Squeezing Stone

Lucas worked tirelessly, stacked on his desk were financial reports from the various companies he owned. Every few seconds, an email would pop into his inbox, the office phone would ring, meetings would be setup months in advance.

His office was in a high-rise building, one owned by his own corporation. He himself was the CEO, yet work was suffocating, it seemed never ending. There was always a decision to make, always someone to guide.

His mind was strained, Lucas heaved a sigh, as he rolled back in his chair. 

The pendulum of the clock echoed, tick-tock, tick-tock. It's hand striking twelve, Lucas finally put down his work.

Calming himself down, Lucas gazed at a small picture frame he placed on his desk. It was a picture of his family. The day his son was finally allowed to go home. It was euphoric, just recalling it, a warmth flushed his face.

Lucas smiled, his hands reaching for the phone by his desk. 

"Hello, it's me, how's the training going?"

Back home, the call was swiftly answered by Adam, who carefully watched over Felix's training sessions, from a distance.

"Yes, hello. The training seems to be progressing well. It's difficult to describe, but I think he's struggling a bit. Instructor Lee is elevating the difficulty each week." 

Adam answered, his gaze lingering on Felix, the boy was drenched profusely in sweat. His face seemed a ted bit red, gleaming with youth. Next to him, stood the teacher. A firm tutor, but a harsh critic. 

"Is that so? His method's are obscure but would you say he's doing a good job?"

Lucas inquired, slightly curious. He hadn't hired Adam as just an attendant. He was an expert at reading people, his quirk was odd, but it allowed him to understand others, or perhaps even grasp their intentions.

The quirk seemed quite complex and held many limitations that the Mattias family wasn't privy to. Yet, Adam had been diligent in earning Lucas's trust. 

Adam contemplated, his eyes turning matte for an instant. He observed the boy and his master and came to a conclusion.

"I believe so. Instructor Lee is more than qualified. He is wholeheartedly working towards giving Felix a better future."

Lucas chuckled, his heart was at peace knowing his son's future was secured. His laughter was contagious as Adam couldn't help but smirk. Then Lucas spoke again, this time his voice sounded heavy, and remorseful.

"Is he having fun?"

"...Sorry?"

"Felix, is he having fun?"

Adam was abruptly caught by surprise. He looked towards the boy once more, noticing his laborious grunts as he poured his strength into training, it seemed harsh but Felix was raring to go.

"It might not sound true, but right now, he has the biggest grin on his face." Adam's voice carried over the phone.

Lucas's lips curved into a smile, noticing the clock had struck again, ten minutes had passed.

"Is that so? That's good."

He put down the phone, and reeled his chair near the table. 

----------------------------

[Training Room]

Felix grunted, his hands turning a shade of white as he squeezed as hard as he could. Yet the stone in his hand didn't break. In front of him, was a block of marble. His task was to carve a shape out of it.

"Teacher, do you really think I can do this." 

A wave of exhaustion washed over him as he put down the stone cube. Lee inched closer, pinching one edge of the stone.

"Of course. Controlling your quirk to achieve this should be possible. Observe."

Lee channeled his quirk, a strange turquoise aura rushed up his arm, as he forced his fingers together. A piece of the stone cracked, breaking off. Felix watched in awe as the entire stone remained unharmed.

"The stone is quite brittle, but a more focused force allows you to break pieces off without damaging the entire structure. That is your objective."

Felix nodded as he got to his feet. He took in a few quick breaths and began chipping away at the stone with his fingers. 

An hour later, he had shaped the cube into a rugged sphere. His precision was pitiful. there was no refined control to show, but Lee seemed satisfied.

"Is this really fine?" Felix hesitantly handed his orb over.

Lee grabbed the jagged ball, inspecting it a few times. He placed it neatly on a handkerchief, securing it in a glass case. 

"For your first time, it's ok. This will serve as a memory and evidence of your growth. From now on, everyday, you must produce five spheres. Each better or similar to the one on display. Understood?"

Felix nodded, his eyes resolutely resting on the sphere. He was lost in his own thoughts, daydreaming about the day he would finally master his quirk and break away from his shackles.

The rugged sphere represented him, his future. It was out of shape, rough around the edges and broken at the seams. But he would do it, he would fix it with his own hands. Definitely.

Suddenly, a ball sharply shot past him, blasting into the wall, a bang resounded.

Felix flinched, breaking away from his drunker stupor. 

"W-what?"

His eyes shifted to Lee. As his teacher calmly stood there, a ball spinning on his finger.

"The first rule, pay attention to your surroundings. No matter what."

"Ah, but that's unfair, I was just relaxing." Felix retorted as he frowned slightly.

Lee smirked, the ball stopped spinning as it dropped into his palm. 

"Relaxing is allowed, dropping your guard, isn't." 

Hearing his words Felix was perplexed, he scratched his cheek, the ball had barely grazed him as it shot past him. He had almost felt the force behind it. He wasn't sure before, but the retired hero in front of him was no joke.

"How would I do that?"

Before he could hear an answer, the ball in Lee's hands bounced on the ground. Felix jolted to the side, a second later, the ball shot towards him. He crossed his arms as the ball dug into him, pushing him back a few meters.

Eventually, it stopped spinning, leaving a slight reddish mark on his skin as the ball dropped to the ground.

"See, you'll learn, eventually." 

This time, Lee grabbed a third ball, tossing it to Felix. 

"Your martial arts is improving. We will work on hand-eye coordination too. The best way to do it is sports. For now, take this volleyball."

Felix rested the ball in his palms, wondering what his training was, as a wall bearing a target mark was brought forwards.

"You can probably guess but, you'll be hitting this target here." Lee traced one meter wide circle on the mechanical wall, all painted in red.

"100 repetitions. Once your done, we'll switch to a smaller target. Remember, it only counts if its inside. You're only allowed to hit it hard. No holding back. The balls were designed to bear an incredible level of stress."

Felix eyes sparkled with a keen glee. He had never been involved with sports. But now that he could finally try it with his hands, he was sure to make full use of it.

Before Lee could even utter a word. Felix had taken a stance, he stood with his feet spread apart, shoulder width.

The ball gently wobbled in his arms. He tossed it up, and took in a sharp breath. Felix's legs twitched, like loaded springs, he leapt towards the ball, his arm swinging with shear speed. 

Right as his fingers grazed the ball, the sudden impulse produced a loud bang, the ball was smacked across the room, planted right into the wall as it spun until falling flat on the ground. A stench of burnt rubber permeated the air.

Felix felt his palms tingle, a sudden heat rushed to his face. 

'Exhilarating, is this what it feels like?'

Lee sighed, as he tossed the ball back.

"Impressive shot, but not good enough." His hand gestured to the wall, the imprint of the wall was slightly over the red circle.

Felix raised a brow as to question the call, but seeing as Lee wasn't one to budge, he decided against it, and repeated the spike.

"Again."

The day continued, as Felix tried multiple sports, from football, to basketball and even tennis. Though largely, he preferred direct contact sports that didn't rely on equipment.

Night fell, as a sea of shimmering stars crowded the sky. A peaceful aurora descended on the city, but in the Mattias residence, the gym lights remained on.

Bang! 

The ball ricocheted off the wall as it bounced into his hand. Felix Rhythmically spiked the ball, putting his all into it.

"98."

He gasped for breaths. Controlling his strength in a manner to hit within the target was far beyond his expectations. Felix grit his teeth, determination burning in his eyes as the ball rolled to his feet.

The boy picked it up and took a stance, before he knew it, the ball was in the air, and then......

----------------------

[2 years later]

Bang!

A sharp shot echoed in the gym, Felix bounced on his toes as the ball he had just slammed into the wall came rolling back to him.

"100."

He mouthed, stretching his shoulder, Felix flicked his wrist as the ball flew high into the air. 

Slowly it rolled back and fell towards him.

Felix shuffled in place, adjusting his feet. His eyes locked in to the ball. Instantly, Felix shot up like a spring, his palm perfectly placed on the ball as he swung. Immediately, the ball erupted forwards akin to a bullet.

It's shear speed, caused the ball to spin on its own axis as it collided with the target on the wall, a 40 cm spot, in the middle. Yet the ball seemed to defiantly continue spinning, ripping into the metal.

Only stopping once a few seconds had passed, the impulse causing it to fall softly to the ground.

A clap echoed in the gym, Lee who had been observing from the side finally stepped in.

"It took you two years, but you've improved your record. I think we're done for today."

He excused Felix early as he picked up and examined the ball.

"Thank you." Felix curtly replied, yet he stayed right where he was, simply staring at his teacher, as if expecting something.

Lee pretended not to notice, but once a few minutes had passed he could still see the boy lingering in the gym. He rubbed his forehead and sighed.

"Are you still stuck up on that question?"

Felix nodded, he couldn't just leave without pestering him for an answer. After all, in two years time his teacher still hadn't yet answered the second question.

"I've told you before but, becoming a hero. It wasn't really a major choice for me. Whether it was to help others, or myself. I just did what I thought best. There's nothing more to it."

Lee solemnly thought about it, but that was the best he could come up with.

Felix felt slightly unsatisfied, hence he had kept pestering, but who was to blame him? He couldn't exactly accept such a bland answer.

Clicking his tongue, Felix finally caved in and left the gym, although he would love to loiter around, he had far too many lessons to catch up to.

So began his tumultuous life, from training to studying, yet Felix had felt content. He felt that his life was slightly hollow, without purpose. But whatever he had, he was happy with.

Felix finished his lessons as he strolled to his father's home office. A room so secretive that only he and Lucas knew the password to it. No one else was allowed to enter. 

He deftly scanned around, the area seemed clear, as Felix quietly slipped inside, locking the door behind him. He walked towards the table. As expected, his father had left his computer unlocked.

Felix quickly went over to the Hero news, a broadcasting channel dedicated to showing the top heroes of the year. 

Over the years, his bad habit had evolved. Felix was searching for meaning in his life, and for some odd reason, he would always be captivated by the hero's on screen. He couldn't put it in words, but something drew him in.

Felix quickly scrolled through numerous videos, as he stumbled upon the trending channel. One video, was above all.

It seemed odd, the posting time was just about a few hours, yet it racked up millions of views. 

The title was simple, "A New Era of Hope: The Strongest Hero Emerges!"

His heart skipped a beat.

'Strongest hero'

Felix clicked the link, and the screen turned black. The video turned on, a heavy smoke filled the horizon. Embers scattered as flames danced violently.

He felt as if the world was ending, the audio was nothing but screams. Horrific voices calling out for help, the camera seemed to shake, the man holding it was trembling.

Felix felt goosebumps, everything in the video seemed to be wrong. What was happening? What was going on? Wasn't this the hero channel?

He felt like closing his eyes, looking away, anything but looking at the screen in front of him.

Then he heard it. A laugh, a boisterous chuckle. It seemed ridiculous, unbelievable even. The man behind the camera cried out.

"He's-He's laughing!"

Felix instantly drew closer to the screen, feeling that his eyes would betray him.

Then he came, a man akin to a goliath, stepped out of the fire, civilians wrapped around him. He stepped on the totaled car, as he carried them to safety, his boisterous chuckles didn't stop.

"Y-you?" The camera man stuttered, but he was stunned to speak as the hero looked towards the camera, his azure eyes glowing a radiant blue.

"It's fine now." 

His lips curled up, revealing a gallant and bright smile.

"Why?"

"Because I, am here."

The video ended, as people shouted out his name, the man who had saved hundreds in one day. It was him, the one and only, future symbol of hope.

Felix leaned in to the screen, his heart beating loud. Blood rushed to his face, his eyes gleamed with joy. A bright smile seemed to sneak up to his lips. 

He laughed, incredibly moved by what he had seen, the boy whispered.

"All.. Might" 

--------------------------

A/N: Hope you enjoyed, leave a comment! Leave a review!! Thanks for reading!!! Bit Long chapter but I was in the flow.