Submerging was normally done with breathing exercises and calm, not blind desperate panic. Jumping in like this was like taking a dive off a bridge at night into frigid waters and hoping you didn't hit ice.
I gave up every other sense, going as deep as I ever had and clinging as hard as I could to my power. My oldest, closest friend, the other half of my very soul. I won't let go, stay with me, we'll die together rather than be torn apart.
I fully expected that to be the outcome. I couldn't fight back... that thing could paste me with a single casual blow. I was dead already, and all that mattered was protecting the rest of the fucking world by keeping my power from its hands.
My quirk reached back, wrapping itself into my flesh. The enslavement-chains wove through my muscle, my bone, stitched us together closer than I'd ever realized possible.
I see. The echoes of All Might's power... that strange, versatile energy, joined together with us, linked itself into our energy. It knew the monster, recognized it as The Enemy, in some bizarre, instinctual way that I could not explain.
Alone, we would have fallen, any two of us would not have been enough. Together, we were three. We were One.
We were enough.
We sheltered each other from the storm, and then the assault faded.
"That... is an interesting reaction," the monster spoke. Somehow- the featureless lump of scarred flesh that was his head had no mouth, or eyes, or ears. I was assuming 'he' by the masculine tone and body type. "Quirk sensing, quirk immunity. I think I'd remember blood erupting from your face."
Fuck... my head felt like it had been crushed in a vice. Which... now that I realized it, was true. This thing was holding me up by my head, my feet dangling unable to reach the ground. "I... it's happened, before."
Keep him talking. I didn't know why I was still alive, why he hadn't just killed me outright on realizing he couldn't steal from me. So long as I was breathing, there was some chance, however slim. He had every opportunity to kill me, yet chose not to. That was good.
"All... Might." It fucking hurt to think, however. "I once made the mistake of looking right at him... almost killed me."
"Interesting. Does that imply I'm weaker than All Might, then?"
He's fishing for information, probably about All Might's quirk and a desire to steal it, mislead away. "I'm stronger than I was back then. Is that what you want of me? Information about All Might's strength? I know what you are, and you may as well kill me."
"Oh, and what am I, then?"
"Th-the ultimate Nomu..."
The monster laughed. "Oh, my, is that what you think I am?"
"You're not?" I feigned ignorance... ignorance was helplessness, helplessness was weakness, and weakness was nonthreatening. Pride was secondary to survival, to warning everyone of what was before me.
"I'd rather talk about you. What gave you the impression I am a Nomu?"
He set me down, and I collapsed to the ground. I probably could have continued standing, if barely. This... was better. This was more weakness. Not like standing was going to save my life, so I did what might.
"Your quirks." I acted like I was trying to be defiant, by pushing myself to a half-sitting position with my hand. Wiped the blood from my eyes and nose. "The lesser Nomu had one or two, broken, twisted, and reassembled into something new. The greater Nomu... several quirks, stitched together into something that shouldn't function, but somehow does.
"And then there's you... so many quirks that they blend into one another, overlapping and shifting, forever changing. It's like trying to count the waves in an ocean storm, I barely know where to begin. Or am I wrong? Is there an even stronger Nomu? Are you just the latest of your maker's steps in crafting some nigh omnipotent quirk for himself and achieve the next best thing to godhood?"
There was some sort of lie sensing quirk in there, but it was more for sensing hostility than honesty, and he'd find it more suspicious if I wasn't hostile in this situation. Still, I needed to be cautious.
"No, I don't believe I'll be answering any of those questions," he said. "I enjoy the old cliche of the evil mastermind revealing his plot as much as anyone, but I've got more important concerns. Like, how you said you looked at All Might... what can you tell me about his quirk?"
"I... to use an analogy," I really needed to focus on phrasing. "If your power is a roiling storm of parts making an impossible to read whole. His is more akin staring into the sun. I know it exists, and that it hurts to look into. I guess this is the part where you torture me for more information."
"Torture you?" He laughed again. "I suppose it would be quite justified, wouldn't it? You have personally carved your way through dozens of my pawns, killed two of my most valued agents, and got into a third's head so completely that he attempted to kill me."
The faceless monster loomed over me, his hand morphing into something large, pulsing with power carried by veins of metal. This was it. As long as he killed me fast, then that would deny him access to my quirk forever. But if he did enough damage, weakened my reserves, I'd lose the ability to shield my power from him.
"I suppose now that I know what you said to him, I can see why he was so willing to throw away everything I had to offer, all for the sake of revenge." The monster stopped, hand raised above me like the fist of a god awaiting a judgment. "And I have never been so proud."
His hand lowered.
"I... appreciate you not turning me into so much paint on the wall, but... I am very confused right now. Which is much better than being dead, but I'd like context? I'd at least like to know what I'm being tortured for?"
"Yes, I suppose I have been a bit all over the place." He acted for all intents like some aged gentleman talking about idle topics. He had even switched to speaking English, with a distinct British accent.
"I see no reason to share details, but suffice it to say I've been raising my young protégé to one day take control of my vast and powerful empire. And, like any parent, I've had my successes and failures."
He waved his hand outward, dismissively. "What matters is his little play date at the USJ, where I'd entrusted him with great responsibility and the glory of being the one to oversee All Might's death..."
He sighed, a hollow, deeply artificial sound. "The failure of the Nomu was, of course, my own, and I accept that. That was always a possibility in my calculations." He looked down at me. "I admit, you were not. What sort of hero carries a phosphorus bomb, let alone tosses it into a portal to an unknown destination? Twelve innocent people died in the fire you started, if it matters to you at all."
I hoped that wasn't true. "I'm a soldier, not a hero."
"Ah, there is that famous American attitude." He had no face, yet I could still see him grinning at me. "Firebomb a city, no concern for tens of thousands, so long as one military target perishes in the flames."
I bristled at the comment- if this psycho was claiming to be the victim. "Big talk, let's ask the survivors of Nanjing how they feel about it."
"Ah, but if only I could," he said. "I'm afraid I was born too late to witness with my eyes a Japan that had the strength of will to reach out and take what we desired. Instead, I spent my life among weaklings and cowards, always looking for handouts from those with the self respect they lacked.
"Know that I bear no ill will to the United States, or you," he continued. "If anything, you've done what I would do in your situation. Eliminating threats and positioning yourself to move forward atop the corpses of your enemies. For that, you have only my respect."
Okay, so he's that kind of fucking psycho. Not great. Crazy people are so much harder to predict than the sane. "Thanks... I guess?"
"Ah, but I suppose I've gone off on another tangent." He ignored my comment. "We were talking of my heir, Shigaraki. To borrow an American colloquialism, you lit a fire under him, when you lit him on fire.
"He has hardly spent a waking moment not thinking of you, and how he would extract his revenge at your expense. And at the moment, I might be the only person he hates more than you. Oh, how he despises me. The hate in his one good eye is terrible to behold."
I don't like where this is going, but I'm not dead, so into the wild fucked yonder I sail. "Out of curiosity, just what did you do to him to trump 'phosphorus bomb'?"
"He was born quirkless, until I crafted a perfect little gift for him..."
Oh no.
"Which, in his youth and inexperience, he used on his own family."
Jesus fucking Christ cornholing Buddha! "That would do it." Holy shit, Endeavor, you are now Number Two worst father as well!
"At first, it was amusing, him not knowing the truth of what I made him for." The absolutely worst human being I'd ever met continued. "But then, you revealed the truth... and now... now... Every time he calls me 'master', he trembles with rage. As he does my bidding, waiting for the day I give him everything, so that he may use it to slay me."
He stopped, and with a wave of his hand the injuries that had been inflicted on me resisting his power faded. "But then I realized, I don't necessarily need him to be my successor, now do I? Wouldn't it be the height of irony, after all my efforts, if wild weeds from across the ocean proved better suited than my own carefully cultivated garden?"
"You can't be fucking serious." I climbed to my feet; feigning weakness only worked when it wasn't obvious that's what you were doing. "I admit you've got the look down pat, but that Vader shit didn't work out for him, why would it work for you on me?"
"I've taken the liberty to learn all about you. If I wasn't confident you'd accept, I never would have spoken to you."
"I call bullshit." The first thing you did was try to rip out my quirk. This is your fucking backup plan at best.
"Suspicious? Good, I wouldn't believe you if you weren't. But I've studied you before coming here. I know were bred to be the perfect hybrid of two powerful quirks, but were such a disappointment that your mother refuses to acknowledge you as her son."
What? I kept my mouth shut because I couldn't even figure out how to respond. Sure, I bore my father's name, but that was in no small part because Mom managed to keep her identity secret.
"Your first girlfriend only cared about your money. Money you had to earn for yourself, in spite of your wealthy family. Your second girlfriend? Only cares about you for access to American technology and resources for her family.
"The closest thing you have to 'friends' at school are the people who use your skills to train their quirks. You're like a teacher that doesn't even get paid."
I remained tense, unwilling to say anything lest it trip his fucking lie detector power.
"And where that subtle bribery fails, you outright buy people. Millions of dollars to that Uraraka girl... so accustomed to buying lovers, that you bought a mistress as well. You let yourself be used by Endeavor, enriching him in the process...
"And you used that to murder Stain, and make it look like a suicide. You don't have a single relationship in your life that isn't built around quid pro quo, do you?"
Don't say anything that answers his question. "You know, there's a psychological behavior known as 'projection', right?"
"Oh, I know what I am," he kept on talking. "And we do have differences- I was never so hedonistic, and if that was all you were, I'd toss you aside as well.
"But you are more than merely a hedonist. You were clever enough to bribe Endeavor to cover up your murder, enough to avoid being expelled in spite of having all the indicators of a serial killer. I must admit, I am impressed, enough to share a little secret with you."
"Is this one of those things where afterward, I either dance to your tune or die?"
He chuckled. "Nothing so droll. One for All- All Might, you know him as- already knows this secret. I haven't properly introduced myself- I am All for One, and my power allows me to take quirks from others, and either keep or gift them at my whim."
Shit, I didn't even see the 'gift' side of his power. "I... caught glimpses." I'd wonder why he referred to himself and All Might by their quirk names later.
"I'm sure. And I am, indeed, planning to hand my empire, this vast power of mine, on to the next generation. You are as much a candidate as my chosen heir, by virtue of your resourcefulness and ruthlessness."
"If I refuse?"
"Then I let you go scampering back to U.A. like a good little dog hoping for some praise for telling them something they already know," he said. "However, can you truly walk away from such power? As you said, the 'next best thing to godhood'. And isn't that a siren's song greater than anything flesh or money can offer?"
Shit, he's got a point. "You have no guarantee I won't turn coat right after claiming your power."
"Perhaps," he said. "But you'll have to earn the position. You will compete alongside my chosen heir, while I will determine which of you is best worthy of carrying on both my quirk, and my legacy. By the time I choose my heir, you'll be tainted as a villain forever."
"I am a patriot."
"I'm sure. But with such power as this, you can be more than a mere soldier. You can be an emperor, ruling over all before you. Or, strike a balance... conquer Japan, and do as your ancestors once did to Hawaii and Texas.
"In fact, you might well be doing Japan a service, this way," he added. "You could reverse the injustices of Japan, and replace it with the superior American system. Lead my League of Villains not in conquest, but in revolution, as your founders once did. With all the wealth and prestige that would come to you. Whatever you desire would be yours for the taking."
I had to admit, his arguments were well thought out... I could see how he'd be able to manipulate someone whose psych profile was what he believed mine to be. Speaking of, who the fuck was writing my psych profile? I needed to thank or punch that son of a bitch, and I wasn't sure which.
So I saw past the base layers, and to the the argument he hadn't stated. He could, at his leisure, kill All Might in his current weakened condition, and then move on to kill Izuku... the only person who might stand a chance of beating him.
If playing along delayed matters, gave Izuku the time he needed to master his power... then I would buy as much time as I could. "If I were to accept this dubious offer of yours, what would I be doing? Exactly."
"You'll find I'm a very hands-off employer," All for One said. "Earn the trust and loyalty of the members of the League of Villains. While dealing with a co-manager who despises you, and will likely sabotage you every step along the way.
"Then, you will destabilize the corrupt system of Japan's hero association using any means you see fit. I will watch, and perhaps make little suggestions here or there, while using my own judgment of your efficacy. You will, of course, start at a bit of a disadvantage, but when has that ever stopped an American?"
I pulled my phone out of my pocket. "You know, I am still planning to stab you in the back the moment I think I can get away with it, right?"
"If you succeed, you'll have far exceeded my expectations."
"Rabbit hole it is, then." I crushed my phone in my hand, and dropped it to the ground by my feet. Sorry, everyone.
The black portal opened up. I stepped through. And found myself in some sort of warehouse.
"Master?" The other victim of this sick game, Shigaraki, didn't bother to hide the anger in his voice at the visit of his 'master'. His hand twitched. Then, with the eye that wasn't covered in scar tissue, he spotted me. "You!"
He jumped to his feet.
I took a cocky stance that could switch to a proper fighting position without messing up my balance. "Hey, Handjob, how'd you like your parting gift?"
"Play nice, both of you," All for One commanded. "One of you will indeed kill the other some day. But until I give my blessing, neither of you may harm the other. Now, League of Villains, meet your new co-commander... the man who murdered Stain."
He vanished into the shadows with a laugh, leaving me alone in very hostile territory.
=====
A/N- Yeah. All for Edge doing that thing he does where he doesn't seem biologically capable of understanding human decency.
Pun titles.
Told you Junko was the least of the fuckery Alex would have to put up with in this story.
And, yes, Kurogiri is dead. He managed to warp Shigaraki out with the last of his strength, then succumbed to his wounds.
Fuckity fuck fuck fuuuck. I stood tall, looking at the small crowd of villains. "I suppose introductions are in order... Call me 'X', my quirk is known as nix. I can identify quirks on sight, and am immune to the effects of other quirks."
I went from right to left, pointing at them. First, the guy off in the distance, covered in scars and some sort of strange piercings. "Pyrokinetic, and a powerful one at that." There was something worryingly familiar with the underlying ice aspect laced into his power.
He grunted. "Hope you don't think this makes us friends. But as long as you don't get in my way, I don't care.
"Magnetic manipulation, specifically the ability to make people magnetic," I pointed at the next, a tall ugly heteromorph with too-large lips holding a giant rod. "I'm guessing that weapon of yours is a magnet."
"Good guess, pretty boy." She- that was a woman's voice- said.
Well, alrighty then. I point to my co-commander. "Disintegration touch, terrifying beyond all reason. Glad I'm immune."
"I could just shoot you," he said in return. And then pulled some gun with a profile I didn't recognize... probably a custom, my guess was a nine mil. "Or are you going to claim to be bulletproof, now?"
"Nope, not bulletproof." Though the quirks around here, I could be. "But then your sugar daddy would be pissed. And I hear you've been very naughty, lately. Which is why I was recruited, to give this shitshow the ol' American charm."
I reached out for the familiar regeneration of a Nomu in the background, just in case. It was in some basement area. And while weaker than the ones in the Hosu attack, it was more than ready for gunfire.
It also held Shadow's warp-quirk and some other stuff I didn't have time to sort through.
And I tapped into the vampiric quirk that came next. Much like after my first Nomu battle, something had changed in me, my bond with my quirk. The flow into dual-copy was almost intuitive, now.
The vampire was a blonde woman in a messy schoolgirl uniform, even messier hair in twin buns, and to round out the look, a butcher's cleaver. "Shigi might not, but I think I should kill you... I don't care what the boss says." She said all while keeping a broad, happy, if somewhat manic, smile.
"Lemme guess, Stain's daughter? Here to get revenge for his death?" She wasn't, not unless her mother fucked a twelve year old, but Stain's identity wasn't public knowledge. Even if they knew, they wouldn't know that I knew his actual age.
I opened my arms, as if to offer a hug. "Well, you found his killer, sweetheart. But you're not as strong as daddy dearest."
The blond was wriggling in place, with quite the blush to go with. "Oh!? You think ~Stainy~ is my ~daddy~?!"
Yup. Like all vampires, she was fucking cray cray. "Or older brother, or uncle. Your quirks aren't identical, but they're damn close."
That was the thing about vampires and their mind-altering succubus subspecies, they all had quirks related to blood consumption. It was endemic to the subtype, like canine heteromorphs with their sense of smell. Or felines and their agility.
Her grin widened. "Oh? You know what Stainy's quirk was? I'll cut that information out of you right before I end your life."
"Paralyzed people by drinking their blood." I feigned a bored sort of calm. It wouldn't fool the vamp, but she should be able to realize I was telling the truth. "You're a doppelganger via same method."
I looked over to the next one. A tall, bulky man. "Muscle enhancement and limited shapeshifting?" If we come to blows, I might be fucked even if I reveal my copy quirk. "Gotta say, I'm a little jealous. I have to work hard for these abs."
"~Are you ignoring me?!~"
I very much was not, but I needed her to believe I was.
"Yeah, gotta say I'm glad you're not some weakling. Keep being entertaining, and maybe I won't kill you."
Yeah, that's basically my life for now, though not from you. I wasn't sure I could beat this guy straight on, but I could easily run. All for One was a different sort of monster. "I hope you don't mean my standup routine. I suck at improv."
He laughed, and crossed his arms. "Not from where I'm standing."
I took that as a 'win' and moved to the next. The man in a top hat and a full coverage mask with a giant grin on it. "Oh... that is a busted quirk."
"Oh?" He said. "I admit, I take some pride in my power, but compared to what you must be accustomed to..."
"Let's just say if you went hero, you'd have a damn good shot at second pl-" NOW!
I stepped to the side, as little miss vampire sailed past me. She was fast enough to spin and attempt a slash from what had been a near perfect stab at my heart. The fullest extent of my Nomu enhancement giving me just enough speed, my quirk tracking her, and my emulation of her combat instincts all came together.
I caught her by the neck of her uniform on her way past, and twisted. She choked, and with my other hand I caught and twisted her wrist to force her to drop the knife. "My apologies, it seems I must cut our little chat short. A distraction came up."
I was unable to see anything behind his mask, but his body language was 'strategically relaxed' like my own. "Yes, perhaps it would be better for you to deal with this, first."
I could have busted her to pieces at this angle, with my strength compared to hers. Instead I shoved her forward. She tumbled onto her face, but was quick to roll and flip her way to facing me again, snarling like the wild animal she was.
I responded by kicking her knife across the concrete, where it slid to a stop almost at her knees.
I knew I wasn't getting through this confrontation without a fight. If I showed any weakness, I bet it would have been the muscle-guy. If I pushed Shigaraki too hard, it would have been a group attack.
And if I just randomly punched the weakest of them, the rest would also know I was too weak to take seriously.
And most of them... there was no way I could put them down without revealing my quirk's true nature. Something I needed to avoid even more now than I ever had before.
This vampire was the perfect pick for what I needed. Unstable enough for it to not be me who started the fight. Strong enough that it wouldn't look like bullying when I won.
"I'm giving you the one chance to back down before I take you apart..." I paused. "Or, on second thought, I'm down for friendly little match. I'm sure everyone here would love to see the moves that put Stain down like the mad dog he was. Like father, like daughter."
She pulled a second knife from hiding under her skirt. "Oh, you think you're so cute, don't you?" Her grin was that of a wild animal, baring her teeth to warn off threats.
"Bitch, I'm adorable. Now are we talking or fighting?"
"You'll be beautiful when I'm done with you!" She lunged, and I hopped back. She was faster than anticipated, and it was more than just her animal instincts. In fact, I'd dare say she was a match for me in natural agility.
That, plus the knives, made her a real threat.
I tapped into her instincts, and joined the melee. A swerve to avoid a slash, a twist to avoid a stab. I baited an opening, and took a cut along the forearm in order to deck her in the jaw and send her sprawling.
She righted herself midair, landed and then jumped to the side when I came down with enough force to splinter the concrete below our feet. Maybe I was a bit too zealous, having Momo make me tungsten plated soles.
Worry about that later, vamp was rebounding while I was 'distracted'. I flipped back, caught one of her knives with my foot, and sent it spinning up into the air. I grinned right back at her. "Well, you're a better fighter than your daddy, I'll grant you that."
I lied through my fucking teeth, and she had to know it. But this fight wasn't about her, or even me, it was about the audience.
Down a knife, I expected her to grow more cautious, but if anything she grew all the more frenetic in her assault. And I matched her pace, pushing my agility to its limits and still being forced to make the difference with strength, endurance, and reach.
I was going wild, too.
The blood. The scent of it- hers, my own, it was awash in my senses. The pounding of my heartbeat in my ears the most ecstatic music in my hears.
The way she panted, the heat of her skin and the smell of her sweat and blood. It drove me as wild as her.
But I was better at hiding it. I'd been training against a mind control quirks for months, years of experience with many quirks that gave their own 'instincts' to their wielders. This was artificial, this wasn't me.
And those heady vampiric instincts were also working on my side, constantly reminding me that my mission was stealth, and how best to lie with my movements and body language even as I increased my pace.
I could do that, if I did it right. I needed only to hide the frenzy, not repress it. Make them think I was playing around and matching her pace, rather than riding the high of this drug that was her power.
This power of hers, she had spent her childhood immersed in this experience... no wonder she was a villain. To live your life this way and not become an addict, especially with Japan's hideous neglect in the 'mental' side of the health care field.
Even in fucking U.A., 'psychology' seemed to be 'that thing you use to mindfuck your enemies into submission' rather than a healing art.
We kept fighting. A flip of a coin whether I was ruining her tattered psyche even further by drawing this fight out, or mending it by virtue of her having an outlet that could meet her at her worst and survive.
I did know it wasn't good for my wellbeing. The stench of blood was the sweetest, most delectable thing I'd ever experienced. It dug its tendrils into my mind, giving me visions of how beautiful she'd be when she broke. That moment when the last light in her eyes went out the greatest thrill I could imagine.
I didn't win this match on speed, I didn't even win it on skill. I won it on maintaining just enough control to match her frenzy, and keep her escalating the speed and passion until her body couldn't handle it and she slowed.
A quick slap sent her other knife clacking across the warehouse floor, and before even I could think, I had my hand around her throat and pinned her to the ground.
She stared up at me, a wild beast that knew she was beaten, but refused to be broken.
I looked down, and it was everything I could do not to lick the blood leaking from the cut on her lip where I'd punched her. She was subdued, her copied power told me that.
I flipped her over onto her face, pinned both arms behind her back and locked her legs down with my feet. She was my better (albeit not by much) in speed, but I was far beyond her in strength.
But with the combat high fading, I felt something else here. A watchful, hateful thing... All for One was using some remote scrying power to observe the festivities.
Even if he wasn't... "You know, bitch, it's been a long time since anyone cut me... I think I deserve an apology. Maybe you should kiss it better."
I lowered my arm down, just in front of her face, and her tongue extended out like an animal desperate for water.
"But you'd like that, wouldn't you?" I drew away, and she struggled in my grasp. "No, I should be taking something from you, not the other way around."
Even with the vamp's power gone, the effect on my mind wasn't entirely faded, that and the stress, the intensity of the fight.
This sick fuck watching from the shadows.
Well, if they wanted a show, I'd give them a show. "I wonder... how many men you lured to their deaths with a pretty face and admittedly flawless body. Did you ever let any of them fuck you before you killed them?"
She tensed. "What!? No! I never!"
"Then this'll be a treat for me." I hooked my finger into the hem of her skirt and panties, then tore them away. "And a learning experience for you."
=====
A/N- Someone said Alex would need a delicate touch. He disagrees.
I can't do this. Adrenaline and mind-fucking vampire bullshit notwithstanding, I didn't want to do this. If I tried, I wouldn't even be able to get it up.
I also couldn't afford to put myself in this situation a second time.
"Consider yourself lucky, bitch." I stood up and walked away with a frustrated sigh. "I ain't doing this while a bunch of faggots watch my ass. But you try this again, and I'll drag you into a side room by your tits."
I tossed a packet of first aid supplies back at her. "Clean yourself up." I began applying some gauze to my arm.
Let the asshole with the nonsense psych profile add 'homophobic' to the list, I'm sure it'd fit in nicely with the whole 'mother married to another woman who pretends I'm not her kid' thing.
"Who do you think you're calling a faggot!?" One of the villains I hadn't gotten to yelled.
"Everyone who's looking at me instead of the pretty teen ass on display." I then looked over at the magnokinetic. "Except you, of course, Ma'am."
Behind me, the vampire scrambled for her skirt. As beat up as she was, she'd be no threat for the time being. But I got the feeling this was not over. Next time... I might be forced to make good on my threat. Agreeing to terms wasn't quite consent, but so be it.
Momo... I would ask her understanding, but... not her forgiveness. That would hurt me more than her hate.
"You sure go from polite to crazy and back again fast, huh?" She said to me.
"I was raised to treat people how they treat me. She tried to shove a foreign object in my guts, you've been nothing but polite. Speaking of, I should finish my introductions."
I went back to the masked guy. "I do apologize for the interruption. As I was saying, you generate localized spatial distortions that can fold an area about the size of a small shed into a marble-sized ball. Some mass, time, and concentration limits I'm sure you've trained for.
"If that was all you could do, you'd have an A-tier quirk. But an object doesn't have to be entirely inside your zone. You can rip walls open, tear people in half, store a box full of explosives to blow a building apart. All without getting creative. That's a power deserving fear and envy, even at the top."
"Explosives, huh?" he put his hand up to his mask, in an exaggerated rubbing his jaw in thought gesture. "That sounds pretty creative to me."
"American. We celebrate the birth of our country by letting kids blow up parts of it. A bit of bomb smuggling isn't creativity, it's tax evasion."
"I had heard things to that effect, I thought that was just a stereotype?"
"I think we've both been around long enough to know that most stereotypes are true most of the time. The danger is when you start thinking they're always true."
"Hmm, you've given me something to think about."
Did he really not think about using his quirk as a bomb delivery system? Well, shit, I just made him far more dangerous. "Happy to be of service."
I moved on, before I made things worse for everyone. Next was the guy who objecting to the 'faggot' comment. "Biokinetic, limited to plants. Speaking of breaking stereotypes, don't see a lot of plant manipulators on the villain side of the law."
"Yeah, well, the hero side of the law are the real villains..."
Ah, edgy teenager, got it. I shrugged at the comment. "Yeah, been getting that impression myself. That seems like a 'Japan' problem. I've been to most of the non-shithole countries, and your whole system has got to be the worst."
Maybe with some time to process, he'll realize that everyone stood watching a girl, a supposed colleague at that, almost lose her virginity to rape. Even here the heroes are better than the villains.
"Says the man who killed the guy making it better."
"Stain? Please. I fought him." Kind of. "He was in it for the thrill of the hunt. He didn't even make things better, every attack only galvanized people to support their heroes. He was creating martyrs for their cause... and now he is a martyr. If he believed his own bullshit, he'd agree that dying was the best thing he could do."
This one... was going to be a problem. The rest of this group were crazies and pretend idealists. This one was a naive useful idiot. With any luck, he'd pussy out and quit the moment it got real.
"Yeah, well, got any ideas for my quirk, then?"
"Botanical power armor. Might take some research into which trees are hardy enough to handle the strain, but I'd look into mulberry. They're the cockroach of trees."
And last of the group, another fully-masked individual. "Okay, I take back what I said, you might have the most busted quirk in this room. The ability to copy yourself and other objects or people, and the copies come with their quirks?"
This was an objective upgrade on Momo's power, save that the copies lacked durability and permanency.
Why was All for One trying to steal my power, and leaving this guy alone?
"No... no," I said. "You don't have control over your copies, do you? They'd always act like the original person."
If All for One was as batshit as he seemed to be, that was a recipe for having to kill his own copies on the regular. Some people could handle dealing with themselves like that. Some people very much could not.
"You're a real smart guy, you know?" He leaned forward in a manner that was either ostentatious or flirty. "And you might even be crazier than I am. I like you, but I'll never turn my back on you. What do you think you'd you do if I made a copy of you?"
It was hard to read him with his full body suit and mask hiding almost any physical tell, but it wasn't hard to guess he was speaking from experience. Monsters lurked beneath this question. So I gave it all due consideration.
"I... don't rightly know, but if I had to guess... do something crazy and driven entirely by impulse. Something I wouldn't, because I have to worry about consequences, but doesn't matter to a clone who won't live long enough to care.
"Like base jumping without a chute, or picking a fight with one of those Nomu weapons just to see how I stack up. Something the real me can never experience, for spite of being created only to die."
That was about half accurate. Leaving aside I was tough enough now to survive terminal velocity with maybe a few bruises, I probably would do something suicidal, but to advance the fucking cause. If I was going to live for minutes, then my death must resonate for a lifetime.
But 'resentful hedonist', would fit nicely into Asshole for Ever's fake profile.
"You scare me, let's be friends."
Yep, this one's also nuts. "Better than the alternative." I looked around. "All told, pretty solid team you've got here, we might even be able to accomplish something real. Now, let's start talking business. I'll be at a bit of a disadvantage, not knowing Japan like a native, but I was thinking we start by chipping away at-"
"U.A." Shigaraki declared.
Dude... "What is your obsession with U.A.?"
"Knew you were too weak to go after your former comrades," he said.
Ah. "Yeah, I pretty much am," I said. "That place has some of the strongest quirks I've ever seen, and I'd be willing to bet money the only reason any of them won't be in the top ten in ten years is because they'll be competing with each other for the position. I will lose, and so will you."
"All the more reason to kill them now, before they develop the skill to be a threat. And to break All Might's spirit."
All Might, you need to herd your tsunderes better. I took a breath. "You idiot. They already have the skills to be a threat! I was trained by American special forces instructors, and the weakest of my class have caught up to where I was at the beginning of the year. The strongest of them match me now!"
I gestured over to Toga. "You saw our match. That's what you're up against, plus a plethora of finely honed deadly quirks."
Huh, you know what? Maybe I should just let them. Thin this herd of psychos without pissing off the boss.
"Besides, you don't win wars by going after students. You win wars by going after soldiers, economies, and infrastructure. Speaking as the guy whose country never lost a war." Lost the peace... several times. The late 20th and early 21st centuries were fucking pathetic like that. But even at our worst, we never lost a war.
"Hmm, how would you do that?" the pyrokinetic asked.
"Well... any successful war starts with intel. We have a clone-maker... those clones keep their memories, which we can interrogate them for. That and the doppelganger lets us infiltrate with impunity. Use that to gather more information. Then it's a matter of using that to strike them at their weakest points."
"Ugh, now you're starting to bore me," the muscle-quirk grumbled. "I'll take the 'kill my way through a bunch of kids' option, thanks."
Your funeral, fuckface. He was strong, sure... but he wasn't Nomu strong, and he didn't have their regeneration. At least a dozen among my classmates could solo him, and any team of three should.
"Besides, we have a trump card," Shigi said. "This isn't all our members, only the ones that are safe enough to let roam freely. The others will be more than enough to overcome U.A.'s resistance, during their summer training camp."
Precog or mole. Had to be a mole, precogs of any true power were rare. Probably that laser-belly guy, was he the one telling All for One I was a serial killer level psycho? Well, then I either owed him a favor, or a beating.
"Fine, but I want to reiterate that this is a terrible fucking idea and you're sending your people on a suicide mission." I looked around at the group. "Those of you who are okay with being thrown away like cannon fodder, don't let me stop you."
Several of them seemed to take this as a personal challenge- muscle guy in particular was more convinced that ever to do it just to prove me wrong.
If they only knew this made them so very like their quarry.
Others, the tree guy in particular, was hesitating. But his hesitation wasn't out of moral or strategic reasons. It was cowardice, and that cowardice only convinced people to go harder in that direction. And so, treeboy folded and went along with the crowd.
I fucking warned them. That was more than they deserved.
While they continued their plans- which I wasn't privy to, since I wasn't trusted- I found a steel beam near the middle of the warehouse to sit against and submerge. Whatever All for One did to me, whatever I did to myself, whatever All Might's power did in tandem... what had once been a narrow bridge laden with rotting boards was now a highway, built from that trial and expenditure of power.
My quirk responded in moments, with the equivalent of a hug. Gratitude, for being safe, for remaining with me. We all saved each other, I thought back. To both my power, and to the cooling embers that gave the heat needed to forge this bond.
I'll get it back, some day.
But until then, there were other avenues of power. I reached out to the Nomu in the basement. Its combination of unique powers had an obvious purpose. An automatic transportation hub.
Shadow warping, some sort of 'perfect sustenance' power that rendered food, water, and sleep unnecessary. Achieved little where air was concerned, however.
And a very specific, very limited hybrid of astral projection and telepathy. Allowing it to mentally lock on to a target, partially read their thoughts, and then its senses would follow that target anywhere in the world until the quirk was deactivated. Up to a dozen targets at a time.
I don't know what quirks were broken and twisted together to make up that abomination, but I wasn't going to touch it with a ten foot pole. If I ever got bored of sanity, I'd rather the vampire's quirk. At least that wouldn't leave me an insensate husk incapable of perceiving my own body.
That no-sleep thing, however? Yeah, that was going to be my baby while I was here.
But I had a specific goal for now. I had a muscle-enhancing quirk and Nomu regeneration (though not to the original's level) to play with.
The muscle quirk was, ultimately, shapeshifting. And had a level of control over what sort of muscle he wanted. It could be skeletal, and even deeper into fast-twitch agile muscle and slow-twitch endurance muscle. Could also get into cardiovascular and smooth muscles. But I... didn't know enough to fuck around with smooth muscle to any great degree.
Still, I set about body building on a very literal level, improving my muscle as much as I dared without a whole lot more training, and then tapping into Nomu regeneration to force the changes to remain.
There would be a ceiling to this project- that being about the strength of that specific Nomu- and it'd take a month or so to reach it- but that was a month that would see me approach Endeavor's physical conditioning.
But, I now had a guest.
"It's called quirktalking, I could teach it to you if you like." I said well before I was approached. That fire quirk was easy to spot from any distance. But I kept my eyes closed, working away at my project. Optimizing my heart muscle and blood flow to sustain the new strength I'd given myself.
"Maybe some day," the pyro said. "I'm more interested in what you said about working for Endeavor. He really that bad?"
Dammit, Endeavor. Am I going to have to fix another of your parental fuckups? "Second worst excuse for a human being I've ever met in my life. And that is saying something, given the places I've been and the people I've killed."
I could sense him relax a little in one way, and grow more focused another. I waited for him to get ready to say something, then went on.
"I'm expecting Shoto to snap and quite literally impale his ass on an ice spike. No jury would convict. Wouldn't that be a fun time for a family reunion?"
His quirk flared up, power washed over him and that is when I realized that maybe I went a bit too far. And also his power didn't include resistance to fire. If anything, the exact opposite.
I was holding Nomu regeneration, so I was safer than anyone else in this building.
Then the heat faded. "I... see." He walked up to me, and sat down on the back side of the pillar. "Tell me, what has my little brother's life been like?"
"Let's start by saying I wouldn't wish his childhood on my worst enemy..."
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A/N- Not gonna lie, the people on the edge of their seats on whether or not Alex would go through with it? Absolutely great. But, no, he's not capable of that. Not yet, anyway.
Talking all the shit about Endeavor, on the other hand?