Viridescent

Chapter Twenty-Five: Welcome to the League

"The Hero Community is still reeling in shock from the attack that took place on U.A's school training camp just three days ago," said a reporter on screen. Images were brought up of planes flying over a burning forest in the middle of the night, dropping hundreds of gallons of water to put out the wild emerald flames. "According to a report from Blood Hero: Vlad King who was on site, ambulances and firetrucks arrived on the scene fifteen minutes after the villains, who have been identified as part of the League of Villains, finished their raid and left the area. Of the forty-one students, fifteen lost consciousness and were in a critical state because of a gas attack. Twelve had injuries, ranging from minor to severe, and thirteen were uninjured. One of the students, Izuku Midoriya, was kidnapped."

"In addition, of the six Pro Heroes who were present at the time, Pixie-Bob of the Pussycats suffered a critical head injury and is currently being kept in a medical coma. Another of the Pussycats, Ragdoll, left a heavy blood trail, but has yet to be found."

"Of the villains, two were immediately apprehended and arrested, but a third villain found at the scene known by his villain alias Muscular, was dead on arrival. U.A is now being targeted by the public with severe criticisms for the attack and kidnapping-"

Kurogiri turned the TV off and set the remote down on the bar. He looked towards Tomura, who had been uncharacteristically silent.

"Were these results to your satisfaction?" Kurogiri asked quietly.

Tomura tapped his fingers against the bar for a few moments. "We achieved our goal. U.A and the hero society are getting all the blame. Even if we hadn't succeeded in taking Izuku, the attack on its own fractured the public's trust in heroes."

"...but?" Kurogiri prompted.

"...It's not enough," Tomura said at last. "Taking Izuku, who has already been targeting by part of the public, is fine and all. But to really shatter the heroes, he needs to be one of us. I want him to be seen with the League of Villains as one of our own."

"You want a demonstration."

Tomura smiled in a ghastly way. "Whether he intended to or not...just the fact that he killed Muscular means he's got that same, murderous instinct his dad has. It would be so easy to make a display of that if he were seen with us...but Teacher won't let me see him yet."

"He experienced severe injuries during the capture," Kurogiri reminded him, reaching over to clean a glass out of habit. "Teacher and the Doctor saw fit to keep him with them until he's recovered somewhat. You mustn't rush things, Tomura. We've achieved something important."

"I'm aware," Tomura replied, more relaxed than Kurogiri was expected. "I want to see All Might's face when he sees Izuku standing with us...but Teacher and Viper are right about something. I need to be a little more patient. Before, I was playing this game like an RPG, but I should be playing like a Sim. I need to manage the pawns I have available at any given time and slowly crumble the foundation that those high up are standing on."

"If you look at it as a game of Chess where I'm the "player", then Izuku is a "King" right now. A piece I need to keep safe at all costs. But if he joins us willingly...he'll turn into the "Queen" and be the most powerful piece on the board."

A small chuckle escaped Tomura's lips. "Well, like father like son, after all..."

/////

A heartbeat monitor beeped consistently in the room, which was otherwise quiet. The lights were dim, but still bright enough to see easily.

Unmoving from his spot where he leaned against he wall, Hisashi studied Izuku's face as the teenager slept on the medical bed. He was hooked up to an IV and had a oxygen mask over his face. Both of his arms and his torso were wrapped in bandages after the Doctor's surgery in an attempt to fix the extensive damage.