Nyx's definition of 'well enough' was very different from Izuku's. Three weeks had passed since he had last seen her, and none of his questions had been answered. Instead, when he woke up, an onslaught of inquiries had been thrown at him by raging bull-headed lieutenant with a nose ring and buzz cut. The angrier the lieutenant became; the more steam would whistle out of his ears. This would have been hilarious if he didn't have dark beady eyes that seemed to daydream about murder. The inquiries made no sense and hardly had much of a connection. A few about the League of Villains, but mostly they were about his life at U.A. down to his daily routines and his most frequent interactions. Finally, after what seemed like days of interrogation, Izuku was released to his own devices with one rule: stay inside the compound.

Izuku found this easy enough, seeing how the compound was the size of a small city. A large cavern carved out underground with very few exits to the overworld. The chamber glowed a warm bronze from the city lights. It was very hard not to get lost, and he often found himself getting turned around in the labyrinth of passageways. Many times he would have to have help from the inhabitance who would bring him right back to the raging lieutenant for a lecture.

Where he was and why have yet to be answered, but after a while, Izuku found he was under close guard. Everyone was friendly enough, but still cautious of him. Mothers would smile and wave but kept their distance, not letting curious kids wander too close. As Izuku walked he'd get a curt nod of greeting but given a wide girth between him and the individual as they passed. This lasted for about two weeks before things began to change.

Late one night, Izuku was wrestled from his bed and thrown into a cold metal room with the lieutenant seated across from him. Hands folded on a table and dark eyes scanning every inch of Izuku's being. After a long look, he welcomed Izuku to sit down, taking a book that had been out of sight and placing it gently on the table. "What do you know of this book?"

The book was relatively thick. Red with a splotchy black mask and the words Meta Liberation War inscribed on the front. Izuku glanced hesitantly at the lieutenant, "I've seen it in a bunch of book stores and the news has commented on its rise in popularity but other than that I don't know much about it."

"Are you sure?" the lieutenant asked, leaning forward slightly so that a dark shadow cast across his face. "What about the missing pro-hero?" He pulled a file from behind him and smacked it on top of the book. Opening the vanilla folder revealed a picture of Best Jeanist.

"Best Jeanist is missing?" Izuku stared at the picture. The pro-hero had announced not too long before that he would soon enter the eye of the public once again. Had something deterred that decision? Was he only missing from the public, or was he actually missing? If so, what happened? Did somehow villains get to him? The League?

The Bull-Man grunted. "Clueless again? How about you tell me why our government is angry with you?"

Izuku had been wondering this himself for a while. The fact that he dropped out of school could cause him issues within the district, but that didn't warrant bounty hunters. His discussion with All Might was private, and no one could know of his conversations with the Predecessors. Above all, only a few people knew of One for All. Even the nature of those conversations wouldn't have caused a conflict of interest. "Honestly, I don't know."

The Bull-Man's eyebrow inched up his forehead. "You don't know? How could you not know? Boy, you are about as useless to me as the dirt beneath my feet."

"Actually, sir, the dirt is very useful! It—"

"Shut up, kid."

"I—eh, yes, sir."

"Let's try this," The Bull-Man closed the envelope. "What were you hoping to accomplish by traipsing into the city's underbelly like a green bean?"

"Sir, I'm afraid I don't follow. Like a green bean?"

"Like a fish fresh out of water."

"Sir—"

"Like a baby deer on ice."

"I—"

"Come on, kid! You stick out like a sore thumb. You clearly don't belong. You're like a fairy princess amongst swamp people."

"Then I'll help the swamp people since I have the power to do so!"

The Bull-Man sighed and began rubbing his temples. "What you lack in competence, you make up for in spirit."

"I'm not sure how to take that."

"Just take it as you like, kid."

Izuku nervously scratched the back of his head. "Mind if I ask a question?"

"Shoot. Might as well, you aren't giving me anything worthwhile."

"Why am I here?"

For a moment, the Bull-Man didn't speak, only enveloped deep in a world only he could see. "Why are you here, indeed." He muttered though Izuku got the feeling that the lieutenant was speaking more to himself than he was him. The lieutenant cleared his throat, the mist fading from his eyes. "We have a proposition for you. We would like for you to join us."

"No."

"No?"

"You've told me nothing about yourselves since I've been here. You're villains, I've figured out that much. And I—"

"What? You can't align yourself with villains?" Bull-Man slammed his hands on the table, standing abruptly. Izuku leaned back, startled by the sudden change in the lieutenant's demeanor. Steam whistled from the lieutenant's ears as he leaned forward on the table, uncomfortably close to Izuku's face. "How do you define villains, hero? What did you hope to accomplish by waltzing into the underbelly? Did you expect to wave a magic wand and change the swamp people into beautiful butterflies?"

"I—"

"You think because you have your hero license, attended U.A., and been in a few battles that you know something about the world? That you can make a difference in this screwed up necropolis of a world? Let me tell you something, kid. You have much to learn." The lieutenant's voice lowered. "Not everything you see is black and white. The majority of what you see is in shades of grey. Villains and heroes aren't that different . . . you already know that. I can see it in your eyes."

"But it's how they are different, sir," Izuku replied, keeping his voice steady.

"It depends on what side you are on. Heroes might be able to bring peace to the Overside, but the Underside has remained untouched."

"Wait, but I thought when All Might—"

"All Might helped push the Underside deeper into hiding, but to be so naïve to think that he brought it on the brink of extinction?" The Bull-Man let out a blusterous laugh. "When you take out a major player, it creates a power vacuum. All Might took out a lot of major players, and many others rose to the occasion. Sometimes what fills the vacancy is worse than what was taken out."

"So . . . what are you saying?"

"Boy, the Underside is like a hydra . . . are you familiar with the mythical beast? Are you at least a little educated?"

"I mean, vaguely, yeah, I remember it."

"When one head is cut off, two more grow back," The lieutenant said grimly. "A hero needs more help from villains than other heroes to get this beast under control. A hero needs to understand both views, both ideologies to make a difference. Suppression does not give birth to peace, only anger and turmoil. The peace society usually experiences is not true peace. It is the result of those emotions brewing and only lasts for a short time. But an eruption will shatter it to pieces with mass carnage. No question, no exception."

"And the eruption, that's happening now."

"Yes," the Bull-Man finally sat back down in his chair, "it is. More carnage will follow, mark my words. You want to be the next symbol of peace so bad? You want to make a difference, kid? Then join us."