Chapter Text
All for One growled, shattering the screen. He had enough. Many people have tried to ruin his plans to transform this rotten system, from the short-sighted followers of his younger brother to the government mongrels (as if they weren't the ones who put him on the throne of the Underworld), but this mercenary who calls herself Themis has crossed all the lines. He swore that even the damned All might hadn't caused him so much trouble. Recently, Themis had destroyed a major branch of his business, leaving behind only a burning building and a pile of corpses. He could restore his financial flow, but if this damned mercenary didn't stop attacking, all his resources would go to hell again. He clenched his fists. It was decided: he would deal with this little pest personally.
The familiar sinister grin returned to his face. This little mercenary will rue the day she ever decided to contact him. By the time he's done with her, not even the dust will remain. Garaki probably wants to claim her body for his new experiments, codenamed "Nomu," but he'll have to accept the loss. All for One won't let anyone bully him.
Hisashi rubbed his eyes as a sharp wave of pain pierced them. Due to the loss of his platonic soulmate a century ago, even with his many Quirks and the good doctor's constant care, he was now nearly blind. Such was the price for not having his platonic soulmate by his side—his eyes became empty, white, and sightless. With each passing day, he was increasingly forced to rely on echolocation as an alternative way to see the world, and this would continue until he could at least regain what little remained of his soulmate—the Quirk One for All. Yoichi, his younger brother - words couldn't describe the agonizing pain Hisashi felt when Yoichi died. It was his fault. He shook his head; there was no point in dwelling on what was lost. First, All for One would destroy this scurrying parasite, and then he would take away the Quirk of his brotherly soulmate from All Might.
He had studied all the attacks in detail to understand what to expect from this new enemy. Themis was intelligent, well-trained, armed, and powerful enough to destroy an entire gang of his pawns single-handedly, and her Quirk… All for One suspected it had something to do with molecular control. He rubbed his chin. Probably something telekinetic, judging by the few surviving CCTV footage.
Having studied the enemy thoroughly, All for One began to think of a way to lure the mercenary into a trap. She wouldn't show up if she knew he was there (the clever little devil knew the King of Crime was no match for her) and would try to escape if he showed up. No, this little parasite was attacking stealthily, methodically destroying valuable assets. So his presence had to be hidden, or better yet, officially, he'd have to be somewhere else entirely. Well, he had a Quirk for just that, which needed testing.
***
Inko slipped silently into the depths of the warehouse where a deal was to take place between one of All for One's pawns and a notorious drug lord. The Commission's orders were crystal clear: destroy the warehouse along with all available Trigger, sparing no one. She would complete the task; after all, Inko owed everything to the Hero Commission. No one wanted to take the blind girl from the maternity hospital where her own mother had abandoned her without even a name, but the head of the Commission saw potential in her—the daughter of the legendary heroine Nana Shimura.
Blind people were of no use to anyone—that was a fact, because in this world, you can only go blind if you don't have a soulmate. Such people have completely white, empty eyes. People like her are called Soulless. People usually become like this when their soulmate consciously sever their bond with them, which usually only happens if their soulmate does something their soulmate can't accept (something truly terrible), or if you're responsible for their death. Inko was born this way—she'd never seen sunlight, her eyes white and empty from the moment she took a breath. She was born with a hole in her chest that no one could fill. But the Commission had a role for her—that of an assassin, cleaning up the mess they left behind. All for One was the apotheosis of that mess, though she didn't know the full story of his relationship with the government, and the Commission in particular. She was simply presented with a fait accompli—she had to destroy his assets so that the rising Symbol of Peace could defeat All for One once and for all, and they could live in a bright future untainted by the darkness of the past. She didn't really care; she had a job to do, and she did it, and in return, she was provided with everything she needed. Point.
Inko crept between the rows of crates, relying solely on hearing, touch, and her quirk, which she'd developed from simple telekinesis, effective only on small objects, to the point where she could sense the slightest vibrations of molecules. Themis eavesdropped on the conversation: All for One's pawn was discussing the price of the Trigger imported from America while his henchmen moved crates of the coveted drug. Time to act.
She set explosives on the crates containing the Trigger, set to five minutes. That would be plenty of time. Inko stepped out from behind the crates, clenched her fist, and with one motion began strangling the drug lord. All for One's pawn didn't even move. He watched his business partner gasp with idle interest, as if he were watching an interesting performance. Inko frowned behind her blindfold. Strange. Usually, the pawns would either immediately rush into battle or flee upon seeing her. Well, it doesn't matter. The drug lord's men were attacking.
Themis dodged the shooting spikes of one and the laser of another, then, attuned to their heartbeats, clenched her fist, ripping their hearts out. Another big guy attacked from behind. She dodged. The big guy growled, the air trembled, and the big guy began to distort, transforming into something more massive. Inko listened to the vibrations, dodging attacks from several more small fry just in time. The All for One minion remained motionless. Good, that would make killing him easier. When the big guy tried to strike her again, she touched him, and in an instant, he turned to dust. Inko dealt with the rest of the small fry with the same ease.
The All for One pawn began to applaud. The claps were sharp, cold, and mocking. "I'm impressed, Themis. You've seriously messed things up for me, but today it's all over. Today you die." Suddenly, the air trembled and filled with a oppressive, bloodthirsty atmosphere. The servant began to change: judging by the vibrations of the molecules around him, he had grown taller and more muscular. Inko didn't need sight to recognize who stood before her. The King of Crime—All for One himself.
She swallowed visibly, but showed no fear. "What a meeting! I didn't expect a special reception from the King of Crime himself. You're supposed to be in America, aren't you?" Sweat rolled down her forehead. All for One shouldn't be here. Had the Commission given her the wrong lead?
"Let's just say plans have changed; my servant will be replacing me," All for One chuckled, waving his hand. The air trembled sharply, and alarm bells rang in Themis's head. Inko soared into the air before the ground she stood on exploded. Damn, he wasn't kidding.
"Let me guess, your Quirk is something telekinetic? If I had to guess, it's probably some form of molecular manipulation. Am I right?"
Inko gritted her teeth, dodging another attack. The timer continued counting down; if she didn't get out of here in the next two minutes, she'd be blown up along with this dilapidated warehouse. Themis pulled several speakers from her belt. This would hurt her too, but she had no choice. "You talk too much, old man."
She threw a grenade at him. He brushed it aside like a pesky fly. Bang! The bomb exploded somewhere outside the warehouse. However, that was enough time for her to throw it at his feet and activate the speakers. All for One covered his ears with his hands. Inko tried her best not to wince at the sharp sound, like claws scraping on glass. It bothered her, too, but she had no choice—this was the only way to disorient All for One. Everyone knew All for One was Soulless. Rumor had it he'd killed his soulmate and gone blind because of it. Well, he deserves it.
Inko flew away at top speed. Faster, this trick wouldn't distract him for long; she had to get away. She felt a sudden shift in the air, but she didn't have time to react—All for One caught up with her and attacked with a blast of compressed air. Themis lost her bearings and began to fall. At the last moment, she managed to land on her feet, but then another explosion almost caught her. It seemed her action had seriously enraged All for One. Damn.
Inko turned up another speaker at full volume. Her ears were pierced by a sharp pain, and the sound made it impossible to focus on All for One's heartbeat or breathing. She couldn't squeeze his heart or larynx, but she had no choice. She couldn't be heard by him; she couldn't allow another attack. All for One's massive figure landed with a loud thud a few meters away, roaring like a wild animal and covering his ears with his hands. This was her chance! She extended her hand, closing the distance sharply—if she touched him, he would turn to dust. It would all be over, and Inko might even receive a reward from the Commission. That's it. Just a little more. All she had to do was touch him with five fingers...
Grab! At the very last moment, All for One grabbed her arm. Had she miscalculated? Had All for One really found a way to see while being Soulless? Inko's shoulders slumped. Well, dying in battle wouldn't be so bad. That's what she thought until All for One ripped the blindfold from her eyes. Pain! The darkness suddenly gave way to... light? The blackness gave way to something Themis had never seen before—a multitude of what humans call colors, and the brightest of them all were All for One's eyes. What color was that? So bright and soothing. Inko saw his face in every detail, from his smooth skin with the barely noticeable dots right on his cheeks, his eyes that were definitely not soulless, though she didn't know what color they were, to his seemingly very fluffy hair. He was beautiful (not that she understood beauty). All for One simply froze and stared, not looking away or loosening his grip on her hand.
"You... What did you do?" she asked, trying to catch her breath. "Is this some kind of Quirk?"
"What did I do?" All for One frowned (Inko had never seen anyone frown before). "What did you do?! Why am I seeing you? I haven't seen anything since..." He bit his tongue.
Her stomach sank. There was only one explanation. But no... No! This can't be! "Oh, for Kami's sake, it's impossible!" Inko began shaking her head from side to side. "You can't be my soulmate!" she cried as the warehouse exploded behind them, engulfing them both in a wave of heat.
***
Soulmate... Just one word froze Hisashi. He didn't even notice the explosion behind him. It couldn't be. It was impossible! He already had a platonic soulmate—his beloved younger brother, Yoichi, and he'd died a hundred years ago!
All for One took a sharp breath, trying to process the situation. He knew soulmates came in many forms—platonic ones: brotherly, friendly, parent-child—and romantic. But could one person have multiple soulmates? In theory, yes. Hisashi had never been interested in the subject, and there was no reason to. Yoichi was his entire world—his brother, and in a sense, his child, since their mother died. He never thought fate would grant him a second chance—having two soulmates was a rare thing, and, even with all his delusions of grandeur, All for One never considered himself one of those lucky few. He paused. Perhaps his age had played a role in this? But why, of all the people on the planet, did his soulmate have to be the one who had destroyed half his criminal empire?
He closed his eyes. After so many years of absence, the light hurt. Everything around him was too bright, too vibrant, too… unnatural. Hisashi glanced at Themis again—she looked like a petite green-haired girl with the most beautiful jade eyes he had ever seen. All for One had never paid much attention to beauty before he went blind, but this girl, she was beautiful. The thought made him uneasy.
“Hey, if you're not going to kill me, maybe you could let me go already?” She snapped at him. She had quite a temper for such a trivial matter. "My hand is already numb from your grip."
"You're not going to try to kill me?" He raised an eyebrow in question.
"Why? To become incomplete again, but through your own fault?" Hisashi reluctantly released his grip, and she turned away. "Kami, why? Why you, of all people? I've always hated you!"
Hisashi crossed his arms. "Well, you know, I'm not a fan of you either. You've ruined everything for me with your endless attacks!"
"I'm proud of that!" Themis crossed her arms. "You are the embodiment of evil!"
"So, you're an angel from heaven?" All for One sneered. "Have you even counted how many people you've killed? Believe me, not all of them were utter villains."
"You killed my mother!"
"And the Commission you serve killed my brother, who was everything to me!" he exclaimed in response. Hisashi froze. Why was he even making excuses to her? All for One never stooped to justifying his actions, using the image of absolute evil to his advantage. She was his enemy! (She was his soulmate.)
For a moment, there was a deathly silence, broken only by the sound of the warehouse collapsing behind them.
"You're not going to kill me, are you?" Themis asked hesitantly.
He sighed. "No."
So, what should they do now? She was his enemy, working for the Hero Commission, and he was the Symbol of Evil, the King of Crime, sworn to destroy this hypocritical society that had taken everything from him, driving him into deep darkness. How could they be soulmates if just a moment ago they were about to kill each other?
"Then... perhaps we could discuss the current situation over a cup of coffee?" she suggested with a nervous laugh.
Hisashi froze. He stood and watched. For a long time. The warehouse behind them was quietly burning.
"What?" All for One finally asked, completely at a loss.