Chapter Text
“Hell is empty and all the Devils are here.”
-William Shakespeare
The conference room was eerily quiet. One could even hear the sound of Hawks feathers moving from the air unit above his head. It was odd within the room of pro heroes. Among the silent heroes were some of the biggest names in Japan. Endeavor, who had his sharp glare pointed forward taking in every detail before him. Nighteye had a pensive look on his face sitting at the back of the room. Gang Orca stood with his shoulders firm and sharp eyes absorbing his surroundings. The various detectives and agents of the commission sat around the table as well varying looks upon their faces.
Their normal conversations and debates were nonexistent as they stared at the images projected onto the wall. The gruesome imagery could be described as nothing less than horrific. The scenes depicted in each photo that they browsed through was representation of violence even some of the more experienced hero's had trouble looking at. Body pieces from organs, skin, intestines, and blood would be scattered around tore apart. Tendons often visible, skulls crush, if you could think it every single one of these victims had received a murderous end.
“The media has dubbed the killings the work of “Arcane.” It's troubling as we can not find any DNA or quirk evidence.” The lead detective spoke up, now breaking the silence. “Well….Aside from this.”
With a click of his remote a new image was brought up. On the ground surrounded by blood was a black circle. The circle itself was unique as it look as if it had been burned into the cement of the alleyway. Unique and almost ancient looking symbols and markings formed inside of the black circle burned the same way. It looked to be something out of a fantasy movie using magic but in a world of quirks they knew it wasn't.
“We have dug through every database available. We have even asked for outside help from different countries and nothing has come up on a quirk that can form this. Our guess is that the individual never registered a quirk, or was never on any record to begin with.”
This caught the attention of the older heroes. In their society it was hard for someone to live their lives under the radar. It begged the question as to how? How could someone with the quirks and technology of their world go undetected. Especially with such violence.
“How many victims total are there?” Hawks asked from his seat, curious. For the police to involve the heroes collected in the room from different prefectures around Japan meant only one thing. The total was large.
“We've estimated between 30-50.”
“Estimated?” Now the number two spoke up. The detective looked at him resting his elbows on the table and entwining his fingers.
“We can confirm 27 murders with the same MO. However, there are multiple victims whose bodies were similarly disembodied. However the trademark circle was not present as well as the places have been in various parts of Japan. It's hard to determine the exact location of the killer. The geography of the killings is too spread out. There are also long periods of time between killings as well. All of these are accumulated over three years.”
There it was again that deafening silence. The unsettling atmosphere those words carried settled over the conference room like a curtain.
“What about cameras? Has no one been seen leaving the scene of the crime?” The question came from Best Jeanist who was situated beside Endeavor.
“No, and that's the troubling part as well. There is no one seen entering or leaving the alleyway aside from the victims.” There was a brief pause as if the detective was debating with himself.
“There is something else that's troublesome. A Lot of the individuals have had criminal backgrounds or have exhibited above average quirk control for an average citizen. But the scenes make it seem like they were taken out like it was nothing.”
“So whoever it is, they're crafty enough to not leave any evidence behind while mutilating people, and get out without being noticed? Has no one been able to track their scent?” Night eye asked.
“Their scent just disappears without a trace.”
“Then a teleporter or they have an accomplice.”
“Yes, we've come to those conclusions as well. But it has grown problematic with the media involved more and more. That's why we have gathered you all here. We need the help of the pros if we ever hope to capture this “Arcane.” Someone this dangerous needs to be brought in as soon as possible.”
It was a collective agreement amongst those gathered. Whoever was responsible for the acts they had seen needed to be brought in and detained. Held accountable for every crime they ever committed.
“Has anyone done a psyche analysis of the crime scenes?” Arsenal, a hero who was in the top 30, spoke up. He was a man around Endeavors age give or take a few years but a hero that had gained attention and was well known for his skills. The hero was well built maintaining a muscular physique from years of work. His eyes a vibrant red and the black of his hair was starting to pepper on the sides. But all and all the man was still attractive for his age which was how he had maintained such high standings.
“Their conclusions have been various. But the common agreement is a male between the ages of 26-34, standing at 5’ 10” to 6’, more than likely they have a physical mutation that causes them to hide from others or they have very average looks that make them blend in.”
“In other words we are looking for just about any male who seems suspicious. Fantastic.” Hawks rolled his eyes. He couldn't blame them though. There was so little to go on they could only do so much. But it did not take away from the annoyance that he was feeling. It would only make his job harder.
“Unfortunately...yes.” Even the detective understood the situation and the regret in his voice showed.”I'm sorry we do not have more to give you.”
“It doesn’t matter we will bring this Arcane down and have them prosecuted for their crimes. This can not continue.” Night eyes tone gave no room for doubt. It was filled with determination and resolved that the others nodded their heads in agreement.
Little did they know though the task wouldn’t be as easy as they thought. Even as they spoke red eyes glowed in the dark alleyway painted red entrails decorating the walls. Their killer had struck again.