From Ashes to Flames [BNHA]

Night Stalker

"Only the cruelest hunters set their traps with terror and trepidation." (Nenia Campbell)

There was something so sleek and carefree about her mannerisms as she walked, her body already taking a more toned shape despite it only being a few days since her transformation. The inhumane restlessness caused by her quirk caused her abilities to keep training and working almost 24 hours a day, though in the same way it also kept her from getting more than a few hours of sleep at a time before warning heat began to flare up in her veins as a reminder to stay active.

She had made it to a rougher portion of town in record time, though leaping over rooftops really seemed to shorten travel distances in the first place. She landed gracefully in an alleyway, her muscles predatorily tense almost like a panther beginning to stalk its prey. It was where her new codename came from, at least she assumed that's why the newscasters had named her something as simple as the 'Night Stalker'.

She began her long strided walk out of the alley, most people in this part of town barely looking twice at the clear presence of a villain. Most of them were ruffians for hire, though they made a path for her on the more busy sidewalks, none spared her more than a glance of recognition. This area was reserved for drug deals, gang fights, and organized crime of all sorts, but what it recently became known for was villain challenges. They were basically bet on duels between villains among others such as mercenaries or yakuza. There was nothing organized about them, but you could be challenged to one and instantly have a crowd to spend money on you no matter where the fight got picked.

As a matter of a fact, she was currently weaving expertly between hulking bodies of thick men and women who made a ring around a fight between some numbskulls. Very few of the adults noticed she had brushed past them, as she was an artist of becoming one with the wind and blending seamlessly into a crowd. But this didn't mean that particular people watching from building terraces and rooftops wouldn't notice the criminal underworld's new rising star, who only a select few knew had the backing of the king of villains himself.

She watched silently in the boisterous crowd, a clear view of the front from behind the first row of cheering. It was four against one by now, though it had started off as three against five based off the bodies laying around. It was too soon to tell if the particularly mangled corpses weren't just trying to sleep it off to avoid getting hit again, it definitely wouldn't be the first time. She knew she could hear the faintest of heartbeats from the one closest to her, but if the fight went on much longer he would die. The issue was, this last member was different from the others, the four targeting him were battered and covered in wounds while he stood silently not even sweating. She wondered if the tall man had sacrificed his teammates in order to get this far, but from the fear in the opponents' eyes he was probably the real deal.

She watched the man with navy blue hair and golden eyes slowly take his hand from his pocket, revealing that he was wearing black gloves that only covered his thumb, ring finger, and pinky. She took one last glance on the black face mask covering the bottom half of his face with razor sharp fangs painted on it before slithering back out of the crowd to find her true prey. She was fresh meat in more than one sense, if she stood somewhere well populated for long enough a group would come together to gang up on her and attempt to take out a rising star before the higher ups could take a liking to them and give them more money. This hatred that followed her when she wanted herself to be known was what she was depending on at the moment, at least in the fulfillment of her mission to build a reputation for herself.

Her Master found it absolutely necessary that she have unshakable credibility when it came to skill and strength before even sending her off to his league, and she was happy to oblige. She also committed assorted murders outside of this group in order to be caught on camera and to build up a level of fear with normal civilians as well, if only to garner the league more prestige when she joined. She stood a good distance off from the fight that seemed to be ending from the crowd dispersal.

Her eyes were fixed on the sky in grotesque interest as she remembered her first string of deaths that seemed so far away now. She acted as though she couldn't feel the hungry eyes on her petite form, some horrendous mixture of desire based off carnal impulses combined with greed based off the price her head should be worth after the couple of gangs she's decimated over her short visits here. It didn't take long before another ring began to form, this time with her as its target.

She didn't bring her head down from the sky as a group of seven men stepped from the spectators, slowly moving to form a ring around her with disgusting grins. Her sigh was an audible rasp through the gas mask as she adjusted the collar of her jacket and pulled at the ends of her gloves a bit in annoyance. Afterall,-

Her thoughts were abruptly interrupted by one charging forward with knives in either hand that seemed to be vibrating. He only lost sight of her for a second as she slid across the outside of his right arm as he dove for her. She turned so she was facing his now falling back before plunging her hand through his chest in one swift and poised strike.

She held his heart in her pale gloved hand as she muttered the end of her rudely interrupted thoughts, "...if I'm going to fight, the prey should at least be worth my time..."