Chapter Text
Izuku stood on the rooftop feeling absolutely numb. Only a couple of minutes ago, All Might had left him there after thoroughly crushing his dreams of being a hero. Add to the fact that he just survived a villain made of sludge who wanted to use his body as a meat puppet to escape All Might. along with the fact that the baggage of 10 years of abuse was weighing heavily on his mind today, after his bully told him to kill himself. With the added effect 3 days ago, he was kicked out of his apartment when his father had recently stopped sending him funds, and he was now living in an abandoned dumpster in a back alley. So yeah, you could understand what kind of horrible state of mind He must be in.
In another life, in another time, probably in another universe altogether, he would not actually be considering taking his bullies' and abusers' advice. But sadly, after witnessing his mother's death at the age of 8, at the hands of Endeavor, due to the man obviously having absolutely no understanding of the concept of collateral damage. He was unfortunately forced to survive on his own and deal with everything by himself. And unfortunately, the option of killing himself was sounding like quite a good one.
A small part of him that was drowning in the sea of numbness that had engulfed him after his encounter with All-Might wanted to quash that thought. But the bigger part of him, the one that knew that there was now nothing for him to live for, was urging him forward, closer to the ledge of the building. A small part of him thought it would probably be better to aim for the alley, and it was for that reason only that he moved from the ledge he was looking down from and moved to the secondary ledge that was hovering over the alley. He then looked down. Nope, no people to witness the most likely gory and quite messy sight of him smashing into the pavement below. Angling himself so he didn't catch on the building across from him, because honestly, he wanted this to be as painless as possible, and there was a chance that that would increase his Likelihood of survival. He then took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and jumped headfirst into the alleyway.
He oddly noted that his form was absolutely perfect, and if this was him simply diving into a pool of water, people would probably be impressed. As he fell through the air, he closed his eyes and let out a sigh of relief. He could just let go now; he was jumping off a 12-story building, and he was diving headfirst into concrete. The likelihood of him even feeling pain was very small. But after a minute had passed with nothing happening, he became confused. Worrying that some random hero had saved him, he opened his eyes and looked around, and what he saw shocked him.
He was in a place that he instantly recognized; after all, it was a place from one of his favorite movies, which was one of the few things that gave him a sense of relief these days. The place mentioned was the Cantina from Star Wars, where Luke and Obi-Wan went to hire Han Solo for transport off of Tatooine. But unlike the movie, this place was completely absent of people, all except for one table where a man whom he did not recognize sat waiting for him. He could see that the man's skin was as white as snow. He was wearing a red Victorian-era Gothic long trench coat with large black epaulettes on the shoulders. Large black folded cuffs and a red and black striped sun hat with a feather in it. When the man finally meets his eyes, he notices his eyes glow with a yellow hue. His mouth is connected to his eyes in the shape of a smile with a dark Blackness behind them. But strangely enough, the man's smile seemed almost like it wasn't really a smile. But before he put any thought into that, the man spoke up.
Drawn by Rowan6
"Hello, Izuku Midoriya. I am the Gatekeeper, an inner-dimensional entity with the sole purpose of maintaining reality. I brought you here because I made a mistake, and I seek to correct it." The gatekeeper said in a quite obvious British accent, with his voice having a hint of sadness and regret. This shocked Izuku, but he was way too emotionally numb to react much. The Gatekeeper saw this, and if Izuku thought he could, he knew the man would be frowning.
"Sit, my boy, let's talk." The Gatekeeper said, with Izuku doing as he asked. As he sat down, the Gatekeeper gave him a once-over. It was obvious that the boy was still in shock from the events of today. And with an audible sigh, the gatekeeper spoke up again.
"You're probably wondering why I saved you and what mistake I made that made me bring you here." The gatekeeper said, with Izuku giving him a nod of his head.
"Well, you see, I am currently on vacation, with my siblings managing my duties. I haven't had a vacation in six millennia, so I was quite honestly excited. I was also given a copy of your Universe and several others to do as I please; I had grown quite fond of your universe, and I was quite entertained by watching your Heroes do what they do. But after I influenced events, I decided to head to a tea shop completely unique to your universe. You see, I am a tea enthusiast, and I wanted to try this unique brew, so I decided to take a visit there. But I wasn't prepared for what my presence would cause. You see, as I was ordering tea, some ruffians decided it was a good idea to assault me. And in the process, I spilled my tea. The next thing I know, the man was already through the window. I admit, I may have overreacted and let my anger get ahead of me. But the fact is, I did, and because I sent that man through the window, it triggered an event that cost you your mother." The Gatekeeper said, and as the last words left his mouth, Izuku's eyes widened in shock.
Izuku honestly did not know what to say. Hell, he didn't even know if he could be angry at the moment due to how numb he felt. So instead of saying anything, he just sat there and stared at the gatekeeper, which resulted in him letting out another sigh.
"Look, I've been watching you ever since, and as I saw your life worsen to the point where you decided to end your life, I knew I had to step in. Look, Izuku, you do not know how important you are; you're one of the very rare individuals who has the power to influence your universe in ways that many cannot. And because of that, your death would not only be a tragedy but could actually do damage to your universe. Everyone you talk to, everyone you meet, and everyone you come across creates ripples that are everlasting. And your death so soon would cause a ripple that could shatter everything. Now I do not expect you to forgive me for inadvertently causing your mother's death, but I wish to make it all up to you with an offer." The Gatekeeper said, and after a minute of silence, Izuku finally spoke up.
"And what offer is that?" Izuku asked numbly, with him still debating if this was real or not.
The gatekeeper could see this, but he decided to continue this conversation anyway. It was probably better for him to be emotionally numb at this moment. Since dealing with his emotions would take up too much time, which he simply did not have. The gatekeeper knew that he had very little time due to his stopping time in Izuku's universe and would need to return Izuku to his universe shortly. If he didn't, his Universe could be damaged, and he wasn't banking on his siblings fixing it correctly.
"My offer is very simple; I am going to give you a power that my brother had recommended. Now, understand this is not a quirk but a power that goes beyond this very universe and various others. This power could make you the most powerful being in your universe if used correctly. And it will change your universe and your place in it in ways that I cannot predict." The gatekeeper said, and at his words, he could see hope and a bit of life enter Izuku's eyes.
"Are you saying that I could be a hero with this power?" Izuku asked, with hope evident in his tone.
"Theoretically, yes, but I would not recommend it." The Gatekeeper said, causing Izuku to look confused at him. Letting out another sigh, he decided to elaborate.
"Like I said, you will not be getting a quirk, so any tests done on you would reflect that. So when you go get your hero license, they're going to quickly figure out that you do not have one. Certainly, there are ways to get around this, and if you try hard enough, you could. But if the wrong people find out, you will be putting yourself at great risk. Especially since it is currently illegal for a quirkless person to become a hero." The gatekeeper said, and as he started to see the hope leave Izuku's eyes, he quickly continued.
"You should also know that it is also illegal for them to arrest you if you decide to do certain things." The gatekeeper added, sparking Izuku's curiosity.
"And what things are that?" Izuku asks curiously.
"Oh, there's a whole list of things, but the biggest one is being arrested for vigilantism. You see, since you do not have a quirk, no one can arrest you, and as long as a villain either attacks first or harm an innocent, the best they can do is contain you for 48 hours. I recommend that you read up on the law in its entirety. But honestly, do you really want to be a hero? Especially after what you experience in your society. Tell me, do you really want to support such a system after today's events? Tell me, what kind of hero shatters the dreams of a boy whom he just saved from a near-death experience and then leaves him on a rooftop?" The gatekeeper asked, with Izuku immediately speaking up.
"But it isn't All Might's fault." Izuku said, but the gatekeeper knew this was more of a reflex than anything, and the boy wasn't really thinking.
"Tell me what the standard procedure is for a hero when they save somebody from a villain who attempted to kill them." The gatekeeper asked, with Izuku instantly speaking up, thanks to his being an expert on all things heroes.
"After they secure the villain, they are to stay with the victim until medical support and police arrive." Izuku said, like it were the most obvious thing to him.
"And what did All Might do, or to be exact, what did he not do?" The gatekeeper asked, which caused Izuku's eyes to widen in realization. But years of believing in his idol were not so easily broken.
"But his time limit." Izuku said, but the Gatekeeper shook his head before responding.
"He may have a time limit, but he had enough time to not only sign your notebook but also to show off. If he was so tight on time, he should have prioritized. But then again, he is only human, and humans are known to make mistakes. Which is why I'm going to point out another hero, the number two this time. What if I told you that his collateral damage in your mother's case is not the only instance, and in fact, he has so many civilian casualties under his belt that if the numbers were made public, it would make him look like a monster? Which, unfortunately, he is. Now, how do you think that such information is not known to the public, and why is he not thrown in jail? I'll tell you why. It is because the Hero Public Safety Commission is covering it all up. And he's not the only one who they're doing it for." The gatekeeper said, with Izuku looking at him in shock.
"What! Why would they do that?" Izuku asked, completely shocked by this recent revelation.
"I won't go too far because we have very little time remaining. But basically, the hero Public Safety Commission only stays in power as long as heroes are fighting villains. So, having their precious number two exposed like that would disrupt such a balance. Your society runs on the concept of black and white, heroes and villains, when the world really runs on all sorts of colors. And as long as that is the case, they remain in power. And trust me, people like that will do anything to keep their power. Now I am not saying this to discourage you, but because I do not lie. But I'll tell you this now: if you accept this power, you could change all that. If that is what you want to do, that is, after all, it is your choice." The gatekeeper says, with Izuku taking a minute to absorb that information. When he had processed the bomb called reality that had been dropped on him, he spoke up.
"And what is this power exactly?" Izuku asked, with the gatekeeper letting out a long sigh.
"Okay, there is going to be a manual with it, which you can read later, but here is the gist. My brother had created this power; it is a system of sorts. Once you accept it, you will be given access to a personal reality, which you can make portals to anytime you wish. And since I know you are a fan of Star Wars, I asked my brother to make it Star Wars themed. Which means you would be able to get access to items, technology, abilities, and even the possibility of accessing that universe. Well, that is if my brother set it up that way. To be honest, I don't know how it really works beyond this. Which is why I asked him to make a manual for you." The gatekeeper said before pulling out a leather-bound book with the label system manual on it. He then placed it in front of him and continued.
"Now we have very little time remaining, so I'm going to need your answer. Would you accept this power?" The gatekeeper asked, with Izuku thinking it over. Which only took a moment.
"I accept." Izuku said with a small smile and a bit of tears. And with that, Izuku disappeared from the cantina. As he completely vanished, the gatekeeper's smile grew. Because he knew that this variant of Izuku was going to be quite interesting to watch. The question is, how can he make it a bit more interesting?