Chapter Four: Explanation

Four Years Ago…

Itsuka opened the binder that held all of her research, gathered from assorted news sources and reports she had managed to find. Today, she was able to add some more pieces to the puzzle she had been assembling.

Her father would be upset, but the questions gnawed on the back of her mind. And so she had sought out whatever scraps of information there were on the Six Hundred Hours, alternatively referred to as the Deep Ones' reign of terror.

Starting at the top.

"The Deep Ones were a short-lived group of terrorists operating out of Okinawa. Over the course of three and a half weeks, more than ten-thousand were killed in their reign of terror, with many more injured or displaced in the aftermath. Thanks to the quick response of local Hero agencies, police officers, and the timely arrival of All-Might, the villains were defeated and their followers subdued."

"Eldritch, a.k.a. Mei Liang. Quirk: Deep Call, an Emitter-type Quirk that summons eldritch horrors via singing." An aerial shot of a portal with a mass of tentacles stretching out and smashing buildings, a hooded figure watching from the sidelines. "Assumed to be the leader of the Deep Six, the notable figures within the gang. Killed in action."

Pictured with her file was the woman impaled a shard of glass. Eldritch had been a fairly big name, even before the formation of the Deep Ones, and her demise had been a great relief among both the Hero community and Law Enforcement agencies in the region. As had the next name on the list.

"Poseidon, Perseus Reed. Quirk: Tsunami." Flipping the page, there were several pictures, mostly possible sightings of the villain, and a picture that had survived the initial strike, a massive wave bearing down on the city. "Emitter-type that manipulates bodies of water. Killed in action."

It was all too easy for some to forget that powerful Quirks didn't make one invincible, and the Greek man that had been gunned down during the fighting was a perfect example of this, as was the morphed ground that had tripped him up long enough for the police to finish him off.

"Bonecrusher, a.k.a. Ezekiel Walker. Quirk: Bone Dance, creates constructs from bones of dead creatures. Possible Emitter-type, but exposed skeletal structure hints at possible Mutation, or even Transformation. Killed in action."

The picture of the massive pile of bones that had been blasted from one of her father's punches. The man himself hadn't survived the impact, though no one had shed any tears for this particular side effect.

The next shot was of a woman with red hair, though it looked dyed. "Havoc, a.k.a. Mari Ketsueki, a.k.a. Bloody Mary. Quirk: Vacuum, an Emitter-type that projects a pressure bubbles. Killed in action."

Even among the list of horrible atrocities committed by her and her peers, Havoc had the distinction of the most gruesome methods of dispatching her enemies, holes violently punched through buildings and bodies ruptured when the pressure abruptly shifted to the extremes.

"Locust, a.k.a. Suzumebachi Aburame." Itsuka leaned back when she saw bug-eyed mug shot, the man looking like a demented scarecrow. "Quirk: Hive, a Mutation-type that turns him into a production center for insects, with capabilities being determined at creation, and have a limited lifespan outside of their master's influence. Killed in action."

"Megalodon, a.k.a.…" Itsuka paused before reading the name that went along with the handle. "Haemon Calagione. Former sidekick of the Kung-Pow Agency. Quirk: Shark, a Mutation-type that grants him many qualities of a shark. Current status…" She sat up as she saw the mug shot of the man. "Detained."

Looking up at the shelf, the picture of the Hero agency her parents had been a part of stood in a place of honor. She picked it up, returning to her bed, comparing it to the mugshot from her binder of the battered, but smug visage of a man sneering at the camera.

The Hero names. Calagione was standing next to Itsuka's mother, with her father standing on the other side.

"Interesting research you're doing."

Itsuka jumped, literally to her feet, and turned around to face her father. He leaned over her desk where the file was spread out.

"I'm…" She trailed off, not sure what to say. "I didn't mean to pry…"

"It's fine," he replied, though the tiredness he radiated didn't reassure her all that much.

She settled at his side, him absently resting a hand on her head, brushing her hair.

"I was planning on telling you, at some point. Should have known you'd seek out the answers yourself. I would say that you take after your mother in that regard, but I think I have myself to blame for this."

Itsuka wasn't sure how to respond to that, then looked up at him. "What happened? How did Shark Boy become Megalodon? Why did he kill my mom?"

Her father was silent for a moment. "You certainly know how to cut to the chase," he said, eventually. "As for your questions, it's… a bit of a story. Not overly long, but you might want to sit down for it."

The two sat down on her bed. Looking up at her father, Itsuka saw his features shift as he gathered his thoughts before speaking.

"Your mother and Haemon had gone to school together, joined the same Hero program, and my boss hired the two of them when they graduated. Since I was only a little older than the two of them, I ended up getting put in charge of them when they were starting out. Worked really well together, at least for a time." Her father paused, grimacing at the memories. "It was shortly before you were born, but we were tracking a villain who had been causing a ruckus. The man was a piece of work, with a laundry list of crimes, and he was skilled at hiding. When the rest of us were still pulling our hair out trying to find him, Haemon had managed to track him down while off duty, completely off the books. But instead of capturing him and sending him along legal channels, the villain was strung up on a streetlight. I managed to catch up to him shortly he had finished. It was a grisly sight."

Itsuka grasped her father's hand a little tighter.

"Regulations dictated that I report him," he continued, "even in light of our past friendship. My reasoning was that if his impulses weren't curbed, and quickly, it would grow out of control. He tried to convince me otherwise, but I already passed the message along to Kung-Pow. After the official reprimand, his reputation took a dive, he quit the agency, and then he fell off the face of the earth."

"Until Fuyuki," Itsuka murmured.

Her father nodded. "Until Fuyuki." Staring into the distance, Itsuka could imagine the scenes playing before his eyes. "That first wave had struck the coast hard. We responded, but they had swept through and left plenty more bodies in their wake. That's when we knew it wasn't some random shmuck with a powerful Quirk, but a concerted attack by an organized group of villains. Few survivors to speak of, even fewer eyewitnesses. It was chaos after that. Attack after attack, always a couple steps ahead. We caught a break by stumbling on a training camp they had set up, rounding up the ones present; mostly small-time thugs, with some disgruntled citizens and Hero course washouts to round out their numbers, but they had plans of the next attack."

"Did it help?" Itsuka asked.

Her father grimaced. "Maybe a little. I like to think it did. But, even knowing what we did about them, our preparations weren't nearly enough to put them down hard and fast. They came in force, with their strongest leading the charge, and their underlings swarming in after them. Fighting in the streets, Quirk usage rampant, I wouldn't be surprised if some citizens had stepped in to help. Being one of the more experienced of the lot, our agency was tasked with taking down the ringleaders."

For a moment, it seemed as though her father had gotten lost in his own world, but he sucked in another breath and soldiered on.

"Kung Pow and I had just taken down Bonecrusher, and that's when Haemon stepped in. In a straight fight, we would have beaten him, but he had come in loaded with black market Support gear, he was mostly fresh, and he came out swinging. Hardest fight of my life." He looked down at the braces. "Your mother had stepped in to protect me, but Haemon didn't care who got in the way at that point, even one of his oldest friends. He just wanted me gone. If All-Might hadn't showed up…I don't even want to think of it."

Itsuka leaned into her father's side. "Do you wonder how things could have happened differently?" she asked.

"All the time. Maybe your mother and I could have changed places. Maybe All Might could have moved faster. Maybe I could have said something to dissuade Haemon from going down the path he did in the first place. But in the end, we can't change what happened. We all made our choices, then and now. We make our choices, and in turn, they make us. All that matters now is how we move forward."

[IB]

Three Years Ago…

Tenya Iida was on his best behavior. As a son of the Iida family, it was his duty to uphold the family's name and reputation.

He had accompanied his big brother to the charity event, gala in Tokyo, where everyone was dressed in formalwear, and the two of them were dragged from pillar to post. As the current Ingenium, it was to be expected that others would be eager to take his measure, and so Tensei mingled with the assorted Heroes and luminaries of the community, fielding conversation with practiced ease.

That did not mean Tenya was not just the slightest bit bored with the affair. There was no one his age that he could see, and father had instructed him to stay close to his brother. No wandering off for any reason.

His brother tapped him on the shoulder. "Tenya," he whispered, pointing over to the other end of the room.

Peering between the gaps in the crowd, he spied two children being watched by a silver-haired bodyguard. The girl looked like a Yaoyorozu. Her companion with the green hair…Teyna could not place him. In any case they were probably of similar age to him In any case they were probably of similar age to him, and thus, someone he could theoretically speak to without feeling out of depth as he did with the other adults in the room.

"Come on," Tensei said, "let's go say hello."

The green-haired boy spotted their approach and perked up when he saw Tensei.

"Tensei," boy greeted, rising with a swagger and irrepressible smirk that was perfectly at home amongst the crowd they was currently with. And yet, despite the smirk, Tenya could not help but notice that far-off look in his eyes. "Good to see another friendly face around here."

"If it isn't my little pen-pal," Tensei replied, holding his hand up for a high-five. "How's it going, 'Zuku?"

"A new school year starts next week," the boy replied, returning the gesture.

Tensei chuckled a bit at this, shaking out his hand a little. "Speaking of which, I want you to meet someone." He pulled Tenya in front of him. "This here is my brother Tenya. He'll be at Soumei Junior High with you this coming school year."

"Is that so? I've heard quite a bit about you. Is your Quirk the same as your brother's?"

Tenya blinked, unsure of how to respond at first, but a gentle squeeze to his shoulder prompted him forward. "The placement of our engines is different, as is the fuel that sustains the usage thereof."

"Zuku" raised an eyebrow. "You're awfully expressive."

Tenya spared a moment to look up at his raised hands when the Yaoyorozu walked up beside and elbowed her friend. "Don't be rude, Izuku," she said, then held out her hand. "I'm Momo Yaoyorozu. It's nice to meet you."

"Right. Introductions." Izuku's smirk turned a little sheepish as he held out his hand. "Izuku Midoriya. And this is Yuri Emiya, my chaperone."

"Among many other titles," she added. "Ingenium, I believe this is my first time meeting you in person. Izuku speaks quite highly of you."

Tensei smirked and tussled Izuku's hair. "Can't say it to my face, can you?"

"I apologize for interrupting, but brother, how did you and Midoriya meet?" Tenya asked.

A moment of awkward silence passed. Midoriya and Yaoyorozu looked off to the sides, and Emiya stared at him blankly. Tenya wondered what it was that he had said that was in error, but, thankfully, Tensei filled the gap before the silence could go on longer.

"I met him on the job," he said, pulling Midoriya into a side-hug. "He was in a bit of trouble, so I help him out. Since then, he's been a bit of a fan."

Izuku gave a wry, brittle smirk, then maneuvered himself out Tensei's grasp, though not without getting his hair tussled during his escape, which found its original shape with a glinting of green light. "Well, since it seems we have so much to talk about, how about we find a table? And some food."

Practically swanning on by with Emiya at his heels, the rest of the little gathering trailing after them.

A/N: I originally planned on adding a training session for Izuku, Momo, and Sho with Yuri, but something about that scene didn't fit right. Trying to force the issue is partly why this chapter took so long to complete.

Yeah, I got a little lazy in using Fuyuki City, or at least name-dropping it. Some of my projects have been bleeding a little into each other. And, yes. Itsuka's dad quoted Andrew Ryan. Of course, that isn't the only reference tucked away here. Most of the Deep Six have at least some component of their name, alias, or Quirk derived from another source (bonus points if you can name all of them).

And now we've officially met Tenya. The initial draft of the chapter had their meeting through Tensei's eyes, but I had already done his POV in the first chapter, and the scene fit better through the younger brother's perspective. If the end seemed a bit abrupt, I've been sitting on this for more than three months, so I wanted to wrap it up and move on with the story. Hopefully you won't have to wait another six months for it to be released.

Questions? Concerns? Comments? Even if it's to tell me that I should be more creative in coming up with names and Quirks, feel free to leave a review.