Can we have a moment of silence for Cry please? .......... Thank you. Holy crap, guys!! What a freakin' chapter!! Not just because it was so long but because of everything that happened!! Everyone got a piece of the action!! But of course, not everyone could make it out crystal clear. Someone had to lose. And the prodigy reality hero was the only one who could do it. And it's gonna crush him when he finds out his efforts were all for not. And what will the Squad do now that he's in their hands? What does Markus want Gregory to do to him? I simply cannot say. So, let's just get back into the story. Enjoy!

-POV: Kira-

"Hey, hey! She's waking up!" I heard someone say as I slowly opened my eyes. My vision was incredible blurry, but after a bit it cleared up. I looked around and saw I was in a hospital room. It was raining outside. And the morning had arrived. I thought I was dead when Molly knocked me out.

"Nice to see you're still alive after all that." I heard the same person say as I turned my head back around. Sitting at the left side of my bed were Twilight and Pein, only they were wearing normal clothes now and not their costumes.

"Ugh..... what happened....?" I asked them as I coughed a bit. I was in so much pain that I didn't want to move. 

"We were beat. This.... Injustice Squad, we stood no chance, even with the help of Cry and the other students. All you girls were unfortunately beat and blacked out." Pein explained to me as I rested my head back into my pillow. 

"Yeah.... I remember that..... How's everyone doing? Did we all make it out?" I asked them as they both put their heads down. Not a good start. 

"Of you girls, the only one in any critical condition is the one you call Asami. She lost a lot of blood and she's in the emergency room right now. But, as for Cry...." Twilight began to explain as she suddenly became very quiet. 

"What..... happened...... I want to know...." I asked them as they both let out some sighs. 

"After you girls were knocked out, he opened a portal for me and Twilight to get all you out. We dropped you off here and then went back to the portal to go and assist him. But before we could go back through it, he closed it. He sacrificed himself to save us...." Pein explained as I felt some tears come down my face. 

"No.... No, he couldn't have..... Are you.... are you saying he's.....?" I asked as they both gave me nods. 

"The Injustice Squad was going to kill us all right then and there. And with the condition Cry was in before we left him, the odds of him surviving is slim to none. I was to be positive about this, but it's simply impossible. I think...... I think he was killed...." Twilight said as she and Pein now began to cry"What about the police? Whenever they arrived..... did they find.... a body?" I asked them.

"We don't know the situation over there yet. We've stayed here all night to ensure you girls made it through all this. And no news has come from it all yet. Nothing on Facebook, Twitter, there's nothing about it." Pein explained. 

"It's all my fault.... If I hadn't followed you two yesterday, none of this would've happened...." I sulked as Twilight reached over and patted my head. 

"Don't say that..... Because all that happened, it saved our lives. At least think of it that way." She said to me as I just shook my head. 

"Yeah, but it cost the life of another. You two don't understand, you're not real heroes. You wouldn't care about something like this." I said to them as they shook their heads once more. 

"You're wrong. We do care. We always have. We don't like taking lives, and we understand your pain right now. We've had friends of ours die because of things we've done. Don't think it's just you who knows this kind of pain." Pein explained to me as I just sighed. 

"I'm..... i'm sorry to hear that...." I said to them. 

"It's fine..... it's in the past now. We can't keep holding onto things like that. It'll just slow us down..." Twilight told me. 

"Besides Asami, all of your friends have woken up. They're all in the next couple rooms over. I'm sure they'll be ecstatic to see you awake, Kira." Pein said as I gave them a nod. 

"Wait dear, we're still not done with the last conversation." Twilight said, stopping Pein from changing the subject. 

"Look, Kira. Maybe you're right. Perhaps we aren't real heroes. At the time, we would've preferred to stay and fight than get you girls out of that warehouse. But Cry gave us our chance to save you. To do a true heroic act. One act may not be enough to be seen as a real hero, but at least we know how to be ones." Twilight said to me as I just remained quiet. 

"I'm..... look, i'm sorry for snapping like that. We've all just been to hell and back last night. The stress is just getting to me...." Twilight said as she rubbed the sides of her head and took in some deep breaths. 

"No..... i'm the one who should be sorry..... I wasn't right before..... You two.... you are heroes. You got us out of there safely...... We can't thank you enough...." I said to them but now they remained silent. 

"One of your classmates.... her name is Holly? She gave us a number to call. We spoke with a girl named Jiro, I guess you all know her. We informed her about everything that happened and..... about who we are. Who we really are." Pein explained to me as I just sighed again. 

"How did she take it? She and Cry are.... well..... were....  in a relationship...." I asked them as they lowered their heads once more. 

"She said it was all our fault..... and we accepted it. She's furious at the two of us..... and she has the right to be. She told us she would send word out to all the other students about what happened though. Everyone's gonna be on high alert now." Twilight explained to me.

"Good..... I hope nothing bad happens.... to anyone else.... during their internships...." I said as someone began to knock on the door. We all looked over and saw a doctor poke his head in. 

"Sorry to interrupt but you all have a visitor." He said as he moved out of the way to let the person in. Coming into the room was Jiro came up to the side of my bed and gave me a very light and gentle hug. 

"I was so worried last night when Cry didn't come back. I feared something happened to you all. But.... it makes me so happy to see you girls are alright...." Jiro said as she began to cry into my left shoulder. But she quickly let go of me and turned to face the vigilantes, a raging fire in her eyes. 

"What. Did. You. Do?" Jiro asked them, trying her absolute best to keep in her fury. 

"We did it all.... everything we said to you on the phone.... it was all us...." Twilight said as Jiro threw a hard slap at her face, then one at Pein. 

"Is he dead.....? TELL ME!!" Jiro demanded to know as the two of them quietly nodded. 

"We believe he is..... And all we can say is..... we're sorry...." Pein quietly said as he buried his face into his hands. 

"You left him there..... You left him there to die! Why!? Why did you abandon, Cry!?" Jiro angrily asked them as Twilight stood up in her face and looked down to her. 

"What do you mean? That's not what we told you. Are you so blind by your rage that you didn't even listen to us?" Twilight said as Jiro just yelled in her face. 

"You said you took the girls through his portal he made for you, and then you left him there!" Jiro said as Twilight reached her hands out and put them on Jiro's shoulders. 

"No. We did not leave your boyfriend there to die, kid. Yes, we took the girls to safety here at the hospital. But after that, we both went back to try and help him. To get him out of there so he wouldn't go through with this suicidal act. We did not abandon him." Twilight very sternly said to Jiro as she pushed Twilight away. 

"LIAR!!!" Jiro roared at her. 

"No.... Jiro..... They're telling.... the truth...." I said as Jiro looked over to me, more tears coming down her face as she looked surprised. 

"What....?" She asked me. 

"They really did..... go back.... to save him..... Cry closed his portal..... on his own.... He stayed.... so we all.... could survive....." I explained as Jiro collapsed down to her knees. 

"Of course he did..... that idiot..... always trying to put everyone before himself..... I always told him it'd get him killed, but I never wanted it to become reality!" Jiro cried as Twilight lifted her back up to her feet and hugged her.

"In the short time we knew him..... He was unlike any hero we'd ever seen before..... Kind.... Caring towards others.... and like you said, putting others before himself.... Despite being a student.... he was a real hero..... and it crushes us to know we aided in him dying...." Twilight said as she now began to cry. 

"But we honored his one and only request to us...... We were real heroes.... and we saved the lives of your 5 students..... We wish we could've done more though...." Pein said.

"From what you told me..... it's all you could've done. And it was enough. So..... thank you.... for saving these girls lives....." Jiro said as she hugged Twilight back and then hugged Pein. 

"Now..... if you'll excuse me..... I need to make a phone call. There's someone who really must hear this horrible news...." Jiro said as she wiped her tears away, pulled out her cell phone and then left the room. 

"I feel so bad for her.... For all of you....." Pein said as he went back to burying his face in his hands. 

"Thanks.... for your concern..... but.... we can only leave this.... in the past.... otherwise.... we'll hold onto it forever.... and it'll slow us down....." I said as Twilight walked over and crouched down next to my face along the side of the bed. 

"And who told you that?" She asked me. 

"Cry..... he told us all that yesterday.... before everything began to happen...." I told her as she grew a small smile and nodded. 

"I see..... it seems he was very wise as well.... I'm not sure how he and Jiro got to the position, but i'm sure Cry was a great teacher....." Twilight said as I nodded. 

"He wasn't our teacher.... not for our class.... but for the other one.... but still, he came to us.... and offered to teach us... during our internship..." I told her as the stroked my hair gently a few times. 

"Either way, he was amazing. The world is certainly taking a tremendous loss because of what happened to him...." Twilight said as she then pulled her hand away and stood up, Pein doing the same. The sounds of police sirens could be heard in the distance and they were getting closer. 

"We have to go, dear...." Pein said to Twilight as she gave him a nod. But not before Twilight pulled out a pen and a piece of paper and started writing something down. 

"Kira, after everything we put you through, we are tremendously sorry. We wish we could help you recover from it all, but we simply cannot. But, from all this, we gained trust for one another. So please, accept this knowing you are the one and only person we trust in this city." Twilight said as she handed me the piece of paper. On it was a phone number. 

"Call that number and we will answer. We'll be there to help." Twilight said as the sirens grew even closer now. 

"Please, we have to go now, before they get here and question us." Pein insisted as Twilight went to leave the room with him. 

"Wait...." I said as they both stopped right at the door. 

"Please.... reconsider what you're doing..... become real heroes..... you have what it takes...." I told them as they sighed and shook their heads. 

"We're sorry.... but that's just not an option anymore for us. We've been acting as vigilantes for so long that we can't walk away from it. If we tried to change, we'd be arrested. All the laws we've broken.... we've become so accustomed to this life. Having to follow them now would be too difficult for us. It's just not possible for us to be heroes...." Twilight said as she put her hand on the door knob. 

"But you were heroes..... last night.... you saved 5 lives.... So please.... try and reconsider...." I said to them as they opened up the door. 

"You're an incredibly brave girl, Kira Summers. We're sorry for what we did to you, and everything else that happened. But we're also glad we met you. And, if ever you considered it.... if you feel like you don't want to be a hero anymore, for any reason at all, you can always come to us. We'll welcome you into our family." Pein said to me as I gave them a stern nod and a smile. 

"We'll see ya around. Keep your eyes open and give us a wave from time to time...." Twilight said to me. 

"Twilight.... Pein..... thank you....." I said to them as they both let out some small chuckles. 

"It's Rebecca. Rebecca Clarke." Twilight said to me. 

"William. William Nevermore." Pein told me as the two of them left, fleeing from the hospital before the police arrived to ask us all questions about what really happened last night. But it was during this time that we all discovered something very strange and curious. Cry's body was not found at the warehouse location. 

-POV: Third Person-

In an unknown location, the Injustice squad settled in at their main hideout. Battered and exhausted from their fight. Their haul of weapons and Trigger drugs destroyed, they returned in defeat. But even in their loss, they claimed a huge victory. 

"Gregory, go get something to seal up all these wounds of his. Don't want him to die on us now." Markus said as he placed the unconscious Cry down onto a chair. Daina brought over a handful of belts and she and Markus strapped Cry to the chair, Ensuring he could've get out if he woke. 

"Shield, go get the collar." Markus ordered his friend as Shield brought over a metal collar. 

"Just to be safe...." Markus said as he placed the collar around Cry's neck and tightened it. He then hit a button on a remote he had and turned it on. The exact same moment it activated, Cry's entire diamond arm fell off his shoulder and shattered against the ground. 

"The kid must've had that thing attached and keeping itself together using his quirk. But the collar nullifies a quirk entirely. So, guess that's why it fell off and broke...." Markus said as Gregory arrived with a sewing kit. He began to patch up all of Cry's visible wounds, starting with the hole in his chest from the metal rod. 

"Ugh........." Cry began to moan as he started to slowly move his head around. 

"I know you're strapped in, but please do try not to move. It makes this infinitely more difficult." Gregory said to Cry as he opened up his eyes and took a look around. 

"Where the hell...... am I?" Cry moaned as he looked down and saw Gregory working on his wounds. 

"You're our guest. Welcome to the Squad's hideout, Cry." Markus said to his captive. 

"And why the hell..... am I here? Thought you'd rather kill me..... than take me to your..... dumb lair....." Cry said as all he could see was that he was in a dimly lit room, with nothing but a single light hanging from above.

"You should be thanking us, kid. The only reason you're alive right now is because of us." Markus told him as Cry let out a chuckle as blood continued to drip from his mouth. 

"I'd rather be dead..... than be saved by you assholes...." Cry said as he tried to spit some blood onto Markus. But his vision was so hazy that he missed. 

"Believe me, I do not care if you die. And i'm honestly not sure why I decided to spare your life. But your dedication to sacrifice yourself and save your friends. It..... moved me....." Markus explained. 

"You're welcome..... Now get it over with. Kill me....." Cry said as Markus just shook his head. 

"No, no, we're not going to kill you. No, we've got something better planned for you." Markus told him. 

"And what the hell..... are you gonna do?" Cry asked. 

"Not telling. You'll find out once Gregory's done with you." Markus explained as Cry rested his head back and sighed. 

"What's the point of killing....?" Cry then asked as Markus looked at him curiously. 

"What was that?" Markus asked. 

"What do you gain by being a villain? By killing others? What's the point of it?" Cry asked as Markus let out a sad sigh. 

"I never actually wanted to kill anyone. But it's just something that we have to do to survive in this world. After everything that's happened to all of us, all we want is to get back at whoever did it to us in the first place." Markus explained as Cry lowered his head back down and looked at him curiously. 

"And what happened to you? What caused you to become a villain?" Cry asked as Markus lowered his head. 

"It all began for me over a decade ago. You would've just been, what, maybe 6 or 7." Markus began to tell his story as Cry nodded, ensuring he understood.

"Before it all happened, I was a marine. Special forces. Captain of my own squad, we were top of our class. Never failed a single mission..... except for one...." Markus told as Cry just listened in. 

"What happened?" Cry asked. 

"Me and my squad were sent on a secret mission to stop an experimental missile launch. We had to head deep into enemy territory, and in time, we located our target. But my squad members were captured in that time, leaving me alone. They were to be executed just before the missile was launched, which left me with the most difficult decision of my entire life." Markus explained. 

"Save your friends..... or stop that missile..... right?" Cry said as Markus nodded. 

"Precisely. And, I chose to save my friends. American spies were able to inform us ahead of time that the missile wasn't going to strike any populated areas, so I felt choosing my friends over it was the better decision." Markus said. 

"Were they.... executed.....?" Cry asked as he coughed a bit, spitting up some blood. 

"No. I was able to rampage my way through enemy forces with my quirk. I took some heavy gunfire, but I persevered and rescued my squad mates. But that was the start of how I came to be now." Markus said as he raised up his shirt a bit, looking at some old bullet wounds and letting Cry see them, confirming his story was all true. 

"The very moment I rescued my squad mates, the missile was launched. But very fortunately for us, only a few seconds after taking off, the missile exploded. To us, this was a win/win situation, and we were evac'd out of the hot zone." Markus explained as Cry began to see where this was all going. 

"So what happened when you got back, then?" Cry asked as Markus now let out a very heavy sigh. 

"When we gave our report, all my squad mates were taken care of and came back as heroes. But because of the decision that I made on that mission, prioritizing the lives of my friends over the missile, I was fully discharged from the corps. All I wanted to do was be a hero, save my friends lives, and I did just that. But then the harsh world lashed back at me. Even though the missile launch was a complete dud, I purposely set it aside for my own personal intentions. And because of that, I was seen as a failure by the marine corps. And so, as I said, they discharged me." Markus explained. 

"Is that it? Is that your tragic backstory?" Cry asked as Markus shook his head. 

"No. Not even close. More than just losing my job made me turn into who I am now." Markus replied as Cry just rolled his eyes. 

"So..... what happened next when you went home....?" Cry asked him. 

"We'll get there shortly. First, go back a few days before the mission started. I received a message from my wife back in Philadelphia. She's been pregnant for a couple months at this point, and she wished me good luck by telling me we were going to have a baby boy." Markus explained as Cry began to see tears coming down his face. 

"I was the happiest man in the world in that moment. I was gonna be a dad." Markus said as he sobbed a bit. 

"What happened?" Cry asked in a much more serious tone. 

"After being discharged from the corps. I made my way home. I was trying to stay as positive as possible so my wife wouldn't worry about me. I could always just get another job. Didn't have to be army or any of that crap. But.... the moment I stepped through the front door..... everything came crashing down...." Markus told Cry as he also began to shed some tears. He knew exactly what was coming. 

"I went through my front door and found my wife.... She had been murdered. Stabbed over a dozen times, even through her pregnant belly. So not only did I lose my job that day, but my wife and soon to be son were taken away from me forever. And days later, I talked to all my neighbors. They didn't even know she'd been killed. No one saw anything. No hero was called, not even any cops." Markus said as Cry did nothing but put his head down. 

"I'm..... i'm very sorry to hear all this..... you did not deserve any of it." Cry said as Markus wiped away some of his tears. 

"But that's just what I get for trying to be a hero. Get kicked out of one of the forces that protects the country, then lose my pregnant wife and baby boy. All my money stolen, lost my house, everything. In the span of one day, I lost everything to my name." Markus told Cry who could feel his pain. So much had happened to this man in such a short time. It's a wonder he didn't try and commit suicide. 

"So what came next, then?" Cry asked as Markus wiped away more tears and then clenched his fists tightly. 

"I was cast out. Nowhere to go, nowhere to stay. I was a living ghost. And here we are, in a world of heroes where they help anyone who needs assistance. Well where were they when I needed help? For 10 years, I have suffered, and not once has a hero offered to help me recover from this. So, I took it upon myself to take it all back. Get everything back that I had lost." Markus explained as Cry nodded, fully understanding what he had been told. 

"So you became a villain..... to get back at the world for what it did to you. You wanted to have another family, so you gathered together people like you. Outcasts. And here, you have a home with them. I'd say your mission was a success, Captain Wheeler....." Cry said as Markus quickly rose to his feet, walked over and slapped Cry across his face. 

"DON'T YOU DARE SAY THAT NAME!! IT HAUNTS ME OF THAT DAY!! I'VE ALREADY SUFFERED ENOUGH BY JUST TELLING YOU EVERYTHING I'VE BEEN THROUGH!!!" Markus roared in a great fury as Cry coughed up some more blood. 

"Please, sir, calm down! I'm nearly finished and he needs to refrain from moving. No more hitting him." Gregory said to Markus. 

"I apologize, Gregory. Please, continue....." Markus said as he sat back down and took some deep breaths to calm himself down. 

"You know..... I would've been the hero..... to help you....." Cry said, sounding like he was choking a bit on blood from being slapped. 

"I know you would've. Because you're different from other heroes. You're like that All Might. Someone who can stick their neck out for literally anyone, even if they were a villain. If only you became a hero a decade earlier than you did. All this might not have happened...." Markus said as Gregory snipped the last piece of thread, finishing off sewing his wounds. 

"Give me a, uh, glass or bottle of water to wipe off some of this blood. I like to have a clean patient when I work." Gregory asked as Markus walked off to get some water. He came back with a mug and a rag and went to give it to Gregory. 

"Wait....." Cry said as Markus stopped for a moment. 

"Please.... Can I have a drink first? I'm so thirsty. Haven't drank in who knows how long...." Cry said as Markus obliged and allowed Cry to take a sip from the mug. 

"Thank you...." Cry said as Markus gave the mug and rag to Gregory. Gregory wiped off all the blood on Cry, from his clothes, to his skin, to his mouth, until Cry was a wet but clean mess. 

"Are you ready now?" Markus then asked Gregory. 

"Yes.... I do believe I am. Take him to the next room..." Gregory said as he exited the room they were in. 

"Wait, ready for what?" Cry asked nervously, a bit of fear in his voice. 

"Your treatment. He's going to fix you." Markus replied as he unstrapped Cry and yanked him off the chair. Cry was so weak that he fell right to the ground, coughing a bit as he rolled onto his back. 

"And what the hell is that supposed to mean?" Cry asked as Markus reached down, grabbed Cry's hair and began to drag him along the floor. 

"You'll see soon enough." Markus said as he opened a door and pulled Cry through. From room to room they went until they arrived at their destination. 

"no...." Cry said with a frightful voice as his eyes locked with an operating table. Just a quick glance made him think back to the most horrible experience in his entire life. 

"Doctor, your patient is in." Markus said as Gregory was all suited up in some surgeon clothes. 

"No....." Cry said as he tried his absolute hardest to struggle free, but he was far too weak and Markus had a firm grip on his hair.

"Put him down on the table. I may need your help for his treatment." Gregory said as he opened up a case of knives and scalpels. 

"NOOOOOO!!!! I WON'T GO THROUGH THIS AGAIN!!! PLEASE, DON'T PUT ME ON THAT FUCKING TABLE!!!" Cry begged for his life as Markus lifted him up and slammed him down on the table, strapping Cry in so he couldn't move at all. There was even a brace for his head so he couldn't move it either. He just laid there, stuck as all the horrible memories of losing his quirk and dying to the villain Overhaul came rushing back. Cry sobbed uncontrollably, pleading for anyone to stop this. 

"Relax, Cry. Soon, this'll all be over, whether you live or die. Speaking of which, what're the chances he survives this?" Markus asked Gregory who had just pulled out a tank of some sort of chemical gas. 

"Not entirely sure. Haven't had anyone survive this yet. Less than 10% for sure." Gregory said as he attached an oxygen mask to the gas tank. 

"Ready to begin?" Markus said as he leaned over Cry's face, growing a twisted smile as the young hero begged for this all to stop. 

"Nighty night.... See you again in a bit...." Gregory said as he placed the oxygen mask down on Cry's face. Cry inhaled the gas from the tank and coughed a bit before his vision began to darken. And soon enough, Cry blacked out. 

-10 Hours Later-

After several longs hours of operating, Gregory had finally finished working on Cry. Markus had left after the 6 hour mark as he was told he wasn't needed anymore, so he waited outside the operating room all this time. Gregory stepped out and wiped off blood from his scalpels as he began to chat with Markus. 

"Well, he's alive....." Gregory said as Markus let out a relieving sigh. 

"Gregory, you are the man." Markus said as the two shook hands.

"It was a full success?" Markus asked as Gregory shook his head. 

"About 90%. He's forgotten about trying to be a hero, but he still remembers everyone from his past and a few details on them. Quite surprising to me, actually. But, I was able to also make him forget about his mother. Wrath Queen is gone." Gregory explained as Markus shrugged his shoulders then chuckled a bit. 

"Guess I can't complain. If he doesn't think he's a hero, then i'd say you pulled it off flawlessly. What about-" Markus tried to ask as Gregory stopped him. 

"What you wanted me to do? That took some time, but thanks to you lending some blood, I was able to achieve the goal. Go and take a look for yourself. He's just sitting in there...." Gregory said as he walked away to go wash himself off. 

"Here goes...." Markus said as he took a nervous deep breath before entering the operating room. There sat Cry on the edge of the table, the collar still around his neck as he moved around his left arm, clenching and opening his hand a couple times. 

"Cry....? Are you.... alright?" Markus asked as Cry turned to face him. Some scars and stiches around Cry's upper left forehead showed where Gregory had done his work. Cry stayed quiet, only staring at Markus until he hopped off the table and moved in close.

"Do you know who I am?" Markus asked as Cry stopped about 2ft away, looking up at Markus' face. 

"Dad....." Cry quietly said as he leaned in and hugged his new father. 

"Son....." Markus said as he hugged him back, beginning to Cry as the man who lost everything finally gained a son he could be proud of. 

"Where's mom....?" Cry asked as the two stopped hugging. 

"She's.... not with us anymore, Cry. She was murdered. Other than our friends here, we don't have anything left." Markus explained to Cry as he removed the quirk nullifying collar from his neck. 

"You won't be needing this anymore, son...." Markus said as he tossed it onto the table. Cry then looked to his right side and moved his left hand over to that shoulder. He moved it down his side, activating his quirk and making another new diamond arm. He moved it around, opening and closing his fist like before as Cry took in a deep breath. 

"So.... what do we do now?" Cry asked as Markus shook up his hair. 

"We take it all back. We show people who we are in a way they'll understand. With fear. We shatter their heroes and take back what cast us out in the first place. We take back the world." Markus told Cry as the two grew smiles. 

"I think I have an idea of where we should start then...." Cry said as Markus looked at him, totally surprised and eagerly awaiting what he had on his mind. 

"What's your idea, son?" Markus asked him. 

"I think i'm gonna go pay someone a visit tonight...."