A little over 6 years ago.
The sun was bright, wind was blowing through the trees.
And down below, an entire empty field was covered with race marks, scorch trails, and ice shards.
Three figures could be seen.
The first was a young boy—11 years old—laid out flat on his back. Staring at the sky. Sweating hard and breathing heavy.
Speed.
The other boy—12 years old—was too busy throwing punch after punch. His bangs were drenched in sweat, outfit stained with dirt. With every swing came a loud grunt. Every attack was like a war cry.
Trio.
The third figure was a man. Shoulders loose. Arms hanging casually by his sides. Effortlessly dodging each of Trio's attacks with a wide, cheeky, grin.
Tony.
He glided around the field in an easy, unhurried backpedal as he dodged, blocked, and evaded each of Trio's combos.
Trio threw a a left jab and a right hook. Tony slipped the jab and rolled under the hook in one fluid motion. "Ou. Almost had me there! Haha."
"Stop laughing!" Trio said as he charged in with an overhand haymaker.
Tony dipped to the side leaning just slightly out of the way. "Ah! That'd been a home run!"
Trio followed up with a knee to the face, Tony just blocked it with a calm tap of the palm. "Nice form! Slow… but pretty!"
Trio landed with a loud grunt. He charged again with another flurry of strikes. Tony weaved them all.
Come on, just land one dammit. Trio thought to himself as he watched his father effortlessly glide around each attack.
He ducked down and went for a low blow. Just beneath the belt. Tony clenched his teeth, covered his groin, and jumped back.
Trio whiffed, he missed so hard he spun around and fell on his butt.
Tony looked down at him with a look of pure distraught. "…Jeez… straight for the balls? How rude!"
Then he stood up straight and gave Trio a thumbs up. "Ha! Fast learner I guess."
Trio picked himself up with an amused smile. "Hm… you can quit celebrating… cuz ITS NOT OVER YET."
He flicked his hand open—FWOOSH—his hand ignited into a giant ball of flame.
Tony's eye caught a glimpse of Trio's power activation.
Hmm, nice! A clean gesture!
Trio charged in with a massive fire fist. "AAGGHH"
"Uh-oh! Steady now!" Tony said as he dashed in front of Trio and grabbed his fist, snuffing out the fire in an instant.
Trio followed up with a left, Tony weaved it and dropped low, sweeping Trio's legs from under him.
"Aww crap." Trio said as he lost balance and fell.
But—just before he hit the ground—Tony caught him by the shirt, holding him up inches from the grass.
"You've done well son. Good job, I'm impressed. Give it a break."
He yanked Trio to his feet and let go of his shirt before patting out the wrinkles. Then he turned and walked away. "Come on, let's go pick up your brother. There's one more thing I wanna teach you guys before I go outta town."
"Yo! Speed!" He yelled. "Still admiring the clouds over there?"
Speed was still flat on his back, still breathing heavy. All he could do was stare up at the sky.
So… much… running… my insides burnnnnn. I think I just hit Gear 2 for the first time. That's good right? Why is it so crappy?
He pulled himself up to a sitting position. Then looked over at Tony and Trio. "Oh good! He's still alive! That's my boy! Alright, on your feet son."
Speed crawled up to a stand. Swaying back and forth.
Trio walked up and poked his forehead. "Quit acting like you're all beat up. All you did was chase him around for 30 minutes."
"So?! You chased him around for an hour and still didn't land a punch. I'd say that's worse." Speed clapped back.
"He's gotta point there." Tony said with a mocking smile.
"HUH?" Trio shouted.
"I'm kidding son. You guys did great. I'm prouda both of you." Tony said as he reached his hand out to give them a fist bump.
He turned to face them both. "Okay! So as yall know, I'll be out in Human Territory helping out for a while. So before I go I wanna leave you guys with one more lesson."
He leaned down and eyed them both with a proud smile. "I think you 2 are old enough to start working on your fighting styles."
Speed and Trio raised a curious brow at the same time. "Fighting styles?" They both said.
"Yup!" Tony said. "Being a strong fighter isn't always about how hard you can throw a punch."
Speed tilted his head in curiosity, Trio frowned with disappointment.
"It's about style in strategy. Every fighter has their own." Tony continued. "Every power has its own strengths and weaknesses, and every power wielder has a fighting style for their power."
He put up one finger. "And every fighting style is built around one thing… your gesture."
Trio squinted his eyes in confusion. "Huh? What's a gesture?"
Tony smiled with closed eyes. "Hm. A gesture is any action that is required to activate the full extent of your power."
"Obviously," he continued. "gestures aren't required in low scale power use. Any person can spark up their power at will. But if you wanna turn that spark into an explosion? You need a gesture."
"Every power wielder has at least one. It can be anything from a simple clap, to a snap, a stomp… anything." Tony said. "A huge part of fighting is identifying their gesture as soon as possible… and keeping them guessing what yours is for as long as possible."
"For instance," he continued, while motioning to Trio. "Trio's gesture is in the hands. When he flicks his hand open, his fire ignites, his ice crackles. That's your gesture."
Trio looked down at his hands. "Hm… really? That's crazy… I never even noticed."
Speed perked up. "Oh that's pretty cool! So you're saying if I get good enough at flicking my hand open then I can use fire and ice too?"
"Great logic! But sadly no." Tony replied. Speed's shoulders dropped in sadness.
"Every gesture is tailored to one's specific power. So every person's is gonna be different." He said. "Some have multiple, majority only have one. Some have flashy gestures, others are very subtle. Some are even audible."
Then he put his hand on Speed's shoulder. "But yours is pretty sweet! All you require to activate your power is quick movement. That's a slick gesture to have!"
"Oh yeah!" Speed said as pumped his fist.
Trio shrugged. "I don't understand, if any simple gesture can activate someone's power… how do we even live normal lives?"
Speed stepped up. "Yeah that's true. Does that mean I need to watch out every time someone waves at me?"
"Hahaha! Good point!" Tony said with a laugh. "But it's not that simple. Power related Gestures require extreme focus, massive intent, and perfect execution. As well as mastery of your own power. Not only can trained eyes see it from a mile away… but It's also extremely difficult… that's what separates the average power wielder from the top 5%."
"Honestly, that hard part is figuring out your opponents gestures. But once you know them, all it takes is a decent counter strategy." Tony said with an assured smile.
Speed raised his hand. "Uhhh… what if they don't have a gesture?"
Tony smiled. "Son… every power wielder has a gesture."
Trio cracked a devious smile. "So… what's your gesture?"
Tony closed his eyes and stood up straight. "Heh… it's a secret."
RIIIINNNNNGGGGG.
Tony looked down as his watch let off a loud ring. "Welp, it's getting dark. Lemme get you guys home before your mom tries to kill me."
They both dusted themselves off and got ready to leave. Tony walked up and knelt down in front of them. "Guys, I just want you to know. I don't teach you this stuff because I want you to become Core Heroes."
Tony shrugged his shoulders. "Frankly I don't care what you do in life. As long as it makes you happy and keeps you healthy."
"Then why?" Trio asked.
"Because I want you to become strong. Strong enough to make your own path in life, strong enough to live free."
"But most importantly," he said with a nod. "Strong enough to protect yourself and the people you love."
"Don't worry about what this world has to say… you don't need to become some "Core Hero" just to do that." He said with a smile.
Trio flashed a confident grin. "Hm. Thanks for telling me that Dad. But too bad I've already decided."
He put his fist into the air with a determination. "I wanna destroy any evil that tries to bring sadness and pain into this world. I wanna start a new age where the evil of the universe thinks twice before pissing me off. I wanna become… The Strongest Hero to Ever Live."
"Yeah! ME TOO!" Speed shouted.
Trio turned to face Speed. "Shut up Speed! You can't be the strongest if I'm already the strongest. That's the point of being called 'strongest' dummy."
Speed folded his arms. "Well I'll just get stronger than you. Duh."
Trio folded his arms and turned his back. "Not happening, I already said that I will be the strongest. So that's what's gonna happen. Hmph."
Trio kept his back turned with his arms crossed until he heard Tony's voice again.
"Strongest Hero To Ever Live…? Is that right… Mr. Trio?"
Trio recoiled. "Mr. Trio? You never called me that before."
He turned back to face him again.
He GASPED as soon as he turned around. "Uh. Dad? What happened to your face?"
He took a step back, Tony's face was scarred, bashed, and bloodied. His smile was gone, his eyes were drained of color. Then in a desperate tone, he spoke again. "Mr. Trio."
"Huh? Dad WHATS WRONG WITH YOU? TELL ME!" Trio shouted.
The more he stared the more Tony's face grew more distorted, more warped. Trio's heart started beating fast, his breathing got uncontrollably intense.
Then he said it again, it didn't sound like Tony at this point. "Mr. TRIO."
Trio stumbled back and fell to ground. His hands trembled, his lips quivered in fear.
The figure approached slowly approached him. It was unrecognizable a disturbing silhouette of what used to be Tony.
Then it opened its mouth to speak again.
———
"MR. TRIO!" A loud voice yelled
Trio woke up with a jolt. He wasn't breathing, as he grabbed his head and looked around.
Once he regained focus he saw an entire classroom full of students sitting at their desks, Weapon Girl sitting next to him, and Mr, Stern… all staring directly at him.
"Hm… first day and you're sleeping in class already? Bad look young man. Seems like graduation isn't high on your priority list." Mr Stern said with a mocking tone.
Trio wiped his face and flicked his eyes between every person in the room, staring with blank faces.
Then his vision landed on Weapon Girl staring back with a concerned look on her face.
Then he looked back at the teacher, still giving him a death stare.
Hm… first day and you're calling me out in front of the class for your amusement already? Seems like your paycheck isn't keeping you happy enough… sir.
He thought to himself, holding back his desire to openly roast this man's entire life. "…My bad." He said with a flat tone.
"See, what we're not gonna do is that right there." He eyed Trio like a challenge. "I've heard all about you Mr. Trio. The spoiled prodigy who thinks learning is beneath you."
His voice cut through the room. "I don't care who your father was, that won't earn you special treatment in here."
He walked up and tapped the desk. "And as long as your butt is in that seat… you're going to be part of this class." He said with a mocking authoritative tone.
All the kids in the room silently laughed around him.
Trio just smacked his lips and sat back in his desk. "Yeah whatever, old man."
He flashed his eyebrows and narrowed his eyes at Mr. Stern. "Hm. Sure spending a lot of time focusing on me… don't you have a precious class to teach?" He said.
The other students broke into amused whispers, Weapon Girl facepalmed in concern.
Mr. Stern got close and leaned over Trio's desk. "Let me make this clear, Sir. In here… disrespect will not be tolerated. Keep it up. I'll be happy to write you a first class ticket to the principal."
Trio eyed him one good time before looking around the class again. Everyone was staring with mocking delight. He looked to the side and saw Weapon Girl, frantically motioning her hands and silently mouthing to him. "Don't do it! Chill out!"
Trio huffed under his breath before motioning for him to continue the lesson.
"Good man." Mr. Stern said before standing up straight, turning, and walking back to the front.
Everyone turned back to face the teacher. He continued his lecture, already going through the beginning section of their first lesson on the history of Villain nation uprising. "So as we know class. 11 years ago, Nomads refashioned their identity into Villain Society and declared independence under the rule of one man…"
He pointed to a face that appeared on the board. A man with a goatee, long, wild, spiked black hair that flares out in every direction, long uneven bangs draped over one eye, and an unapologetically charismatic smile.
"…Manifest."
Mr. Stern continued with conviction. "This is the man that corrupted the entire Nation of nomads. Turning them into viscous savages, hellbent on destroying everything that Hero Nation has built."
Trio just folded his arms and squinted his eyes at the board, shaking his head the entire time with an irritated expression.
Weapon Girl stared at him from her desk. Her concern was still high.
Gosh man. This guy is not making it easy on Trio. He's already one bad look away from exploding… and it's only day one.
She started rubbing her forehead in concern.
Hero Course is starting next week. If I make it in then who's gonna be here to stop you from doing something stupid. All you had to do was just sign up, then you could at least get away from THIS.
She narrowed her eyes at Trio, he was still eyeing the front of the class with his arms crossed. The sound of Mr. Stern's lesson droned on in the background like white noise as her thoughts cut across her mind.
Darnit Trio… why do you have to be so stubborn???
She looked back to the front, Mr. Stern continued. "—Leading to the Shattered World War. It started in 121 AA, when Manifest and his Villain forces launched an unprovoked assault on the east border of our nation."
He turned to prepare the next slide of the PowerPoint until Trio's voice cut through the room. "…That's bullshit."
Stern stopped.
Everyone in class turned to look at him again.
Mr. Stern slowly turned around and faced Trio with raised eyebrows. "Sorry. Come again?"
Trio just sat there with his arms folded. "None of that is true. Villain Society didn't attack us out of nowhere. We were the ones who sent a Core Hero scout team into their territory first."
Mr. Stern's eye twitched as Trio continued. "I know that cuz they tried to send my dad out there… he declined obviously."
Trio shook his head with a demeaning smile. "Tch, he called it. We literally gave them the excuse to start attacking us. They laid out the bait and we took it like mice."
He sat up in his seat and eyed Me. Stern with defiant intensity. "You know, history class is so funny to me. Every other topic is all fun and great… until you get to the war. Then we wanna start changing stuff… rewriting the past… I wonder why."
He rubbed his chin as if pretending to think. "Is it because Villain Society is very a recently established nation yet they're still doing better than us in every way? Bigger cities. Better infrastructure. More S-Ranks. Hm… I guess it makes sense."
The class went silent. Everyone stared withe their mouth hung open. Weapon Girl blinked in disbelief m. Mr. Stern looked off to the side as he took a long, deliberate exhale.
Trio just smiled.
Then he shrugged. "Hey… he wanted me to be part of the class, right? Well there's my contribution."
Mr. Stern closed his eyes, inhaled, then exhaled long and slow.
Then he smiled and opened his eyes to look at Trio. "Okay then. Looks like your father taught you a lot Mr. Trio."
Trio sat back into his seat and crossed his arms again. Still eyeing the teacher hard.
Then Mr. Stern flashed a condescending smirk. "Too bad he didn't get a chance to teach you manners."
The class let out a collective "Ouuuuuu!!"
Trio sharpened his gaze and aggressively sat up straight. "…what did you just say?"
Mr. Stern just crossed his arms and held the stare.
The class swelled with noise of amusement and shock.
"Repeat what you just said. I DARE YOU." Trio pushed his seat back and place his hand on the table to stand up.
Then an arm pressed against his chest—he looked to the side.
Weapon Girl was leaning in front of him, stopping him from getting up. Terror was written across her entire face. She had her teeth clenched in panic as she eyed him with worry. "Trio, calm down. Just let it go."
Trio's breathing grew rapid as he stared at Weapon Girl pleading. He balled his fist and got ready to stand.
She pushed him back, stopping him from standing again. "Please!" She said. "Don't let him win!"
He eyed her one good time, he noticed the look on her face. She was the most serious he'd ever seen her in his life.
He froze for a beat, his thoughts flared through his mind. His breathing grew heavier as he thought.
"Raise your hand before you speak next time." Mr. Stern said from the front of the class. "Your outbursts might be tolerated in other classrooms, but not here."
Trio just eyed him with intensity.
Mr. Stern pointed to the door. "One more disruption out of you and your time in this school… is done. You understand?"
Trio didn't speak, he just held a sharp gaze on Mr. Stern.
Then he turned to look at Weapon Girl again, she was shaking her head no. Silently pleading for him to calm down.
Then he took one long deliberate deep breath. "Goddamn you fucking suck." He whispered under his breath.
Then he pulled his seat back to his chair and sat back down with a groan.
The class finally quieted down, Weapon Girl took a sigh of relief before leaning back into her seat.
Mr. Stern's smile returned once more. "Goood. Gooooood. Well now that we have some ground rules set… let's continue."
He walked back up to the board and prepared the next slide of his presentation. "Okay, who can tell me where we left off—"
He turned to face the class and saw something that stopped him mid sentence.
Trio—raising his hand—patiently, angrily waiting to speak.
Mr. Stern took another annoyed deep breath. Then motioned to Trio. "rmmm. Yes? What is it Mr. Trio?"
"I have to use the bathroom." He said in a suppressed tone.
Mr. Stern rubbed his forehead in frustration. Then he looked back up at him. "You know what… go right ahead." He said while motioning to the door.
Trio quickly stood up with a loud "hmph" before casually walking to the front of the class.
He eyed every student who looked his way like a challenge. His eyes silently daring one of them to say something.
He caught a kid staring at him a bit too hard and fake lunged at him. The kid flinched backwards into his seat.
He made it to the front and Mr. Stern pulled out the hall pass to hand it to Trio.
Before Trio could grab it, Mr. Stern pulled back. "You have exactly 15 minutes."
Trio looked down at the pass, then looked back up to Mr. Stern. "Tch… it's an emergency."
Snatch