Post Vitam

Chapter 05

Izuku was used to pain in his life. This much was certain but to have everything hurt all at once to the extreme? That was a new kind of hell he had been spared until now. The second that accursed concoction was injected Izuku felt the worst pain he'd ever felt all over his body. He started to scream but before the air had even reached his lungs it was over. Izuku almost felt paranoid like it never happened but the amount of sweat that was running over his body proved that at least something did happen. He wasn't insane.

"WHAT WAS THAT?!!!!" Izuku asked abandoning manners after what felt like torture he wouldn't wish even on his mother.

"Honestly son you are the most fascinating patient i've ever had, but I assume you mean the injection I gave you. There was two parts to it as you saw. I've only ever read about the ring happening during diagnosis."

The doctor sat back in his chair and rubbed his nose bridge again. "It means the nanobots detected a blocker in your DNA that relates to the quirk gene. An artificial one at. Meaning at some point you either got severely sick as a baby or a villain quirk attack affected your mother when she was still carrying you. Triggering an immune response in you to protect you in the womb."

"So what was in the syringe then doctor?" Izuku asked stunned that such random events could've affected his life so severely. Something that had happened before he was even born could've been the cause? Was he cursed he thought to himself. What did he do in a past life to be punished so harshly in this one?!

"You know about one part of the liquid, it contains our nanobots that help identify quirks and the other part I mixed in cleared the blocker on your DNA" The doctor explained it as if Izuku had asked for the recipe to some cookies.

"What do you mean cleared the blocker on my DNA?! Don't you need like special machines or stuff to alter DNA like that?!" If it was this easy to alter DNA why are the quirkless still a thing?! Izuku was deep in troubled thoughts about willful injustice in the world when the doctor snapped him out of it with a chuckle.

"That is true yes but I didn't alter anything. Think of it as cleaning up a nasty mark on the wall. The wall has always been the same under the mark. It's just not dirty or obscured now." He continued hoping that explanation would be enough. I need to draw your blood now though son"

He set up a small silver block with a syringe sized hole on top on his desk. The doctor took Izuku's blood and injected it directly into the silver block. "Now we wait" he said as he finished injecting the blood.

Lucas yawned clearly bored now that the commotion was over with. It had been over five minutes when Izuku felt himself agreeing with Lucas again and gave a yawn of his own.

"You certainly are a special case aren't you son?" Gaining a awkward chuckle from Izuku. Shortly after came a pronounced DING from the silver block. Up out of the block rose a USB stick which the Doctor quickly retrieved plugged into his laptop. He read over the result and scratched his head looking confused and slightly amused.

"Special doesn't cover it son"

Izuku was a little more annoyed each time the doctor called him son. "What is it already?! Also can you please stop calling me son?" 

Causing to Lucas pipe up from the back. "You Tell him son" Teasing and giggling. 

"Sorry, I'll stop that then." The doctor rubbing the back of his neck clearly feeling awkward for his habit.

Izuku sighed. "J-Just tell me already please"

"Right. Well it turns out you have two quirks both dealing with the same thing. Your mortality. The bots have designated it POST VITAM. According to these results you will live well beyond the normal human age barring something along the lines of decapitation. I'm expecting you to live well until you are 600 at least. There are already a few people with that quirk actually.

But the second one is what makes you special!" The doctor was excited clearly. Izuku couldn't see why. So he'd live for a long time? WHY? The gods surely must despise him to have punished him so much. He'd have at least six hundred years of this life? NO THANK YOU VERY MUCH! He was basically still quirkless, just for longer.

The doctor carried on "Normally I'd be advising you to prepare to eat healthily and take care of your body because you're going to have it a long time. Not you though. I'm not encouraging reckless behavior here but it seems as your cells are destroyed or near close to that they regenerate stronger."

Izuku perked up hearing about this. "what does that mean exactly doctor?" He smiled at Izuku. "Two things, you heal incredibly fast and you get stronger as you age since normal cells refresh themselves they are replaced with new ones. Yours stay and get stronger. It'll also probably mean you are very hard to kill. IF you can even die that is. I might be looking at an actual immortal being right now!" The doctor chuckled.

"So wait if my cells don't change won't I stop growing?" Izuku worried he'd be eleven forever...

"No, you just age very slowly. The older you get the slower you age. I suspect you'll reach somewhere to the age of maybe 45 before it slows down to such an extent it'll take about three hundred years to notice any change"

The doctor got a sad look on his face now. Izuku was smiling a genuine smile for what felt like the first time in his life. He noticed the doctor's face and wondered what's wrong now? His life was finally on track again. He could train and be a hero now. He could be like Eraserhead who doesn't have a fighting quirk but is still a top hero. He couldn't stand the doctor spoiling his mood. "What's up doc?" Lucas suddenly howling with laughter from the back

The doctor ignored Lucas again and started. "Well if you want to do something about the abuse you're no doubt getting now would be the time." 

He bit his lip looking nervous "Nobody else is going to believe you now." 

Izuku looked at him wide eyed. He was right, all his cuts from last night were already scars and his bruises gone. Should he say something? Maybe foster care wouldn't be so bad now that he's basically invincible....

Then again maybe his mother would come around now that his quirk had finally manifested?! She could finally love him again? He hated how much he wanted that....