A/N: A shout out to the reviews!
ARSLOTHES: Thanks for the compliment! Welcome to the story, my friend!
Mightless3: Shepherd is as tall as Kaminari Denki. He's just slightly taller than Midoriya.
Rex559: It's true that Hound-dog is in charge of helping students with their problems. But because of Midoriya and Bakugo's possible connection to Shepherd, All-Might is place in charge of finding out what happened.
Raven Mordrake: You'll just have to see in this chapter.
Donovan2771: It's tempting…maybe I'll add that in the future..
Betacode79: Thanks for that comment. I really hope I don't have to make this fic M-rated.
weslyschraepen: Oh he'll get his revenge…in due time. But we have to remember that his memories are lost and tempered with by All for One, so he hardly recognises anyone.
Now, onwards!
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Chapter 7: Retaliation.
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=[Musutafu Outskirts, Washiki District, Gekai Private Hospital]=
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"GARGH-GRAGH-! MY EAR! THIS CRAZY BASTARD BIT OFF MY EAR!" Torishima roared in agony, rolling on the floor as blood seeped out of the fresh wound at a steady pace, with his detached ear spat out a distance away from him.
Shepherd made a face like he was about to vomit…before a puddle of toxic sludge was hurled out from his mouth. Before the other guard, Mustard, could retch in disgust at this, the black sludge twisted into life and morphed into spears. They cut through the chains and iron shackles restraining Shepherd and released him. "…You're so noisy…" he looked at the screaming Torishima with disinterest.
"…I can in fact purge sludge from any part of my body…but doing it from my mouth leaves a seriously revolting aftertaste." Coughed Shepherd, wiping the remains of blood and sludge off his lips.
Mustard was about to reach inside his uniform to fish something out, but Shepherd swung his arm and let loose a gunkshot of toxic sludge. Mustard was knocked against the wall and caged in a mass of dark ooze before he could even react, while Torishima continued screaming from the [Toxic Sludge] user's previous attack.
"…I said…" Shepherd growled. "You're too noisy!" He used his other hand to morph the sludge into a whip, slamming it straight into the [Pterodactyl] quirk user's body. The young thug was sent flying into a wall, effectively silencing him and knocked out cold. With him out of the way (for now), he turned his attention to the now cowering Mustard. "Now…what should I do?"
"W-Wait don't kill me!" Mustard cried out. "I can help you!"
From the pitch of his voice, Shepherd figured that this boy was around his age as well, maybe slightly younger.
"…help me?" The hold around Mustard tightened drastically and caused Shepherd's captive to gasped in pain. "…What would you possibly know that could possibly help me? When I can just raze this entire establishment to the ground and get rid of your annoying little group in one shot? What is going to stop me from crushing you right now into a bloody pulp?"
"C-Calm down. Look…I know about the layout of this place better than anyone else." Mustard hastily replied. "You want to find our boss, don't you?! If you let me off, you'll find my quirk pretty handy right now and I can bring you to Jackal! So…please?"
Before Mustard could continue, Shepherd took a moment to observe the trapped, lifeless patients of the hospital sitting in their holding cells.
Shepherd's fingers twitched in agitation at the sight of the broken youths gazing soullessly at him like statues. He didn't know them, but seeing people his age fallen prey to that infuriating Jackal's devilish schemes triggered a horrible feeling in Shepherd. The feeling of being trapped…toyed with…
To make things worse, some of the prisoners were mumbling incoherent ramblings like they were constantly in a trance. The light of life was lost in their eyes, and Shepherd now realized Jackal wasn't bluffing when he said his quirk could rob people of their cognitive abilities. Looks like only the culprit who reduced them to this state could turn them back.
There it was; that weird feeling like Shepherd knew something from his past. Shaking his head, he calmed himself and focused on the task at hand, shifting his focus back to Mustard.
"Where is Jackal?"
"H-He's probably at the third floor…that's where he hangs out to chill."
After a moment of thought, the sludge trapping the gas-masked boy loosened considerably.
"…Alright then, but first…tell me the quirks of all the people in your little group, as well as how their weaknesses," Shepherd instructed, increasing the grip power in the hold again to make sure Mustard was properly registering what he wanted. "…I've seen some of them in action, mind you. If anything you say doesn't add up or sounds fishy…I will kill you on the spot."
"Y-You got it." Mustard nervously replied. "T-The big guy with the hyena face is named Scourge, his quirk [Hyena] grants him supernatural reflexes and agility…but I'm sure his cannibal tendencies is just a disgusting past-time."
"…That guy is dead, so that information's useless now." Shepherd snorted, lowering his voice and edged the black sludge closer to Mustard's face. "If that's all you know, should I make you experience the same death as Scourge?"
The kid paled and froze in his grip. He shook his head frantically and yelled. "Wait! Wait! I got more! I swear! Look, that guy whom you just bit his ear out? He acts like a bigshot, but his [Pterodactyl] quirk just gives him those red-coloured wings to fly and hover short distances. It's funny how his villain name is 'Vulture', when he can't even fly that high off the ground."
"…Yeah, real funny." Shepherd growled. "How about your leader Jackal and that girl with the flute? It seems like those two are the most annoying ones."
"You have already felt Jackal's [Brain Eater] personally; it allows him to view the memories of people he had touched on their foreheads. I don't know the full extent of his quirk, but what I do know is that if he reads too much into one's memories, the person will end up in a permanently broken state of mind; that's how the patients of this place became like that." The kid said. "As for Jackal's sister…"
"…Wait- that girl is your boss' sister?"
"That's what he calls her, but I don't know if that's really the case. Siren's quirk is a little unusual, because she needs an instrument to activate it," Mustard explained hurriedly, glancing around nervously as though his leader was secretly watching him. "Her quirk manipulates the five senses and emotions of anyone in the vicinity who hears the sound she produces. From what I know, her vocal cords emit ultrasonic waves which attacks the target's brain through their eardrums, instilling powerful hallucinations. That's all I know I swear!"
"…So what's your quirk? How is it going to be helpful for me?"
Mustard smirked a little and pointed at himself. "It's [Gas]. I can emit a special type of gas from my body and I can sense where everything is within the gas by reading its fluctuations, just like how a spider tracks its prey within its web. It's pretty neat for scouting and tracking the movement of others. But it's harmless I swear!"
"…Harmless you say? Then why wear a gas mask?" Shepherd asked, making Mustard winced and shrugged his shoulders in shame. "It makes me look the part, I have to conceal my identity with something, don't I? Trust me when I said my quirk is harmless, you weren't affected by it when you first came to this place, right?"
"…So that purple gas in the beginning was your doing too huh?" Shepherd mused. "If that's the case, there one last thing I need to know."
*SLASH!*
"…Tell me how to change those patients back, now." Shepherd snarled as he turned to look at Mustard. "…or else," he said as he stressed on the 'else', a sludge blade pointed at the latter's throat.
"I swear there's nothing I can do! Only Jackal has the power to revert his quirk, I can take you to him!"
Shepherd looked at Mustard sceptically, but he released Mustard from his sludge and gave him a warning glare. "Lead the way to Jackal then. If you are leading me to a trap…"
"Be prepared to face the consequences."
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=[Yuuei. Outside Staff Conference Room]=
"It's a miracle that they're still going on with the Sports Festival, given what happened at the USJ. A bad idea if you ask me…"
"Come on Aizawa! Your class is so hyped up about it despite having just recovered from that attack, can't you at least match a little of your students' enthusiasm?"
"That's what I'm worried about; I don't need a student over-straining himself from excitement and cause an accident." Aizawa sent Yamada a glare as they just finished a briefing for the upcoming sports festival. "I told them to take it easy but still…"
"It's a once-per-year event after all, an integral part of every U.A student's journey as a hero," Yamada stated loudly. "It's not something that's going to be cancelled easily or taken lightly. It's a prestigious event after all, something the entire country looks forward to."
"There's the incredibly long debate to the issue of continuing the event though…" Aizawa slowly trailed off to a mutter. "The brats are lucky to have almost recovered from their injuries during the USJ attack, most of them. Todoroki Shouto have cuts all over his body while Kirishima still has a broken arm. I tried to talk them about sitting out the one-on-one battle rounds, but they were incredibly insistent. Talk about hard-headed."
In response to Aizawa's sighs, Yamada just laughed. But after a while, the [Voice] quirk Pro-hero and teacher told his colleague in a more serious tone.
"Hey Aizawa, did you hear? You, me and Nemuri. We're being asked to join a temporary task force for the time being after this festival is over, approximately during the internships of the hero classes."
After a few seconds of silence, Aizawa gave him a slightly bewildered stare – his brow showing his surprise from the way it raised the bandages covering his face. "No. I have heard nothing of the sort. Where did you get that info from?"
Looking around to make sure no one's listening, Present-Mic explained. "I don't know much of the details…but apparently we are specifically selected to suppress a certain villain. I got a hint from that Inspector Tsukauchi the last time he visited here thanks to the USJ incident."
"So…who is this villain?" Aizawa narrowed his eyes. "Don't tell me it's the crazy one making the news these days?"
"Bingo," Present-Mic nodded in confirmation. "The user of [Toxic Sludge], S-rank villain Shepherd."
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=[Gekai Private Hospital, Second Floor]=
"This better be the right way kid."
"Just believe me! What use would there be in lying to you at this point? And stop calling me 'Kid', it's Mustard. You're only what? 15 years old?"
"…I don't care," Shepherd only let out a snort as he followed Mustard's lead and climbed up the stairs leading to the second floor of the hospital. "…I'll only believe you when you lead me to that Jackal. Until then…you don't need me to say what happens if you are lying, do you?"
"Your lack of trust is seriously a pain…" Mustard muttered, keeping a safe distance away from Shepherd. "But I guess that's what makes you the S-rank villain Shepherd; the Hellhound of the League of Villains. Is it a good time to say just how much of a fan I am? The way you slaughtered that powerhouse Muscular…not to mention Scourge, you are really the real deal!"
"Again…I don't care." Shepherd said, hissing over his shoulder. "Just tell me where to go next."
"…Just around the corner at the surgery room." Mustard told him. "There is an emergency staircase which leads to the third floor. Jackal will most probably be in the surveillance room where the security feed is shown."
He climbed the stairs and reached the second floor. The hospital had three floors above the ground, and the basement. While walking down the white corridors, Shepherd suddenly stopped. A petite figure stood in front of him. It was the girl in a hoodie and sneakers, with lavender-purple hair and bandages around her neck, giving off an unnatural atmosphere.
"It's Siren," Mustard warned, retreating behind Shepherd. "Just like me, she doesn't have any combat ability…but she can knock us out by through music using that flute of hers."
The thing which caught Shepherd's attention was the wooden flute in her hands. He had been previously caught in some weird hypnosis which caused him to be suppressed so easily. If he was caught again, he was sure they will kill him with no hesitation this time. In any case, falling victim to her music was not going to be an option.
"…a troublesome quirk." Shepherd muttered. "But not one without its weaknesses."
"My name is Hichikiri Shizune, villain name: Siren," said the girl who had been silent. "I like ice-cream and music, and I dislike cats and crowds. I have killed 60 people."
"…I heard you the first time. I'm in a rush, so step aside." Shepherd's voice cut her off harshly, as sharp as steel. "…I can't say I would have mercy on a girl. If you choose to get in my way, I'll won't hesitate to cut you down."
"It doesn't matter." Shizune's voice lacked even less emotion than Shepherd. "I will fight to protect my brother, his dreams…and my home. A person who dares destroys our home will be silenced, like all the others before you. Are you going to betray us, Mustard?"
"Sorry," Mustard told her. "It's my personal policy to side with the winning team."
"So be it. I'll just have to put both of you to sleep." Shizune then whispered, placing the transverse flute gently upon her lips. "Psycho Flute: Slumbering Performance."
"…That music again?" Shepherd said without changing his expression. "…Don't expect the same trick to work twice."
Shepherd's sludge spread out like wings and attacked Siren in a shower of bullets. Siren silently jumped back to avoid the sludge by a narrow margin, pressing the flute to her lips once more and let the melody reverberate across the corridor, making Shepherd wobble unsteadily as he beginning to feel the effects of the girl's music. However, that did not caused the [Toxic Sludge] quirk user to stop; the boy expanding his sludge to catch the villain flutist in its range, but much to his chagrin, the girl was more nimble than he thought, playing her flute with more force.
"Psycho Flute: Slumbering Performance Crescendo"
A louder and shriller melody was produced, and it resounded deeply in Shepherd's mind no matter how much he covered his ears!
"…a quirk that attacks the senses…that's quite nasty." Shepherd clenched his teeth, struggling to not collapse. "But don't you dare…underestimate me!"
Shepherd willed the toxic sludge blades high in the air, before piercing it into his own stomach. That caused him to cough out blood, but he grinned as the pain cleared his mind and caused his vision to refocused, able to see Siren who was watching quietly with dark eyes.
"You overcame the sound by inflicting pain upon yourself," Siren said blankly. "But nothing will change. If you wish to harm yourself to escape my music, I shall simply continue playing until your body bleeds out. I will not give you the time to recover."
Siren rushed forward, readying her instrument once more. But Shepherd took his opportunity to morphed his toxic sludge into countless spears and lashed them out in a wide area. Following Shepherd's attack, Siren quickly breathed a piercing melody and made the boy clutched his head in pain, breaking off his concentration to activate his [Toxic Sludge] quirk.
"I won't give you time to morph your sludge."
"Grrr…Gargh-SCHWARZ HAGEL (Black Hail)!" With a snarl, Shepherd hardened his sludge into bullets and fired them in all directions like a machine gun.
Siren did not have time to react and was pierced in several areas. With a dark flash he caught the flute which had fallen out of her hands. The instrument soon splintered, crushed and shattered into pieces of wood.
"Nice try…" Shepherd's eyes sharpened with ferocity. "But I've enough with your music. With this, you are rendered useless…so step aside."
Shepherd's sludge reformed into a large beaked spear, aiming at Siren's neck. However, Siren's expression did not change as she continued to stand in the boy's path, pulling out a pocket knife from her pocket and showing Shepherd the blade.
It would be so easy to kill her now…but something about her doesn't seem right.
"Step aside, you have lost the means to activate your quirk." Shepherd repeated with more force. "Or do you merely have a death wish?"
However, just as Siren was about to say something, a purplish gas suddenly overwhelmed the entire corridor in one strong burst. Shepherd's eyes widen as he saw Siren's genuine expression of surprised before she slumped forward and fell to the ground unconscious. Following this, his body also fell down, and his eyes fell upon the one responsible for this sudden attack.
"Have a nice sleep. I'll finish the rest…" Shepherd looked at to see Mustard with a revolver in his hands. He could have sworn a smirked was forming on that little bastard's ugly mug. "…you idiots."
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=[U.A Sports Stadium]=
Bakugo was distracted. That was the only excuse he had for being distracted during the race.
"You drove him to this! You could have prevented that!"
Not only was Deku beginning to grow some balls, he was also constantly reminding him to a bad memory, and it sickened him.
Why did he even care so much? Why was he acting like he was entirely to blame for that quirkless crybaby's suicide attempt?
It wouldn't change anything now.
Even if that crazy villain that faced was indeed, by some miraculous chance, Hakazuka Kotaro…it wouldn't change anything.
He wasn't the same person anymore, by a long shot. That guy was just a crazy psychopathic villain who got himself into the top danger list or villain and was now wanted by the country. But at the end of the day…a mere villain.
He did not have a hand in creating such a monster.
That shitty Deku thought he knew everything. He almost hoped that he would end up facing Deku directly in one of the advancing rounds, just to show how weak he actually was.
He looked behind him briefly to see the wave of faux villain robots crashing down on the majority of the U.A students right at the start of the obstacle race (courtesy of that half-and-half bastard), many of them already hinder by such a weak excuse of an obstacle.
What a joke.
With his usual ruthless attitude, he blasted his way though the rest of the robots, not caring if he knocked others out of the way, his gaze fixated only on the aloof Todoroki running ahead of everyone else.
If he wanted to advance to the top with flying colours, being second was not an option. In the massively competitive world of Pro-heroes, being the best was the only way, and he could not afford to be bothered by those struggling beneath him.
"You did not care about anyone else besides yourself, Kacchan!"
But that was a lot easier said than done, as he caught a determined Midoriya bashing his way through the first barricade of robots and glared at him with a determined expression. There it was again, being distracted needlessly when he should be aiming for what's in front of him. That Shepherd guy had nothing to do with him, nor should he care. The heroes will always win…especially against villains.
The world is cruel, and reality is even harsher.
Bakugo was going to reach for number 1, even if it meant trampling over countless others for it.
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=[Gekai Private Hospital, Second Level]=
"I can't believe he fell for such an obvious lie," Mustard chuckled as he stood before the two fallen figures of Shepherd and Siren. "Looks like Jackal was right all along; small fries like me always look practically harmless powerful guys like you. Did having born with two quirks make you feel somewhat special? You must be feeling so confident because of that regeneration of yours right~? A special guy like you never expected to be ambushed by little-ol'me, isn't that right?"
His laughter only intensified when he was responded with silence. "But I technically never lied to you, really. My quirk is indeed gas…I just happened to exclude one tiny detail. It's [sleeping gas]! Luckily I made the correct decision to remove that mask of yours from the very beginning!"
"Sparing the enemy is a common trait of the strong and arrogant," Mustard thought to himself as he stood behind Shepherd's still figure. "He thinks he's invincible just because he has a [Regeneration] quirk…what a dunce."
He reached within his gakuran school uniform and pulled out a small handgun – a 38 Revolver, aiming the silver barrel straight at Shepherd's head. "No matter how exceptional a person's quirk is, they are still human."
"Overconfidence is a typical trait of people with healing quirks; they think they're invincible. Even if you have a powerful regeneration quirk, if I aim for your brain or heart…I can still kill you easily, just like any other human being."
"Goodbye…and good riddance." He declared gleefully, the finger pulling the trigger.
He was about to pull the trigger when suddenly, a barrage of black sludge spikes protruding all around Mustard and immobilized him; their sharp ends poised to skewer the boy alive. He yelped, falling to the ground on his rear. "…Nice gun, it's the same type as what that winged bastard was using when he fought me." The voice of Shepherd uttered a demonic snarl as he stood up, eyeing Mustard with a dangerous glare. "…you must be pretty weak if you're relying on something like that."
"Impossible…!" Mustard sputtered in shock. "I just hit you with my quirk at full blast…so why are you still moving?! The poison gas should have knocked you out cold! You should be asleep!"
"…Poison?" Shepherd looked up towards Mustard at that, growling furiously like an animal. "…you call this poison?"
Shepherd's sludge morphed into a whip and pulled away Mustard's gun. "G-Give it back!" Mustard realized that his last resort for a counterattack had been stolen away and paled greatly.
"…sorry, but I'm afraid that my body is host to a much deadlier poison; yours just can't keep up."
Shepherd held the gun in his hand. At the same time, sludge oozed out of his arm and encased it in the form of a claw, before the gun was crushed in its powerful grip. The black metal pieces scattered in vain before Mustard's eyes, who could only watch in horror.
"…What's the matter?" Shepherd asked coldy. "Weren't you going to kill me?"
Shepherd threw a punch, hitting him squarely in the center of his gas mask. His small, scrawny body was thrown back to the floor as his protective gear shattered into pieces, revealing his true identity to be a boy slightly younger than Shepherd himself, with blonde choppy hair. Blood was leaking from his mouth, several molars forcibly removed from the sheer power behind the strike.
"…how many people whom you've shot with that gun? You think you're strong with that kind of borrowed strength?" the [Toxic Sludge] user asked coldly as he stomped towards him, his sludge morphing into a hellish blade. "In the end…you are just like that Muscular guy huh? Was it fun to kill those weaker than you?" He grabbed Mustard's wrist with his other hand, pulling it upwards. His body was limb, still stricken with fear, and pain was coursing through his system like a pump. "…I bet you took your anger out of those patients in the basement as well, isn't that right? What other reason could there possibly be for you to stay in this little group?"
Mustard retreated to the wall in horror, his face etched with sweat and tears, and body pressed against the wall. "W-wait, please let me explain!" he begged and pleaded for his life. Little good would that do for him right now. "This was all Jackal's idea! I'm innocent! I'm only following orders!"
"No no no, I understand…I don't blame you," He leaned in, whispering into his ear. "It feels good, doesn't it?"
Mustard's face blanched, his soul finally tasting true absolute terror. "…I understand…the sense of elation when you kill others who belittled you…" Shepherd said, almost in a reminiscing tone. "…but what is the use of killing those weaker than you? Or using something as distasteful as a gun? No…you have to use your own two hands to take action…to destroy those who dared stand in your way."
"…You got some balls to try killing me even after knowing how I killed Scourge previously, I'll give you that." Shepherd told him. "For that…I'll give you a quick death."
Mustard felt his tears finally sprawling all over his face. "N-No…! Please I beg you!"
"...Schwarz Kiefer (Black Jaws of the Beast)."
The sludge loomed above Mustard like a monster's jaws, before slicing down and bisecting his body into two pieces.
=[]=
"…That was seriously unsatisfying."
Shepherd gazed at the split body of Mustard. After all that big talk, this was all he amounted to? "You think I'm privileged? You think I'm was born lucky and powerful?" he told him, stepping away from him. "If that's how you see someone like me, you must have lived a pretty luxurious life."
Mustard's eyes fell on him weakly. "Finishing you off has no merits…" Shepherd scoffed. "I'll just let the poison do its work."
He sharply turned on his foot and walked towards the other opponent who has fallen victim to Mustard's sleep-inducing gas.
"hgg…" Siren groaned, but her body couldn't move much. She struggled to stand and her hands tried to reach her instrument.
A black claw of sludge manifested from Shepherd and held Siren's neck, who fell to the ground while trying to pick up her flute. Siren gasped for air while her lungs were constricted, fingers clawing the sludge appendage.
Observing the girl's lack of fear, Shepherd asked with blood thirst evident in his tone. "Where is Jackal? Spit it out. I'll kill you if you don't." Shepherd demanded with his purple eyes gazing into Siren's. He began to squeeze tighter. "I was patient with the first liar, you won't be so lucky this time if you so much as to utter a single word of nonsense."
"What is your purpose here?" Siren suddenly asked emotionlessly. "Are you perhaps sent here to kill everyone, or…you plan to reclaim those children in the basement as the League of Villain's property?" Those words caused the black sludge controlled by Shepherd to bubble furiously, morphing rapidly into a spear, like a scorpion behind Shepherd, pointed towards Siren.
"My job…is to eradicate the fools who dare intrude on League's territory and claim it as their own." Shepherd snarled. "This is your last chance; give me the location of your leader and tell me how to undo the effects of Jackal's quirk on those people trapped in the basement."
"It's…impossible." Siren said in the same voice. "My brother's quirk has rendered them permanently deprived of any cognitive ability…they will remain in that state for the rest of their lives. As for my brother…I would give my life to protect him."
"…I see."
Shepherd's sludge began to bubble, forming around his arms like his anger was manifesting.
"…he must be a sorry excuse of a leader if he does not plan to deal with me himself, but it does not matter. My patience is running thin here, either spill your leader's whereabouts…or your final words. Without your flute, you are nothing but a weakling."
"That will not change anything," said Siren immediately, her eyes were stone-cold, lifeless and deprived of emotion. "I will carry out my mission to protect him."
"I can't say that's not admirable, but you are ultimately a foolish person."
"Kill me then."
Shepherd clicked his tongue in disgust before swinging his sludge diagonally and throwing Siren, making her crash to the floor with a painful thud and left a radical mark.
"If you wish to die so much, do so in a corner by yourself," Shepherd quickly walked past Siren, and made his way out of the corridor. "What a boring opponent."
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=[Gekai Hospital level 3, Security Surveillance Room]=
Jackal was born an excellent prodigy who had a way with words and people. However…he didn't possess a single ounce of empathy, believing that being mindful of others was a waste of time when effort should be spent developing his own business empire and standing in society. Combining his wit, cunning together with his [Brain Eater] quirk, he was a feared con-man who able to amass his riches while avoiding detection from the authorities.
Robbing people of their minds and plundering possessions for himself, thievery, fraud, trickery. Jackal had committed the most heinous crimes to get where he was today. Who cares if he was scoffed at for having a villain-like quirk? While the rest of them are slaving away in this 'just' society, he would be lavishing in the fruits of his own endeavors.
He had no interest in others, and trampled over the lives of various heroes, villains and civilians. A boy who was expelled from school thanks to a suicide case. A small-fry villain who despised the strong and privileged. A cannibal who was shunned from society, and a girl with a mental trauma from her quirk going berserk. He had utilized everything to his advantage, standing on top of others like a demon.
Sitting in the chair in the surveillance room of the abandoned hospital, Jackal watched what was happening below through the security cameras. "Tch…they can't even do their jobs properly." He had specifically instructed Mustard through the communicators to act like he was going to betray and former, and then bringing Shepherd Siren to fight him. If she wasn't strong enough, the plan was to have Mustard finish him off using the gun provided to him.
It was the perfect plan.
He had specifically told Mustard not to bother using his gas and just use the gun…but the boy just couldn't bear to resist using his quirk and trash-talking, could he?
To make things worse, that Shepherd just had to be immune to poison and chemical agents…just great.
"After all that effort made to procure those guns…" Jackal seethed. "Those idiots blew it up." He kicked down the chair in anger, massaging his tempers as he weighed his remaining options.
Scourged was killed. Mustard was brutally incapacitated. Vulture was in the basement unconscious. All he had left was Siren, who was somehow spared but her instrument was destroyed.
"Well…I really hope it doesn't come to this." Jackal calmly turned the dashboard control keys and opened a channel to communicate with Siren. "But I have a final card to play."
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=[Gekai Private Hospital. Second Level.]=
"Shizune…report your status."
While Shepherd was making his way to the highest floor of the hospital, Siren tapped on the communicator and spoke quietly.
"B-Brother…Shepherd is making his way to the third floor now. I-My instrument is broken…Mustard is down and I don't know where Vulture is."
"Shizune…are you hurt?" Jackal's voice was calm. "Are you able to fight?"
"I-I can move…but I'm still feeling a little weak because of Mustard's gas." The girl known by her real name Shizune, replied.
"Then come up to the third floor now…no excuses." There was no trace of concern or worry in Jackal's voice. It was the voice of authority that he still had pieces left to play in the game. "we still have you and your quirk. We will kill Shepherd once and for all."
"I…I have to use my quirk…to kill?" Siren said in an absurdly flat voice, her fingers gripped her own arm tightly.
"Are you questioning my orders? Or perhaps…" Jackal's voice turned icy. "…you wish lose your only place in the world…and go to jail?"
Shizune's breathing stopped, as though her superior's voice had caused the air to vanish.
"N-No…P-Please I-!"
"You don't have anywhere to go if we were to fall here, Shizune. Don't disappoint me."
With that said, communication was then lost.
Tracing the communicator in her ear with a shaky finger, Shizune turned around. Her body was shaking, she was afraid to go after the white-haired boy. Her eyes lingered on the broken pieces of her flute, before finally making a decision.
"I will continue to kill…to protect my place."
With her emotions shut down forcefully, her eyes returned to their blank, lifeless state.
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=[Gekai Private Hospital, Third Level]=
"You've really made me angry, boy." Jackal's voice echoed in the hallway where Shepherd just entered from the stairway. "I should have broken your mind with my quirk from the very start."
"…Jackal." Shepherd turned around, looking for the source of the sound. "…you have been relying on your lackeys like a coward so far. How about you come out?"
"Looks like the League of Villains wasn't as weak as everyone claimed them to be," said the leader of 'Scavenge' in a flat tone. "The [Toxic Sludge] quirk user Shepherd…what did the League do to have a monster such as you?"
"…Enough," Shepherd told him. "You killed one of Sensei's close associates. You messed with the territory of the League of Villains. As such, I will eradicate you…and bring your corpse to Sensei."
"Don't get cocky. You think I'll let myself be beat by a mere child? A stupid kid whose purpose is to impress his boss like some obedient dog?! Screw that!"
Shepherd's patience was stretching thin. At this rate, it would be faster if he used his quirk to demolish every single level of the hospital and forced Jackal out into the open. In terms of combat ability, Shepherd's quirk comes out on top. Only person remained for the completion of his mission.
Or so it seemed.
"I won't let you proceed on further than this. You will die here." Standing at the entrance where Shepherd came from, the flute-wielding Siren, Hichikiri Shizune.
"Willing to die for your leader?" said Shepherd, slightly mocking. "I have given you a warning. Your illusions won't work on me anymore."
"How confident," Jackal laughed through the loudspeaker, apparently enjoy this scene from his hiding spot. "Do it, Shizune. Show him your true strength."
"Brother is in danger…I must save him…!"
"…Your quirk is useless without your flute. How are you going to fight me? Are you going to become a human meatshield just to protect what's left of your little group? There's nothing a weak little girl like you could do in this situation."
Siren didn't answer, she just looked down and clutched her head in fear.
"I must…Save him…I must kill you…!"
Her voice trembled with desperation. No…it was fear.
"…You," Shepherd observed the shaking girl. Something seemed off about her from the beginning. "That's enough-"
Siren hugged her body with both hands. Her joints turned white and her fingernails sank into her shivering flesh. "I must protect my place…I must protect brother…I must protect brother…I must be useful if I want to live…I must…!" she said with a scared look. Her teeth were shaking with terror and cold sweat sprouted all over her face.
Shepherd, after looking at the girl's drastic transformation from her initial emotionless outlook, said with a hard tone. "…Enough. Stand down and I won't hurt you."
"Go on Shizune," The sinister voice of Jackal chuckled over the loudspeakers. "Show him just why you are called Siren."
"Your quirk is death-incarnate, Shizune. As long as you live…you can only bring suffering to those around you."
In front of Shepherd, Shizune trembled violently. She was so terrified…so scared…but she took a deep breath. With his eyes narrowed, Shepherd readied his sludge and dashed towards Shizune.
"You have no place left in this world. If you want to continue living…you have to protect me, Shizune."
And Shizune screamed.
"SKKKKKKKKEEEEEEEEEECCCCCCCCHHHHH!"
In Shepherd's dumbfounded face, Shizune screamed out a high-pitched scream that hit the boy like a massive shockwave. An invisible force hit Shepherd, and he crashed to the ground as searing pain assaulted his eardrums. Shepherd lost consciousness for a moment, like a puppet whose strings got cut off, until his body twitched slightly at the unbearable sensation like his ears were about to explode.
"Impressive, don't you think?!" Jackal laughed over the intercom as he observed the battle from another room. "Siren's quirk is [Psychosis]! When she uses her flute, the sounds she produced can impair your senses and emotions in your mind! But her true terror lies in her voice, emitting ultrasonic waves directly to the mind…and scramble your brain in seconds!"
Siren screamed again.
Shepherd could not even hear his own cries of pain as the sound assaulted his eardrums and caused blood to bleed from his ears, eyes and mouth. No matter how much he tried to clamp his ears shut, the sound just seemed to pass through any defense and caused him to feel like his nerves were on fire. Shepherd's body was constantly taking damage, but he still continued to struggle in agony. Normally, a few seconds of Shizune's voice was enough to destroy someone completely, but seeing Shepherd still alive caused her to panic and unleashed her devastating high-frequency attack repeatedly. Her hands were shaking, her eyes were trembling and cold sweat was all over her body.
"This is what makes her the perfect killing machine!" Jackal's voice chuckled. "You are going to pay for what you have done to my group, brat!" He continued, forcing Shepherd to listen. "I have always gotten what I want from whoever I wanted, and you're no exception. I'm going to make sure you'll have a slow and agonizing death…and turn you into a living vegetable! Do it! Shizune!"
I must kill…I must kill…I must kill…
Shizune could not stop attacking. She couldn't even stop if she wanted to. All she could hear was the cold voice of her brother and what would happened if she did not finish off the opponent. Her broken soul screamed, she couldn't stop. It was only when a searing pain rose in her throat, which caused her to stop and coughed violently, blood dribbling out from her mouth.
"Don't stop Shizune!" Jackal's voice ordered. "Use your voice to destroy him until there's nothing left!"
'*cough!* I-I cannot…*cough!* …stop!" Shizune tried to use her voice, but the pain was too unbearable for her and made her cough out small spatters of blood to the floor. But the voice of her brother was far scarier than the pain…forcing herself to stand up and continue unleashing her hypersonic scream. Her throat was cracking, but her broken soul continued to cry in desperation.
"W-why…?"
Shizune's voice stopped.
Shepherd's lips moved in small words.
"Why…are you listening to this weakling…why are you so afraid?"
A shiver went through Shizune's body. Why wasn't this boy dead? Her quirk has always killed her victims within seconds, but why is he still conscious? She stared at Shepherd with fear in her eyes.
"You…don't actually want to kill…don't you?"
Shizune's face turned a ghostly white, and her emotions began to skyrocket through the roof.
"You have no right to live, Shizune."
"Killers have no place in this unfair world," The icy whisper of Jackal clutched her heart. The voice which shackled her. "But I can give you salvation…lend me your strength Shizune, and I can make a world where you can be accepted."
.
.
=[Flashback]=
A case study on quirk theory once hypothesized,
A child would normally manifest his or her quirk by the age of four, or born with it (especially for mutation-types). However, there have been cases of quirks that first activated with an external stimulus. For example, a man in his twenties thought to be quirkless…had in fact possess the ability to fly during a skydiving trip. Such cases of hidden quirks had raised the question of why? Seventy-five percent of hidden quirk cases required very specific triggers to manifest themselves…and the quirks themselves may be increasing in power without their owners realizing it. Theory indicates that the longer the quirk doesn't manifest, the more likely it may go berserk at its first manifestation. So, it is essential for parents to identity the child's quirk nature as should as possible, to take safety countermeasures if necessary…
.
The Hichikiri household had a long history of producing some of the most influential musicians in Musutafu. Shizune had the perfect life planned. Her mother was a violist, with a [Music Empathy] quirk which allowed her to instill various emotions with her music instruments. Her father was a talented pianist and singer, his [Acoustic-kinesis] quirk giving him the ability to amplify any sound he produced.
Even though Shizune was born quirkless, she was no doubt…the pride and joy of her prestigious family. Her favorite instrument was the transverse flute, and she was a great singer who has garnered many fans online for her voice.
"You are our most precious treasure…our beautiful little songbird," her parents would constantly tell her, ruffling her trademark lavender-purple hair. "For your very first solo performance, our friends will finally hear your music…but don't be nervous okay?"
The smile on Shizune's face said it all. On her 10th birthday, she was scheduled to have her very first solo performance, a feat rare even for music practitioners. She was initially disappointed not to have a quirk just like her parents, but now none of it mattered to Shizune. To her, having a quirk was just an accessory…something that made her different from others. But with her innate talent in music, her life was already fulfilled.
On that day, the lights shone on the stage and thunderous applause prompted the little girl to trod nervously up on stage, wearing a stunning white dress handpicked by her mother. Reaching into her attire, she produced her favorite flute.
She held the flute in her hands…she was smiling at the applauding crowd…her fancy dress twirled beautifully as she prepared for the biggest performance of her life as a prodigy flutist.
She could even see the proud faces of her parents smiling from the front role.
"Please," she prayed. "Let this performance be the most memorable of my life. Everyone shall not forget my music."
In the next moment…
Her prayer was answered…by the untimely manifestation of her quirk, a fusion of her parent's powers which she never imagined she had.
Someone in the audience started screaming. It startled the girl at first, but experience calmed her nerves and she continued to play her flute. But soon even more audience members began to go berserk, screaming their lungs out and foaming in the mouth, attacking the shocked listeners beside them like they've gone mad. Shizune's eyes turned horrified when every single person in the music hall started displaying the same symptoms, collapsing with screams filled with agonizing pain.
Something was happening. Villains must be attacking, why else would they be acting like that?
"SOMEONE PLEASE HELP! VILLAINS…VILLAINS ARE-!" Shizune stopped playing and screamed for help while she jumped off the stage to help her dear audience. But the expressions of pain intensified as a weird wave of energy seemed to originate from Shizune's voice, making everyone bleed extreme volumes of blood from every opening of their body.
"Run…PLEASE RUN AWAY!" she sobbed, but the more she cried out to help, the more agony the audience members seemed to suffer as they tried to clamp their ears shut. It was like a scene from hell.
By the time Shizune was too traumatized to scream out anything, the entire concert hall was bathed in blood. Her hands were dyed red, her dressed stained a rich crimson as the bodies of guest laid all around her with blood oozing out from their offices.
"Mother…please…help me…!" Shizune sobbed. "The killer…the killer is still-!"
The woman who spent her entire life nurturing her precious child paled and skittle back. "No! Stay away!" she screamed. "Stay back! You monster!" she pleaded hysterically, gazing at Shizune like she was the personification of death itself.
"N-No…please…!" The purple-haired musician sobbed silently, whispering her pleas under the fear that her voice may harm the only person she loved in her entire life. "I can't control it." She begged, walking towards her mother. "Mother…please…!"
The woman kicked her away. "I have no child…not a monster like you."
Sobbing, Shizune gathered her flute and whatever possessions left and ran away from the carnage-filled music hall. Before she left the vicinity she took one last look at the blood-stained auditorium and saw her mother hugging the lifeless corpse of her husband, a look of pure loathing on her face before she broke down and hugged her dearest.
It was then she realized.
She was the one who killed…she was the killer.
"SHE'S THE KILLER! GET HER! SHE'S THE ONE WHO DID THIS! GET HER!"
Sobbing, Shizune hobbled away from the crime scene before the sound of police sirens wailed in the air, unsure of what her life has become now that her most precious talent…was now her deadliest weapon.
=[Months later]=
Shizune prayed every day to whatever god she knew. She didn't pray for her safety. She didn't pray for help. She just wanted a quick death.
The police had worked fast. News of the a music concert performed by one of Musutafu's music prodigies had gone horribly wrong, resulting in the death of 60 audience members, their auditory organs shattered and all died from heart attacks. One was spared, but her mind was broken and spent the rest of her life in a mental hospital. And finally, the prodigy musician herself was missing…and the case was identified as a cruel villain attack and kidnapping.
Shizune spent her days wondering in the shadows of Musutafu City. She removed herself from society and dared not appeared in the public under the fear of someone recognising her. If she was taken to the police…they would no doubt question her newly-manifested quirk and link the deaths back to Shizune. With her voice turned into a weapon, she did not dare utter a word. With no family left and no friends to turn to, Shizune spent her days wandering about lost…hungry…and devastated.
She found out that by using her flute, she could create hallucinations in people's minds which caused them to go mad. But every time her lips connect to her instrument, the screams of her victims would come and haunt her, and ultimately terrify her. Life no longer had any meaning for her and she slept every night continuously being plagued by nightmares.
"Poor thing…so you're the girl whose quirk went berserk, aren't you?" She was surprised to see a smartly-dressed man standing before her dishevelled figure. "I mean you no harm…I just want to talk." The strange man greeted, but the greedy look in his eyes made Shizune extremely wary.
"Stay back," she finally whispered in a trembling voice. "Don't make me kill you."
"You're a killer…no matter what you do, there's nothing that can change this fact." The man laughed lightly and extended his hand. "You can no longer turn back…but I can show you a path where you can be reveled for your gifts…a future where you can be forgiven for your sins."
.
=[Flashback end]=
And so she killed…and killed…and killed even more. But how much more must she kill to earn forgiveness?
"I m-must protect him…he promised me…!" Shizune coughed, feeling like her throat's on fire. "I-I want to be f-forgiven…!"
"WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR, SHIZUNE?!" Jackal's voice howled above her. "KILL HIM! KILL THAT BRAT! IF YOU DON'T KILL HIM NOW…YOU'LL HAVE NO WHERE TO BELONG!"
"Shut up…what right does a weakling like you have…" Shepherd gritted his teeth. "…TO TELL HER TO LIVE OR DIE?!"
"…You are a killer…just like me." Said Shepherd, who had been crucified against the wall from the initial shockwave of Siren's voice, said in a wheezing voice. "You cannot change that fact."
"A…a…" Siren's eyes shook with terror and another scream was unleashed. "Uwa…Aa…Aaaa…Aaaaaaah!"
Shizune let forth another banshee-like scream and blasted Shepherd's body away, which was thrown like a ragdoll and caused him to crash again into the wall. The boy's ears were bleeding and his brain felt like it was being scrambled from the inside-out. His entire nervous system felt like it's on fire and his heart was beating at a dangerous pace. If it wasn't for his regeneration…he would have been a goner a long time ago.
"No! No! No! NO! NOO!" shouted Shizune as she continued to unleash her death-inducing voice. "I have no choice! I have to keep killing! I WANT A PLACE WHERE I CAN BELONG!"
"That's…something the weak tell themselves to escape from reality!" Shepherd howled over the noise. "How long are you going to follow that man's orders?! How much are you going run away from your sins?! Are you going to stay as a weak little girl who takes orders from someone who doesn't care for you?! SAY IT! WHAT YOU REALLY WANT TO DO!"
Shizune stopped her quirk. It took her a few seconds…but she whispered with tears leaking down her teal eyes.
"My name is Hichikiri Shizune…I love music…and ice-cream. I killed 60 people, and…"
"…I-I don't want to kill anyone else…"
*SLASH!*
A slashing noise cut through the brief moment of silence. "Eh?" Shizune creaked her head downwards to see a thin blade of toxic sludge piercing through her belly and past her back, burying her in the wall behind them.
"H-How are you…m-moving…?!" She croaked in a bloody voice.
"I can't hear very well now…I tore out my eardrums…!" Shepherd rose to his feet slowly, the sides of his head bleeding heavily. "Your voice produces ultrasonic waves that attack the auditory nerves no matter how much one blocks it…so I just had to remove them, simple as that."
The sludge around Shepherd's arm morphed into many spears and stabbed Shizune, twisting and expanding, getting the violet-haired girl to scream in pain as she felt her flesh tore up and toxins seeping into her body.
"A quirk that is fueled by fear…and your desire for repentance," Shepherd stated as he walked towards Shizune. "…You don't belong here. Your heart is weak…your resolve to kill is weak as well…a person who seeks her own death on the battlefield does not have any hope of winning."
In response to his words, Shizune's teal eyes were filled with terror. Shepherd finally reached the girl, quickly removing the sludge blades pinning Shizune and threw her against the ground, his purple eyes glinting evilly in the dim light as they gazed at her coldly, cold black sludge swirled around the white-hair boy menacingly.
"Now that you have calmed down a little, you can stay here and wait for a quiet death while I find your 'brother'. If you choose to stand in my way for the third time, I will not hesitate to cut you down."
"P-Please wait," Shizune coughed, raising a hand and begged in a raspy voice, probably from overusing her quirk. "Jackal is all that I have left!" Her voice continued to plead as Shepherd walked out of the room. "If you kill him…I have nowhere else to go to! So…p-please…!"
Shepherd paused for a while, before he moved towards his final prey.
"…Like I care." He never looked back and the sound of his echoing footsteps resounded silently into the hospital.
.
=[To Be Continued]=