Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Standing at the edge of the roof looking down at the pavement below, it wasn’t hard to imagine what the boy had been thinking in that moment.
Having just met his idol and subsequently having had his dreams crushed by him shook the boy more than All Might could’ve known.
“Become a Hero? Without a Quirk? I’m sorry my boy, but in today’s society I would think it impossible and foolish to even try. If you want to save people, why not try medicine? It might not be as glorious, but doctors save people’s lives everyday.”

Kurogiri shook his head, had he not been tasked with surveillance he would have missed the key moment when the boy had fallen backwards over the ledge. His master had an interest in the limp child in his arms, and having the object of his interests did before he decided it was his time would not be something that would go unpunished.
Opening a portal, Kurogiri slowly stepped through into a darkened room, surgical equipment lining the cold stone walls around them.
“Ah, Kurogiri- what a surprise, I was not aware that we had an appointment today?” A stout man approached out of the darkness, grey hair framing his gaunt face and sickly skin.

“Doctor, this is less of an appointment and more of a request on my behalf.” Stepping towards the operating table in the middle of the room, Kurogiri lowered the body onto it and moved to turn on the lights.

“A request? I was under the impression that you had no need to desire things, let alone request something of someone. Is there something that I should inform the master of?”

“No.” Kurogiri responded, flipping the switch on and bathing the room in a sudden flood of light. “I was tasked with observing the boy. Due to an… unprecedented event, we are now at risk of losing him. If you want to inform my master that he lost one of his pawns, then by all means do. I shall not prevent you. I do believe however, that it is in our best interests that we keep the situation on the quiet and that you focus on fixing him.”

Quickly, the doctor stepped forward, extending a hand and placing it on the
Boy’s fragile wrist.
“You’re lucky you got here quick- he’s weaker than I’d want for a patient.” Turning to open a drawer, the doctor picked out a long syringe filled with a dark, murky purple liquid. “I can make it work, but it’ll be touch and go for a while. But what am I supposed to report to the master when he asks me why his toy is strapped down to a gurney in my lab?”

“I can handle it” kurogiri responded. Sensing that his presence was no longer needed, he turned back to the wall from which he had entered and opened a new portal, one he was somewhat dreading stepping through. “I shall go and inform my master that I have brought the child to you for treatment. As far as I was instructed, I was to observe the boy until he came to me willingly in search of power. Today’s events simply…sped the process up. You should face no consequences for what has happened here today.” Sparing one final glance to the pale, freckled face of the unconscious boy, Kurogiri took a resigned step forward before disappearing from the room.
The doctor, now alone with his patient hastily turned the lights back off, plunging the room back into its more natural state of darkness.
“Well then.” He spoke, finally turning his full attention to the boy. “You wanted power right? I can give you that and so much more…the power to change this fractured society that shuns and discriminates those who do not fit into its perfect mold. But-“ he paused, noticing that the boy was slowly stirring, eyes fluttering slightly as his consciousness returned to him. “I will only do so if you let me, only save you if you ask me to, if you beg me to. So what will it be? Should I be your hero?”

“….my h-hero?”

“Please….”

The doctor’s hand came up slowly to caress the side of the poor boy’s face. “Yes?”

“Save me.”

And he did.

Chapter Text

Cold.

That’s all there is.

Cold metal, cold air, and cold skin.

Where am I? What happened to me?

I-

Oh.

I died.

Slowly lifting my head, I look around and take in my surroundings.

I had been to the hospital a few times before in my life, the time I remember the most being when I was diagnosed as quirkless.

Quirkless.

A term that only came into existence around the same time as quirks themselves did.

Whilst the word itself is pretty innocuous, it’s how people treat those who are assigned that word that is offensive.

Lesser.

That’s essentially what’s being said. People who don’t have quirks are less than those who do. And with the decrease of quirkless cases every year, those that remain are left to fall into the cracks of a superhuman society.

Fall.

I fell.

I fell far.

“Where.. where am I?”

“Somewhere safe my boy.” I flinch, not having expected to hear someone answer my muttered question. The voice that spoke was cold, professional almost. Must be a doctor. I think, that would explain the strong smell of disinfectant in the air. I realize that I must have survived. Begrudgingly I realize that, more than just survive, I had most likely been taken to a hospital. It would only be a matter of time until the doctors and nurses found my file and discovered my quirkless status. I’d be lucky if they didn’t refuse to continue treating me after that.

“Are you listening to me boy?” The voice startled me out of my inner monologue by just how curt it sounded. Ah, they must already know.

“I’m sorry sir, I was just a little confused.” I answer not entirely untruthfully, I hadn’t expected to survive that fall, and given the stabbing pain in the back of my skull it seems miraculous that I did.

Quietly, the man I assumed to be a doctor chuckles, it’s a low sound, strangely comforting despite its rattling echo resonating in the dark room. Wait. Dark? Why would it be dark in a hospital? I check again and- yes, it’s dark. Not just dark, empty .

“Oh, don’t panic my boy, your vision will return to you soon enough. You gave your brain quite a shock after all. It’s incredible you only slightly damaged your sight.”

The doctor must have noticed that I’d started breathing harder, panicking at my sudden realization that I couldn’t see.

“So… I’m not blind?”

“No, just injured. But it will heal.” A sense of calm washed over me at his words, only to be interrupted by the doctor continued rambling.

“It’s your brain that I’m more concerned about than your eyes. With such substantial injury it’s a miracle that you weren’t pronounced brain dead at the scene. There is more I’d like to do, but it’s a highly invasive procedure, not to mention the risks that accompany it.”

“What’s wrong with my brain?” I ask slowly, trying to quell the bubble of panic slowly inflating in my chest.

“A bubble.”

I stare blankly in the direction from where I heard the doctor speak. “What?”

“There’s a bubble of blood forming on the surface of your brain. It’s putting pressure on it, and if not treated it could cause irreparable damage to your it.”

Swallowing, I digest the words that the doctor said. “Then why haven’t you treated it yet?” I ask slowly. If the doctor was hesitating it could only mean that they had found out about my quirkless status.

“Well you see, as a minor, we do need the consent of a parent or legal guardian in order to perform the surgery. At the moment, we haven’t received either and are therefore unable to do anything.” That makes sense . I think, quickly dismissing my previous theory.  But, where’s my mom? Shouldn’t she be here?

“Umm, has no one found my file and emergency contacts?” I ask in a small voice.
If they check the file they’ll see it. But if they don’t check, then mom won’t be able to consent for the surgery.

“Well my boy, I’m afraid we haven’t been able to locate your file.”

“What? Why not?” I ask incredulously.

“Villain attack. They had an electro magnetic field quirk. It messed with all of the computers and seems to have wiped their memories clean.  We are still in the middle of re-identifying and registering all of our current patients. You only just came in, so unfortunately we haven’t had the chance to find you on the backup system yet.” The doctor paused in his speech for a minute and I heard what sounded similar to pen scratching on paper. “If you give me your name we can try and find your file for you. But-“ he paused again, the scratching sound stopping alongside him, as if he a sudden realization had come to him. “It might take some time…time that you don’t have with your condition. However…if you didn’t have a guardian then it’d simply be a matter of obtaining your consent directly.”

What should I say? If I give them my name they’ll see my file. And who knows how long it’ll take them to contact mom if they even bother to. The doctor said I’m running out of time. With a whirlwind of thoughts in my head, I take a steadying breath.

“I-“

I hesitate.

“I don’t have anyone…like that…”

I lied.

“I’m have no one. I’m-“

Breathe

“I’m alone.”

I could feel my heart pounding in my chest, but  the tightness of my throat and ringing in my ears was dragging the sound of its beats.

“How fortunate.”

The doctor spoke after what seemed like an eternity.

Fortunate?

“Well then, that makes this a lot easier for us to treat you!”

Oh, that’s right. I lied.

“Well then, to verify we have your consent to proceed immediately with the surgery, could you please state your name, age and occupation for our records? We can sort out all of the details after you’re fixed.”

Fixed.

“Midoriya Izuku. Aged 14, full-time student at Aldera Middle school.”

“Excellent! Well, I’ll go and hand over this information quickly and then I’ll be right back with a couple nurses to get you ready for surgery.”

I let out a breath that I’d unconsciously been holding in.  “Thank you Mr., uh-“

“My boy! Where are my manners! My name is Garaki and I’ll be your surgeon for this procedure.” I nod, deciding that I was too tired to voice my responses anymore.

“Good, now try and relax my boy, it’s healthier if the patient is in a more relaxed state when they’re out under. Its leads likely to lead to any complications.” Once again I nod, feeling a familiar heaviness of exhaustion sweep over my body. I lean back onto a soft surface that I assume must be the pillow on my cot.

As I lie there, my mind slowly beginning to fade to black as I fall asleep I hear a distant sound of footsteps approaching, accompanied by the now familiar voice of Doctor Garaki.

“He’s all ready for sedation now, just had him give us our consent so we can start straight away. Go prepare the theater for us, we’ll be bringing him through in about 10 minutes.”

The rest of the conversation faded, leaving the now slowed thumping rhythm of my heart in my chest.

It’s fine. I’m fine. They didn’t find out. They won’t find out.

With that, I faded, blissfully unaware of my conversation with the doctor being broadcasted on a small screen to my mother in our small apartment kitchen.

“if you didn’t have a guardian then it’d simply be a matter of obtaining your consent directly.”

“I- I don’t have anyone…like that…I have no one. I’m- I’m alone.”

“There we have it..” a voice drawled from an adjacent monitor. Its uncaring yet somewhat pleased tone sending shivers down the poor middle aged woman’s spine.

Inko had just gotten home from the shops when the doorbell had rung. She’d opened it, half expecting it to be a postman delivering a limited edition all might figurine she’d recently managed to find online to cheer up her son. But instead, she’d been met with a blow of hard steel to the head, and had woken up bound to one of the two chairs at the kitchen table.

Surrounded by strange men, she’d been helpless to watch as her son’s limp form had been projected onto the screen before her, unable to do anything to help him as she watched him speak to this “doctor” figure in a dark and dingy room.

“I’m- I’m alone.”

“Mphmm!”

A startled grunt was the only sound she could make from behind the thick fabric bag in her mouth, it’s salty taste flooding her senses as it became drenched in the tears poring down her face.

“Well then, the boy clearly said that he doesn’t have any guardians looking after him..”

the voice from the screen began, a slow infernal sense of realization trickling into Inko’s mind as sat surrounded by the intruders.

“It would be a shame if when he awoke he found that we had caught him out in his little lie. How about we make sure that he can’t have been lying to us to begin with?”

With those simple words and a bullet’s mercifully quick efficiency, Inko felt her body grow numb as her life bled out from within the cavity where once sat her brain.

Midoriya Izuku

Aged 14

All alone in this world.

Chapter Text

“Time is 17:00 hours. Patient has been completely sedated in preparation for emergency craniectomy. Head has been shaved  and the incision line has been marked from the frontal hairline in the left hemisphere to the base of the left ear. Skin has been sterilised and we are now ready to begin the procedure.”

How exciting! It’s not everyday I get to play around with such a young subject. 
The last thing that Garaki was expecting when he begun work in his laboratory today was an impromptu visit from a certain portal-wielding mist man carrying a near lifeless middle school aged boy. The same age as Tsubasa…I wonder how that brat is doing these days..   He thought suddenly, allowing his concentration on the task at hand to slip in favour of seeing his grandson’s face flashing through his mind. Memories of simpler days. Ever since his master had gotten grievously injured by Japan’s symbol of peace he’s had his work cut out for him. He even had to relinquish his original quirk to him just to keep him alive. Not that he was complaining: his master had graciously given him the resources necessary to duplicate his quirk beforehand, leaving him with an albeit slightly less effective copy of his original power; Life-force, but a quirk nonetheless.

“Uhm, sir? I have made the first incision, can we begin to open the bone flap?” Cut back from his thoughts, Garaki quickly turns his attention back to the unconscious boy lain on his table. “Yes, yes- Hado, the drill-“ he instructed to the assistant standing to his left, hand held out waiting to be passed the request tool as he got into position behind the lease of a large magnifying glass.”Here sir-“ Hado hurriedly replies as he places the thin-tipped drill into Garaki’s hand. Starting up the drill, a high pitched buzzing sound begins as he lowers the tip against the exposed part of the young boy’s skull. As he traces along the line, he pushes the tip of the drill a little deeper, very stroke of it carving away bit by bit until finally, the flap of bone loosens enough to be pried out by a steady pair of forceps. “Tanaka, get a kidney tray ready, I’m opening the flap.” As he lifts the large piece of bone out of place, a shiver passes over him. Ah, what a colour..he silently mused to himself as soon as the boy’s brain came into view. Such a beautiful shade of red, such healthy blood. He’s fortunate that we began operating when we did. With so much blood built up, it’d only been a matter of time before irreversible damage would have occurred.

“Sir?”

Tanaka’s voice bringing him once again up from within the depths of his mind, Garaki turned to face the woman as she presented the cracked bone in the tray. “Sir, what is your decision?”

“Ah, yes, the bone. Leave it aside for now- once I’ve gotten the pressure stabilised I’ll have a look and decide what to do with it.” Looking back into the freshly opened whole in the boy’s head, Garaki begins to remove the pooling blood sitting on the surface of the wound. As the thick red liquid slowly cleared away, he located the ruptured arteries responsible for the bleeding and cauterises them, the faintest smell, similar to when a human hair being caught by a a candle flame gently rose from the where the cauteriser burned.  Nearly ready… 

Garaki slowly put down his tools and stepped away from the boy’s head. Pacing to the side of the table, he lifted the kidney tray in which sat the cracked and crumbling shard of bone that he had previously removed. “Tanaka, make a note in the record that a replacement flap will be needed when the patient is healed. The piece we extracted cannot be reinserted due to severe compound fracturing across its surface. Note that I am making this decision due to the evidence I have to suggest that further injuries could occur if reinsertion is attempted.” Tanaka nodded quickly, discarding her medical gloves into the disposal in the corner of the room and moved over to the equipment stand to record his words. “Moving on,” Garaki continued, now turning his gaze to meet that of his other assistant. “Hado, can you give me a read on his vitals?”

“His blood pressure is stable for now sir, but his pulse is a little higher than I’d like it to be.”

“Good, keep an eye on it for now. How are his oxygen levels?”

“They are steady for now sir.”

“Excellent.”

“Sir, forgive me for asking, but are we going to be continuing with the standard procedure on this patient as well?”

Garaki froze, his mind weighing the options before him. I could either let the boy heal off his current injury and then proceed with the quirk transfer process when the time comes to seal his skull or, go on with the procedure immediately, ensuring that he doesn’t find the time to escape. He hummed thoughtfully as he carefully considered his choices before settling on the latter. “We’re going through with it.” He spoke, a sense of finality clear in his voice, “I need you to keep a careful eye on the anaesthesia, we don’t really want him waking up in the middle of what’s coming next.”       Or rather, it would be too distracting to keep working through the screams. “Tanaka, I need you to fetch me donor number 7’s case.” With a brief acknowledgement, his assistant hurriedly made her way into the attached storage room, bringing back with her a large cylindrical alloy case, the telltale vapour pouring off of it as it reacts to the shift in temperature outside of its usual place in cold storage.

Setting the case up on a table near the boy’s head, he opens the case to inspect the variously sized tissue samples lying within. Tanaka, the steps of the procedure almost second nature to her by now, opens a cabinet on the side of the room and takes out a small syringe of trigger, a man-made drug that induces quirk activation. “Increase the dose by 50mg.” Garaki stated, forceps already clamped around his chosen piece of springy, semi-beige flesh, placing into a dish ready for transfer.

“Sir?”

“I have assigned quirk sample 7.04 to the patient, with views to accelerate the natural healing process so that further modifications may be made in future surgeries.”

Hurriedly jotting down the his latest notes, Tanaka transfers the now adjusted dose of trigger into a clean syringe and takes her place by Garaki’s side by the opening of the boy’s head.

He slowly lowers his hand in which he is now holding his favourite scalpel and begins to make his incision into the exposed part of the frontal lobes. After a tense moment, the blade successfully slips through the folds of soft butter-like, squelching fat. Satisfied, he returns the scalpel to its tray.

“Location of the Thalamus successful- preparing transplant zone.”

With his other hand, he slowly pries apart the outer folds of the brain with some forceps and secures them apart with a small titanium brace. Reaching across with the forceps, he gently lifts sample 7.04 into position and slowly lowers down into the depth of the open organ. As he delicately slides the piece of tissue between the mushy masses surrounding it, he picks up a long needle and slowly begins suturing the two pieces together.

“Attachment of sample tissue to host tissue completed, preparing for bonding procedure.”

“Hado, give me a read on his vitals.”

“Everything normal so far. A second dose of anaesthesia has been administered and the patient should remain under for another three hours.”

“Excellent- In that case,” Garaki lifted his head and turned to his face to lock eyes with an excited looking Tanaka. He couldn’t blame her for her lack of professionalism at the prospect of administering the trigger.

It’s my favourite part as well.

“Begin bonding sequence.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, Tanaka plunged the entire length of the syringe’s needle into the exposed Thalamus, straight into the sample tissue. A full minute the ensemble of the operating theatre waits in silence, the only interruption the beeping sounds from the EKG hooked up to the boy’s small chest. Suddenly, The machine starts beeping erratically as the boy’s unconscious form begins writhing and jolting on the table with a thick, yellow froth foaming through his nose and mouth.

“HADO”

“His blood pressure is rising rapidly sir! Administering emergency intravenous antihypertensives!”

“TANAKA- PREPARE TO ADMINSTER DEFIBRILLATION SHOCKS”

In a flurry of movement, Garaki is looming over the boy’s chest and ripping off the privacy sheet to give access to his pale skin. As soon as Tanaka slams the defibrillator onto the side table, all the equipment previously resting on it flung clattering to the ground around them, does he rip the pads from the machine and slam them down onto the boy’s body, one on the upper right side of his chest, just beneath his collarbone and the other firmly pressed onto the left side underneath his armpit.

The loud recognizable beep of the defibrillator blares, and the doctor thrusts his arm out to get his assistance away from the body.

“CLEAR”
Tanaka administers the first shock.

The boy’s body arched up in a harsh jolt and smashing back firmly into the table, Garaki lunges forward and begins to pump his hands up and down in a ferocious rhythm over the convulsing boy’s heart. Another beep sounds out and once again he springs back.

“CLEAR”
A second shock.

The convulsions are dying down yet the frantic beeping of the EKG has yet to slow, so Garaki resumes his brutal rhythm until a third beep reaches his ears.

“CLEAR”

Silence

The defibrillator lets out its telltale ring to register the heart’s rhythm returning to normal.

“Tanaka, please return the defibrillator to the charging station and add the incident to the report.” With an exhausted sigh, Garaki continues to administer CPR at a less frenzied pace for further couple minutes until the EKG resumes its original repetition of steady bleeps.

“Sir, according to the monitor bonding has been a success. The host body is showing no signs of rejecting the foreign tissue.” What a relief.

“Good work Hado, let’s observe him for a little while longer before sending him off to recovery.”

Raising his hands, Garaki glides his gloved fingers back through his hair, uncaring of the streaks dying themselves red in the sticky blood coating his hands.

“Tanaka, go fetch me a protective helmet- this kid’s pretty small so an S size should do it.”

Whilst waiting for Tanaka to return, Garaki began cleaning up the remains of the surgery. Suturing the outer Temporal Lobe, essentially entombing the implanted quirk factor behind layers of protective fat, he makes short work of cleaning any excess blood from the exposed mass. When Tanaka returned, helmet in hand, he gently slides the protective gear in place, adjusting its padded sides as to protect the delicate material within.

“Excellent work tonight Hado, Tanaka- start cleaning up, as far as I’m aware we’re still due to operate tomorrow so this place needs to be ready for subject 12B by morning.”

As the two assistants silently and efficiently clear away all the discarded equipment on the ground and throwing all the waste into the waste bins, Garaki lets himself finally take a moment to marvel at his latest pet-project.  With some care and attention, this one will most certainly become an extraordinary specimen. He reacted better than any of my subsequent subjects to the bonding process. It could be a sign that he may be the perfect host body for housing multiple quirks. I should have requested master provide me with blank slates sooner.

Slowly stretching his stiff shoulders, he takes hold of the handlebars of the table and pushes his foot down onto the wheel brake, relieving its pressure allowing him to start guiding the table out through the main theatre doors and down a long low-lit corridor towards the recovery ward. Arriving at a set of heavy steel doors, he reaches into an inner pocket of his lab coat and extracts his ID card, lazily flashing it across the door’s sensor. A grating blare of a siren lets out a short burst as the double doors open in on themselves with a slow, scraping sound as the drag across the tiled floor.

Manoeuvring the table across to a cot located at the back of the room, he eases the upper plate of the table onto its runners and slowly slides the boy down onto the slightly stiff mattress, resting his currently highly fragile head onto a large pillow.  After securing him to the mattress with heavy duty industrial wrist straps on either side of the cot, in such a way that he would be comfortable as well as unable to move, he strode to a medicine cabinet in the corner of the long ward. Returning with a drip ready, he carful insures the needle into the back of the boy’s hand, catheter in place securing it snuggly along with a couple strips of medical tape to keep the tube steady.

“Time is 19:46. Surgery to relive pressure on the mid left hemisphere was successful. Further quirk assignment surgery was a success with the host body only experiencing minor shock at bonding stage of the procedure. Patient’s vitals all lasted registered as normal, and has been assigned cot 10 in the recovery ward. Patient has been left to wait out the effect of the second dose of anaesthesia administered with a drip to provide the necessary nutrients to promote quirk growth.”

Finishing his personal report, Garaki turns his back to the cot and makes his way to the entrance of the ward, scanning his ID to open the doors once more. As he steps through, turns to peer back at the cot that lies barely visible past the slowly closing doors.

Midoriya Izuku… It seems like only yesterday when we first met and yet over a decade has passed since then. I cannot even begin to imagine the masterpiece you will have become another decade from tonight.

Chapter Text

Coming to from under anaesthetic felt weird. Unlike when waking up from a nap, where you retain a general sense of how much you must have spent asleep, the very concept of the passage of time feels almost alien in this moment. Was it hours? Days? He dreaded to think, years? A dull weight around his head slowly reminding him of the events that had recently transpired. The operation must have been a success…But this definitely isn’t a hospital.

His eyes now having recovered looked around the dimly-lit room, and as he grew accustomed to the low light levels, he began to be able to make out the shapes of several other empty cots lining the walls of the long room.

“Midoriya my boy, welcome back to the land of the living.” Recognising the voice of that of the presumed ‘doctor’ Garaki, he finally sees the face of the man to whom he owes his life.

“Doctor Tsubasa…?” He tries to lift himself to sit a little straighter, but the unusual weight of his head paired with his physical exhaustion and sore limbs only allows him to slightly shuffle his weight backwards, earning a huffed grunt of discomfort in reply.

“Ahaha, of course, I’d forgotten that we’d previously met under that identity. I can assure you, I remain every bit as professional now as I did back then.” The doctor, Garaki, approached the side of the cot and pulled out a thermometer. Drawing Midoriya’s attention to it, he understands the implications and opens his mouth to allow the doctor to take a measurement.

“A healthy 98.6F. That’s delightful to see. You do keep on surprising us my boy, all my other patients always suffered from severely high fevers post surgery. I have very high hopes for you, very high indeed.”

“You did something to me.”

The simple statement seemed to catch the doctor off guard as he stopped undoing the bindings on Midoriya’s wrists to look straight into his eyes.  I was right.

Lowering the thermometer, he pushed both of his wrinkled hands into his coat pockets and leant slightly against the bed frame. “Well of course we did my boy, we had to operate on you to save your life. That’s why you’re wearing a protective helmet right now after all.”

Letting out a hum of disagreement, Midoriya slowly blinks his eyes. “No, not that. Something else.” He lifts the hand free from the IV and lightly gestures to himself. “I can feel it- there’s something different in me. It’s moving around, like, like waves.”

No response. The doctor continued to watch as Midoriya struggled to explain himself, a glint of surprise and of a darker fascination in his eyes only further evidencing to him that his theory of having undergone some kind of change wasn’t completely unfounded.

“Garaki..sir, what did you do to me?”

Despite the tension in the hair, Midoriya found himself unusually calm, almost unconcerned with his condition.  But why? I should be scared- panicking, crying! Something happened to me and I have no idea what! It could be dangerous and yet, I feel nothing.

“I only want an answer doctor-nothing more, but also nothing less.”

At last, after a moment which Midoriya could only describe as having felt like both an eternity and blink of an eye, Garaki replied.

“We fixed you.”

A pause.

“In this society…your condition, this.. ‘Quirklessness’ is considered nothing more than a disability.” He stepped closer. “I was granted the power to cure people like you- people who would fade into nothing between the very cracks that our world is built on.”

Extracting a hand from its pocket he gently brought it down to rest on Midoriya’s left leg.

“Doctor-“

“Please my boy, after having been allowed to explore so very deep into your mid, I believe we are beyond such formalities. Far beyond.”

Inside me.

With a thundering heart, adrenaline coursing through his veins he slowly processes the words he just heard. “Garaki, are you telling me that you….that you gave me a quirk?”

“Clever boy, you caught on much faster than I thought you would. But what- aren’t you confused? Desperate to know more? To know how, to know why? ”

Strange. I feel calm. A strange man just told me that I’ve been surgically given a quirk and yet I feel fine.

“Well…. As for how..I don’t think it could be that impossible to do. I mean, quirks in this day and age can almost achieve the impossible. Levitation, Invisibility- not to mention mutation types. That there not be a quirk that allows its user to bestow quirks onto others exist in the present day is improbable- highly unlikely even. You must simply have had access to such a quirk to use on me.”

Garaki’s eyes grew gradually wider listening to Midoriya’s rambling, a strange giddiness forming in the pit of his stomach. With a quick glance to the corner of the room, he notes that the security camera’s red light was flashing. He would have to show the footage of this conversation to his master later.

“So you know how, but have you figured out why we did it’”

“I- No. I don’t see any reason to explain it.”

“It’s a long story-not one you need to know all the details of anyway. All you need to know is that the role you play in this world is key to bringing about the dawn of a new era- one in which the discrimination aimed at those with undesirable quirks or with none at all becomes obsolete.” Midoriya watches quietly as Garaki turned to speak directly towards a camera he just spotted in the corner of the room.  As if he’s speaking to someone watching us directly.

“A world where everyone is equal. No more needless death and violence. No more ‘Heroes’ fighting for fame over the broken bodies of ‘villains’ that they punish with their self-entitled justice.” An inexplicable feeling came over Midoriya as he continued to listen to the man’s monologue. He had always wanted to be a hero- I wanted to be someone who can smile while saving others. And yet, when he needed saving the most, when he needed a hero- his hero…

He never came.

“Tell me boy, don’t you long for a world like that?”

“A world like that?”

“Where people, children, like you- born sub-par to the rest of humanity get to live long, fulfilling lives? Not cut short because society fails them?”

“But how does giving one quirkless kid some power change anything?”

Garaki chuckles, a dry and dusty sound coughing its way out of his throat. “It was never just one, my boy.” Gesturing to the empty cots throughout the room, Midoriya’s eyes focus in on how lived-in they all look, with disheveled sheets and roughed up pillows. “You might have been the first quirkless patient I’ve treated but you most certainly weren’t the first to pass through these doors. And now that I’ve witnessed first hand just how viable a host a quirkless body is I highly doubt you’ll be the last.

“I see….No, I understand .” He began slowly. His still throbbing head working through all of this new information. The self-awareness of there now being a quirk present in his body causing him to feel its presence growing stronger. The initial soft waves he could feel washing back and forth throughout him now thundering into a torrential storm- lashing at the underside of his skin, sending the hair on his arms and legs rising as this new power surged within him.

“What did you give me? What do you need me to do..? To… make that world” A better world. “ come true?”

“I can see it’s going to be a delight working with you Midoriya.” Garaki began. All boundaries now gone, the man sat down at his side and gently wrapped one arm across the his small shoulders, pulling his body into his side making sure to carefully guide Midoriya’s protected head into the crook of his neck. Side by side they sat on the small cot in the dingy room- the only light emanating from the camera aimed directly at the bed recording their interaction. The only evidence there would ever be of what happened on that fateful day.

“For now, I want you to rest. You’re still recovering from quite the traumatic ordeal. The quirk I gave you, sample 7.04 is a simple regenerative type quirk. Nothing too remarkable, it simply accelerates the body’s natural healing process by a considerable amount. It may be a humble beginning, but soon you will be given the power to shape the future with own two hands. And when that time does come, this little…’booster’ quirk, will continue to mold your body into the perfect receptacle for me to fill.” Getting to his feet, Garaki smiled down almost fondly at Midoriya as he checked one final time that his IV was still being held in place by its tape. “If you’ve recovered sufficiently by the end of the week we can look into settling you with another quirk. We’re going to have to seal up that whole in your head as it is, so why not take advantage of this opportunity and use the opening already provided rather than wait and make a new one.”

“Yes, that sounds…logical.” Midoriya responded. His thoughts float around a moment longer before a sudden realisation hits him. “Garaki- has anyone contacted my mother?”

A numbness akin to being drenched in icy water trickled down his spine as the doctor, who’d already turned to leave looked back at him, his face set in an unreadable grimace.

Deep down in the facility, deep underground rested an imposing figure. The scarred featureless face sat upon his strong frame, that even as he sat hooked into various life support machines, each one whirring loudly as they desperately fight to keep him alive, he still maintained a domineering presence over all. Despite him being his master of many years,  Garaki always fought hard to suppress a shiver of both fear and revulsion at the abominable state of the once-human man before him.  All for one.

As he silently stood by his master’s side, he played the security footage taken from his earlier conversation with the Midoriya boy.

“So she’s dead? Or rather, you had her killed?”

The camera failed to pick up the boy’s face in that exact moment, but Garaki remembers it vividly; surprise. No hatred, no fear. Just a look telling him that it was an unexpected piece of news to receive.

“You seem remarkably calm given what I’ve told you.” Garaki on screen has his back to the camera, but the slight motion of his hands slipping into his pockets is still picked up through the movement in his shoulders.

“Honestly, I’d be lying if I said I’d expected that to happen. Even now I’m struggling to completely understand why.”

“We needed an assurance. If you are to be kept by our side, we could not allow for any kind of external influence. That woman-“

“My mother.”

“Your… mother, was exactly that. Hence, she had to go.”

“Was it quick?”

“Her death?” Garaki’s projection absentmindedly shrugs its shoulders.

“If you’re asking whether she was in pain then I have no answer for you. Apparently it was a quick affair but, I wasn’t present for it. All that I was informed of was that her quirk was too weak to be worth harvesting.”

“It was quick…”  Midoriya’s voice drifted off, the camera’s natural static filling the silent void left in its wake.

“Thank you.”

Pausing the recording, Garaki turns to face his master who’s large mouth rested in a quirked grimace.

“The boy seems rather acceptant of his mother’s fate.”

“Yes! That’s what makes his case so interesting!” Garaki excitedly responded, hands coming up to clasp each other at chest height. “I have yet to do any scans to confirm this, however I believe that the initial damage his brain incurred may have significantly affected a region in-between the frontal and temporal lobes responsible for specific emotional traits and behaviour. “ He stopped, noticing the hand his master had slightly raised to silence him.

“Please, doctor, I have no need for a full report. What could this damage mean for what I have planned for him?”

“Ah, yes- of course,” He continued, “Well, his lack of emotional response suggests a loss of empathetic and sympathetic traits. During our conversation, I was under the impression that even if he did not agree with my opinions, he accepted them through some kind of logical reasoning. I believe, that going forward if this truly happens to be the case, the boy will easily become obedient to us, likely following though on orders with minimal complaints as long as a logical explanation for his required actions is provided.”

His master’s mouth slowly spread outwards, twisting into a grin far too large for his face as the scarred, rough skin stretched and cracked around its corners.

“Excellent- you have done remarkably well with this one doctor.”

“It’s an honour to be told, master.”

“You promised him a power to shape the world, did you not?” Garaki looked back at the screen, thoughts wandering back to recall the exact words he had spoken at the time.

“Soon you will be given the power to shape the future with own two hands.”

“Yes, I believe I did?”

“And have you chosen a suitable quirk for him yet?” All for one asked, his head ever so slightly tilting as he angled the flat surface of his face at Garaki’s smaller, dumpy form.

“No, at this moment in time we have yet to have assigned him a secondary quirk.” A loud mechanical hum shook through the room, reverberating deep into Garaki’s bones as he stood steadfast to his master’s side.

“I believe that I may have a quirk that would suit the boy perfectly. If I recall from Kurogiri’s observations, the boy has quite an interest in so called ‘hero analysis’.” A dark chuckle bubbles up through the machine. “My dear doctor, how would you like to take on a little apprentice?”

He answered with a grin.

Chapter Text

Over the course of the past week, Midoriya was kept under observation and subjected to a variety of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy sessions to determine the extent of the affect his injury had on his mental state after a quick scan had revealed a shadowy residue in the area where the bleeding had been.  As the he was scheduled to undergo his follow up surgery in the morning, Garaki was reviewing the footage collected from the five sessions he had recorded for his master. Lazily scratching at his wrinkled neck he swiped his index across his mouse, scrolling through the lists of folders documenting his research, one coming to a halt when the cursor landed on the particular file he was looking for.

“ P.N-M.I(REBT)/REC/.MKV ”

Opening the file, he sorted by date and loaded up the earliest video. The camera footage was grainy and rough- which was to be expected of security cameras, fortunately however, the audio remained relatively clear. Hitting play, he was greeted with his own distinct gravely voice reporting back at him through his speakers.

“REBT Session one. Administrator; Doctor Garaki Kyudai. The time is currently 13:00 hours. Following a scan which provided evidence of brain damage, the patient has been prescribed with undergoing a short behavioural therapy assessment. During the assessments, the patient’s brainwaves, pulse and adrenaline levels will be monitored by the administrator in an adjacent room.  Before the session begins, I will now request consent from the patient to perform these tests.”

A pixelated Garaki lowers the clipboard he held in his hand and looks over to where Midoriya was seated. After a second’s wait, Midoriya’s quieter voice replies.

“I consent to the participation of these tests.”

“Consent has now been recorded. This session will focus on testing the patient’s reaction to stressful stimulation. The patient will be sealed in the test chamber for the full duration of the assessment. Patient has been provided with a buzzer to communicate with the administrator in case of emergencies.”

With that, Garaki leaves the screen, his departure followed by a heavy hissing sound as the door to room opens and then shuts again behind him.

Left alone in the 7 square meter room, Midoriya fidgets slightly with the various wires attached to the censor-covered thin metal helmet encasing his head before finally settling down in his chair and looking straight ahead at a monster on the opposite wall. The lights slowly dimmed, and the screen flickered on.

The first half of the test was simple; Midoriya sat and watched footage of people in potentially life-threatening situations such as being suspended off the side of a cliff, or forced to walk narrow gangways at ridiculous heights. As the footage continued, Garaki clicked open another file and pulled up the corresponding data he had recorded at the time of the test. Matching the time stamps between the video and the document, he made note of the insignificant rise in adrenaline the machine had measured at the time and instead squinted at the screen in an attempt to read Midoriya’s facial expressions. After the 20 minute footage on the room’s monitor had elapsed, he let out a unsatisfied huff and paused the video.

The first half of the test hadn’t yielded ground-breaking results. Midoriya’s collectedness could still be considered normal as the stimulant had only been visual rather than physical.

Taking a sip from a mug that sat slightly precariously on the edge of his cluttered desk, Garaki’s face grimaced as the disgusting taste of cold bitter coffee hit his tongue. Setting the mug down again, he unpaused the video to watch the second half of the session with increased interests. In the second half, he had opted at the time to introduce a more interactive stimulant for the boy to endure.

“That concludes the first half of the assessment. For the second half, live specimen will be introduced into the room and placed in a stressful situation. For this exercise the patient will have their movement restricted to prevent interference in the stimulant.”

The same low hiss played again and Garaki watched as he entered the room followed by an assistant. As he attached wrist straps to the chair Midoriya was in and tightened them down on either arm, his assistant placed a large box on the floor before leaving and returning with a large motorised compressor that sat perched over a medium sized metal cage. Opening the box, Garaki then lowered his hands into it and lifted out a small domestic rabbit with large floppy ears. Placing the rabbit in the cage and powering on the compress, Garaki and his assistant left the room.

“The stress stimulant has now been introduced to the patient. Over the course of five minutes, the compression plate will be lowered onto the specimen until it is crushed. The patient’s responses and vital signs will be monitored throughout the exercise.”

How interesting, Garaki thought to himself as he watched the video. Having already checked the recorded vitals from the current time stamp, his attention fell fully onto Midoriya as he sat watching the rabbit unblinkingly. Despite the massive spike in heart rate and increased adrenaline levels, his face remained impassive. Not even the slightest quiver in his body was breaking through his sturdy posture to reveal his internal reactions.

As the plate slower inched further and further down, closer and closer onto the rabbit’s spine Midoriya’s pulse continued to accelerate. According to his brainwaves however, he was not feeling even the slightest amount of stress at the spectacle in front of him. Growing slightly impatient, Garaki dragged the cursor along the bottom bar of the video, releasing it just as a popping squelch bled from the speaker. Midoriya, seemingly unfazed by the bloody remains of the crushed rabbit seeping through the metal bars of its cage and onto the floor slowly blinked, his chest suddenly heaving outwards as if a bucket a cold water had just drenched him, breaking him out of his fixation.

“That concludes the second half of the assessment. Following the stimuli designed to trigger a stress response, the EEG has not recorded any changes to the patient’s emotional state. The patient’s pulse and adrenal levels are both elevated above the average levels demonstrating that whilst the patient experiences a physical reaction to stress, there is no evidence of them experiencing a psychological reaction to it.”

As the last few seconds of the video play, the blood and viscera soaked cage and compress are wheeled out and Garaki returns on screen and begins loosening the restraints on Midoriya’s wrists. 

“You did well today my boy, tomorrow’s experiment will be a little different, so if you’re feeling tired right now do tell me. We might be able to rearrange things and save the slightly more strenuous tests for when you’re feeling up to them.”

“Thank you Garaki, but honestly, I feel fine. Just a little sick from the smell.” Garaki’s form shakes from his laughter as he pats Midoriya’s back as he stands up out of his chair.

“I’m glad to hear it my boy. Well if that’s the case we’ll go ahead tomorrow as planned. I’ll have Hado escort you back to recovery for now as I sort some things out. If you’re feeling at all hungry tell him and I’ll bring some food with me when I come to check on you in a bit.”

“Thank you, I’ll be going now.” 
Midoriya bowed slightly before walking up to the assistant standing just out of view. The hissing sound of the door opening for them being cut off as the video ends just as abruptly as it began.

Closing the viewer, Garaki chuckles to himself.  Such a polite boy.. bowing and everything. It’s fascinating how his manners remained in tact despite his loss of empathy. Though I suppose, understanding others and respecting them are two vastly different things.

Gazing at the small digital clock to the left of his monitor, he let out a sigh as he mentally made note of the time. He’d only just finished reviewing the first day’s assessment and had another four to go through before the procedure in the morning. It’s looking to be a long night.

“REBT Session two. Administrator; Doctor Garaki Kyudai. Assistant; Hado Eisen. The time is currently 15:00 hours. Continuing from the first session, the patient is going to be subjected to physical stimulants in order to trigger an emotional response. During this assessment, the patient’s brainwaves, pulse and adrenaline levels will be monitored by the administrator in an adjacent room. Verbal assessments will be administered by the assistant over loudspeaker. Before the session begins, I will now request consent from the patient to perform this test.”

“I consent to the participation of this test.”

“Consent has been recorded. This session will focus on triggering anger or an aggressive response from the patient through the means of physical stimulation. The patient has been equipped with an electric shock belt located around the abdomen that will discharge at random intervals at a current of 70mA. The test chamber will remain sealed until the full time of the assessment has elapsed. The patient is expected to respond verbally to prompts administered by assistant Hado throughout the duration of the assessment. A buzzer has been provided to the patient for communication with the administrator in case of emergencies.”

“First prompt- time; 15:15 hours. ‘Midoriya, am I coming through clearly?’ ”

“Yes.”

“ ‘Can you describe the situation you currently find yourself in and rate the intensity of the electric shocks you are experiencing on a scale of 1 to 10?’ ”

“I am locked in a room that I will not be allowed to leave until the end of the test. The pain I am currently experiencing is a level 6.”

“ ’Your response has been noted.’ Patient is yet to exhibit any obvious signs of aggression.”

“EEG not registering any change in brain activity as of 15:15. Pulse and adrenal levels remain steady. To further encourage a reaction from the patient, the ambient temperature of the test chamber shall be continuously raised by 1 degree every five minutes until the end of the assessment.”

“Second prompt- time; 15:45 hours. ‘Midoriya, can you describe the situation you currently find yourself in and rate the intensity of the electric shocks you are experiencing on a scale of 1 to 10?’ ”

“I am still stuck in this room with no exit. It- it feels as if it’s getting hotter. My skin feels sticky. I would rate the pain of the electric shocks at 6 still.”

“ ’Your response has been noted.’ Patient has sensed the gradual increase in temperature yet has still to exhibit any external signs of aggression.”

“EEG not registering any change in brain activity as of 15:45. Pulse and adrenal levels have increased alongside the rise in temperature. To further encourage a reaction from the patient, an auditory stimulant will now be introduced into the test chamber”

“Third prompt- time; 16:30 hours. ‘Midoriya, can you describe the situation you currently find yourself in and rate the intensity of the electric shocks you are experiencing on a scale of 1 to 10?’ ”

“It’s slowly getting unbearable in here. I’m boiling and dehydrated. I can’t tell if the ringing in my ears is just in my head or not anymore. The uh, the shocks are hurting more now too. Like a- 7 or 8 now? How much longer do I have to be in here?”

“ ’Your response has been noted.’ Patient has yet to exhibit signs of aggression since the introduction of the auditory stimulation.”

“Wait! How much longer are you going to keep me in here for! You didn’t answer!”

“Amendment- Patient has begun to exhibit signs of frustration directed towards the prompts.”

“EEG has detected minor activity in the amygdala. Pulse and Adrenal levels increased since last monitored.”

“Final prompt- time; 18:00 hours. ‘Midoriya, can you describe the situation you currently find yourself in and rate the intensity of the electric shocks you are experiencing on a scale of 1 to 10?’ ”

.

.

.

“Attempting a second time to receive a verbal response to the prompt. ‘Midoriya, can you describe the situation you currently find yourself in and rate the intensity of the electric shocks you are experiencing on a scale of 1 to 10?’ ”

“Let me out.”

“ ‘Midoriya, can you describe the situation you currently find yourself in and rate the intensity of the electric shocks you are experiencing on a scale of 1 to 10?’ ”

“I don’t want to be in here anymore.”

“Patient exhibiting signs of frustration and displaying stubborn behavior refusing to respond to the given prompt.”

“EEG registering higher activity in the amygdala than recorded at 16:30. Patient’s pulse and adrenal levels have dropped considerably. Test chamber temperature currently measuring at 135F.”

“That concludes the second session. Patient will now be extracted from the test chamber and treated for potential heat exhaustion, dehydration and migraines. To be noted; patient did not respond aggressively to any of the stimulation. Patient did however present high levels of frustration and unwillingness to follow instructions. Suggested that obedience therapy be considered for further conditioning.”

“REBT Session three. Administrator; Doctor Garaki Kyudai. The time is currently 03:00 hours. Continuing from the previous session, the patient was restricted from sleep as to enhance emotional state in preparation for the session. Before the session begins, I will now request consent from the patient to perform this test.”

“I-”

“Do I have consent to perform this test?”

“… I consent to the participation of this test.”

“Consent has been recorded. During this assessment, the patient will be restrained and blindfolded. Stimulation will include audio and odours in attempt to trigger a fear response. Following the previous session’s promising results, audio has been tailored to the patient to provoke as strong a response as possible. A buzzer has been provided to the patient for communication with the administrator in case of emergencies.”

“Time is 04:00 hours. Patient has used the buzzer and the test has been halted. Patient is not exhibiting any external signs of fear, however EEG monitoring has tracked a sharp increase in activity in the Amygdala. This session will resume in five minutes should the patient consent to the continued testing.”

“Time is 04:05 hours. Patient refused to consent to continued testing therefore this session has been concluded. Patient reported experiencing phantom pains in the upper left hemisphere of the cranium and is being sedated until further assessment. Recorded audio file of subject ‘Midoriya Inko’, status; deceased,  proved highly effective in triggering an emotional response. Recorded audio file of animals in distress proved equally effective. Suggested that the patient undergo Systematic Desensitization Therapy for future conditioning.”

“REBT Session four. Administrator; Doctor Garaki Kyudai. The time is currently 15:00 hours. Since the previous session which was concluded prematurely by the patient, they have been under constant sedation in preparation for today’s assessment. Before the session begins, I will now request consent from the patient to perform this test.”

“I consent to the participation of this test.” 

“Consent has been recorded. During this assessment, the patient will once again be restrained and blindfolded. Auditory stimulation will be used in attempt to trigger a negative emotional response. Following the effectiveness of the audio file employed in the previous assessment, the same audio has been amended and will be reintroduced in today’s testing. A buzzer will not be provided to the patient for the duration of this session.”

“Time is 17:00 hours. Patient has exhibited minor physical reaction to the auditory stimulant. EEG has recorded steady activity in the amygdala. The patient’s pulse has been recording as being bellow average and no traces of adrenaline have been detected in their bloodstream. For the remaining duration of the assessment, all stimulation will be removed in attempt to induce anxiety in the patient.”

“Time is 17:50 hours. Patient is no longer exhibiting any sign of emotional distress. EEG has registered a rapid decrease in neural activity in the amygdala. The patient appears to have entered a state of catatonia. That concludes this session.”

“REBT final session. Administrator; Doctor Garaki Kyudai. Assistants; Hado Eisen, Suzuki Anna. The time is currently 14:30 hours. As a result of the previous session, the patient has been diagnosed as catatonic. Testing for this session has been amended in response to the patient’s current state. As in their current state they are unable to consent to testing, the primary guardian of Midoriya Izuku, Garaki Kyudai, consents to the testing of this session.”

“Consent has been recorded. During the first half of the assessment, the assistant will be administering continual doses of DL-Phenylalanine to promote endorphin productions. The second half of the assessment will commence once the EEG detects activity in the hypothalamus that can be attributed to endorphin production.”

“Time is 14:45 hours. First dose of DL-Phenylalanine has been administered by the assistant. EEG has yet to register any change in brainwave activity.”

“Time is 15:00 hours. Second dose of DL-Phenylalanine has been administered by the assistant. EEG has yet to register any changes in brainwave activity.”

“Time is 19:20 hours. It has been five minutes since the thirteenth dose of DL-Phenylalanine was administered. The EEG has registered increased activity in the hypothalamus. The second half of the assessment can now begin. Assistant Suzuki will use their quirk ‘Dreamer’ to project the patient’s happiest memories into their conscious mind. Assistant Hado will record  physical reactions to the stimulant. Results of physical observations will be added to final report at the end of the assessment.”

“Time is 19:25 hours. Assistant Suzuki has successfully accessed the patient’s longterm memory and has begun projection. EEG is registering hyperactivity in the hippocampus.”

“Time is 20:15 hours. Assistant Suzuki has released the patient from under the effect of the quirk; ‘Dreamer’. Patient has regained awareness of their surroundings. Brief interaction between the patient and assistant Hado has concluded that the patient’s emotional state is relaxed. EEG has recorded hyperactivity in the hippocampus and hypothalamus. That concludes the final session. Due to hyperactivity in the brain, the patient will be kept in the test chamber for further observation until lower brainwave activity has been recorded by the EEG.”

“Time is 21:03 hours. Brainwave activity has returned to its original state and the patient has fallen asleep. The results of these sessions suggest that due to the injury to the brain, the patient will experience lasting effects such as lowered emotional responses, weaker fight or flight response to threats as well as a lowered sense of compassion and empathy. Conditioning has been approved for post-surgery to ensure maximum obedience in future assignments. This concludes the final report of the REBT sessions of patient ‘Midoriya Izuku’.”

Yawning, Garaki shuffled towards the elevator that led down to All for one’s residence. The doors slowly sliding apart, Garaki stepped into the cubicle and pressed the button to send him down. Reviewing those files was truly fascinating. Being able to see the day-by-day changes in his personality in such a shortened amount of time just goes to show how adaptable his mind is. I was intrigued when master suggested he become my apprentice, but seeing how unfazed he can be in the face of a little blood makes it an appealing suggestion.

The elevator pinged to a stop and the doors parted to reveal All for one already standing on the other side of them. “Doctor, I believe that we are our special guest is expecting us in the operating theatre right about now?” he spoke, stepping into the small space as the doctor stepped aide to allow for his master’s hulking form to enter the elevator.

“Yes sir, I’ve had my assistants prepare him for the transfer. I have already treated his skull and have implanted a prosthetic bone flap and have sutured his scalp closed. I believe that thanks to the effectiveness of the regeneration quirk he was transplanted, the risk of infection will be practically non-existent.”

“I’m glad to hear it. We should proceed immediately with the transfer then. Have you considered my suggestion of taking the boy on under you?” All for one asks, his tone of voice suggesting that had his facial features remained in tact his eye brow would have been quirks quizzically.

“Yes, and I believe that he would be suited perfectly to working under me. His emotionless response to stressful situations would make him invaluable in quirk farming. I also have hopes of instructing him on how to perform quirk transplantation surgeries himself.”

“As expected.” All for one agreed as they stepped out into the corridor leading toward the operating theatre room doors where the ‘operating’ light shone bright and crimson.

“I have chosen a quirk from my arsenal that I never had the means nor the desire to exploit. Given your decision to mentor him as well as his interest in quirks, I believe that he and this power will prove to become an invaluable asset in our plans.”

The doors to the operating theatre opened to reveal Hado and Tanaka standing either side of Midoriya’s bare head. The only reminder of him being alive the strong and steady being of the EKG stood next to the operating table.

As the two men entered the room, Garaki’s assistants took their cues to leave. Their areas of expertise resided in surgical procedures and physical quirk reassignments. However All for one’s presence informed them that they would not be needed. Midoriya was going to be receiving this new quirk from him directly.

“I must admit I am curious sir,” Garaki spoke calmly as he pulled a pair of latex gloves. “When you mentioned that the quirk would suit him, did you mean to imply that it’s some kind of strength enhancing quirk? You said you’ve never found a use for it, but surely any combative type quirk would be of use to you.”

“Not at all doctor, the quirk I have chosen for him is far more intriguing than that. Rather than being combative, it would more appropriately be considered a support type. I don’t fully understand the quirk’s capabilities however. It belonged to man I encountered many, many years ago- when the dawn of quirks still resided in living memory.” Taking up his place at the top end of the table, All for one lowered both of his hands to encapsulate the head of the boy which was being dwarfed by the immensity of his scarred hands. Caressing a cheek with his thumb, he reached deep within himself, searching through the swirling abyss inside of him that was his quirk until he found it- deep, deep down, in a cold, forgotten recess of his being. Reaching out, he grasped it feeling it flare to life at the sudden contact. Drawing back to the surface, he carried the quirk with him, the energy it emitted growing more and more erratic, as if in excitement at the prospect of being called upon. Opening his eyes, All for one guided the raging quirk through his body, a blinding, colourless light emanating from under his skin as it snaked its way down his arms and into the palm of his hands.

“Garaki-“he spoke, his voice noticeably strained by his effort to control the coursing quirk aching in hands. “Prepare a sedative, the strongest one you have.”

“Sir?”

“I fear that particular quirk might have a mind of its own. Having been locked away for so long, I can hear it itching for release. The boy won’t have any means of controlling it, so he must be kept under until his body adapts.”

“Of, Of course!” Garaki’s voiced trembled in reply. The prospect of the boy receiving a sentient quirk of kinds sending shivers of anticipation down his spine.  Midoriya Izuku, what a masterpiece you’re turning into!

With a final grunt, All for one relinquished the hold he had over the quirk, channeling it through his fingertips straight into the boy’s head. The second he feels it spark past his fingertips, Midoriya’s eyes rip open and his lips split apart to make way for a blood-curdling scream.

Garaki leapt forward and shoved the full length of the 7 gauge needle into his neck, its effect almost instantaneous as the screaming evaporates like a puff of air from his lungs. As Midoriya’s eyes start to flutter close, his hazy and disoriented mind makes out a faceless blur leaning over him, its voice dizzying as it spoke. 

“Well done Midoriya, in due course you will awaken to a power unlike one you could ever have imagined. Consider it a precious gift from me and treat it with great care. Serve it well, and it will serve you in return. Know its name, and respect it. Sculptor.”