ATOMIC STRUGGLE

6「alone」9

(Welcome back everyone! Comment goal is 20 still, so good luck and happy reading!!)

Izak wasn't sure what was going on. It was so quiet. There was nothing to do. There was no one home but him. It was the end of the first week of summer break, and Shinso and Mihoko had gone out to the arcade for the day. Toga was out who knew where, and Midoriya had texted him some pictures of him and All Might at a floating security island place that the doctors at the lab had told Izak about. Apparently several of their classmates, including Bakugo, were there as well.

That meant that Izak was completely and utterly alone. It felt weird to him, since it had been so long since he hadn't had anyone around him, or at least in another room. Now, there was no one, and the apartment was completely silent aside from the maroonette's breathing.

And that was when his phone rang. "Hey Giran," Izak said after he had accepted the call.

"Good afternoon! Say, do you have some time to come to the office? Some more people would like to meet you."

"Actually," The teen glanced upwards. "Do you want to come over? Miho and Shinso aren't here so I'm all by myself."

"Oh, of course," Giran instantly perked up, then paused and called something to who Izak assumed were the clients that wanted to meet him. A second later, he seemed to get the OK, so the broker let Izak know that they would be there within the hour. Sure enough, there was a knock at the door about twenty minutes later.

"Hey," Izak greeted as he opened the door, revealing Giran and two other people.

"Thanks for inviting us over," Giran smiled, taking a second to take his shoes off, the other two following suit. Leading them to the living room, Izak gestured for them to sit on the couches, then snapped his fingers. A tray with tea and snacks appeared on the coffee table. "I wonder if your tea will be as good as your food," Giran mused as he took a cup.

"It should be," The maroonette shrugged as he also took a seat, turning his attention to the two people he didn't know. One was a heteromorphic type that took on traits of a gecko thanks to his quirk. The other was wearing a mask, which he took off to try the tea. Underneath the mask was a ski mask with holes for the eyes and mouth.

"Oh my, this is amazing," The person blinked in surprise. "What a harmony of flavors! I daresay this is the best drink I have ever had."

"...I'm not a tea person," The heteromorph declined, giving the person a weird look.

"That's fine," Izak shrugged. "Want something else?"

"No thanks," He shook his head, seeming to be on edge a bit.

"Well now that we're all settled, let me introduce you," Giran hummed as he placed his tea cup down on the coffee table. "Izak, this person goes by the code name Mr. Compress."

"Nice to meet you," Mister Compress smiled with an incline of his head.

"And he," The broker directed his gaze to the heteromorph. "Goes by Spinner."

"Nice to meet you both," Izak said, glancing between them. "Would it be okay if I just called you Compress?"

"Of course, there's no need to trouble yourself over honorifics," The person complied with a chuckle. Spinner on the other hand narrowed his eyes. "You are known as the hero Aether that took down the hero killer, correct?"

"Yeah, but my name is Morgan Izak, feel free to call me Izak."

"Perfect, then with that, the pleasantries are concluded, and the main event can begin," Compress smiled, and Spinner took over as he shifted forward in his seat.

"What is it that you want?" He asked, holding his hands together as he stared Izak down. The maroonette tilted his head.

"I'm not sure I understand your question," He said slowly, not breaking eye contact. Spinner's eyes narrowed further.

"What are your convictions? Your ideals? Things you want to accomplish in life?" He reiterated, causing Izak to purse his lips for a moment before he leaned back.

"Honestly, nothing."

"Excuse me?" Spinner's forehead creased in confusion.

"I don't have anything I want to accomplish," The maroonette repeated with a thoughtful expression. "I just want to live well. My ideals are the same, but a bit broader," He explained with a slight, barely distinguishable smile. "I think everyone around me should be able to live well, and if I'm able to help them to achieve a better life, I'm more than happy to."

Compress swallowed.

Spinner's forehead was no longer creased. Neither were confused any longer. Earlier, when they had gone to Giran, they hadn't asked to meet Izak. No, they had asked to be introduced to the group that was forming under the flag of Stain's ideals. Giran had just smiled that knowing smile of his and lit a cigarette.

"Instead of that, why don't I introduce you to the hero that captured Stain? His hero name is Aether, he's actually a close friend of mine. He's pretty mellow, so as long as you don't show any open hostility, he's friendly to everyone. If you still want to join the new group after you've met him, I'll arrange a meeting with the leader within the week."

Neither of the two had understood what Giran was up to in that moment. It made no sense; it felt like he was sending them into a trap or something, even though they both knew the broker would never do such a thing. But now, they understood that Giran had saved them from wasting their time with some other group, and had instead done his job as a broker and given them exactly what they were looking for.

"What?" Izak asked, unnerved by the sudden shift in the feelings the two guests were emitting.

"Ah, sorry," Spinner sat up straight. "From what we've been told, you're so powerful that the information on you and your quirk are classified as top secret by the government. If you really are that powerful," The gecko tilted his head. "Why aren't you doing anything to change the way things are?"

"I just want to live well," Izak shrugged. "I'm living fine right now, so I don't see a need to do anything. Of course, if people come ask for help, I won't turn them away, but other than that, I'm content." So that's what it was, the two guests thought to themselves, he doesn't have any ambition behind his ideals.

It was right then that a knock on the front door was heard.