A/N: I've been fiddling with this concept for a while now. I'm supposed to be finishing this chapter for another story, but I didn't want to accidentally forget about this concept. It's a little shaky right now, but hopefully I can flesh it out better with more time. This chapter is short because its an introduction - I generally write longer chapters aha! Hope you guys like it, I thought it was interesting enough.
It was a dark alleyway, tattered newsprint and various other garbage strewn across the pavement with little care. A little light peeked through the iron gates that blocked off the end, the sun setting slowly as silence descended over everything. A few people lingered out on the sidewalks, but as darkness slowly overtook the streets the remaining passersby dwindled down to none. Of course, that did not mean everyone had made it safely back to their homes.
Exploit tore through the alleyway, her eyes narrowed as she followed the retreating figure around yet another corner. Her faded blue combat boots splashed through a few lingering puddles as she maneuvered around, her bright gold eyes searching for her target amongst the scattered rubbish. The chill in the air meant nothing to her, her body protected by a simple black jacket with various pockets of medicines and small weapons. She wore a pair of black cargo pants to match and had her dark brown hair obscured by a black helmet. All in all, she looked like a typical thief. Yet she was so much more.
"Exploit, were you able to apprehend him? Agencies have been tracking this guy for months now." A voice crackled in her ear, and she couldn't help but roll her eyes. They were so impatient about something that was incredibly dangerous.
"No, I exploited his quirk, but he managed to slip away. He's not just his quirk, so its not as simple as aggravating his weak points." Exploit, as the name entailed, was the quirk she utilized in combat. It allowed her to focus on an opponent's eyes and find their quirk's drawback. She could then reach for the quirk and 'exploit' their drawback, forcing it to occur faster and or harder. It was a difficult quirk to use, but she made do with what she was given. The problem was, this guy was good.
"Well you've been tracking this guy for a while now. Everybody has. You nab him, and we get rich." She couldn't help but smirk at the thought. This guy had evaded some of the top Pros, and if someone like her managed to take him down, she could kiss her lowly government salary goodbye and move on to the big leagues. It was like a dream come true, if she managed to nab him of course.
"Yeah yeah, I know. Don't get your panties in a bunch. Just let me handle this and you handle the money." She disconnected quickly, shaking her head to regain her focus. She couldn't let herself get distrac-
"Tch, money. Fame. Power. You Pros are all the same." Exploit brought her arms up in a cross above her head, narrowing catching the edge of the blade with the bracers around her wrist. The man smirked, his tongue flicking over his lips as his attack was easily negated. He jumped back quickly as her eyes shined, trying to make eye contact with him once more.
"I'm here to apprehend you, hero killer. If you play nice, the authorities might go easy on you." Exploit sneered, only for Stain to laugh in her face. His head fell back slightly as he did, and the hero quickly lunged at the opportunity. Stain quickly sidestepped her attack, his hand gripping his sword tightly as he brought it around towards her backside. Exploit scowled, stumbling a bit but rolling forward to avoid the blade.
"Easy on me? I won't allow your false heroics to lay a hand on me. There's only one man I'll allow to kill me, and you don't compare, you false hero." Stain brought his blade down again, forcing Exploit to move defensively. She dove to her left, quickly pushing herself to her feet as she stumbled forward. She retracted her own blade from its holster, barely catching Stain's as he swung it once more. Blades clashed with a clang, and soon the two were pushing against each other for dominance.
"What would you know about heroes, you freak. You're a fucking killer, and I'll make sure you're treated like one." Exploit snapped, her arms trembling a bit at the effort of holding back his blade. She wasn't weak, but this guy had avoided all kinds of heroes and authorities for a reason. He was no pushover.
"More than you'll ever know, hero." Stain suddenly pulled back, allowing Exploit to stumble forward. He suddenly withdrew a small knife from a pocket in his vest, releasing his blade and quickly aiming for her exposed arm. Exploit swore, diving forward quickly and practically crawling to get away. She narrowly avoided the slash, but it was still too close for comfort.
'I have to retreat. I need to gain some kind of control over this. Or else I'm dead' She put her thoughts in to action and pushed off the ground quickly, putting some distance in between her and Stain. The man laughed, licking his lips once more as he watched her retreat. She disappeared down the alley, breathing heavily as she gained her bearings. If she was going to come at him again, she needed a solid plan. Exploit leaned against a wall, swallowing hard as she tried to think.
"Who are you?" The quiet voice of a child tore her from her thoughts, and Exploit glanced to her right to find a boy standing in the alley. Grey and Turquoise eyes stared at her from underneath a mop of red and white hair, watching her curiously. He looked to be about fourteen, maybe fifteen, and wore slightly ragged clothing. It was a simple white button-down shirt with a pair of black jeans, but it was the odd metal backpack that he wore that caught her attention. It looked like a device, but the metal had seen better days and she wasn't quite sure if it even worked. Around his neck, he wore a long red scarf and what looked like a white bandanna. He was an odd kid, but she didn't have time to think about that.
"You need to go right now. This isn't safe. Go find your parents." She hissed lowly at the kid, making a shooing motion with both of her hands. He stared at her blankly.
"I'll be fine. I'm already with my parent." He informed her curtly, and Exploit had to muster up all her patience to not slap the kid. She reached out to grab his shoulders, and he instinctively drew back warily.
"Okay, listen to me kid. I'm fighting a villain right now. I can't be a hero and do my job if you're in the middle of everything. Now scram!" she snapped with a little more hostility then she meant, but he seemed to get the picture. He took a few steps back, suddenly raising his hands to tug at the white fabric around his neck. Exploit didn't care at this point, turning her back on him as she began to walk deeper in to the alley. The boy slowly untied the knot holding the bandanna together before pulling it around his head, covering his eyes. He tied the mask tightly, letting the obnoxiously long strings drape over his shoulders. He pulled the scarf over his face, and began following Exploit quietly.
Meanwhile, Exploit had put the kid out of her mind completely as she ran through the maze that was this eerie alley. She considered calling her agent again, but opted not to. She didn't want to be caught in a call in the middle of a fight.
"Didn't they teach you not to turn your back on your foes?" She brought her blade up to meet Stain's, smirking slightly in response as he backed off immediately. He wasn't scared or anything, but he kept his distance all the same. His smile was odd considering the situation, but she didn't think too deeply about it.
"I could say the same thing to you. Who knows when my sidekicks will be here. Once they get here, you'll be nothing but dust beneath my boot." She grinned, her eyes twinkling as she caught his gaze. It took only a second for her to catch hold of his quirk, digging her metaphorical knife in to its weak point. If he felt it, he didn't make it known. He just watched her with that odd smile.
"I think you're misinformed. Nobody's coming for you." The words didn't come from Stain, and before she could even blink she found her feet encased in a thick layer of ice. She swore, her heart lurching as she tried to brute force her way out of it. The ice seemed to thicken by the second, ensuring she wouldn't move. Stain couldn't help but laugh.
"You heroes, so cocky because of your false belief that you're doing good. Well you know what? Our society shouldn't be built upon heroes like you. Fighting for your next paycheck or fame…. disgusting." Stain growled, stalking forward with his small knife. Exploit scowled, leaning back a bit as he made his way to her. Ice slowly crept up her legs, holding her in place.
"I'm saving lives. What're you doing? Taking them, you monster. You can't preach about heroes with all that blood on your hands!" She snapped, her heart beat increasing erratically as he edged closer. Soon he was in her face, his disgusting breath nearly causing her to gag. He grinned wickedly, his teeth glinting.
"My hands are stained with the blood of liars. I don't have any regrets. Can you say the same for yourself, heretic?" Exploit brought her head back a bit before suddenly slamming forward, knocking in to his face. He grunted and stumbled just a bit, but recovered quickly. He snatched up her face in his hands, his nails digging roughly in to her skin.
"Your blood is so muddy with your greed that I almost considered it not worth killing you. However, that wouldn't do. You will be apart of my message. All of you will." He pulled her face forward, and she closed her eyes with a grimace. She couldn't open her mouth with the way her held her face, and it was only silence that rang through the air when her body fell forward. Stain sidestepped to the left, letting the hero's body hit the pavement with a loud thud. The ice slowly melted away, and the man scowled.
"I'd glad I didn't need to keep her alive. She was a real stain on this fucking earth." Stain growled, stalking past her body and towards the boy that stood behind. His eyes were obscured by the white mask, which matched Stain's.
"She wasn't very pleasant to me either. She left a bad taste in my mouth talking to her." The boy sniffed, crinkling his nose as he remembered their aggressive exchange. Other heroes had at least shown a bit of care towards him, but this girl had been flat out rude. Not that it mattered anymore, considering the puddle of red came from her.
"Just the sight of her alone should leave a bad taste in your mouth, Shoto. You're not starting to feel sympathy for them, are you?" Stain suddenly advanced on Shoto, gripping the blade tightly. Shoto immediately tensed, taking a few steps back and raising his arms defensively.
"No, I don't. If we stay here for too long, they're going to figure out something is wrong. We should leave." Shoto spoke hastily, eyeing his master with a hint of fear. He had known the man for a while now, and while he was still alive, Stain was prone to berserk fits of rage. The scars that were carved in to his face and arms proved as much.
"Let them. Maybe this time, All Might himself will show up. Purging the world of these heroes is making me weary. I should be granted the end I deserve for all of this work." Stain sneered, and Shoto swallowed hard. The two stared at each other intensely for a few more seconds before Stain finally relaxed, backing up a bit to give the boy breathing space. Shoto exhaled quietly, relaxing only a little bit. It was never a good idea to let your guard down.
"No, we still have a lot of work to do. We can't stop until this world is purged of those false heroes and order is restored once more. You and I have a lot of work to do. And you still need your first kill." Shoto swallowed nervously, the subject making him uncomfortable. He had caught and trapped many heroes for Stain, but the thought of bringing one down with his own hand. Well. It didn't sit right with him.
"S-should I? You've been doing good on your own for a while now. I don't know if I can take that honor from you." Shoto chuckled weakly, and Stain narrowed his eyes. He suddenly reached for Shoto, yanking him up roughly by the collar of his shift. Shoto knew better than to fight back.
"You, brat, need to start doing a little more on your end. If both of us are purging this world, the end we both envision will come much faster. I've been giving you time to think it over, but you had better wrap it up soon. I didn't just pick up some random, useless stray off the street, did I?" Shoto swallowed hard again.
"No, you didn't. You saved me." Stain dropped him at the confirmation, and Shoto stumbled a bit. He rubbed his thought experimentally, hoping it wouldn't bruise. He watched warily as Stain turned his back on him, looking back at their work.
"Then act like it. You and I will bring this world to its knees. We will restore everything to how it should be. But I need you to fucking chip in and soon. Once you have your first kill, you'll never have to worry about it again." Shoto nodded quietly, listening to the brief lecture for a few seconds before the sounds of police caught their attention.
"We should go…before they spot us out here." Shoto suggested, and for once Stain seemed inclined to agree without violence. He turned around quickly, suddenly walking and passing by Shoto without a single glance.
"Come, we need to plan out our next targets and city. You need to work on your shit as well. We have a lot to do, Shoto." Shoto nodded, trailing behind the large main as they took off across the street. They crossed in to another alley and soon Stain was scaling the wall, Shoto following behind. They duo quickly reached the top, Stain even yanking the younger boy up once he reached the top. They stood on the roof quietly, crouching down as they watched the chaos unfold underneath them.
"You Shoto, you will be my successor. As extension of my will. You will be purge this world of its false heroes and contaminated ideals. Once you taste blood, you won't ever hesitate again. You, Shoto, will bring peace to this world."
Shoto nodded in silence, watching as the world fell apart beneath them. He couldn't help but smile.
A/N: Ahh, hopefully that came out okay. Exploit is an oc of mine I made for this part specifically. Stain is a little weird to write, but hopefully I did him justice.
I like reviews - and by that I mean I like critique. Especially with Stain, since he's a bit response is absolutely loved! This story will update once a week depending on how much time I have between this one and my other story.
Thanks for the read guys!