The world around her was shifting, constantly blending into new, blurry scenes. The feeling of warm, comforting arms wrapping around Mariko was acknowledged by her mind, but never fully registered.

'Mino City, Kakun City, Nebaro City, Hando City' the predicted path of the gigantic villain was ringing in her head as her eyes looked upon the horizon, seeing the deep furrow wrecking the beautiful forest.

'Ms. Midnight!' She heard Kirishima scream his lungs out, reaching out to hold the dead hero's hand.

'Mosu City, Horisu City, Kuraudo City, Karida City, Karamari City, Suinara City, Hau City...'

She clenched her fists, tears streaming down her eyes, as the calm, warm wind blew in her face, carrying the smell of blossoming flowers mixed with a metallic scent of blood. Her shoulders trembled in sorrow and she gritted her teeth, hearing them grind as the burning tears poured down from her cheeks to the ground.

'Sairo City, Shido City, Anoto City, Deno City, Ota City, Asaruda City...'

All of them. All of the cities will look just like that forest. Wrecked, bathed in blood and tears of the unprepared, terrified citizens.

She squeezed her palms into fists, burying her nails in her soft skin until they left bloody marks. Her heart pounded fast and she felt her Quirk flow around her body, inflicting pain on her.

'I am so weak. So useless.'

She grit her teeth, feeling her heart race, muffling all the sounds from the world around her. As the sun was slowly falling down, she noticed flash of police lights shining on the trees, announcing the arrival of the officers.

Mariko felt someone place a hand on her shoulder and like in a lucid dream, she followed the person, allowing them to lead her in between the trees. Some time later, she felt her arm being examined and she saw a medic worker shine a small flashlight in her eyes. Then, she helped carry injured heroes and villains, providing the doctors with all her medical supplies stored in her vest, as they were quickly running short.

Like in a trance, she entered an armored vehicle and after some time which seemed like an eternity, she saw the door open. She stepped outside and noticed the garage door of the Central Hospital she was once hosted in. Mariko stared at the entrance with a blank expression on her face and then felt something hit her shoulder. She slowly turned around and only then realized that the building is surrounded with a ton of people. She walked around the car and stood on a small brick wall, separating the drive from a pretty rockwork, hoping to get a clearer view on what was happening.

'Your son is a murderer!' she heard screams from outside the fence.

'We need explanation Endeavor!'

Senchi looked at the faces of people gathered in front of the hospital. What happened? Did they not see in what state they have returned?

'TAX THIEVES!'

'YOU ARE USELESS!'

As she read the hateful signs held by the people, one of the protestants tossed an empty bottle towards Mariko. She froze in place, as if patiently awaiting the impact, but before anything happened, she saw a flash of red, spiky hair and then heard the glass shatter and hit the ground.

She blinked, trying to take control over her brain, but all she could think of was Midnight, Hizashi and Aizawa. She was constantly seeing the woman's body crushed by debris, her torn hero costume, damaged face, broken glasses, the scent of the blood mixed with her perfume.

'Hey!' Kirishima snapped her back to reality. 'We need to go inside.'

Senchi nodded and allowed the boy to grasp her forearm and help her towards the door.

The chaos inside the building made her nauseous. There were stretchers with people everywhere; medical workers, doctors, nurses, all running around, transferring patients from one room to another. As they approached the reception, they noticed the rest of the Class 1A students who were supporting the Edgeshot's team during the assault on Liberation Army headquarters. The rest of the students were missing.

As the group took the elevator to the tenth floor, Mariko looked at the students, examining their bodies.

'Everyone fought so well, except for me,' she thought to herself, the guilt washing over her. 'Hero Commission wanted my Quirk on the field because of Gigantomachia, yet I abandoned my post in order to save Midnight... And I didn't save her anyway.'

She whined quietly and lowered her head, feeling the tears pour from her face.

'I am so sorry, everyone,' she said quietly.

'What are you talking about?' Jirou cupped her cheeks and looked into her glossy eyes. 'None of us could do anything.'

'I was supposed to...' Mariko gritted her teeth, her nostrils flaring as her throat tightened painfully. 'Stop. The. Machia.'

Kirishima grasped her arm tightly.

'We did everything we could,' he announced, as the elevator stopped on the tenth floor. 'Ms. Midni-' he trailed off and swallowed, regaining composure. Creati looked down and Kaminari frowned. 'Ms. Midnight told us to give him narcotics, put him to sleep. Our entire group was trying to get the medicine in his mouth, but even with the help of the Pro Heroes...'

'Mt. Lady was holding his jaws open!' Mineta added.

'Mudman trapped him under the ground,' Kaminari commented.

'All of that and we still managed to get only one of the narcotics in,' Kirishima finished and all of them stepped into the corridor in front of the elevator.

Mariko nodded, knowing that if she attempted to speak, her voice would stuck in her throat. The group of young heroes turned to the right and looked at the corridor full of doors. They slowly approached the first window and peeked inside the room.

'Todoroki!' Kirishima shouted and glued himself to the window, watching the boy covered in bandages, calmly laying on the bed under the sheets. 'Ow!' he whined in pain at the sudden movement.

As the group gathered around the window, they heard a nurse rushing towards them.

'Please let your classmate rest and come with me, we need to take care of all of you,' the lady requested. Mariko looked up into her kind eyes, seeing the obvious signs of stress and fatigue painted all over her mature face.

'She is probably on duty since early morning,' Senchi thought.

The students joined the nurse, asking her questions about the state of their friends on the way.

'What happened to Todoroki?' Kirishima asked.

'A lot of injuries, including burns. Both of them,' the nurse answered.

'Burns?' Creati joined in the conversation. 'Was he fighting Dabi?'

'Didn't you hear?' the nurse asked, shooting an uneasy glance at the group of young students.

Senchi looked at Mina, walking beside her.

'About what?' Mariko asked.

'It hasn't been confirmed yet... but,' the nurse responded slowly. 'The villain named Dabi broadcasted a recording.'

Jirou frowned and pulled out her smartphone from her pocket, then enabled mobile data and scrolled to the news page.

'Apparently he is... I mean he claims to be Endeavor's son.'

Kaminari stopped mid-step, making Tokoyami bump into his back.

'His son?' he repeated loudly, clearly shocked.

Mariko brought her hand to her chin.

'This doesn't surprise me,' she said quietly and Creati looked at her. 'Fire quirks are not that common and we all know that Shoto's scar had to come from somewhere. Shoto also has quite a big family. Knowing that, it does seem likely that one of the children turned from abused to abusers.'

'Yea,' Mina nodded.

'So you think that it is true?' the nurse asked in a worried tone.

'Even if it is true, this doesn't change the fact that our friend Todoroki is a good person,' Yaomomo said and the entire group nodded. 'And Endeavor seems like he,' she trailed off, not sure what to say.

'Seems like he wants to reconnect with his family,' Kirishima added.

The nurse turned her head away from the students, then opened the door to a room with multiple hospital beds.

'Please take one bed each, some of your friends are in the room next door. I will get a doctor as soon as I can, but they are very busy.'

'Is Deku here? Dynamight?' Mineta asked.

'They are being operated.'

The room fell silent. The nurse turned around towards the door and pushed down the handle. Mariko quickly got up from the bed, attracting the woman's attention. Before she said anything, the lady raised her hand.

'We will answer your questions soon, please let us prioritize your health.'

Mariko closed her mouth and nodded. A small frown appeared on her face and she looked down on her feet. The nurse left the room, closing the door behind her.

'I know it's hard, Senchi,' she heard Earphone Jack. 'But all of us should rest now.'

'You are right,' Senchi nodded and sat back on the bed.

As the time flew by and the sun hid behind the horizon, the people from the front of the hospital slowly returned to their homes. The young heroes received their treatment; most of them were advised to stay in their beds, but a few of them, including Senchi, Sero, Sugarman, Mineta, Shoji, did not have any major injuries, so could roam the hospital for a bit, checking on other patients. Soon after that, Asui, Uraraka and Iida appeared in the hospital.

In the late evening, Present Mic joined students and told them all about the situation from the Hospital Raid group. Mariko remembered clearly how terrified the faces of the heroes were, when Yamada told them about the scale of destruction and how Shigaraki still managed to get away. After that, Senchi and Mic went to the roof of the hospital, where the man told her about Aizawa being targeted by All for One when he was still a student in the U.A. He explained that the incident, where Oboro Shirakumo was lost in action, was originally meant to kill Eraserhead in order for the ruler of evil to take control over Erasure Quirk.

Mariko felt the rage back from when she tried to defend Midnight against a group of villains, form again deep inside of her. As the silence fell upon both Hizashi and Okaido, they noticed flashes of purple and yellow lights towards the far south east. Yamada froze in place, but Mariko checked the map on her phone, trying to pinpoint the source of weird lights. Before she figured out anything, Hizashi simply said:

'It's from Tartarus.'

In the early morning of the first day at their stay in the hospital, Mariko called Hitoshi and All Might, telling them about the loss of Midnight and how Eraserhead, Mirko, Endeavor, Hawks, Deku, Todoroki and Dynamight had to be operated and all of them are still unconscious. Barely two hours later after the call, the Recovery Girl visited the hospital, administrating the medical aid to all of the patients in the facility, rapidly boosting the recovery of injured heroes and civilians. All Might came with her. Later on the same day, Kacchan, Hawks and Todoroki woke up. Present Mic and Mariko requested entrance to Aizawa's room but were both denied. Mariko fell asleep close to Aizawa's door, curled on an uncomfortable chair in the lobby.

When she woke up, she felt a hand on her shoulder and as she lifted her head to meet bright green eyes of the DJ, she heard him announce that they can now see Eraser. Mariko stood up so fast she got dizzy, but still pushed the door open. When her eyes fell on the unconsious man, she felt her heart skip a bit and her throat tighten. He was missing the leg below his right knee and there was a bandage covering the ride side of his face. The doctors informed them that he was missing one eye.

After forcing herself to eat some lunch with the students from Class 1A, during which they read the dreadful news about the Tartarus assault, she suggested to Hizashi that they should pick up some Aizawa's stuff for when he wakes up. When they were travelling through the city, they noticed the panic all around, people seeking shelter, ruined shops and streets, constant police patrols. This was the first time since the dawn of the Quirk society when Japan was in such terrible shape and condition.

When both of them arrived at the school, they were greeted by a gigantic wall, separating the school's property from the rest of the world. As they stepped inside the U.A. High grounds, dressed in their hero costumes, they were greeted by Principal Nezu and the students of school, who showed appreciation for their hero work and honored Midnight with a minute of silence. The Principal then announced that he was made aware some time ago about the wishes of Midnight's burial and how she wanted to 'be buried in the school grounds so that she will never run out of young boys admiring her even when she passes away.' This made Mariko cry and laugh at the same time and she found herself gripping her whip, already missing her presence.

Hizashi and Senchi then went into the teacher's dorm, where Eri attacked them with a tight hug the second they stepped inside the dorm. The kid noticed Mariko's teary eyes and the whip she was grasping and understood the situation without a word. Both of them showed each other support and quietly cried together, when Eri found out about the state of other heroes, especially Shota's. The child then said that she will become stronger at using her quirk, regenerate her power and help everyone, bringing them back to their previous, healthy state.

Mariko looked outside the window, placing her hands on the glass pane, feeling her heated skin collide with the cool, smooth surface, leaving the steamy marks around her palms. She took a slow, deep breath, trying to calm her roaming emotions. She closed her eyes, recalling the news she had read just a few moments ago.

Rough estimate of the prisoners who escaped in recent attacks on prison facilities was ten thousands, but was most likely to be more than that. Basically, almost everyone they managed to capture during the Hospital and Liberation Front assault, was released into the wild again.

Mariko looked behind her shoulder, glancing at Eraserhead's face. He was still unconsious. She turned her head back towards the window, shifting her sight to the bottom, looking a the big group of people gathered in front of the Central Hospital.

'Tax thieves!'

'You are useless!'

'Todoroki is a murderer!'

She closed her eyes again, feeling her Quirk burst out of her body, coating her skin in a layer of invisible needles, poking at her nerves. The dark energy lazily swirled around her arms, spreading over to her shoulders.

'The chairwoman from the Hero Public Safety Commission is dead, killed by Re-Destro. With the current state of the country, there is no way that the Hero License exam will be held in June.' She frowned, feeling the pain amplify. 'I was given permission to attend the mission because of my Quirk, but I did not do anything.' She gritted her teeth, feeling the burning sensation on her forearms. The black energy covered her entire body and formed slow, constantly shifting tentacles, which were erupting from the aura just to disappear a moment later. 'I should leave the school. I could at least do something. Maybe capture some villains, be of some use to the socie-'

'What sort of dumb ideas are crossing your mind right now?' she heard a low, tired voice.

Mariko snapped her head to the side, looking at Shota, who was staring at her with his one eye. The energy from around her body transferred over to the man, turning it's color into a lively green.

'Eraser!' she shouted and dashed to his side with one step, feeling the tears flood her eyes. She kneeled next to his bed, placing her forehead on his hand. 'I am so happy you are awake!'

'I am so happy you are all fine,' he responded quietly.

She gently grasped his hand and placed a kiss on top of his palm.

'I will call a nurse, I will be right back.'

'There is no need to.' He squeezed her hand reassuringly.

Mariko frowned and stood still for a few seconds, before finally sitting down next to Aizawa. She looked at him with a frown on her face.

'What were you thinking of?' he asked her. 'That's a lot of stored Drain,' he noticed.

Mariko looked down at his hand, gently caressing it with her fingertips.

'Nothing that you would approve of.'

He said nothing, but waited for her to elaborate. As the seconds passed, the movements of her fingertips sped up and became shaky. She looked to the ground, feeling a wave of tears coming to her eyes. Her chin crinkled up and the tears escaped her eyelids.

'I... I couldn't do anything. Midnight... She... is gone.'

Shota looked down at Mariko's hand and grasped her palm, squeezing it tightly.

'And Gigantomachia. I didn't stop it. I didn't do anything. I- I held her, as she was dying in my arms. If only I was faster, she would still be alive. That's how much of a Sentinel I am... Protector of heroes and civilians,' she sobbed, gritting her fists in hatred.

'There is nothing that could have been done,' Eraser said quietly and grasped her shoulder, bringing her face close to his side, slowly petting her hair.

'If I only I wasn't so weak, so path-'

'Stop,' he shut her off. 'Look at me.'

Mariko slowly lifted her gaze, feeling her forehead pulse in an upcoming headache. She made eye contact with his intense, yet kind glance.

'There was nothing anyone could have done.' He wiped her tears away with his thumb, feeling her lean into his touch. 'I will not allow you to live your life with such burden. I will not let you live the life that I do.'

Mariko looked to the side, feeling new tears storm down her face.

'Do not put the blame on yourself, if your heart was in the right place. Do not put the blame on yourself if it's the hatred of others, that killed Midnight. There was nothing that you could have done. Nothing that anyone could have done.'

She stood up and hugged him gently, placing her forehead on his shoulder. He transferred his right hand from his side and grasped the Midnight's whip, as if quietly bidding the woman the last goodbye.

'Remember the feelings. Remember what the villains are capable of, cultivate the anger and turn it not into a weapon, but into a tool. A tool with which you will defeat them and bring them into justice, carrying the will of the ones who lost their life in order to achieve that,' he said with a serious, yet quiet tone. 'Don't let it consume you, don't let it turn you into the person you are fighting. Use it to your own advantage.'

Mariko took a deep breath, smelling the soothing scent of Aizawa.

'And when the time comes,' he added and she looked into his eye, matching the intensity of his look. 'We will strike back.'

The end