Chapter 1

When the dust settled, it gave way to a landscape of destruction a large crater surrounded by what appeared to be the remnants of several skyscrapers that could come crashing down at any moment. In the center of the crater, amidst the devastation, the figure of 'All Might' emerged, hunched over and panting, the pain almost too much to bear. A gaping hole in his right side revealed his stomach. 'All Might' was the name of this hero who stood there, his entrails exposed, yet he still smiled. This simple gesture infuriated his opponent. How could someone be so calm after suffering such a severe injury? But suddenly, 'All for One' started to realize that this man was not like the other ants he'd crushed before. He started laughing maniacally and said, "How do you always find these fools, brother? How do you motivate them to be so selfless even after your death?" All Might grinned back at him as he struggled to stand up straight, "You will never be able to understand what drives us," he forced out in a fit of coughing. All for One, still laughing, slowly approached him until he was standing directly above the hero, who is still bent over in pain. All for One, with a twisted grin, prepared to finish off the hero, a strange light emanating from his left hand. Suddenly, a jolt went through his entire body as the ground disappeared under his feet. He was grabbed by the foot by a still slumped over All Might and tossed around like a ragdoll, so surprised by this sudden act of resistance that he was unable to activate his quirk. His head was repeatedly smashed into the remains of a road.

Some years later a green-haired boy named Izuku Midoriya was sitting at his desk in the back of the classroom. He fidgeted with his pen. A loud bang ripped him from his thoughts as a hand slammed down on the table. The loud and abrupt noise made the young boy drop his pen and jump up from his desk. As he tried to look up at whoever it was that pulled him out of the dream, he was grabbed by the collar of his shirt by a boy with blond spiky hair that glared at him with an angry expression. The blond boy snorted at him: "Izuku, you idiot, get up, or do you want to be left behind?". The blond boy continued to curse. He dragged Izuku through the classroom, past the rows of desks, and towards the door. Izuku was pulled away by the other boy. He could not think for a second because he was not prepared for such a situation. The many different thoughts in the boy's mind fought for dominance as he was dragged through the corridors of the elementary school. Was it time for the class trip? Why is Katsuki dragging me through the corridors? Wait, my pen! Should I resist? All these thoughts raced through his mind in rapid succession. As soon as the two children had reached the exit of the school, Katsuki let go of Izuku's collar and instead pushed him through the door of the school building. In front of them was a medium-sized school bus with the words "Aldera Junior High" written on the side. The two walked up to the front of the bus, and when Izuku was about to go up the stairs to get on the bus, he fell on his hands because Katsuki pushed him to the side to get on the bus before him. Izuku quickly jumped to his feet, ran up the stairs, and sat down in the last available seat. The bus slowly began to leave the school grounds, and most of Izuku's classmates were incredibly loud and excited about the trip. Suddenly, "Shut up, you extras!" shouted a loud voice in a roaring tone from the back of the bus. The voice unmistakably belonged to Katsuki, Izuku shivering a little because of Katsuki's angry roar. Izuku started to play with another pen and began to think about his class trip to the Hero Public Safety Commission. The Hero Public Safety Commission, or HPSC for short, was the branch of government that made sure that those who did the work of a Hero were not above the law. On the way to the HSPC, the school bus slowly became more lively again as many of Izuku's classmates began to speculate about how the HSPC worked and what they would see while they were there. Izuku's neighbor started a conversation with some of his friends about what kind of people would be working there. Another chimed in and said, "Probably all the quirk-less trash like him," pointing at Izuku. Izuku felt the sadness overtake him; he was painfully aware that he had no quirk, and therefore, his chances of becoming a hero were basically zero. He then recalled how he vowed to become a hero to help others, and how "All Might," the hero known as the symbol of peace, always smiled no matter how bad things got. Izuku refused to give up his dream; he wanted to help those in need. His forced smile at the beginning now grew brighter and warmer. As the bus slowly approaches Tokyo, the noise on the bus starts to flare up again, but Katsuki glares and curses at them before it can start again. Soon, the buses are parked near a huge government building that clearly belongs to the HPSC. The teacher before letting the class off the bus sternly tells them not to leave their side unless their guide allows it and to listen very carefully to their instructions. The class starts to get more and more excited and unruly and the answer seems to be yes in the form of screaming and chatting. Thinking about what he already knew about the HPSC and the Heroes who worked there, Izuku took out a notebook with the title titled "Notes on Hero's and the corresponding organizations Volume 6" that seemed to be filled with sketches and notes about Heroes. He flipped to the pages titled Public Safety Commission. The whole class poured out of the school bus, some chatting, others gazing at the imposing building befor them. As Izuku left the bus, he saw a sparrow fighting with a crow, the crow seemingly trying to kill the sparrow. The interesting thing was that the closer Izuku looked, the more it looked like the sparrow was dominating the crow. Wanting to stop the two birds from fighting, He took a step closer in an attempt to frighten them into flying away and thus stop the fight. While the Sparrow immediately took off, the crow remained on the ground inured by a stick that was lunged in his wing. Izuku gently lifted the crow and removed the stick from its wing. The crow tilted its head to the left and then to the right as if to say thank you before it flew away. The class now moves slowly into the government building and sits in the waiting area, the teacher telling them to wait for their tour guide to arrive. izukus eyes darted to the clock hanging on the cold grey wall of the waiting area, it said 11:45, it was almost lunchtime. He starts to ponder whether he should take out the bento box his mother had made for him or wait a little longer. While debating whether or not to eat his lunch, he noticed a familiar face, as did some of his classmates. He stood up from his seat and looked at the woman with the indigo hair with the scattered pink streaks, the professional hero Kaina Tsutsumi, better known by her alias Lady Nagant. As some of Izuku's classmates rushed towards the professional hero, he decided to approach more cautiously. The few brief conversations he had with heroes had taught him one thing: while most heroes did not mind being rushed by fans, they all disliked being treated like a performer of miracles; they preferred to be treated like a human being.

A car drove through the city and stopped in front of the HPSC. Inside was a woman in her early twenties with indigo hair with scattered pink streaks. As she got out of the car, three children ran up to her. The boy on the left cheerfully shouted, "It's Lady Nagant!" The other two joyfully squealed, praising her for being able to hit a moving target from a 3-kilometer range and declaring her the absolute coolest hero. Smiling at the three children, she bent down to pat one of them gently on the head. However, she stopped herself when she realized her hands were covered in blood.

The children's faces suddenly twisted and distorted into horrified, lifeless masks. Where eyes should have been, there were now two black, gaping holes that seemed to stare straight into Kaina's soul. Their voices became a disembodied, ghostly whisper. "Why did you kill them? Tell us. Is it fun? Why?"

Kaina, now stuttering and terrified, tried to reply that it was for the greater good. At least, that's what everyone in the HPSC always said when they sent her to get rid of a villain who had to go away quietly, or a hero who turned evil, and the public wasn't allowed to know. A ringing noise broke through the creepy chorus of voices and tore her from her nightmare. She shot up from her bed in a cold sweat. As she got up and went to the shower, she cursed, "Another one of those damn nightmares," as she turned on the cold water, hoping it would help her clear her head.

She sighs as she remembers today is a school field trip and they will come to her workplace. She does not really want to see children as they seem to trigger her guilt and make her question her morals even more. As she leaves her apartment, the loud and buzzing city noise is drowned out by the sound of her own thoughts and voices in her head. She thinks of the children who will visit the HPSC and drifts into a childhood memory of a younger and much more joyful and idealistic version of herself. At that time, she looked up to the heroes and wanted to be just like them, but now she sees them only as performers on a stage, trying to keep up a false facade of peace. an unexpected flapping of wings brings her attention back to the real world outside of her thoughts for a moment she looks around she sees a crow the bringer of death she thinks for a moment as the crow disappears from her view she sinks back into her thoughts. As she stands at a crosswalk, she wonders in her mind when her dream began to look like a lie. She begins to count the cars that pass by, gray, gray and gray again, with a few black cars in between. A soccer ball rolled past her onto the crosswalk something inside her made her nervous she did not know why suddenly a boy no more than five tried to run past her to get the ball she grabbed the boy to stop him as a car passed him at breakneck speed she said be more careful kid. While she was already on her way again the boy came up to her and said thank you miss she just waved him off with a short reply its part of my job she smiled for a second before thinking that saving one life is far from enough after taking the lives of several villains in the name of justice she scoffed at the thought of justifying murder in the name of justice. As her superiors always do. The HPSC building rises slowly in the distance like a giant of steel and glass as mighty and imposing as ever. She started to mentally prepare herself for another day of work, each step she took toward the building felt heavy and uncomfortable, but she had to do it. As she entered the HPSC, it was now 11:45 in the morning. She heard the bustling and lively voices of 11-year-olds as she passed them, some of whom recognized her as the professional hero Lady Nagant and ran up to her.