MHA: An Alchemist's Vengeance

Chapter 8: Prodigal Children

Memories always came in pieces. Yurina would say it again and again. You couldn't remember everything at once. You shouldn't be able to. That would be too overwhelming. The incident with the masked man and his merry band of villains had triggered some new memories to trickle into Yurina's head. Memories that she knew if she spoke, the HSPC would want to talk to her and interview her. They had always kept a close eye on her, considering that she spent a good portion of her childhood within the Villain League's grasp.

But yes, there were memories.

Yurina remembered a little boy. He wasn't that younger than her. He just looked small. Yurina recalled his face, and how it was often hollowed. His eyes, there was often nothing there within them. Yurina often tried to brush the hair away from his face, but he would flinch away. He was erratic, mind numbingly absent in the presence of All For. He always talked about killing, getting revenge on those who wronged him. But alone, he was silent, muttering things, looking around like a rabid animal. In Yurina's hazy, drugged memory, all she remembered feeling was sympathy. She wasn't afraid of him. Just curious, wanting to help. Even in her drugged-out mind, she had the heart of a child who wanted to love, who held so much humanity in her heart because of her parents and all the love she had been given. Yurina knew that boy didn't have any love, not like the love she had.

The masked man had said she promised him they would leave together. They would be safe one day. Yurina couldn't remember that, but she didn't doubt his words. Children always said optimistic, yet unrealistic things. It was just words to keep moral up.

She called him Tenko. The name was so familiar in her mouth. But Yurina remembered calling him that again when he had changed. How had he changed? The hands, yes, it was the hands. He started wearing terrifying replicas of human hands on him. When had he started that? It didn't matter. All Yurina could recall was that when she said his name, he would remove the one that covered his face, and reach out a hand to grab her. Did he grab her? Yurina couldn't remember that part. But yes, he was Tenko. And she had made him a promise that she failed to keep.

~~~

Yurina attended a meeting with all the teachers at U.A the morning after the incident. Tsukauchi joined the teachers, reporting off details from the other day. An investigation had already begun. But after Tsukauchi gave his report, it was clear to everyone that they had little to nothing to work with.

Their key information was the name of the man. "Shigaraki," Tsukauchi said, "His quirk seems to entail disintegrating whatever he touches. However, there are no official records of them in the national quirk registry."

"What about the black misted man?" Aizawa asked.

"I couldn't find a name for him," Tsukauchi said, "But we've deemed his quirk "warp gate"."

"We've really got nothin," grumbled Snipe.

All Might looked up from where he sat with Nezu. His suit hung loosely on him. "The ringleader," he began, "I can't get his plan out of my head."

"What do you mean?" Nezu asked.

"It was extremely simplistic," All Might said, "But they prepared everything so meticulously. He truly believed everything was going to work. But, when it didn't, he seemed to throw a tantrum."

"He was very childish," Yurina agreed.

"Yes, like a toddler." All Might said, "Like... a man-child."

"It's highly possible he didn't get the same quirk counseling in elementary school like most kids." Midnight said.

Vlad King shook his head, "That's great to know, but what does this mean?"