Amity Colosseum, Kingdom of Vale

A man stood in the center of the arena floor. He was dressed in a crisp business suit, with slicked-back black hair and black fingerless gloves. He would have easily passed as a businessman if it weren't for the pale spiderweb-crack-like scars that covered his face and body. Even he didn't know where the scars came from. Certainly not from a fight. He was too careful of a brawler for that. He just knew that they showed up several months prior, when the voices started.

Mantle, Kingdom of Atlas, fourteen months ago

Alexander Seraphi was a man with simple desires. Money, entertainment, women, et cetera. He was living comfortably as the head of a local branch of the Spiders, an underground organization originating in Mistral. It paid well, and he had his every need catered to by underlings. Since the recent takeover of the Spiders by… her, more and more of the gang had been slowly disappearing, though it didn't concern Seraphi. The only thing he had on his plate was the occasional raid by the police, though they usually found either nothing or a building full of thugs. He was living a good life.

Then he started hearing them. Or, more specifically, it. One night, while he was kicking back in the moonlight, a voice rang out through his head, accompanied by a splitting headache.

Av…lon Arch...l s...em o...ne…?

Seraphi couldn't quite make out what he heard.

Test. Can the host hear?

"Wh-what the..?" he sputtered.

Excellent. Test. Can the host move?

"What the fuck is going on?" he shouted as he pitched forward, scrambling to his feet again.

Excellent. Test. Does the host have Aura?

Seraphi collapsed to the ground, writhing in pain. His body began to shimmer white, fading quickly and leaving light marks along his flesh.

Excellent. The System will now begin an explanation of the host's functions.

Seraphi blacked out.

-XNTW-

Proposal. Use our Semblance on the approaching huntsman.

"No."

Unacceptable proposal. We cannot complete our task of recording Semblances if you do not.

"No!"

Seraphi turned into an alleyway and slumped against the wall. He sighed. Why did this have to be so difficult?

Alert. Two humans and one faunus approaching from behind. All male. Intentions likely malicious.

"Shut up."

"Hey, gramps! Who you talkin' to, eh?" One of the approaching boys asked.

"Oi, is he goin' crazy? Talkin' to himself an' all?" Another of them said.

"Hey, yeah. Hey! Old man!"

"What..?" Seraphi looked over his shoulder.

"Don't you old dudes always say to look at someone when they're talkin' to you?" One of the boys asked. He had two dog-like ears atop his head.

Analysis. They are student huntsmen. Likely attending Atlas Academy.

"I can see that." Seraphi mused.

Proposal. Use our Semblance on them.

"I'm not gonna hurt some kids!"

"Eh? Kids? Heh. We're from Team AZRE. Top first-years up in Atlas!" One of them boasted. "Even if you're some super-strong mafia guy, you won't be able to lay a finger on us!"

"If you're such big shots, what are you doing down in Mantle?" Seraphi asked.

"Tch, we're just lookin' for some fun. So boring up in Atlas. Too many tests, too much homework…" the Faunus said. "Maybe we can use you to blow off some steam!" He lashed out towards Seraphi, striking him in the cheek. Seraphi stumbled, wiping his cheek.

"Heh, I think you made 'im mad!" they all laughed.

They were too busy laughing to notice Seraphi ferally growling with rage. His eyes shimmered silver for a moment as he slammed a fist into the gut of the Faunus boy. He went flying out of the alleyway and slammed into the lamppost across the street.

"What!?" One of the students gasped. "That's it! I don't know who you are, old man, but you're goin' down now!" He drew a knife, likely his personal weapon, and approached Seraphi.

Analysis. Knife uses a gravity dust cartridge loaded into the handle.

"Good. Now I'll use my Semblance."

Seraphi grabbed the boy's wrist as he brought his hand down, shimmering silver. Purple energy flowed from the knife into Seraphi's arm, increasing his power. Seraphi's hair turned white and began floating weightlessly. The crack-scars all across his body also took a bright silver glow. He grabbed the boy's face with his other hand, draining more energy from him.

"Aster McDowell. Male, 178 pounds, 6 feet 2 inches tall. Blood type: B-. Semblance: Telekinesis."

He threw Aster further down the alleyway, turning to the third boy, who drew a plain pistol and fired several shots. Seraphi raised his hand and the bullets slowed to a stop before his palm. Before the boy could run, Seraphi grabbed him as well, absorbing his data and copying his Semblance. The boy sank to his knees, out cold. Seraphi was enveloped in a bright white light, emerging wearing baggy white pants, fitted boots, and a coat with tails, although they all seemed to fuse together as if they were his skin. They were covered in glowing silver cracks. A gray wrapped cloak flowed behind Seraphi as he walked.

Across the street, the Faunus boy stood up, watching Seraphi in fear as he slowly approached. He was petrified. This was different from a Grimm or a teacher, or even bandits. This was something different. A real monster. An almost divine presence.

"Wh-what the hell are you?" he stammered.

"Avalon Archival system, unit 0. You may know me as Alexander Seraphi."

The present, Amity Colosseum

"What we're doing is wrong." Seraphi's voice shook, reverberating through the empty colosseum.

It is for the greater good.

"But the ends don't justify the means! These are children!"

Yet you go along with the plan.

"Because you never shut up!"

You revel in the power it gives you.

"But these are children we're talking about! Not even able to fight properly!"

Their Semblances equal or exceed the power of the prior generation.

"That doesn't make it right!"

We must complete the archives at any cost.

"Beacon will be the last. After this, we'll let them all go."

That is acceptable. Query: if you did not want to aid our goal, why did you follow the system's proposals?

"Because you never gave me any choice…" Seraphi whimpered.

A/N: Hello! Thank you for reading this chapter. I hope you enjoyed it!

If I remember correctly, last week I made a comment about Hololive, and something about hopefully becoming "one of the first male members." I made that comment forgetting that Holostars existed, so forgive my absentmindedness. That made me look like an idiot.

For those who like listening to music as you read, I'm considering organizing a soundtrack for this fanfic. It would just be songs that I think would fit the chapters and their various scenes.

Leave a follow and/or a favorite if you enjoyed this! Or, if there's anything you noticed, feel free to leave a review!

Thank you for reading, and stay tuned for more chapters in the future!