—Cole POV—
"What do you mean you found twelve bodies in the back of a van!?", Togo shouted angrily, "How did you know they had the bodies in the first place?"
"Got a tip that some civilians saw some men loading bodies into the back of a van.", I remarked probing for information, "The lead led us here, but I am not sure why they are taking bodies. Dead Man isn't in Japan right now, right?"
The Dead Man was Number 5 on the Hero Associations Global Most Wanted List. His Quirk, Reanimation, basically made him a Necromancer though the undead he had intelligence like the High-End Nomu in All For One's arsenal. Based on the information I found, the dead he brought back could only last a weeks time before they would disintegrate into ash. The closer they got to that time, the more feral they became, making them dangerous time bombs. He was responsible for several horrendous massacres involving thousands of people and most recently slaughtered an elected official in his home country in Translyvania.
"Not that I am aware of, and I hope he never does. I have seen his work…it's not pretty.", Togo remarked with an audible gulp, "The Hero Association has him somewhere in Europe right now, could have a copycat on our hands though. Do you need backup?"
"No, but could you have someone take these bodies back to the morgue? Keeping this quiet would probably be a good idea for now.", I pointed out, "I haven't tried moving deceased people with my power before so I don't know how it would turn it if I tried it now."
Agreeing with me, he said he would have a team quietly remove them. Thanking him I ended the call and looked at Mirko. Asking me if we were going in quiet or loud, I said we were going in loud. Placing my hand on her shoulder, I zipped into the power lines and shot into the home. Reappearing in the living room, the four men on the sofa nearly screamed in shock.
"What the hell is going on here!?", one of them shouted as he went to stand up.
"You are under arrest, and coming with us.", I chuckled grabbing the man by the face, "By all means though resist as Mirko here would love a good fight."
Cracking her knuckles, Mirko was ready to pounce the moment one of them made a move. Lifting their hands in surrender, they were smart enough to know that they weren't a match for us. Hearing Mirko sigh, she was upset that she wasn't going to do anything. Hearing the cops pulling up outside, I cuffed them with electric shackles and marched them out to the officers. Having taken a peek into the man's mind, I discovered that the man they were working with was one of the victims at the Night Club so again I was out of luck.
They had done their most recent job, and only found out he died when they got to the drop-off point. One of the other men saw his name listed among those that died at the Night Club. That was why they had the bodies, they weren't sure what to do now that they had stolen them so they just left them in the van like idiots. Without any more active leads now, the only thing I had left was to check the drop-off point they frequently went to look for clues.
"So what do you want to do now? I was going to backtrack to see where they have been to see if I can find any leads.", I stated.
"I think I will patrol around here since it appears the local Heroes aren't all up to the task.", she said with a smile, "Once I am done around here, I will give you a call so you can give me a lift back to my place."
"Can't you just run there?", I inquired.
Giving me a blank expression, she said she'd call me to come to get her before taking off. Shaking my head at her, I shot into a power line and made my way over to the site. Arriving in a secluded parking lot far from prying eyes, I looked around for any nearby cameras that might have footage I could use.
—3rd Person POV—
Unfortunately, the local area's cameras hadn't been updated in years so the footage was washed out and grainy. Searching the deceased man, Mr. Kai, home Kessler discovered Kai wasn't only helping acquire dead bodies. Kai was also selling weapons on the black market, specifically equipment he was getting from Detnerat.
'If memory serves the current CEO is the Grand Commander of the Meta Liberation Army. He is bound to have information on All For One as they are in direct competition with one another.', Kessler thought, 'Let's pay the company a visit.'
Heading straight over to the company, Kessler asked the secretary at the front counter if the CEO Rikiya Yotsubashi was available. Informing the secretary that this visit was in regards to a case he was working on, the secretary made a quick call to confirm if now was a good time. Getting the green light from her boss, the secretary told him to head up with some security guards.
Getting into the elevator with them, Kessler sized them up carefully. It was clear Rikiya was underestimating him if Rikiya only sent two guards up with Kessler. Getting out of the elevator on the top floor, Kessler was led down a long corridor towards the CEO's office. Confirming that the rooms just off the hallway were clear, Kessler was confident this would go rather smoothly. Opening the door for Kessler, the guards followed him into the office space.
"Welcome to Detnerat, Mr. Bolt. How can I be of assistance to you today?", Rikiya asked getting up from behind his desk.
"As I told your secretary, this visit is in regards to a recent murder.", Kessler stated glancing at the security guards, "I take it this is standard procedure here?"
"You can't be too careful nowadays.", he laughed with a slight hint of worry.
Handing Rikiya a folder with a copy of the documents he recovered from Kai's home, Rikiya froze up when he saw the document on top. Inside the folder were several transactions where prototypes from Detnerat along with other hardware were sold off to criminals. Sensing their boss's change in demeanor, the security team went to grab Kessler.
"I wouldn't recommend trying it, it won't end well for you.", Kessler warned them as he looked at them over his shoulder, "If you want to see your families tonight, behave yourselves."
Believing that Cole was bluffing, the two of them attempted to tackle him. Turning back to see what was happening, Rikiya watched his security guards harmlessly pass through Kessler like he wasn't even there. Seeing wisps of smoke emanating from Kessler's body, the men weren't even able to scream before being engulfed by smoke. Reducing them to nothingness, Kessler reabsorbed the clouds of smoke as he walked towards Rikiya.
"I warned them…are you going to be an idiot as well?", Kessler asked him with a calm tone.
"What the heck! You killed them, a Hero isn't-", Rikiya stated before Kessler pointed a finger at him.
"Isn't supposed to kill the villains? That is laughable coming from a villain who has killed thousands trying to achieve his goal. Where is it written in stone that all Heroes don't kill?", Kessler inquired narrowing his eyes, "How many lives could have been saved if a Hero put you down sooner? Killing you now will definitely save countless lives that you'd end up taking in the future."
Sensing the overwhelming killing intent coming from Kessler, Rikiya realized the Hero in front of him had no qualms about killing him. Remind Kessler that cameras were all over this room, Rikiya threatened to leak the information to the press if Kessler killed him.
"Hahaha!", Kessler laughed with an unconcerned grin, "Clearly you don't understand who you are dealing with…does the word EMP mean anything to you?"
Realizing that Kessler was able to fry the building's systems, Rikiya started bulking up realizing a fight was the only way out of this. Snapping his fingers, Kessler fried the electronics in the building to ensure his visit today wasn't recorded. Reaching one hundred percent output, Rikiya rushed forwards towards him trying desperately to silence Kessler. Getting only a few inches from where he started, Rikiya stopped moving dead in his tracks. Trying to force his way forwards, he found moving impossible for some reason.
"You are really stupid, aren't you? I demonstrate that my power extends beyond electricity, but you still thought it was a wise move.", Kessler said with annoyance, "I swear, how the heck did you assume the title of Grand Commander with your idiocy."
Shooting several light beams through his knees, hips, and shoulders Rikiya grunted in pain as they passed through him. Releasing him from his bonds, Rikiya collapsed to the ground unable to move as his joints were heavily damaged. Calmly walking over to him, Kessler grabbed him by the hair and lifted his head up.
"I want the information you have on Kai's other clients.", Kessler demanded.
"What information.", Rikiya remarked feinting ignorance.
Snapping Rikiya's shoulder like a toothpick with his left hand, Kessler told him to stop playing dumb.
"You sell goods to the black market, no idiot would do that without keeping tabs on their sellers. After all, if they turn on you, you'd want to erase the evidence completely.", Kessler stated understanding how the black market worked, "Give me what you have his clients."
Knowing that Kessler was too strong for him to defeat, Rikiya advised that the files he wanted were in his desk. Releasing Rikiya, Kessler went to the desk to retrieve the files. Opening the cabinet drawers, Kessler quickly found detailed documents on all of the sellers in the army's employment. Flipping through the documentation, Kessler found that Kai had been frequenting the Jaku General Hospital. Recalling that name for his memories, Kessler knew that was where the High-End Nomu were being made.
"What are you going to do with me, turn me over to the police?", Rikiya questioned accepting he lost this fight.
"Of course I will, if I kill you now your army will go into hiding. Sending you to Tartaros will ensure they come to break you out.", Kessler said in a cold tone, "That said, you are a liability now that you know my secret. I can fix that really quick though, after all, I just have to mess with your bioelectricity a bit to ensure you never walk, talk, or live normally again. It is unfair for you to live a comfortable life after all the lives you ruined."
Feeling an overwhelming sense of dread come over him as Kessler flicked his desk across the room with a single finger. Seeing a dark aura surround Kessler, Rikiya felt all the pent-up anger and aggression that Cole had been carrying all these years. Cole had met countless cruel men like Rikiya who had no issue sacrificing innocent lives so long as it furthered his agenda.
"Please…please wait a moment…I…I can be an asset to you!", Rikiya pleaded as his body bulked up uncontrollably, "My group could easily help you get whatever you want!"
"No they can't…", Kessler growled reaching out with his armored arm, "I can't ever regain what I have lost. Now stay still, this is going to hurt…a lot."
Screaming for help, Rikiya desperately hoped that someone would come but no one did. His screams filled the empty penthouse floor as Kessler rewired his mind completely. Becoming no better than an invalid, Rikiya's days of hurting people were over. Getting the files and Rikiya out of the room, Kessler completely destroyed everything on the penthouse level as he carried a box of files and Rikiya downstairs.