Chapter Text
:::Prologue:::
A man in a white coat and strange goggles approached a green, translucent vial that rest among a rack of empty vials. A glowing yellow and black swirling substance festered inside the said vial ominously. The room around this man was dark, filled with stark white counters and operating tables. A single, dim light flickered.
The man smiled to himself humbly, "Well, Kyudai, you've outdone yourself this time!" The man, Dr. Kyudai Garaki, whispered excitedly to himself. He gingerly grasped the vial, removing it from its case and monologued quietly, "What a magnificent quirk, Dimension Gate..." Said quirk allowed teleportation, although Kyudai had no idea where to. However the situation he was using the quirk for was dire. Kyudai's task was to aid an escape for a very powerful villain from Tartarus, the most secure prison in Japan. Said villain being, a quirkless boy, Mastermind. Thankfully for the villain, Kyudai did not require a person to have a quirk in order for the doctor to respect them.
Dr. Kyudai's shoes clopped against the stony ground as he approached an operating table with a person strapped to it. Said person seemed to be made of a white, glowing mist, although there was obviously something physical under the straps. The doctor smiled as he grasped a syringe from a small tray beside the operating table. He inserted the syringe into the vial in his other hand, pulling the quirk-filled substance slowly into the syringe. Glowing yellow strands shone from within the black mass.
Kyudai breathed out, impressed, "Quirks… such beautiful things. The essence of a being's power. Such a shame I have to use this one so soon… Although I am glad it is you..." Kyudai paused, a smirk growing on his face as he stared at the mist-engulfed being, “Kurogiri...”
He set the vial onto the tray slowly, wanting to savor every moment of seeing this quirk manifest itself in Kurogiri.
Kyudai stepped closer to him and punctured the obscured skin with the tip of the syringe, slowly pressing the fluid into the person's body until there was no more. He watched intently for half a minute before noticing a yellow glow coming from within the mist. At this sight, the doctor let out a quiet, yet drawn out chuckle; whispering to himself "It's working!" Suddenly, the mist that flowed off of the person transformed into a poisonous black, and the yellow light slowly started getting brighter. Kyudai dismissed the quirk's behavior as he watched it manifest. But the light never stopped getting brighter. Kyudai recognized this as the process malfunctioning, it was too much for the user to handle and was about to overload. He obviously didn't plan this.
The doctor panicked, desperately going to turn away and protect his body with his arms.
Kyudai's ears suddenly started ringing as a bright, clear, white light filled his vision; and he could feel himself being propelled away from the Kurogirini. He heard a short thump, the sound of multiple vials shattering against the ground, and everything went black.
-----
:::~~~:::
-----
Midoriya Izuku, the inheritor of One For All, the heroic boy taken in by All Might himself, was currently in a very strange dream. He could not move in this void that was around him, and could not feel anything except for the top half of his face. He saw a kind, yet tough-looking woman with long, black hair stood in front of him, along with many people he didn't recognize lined up beside her, and one that looks like… Izuku had seen them before, but… It was clearer this time. 'The vestiges of One For All!' Izuku thought, because he couldn't speak.
Two white-haired figures, one with long hair and another with short hair manifested in front of him. Izuku intently watched as he saw the short-haired one go to say something, but everything suddenly cut to white, except the woman for a split second. The woman seemed shocked before she also was washed out by the white.
The moment the white took over his vision, he felt like he was being thrown. He desperately tried to mentally grasp onto what was left of the dream…
Then Izuku suddenly felt like he was falling, and a big impact on his back made his eyes shoot open. He immediately sat up out of instinct, grasping at his heart and trying to catch his breath.
'What the hell was that?!' The boy thought, then hearing someone take a gasp from behind him. The sudden realization hit him as the adrenaline started to fade, he wasn't in his room. Izuku slowly turned around in place to see a very freaked out Kaminari Denki covering his mouth.
Izuku stuttered out a quiet apology "K-Kaminari-kun! I'm sorry!"
Denki was still covering his mouth, terrified as he replied with a shaky breath "M-Midoriya…"
He thought in a panicked tone 'Mastermind? Mastermind is in my dorm?! Oh god- Oh god- what do I do?!... Okay, calm down and just try not acting stupid!' Denki gulped and asked in a whisper, "What are you doing here...?"
Izuku turned so his body faced Denki, "I honestly have no idea, Kaminari-kun. I was hoping to ask you that… I was just having a weird dream and all of a sudden, I'm in your room…?"
As he dropped his hand from his mouth, Denki forced a smile that Izuku could tell was strained, "I-I should go ask Sensei what to do…". In reality, the electric boy was thinking, 'That oblivious act isn't going to trick me… I need to get out of this room, fast.'
Izuku hesitantly nodded, "I would appreciate Aizawa-sensei's help… thank you…" Izuku's thoughts wandered off on their own, 'What's going on with Kaminari…? Usually he would've just relaxed and told me not to worry about it… but he's so… tense…'
Denki stiffly stood up and walked out of the room briskly, quickly slamming the door behind him and locking it. 'Holy shit!!! That was way too close…!' Denki thought, backing up against the door and sitting against it. He hugged his legs to his chest and tried to slow his breathing.
The sound of Denki's heart pounded in his head as he rehashed the situation in his head several times. 'Who the hell am I supposed to tell about this?!'
-----
:::~~~:::
-----
Viridian, as most he knows will call him, is curled up on his bed. He buries himself within a large hoodie, embroidered with the words "If lost, Return to Eraserhead". The text imprinted on the fabric comforted him in a sense, although not much. The Vigilante still felt an aching dread within him, as if it was tugging at his chest.
Viridian hid his eyes in the soft fabric for a while, Even though his eyes were closed, a flash of white flooded his vision for a split second; startling him. He immediately pulled his head out of his hoodie, just recovering from the near-blinding experience. He slowly blinked open his eyes to find himself in a rugged and worn version of his room. 'What? What happened- How did that happen in a split second?!'
Viridian held his head in his hands, glancing around frantically as his breathing speed started to escalate. Noticing this, he tried to center his focus on himself to calm down.
It took a few minutes, but Viridian finally got up from the bed he was curled up on. All Might merch that was scattered around the room was destroyed, not a single one left for mercy.
His first instinct was to go ask his mother what was going on, Viridian only just noticing how late it was. Oh, oh well. He'd not want to bother his mom about this anyway. Maybe Eraser was a better choice…? No, he wouldn't want to see a murderer again…
The thought brought tears to his eyes as he remembered the experience. Viridian gently dabbed at his cheeks with the hoodie he was wearing.
For the first time, he noticed his room looked… searched-through. He bit his tongue and sunk into the mattress again, only to wonder what had happened in that split second. Was he a ghost now? In a parallel world? Did he time travel? All these thoughts pestered his mind endlessly as he quietly waited for sunrise to approach.
-----
:::~~~:::
-----
Here arrives Deku, analyst-in training, having just figured out the intricate puzzle he had to solve to make it to Nedzu's apartment. He was excited for his new internship with the principal, as he was for anything that helped him progress in his career.
He took a deep breath before knocking at the door. He saw Nedzu standing readily inside for a moment before his vision was ripped away in a blinding white light.
Deku froze as he no longer saw Nedzu in front of him, with a welcoming expression. The door swung open with a creek as he saw a rather hostile Nedzu, standing a few feet away from the Door.
The air around him immediately seemed colder and the colors more dull.
"Mastermind, what are you doing out of Tartarus?" The principal asked coldly.
Deku's pupils narrowed, glancing around unsurely. "Who's Mastermind…? I'm here for your internship, I'm your personal student…?"
Nedzu frowned and stated "I have no personal students, I haven't had any in decades. Now I can't have someone like you running around. Come inside." The principal turned away and head towards a table in the apartment.
Deku gulped, walking in, his eyes tracing the room as an unsettling feeling washed over him. 'Something… something is seriously wrong here.' He slowly shut the door behind him.
Nedzu got out a tea kettle for himself and announced "I'm calling Detective Tsukauichi to come escort you back to Tartarus and I will not let you take a step out of this apartment until he arrives." He quietly poured himself the tea and exhaled quietly. "We cannot let it get out that you somehow escaped from Tartarus."
Deku tried to get out, clutching a fist at his chest "B-But I didn't escape from T-"
Nedzu cut him off "That's enough, Mastermind."
Deku opened his mouth to reply, but shut it quickly; looking down at his obnoxiously red shoes. He let out an exhale as he sat down on the ground to take off his shoes and set them by the door respectfully.
Nedzu sighed "Come over here, Mastermind. I'd rather not have you sitting on the floor. It is still basic manners for me to offer some tea."
Deku looked up at the principal for a second, hesitating before getting up and sitting across from Nedzu at the table.
The principal politely slid over a cup of tea to him.
Deku silently took the cup into his hands and sipped from it, sitting in an awkward silence with Nedzu. Before the silence became unbearable, he spoke up in a quiet voice "I meant that… I have no idea what's going on Nedzu-sensei."
The principal perked up at the honorific, but dismissed it "You're Mastermind. Murderer of the Symbol of Peace, and horrific strategist of the underworld. I, along with Tsukauichi caught you recently and put you in Tartarus."
Deku's eyes narrowed and his mouth fell open, horrified "I… I-I did what…?"
-----
:::~~~:::
-----
Cheat Code, the Support-course Strategist student was out going shopping for parts. Mei needed some specific pieces to continue her work on Shinsou's new mask.
UA didn't supply them, so Cheat Code was sent out with a shopping list to a local Support-Item store. He had collected what he needed and bought it. The moment he went to grab the receipt, a flash of light made his eyes burn; like how Nedzu had forgotten to turn all the settings to dark mode on his display before sending it off to Cheat Code to use.
He was pretty sure he didn't forget, according to how sadistic most thought the principal was.
He took a step towards the exit, only to bump into glass doors. He thought they were open earlier? Cheat Code's eyes fluttered open and he held his head, realizing his hands were now empty. 'What the hell?' He saw a lock over the door bars and a sign saying "For Sale" What the hell happened in that time?! Did he get hit by a quirk? Cheat Code shifted from thought to theory, bouncing around his brain like Gran Torino.
The boy took in a deep breath before turning around, seeing the shelves in the store suddenly empty. He padded around to see if he could find a back exit that wasn't locked. Graffiti was splattered all across the store. Most were just logos, but a bunch of them referenced someone called "Mastermind". It seemed this "Mastermind" was pretty popular, he hoped that it wouldn't end up being his downfall; wherever he was.
Cheat Code found the back exit soon, grateful it was only locked to the outside. He slowly walked out into an alleyway, seeing a rather familiar pale-haired figure down the alley, smoking a cigarette.
The man noticed him and turned to him, taking the cigarette out of his mouth "Mastermind…?" The man croaked.
Cheat Code froze in his tracks, breathing out as he stared at the villain "T-Tomura Shigaraki…?"
Tomura rushed over to the teen "How the hell did you get out of Tartarus?! And why… Why do you look so young?"
Cheat Code gulped. 'Okay, those were pieces of information. Mastermind is a villain, Looks like me, and is older than me' He stuttered out, "W-What…?"
Tomura huffed "You get caught once and turn into a pussy. C’mon, before your boyfriend goes out to try and save you." The man snatched Cheat Code's wrist with a lifted pinky finger and started dragging him.
Cheat Code had many, many complicated thoughts bouncing around in his head.
-----
:::~~~:::
-----
Mastermind, proud villain and strategist, the one known best for eliminating the Symbol of Peace from the world, had been placed in Tartarus, the most secure prison in Japan, if not the world! Mastermind felt sick at the thought of staying in this place for more than an hour, but he knew he had to play the waiting game.
Something must happen soon… and happen, it did. His vision flashed white, hurting his eyes for a split second, his head feeling like it was splitting open and pain overwhelmed him. He attempted to scream, but Mastermind could not even hear his own voice. The pain faded a little as his eyes slid open, he found himself placed in a dark void.
'Kurogiri?' He thought, 'No, Kurogiri is locked in Tartarus too… Where am I?'
Mastermind looked around to see a collection of 3 people also in this void, all of which looked concerned and worried. He went to go speak to them, but realized he couldn't move, nor feel the rest of his body besides the upper half of his face. 'Oh wow. Very convenient…' The people gathered in front of him just seemed to notice him, one of them just walking up to the freckled boy and placing their hand on his forehead.
This action caused Mastermind to wake up, pain shot through his arm and he rolled over onto his knees on… the bed he was on? Shutting his eyes tightly, he heard a few noises before the pain faded.
Mastermind slid his eyes open slowly to see a room that looked… destroyed, to say the least. He gagged at a few of the unharmed All Might decorations.
'What the hell is this? Did I die and now I'm in hell?'
Mastermind heard a door open from behind him, and immediately turned to see who it was. Yuga Aoyama, resident sparkle of UA.
Aoyama pointed at Mastermind obliviously "It's early for your ruckus, Midoriya-..." The blonde surveyed the room "Mon ami, What the damage you've caused, Midoriya!"
Mastermind looked at Aoyama, bewildered. 'What…? How the hell does this guy know my last name? Why is he talking to me so casually?!'
He gathered his thoughts and sat up on the bed, noticing it was an All Might themed sheet and held back his urge to curse at it. "Aoyama-kun…" he muttered coldly "I have no idea what just happened…"
Mastermind glanced over to the balcony, stars glittered among the dark sky "Crap, it must be like 2 AM or something… That must've been loud."
'I have no idea who would ever be this big of an All Might fan… Besides Sir Nighteye. But he isn't a student here… Wait, Aoyama addressed me by my name casually, as if I live here. Does that mean that this is a parallel world to mine? Where I became a hero…? Ugh, then this alternate me has disgusting taste.'
-----
:::~~~:::
-----
Mastermind, yes another one, had ended up somewhere else. He appeared in his room, or at least a version of it. There was more varied hero merch than he remembered. More hero merch, because he couldn't remember having any since…
Looking out the window, Mastermind saw how the sun was slowly rising above the horizon. He didn't know what to do, he didn't want to scare his mom into calling the police; since he was just in Tartarus after all.
Mastermind got up and noticed a pair of goggles, slipping them on as he started to hurry himself out of the house. He couldn't risk going to Tartarus again. As he dashed out of the house, he started jogging down a random path. Directions didn't matter, he just had to get away. The streets slowly grew more sketchy, dirty, and crime-filled as he wandered, before being stopped by a hand on his shoulder.
A much older voice asked him as he felt a hand on his shoulder "Kid, what are you doing out so late? I know that-"
Mastermind whipped around to see the pro hero, Eraserhead. A moment of panic made him hesitate to think.
Eraserhead seemed a little surprised, muttering softly "Kid, why are you so jumpy…? It's just me…"
Mastermind shut his eyes tightly as he suddenly shoved the hero's hand off his shoulder and dashed off, taking the opportunity in the hero's shock. Eraserhead muttered to himself with guilt "Shit…" before chasing after him. He tried his best to keep the kid in his view "Kid! Stop running!"
-----
:::~~~:::
-----
Meanwhile, another Mastermind had found himself standing in Principal Nedzu's office. A plain space with little decoration. Two paintings were hung up on the wall, a table, a desk, and a kitchen were all that was in sight. The immediate panic that strook him must've caught Nedzu off-guard, because he noticed the principal's ear twitch tentatively.
The mouse-like person muttered with a smile "Is everything alright, Midoriya? You just froze for a second."
Mastermind's initial response rang clear in his head, and out loud "Yeah, It's no problem; Principal Nedzu!" He strained to make a smug smile as he realized how absolutely fucked he was in this situation. Trying to plan out the next 7 answers in conversation, and also managing each responding facial expression at the same time.
Nedzu asked calmly "That was a strange smile, Midoriya. That really isn't like you to strain it. Did you have a dissociative episode? I can provide care for you, if you wish"
Mastermind chuckled softly with a tinge of awkwardness as he tried to figure out what was going on, walking further into the room "What am I doing here, again?" In his head, all sorts of alarms were blaring at him 'damn, what is he thinking, has he figured me out? Am I even known as Mastermind? Does Mastermind even exist here? Wait, he's looking at me weird'
Something in Nedzu's mind seemed to click "Ah! I see… You aren't the same Midoriya, are you?"
Mastermind tensed and turned around to stare directly into Nedzu's stone carved eyes. 'Shit.'
A dramatic pause proceeded before surprisingly, Nedzu smiled and offered Mastermind a seat. He brought out a kettle and asked "Would you like to chat about it over tea?"
The green-haired boy felt like he had gone through emotional and mental whiplash as he let out a short, relieved exhale. 'Does this guy think I'm a hero…?' A lone thought, stood alone in his head as he took his seat across from Nedzu slowly.
Nedzu paused for a second to pour Mastermind a cup of tea, "Do you know what happened there when you froze, and do you have a different name I should call you by?"
Mastermind hushed his words as he answered both questions, still just getting over the adrenaline buildup. "I've already forgotten what that was, and Midoriya is fine."
Nedzu nodded slowly, "So, I was planning for Izuku to have an internship session with me here; but I suppose that's cancelled!" He paused for a second to sip at his own cup of tea. "So how long are you staying, Midoriya?"
Mastermind huffed, frankly now a bit annoyed, "I have no idea… However, I have a feeling I'll want to stay" the boy thought tentatively 'Maybe I can stay here so I stay OUT of Tartarus-'
Nedzu waved his paw dismissively, cutting off Mastermind's thought "Dear god, no. I can't just say that my personal student all of a sudden forgot his entire life right after an internship session with me! You're going back, and I'm going to help you disguise yourself as Deku until you do!"
Mastermind winced at the name used, looking away from the principal, "He still uses that insult as a name…?"
Nedzu smiled sadistically, tapping his paw pads against the table as he noticed the negative reaction from Mastermind, "Not just as his name, but full on pro heroes associate it with him, too!"
Mastermind mentally groaned, managing a calm expression. 'God, this is going to be a nightmare; isn't it?'
-----
:::~~~:::
-----
The last Mastermind opened his eyes with a splitting headache, finding himself in a store, and holding a receipt and a bag that was pretty heavy.
A cashier right in front of him snapped his fingers in front of Mastermind's face "Hey, green boy. You look like you just died!"
Mastermind looked up at the cashier, assessing the situation for a second before nodding quietly "Sorry, I'll be going now."
The boy turned away from the counter and left the store. After leaving he quickly shuffled to the alleyway behind the store, and checked what was in the bag.
'Support Gear? I thought most of those stores were closed down by now… Why is there one open?'
Mastermind puzzled himself looking at it, checking if anything was different, he felt around his body. 'A blazer, a pocket… with a phone, a wallet, … I'm smaller…?'
He dug through the bag to try and find something reflective, luckily finding a shiny metal plate. He looked at his reflection and saw he was wearing a UA uniform, almost dropping the metal in surprise.
'Holy shit, this must be a different universe. I would never apply to UA!'
Thinking about the situation, he rose a hand to his mouth. After a moment he suddenly took out the phone from his pocket. Turning it on he exhaled in relief to find no lock on it.
Mastermind immediately went to what he assumed was a messaging app. He tapped on the top pinned group chat. Including people nicknamed as "Explosive" and "Insomniac". He huffed and typed in a message as casual as he could make it.
~-----~
Analyst: alright I have a bag of support gear, where should I drop it off?
Explosive: WHAT'S THE SECRET PASSWORD?!
Analyst: what…?
Explosive: OH MY GOD, ARE YOU A DIFFERENT IZUKU-
~-----~
'Fuck.' Mastermind thought, hesitating for just a moment too long as "Explosive" replied to their own message.
~-----~
Explosive: OH MY GOD YOU A R E-
Analyst: what?! no! and please turn off caps lock, it's really annoying.
Explosive: *gasp*
Insomniac: Oh no, you've done it, now; Izuku. Great job, you made her cry.
Analyst: huh?! What the hell is going on?!
Insomniac: You know what you need to do, get over here and say sorry.
Analyst: where even are you???
Insomniac: The Support Course lab??? Just as always???
~-----~
'Jesus fucking christ…' Mastermind turned off the phone and made a run towards UA. Well, this is a situation he thought he'd never be in.
Mastermind arrived at the classroom door after getting lost in UA for half an hour, now exhausted. He opened the door to find a judgemental Hitoshi Shinsou hesitantly hugging a sobbing Mei Hatsume.
Shinsou glared at Mastermind "You better explain this, or I'm never gonna forgive you."