Disclaimer: I do not own My Hero Academia, or The Gamer, or The Harry Dresden Files.
Summary: Izuku Midoriya gets The Gamer ability. He gets a Harry Dresden File DLC. Chaos ensues.
Izuku Midoriya wandered through the streets without realizing just where he was going. His mind was wandering as his feet moved. He was aware enough to give a passing glance to traffic lights.
It wasn't until he realized it was quiet before he blinked, shook his head and stared at the entrance of a forest trail. Izuku looked around and noticed how familiar it was. The scent of pine, the cool breeze hitting his skin as the sun warmed him up, crunch of fallen leaves and small twigs underneath, all of it, was enough to recall childhood memories.
He walked the familiar trail. He could remember the singing of children. The stomping of feet. Laughter that once rang and the argument that destroyed the relationship between friends.
He heard the small flowing creek underneath a giant log. The smell of fresh dew on grass in the air. He smiled softly and he sat on the log.
The trees rustled with breeze. He closed his eyes. It was calm.
Did he make the right choice in not telling his mom everything? She already had a hint that he let slip. The whole concept of the Quirk though...
His Quirk. Nine years after he was told he would never have a Quirk. Quirk Specialists had done every test they could with his mother's permission.
Quest Unlocked:
Find and Clear Dungeons:
0/9
Reward: ???
Izuku stared at the notification that appeared. He frowned. He hadn't finished the Tutorial Manual yet and he already had a Quest?
It didn't take anything, but a thought, and the Inventory appeared. He pulled out the Manual. The weight was comfortable, just like the rest of his journals.
He held it with two hands. It made everything real. His dreams were closer than ever.
It made him hesitate.
He didn't open it. He just stared at the book. Questions rambled in his mind.
What could he do as a Hero? What type of a Hero would he be? How would he present himself?
Could he be like All Might and always smile? Would he even want to? Who was he?
What could he do with Magic and Skills? How broad of a scope would he be given? Where could he practice? When could he learn the different aspects of his Quirk?
Izuku pondered the questions rummaging inside his head. It all came down to a word. His Title. Deku.
Worthless. Useless. Hollow.
He needed to get rid of the Title. He needed to make a cover for his Quirk. He needed to go beyond.
He needed to gain Skills and Magic. He would master any Skill or Spell. How far could he go if he explored his Quirk?
Two years. He had two years. Then he could get into U.A. Maybe.
Maybe he would find the answers he wanted by then.
Izuku sighed. "Magic. I wonder what's going to happen now?"
He opened the Inventory and placed the Manual back in. He should probably head back. He couldn't tell the time in the forest. At least not in this park.
He stood up and stretched. The breeze went still. Silence entered the forest park.
A loud crack resounded. The ground shook. He noticed it was further into the forest. A scream rang out.
It sounded unnatural at this time of day. It took him a moment to realize the sound was one of pain and terror. It broke off with a choking sound. A woman's voice.
Not thinking, he stepped up onto the log and rushed across. It was in the direction of the small fort that he and his friends at the time had created. Izuku saw the overgrowth covering the small, abandoned fort. A hole leading down into the ground was inside.
Izuku stared at hole. A loud notification rang with the sound of a bell. Confetti in all colors sprang around it.
You have Discovered Nana's Tomb:
Added Dungeon to Map
Required: Level 70
Clear Conditions:
Slay all: Skeletons, Zombies, ???.
Reward: New Title, Spirit Skull, Skill Book, Magic Book.
A warning notification appeared in red.
Warning!
You will not be able to exit until you have Cleared the Dungeon!
Continue?
Yes? No?
Izuku shivered. Sixty-one levels below the requirement. There was no way he was going to be able to do anything about the Dungeon. Who knows what would happen?
He paled. It was like his Quirk had been listening to him. A goal, a daunting one was placed in front of him. More so than the Quest he was given.
The scream he knew would haunt his dreams had originated somewhere around the Dungeon. He did not doubt that it came from the Dungeon. He had barely grasped the tip of his Quirk.
The teen whispered out a "No," and took a step back. The hole seemed to shimmer and dissappear. As if it had never existed.
His heart was racing. He left of his own accord. He focused on not looking back and his lips trembled.
He needed a game plan. A strategy on what he was going to do. Along with a way to prove his abilities.
Exiting the forest park, Izuku stumbled onto the concrete ground. The sun was high in the sky. A sharp laughter rang out on the streets ahead.
In front of Izuku a car was speeding towards him. A red, shiny, new looking convertible with its top off. There were two people in it.
A man in a red business suit and a woman in a dark navy-blue suit sat next to him. The woman was turned and shooting behind her. The man was laughing maniacally.
The sound of a police siren was in the background. Izuku jumped aside from the car, throwing himself to the floor. He skinned his hands, and a stinging sensation ran up them.
The sickening sound of flesh and bone crunching could be heard after the car slammed into the trees. The teens stomach lurched. He had a feeling someone wasn't getting back up.
"How? What is going on?" Izuku gapped as he spotted a figure of a man rolling on the ground. He saw the man giving a bloody grin.
The red suit ripped, and the man transformed with a howl. In slow motion he saw the police car slam on its breaks and swerve. A hobo looking man with scarf was on top of it and he let the scarves stretch out in a white streak that barely missed the now transformed werewolf looking man. Izuku barely saw the scraggly beard or the yellow goggles even as he saw the mans hair defy gravity.
The car door opened to a man with a stoic bland expression before he simply pulled out a pistol from his tan trench coat. The person held it with two hands and pointed it at the two fighters. Izuku could tell he was aiming to line a shot at the supposed criminal.
Yellow eyes of the beast met his emerald eyes. Izuku saw the person turn to the scarf wearer before biting deeply into his shoulder. The trench coat wearer shot a dart into the bipedal wolfs leg.
The mouth let loose with a howl. It knocked the man back with a paw that made the other fall to the ground out of breath. It looked towards the now dubbed Trench Coat instead of Izuku's now named White Scarf before turning to him.
He saw it preparing to leap at him. He didn't think. He reacted as it was mid leap.
He searched inside for his Quirk. His power. Something, anything that could help.
In that moment he visualized flames and heat. An inferno that would stop the wolf from touching him. He imagined the old flames his father had. The ones that comforted him when he was little. The ethereal emerald, green flame.
His hand rose towards the oncoming enemy. Izuku's voice cracked as he yelled his supposed Spell. He couldn't care less if it made him look crazy. It had to work. He poured his faith into that single word.
"Ignite!"
Izuku was blown backwards by the force of an unseen blast. His eyes saw the green flames light the wolf up even as he was lifted and slammed to the ground. In the corner of his eye, he could see the bars that were talked about in the Manual. Mana and Stamina were drained. His Health had dropped significantly. A notification had appeared telling him his Mana and Stamina were blocked until his Health was full.
"Holy Shit!" Izuku muttered out. He let his head rest on the concrete. His hands touched the back of his skull. A bump was forming and his head felt sticky. He put his hand in front of his eyes and saw red. "That doesn't look that's gonna leave a headache."
"Kid! Are you alright?" A man's voice shouted.
"I believe he's better off than-" Izuku could hear a second man's voice who seemed to fade out.
"I think the world is spinning. I did a Kacchan boom!" Izuku let out a pained chuckle. "My head hurts. Everything hurts. I don't think I was supposed to do that."
"Kid talk with me." An obviously in pain voice gritted out. The teens eyes grew unfocused as they searched for a face to go with a voice.
"I just got my Quirk. It's confusing as Hell. You're a Hero aren't you." Izuku tried searching through his memories. His head was aching. A headache was pounding inside.
"My Hero name is Eraserhead. Keep talking kid. Who are your favorite Heroes?" Green eyes watered. He could distantly hear the sound of tearing fabric and the sound of a radio going off.
"My mom. Dad. You. Trench Coat." Izuku paused. "I wonder if I can be a Hero now? Did I kill that guy? I'm definitely not All Might."
"Don't worry about that. What's your Quirk?" A soft voice entered his ears. "What's your name?"
"I'm a Wizard. So, Magical! Fire~Fire~Fire~" Izuku started to sing horribly. "I wonder if I'll learn some more tricks? Onwards with the Quest! To the Dungeons I go!" Izuku's eyes went out of focus.
A grunt came from the pained man. "How soon are the ambulances coming?"
"They're on the way here as we speak." The other voice was flat. Then in a worried tone he asked, "Is the kiddo doing alright?"
"I don't think so. It seems like this was the first time he used his Quirk-" The voices faded into the background as Izuku listened to ambulance sirens coming closer. He could feel someone lift him up onto something and he let himself go unconscious.
Naomosa Tsukauchi was having a bad day. Most days weren't spent hunting down a serial killer and their partner who led a chase through a city. Nor did he usually have to worry about being shot at.
He also usually didn't call an Underground Hero out when he knew he was sleeping for a confrontation with criminals. Of course, since the Hero in question was already on the case, and that there were kids involved, well, he needed to call him. That was how they ended up chasing the depraved lunatics to a park area.
That, Naomosa Tsukauchi decided, as he sat with his head in his hands on the hospital bench outside of a room, was when things had gone downhill.
The culprit they were tracking was dead. The partner was lit on fire. A random civilian had used their Quirk to protect themselves.
Worse yet, the civilian was a kid. A kid who apparently had a Quirk come in late and had a traumatic first experience. Even better was that the kid, no teen, was registered as Quirkless and he had a hard time with the first responders to get him to a hospital.
It kept on getting better from there. In the teens wallet that had to be found, and when they did, they were able to identify him along with calling the teens mother. Of course, that call went wonderfully when he came to a realization that the mother was worried about her son who apparently had his Quirk manifest late at night, had an argument this morning, and he had decided to walk around the neighborhood.
She, or rather Inko, was going to come to the hospital for her kid. There was also the fact that the teen was disrupting the medical gear. Something that bewildered most of the medical professionals.
Due to the seriousness of the issue, he had called in Recovery Girl as a favor. She had come over quickly to help the teen especially after he discussed the odd circumstances. Chiyo, Recovery Girl, had declared it was Quirk overuse and had said she would update his registry as she was a medical proffessional. She also told him that he had numerous burns, bruises, and scars upon his body.
Naomosa was worried. He didn't know a lot about the teen, but he could tell he was in shock after he lit the man on fire. He let out a deep sigh and shuddered.
He remembered what had happened vividly. He had felt the air rapidly cool right before the kid had shouted. The shimmer of heat in the kids outstretched hand that seemed to spread to the man before the blast of green flame and rolling heat.
Before he could radio back in static had erupted over the radio. He had watched as Eraserhead had opened a small first aid kit he had on his suit and applied a bandage to the teens head. He had heard the teens voice filled with worry about accidentally killing a man and saying he couldn't be like All Might.
That had struck a chord in Naomosa. If the teen remembered anything, it would be that. He may think he could never be a Hero.
Then there was what the teen had said after. When the teen had answered Eraserhead about the Quirk he had been truthful. Dungeons and Quests though? What type of Quirk did the kid have?
Footsteps echoed in the white halls of the hospital. A woman's voice squeaked out a hello in front of him.
He looked up and saw woman with a resemblance to the teen they had found at the scene. She was stout, her green eyes shined with unsched tears and tear tracks running down her face. He noticed her lips quivered.
"Is my baby Izuku alright? Where did you find him? How did he end up in the hospital?" Her voice wavered.
Naomosa stood. He held out a hand and gave a slight smile. "Sorry for the call Mrs. Midoriya. Midoriya seems to be fine. Just tired. Apparently from Quirk overuse."
She frowned and shook it. "I didn't think he would try practicing with his Quirk so soon. He always analyzes Quirks as a hobby before his Quirk came in-"
"He didn't do it on purpose. He did it to protect himself. A Villain attacked him." Naomosa's voice was steady.
"He won't get in trouble either. I heard him say he just gained his Quirk and that it was true. Sorry." Naomosa rubbed the back of his head. "I did call in a few favors to get the kids Quirk registered though. Unfortunately, he won't be able to name it. He called himself a Wizard so that's what I suggested his Quirk be named."
She let out a relieved sigh. "Thank goodness. "I'm sorry, I didn't introduce myself. I'm Inko Midoriya. Thank you for protecting my son. Was there a Hero as well?"
Naomosa nodded. "There was. He patched Izuku Midoriya as much as he could."
A doctor opened the door to the room. "He's tired, but you can visit him in the morning. I assume you'll need to interview him. Try not to overdue the questioning detective. He needs all the rest he can get."
Izuku Midoriya woke up to his mother sitting in a chair beside him. Her hand had been outstretched into his and her head was at an awkward level. He smiled as she slowly stirred.
"Izuku." It was a whisper that came out. "I'm so glad you're alright."
She stood up. "I have to go call a detective. He needs to get your statement. I'll let you know that everything is alright. I talked to the detective, and you didn't kill the man." An awkward silence entered the room before she stepped out.
The teen could see his Health, Mana, and Stamina bars were full. A notice showed that he had leveled up and he had increased the level of the Ignite spell. Izuku leaned into the bed before the door opened and a plain looking man came in wearing a trench coat. Inko Midoriya stood behind him.
Naomosa introduced himself and greeted Izuku with a handshake. Izuku reached for it and met the man's eyes for a second too long. He felt himself being drawn into a weightlessness before his vision changed.
Izuku could hear a physical monotone beat of a drum. He was in a cluttered office with papers scattered, folders were placed everywhere with the words "secret, confidential, classified" and other synonyms. Small picture frames were upon a high shelf. The sense of friends and family being above all things seemed to come to Izuku's understanding of the man's principles.
The teens body was dragged out the office before he sat in a small interrogation room with a steaming cup of coffee with a ticking clock. A knock at the door had Izuku's body moved through the door before his vision spun and he instinctively knew he was in a tall tower. He looked down a hallway that had the shadows shift into a variety of silhouettes of Heroes like All Might, Present Mic, and a variety of other Heroes he recognized.
Lastly, he spun until he was in a home. Just like before he instinctively knew it was empty except for the person resembling Naomosa who sat in a recliner with a hunched back and a cup of coffee. He looked closer to the man, and he could tell that there was a bone deep tiredness of a weight he was burdened with.
Behind him was a medieval knight in full armor with a blade held up straight in an ethereal white light. Beside the man was an hourglass filled with sand slowly falling on the man's left and a balance scale on the right both in that same light.
It was then that he understood Naomosa. He was a man who had dozens of secrets and still held close to family. He dealt with his Heroes and helped in ways they couldn't. He spent his time to bring a balance or order to the world and worked like a duty-bound warrior to help others as much as he could. He dealt with truth.
Then they were back. Izuku and Naomosa shuttered. The stoic face had a tear in his eye. "I'm so sorry Izuku. I wish I could have protected you. Can-can we speak alone Mrs. Midoriya?"
The Midoriya matriarch looked between the two before looking towards Izuku who shifted his eyes to stare into the detectives. "You don't have to do this alone Izuku."
Izuku held out a hand. "It's alright mom. I'll be fine. Don't worry."
They waited until she left before he took the seat next to the bed.
Naomosa spoke first. "Do you know what that was kiddo?"
Izuku shrugged. "I believe it was something called a Soulgaze. Simple enough to understand. A window to another's soul."
"Your Quirk dealt with fire. I saw that hole in that kid fort. I saw a lot more than that kiddo." The man's voice was soft.
"Yeah. I could say the same. I don't really think we should say what we saw in each other. It sort of leaves a bad taste in my mouth you know?"
"I understand."
Izuku looked at him. He truly did understand. They looked away.
They sat in silence.
"I think I understand what your Quirk is capable of."
The teens head spun. "You do?"
"Yeah." A smile at the tip of the older gentleman's lips. "My sister sent me the book series. In full. It's about a detective. I read all of them."
"That's nice." Izuku smiled back.
"It was." He paused. "Would you like to be able to come to my place and read them when you have a chance. They're paperback."
Izuku nodded. "Could I have your help with covering up from Dungeons?"
The man let out a chuckle. "It depends on where they are kiddo."
"Do you think I could be like you?"
The man's smile slipped. "You could. You could be a Hero. You could even be both."
Tears fell and he let loose a pained laugh. Naomosa wrapped the teen in a hug. "You can be a Hero."