Erased Blood: A MHA fantasy AU

CHAPTER 8: POISONED TARGETS

Their ears were ringing. 

The forest refused to cease in its yelling, as it mercilessly carried on, until they felt that their ears would burst.

Not that Tomura was helping their situation, either.

He was yelling right back at the forest, and Dabi, who unfortunately happened to be the closest to him was sure that he would have lost all hearing if he had been a normal human being. 

"HOW DARE YOU CALL ME WEAK, YOU BUNCH OF UNEDUCATED GOBLINS?"

"Weak, weaker, weakest," the voices chirped as if teaching Grammar. 

Tomura's eyes flashed a dangerous scarlet as the trees around him began trembling. 

"WEAK." 

In a circle around him, all the trees disintegrated, leaving a circle of destruction around him.

His neck was starting to itch terribly, a side effect of using his powers.

The forest quieted down in that instant.

Tomura turned to look at his gaping companions as he cackled, 

"This is how you show them who is the boss." 

 Dabi massaged his ears.

"Couldn't you have done that earlier, huh? Our ears feel like they have been bulldozed."

"Agreed. Now if I permanently lose my hearing and cannot listen to the village bard anymore, Tomura-kun, it's your fault," Toga grumbled good naturedly, "Though that was really…."

"AMAZING!! SPLENDID!!! IT WAS A MARVELOUS PIECE OF MAGIC, MY PRINCE—," Compress began before he got shut down with five exasperated looks and he merely smiled.

"So, we have proved that mental ghosts exist, great," Dabi said, "Let's go back now????" 

"Well….I think that someone is approaching," Twice hesitantly said, pointing to a wispy figure.

"You mean something," Tomura said as he squinted to look at it properly. 

"I am neither a thing nor a person, but a mere ethereal being," the wisp spoke, "You have passed the first trial." 

"Huh—," Tomura began but in the next blink they found themselves back at Dabi's place.

"...odd," Twice commented.

"YA THINK—," Tomura began, going into one of his famed temper tantrums, with Dabi giving a running commentary and infuriating him even more. 

A katana stuck out of the clearing where Tomura had been standing not two seconds ago.

"Tch," said the masked assassin, "Missed yet again." 

~~~~

The murders by the Hero Killer had been done in a particular pattern, now that Aizawa focused on it. 

They had all been murdered at night, after most of the Kingdom went to bed. So, Stain must be someone who either worked during the day or wasn't that well known enough in these parts to mingle easily with the morning crowd and would stick out like a sore thumb if they tried to commit these atrocities in broad daylight, or perhaps it was because that's when the heroes had their guards down the most, because no one really expects to die while sleeping in a bolted room.

He rubbed at his sore eyes. His brain felt like it was full of cotton.

The page sat blank in front of him, spotless. 

Why did the King have to give him such a complicated case when he hadn't slept properly for weeks on end??? 

He yawned yet again, wishing to stab himself with the parchment quill, but unfortunately he was well aware of its limitations and that, without poison, it wouldn't really count as a good murder weapon. 

Dimly, he wondered if the ink was poisonous or not and kept his quill down to inspect the bottle. 

The ink bottle looked the same as any other day, however, the smell felt off. It smelt nothing like ink. 

On closer inspection, he realised, face paling ever so slightly, that it was a magical poison, which killed on direct contact.

Swallowing, the grim reality set in, as he realised that he was being targeted as well. 

~~~~~~~

"I will never forgive him," Tenya Iida swore, eyes red from crying. "I need to get powerful enough to defeat the Hero Killer….for the sake of my dead brother." 

He was alone on the streets that night, cool wind brushing against his form, making him shiver as the tears refused to stop. 

The world seemed to howl, echoing the wailing of his soul, at his loss.

He fell to his knees, gasping. His parents had died of hunger sometime in their old Kingdom, the Kingdom of All Might and his brother, his hero had brought them here, braving all peril.

And now, he died a heroic death at the hands of a cowardly killer.

And Tenya Iida would certainly avenge his precious brother's memory.

"Kid, haven't your parents ever told you not to sneak out at this hour in the dark night?" 

In his haze, Iida swung around to face a hooded man.