave, determined and skilled, not to mention, persistent and kind to even those who don't deserve it.'
Momo opened her mouth to speak. "A-Are you part of this?" she asked, referring to the kidnappers. Izuku stared at her vacantly as the flames surrounding him began to fade. "Momo Yaoyorozu..." he spoke, shocking Momo that he knew her full name. "Tell me..." He revealed his left hand dripping with blood and blood splattered all over his black cloak. Under his feet were the dead bodies of the last two that tried to attack her.
"Do I look like the kind of person who would have friends?" he asked coldly.
Momo paled and was shaken to her core. 'H-He... he's completely out of my league. What do I do? What can I do? Even if I were healthy, he's defeated so many heroes.' As Momo was having her mind overwhelmed by her seemingly hopeless situation, Izuku had moved to be right beside her. He aimed to chop the nape of her neck, but she rolled away, and quickly created a shuriken in her palm. She threw the sharp, bladed disk, but the Green Devil tilted his head to avoid the attack. Mostly.
The small weapon cut through the fiery cowl and cut him just under his left eye. Izuku exclaimed from the pain and covered the wound with his hand. 'Sharp objects cut through his fire! That's good to know. I'll make a sword and-'
Fwoosh!*
Momo's thoughts were interrupted by a wave of green fire hitting her at point blank range. The force of the attack sent her tumbling a few feet away from the devil, and she stopped with a groan. However, she noticed that she wasn't burned or chilled, it was a warmth that brought her the closest thing to comfort as possible in this situation. It left her perplexed, which left her open to another strike.
He chopped the nape of her neck and she was out like a light. He stared at her unconscious form with emotions he hadn't felt in months. Sympathy, guilt, protectiveness. "I'm sorry." He wished he could say that to her conscious face.
His time with her was interrupted when he sensed a strong heat signature approaching. 'Endeavor...! And others. I'd rather not.' He raised his fist, and quickly opened his fingers. That simple action alone caused every fire in the mansion to burst, creating a massive explosion, though it didn't touch him or the girl in his arms.
Present
"Endeavor!" Hawks yelled as he pointed out a green streak in the sky. He and the flame hero immediately pursued in the sky while Ingenium followed on the ground. "He's heading straight for the Yaoyorozu's! Hawks, use your feathers!" Endeavor shouted. "I can't! He's surrounded his body in flames. My feathers would be incinerated before they touch him!" The two them grit their teeth as they chased the murderer.
Meanwhile, Mr and Mrs Yaoyorozu were having the worst day of their lives, believing their only child was blown to kingdom come. The travesty made them collapse to their knees and cry. They couldn't mourn for long as the monster responsible for the explosion landed right in front of the distraught couple. Mr Yaoyorozu held his crying wife tightly as the demon slowly approached them. He stood directly above them, the crackle of his fire haunting them to no end. They clenched their eyes shut and braced themselves for what was coming.
"I believe this belongs to you."
The Yaoyorozu's peeked their eyes open to see the devil placing down a large, warm fire that broke away, revealing their daughter. She stirred awake, and the first thing her blurry eyes saw was her parents. The immediately lifted their child and embraced her in a hug. "M-Mother...? Father...?" Momo asked, struggling to believe this was reality. Her parents were holding her tightly and protectively, crying tears of joy that she is safe. It made tears of her own build up in her eyes.
"My poor baby, we were so worried about you!" Mrs Yaoyorozu said frantically. "Momo, I am so sorry for what you had to go through! It was my mistakes that caused you to end up in that awful place. I apologize, my child." Mr Yaoyorozu said sincerely. Momo hugged them back. "It wasn't your fault, Father..." she said weakly.
Izuku was watching their family reunion as he'd seemed to be forgotten. But for once, he was fine with that. Seeing parents not only caring about their child, but also taking the blame for their suffering. The flames emanating from Izuku's body weakened slightly, his eyes could be seen within the flames. They shined with a light that was vacant for far too long. He was having a moment of humanity. Sadly, all good things come to an end.
In the blink of an eye, Izuku found himself surrounded by red feathers on all angles. 'Hawks...' he thought sadly. He hated that they had to reunite like this, but it couldn't be helped. Endeavor, Ingenium and the Wing Hero flanked him while keeping the Yaoyorozu's safe. "It ends here, demon." Endeavor proclaimed. Izuku had one option, one that made him sick to his stomach.
"Ack!" Momo gasped suddenly. Everyone's eyes turned to her except the Green Devil. He was faced away from her with his palm pointed in her direction. Around Momo's neck was a circle of green fire. Everybody's hearts skipped a beat when they realized what game he was playing. Hawks and Momo were the most pale. "You wouldn't!" Hawks yelled, though it sounded more like pleading than demanding. 'Last time was a despair-ridden breakdown, but you wouldn't willingly destroy a happy family! Izuku, please don't do this!'
What Hawks didn't know is that he was right. Despite the world's best efforts to crush it, Izuku still had a soul in him. He especially wouldn't kill Momo, but they didn't know that for certain. Izuku curled his fingers, and Momo felt her windpipe being crushed. The poor girl desperately gasped for air and clawed at the flaming ring around her throat, but it was useless. Tears built up in her eyes as her vision began to darken again.
"Stop!" Hawks yelled, sounding desperate. "Just... just stop." He called back his feathers to his wings and dropped to the ground, holding his hands up. Endeavor extinguished the flames in his hands and held them up non-threateningly. Ingenium held up his hands as well. The pros surrendered. Izuku opened up his fingers, allowing Momo to take a breath. The girl went into a coughing fit, tears streaming down her cheeks as her parents held her. She wasn't out of danger yet, however, the fire ring around her throat still remained.
The Green Devil turned his back to everyone and walked away, forming wings on his back. Hawks, once flattered by the mimicry, just had insult added to injury. Before he flew off, someone called out to him.
"Y-You...!" Izuku froze in his tracks, and everyone's attention had returned to Momo. "W-What happened to you...? You can't have been born like this... You're not completely heartless... S-So why...? Why are you like this...?" Everyone was shocked Momo, in her weak condition, had the courage to ask the Green Devil that. Slowly, the devil turned his head to look at her over his shoulder.
Everyone tensed up, wondering what he would do next. But he did nothing to them. He let the flames around his left eye disappear, and revealed the cut Momo inflicted on him. It looked like a tear of blood running down his cheek. It distracted from the actual tears building in the corner of his eye. Momo and Hawks saw it though, and for just an instant, they saw an incredibly sad kid.
Finally, Izuku flew off into the sky at high speed. The pros knew not to pursue him until the ring around Momo's neck disappeared, which it did after a few minutes. But by that point, he could be miles away in any direction. Momo's parents embraced her more protectively than ever, but their voices were drowned by her own thoughts. 'Those eyes... those horrible, pain-filled green eyes...' she thought to herself. She'd seen eyes like that before.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a gentle fist to her forehead. It came from Hawks, who was crouched and smiling at her. "You got some real guts, rich kid. I don't know a lot of heroes who would mouth off to the devil like you just did." Momo blushed slightly at the praise, and bowed her head. "T-Thank you, sir..."
Endeavor saw the look the two of them had in their eyes. He crossed his arms over his broad chest and huffed. 'Naive kids...'
...
This scene had become far too familiar for Izuku. Being surrounded by fire and corpses, covered in blood. This time, it was over a hundred bodies littered across the inside and outside of a small mansion. The burning, collapsing structure of the Creature Rejection Clan. He stumbled upon them while looking for a place to rest. But then they started spewing nonsense about him joining their cause to "purge the mutant scum that plague this country". Izuku thought about Tsu and her siblings, and let's just say he got pissed.
Luckily, he got to the kitchen before it burned down. He found a turkey leg, cooked it himself and sat and ate with dead bodies surrounding him. "You..." a breathless voice uttered, but Izuku didn't flinch. He turned his head and saw the last living member of this prejudiced clan, her robe covered in blood and skull mask cracked. Her near motionless body was splayed on a coffee table. Izuku finished his meal and slowly approached her. He didn't have his quirk covering him, revealing his cold, emotionless eyes.
"You're not... a heteromorph..." she said between her dying gasps. "You're something... far uglier..." The Green Devil lifted his foot and pressed it upon her wounded stomach, causing her to vomit more blood through her mask. "You're right." he spoke before stomping so hard that his foot went through her stomach and crushed the table beneath her. He pulled out his foot, his boot dyed an obscene red with small chunks of human innards stuck to it. But he felt nothing. The turkey's effects were taking action, and Izuku felt more drowsy than ever. He allowed himself to fall asleep in a burning mansion with corpses.
Izuku didn't know how long he slept, how many hours had passed. The dark clouds made telling time difficult. But it had to have been a while, he found himself waking up in a pile of ash and cremated bodies. Still, his heart didn't beat for them. 'I should get cleaned up.' he thought as he walked toward the forest. He found a tree brancg and hung his black cloak there. The front just below the collarbone was torn off, making it more of a cape. He left it to hang in the rain to wash away the blood. Izuku walked through the rain and found a lake nearby.
He stared into its reflection, and saw a powerful, but broken soul covered in blood and looking as dead as a living person can be. The foreign blood that dripped from his hair landed in the reflection, washing away the image of that broken soul. Izuku let himself fall into the lake, the blood covering him not easily coming off. He didn't make the effort to wash it all off, he knew he couldn't.
...
The first flakes of snow fell down on the empty streets of Musutafu. Countless lives, both good and bad, have been lost in the destructive warring, an inevitable aspect of superhuman society. Now the once lively streets, were dead quiet, devoid of life. Except for one trudging through the cold, keeping himself warm with the coat of his unique quirk. The one who could be viewed as responsible for society being flipped upside down. The soul who has taken more than most villains. The Green Devil.
He dropped to his knees, clutching his chest and struggling to breathe. His flames weakened significantly. "All For..." he said to himself weakly. All of a sudden, he felt something. Something sharp had cut through the flames on his back. Izuku raised his free hand. He caught the projectile between his fingers mere inches before it lodged itself between his eyes. It was a red feather. 'Hawks...' he thought, immediately knowing what this was.
The emerald demon's senses must have been dulled due to the lack of proper rest and immense stress and guilt. He didn't notice the high number of body heat signatures until he saw them with his own eyes. Whatever remained of hero society was in front of him, all suited up and with their eyes fixed on him. At the forefront of this crew was the Wing Hero himself.
"Hey buddy, remember me?" Hawks asked with his trademark nonchalant smile. The Green Devil incinerated the feather caught between his fingers. "Good to see you, too." "Leave." The devil growled. Hawks' smile disappeared. "Yeah, we can't do that." Izuku picked himself up to stand, albeit with difficulty. "Get lost." he growled. Hawks held his ground. "Please, don't make this harder than-" "Did you not hear me...!?" Izuku cut him off.
Green flames grew to cover his feet, hands, chest and face, with large wings sprouting from his back. He got in a battle stance, his fire roaring and setting the ground around him ablaze. "All of you, get out of my way!" he shouted, his voice hoarse, raspy and gruff. His eyes were ablaze in an horrible glare, rife with anger, hatred, animosity and hostility.
Hawks had a glint of sadness in his eyes as he adjusted his glasses. "So be it." he pulled two large, thin feather blades from his wings. "We'll have to do this the hard way."