Shota Aizawa did not appreciate being called by Nedzu. It didn't particularly matter -why- the rat was calling, he didn't want to deal with the menacing little sophist. Ever.
It made for a relatively difficult relationship between them, what with Nedzu being his boss on his day-job. Aizawa had the misfortune of being one of the menace's favorite targets.
Personally, Aizawa chalked that up to the fact that he refused to pay any special attention to Nedzu and that probably did something to the chimera's instincts. Like how alleycats adored anyone that tried to ignore them.
Getting called after school had let out and he'd sent the current batch of hero aspirants home? Aizawa had some choice words for the rodent, none of them good. He didn't like having his midday nap interrupted before he was set to return to his investigations on a missing persons case.
Of course, the little shit knew the right words to get Aizawa up and moving. 'Highly dangerous individual with unknown capabilities' wasn't that pressing for him. There were other people that could suppress dangerous Quirks. They were rare but Aizawa knew that at least two such people worked with the police. Golden Rule and Chatterbox could both do that particular job.
'A young child with an unknown but dangerous Quirk, recently extracted from an abusive environment' got him moving at double time, however.
Now, Aizawa was tired. Aizawa had been working all day trying to get his class to understand that there was more to Heroics than some thrice-damned popularity contest. He was exhausted and should not, under any circumstances, be put around children.
Thankfully, he'd found himself in a room with Nedzu and some tall, skinny blond man alongside a few other officers and heroes to watch a presentation.
"Quite frankly, we have more data than we know what to do with, some of it is contradictory and almost all of it paints a, frankly, fantastical picture." Nedzu stated, standing on the table at the front of the room.
Nedzu was enjoying this.
"Our current issue involves an individual of unknown age. Named 'Alec', he appears to have a dragon transformation quirk similar to, if not nearly identical, to Ryukyu." The lights dimmed as Nedzu manipulated a remote with both paws before an overhead projector kicked on. "This marks the second time that he's been held in police custody, though we're uncertain as to whether or not he can be held without extraneous and expensive countermeasures coming in to play."
Aizawa took a deep quaf of his coffee as Nedzu cycled through a series of photos and video stills. The huge dragon with midnight black scales and covered in twinkling stars was interesting. It didn't explain why Nedzu had called for him, though.
"I'm assuming the wings and claws aren't for show, are they?" A woman asked. She wore a loose red Chinese dress with a claw-like hairpiece in her short blond hair.
"Well, the claws haven't seen any use so far but he has been caught on several cameras flying." Nedzu responded, fiddling with the remote to swap over to a slide of the suspect... Flying away from a police station.
This police station.
Aizawa's confidence could not possibly go any lower.
"Now, ideally none of you will actually be needed." And Aizawa was wrong. Nedzu -could- drop his confidence through the floor. "The suspect has proven surprisingly compliant. However Alec has a multitude of capabilities that we are aware of and no real knowledge as to how to interact with them..."
"Such as teleportation." An officer picked up where Nedzu had trailed off, the Quirked animal hopping off the table and making a beeline for the drinks. Coffee and tea. "Potentially possession, though that was a one-time case and he's made no mention of being the one to perform the act. Shapeshifting as well, though now that he's exited his host we also don't know if he retained that capability. He's also our sole suspect in a widescale use of... We're really not sure. More than one-hundred members of the leading Yakuza group are the victims of what's being termed 'Forceful material re-composition'."
"...What kind of Quirk does he have, exactly?" Midnight, the M-Rated hero asked. Her voice was absent of its usual enthusiasm. "The ability to be a fantasy character?"
"We have no idea!" Nedzu chirped as he got back up on the table through strategic use of various office chairs. "If his claims are accurate, he hasn't got a Quirk! However, considering the wide array of capabilities he's shown we've requested the three of you specifically to counter his currently known abilities. Assuming you are able, of course."
"...And what does this have to do with a child in danger, Rat?" Aizawa finally asked, getting to the meat of the real issue.
"...Yes, well. Former danger, really." Which short-circuited the little nuisance and his word games quite nicely. The screen behind them shifted to show a small room with a child-sized bed. There were dried bloodstains on virtually everything, though a single large footprint in front of the door had been highlighted in blue. "For reasons yet to be determined, the suspect may have broken into the Yakuza Headquarter, petrified all involved individuals except for a sole child that was the focus of needless and wasteful experimentation and then disappeared. Without being caught on any of the on-site cameras."
A different man stood up and took the remote from Nedzu, the chimera happily handing it over so he could instead sit and watch. This man, wearing a rather bland business suit, stood out due to the odd coloration of his hair. A trio of bright yellow stripes that clashed noticeably with his dark green hair.
"I am Mirai Sasaki. Also known as the hero, Sir Nighteye. My agency was one of the many that were investigating the Yakuza branch known as the Shie Hassaikai. While it is true that the perpetrator of the attack on them was not clearly or directly observed on camera, that does not mean that clues to his presence were not left behind." The projector's image shifted as the man manipulated the controls, shifting to a split-screen image of an empty corridor. The brightness of both images changed dramatically until the image was nearly washed out before playing.
The details were impossible for Aizawa to really determine but there was a large, noticeable distortion that traveled down the corridor, the light that traveled through it subtly warping, before it turned out of sight.
"We're still working with experts to get the image quality improved." Nighteye admitted to the assembled group. "However we can at least determine, based on the footprint that was left behind and the general size and shape of this... Mostly invisible creature, that an individual matching Alec's former dimensions may have been directly involved in Vigilante activity."
"...Well, this isn't exactly something I can do much with." The Dragon Hero, Ryukyu admitted. "Aside from possibly fighting him in aerial combat? Assuming he wouldn't simply teleport away? I'm not entirely sure why I was called here on a priority alert."
"That was my doing, actually." Nedzu admitted to the woman. "I was hoping that you would be willing to assist from an observation booth and clarify Alec's body language during questioning for the interrogating officer. With the rarity of your quirk and the similarity between your two forms, we are hoping that you might help to offer clarity with his, ah, proclivity for mysterious statements."
"And you want me nearby to try and cancel and Quirks this vigilante might have." Aizawa sighed and rubbed at his tired eyes. He didn't need to see the rat nodding to him. "What about the child? Are they safe?"
"Yes." Nighteye answered, pushing his glasses back up his nose. "Safe, clean, well-fed and wearing new clothes. Though she is understandably anxious considering the bond she seems to have formed with the vigilante. We have a member of the local Social Care checking on her now."
"So. Potentially severe charges of Vigilantism, escaping police custody and... Are those it?" Aizawa had to ask, the details, while impressive, did not seem especially actionable.
"Yes, and the only one of those with actual evidence that we can act on is his escaping from police custody." The officer, who never did introduce himself, sighed in exasperation. "Given that it was done non-violently? And that he surrendered himself back into police custody? The courts are overburdened with actual cases of villainy. Unless we have something actionable it's just not worth our time or money to pursue this."
"Regardless of pursuing charges on Alec, there are some serious allegations that he's made that I want clarified." The tall, skeletal blond man that had been mostly silent finally spoke up. Aizawa felt a surprising amount of force in his presence. The man, for how slight he seemed, carried a kind of strength that pushed against Aizawa's exhaustion and forced him to straighten his spine.
"Of course, Yagi." And it even had Nedzu deferring to him politely. Aizawa knew what it meant when an animal curled its tail underneath of itself. "What do you think we need to follow up on?"
"He outright stated that Endeavor is abusing his children." The murmuring and whispering in the room went silent at this Yagi's words. "And he promised answers."
"...I see." Nedzu's ears were almost flat against his skull. Aizawa could see the small creature was struggling to control a hiss from escaping. "Yes, we'll be sure to ask him about that."
Aizawa stood up, ignoring the heavy atmosphere in the room. He didn't know what all was going to happen, no, but he did know one thing.
He was going to need more coffee.