His instincts were telling him to run. To hightail it out of there and never look back. The soft ticking of the timer somewhere above him felt like an ominous warning, slowly marking the rapidly diminishing time.
His sense of duty and morality disagreed wholly with his instincts. The doubt, however, was fleeting in his mind as he laid there, listening to his own breathing.
Distantly, as if by a vague, detached thought running through his head. He realized that he'd already made his decision.
Stifling the urge to flee, to take cover and hide, he stayed. Ripping the gag from his mouth. Finally free of the uncomfortable, disgusting taste of dirt and grime, he took a moment to think.
The villain had stripped him of his weapons, but they hadn't searched him completely. Therefore, in the hope that his hunch was correct, he began the process of unbuckling the straps of his boot. Elation washed over him as the phone he had stashed there dropped to the ground. Hitting the concrete with a soft thud.
On habit alone, he pressed the first contact on the device. The call ringed only for a moment before it was answered. As if the man had scrambled to answer it as soon as the call went through.
"Shadow? Is that you?" The hero's voice was breathy, relief evident in his tone. "You have to get out of there, do you hear me?"
Taking a moment to exhale, steeling himself for the decision and the inevitable argument it would ensue. He spoke. "We both know that's not going to happen, Eraser." His voice is soft, yet steady, wanting the man to understand just how serious he was about this. "I'm the only one close enough to stop this. We're wasting time as it is." And before the man could object, he plowed on. "I need you to send someone to Hosu."
"Ingenium is already there, he's searching for the bomb as we speak." So they did get his message, good.
"Tell him it's underground, probably in the sewage system." He informed quietly. "I can feel them, Eraser, the energy thrumming through them is colossal. They will level the city."
"Then get the hell out of there kid, please, we can send professionals. You don't have to do this."
Behind the underground hero, Tsukauchi had already notified Ingenium, and was now busy trying to locate the call through satellite. A couple of minutes and they'd have Midoriya's location.
"You can try and find me, but you won't get there in time." He didn't need his sight to know the timer above him was ticking. Time was running out. "You know I'm right, Aizawa." And he added, as reassurance more than anything else. "And don't worry, I know for a fact that my area has been evacuated. There are no civilians nearby."
"How could you possibly know that?"
"I can sense it. That accident didn't just take away my sight, Eraserhead." And wasn't that a cruel reminder? Aizawa knew better than anyone just what the kid had lost that night.
"Midoirya, please, just get out of there, kid. You've already done enough." Even as he spoke, the tone in his voice gave away his resignation. He knew, that no matter what, the kid wasn't going to run away from this. It was just not in his nature.
A monitor beeped in the conference room, clear as day to Izuku's ears, even through the phone.
"I found it. I found the bomb" Static erupted from the device, indicating the lack of proper signal. "Shadow was right, it's in the sewers." And a moment later. "I sent you a picture."
"Oh my," The principal, even in crises, didn't lose the cadence in his voice as he spoke. "This will be quite tricky." Turning to the underground hero, the rodent's voice lowered, indicating the severity of the situation. "You're not going to like this, I'm afraid."
Before Aizawa could even voice his worry, the principal approached the phone, currently laying on the table's surface on speaker.
"We will need your help for this, Midoriya."
____________________________________
Aizawa's pulse thundered as he raced through the streets. Blowing past multiple red lights as he fought against the clock.
He had bolted out the door the moment the satellites zeroed in on Izuku's phone location.
The logical part of his brain told him it was useless. Midoriya was right in saying they wouldn't get there in time. Yet, here he was, trying anyway. Because he knew he'd never be able to live with himself, knowing he hadn't tried everything before giving up. Izuku was just a child. He wasn't meant to be going through any of this.
The teen was currently trying to defuse a bomb, and Shouta would do anything to get there in time, to prevent the boy from facing this alone. In fact, he planned on getting Shadow and getting out of there as fast as possible.
The roads were packed, the evacuation process had been immediately started the moment the bomb was located. Izuku was right when he said his area was clear. Still, they weren't taking any chances. A city-wide evacuation was being issued.
However, turning on the radio, he could hear the news reporting the all-out battle that was currently happening just a few blocks away. Instead of finding where Midoriya was being kept, the task force had run into the league's headquarters. Which in itself would've been good news if it weren't for their current predicament. Endeavor and several other heroes had already been incapacitated. All Might was facing the league's real leader. The man behind it all.
His talents would surely be needed. However, Midoriya was his priority. He just had to believe that the number one could handle this alone.
The GPS device beeped, signaling he was approaching the location. Maybe, if luck was on his side, he would get there in time.
____________________________________
"Okay, run me through the plan again." He combs a hand through his hair, fingers twitching with the effort to quell the shaking of his body.
"From both the video feed in your location and the pictures we got from Ingenium, it is safe to say that we will need to defuse both bombs at the exact moment. Any error in timing will result in the immediate detonation of the explosives." Nedzu replied calmly, having expected Shadow to be nervous. It didn't stop him from being painfully blunt in his response. The situation was grave, he treated it so.
"Cool, cool, cool, okay," Izuku spoke quietly, as if to himself. "And are you sure the wire I'm touching right now is the red one?" Despite his greatest effort, he failed to hide the tremor in his voice. They had spent the last ten minutes making sure the wire he was about to cut was the correct one. He had moved the camera until they got a closer look at the bomb. They were his eyes right now, his fate was in their hands.
Letting his senses wash over the room, he could feel it, the energy thrumming slightly stronger in the wire in question. It served to placate his doubts, if only slightly.
"Yes, now, gentlemen, time is running out." The rodent began, "If you would please position your knives." Or in Izuku's case the sharp piece of shrapnel he found lying around.
Anticipation thrummed through his veins like a violin. Every nerve in his body felt electrified as he brought his hand closer and closer to his intended target. Sweat gathered on his brow with his rising anxiety. Were the walls closing in? It certainly felt like it.
"Breathe Midoriya." Tsukauchi's voice felt like a bucket of cold water, running down his back. It anchored him to the world before he could get lost in his doubts. Subduing the storm that raged just behind his eyelids. The interruption made him pause just long enough to exhale. Releasing some of the tension that had built up inside of him.
"Okay, I- I'm ready." He said slowly, despite feeling the complete opposite.
A similar confirmation was heard from Tensei on the other line, Izuku envied the man for the steadiness of his voice.
"On three." 1. They were really doing this. The piece of metal stung his finger as he applied more pressure to his grip. 2. He could hear the scrape of the cable on the sharp surface of his makeshift blade. To the normal person, it would be imperceptible. To his ears it was everything. 3. His heartbeat skyrocketed as they made the cuts. The timer above him beeped and beeped, and finally it stopped.
Nothing. A deafening silence settled over the room and through the call. They were all holding their breath. He could feel it.
"We did it." Tensei's voice sounded faint and distant. It didn't make the unfiltered joy disappear from his tone. He could hear Tsukauchi laughing and Nedzu exhaling.
Izuku did not share in their celebration. Dread pooled in waves through his guts. His heart dropped as a new sound settled behind him. The timer above him had stopped. Yet, a new one had started. A third object that had previously been inactive, and therefore invisible to his senses, jumped to life.
"-riya? Midoriya, is something wrong?" Tsukauchi's worried voice barely registered in his mind, as reality crashed down on him. The man could probably see the terror set in, as Izuku raised his head to face the camera.
There was a third bomb. Probably set to activate as a fail-safe in case the other two were defused.
"I'm sorry." He whispered, trying his best to muster a last smile. Eyes shining with sadness.
And then the world burned.
___________________________________
"We're lost, just fucking admit it!" Bakugou's gruff voice accused, his anger barely hiding the worry they were all feeling.
"We're not, we're close, I just know it. You saw the hero team, they were led just a few blocks away from here. If they got it wrong, then maybe our hunch is right." Kirishima defended, not breaking his stride as they marched across the street. The live feed had been shut down before the timer went off. For all they knew, time had already run out.
"You mean the hunch we got based on the Shinsou's unreliable information? He said Izuku mentioned that warehouse once, why would they take him to a place that's already been burned down!"
"Look, it's the only lead we got, okay? Can you please shut up so we can stop wasting time?" Shinsou growled, turning away from the road to look at the explosive blonde.
His momentary lack of awareness proved almost fatal as a car sped towards them, skidding abruptly to a stop, wheels screeching as the owner punched the breaks. Just barely managing to stop the vehicle before it hit the teen.
"Pay attention Eyebags! We don't have the time to save your ass now! "
Ignoring the angry blonde, Shinsou kept his gaze trained on the car, as the owner got out, dark eyes glaring at them with vigor. Familiar dark eyes.
"What the hell are you doing here?!" Their teacher screamed, fury radiating from him in waves. "Never mind, I don't have time for this." Just as he finished his sentence, an explosion erupted behind them. Shaking the very earth beneath their feet.
For a moment, fire seared into the sky, as if reaching for the stars above, making way to dark smoke that soared into the atmosphere ominously. Glass shattered and sprayed outwards. Creating an upsurge of projectiles and shrapnel, covering the streets. The warehouse seemed to cave in on itself. The structure, already unstable, crumbled like a deck of cards.
It all happened in a fraction of a second. Aizawa could feel the heat almost searing into his skin. The shockwaves came abruptly, pushing them bodily onto the ground as they scrambled for cover.
From his crouched position near the car, he could see it, through wide, horror-filled eyes, the warehouse. Or at least, what was left of it.
Fire and smoke rose in the air like a morose beacon. The flames were scattered and far between the rubble that now littered the space.
It felt as if he'd been through this before.
He could see it as if he was still there, that night, all those years ago. He had stood like he is today. Watching the fire burn, consuming within it someone he was supposed to protect. Despair, heavy and overwhelming loomed over him, akin to the smoke bellowing before him. Threatening to suffocate him completely.
The teenagers next to him were already on their feet. Shouting as they ran, frantic in their pace and movements towards the carnage. It was only then that he snapped back into himself.
This was not the time to panic. He could almost hear the principal's words echoing in his mind.
Only one thought permeated the rest though. A naïve, illogical hope, he couldn't help but hold onto it. Because now, for as long as he could, he would latch onto it. The ability to hope. To deny reality.
"Stop! You'll get stuck if you go in there!" Uraraka shouted at Kirishima's and Bakugou's backs, desperate fear tinging her voice.
Shinsou stood frozen next to her, his gaze looked devoid of any emotion as he watched the wreckage.
He took a step forward as if on autopilot, his body moving without active thought. Drawn like a moth to the flames.
"Shinsou?" Todoroki asked, his quiet tone, almost drowned out by the noise around them.
His words seemed to trigger something deep within the male, his slow movements ceased as he took off, sprinting into the ruins.
"Get away from there!" Aizawa's voice rang as he followed behind his students, "It's dangerous!"
The teen gave no indication that he heard. Practically launching himself into the sea of rubble, hands already working to dislodge the rocks in his way.
"Stop! You're going to hurt yourselves!" The class president shouted, hand coming up to stop Uraraka as she tried to join the others in their frantic search.
"We can help, Iida." The girl answered simply, determination outweighing her worry and fear.
With that, they all got to work. Their training kicked in as they functioned in tandem. Kirishima protected them from any oncoming rubble, while Uraraka floated the bigger boulders in their way. Depositing them a short distance away.
Meanwhile, Todoroki and Yaoyorozu worked on stabilizing the structure. Either with ice in the right places or actual bracers on weak points. Their movements were methodical, yet hurried.
Shinsou and Bakugou were the only ones moving with no particular order. Agitated and hysterical as they dug through the rubble. A constant stream of 'Izuku' could be heard spilling from Shinsou's mouth. His voice cracked with something almost fragile.
Around them the smoke and fire raged, mirroring their inner turmoil as they dug into the very ground to get to their friend.
______________________________
1 week later.
"His warning allowed us to stop two of the bombs in time. However, the villains had used a quirk to trigger a third detonation. His sacrifice that day saved so many lives. This city will forever be in his debt-" The captain was saying, his voice sounded far away. Distant and hazy.
"Excuse me?" A gruff voice called behind him. Turning to look at the newcomer, Aizawa could see the man was old, the scars around his eyes spoke of a terrible story. The walking stick held in his arms revealed the outcome. A couple stood behind him, a woman and a man. They were holding hands, staring sadly at the podium in front of them. "Are you Aizawa Shouta?"
"Yes?" Aizawa didn't feel like talking to anyone. However, a smaller part of him was curious about how these people knew his kid.
"I was told you were Izuku's guardian before-"His words died down before they could make it out of his throat. Looking incredibly older now as he spoke. Sensing his distress, the woman behind him stepped forward, resting a hand on the man's shoulder in silent support. "I, I just wanted to thank you for giving him what I never got the chance to. "
"You were the one who trained him, weren't you?" Shinsou, who Aizawa hadn't noticed approaching spoke up. His words were breathy as he realized just who it was, standing before them. "You're Ryu."
The man's hands clenched tightly around his walking stick, almost trembling with the tightness. "Yes, I trained him," Ryu admitted quietly, guilt almost palpable. "Maybe if I hadn't he would still be-"
"Izuku loved you. He told me how without you, he would've probably given up on life a long time ago. So, don't you dare regret it now. You were the reason he got to live out his dream. You gave him something to live for." The boy's voice cracked, a few tears escaping captivity without his consent.
Aizawa wanted to hate the man. However, Shinsou's word rang true. Without this man, Shadow would've never become who he was.
"I think Izuku wouldn't want you to blame yourself." The hero's eyes were grave as conveyed the words. A memory rose to the surface of his mind. A cold night on a rooftop, heart-wrenching words, but above all, forgiveness. The significance only now sank in as he realized just what Shadow meant that day.
With a solemn nod, the family turned to leave, the man only pausing once to ask one last thing. His tone was fragile, almost delicate as he spoke. "Was... Was he happy, towards the end?"
Ignoring the aching threatening to crush his heart, he replied. "I'd like to believe he was."
________________________
1 week earlier.
Hope was a dangerous thing to trifle with. Still, it didn't stop them from yearning for it.
"Over here! I think I found something!"
Kira's note!
Were so close to the end!
Hope you guys are liking this!
For those of you who don't want to wait, the last chapter is already up! Link in my bio