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Endeavor picked himself up off the ground. Small stones and bits of dirt rolled off of his back as he stood, the sound of the stones hitting the rocks below hidden under the never ending tinnitus that rang through his head. It had become ever present in his life after fighting Hood. It had gotten worse since. Standing straight was a bad idea as it just served to remind him of how much he hurt right now.
Everyone had their own ideas about what the worst part of having a fire quirk was. Most seemed to think it was the burns, the prickling of red flash and singed skin, the blisters that would form filled with clear fluid before the worst of them inevitably burst. Others might think it was the hot flashes, the waking up in the middle of the night to the smell of singed sheets, the increase in insurance premiums.
Endeavor had always thought that the worst part was how the heat of the air made one forget how to breathe, the reduced oxygen making it all the more fatal a mistake. On some of his worst days Endeavor had wondered if the oxygen deprivation from his own quirk had made him especially stupid. Here and now, trying to take in a full breath and failing, he believed it.
Hawks made a noise as he forced himself back to his feet, blood dripping down his face, trickling from his hair, and those prosthetic wings—those stupid prosthetic wings that reminded Endeavor every time he saw them what had been lost because of him —hanging broken from his back. Bits of dirt and rock trickled out from the folds in Hawks’ jacket and why was he even still wearing the stupid thing, hot as it must have been? Hawks swayed as he stood there, the few feathers sticking out from his back serving to push and pull him into something like standing.
Endeavor had just enough time to get something like a breath into himself, before with a casual wave of his hand, All for One sent Hawks tumbling back to the ground. Less effort than it might have taken an average man to swat a fly.
“I had hoped things would end like this.”
All for One walked down the air, like he was striding down the stairs at a gala. The man had a flair for entrance, a weight of expectation to him like he expected everyone in the room to be watching him.
A prickling sense of danger crawled over Endeavor’s skin, a feeling like this was a distraction. A feeling that told him that it didn’t matter how close of an eye he kept on the man, he would inevitably be caught off guard.
“It’s not over.”
The words didn’t sound like his. Even the spike of pain in his chest as he spoke didn’t make the words his. If someone had asked, Endeavor wasn’t sure he would have been able to take credit without feeling like a liar.
“Oh, but it is the end.” All for One said, stepping closer.
Endeavor blasted him with everything he had in him. The fire power he brought to bear did nothing. He was too weak like this, overheated to the point where he couldn’t manage anything more.
With another contemptuous flick of the hand, All for One sent Hawks careening away from the both of them. Endeavor hadn’t even seen the man stand.
“My dear Endeavor,” All for One said with a grin, a hand held out towards him. “Did you never notice?”
He had to remember to breathe before he could answer. “Notice what?”
“So many good heroes die young. Leaving you with children struggling to protect what little they can—” here All for One pointed in the direction of Hawks. Hawks wasn’t moving. “—and yet all the while you survived.”
Endeavor had nothing to say to that, but he felt his face go slack. It was a casualty of the hero industry. Heroes died. The younger, more inexperienced heroes, died more often. It created an imbalance in the industry. This, like so many things, he had taken for fact. Inevitable.
All for One chuckled. “You never even considered them, did you? It was just you and All Might. The Symbol of Peace and the man who hated him more than anything, the two of you growing old together.”
“I didn’t hate him.” Endeavor protested, but his words were lost as All for One continued to speak.
“But that’s not to say you can be compared to All Might. You’ve never had any of All Might’s exceptionalism, have you Endeavor?”
All for One walked closer. Endeavor struggled to find the words to fight back, let alone raise a fist against the man or strike out with his weakened fire power. There was nothing in his arsenal that could hurt the man. All Might had fought him and won?
If there was one thing All for One was right about it was that. Endeavor had never been anything next to All Might.
“No, you weren’t that.” All for One answered his own question. “It’s a shame really. Try as I might, All Might survived. All Might was strong enough that even I could hardly touch him. Well, that is, until the end.” The scars tugged at the corners of All for One’s mouth, pulling his smile just slightly askew. “But you?”
All for One stopped just a few feet in front of Endeavor.
“I never even took you into consideration.”
All for One shook and it took Endeavor a moment to realize he was shaking with laughter.
“All these young hopeful heroes dying at my hands while you remained alive and never once questioned why. Oh Endeavor, I did always like you. Thinking was never really your thing was it? You called yourself Endeavor, dedicated your entire life to usurping the symbol of peace and never once realized that you were left to remain a hero because you have always done more harm than good just by existing.” All for One’s voice fell, quiet enough that Endeavor knew the next words were spoken only for him to hear. “Only in the end to become the number one hero by default.”
“Don’t listen to him!” Hawks yelled. “It’s not true! You’re my hero Endeavor! You saved me. ” Hawks’ voice broke as he yelled.
In that moment several things happened at once. All for One raised his hand, another contemptuous swat in Hawks’ direction but Hawks dodged, flying so low over the ground his feet kicked up rocks. Endeavor hoping to stop it, trying to do anything at all, punched out with a gout of flame in All for One’s direction. All for One jerked back as he burned.
It was a moment of breathing room and likely the only one they would get in this fight.
“Together! Hawks!”
Trust was what made hero society work and even though that trust had been broken months before, fracturing society, Endeavor would have to trust that Hawks would be able to capitalize on any opening he made for him.
Hell spider. He thought. He didn’t have the breath to say it aloud.
His lungs burned as he concentrated firepower into the tips of his fingers, deft movements forming a spider web of flame that began to close around All for One.
“Now! Hawks!”
The web of fire collapsed inward and Endeavor thought he might have been too hasty, but in the blink of an eye there was Hawks, sword coming around him, aiming for the back of All for One’s neck. In the next instant the fire connected with All for One and smoke and steam billowed out, leaving Endeavor momentarily blind. When it cleared he could see the quivering form of All for One, hunched over, a massive hand braced against the ground.
Endeavor allowed himself another breath. They still had a chance.
“Well.” All for One said, laughing. “You heroes never do know when to give up.”
The feeling was like that of being crushed. The air, hot and heavy and hard to breathe, grew cold with a sort of suddenness that made his lungs seize leaving him drowning, unable to gasp for air. His fire had guttered out. All for One hadn’t touched him, he shouldn’t have been able to steal his quirk, and yet—
“I do hope you’ll forgive me, Endeavor.” All for One stood, that rictus grin turned in his direction. A hand seized around the sword that Hawks had been driving towards his neck and the blade shattered. “After all, I am a paranoid, old man. Even if there was no reason to get rid of you, I took measures. I’m sure you understand. This was never a fight you could win, simply a distraction.” The last few pieces of blade fell from All for One’s hand as he opened it.
Hawks had already flown away. Good.
“I don’t understand.”
He had meant it as a rebuke, but the words came out weak and trembling. Confused.
“Have you ever had the world hand you opportunity so serendipitous that it felt like a gift wrapped in a bow just for you?”
No. Endeavor had never felt like that. Everything he ever had he had fought and clawed and worked and sweat and bled for. Everything had been a sacrifice and in the end all of his fighting and struggles had made so many things worse.
He didn’t realize he was shaking his head until All for One responded: “No. I suppose you wouldn’t. See my doctor kept an eye out for me, for any quirks that might be beneficial to my goals.” All for One chuckled. “Oh, it’s really quite funny.” A hand came up and Hawks was caught in the power of it, as All for One once against tossed him away like yesterday’s trash. Hawks hit the ground hard and didn’t move. “Please, let me finish. I think you’ll like this.”
Hawks said something but Endeavor could do nothing but stare at All for One. How was he supposed to stand, now, when it felt like his quirk had died?
“My doctor came across such a useful little quirk in such a useless little boy.” All for One pressed his hands together and when he moved them apart a ball of fire appeared between them. “Did you know? The boy had already activated his quirk but didn’t realize. They came to me because they thought the poor boy was quirkless. When all this time he had the perfect quirk to defeat you, Endeavor.”
All for One pulled more flame into the swirling orb and as it grew Endeavor felt himself grow colder.
“The ability to manipulate fire with hardly more than a thought.”
He tried to warm himself, but the flames were under All for One’s control. This time Endeavor snuffed his flame himself.
“Do you know whose quirk I stole? I’ll give you a hint. His father can breathe fire. His dear, poor, mother has the ability to manipulate small objects. And his mentor was the former symbol of peace.”
Endeavor’s eye blew wide, fire flaring across his face as it often did with heightened emotion, only for the flames to be ripped away again.
“Yes. Dear Izuku Midoriya. Poor quirkless Midoriya. And all this time, he had the power to bring about the downfall of the number one hero?”
Endeavor sank to his knees. Hawks was trying to get up, but even from here he could see that his arm was broken.
“Endeavor!” Hawks yelled.
“I hope I find a way to tell him. I would so like to see the look on the boy’s face when he learns he not only brought about the end of All Might, but the end of Endeavor as well.”
The fire around All for One had grown large enough to almost entirely obscure him. Endeavor’s eyes stung from the heat and light.
“I should thank the boy.” All for One said.
A stream of fire broke off and it zeroed in on Hawks, almost seeming alive as it coiled around him, spreading over him like a bulbous parasite fat with flame. Hawks struggled for a moment before he collapsed in a smoldering heap.
“This victory would not have been the same without him.”
The air around Endeavor felt so very cold.