"What is that Izuku?"

Izuku bolted, desperately putting as much distance between himself and her as possible. He frantically tried putting it out, but he hadn't quite figured out how to turn it off yet.

He ran, and ran, then ran some more, nearly losing his footing more than once on the mossy cobble roads. He knew better than to underestimate his pursuer. He continued to run until he was completely out of breath. Looking around of cover, he darted into an alleyway off the main road.

Izuku's chest heaved, desperately gasping for air. He'd never run that before much in his life! Hearing someone running down the road, he moved further from the entrance of the alleyway, hoping the darkness would conceal him.

With bated breath, Izuku listened to the clop of shoes on cobble grow louder and louder before finally, a figure dashed past the entrance. The sound grew fainter and fainter as the person left the area.

Izuku collapsed to the floor and breathed a huge sigh of relief. Checking his right palm, he groaned. It was still there. He had to keep hiding, there was no way he could show her this.

He got up, walked to the entrance of the alleyway and poked his head out, scanning the street. To his surprise, he didn't recognise anything. None of the vendors, the signs, the taverns, the general stores. Priding himself on his knowledge on every nook and cranny of Aurelia, anxiety began pooling in his gut. How far had he ran? Was this the far outskirts of the city? Or had he somehow accidently passed the border checkpoints and left the city completely?

*clack*

Izuku whipped around, looking back into the alley. Now realising he had no clue where he even was, he had to be careful. There was no way to get to safety if he didn't even know where safety was.

He stared deep into the darkness, staying that way for a few moments before breathing a shaky sigh. It must have been a rat. He chuckled to himself and shook his head, disappointed for jumping like that at little noises.

…

Using reflexes the boy didn't know he possessed, Izuku dived out of the way as a solid blue beam of magic flew past his head with a high-pitch whine, obliterating the stone wall beside where he once stood.

Now on his butt, he crawled backwards from the alley. Though his ears were ringing from the narrow escape, he could hear screaming behind him. The few people that were still out shopping this late in the day ran into buildings and locked the doors. He couldn't blame them for abandoning him. Even though magic was commonplace now, mana sorcery was still very rare and powerful. He needed to leave! Desperately trying to get his nerves under control, he turned over and got to his feet, only to collapse onto the floor again as an explosion rocked the ground beneath him.

"What do we have here? Are you lost, son? You look rather confused. Don't worry, we'll assist you if you come here!"

Izuku rolled to the side as a corporeal hand launched towards him. Having missed him, the ghostly hand faded away. The boy looked for something lying around in the street he could use. He needed a weapon; he needed a plan.

'The first attack was a magic beam, so one of them is a mana sorcerer. Then an explosion. Clearly a volatile pyromancer. Then that hand. Maybe a summoner?'

Stalling for time, he tried talking to his attackers. "What are you idiots doing, wasting your time attacking a child? You know unlicensed use of magic means serious time in the dungeons! Why are you risking imprisonment screwing around with me?"

Three men walked out of the alley and the shadows. The one on the left was hunched over, with his left hand covered in thick flames and gripping a lethal serrated knife in his right. He was completely bald and covered in burn scars all over body, with a nasty scar running from his chin over his missing left eye and up to his forehead. All he wore was a tattered pair of shorts. He was the pyro.

In contrast, the man on the right stood ramrod straight and dressed in what was probably once a very fine dress suit, now covered in dust and dirt and grime. His greasy black hair hung low and covered his left eye, but his right eye was still visible. It was completely black. He had his left arm behind his back and his right arm pointed towards him, tightly gripping a blackwood wand in his hand. Definitely a summoner.

Having identified the pyro and the summoner, that left the man in the middle. He towered over both his partners, arms crossed and leering at Izuku with a toothy grin. He had large arms with biceps as big as the boy's head. Three identical scars cut across his left and right arm, even distance between each scar. Both his hands pulsed with blue light. He wore a sleeveless tunic and worn leather leggings. He was bald, and had two, thick blue lines painted on his forehead.

Of the three, the man in the middle stepped forward and answered his question.

"Jeez, ya thick or something squirt? What, ya think upstanding, law-abiding citizens are just gonna be hanging out in a random alley? We're already up for enough crimes to put us away for life! No harm in messing with a little punk for fun!"

The pyro looked confused. "Ahh, that weren't what you said boss! You was talking about the thingy in his hand, th-"

The sorcerer quickly turned away from Izuku and grabbed his lackey by the throat and lifted him off the ground. The scrawny man gagged and scrabbled for purchase on the larger man's forearms and struggled, to no avail.

"What's wrong with ya, ey? We're friggin criminals, we lie! If I was lyin, I was doin it for a reason. Next time, use whatever shred of common sense ya have left and keep ya trap shut!"

He threw the pyro to the ground. The man rolled over onto his side and coughed violently.

This was it! This was Izuku's chance! The pyro was down and out for the moment and the sorcerer was distracted. Getting to his feet he sprinted towards the intersection. If he could just make it around the corner and out of line of sight, he would have some time to hide in a bui-

Izuku's foot snagged on something and he went down, hard. His head smashed into the concrete. A blinding pain shot through his nose and his ears rang.

"Instead of letting your anger get the better of you, Sachiro, it may be prudent for you to keep focused on the task that hand. The boy nearly got away."

Looking at his feet, Izuku saw a small ghostly hand fade away.

The sorcerer, Sachiro, turned towards Izuku and growled. "Look kid, we ain't gonna kill ya; we're just gonna hurt ya real bad. The sooner ya let this happen, the sooner your lights go out and the pain goes away! Now hold still!"

Sachiro pointed his palms towards Izuku, pulsing faster and faster with brilliant blue energy.

Looking for something, anything, Izuku threw himself at a large barrel lid and pulled it up in front of him just in time to shield himself from the blast.

Despite his makeshift shield, the sheer power of the blast sent him sliding back a few metres, the lid completely blackened on the front and smoking.

Forcing himself to stand on shaky legs, Izuku tensed upon seeing Sachiro slowly clapping with a big grin on his face.

"Hey, hey, I take it back! Ya ain't thick at all! In fact, ya seem to have some real potential! For what it's worth kid, if this were normal circumstances I'd let ya go! Ya've put up more of a fight then the sniffling babes around 'ere, and ya only a kid. Kids are a boring fight, don't know enough to put up a good show. Unfortunately for ya, these aren't normal circumstances. So ya gonna let me knock ya out, or ya can fight back! Either way, ya ain't winning this! Kanaye, Koshiro, now!"

Focused on Sachiro, Izuku hadn't noticed the pyro and summoner slowly approaching him from his sides. The summoner's ghost hand ripped the shield out of his grasp, while the pyro threw a small fireball straight towards his chest, throwing him onto the floor again and knocking the wind out of him. Defenceless and too weak to fight back, all he could do was look up at Sachiro as the man swaggered towards him with a smug grin, palms rapidly pulsing again.

"Told ya kid. Night night!"

Izuku dropped his head and breathed, trying to prepare for the world of pain about to befall him.

The pyro suddenly began giggling, pointing down the road. "Hey, Koshi, look! There's a girl running towards us! What does she think she's gonna-"

"GALE FORCE!"

A furious wind suddenly roared to life in the street, throwing the criminals down the road. As Izuku felt himself being picked up by the wind, it became a mini tornado, throwing the poor boy and his attackers around and around in circles before finally, a hand shot through the wall of wind.

Grabbing a hold for dear life, his saviour yanked him out of the tempest and he landed roughly on the cold cobbled floor. She wore a witch's hat on her head and long, dark grey mage's robe, with a small pack resting on her hip that attached to a cord slung over her shoulder.

Looking down at him, staff in her left hand and her right hand on her hip, clearly unimpressed with him, was one Ochaco Uraraka.

Despite the situation, Izuku sheepishly smiled at his best friend. "Uhhhh… hi?"

Rolling her eyes, she grabbed his hand and pulled him to his feet. "When we get back, I'll make sure your dad kicks your ass."

Still holding her hand, Izuku pulled her into a hug and buried his head into her neck. "Thank you. I don't know what would've happened to me if you weren't here."

Frowning, she pulled away from him and looked him in the eyes, frustration replaced with concern. "Izuku, who are these guys?"

"I don't know, I just ducked into that alley over there to get away from you, then… we've got to move. Now!"

Izuku grabbed her hand and ran. Ochaco nearly tripped before putting her foot down and yanking her hand out of his.

"Damnit, Izuku! What's wrong with you?"

"Look!" He grabbed her by the shoulders and turned her to look back at her mini tornado still whirling in the street. A bright blue light pulsed within the tempest, blinking faster and faster and faster.

"That's a mana sorcerer, Ochaco! We can't fight that guy! We've got to go! We'll find a powder launcher and alert the guards, let them handle it!"

"YA STILL, AIN'T, WINNING THIS!"

A hundred beams of pure energy exploded outwards from the tornado, destroying stalls, shattering windows, and setting some roofs alight. Grabbing her arm, Izuku dived to the ground and pulled Ochaco with her, though his effort was in vain.

With a scream of pain, a beam of energy caught Ochaco directly in the left shoulder. She dropped her staff clutched her arm, groaning in pain.

"Ochaco!" Getting onto his knees, he leant over her and gingerly pried her hands from the wound. Aside from skin in the very centre of the injury peeling away and bubbling slightly, overall she got quite lucky with only slight charring around the wound. "Ochaco, do you keep bandages on you?"

Through gritted teeth, the girl nodded and said "B…bag!"

Looking around, he quickly spotted it, thanking the higher powers that the bag hadn't gone too far. He reached over a snatched it, pulling it back towards him and rummaging through it. He couldn't believe that the beam had only lightly charred her skin. If the blast was at the same strength as the blasts from earlier, at the very least it should have taken a chunk out of her shoulder.

"Ohoho! That was powerful!"

Still kneeling in front of Ochaco, he looked up from the bag and turned towards the sorcerer. He knew spells required focus, so he wasn't surprised to see that the large tornado had disappeared. Scanning the road, he saw the pyro and summoner laid out on the ground, bleeding and unconscious. The sorcerer had also taken significant damage from the whirlwind, a large gash on the right side of his forehead bled profusely and ran into his right eye, half-blinding him.

"Who is she? I don't see power like that in me own boys, let alone a little brat. And a girl no less! Maybe the rumors really were true. The magic in young ones is getting stronger!"

Heart sinking as the sorcerer began walking towards them, Izuku turned his attention back towards the bag and finally found the bandages. Helping Ochaco sit up, he quickly wrapped the bandages around the wound and pulled her to her feet.

"We have to go Izuku!"

"We can't."

Ochaco turned to Izuku, staring at him disbelievingly. "Why not?! You just said yourself we can't fight him! Why change your mind now? … Say something Izuku! You can't even do magic, so stop trying to play hero!"

She realised to late what she had said, gasping when she finally did. Before she could even begin to apologise, she was shocked to see a smile on Izuku's face.

"I'm not playing hero, Ochaco. I said that before he broke out of your tornado. Most mana spells excel at long range; if we ran we'd be playing into his strengths. No, now we need to fight him head on."

He turned back to face the sorcerer. Figuring that was the end of discussion, Ochaco turned to focus on her enemy, almost missing the little mutter under her friend's breath.

"I'll show you magic."

Izuku darted towards the discarded barrel lid from earlier, lifting it by the handle to use it as a makeshift shield. Next, he darted towards a broken broom and grabbed it to use as a weapon.

Sachiro, upon seeing what his prey was doing, bent over and howled with laughter, clutching his stomach. "Ya-ya think ya gonna fight me? Really? With a lid and a broken broom? I change my mind again! Ya the dumbest bastard I've seen in years!"

Hurrying back to Ochaco, he quietly told her his plan. "His spells excel at range, right? So we get in close. He will definitely have something to hold us off in close quarters, but it won't nearly be as powerful as his long range attacks. I'll get in there, distract him, and you can finish him off with your gale force spell. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

Wasting no time, Izuku charged towards his enemy.

His eyes shining, Sachiro grinned like a shark and raised both hands towards Izuku. "Oh, kid, ya ain't got a clue, do you? I'm not your enemy. Far from it. I'm just the hired help!"

A brilliant beam of blue lanced towards Izuku, who raised his shield to take the blow head on. It slammed into the lid, almost stopping Izuku in his tracks as pain shot through his arm. Even with his makeshift shield, the sheer force of the blow was enough to send tremors through his body.

Several large cracks now ran through the lid. Izuku knew it would only hold up against two or three more of those attacks. He had to get up close before it was too late.

Pushing through the pain, he continued charging towards the sorcerer. He forced himself to focus on his footing, the mossy cobble road providing an added hazard to this fight. One wrong step and he'd be on the floor, totally defenceless.

Sachiro raised his hands again, his palms pulsing brighter than they had before. This was going to be a big one. Izuku ground to a halt and kneeled, bracing as best he could for the next blast.

"Aero bolt!"

A small, concentrated projectile of air flew over Izuku's shoulder and collided with the sorcerer. The man stumbled, knocking his attack off course. The mana blast slammed into the side of a building, a large gaping hole opening up where it impacted as a shower of debris covered the street.

Not wasting anytime, Izuku immediately darted into action. He jumped straight into the cloud of dust that now settled in the street, obscuring himself from view.

Sachiro slowly took a few steps backwards, scanning the cloud of dust for the first sign of the boy. He had his palms raised and another blast ready.

"Ya little girlfriend might have a few good tricks up her sleeve, but it won't be enough to save ya. Come out, boy. Trust me, this ain't anything personal. I promise to make it quick."

Seeing a shadowy figure slowly approaching, Sachiro laughed and powered up even further. No silly little lid would withstand this. "Alright kid, this ends now!"

With a burst of energy that even rocked him a little, the bolt of magic shot from Sachiro's hands and slammed into the figure. With a shout of pain he saw the figure collapse, the lid-shield clattering to the floor.

"Ahhh! Finally! Ya nearly had me worried there kid! Haven't had a real fight in years, so thanks for almost giving me one!"

Sachiro slowly swaggered over to the figure, pulling a slave mark pen out of his pocket. With this, he trapped Izuku into following his every command until he released the boy.

Using the sharp point at the end of the pen, Sachiro pricked himself and drew a little blood, then dipped the pen tip in it. Approaching the boy on the floor, he almost felt some sort of half-empathy for the boy. Sachiro was a rotten man to the core, and he killed, robbed and raped whom, when and where he liked. However, he did have a large amount of respect for those that proved to be powerful or resilient, and the boy had done that. He wasn't powerful in the normal sense, but he'd shown the ability to think on his feet, and he had tanked two direct attacks before the third finally felled him. Because of this, he would have let the boy go, or even try and persuade him to join, but this boy wasn't just a random peasant on the street. The boss had asked for him, so he would take him.

Kneeling in front of the body, he turned it over. On the floor lay a mannequin with a green tunic and the lid, now in small, black, smoking pieces on the floor.

Before the sorcerer could retreat, Izuku came from behind him and brought the broom handle over the man's head as hard as he could, the handle shattering into pieces. He then jumped onto his shoulders and put him in a headlock with all the strength he could muster.

"OCHACO, NOW!"

"Gale Force!"

"MANA ARMOUR!"

With a roar like thunder, the powerful wind returned to the street. Already, Izuku felt himself being blown away and held onto the sorcerer's neck for dear life. Unfortunately for him, the man wasn't being blown away like he planned.

Struggling to open his eyes in the face of the mighty tempest, the boy finally opened them, his heart sinking at the sight in front of him.

The sorcerer was covered head to toe in a light blue glow and his right foot was planted in the ground.

"Heh, that- urgh, that was ya plan kid?! Distract me and blow me away, then hope-ahh, hope I'd hit something and be knocked out like those other idiots?! And then what were ya gonna do? Ya- urgh, ya stuck here with me! How did ya plan to get away?!"

Izuku decided to save his strength and not say anything. He could just barely keep his grip on the man's neck.

With a long groan, the sorcerer slowly shuffled his left foot forward before slamming it into the road, smashing through the cobble and planting his foot in the ground.

"This-ahhh, this armour gives me better defence against magic attacks, and makes me a little stronger! If this all she's got, ya bitch is toast! I can keep moving forward 'till I see her, then I'll-urgh, I'll blast her! You, on the other hand, do ya have the strength to hold on?"

Izuku screwed his eyes shut and focused on breathing, trying to ignore the man's jabs and the wind whipping past his ears. He had to come up with a plan, he had to think of something; he couldn't let his friend get hurt.

After another slow shuffle and foot-plant forward, Sachiro looked over his shoulder at the boy hanging off him.

"Ya know, I've given ya the chance of surrender, but don't even think for a second that passes over to her! One trick little bitch, letting ya-argh, letting ya fight me alone! Anyone who relies only on their magic don't deserve to use it! Ya just business, but she's personal! So if ya really care about ya little girlfriend, ya better beat me right now! Otherwise, I'm gonna enjoy turning that little girl into a woman, if ya get what I mean!"

Sachiro look back towards the source of the wind. He could see her now! One blast, and the little girl would regret ever messing with him. He raised his palms for the final time that afternoon, a wild grin on his face and full of confidence. As per usual, nothing could get in his way. He'd enjoy teaching both brats that lesson.

"New plan."

He felt the boy pull himself forward and lean over his shoulder. Sachiro turned his head to look at the boy, and for the first time in his life, he felt fear.

Cocking his head at him, an evil grin on his face, Izuku stared into the man's eyes. Sachiro's heart pounded, staring back at the cold, pitch-black depths that greeted him. He felt the boy lay his right palm against his chest. Remembering what he'd been told of the boy's current power level, he regained some of his confidence.

"Ya think ya gonna burn me with that poncy little flame?! The ember's still tiny, there's no way ya gonna get through my-"

"Burn."

FIRST FLAME

Ochaco kept her staff planted on the ground and desperately tried focusing on the spell. She recited her teachings over and over in head her to keep her mind from wondering - 'no focus, no magic' - but she struggled. Izuku was her best friend, and she trusted him more than most of the people in her life, but seriously?! Asking her to use her most powerful, dangerous spell while he was directly in range?! Ridiculous! She promised to herself that, as soon as she made sure he was safe, she'd kick his ass.

Holding the spell for a few minutes more, she finally lifted the staff and released the wind. Just like before, the storm almost instantly disappeared, leaving behind the destruction it and the sorcerer had wrought.

With the wind, the cloud of dust Izuku had used as cover had been blown away. It only took Ochaco a few seconds to see Izuku lying on the floor unconscious on the floor surrounded by debris and rubble.

She dropped her staff and sprinted over to him, dropping to her knees as she got to him. With the commotion finally over, people began coming out of the buildings and cover. Within a minute, the street was packed with people, some already clearing the mess but most coming over to surround her and Izuku.

"Izuku! Come on, you're ok! You're ok! Come on, wake up!"

Ochaco shook his shoulders, desperately for him to respond, to say or do something, anything. She was so focused on her friend, she didn't notice anyone approach until she felt a small hand rest on her left shoulder.

Ochaco jolted, turning around and whipping out a small oak wand. It was an old lady. She was short, only a little taller standing at full height than Ochaco as she knelt. She wore a large white coat that was a few sizes to big for her and trailed along the ground behind her. She had her dark grey hair tied up into a small bun on her head. Undeterred, the old lady simply smiled at her and knelt beside her.

"He's not dead, dearie. You can see his chest rising."

Putting aside her suspicion for the moment, Ochaco whipped back around to Izuku and confirmed that he indeed was breathing.

"Panicking won't help him, child. We must make sure that he's not suffered any serious injuries. Let us bring him to my shop."

It was then Ochaco noticed two large, burly, men standing behind the lady. They towered over the lady - they were at least six feet tall - and looked identical to each other. They were both completely bald and sported a matching pair of long curly mustaches. They both wore tight and clean navy blue suits and black dress pants, with matching black bowties.

She shifted closer to Izuku and put one hand on his leg while she held the wand in the other, pointing it at the lady.

The lady continued smiling at her, raising her hand when the men behind her tensed. "We're not going to hurt him. In fact, looking after him is the least we can do for the poor boy. You two saved us."

The man on the left grunted, gaining Ochaco's attention. "Those three buggers have been terrorising our district for over a month. We don't know why they came here; mum here overheard one of them mention something about how they were searching for 'the flame', but it could've just been that crazy fucking pyro talking out his ass."

He winced as the old lady turned and slapped him on the leg. "Language!"

As he muttered an apology, the other man spoke up. "Look, you have every right to be suspicious of strangers you've never met before - I'd be worried for you if you weren't - but think of it this way; he may need urgent help. If you don't let us help him now, you're risking his life. Have you really got a choice?"

Ochaco looked back towards the lady. She knew to never judge a book by its cover - another lesson driven into her core through strict lessons and personal experience - but she swore she could almost physically feel warmth emanating from the woman in front of her. Making a decision, she pocketed her wand and stood up, bowing in front of the old lady. "Please, help him!"

With a small nod, the lady stood as well, turning to her sons. The warm smile was gone, replaced with the serious expression of a woman on a mission. "Boys! Pick him up - gently! - and take him to the shop! Akihiko, you lift him by his shoulders. Akihiro, you lift him by his legs. Lets move as quickly as we can without hurting him. The sooner we get him inside, the sooner we can make sure he's not in any serious danger!"

Turning to Ochaco suddenly, she adopted a warm smile again and grabbed her hands. "I'd like to make sure of your health after we care for your friend, if that's alright with you. I saw a blast hit your shoulder; you can never be to careful with mana sorcery injuries. Those silly idiots need to learn that harnessing the power of element residue is a risky and volatile business. It can lead to some unexpected infections and illness when wounded by those types of spells."

Ochaco waved away the woman as she began fussing over her. "I'm alright, really. Worry about Iz- Midoriya first, he took the brunt of two blasts and my wind spell."

Ochaco watched over Izuku like a hawk as the two brothers slowly lifted Izuku off the ground, ready to step in at the first sign of trouble. They picked him up off the ground and carried him towards a tavern that had two large, glowing top hats on a sign above the door.

"Silly me, I never asked what your name was, dearie."

"Uraraka. Ochaco Uraraka."

The lady patted her shoulder. "That's a pretty name, dear. My name is Shuzenji, Chiyo Shuzenji. Oh, don't forget your staff!"

With a gasp, Ochaco quickly turned around and went to retrieve her staff, before hurrying back. Inwardly, she berated herself. Forgetting her staff, of all things! Is this what Izuku does do her? That boy better recover so she can kill him herself!

As they approached the tavern, Ochaco finally had time to breathe and process the entire situation. Why had he even ran away from her again?

She looked towards his right arm. His arms swung back and forth lightly as the brothers carried him, and every few seconds she'd catch a glimpse of something in the palm of his right hand.

Embedded in his palm, the size of a quart, was an ember.

FIRST FLAME

A breath. In, and out. In, and out. He'd learnt long ago that plans rarely ever came to fruition. In order to truly move forward and capitalize on every situation, he had to maintain a clear and focused mind.

He relaxed into his bed of cushions, retreating further and further into his mind. Clearly, he had sorely misjudged how powerful a flame the boy could produce, if the pile of ash named 'Sachiro' he'd left behind was any indication. Even with the ember in its earliest stages of development, it was much stronger than he'd anticipated. Despite these setbacks, he now possessed more knowledge on the wielder than he had the day before. Tomorrow, he would learn more. The day after, even more.

That was how he would win. Find an obstacle, remove it. Find a treasured possession, destroy it. Find a relationship, exploit it. Manipulate the boy into a position of his choosing, bring him down, break him. For now, however, he would withdraw. The defenders would undoubtedly be on high alert now.

In the meantime, he would prepare. He certainly wasn't the only one looking for the primordial element. The wolves were closing in, and soon the boy would find himself surrounded. He would let the others have there. By the time Izuku Midoriya turned 18, the boy should be well acquainted with his powers and his duty. He hadn't planned on letting the boy live that long, but if fate willed for him to live for now then so be it. He would enjoy facing a powerful opponent once again. It had been too long.

Opening his eyes, body in his room but mind somewhere else entirely, he whispered. "Good luck, boy. I'll see you soon."

For clarity:

They are both 13.

Sachiro is a name I completely made up. The rest of the OC's names I got from a baby name website. According to the website; Kanaye stands for 'Zealous One'; Koshiro stands for 'wide mind' or 'ambitious'; Akihiko stands for 'shining prince' and Akihiro stands for 'bright scholar'. Not sure how accurate these websites and their translations are, so if it's wrong don't flame me.

A quart is a unit of money I made up. I have a basic system of money I made for this world. I haven't even really begun creating this story so it may change later, but for this prologue/pilot it'll have to do. I don't know the size of American coins, so if you are American (or any non-Australian) look up 'Australian 5cent coin' if you want a rough idea of how large a quart is.