Chapter Text

Far, far above the planet Earth...

Two of its greatest defenders have come to the planet's aid once again. One of them, a veteran at this sort of business, folds his arms as he watches his son behind a black visor in the shape of a star.

Groaning loudly, pushing back a fiery yet cooling asteroid larger than most countries, the younger of them barely manages to stop it.

A pink costume with white stripes on the underarms that connect to the hips and outer side of the legs, a black line on the chest with a circle around the neck that connects to the black mask. Green gloves and boots with yellow soles. His wild curly green hair is adorned with a headband that has two yellow horns attached that stick out from his hair.

"Heavy, isn't it?"

Star Man asks. Invincible struggles but successfully stops a monolithic meteorite from crashing into Europe. Out in space, just barely within the reaches of the atmosphere where the gravitational pull is still present, enough air for them to speak to each other.

Too close for comfort, Invincible thinks.

"I... I caught it...!"

"This one is small though."

"SMALL!?!"

The younger Hero exclaims, his fingers digging into the alien stone, his head snapping towards his father as he snaps at him verbally.

"How is THIS small!?!"

Star Man holds up to his hands to his head.

"Three years ago, remember that alarm about a K-T Extinction Rehearsal?"

Invincible shakes his head. At that, Star Man pouts behind his helmet.

"Ah. Right, you weren't out on the field by then-! Anyways, I had to stop an asteroid the size of Texas, by myself. It was not fun... But remember this weight. You'll be carrying heavier soon enough." 

Invincible looks ahead at the gargantuan rock as his father continues.

"That's just the weight of this world. You've graduated from UA, so we're getting you some experience for now, but remember... One day, we'll have to leave Earth..."

"Nrgh-!"

Invincible lifts the giant rock over his head and begins to descend to the planet's ocean.

"To make the universe...! A better place...! Right...!?"

He says with great effort and a smile. Star Man raises a brow behind his visor.

"Right- Invincible, what're you doing?"

"This rock could have... New resources for us to use... From places unknown... And even if it doesn't, we could still use the iron in it, so Hatsume-chan can have her own personal deposit for Support Gear...!"

At that, Star Man nods.

"It could also be home to a nest of murderous bugs adapted to kill lesser beings..."

"But that's why we're here!"

"An answer for everything, huh?"

Invincible grins as he nears the surface of the ocean and begins to fly towards Japan. Towards home.

"I did learn from you...!"

"Har, har."

Only an hour later, after securing the space rock into a safety storage within the oceanic depths just under the entrance to the Star Man Agency; retitled as the Viltrumite Agency, Izuku takes his mask off as he floats out of the watery exit in his new office.

He lets out a groan and rolls his shoulders, eyes shut tight as he wants to do nothing more than sleep right now.

"Midori!!! ~"

Scratch that. There is someone he needs to do first. He grins as a pair of pink arms and legs wrap around him. Mina latches onto him as quickly and tight as a magnet. Izuku hugs back as he pretends to fall back, taking to the air in a spin, much to her delight.

"I was only gone for two hours-!"

"Two and a half! That's too long for me! C'mere...!"

She steals his breath away with an intimate embrace. One he replied with in kind as they share into each other.

"He can hold his breath for days, Mina, don't go passing out in his arms!"

Hisashi calls out as he takes his helmet off after entering the room, Inko by his side holding a hand up to her eyes.

"Goodness! Izuku! Mina! C-Can't you two at least wait until after dinner?"

Izuku lands with Mina hopping off of him with a breathless giggle.

"Sorry, sorry, Inko-chan! It's just...! A lot is going right for us right now!"

Izuku wraps an arm around her waist, a hand over her abdomen.

"We've got a lot to look forward to... But, I'm hungry! Where are we eating?"

Five years since UA. Five years since the battle for the soul of Japan, for the future of the world, since Izuku has surpassed his father as the Number One Hero of the World.

Five years since the sad yet inevitable retirement of the Guardians of the Globe. War Woman, Star and Stripe, and Dark Wing still go out for the big events. Captain Celebrity and Red Rush have returned to their families full time. The Immortal vanished to find his long forgotten peace. Aquarus and Martian Man have worked to unite the ocean and an entire planet. To kickstart a new goal for Earth. 

To breach beyond the solar system.

His father, Star Man, informally has retired after All Might's untimely tragic death...

Although that death had been faked. Toshinori Yagi lives in secret among his fellow man, many unaware or even in the know of the Symbol of Peace's origin. These days, he remains a dutiful teacher at UA, although One For All has vanished from his body... There is no need for it in a world without All For One.

Izuku Midoriya and Class 1-A had saved the world, and now, the next step approaches soon... But first, dinner.

Mina moans in delight as she gulps down a mouthful of risotto. The family out in Naples, Italy, at Hisashi's favorite restaurant. No costumes, no perils, just a loving family having a lovely evening.

"It's so good! ~ Midori, have you tried it? It has shrimp!"

Izuku gives her a weary look.

"With white wine-"

She quickly shoves a spoonful into his mouth.

"I made sure that there wasn't any when we ordered! Don't be such a helicopter parents!"

He grumbles, begrudgingly eating the gifted portion, a smile on his face that he cannot keep away.

"When it comes to you, I have to be! ... This is good...!"

Mina beams at him in victory.

"See? They've got this nice grape thing as a substitute, I thought that it'd be too sweet, but it actually blends in well!"

Hisashi leans on the table eyeing his daughter-in-law.

"Why the back and forth? Izu, you usually let her drink herself stupid."

Izuku rolls his eyes.

"No, she usually drinks so fast I can't stop her in time!"

Mina pouts, puffing her cheeks.

"I've gotten better! Besides, I won't be touching anything like that for a good while!"

Inko holds her phone up, offering it to Hisashi, who usually stays out of these kinds of photos anyways.

"Well, we all already know why, but I think we should remember today! How about it, dear?"

Hisashi takes it and waits for everyone to get into position, with Izuku hugging Inko, and Mina hopping onto a flexed bicep as she sits on it like a throne.

"Okay! We're all set? Ready? Say...!"

A stray beam destroys the phone from the side. Numerous beams fly from the left, melting and killing dozens, with Izuku and Nolan quick to use their bodies to defend Mina and Inko.

There would be no moment of rest as a blue blur immediately rams into Hisashi, and Izuku could only watch as he holds Mina close in despair as he finds the origin point. A familiar portal.

The Flaxans have returned. However, this is odd. They only ever arrive in Japan! Why did they arrive here? Why at such a perfect moment? Why are they here to ruin the peace he has fought so hard to maintain?

Out comes tanks, gunmen, riflemen, infantry and those in powersuits... People. Some look alien, some were obviously Flaxan, but... Some were human.

And the one leading them all wore a face he had only ever seen in the mirror.

Dressed in sterile Flaxan armor, with solitary goggles that hide heartless eyes, a stoic voice as sharp and cold as steel is Izuku Midoriya.

"Found you."

"Mina-! Go!"

The Hero says as she takes to the stunned Inko, pulling her away and towards an alley as Izuku flies at this copy.

Only to be struck first.

The Flaxan Invader raises a brow then as he shoves his fist deep into Hero's face, as it sinks into it like putty, the skull bending not unlike rubber.

He is struck in his rib, but his armor takes all of the impact, and so the Flaxan Invader grabs hold of the nose and begins to spin before slamming the Hero into the ground. 

Where he bounces right off and back at the Flaxan Invader with a flying knee across the cheek.

"Uhf-!"

The Hero continues to bounce around the area, becoming a blur that wipes out an army in moments, before stopping in front of his horrible reflection.

"I don't know who you think you are? But give it up! You're tough, but I'm-!"

"Invincible."

The Flaxan Invader says. He holds up a hand and all at once, buildings. Cars. The street itself is undone, like a series of explosions, before all being pulled to trap Izuku. The prehensile Hero struggles in vain as he is trapped under a crushing pressure of debris and telekinetic force.

"Quirk: Flexabody. Your body has a property similar to rubber. You can't stretch, but blunt force attacks bounce off of you, allowing you to be near invulnerable to all but piercing, slashing, or extreme temperatures. However, despite your Viltrumite heritage granting your Quirk unforeseen benefits, you have a weakness. Two of them. You need momentum. Held in one place? You're powerless... And your strength is hindered by having such a soft body."

He holds out another hand. To Izuku's shock, to his horror, Mina shrieks as she is flung into the invader's grasp. Her neck in his hands. A guillotine blade that can and will end their future.

"Wait-! Wait, wait! Wait-! Please wait!"

Izuku begs. Mina is silent, the vice grip around her throat with cold metal gauntlets, does not squeeze down on her... The fear suffocates her more than any hold. The Flaxan Invader speaks as he eyes her, his unseen gaze of hidden disgust, his stoic unmoving expression changes to one of mild surprise.

"I will not. Your father clearly failed to inform you of your duty as a Viltrumite. Your, responsibility, to conquer this world."

Izuku snarls and shouts out. What he says, has Mina confused.

"He Did Tell Me!!! He... Did...!!! And you would know, because we contacted the empire! So... Why are you here!?!"

"Izuku...?"

She asks, lost between the sudden invasion and helplessness, she hears the portal open behind her captor. The Flaxan Invader floats backwards.

"I am here. For you. Do as you're told, and you will be freed, otherwise I will kill both of them. I'm kind enough to let you keep that much."

The Hero bellows out as the prison of debris shakes from his rage.

"WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE!?!"

The Flaxan Invader removes his goggles. Heterochromic eyes of green and blue glare into his own reflection.

"You haven't figured that out? I'm..."

INVINCIBLE

Masaru sighs as he walks past an incessant crowd of hostile journalists.

"Bakugo-san! Bakugo-san! Is it true about Star Man's intentions to poison the water supply in Africa using the Agency to weaken humanity!?"

The exact opposite actually, but telling them wouldn't change anything.

"Bakugo-san! Were the generators that were rented out siphoning energy instead of generating any?!"

That's just a lie, because anyone that ever used them knew they were solar powered, but could last up to ten years.

"Bakugo-san! Did the alien technology left behind by Star Man still have any uses for mankind?!"

At that, he points at the journalist who asked, weary eyed and voice croaking.

"Yes. We're rebranding and renovating, but the purpose remains the same. To help people."

"What's the point of rebranding when all your work will be affiliated with the world's greatest villain?!"

Asks another one. The same one from before, asks a better question.

"Why continue with philanthropy?! How can we trust you weren't apart of the attempt to conquer the world?!"

He is about to answer but one question nearly has him fly off the handle.

"Have you no remorse for taking part in Izuku Midoriya's death!?"

Were his wife here, that man would have been torn asunder. Were he a lesser man, he would have given the tabloid toadie exactly the reaction he wanted, but instead? Masaru makes a last statement.

"An entire organization worked for Star Man under the pretenses that he was here to save the world. I alone, personally knew the man behind the helmet, or I thought I did. He is gone now... But not forever. It is my responsibility, to not only prepare for his potential return and make him face the consequences of his actions, but until then to pick up the pieces he left behind so that those that worked for us aren't abandoned either. No more questions."

He gets in his car and is quick to drive away before they can surround him. A held breath finally flies from his aching chest. Many of his employees, understandably, left. Those few who remain, remain out of loyalty to him, or out of the fact they cannot get a job anywhere else. The Star Man Agency is too big to fail immediately, this he and Hisashi (as he knew him) worked hard to achieve, but without action? It will die as a company.

Perhaps it should. 

Were it not for the objective good it does for the world, were it not for the sheer historical remedies and solutions it has provided in the past, he would have burned the entire building down already.

He has questions himself for his former friend. So many questions. No one on Earth could possibly answer them.

No one left anyways.

He can feel tears coming again as he thinks of Izuku. He thinks of Inko. His heart breaks further, for he heard how to boy died to protect the planet, and fears for what his mother has done since then. He gets home, after hours of traffic delays, and Villain Rampages. 

Heroes have been struggling a lot as of late. With the hundred prisoners free from Tartarus, many of them have gained new followers, erupting in the newly labeled Syndicates that have popped up all over the country.

Gangs is a more apt word, Masaru believes. Civilians have not helped either, as the world has changed, but people still refuse to adapt. Civilian casualties are at an all time high, usually because of their own doing, rather than the incompetence of those few Pro Heroes remaining.

Many Pros have either retired, due to injury or pressure, no longer a viable means of work. Save a city? The people malign you for not doing it fast enough. Understaffed and underpowered? You're deemed worthless by the public consciousness. Fail to stop a purse snatcher? You're found guilty in the court of public opinion.

It is so unfair to the brave souls still trying. It makes Masaru wonder if his former friend had a point about humanity. The thought sickens him. He gets out of his car, and the smell of dinner is the only calming thing he has had to look forward to all day.

A day full of answering calls, having meetings, being berated and condescended too non-stop by all their investors. To finally have a break from it all as his wife opens the door for him, makes it worth not taking a dive off of the top of the building.

"Hey, got a surprise for you...!"

Mitsuki hates surprises... Why would she set one up for him? Still, if she is feeling playful enough for this? He'll have to suck up his awful mood for her sake. Izuku was like her own son, same to him, and losing that boy? That day? He had never seen her so distraught.

He forces on a smile as he enters his home and approaches the kitchen.

"You finally figured out how to use the air fryer without grease?"

"One time! That was, one time!! No, look!"

He looks ahead and his shattered heart erupts from his stomach and into his throat. Izuku sits with Katsuki at the table, as Inko washes dishes at the sink. The bush haired teen smiles a shy and awkward grin at him.

"Bakugo-san! Sorry I haven't visited in a while!"

"... Hehe..."

A relief filled yet weak chuckle. He shakes his head and pats both of their heads.

"I should've known something was up when Katsuki was acting as if nothing happened! You survived all of that!?"

Katsuki, who usually swats away at his mother, merely glares ahead as his father ruffles his blonde hair.

"I was in the know but couldn't risk an info leak. All kinds of nosy flies buzzing around our house lately... But they've been scared off by now."

He finishes with a wolfish grin. Masaru sighs, lowering his head in defeat.

"I think they just came to bug me at the office instead... We've had break in after break in, but most of the stuff we have are useless outside medical or environmental services... And ever since Hisashi left, no one can get into his office but me, and his computer is locked with a password. He never told me it... Just, one more secret he kept from me."

Izuku perks up at that.

"A password? Have you tried anything?"

Masaru shakes his head.

"I'm scared one or more wrong entries might trigger some unknown security system, or worse, lock the computer down. There is a hint! Remember the happiest day of your life... I wish I knew what that was, but after everything, I'm questioning if he was ever happy here..."

He says glumly before forcing himself to smile again.

"Then again, he was never actually good with computers to begin with. A strange weakness of his..."

"Could I give it a try?"

Izuku asks. Masaru scratches his cheek. Apprehensive.

"I doubt now would be a good time... You're staying low, right? That place is swarming with people trying to get a story or even plunder what they think are treasures..."

Inko finishes with the dishes, quietly making a return to the table.

"All our finances aren't anywhere close to that building though... Shows how far ahead he planned for something like this."

Katsuki growls then.

"Smart enough to figure that part out but dumb enough to get you in this situation in the first place...!!"

Seeing Inko already paling as a shadow creeps over her weary face, Mitsuki speaks over her son.

"Izu-chan.. You're still attending UA?"

Izuku nods, just as eager to change the subject.

"Y-Yeah, the building isn't ready yet but, I wanted to see how you guys were...!"

Katsuki scoffs.

"Fine enough that we don't need you sniffing around early! You ate already, go head back to wherever, before some nutjob looks through our window."

There is a collective pause as each and every head that can turns to a window at the front of the house. Sure enough, one persistent journalist gasps as she sucks out of cover.

Izuku sighs seeing this as he gives Katsuki a weary look. His feral friend gets up from his seat.

"I know that one...! You, get outta here. I'll take care of this."

"Izuku...?"

Inko asks as they return to the GDA bunker under UA. He stops himself from going to his room, looking back at her with some concern.

"Mom, I don't think he'll hurt that lady-"

"That's not it... When your father, showed me what he was doing? It wasn't the first time."

He turns to her fully after hearing that. She moves to the sterile couch of this generic "apartment" they have to call home now.

"Years ago, when your father showed up... His name is Nolan. This much you already knew, but... Those, aliens? The ones that arrived through the portals? The first time they arrived was in a small pocket at Akihabara. At the time, I was studying to be a teacher and was trying to relax with Mitsuki... But they dragged me and fifteen others away into the portal. They came in and left just as fast, almost in an instant."

Izuku makes his way over to his mother placing consoling hands on her quivering shoulders.

"Mom you don't have to tell me this-"

"I. Want to. I, need to. Please."

He sits next to her and she reluctantly continues.

"He pretended to be a human. They threw us all in some kind of pit, or animal pen, before taking each of us away to study. Eventually fifteen became, ten, and then ten became five. I don't think they could tell us apart, they'd pick the same person three times, then do the same things to someone else... By the time it was my turn, is when Nolan acted. I was under an operating table when the room shook. I got free, I... Fought, the doctors... Managed to get to outside... He found me."

She sighs shaking her head.

"He was, covered, head to toe in... Viscera. Smoking. He smells, awful, and in one movement he was clean. He moved so fast he had essentially burned the stink off of him... I don't know what happened after he got me to safety... I just know that where once was a city? There was a crater."

She raises her hands above her head with a nostalgic smile, eyes of fright, an involuntary chuckle from nervousness.

"He dropped me off, came back with what must have been the foundation of the city or something, it was like an entire mountain... Picked me up, and held it there, as the scientists below in this underground bunker opened a portal back. He threw me in and... Shortly after, he came out. That was days, a week or more for us, but outside? It was about a few seconds... Maybe a minute. None of it felt real."

She grows silent before speaking again, a pause for trying to find the words.

"He just left me, at first. He came back on my way to class with Mitsuki. Your grandparents, didn't like him... It was hard for him to, adjust to Earth, but I helped him. I thought I was helping him understand being human. W-When you happened, despite what the doctors all said, he just couldn't help but think anything was possible with him. He... He was so... Amazing."

Her smile grows fonder... Before it falls to a cold and despondent stare. Hopeless and lifeless.

"And it was all a lie... Izuku...?"

She looks at him in a moment of weakness and asks.

"Why did you fight him?"

It should have been an easy answer. It is an easy answer, she knew that already, but that she even asked said so much more to Izuku. It hit him as hard as any strike from his father, that his own mother, would ask him this. 

Realizing her own mistake, she makes an attempt to apologize, but he only stands to walk away.

"Izuku, I-!"

"I'm going to get us something to eat."

A pitiful excuse, dinner wasn't for hours and lunch already ended. Still, he leaves in a blur and a wild wind that throws the room into chaos. Inko, left behind in a mess, falls to her knees in tears.