Mark finished his morning training before sunrise, as usual. His muscles were warm, his breathing steady. His body no longer resisted strain; no matter how hard he pushed, it adapted. The sensation was both satisfying—and unsettling.
That afternoon, Mark went with Maddie to a hero promotion event in the city center. It was advertised as safe, family-friendly. Heroes demonstrated their Quirks on stage, children cheered, and the crowd buzzed with excitement.
Mark felt uneasy.
There were too many people.
Then—
everything broke.
A man burst out from behind the stage. A gun in his hand. He shoved into the crowd, shouting wildly.
"Nobody move!"
People screamed and stumbled backward. The man grabbed the first person within reach.
Maddie.
He pulled her in front of him, pressing the gun to her head.
"Stay back!" he yelled. "One step closer and I pull the trigger!"
Mark's heart slammed against his chest. His body refused to move, but his mind screamed.
Then a hero stepped forward.
Steelguard.
Middle-aged. Experienced. And far too confident.
"Drop the weapon," he said firmly. "You're surrounded. You have no escape."
The criminal laughed. His name was Rift. His hands trembled, but his eyes burned with madness.
"You're wrong," Rift said. "I do have an escape. And it's her."
Steelguard clenched his jaw. He hesitated—
then made a mistake.
"Now!" he shouted, activating his Quirk.
A metal shield launched toward Rift.
Everything happened in less than a second.
Rift fired on instinct.
The gunshot echoed.
Maddie's body jolted before Mark's eyes.
And she collapsed to the ground.
Silence fell.
Mark stopped hearing the world.
The hero shouting…
The crowd screaming…
All of it faded away.
All he saw was the body lying on the ground.
Blood.
Stillness.
Something inside Mark snapped.
Control ceased to exist.
His Quirk was no longer a point.
No longer an area.
It became him.
Push and pull erupted simultaneously, in every direction.
The ground collapsed. Asphalt surged like a wave, then shattered. Nearby buildings lost their windows in explosive bursts. Cars lifted into the air, smashed together, and twisted into piles of metal.
Rift didn't even have time to scream before being crushed inward by invisible force.
Steelguard was thrown violently. His armor shattered. He slammed into concrete and lost consciousness.
Air pressure imploded. Breathing became impossible. Space itself warped, the epicenter being Mark.
This wasn't an attack.
It was annihilation.
When Mark finally dropped to his knees, a crater surrounded him. The event plaza no longer existed—only rubble and silence remained.
With trembling hands, he crawled toward Maddie.
Then a voice echoed in his mind.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
Full-Body Push–Pull Synchronization: CONFIRMED
Eligibility Level: Initial
Mark didn't even register the message.
His eyes were locked on Maddie.
For the first time, he understood something clearly:
Heroes could make mistakes.
And when they did…
the innocent paid the price.