Boku no Hero Academia: Custodian Izuku
Disclaimer: This is a crossover fanfiction story of 'Boku no Hero Academia' and 'Warhammer 40k' (yes, really). I own nothing of the two series other than the fanfiction stories that I make.
I am making this story for the sake of fun, fluff and awesome after writing a one-shot story of the same story concept. If I am able to somehow impress fans of Warhammer 40k or even move someone to tears, even better.
Also, if anyone wants to know how in the world I got this idea in the first place, please refer to the artist, Ryuusei (Mark II), who has made some awesome pictures of gender-bent primarchs. The link is: .us/pools/17320
Please note that while I am familiar with the Warhammer 40k setting, my actual knowledge of it is casual at best. Also, if the genderbent primarchs seem at least a bit OOC, please kindly consider the fact that their bodies (especially the traitor primarchs) have changed drastically after entering Izuku's world.
In case anyone asks how much crack I was taking in to come up with the idea, I am just going to say enough to make even a loyalist Adaptus Astartes trippy.
Chapter 21: Revelation
A short while after the shard of the Emperor's soul had stepped out of the Bloodline Chapel, a meeting was held in an open field that was some distance away from curious eyes. For reasons that the Emperor had yet to explain, the souls of the loyalist space marines brought the corpses of the members of the League of Chaos Undivided with them to the meeting place. Nedzu, who had been expecting the Emperor to appear at some point, had been waiting at the field when the Emperor arrived and spoke to him with a respectful bow, "It is an honour to finally meet you, Emperor of Mankind."
The Emperor nodded in return and said, "You have my deepest gratitude for your willingness to help my former sons, Principal Nedzu."
Best Jeanist, whose real name was Hakamada Tsunagu, raised an eyebrow and asked, "Former sons?"
Hizashi explained, "Long story short, the girls from Class V who have been living at U.A. High School since last year, as well as their sisters including one of the leaders of the League of Chaos Undivided, were once men in their past lives."
Wash, whose real name was Mitari Susugu, was so surprised by the revelation that he broke character and asked, "Seriously?"
The Emperor smirked and said, "It's a massive understatement but he's not wrong."
Jin, who had been protecting a clothes shop at certain shopping mall with Kenji (a.k.a. Magne) during the conflict, said, "That's putting it lightly." He then added, "As light as a ton of frakking lead!"
Kenji, who was glad that Jin was present to help her protect her friend and the rest of Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall from a sudden incursion of Vermin Spawn, turned her attention towards Magnus and asked, "How did you know that Rondo-chan's shop will be attacked?"
"Let's just say some of my sisters can predict possible future outcomes. Besides, one does not have to be an evil genius to consider the idea of attacking people who are on friendly terms with an enemy to cause grief," answered Magnus.
Kenji hummed as she thought back on the Vermin Spawn and how they seemed to target Rondo and her shop in particular. Had Jin not helped in the defence of the shop by creating a copy of Magnus and Fulgrim, the shop would have been destroyed for certain even if Rondo had somehow managed to escape. That was not to say that Rondo was completely defenceless but, without actual combat experience and suitable equipment, a strong muscular body usually meant little against a horde of savage rat-men with tainted crystalline daggers. The transgender villainess only needed a brief moment to think about the attack and how Rondo was on good terms with the girls from Class V before she nodded in acceptance of Magnus' explanation and replied, "Fair point."
On a side note, the Vermin Spawn had attacked other people as well but, thanks to Kenji and Jin's efforts, the casualties had been kept to a minimum.
Kaina raised an eyebrow as she looked at Jin and Kenji and asked, "Those two are villains, right?"
Aware of Kaina's lack of exposure to recent news due to being in prison for years, Mera nodded with a tired sigh and said, "Yes. Like you, they've been roped into helping us stop the League of Chaos Undivided."
Madam President rubbed the bridge of her nose and grumbled, "They're not the only ones either, which means that we have just that much more paperwork to deal with, never mind everything else that we will have to deal with after today."
The Emperor smiled bitterly at Madam President's statement and said, "Ah, paperwork and bureaucracy, the two undying enemies of countless noble human souls since the dawn of 'civilised human government."
Guilliman grimaced as she thought about the time when she led the Indomitus Crusade, especially the paperwork and logistics, before she asked the Emperor, "You said that we had much to discuss, Father."
The Emperor nodded at Guilliman and said, "That we do. I am certain that all of you, including all of my former sons who now stand before me, have questions."
Lion stepped forward and asked, "Is the League of Chaos Undivided completely defeated?"
"Yes, they are," confirmed the Emperor who then grimly added, "However, the Dark Gods that corrupted them are still very much present in our home universe and will remain a threat to us all for the foreseeable future."
"Is there anyone else that they have corrupted?" asked All Might who nearly shuddered at the thought of All For One becoming a Chaos Champion.
"As far as human worshippers are concerned, no. However, the chaos-afflicted rats are another matter altogether," answered the Emperor.
"Can't you use your powers to put an end to them?" asked Madam President.
The Emperor shook his head and explained, "While it is fortunate that the taint of Chaos is concentrated to this part of your world, as I would have needed to use up even more of my limited strength to purge it completely otherwise, I am unable to completely revert the chaos-tainted rats back into their original forms. I believe that their resistance to changing back to their original forms may be linked to the dormant quick factors within their collective genome."
Aware of a theory that claimed that quirks were caused by a novel virus that was spread by rats, Nedzu raised a brow and asked, "Are you implying that the chaos mutations has somehow awakened their dormant quirk factors and that you cannot undo the awakening?"
"Indeed," confirmed the Emperor who then added, "What is more, the collective awakening of their quirk factors has made them larger, smarter and more human-like than their original forms."
Lion frowned as she thought, "Which means, given their origins, they may potentially become Chaos worshippers or something similar if left unchecked."
"Unless something is done to deal with them, yes," confirmed the Emperor.
"Do you wish us to head out and hunt them down?" asked Russ. In spite of having only a few minutes of rest after fighting hordes of Pox Spawn, she and the other former primarchs were ready to set off to purge the minions of Chaos.
The Emperor smiled and said, "Under normal circumstances, yes. Fortunately though, a less violent alternative is available to us."
With a wave of the Emperor's hand, he revealed something that shocked Izuku. His eyes were as wide as saucers as he stuttered, "Y-you're…?"
Shuiichi, or rather his soul, scratched his cheek sheepishly as he spoke, "Yeah… not what I expected to happen after dying back there."
Nezuko, who was hugging Shuuichi, was similarly sheepish as she smiled and explained, "The Emperor stopped our souls from being taken-dragged to the other side."
Standing alongside with Shuuichi and Nezuko were Karutoko, Kurogiri, Haeto and Gokicha. Toshinori noticed that not all the members of the League of Chaos Undivided were present so he asked, "What of the other members?" Left unsaid was the notable absence of Tomura and Lorgar.
Enji, who had noticed the absence of his oldest son, Touya, had a similar question but remained silent.
The Emperor shook his head and explained, "Unlike the ones who now stand before you, the other members are either already damned because they died before I could execute my plan to stop the spread of Chaos into this world or, as in the case of three particular individuals who have perished more recently, are unwilling to let go of their hatred."
Both Enji and Toshinori were disappointed but not surprised by the answer. For Enji, whose oldest son had become a deranged villain before Vulkan killed him not too long ago, the answer was particularly painful.
As a father who had to live with the fact that his choices had led to his sons becoming monsters and worse, the Emperor gazed upon Enji with sympathetic pity in his eyes before he turned his attention towards Nedzu and said, "I plan to use Eri's powers, in conjunction with my own, to bring two of the former cultists back to life and serve you as purified 'Psykana Repentia'. As for the rest of the souls, they will serve as guardian spirits at the Bloodline Chapel until I have deemed them as worthy of being brought back to life as fellow psykana."
Kurogiri, who was actually an intelligent noumu that was created from the defiled corpse of a certain hero-student named Shirakumo Oboro, stepped forward and revealed his true face by dispersing the black fog had that concealed it. He wore a bitter smile as he turned his attention towards Hizashi and said, "One of them being me, somehow."
Hizashi was gaping dumbly as he could not think of anything to say about Oboro's shockingly unexpected appearance even as a manifested soul.
Karutoko smiled brightly as she stepped forward and said, "I hwave a swecond chwance aht lwife twoo!"
"Not that I'm against the idea of redeeming villains, but, unless I'm mistaken, they are not the ones responsible for creating the mutated rats, are they?" asked Nedzu while glancing at Nezuko.
The Emperor nodded and said, "That is correct. That being said, the person responsible for creating them does not need to be physically alive to fulfil her role in helping to solve the issue."
Nezuko let go of her clingy hold onto Shuuichi so that she could step forward and explain, "The Vermin Spawn are the result-product of my quirk which, at the time, was altered-changed by the Ruinous Powers. In exchange-payment for a chance to be brought back to life with Shuuichi-kun, I've agreed to be a saint-spirit for the rats that have been mutated-changed by me."
"In other words, she will be their equivalent to a holy spirit that will steer them away from the path of Chaos," said Magnus who quickly understood the Emperor's plan.
"Won't it lead to a potential religious issue in the future?" asked Lion. While she never saw the Emperor as a god, even she could understand that letting a "rival god" rise to power would lead to problems in the future.
"If the plan was for me to be a goddess-empress to them, it probably-likely will," admitted Nezuko who then added, "However, I have no intention-desire of becoming a 'Great Horned One' of the mutated-changed rats."
"And why should we trust you?" asked Madam President who then harshly added, "Even if the Emperor is willing to trust you, it does not change the fact that you are, at the very least, a former member of the League of Chaos Undivided."
"Do you question the Emperor's will?" growled Juljak Nul.
As someone who had witnessed Sanguinius' fury back when she foolishly tried to control her and the other former primarchs, Madam President was not cowed by Juljak Nul's displeasure as she spoke to him, "Your Emperor has made mistakes before. I am simply accounting for the possibility of him making another mistake."
Although angered by Madam President's statement, Juljak Nul knew that she was not wrong about the Emperor making mistakes. After all, the Horus Heresy could be considered as the horrifically tragic culmination of the Emperor's bad decisions. The other manifested souls of loyalist space marines were similarly angered.
"Peace, my astartes. She has every right to question this decision of mine, this time," said the Emperor.
Juljak Nul bowed to the Emperor and said, "By your will, Emperor." The Madam President breathed a soft sigh of relief as the gathered souls of loyalist space marines backed down.
"While I have no right to claim that my plans have never failed, I am nevertheless confident that there are far worse ideas to prevent the potential threat of the mutated rats than the one that has been proposed," said the Emperor who then added, "Besides, as Nezuko has already stated, the plan is to have her become a holy spirit or saint who will ultimately answer to my authority as her 'spiritual superior'."
Angron huffed as she spoke, "Even I can't deny that this plan is not the worst one you could have come up with."
"What of the two souls that you plan to bring back to life?" asked Nedzu.
"You can trust them," said the Emperor who then explained, "Unlike the rest of the souls, they were mentally compromised long before they made the decision to follow the Chaos Gods."
Oboro nodded and said, "As some of you may already know, Karutoko-chan suffered brain damage after getting abused by her own family. What's more, compared to the likes of Shigaraki Tomura or Lorgar, she has actually done relatively little direct harm to anyone even after becoming a cultist."
"Even if that's the case, attempting to kill someone who is defending innocent people from the rest of the cult isn't exactly what most would call a benign crime," said Tsunagu. Left unsaid was that Karutoko's desire to kill her own abusive family, while still wrong from a moralistic stand point, was understandable and, from a certain point of view, even justified.
"True, but my point about her being mentally compromised still stands. Besides, she was actually being driven to kill by the Dark Gods at the time of today's attack," argued Oboro.
Angron nodded and explained, "She said that she wanted to be a 'friendly enemy', not a despised enemy that had to be purged from existence."
"Were you… mentally compromised too, Oboro-senpai?" asked Hizashi.
Oboro smiled bitterly and replied, "I was turned into a 'brainwashed zombie slave' after I died. It happened long before Shigaraki Tomura and Lorgar formed the League of Chaos Undivided."
Hizashi made a mental note to have a "singing contest" with the people responsible for turning Oboro into a slave after his death as he spoke, "Nemuri and Shouta are going to frakking flip for sure when they find out about this."
Oboro grinned as he replied, "Oh, I don't doubt it."
"What do you plan to do with the other bodies?" asked Izuku.
"I plan to have the other bodies destroyed to prevent the Ruinous Powers from using them," said the Emperor who then grimly added, "Even if the bodies lack the original souls, the Ruinous Powers can still use them to cause great harm in one fashion or another if given the chance."
Keigo grimaced at the reminder of how Haeto and Gokicha died and said, "Yeah, I'm not against the idea of preventing another monster plague from happening."
Kenji frowned as she pointed at Nezuko while asking the Emperor, "I know that I'm not really one to talk since I'm a villainess, and I'm no anti-mutant hater either, but is there a reason why you're giving her and the other three a chance to redeem themselves even after all that they have done?"
"They may have chosen to join the League of Chaos Undivided in the end but that decision was not as voluntary as some of you are assuming," explained the Emperor who then added, "After all, they are survivors of the destruction at Deika City."
Corax frowned as she spoke, "So it is true then. The League of Chaos Undivided attacked Deika City to not only make an army to distract us but also gain potential cultists."
Shuuichi sighed and admitted, "I was the one who decided that we should join them." He then explained, "For as long as any of us can remember, Nezuko-chan, Haeto, Gokicha and I have been hated by everyone else because of our mutations. To somehow get away from the hatred, we joined the Meta Liberation Army since their motto is the free usage of quirks. They didn't exactly treat us much better though as they saw us as expendable pawns in their so-called war against the 'oppressors'."
"So you four accepted the chance to join the League of Chaos Undivided to avoid getting killed by them or worse," concluded Izuku.
"It's one reason. They might have been willing to spare us at the time and even promised to let us go but there was no guarantee that they would continue sparing us in the future," said Shuuichi who then bitterly added, "As for the other reason, we simply didn't see the point of rejecting their offer since no one, especially not the ass-holes who had tormented us, would give a damn about us choosing a more 'heroic path'."
Guilliman thought about the state of the Imperium during her past life and sighed bitterly as she thought, "How many souls would have rejected the temptations of Chaos if their lives had not been hellish already to begin with?"
"Are there any further questions about bringing Kurogiri, or rather Oboro, and Karutoko back to life?" asked the Emperor who already knew the answer.
Nedzu glanced at Toshinori and Madam Persident before he confirmed, "No, we do not."
"Then let us not delay any further and bring these two back to life," said the Emperor. He then ordered his space marines to assemble the bodies of the two people whom he had planned to resurrect. After they had assembled the bodies, he turned his attention towards Eri, who had been in his arms the whole time, and asked her, "Are you ready, little one?"
Eri nodded and said, "I'm ready, Emperor-san."
"Then let us begin," said the Emperor. As he waved his hand over the two bodies, the golden glow of his eyes intensified. Eri's horn gave off a similar golden glow which soon enveloped the two bodies. Izuku and the other "local people" of his world stared in amazement and morbid awe as severed body parts got re-attached and wounds closed. Before long, the two bodies were made whole, albeit free from the taint and marks of Chaos, and simply lacked the final spiritual component to become truly alive.
"Okay, that's pretty damn disturbing but cool at the same time," said Oboro who then asked the Emperor, "So, do we need to step in or…"
Suddenly, Oboro and Karutoko were sucked into their respective bodies. The Emperor, who had used a minuscule amount of his power to forcibly draw their souls into their bodies, could not help but smirk a little at their shocked expressions.
As soon as the two souls completely entered their respective bodies, they both gasped and came back to life. After a quick check that they were indeed alive and inside intact bodies, Karutoko whooped and said, "Hwe're alwive! Alwive!"
Yes, Karutoko still had her lisp and, other than lacking the marks of the four Chaos Gods, had changed little in appearance.
Oboro, who was glad that his body had somehow been changed to resemble his original living self, albeit with black cloud-like hair and yellow eyes instead of light-blue hair and blue eyes, pondered aloud, "So… do I still count as a second-year hero-student?"
Hizashi smiled bitterly as he shook his head and asked Oboro, "Are you seriously trying to think of an answer to that question after coming back from the dead?"
"Hey it's a legit question!" argued Oboro who, in spite of being essentially an undead slave for years, could still somehow grin with good cheer.
Karutoko grinned at the Emperor and said, "Thwanks fwor lwetting ush lwive agwain, Empweror-swan."
The Emperor nodded at Karutoko and Oboro before he turned his attention towards Nezuko and said, "You know what must be done."
Nezuko nodded at the Emperor before she stepped forward and brought her hands close together to create a small golden flame that flickered between her hands. She then sent out a spiritual message to all of the mutated rats, "To all who have been changed-turned by my power-quirk, know that I am your creator-maker but not your goddess-empress. I was once a pawn-slave to Dark Gods until the Emperor of Mankind saved my soul-spirit. Come to me and I will do all I can to guide-show you all the way to a better-nobler life." After sending the message, she turned her attention towards the people around her and said, "I cannot guarantee-promise that all of them will come to U.A. High School but, at the very least, all of them have received-gotten my message."
"Then let us move on to the next matter," said the Emperor.
"What do you plan to do to the three souls who have refused to let go of their hate?" asked Angron. Left unsaid was what would happen to Lorgar's soul.
The Emperor sighed and said, "I have, to put it simply, imprisoned them. Sending them back to the Warp of our original universe is out of the question and letting them remain in the immaterium of this universe is simply too risky to allow. However, while while I can destroy their souls, doing so is something I'd rather avoid doing at all if possible."
Guilliman raised an eyebrow and asked, "Are you… trying to redeem them too somehow?"
Well aware that Guilliman's question as really about Lorgar, the Emperor nodded and said, "While I still loathe to be seen as a god, there's no denying that my decision to destroy Monarchia and humiliate Lorgar and his… her legion is one of the reasons why she has ultimately chosen to become a pawn of the Chaos Gods. Had I done things differently, perhaps the Heresy would have been, if not averted, less damaging to the Imperium."
"What of the other two who refuse to let go of their hate?" asked Toshinori who wanted to be sure that the Emperor would not simply forsake the other two souls to save Lorgar's.
"I will try to save them as well. However, while the one named Tomura might be possible to save due to various past circumstances that I will reveal to a chosen few later, the one named Touya will be the more difficult of the two," answered the Emperor.
Enji grimaced bitterly while Toshinori was both relieved and worried about Tomura's past circumstances.
"Is there anything else that any of you wish to ask concerning the League of Chaos Undivided?" asked the Emperor.
"Are you planning to deal with the 'previous benefactor' of the League of Chaos Undivided?" asked Madam President.
The Emperor shook his head and replied, "While the 'previous benefactor' that you speak of is a threat to this world, I am certain that my former sons can help you deal with him when the time comes. Understand that my main concern right now and for the foreseeable future is ensuring that the Ruinous Powers, never mind the other threats from my original universe, will not endanger this version of Terra."
Madam President nodded in acceptance of the answer and said, "As much as I would like to have at least a bit of additional help, I will readily agree that your former primarchs are very capable and the problems of your universe are the last thing I ever want to deal with."
"Then let us carry on to the next relevant matter," said the Emperor who then turned his attention towards his former primarchs and asked rhetorically, "Many of you wish to know if returning to our original universe is possible, yes?"
Sanguinius nodded and said, "Given the state of the Imperium after the Horus Heresy, I cannot in good conscious refuse the idea of returning to it to somehow help stop the forces that threaten it."
"As do many of us," said Dorn.
The Emperor nodded approvingly at his former loyalist primarchs before he answered, "While it is possible, your return does not need to be immediate, relatively speaking."
Magnus raised an eyebrow and said, "You're planning to let us remain here until we pass on and then take our souls to the other side while barely a moment even passes by there."
The Emperor nodded and said, "The flow of time in the Immaterium is a convoluted thing even at the best of times but making sure that the Imperium will not need to wait for many decades or longer for your return is hardly a complicated matter." He then turned his attention towards Angron and Gwalchavad to add, "Though whether it will be all of you or not is something that only time will tell."
Even the Emperor at his full might could not always accurately predict the future. Therefore, as a mere shard of the Emperor's entire being, the one present before the gathered group could only guess the likelihood of certain former primarchs being willing to serve the Imperium once again.
"What will you have us do in the mean time?" asked Vulkan.
"I want all of you to protect this version of Terra and to help it advance to the point of being able to, if not travel across the stars, conquer every planet within this solar system," said the Emperor.
Ferrus raised an eyebrow and said, "Not that we will refuse the task, but I imagine that you have a plan for this version of Terra."
The Emperor smiled enigmatically and confirmed, "You can certainly say that."
Nedzu could not help but smile at the challenging idea of correctly guessing the Emperor's plan for Earth as he spoke, "I suppose you will not be revealing it any time soon."
"Other than the fact that I have no intention of bringing harm upon your world or its people, not even as a well-meaning tyrant, no," replied the Emperor.
Madam President sighed and said, "I suppose that's as good an answer as we will be getting, for now."
"Moving on to the next question that I am certain all of you have right now," said the Emperor who then sighed and added, "I will confess that even I was at a lost on how my former sons managed to reach this version of Terra until recently."
Izuku's eyes widened as he asked, "Does that mean that you now know the answer?"
"While the details are still difficult to confirm let alone explain, I can indeed give a basic answer," said the Emperor who then answered with a bitter smile, "Horus."
Surprised, Jaghatai asked, "That does Horus have to do with us being here?"
The Emperor wore a bitter expression as he answered, "As those of you more familiar with the truth of the Horus Heresy know, I had to destroy Horus to stop the Ruinous Powers from achieving victory. That included destroying his very soul so that they would not be able to enslave him to their will as their daemon prince."
Magnus' single eye widened as she asked, "Are you implying that something else happened to his soul?"
"Shards of his soul to be precise," said the Emperor who then turned his attention towards the sky and added, "Even now, the shards of his soul are listening to us."
"So you're saying that, when our souls got banished due to the disrupted ritual that was intended to widen the Great Rift, our souls got drawn to this world by the surviving shards of Horus' soul which had somehow been banished to this world instead of being destroyed completely," concluded Corax.
Curze frowned as she spoke, "That does not explain why we ended up having not only physical bodies but that of the opposite sex."
The Emperor actually shrugged as he admitted, "As I have stated before, even I cannot fully confirm or explain the details but I assume that it's simply the result of being brought to a universe that, in many ways, is very different from ours."
"Am I correct to assume that the 'War in Heaven' never happened here?" asked Magnus.
"You assume correctly," answered the Emperor who then said, "What is more, the Immaterium here is very different from the one back in our original universe. I imagine that the lack of 'chaotic phenomena' caused by reality-breaking weapons is, at the very least, part of the reason for this difference."
"Does that mean that we won't have to worry about Orks and Drukhari?" asked Guilliman.
"Yes, though I still recommend diligent vigilance. Even if this version of the galaxy is arguably less dangerous the our original one, there is still no telling what horrors may exist among the stars here," replied the Emperor who then bitterly added, "Never mind what 'familiar horrors' may yet slip through to this version of our galaxy."
"We will be vigilant, towards both the external and the internal threats that humanity will inevitably face," said Lion.
The Emperor nodded at Lion before he turned his attention towards Izuku and said, "Now, for one particular matter that I have been wanting to settle for some time."
Izuku blinked as he pointed at himself and asked, "You want something from me?"
"On the contrary, I wish to grant you a boon as an expression of my gratitude," said the Emperor.
Flustered by the idea of receiving a boon from the God Emperor of Mankind, Izuku stuttered, "A-are you sure? I mean… I know that you can see the future and probably know a lot about me by now but surely such a boon can be given to someone more deserving."
The Emperor smiled as he raised an eyebrow and asked, "Like who, if you are so certain?"
"Well… like giving a badly-injured pro-hero his good health back… or bringing more people back from the dead like the victims of this whole incident," answered Izuku who then turned his attention towards Shuuichi, Nezuko, Gokicha and Haeto to add sheepishly, "No offence."
"None taken," said Shuiichi.
Haeto sighed as he grumbled, "Not like we have any right to complain even if we wanted to, myself especially."
Gokicha smiled as she held Haeto's hand comfortingly.
Toshinori did not miss the fact that Izuku was referencing to his old injury which, while mitigated by the transplanted organs, was anything but completely healed.
"Both suggestions are certainly noble and reasonable," agreed the Emperor who then argued, "However, it is my personal opinion that granting you this boon is not only a justified reward for your invaluable deeds but also an act that will likely save many more lives from not only death but also damnation."
"Are you planning to turn him into your agent upon this world?" growled Angron who was suspicious of the Emperor's intentions.
"It's a tempting idea but I have little reason to do anything that is truly against Izuku's wishes," said the Emperor.
Although displeased by the idea of having Izuku potentially indebted to the Emperor, Angron know that Izuku had the right to make his own choices. Even so she, had to warn the young man, "You know what the Emperor has done to me and so many others."
Izuku nodded at Angron before he turned his attention towards the Emperor and asked, "May I ask you one question before we talk about this boon, Emperor-sama."
"You wish to know why I allowed Angron to suffer as she had during the Great Crusade, yes?" asked the Emperor who did not need his precognitive abilities to guess the question that Izuku had wanted to ask.
"I get that An-chan rejected your offer so that she could fight and die with the City Eaters but surely there had to be a better way to resolve the issue at the time, right?" asked Izuku.
The Emperor wore an expression of weary regret as he sighed and replied, "For the short term, yes. However, the same cannot be said for the long term." Aware of the confusion in Izuku and even Angron's eyes, the Emperor explained, "I could have used my own forces to help Angron and the City Eaters defeat their oppressors, imminent Imperial Compliance and the value technologically-advanced infrastructure be damned. Alternatively, greater leniency towards Angron and the City Eaters could have been arranged. However, even if I had done so, the risk of Angron turning against me would still be dangerously high, never mind the danger of allowing a more competent leader become an enemy."
Curze's eyes widened as she realised the implications and said, "You saw visions of Angron either dying or turning traitor."
The Emperor nodded and explained, "From the moment Angron refused my offer, the only visions my precognition could show me were visions of her dying or turning against me. If I had allowed her to die as she had chosen, the Dark Gods would have turned their attention towards another primarch, never mind the effects of losing yet another primarch would have on the Great Crusade itself. However, helping Angron and the City Eaters would not have ensured their long-term loyalty, especially with the Butcher's Nails driving them towards potential Khornate worship. In the worst case scenario, Angron would have turned against me as a more competent enemy champion with justifications and goals that extended beyond blind hatred."
Angron glared at the Emperor and growled, "Given your willingness to tolerate tyrants, such as the ones who ruled over Nuceria, as long as they comply to your demands, never mind your own penchant of eliminating anyone who does not comply to your demands, I wonder why."
The souls of the loyalist space marines and even the former loyalist primarchs tensed in response to Angron's admittedly factual insult to the Emperor. Before any of them could act, the Emperor raised his hand and said, "Shameful as it is to admit, Angron's words about me are without falsehood." He then glared at Angron and said sternly, "However, know that my actions are ultimately for the survival and eventual betterment of humanity even if the effects are not always apparent and, at times, even counter-intuitive."
"Which is the only reason why I'm willing to cease hating you even if I can never forgive you for taking me away from by comrades in arms," growled Angron who then added, "So, for your sake, you better choose wisely on how your boon will affect Izuku."
Izuku was understandably worried as he glanced at Angron before he asked the Emperor, "So… what's this boon that you wish to grant me?"
"To put it in simple terms, I can offer you what is basically a quirk," replied the Emperor.
Izuku's eyes widened as he realised what the Emperor was offering to him. Understandably, he had questions as he asked, "W-what kind quirk are you offering? Does it have anything to do with the warp?"
"To some extent, yes. As for what kind of quirk I am offering, that depends on what kind of power do you wish to have," replied the Emperor who then warned, "However, I will not make you stronger than my former sons nor will I be able to change or remove the quirk once I have given it to you so choose wisely. Also, know that this power comes with a responsibility that will only end in death."
Izuku frowned as he thought about the boon and mumbled to himself to the point that even the souls of the space marines wondered if he was making some sort of arcane incantation. After a full minute of thinking and mumbling, which was a lot shorter than those who knew Izuku well had expected, he turned his attention towards the Emperor and said, "I have made my decision. I want to have the power to heal and strengthen not only the body but also the very soul of others."
The Emperor was clearly pleased by Izuku's decision as he spoke, "Very well, I shall grant you this gift and a little more. This power that you wish to use to help others can also be used to help yourself if need be." He then offered his hand to Izuku and said, "Come forth, Midoriya Izuku, and receive your reward and responsibility."
Although nervous, Izuku accepted the offer as he strode forward to accept the Emperor's gift. Angron, who could not bring herself to fully trust the Emperor, did not stop Izuku as she knew that it was ultimately his choice to make. Inko, who remembered the countless nights that Izuku had wished for a quirk, covered her mouth while tears flowed freely from her eyes. Toshinori, along with many of the other former primarchs, smiled as he knew that Izuku was worthy of receiving a boon that would help him become a hero.
Once Izuku stood before the Emperor, he hesitantly reached out to touch his offered hand and then, with eyes shining with convictions, said, "I'm not sure if I can ever live up to your expectations, or the expectations of An-chan and so many others for that matter, but I will do the best I can and beyond."
The Emperor smiled at Izuku and said, "You are already a young champion worthy of standing alongside with the noblest of my warriors."
A blinding flash of golden light soon engulfed the field…
-A few hours later…-
Given the scale of the attacks that were caused by the League of Chaos Undivided, it was no surprise that many people remained busy for hours before a proper announcement could be made. The announcement was made by not only the Madam President of the HPSC but also Nedzu, Endeavour and All Might as well.
In the announcement, it was made clear that the League of Chaos Undivided had been stopped. However, the heroes responsible for stopping the league were forced to kill many of them, including a villainess named Lorgar who had claimed that her quirk allowed her to turn other people into her minions in exchange for empowering their quirks. Only two members of the league had been successfully captured and, given their circumstances as "mentally compromised" individuals, it was decided that they would receive rehabilitation instead of being sent to a high-security prison such as Tartarus Prison. As for where the two would be having their rehabilitation, it would be at U.A. High School as the newest students of Class V. Though many people understandably considered the decision to be risky, at best, their fears were somewhat alleviated by the fact that the two villains could not create hordes of mutated monsters and had their altered quirks weakened by Lorgar's death. On a happier note, a student of U.A. High School who had been "functionally quirkless" for years had somehow managed to awaken a quirk during the fight against the League of Chaos Undivided and the students of Class V had proven themselves to be worthy of becoming pro-heroes in the future.
Needless to say, the "announced truth" hid many details and contained a number of lies but those who knew the actual truth generally agreed that letting everyone else know about about the Ruinous Powers, the Imperium and the Emperor would have been a terrible idea.
With the help of the Emperor, whose powers included the ability to alter and remove both memories and information as necessary, various details about the attacks, especially the ones that involved the souls of his space marines, were successfully expunged. Of course, there were those who still knew the truth but the Emperor had deemed nearly all of them as trustworthy enough to be entrusted with protecting the world from knowing the truth too soon.
All For One and Garaki Kyuudai, who had already known about Lorgar's actual origins long before the attacks took place, were not among those deemed as worthy.
Although the Emperor had entrusted All For One's elimination to his former primarchs, he never said that he would not give them a clue about the villain's whereabouts that he had discovered "by chance".
Needless to say, another attack would happen soon although Izuku would be excluded from taking part in it due to not only the support nature of his new ability but also the importance of his role in helping Nezuko's creations, which had been named the Flameborn as a reference to her flames, get settled into U.A. High School.
-In the primarchs' original universe…-
For many millenia, the Dark Gods laughed as they drank in the souls and emotions of their followers and victims. However, a recent turn of events had caused them to not only cease laughing but in fact be close to raging in impotent fury.
The Emperor of Mankind had finally revealed his plan for the alternate version of Holy Terra.
Although the eventual destruction of the Imperium of Mankind would still happen, regardless of the Emperor's still-ongoing efforts to somehow avert it, the complete damnation of humanity as a whole was no longer possible. As for why that was the case, the Emperor had taken advantage of the connection between Terra and its alternate self to establish, for a lack of a better term, a "safer afterlife" for the citizens of the Imperium. By sending worthy souls to the alternate version of Terra, the Emperor was ensuring their safety from the countless horrors that lurk within the Warp. What was more, the alternate version of Terra was protected by not only the souls of the Emperor's loyal servants but also a shard of his own soul. Without a willing agent of their will such as Lorgar, the Dark Gods could no longer spread their influence upon the alternate version of Terra, which was already difficult before, without extreme difficulty.
Yes, the number of human souls in the Imperium of Mankind was thousands upon thousands more numerous than the number of souls on the alternate version of Terra so it would be simply impossible to save even a hundredth of them let alone all of them. However, even if only less than a hundredth of the human souls could be saved, it would still be a victory for the Emperor who, even in the present, still refused to embrace his ascension and become the fifth Chaos God, the Dark King.
In spite of the obvious setback, the Dark Gods were not without options and they were more than spiteful enough to do something that would at the very least bring ruin upon the alternate version of Terra. The only question was how to best attack the alternate version of Terra with the resources currently available to them.
As for the Imperium of Mankind, the moral of the people was clearly on the rise as visions of the reborn primarchs and their allies heroically putting an end to a Chaos incursion spread across the galaxy. That was not even counting Izuku being granted a gift from the Emperor himself, effectively becoming a saint in all but name.
The doom of humanity may be impossible to completely avert but it was also becoming clear to even the Dark Gods that it doom would not come easily even with the countless malicious threats that threaten it.
-End Chapter-
Author's Notes:
Originally, I though about reviving more former members of the League of Chaos Undivided (namely Nezuko and Shuuichi). However, after a bit of thought, I have decided against it if only because their crimes are still their own in spite of the circumstances.
As for the details:
Skirakumo Oboro (Formerly - Kurogiri)
His appearance is that of his original living self with dark cloud-like hair and yellow eyes. Due to being originally an intelligent noumu, Oboro's ability to make warp gates is still present. However, he can no longer create warp gates that connect to the immaterium of the other universe (which is honestly for the best for basically everyone involved).
Kenshinteki Karutoko
Her appearance remains largely unchanged. In spite of no longer having brain damage or Chaos corruption, her personality somehow remains largely unchanged too. Though her quirk is no longer enhanced by the corrupting powers of Chaos, it is still noticeable stronger than it used to be originally. The enhanced nature of her regeneration also allows her to push her body to superhuman limits for limited periods of time before she needs to recover.
The Flameborn
The Flameborn are originally Vermin Spawn which have been purified by the Emperor's act of purging the taint of Chaos from the "Quirked World". They resemble short anthropomorphic rats the size of Mineta Minoru and, not unlike pet rats, are social and friendly. They are also intelligent and speak a language known as Squeekish. Due to being the product of Nezuko's Chaos-tainted quirk, they are highly resistant to poisons and diseases. Also, they worship Nezuko as a holy spirit and saint who, in turn, serves the Emperor of Mankind. (I did not want to name them Skaven and, after considering both their origins in this story and the Charr from 'Guild Wars', decided to name them Flameborn instead.)
Until next time, go beyond, plus ultra!