Fly High, Burn Bright

Chapter 61

The whole way there, my legs bounced with worry, and not even Dabi's hand on my thigh could calm me down. The van had seven other members of the League besides myself, including Toga, who'd insisted she was necessary for the mission, and Mustard, who'd now managed to escape from jail twice with his quirk that released gas. With every bump in the road, the entire vehicle bounced slightly, doing nothing to calm down the anxiety I could feel swelling in my chest. I tried to force myself to calm down - after all, this wouldn't be any different from the jobs that I did as a hero, except now, I'd be playing on the opposite side. 

Toga gave me an empathetic grin. "Don't worry about it," she reassured me, "you'll be fine. Besides, it's not like Dabi's gonna let anyone hurt his little princess."

If it weren't for the fact that I was too busy breaking down with nervousness, I probably would've turned into a blushing mess not only from Toga's words but from the fact that Dabi sent me a playful wink and a smile that promised anything but safety. "I'm not worried about getting hurt, Toga," I managed, my voice a little weak from the idea of going back to the agency, even if it was just to ransack the place. "I'm just not looking forward to going back there."

"Oh? Scared of running into your old boy toy? What, are you worried you'll have to fight him but won't be able to or something?" Though she meant it to be teasing, I tensed up at her words, and Dabi's hand on my thigh seemed to heat up just the slightest bit, as if he was trying to suppress the flames from coming out. The attention of three others snapped to me as they, too, waited for an answer.

"I think I'll manage kicking an overgrown bird's ass," I replied through a forced smile, and some of the villains around me laughed in relief, not noticing how I clenched my fists a little harder. I hated Keigo's guts - he led me on, gave me a fake sense of comfort, made me feel at home, and then tore it all away from me. If I have to fight him, then I won't hesitate,  I assured myself.  He doesn't deserve my mercy after hurting me so much. Still, a small part of me wondered if I'd actually be able to do it - my whole life until now, I'd been doing my best to keep him out of danger, and fighting him would be contradictory to everything I'd ever known - then again, if I'd been told I would become a villain willingly one year ago, I would've laughed out loud at something as absurd as that. 

After that, the ride was more or less silent. No one bothered speaking, and it wasn't like there was anything in particular that needed to be said. By now, I'd repeated the plan back to myself so many times that it was engraved into my mind, and even though I was a little sore from last night's training, I was more than sure that the mission would be a success, and the members of the League would lose their doubts about me once and for all. A large bump in the road sent the van bouncing up, and someone beside me complained about the ride, but no one in particular answered. Maybe they were too lost in thought, or maybe they were just as nervous with anticipation as I was. Either way, it didn't really matter as I steeled my nerves and prepared myself for the absolute worst, just in case everything went severely downhill.

The van finally came to a stop, and after we all checked to have out gas masks with us, I put on the plain black mask the League had provided for me as a disguise. We stepped out of the van in a small alley about one hundred meters from the agency, and the group turned expectantly to me - I was nominated as the unofficial leader for the mission so that it would not only be a test of my loyalty, but one of leadership as well. I took a breath that was a lot more rattling than I hoped it would've been but gave the others a reassuring nod. The van was hidden well enough and no one would've been able to find it unless they knew where to look, so we set off in the direction of the agency.

I made sure to take the route that no sane pedestrian would even dream of, constantly looking back to make sure the others were following my steps, and only once the building was a mere ten meters away from the alley's exit did I come to a stop. "Group together," I ordered, trying to have as much authority as possible, though in the all-black getup and the tied back ponytail that was barely long enough to even be held in place, I must've looked pretty ridiculous. They did as I said, gathering into one large group, and although we'd chosen a time when barely anyone wandered the streets, I took the precaution of wiping ourselves from everyone's sight. 

Once that safety net was in place, I led them to the very same second floor window that I'd told Shigaraki about and scaled the building, showing the others the easiest way to get into the agency. Toga followed directly after me, with Dabi close behind and the others doing the same. We moved silently, stopping every few meters as I opened my senses to catch if anyone was lurking among the halls. Thankfully, the heroes were nowhere in sight - probably on patrol somewhere - and the departments weren't strong enough to pose as an actual threat. 

Although the mission from Shigaraki had been simple enough, to slip into the agency and get all the reports of both heroes and villains alike, I knew it wouldn't stop at just that. The League wanted revenge. They wanted to burn the agency to the ground, to create chaos and destruction, and although the building had been all I've known for three years, part of me agreed with them. After all, it was the job of a hero that hurt me, wasn't it? If I'd never become a hero, I wouldn't have had those breakdowns for all the hate, right? So the agency would deserve being burned down to the ground. It was only fair - the agency hurt me and the League, so now it was our turn to hurt the agency.

I saw Dabi and a few others start to stray from the group, no doubt to wreak havoc on their own somewhere, but I shook my head at them, instead pointing at Mustard - the one with the gas quirk - who nodded and waited for everyone to put on their gas mask before activating his quirk. The sleep gas spread quickly, and I let myself relax a little. At least I wouldn't have to overwork my quirk to always keep an eye out for anyone who came our way. Still, I kept the invisible barrier hiding us from the rest of the world up just in case someone was unaffected by the quirk and I led the way down to the archives. We quietly slipped past the several offices where the workers were all looking particularly drowsy, though none of them seemed to be able to tell what was wrong. It was so twistedly wrong, I almost laughed out loud, but I managed to control myself so as to not give away our cover. 

The thuds of them dropping in their sleep was like music to my ears. I could get all the revenge I wanted, right here, right now, and no one would be able to stop me. After all, what had the agency ever done for me? They'd never stepped in to stop the hate from the public. They'd never checked in to make sure I was fine from all the missions they sent me on. My best efforts were met with scoffs and lectures about how I was wrong for seemingly no reason whatsoever. They'd hurt me, they'd forced me through too much to just let go, they'd tried to make me change who I was, they'd sided with a murderer that killed my sister instead of a hero who was only doing her job. They were wrong. They were wrong to hurt me like that, and they needed to pay. 

Only when we forged past the media department did I hesitate slightly, catching sight of Niko among the other passed out office workers. I was almost tempted to stop in my tracks, to drag Niko out of the building and as far away as possible. After all, it wasn't like Niko had ever done something against me, right? They'd lectured and yelled at me sometimes, sure, but all in good heart. No, I frowned to myself, forcing myself to walk past without acknowledging him. He must've put Keigo up to the idea of ending our partnership. This is Niko's fault too - they were the ones that put this whole sick loop on play. This time, when two of the villains started to slip away from the group, I let them do so.