"They'll think she's one of my creations." All For One pointed out as he lay on the hospital bed. It was one of his routine checkups with his personal Doctor and naturally, the two couldn't help but talk about recent events, specifically the fresh blood in town.
"All Might and his allies?" The Doctor wondered. "They probably will. From what little investigating I've done, I can't seem to pinpoint any singular quirk that could give such a variety in abilities." He noted.
"Do you have any theories as to why? As far as we know, aren't you the only one with the technology and the means to extract, duplicate, and graft quirks? Or do you think some other group can develop that technology?"
"I wouldn't put out of the realm of possibility. There are many cases when different individuals created the same inventions at different locations and times but without ever learning of each other." The Doctor explained.
"I see." All For One mused. "Then that could be problematic."
For decades, All For One has held control of the criminal underworld through his quirk, the rarest and arguably most powerful one of all. The ability to take and give quirks, All For One. It was what let him control the flow of power, stealing quirks from those that opposed him, and granting quirks to his followers in exchange for loyalty. For someone else to now possess such an ability. All For One clenched his fist.
"We need to find out just where she came from and how she attained such power." The villain noted. "Perhaps she merely has a powerful quirk, in which case that could be more than useful, but if she has someone else backing her, then we need to find them and destroy them." All For One explained.
If that fight was anything to go by, then there was a very likely, very real chance that should the Herrscher grow stronger, or should there be any beings like her, there is a very real chance they could kill All Might, and permanently destroy One for All. The destruction of One For All was not something he could allow.
"What is your plan, Master?" The Doctor questioned.
"How is the progress on the Nomu project?" All For One questioned.
"I've managed to stabilize the additional quirks within the current prototypes." The Doctor informed. "However, for the most part, these Nomus initially had similar quirks to the ones I implemented, very few can seem to hold completely different quirks and even then there are some unforeseen side effects."
"I see." All For One noted. "Have any of them taken to the Shock Absorption Quirk?" He questioned.
"So far only one has held on with Shock Absorption, I am currently working to see if I can incorporate the strength quirks you requested as well as a regeneration one."
"Very well." All For One told him. "We will need to gather more info on our new adversary. If it is possible I would also like you to look into designing a counter for our new obstacle. Should she become too problematic then we will need a means to wear her down and either remove her as a threat or submit her to our will." He instructed.
"Very well." The Doctor answered.
After discussing a few more points, the Doctor finished checking up on the villain. He bid his master farewell and left to resume his work on the Nomus. All For One was left alone with his thoughts.
There shouldn't be anyone else with this ability, his ability. To take and give quirks, was his power and his alone. He had granted it to the Doctor as a reward for his loyalty and as a means to continue his work. No one else should wield it. He'd need to find whoever had managed to copy his ability and exterminate them. There was only room in this world for Demon King after all.
Izuku felt terror like had never felt before. He was now a prisoner trapped in his own body, that had been warped into that of the Herrscher. He couldn't move a muscle, not unless she commanded it. He could hear, he could smell, he could taste, he could see, and he could feel everything around him. Yet he could do nothing at all. Every move was dictated by the Herrscher.
"Why are you doing this?" He thought. He had so many questions running through his mind right now.
"It was tempting to let you pass out." The Herrscher noted as she folded her arms under her chest. "Normally I'd let you go unconscious and then take over, but given the situation, I couldn't tell if you'd die first or not." She noted. "It was the safer bet to save you."
"So now what? What are you planning to do now that you have control?" He questioned the Herrscher.
"I think we should head home soon." The Herrscher noted. "The humans seem to be destroying themselves just fine without my involvement." She chuckled as she watched the civilians run from the villains.
"You…you aren't working with the villains?" Izuku realized.
"You dare assume I'd associate with that filth." The Herrscher growled. She was offended he'd even think she'd be aligned with such disgusting creatures. She had more self-respect than that.
She glanced down at the villains, feeling utterly repulsed by them. There were three villains, and they each had unique and grotesque abilities. One was a man whose main power seemed to be extending and manipulating his teeth. Another was green and chubby, like a giant gummy bear, with the power to eat any matter and spit out energy projectiles. The last one, a seemingly thin pale-yellow man, seemed to consume large quantities of water, filling up like a balloon, and then proceeded to spit out a highly corrosive acid.
In short, the entire villain group seems to have the common theme of their powers being related to their mouths. Two-thirds of them were upchucking something they consumed. How her host thought her elegant and divine nature was akin to them, she couldn't fathom.
Nevertheless, the 'villains' if she'd even call them that was amusing enough. It was nice watching the little insects flee in terror. Even better when she didn't have to do it herself. Unfortunately, her host didn't share the same sentiments.
"You have to do something." He pleaded with the Herrscher. "You can't just leave those people down there." He told her. It was a fool's errand. He knew that much but he had to try, maybe if could convince her to at least save one person at least.
The Herrscher rolled their eyes as she placed her hands on her hips. "Why would I ever do that?" She questioned. "In case you forgot, I want to see humanity destroyed. If you want a heroic Herrscher, try finding another one, preferably an Idiotka one." The Herrscher dismissed.
"But…"
"SILENCE!" The Herrscher snapped as she resumed watching. She tried to enjoy it. Savor the misery of the people running in fear, but she couldn't. She could quite feel enjoyment from it. However, she could feel a growing irritation inside her being as she watched on.
"This is wrong," Izuku whispered. "At the very least you shouldn't be taking joy in all this suffering." He argued. It felt disgusted to him, to watch these people suffer, to feel the Herrscher's satisfaction at seeing it all.
"You don't seem to think the same way when you watch your heroes." The Herrscher responded.
"What?"
"You heard me, Izuku. I've been watching how your world portrays its version of 'heroes and villains'. It mostly resolves in two super-powered humans fighting and the media simply picking a side to support." She scoffed.
"That's not true. Being heroes is about saving people." Izuku argued. "That's what separates them."
"Is it? Why is there so much coverage focused on the power of heroes and how they can beat others? Why are some of the top videos all about hero vs villain fights? Why is it…people like Bakugo, who were nothing but cruel and abusive to you, are seen as having the potential to be really good heroes?"
Izuku was silent. He should have had a simple answer to her retort. An answer to defend Bakugo. "It's because of his amazing quirk." He thought. He wanted to hide away that thought, but the Herrscher still heard it. She was listening specifically to hear him admit it.
"Hehehe…so that's your answer. You think just because he has such amazing power, and drive, he can be a hero, if that's the case then by all accounts I am a hero, maybe that's why you think so, but I know very well I'm not. If people like Bakugo are what you define heroes as being, then humanity here is no different than it was back then." The Herrscher noted that she saw the villains overpowering the people with reason rhyme or reason as to why they did.
"Why are you so interested in it? You seem to hate humanity so much so why are you still involving yourself with it? Why can't we just leave?" Izuku shouted in his mind.
"Oh, but that's just it. We love to see the things we hate get destroyed." The Herrscher smiled maliciously. "That's common for any being, and I'll gladly share my love with you." She mocked as she focused her eyes on the people being injured. People who were starting to bleed, who were at the mercy of the villains.
"NO!" Izuku gasped as he saw the villains ready to strike. The acid user was ingesting a lot of water, and the people on the ground were right in its path. Izuku wished he wouldn't see it. He wished more than anything that if anything horrible was going to happen, he wouldn't see it.
He got his wish. The Herrscher's eyes closed before him, throwing his entire world into darkness. "Believe me this isn't going to be any better." The Herrscher noted. "I'd argue it's even worse when you don't see it, because your mind can craft even worse horrors you can imagine, to fill in the -ahhhh."
The Herrscher's body was doused in liquid catching her off guard. Before she could even recover, Izuku shrieked in pain. Their body felt like it was on fire like the Herrscher's skin was being eaten away by the liquid itself. Her eyes snapped open as she looked for the source, trying to ignore both her pain and Izuku's annoying screams of agony. The Herrscher clutched her head she tried to focus but Izuku's screams were driving her crazy.
"WHO DARES?" She questioned as she looked around.
"Herrscher," Izuku pleaded. The Herrscher grimaced at her host's useless antics, feeling tears forming in her host's eyes, she tried to remove the acid on her face. Her vision was initially very blurry but gradually she was able to see clearer and as she did, her fury rose. Her teeth grit as she tensed her body, clenching her fists in rage. Whoever did this….
"Make it stop, please. Make it stop." Izuku continued to beg.
She intended to stop this pain. Seriously, couldn't her host keep it down? This reminded her of the children back in Babylon. All the children whose screams still lived on her head, and the burning sensations caused by the Honkai injected into their veins. She despised those memories. They reminded me of the pathetic helpless being who was taken and broken, all for humanity's benefit. She will break whoever thought they could drag her mind back to that place.
The Herrscher scanned the area before it fell on the source. The one who ignited her fury. She narrowed them on her target. Her rage swallowed the feelings of pain and replaced them with bloodlust.
"YOU!" She growled venomously as she stared at the Acid spitter and his allies. So, he and the other villains dared to attack her, even after she had left them be, typical humans. "Well, my host, I changed my mind. Looks like I will do something about these villains….."
The Herrscher hovered into the air, looking down at her enemies. She hadn't intended to get involved, she was still trying to conserve power, but if they were looking for a fight.
"I'LL GRANT THEIR DEATH WISHES." She spat.