Chapter 95 : Slash (Interlude 3)
A/N: And here it is! As some of you can see - it's another interlude! Though, this one's a bit different from the ones of the past. How, exactly? Well, just read to find out!
A few days ago…
The four of them waited still and silent, eyeing their target down below from their rooftop vantage point. Not one of them spoke, all of them knowing the importance that the next step of the plan went through flawlessly.
They observed their target — whose role played a most pivotal part of their plan — a man who by all accounts seemed unaware of the eyes on him. On a normal day, he would wake up, take the time to walk to a nearby cafe, and head back home before his departure for work.
But today he had woken up late — just as planned by the band of four watching above. So as he hurried along the sidewalk, worrying about being behind schedule, it wasn't exactly unanticipated for him to bump into somebody as he turned a corner.
The target fell to the floor, hat tumbling off his head. The hooded man he had bumped into followed suit.
Of the four atop the rooftop, three held their breath.
Back down below, the target reoriented himself back to his feet. The hooded individual was faster though, already going down to pick up the target's hat. He offered the hat back to its owner, and after a few moments of apology the two were on their way.
All in all, the encounter lasted no more than twenty seconds. But that was all that was needed for the plan at large. The group of four on the rooftops knew this; already they were reeling in success.
The leader of the group, who was hunched in a low crouch on the edge of the roof, let out a low chuckle. He backed away from the edge, standing upright as he eyed the three others behind him.
"And there we are," Stain smiled, crossing his arms. "The groundwork has been set. Now all there is left is—"
A flash of light erupted amongst the group. When the light receded, a blue and silver armor-adorned individual stood in the middle of the group.
"Waypoint," Stain greeted, a hint of distaste in his voice.
Waypoint let out a huff of air, his eyes shining in similar disdain. "It is done. Shishikura was none the wiser. Your hand?"
Stain complied, offering his hand out. Waypoint reached out with a closed hand. Once his hand was over Stain's, the palm opened, dropping a pebble into the man's hand.
"And with that, our business with one another is essentially complete," Waypoint glowered. "You remember my number, don't you?"
Stain nodded.
"Great," Waypoint sighed. "Then I'll be off."
Another flash of light, and Waypoint was gone.
Stain pocketed the rock. He eyed the other three before him, letting out a rare smirk before turning his back to eye the skyline.
It was silent for a moment, the group willing to bask in their short victory. That is, until one of the group began to speak out.
"Are you… sure that now is the time for this?" Gentle asked.
Stain nodded. "It is. This is a once in a lifetime chance. The heroes are going to be pulled away for that attack tomorrow. Tartarus will lay with but a few heroes at minimum. Their guard will be down, their defenses weakened. Now is the time to strike, Danjuro."
Gentle shrugged, looking unconcerned. "Alright. Just making sure. It's just that you've been getting a bit... "
Stain turned around, eyes narrowing at the man. "A bit what?"
"A bit more reckless, is all," Gentle answered nonchalantly. " I just don't want you making mistakes, you know?"
"Yeah, Stain!" La Brava countered, puffing up in Gentle's defense. "No need to be so rude! He's just trying to watch out for you."
Stain huffed. "Don't worry about me. Focus on the plan. This isn't the time for mistakes. You three understand that, don't you?"
"Yes, Stain-sensei!" Spinner exclaimed. "We won't fail you!"
"Good." Stain said, not even waiting for the other twos' response. He shoved his hand back into his pocket. When he pulled it back out, instead of the rock previously given by Waypoint, in his hand was a rather familiar dart filled with a murky liquid.
He brought the dart up to his eyes, a wide grin coming to his face. "Tomorrow— Tomorrow, All Might will be avenged."
"Everything holding up, Kuromi?"
The man in mention didn't dare move his eyes away from the camera feeds. As such, he responded, albeit as his eyes darted from monitor to monitor before him. "Seems so, Shishikura. Nothing unusual, same as always."
Shishikura nodded. "Good."
"What?" Kuromi questioned. "Worried something might happen?"
Shishikura let out a huff. "I am, actually. How are you not, with what's going on today?"
"The only difference with today is the lowered amount of heroes on the premises," Kuromi said. "And the prisoners don't even know that little fact, considering their isolation."
Shishikura shook his head. "Honestly, you need to—"
Kuromi narrowed his eyes, noticing his partner's pause. He still didn't remove his eyes from the monitors, however. "Something wrong?"
"No… I don't know…" Shishikura looked around the room. "You mean you don't hear that?"
"Hear what?"
"There's like this… buzzing. It's almost like it's right in my ea—"
A flash of light interrupted his words, his hat flying off of his head in the confusion.
"BREACH!"
"Quick! The alarm! The doo—"
As the light receded, both Kuromi and Shishikura found themselves to the mercy of an outstretched blade, it's cold steel pressed right against their necks.
The security turrets within the room — programmed to shoot if more than two individuals were in the room at the same time — proved to be for naught. They had activated, of course — though the large hail of bullets proved useless as they bounced off the backside of a large blanket being held by man with a reptilian mutation.
Beside the mutant was a short, pink haired woman typing away at a laptop in her hands. And beside her was a well dressed man, whose arms reached above and out forwards before him, resulting in a similarly rubberized invisible dome surrounding the intruders.
But perhaps worst of all, was the pathway that was carved between the villains and both Kuromi and Shishikura, and the rather familiar man in front of them.
"Your choice, you two," the notorious Stain said. "What's your decision?"
Shishikura didn't think. He moved. And then he was met with darkness.
"Brava. Hack," ordered Stain, handing Gentle both of the guards.
"Right on it, boss!" the cheerful woman said, strutting on forward.
"Mind hurrying it up a bit?" Spinner asked. "I'd rather not be standing here holding this tarp up when your boyfriend's quirk wears off, you know. I prefer not being punched full of holes."
"Oh, quit complaining!" La Brava cheered, her hands already typing away at the controls. "I mean, look! Automated turrets to commence shutdown in three… two… one… and—"
A mechanical whirl echoed within the room, the turrets attached to the ceiling ceasing their fire and slumping into inactivity. "There! Done!"
Spinner hesitated for a bit, looking behind him and waiting a few moments before he placed the sheet off to the side. He let out a sigh of relief once all was said and done.
Meanwhile, Stain walked up to La Brava, peering over her shoulder and at the monitors before them. "Well? Where is he?"
"One sec…" La Brava trailed off. "You see there's a bit more encryption than usual, though that's to be expected considering the prolific nature of All For One… Oh, hey! Look at that boos, they have a cell here specifically reserved for you! Isn't that a bit neat?"
"Focus, La Brava!" Stain seethed. "We can't spend any longer here than necessary!"
"Hey, watch you tone Stain!" Gentle interrupted, walking towards the pair. "She's trying her hardest! No need for you to get all prissy!"
Stain jerked towards Gentle. "I—"
"Done!"
Stain, Gentle, and Spinner all looked towards La Brava.
"He's in level B10, the lowest level there is. It's around 500 meters below sea level, but thankfully for you I focused on securing the elevator. The path between here and his cell is safe. The turrets are disabled and any guards you come across you should be able to handle on your own. And don't worry about anyone setting the alarm off — that's been disabled. All in all the trip will be relatively uneventful — just make sure not to make any detours along the way, 'kay?"
They all stood still for a second, absorbing up the lengthy tirade that La Brava had just provided them. Eventually, Stain gave a minute nod, spinning in place and heading for the door.
"Gentle, Brava, remember the plan. You two stay and ensure nothing goes wrong." Stain looked at his student. "Come, Spinner. It's time."
"Yes sir!" The fanatic exclaimed, eagerly following his mentor out the door.
"And here we are," Stain uttered, gazing upon the door to All For One's cell. After a few moments, he turned his gaze towards Spinner, gesturing his arm out towards the door. "Would you mind doing the honors?"
"Certainly, Stain-sensei!" Spinner cheered, moving to spin the handwheel on the door. With a heave he pulled the door open, the sound of pressurized air signifying its successful unlocking.
Stain walked right in, his arms behind his back as Spinner followed suit. The armed turrets at the room's ceiling remained quiet despite the foreign intrusion — all courtesy to La Brava's machinations. As a result the guns remained trained on their prisoner, barrels aimed to shoot at even the slightest movement.
The intruding duo dutifully made their way towards the faceless, restrained man at the center of the room. Aside from his growing grin, any signs of emotion from the man were unable to be deciphered due to his missing and mangled features.
Eventually the duo stood a few feet before All For One, Stain at the front whilst Spinner just behind him.
"Well well well," All For One intoned, his smile never leaving his mouth. "To what do I owe the pleasure of such… lively visitors within my cell?"
"Don't think of this as a pleasantry visit, bogeymen," Stain snarled, lurching forward. "I'm here to deliver your judgement."
"Oho?" All For One chuckled. "And do tell; judgement for what, exactly?"
Stain reached into his pocket, taking out the dosage of quirk destroying drugs that he had long ago pilfered from the base of the Shie Hassaikai. He twirled it around in his fingers, making sure it glimmered and sheemed in the low light of the room.
All For One didn't have eyes, but the slight movement of his face keyed in to Stain that All For One could very well tell what was being shown in front of him.
"You understand now, don't you?" Stain smirked, pointing the end of the dart straight at his target. "Any last words, you abomination?"
"Hmm." All For One tilted his head. "Well—"
Stain didn't give him a chance to speak. He jerked his hand with swift and harsh movement, jamming it straight into All For One's neck.
All For One snickered. "Rude, much. For your information, I was going to tell you about my quirk."
Stain scoffed. "I know all about your quirk, scum." He pulled his sword out from its sheath. "And the world will not miss it or you."
Stain jabbed his hand forward.
There was a blur of movement.
Stain found his sword stopped in its place, held tight in All For One's grip. The arm that had previously been held down had broken free of it's restraints, preventing the fatal blow from piercing All For One's heart.
Stain blinked. "But the defenses…"
All For One simply grinned at the expression of shock on Stain's face. "Got too caught up in the moment now, did we? Didn't take in the face that you'd be blocking the turrets with your little stunt, no doubt giving cause for your friends up in the control room to ensure you didn't get shot?"
Stain let go of the hold of his sword, dashing backwards and out of All For One's immediate vicinity. But the hail of bullets he was expecting to rain down never came. It was only then that Stain noticed the crackling tendrils erupting forth from All For One's side, shot straight into the guns on the ceiling.
Spinner jumped in front of his mentor, sword in hand and stance ready. "Stain! You need to ge—"
He was swatted aside in an instance, crashing into the wall of the cell in a heap of rubble. All For One hadn't even moved, the cause of Spinner's untimely removal leaving Stain troubled.
"Hope you don't mind," All For One said to Stain. "You and I were talking, after all."
He stepped forward, the tendrils retreating back into his body. Stain, however, stayed in place, not even thinking of taking a single step back.
"Anyways, my quirk," All For One spoke, taking another step. "Fun little fact about those guns I just destroyed — they're specifically programmed for every villain within the facility, myself not being an exception in the slightest."
All For One took another step forward. "You see, the guns weren't programmed to shoot if passive quirks were a part of the prisoner — only when quirks were activated, you see. And let me tell you, after all these years alive I've come across quite the number of passive quirks. The authorities weren't so keen about finding that out of course."
Another step. "They wanted to kill me on the stop! But would you believe that I told them something to ease their worries? And just what could I have possibly said? Well," he chuckled, "that none of them would allow me escape or harm anyone! All Might even got his little lie detector to vouch for my word!"
Step. "You see, the second I heard about these… quirk destroying drugs, I knew of their danger. I'm not stupid enough to disregard them. So what was one to do? Well, search for a quirk that allowed me to live while my bloodstream remained frozen. Quite the convenient getaway, eh?"
All For One was right in front of Stain now. Stain never let up his glare, staring daggers at the man he sought to kill. All For One's smile seemed to grow wider, if anything. Even more so when he placed a hand on Stain's shoulder, and the man still refused to react.
"How does it feel," All For One asked, "that your little stunt to get that nasty serum into me proved fruitless?"
Stain scoffed, speaking for the first time since All For One had begun his little speech. "I've failed, simple as that."
"Oh?" The amusement was celar in All For One's voice. "And what, you don't plan to do anything about it? No Plan B? Plan C? Plan Z?"
"No." The word came out with no hesitation. "Catching you by surprise within your cell in Tartarus was my only chance. I have not one shred of belief that I can beat you now as if, with you walking about. Not when All Might himself had to retire after fighting you."
"And yet you waltz in here, knowing the kind of monster you'd be facing? A small party of green adventurers with nothing but a miniscule, illegal drug as your defense wandering into the lair of the almighty Demon Lord?"
Stain didn't respond.
All For On chuckled. "You've got guts, I'll tell you that."
All For One's hand moved, coiling around Stain's throat, lifting the smaller man until his feet dangled off the ground.
All For One chuckled even more. "And would you look at that! Caught in my death grip, and still you remain unflinching. Your dedication truly is a marvel to gaze upon."
All For One loosened his grip, enough so to allow Stain to speak, but with still enough force to leave the man in the air.
"I'll give you this gift. As your final legacy in this world, any departing words you'd like to leave?" All For One asked.
Stain smirked, his teeth snarling into a feral grin. "I may have failed, but I won't be the last to try. There are a small few true heroes out there in the world amongst all the filth. They will be the ones to rise up and defeat you. They will be the ones to end your reign of terror, and reclaim penance for what you had done to All Might. This, I swear upon my heart and blade."
All For One chuckled. "Cute." His hand tightened, squeezing Stain's neck with ease. All For One threw the corpse to the side, then went along to flex his fingers.
"Hmm… Bloodcurdle, eh? I won't lie when I say that I was eyeing it ever since your time as Stendal. I've been in need of a new paralysis quirk ever since my eyes were destroyed, after all." He looked back at Stain's cooling corpse, nodding to himself before making way towards the door.
"I'll save this for when I really need it, as a sign of respect for the one to release me from my prison. After all, with the beating that Tomura had taken earlier today, I'm not sure if his body would have taken the strain of further exertion well — army of Nomu or not."
All For One walked out of his cell. The dozen or so turrets that aimed in his direction were immediately destroyed with but a thought. And alarm began to blare, flashing red lights filling the hallway and the sounds of bulkhead doors closing up.
All For One let out a satisfied sigh. "To think, all it took was a band of extremists to allow for my escape. Has hero society really steeped so low?" He let out a chuckle. "No matter."
The sound of dozens of feet scrambling down the hall and pounding against the metal floor, the dreams of surprise and terror that rang throughout the compound, and the sounds of unrest amongst the general occupants of the prison. It was sweet, sweet music to his ears.
"Now," he smirked, "I wonder how that big blonde idiot will react to the news of prison break?"
A/N: Yes, All For One was monologuing. And yes, he was talking to himself out loud. What should you expect from somebody who willingly calls themselves a 'Demon Lord?'