Guilty Act

by PainX65

Styx, one of the best prisons in the world. Second to only Tartarus itself. It would be fine...if you weren't in this prison filled with convicted criminals of all kinds and guards ready at a moment's notice. You know what they say though, even the best have the worst. SYOC

39. Once In A Blue Moon

After her match and on her way back to the waiting area she was at before, the assassin noticed that Sae was nowhere in sight. In fact, there was somebody else there though.

One of those helmet wearing guards, but this one wore a different helm. Not a whole lot, but enough to tell the difference.

"Sae must still be fighting. That crowd sure has gotten louder."

She didn't think much of it as she glanced at the new guard before her. As she took in the features of the guard's helmet, she noticed a few minor differences in said helmet. As they turned off the wall and now faced her, she cautiously observed the guard.

"How was it?" they asked, walking closer to the inmate. "Nothing you couldn't handle."

"Does it really matter?" she asked, blank faced as always. "I did my one match."

"Count yourself lucky that they didn't want you to go all on and kill the guy." as the guard huffed, it seemed their hands under their cloak was messing with something, if the sound of a popped bottle was anything to go by. "Now, what did you think of it?"

Raising an eyebrow in response, the assassin responded. "You mean about this arena?"

"Yeah, about Limbo."

As soon as they nodded, the guard was met with silence. "You can drop any of the bullshit," they said, turning around briefly to take a swig of whatever opened bottle they had. A minor curse was uttered in a whisper before they spun back around to face her. "You can already tell with just one match in the arena that it wasn't what they told you."

"What are they after? Are they trying to bait me into some trap?" As Yua was stuck in thought, the guard sighed.

"I'm telling the truth you know," the guard responded to the silence. "I just want an honest opinion."

"An honest opinion?" she repeated.

"Yes. What do you think of our facility to put inmates in their place with other inmates? That's what they told you, wasn't it? I want an opinion on your match."

Staying silent for a little longer, Yua shrugged. "It's not a convincing charade." Yua finally gave an answer as she kept a cautious eye on the guard before her. "As soon as you enter, you can already tell it's an underground fight pit."

"Yeah, they're not real slick are they? Then again, everyone here is a willing combatant…until recently…" they sent Yua a look, briefly, before walking around her. "Now, there were three people looking for Limbo. One is a person who values knowledge and doesn't like being out of the loop, the other is driven with a heart of justice despite how far she has fallen…"

"And then there's me."

"Correct!" the guard stopped in their tracks. "The only one in this group who has no connection to Limbo."

"Connection?" she turned to face the guard behind her. "What connection?"

"As I said, Insatsushi is driven by a want for knowledge. Limbo is one of those things where she's still in the dark. Kumiza is a former hero and after learning about Limbo, I highly suspect that she'd want to take it down even if she considers herself a garbage human now. As you can see, upon learning about Limbo, they have a drive."

"That would explain a few things…" Yua thought back to when Sae was about to rush in when Koneko slashed away at that motorcycle helmet wearing guy, who oddly didn't fit in among the prisoners and inmates. "Just who was that guy?"

"That leaves you. Ignoring the fact that you might have owed Ashita a favour and that one fight deal that was made, you don't have the same drive or goal as those two do now." the guard mused, walking back around as Yua kept her guard up.

So she asked, "is that a bad thing then?"

"Not at all, in fact that brings me to why I'm here." the slightly different helmeted guard stopped before her. "Your match is done, but how about we strike a deal?"

The guard waited for a second, before realising their error with Yua's unchanging expression. So with a quick cough, the voice distorted by the helmet continued. "Similar to the deal given to that info broker, how about you join us? You stay quiet about Limbo, perhaps join in from time to time with a match or two and reap the benefits. Higher quality meals, more access to features such as a more customised cell and more. We can even look the other way if you decide to break the rules."

With a blink of her pink eyes, the assassin crossed her arms. To the guard, she was completely unfazed. Most inmates showed something when the benefits were brought up. "Should've known better, I suppose." they thought to themselves, feeling the urge to take another sip.

As they were about to ask Yua for her response, voices from down the hall caught their attention.

"Are you serious? All of them?!"

"Yeah, she ate all of them!"

"Who thought it was a good idea to do that?! I know why, but doesn't that mess with the production line?"

"It actually makes things easier, it's dealing with the bodies afterwards that's the problem."

A third then hissed. "Just focus on this one right now." they huffed, pushing something that was covered by a cloth. A person?

Passing by the hallway the two were in were a couple of guards wearing helmets that looked more like the ones Yua noticed on her way in. They didn't even spare a glance down the hallway as they hurried off to some location elsewhere in this makeshift arena.

The guard sighed. "I'll ask you about it later. Stay within the room and think about it before I release you."

"Just me?"

"...it depends on if Sae survives her fight or not." Without a moment to lose, the guard walked off in the direction of the pair that passed on by, pointing to her position as they asked someone else to keep watch.

With not much else to do or go, Yua returned to the waiting room.

"Judging from what he said about Sae, it seems they have no intentions on letting her go freely…it seems the promise they made with Ashita will only be seen halfway." taking a seat and crossing one leg over the other, the green haired inmate stared at the unmoving clock in the room. "Even distorted, that tone was as clear as day."

With some new free time, she thought back to the other thing the guard said. She was already in a good place within the prison.

Access to the co-ed ward, the benefits that brought with it. It wasn't anything special to her, sure it was nice to have and rare with many of the prisoners not being qualified for it. "It's not like I have anything to gain or lose from it either." It also wasn't like she had any reason to do this either. She was requested for this task and she agreed to it.

Now this deal that was offered to her to stay quiet, it wouldn't change anything.

"Hmm…" with a quick glance around the room, the assassin with flower petal eyelashes' pink eyes found itself back on the unchanging clock due to there being nothing to do. "I wonder how Ashita's doing?"

Closing her eyes, the only thing she could do right now was wait.

---

Sae was in a bind. No longer did she have the fleas that Fleabag used to attack her with and now she was being attacked by a cannibal moving at speeds she could barely keep up with.

Sae knew she had many enemies within Styx, but… "How many people were in the back? She's faster than what she was when I first encountered her!"

Sae raised her arms to block the incoming attack, but Maneater was just too fast as she was blown back by the speedy blow. "If she just ate, this is going to keep up for a while-" her thoughts were interrupted when Maneater struck her again. She didn't even have much time to react from the first blow!

As the laughter from the cannibal echoed from around her, Sae got back on her feet. It wasn't going to be easy for the former pro hero.

Maneater was one of those people who's quirk was rather basic and didn't have much in terms of super-moves of creative uses, but what it lacked in creativity it made up for pure strength. Similar to many other basic yet strong quirks like super strength. Maneater's quirk just so happened to be one of those strong ones.

Cannibal: Maneater gets stronger, faster and durable the more human flesh she consumes!

It was almost as if she was destined to be a cannibal!

"I just need to grab something-" as Dark Feather glanced around the arena whenever Maneater passed her by, she could only see Fleabag on the ground, separated by her quirk with a chunk bitten out of her and then, she spied the ground.

A hand gripped her head, gave her space to breathe, then sent her back into the ground. She didn't have time to even utter a sound!

All she could see was the crimson haired flesh eater's teeth!

Throwing a punch to free herself, she watched as Maneater easily dodged her strike. "Her reflexes improved too!"

As her punch passed on by the cannibal, a much faster punch sent her flying!

The crash landing came quicker than expected. She didn't have enough time to gasp for air when Maneater was already standing above her, kicking her into the wall with a lot more strength than her punch.

Quickly getting to her feet, a hand covered the hero's mouth as she was pushed into the wall, lifted a little in the air as her feet failed to touch the ground. She heard the growl of the cannibal who opened her mouth. "Bone apple tea!" she mockingly taunted, opening her mouth to show the vicious rows of teeth she had before closing in on Sae Kumiza.

As the vicious maw got closer, Sae quickly realised that she couldn't pry the villain off her, so she resorted to attacking. The hits connected, but the teeth were already about to clamp down on her neck!

Then…

Maneater's jaw slammed shut.

Forcefully, as a hand shut it for her. Sae mumbled something, under the cannibal's hand as she continued to punch away at the bloodied inmate's stomach.

Maneater easily managed to open her mouth back open right as Sae punched the cannibal's arm, hard enough to release her from the villain's grasp.

Sae backed away, trying to get as much distance as she could. Sadly for her, Maneater had different ideas as her sharp teeth seemed focused on ripping out some flesh.

In an effort to knock Maneater away, the sharp teeth managed to leave some shallow cuts along the former hero's arm.

"Fuck! That's sharp!"

"Sorry, Dark Feather," the villain's voice sounded close. Too close. When Sae looked up, there she was. Right in front of her. "If you're not going to finish that. May I have it?"

She wasn't given any time to respond as Maneater hit her away with quite the swing.

Sae didn't even reach the other side as Maneater already intercepted her and knocked her around. Sae didn't fare well as she tried to build some distance the moment she got free from the villain's assault. She gave a brief look down to her arms. There was that to consider too.

Not like she had the time to think through it, other than to hold out for now.

As the next couple of minutes passed, when Sae did manage to land a quick counterattack, Maneater had already landed ten times that moments prior. It didn't help that Sae had just been in previous fights too. Sweating, fatigued. It was getting to her.

But that's when she noticed something about Maneater.

The cannibal continued the usual display of the fight up to this point, however unlike Sae's trouble of keeping up with her…she could track her more easily! She could react as she dodged her strikes and punches! Sae was starting to keep up as she was able to fight back! Hitting the cannibal when she could! Dark Feather realised in that moment a crucial detail.

"She's slowing down!" Sae noticed as Maneater got closer and without much warning, Sae landed a hook into her face. "I just got to keep this up, then she'll be out of flesh in her system! The problem though, is how much did she eat. It not only gives her all this enhanced strength, speed and durability but it also impacts how long she stays like this…I need to keep my distance."

And so, for the next few minutes, Sae was subjected to being a punching bag for the most part. Maneater's speed and power was still in high gear as she threw Sae around the room, pummeling and kicking her away when she could. Though, thanks to recent meals passing her system, Sae was able to defend herself better and better as time slowly dragged on.

A few minutes entered the double digits as when Sae started to get her hand in the door, punching Maneater in the face once more, that's when Maneater stopped her assault.

Rubbing her face, the cannibal stared down the former hero and while Dark Feather was ready for Maneater's next move, she wasn't prepared for Maneater to run in the opposite direction.

"Wha- Hey!" Dark Feather called out as she soon realised where she was going! "STOP!"

Maneater's target was obvious.

It was the split up villain in the room. Fleabag.

"MANEATER!"

It was too late for the hero. Maneater already picked Fleabag up and took a bite out of one of her unconnected limbs. Dark Feather was late to the scene…again…

Then, Maneater turned her head at her, with a sick grin as the blood trickled from her mouth. A horrible chill crawled up the former hero's spine.

Maneater was dangerous.

She charged back into the fray, grabbing a hold of the down and out inmate she took a bite from.

To the utter shock and surprise of Dark Feather, Maneater had grabbed the arm of Fleabag and swung her right at the former hero!

It took her so off guard she was hit dead on! Face to face with Fleabag herself who seemed to have passed out due to the pain of having flesh ripped out of her. Fleabag's head, a part of her torso and her arm were now acting as the cannibal's weapon.

After getting hit, Maneater continued the assault as she brought down the incaptiated, weaponized inmate down on her like a hammer!

Getting whacked by an inmate wielding another inmate wasn't something Sae was expecting to ever witness in Styx let alone be on the receiving end of one! Maneater kept swinging the poor inmate around as the former hero received the brunt end of the attacks.

The combination of the odd attacks with an 'improvised' weapon and the boost of speed Maneater was riding on with her latest meal, Dark Feather was having difficulty getting a hit on the cannibal. The added reach of Fleabag gave said cannibal just enough reach to stay out of the hero's attacks.

Whenever she did block or avoid the swung inmate, Maneater was right there to add in an additional attack.

A good example was what happened just now. Sae had dodged the swung Fleabag, only for Maneater's free hand to punch her right in the face!

"I can't keep up. Her speed combined with using Fleabag like that…I can barely get any hits in on her." she gulped at the most obvious solution that came to mind. "I guess I have no choice."

Sae, now trying to put distance between her and the cannibal prisoner, began to roll up her sleeves, at least one would do for her purposes and as she did, Maneater kept attacking. As she missed the first swing as Sae rolled one of her sleeves up, she continued the momentum and on the second attempt of her swing, she sent the green eyed inmate back into the wall.

"Oh! I like that. Let's do it again!" as the cannibal laughed, she used the momentum of a new swing to power up her Fleabag. Yet as she came down with the new swing, Sae acted as quick as she could.

As her hand ran across her right arm, a dark purple light began to glow as the loner inmate winced as her arm was now engulfed in the same light she used on the larger than normal fleas.

Maneater, watching as her swing was coming down, immediately started to redirect her weapon as Dark Feather's light engulfed arm slashed at the unresponsive, probably unconscious, Fleabag.

The cannibal watched as her weapon missed its target as the head of the moss hair inmate popped off without any harm to the victim. "Shit-" she cursed out, jumping back before throwing the headless torso at her enemy, who just sliced through it.

Using her enhanced hunger-filled speed, she bounced and dashed right around her opponent before taking the best path for attack! Sadly for her, Sae had turned around with her arm of light, slashing away as she baited the cannibal into her blindspot.

The cannibal was sliced in two and then with another slash, into four large pieces.

It marked the end of the fight for everyone involved. Sae, Fleabag and Maneater.

However, Maneater didn't let her newly acquired sliced and diced form hold her back as she managed to land a few hits in as her body fell to the ground while her head did all the main damage as it landed itself on the hero's shoulder, biting down deep with her incredibly sharp teeth.

As the light dispersed from her arm right after the slashing of Maneater, a searing sensation started to burn away at her arm! It was like she was splashed with very hot water or cooking oil! The biting of Maneater didn't help as she tried to remove the cannibal from eating her shoulder.

Slamming back into the wall, punching with her stinging arm, she eventually managed to knock the cannibal out and onto the floor as blood poured out of her shoulder.

Falling to her knees soon after, the former hero clutched her arm as the voice of Limbo's host (and probable mastermind to the ex-hero) came out of the speakers.

"The former hero just manages to stay afloat," the host mused over the speaker. "It could have gone either way folks!"

Sae only had one thing to say to that, or think in this case as she bit her lip, holding her arm close. "No shit!"

---

As Yua waited, she didn't actually have to wait long as the door opened revealing the same guard from before. During the wait, she did some thinking. It wasn't like she could do anything else in the room.

Mainly about her release from Limbo.

A guard did come in earlier to tend to any of her injuries from both Naut and the pair that tried to dissuade them from finding this place. "Why tend or check my injuries? It must mean they're going to release me soon." She turned her head towards the door. "Assuming Ashita's bargain is still being upheld."

She was safe to assume it was, considering that the slightly more unique helmet wearing guard asked her about the deal they proposed. It still didn't benefit her in any way either, so it wouldn't really matter if she accepted or declined. However, there was one more factor for her to consider. "They're probably going to take out Sae."

Yua Aoi didn't know much about Sae Kumiza.

She knew that she was a loner in the prison, constantly frowned at every inmate that got close and threatened the people that knew her or tried to attack her, sometimes rarely attacking them should they strike first. She also knew that she was a former hero and after the talk with both the guard and seeing how she approached the task about Limbo, especially with someone like Shi choosing her for the task, the assassin knew that the former hero would not let Limbo continue to stand.

Therefore her termination was highly likely.

Which brought her to her current thoughts. "If Sae is going to be terminated to keep Limbo a secret, I'm now in a position where I am either terminated with her or let go like Ashita. What's the best choice here?" Yua knew she could handle a handful of guards. Sure she could get countered by one, primarily against her quirk, but she could handle a good size. The matter of things were more on the lines of whether or not she got the same treatment as Sae.

"Declining might make me a target to be assassinated to keep Limbo quiet. Accepting gives me nothing but a faster way out of here." She didn't know why she decided to accept this task in the first place. Maybe that wasn't the case though, sure she had no reason to accept or follow through. Both guards and inmates alike have mentioned to her that she was reliable and helpful. Shi being one of them when she approached her for the task.

The jackal headed guard turned around as she crossed her arms, staring at the indifferent looking prisoner. "I want your assistance with two other inmates I am planning a task for," the guard began. "You have proven yourself to be very helpful when the other guards request for your assistance. Many have claimed how reliable you have been and with the two I'm choosing, I need someone to be that pillar of responsibility and you are it."

Silence then followed which made the mean looking Jackal eventually turn her head to the side for a second, not quite used to dealing with complete silence from an inmate like this as she scratched the bridge of her snout. "Do you accept?"

She had no reason to accept or refuse, but in the end…

"Yes."

When the door did open and the guard from before walked in, her pink eyes drifted over to them. "Have you thought about our deal?" they asked, closing the door behind them. "I see your injuries have been checked?"

"Yes, to both." it came out in the same monotonous voice as always as her petal-looking eyelashes blinked.

"So, do you agree to our deal?"

"Do you mean keeping quiet or participating?" she asked back as the helmet and cloak wearing guard stared at the green haired inmate.

The guard cranked their neck. "Either, really. It'd be better for us if you partook in Limbo, but we can make just staying quiet work with maybe a few instances to help ensure some others stay quiet, though with the track record here, that's pretty unlikely."

"I think you know my answer then?" she gave him a look with the expression she was well known for within Styx.

Blank.

"I take that as a yes?" when the assassin nodded, that's when the guard perked up a bit. "Ah, that's some great news. Judging by your question, I assume you're not really interested in the fighting but we might have to bring you in here or there. Nothing too major and you can always change your mind on wanting to join more matches."

Plus having an assassin on board gave them a lot to work with.

The guard was met with unblinking silence as they seemed to feel that she was nodding along. Call it instinct or whatever.

"Oh, and you will be monitored for the time being." they quickly added on, to which Yua thought was obvious considering the circumstances that lead them here.

"Then that means…?"

The guard opened the door. "You're free to go."

Yua Aoi was back in the ward.

…

It was some time later after her match with Fleabag and Maneater.

Yet Dark Feather was nowhere near the room that she waited for Yua in as she was escorted to wherever it was she was being taken to. She did know one thing and that was the distance required for her quirk to stop. As soon as she was out of range, the two would pop back together like they were never sliced and diced.

Granted, she wasn't allowed to see the direct path she took. She did overhear one of the guards on a phone behind her address the group after what felt like minutes of walking.

"This is enough, the quirk wore off and they're back together." As soon as the distorted voice of the guard was heard, another guard shoved the former hero to keep her moving. It wasn't long as she was granted the gift of sight before being shoved once more into an empty room.

"Stay here."

"What about Yua-" she was cut off instantly, noting the tone they used under the distortion of their voice.

"She's fine," they replied as they closed the door on her, leaving her alone.

A frown painted itself on her face free of charge. She had a bad feeling about this…

Quickly heading to the door as quietly as she could, she positioned herself in a way she had the best way to hear the guards outside. "How long do we hold onto her? Can't we just get rid of her now?"

"No. Not yet at least. Even though we were told that Ashita searched for Limbo on her own with the help of both Yua and her, we need to play it carefully. There's a lot that could have happened."

"What do you mean?"

"You know, things like Sae going missing or turning up dead. She has a positive track record with the guards and if she's missing or dead, that ain't good for us."

"...ah…"

The guard continued, "and that's not taking into account all the other reasons. We don't know if they're lying about the reason for being here or if someone else, like a guard, set them up for this."

"Would they though?" the other guard asked back. "Ashita and Yua seem pretty genuine about it. It's just Sae. I can see it being suspicious with her in their team, whether she's a solo tagalong or a plant right from the beginning. It does bring suspicion to the other two…"

"Shit, shit shit! This is bad!" Dark Feather thought as she continued to listen.

"But, I can also see why that's not the case. Ashita has dirt on anyone and a hero is a good piece to blackmail. Not to mention the other guards. Can you imagine Tai, Dahlia or Shi sending guards to assist them? No!"

"I can't see Alexios letting the prisoners endanger themselves either…" the more sceptical guard mumbled. "Just having her on their team screams odd, but I can't picture the wardens or guards using them for help, especially when the rivalry with those Tartarus bastards are acting up again."

"Stupid Tartarus fucks…" the other hissed. "Anyways, just gotta keep an eye on her for now while they handle how to go about it considering the mess it'll make if she's missing or dead."

"Yeah, yeah. I heard your point already…hey, did you hear about that one Tartarus idiot who-"

That's when Sae made her way silently back into the middle of the room. On one hand, it was much easier to eavesdrop thanks to these doors not being the same as their cells. Sae didn't really care for the Tartarus-Styx drama as only one thing eased her…for now.

"Okay, so the jury is out on this one. They got close, but thank god for Ashita and the guard's reputation. Still, there's a high chance I'm going to be sleeping with the fishes if I don't do something….might have to use my arms again." She hoped that wouldn't be the case as she began to look around the empty room for anything she could use to avoid any more damages to her hands.

The empty room didn't seem promising, but perhaps something like a small pebble that was stuck to someone's boot might have fallen off here or something…if the room wasn't clean. "Starting to think I should have taken one of those fleas with me…" she huffed to herself as a thought popped into her mind as she searched the room that was already proving to be a waste.

She could use her prison garbs…right?

As that thought entered her mind, she was glad she was alone as the feeling of embarrassment washed over her. In the heat of the moment of the fights she's been in, not once did she think of it. Grabbing the orange sleeve of her prison uniform, she gave it a tug, to rip off just a bit of her sleeve.

"Oh, right." She blinked at how resistant the material was. "Styx issues out specially tailored uniforms to inmates that work against their quirk…it would take something stronger like that bear lady to tear something off…damn it!"

If only she took something from Maneater, Fleabag or one of the times Kuma slashed her before she walked into Limbo. Sure, she managed to avoid having her torso sliced open, barely, but she could have gotten some scrapes from it.

Granted if any scrapes were left behind from it to begin with. As she looked down at her tear-resistant prison garbs, the slashes weren't anything too bad to the usually pristine uniform. You could tell she had been in a fight and exactly where Kuma's claws slashed at when they connected with her jumpsuit.

Her hand then reached up to the wound she received, they had tended to both her shoulder and her arm. It wasn't the best, but it kept her in check for now until she got to a proper doctor like Lambert or Carna and she sure wasn't going to remove them and aggravate the damage. Her right arm still stung and even with the advancements of healing supplies such as the rare, occasional gel they sometimes used in the infirmary to treat the more basic wounds with ease, she barely got any of that.

"And of course I refused the crocs for better running, could have used them…"

It seems for now, she'd have to resort to using her other arm if it got to it.

---

The mastermind of the arena sighed as they just issued a quick break for a sudden clean up. "At least we have a bit more resources to work with, then." they thought as they opened their rather unique looking maw and began to eat parts of the flesh of the now eaten inmates.

Rather, in this particular case, continue.

The host stopped as they turned to the other person in the small, corpsed filled room. "Harvester," as soon as the word left their lips, if you could call them that, the tall figure immediately turned to face the mastermind. "Collect as much as you can, we'll leave the rest for the clean up crews."

The tall figure made a noise and began biting body parts to swallow.

Turning back to the corpses, the successor glanced at that recipe list they were given. "I can make quite a few from this." As they turned to leave the room once they were done, they snapped their fingers and the tall, imposing figure came chasing right after as soon as they left the bloody room filled with corpses.

"She sure can eat," the successor said, making sure to conceal themselves as the helmeted guard played around with a now empty bottle.

"It certainly saves you time," the helmet guard sighed. "How are we going to deposit these in the wards?"

"Scatter them around the same as usual. Due to all the bites ripping flesh out, pin the blame on any inmate that has a preference for biting, like animal quirks. If not, other quirks and inmates that have an easier time removing body parts will do the trick. If they're not a part of Limbo, speak to them first about some 'benefits' they can get." the successor waved their hand. "If the bites are not as noticeable, pass it off as whatever and with the numbers here, try to make as many of them as group fights or double takedowns on both sides."

The helmeted guard picked up the bottle as it disappeared under the concealing cloak. "Very well," they responded, already getting right to it. "We'll distribute the bodies shortly. We have another problem to address though."

"Dark Feather?"

"Dark Feather."

The successor would have rolled their eyes if they had the ability too. "She'll fight back if she's attacked, right?" The three passed down the halls. "Schedule her for another match-"

"The prison broker has also negotiated a safe return," they revealed, cutting the host off. "A hasty decision they made, but I have been told she has made no moves towards any of the guards as long as demands are seen through."

The host of Limbo paused for a second. "Actually, change of plans. Pin the blame on Dark Feather as much as you can. Until we can prove that Ashita won't talk, drag that old hero deeper into the mud. Arrange for solitary confinement for Sae Kumiza. She might have a good track record with the guards, but after Mariko's escape, trusted inmates won't be so trusted anymore, if you catch my drift. Anything else will be up to you."

"Understood." The helmeted guard had to chuckle at that. Seems something good came from that too.

"Anything else?" the successor said at the door to the room.

"Yes…Nightmare has returned with the harvest. We're still prepping the room for your work."

They gave the guard a quick nod. "I'll be right there after producing more drones for the orders."

It was a short lived meeting after that, as one of few higher up Limbo guards wandered away.

Re-entering the room with their master, the successor pointed back to the corner where the tall follower stopped to stand in once again. "Hold onto the materials for now." they ordered as they returned back to their master as they spied the daredevil that was now in the room.

"Welcome back," the daredevil waved.

"I trust everything went well?" the master asked soon after.

"Yes," the successor nodded. "Just a quick collection run before the dumping."

The master remained in the chair, checking their rather old phone. "I spent some time with your drone here. Works of art, as always."

If the successor could blush, they would have been red as a tomato right now. "M…Master, your words are too kind!" rubbing the back of their head, they noticed their master put the old model of phone away.

"Do you remember where we left off?"

"...Yes…"

"Good. Now, I did a little bit of thinking of this little slip as well as this extra party that's been sticking their nose in where they shouldn't belong." The master didn't wait for their protege to speak as they continued. "Since they released Vito, that means that they know of Limbo."

That poor successor, the chills were coming back. "Uh…"

"Vito isn't the brightest inmate and would have expected that person to be a member of Limbo, giving them basic knowledge of the event if they weren't a part of Limbo such as those onlookers to begin with. Yet, that might not be the case also. Another possibility is that they planned Vito's release for a reason and learned of something extra because of it."

"An unrelated reason?" came the one called Teddy. "What could that be?"

The successor nodded, wanting to know too. Master's theories could shed some light.

"Vito is one of many prisoners that are locked up for good, but only he was released. What's the difference between them?"

The host of Limbo perked up. "Vito…is easier to contain…!" They then shot straight up. "The other inmates are way more deadly and dangerous than Vito! Sure, he's probably the inmate with the most physical power in the prison but there are many inmates and guards that can easily incapacitate him!"

"Exactly." Master smirked as they began to walk around the room, patting the tall figure called Harvester. "Since we don't know for sure, let's go with this as our main theory. Vito, a dangerous yet easily dealt with inmate is released into the ward, killing and beating anyone in his way. So the question of why comes up. Now, if we add the fact they know of Limbo, it's to reveal it to the guards, but why not just tell them or some other method to let them know? Now, if we do the opposite and add the fact they don't know of Limbo…what was the purpose?"

"A purpose for letting Vito go?" the mastermind of Limbo crossed their arms. "...it would have to be personal, right?"

The successor had to wonder. What kind of personal vendetta this person had to ensure the prison remained functional for now and not let it crumble all at once?

"Unless they want to cause as much chaos as they can, a personal vendetta is the closest reason they might have for releasing him. A vendetta that requires Vito being recaptured." a frown then appeared on the mentor's face. "It doesn't look good for Styx, at any rate."

"Um, Master…how…how does this tie into my slip up?"

"If this third person used Vito for whatever goal they had in mind, that means that Vito would have assumed that they were the same as those within Limbo. That person would have learned of it because of Vito's previous experiences which leads us to two expected movements that I feel are the most likely to occur," the mentor continued, not even answering the question in the slightest. "Judging how Vito is easier to recapture, it is likely that they're secretly among the rank and file of the audience of guards and other onlookers you built up. So the first is that they are secretly keeping an eye on Limbo and plan on either using it similar to Vito, which will bring attention to it and achieve a similar result to whatever they used Vito for in exchange for crushing the operation that is Limbo."

"And…the second, Master?"

"The second is that they're going to make sure Limbo stands tall for just a while longer."

The successor tilted their head at their mentor. "I…don't follow…"

"One expected movement for the third party is to get the same result that Vito had, whatever that might be. The other one…to keep Limbo going? Despite having possible leaked info from Vito, choosing to leave it alone for a while longer when they could have just used it already? I mean, it's still saved for a rainy day to use like Vito, but nothing was out of the ordinary with Limbo since." the successor tried to wrap their head around it, zoning out a bit from the conversation. "If we go with a personal vendetta, leaving Limbo alone instead of acting on it…what could the reason be? Taking it over doesn't sound like it if Vito was let loose only to be recaptured. A reason to leave it alone, but working against Styx…"

"It's the least likely action that I can think of, but it's been quite a while since anything has happened in that regard, has it not?" the mentor gripped a stick. "Just look at the guards after Vito was released. Increased security, more thorough checks, questioning that would have exposed Limbo if it wasn't for a safety precaution we made a while ago."

Teddy perked up at the mention, hand rubbing the bottom of his motorcycle helmet like it was his own chin. "Wait, are you saying that they're doing it for the prison's benefit?"

"It's hard to say," the master responded with a shrug. "It could also very well be the opposite. Imagine hearing these things about Styx. Not only will it hinder the prison and its reputation if word got out, but our operation will crumble faster without one of our major strongholds."

The daredevil leaned back on the wall. "Heh. That does sound a lot worse than buffing security, huh."

The successor tapped the bottom of their weirdly shaped mouth. "Actually…there was also a report of a prison inmate, Akita, that slept around with a lot of the guards." they revealed, looking from the floor to both of them. "I think they managed to keep it under wraps? But after hearing that possibility, I wouldn't be surprised if this other party somehow knew too."

"And they managed to avoid being found…and they don't even have the drug!" The daredevil waved his hand in the air while the master tapped the stick on the ground.

"The main point is that they haven't made another move since. While concerning that they could be involved in more than what we know, they haven't made a move against Limbo yet. They're probably holding onto it for a rainy day, either going to use it for a Vito situation or perhaps using it for themselves when the time's right." the mysterious figure then sighed. "As much as I loathe to say it, it seems we're in the dark with whatever they plan to do."

It was then that the successor tried once again. "Um…how does this work into my slip up? I know they'll be used as a scapegoat for everything we've done, but…"

"Easy there," the daredevil gave a calming gesture while the mentor tapped the stick to an old rhythm on the ground.

"Since they haven't made a move against Limbo yet, we can say for now they are holding onto it until they need it and with Vito not being the brightest, they would at least have knowledge on it. As I mentioned before, correct?" as both nodded, the teacher continued as they began walking around the room. "They have knowledge of Limbo and caused chaos with Vito. You, my dear successor, had a body found by someone that was not supposed to. I assume that Eris has already interrogated Vito, but we can still salvage this."

"How?"

"The body is still up to debate." a chuckle came from the master. "All we have to do is make it so that our unaware scapegoat was the one that messed with the body. While we can assume that Eris knows that there are two factions, the unknown party and Vito's fighting, we can take solace in Vito's stupidity and our own precautions to make it harder for them to find out details of Limbo and use this to make our scapegoat do some trickery into making it seem like one group is actually two opposing groups to Vito as a way to confuse the wardens. Assuming everything goes well."

"It honestly sounds easier said than done…" the successor and Limbo mastermind thought. "Putting this person as the scapegoat for my slip up…or the accidental find rather and making it so that this person tricked Vito into thinking there are two unrelated groups to confuse the wardens and other guards…Master makes it sound so simple."

The host of Limbo was unsure if they should go ahead and ask. After a short while they gathered the courage to ask, "how do we catch them?" they asked with a little stutter as their nervousness returned. "I mean, the corpse-blame pinning and Vito 'tricking' requires that we grab a hold of them, don't we?"

"Not necessarily. It is highly encouraged that we do find them," the older one of the group replied, pausing from where they were walking. "Having a face and prints will go a long way, but we have many guards and inmates on our side. If the guards have already been questioned, I doubt that they will be questioned again."

"Which leads to trusty comments!" the successor shot up. "Not only that, with how everyone in Limbo is fully concealed save for the inmates, it makes it safer for our side to go about their daily prison routines without suspicion without being spotted by this other person!."

"You mentioned that the people in the audience of Limbo are selected carefully, correct?" the master asked their student who would have gone wide eyed if they had the ability to do so.

It was like realisation struck them like a lightning bolt.

"Yes. It's mainly just guards but I can recall many of those we've recruited and we can always take the drugs back to question them with Nightmare! If they somehow snuck in without anyone knowing, I doubt they'd have the drugs naturally unless someone gave them some, but we should recognize the face of someone who was never invited. Either way, Nightmare or another specialised drone can catch them!" The protege began pacing around the small room.

"Nightmare… has limits in that sort of application, but yes. It can work." a smile graced the mentor's face. One of pride for their protege. "A drone is a good idea."

"I can craft up a drone with the specialty of questioning our Limbo guards to find this scapegoat and with the some of the guards already being questioned, they'll be trusted enough for the wardens to ignore any sort of pointing the scapegoat does in order to maintain the illusion of them being the culprit as well as the evidence they present will be more valid and trustworthy to the wardens and the inmates will all confirm it was them that did it in exchange for benefits and more Limbo matches if they're brought into by the scapegoat or by us. I just got to get a drone ready and then, this other party will end up as the real inmate fight organiser and body tampering menace of the ward."

The master couldn't help but let the smile grow. Their successor was evolving before their eyes.

The smile began to falter as one variable crawled up in their mind and decided to live there as a squatter.

Luck.

"...that's if it all goes well though," the master voiced, catching the attention of their pupil and the currently silent daredevil. "There might be unknown factors, but this person hasn't moved an inch when approaching what to do with Limbo so for the moment we are safe. We can assume as I mentioned before that Limbo is being held onto for a rainy day. So we have time to spare. I trust you know what to do if something happens to the operation should something unforeseen happen?"

There was no nervousness or worry behind those large eyes of the prized pupil. "I know what to do. You can count on me."

The smile returned once more to the mentor's face as they snapped their fingers.

"It's time for us to leave," the master said as they stood with that daredevil with button-patterned eyes standing behind them. "We've overstayed our welcome here."

The successor immediately bowed. "Thank you for coming, Master."

"Oh! Just remember to use the ingredients we gave you. A few of those orders are higher on the priority side of things, be ready to deliver. I almost forgot after all that." as the master pointed at their successor, they bowed once more.

"Understood, Master. I've already got one that's soon to be ready."

At that, the master gave a smile. "I'll leave this up to you, keep up the good work." the master said as they and the daredevil started to meld into the shadows. "I'll be back later when I get a chance."

"Yes, Master! Thank you!"

Within a moment, they were gone.

It was then that they knew they had no time to waste as they wiped their forehead as they sent a quick glance to the nearby table with a disguised container with a certain drug. "Ashita's quirk can easily bypass the drug's effects…maybe we can use her help if she's fully onboard? The main problem right now is Sae…I'll have Harvester deal with her soon." A brief thought of whether they should have told their mentor about these two appeared in their mind, but was immediately squished out. If they wanted to succeed their master, they had to deal with their own problems.

Not to mention that for the successor, there was simply a lot to be done. "Harvest the new material that has been brought in, wrap it up after a few matches, create that drone. So much work to do. I better not waste anymore time."

Now, it was time to get to work.

---

"We got so many new faces," Arai said as he leaned back from the window where he watched. "Heh, even as newbies that got a better name than that fire hand dumbass!" he laughed as a snake used his own tail as a chair.

"It makes me want to fight them even more!" the rattlesnake grinned.

As the two watched the fight below, a newcomer to Limbo turned their eyes to them and then back again to the fight that had ended moments prior.

The figure next to him then spoke.

"I'll admit, I'm surprised to see you here, Jin." the older inmate glanced at the rookie next to him.

"I'm shocked too." Jin revealed as he still took in the sights. "They said I was scouted and well, here I am. I didn't expect a fight club of all things."

A passing guard then called out, "Jin Nakamura, get ready. Your fight is up next."

When Jin turned to meet the helmet wearing guard, they were already gone. "My turn, already?"

The rookie felt a hand on his shoulder and when he turned back around, David gave him a smile. "You okay?" the more experienced inmate asked, "it's your first fight, I doubt they'll put you in a tough match like what happened to Crazy Ape and his matchup."

"Yeah, I'm fine." Fighting wasn't the real issue, he was fine with it. His quirk on the other hand… "I can handle myself just fine."

"That's the spirit!" the sandpaper skinned inmate added while the rattlesnake continued to use his tail as a chair.

David turned back to the stage when the lights dimmed. "It's time."

As Jin headed to the doors with David following for good luck, the host's voice played over the speakers. It sounded a little different than the previous times.

"Now we got a special match for you today. A really special one!" the host began, as the lights hovered over the doors. "Not only do we have yet another newcomer to Limbo in the wings, we have the first champion match of Limbo!"

Jin titled his head at that. "Champion match?" When he went to ask David about it, the older man just stared into space.

"Due to the fall of Naut in the earlier matches as well as the sudden death of Iron Gauntlet thanks to our local cannibal, we had to switch up the matches a little bit!" the host explained. "So we decided to test some new fresh meat with one of Limbo's Champions!"

Jin could only blink at what he heard. "I must have some bad luck." he stopped when he saw the sandpaper skinned inmate walk down. "If I'm not fighting Iron Gauntlet, then who am I fighting? Why do I have a bad feeling about this?"

"Oh, it's bad all right," smirked Arai, "Iron Gauntlet was someone more on your level, you've actually met him before. Apparently they were scouted here like you, but by an inmate that was in the loop."

"Wait, you mean that guy that greeted me earlier?" It wasn't even that long ago for the Limbo rookie.

Jin had just entered Limbo.

A world he wasn't expecting from the prison Styx. The guard that brought him here left him to his own devices and wandered off to who knows where. He couldn't exactly tell with all the similar helmets everyone was wearing down here.

What also didn't help was that he was left alone with no idea what to do or where to go. He assumed he couldn't just leave, seeing how they just told him that they needed him for…a task.

Something that he quickly realised when he saw the fighting of course.

"Hey, are you new here?" a new voice called out. When Jin turned his head. It was a taller man that looked like he was wearing gauntlets.

"Yeah, I am."

The taller man relaxed a little. "Ah. Same. Just started not that long ago. How did you get scouted? Guard or inmate?"

Jin blinked at the man. "A guard…" the crystal quirked inmate took no notice of how the man's gauntlets receded, transforming back into a normal pair of hands. "What is this place, anyway?" Might as well get the information, right?

"You've heard them call this place, Limbo. Right?" Iron Gauntlet asked. "Well, as you see from the fighting, it's used as a fight ring for inmates…to either beat the shit out of each other…or until only one prisoner in the ring remains alive and breathing."

Not the best thing to hear when he just got in here.

"Any reason why?" he asked, thinking about the shady place. "I can't imagine all of the guards accepting this…"

Iron Gauntlet sighed. "No idea, besides a few bets and wanting to watch inmates fight and sometimes kill each other, I have no clue." as the gauntlet quirked man rubbed his chin, he suddenly clicked his fingers. "It honestly feels like we're just a small piece of something else at times."

Jin nodded as the man talked, and asked, "hey, uh. Since I'm new here, can you fill me up on all that I need to know? Rather not get thrown into a death match without me knowing."

"Sure, from one rookie to another, death matches are kinda rare in my short experience. At most, all you have to worry about is losing your limbs and other body parts."

"Body parts?"

"While some death matches are encouraged, removing your opponent's body parts is also highly encouraged. Not pushed in any way, sometimes restricted or banned, but if you spill blood like that the more good incentives are put your way." Iron Gauntlet waved his hand around. "Kinda fucked if you ask me. No idea what happens to them, you think the place where they dispose of them would stink up."

The rookie, Jin, raised an eyebrow at that. "What makes you say that?"

Iron Gauntlet began to scratch the back of his neck. "Honestly? I got curious and watched one of those guards here dump bodies but also take a bag of someone's guts to an odd looking person in a hooded cloak. Checking the room where they dump them, it's as if it's used more as a storing room than anything. It's basically barren."

"Huh." Jin had…no idea what to do with this sudden information. "A room for storing bodies and giving them to someone else here?"

"Sorry." the taller man apologised. "I got carried away. Just that there's this uneasy feeling about all this."

"No worries. I felt kinda the same as how they just grabbed and dragged me here."

"Oh! Don't worry about the fights, it seems they put us up against others closer to our levels? I think at least, it's hard to tell in this place…unless you're really unlucky…like some sort of one-sided bloodbath…"

Jin was about to ask Iron Gauntlet for his name, but then one of those guards came walking over, grabbing the taller inmate. "The next match is coming up. Do you want in on an upcoming fight with someone called…Dark Feather?"

As Jin watched Iron Gauntlet and the guard talk, he saw Iron Gauntlet's eyes widen before he left with the guard with clenched fists. Something happened and Jin wasn't sure what.

"Getting yourself acquainted with the others are ya, Jin?"

He turned around to see a familiar face.

"Arai?"

He wasn;t alone as a surprised wall of muscle was staring at him with wide eyes. "Jin?"

"...David?"

"He seemed like a decent guy too." Jin couldn't help but sigh.

"It seems they're doing this because of the amount of people that Maneater ate and killed. Iron Gauntlet must have been one of those inmates that were caught by Dark Feather or he was just really unlucky in her warpath."

The crystal inmate shot a glance at Limbo's Sandman. "Is that why this match is on like this?" he asked as the speakers continued but went ignored.

Lifting his sunglasses up, Arai continued to smirk. "Maneater ate a lot of people backstage, probably more than what they were expecting. Blame a cannibal's gluttony I suppose."

Jin said nothing as he glanced back at David who just stood there, in silence.

"-COMING FROM THE DEPTHS OF HELL! LILIM!" The host had finished their hype up as she entered the ring.

It was then that the slightly tanned woman entered Limbo, in a sleeveless, short pant leg, light grey jumpsuit. Soft purple eyes scanned the room for a moment before it stopped on the door she just came out of just seconds prior.

"Let's get this over with…"

There was no interest on her face in the slightest.

The crystal inmate then headed for the arena. "Guess it's my turn-" Jin was suddenly pulled back as David walked right on by, aiming for the doors. "David?"

The older prisoner shot him a small smile. "It's dangerous for you to face her. I'll go instead, they won't mind." As soon as he finished explaining his reasoning, Jin watched the man walk away without a further word.

It wasn't like he could convince him otherwise. "Damn it, David."

"She is a champion, after all." Arai added as he stretched. "Let's go watch and see what happens."

Jin nodded as he followed the sandpaper skinned convict while the arena got busy.

"Hm? What's this? It seems we have another development folks!" the crowd began to murmur. "Taking the place of Limbo's new rookie, this man is stealing the spotlight and taking over the rookie's match!"

It was then that David walked into the arena.

However, from where Jin and some other inmates were, they could hear the nearby guards laugh at his entrance. "That heroic fool is doing it again."

"Hahaha. What the fuck, no one told him about the parole bullshit right? Hahahaha. How stupid can he be! Overprotective dumbass!"

More and more of the helmeted guards laughed, poking at the man below them.

"In one corner we have the woman that turned a nation on its head, the demon of Salem! A champion of Limbo! LILIM!" the announcer repeated themselves as attention now fell on David.

"In the other we have a fighter that is well acquainted with the dealings of fight arenas just like this one! The underground fighter, the newbie protector, the wannabe hero! Punching Bag!"

Jin could only sigh at the name they gave him. "Well…could have been worse…"

"It used to be Masochist, you know." Arai added, causing a double take from the rookie.

"Eh?"

It was then that the voice commanded the fighters. "BEGIN!"

Not a second sooner, David flung himself at the tanned woman. Fist reared back, he unleashed his assault within seconds!

Only to be side-stepped and kicked into the wall.

It didn't take long for the former (sorta) arena fighter to lunge back once again. No real strategy, just an attack that relied on his own speed and strength. Something the white haired woman scoffed at once she pummelled his face in.

Back again on his back, David flung himself up on his feet again.

"Are you stupid?" she asked as he fired himself at her again, faster this time. "Don't answer that. I already know."

David's repetitive attacks kept going with the same results. Flat on his face or back each time, sometimes into walls.

Getting up again and again. Yet, there was something else to it.

He was getting faster and faster.

An empowered David outsped his opponent, managing to grab onto her arm. A slight surprise popped into her eyes as she was suddenly spun around the small makeshift arena, being slammed into the ground and then thrown into the wall.

As if a taste of all the attacks she landed against him, the empowered strength from the pain David built up was unleashed on her, cracking the wall with ease from the single punch.

As the American inmate removed his fist, he wasn't expecting to be kicked away. "She's still up? She's more durable than I thought and this was the pain from her power too…"

"Oh. I see." she dusted her shoulder off from the attack. "Is your strength built up enough now? Got your fill for masochism already?"

The muscular wall said nothing as he just glared at her. His quirk was taking effect!

She glanced behind her to the small crater in the wall that she made. "As expected of my own strength."

David lunged as fast as he could while her back was against him. Sadly for him, history repeated itself as he was tossed around like a ragdoll.

"If you get powered up from taking hits and feeling pain, I wonder how much pain will break you…"

That's when Lilim started to change.

The change was practically instantaneous, gone was the white haired woman and in her place was a much taller figure.

Sharp claws hands and feet, the body appearing grey and stone-like, like she had scales made from stone. A green glow that resembled flames ran along the body in her arms, legs, chest and eyes. Over top of this appeared to be a demonic looking skeleton, covering the top of her arms and clawed hands, the rib cage surrounding the torso like an extra plate of armour and of course the skull lacking a lower jaw with a small pair of horns that was covering the demonic face she now possessed.

A simple exhale released the embers of green flames.

It looked like she was replaced with a demon!

Devil: Lilim can transform into a more demonic looking form that boasts incredible strength and more. A true monster!

The sheer power radiating off the now demonic looking inmate was staggering.

A power that she was already showing off as she attacked. In an instant, David was knocked off his feet from the speed of the devil.

Sailing through the air, his eyes caught sight of the now demonic Lilim already chasing after him, still mid-air, she unleashed a barrage of flying fists with the final hit spiking him into the ground.

"Let's get this over with."

David slowly got back to his feet as Lilim leisurely walked on over.

"What the hell is this? Where was this hiding?!" he forced himself to look up at the monstrous form she now took. "Was she just playing around?"

Flannegan took a step back. He needed to think now. "It seems I need more to take her down. If I get more when she's like this, my quirk's power could be enough… that's if I can handle all that pain. A single hit when she was like that…I don't think I can take much more of that…"

David, showing signs of fatigue as he tried to control his panting, braced himself.

"Come on. Don't chicken out right now," Lilim taunted as she was already right in front of him as a nasty right hook almost knocked him off his feet.

As she landed more punches, David did his best to stand his ground. In the end, her efforts just made him stronger.

Stronger for the moment when he was able to do what he did next.

"You bore me." Lilim's punch aimed straight for the man's stomach, but David managed to dodge it as a light sparked in his eyes.

It was now or never.

David saw his opportunity and grabbed hold of the demon's wrist.

Using the power from his recent pain, he managed to flip and slam her into the ground like some old saturday cartoon show.

He then repeated it a couple of times before stomping on her skull-like face after the last one. Again and again he stomped, fueled by the adrenaline and stinging pain.

"I can't let her get a moment, a single second, to counterattack! I need to end this as soon as possible!" the American inmate thought as he put everything he had into the punches he soon delivered. When the barrage of crouching punches ended, the panting David eventually got back onto his feet while he looked at the tiny crater that Lilim's head resided in.

"How do you like that?! That's my strength!" he shouted as he looked at handiwork made from his own counter attack. "This is the admirable strength of a hero!"

It was over…

Until…

She laughed. Laughed. "You? No. The only admirable thing here is my own strength. You might get stronger from the pain, but it's us who give it to you."

David felt a chill up his spine.

"You should be thanking me for making you actually strong."

He had no time to act as he was blasted away yet again as she was already on her feet like she wasn't headfirst into the ground.

"And what's with this talk of being a hero? You're not a hero. Did you have regrets about not becoming one? One of the common rabble that never got their foot in the door? Don't make me laugh again."

Baring his fangs, he tried to kick her. "As soon as all this is over, when I finish my parole, I will be a hero!" he screamed, missing his kick, but the follow-up punch pushed her back with great strength. "And I will crush villains like you so you won't hurt people ever again!"

This time, she wasn't the only one laughing at him.

It didn't matter how much he was wailing on her, the effects of his attacks getting through. None of it mattered. When Lilim fell to the ground, she couldn't help but smirk. David was already punching her into the ground, yet it didn't stop her from getting back up again.

"So you're that delusional fool that thinks they can be a hero. Give it up. You're a criminal and never will be a hero."

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" David roared as he charged headfirst into danger. No one will tell him otherwise. What would be the point of this parole? The matches of Limbo he was sent into?

All of this was so that he could be a hero!

He was going to be a hero, no matter what!

Somewhere in America, in a small little home, David fell to the ground with a red cheek. It took a while for the young child to touch it, wincing at the sting it still carried. When his small eyes glanced up, he watched his father hurl a bottle right at the wall next to him as the sound of crying caught young David's ears.

His little brother.

"Stop crying!" his father shouted, smacking the youngest child back to the ground. "Toughen the fuck up! You have that quirk for a reason, don't you?! I'm helping you learn how to use it, you ungrateful brats!"

As he slouched back into his chair, David took his little brother upstairs, spying the MMA match his father was watching. "He's still watching that again…" he thought, watching his father watching a cleaner version of himself on the TV. A relic of a much better time.

David knew little about his father's previous profession. A washed up MMA fighter that was banned for cheating. David had to scoff at the sight of the now washed up drunkard who claimed that he was toughening them up, the eldest child could easily call bullshit on that as he brought his younger sibling back to their room. The only thing he knew less than that was their mother.

"You okay?" he asked his little brother, only to hear a whimper as he made sure to hold his sibling close in their shared bedroom.

"Don't worry, we'll get out of here as soon as we can!" David shot his little brother with the biggest smile he could muster, swollen cheek aside. "I promise nothing will ever hurt you again!"

Teary eyes glanced up at him, lips quivering as they asked. "Is…Is Mama coming back?" It was the question that made the smile falter.

The last and really only memory David had of that…person was as soon as his sibling turned one year old, she got up and left. David had reached out for her, not wanting her to go or perhaps a question? He couldn't remember that. What he did remember is that when he reached out for her, her hand smacked him down as she got in her car, filled with bags and left.

Never to be seen again.

A bitter memory back when their father was still…the old him, and not replaced by the drunkard.

"We don't need her! She's just as bad as Dad." The young Flannegan brought his brother into a hug as he made sure his little brother, the only real member of his family, fell asleep as the sounds of an old recorded video played for the thousandth time downstairs.

…

David had a plan. A simple plan.

As soon as the school bell stopped, he'd find a good place to stop and throw punches. It was usually against trees nearby as he punched and kicked at the tree, copying the old footage he watched of his father whenever he wasn't around. Landing the same kinds of punches and kicks against the tree, he soon fell onto the ground covered in sweat.

To his father, this was just a new project to help his grades.

For David though? It might as well be a middle finger to his father. The grand, simple plan that David came up with was…to get into MMA!

The same previous profession as his father. It was all David really knew thanks to their…'family problems' and it being a big old fuck you to their old man. As he trained after school, day after day in most cases, he wiped the sweat from his forehead after a tough day of practice. It wasn't as good as a sparring partner…but he didn't have the money to join a gym and as the years passed little by little that felt like aeons, David was sure that he was slowly improving with his father 'toughening' him up.

After returning home from another day of training, looking at some flyers, the now older David returned home…

As his life changed drastically that day.

Entering the old run down house that somehow managed to pass safety inspections…or was avoided for one way or another, David heard the sound of muffled panic which caused him to slam the door open. The sound of panic was now clear…it was…

Apologies.

A voice that belonged to his father. His father…THEIR father was apologising!

It was like a fever dream that played no real impact in the older sibling's mind or plans, but…a part of him wanted that old man to do this, preferable when they were leaving for good. An odd feeling rose in the teen and as he stepped over the bottles of beer after breaking out of his shock.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry!" the man cried. "It wasn't my fault!"

It all came crashing down.

In the arms of their father, was David's sweet little brother.

Dead.

It felt as if five hundred years passed on by in the blink of a second as David's dull green eyes that only saw red.

As his father apologised, a remnant of who the man used to be flickered in his actions, it seemed he realised he wasn't alone and when he turned his head, it was immediately slammed into the ground. David wasted no time in raising that man's head and slammed it down again and again. When he got bored of that, fists came in.

All the eldest Flannegan child could see was red as they dragged their father, unaware if they were conscious or not, into a different room. Any struggle for survival wasn't even registered as David grabbed whatever he could to beat the man in his grasp.

His father died rather quickly, all things considered…but David wouldn't even notice for a good solid hour.

Dumping the old man's body in the old house, he gingerly picked up his brother and took him to their little hideaway. It took a while, but after wrapping his little brother up, with one last hug, he couldn't stop as his vision blurred, wiping his eyes as he covered his little sweet brother in dirt. "I…I…failed you…" he choked out as his promise was never fulfilled.

…

Living in the streets was something of a coin flip for David. As soon as he started to live in the alleys, his training had changed as he found a new way to get money. He was slowly becoming a wall of muscle as he threw his opponent to the side.

He might not have joined an MMA group, but the street fights and the underground pockets where he was paid to punch people was a decent alternative.

In the underground arena, which was just an old unused warehouse, David slammed his opponents into the ground with ease. As a third joined in out of the blue, David engaged in a slightly better fight where he was pushed back a bit, taking hit after hit until he released that pain of his opponent who proved to be quite slippery.

When he finally managed to hit his target, he took his winnings and was about to leave until a man in a business suit approached him. "Impressive fight. How would you like to make more than that meagre scrape of notes?" The man spoke and David could tell by his accent that he wasn't from around here. It was then that the man opened his briefcase. "This is just a fraction of what you could make. How about you put that quirk to use somewhere else?"

David glanced at the cash. It was already five times worth more than what he just won.

"Sure."

"Then let us be off to Japan…well, we might need to get you a passport first."

"Ah alright…wait what?"

When David arrived in Japan, he was soon put to battle in underground fight pits and clubs and thanks to his quirk, started to make a little bit of a name for himself to a handful of people involved. It was small and unnoticed at large, but in the few rings he was sent too, he was somewhat of a regular. At times he was unsure what they said, lagging behind as he caught only a few words here and there sometimes, but he managed to follow the gist of things.

As he fought his opponents, not once did he ever kill a person. Not even when they got him so frustrated so much he made sure to hurt them real good. However, the single kill on his hands…was about to change the day he was invited by his new soon-to-be managers.

It was as if he was being sold off like a sports team.

As three extremely wealthy businessmen in the country invited him to their room with talks about buying him as one of their personal fighters, something the man who brought him here was pretty pleased about, considering the zeroes they saw when they offered to buy him.

Yet as soon as David got there. "What…the fuck?" his words got stuck in his throat, so they never came out.

"Ah, David was it?" one of the wealthy businessmen asked, "come take a seat and enjoy whatever you fancy."

"Who…are they?" David asked in broken Japanese, eyeing the other people in the room. The sight of them made the pit in his stomach drop.

"Them? They're no one important," the second one replied. "They were easy to get a hold of, so enjoy."

"You can have them if you want, there's always more where that comes from, champ.".

The sickening feeling grew and grew as David clenched his hands tighter and tighter. He felt sick, these men were sick! "Sick freaks…!" it almost came out whispered as David saw what these men had brought with them.

In the room, whether with the business men or sprawled out on the lounges with bottles and syringes of some fucked up drugs on the tables…were a group of drugged up and kidnapped girls, some with rope around their wrists. It wasn't the worst of it though. They were wearing high school uniforms…

"Sorry, what was that?" the first businessman asked, not hearing David properly.

"YOU SICK FREAKS!" the muscular man screamed as he dashed at the businessman, grabbing a hold of the scrawny man and making sure to twist their head right around.

The other two ran to the door as they watched their business partner's head get ripped clean off like it was nothing.

David was too fast for them though, as all he could see was red as the screams of the businessmen echoed with the sound of breaking bones.

Once again. All he saw was red.

…

After David dropped off those girls at a police station, covered from head to toe in blood of the men, he ran darted off into the night. Haunted by two different nights, the man lurked the street like a vigilante, hunting down people just like those men. If the law couldn't do it or didn't want to do it, then he would do it.

Due to his activities, he encountered a few heroes that he was able to fend off, but then the day came. The day he was unable to fend off a hero. It was a high ranking one, a real high one that was enough for everyone to know in the country.

No matter how he attacked the hero, the hero was unfazed or completely dodged his attacks. It wasn't long before he realised…he had no chance.

So, he gave up.

"Thank you!" the hero's voice boomed. "I did want to talk with you about the other day. A young girl mentioned that she was saved by someone that matches your description, hazy as she was thanks to her quirk's side effects. Now, would you mind coming with me?!"

He was quickly taken to the station, where he confessed to the murders…including the murder of his father. He never saw the hero after that, saying something about someone else always needing help. One thing he knew for sure, was that he was going to go to jail regardless.

No matter how friendly that hero was, it was clear by the talks of serving out a sentence and answering for what he did, that the high ranked pro hero was still sending him off to some random jail.

As he waited for the news of his imprisonment, something he already knew was happening, a man entered the room.

"Hello," he quickly checked a clipboard. "David Flannegan?"

David silently nodded.

"I'm detective Tsutsui, nice to meet you." they introduced themselves, taking a seat opposite of the criminal. "As you already know, you won't be leaving here as a free man."

"I know."

"I also understand that you've been in a lot of fight clubs. I want to ask you some questions about that. Everything that you know about it, all the info that you know." Before David could ask anything, the detective continued. "If you give me information, we'll make a deal."

A raised eyebrow as dull green eyes stared at the detective. "A deal?"

"I've seen how you talked with that hero earlier. Are you…interested in becoming a hero?"

"A hero?" the American thought, "...he always wanted to become a hero…"

The detective kept the conversation going. "I read what we got on your file right now and your quirk is a decent one to have. It can be quite useful."

David was unsure what to say. "Thank you?"

"Don't thank me yet. You've heard of parole, right?" he smirked as soon as David nodded. "Great! Makes things easier. In exchange for information and a ten year long good record, you'll be eligible for parole."

"But how do I-"

"Not important," the detective shook his head. "We can get a hero to watch you as you work your way to herodom…if you can manage the record…and your temper…"

As they talked, they managed to work out a deal as the now convict David revealed everything he knew to the best of his ability.

You could see the light return to the man's eyes at the proposal.

He could be a hero? A parole sounded like nothing!

It wasn't long before some police officers came in to escort David out. "Tsutsui? What are you doing here?"

The detective handed the officers a note. "A note from the judge. David Flannegan is to be sent to Styx for his sentence." he then revealed. "Also to get some extra information about those fight clubs, I have an ongoing investigation to continue as soon as we're done here."

"Ah, well. Come on, Flannegan." and so, the criminal was escorted out and to his new 'home'.

As he was being taken to Styx, he failed to see the smirk on the detective's face.

The wannabe hero, empowered by the recent bruises he sustained, flung his tightly clenched fist right at the demonic prisoner that stood before him.

A simple yet powerful punch. Increased speed and power thanks to the damage Lilim had landed. As it hurled with great, surprising speed from the muscular wall that even onlookers had trouble keeping up with, the demonic inmate…ducked.

The giant flying fist flew right over the demon's head.

Equally as fast, the demon inmate's own fist came crashing into the pain powered criminal. As soon as her own punch landed, within an instant, David's feet immediately left the ground as he was fired into the air.

It didn't end there however as Lilim grabbed David's leg in mid-air, only to slam him down into the ground with the same amount of force that lifted him into the air.

A sharp gasp escaped the American's mouth, which was repeated when the demon's foot came down on his chest, again and again. A pair of hands rushed in to capture Lilim, but the wounded fighter lacked the speed necessary to accomplish his goal. What he got in return was a swift kick into the wall. Hard.

A cold embrace wrapped around his neck as the demon lifted him high into the air, squeezing the air out of him.

A speedy kick almost hit the champion. Almost.

"Power obtained through pain, yet it does nothing to nullify the feeling…it means nothing if you fall when you get it." Lilim's free hand that had caught onto the kick, pushed it away and punched the man hard in the stomach. So hard that it cracked the wall he was pinned against!

"A waste of effort, really. Why do you even bother?" she sighed as she watched the man struggle to breathe. "It doesn't take a genius to know what the guards are talking about when they mention your parole. It's laughable every time I hear it. You'll never be a hero. Give up."

A powered up fist soon landed in her face out of nowhere!

"Struck a nerve did I?" she asked the man that looked like he had a fire in his eyes. While he still had trouble breathing from her cold grasp, he went to punch her again, only to be thrown to the ground. "With the crimes you committed, much like the rest of us, how can you ever think they accept you to be a hero? After all you've done here? Hell we have an example of former pro-heroes in here! You aren't one of those rare cases that get lucky, just a delusional fool chasing an impossible dream."

David lunged right at the demonic Lilim as soon as he got to his feet, lost to the world as he howled some battle cry.

Yet Lilim stood strong with only one thing to say. "Taste reality."

Quickly adopting a fighting stance, rearing back her fist, the transformed criminal unleashed a powerful blow! A mockery for the wannabe hero.

A semi-open palm with the sharp claws of her hand facing the man before her, her current punching bag.

DEVIL'S STAKE!

It came in fast, the sharp claws piercing the man's chest only for it to come straight back out as soon as the palm slammed into the man, firing him away.

David, who was just gasping for air moments before going in for the lunge was staggering on his feet before the tall wall of muscle fell to the ground not a second later with quite the loud thud.

A foot of fire and brimstone pressed onto the down man's head, pressing him deeper into the ground beneath him.

Then the cold tone left her lips.

"Pathetic."

David laid face first in the ground with a foot pressing him even deeper into the ground, hard. The pressure increased drastically as the voice returned to the arena. "THE WINNER IS LILIM!"

---

Ah. The perks of the co-ed ward's good behaviour program. Ashita sat at a table in the female ward as she enjoyed a great meal provided to her, in fact, she noticed a significant rise in quality from the meal.

The meals that were made for the co-ed ward were definitely better than the standard wards basic meals, mostly because they were meant to be rewards for good behaviour. The info broker couldn't help but notice that the bonus reward for good behaviour was a lot more…rewarding than usual.

If you caught her drift.

As she stretched her arms high into the air with squinted eyes, she had a little peek.

"Yep…I'm being watched." from the other end of the room, some random guard was watching her like a hawk, or at least that's what they were trying to supposedly hide. "At least try to act like you're not watching me...unless that's on purpose."

After her stretch, she got back to her meal, already taking another bite. "Same guard as earlier too," she thought, going for another bite. "If they're watching me this closely, that means they don't know about the note…or at least think I might have one on me if they think something's up. It's more likely my arms though…lucky."

Finishing her meal, Ashita dropped her tray off at the cafeteria and decided to just wander around the prison, with the same guard trailing from quite a distance.

It wasn't enough to be clear as day for any regular guard to catch on sadly. "They're really keeping Limbo secret to the best of their abilities. Huh, I guess why some of them were so stoked about a match or game happening that day."

While she didn't like the idea of being watched constantly, at least until they trust her enough to remain silent for good, the bonuses were nice.

It hadn't been long since she was separated from Yua and Sae and she wondered if the ones watching her really took her deal seriously. It would have sucked if they didn't, and it ended badly for them… "If they don't decide to silence me permanently, that is…"

Not a thought the currently smiling info broker wanted to think about. Shaking those thoughts away, she continued on to her destination…wherever that was. "What should I do now? The co-ed ward?" Just as she approached the said ward, there were some distinct sounds of what she could only assume was a fight coming from somewhere within the ward. "A fight? Maybe not today…"

She didn't want to get wrapped up in another mess.

It came close just doing this task for Shi!

Her mind then travelled back to Mariko and that masked girl, Demelza, at the thought of Styx's jackal. "It should be fine, right? Shi should understand…I hope." considering Mariko's escape, she just hoped Shi would accept her note. "Good luck, Mari. You'll need it."

---

As Jin watched as David was taken out of the arena on a stretcher, he watched as a guard ushered him into the arena. Seems like this time, he was really going to fight.

"Good luck, Rookie." he turned to see Arai give him a small wave.

Returning a small wave, Jin managed a small smile. "Thanks, Arai."

"Just hope that you don't get a shitty nickname like Ember Hands." the sandpaper man laughed. It became louder when he saw the expression on the rookie.

He really hoped he didn't get such a…lame nickname.

As far as he witnessed, a lot of the fighters within Limbo had a decent nickname or alias. Rattlesnake, Maneater, Fleabag, Jolly Holiday. Aliases that worked decently well with who they were. "Then there's Ember Hands. It sounds like a slow day at the naming department…or they were saving better nicknames for other fighters."

"Iron Gauntlet is definitely better than Ember Hands, then there was David's Limbo alias…more so the old one, Masochist…" he stopped when he got to the door as Lilim walked past him.

"So you were supposed to be my match? Seems things in Limbo are getting all messed up. Good luck with your match, rookie."

Jin couldn't tell her tone, perhaps due to the transformation? He had no idea. Bored? Not caring at all? Hard to say.

He watched as she returned back to whatever room she was staying in as she reverted back to her normal, human form. Turning back to the arena, still damaged from the last few fights, it was his turn now when the voice began.

"Now! Introducing for the first time, we have the fighter who was robbed from the last match!" the voice boomed throughout Limbo. "Maneater has made things unpredictable in the matchups, but isn't that what we wanted? Punching Bag sure showed us that!"

Standing at the door, Jin glanced towards one of the helmet wearing guards who just raised a hand. A simple wait gesture.

"This young man is haunted by his very crime!" Jin started to pale at the mention, caught between fear and anger as the voice continued. "Will he repent for his crimes? Or will he continue to add more to his tally? Considering the blood on his hands, he might already be washed up from using his quirk effectively! A life on the streets, both a thief in valuables and lives! A new rookie joins Limbo!"

"Calm down, calm down. They're just trying to aggravate you for your fight," Jin thought, taking a deep breath.

The guard gave him the signal to enter, and he did just that, keeping an eye on the guard for a moment as he started to walk into the arena.

"Crystallizer!"

Jin had to cover his eyes as soon as he entered the 'arena' fully. "It's a lot brighter in person when you're not watching from the sidelines."

It was then that the announcer's voice returned. "Shall Crystallizer join the ranks of Limbo? Or will he end up just like Crazy Ape? Only time will tell, but considering his opponent, it might be clear as day!"

"At least they didn't call me Crystal Meth or whatever…so I guess that's good…"

Jin's eyes followed the lights as they appeared over towards the door. "The opponent for this match…is a familiar face to many frequent fighters and onlookers! He considers himself an artist and those that have seen his work first hand can attest to that."

It was then that a man with dark blue skin walked in with swept back black hair and only wearing baggy grey pants that seemed to be from one of the prison jumpsuits, or perhaps that was all that remained.

"A man with a passion for the arts…of murder! What's a better art piece than blood and bodies! Just look at the Shibuya Massacre! The artist, a champion of Limbo! KAJIRU!"

"A champion?!" The wide eyed Jin couldn't help but stare at the strange man. "...I wish Iron Gauntlet was still here…"

As soon as Kajiru entered the arena with the doors closing behind him, almost instantly, he fell into a pose as if he was mid-dance or mid-stretch. "It's time to make art. Let's start."

"Did…did I end up with a crazy one?" Jin thought, taken back from the man's behaviour, watching him glide around the arena…only for a kick to send Jin into the ground. "Shit. I almost forgot…"

Jin wasted no time in dodging Kajiru's downward kick. He wasn't going to let that guy get more hits on him like what happened with David and his match with Lilim.

With no option but to fight, Jin marched in as his opponent swiftly approached in a more direct way than before.

Nakamura's attempt to hit the artist, the dancer, was an uphill battle. Every time he got close, Kajiru just dodged in ways and shapes he didn't know were possible! Which led to some openings from the crystallizer. Openings that the dark blue man took up on as he lashed out with a kick.

He recoiled as he was almost kicked off balance. "It's no Vito, but he does pack a kick!" quickly as he could, just as the leg retreated, Jin grabbed a hold of his opponent. "You're not getting away that easily."

The moment he stepped foot into Limbo, he knew that he had to fight. It wasn't his first response, but seeing the previous fights just went to show how much choosing not to fight would leave him as. Therefore, as he cemented his mind in knowing the only way out of here was to fight, he unleashed his attacks.

Punching the artist in the face as he yanked the leg closer, setting the man off balance.

Falling now, Jin's follow up punch was caught and within seconds, the man that was supposed to be hitting the ground wrapped around the rookie's arm. "Wha-" Jin was flipped onto the ground along with his opponent. A brief struggle on the ground, with the two racing each other to get up, Kajiru managed to break free and get back onto his feet with a smirk.

A short lived smirk that noticed that Jin didn't try to get any distance when they raced to get up. Rather, he decided to get closer. Much closer.

"Huh…"

Closing the gap, Jin landed a quick uppercut on his opponent!

As Jin landed a hit that sent Kajiru backwards, he was met with a foot to the chin as Kajiru flipped right around, back on his feet.

Rubbing his chin, Jin rushed at his opponent. Focusing on the offensive.

The way Kajiru weaved his way through Jin's attacks, the attacker couldn't help but notice that it wasn't anything he'd fought against before.

It was like water. Freely flowing around him.

Getting punched in the face wasn't something Jin wanted, but got nonetheless.

"Are you new to this dance?" Kajiru asked, following up with a graceful kick. "Or are you perhaps stuck in a trance?"

"Stop that." Jin wiped his mouth after a cough. Already charging back in, he chased after the slippery dancer.

The more the Limbo rookie fought, his attacks were mostly misses. Only a handful of times was he able to land a hit on his opponent. The dexterity that Kajiru showed was something else.

As they fought, Jin couldn't help but wonder. "His style…is he dancing?"

It wasn't time to think about it, or ask either, so Jin got started with his quirk. There was no way he wasn't getting out of here without a fight anyway. So, a line of rough crystals formed a simple shape from his body, created and grasped within his hand. A rough crystal blade!

It was more like a lead pipe or a wooden bat in appearance though…and purpose.

Swinging the blade, Jin charged right in as Kajiru dodged and weaved. Showing great flexibility in his movements.

When Kajiru practically flipped himself backwards, Jin fired a small crystal from his free hand, managing to hit the Limbo champion, which served more to set him off balance than an actual attack.

It was something he took advantage of as he landed a powerful hit to the side.

Like a powerful baseball swing, Jin basically tossed the man with swept back hair to the side. "I gotta end this quickly before he takes me down like Lilim decided to do in her match!"

As soon as Kajiru hit the ground, Jin got started on making more crystals. The crystals started to pile down on the 'artist', starting with the torso for the fighter on his side at the moment. "Hopefully that will keep him down." he huffed as he Kajiru was under a layer of crystals, pinning him to the floor. "That was…no. Better not jinx myself, but why hasn't the-"

The sound of crunching caught the crystal inmate's ears. It sounds like someone…was eating ice of all things.

The time he looked down, two things happened. Kajiru almost hit him with an uppercut and was now…free. The other was that something else was in the room with them as it leaped up and almost clawed him!

Now at a distance, Jin glanced down at what had just joined in on the fray. "Of course I end up jinxing myself, but…what the hell is that?!"

A small dark blue…creature was on the ground, eating away at the crystals. Its body was that of a small ball with four sharp paws, reminding Jin of a mole in how they looked, but even more deadly. The only other feature it had was the sharp teeth it possessed. Only a mouth, no eyes, no nose, no ears. At least, not visible anyway. Just a small little dubious creature with sharp claws and sharper teeth, eating away at the crystals with no real issues.

It then turned to him once it was finished.

Nibbler: Kajiru releases small four-legged creatures from his body that have quite the appetite for human flesh! These little guys can feast on anything!

"Just my luck…" of course his opponent happened to have some quirk to deal with his crystals. "Coincidence or just pure bad luck?"

When the small thing lunged at him, the dodging part was easy…if Kajiru wasn't also there to kick him into the ground. "It's okay to cry. You are going to die."

"Stop…it…" the crystal-making inmate grunted as he got back to his feet as quickly as he could. He really didn't want to test that little creature's teeth.

The dark blue skinned man stroked the little critter as it seemed to enjoy it, even purring at his touch. "Cute, aren't they?"

Jin had no time to question what happened or the change in Kajiru compared to the other times when he watched another pop out of the dancer's torso. "Great. They multiplied…"

"Go and feast! My little beast!" Kajiru smirked as his little critters lunged at the crystal inmate who fought them off with his homemade weapon.

Whacking them away, they quickly joined back in…joined by a third.

"Crap! I better deal with these things before I get overwhelmed!"

Whenever a nibbler jumped at him, he swatted them away with his makeshift weapon of crystals. However, slowly, they were starting to overwhelm him to the point where Kajiru just sat back and watched!

It didn't help when they started landing hits. Not with the teeth…yet, but man were those claws sharp. Jumping right by, the claw outstretched, instantly leaving a shallow cut on his arm…that could have gone way deeper if it was more of a head on attack than a side graze.

More and more the small creatures left their scratches. Some were less shallow than little things were even trying to bite him! Just as one was about to chomp down on his leg, the little mole or whatever it was bit down onto some quickly generated crystals, giving Jin time to get away or attack them.

"That was a close one," he mumbled, creating more and more crystal coverings over his body while the nibblers tore away at his makeshift armour, eating it like it was cotton candy or something.

Bringing down the crystal pipe, bat or blade, Jin pummelled, squished and knocked away the sentient parts of Kajiru. Sending an occasional glance towards the man himself, who seemed to be an onlooker now. "Got to get closer…slowly…slowly…"

Slowly but surely, the fight got closer to the 'artist' as the rookie continued to deal with little gnawing nuisances. One suddenly clamped down on his crystal covered leg! Instead of tearing it off, it clung on, ready to bite down and through the crystals. It was only the start as they started attaching themselves to him.

Jin…wasn't prepared for that.

He could hear the sounds of the crystal breaking, and for those in view, he saw just how close they were getting.

"The time is ticking! And when it's done, they will be ripping!"

Jin's eyes widened at the mention. "Ah shit…" a time limit. This guy must be messing with him now! "This guy, I swear. Why not just bite down immediately? Ah, they're getting closer…what can I…oh!"

Standing still and focusing, the crystals that were being bit into suddenly grew, perhaps more added to them was more accurate, but it blasted the nuisances away as the makeshift coverings began to fall off him.

"Oh? That was-" Kajiru was unable to finish as Jin got closer. A bit too close.

Not prepared for the crystal inmate to be on him, Kajiru was kicked down as Jin Nakamura brought down his crystal bat. "This ends now!"

As Jin brought the rough crystal blade he made down on the oranged eyed champion, he froze at the moment of impact and the sounds of a loud crunch.

The man who was on his back, supposed to be whacked with the crystal blade (though many would assume the intention was to impale), sat there with a mouth connected to his chest. A mouth that ate away of the crystal and remained in the man's body.

"Those things can stay on him?! Does that mean that they can return?"

"It seems my fasting has reached its conclusion. Now, let me erase your illusion." Jin was instantly kicked off, as the small chest mouth ate the rest of the crystal blade that Jin Nakamura was forced to release.

"Stop…" Jin mumbled as he jumped back with another heavy downward kick. "Fasting? Not important right now. It totally seems like his mixing dancing with his fighting style. It's a lot clearer now."

Covering his hands with crystals, like boxing gloves.

"Interesting choice of super move, but I hope they're not easily removed."

Jin never actually thought of the possibility of super-moves before. So as he unleashed his now named Crystal Boxer, Kajiru decided to meet him head on!

The artist smiled as he rushed in. The two within punching distance unleashed what they had with Jin having the added strength of a crystal ball surrounding his fists. While both landed their first punch, Kajiru caught onto the new Limbo fighter's second with a crunch.

That's when Jin saw the mouth on the palms. A mouth full of crystals.

"His hands too?! I need more crystals!" and so, more crystals replaced what was lost. "Get your meal for the day, let's see how much you can handle!"

Snapping a finger, one of the nibblers pounced at Jin…only to be punched away into the wall by Jin's Crystal Boxer.

Kajiru seemed to understand as he held his hand up, preventing his little pets from joining in. Once that was over, they continued their back and forth punch match.

Though, he wasn't going in empty handed. Much like Jin's crystal fists, those durable little monsters formed around Kajiru's own hands.

It was then that a trade of blows began. Jin's crystal covered hands landed strong hits against Kajiru's body to a point where he was surprised that the champion was able to keep standing. "Guess they're not called champions for nothing." he thought as his own crystal boxing gloves were being chipped away thanks to the combination of Kajiru's nibblers that now acted as his hands with those sharp claws slash away at any exposed parts of the rookie.

In the next few minutes, Kajiru and Jin were approaching their finale. Jin covered in cuts, leaking blood like busted water main and a bruised Kajiru who took the punches head on, softened by the use of his quirk to act as armour. Just as Jin had done with his crystals.

As Jin's armour grew, so did the lumps that were Kajiru's nibblers that acted to soften any attack. One with hard armour, the other with soft armour.

"We've gone on long enough. I've seen your stuff." Kajiru declared as all the lumps jumped from his body, forming into his little pets. "It's time to take you down, you can't take my crown."

Snapping his finger and pointing at the rookie, the monsters lunged with many people knocked away by Jin who struggled to keep them all away from him. He put up a good attempt but once one latched on…it began. Many of the knocked back creatures ate away at his crystal armour while one on his leg clinged on tight.

The new nibbler at his leg bit down hard, easily breaking through the crystals and into his leg that caused him to release a horrid scream.

Falling to a knee, as Kajiru swept his now messy hair back, he kicked the rookie back onto his back. "A good attempt that made me unkempt." Kajiru grinned. It was nothing like the smiles he wore before now. Just then, a few of the creatures that came out of his body latched onto their creator and faded back into his body. "Thanks for the meal, it had a…certain appeal."

Yet, Kajiru made no move as Jin panted and huffed.

"Is he waiting for me?" Jin wondered as he got back to his feet, already having the crystals cover his body as much as he could once again. It wasn't a lot this time around, but it served its purpose as he marched forward.

"I thought you would have stayed down? It seems you're persistent in wanting to be a clown."

The steps taking forward didn't last long as Kajiru snapped his fingers, unleashing the seen and unseen critters that weren't re-assimilated into the artist that began to cling and hold onto the crystal armoured man. Many of these nibblers were kicked or punched away, but not all of them.

After a while of keeping as many of the monsters off him, multiple of the nibblers were now clinging onto him like he was the target of a hunt as the last crystals on Jin, such as the makeshift boxing gloves, shattered into tiny pieces the moment he dropped onto his knees.

As he fell forward, the only thought through his head wasn't the creatures that planned on eating him, but rather… "I need to get stronger…"

Landing on the ground with a thud, the small little critters that surrounded him pawed at him for a second before turning tail and headed back to Kajiru. Some jumped at him and assimilated back into him while others just laid in his laps waiting for more pets. If they had tails, they'd be wagging like crazy.

In a soft voice, his voice was like a whisper. "You all did good today…" his orange eyes with black sclera glanced up at the fallen warrior. "And for your first match, you've done well. Rest easy now until next time we clash."

"The newbie of Limbo put up a surprisingly good fight!" the mastermind's distorted voice echoed over the arena. "THE WINNER OF THE MATCH IS KAJIRU!"

---

In the office of one Eris Argyris, eyepatched warden of Styx, sat a single large egg wrapped in the dark cloak of her fellow warden on her desk.

An egg her fellow co-warden had been with constantly outside of a few occasions and one they've been keeping hidden from others, outside a select few.

As she picked up the egg, she had no idea what to make of it outside the fact that there were eggs hidden within prison grounds. "There is no way eggs of this size just appear out of nowhere. Nor can I think of anyone that has a specific egg related quirk, both inmates and staff."

Placing the egg under her desk, she glanced at her fellow warden who flipped through some stapled papers that were now dropped on her desk. "Did they find anything more yet?" she asked, keeping the evidence safe and out of view.

"Nothing yet," he sighed. "The egg nursery ruins are being investigated but we're getting nothing so far, so that mystery is still there. We're approaching cautiously with the details you got from Vito about getting to fight and kill people as well as this red eyed individual that let him go. Any update on that?"

Eris shook her head as she sat back down in her chair. "None so far and it's…alarming. I have questioned most of the on duty staff and I got a few more to question if nothing else comes up again. It kinda feels like someone is trying to avoid being captured that way."

"We can only hope that the sudden questionings will scare them into doing something stupid."

"Hopefully…anyways, any other updates?"

Seimei crossed his arms, beginning to make laps around the room. "Going over the slowed down footage when Alexios noted that Yubi's extra fingers were missing and we still can't make out just who or what is what that took them. It could very well be the tamperer. Sadly, we still have nothing on the cloaked figure that visited the funeral home that night."

"Was it after closing time?"

"For the general public, yes. We managed to get a time frame of when the cloaked individual arrived at the funeral home." Seimei then stopped to smile. "With hero assistance, we managed to get footage of an unmarked car that was clearly lacking any sort of number plates as well as dark tinted windows in the general vicinity of the funeral home that matched the description Bunri's clone gave at the time."

Leaning back in her chair, the female warden just stared at the ceiling. "Cloaked and in an unmarked shady car after closing time…very suspicious." Now with her hands behind her head as she kicked her feet up, the warden glanced over to her co-worker. "Quite a mystery we have on our hands. Eggs, a person with red eyes, a group making inmates fight, body parts being stolen from both the living and dead…how does this all connect?"

Snapping his fingers, he pointed to under the desk. "Hopefully that egg will show us what that is. If it turned out to be all unconnected, I'd definitely be surprised. Well, then again, the red eyed person isn't connected from what we gathered since it gave us a lead, but still. Point stands."

Turning her eyes down to the egg, she wondered just how long would the egg hatch? It was either going to be a link…or something unrelated.

It didn't matter though as a sudden series of knocks landed on the office door.

"Enter." she called out and whoever it was wasted no time.

As the door flung open not to look after, Bunri paled as he looked at the both of them. "We have a problem…"

"...what happened this time?" Seimei leaned forward, "is it about the person who set Vito free? The person behind the inmate killings and body tampering?"

"It could be, now that I think about it," shaking his head, Bunri gave them the news.

"Gousen's not in the solitary confinement cell. He vanished."

---

Another long chapter. God damn. I think this is the longest chapter yet. No, yeah. It is.

I doubt the next chapter will be as long as this, but enjoy! It's time to rest now after this behemoth.