𝓐 𝓜𝓮𝓪𝓷𝓼 𝓽𝓸 𝓪𝓷 𝓔𝓷𝓭 | Katsuki Bakugou x Male Reader

Chapter 21

Nezu congratulated the Peacekeepers on a masterful job, honoured them for ridding the country of the menace called the Mockingjay. With (M/N)'s death, he predicted a turning of the tide in the war, since the demoralised rebels have no one left to follow. And what was (M/N), really? A poor, unstable boy with a small talent with a bow and arrow. Not a great thinker, not the mastermind of the rebellion, merely a face plucked from the rabble because he had caught the nation's attention with his antics in the Games. But necessary, so very necessary, because the rebels had no real leader among them.

Somewhere in District 13, Tenya hit a switch, because now it wasn't President Nezu but President Kaina who was looking at them. She introduced herself to Panem, identified herself as the head of the rebellion, and then gave (M/N)'s eulogy. Praised the boy who survived the Seam and the Hunger Games, then turned a country of slaves into an army of freedom fighters. "Dead or alive, (M/N) (L/N) will remain the face of this rebellion. If you ever waver in your resolve, think of the Mockingjay, and in him you will find the strength you need to rid Panem of its oppressors."

"I had no idea how much I meant to her," (M/N) said, which brought a laugh from Shoto and questioning looks from the others.

Up came a heavily doctored photo of (M/N) looking amazing and fierce with a bunch of flames flickering behind him. No words. No slogan. His face was all they needed now.

Tenya gave the reins back to a very controlled Nezu. (M/N) had a feeling the president thought the emergency channel was impenetrable, and someone would end up dead tonight because it was breached. "Tomorrow morning, when we pull (M/N) (L/N)'s body from the ashes, we will see exactly who the Mockingjay is. A dead boy who could save no one, not even himself." Seal, anthem, and out.

The grace period would be brief. Once they dug through those ashes and came up missing eleven bodies, they would know the squad escaped.

"We can get a head start on them at least," (M/N) said. Suddenly, he was so tired. All he wanted to do was lie down and go to sleep. He pulled out the Holo and insisted that Ikara talk him through the most basic commands so that he could at least begin to operate the thing himself. As the Holo projected their surroundings, he felt his heart sink even further. They must have been moving closer to crucial targets, because the number of pods had noticeably increased. How could they possibly move forward into this bouquet of blinking lights without detection? They couldn't. And if they couldn't, they were trapped like birds in a net. (M/N) decided it was best not to adopt some sort of superior attitude when he was with these people. "Any ideas?"

"Why don't we start by ruling out possibilities," Denki said. "The street is not a possibility."

"The rooftops are just as bad as the street," Yui said.

"We still might have a chance to withdraw, go back the way we came," Juzo said. "But that would mean a failed mission."

A pang of guilt hit (M/N) since he had fabricated said mission. "It was never intended for all of us to go forward. You just had the misfortune to be with me."

"Well, that's a moot point. We're with you now," Ikara said. "So, we can't stay put. We can't move up. We can't move laterally. I think that leaves just one option."

"Underground," Shoto said.

Underground. Which (M/N) hated. Like mines and tunnels and 13. Underground, where he dreaded dying, which was stupid because even if he died above ground, the next thing they would do is bury him underground anyway.

The Holo could show subterranean as well as street-level pods, (M/N) saw that when they went underground the clean, dependable lines of the street planes were interlaced with a twisting, turning mess of tunnels. The pods looked less numerous, though.