There's no magic bullet, no cure for pain

What's done is done, 'til you do it again

Life in pursuit of a nameless prey

I've been so close, I'm so far away

It's so hard to explain, so easy to feel

I need you now, nothing is real

Save me from the villains of circumstance

Before I lose my place

Villains of Circumstance by Queens of the Stone Age

Prologue: One Smooth Criminal

The late morning light flitted through the windows of the train cabin as it sped past hills of dense trees and the occasional cluster of buildings. His body rocked with the rhythm of the train. He sat in the front row, near the connecting doorway to the other cabin. It had been a quiet, easy ride so far, which was what he had hoped for. The unsuspecting passengers occupied themselves as best as they could to ride out the four-hour journey though typically it only took about three hours to get to Hosu. Today, however, was going to be a little different. He checked his wristwatch as he lifted his legs and planted his feet against the hard plastic wall in front of him. The person next to him gave a strange look, which he responded to with a haphazard shrug.

Suddenly, the train lurched to a grinding halt, tossing everyone forward from their seats. Cries and gasps of pain and confusion erupted behind him. For his own part, he grunted and stretched out his legs with an ache. He rubbed his kneecaps gingerly as he looked out the window. A blurry shadow moved in his periphery. More people cried out. It was showtime, he supposed.

A heavy object rocked the cabin from side to side as the unseen thing clambered up to the roof. There was a brief reprieve of quiet punctured by the metal ceiling groaning under the weight of whatever was on top,followed by a horrible sound of crumpled steel as a hole was ripped above his seat. Wicked claws with broad, sharp nails tore at the ceiling. With a bit of effort, the creature widened the opening and fell through with a heavy thud. He looked at the invader with some scrutiny, a bored glaze across his emerald eyes.

The villain was a hybrid of a muscular man and a shark. It was not who he had pictured when he staged this gif. Gray, textured skin stretched taut over bulging muscles. The shark-man was broad and hunched. He could see a visible effort from the villain to keep his webbed, clawed hands from dragging on the floor. The wide head with a short snout sat over a thick grin that split his face showcased the jagged rows of yellowed teeth. Coal black eyes peered out eerily with malice reflected in their depths. A voice called out from beyond the opening this hired crook had made.

"Hey, Megla! Hurry up, we ain't got all day. The pros'll be here any second!"

"You got it," the shark-man responded. His voice was moist and sloppy, as if he had trouble speaking. Megla stomped forward and pointed a finger as he did his best to take command.

"Now I'm looking for somethin' very special, and you're gonna help me find it. You heard my friend:; I don't have much time, so spill it: where's the loot?"

Turning around in his seat, his curiosity getting the better of him, he watched Megla with an arched eyebrow. It was hard to suppress the urge to pull out the notebook sitting in the satchel he carried with him to notate what he observed. Instead he watched Megla's movements and features closely as he threatened the passengers one by one. The shark-man (man-shark?) finished leering at a middle-aged couple, and turned his attention to a young teen sitting next to them.

She must have been no older than fifteen, with short blue-gray hair that was swept to the side of a horn protruding from her forehead. Her bright red eyes strained with fear as she quivered under Megla's murderous glare. He turned to look over the couple again. A tall, brawny, yet slightly pudgy man with fading ash-blonde-and-gray hair clutched his wife. She appeared to be just a few inches shorter than her husband, her long brown hair framing her round face with a permanent blush. The woman was doing her best to pull the young teen away from the villain that towered before them. Bingo.

"You look like you know something ya little sn-"

"Excuse me, but do you think you could wrap this up?" he asked, getting up from his seat, "We've all got places to be."

The reaction was almost instantaneous. Megla charged forward, the hulking mass of shark covering him in shadow, snarling a constant stream of insults. Compared to the bulky criminal, he wasn't much. He was just a little taller than the average height, his physique lean and slender, a pinched, round face looking up at Megla past the forest of green curls that hung low on his face. Freckles peppered his pale skin that spread softly as he gave Megla a smirk.

"You got something to say, shrimp?" Megla barked, his foul breath almost knocking the wind out of him. He did his best to hide his disgust as he pulled out a business card from his jeans pocket.

"Really? A fish pun? Whatever, just come here," he commanded as he curled a finger in an undulating motion. Megla was clearly confused and failed to hide it. The shark bent over with suspicion etched into his face. Ah, this poor guy. Doesn't have a clue, does he? I don't blame him. He wasn't exactly what I had in mind when I hired him. Last time I do any remote planning...

"Look, take this," he whispered as he slid the business card into Megla's hand, "Read it to your buddies and get the hell out of here. The pros will be here any second, and I already found what I was looking for."

Megla took a step back and turned over the card. The front was glossy, black, and embossed with the green outline of a grinning rabbit. On the back were instructions scrawled in shaky but measured lettering.

Understanding dawned on the villain's face, and he gave him a wink. With a jerk of his head to the ceiling, he stepped back and started acting out a classic bit he'd used many times before.

"Now, get outta here! I don't even wanna see you around these tracks so help me!" He shook a finger at Megla before pointing it at the opening that had been created. Megla did his best to look admonished, though his confusion remained. He leapt into the air and was out of sight as he rallied his crew to escape. He turned around to look at the sea of peering eyes that stared out in astonishment. He gave them a sheepish grin as he rubbed his neck.

"I'm, uh, I'm part of the Endeavor Agency. Legal department. So, you know, I threatened him with the max sentence. Don't think he realized that he'd have to go to court."

The train erupted into cheers, many of the passengers clapping or hollering in glee. A few folks stood up and shook his hand vigorously. It never failed to surprise him how easily people could be herded in the right direction. A few simple words, the implied desire of a hired thug...some days it was just too easy. And now he was being praised for "saving" the train riders. Resisting the urge to shake his head in astonishment, he walked over to the scared teen now being calmed by the soothed by her neighbors. He gave her his best winning smile, the skin at the edge of his eyes crinkling just so as he squatted down just enough to be eye level with her. Time to finish the act.

"Hey, you doing okay?" She seemed to calm down as he looked at her with his warm emerald irises. Her only response was to bite her lower lip and nod. The elder gentleman gently released his wife and stood up with an honored expression as he held out a hand towards him.

"Uh?"

"Young man, that was one of the bravest things I've ever seen, and my daughter is a pro hero. I wanna shake the hand of the man who saved us from those thugs," the husband declared. He looked up at him and slowly rose to meet his handshake.

"What's your name, son?"

"I'm, uh, I'm I-Izuku M-Midoriya, sir," he stuttered. The gentleman and his wife both laughed softly at Izuku's shyness. Even the young lady perked up at his show of nervous energy . The husband introduced himself and his wife with a light-hearted openness.

"I'm Daisuke Uraraka and this is my wife, Saiko," the man offered. Izuku's eyes widened.

"Does that mean you're the parents of Uravity? Oh wow, she's one of my favorite pros right now!" he declared, gushing over Uravity's exploits and rescues. The Urarakas looked impressed and proud as they indulged in boasting about their "little hero" and how she was opening an agency office in Hosu. Izuku gave them a wistful grin before turning his attention to the teen who had warmed up to him slightly after hearing all the Uravity talk. He noticed that she had a small white purse with green accents and yellow-stitched lettering across its surface. Something clicked in his head, and he suddenly knew just where to steer the conversation.

"Oh, are you a fan of Lemillion too?" he asked gently. Her eyes lit up, and she gave a dazzling smile in return. An unfamiliar tightness compressed his chest, and he fought off the instinct to grip at his heart. He almost felt bad as he pushed forward with his plan. Almost.

"Y-yeah, he's an amazing hero. I think he'll be the next All Might," the young lady declared, her voice determined to stay at or below a whisper. Izuku nodded thoughtfully as he took an unoccupied seat in front of them so he could continue speaking with them. Twisting awkwardly, Izuku peeked past his seat to look them in the eye. He offered the girl a handshake, which she took with some hesitation.

"I-I'm Eri," she whispered with a shaky smile playing at her lips. He gave her a thoughtful look, and turned his attention to the static-filled speakers as the conductor announced that they would likely be disembarking soon.

"Considering the damage to the fifth cabin, we cannot continue to our destination. We apologize for any inconvenience."

Izuku gazed at the opened roof in silence while groans and complaints sounded around him. The Urarakas were fussing over whether to call or text their girl to let her know about the delay. Eri looked a little downtrodden on her own; she clutched her purse a little tighter. Izuku took notice and filed it away for later.

"Say, Eri," he began slowly, quietly, as he looked back at the hole, "Aren't you enrolling in U.A. this year?" Eri gasped and the Urarakas fell silent. He turned around with a sheepish grin. "What can I say? We hear a lot at the agency. So, do you think you could, uh, y'know?"

He tilted his head at the opening that let in the crisp spring air breezing through the cabin. The Urarakas looked at him curiously. Eri nodded and stood up, so Izuku replaced her in her seat. He leaned over to the couple with a sly look in his eyes.

"Get a load of this."

They gave him a strange look, but quickly turned as Eri began to climb up Izuku's abandoned seat. A few folks tried to help her get down but were quickly shooed away with a swat of her hand. She exchanged a determined look with Izuku before she touched the sundered roof. Her horn grew for a moment as she screwed up her eyes in concentration. A faint blue light emitted from her body, blinding the passengers that looked on. When the illumination ebbed away, the cabin stilled and no one spoke. Izuku gave his biggest grin to Eri. She was huffing and a sheen of sweat had formed on her forehead. The Urarakas looked in awe of the young lady who had been inconspicuously sitting next to if nothing had happened, the roof had been closed. There was a gleam in the ceiling, the material made new once again and brought to pristine condition.

The door behind Eri opened and a man dressed in the crew's uniform stepped out. He gawked at the ceiling and rubbed his forehead. The man walked away muttering to himself, gently closing the door behind him. Izuku stepped out of Eri's seat to let her back in, thanked the Urarakas and Eri for their time, and walked back to his own. As he knelt down and rummaged through his satchel for the worn notebook he had bought a month ago, he pulled out two gloves and slipped them on. Izuku reached behind him to his curved back and plucked a few strands of silver-blue hair that stuck to his hoodie. A sardonic twist crossed his lips as he put the follicles in a small vial. He sat back down and began to scribble away in his notebook as the train lurched back and sped away, the outside world blurring once again for the last leg of the journey.