Okay, here we go. This is Demon Matter (now Devil Matter) take 3. I hope I can stick with the idea this time and not abandon it cuz we haven't even gotten past the battle trials and it's getting old real fast. Anyway, I'm rambling, let's get started.
"text" - regular speech
'text' - thoughts
(text) - scene change
"text" - character reading something
*text* - action
Quirks. Meta abilities. Superpowers. Or whatever you call them.
These were superhuman abilities that allowed people to do wondrous and extraordinary things.
It started in Qingqing City, China. A baby was born, and this baby had an unusual ability: It could glow! Not long after, people all over the world began to manifest these abilities. It was unknown how such a phenomenon was happening, but soon, having Quirks became the norm for the world. Currently, 80% of the world's population has Quirks.
However, like all things, bad things came with the good. Some people used their Quirks for selfish and deplorable reasons. With people like this existing, a profession thought only as fantasy soon became reality!
Superheroes! But before people could become heroes, they had to be taught. And this is where our story begins.
(Musutafu, Japan)
"You've gotta be kidding me…" a teen girl said. She had orange hair tied in a side ponytail and large teal eyes. She wore a white Japanese sailor uniform (typical uniform for middle school girls)
"What?" A teen boy quipped, clearly amused. He had messy silver hair and teal eyes. He wore a black gakuran (typical uniform for middle school boys in Japan).
"Gummy bears? Again?"
"You judging me? Again?" the teen boy retorted, his lopsided grin not even fading a little bit.
"Ugh, Mel you're gonna get cavities again." the girl groans.
"Everybody gets cavities."
"Yeah, but nobody eats as much sugar as you do!"
"Why you gotta be such a mom, Kendo?"
"Ugh, whatever…" The two continue walking, the only sounds being heard being their footsteps, the traffic of Musutafu, and the sound of Mel chewing his gummy bears. "Anyway, you submit your application to U.A.?"
"Yep." pops another gummy bear into his mouth. "You?"
"Mhm. Kinda nervous." The girl brushed a lock of her hair out of her face.
"Exam's in ten months, isn't it?"
"Yeah, but…I dunno, can't help but be nervous, ya know?" The boy hums and nods in response to his friend's concerns. Before the conversation could continue, a ring was heard from the girl's phone.
"And that's my dad. I'm gonna head home now." she walks off towards the nearest station. "See ya later, Mel."
"Later, Kendo." Mel waved as his friend departed. Then, Mel got a text alert on his phone from a "Mido"..
"Hey, uh, wanna hangout?"
'Hmm…message is short…means he had a rough day…again…' Mel's smile fades a little bit as he ponders the seriousness of his friend's situation.
"Sure." Mel texts, his smile instantly returning.
"Meet me at the Sega Arcade"
(Sega Arcade, Downtown Musutafu)
Izuku Midoriya had been Mel's friend during elementary school. He would often defend the quirkless child and lend him his support whenever he could. Upon entering middle school, however, Mel transferred. Despite this, Mel and Izuku maintained as much contact as possible. Mel strolled up to the entrance. The Sega Arcade was bathed in neon light, its electric blue glow flickering intermittently as if it were alive. Inside, the rows of towering machines blinked and flashed, their screens lighting up the faces of eager players with a kaleidoscope of colors. Characters from old-school fighting games danced in pixelated glory across the displays, each motion jittering as if stuck in an eternal loop. He then saw his friend nearby, leaning against the wall and scrolling through his phone.
Izuku Midoriya was a skinny kid with curly green hair and green eyes. He also wore a black gakuran but his look was made more unique by his signature big red shoes. His expression indicated he was tired.
"So what happened today, Mido?"
"I-its nothing, Melion…" Izuku said, waving his hand dismissively. Mel took notice of nothing tucked under Izuku's arm. It was one of his "Hero Analysis" notebooks, but this one was burnt and singed in several places, and had obvious water damage.
"Bakugou?" Mel asked, pointing at the damaged notebook.
"Oh, uh, it's nothi-wait, where are you going?" Izuku says as Mel begins to walk away.
"In layman's terms, I'm going to fuck Bakugou up." He said with a big, wide smirk, which some would call "murderous." Midoriya's eyes widened.
"N-N-NO! T-That's not…please don't! You'll get in trouble again!" Midoriya sai,d grabbing the latter's shoulder. "Please?"".. fine." Mel relented. "But if I see him again it's on sight."
"Why are you like this?" Izuku mutters inaudibly. "Anyway, I just needed to talk about today."
"Okay."
(At a nearby cafe)
"Hmm…what a day…" Mel comments as he sips on his drink. Izuku had recounted his day at school, how his entire class mocked his dreams, how he had been accosted by Bakugou and his lackies, and how Bakugou had burnt his notebook and thrown it out the window.
"That's not even why I'm so bummed…"
"There's more?"
"Yeah…" Izuku paused, with Mel wondering why. "Anyway, I have a question for you."
"What's up?"
"Melion…do you think I can be a hero?"
"In what way?"
"Wha…like a pro hero! Like All Might! Do you think I could be a hero like him?!"
But before Mel could even get his thoughts out, Mel's eyes drifted to a sight outside, where dozens of people were running.
"What in the-"
*KABOOM!*
Suddenly, an explosion was heard outside. It shook the cafe, knocking loose some bits of the ceiling, which fell on Mel's head. Mel and Izuku look outside to see even more people running.
"What the-"
*KABOOM! KABOOM! KABOOM!*
Another explosion shakes the cafe, the lights shake and flicker, and some parts of the windows actually crack. Mel looked over at Izuku, who was just as frightened and confused. Without wasting time, he got up, ignoring Izuku's pleas to stay down and bolted outside. Upon exiting the cafe, the smell of smoke and fire permeates his nostrils. Down the street,t he sees fires that most likely originated from the explosions. He can hear more explosions amongst the terrified screams of the people, but they sound faint.
Mel, spitting in the face of common sense, runs towards the source. If his mother could see what he was currently doing, she would faint…again, but curiosity seemed to matter more in the moment. The explosions got continually louder until he reached a big crowd. They were trying to get a look at the action, filming with their phones. The crowd is being blocked by a group of pro heroes.
"What's going on here…" Mel said, standing on his toes to get a better view of the action. And then he saw it. His heart pounded in his chest as he finally caught a glimpse of the devastation. Beyond the line of heroes, the street was in shambles. Smoke billowed into the sky, glass littered the pavement, and twisted metal sparked with residual fire. At the center of the destruction, writhing and pulsing with nauseating fluidity, was a massive sludge-like creature, most likely some kind of villain with a sludge quirk. It surged violently, smashing against walls, vehicles, anything it could reach. Also, it was…blowing things up?
Mel blinked and then rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was imagining it. He was not. The villain was indeed causing explosions that devastated the road and nearby shops. There was something familiar about those explosions. He had definitely seen them before.
And then he saw it.
There was somebody in the mess of the malevolent slime. Mel squinted and was barely able to make out a boy caught in the slime. The boy had spiky ash-blonde hair. Suddenly, it all clicked for Mel. He knew who was in the slime, and the familiarity of those sparking explosions confirmed it.
"Bakugou…"
It was hard to tell through the slime, but there was no mistaking that fiery glare or the wild detonation bursts. He was trying to fight, but he was losing fast. And the villain was only getting stronger.
Mel's hands clenched.
The pros were just… standing there.
"Why aren't they doing anything?" he hissed under his breath.
One of the heroes up front—a tall man with a retractable visor and a tech-themed costume—was barking into a comm. "We don't have a clean shot. The hostage is making it worse—any attempt to intervene could cause further injury or collateral damage."
Another hero, a woman with vines growing from her shoulders, added, "The villain's body is absorbing impact too well. We need a quirk that can neutralize sludge or create a vacuum…"
"Or someone who isn't afraid to act," Mel whispered, eyes narrowing.
Mel stepped forward instinctively.
But he stopped just as quickly.
All he could hear were the echoes of childhood. The whispers.
"Monster."
"Stay away from him."
"He's dangerous."
The voices from his past came unbidden. Old memories bubbled up—of frightened faces, of people backing away from him, whispering about his quirk. About how demonic he looked. About how he must be evil.
His hands trembled slightly. He took a half-step back. Maybe someone else would handle it. Maybe it wasn't his place. i mean, there were tons of heroes on the scene, even a little green one that kind of looked like Izuku.
…
…
…
…wait, what?
A green blur shot past the barricade.
A scrawny boy with messy hair. No gear. No weapons. No backup. Just a determined look in his eyes and a body moving before his brain could stop him.
Mel blinked. "Midoriya?!"
There was no hesitation in that kid's movements. No second-guessing. No fear of how others would see him.
And in that moment, Mel understood.
He couldn't stand by.
"…Screw it," he muttered, before dashing toward the chaos. "I'll deal with the consequences later."
"Stop! It's too dangerous!" one of the heroes shouted, but Izuku and Mel were beyond hearing. The former's sole focus was on reaching Bakugou, while Mel's was solely on making sure his friend didn't die (and maybe saving Bakugou).
Closing the distance, Izuku unshouldered his backpack and hurled it with all his might at the villain's eye. The makeshift projectile struck true, causing the sludge to recoil momentarily. Seizing the brief window, Izuku plunged his hands into the viscous mass, grasping at Bakugo's outstretched arm.
"Kacchan! Hold on!" Izuku's voice was strained, his muscles burning as he fought to pull his friend free.
Bakugo's eyes widened in shock and, perhaps, a flicker of gratitude. "Deku, you idiot! Get out of here!" he barked, even as he clung to Izuku's hand.
"You looked like you needed saving." Midoriya shouted back, with tears in his eyes.
Just as Izuku's fingers latched onto Bakugo's arm and he began pulling with all his might, the sludge villain let out a guttural growl, the damaged eye already regenerating, tendrils surging with renewed aggression.
The villain's form began to swell again, and for a moment, it looked like both boys would be engulfed.
Then—
CRACK!
A sharp, snapping whip-crack echoed through the plaza, followed by a guttural shriek from the slime villain..
"Honestly," a calm voice drawled above the chaos, "you'd think you guys would've figured out not to let sludge monsters run around unsupervised."
Izuku turned and saw him. There, his friend stood, with his signature light-hearted smile, but he looked different. His eyes had changed, going from the usual bright color to completely black (and what some might call soulless), and from his hand was a jet-black tendril made of…some sort of dark energy.
"Melion?!" izuku shouted. "what are you-!"
"Making sure my best friend doesn't bite the dust!" He answered. "...and maybe Bakugou. By the way, how ya doin' boom boy?"
"I'm—what the hell are you doing here, dumbass!?" Bakugo shouted, eyes flaring behind the sludge. "And stop looking so smug, shithead!"
"Classic Bakugou." Melion smirked.
The villain, enraged, turned fully on Melion now, aiming to crush him in one final blow.
But then—
"Fear not! For I am here!"
The entire street seemed to rumble with the voice.
All Might arrived in a burst of speed and power, his silhouette cutting through the smoke like a blade. With a single, meteoric punch—Detroit Smash!—he ended it. The villain disintegrated, the winds of the blow tearing through the clouds and summoning a sudden downpour.
Rain fell, cool and steady.
Melion stood perfectly still, staring up at the sky as his tendrils slowly faded into nothing, dissolving into smoke.
"Wow," he said, voice soft now. "He really does change the weather."
Izuku, panting, sat up beside Bakugo, eyes wide with awe.
All Might walked over, gaze scanning between them. "Young men," he said firmly. "That was a truly heroic act."
Midoriya looked at him, then over at Melion, who was already shaking rainwater from his coat and pretending like his heart hadn't been pounding the entire time.
Melion just gave a lopsided grin. "Yeah… you should've seen the other guy."
(Some time later…)
After being checked over by medics and getting an earful from the pro-heroes on the scene, Melion was walking Izuku back to his home.
"Today has been pretty eventful, eh, Mido?" Melion quipped as he gave Izuku a light nudge with his elbow.
"Deku!" A familiar voice shouted.
"Oh god…" Melion groaned as he casually turned around while Izuku quickly and fearfully spun around. There was Katsuki Bakugou storming towards them, his expression like a violent storm.
"I never asked to be saved, least of all by you…! Bakugou ranted. "In fact, you didn't save me! Right?! I did it alone!"
"Well," Melion started with a sarcastic "matter-of-fact" tone. "The destruction the villain caused with your quirk says-"
"Shut the fuck up you smily freak!" Bakugou snapped at Melion, to which the latter winced slightly. He then pointed back at Izuku.
"I won't let a quirkless, worthless little rodent like you look down on me! You think I owe you some kinda favor?! Don't you dare fucking look down on me!" Bakugo huffed before walking away. "Goddamn shitty nerd!"
Melion and Izuku stood there for about a minute before the former made another quip about the situation.
"And here I was thinking he wouldn't say 'thank you'." Melion quipped.
"Wait, you think that was a 'thank you'?!" Izuku asked incredulously,
"Meh." The silver-haired teen shrugged. They began walking again but were stopped by a familiar face.
"I AM HERE!"
"All Might!" Izuku exclaimed, his voice tinged with both excitement and apprehension. Melion's eyes also widened in surprise. Standing before them was the Symbol of Peace himself, his towering figure unmistakable even in the dimming light. Izuku's eyes widened in surprise, while Melion's ever-present grin faltered slightly.
"What are you doing here?! Weren't you surrounded by the press?!" Izuku asked/exclaimed.
"Ha! Giving them the slip is as easy as pie! For I am All Mi-BLLEGGGGGHH!" Before he could finish that boast, All Might…deflated? Rather, he turned from his iconic muscular self into a skinny, shriveled man. Melion's grin briefly faded for a bit, but his eyes were now as wide as saucers.
'What the hell is going on here…' was the question rattling around in his head.
"Kid," Small Might started. "I came to say thanks…and to give you an apology."
"Huh? W-What do you mean?"
"If I hadn't met you today…if I hadn't listened to your story..then I would have strayed from the words I tell everybody to live by! All talk, flashing fake muscle. You reminded me why I became a hero! For that, I thank you!"
'Wait, does Mido know this guy?'
"No, I…" Mizuku lowered his head. "It was my fault to begin with…I'm the reason that villain escaped and caused all that damage. I rushed in even though I'm quirkless and-"
"But that's just it!" Small Might interrupted, making Izuku lift his head back up.
"Of all the people..of all those pro-heroes with flashy quirks..you, with no quirk, were the first to act! Sure that kid with the black tendril quirk helped, but only after you went in!"
'That is true…if Mido hadn't stepped in first…' Melion's smile faded again briefly. He had quite a strong quirk, but he had hesitated to act.
"You're the one who made me act!" All Might said, smiling warmly. "Your actions today—charging in to save your friend without hesitation—demonstrated the true spirit of heroism. That innate bravery is what makes a hero."
Izuku didn't know what to think. For the first time in his life, someone was actually encouraging him to be a hero. However, it was what All Might said next that unleashed the waterworks.
"Young Midoriya…you can become a hero." with that, Izuku Midoriya hunched over, tears streaming down his cheeks. These were not tears of sadness, but tears of joy..happiness…hope.
"Uh, excuse me?" Melion said, raising his hand, his smile frayed a bit, this time conveying awkwardness about being in this situation. "Hi, Melion Liones here, and I have to ask…what the fuck is going on?"
Small Might froze, his head turning slowly to Melion. "H-How…how long have you been standing there?"
"Literally the whole time."
The pro hero's mouth opened and closed in shock. Then, he groaned and slumped forward. "You weren't supposed to see that…"
"I wasn't supposed to use my quirk today either, so I guess today's just full of surprises." Melion said, smiling and tilting his head.
"Melion," Izuku began, anxious, having stopped crying and wiped the tears away. "...you can't let anybody know about this! This- this is All Might's secret!"
"Kay." Melion said, popping a gummy bear into his mouth from the bag of candy earlier.
'It was that easy to convince him?!' was the collective thought if both All Might and Izuku as they witnessed the nonchalant attitude of the silver-haired teen.
"You're…surprisignly calm about this." All might commented.
"Meh. You live like me and you're not surprised by stuff like this anymore." Melion popped another gummy bear into his mouth.
'What kind of life does this young man live…' All Might wondered. He quickly shook his head as he wished to bring the conversation back.
"Since you are here…you might as well bear witness to what I'm about to tell Young Midoriya." All might turned his head to once again face the green teen. "Young Midoriya…you're the one who is worthy to inherit my strength!"
…""Huh?"" the two teens were flabbergasted. What exactly was the Symbol of Peace on about?
"Respectfully, Mr. All Might, what the fuck are you talking about?" Melion asked.
"I'm talking about my quirk." Professor All Might then started his lecture. "You know that weekly photo magazine, 'Friday'? They have my quirk down as some generic quirk like 'Super Strength'. I always evade this topic with some well-placed zingers and one-liners whenever it's brought up.
"You see, it wouldn't do if the almighty "Symbol of Peace" were not, in fact, a 'natural-born hero'."
"Natural-born?" Izuku questioned. His eyes then widened with realization. "Wait…does that mean-?!"
"Correct, Young Midoriya!" All Might interrupted. "The quirk I possess is not unlike the sacred torch of legend! Something that is passed down from one bearer to the next!"
"Whaaaa…" Melion's jaw dropped, and a single red gummy bear fell out of his mouth.
"A quirk…that you can inherit?!" Izuku shouted.
"Yes." All Might nodded. "And I've chosen you to be its next wielder."
"Hold on a second!" Midoriya said, and then proceeded to go into one of his signature muttering rants, talking about the wonders of the world and various mysteries, and trying to wrap his head around it.
"Geez, enough!" All might said, stopping Izuku from continuing his never-ending speech. "Don't immediately dismiss the possibility! There's a lot I keep close to my chest, but I don't tell lies!"
All Might holds out his hand, as if holding something (maybe a ball). "It's the power to transfer power…and the name of this ability is known as:
One for All!
"One for all…"Izuku parroted.
"Yes. One man cultivates the power, then grants it to another, and then again it is fostered and passed down. In doing so, brave hearts with unwavering calls to save lives can brandish this might!"
"But…" Izuku started, his doubt showing itself. "Why are you giving me this awesome power?"
"Didn't you hear him?" Melion nudged him, having snapped out of his shock. "He said 'brave hearts with unwavering calls to save lives'. That's you dum dum."
"Wha?"
"He is right." All Might nodded. "You, who had no quirk and are only a skinny teen–you were the one who shined more than any of the other so-called 'heroes'!"
Izuku, once again moved to tears, wiped his eyes.
"But hey, it's still your call! So what do you say?" Izuku wasn't sure what to think. For the first time, he hoped, yet he didn't want to dream his goals were possible. He looked over at Melion. Melion was skeptical for his friend, but he also knew opportunities like this rarely ever happen. So he said nothing, but gave a slight nod. Izuku looked back, a fire of determination in his eyes.
"I'll do it!" He said, but his face still had traces of hesitation. Before anything else could be said, a phone ring broke the atmosphere.
"Oop. That's me!" Melion reached into his pocket and answered a phone.
"Yello? Ohhhhhh…heeeeeyyy, Mom…what's up?" Melion's tone shifted to mortified and anxious. "Oh…you saw the news…listen, I…but…*sigh*...I'll be home in five."
After hanging up the call, Melion looked to Izuku with a nervous smile. "I gotta go. Keep me updated on this whole one for all stuff. See ya!"
With that Melion sprinted for the nearest station. This beginning may seem a bit lax and slow…but this is a story where this teen became one of the greatest heroes.
And that's a warp. Finally got around to doing this rewrite. Not sure why I chose now, some few years later, but inspiration and writer's block can be fickle mistresses. Anyway, this has been the first chapter of the rewrite. Hope you enjoyed! Leave a favorite or a review, and I'll see ya when I have Chapter 2 ready to go!