On this episode of Author's Notes Time, I actually wanted to ask a question got everyone reading. Do you guys prefer this style of shorter, more concentrated chapters or the longer, more detailed Runic Legacy style? Kind of wanted to get some second opinions on the subject.
Anyway, enjoy the chapter, stay safe and have a wonderful day.
Outside the Shie Hassaikai compound, Izuku
Using Void Heart's matter manipulation to from a stealth suit that warped light around me, shunted any excess heat to the storage space and drew its air supply from the storage space to minimize the chances of being discovered, I used Stain's stealth training to slip into the underground tunnels beneath the compound behind a thug bringing a report to their leader. One Kai Chisaki, a real piece of work and someone I would make a point to record his painful demise as a reminder of why I do what I must.
Giving Void Heart instructions to scout the compound for the locations of everyone in the facility, she spreads out in microscopic clusters throughout the facility within five minutes, forming tiny camera that fed back to a spare processor array designed to mark all hostiles and prevent accidental injury to the child. I saw her in her room and that bastard reaching out to use his quirk on her to harvest her organic matter.
Simultaneously throughout the entire facility, every single thug and member of the eight bullets were killed by a spike driving through the back of their skulls and into their brains. All except for Chisaki. For him I simply used Void Heart to sever his pinkies from his hands, rendering his five-point contact quirk forever unusable and binding him to the wall.
Warping outside the door to the girl's cell, I open the door and sass "Well look here, Overhaul. You seem a little bit tied up, don't suppose this is a new routine of yours or are you into stuff like that?" before kneeling in front of the girl and revealing my combat appearance. Using Void Heart to change my size I appeared to be taller and older, perhaps between eighteen and twenty-five. I wore a form-fitting set of jet black high-tech exo-armour designed to take plastic explosives without a scratch, covered by a tattered black travelling cloak with a hood pulled up over a plain black mask that white lines to mimic the expression of my older face underneath it.
Speaking calmly, I ask "What's your name kid?" in an attempt to soothe her when Chisaki snarl "She doesn't need one, she's materia-ack!" cutting off when I command Void Heart to gag Chisaki and shut him up. A command she took great pleasure in executing. Theatrically sighing I chuckle "Alright, how about a second try now that somebody can't interrupt" a cheeky grin spreading across my mask, eliciting a slight giggle for the poor child.
"I'm Eri" she states shyly, not sure what to make sure of the situation. Patting her head gently as she calms down and rests on my chest I murmur "There, there Eri, it must have been so hard to keep going all alone in here. You don't have to pretend anymore. It's going to be okay now" prompting her to wail her heart out into my armour which I fortunately softened up so she wouldn't bang her head.
After half an hour of comforting the poor girl, I create a small bracelet and smile as best I could around my mounting sorrow at having to part from Eri, I choke out "Now listen carefully Eri. I can't look after you because bad people might try and hurt you to bring me into a trap and I don't want that to happen. I found a friend that will makes sure no-one like this monster" pausing only to boot Chisaki full force in the crotch "gets to hurt you again. Wear this bracelet at all times and if you get in trouble, I'll be there to save you again, okay?"
Sniffling Eri hangs on my arm begging "Do you have to go? I'll miss you" as tears threaten to return to her eyes. I hold her close and speak my heart as I console her "I wish I could, but it could get you hurt. If you ever want to talk to me, just think about me appearing in front of you I'll come to you. Now could you wait outside the door for a second? I need to bring judgement to this sorry excuse for a person"
As she left, she ran up to Chisaki and kicked him in the shin sobbing "I hate you!" before going out the door. The pent-up rage and hatred that had been supressed the entire time to avoid scaring Eri came back with a vengeance as I snarl "I wonder, how many times did you take her apart and put her back together again? While I can't give you nearly enough suffering to pay for what you've done, I can certainly take a crack at it. Now then, scream for me Chisaki!" trailing off into maniacal laughter that left me thanking my foreplaning in soundproofing the chamber. She didn't need to witness this side of me.
One hour later, UA Principal's office, Nezu
Calling in the relevant parties to explain what had happened took a total of an hour and explaining even the absolute basic the bizarre situation took half an hour more to answer to a satisfactory degree. Their understandable scepticism aside, we had to try and put together a plan to raid their compound and get the child out. I'd only started to get to grips with the basics of the plan when Power Loader interrupted "Nezu, you said we were going to rescue a child, right? Would that happen to be the child at the front gate with a sign saying 'One smol bean delivered Nezu. Find me if you can' who appeared out of, quite literally, nowhere?" much to everyone's confusion until he projected the security camera footage.
Standing right outside the main UA with a travelling cloak over the rags she was wearing was a six-year-old child with brilliant crimson eyes, white hair and a small horn poking out of one side of her forehead. She was also carrying the previously mentioned sign with a small grin on her face.
Burying my face in my paws, I groan in defeat and mumble in disbelief "They took down an entire yakuza group in less than two hours by themselves. Before delivering the child to our doorstep with a sassy sign. I have a horrible suspicion this is going to be the start of many people getting deliveries with sassy messages. Nemuri, could you bring the child in without traumatising them. I'm going to need a lot more tea in the coming days, aren't I?"
When the small child came in, she immediately pouted and said "Aww, nice man was right that you'd let me in... he's going to say 'told you so' next time I see him. Cheeky" somewhat grumpy about a bet of some sort. Perking up slightly she calls "oh he also said 'Tell Nezu to remember our chat' whatever that means. I just wanted the cookie and the head pats" prompting Midnight to silently turn around clutching at her chest from the raw cuteness in front of her.
Catching a bit about the mystery individual, I ask "What was the nice man like when you saw him?" hoping for more information other than them probably being male as long as a shapeshifting quirk isn't in play. Gushing joyously about her saviour the little girl bounced up and down saying "He was so cool! The bad bird man was about to hurt me then he ends up tied to the wall. Nice man walks in and teases the bird man for being mean and makes sure I'm safe. He gives really kind hugs, he let me cry in his arms and stroked my hair!" as her mood dipped towards the end.
Sniffling she manged to splutter "he told me I couldn't live with him or other bad people might try and hurt me to get him into a trap. He doesn't want me to get hurt, but I miss him and I..." slowly tearing up in sorrow at not being near them. Rubbing her tears dry she said "it's okay though, he said if I ever got in trouble, wanted to talk or needed a hug, he would come to me. I just needed to want him to be here" holding up a small bracelet she kept tight on her little wrist.
As gently as possible I ask "Could I talk to him? I won't hurt him, I promise. I just think that he's very sad about how mean people can be and doesn't trust anyone else anymore. He wants to help people, but he is angry that the people who should help others don't. I want to try and help him" prompting a light nod as she closes her eyes.
A small drop of black liquid leaps into the air in front of the girl and grows in size, suddenly freezing then twisting into the shape of a young man between eighteen and twenty-five if his body shape is anything to judge by. Garbed in a strange advanced exo-armour beneath a cloak similar to the one the little girl was wearing at the gates.
A light chuckle echoes as the man mocks "Stop trying to erase my quirk Eraserhead, you'd need to see me in person to do that and not this projection. Hello Eri, did Nezu want to talk to me? Perhaps you just wanted some head pats and a cuddle little bean?" putting her in his lap as she snuggles into his projection for all she's worth. A moment that left Nemuri positively shell-shocked by how adorable this scene was to witness. Yes, I'm beyond most intellectual problems, but even I can admit that past a certain point being adorable could be considered a quirk of its own.
Booping Eri's nose, he covers her ears for a moment and speaks in a voice as cold and uncaring as the tundra of the polar ice caps "You had better make sure she gets to have a proper childhood Nezu. Remember my warning; if I hear so much as a peep of Eri being hurt or used like a tool, everyone in that organisation dies before I come back to turn me into mittens. If there's any doubts as to my ability to follow through on those threats, check the Shie Hassaikai compound and the tunnels underneath it. Try not to lose your food" before taking his hands of her ears and in a cheery voice as if he hadn't just been casually speaking about slaughter tells Eri "Be a good girl Eri and learn well. If you do a good job, I'll bring some candy apples for you next time. I have a feeling you'd love them. Stay safe until I next come see you, okay" petting her head before turning into a drop of black liquid and returning to the bracelet on Eri's wrist.
A stunned silence pervades the room until Nemuri pants "My god, am I the only one that thought that was kind of hot?" before finding a capture scarf gagging her and dragged out of the staff room by a very angry Eraserhead. The resulting "conversation" on appropriate topics of conversation around children could be heard in the meeting room along with one of my new favourite descriptions for Nemuri of "Lust-crazed succubus".
In the midst of it all I wear a small frown on my face. While his quirk seems to be fairly distinctive it isn't something I've ever heard of in the slightest. Remote control, telekinesis of the black liquid, some method of resizing the liquid and even more I haven't had a chance to notice yet. While I would be reporting the bizarre range of applications one quirk had and search for him through those channels, I was more interested in the person himself.
What drives a man to seek to protect a small child that they aren't related to with that amount of dedication and determination? The only thing I can think of is a certain level of empathy for her situation based on an aspect of what she went through. Unbidden the conversation from earlier this night played through my mind and his response to being told he could have been a great hero.
With a heavy heart I pieced together a small, but important part of this uncertain picture. Who else would hold such a bitter response to what should have been praise other than someone who wished to be a hero with all their heart and was denied that dream? It seems that the world has lost a great hero before they could even make a mark on history.
Anger towards this broken system that keeps sending prideful, arrogant idiots who believe a quirk is all there is to being a hero and the effort I could dedicate to other things if society stopped being so judgemental and ostracising people for the most stupid of reasons. A state of affairs that only led to more discontent and bitterness, leading more promising members of society to turn their backs on the society that treated them as less.
I'm starting to remember why I despise humans so much at times.
I guess we'll have to investigate that compound later tonight and file a report on what we've found out about his quirk. Recalling the fury that burnt in that man's eyes as he spoke of his retribution towards those that would harm the child, I swore to try and get the smug bastards from the Commision to avoid a catastrophe. For my sake if not theirs.
The next day
Those simple-minded, pencil-pushing imbeciles! They heard about Eri's quirk and were trying every damn trick in the book to take, whether for use as a tool or as leverage against the vigilante now commonly referred to as "Judgement" is reference to the phrase painted in Overhaul's blood over his twisted, broken body. "None can hide from their sins nor shall they escape judgement"
I already knew parts of their conduct based on the way they used Hawks, but if they thought I was about to let them do it a second time to a child someone capable of annihilating an entire Yakuza group without any signs of resistance alone had entrusted me then they were wrong. Which is how I ended up face to face with two shaved apes in suits flanking a greasy little man that I find insulting to be compared to a rat.
After about two hours of telling them in no uncertain terms that they were not getting the child and I did not care what legal shenanigans they pulled in order to try and get her I decided to make it simple enough for them to understand. I wasn't letting it happen. No way, no how.
For once I got a slightly gleeful sensation from seeing the head of the association calling me when she roared "Nezu we'll back off the girl, just call off whichever attack dog you set on us. We've already lost several billion-yen worth of offices and equipment in this debacle, so stop before you get saddled with the repair bill!" to which I took no small amount of malicious pleasure in cackling "Oh no, you've got it backwards here. I didn't set him on you. You brought down his wrath on you by targeting the girl. I believe that the only reason he's limited his retaliation to property damage and not a body count is the fact that the girl is still unharmed. Upset and mildly traumatised by your actions, but unharmed. If you don't want to be the next Overhaul, I suggest you retreat as far as you can from this battle. After all, do you thing you can challenge someone that could challenge All Might is terms of combat strength? Bear in mind that this is just using that little I can tell about his quirk at the moment to make that estimate"
With a sudden shift back to cold, calm solemnity I utter "If I had to guess he could very well surpass the level of strength that All Might possessed in his prime at the current moment. Do you wish to gain enmity from someone like that to gain one girl?"
With a hint of fear creeping in I utter the terrifying part "After all, he doesn't shy away from slaughter and death in the slightest. That is who you are deciding to start a fight with. Someone with combat potential beyond All Might and a lack of hesitation to use lethal force. Should he end up coming for you to settle his grudge..."
"Can you hide from your sins?"
Wow, I got four chapter out in two/three days which I'm personally impressed by. Hope you all enjoy the chapter and take care until the next chapter of Voidborne!
Okay, shit Dragonball references aside, take care of yourselves and try not to die in the global pandemic. I always find not dying to be a good place to start.