Disclaimer: This is purely a fan work and I own nothing

Midoriya Izuku stared at his feet as they listlessly carried him through the streets of Japan. His own hero had confirmed what he supposed he knew his whole life. He could be no hero. He was weak. Quirkless. Perhaps Bakugou had been right all these years...a worthless Deku.

As he came to an intersection, he was hit with an urge to go right. And in another life, he did. But today, bitter and heartbroken, Izuku turned left, not even noticing the hero Power Loader charging past him to get to the site of a villain attack; his own thoughts drowning out the yells and commotion that followed.

It was not until young Izuku Midoriya returned home that he realized the consequences of his choices; he had turned away from the sludge villain, who had escaped when he was talking to All Might, and walked away from a supervillain attack for the first time in his life. And on the news, his heart sank further than he thought possible; the sludge villain had kidnapped and murdered Katsuki Bakugou, and used his body to escape as the Pro Heroes did damage control and rescued the civilians.

Izuku did not move from his spot on the couch for hours; not only had he lost his dreams, it was his fault the villain got away. It was his fault Kacchan was dead. That night, he looked out his window and considered forcing it open, repaying the debt to the universe with his life, but he could not go through with it.

Days later, he forced himself into his nicest suit, and followed his mother to the funeral, somehow made even more sad without a body to bury. While he was there, Izuku could only stop and stare at the notebook Kacchan had torched and thrown away. The tears fell freely, staining the already crisp pages that sat atop his lap.

It was a simple ceremony; the most spectacular thing was that some of the Pro Heroes who had failed to save Bakugou had shown up to pay their respects. And as everyone was leaving, the hero Power Loader noticed a young man with green hair had dropped a notebook. He picked it up and called to the boy, "young man!"'

Izuku and his mother paused as he turned. The hero was approaching, and Izuku froze as he noticed the man was flipping through the pages.

"Sir, did you make all these notes on heroes? Even your friend?" He asked, somewhat amazed.

Izuku nodded, sadly. "Kacchan used to make fun of me for being such a nerd."

Power Loader shook his head and turned so he was standing next to Midoriya, pointing out some of the notes. "Not to speak ill of the dead, but I see it differently. You even have notes on the type of equipment the heroes use to augment their abilities. How long have you been doing this?"

Izuku wiped his eyes. "Since I was about four...I found out I don't have a Quirk. See, it was my dream to be a hero...but...I learned that that's unattainable."

Power Loader was taken aback by this; that was a rarity these days. But he eyed the boy for a minute; Quirkless or not, he knew his stuff. "Have you ever considered a career in Support?"

Izuku and Inko tilted their heads at the man. He pulled out a business card, and Izuku's heart leapt into his throat.

"I'm a Support professor at UA," he explained, "And with a sharp mind like yours, I think you could do well learning to build support tech for the pros."

Izuku began to stutter, prompting Power Loader to chuckle. "Let me tell you something...what's your name?"

"Izuku Midoriya, s-sir." The boy stuttered out.

"I was there when your friend was attacked. And no one had the right Quirk to save your friend. And I hate that." He looked to the ground, "You can't save everyone in this field, and sometimes Quirks aren't enough. That's where I want take Support to. To do what Quirks can't."

"What Quirks can't...?" Izuku echoed, still processing all of this.

Power Loader handed another business card to Inko. "Tell you what, young man. The exam is in ten months. I will remember the name Izuku Midoriya. If I see you apply, I'll put in a good word for you. And if you want to discuss what being a Support student means...give me a call. My condolences for your loss."

This chance encounter between a Pro Hero was one of two factors that had changed Izuku's life forever. The second was a news story that had played when they returned home that night. A minor villain had tried to rob a bank, and when he went to attack a woman, her husband had killed the villain with a gun. As part of the story, they brought attention to the fact the man was Quirkless, and had owned the gun illegally.

But all Izuku heard was that a Quirkless man had stopped a villain.

He stewed on the events of the day as he laid in bed. Finally, he made up his mind. He turned on a desk lamp, and opened a fresh notebook. On the first page, he wrote, "Deku, The Hunter."

A few days later, he called Power Loader, and left an awkward voicemail on the teacher's answering machine. He scolded himself for sounding so stupid and awkward, but he was surprised to get a call back within the hour.

"Yes, you're the Midoriya boy, right?" The gruff voice asked.

"Y-yes sir. I thought about what you said, and I was wondering if you could tell me where to start...I've never invented anything before." Izuku stuttered, nervously.

There was a silence at the other end as Power Loader considered this.

"Tell you what kid, I've had a project in mind. You know that beach on the outskirts of the city? Where all the trash ends up?"

"Yes sir, why?" Izuku answered.

"Meet me there tomorrow at dawn. You're going to need a crash course on how to build and invent. I've an idea. But this is going to take up a lot of your time. Are you ready for this kind of commitment."

Izuku paused and took a deep breath. "Yes, Power Loader, sir. I am. I want to create a world where no one like Kacchan is killed again. I want to fill in the gaps that Quirks can't cover."

Midoriya heard a chuckle at the other end of the line. "Then I'll see you in the morning, kid."

Izuku barely got any sleep, heart in his throat as he waited on the beach. There was a loud bang, and he leapt about three feet in the air; Power Loader burrowed through the sand and sprung out in front of the boy.

"Glad you made it, kid!" The Pro Hero greeted, brushing off his shoulders.

"W-well, didn't want to keep you waiting," Izuku said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Good! So, let's get down to the brass tacks," the Pro started, "I'm giving you some private info here, so this stays between us. Got it?"

Deku nodded.

"The entrance exam for Support Class is going to be in nine months, and you're going to need to learn to build robots." The Hero explained.

Izuku panicked..."I-I've never even looked at anything about that, I wouldn't know, where to start, the intricacies of fine machinery are something that are only taught of the most prestigious middle schools in Japan and..."

"Yeesh, cut the muttering kid, it's creepy," Power Loader laughed. "That's why I'm going to teach you. See all this stuff?"

Izuku looked across all the trash across the horizon and gulped. "Y-yes."

"We're going to use all this scrap garbage to build a robot. You're going to learn the ins and outs of inventing - and we'll put some muscle on your skinny ass too. Even Support students are expected to meet some physical requirements, alright?"

Izuku nodded. "Y-yes sir. So...where do we start?"

Power Loader grinned. "Bring me that locker over there. You've got a lot to learn, kid."

So, the next nine months was a living hell of training for Midoriya Izuku. He dragged scrap around the beach, burned his hands with welding tools, learned different types of telescopic lenses, how to build a motherboard, how to wire circuitry, and, most importantly, how to weave these skills together. It was a training of body and mind. After a few months, it actually was not that hard of a transition for Izuku; he had always known what sort of equipment the Pros used to enhance their Quirks; he even had notes on Power Loader's headgear. It just became a shift of better understanding on how those items worked, and just how helpful they were to each hero.

The day before the exam, Power Loader and Izuku stood on the beach, and examined their finished creation: it was a robotic exoskeleton suit. It was blue, with a pull down visor, and they had even made red boots that looked like the ones Izuku himself wore.

"I like the boots, nice touch, kid," Power Loader said, clapping his protege on the back. "What do you say you take her for a spin?"

Izuku looked at the man, shocked. "M-me?"

The hero laughed. "Of course! We built it to your dimensions, didn't we? I'm not fitting in there."

Deku gulped nervously, and pressed a button on their remote; the chest plates and leg plates opened up, and he stepped backwards into the machine as it closed around him. He reached up and pulled the visor shut over his eyes.

Without warning, Power Loader through a large rock at him, which bounced off the armor.

"H-hey!" Izuku cried, "What was that about?!"

"Did it hurt, or did the impact dampeners work?" Power Loader asked.

Izuku paused. "I could feel the push of the rock, but it didn't hurt!"

"Yes!" Power Loader fist-pumped, "You installed it right! That's the hardest part! Now test the flamethrower!"

Izuku raised his arm.

"POINT IT AWAY FROM ME, KID!" The teacher shouted, shielding his face with his hands.

"O-oh! Right! Sorry Sensei!" Izuku shuttered, point over the water and making the hand gesture that triggered the flame jets. He felt the heat shoot down his arms as fire shot from the wrist-mounted pistons,

"HAHA! YES!" Power Loader exclaimed. "WE DID IT! The fire-mech suit dream is realized! Climb out, kid!"

Izuku climbed out, proudly. "Think I'm ready?"

Power Loader nodded. "Yeah, Midoriya, I do. Now remember, you'll be on a team for building, but you'll be scored individually, so don't let any hotheads take over for you. Stand on your own feet, and if all else fails, add flamethrowers. You are REAL good at flamethrowers."

Izuku smiled. "Probably all the notes on Kacchan."

Power Loader's smile faltered. "I'm sorry about your friend, Midoriya. I know that's why you're really here now."

Izuku looked over the view of the water. "Thanks. I mean...don't get me wrong. He wasn't always the nicest, but...he didn't deserve that. I'm just glad I found a calling I can achieve without my Quirk."

"Well, you done good kid. Now, go get some sleep. You've got a big day tomorrow."

Unbeknownst to Power Loader, there was more to the calling than Izuku let on. Back at his home, Izuku had various news articles pinned to a cork board; the sludge villain was still at large, using Bakugou's corpse as a meat suit for his crimes, and for months, Izuku had been tracking the case, looking for patterns. But like his sludge, he was a hard to grasp. Whatever his process was, it was pretty unclear.

Izuku smiled to himself serenely, despite his frustrations. While he had found passion in what he did, Support was a means to another dream.

"Don't worry Kacchan," Izuku said, tacking up another article, "your suffering will end soon. I just need...the right...tools."

The next day, Izuku rose bright and early, and slung his backpack on to head to the UA testing center. Part of him wondered why the Support Test was a full month before the Hero Test, but being a Hero was a dream of the past.

The test was odd; he was handed a card with, "Group D, Team A,"on it. He reported to the testing center for Group D, which was an arena sized room filled with parts, and found that a lot of students were already finding their teams.

Before he could ask around, he felt a tap on his shoulder. Izuku turned around to see a girl with pink hair beaming at him. He froze up. Holy crap, a girl!

"You're Team A, right? I could see from across the room."

Izuku looked down at his card. The print was really small.

"Ha!" The girl laughed, "Impressed? My Quirk, I can zoom in on things. I made this precious baby to help with it!"

She pat the goggles on her head, swelling with pride. "I love my babies!" She crowed. "What have you made? I'm Hatsume Mei, by the way."

Izuku froze up. His training with Power Loader was supposed to be a secret. He opened his mouth to give a weak excuse, but he was interrupted as a voice came from a podium at the end of the room.

"HELLO GROUP D!" Yelled a man with blonde hair.

Izuku internally freaked out. "That's Present Mic! He's the voice Hero!"

He fought the urge to mumble; he had just been told for most of the last year how creepy it was, and did his best not to.

"EVERY YEAR, AS YOU GROOVY CATS KNOW, WE GATHER STUDENTS FOR THE HERO COURSE! AND WE HAVE THEM FIGHT SOME CRAZY ROBOTS TO TEST THEIR QUIRKS! CAN I GET A WHOOP WHOOP!" Present Mic yelled.

Izuku went to give him a Whoop Whoop, but no one else was, so he kept quiet.

"...OKAY, YOU'RE ALL IN ZONE. SO WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH YOU?!"

A banner unfurled behind him, showing a giant robot that.

"WELL GROUP D, YOU ALL ARE GOING TO BE BUILDING THIS BAD BOY; THE ZERO POINTER! WHAT SAY YOU MAKE A BOT THAT GIVES THE HEROES A HARD TIME?"

Midoriya and Hatsume exchanged glances; his nervous, hers ecstatic.

"TEAMS, GRAB THE BLUEPRINTS FOR YOURS PART, AND WHEN TIME IS UP, YOU WILL NEED TO PUT THE ROBOT TOGETHER!"

A panel in the wall opened, revealing ten rolls of blueprints. Midoriya ran over to it and grabbed theirs, bringing it over to Hatsume.

"So what are we building? What part of the baby are we in charge of?!" Hatsume begged, bouncing on her feet.

Izuku unfurled the sheet, and his eyes widened.

The Weapons Systems. Specifically, the lasers and...flamethrowers.

Midoriya met Hatsume's gaze, and this time, they were both ecstatic.

It turned out, it was just the two of them on Team A, as the size of the Zero Pointer did not mean it generally needed a ton of weapons. However, the two of them were MORE than enough; Midoriya was amazed at how easily Hatsume could make the precise lens for a laser that would maim, but not kill, any of the Hero hopefuls, and she couldn't help but applaud him for his knowledge on flamethrowers.

"That propulsion system is something," she admitted, "my babies only manage a thirty foot flame burst. How are you getting fifty feet?! I MUST KNOW!"

Izuku began to sweat nervously, although the welding torch in his hand wasn't helping. He flicked it off and lifted his visor. "L-let's focus on getting the w-weapons on the m-mounting system, Hatsume."

OH MY GOD, I TALKED TO HER! He panicked.

She pouted, "I'll know your secrets, Midoriya! Just you wait!" She flashed him a wicked grin.

Izuku gave her a weak smile and turned back to his welding. F-focus, Deku.

Finally, the buzzer sounded, and the groups game together, wheeling their parts to build the robot together. As Hatsume and Midoriya mounted lasers and flamethrowers on both the treads and the arms, Present Mic was shocked on how many they made.

"Y-you only had to make one for each tread!" He marveled.

"I know, but we had enough materials to really give this guy some firepower if you know how to wire it right." Hatsume boasted, throwing an arm around Midoriya. He burned bright red as she added, "And this green-haired genius knew how to rig the babies real good!"

Present Mic was thoroughly impressed. "I've never seen a Zero Pointer with so much bang...but is it's bark worse than it's bite?! Tune in and find out!"

He went to test the flamethrowers, and both Hatsume and Midoriya began to panic. "No wait, there's people in...!"

The flamethrower torched a wide radius fifty feet in front of them, a few of the other Support Students just barely managing to get out of the way in time.

"...the way..." Midoriya coughed, getting out from under the singed metal plate he had covered himself and Hastume with.

Present Mic boomed, "THAT'S SSSSSSPICY!"

Two weeks later, a letter from UA came. Izuku and his mother opened it together, to find a holo-disc. The projection of Power Loader proudly crowed that he had passed the Support Exam with flying colors. Izuku and Ink both teared up and embraced; at long last, Izuku had found a way into the Hero Academy.

But Izuku did something else in those two weeks. He got up early every day, and went back to that beach for scrap.

And the night before he began Support Training, he stayed up, finishing his own miniature flamethrower.

"I guess you're the first of my babies." He chuckled to himself. "I'll have to make you some brothers or sisters."

Deku turned to the latest picture he'd pulled from online, the sludge villain using Bakugou's body to pull a robbery heist in Shibuya; part of Bakugou's face had rotted away, revealing the muddy substance underneath.

Despite how much the sight made Izuku seeth, he kept the serene smile on his face and turned back to his flamethrower. "I don't think you're quite enough for our guest of honor."

He opened his closet, and pulled off a loose board in the back, stashing the weapon.

Midoriya Izuku was ready for Support Class.