Rejected Stones

The Endgame

Beta'd by kylekatarn77 and Poliamida

64. The Endgame

War never changes. Only weapons are new. Yet it is not the weapons, but the men who handle them, who win victories.

-Arthur W. Page, The Conduct Of War

Izuku's breath misted in front of his face, and snow crunched under his boots as he scrambled out of the cab of the truck, which was parked at the end of a gravel road. Birds were just beginning to call, and the sky was still grey and dark with low overhanging clouds. The trees were shrouded in mists and snow, the convoy of trucks hiding amidst them, and the noise of the idling engines and slamming doors was muffled.

Mei had the back open, and Izuku hurried inside, starting the bootup sequence for the Power Suit as Mei worked on the Ultra Armor. Hari swung in, swearing under her breath and helping Izuku into the Power Suit. They had painted both it and the Ultra Armor in Urban Warfare digital camo patterns, and Izuku hoped that would blend in with the winter colors of the forest as well. The pines held on to their green, but most trees were barren and lifeless.

"Izuku, I love you, be safe," Mei said, coming over with his helmet. She kissed him on the cheek, drawing the moment out, and he let himself be lost in her warmth.

Then she separated, placing the helmet upon his head and sealing it. His HUD flared to life, and Izuku checked the levels. "Energy levels at full, all weapons systems online."

"Right, this one's ready too," Hari said, popping the canopy on the Ultra Armor. "Guess this is the part where you fuse the mecha together."

"It's fine, we've practiced it before," Izuku assured her, then climbed in. The two suits' systems synched up, and Izuku stood up, the larger Ultra Armor coming to life. "Synch is good, all systems integrated. We're ready."

"Be safe out there, Izuku," Hari said, rapping the breastplate with her knuckles. "Mei'll take good care of you. Come on sis, let's go get the HQ comms up and running."

Mei moved to go, then stopped, turning back and wrapping her arms around the Ultra Armor's arm. "Take care of Izuku, OK? He has to come back. He's the most important." Then she looked up at Izuku. "And you tell Destro that his babies are ugly, and ours are much cuter, and quirks don't matter!"

With that, Mei hurried off after Hari. Izuku smiled after her, then centered himself.

Taking a deep breath, Izuku clambered out of the truck, looking around. He spotted Togata hurrying over, his expression grim. "Where's Hari?"

"Hari, hold up," Izuku called, then winced. His voice was amplified by the suit's speaker system, and he worried it would carry.

Hari's head appeared on the other side of a truck, looking at Izuku with a concerned expression, and Mei's head popped up beside her a moment later. Togata walked through the truck, and Hari let out a squawk. Her head vanished, and Mei looked down at her, grinning. Then she looked at Izuku and gave him a thumbs up. "First base!" she called.

Shaking his head and smiling, Izuku turned away, heading for the rally point. It was easy to see- even in the mists Endeavor's flames were hard to miss. He made his way into the clearing, standing at the back of the group. In the Ultra Armor, he was easily the tallest one there at over three and a half meters.

"There's Midoriya. Where's Togata?" Endeavor barked.

"Here!" Togata called, popping up out of the ground next to Endeavor. There was a notable smear of pink lipstick on his cheek, which he rubbed at absently. "Sorry, had to take care of something. Wouldn't want to start this with any regrets."