With trembling fingers, Izuku slowly opened the door that led to the deepest recesses of his mind. The corridor behind it was pitch black, leaving Izuku to determine from there what lay in wait for him on the other side. This was not at all what he thought he was getting into when he started his hero career. Supervillains and criminals were one thing, but this was on a new level entirely. Shooting a nervous glance at J'onn, who simply nodded, Izuku steeled himself and walked through the door.
The hallway seemed to go on for eternity. He could hear sounds of cries and screeches that came from all around him. He tried to push his fear aside, but it continued to creep into his heart. Izuku turned to look at J'onn following behind him. He was glad that he was with him. He didn't know what he would do if -
J'onn was gone.
"J'onn?" Said Izuku into the darkness. No reply. "J'onn!?" Again, no reply. Only darkness. Izuku began to feel panic enter into his heart. He began to run down the hallway, calling for J'onn as he ran. He had to get out of there. He had to wake up, but there was no way out. He was trapped.
He felt his feet slip from under him, falling hard to the floor. He lay there, for how long he did not know, tears streaming down his face. "Don't leave me," He cried. "J'onn. . . Bruce. . . All Might. . . please, help me."
"Oh, Izuku," Said a voice from above him. "You're not alone."
Izuku raised his head, ready to cry out for joy that J'onn was back. But it wasn't J'onn that stood before him. He let out a gasp of fright as the figure emerged from the shadows, showing himself at full form. He would recognize the scarred, faceless visage that appeared before him anywhere, the very man who haunted his dreams.
All For One.
"I never left, Izuku," He said, his mouth twisting into a perverse smile, his hand reaching forward and grabbing Izuku by the throat. "And I will always be here, right beside you." All For One lifted Izuku high by his throat, completely off his feet. He struggled to free himself against his captor, but it was futile. He had no weapons, he couldn't use his quirk. He couldn't even scream.
He was powerless.
Batman stared silently at J'onn and Izuku in their collective trance. It had been only five minutes since they had started, but already Bruce was feeling concern. He knew the boy was strong, but he was still young. Most adults weren't prepared to handle the sheer psychological trauma he had experienced. He was thankful J'onn was there to guide him through the process.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, Izuku and J'onn doubled over, as if experiencing some sort of synchronized pain. Izuku suddenly began to convulse into a seizure-like episode, falling out of his chair and onto the floor, where he continued his convulsions.
"Midoriya!" Shouted Batman, rushing to his side.
"What's happening?!" Said Superman, alarmed.
"It's All For One."
Batman turned to the source of the voice. J'onn had come out of his trance, but Izuku continued to thrash about on the floor.
"What's going on, J'onn?!" He said sharply.
"All For One's hold on Izuku is stronger than we anticipated," Said J'onn. "It's fighting back."
"What do you mean?" Said Wonder Woman.
"We had just entered his id when something had taken hold of me and expelled me from his mind," Said J'onn. They began to carry Izuku to the medical wing down the hall, placing him on a stretcher. The medics began their work, trying to quell the seizure and stabilize Izuku, but Batman didn't know how much good it would do.
"You have to get back in there," Said Batman. "You have to help him!"
"I tried," Said J'onn. "But it is blocking my attempts to enter his mind again. I believe All For One may have had a quirk that gave him some sort of psychic ability. Considering how he has amplified his other quirks, it wouldn't surprise me if he did so with this one."
"There has to be another way," Said Superman.
J'onn pondered for a moment. "All For One is feeding off of his negative memories to give strength to the brainwashing," He said. "And most of them center around All Might."
"All Might . . . that's it!" Said Batman suddenly, snapping his fingers. "All For One used Izuku's anger towards All Might to gain a foothold for his mental conditioning." He brought his hand to his chin in thought. "I think I know of a way to fix this, but I'm going to need some help."
All Might stretched as he stepped out of the bathtub, placing a towel around his waist. His wounds from the Kamino Incident had healed nicely, thanks to Recovery Girl, but a lingering ache still plagued him, and was usually only soothed by a hot bath. Now, he was looking forward to having some tea, kicking back and relaxing while watching -
The world turned blue around him as his comfortable living room disappeared. Instead of the tatami mats he was used to feeling beneath his feet, it was a cold, hard floor. The smell of tea was replaced by the cold, sterile odor of the computers and heavy machinery around him. He only had a minute to survey his surroundings when he spotted the familiar bat-like personage before him.
"Good, you made it," Said Batman. All Might paused for a moment and seemed to have a silent fit in front of him, gesturing widely in anger, before finally speaking.
"What the hell is wrong with you, Bruce?!" Said All Might indignantly. "You couldn't have warned me or waited until I was dressed?!"
"Come with me. Now," Said Batman, turning and walking away.
"Wait," Said All Might, falling in line behind him. It was not noticeable to the untrained ear, but his voice carried a worried tone to it. Something was wrong. It took him a moment for him to realize where he was. "What are we doing on the Watchtower? What's going on?"
"It's Midoriya," Said Batman.
"What happened?"
"No time, hurry," Said Batman. He brought All Might to one of the rooms in the medical wing, where All Might paused with surprise and embarrassment to see Superman and Wonder Woman waiting for them.
"Toshinori!" Said Superman, walking up to him and wringing his hand. "It's great to see you again."
"Hello, Toshinori," Said Wonder Woman.
"Clark, Diana," He said. "It's good to see you again . . ." he looked down. "Though I wish I wasn't feeling so underdressed." His eyes fell on the green Martian that sat in the chair next to him. "J'onn! It's great to see. . ." he paused as he approached, gazing upon the unconscious Midoriya on the stretcher.
"What happened?" Said All Might. "Who did this to him?"
"It would take too long to explain," Said Batman, lying down on the stretcher next to Midoriya. He gestured for All Might to follow, who complied, bemused, lying down on his own stretcher next to Batman. "Now, J'onn," Batman said to the Manhunter.
"What do you mean 'now?'" Said All Might. "What is going --" before he could finish, his head hit the pillow with a soft 'thump', and both he and Batman drifted into unconsciousness.
Izuku struggled violently against the heavy chains that bound him. All For One had moved him to a room that burned a violent red hue, suspending him with chains over a deep, gaping hole that seemed to go on for eternity. He tried to use his quirk, but nothing worked. He tried to break free of the bonds, but they were too strong. Meanwhile, All For One stood before him, hovering over the hole, gloating.
"Don't fight the restraints, Izuku," He said. "It will only make things more difficult."
"How are you here?!" Said Izuku. "You should be in jail!"
"I am," Said All For One. "I'm not really here, per se. Think of me as an echo left behind from our time together."
"What do you want with me?" Said Izuku.
"I gave you a gift, Izuku," Said All For One. "Great power to achieve dreams beyond your imagination. Yet you threw it in my face, denying your destiny of destroying All Might and finally surpassing him."
"I control my own destiny," said Izuku.
"Perhaps you did, but not anymore," Said All For One.
"What do you mean?" said Izuku.
"You will remain here from now on," Said All For One. "And I will be taking control of this vessel."
"You can't!" Said Izuku, horrified.
"But I can," Said All For One. "The quirk that was used to control your mind has a delightful little fail-safe should the host take back control. I was hiding in your subconscious, growing in strength until the time was right to take control. Unfortunately, Batman was concerned about this, and has forced me to act sooner than I would have liked. I will take command of this body and use it to rejoin Tomura in his fight against the heroes. You will be a great asset to his cause."
"I won't let you!" Said Izuku.
"You don't have a choice," He said, gesturing to the pit below him. "What you see beneath you is your deep subconscious. Think of it as a place of forgetting. Nothing that enters ever escapes. Should you try to resist, I will have no choice but to send you there, where you will wander in endless darkness for the rest of your days. But I would much rather you stay here with me, and keep me company." His grotesque features contorted into a twisted smile. "We will have so much fun together, just you and --"
"Detroit. . . . SMASH!!!"
A large figure emerged from nowhere, a heavy fist connecting with All For One's face, interrupting his monologue and sending him flying in the other direction. Izuku could hardly believe his eyes as he saw the giant, powerful form of his former hero standing before him, no longer sickly and frail, but strong and in his prime.
"All Might?!" Said Izuku incredulously. "Is that really you?"
"Yes, Young Midoriya," Said All Might. "I . . . no, we are here!"
Coming out of the shadows behind him came J'onn and Batman, following in tow. All For One recovered and flew back from the shadows, and All Might quickly engaged him again while Batman and J'onn set to work on freeing Izuku.
"No matter how far you're beaten back you manage to slither out from even the smallest of crevices," Said All Might.
"You won't beat me in here," Said All For One, suddenly beginning to change. He began to grow in size and appearance, transforming into a gigantic dragon-like beast, batting All Might away like a fly. "His mind is mine!"
"Batman, help All Might," Said J'onn. "I will help Midoriya." Batman nodded and left to engage the Dragon with All Might. J'onn began to use his immense strength to pull at the chains, but they held true.
"J'onn!" Said Izuku. "I'm sorry, I couldn't stop him."
"It's not your fault, Izuku. We underestimated him," Said J'onn, struggling to break the chains. "These psychic bonds are strong. I will need your help."
"How can I help?" Said Izuku. "They won't budge!"
"All For One wants you to think that he has taken control," Said J'onn. "That is how he has trapped you. But this is still your mind. You can break free."
"How?"
"You have to remain calm," Said J'onn. "He planned to distract you to prevent you from concentrating. Focus on breaking free from the chains."
Izuku nodded, trying to concentrate. The battle raged around them as All Might and Batman fought against All For One. He continued to change forms against the duo. Izuku still couldn't believe that All Might was back in full form, and that Batman could use his weapons against their enemy, but when he looked at J'onn's glowing red eyes, he could see that he was using his powers to make their abilities tangible. It fascinated him.
"Izuku, you have to focus," said J'onn, reading his mind.
"Right, sorry," said Izuku. He closed his eyes and began concentrating, all the while pulling at the chains that bound him. One by one, they began to break under the combined effort of J'onn and Izuku.
"NO!" Shouted One For All, using a powerful attack to throw Batman and All Might back. He lifted his hands and caused the ends of the chains to snap from their moorings and wrap themselves tightly around Izuku. A large tendril grew from All For One's hand and latched onto J'onn and was thrown towards All Might and Batman. Before their eyes, Izuku fell deep into the pit below, disappearing into the darkness.
"Izuku!!" Shouted Batman, running towards the pit. J'onn, took off in flight towards the pit, but both were stopped again by another blast from their enemy. All For One began to laugh mercilessly, but stopped abruptly as the ground beneath them began to shake.
A large explosion came from the pit, rising out of the depths and blasting high into the air. All Might stared in amazement as his eyes moved to the top of the blast: Midoriya, his chains gone, and being carried by the arm by --
"Kacchan?!" Said Izuku, shocked. He had felt something grab him as he felt into the pit, and was thrust upward at incredible speed. He opened his eyes and could hardly believe what he saw: Katsuki Bakugou, as he remembered him, carrying him upwards out of the pit in a massive explosion.
"Don't you let go, you damn nerd!" He shouted. Repositioning himself in the air, he threw Izuku with incredible speed towards the shell-shocked All For One. As Izuku flew towards his enemy, Kacchan matched his speed with him. "You have my quirk, now stop being so fucking useless and kill that bastard!!"
Izuku felt a fire light inside his heart that he had never felt before, a confidence and happiness that he never thought he could feel. All For One seemed to grow weaker as they approached. In perfect synchronization, the two boys threw their hands forward towards the helpless All For One, shouting in unison:
"Howitzer impact!"
A massive explosion radiated from the two boys that rocked the foundation of Izuku's mind. All For One yelled in pain as he began to melt under the sheer intensity of the blast. "This can't be!" He shouted. "I am invincible." Finally, the last remnant of All For One disappeared in a wisp.
Immediately, the dark, foreboding atmosphere changed. No longer was it a prison, but a vast open field bathed in a warming light. All Might, Batman and J'onn joined and stood next to the two boys. Batman looked to J'onn, who scanned the area.
"All For One is gone," He confirmed.
Izuku breathed a sigh of relief, immediately remembering who was standing next to him. "Kacchan!" He said, turning to his friend. "I'm so happy! But how are you here? How are you--?"
"Shut up and listen, you stupid nerd!" Kacchan snapped. He pointed his finger warningly into Izuku's face. "You have my quirk now, idiot. I have a reputation to uphold. So don't you dare fucking lose again. Do you hear me?"
Izuku paused, trying hard not to laugh despite Kacchan's angry words. It was just as he remembered him. "I won't," Said Izuku. "You can count on that."
Izuku jumped as Bakugou seemed to explode into a flash of light and mist. It began to swirl around Izuku, finally circling and disappearing into his chest. Izuku felt the warmth and confidence return as he turned back to Batman and the others, wiping tears from his eyes.
"He saved me," Said Izuku. "But how could he be here? Was he even real?"
"In a way," Said J'onn. "He is more or less a memory of the person he once was, attached to the quirk that you now carry."
"That means you're fighting for more than just yourself," Said Batman. "And are never truly fighting alone."
"It's time we left," Said J'onn. In a moment, the entire world seemed to fade around them, and Izuku woke from a hospital bed in the Watchtower. J'onn, Superman and Diana were standing over him, while Batman and All Might sat up from two stretchers next to him.
"You worried us for a moment there, son," Said Superman.
"You pulled through, like a true warrior," Said Wonder Woman, approvingly.
"I wouldn't have made it if it hadn't been for all of you," said Izuku. "Kacchan, J'onn, Bruce, and . . . " He paused as he saw the sickly All Might shuffle awkwardly towards him. "All Might."
"Young Midoriya," Said All Might. "I'm glad you're safe. You had us worried. . . You had me worried." Izuku pondered All Might for a minute. After all that had happened between them, all the hate and anger he felt for him seemed to have for the hero had melted away. Izuku walked over to the Hero and held out his hand, who took it and shook his hand firmly.
"Thank you, All Might," Said Izuku. He looked him up and down. "Why are you in a towel?"