The King of Heroes: Null/Virtue

Prologue

Subject: #9

Designation: Deku

Experiment: Blending of human DNA with material NLD-2 acquired from [Redacted]

Chronology: Deku's biology appears to be that of an 18-year-old, however, the subject has been alive for approximately 22 years. This appears to be an effect of the splicing efforts.

Current Assignment: Assassination of Regan Letterman, leader of the Torren Terrorist group.

Capabilities: Enhanced strength, speed, stamina, durability, and [Redacted]. Has been trained with every sort of weapon that Project Vishnu could be authorized to possess. Denser musculoskeletal structure and animal-like senses. Do not let subject near [Redacted] as NLD-1 is aware of Subject #9's existence.

Concerns: The subject shows an abnormal amount of empathy towards the other children that are part of Project Vishnu. It would be advisable to terminate the remaining children, as their experiments have been proven failures. Proceed with Subject #9 as a base template. Do not let Subject #9 back into the facility until the remaining tests have been terminated.

*******

"Ah... I gotta whiz..." A fat balding man gestured to the screens in front of him, instructing his partner to watch closely. He stood with a groan and shambled off.

It was a regular occurrence during the night shift that they took turns watching the monitors. But nothing ever happened. The front gate, the employee doors, everything was all monitored by the security cameras, and even after 10 years of watching them, nothing interesting was recorded. So they tended to be lax, playing card games, talking about what they'd rather be doing with their lives, etc.

Of course, if they knew what was really going on behind the facade of a car part manufacturer, they might have taken their job a bit more seriously. That was why the partner missed a tiny shadow leap over the 12-foot fence that lined the perimeter. But it wasn't like these two were the real guards, they were just another part of the cover story.

Subject #9 was good, but the facility was not to be trifled with. So it only made sense that the alarms started blaring mere seconds after the fat man went to pee. They'd never hear the alarms, they were internal only. After all, the facility didn't want police to give them any extra attention.

"Facility breach! Floor 2! Subject- AH!"

The scientists hiding inside the subject room watched in horror as a body went flying through the air, hitting the wall with a sickening SPLAT. It was the only sound they'd been hearing. The guards never even got the chance to get a shot off.

The children they were with barely took notice. They weren't exactly raised with the moral value of a normal human to be fair. In fact, most of them looked pretty disfigured themselves, they likely assumed that humans could naturally go splat and pull themselves back together, much like how the scientists took them apart and put them back together.

Through the sliding glass doors, the scientists watched a figure in black armor approach the darkened room. He didn't bother trying to unlock the door, he simply kicked it open, sending it flying off its guideway and into the nearby wall.

Green slitted eyes shone through the room, instantly spotting the scientists huddled in a corner. The one closest to him began to whimper. He was holding a gun to the heads of one of the children. Unfortunately for him, Subject #9 knew he was too afraid to actually get his hands dirty. He just watched others torture children, he couldn't do it himself.

"Hey guys... you should close your eyes..." The voice sounded kind, but layered over an apathy that made him a menace in the field. "I'm talking to you too," He said, directing it at the scientists. "I wouldn't want to watch either."