Long ago, before quirks had even been a thought on the horizon, a battle took place between a hero and a villain to determine the fate of a kingdom, the names of both, the villain and the hero were lost to history. Their battle had long been lost to the annals of time. We join our hero right after their climatic showdown has come and gone.
Her weathered coat snapping around her as she struggled to her feet after her enemy's final desperate spell. She had managed to defeat that monster after all her travels. While she had gone into battle prepared for the worst, somehow she had been hoping that it would have gone better.
While she had been able to manage a victory against her dark opponent thereby preventing the destruction of the kingdom, and all her neighbors, she had not been able to do so without several mortal wounds to herself.
As her vision blurred and darkness slowly edged in, she nearly collapsed, only just catching herself by using her sword. Using her cracked blade as a cane she lowered himself to the ground.
"Not yet, I still have a job to do" she recited to herself, forcing herself to not lose to the cold embrace of death just yet. Reaching into her vest to pull out her grimoire, a tiny thing to the untrained but to the trained eye one would know compression magic had been used on it to reduce its size long ago, though such arts had been lost to the ages.
"One last spell, then I can rest" she reassured herself, breathing in deeply before coughing heavily, blood splattering her vest. Pulling a small hourglass out of her pouch and crushing it in her palm, she threw the sand up in the air and swung her arm, causing the sand to start flowing in a circle.
"Now a portal" she muttered to herself, the land beyond the floating sand disappearing as a vortex began to open. Inside she could see lands and times she would never live to see passing, not that she could physically enter the vortex even if she wanted to. Coughing and pulling out a string, she tied it around her grimoire, making sure it would stay shut.
"Go, find the next wielder and serve them well. Our time no longer has a need for you or me" she said, seemingly to the book before throwing it into the vortex. Pulling her hood back, her singed silver hair flowing in the cool breeze, a small smile settled on her bloodstained lips as her lightly glowing red eyes slowly closed, her wounds finally taking her.
-
Izuku shot up in bed, sweat pouring off of his body. Sliding his legs off his bed, he put his head into his hands, breathing deeply and shaking his head as if to clear it. He'd been having weird dreams lately waking him up at random hours in a deep sweat, wondering why he was suddenly dreaming so much.
Picking up one of his journals and turning his lamp on, he started recording what had happened in this dream. Normally it was about some sorceress or wizard traveling, the lands she had traveled, creatures she had encountered, friends and enemies she'd made, but last night had been different. Normally even in the bad situations the magical woman had been able to pull out a victory for herself and her friends.
"But even though she won the battle last night, she still lost. Why did she throw her book into that sand ring?" Izuku asked himself. Closing his book with a sharp snap, he shook his head, he had to get up early to keep working out this weekend, he only had a few months left until UA's entrance exams. While Izuku didn't exactly expect to get in, that didn't mean that he wasn't going to give it his all.
Laying back down he shook his head as he turned his lamp off. 'Who am I kidding, Bakugo would kill me if I actually got in. Not that he cares if I'm okay or not, especially after he told me t-to jump off a roof to get a quirk.' Tears stinging his eyes as he remembered how pathetic he was compared to Bakugo, he didn't have a quirk or his "bombastic" personality. He really was a Deku. At least he'd get into general studies with his smarts even if all his physical training was probably useless.
He was about to fall asleep when the back of his eyelids lit up with a light. "What the-?" He started to ask as he opened his eyes. Suddenly his eyes shot open as he saw a ring of sand floating in the air with a swirling vortex of energy inside of the ring. Everything around his bed was starting to float until suddenly a small book landed on Midoriya's stomach, the portal closing abruptly afterwards. No sign of the portal remained except what had fallen onto him.
Shaking as he remembered his dream, he turned his light back on and lifted the small book. The leather bound, dusty, securely tied book looked exactly like what he'd seen in his dreams, down to the gash in the upper right hand corner of it. Raising a shaking hand he undid the simple knot and carefully sat the string down on his desk.
Opening the book, he looked in awe as the words rearranged themselves before his very eyes from a language he couldn't begin to comprehend into fluent Japanese. He pinched himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming and based on the pain he definitely wasn't. Looking back at the book he swallowed deeply as he read the first line.
New owner, you have been selected to inherit the book of Talia, the previous master of this book of magic, or grimoire as you prefer, please refer to the glossary on the next page should you need to look back over material that you've already covered. he read aloud, shocked as he saw how… ordinary the name was. It was like his name, ordinary, boring, unnoticeable. He shook his head and continued reading, the book congratulating him on becoming it's new owner. Looking at a warning on the book he tilted his head.
While this is a lot to take in, please be aware that by just touching this book you have awakened the mana residing within you, if it wasn't already awakened, be watchful as until you train to control these abilities strange things might happen to you. He continued. Pinching himself again just to make sure he wasn't dreaming.
"If you are not physically active, immediately start training. Your mana pool is directly tied to your stamina, so the longer you can fight the more magic you can cast. Take note however, while stamina is very important to the amount of magic you can utilize it can also be supplemented by your environment, for example water magic is more easily utilized when near a body of water like the ocean or a lake" he finished. Closing the book and putting it under his pillow once he noticed the time.
Shaking as he laid down, running a hand through his hair. He could hardly believe what was happening. His dreams hadn't been dreams at all apparently, but the past? That must be a long time ago then. Still though, the fact that the lady in his dreams had actually been through all that… she was stronger than he'd thought, and he had already thought that she was plenty strong already!
Why had the book chosen him? Who was Talia really? He'd seen parts of her life in his dreams yeah, but only bits and pieces, never the full picture. He knew that she was a hero, at least to the people that she had saved but that was all he really knew about her. This was a lot to take in. Taking in a deep breath he started to focus.
'Take it one step at a time Izuku. Get in shape? Okay I can do that' he thought to himself as he started to close his eyes before shooting up and holding his hand, holding his hand over his mouth as his arm felt like it was on fire.
Quickly turning his lamp on, and yanking his sleeve up, his jaw dropped as he saw a brand on his forearm. It looked like a blade with a plethora of creatures and plants curled around it. Pulling the book out from under his pillow, he glanced carefully at the cover and saw the same symbol. Looking back at his forearm, he grew even more confused as the brand seemed to be completely gone.
Sliding the book back under his pillow, he laid back down and started to close his eyes. He thought he'd never fall asleep with everything he was thinking of, but after less than a minute had passed he passed out. Not noticing as the brand and the book both shone for a brief moment before fading.
-
Waking up and sliding his legs out from under his sheets, Midoriya started to stand up his hand sliding out from underneath his pillow, knocking the book from last night onto the floor. Flinching at the sound, he looked down and spotted it. Reaching down and lifting it up, his eyes growing wide, he opened the book and looked at the first few pages again.
"It's real," he said. Shaking and holding his hand up to his mouth as he grew teary eyed. He started to smile, unable to contain his pure joy.
"I guess I don't need a quirk to be a hero after all" he whispered to himself, starting to laugh a little until he thought of something that made him stop and make his mood drop just a little.
"People will think that my quirk is magic" he realized, breathing in deep, he closed his eyes and fell back onto his bed.
"That doesn't matter, I want to help people and with this-" He held up the book, looking at it's smooth leather surface with pride. "- I'm sure I'll be able to help a lot of people" he finished, hopping up, getting his usual workout shorts and loose shirt on. Pulling out a backpack to stuff his water and his new book into before pulling it on.
Writing a quick note to his mom, she liked to sleep in on the weekends, letting her know he was headed to the beach for more community service. Technically he wasn't lying, he just wasn't telling his mom the whole truth. Like how no one had asked him to do it, and that he was really just doing it because there was heavy junk there, which he could pretend was heavy rubble and debris, so he could trick his body into working out harder than he probably should. He knew she was getting suspicious though about where he was going and what he was really doing.
'Today's going to be different though, I have to workout and try and figure out this magic thing.' he thought, still in disbelief that he was going to actually have the power to help people in trouble, something that had evaded him his entire life. Scarfing down a banana so he wouldn't get quite as hungry later, he slid his shoes on and started running towards the beach.
Finishing his physical workout and chugging down a bottle of cold water, he took in a deep breath, as loose as his t-shirt was; it was clinging to his body with how much he'd been sweating. Stretching his arms out above his head, he walked over to his bag, slightly limping from how hard he'd worked his legs today. Reaching into his bag he pulled out his grimoire. Opening it to the practical application section.
While you will later learn about all twelve elements and how they mix together, today you should try and apply your mana in a safe area. Make sure to do so far, far away from people as there might be an explosive outcome. Blinking several times at the page. He looked around himself to make sure the beach was still deserted, well it was still filthy so it made sense that no one was here. Opening the book to finish the instructions he knelt down next to his bag.
Once you are sure that you're safely away from other people, simply focus on doing something with your mana, the basic elements are mostly safe. Water is by far the safest to work with at an early stage in your training, just focus on water in your mind and if you're physically near a body of water try and focus on it as well. Nodding and putting the book back into his backpack, he turned around and waded into the water, facing away from the shore.
'Okay so I'll just focus on the water like the book said.' he thought. Trying to empty his mind, he closed his eyes and just listened to the rolling of the waves. After a few seconds he felt a serenity enter him. Opening his eyes he could see water covering his arm up to his shoulder, looking at his arm in awe, he decided to see what he could do.
Pulling his arm back and shoving his open palm forward, he immediately felt a surge of power run through him as the water on his arm shot out, hitting the ocean it caused a giant splash, making a small geyser shoot up into the air before splashing down, the edge of the blast of water he'd let off hitting him and leaving him drenched in sea water. Blinking in surprise and unable to suppress the grin spreading across his lips. He was obviously strong, he didn't need to worry about being useless anymore if he could do something like that!
Walking back towards the beach, he blinked as his eyesight blurred for a moment. Falling onto the sand, his vision darkening and his breathing getting a bit more ragged. Pushing himself up, he grunted at the effort it took. He immediately lost all thoughts about his strength as he was hit by a wave of nausea.
'I must have done something wrong. Maybe I didn't take in the water's energy like I thought?" He thought. His dizziness passing him, he walked back over to his backpack to chug another bottle of water. Taking in deep breaths, he started to reach for his personal hero notebook to record the results and start reading the next few pages of the grimoire.
"Izuku?" A voice he knew belonged to his mother asked. Looking up he saw her shaking and staring at the still rippling waves in the water. Her look said that she had just seen what he had done. She was holding a shaking hand over her mouth with tears sliding down her cheeks.
"H-hey mom, u-uh I guess I have a q-quirk" he lied. He hated lying to his mother but… well she probably wouldn't believe him if he actually told her the truth. Truth to be told, he could barely believe it himself. His mother let out a sound halfway between a squeal and a sob.
"I-Izuku, I-I'm so happy!" She exclaimed. Running towards him and hugging him tight. He started tearing up and hugging her back. Maybe a small lie to his mother would help. He knew that she had blamed herself since he was five years old for him being born quirkless. She looked up at him with a giant smile on her face.
"Who knew that your quirk would take so long to manifest or that it would be completely different from my quirk or your fathers!" She said excitedly. Her excitement radiating off of her. He was happy that she felt relieved about him actually having a "quirk", but he was a little sad that she was only so happy because his "quirk" had finally manifested.
"I-I thought… n-no I hoped that your quirk had manifested but I never expected it to actually happen!" She admitted. Hugging him tighter she looked up at him with a look of realization and worry.
"We need to get you to the doctors office Izuku!" His mother exclaimed. Her eyes suddenly turned full of worry and in full mom mode. She grabbed his cheeks and pulled his face down a little so she could look at him. Worry immediately overtook her happiness once she realized that he'd almost passed out.
"M-mom stop! I'm fine and besides, the doctor said I didn't have a quirk right? A-and besides, I-I'd rather figure out my quirk on my own." Izuku panickedly said. He wasn't sure what a doctor would think of someone who wasn't supposed to have a quirk suddenly developing one. He didn't think anything would come of it, but he didn't want to take any chances right now, not right after he'd gotten the book.
"A-are you sure I-Izuku?" Inko asked. Staring up at him with worried and hesitant eyes. He felt guilty trying to force her not to take him to the hospital, but even if they went all the doctors would say is that he shouldn't have a quirk. Which, he still didn't have of course, but it would just be a waste of time for them to go to the hospital and for his mother to argue with the doctor about it.
"I'm sure mom, but I still want to try out my quirk a bit more. I'll be home soon okay?" He said, smiling at her widely, hugging her tight before letting go of her.
"I'm so happy you have a quirk Izuku, I was so worried about you going to UA's entrance exams, and I still am, but now I think you'll be okay!" She said cheerfully before walking away from him. He could still hear her sniffling as she walked away.
His smile slowly faded as she walked away. He was happy that she wasn't going to worry as much, but he was sad that she hadn't believed that he could get in without a quirk. Not that he'd had much hope in actually passing the entrance exams without a power of some sort. Now that he had one though, things would be different.
Sitting down on the beach, he pulled out his book and started reading some more. No more actual training today, he needed to learn how to actually control his output now. Flipping back to where he had been he started to read.
"After you have unleashed some form of mana you'll probably realize that you had no control over your output. This will be easier to control with time and practice, a lot of practice. First we will go over the different elements." He read. Laying back on the sand with the book resting on his chest, he could barely contain his excitement. He was learning so much about his new ability today. Finally fishing out his hero notebook, he started copying down what he was learning today while reading, maybe that could help him focus and figure out his magic faster.
Fire; the element of heat and flames, this is the element of the brave and the bold. Thunder; the element of electricity, the element of the impulsive. Ice; the element of ice and snow, this embodies one with a cool and collected demeanor. Water; the element of water and the ocean, those who steadily grow embody this element. Earth; the element of soil and rocks, this element embodies the strong. Wind; the element of air and sky, this element resides with those who embrace the joys of life. Force; the element of combat and spirit, this element of the determined. Nature; the element of plants and nature, this element embodies those who grow and adapt. Time; the element of time and eons, embodies those who look to the past and plan for the future. Star and Arcane; the elements of space and the paranormal closely intertwined, this element embodies those who are mentally strong. Shadow; the element of darkness and negativity, embodies everyone and shows the needed balance of the heart. Holy; the element of light and purity, embodies the good in everyone. He finished. Glancing at the last two pages, he swallowed. That was a lot to remember. Quickly writing down each element in his notebook, including possible useful spells he was already thinking of, he picked his grimoire back up.
'But it looks like with all these different elements I'll be able to help a lot of people in a lot of different scenarios!" He thought to himself. Smiling brightly he noticed a little mark in the book unlike the rest of the writing. Only one word was still legible and he could barely make it out as it was.
"Divine" He said. Tilting his head, he wondered why that was there in this otherwise well written grimoire. Writing down the word "Divine" in capital letters, he underlined it three times to make himself think about it later when he was going over his notes. Shaking his head and turning the page, he had enough to think about as it was. There were only three sections on this page.
Finally we will cover the three kinds of spells. Projectile based spells which are probably how you first controlled mana. These are exactly what they sound like, they are some kind of projectile of any kind formed from the element of your choosing. How they are used and are useful is entirely up to you the caster, the more imaginative you are the more uses you will find. That made sense, his water blast had definitely been a projectile, a very dangerous projectile. He'd have to learn to regulate his output, otherwise he could seriously hurt someone, or even kill someone. He shuddered as he thought of that.
"Next we have utility spells. These are what they sound like used for utility. They are almost never directly offensive. A few examples are elemental walls used to separate forces or block attacks from a distance. Another is creating pillars to hold up a falling object. Just like projectile based magic, these are up to your imagination in how to apply them in and out of battle." He continued. Nodding as he thought about it, he was sure this was how he could help people besides fighting villains. He'd have to set time aside to think up "Utility spells".
"Finally we have enhancement spells. These are easily the most difficult to classify as each element is used in a different way for enhancement. The only way they are similar is that you are somewhat covered lightly in the element you are choosing to enhance yourself with. An example of this is Lightening enhancement or lightening form as you might call it. Electricity envelops your body and you develop an extreme speed increase for short bursts. While projectile spells are usable while using these spells, you will also automatically conjure short range spells to use, such as a flash of lightning in front of you or a sharp gust of wind when using a wind enhancement. These are difficult to master, each one requiring training for the full body version of the spell." He concluded. So while each spell type was different, it was mainly up to him to think of uses for each spell type and element. Looking down and noticing a tiny after section he started reading it as well.
"The final basic lesson is this, while it is up to you to come up with your own spells there are several basic spells in the section following this one with more advanced spells further in the book you can use as you learn and practice on your own with magic. Also, remember that you can combine elements in unique and varied ways for new spells and element combinations." He read. Well this was a lot to take in. Learning how to efficiently and masterfully use magic was going to probably take him years. It was a lucky thing he got his book when he did, otherwise he would've had no time to learn about it before the entrance exams. Putting the book away and pulling his backpack on, he stood up and started to leave the beach.
"Well at least I've got some time to practice." He muttered to himself. He had a long four months ahead of him in preparation for the UA entrance exams.