Grit Your Teeth and Bear it (KiriBakuDeku)

Chapter 8

Kirishima's POV

Heart racing and palms sweaty. My muscles are sore and aching, but despite all the physical pain I seemed to be in, I wished more than anything that it was silent.

After a major incident, one assumes that once the dust settles it would be quiet, still even, but that is far from the truth.

I could hear heroes shouting orders, securing structures and finding trapped civilians. I hear police sirens and their voices, pressing for people to leave the area. Ambulances are loading screaming victims, bloodied and battered. Others were tagging the deceased. I could hear the cries of loved ones, finding the corpses of the people they call friends and family. Children crying out to their lost parents they couldn't find.

"Riot!" The rough voice of Katsuki reached my ears and I turned to him. My eyes were wide and burning. It doesn't matter how many times I've seen something like this. I could never get over it. I could never forget the screams of the people or the bodies stiff and cold. "Come on," he said gently and tugged me in a random direction.

There was a group of heroes and policemen gathered together, discussing what happened here and what to say to families and the media. 

"They promised them what?" I heard Momo's voice as we approached the group.

Kaminari saw me and quickly ran up to me, the two of us hugged for a moment, glad both of us are okay. Sero came over as well and gripped my shoulder with a forced smile.

"They promised to bring back the life of their loved ones," Ingenium explained.

"Who promised what?" Kat asked.

The rest of the group turned to us and they parted slightly. In the middle of the group, I could see a villain tied up and looking down, not meeting the eyes of anyone.

"The Black Lotus Syndicate," Erasure Head said. 

I scrunched my eyebrows. That name did not sound familiar to me. "Who?" I questioned.

"That's what the group is now calling themselves. The people who killed Uravity," Present Mic explained.

"And they promised to bring back their loved ones in exchange for servitude? How the hell do they plan on doing that?" Kat asked.

"I don't know, but it must have been some deal if this many people believed it," Ingenium explained. 

"We'll do some more interrogation and inform all of you with any developments. Luckily, we've caught quite a few villains here, so hopefully we will have a clearer picture soon," a detective said as some police collected the villain from off the floor and escorted him away. 

The group understood and everyone split, ready to help clean the mess. Kat, Shinso, Kami, Sero, Iida, myself, and others stayed behind to talk more for a moment longer. The area has been secured and there is no longer any threat or danger, though we could still hear the shouting voices of medics and loved ones.

"That was something. Do we know what their end goal was?" Chargebolt asked.

"End goal?" I questioned.

"Yeah, we know why the villains got together, vaguely, but what was the end goal of the Black Lotus attacking this place? Don't they go after high officials or people with power?"

Shoto, who I did not notice was standing not far from us, snapped his head towards us. "Where's Deku?" He asked.

"What? What do you mean where's Deku?! Aren't you his partner?" Kat yelled.

"Yes, but we got separated after arriving on the scene." 

We all fell silent and turned to him. "He was here, at least, when things first started. I saw him fighting, but has anyone seen him since?" Shinsou asked.