Chapter 206: CHAPTER 202(Raid Debrief)
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CHAPTER START---
---7 PM, 6 Hours After Yakuza Raid...
"---Alright so that's just about everything, you're all caught up," Horizon says.
Currently, he was in one of the hospital rooms of the Miracle Ward in Central Hospital. Wearing his backup Hero Costume kept here so his new arm was seemingly the exact same as before.
And speaking to Rocklock, who is sitting up in the hospital bed, wearing a medical gown and staring blankly at Horizon.
After a few more silent moments, Rock Lock blinks and just continues to stare.
"Are you gonna stare like a useless fucking retard or will you be useful?"
"Uh, sorry I just... it's a lot to wrap my head around," Rock Lock admits.
"No, it's really not, and I fixed you better than you were before. For some reason you had some damage in your foot from before."
"Yeah I broke it a few ye---"
"Nobody cares."
"But you're my do---"
"Look do you understand what I said or not?" Horizon cuts him off. "It's not that complicated, your foot got hurt, I cut it off and grew you a new one, easy?"
"And by got hurt you mean...you nuked it."
"Irradiated it, just radiation burning and saturating it until the DNA chains were destroyed and the cells died, you didn't even feel it. Your body doesn't even know that's not the same foot."
"And Chisaki?"
"Same thing that happened to your foot, but, to his whole body," Horizon shrugs.
"You killed him?" Rock Lock looks genuinely concerned, mostly by how casual Horizon is being about this.
"Oh yeah he's super dead, even I can't heal what I did to him, but hey, no need to dwell on it, things break all the time," he mindlessly says, much too tired to put up the proper 'True Hero' persona after such a long day.
"Right," Rock Lock nods slowly. "Well, thank you for everything, and good work out there. Now I should get changed and get out of he---"
"Actually your wife is here waiting for you, but you can get changed after the meeting."
"What meeting?"
"They're about to walk in?"
"What?! Wait I'm mostly naked here, who?" Rock Lock looks even more worried and double-checks that the hospital sheets are covering him.
And a few seconds later four people walk into the room.
Sir Nighteye, Ryukyu the #9 Pro Hero, a lone security agent.
And the person whose presence mortifies Rock Lock the most due to his state of undress, Hero Public Safety Commission President Pantu herself.
"He's fine to talk now," Horizon says as they all enter and the agent stands in the room blocking the door, presumably using some Quirk so they aren't being spied on.
"Its a pleasure to meet you lady Pantu," Rock Lock says, as she is rarely seen outside of the Commission buildings.
She glances at him for a moment, "likewise I'm sure, now, can you recall the situation which led to Horizon's more lethal approach during the battle against Kai Chisaki, aka the villain Overhaul."
"Well uh," Rock Lock looks around nervously at everyone, then his eyes fall onto Horizon who was silently standing there.
"Just pretend he isn't here," Pantu says.
"Right, well. I remember the fight was tough, we were in a stalemate for a while before Horizon showed up. He warped Eri away, then he beat the villains but, then something happened. It was like I blinked and everything changed."
"Time bomb," Sir Nighteye says. "One of the villains had a minor time Quirk, he overdosed on a unique and lethal strain of Trigger and became a bomb that slows time to a near stop around his body."
"Seriously?"
"I overcame the effects after a while and prevented Overhaul from leaving," Horizon says. "You obviously slept through the recap we had after your procedure."
"Focus please," Pantu says. "After you were freed."
"Right," Rock Lock thinks hard about what happened before answering. "Well we tried everything but nothing could stop the guy, until Horizon did that radiation attack. I didn't know it was a lethal attack I swear, I just knew if he thought it could bring that monster down it was our best shot."
Pantu detects no lies with her Quirk, then turns to Sir Nighteye. "Did you know the attack would have been lethal?"
"Obviously not," he says, and she detects no lies. "I'm very strict with my Quirk, and since I used it on myself I could only see into my own future, and only a few feet around myself at best through a fuzzy image."
"Very well then," she turns to Horizon. "Your justification?"
He just shrugs, "it was the most efficient option, since the alternative was a long fight that we weren't ready for. One of those Nomu gave him enough energy to win a war of attrition, and there wasn't anywhere in my range that I could warp him to and safely fight away from all civilians.
It's also the only attack I have that can properly deal with his Quirk. Overhaul is much better than just regeneration, he was restructuring any damage in real-time, and only needed to command matter instead of constantly focusing on it. The best course of action was to fry the cells entirely."
"And why did you have this attack?" Pantu asks.
"For people like All For One, or whenever I got attacked by some Nomu."
Pantu doesn't detect any lies so she asks the others, "Does anyone think his assessment is wrong?"
"A bit extreme perhaps," Sir Nighteye says. "But, I understand how he could come to his conclusion."
"I just hate the fact that I helped kill someone," Rock Lock says. "Willing or not I've got blood on my hands now..."
Beneath the visor Horizon rolls his eyes, and throughout this entire thing Pantu's cold demeanor never slips.
Hearing enough from the others Pantu turns back to Horizon, "do you feel any guilt or remorse for what you did?"
"..."
"Remember who you're speaking to, lying doesn't work..."
"I remember, and I also know sometimes extreme circumstances demand extreme actions, and I don't regret or feel bad for saving everyone there."
She once again detects no lies, but is slightly impressed by his clever phrasing to conceal the mercenary beneath the visor.
"Well then I've heard enough," she snaps her fingers and the security agent takes out a few documents from his jacket, handing them over to her. She passes them out, giving Sir Nighteye two. "I've mostly kept this contained, some of the police and people on the scene will suspect things due to only you few being present at the time of death, but nobody will believe them."
"You've got to be kidding me," Ryukyu says, looking down at the forms. "This is a cover-up? You want us to sign this? No way! He killed someone and you expect me to promise to never ever speak of it to anyone, to never report it to anyone, look I know our job can get messy but this is extreme.
If I sign this then what next, then how many times are we teaching him and other Heroes that 'sometimes killing villains is ok', that's a slippery slope that I will not be a part of. He should at least publicly acknowledge it and apologize, that's the right thing to do," she looks around the room, seeing Rock Lock a bit inspired, Pantu and Horizon unimpressed, and Nighteye in the back signaling for her to shut up.
Clearly, he knows more about her when regarding the HPSC.
But she noticed him a bit too late.
"Really?" President Pantu asks, taking a step closer to Ryukyu. "And what would that achieve?"
"It would maintain his honesty and integrity, as any real Pro Hero should," Ryukyu says.
"Perhaps, but clearly you and everyone else tend to forget that Horizon is not yet a Pro Hero, he's a Hero Course Student often treated as one because more often than not, he's better than ANY Pro Hero we have."
Ryukyu takes a step back and has the decency to look ashamed, just for a moment, before resuming eye contact with Pantu.
"This isn't right," she says defiantly.
"It's what's best. But please, refuse if you must, if your values and integrity demand it. But I want you to know, before you make that foolish decision. It will result in you being locked in the deepest depths of Tartarus for the rest of your life."
"Wh---"
"For conspiring to destabilize Japan and incite fear and panic into the civilian population. Because Horizon provides safety, and stability, his being here allows people to stay calm, especially with All Might now retired.
See, when a student messes up they are usually suspended from using a Provisional Hero License, but in this case, we would be forced to expel Horizon, and remove Japan's next Symbol Of Peace because of how you feel in your heart.
With him here we could have an even more peaceful era than that of All Might's, and you intend to threaten that, clearly, so either you sign that document right now, or I can have him warp you into your cell."
Ryukyu narrows her eyes at Pantu, "You'd go that far for a student? Throwing an innocent Top Pro Hero into prison with monsters to rot?"
"Top 10 Pro Heroes are easily replaced, the existence of the annual ranking ceremony proves that, but there is only one Horizon, it's an easy choice to make," Pantu says. And without a word she reaches into her pocket and hands Ryukyu a pen.
As Ryukyu angrily signs the papers Pantu looks around to see the others doing the same, 'at least I know the rumors about him and Ryukyu aren't true, we can stop investigating that now...' she thinks before turning to Sir. Nighteye.
"The second form I gave you is for Lemillion, I understand he's here trying to cheer up the girl, how is she?"
"Resting after Horizon healed her," Sir Nighteye says.
"Good, then this raid really was a success. And good job following protocol, calling Horizon the moment you discovered the Yakuza had Nomu saved a lot of lives today."
"Yes, but what made you instruct us to continue forward?" Sir Nighteye asks. "Was it not safe to assume Kurogiri would simply warp them out."
"It was a gamble we were willing to take," Pantu lies, because the information from Hawks told her Kurogiri was off on a trip with Dabi and Shigaraki this morning. "Hopefully whatever information we recover from their systems will give Horizon some leads to track down the League Of Villains."
"Well, I'm glad it all worked out," Sir Nighteye says. "Now I need to brief Mirio on what's going on, is there anything else lady Pantu?"
"Just a small warning to Horizon," she looks at the hero in question. "Try not to use your 'Gamma' attacks please, unless absolutely necessary. Most countries don't appreciate any radiation-based attacks such as that...especially ours, considering our history. Unless you have to resort to it, keep it hidden. And it should go without saying, not against living people, only Nomu if necessary.
I'm burying this incident so deep nobody will find it, but we can't make this a habit, because even for you I can only make so many exceptions, understand."
"Don't act out and make people think I'm a nuclear reactor beneath this," he taps his visor, "I think I'll manage."
"Always a pleasure talking to you, now I need to get back to work, aside from the complications, well done on the raid today everyone," Pantu says before abruptly leaving with her bodyguard, quickly followed by a pissed-off Ryukyu.
"Well, I should go speak to Mirio, thank you, once again, for everything Rock Lock," Sir Nighteye says.
"Hey it's the job right," Rock Lock replies before it's just him and Horizon in the room.
As Sir Nighteye leaves Horizon turns to Rock Lock, "If you're gonna cry about how you helped kill someone, don't, your wife is about to walk in, with the baby."
"Oh, thanks for the heads up."
"Just be out of here quickly, I have one more patient to work and it'll need the room after, oh, and good job today. You aren't completely useless after all."
"Than---" Horizon warps away as the door opens, causing Rock Lock to mutter. " Man, even giving a compliment he's such an ass..."
END CHAPTER---
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