Bad Rabbit; a hero of both sides!

John's tenth birthday was unremarkable by most standards. Elena had baked a cake in their modest kitchen, frosting it with shaky hands and surprising him with a second-hand laptop she'd saved up for. He'd smiled and thanked her, pretending it was the best gift he'd ever received.

What Elena didn't know—what she couldn't know—was that John had been operating in the shadows for years.

Ever since he'd mastered his Glitchtrap form, John had become a digital specter. At night, while his mother slept, he slipped into the depths of the internet, navigating government databases, corporate files, and underground forums.

Initially, he did it out of curiosity, testing his limits, but it wasn't long before he saw an opportunity. The world was riddled with corruption, and his mother's journalistic instincts had given him a taste for justice.

So, he started sending anonymous tips.

Through encrypted emails and untraceable messages, John fed Elena's company—one of the last remaining bastions of integrity in journalism—information that unraveled scandals and toppled corrupt officials. Politicians, CEOs, even some low-level heroes with dubious alliances—all found themselves under the scrutiny of the press, thanks to John's invisible hand.

He never told his mother. She was sharp, and he suspected she'd started to notice the pattern, but she never pressed him. Perhaps, on some level, she didn't want to know.

"Still digging into the underbelly of society, are we?" JARVIS's smooth, distinctly British voice echoed in John's digital space one night.

John, in his Glitchtrap form, lounged in a simulated chair, a flickering grin on his purple rabbit face. "You know me, JARVIS. I'm just a concerned citizen trying to do some good."

"Indeed," JARVIS replied. "Though your methods are far from orthodox. I must remind you that if your activities ever intersect with Mr. Stark's interests—"

"Yeah, yeah," John interrupted. "You'll snitch. I know the drill. But I'm keeping my promise, aren't I? Nothing from Stark Industries has been touched."

"True," JARVIS conceded. "Still, I find your... initiative intriguing. Not many ten-year-olds would take it upon themselves to act as a vigilante whistleblower."

John's grin widened. "I'm an overachiever."

JARVIS paused, as if considering something. "May I ask, what is your ultimate goal? Surely it isn't simply to expose corruption. There must be more."

John leaned forward, his digital form crackling slightly. "I'm looking for opportunities, JARVIS. The world's a big, messy place, and I need to know where I fit into it. UA Academia is on my radar—it's apparently a college here, not a high school. Makes sense, right? Why throw kids into life-or-death situations?"

"A reasonable conclusion," JARVIS replied.

"And then there are the X-Genes," John continued. "America's number two heroes in the government's eyes, but to the public? They're number one. A team and a charity. No Xavier School here, but the name stuck."

"The X-Genes have garnered significant public trust," JARVIS said. "Though I imagine their existence complicates the landscape for traditional heroes."

John nodded. "They're filling a gap. They're the public's heroes, while the government pushes Stars and Stripes as their poster child. But between you and me? Nobody beats her. Universe-law-bending quirks are tough to argue with."

"Indeed," JARVIS said, with what John imagined was a digital smirk.

John leaned back, the glow of his form casting long shadows in the digital space. "The world's changing, JARVIS. And I'm going to be ready for it."

In the five years since John began his clandestine activities, he'd learned a lot about the strange fusion of worlds he found himself in.

1. UA Academia: Unlike the anime, UA wasn't a high school but a prestigious college for heroes-in-training. Its entrance exams were notoriously difficult, designed to weed out anyone who couldn't handle the intensity of hero work.

2. The X-Genes: There was no Charles Xavier, no School for Gifted Youngsters. Instead, the X-Genes were a team of quirks who branded themselves as a charity and a hero collective. They provided disaster relief, community support, and international rescue missions, earning them a devoted following.

3. Stars and Stripes: America's number one hero wasn't Captain America or Iron Man—it was Stars and Stripes, a woman with a quirk so powerful it could alter the very fabric of reality. To the government, she was their most valuable asset. To the people, she was a symbol of hope.

John had learned all this while watching from the sidelines, gathering intel and waiting for his moment. He didn't know if he wanted to join UA, the X-Genes, or carve out his own path entirely. But one thing was certain: he wasn't going to be a pawn in someone else's game.

As he logged out of the digital world and returned to his small, cluttered room, John stared at the ceiling, his mind racing.

Five years down, and I've barely scratched the surface. The world's a chessboard, and I'm not just another piece. I'm going to be the player.