Enjoy.

All men are not created equal. In a hero society, how could they be? Heroes are like gods among men, standing above and looking down at what used to be their peers. They only grow in stature as time passes. Such is the way ever since the emergence of quirks. The world revolves around them, as it should, but what about the people born without a quirk? Are they special in their own rights, or only painfully ordinary?

Midoriya Izuku could never quite answer that question as he was growing up. Was he special in the way his mother assured him? Or was he merely fodder for the elites, a kind of basis on which they could measure how great having a quirk could be, no matter the quirk?

Well, it's of no concern anymore, things changed for little Izu-chan. He holds a high position of power in the ever-expanding League of Villains, a place scum like him belong. He is the man of strategy, a right hand to Tomura. He's always operated from the shadows, but the time has finally come.

"Don't be nervous, Izuku." His female compatriot giggles behind her sweater's sleeves. Her sharp canines glint in the low light as he turns to stare at her.

Offering a smile, he replies, "What's there to be nervous about?" His empty eyes betray him.

She hums, sliding into his personal space, "This is your first time going out with us, your debut as a League member to the public. Everyone gets a little nervous." Both of them know, Izuku isn't just anyone. He's had skin in the game for a long time.

He smirks, "It's time I get more involved. Working behind the scenes has always worked better for me." He squints his eyes in a wide teeth-baring grin, "Nothing beats seeing the plan in action though." The screams always rile him up.

Dabi's scarred hand comes to rest on his shoulder, "For this one, your margin of error is always less if you continually read people."

Midoriya nods, fixing the gloves on his hands. Tomura wanted Izuku with him on this one. They were going to rage through a city, and to do it unhindered, first they needed a machine. Once they had the machine, well, then things would get interesting.

Tomura walks onto the stage, facing a crowd of lackluster villains. Father's hand covers everything but his cold eyes. "Everyone knows the plan?" The room is still. They're already wearing their game faces. "Good, then you know what to do." They begin heading out. They're not heroes, they don't need a big, uplifting speech. They're villains, and as long as they follow the plan, it doesn't matter what they do in-between.

Izuku and Dabi flank their leader with Toga trailing behind.

Their maneuverability has definitely gone down since they lost the warp quirk. It makes sense the heroes would target Kurogiri above all else. After everything that happened, those were the days when things had started to look up for the League. They had rid themselves of One for All, and the heroes have been on the defensive ever since.

The drive to the facility was quiet and tense. Toga had snuggled up against Midoriya while he stared at the ceiling of the truck. Dabi and Tomura talked occasionally. Silence permeated the air however, and it was looming and deep. The villains paid the heavy air no heed, as it was their usual atmosphere. The darkness of their deeds surrounded them, and it was further blackened with every crime committed.

Silence is boring though. Tomura scratches his neck absentmindedly before addressing Izuku. "Are you ready, Deku?"

Izuku's eyes trail down to his boss, "Of course." He's not one to disappoint.

Their target came into view from the trucks, and the building was easily surrounded. Dabi and Deku ran inside, keeping a fast pace with each other. Tomura had driven off with the others, leaving them few vehicles and personnel for the attack on the poorly guarded building. They made it to the destination, setting fires as they went. Collecting the machine and squashing any rebellion took little to no time. On the roof, the weapon was set up and Izuku removed a vial from his vest. Having done his do-diligence, it's easy to operate the high power chemical weapon. He inserted his special vial and a quick press of buttons set it all off. The show began, and it was a sight to behold. The great surge of light and power torpedoes into the sky, ingraining in the atmosphere. The aerosol blanketed the city with Deku's special chemical. Dabi grins, "This is more like it." Everything is according to plan.

Izuku nods to the guys around them, ordering, "Let's get this out of here. This city is ours now." As they leave, he stops to turn to the cloudy sky, breathing deeply, before a dangerous smile spreads across his face. He covers his mouth with a gloved a hand, as a chuckle escapes him. "They should be feeling it now! This hero society is through! Ha!" He motions to the city, spinning for a second. His heart beats with excitement and delight. Oh, the screams will be wonderful!

Dabi mutters, breaking through his euphoria, "Yes, yes, let's go meet up with Tomura. He should be at the mayor's... Your crazy is showing again."

Izuku composes himself, following behind Dabi, chuckling every so often. He settles for a strange hum that Dabi knows not to ask about. Toga once asked what song it was and Izuku gave a dangerous smile, almost like baring his teeth in a snarl, and he didn't answer. Instead it looked as though he were struggling to keep himself from launching at her in a frenzied rage, but he kept his cool.

They drive through the burning city. People are running about or standing in some frozen emotion, be it anger or fear. They're crying or screaming or laughing. Midoriya sighs in contentment, watching the chaos unfold. Finally, they know. They know what it is to be without power in a chaotic world, like he was.

He murmurs, leaning on his hand, "I'm glad I joined the League."

"You were doing pretty well for yourself as a villain mobster." Dabi recalls his first interactions with Deku. He feared for his life their first meeting, but he was the only one in the League at the time that could hold his own against the monsters lurking in the underground. Deku happened to roll with that crowd, and his reputation was astoundingly evil.

Dabi's attention returns to the present as Midoriya shrugs, "I was still under the thumb of many back then. I'm free now. A world without heroes, they will feel the pain of having no one to save them. Hypocrites." Daggers glint behind his eyes as he considers the world outside. The world that let him down.

Dabi continues observing when a dark atmosphere encloses Midoriya. "Right." Dabi merely started out following Stain's teachings. At first, only corrupt heroes should be weeded out, but Dabi's ideas changed after All Might's fall and the rise of villains. The whole system should be done away with. Villains of the past have just been thinking far ahead, more than the rest of society, so they've been shunned. This is how all new ages get started, by forcing a change.

What they're trying to create will be better. It'll definitely be more amusing.

They reach the steps to city hall. As expected, there are bodies everywhere. Dabi and Izuku step out of their vehicle and enter the building. Izuku kicks up a pile of dust, chuckling darkly. They're greeted by League members who guide them to Tomura. The man sits in the mayor's office, his feet up on the table. "Well done, you two. Now, we wait for the call."

"Heroes, this city needs your help..." The mayor sat behind his desk, the most dire expression slowly peels away at a twitch or two before a smile breaks out followed by a... giggle? The facade fades and Toga stands in her birthday suit, smiling pleasurably, "Come here if you dare, hero." A jacket befalls her as she gets up to let Tomura take the screen.

He lays it down with menacing vivacity. "This city is ours now. You could try to take it back, but you'd lose your quirk in the process. What's it gonna be? I'm waiting." He holds up a pen, pressing all his fingers for a disintegration. The signal is cut. He stands, stretching, "Let's see what they do."

News crews swarm the smoldering city. People who evacuated began their tales of woe. Quirkless, the lot of them. Deku found great pleasure watching the news channels give account after account that the city is a quirkless wasteland. Heroes consistently cried or shook in fear on camera. The city was quarantined.

This was the time to relay another message. So they set up the broadcast station and began their transmission.

Tomura sat in his villain uniform, on a chair behind a table in a legitimate newsroom from an abandoned building. Lightly scratching his neck, he informs the world, "We can take away quirks, and we have the means to do it on this scale, maybe more, you wouldn't know. Those who wish to keep their quirk, join us." He stands and leaves.

Deku enters the picture. Smiling in a mocking demeanor, "As you've heard from our illustrious leader, we're extremely capable and willing. What hero can save you if they don't have their quirk anymore? As for this city, we'll be moving on to the next and the next, maybe your own city. The time of heroes is at its end, come join us by the fire, watching their world burn." The signal is cut and Deku breathes out, "I've never performed in front of so many people before." He feigns emotion. In fact, what's this one called again? He's supposed to be nerve-wracked, but what face goes with that? Puzzled, he smiles again.

"Apparently, you're better suited to be listened to and taken seriously." Tomura continues, "Let's move on, this city is boring now that most have left."

One of their underlings opens a door, and instead of the room that's supposed to be behind it, it's their next base. The great machine, responsible for releasing the chemical, was moved out of the city from before amidst the initial chaos. Deku steps through, glad to have another person with a suitable quirk for traveling. The rest of their troops move through. Dabi tells them, "We'll hit the next city in a few days, everyone rest up."

As Deku moves to go to his quarters, a young girl runs up, her enchanting hair flowing behind her. "Deku-san! You're back!"

She wraps her arms around him, and he gives her a warm smile. The crazed glint in his eye fades as he gazes upon her. "Eri-chan, how are you feeling?"

She smiles, "I'm great. Do we get to practice with my quirk some more?"

Izuku pats her head, noting the horn. He murmurs, "If you wish."

Toga rests her chin on Eri's shoulder, "Let's let grumpy-old-Deku rest, and we can play."

Eri giggles and Toga leads her away by the hand. Deku watches the two leave before he sighs and continues to his room. He takes a short nap before he gets to going over the logistics of their next plan. Even as they speak, the heroes are probably trying to pinpoint their base and find their next target. They know Eri is the source of their reverting people to their quirkless past. Eri is probably the heroes' greatest failure. The ninth holder of One For All lost his quirk in that fight for her. It was easy pickings for the League.

Deku joined the League shortly after. Because of his quirks, he was put in charge of the frightened little girl. Eri came to love his quiet and kind nature. He wanted to know more about her quirk and the contents stolen from Chisaki, and he went about it in a gentle way. She never knew that it was a mask he donned as soon as he saw her.

Tomura waltzes in his room as he's mulling over details. He sits on the recliner, putting his feet up and leaning back. "We're going to Endeavor's city next, right?"

Deku nods.

"All Might is hospitalized in that city."

Deku glances up from his papers, "And?" He knows where Shigaraki is going with this, but he needs him to spell it out.

Tomura leans forward, "Let's make an example." His voice holds severity. He wants this, it's personal.

Deku stares straight into Tomura's eyes, and he replies, "No." Deku focuses on his work. He's the only person who actively dismisses Tomura's ideas, not that it didn't earn him some licks before. Still, he's a daring man, and Tomura never scared him. He knows what real monsters look like.

Tomura stands, and moves to place his hands on the desk, keeping one finger up, "Let's make an example." Deku doesn't need to look into his eyes to know they're burning with animosity.

Deku stands as well, growling, "Picking on the weak is the sign of a weak organization. Better we choose someone with an actual fighting chance, that makes sense to make an example of." Some emotion from a distant past rears at the thought of bringing down All Might. Whatever it is, he's not paid to feel, he's paid to think. Going after All Might, a poor decrepit, old man makes no sense.

Tomura breaks contact, crossing his arms and muttering, "Fine, how about Endeavor?"

Deku smirks, "I was thinking she might be more suitable." He holds up a picture of a costumed hero, known to be bubbly and kind.

Tomura stares at the picture, "Uravity? I thought we weren't going for the weak?"

Deku chuckles darkly, "She has just the image we want to destroy. She's a rescuer but is also known as an excellent martial artist. Tearing someone like her down will be just the right blow. We know her office is based there and I happened to schedule our attack during a time she's known to be around. Endeavor has too much controversy, we need someone well rounded and loved by all."

Tomura receives the picture, "Uravity..." The paper disintegrates in his hand. "Good job, Deku."

Of course, the heroes weren't sitting on their asses doing nothing. In fact, one particularly explosive hero managed to further research on this new player in the League. He followed a hunch after seeing the green-haired villain. It reminded him too strongly of a distant friend, if he could even call him that. Their relationship was more like an ant meeting his shoe.

Bakugou Katsuki, one of the brightest yet most uncouth heroes around. He's R-Rated just for his language and general brash nature. Still, none can deny that he is a prodigy when it comes to battle and the utilization of his quirk.

He's one of the few heroic occupants in the room. He sits beside some of his former classmates including Uravity, Red Riot, and Ice Burn. "Midoriya Izuku, that kid went missing a long time ago after he and his mom moved to a rural region. The villain, who we still can find no trace of a history or background, looked uncannily similar to that nerd, so I had to do some digging. No surprise my hag of a mother hid the truth about him from me. Apparently, Midoriya disappeared and the police found his mother's mutilated corpse, signs of occupancy of the murderers, and obvious kidnapping of the kid. There's no doubt in my mind that Midoriya and this new villain are the same."

Red Riot comments, "I kinda feel bad for the guy now."

"Don't. He's still a villain, and we're going to have to take him down." Images of a kind, freckled face flash in Katsuki's mind, further deepening his mean look. "There's no sign of where the League might be hiding. All we can do is intensify the patrols and investigate like crazy. We've found some of their abandoned hide-outs, but that's not enough."

Uravity muses, "They've gotten much cleaner since when we were in high school. It's become more of a battle of wits, and they've been winning. Hiding for years now, but why the wait? Why didn't they follow through with the machine they stole and get it beforehand? Something must've kept them from acting for this long period, what?"

Ice Burn clears his throat. Looking from each of the heroes, he leans forward and balances his gaze from Red Riot and Uravity. "They mostly disappeared after the raid you two performed on the yakuza household? A lot of those details were kept from the public, care to shed any light on the details of that mission?"

Uravity and Red Riot share a look momentarily. The hardening hero postulates, "That was our greatest shame. Mirio-senpai, Tamaki-senpai, and a lot of other good heroes were lost that day. Our mission was to rescue a little girl and we failed miserably. Overhaul was double-crossed and the girl was gone with the League. We never found out the details of her quirk and why she was necessary to the operation."

Katsuki, whose hero name is Ground Zero, gripes, "Don't dwell on it, it's just been a series of losing battles since All Might retired."

"There was a drug that Overhaul was producing to remove a person's quirk, we never found the drug, just that the girl was missing, and Overhaul was dead. Maybe they completed it?" Uravity sets her chin on her palm, pensive.

Katsuki tells them, "I already told the police to focus on cities with the highest number of heroes living in them."

"All that means nothing if they have the maneuverability from someone with a quirk."

Growling low, "Then what do you propose we do?" Ground Zero's intense gaze aligns with Ice Burn.

"Come on guys, I know you're all former classmates but let's try to keep this civil. We're doing everything we can."

Breaking eye contact, Ground Zero stands to leave, "Our best isn't going to save anyone, nor will it help us beat them." He walks out in a heated fury. Everything is terrible. Deku is a villain now? He shakes his head violently to free that awestruck face from his mind. A distant, muddled voice is telling him how awesome he is, and how they're both going to be heroes when they're older. Without thinking, he punches the wall outside with explosive intent. People stare at him for a moment as he stares at the ground. His skin feels hot, and he's trying to focus his sudden rage. Deku never mattered, so why is he getting all bent out of shape about it? Why is he a fucking villain?

"What did that wall ever do to you?"

He peers behind him to find Uravity and Red Riot have followed. Red Riot steps forward, placing his hand on his friend's shoulder, "You can be honest about being broken up about your friend."

Bakugou shakes the hand off him, and continues to walk. "Piss off, he never would've made a hero, and he definitely can't be a great villain. I'll crush him."

Uravity sighs, smiling kindly at her red-haired companion, "He never changes. You're going with him to that house in the country right," after a nod, she adds, "Look out for him."

Red Riot bares his sharp teeth in a grin, "Of course, and you look out for yourself here. This city is one of those with the most heroes after all."

Raising a fist, "Even without my quirk, I'm not powerless!" She has a lot of combat and martial arts training to back her up.

They part with Red Riot rushing to catch up with Ground Zero.

The drive is quiet, and mostly tense. Red Riot, out of uniform, is known as Kirishima Eijirou. He glances at Bakugou every once in a while. His scowl has maintained the same level of intensity since they left. Gathering up the courage, Kirishima sighs, "You know, this might have been better left to the cops. We're not even sure it really is Midoriya."

"It is." The calm tone surprised Kirishima.

He stares at his friend's face once more, and what does he find? Could that be pain? Sadness? Regret? For a small moment, Bakugou's expression is soft and vulnerable, staring at the road ahead. "You guys must've been really close then."

Like that, the perpetual anger floods the shadows of his face and Katsuki growls, "Not particularly. We were kids. He followed me around like a puppy." A fluffy and loyal puppy, that looked out for him even when he was annoyed by it. The thought only makes him grit his teeth.

Kirishima smiles, "Oh?" His tone beckons Bakugou to continue.

Bakugou glances at Kirishima's cheeky smirk with one brow raised in a question. The blond elaborates unwillingly, "He was a sad, pathetic little kid with no quirk. He could never fantasize about being a hero, but I never really pegged him for a villain either."

Kirishima is watching the rolling hills, lost in his imagination, so he doesn't notice the wince when Katsuki hears the distant, "Are you okay? Can you walk?"

"I wonder what happened to him?"

They know his mother was brutally murdered and he was taken. It's sad to think, but he might have been better off dead. A tragedy is still a tragedy though.

Katsuki turns onto a dirt road leading into the forest bordering the plains. "They really lived in the middle of nowhere, huh." With poor cellular service, everything rests on a functioning landline.

Kirishima asks, "So, why'd they move out here? Do you remember anything?"

"My old hag said my aunt was worried about De- Midoriya getting bullied, and that he'd be better off in a new place. They'd keep his quirk under wraps. They were doing well out here." Until everything went to shit.

They reach the end of the road, finding a little house that's completely run down. No one wanted to live in a house that was the scene of a grisly murder. Katsuki steps out, there's a lot of trees surrounding the house. It's nice and cool under the foliage. He walks around. Izuku probably ran all around this property, right? He turns to the porch as Kirishima winces at every creak. Two steps are broken, and the color is all peeling off. The windows are gone. It's just the skeleton of a home. The door hangs off one hinge as Kirishima steps inside. It's small and there are no traces of the family that lived there before. Katsuki follows close behind, peering around as Kirishima ventures deeper into the home. Katsuki is about to follow him to the basement before Kirishima walks back up and blocks him from going inside, "Not this one buddy." Katsuki stares into Kirishima's stern gaze, placing his hand on his shoulder.

Smoke begins billowing from his hand, "Get the fuck out of my way."

Kirishima replies, "It won't help you. Trust me."

"Don't make me repeat myself."

Kirishima concedes, stepping out of the way to let Katsuki pass. He presses his head to the wall before he dives back into the abyss. Bakugou came down only to stop as his eyes discerned the dark stains of blood from a distant event. They couldn't get rid of it, because it was left to set on the wall. He breathes out. Why is his heart racing all of a sudden?

He walks around and toward the back corner he finds scribbles on the wall in terrible handwriting. Crouching, he reads "DEAD" repeatedly scrawled, etched deep into the wall. It's only in the corner near the back, by the... It's only near the pipes.

An inconceivable emotion overcomes him, as he breathes out. Punching the wall in a quick burst of power, he breathes, his fist somewhat inside the wall. He pulls his arm out, staring at his hand. There's a slight quiver to them. Then he finds himself being led outside by his companion. He isn't even paying attention to the calm words being said to him. He merely grunts, "Those bastards." Those fucking cretins.

"Hey, are you back with me, Bakugou?"

The explosive hero stares out the window as they drive away. He's not stupid. He knows the house was reportedly occupied by the criminals, and that means the Midoriyas may have gone weeks alone and afraid. Maybe his aunt was also kept alive for a while, though he hates to think that she was slowly tortured to death with Deku watching. It's worse to think that Deku lived next to his mother's corpse although that's what the words suggested. A kid driven mad with grief and pain.

He cringes away from Kirishima's touch, with his friend finally coming into focus, "Come on man, you're starting to worry me."

"I'm fine, jeez. What are you, my fucking babysitter?" Just leave him alone, he's processing.

Cracking a small smile, "There he is."

They head to the city toward the hotel for the day. They'll come back and have another look around the house and try to find any trace on who occupied the Midoriya home through the news outlets of the time.

In the next week, they come up with bubkes, nothing. There's no logical reason in the area why someone would go there. They needed a hideout, so in that way it makes sense, but it seems so random as to who could've done it. Eventually they have to go home and let this investigation die. At the airport, they sullenly wait to board the plane to the city before a voice on the loudspeaker calls, "All flights to Kioko are cancelled in the wake of a villain attack."

The heroes tense as the news is hijacked, "Hello, precious viewers! Welcome to another episode of the League, now, what do we have here?" It's the green-haired villain from before. His sunken eyes betray his bright smile. This is the face of a lunatic. He giggles, "Oh, it's the dear hero, Uravity, beloved by many!? How are you doing on this fine day, ma'am?" The shoddy camera makes it seem all the more gritty. Even so, there are fires and people running and shouting in the background as he reveals Uravity struggling in the arms of two men.

"You won't get away with this!" Anger rolls off her tongue, but anyone who knows her can see the fear behind her eyes. "What did you do to my city?"

"I just brought everyone down a few pegs is all. What's it like to be quirkless?" The young villain smiles deviously as loud creaks are heard. The video shows a skyscraper completely on fire, and victims in need of rescuing are screaming from the open windows. Bodies are falling, from the people trying to escape the smoke, they're hoping, praying they might survive the fall.

The camera switches from Uravity to the building. "Why, Uravity, why don't you go help them!? People are dying! Men, release her! Let her do her job, quickly!"

The brutes release her but she doesn't rush forward. She stares at the building, another splat is heard. Tears build in her eyes as she realizes she can do nothing to help them, no one can.

The villain steps closer to her, "What's this? Aren't you a hero? Shouldn't you be rushing to help, no matter your life!? Do I smell hypocrisy!?" He laughs boisterously before turning the camera on himself, "You heard it here first folks, we're merely trying to show that there are no true heroes anymore. And this is only the beginning, we're going to make you painfully aware of how no one will come to the rescue any longer hahaha!" The laugh may be loud, but he finds no humor in his words. He's merely enjoying the flames.

"You monster!" Uravity swings a punch at him and he simply evades.

He smiles, "Oh, you're still here. If you've got fight left in you, then escorting people out of the city shouldn't be too much of an expectation." His eyes squint from his large grin, "If you take another swing at me, I'm going to cut off all your limbs and feed them to you." Her hesitation is infuriating. Why did she even become a hero? It infuriates him beyond his own comprehension. How dare she be allowed to work as a hero.

Uravity stops her assault when the killer intent rolls off his breath. There's a dangerous air to this villain, which is strange. If he truly is quirkless Midoriya Izuku like Bakugou says, then how is he so confident? She asks, with stoic features, "Is it you Midoriya?"

His eye twitches at the name, then his smile becomes strained. Green irises peek from the slits of his eyelids as he coldly responds, "Whoever this Midoriya is, if he's alive, I'll kill him too if you like. I won't repeat my offer, Uravity. Are the people dying and in search of a helping hand not your top priority? It seems you will be needing a lesson in heroism after all." He hands the camera to one of his goons.

He walks to another building where a kid is crying over her mother's corpse, crouching beside the child, Deku shushes her, "It's going to be alright, little girl. The League will happily take in any strays." He brushes a tear from her cheek, and his eyes flash a brilliant green for a moment. The child quiets and he picks her up, "Your mother did a good job protecting you, now let us be your family."

Uravity stands speechless as the little girl quivers in his arms. She stares between the camera and the scene they just displayed. It's all propaganda. She growls, "Let the girl go." After all, nobody likes a dirty politician.

"Looks like someone finally learned some priorities." He rolls his eyes, "Sorry, but you snooze, you lose. Next time a villain kindly offers you a way to save people, you should take it. Even if it's a trap, how can you even call yourself a hero?" He levels with her, considering her actions. It's because of heroes like her that he was- ... Ah, that was so long ago. He settles for a glare.

Uravity bites back tears as she agrees. She froze when she should have acted. She's pathetic, and she knows, hell, everyone knows now. She turns away, she's outnumbered and outgunned, and there's no way she can beat them. She might be able to save a few people, after all, she's not weak. Just as she's about to turn to help people evacuate, the skyscraper comes tumbling down on itself. The camera feed cuts out as the breaking steel and glass explode in the distance and come raining down on them.

Katsuki and Eijirou haven't realized they're out of their seats. Horror is painted on their faces. What can be done? Is Uravity alright? What about the other heroes? Katsuki growls, "I'll kill him."

Kirishima nods in agreement. "Friend or no, that man needs to be put down."

Still, there's that inkling of relief. None want to say it, but if they'd stayed in the city, they'd probably be quirkless right now.

Back in the city, Deku scowls at the trashed building. What a waste. He tells his underlings, "Come, we're going to meet up with Tomura." He begins walking to the door for the stairs.

One of the masked villains asks, "What about Uravity sir?" He gestures to the unconscious woman also on the roof of the building Deku took them to.

He rolls his eyes, "Leave that trash."

His two compatriots share a look before following his lead. They're not sure what happened exactly, just that they were suddenly thrown to this roof across the street. Deku's quirk is certainly one of the main gossips among the League's lackeys. It's said that only the upper echelon know. Even now, those who have been with him for years can't get a firm grasp of his desires or personality. He doesn't seem so bad as he whispers soothing words to the child in his arms. Quite the enigma, that Midoriya Izuku, though he prefers Deku.

A/N: Next chapter will be out soon. Hope y'all enjoyed :D