"What's wrong with me?"
A boy rubbed his head as he rose from his bed.
In a fairly sized and plain room with plain brown wooden walls, similarly plain brown floorboards, with the furniture just as plain, fashioning a plain desk littered with books of different kinds, chair and closet, plain bed and mattress, all made of roughly the same plain wooden material, the boy's surroundings, no matter where you looked, remained just that. Plain.
Yet, funnily enough, one might appreciate it for such, seeing the beauty in simplicity.
With the white drapes fluttering before the windows that let in the morning light and breeze, this calming and what most would call a good morning went unnoticed by the disturbed boy.
'What is this?'
His hands slowly drifted from his head, to his neck, and finally his chest, remaining there as if he were counting the number of beats from his heart.
But it wasn't exactly his heart that was doing the beating.
No, it was something else.
Something foreign yet at home.
A burning something that raged in his chest.
The boy, his eyes still closed, could almost see this something.
A flame.
A blue flame with black highlights burning within him.
'It can't be…'
He thought, slowly opening his eyes and widening them as he stared at the blank air.
'Have I really unlocked my Quirk? But…that's impossible…'
-CREAK
The boy's thoughts were cut short as he turned upon witnessing his door swing open, a tall and similarly aged figure stepping in with a buzz cut and fiery amber eyes.
Like Rin, he wore a blank expression.
"You missed breakfast again, Rin." He spoke in a flat tone, staring at the boy, or rather Rin, still sitting at his bed with a dazed expression.
Rin didn't answer for a few seconds, shaking his head a little as he stumbled on his words.
"Isagi…? Ah, yeah, whatever. It's fine." Rin waved it off, rubbing his messy hair as he swung his legs off his bed, taking a moment before rising to his feet.
Rin, a boy on the skinnier side with unkempt, messy black hair, his features seeming rather average, nothing standing out other than his bright emerald green eyes.
And most notably, both he and Isagi fashioned bold numbering on their necks, Rin's reading the number "269" while the other fashioned "265". Yet, neither of them seemed to acknowledge this.
"You alright? That's not the hangry reaction I was expecting."
Rin raised an eyebrow, turning to Isagi.
"Hangry?"
"You know, angry because you're hungry. Hangry."
"I don't get Hangry."
"It's noticeable when you've missed breakfast. You're quieter than usual, and your responses are always short and mumbled. You seem like a ticking time bomb waiting to go off."
"Can you wait until after I'm up to disturb me with this?"
Isagi stared at Rin, who remained on the edge of his bed, before the former pulled an apple from his pocket, tossing it to Rin, to which the boy promptly caught.
Taking a moment to shift his eyes from the apple then to Isagi, swallowing his previous words, he spoke once more.
"Thanks."
"No problem. After all, none of us likes it when you're hangry. Now come on, everyone's waiting outside."
Upon Isagi leaving, Rin bit down into the apple, holding it between his teeth as he quickly visited his cupboard, pulling out an all white hoodie, identical to the one Isagi was just wearing.
'Well…it should be impossible…right?'
Rin, everything still freshly running through his mind, contemplated while dressing himself and leaving his room.
'What other explanation is there? It has to be. This is my Quirk.'
He thought, stepping out of this room, shutting the door as he made his way through the similarly wooden hallway, chandeliers decorating the ceiling as he went, while a decorative red carpet blessed the ground.
With the only sound being his footsteps and the frequent crunch of him taking another bite of his apple, he soon made it down the stairs, quickly approaching large twin dark oak doors with a fashionable golden handle.
All during this, Rin's mind went back and forth between whether he really had awakened his Quirk or there was something else wrong with him.
While one half of his logical mind supported the former theory, the other half clung to the latter.
But it was because of something else that supported his latter query that had him so perplexed.
It was reality.
Because…
'Because I'm here…'
He thought, opening the door only for the morning light to bless his face and a whole new scene to unveil itself to him.
'Because…I'm a Nulled.'
Stepping out of the building, he found himself in a colourful environment.
On a grassy hill perched an awe-striking mansion, surrounded by a dense forest from all sides that went on further than the eye could see.
The only other structure that seemed to be man-made was a large gate with a brick frame and black metal bars that were currently shut, only darkness peering from deeper within, under the hill, at the mouth of the forest as trees hugged at edges.
It was because of this last detail that it was hard to tell where the gate ended and began.
This same mansion was the one Rin had stepped out of as he took a moment to stare at the dozen individuals all wearing the same all white attire as him, as well as each of them also possessing a number on their neck, all sitting on brown benches.
'And so is everyone here.'
The Nulled.
It was the name dubbed for those who had succumbed to the disease known as Quirknull.
A contagious disease that ate away at one's Quirk until they were left Quirkless.
It was for this former point that they were segregated in the middle of nowhere, away from society.
Rin was one of the more severe cases, having completely lost his Quirk before he could even awaken it.
'Well, at least, that's what I was told. That's what I thought….until now.'
He couldn't deduce whether he was cured or if he was diagnosed incorrectly.
If the former, then this was big. Not only was he now the Miracle Child who literally was the cure to this incurable disease, but it meant that…
'I can stop this disease from ruining all our lives and any others in the future. I'll need to test this Quirk of mine to make sure it's at its full capabilities, unhindered by the Quirknull, then I can tell the Doctor.'
He thought while walking amidst the other Nulled, who chatted around their benches.
They were typically around a similar age to Rin, but it wasn't uncommon to see some a little older or even slightly younger.
"I'm still learning more about my Quirk every day. It seems like I still have some degree of it left, which is good. I've grown a little fond of it."
The surrounding conversations entered Rin's ears as he continued to walk, his mind still clouded with countless thoughts.
"What was your Quirk again?" A boy asked in a calm tone, to which the person he was speaking to, a girl with pigtails, answered.
"Vibration. I can create and control Vibrations. The Doctor has been having me test how sharp a vibration I can generate, and it goes a little something like…"
The girl, her expression bland and emotionless, raised her hand as she pressed her thumb and middle finger together, ready to click.
But before she could, a hand cupped around her fingers, restricting her from doing so as she looked up.
"That'll disturb some of the others. Their Quirks can't handle that, you know this." Rin stopped her, prompting her to look around, seeing a few faces that justified his point.
"Oh…yeah, you're right. My bad." She lowered her hand and replied in a tone that made it seem as though she was being sarcastic, but Rin knew her words were genuine.
He was used to this. They all were.
He continued to walk as he passed a few others, greeting some while mediating some conflicts along the way. He was always good at that.
He saw it as a simple fix, and his interference would always be for the better, so the others naturally began to confide in him for certain things.
-CLICK
-CLICK
-CLICK
"Hey, Ollie. How are you doing?"
Rin turned to a man sitting alone who clicked his fingers while facing the gate at the bottom of the hill they were on, his head showing signs of balding despite him being in his early twenties.
He bit his nails and fashioned dark circles under his eyes as he mumbled.
"No…I don't like it…I don't like it…"
Rin stared at this with a blank expression.
'Still the same, huh?'
He thought, patting Ollie on the shoulder before walking away, finally approaching the bench he usually sat at. And he wasn't surprised to find he wasn't the only one.
With Isagi already there waiting for him, two others joined him.
"Over here, Zenin!"
"Yes, I see you, Dion." Rin waved off the overly figure who exclaimed at him from the same bench as Isagi.
With fiery red hair and delicate tan skin, her bright yellow eyes peered at Ronan as she smiled widely.
Perhaps the most notable detail about her was the wooden sword she carried on her hip, however, her radiant skin and captivating frame paired well with the rest of her features, presenting a mature, but not aged, demeanour that almost hypnotised those who saw it.
But her playful smile added a warm and welcoming nature to her, making one feel comfortable.
It was for this reason that Ronan didn't mind her presence too much.
"Must you yell? It's early in the morning."
Isagi muttered as a hint of annoyance escaped his lips while staring at Dion.
"Huh…did you have your breakfast? I think you're just hangry again."
"I knew it." Rin, having just taken a seat, peered at Isagi from the corner of his eyes as he heard this.
"You're the hangry type, and you tried to force it onto me."
Isagi's lips moved as he paused, but no words would come out until he finally rested the side of his face on his palm and turned away.
"Whatever."
Dion laughed obnoxiously upon saying this, and before Rin could say anything else, he was interrupted.
"Hello, Rin."
Beside him, a monotone voice greeted him, prompting him to turn.
It came from a girl closer to his age who sat to his left.
Fashioning the same bright amber eyes and tan skin, that was where the similarities ended. She possessed long white hair that cascaded down her body to her torso with bangs that extended left to her face.
But most notably, she possessed long rabbit ears that pointed upward. Ronan knew this had something to do with her Quirk, similar to her lean and athletic build that added slender curves to her frame.
Most notably her legs since she wore a skirt most times.
"Ah, hey Rumi."
He greeted the girl in a similar tone.
"So tell me, what would you guys like to hear today?"
"How about a story that actually involves you. Everything you've told us has to do with situations that have nothing to do with you, yet you can explain it in such detail. Trust me, the parts where you improvise are very noticeable."
Isagi replied in a flat tone, contrary to the lively cheer in Dion's voice.
"What? Improv? Is that really how you think I come up with my stories?" Dion asked, and without having to look up, Ronan could feel the dagger-like eyes piercing the top of his head.
"Well…he's not wrong," Rumi commented, shrugging.
If it wasn't obvious enough from appearance alone, Dion and Rumi were sisters. Though Rumi was raised in this facility, Dion had only arrived a few months ago, having been diagnosed recently.
However, due to their similar features and the fact that they shared the same last name, Kane, it was easy for the two to fill in the blanks.
Especially since Dion told Rumi a story of how an infant sister of hers was diagnosed with the Quirknull and taken away by professionals long ago.
Dion wore an offended expression, pausing as her eyes drifted to Rin, who avoided eye contact.
"You too? Alright fine, I understand that for kids like you who have spent your whole lives in the middle of nowhere, it's hard to imagine the outside world." Dion sighed.
"I was willing to believe you with the existence of Heroes and Villains, despite even that much sounding like fiction, but a yellow-haired smiling hero fighting dozens of villains as he saves countless civilians from a city-level disaster? We just can't help but be sceptical."
Rumi added, her words carrying the usual flat tone but carrying a sense of intensity.
"What's so hard to believe about people wanting to use their Quirks for good?" What Dion said wasn't exactly illogical, but that didn't mean one could swallow all this so easily.
"So, how do you know about it? You give so much detail as if you had a front row seat in such a disaster."
"Something called the News. It's a place where events all over the world can be broadcast."
Dion went on to explain, rambling on as she usually did during meal times. And as usual, her loud voice and drama prompted her to garner most of the attention around.
But everyone was used to this.
They justified it now as Dion simply being Dion.
And everyone loved Dion.
She was one of a kind amongst them, her outgoing personality being impossible to ignore.
There were just a few that were willing to endure her over-the-top nature so early in the morning.
But not the three before her.
Rin, Rumi and Isagi were simply invested in the so-called rambling Dion had fallen into. They didn't mind the fact that she seemingly had no off button.
No, they preferred it.
Despite arguing about it, whether what she said was true or false, they didn't care.
Like Dion had said, this disease had caused them to spend most of their lives here. It was all they knew.
Therefore, even hearing rumours about a whole world out there fascinated them.
"Do you understand? I know that it might be hard, but just imagine it for a second. A perfect world. That's what it's like out there. A world where every single person lives in pure bliss and peace. Simply Perfection."
The trio stared, their expressions blank as they failed to share the same enthusiasm as Dion threw exaggerated gestures with her arms.
"Have you ever thought about it?"
All heads turned to Rin as he spoke. Dion's smile widened as her ears perked up upon leaning forward.
It wasn't all the time she was asked questions, especially from Rin of all people, so she welcomed this opportunity.
She was beginning to think the three considered her as nothing but a story whore.
"Becoming a Hero, I mean. With the way you speak, I'd believe it's something you'd want to pursue."
Dion shook her head.
"Don't be silly. A Hero isn't just something one "Becomes". It all comes down to the heart."
"The Heart? What do you mean?"
Dion's grin grew wider as she held up two fingers.
"There are two things that make a person. The heart and the mind. By heart, I mean your desire. Something you desperately want more than anything else in the world."
"And your mind?" Rin asked, intrigued. And seeing this, Dion's excitement grew.
"Your resolve. How you choose to pursue your desire or what you choose to do with it once you've achieved it. With these two things, any human can achieve anything they set their mind to. Together, it's like…a state of enlightenment or something." Dion laughed, pausing for a second to find the right words.
'Enlightenment...'
They all stared, Rin especially so.
With this new revelation of unlocking his Quirk, he had this feeling that wouldn't go away.
He'd never felt it before and couldn't quite put his finger on it.
But for some reason, he looked forward to…more.
"For example, for me, I taught Kendo to kids and trained them to be disciplined, shaping the future generation to be nothing short of great warriors." Dion rubbed her nose, her chin raised as she bragged.
"Good Morning, everybody. What do you say we all get started?"
All heads turned to the sudden voice, only to witness two figures, a male and female, standing at the door to the mansion, clad in all white clothes, similarly to the Nulled.
Except theirs were more formal, both wearing a three-piece suit. The female, standing a little before the man, fashioned chin-length black hair, a gentle smile plastered on her face as she looked around.
Meanwhile, the man wore a neutral expression, his blonde hair standing out amongst his otherwise average features.
"How's everyone today?" The female spoke, greeting each person by name, the warm smile never leaving her face.
"Good, Ms Ino."
Like usual, she would escort everyone in as the man beside her would whisper something in her ear, leaving shortly after toward the gate at the bottom of the hill.
And like usual, its faint CREAK would ring out through the air as the metal bars would open outward.
Without saying a word, every single Nulled rose to their feet, heading toward the mansion in succession.
Well, everyone but three individuals, one of them being Rin.
'Being Quirkless…well, thought to be Quirkless comes with its perks. I have an abundance of free time.'
"Don't worry…"
Rin looked up, seeing Dion staring at him with a smile.
"We won't be gone for long." She added, having seen his distant eyes upon the Nulled being called inside, seeing an opportunity to tease.
"Are you kidding? These times are some of the best in my day."
Dion chuckled as she and Rumi left, leaving him alone on the bench.
"Isagi…"
Rin called out, witnessing Isagi turn and raising his hand, offering the remaining half of his apple.
"You're Hangry. Meaning you were also late for breakfast. You gave me the last apple, didn't you, so here."
No words were spoken as Isagi stared for a second, soon grabbing it as he turned, the crunch of the bite being followed by a slight mumble.
"Thanks." He left, hurriedly catching up to the rest of the Nulled.
It wasn't long until the abundance of Nulled was almost cleared out, and there were only three seated individuals.
One was the balding man, and the other was a man with long, unkempt blonde hair that covered his face like curtains.
'Good. Now that I'm alone, I can finally learn more about this.'
He thought, closing his eyes for a second and focusing on the burning flame in his gut.
'I didn't want to risk anything crazy happening in front of everyone, but now I can do as I please…'
"I can't take this anymore!"
Rin jumped a little at the sudden yell, snapped out of his trance as he jerked his head to the side, witnessing the balding man shoot to his feet, grabbing his skull, almost tearing his hair out.
"Hey…" Rin muttered, raising his hand, his mind lagging for a moment. But before he could say anything else, the man kicked off the ground.
With the wind sending whatever hair he had left on his head in a frenzy, his arms swung wildly as he practically leapt off the hill they were on, tumbling down it.
Before Rin could move…
"The Gate!"
Rin turned, seeing Isagi yelling from the door to the Mansion.
'Has he not gone in yet? No, that's not important right now.'
He thought, watching the balding man sprinting toward the gate.
His expression slowly contorting into an uncomfortable one, Rin looked around, witnessing the blonde-haired man not move an inch.
'I can still stop him!'
Rin spoke, bending his legs, preparing to pounce, but before that, Ollie yelled out once more.
"I have to get out of here!"