Hello once more you beautiful people!
Some may be calling for a sequel to Forgotten, but nothing is final about that. IN-between my absence from this sight i have gone off and collected ideas for various things, and this little fic is one of them. So I figured "Hey! I have an idea, some of my friends liked it, so why not!?" It keeps me writing and practicing, so it can only lead to some good stuff, right?
For those not caught up on the My Hero Academia/Boku no Hero Academia manga, or the A Certain Magical Index/Toaru Majutsu no Index light novels, spoilers are inbound. Significantly more for for the first, but they exist for both.
I Hope you enjoy this little idea I had! ^^
80% of the population has a Quirk, while 20% of the population doesn't, and as such, is powerless.
While that 20% figure is accurate, saying that 80% of the population has a Quirk is somewhat less so.
What outsiders perceive to be Quirks could be something else, for example.
Like Magic. Magicians, sorcerers, warlocks, witches, the whole nine yards. It has existed long before quirks, and as such, is much more explored, versatile. But reclusive by nature, leads the things of spells and summons regarded as a myth. Even in Days like today, the Cabals of Magic, Churches of God and Sorcery, leave a secret life, operating in the shadows except under extensive circumstances.
Though to say that the appearance of quirks into the normalcy of life has made their existence harder would be false. To have their magic written off as a Quirk, though annoying and sometimes insulting, has given the forces of magic much more breathing room. Areas to act they never did before. In a world where everyone has superpowers, even Magic can be seen as common in the eyes of the populace.
Another force, however, is much newer, debuting even after Quirks, but took a stance before their dominance in the market.
An Esper is a being of psionic capabilities. To conjure changes in the world around them with just the power of their incredible mind. Like Quirks, some are born with it, though this is very rare. Others have to develop their psionic abilities naturally through knowledge…. Or unnaturally with various chemicals, drugs, and compounds. Often, both are required; one's mind is difficult to fully control, and splashing in supernatural capabilities make such a task even harder.
But this leads to devastating results. Ranked 1 through 5, the higher the number, the more powerful an Esper. A Level 0 is ability-less, most of the time, though exceptions do exist. The more one goes through the scientific power development curriculum, the more powerful their Esper Ability becomes. The more the learn, the better they can control it. The more they use it, the more they master it. Even if provided purely through the chemicals, it takes years of hard work and dedication to become a truly powerful Esper.
There's even a Esper who started as a level 1, and through hard work and dedication, rose all the way to be the third ranked level 5, one of seven, Espers with abilities in scale comparable to a Nuclear Bomb.
Taking these facts into account, if one were to say that 80% of the world has some kind of supernatural power, while 20% does not, it would be a much more accurate statement. Under normal circumstances however, the three forces of Quirks, Magic, and ESP, rarely meet. Magic is often shrugged off as a Quirk by even ESP users, and Magic rarely has dealings with either of these other two forces, and ESP can be mistaken for a Quirk; some even believe they are one and the same.
But, like all things, one who knows enough can bend the rules. Fate can be shifted. And those who would otherwise never meet are suddenly granted an audience with each other. The unthinkable becomes the norm.
Powers that should never meet suddenly clash violently.
That is what we will be observing here.
The very rare instance where three forces who never meet will all be located in one place.
-U. A High, Class 1-A-
"I wonder where Aizawa is… he's usually not this late." A boy, about 15 years old, with green eyes and black curly hair with green highlights spoke, almost absent mindedly. His name was Midoriya Izuku.
"Quit your bitching, Deku. Just means we waste less time cooped up in this fucking place." Another boy around the same age, with ash blond, spiky hair and red eyes replied harshly, sitting with one leg prompted up at his desk. His name was Bakugou Katsuki
"You should keep in mind that we are here for a reason, Bakugou! All class work, even if tedious, has a purpose!" Another male spoke up, sitting at attention at his desk. He has black hair and wears rectangular half-rim glasses, and blue eyes. His name was Iida Tenya.
"C-Calm Iida, you know he is going to do stuff like that no matter what…" Izuku quickly interjected.
"With all due respect Midoriya, I must at least attempt to instruct him!" Tenya replied.
"You should listen to him. Your wasting your breath." Katsuki gruffly responded.
"…Doesn't mean that you shouldn't listen to him though, Kacchan." Izuku said quietly.
"What was that!? You wanna fuckin explode or something!?" Katsuki lashed out harshly, small explosions triggering in his palm. Izuku shivered and recoiled into his chair at the sight of them.
"C-can't you two get along, just this once? If Aizawa walks in and catches you…" A girl spoke up. She had shoulder-length brown hair and big round brown eyes, and a noticeable, seemingly permeant blush on her face. Her name was Uraraka Ochako.
"How about you mind your fucking business, eh!?" Katsuki quickly shouted.
"How about you stop screaming in my class." An oddly quiet voice from the door way.
Despite its absence of volume, the voices demand silenced the once rowdy classroom. The voice belonged to a tall man with shoulder-length black hair, with some hanging down in front of his face, a half-shaven beard, and a small mustache. This man was Aizawa Shouta, and he is not only the teacher of Class 1-A, but the Pro Hero, Eraserhead.
"Sorry, something somewhat important thing came up…" Aizawa said simply, stepping into the room, carrying some papers, which he promptly placed on the podium. "As I'm sure you remember, All Might has recently retired due to his own injuries, and as such, it is imperative we get heroes prepared and ready to protect the people in All Might's absence, sometimes things come up that can't be avoided… even if you want nothing to do with it."
"Excuse me, but what exactly are you saying, Aizawa-sensei?" Tenya raised his hand quickly as he made his statement.
"What I'm saying is, though I'm sure you all wish to resume training your abilities, something has come up. And it's hard to ignore…" Aizawa stopped for a moment, waiting for any other outbursts. When he was only met with silence, he continued. "Tell me, how many of you are aware of what an Esper is?"
"An… Esper?" Izuku questioned.
"Yeah, they are fairly rare around here, so I'm not surprised." Aizawa replied. "A Hero uses a Quirk; an ability granted through a mutation. An Esper's ability is, however, granted through the mind manifesting something not of this world. That's the easiest way to describe it. I'm telling you this because of a rare opportunity that has presented itself for those of you interested."
"Blah blah blah! Get to the point!" Katsuki shouted.
"Point is that the center point of not only ESP, but scientific advancement as a whole, Academy City, has delivered us a promotional offer." Aizawa held up the papers he had brought in with him. "Sign-up Sheets. For those wanting to show off their abilities to the world, or simply wishes to see the other side of the spectrum of abilities, or even just an excuse to travel to the most advanced city in the world, your wishes are granted for… about eight of you."
"…Academy City…" Izuku thought out-loud. "People who are born there don't get Quirks, right? And they still don't have an explanation?"
"That's right, that's the place. For those who remember the Sports Festival, this will seem somewhat familiar for those who made it to the finals. It will be a 16-man tournament, eight heroes-in-training against Espers of varying degrees of strength. Single elimination, by forfeit, ring-out, or technical knockout. But… for those of you who don't want in, there is no punishment. It is completely optional. Those who don't wish to join or can't, you will remain here and go through classes like normal. So, if you would rather stay here and hone your skills, you are more than welcome… but those who participate can win… something." Aizawa set the forms down on his podium again. "They didn't really tell me the prize list, so it's a mystery, but only the winning side of the tournament is rewarded."
"When will this take place, exactly?" Ochako asked.
"About a month from now… if I remember correctly." Aizawa took out a small notebook and started flipping through it. "Yeah, a month from now, over the course of three days. First day is the first elimination round, day two is the second, and day three is the Semi-Finals and the Final round... if there needs to be one. The moment all the participants from one faction are eliminated, the other is automatically declared the winner."
"So… if we aren't careful... we could all get whipped out in the first round…" Izuku mused.
"As if, I'll just blow them all to pieces!" Katsuki clenched a fist with a grin, in obvious excitement.
"How are we deciding who goes in, Aizawa-Sensei!?" Tenya shouted, once again raising his hand.
"First come, first serve. You guys are in the first Class, so you guys have first dibs. If there are openings after, it goes to Class 1-B, and so on until all positions are filled." Aizawa popped his neck. "That's all the information I can give to everyone. If you want to know more, you got to sign up. If you're interested, stay behind. Otherwise, Homeroom is dismissed early for you… and you all better make it to your next class or else."
After the subtle threat was left, slowly the room started to empty. Tenya looked around the room quickly; watching for who was staying and who was leaving; it was obvious that he was going to participate, and was eyeing his possible allies.
Katsuki crossed his arms, waiting for everyone to leave. His patience was short; he wanted an excuse to show how powerful he was. And showing up some hot-shots form another city sounded like a good idea.
Ochako stood up to leave, but paused when looking at Izuku. Somehow she could tell just by looking at him; he was going to participate. She stood for a moment, thinking with a worried and corned look, before suddenly sitting back down, almost fast enough to fall out of her seat. She didn't want to abandon her first friend in U.A. high after all.
As mentioned, Izuku stayed. The reminder that All Might had retired because of his fight with All for One burned in his mind like a fire. He felt like that he had to show the world, that even without All Might, the world is still safe; That there are still powerful heroes who will stand up to protect them. That alone was a solid drive for him; show what the heroes of tomorrow will be able to do.
Besides them, four others stayed.
Todoroki Shouto, a boy with short, bicolored hair; the right side is white, the left side is red. There is a burn over his left eye, and his eyes are also different colors; his left eye is green but his right eye is black. It would appear to those watching him that he decided to stay behind and participate because both Izuku and Katsuki did, perhaps to attempt to assist them both.
Tokoyami Fumikage, a relatively short male with a crow-shaped head, red eyes, red neck, and human teeth. Always willing to take on tasks to better himself, a tournament to push his limits and understand where he needs to develop sounds ideal.
Kirishima Eijirou, another boy had spiky red hair and a little scar above his right eye, and red eyes. Something of a rival to Katsuki, if he was saying, so was Eijirou. He had to admit though; the prize had his eye, just simply to know what it was; it was more curiosity than anything else.
And finally, Yaoyorozu Momo, a young woman with a mature physique for her age, while also being one of the taller ones of the class. Her hair is black with bangs to the right that is tied back in a large, spiky ponytail. Always wanting to prove herself to others, an event like this is a good way to stand out and show what she can do, or so she thought.
Aizawa looked around the room quickly, just to make sure no one else was backing out.
"Alright, one final thing before we move on, you are free to use your Hero suits if you desire to. Just don't go around destroying anything." He passed out the sign-up forms around the room quickly before returning to the front of the class. "Exactly eight, no need to elimination games then. Guess that's lucky for you all."
"…So… any idea who we will be going against…?" Shouto suddenly asked, not taking his eyes from the form in front of him as he quickly filled it out.
"We will be going over what I'm permitted to share with you once you're finished." Aizawa replied. "Though I can say that their eight positions are also filled too, although they chose a different method of selection."
"Cut the shit, you know we aren't gonna back out! Stop padding this shit out!" Katsuki shouted, throwing his form forward in front of him, crudely filled out in a hurry.
"…If you want to look into the depths of hell so quickly, then fine." Aizawa pressed a button on the podium and a monitor of some kind slowly dropped from the ceiling. I'll go over them in order. I can't tell you what their ability does so... use your imagination." Aizawa pulled a remote out from the podium and stepped to the side, letting everyone see the screen. "One final lesson; Espers are rated based on the power of their ability, as well as how well they can control it, and are ranged from level 0 to level 5. Level 0's are the lowest, and often don't have abilities they can manifest… though exceptions exist… and a level 5… is comparable to a high-powered nuclear device in terms of potential."
"A-a nuclear bomb!?" Izuku stuttered out.
"It's too late to back out now; it's time to bite the bullet." Aizawa pressed a button on the remote.
A face appeared in the monitor; a still image. It displayed a male roughly 16 years of age, with white hair, red-eyes, and very pale skin; appearing very much likes an albino.
"Name is unknown. He is simply referred to by his ability name, which is Accelerator. He is the top ranked level 5."
The screen switched, now showing a girl, roughly 14 years old. She had brown hair and brown eyes, and was making a rather irritated expression.
"Name: Misaka Mikoto. Ability: Railgun. Third ranked level 5."
It changed once more, now showing a girl looking roughly 15, at least based purely on appearances. She had long blond hair and golden eyes, but with a star-like design right in the center, and had a very cheery smile.
"Name: Shokuhou Misaki. Ability: Mental Out. Fifth ranked level 5."
The shifts were becoming predictable now. It displayed a male about the same age as Accelerator. He had black hair and black eyes, a white headband, and a noticeable grin that practically oozed confidence.
"Name: Sogiita Gunha. Ability: Attack Crash or, if you prefer, Telekinetic Cannonball. Seventh and last ranked level 5."
"…Four out of the eight and we're already dealing with four nuclear bombs… huh…" Izuku suddenly appeared very nervous.
"It must be in order of strongest to weakest… judging from that description, there are only seven level 5 Espers, but only four are participating. Even if their selection process was different, it must be similar enough so that when the ones at the top refused, it went down to the lower rankings…" Tenya mused.
"Am I the only one worried about this!?" Izuku explained.
"Shut it! Trying to listen to him explain this shit!" Katsuki shouted.
"…I have never once thought I would ever hear you utter those words, Kacchan."
"What was that!?" Katsuki banged his hand on his desk in rage.
"Both of you. Stop. You both still have classes after this." Aizawa's words quickly silenced the duo. When it was quiet again, he resumed the slideshow.
It now displayed a girl about a year younger than Mikoto. She had tawny-colored hair tied into two pig-tails with brown eyes, seeming someone serious with her expression.
"Name: Shirai Kuroko. Ability: Teleport. Level 4." Aizawa's brow furrowed and he sighed. "And now we start in with the three who probably got tricked into entering…"
It now showed a 16 year old male, which would be the same apparent age for the final three. He had blonde hair and sunglasses, hiding his eyes, and a gold chain around his neck.
"Name: Tsuchimikado Motoharu. Ability is Auto-Rebirth, but currently ranks as a level 0."
"A level 0 entered…?" Ochako looked puzzled.
Next was a boy with short blue hair, and pierced ears. Not much else could be told because his eyes were closed, but he appeared to be smiling.
"Name: Aogami Peirce. His ability is called The World, but his level, is unknown."
"How could they not tell his level… that is very strange. They know his ability but not how strong it is?" Momo spoke up for the first time, speaking everyone's mind about the oddity.
"It sounds like they are with-holding some information after all, at least to me." Fumikage also joined the conversation after a long silence.
The screen changed a final time. It displayed a male with spikey black hair and black eyes. His expression looked distraught, like he had just been through a horrible circumstance.
"Name: Kamijou Touma. Ability is called Imagine Breaker, and is also a level 0." Aizawa pressed a button and the screen vanished into the ceiling.
"For a competition they seemingly want to win, why would they let their lowest and least capable participate…?" Tenya questioned openly.
"Level 0 or not, that ability sound kick-ass just by the name! Imagine Breaker! I wonder what it does!" Eijirou sounded excited. "That Attack Crash guy sounded tough too! I'm getting pumped up!"
"That's basically it. You all have about a month before we set-out for Academy City. I suggest you put your best foot forward… it will be the first time Espers have clashed with Heroes officially." Slowly everyone handed in their forms, and Aizawa outright forced Katsuki to pick up his and hand it in, before leaving the room. "Class dismissed."
"Espers huh…" Izuku pondered as he stood up. "I wonder… how One for All will stack up against them…?"
-1 Month later, Academy City Airport-
"O-oh wow! Look at it all!" Izuku stared in amazement just by looking out the front glass doors that would exit the airport.
"This place hasn't changed a bit at all huh? Last time I was here I was healthy." A voice sounded from behind him. He was an overly-skinny man with angular features, long limbs and neck, wearing over-sized clothes, and also spiky, disheveled blond hair with two bangs framing the sides of his face. This was Toshinori Yagi, otherwise known as All Might, the former holder of One for All who passed it to Izuku.
"A-All Might!? I thought all the teachers were staying back?" Izuku was both excited and confused. Similar reactions were shared by the rest of the group, save for Katsuki.
"Well that's easy… Vacation Hours!" All Might replied. "A little time off never hurt anybody! Hard part was finding a matching flight…" All Might scratched his chin. "Besides… seeing my students through on their first clash with unknown forces; what kind of teacher would I be if skipped out on that?!"
"B-Being watched over and supported by All Might…" Ochako said in a pleasant tone. "I feel like there's no way we can lose now!"
"Question; who is taking your place back at class?" Tenya promptly asked.
"I believe… Mt. Lady volunteered." All Might responded.
"…I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not…" Shouto said.
"Should you even be flying, All Might?" Aizawa commented from behind.
"…Technically no, but-" All Might was caught off guard with Aizawa smacked him upside the head. "Ow!"
"Your health is in danger of giving out on you, be more careful." Aizawa stepped forward. "Alright, I sent the location of our living arrangements to your phones, don't lose them or you'll get lost. Curfew here is around 8:00 PM; make it back to the Hotel before then. Otherwise, do whatever you want, everything starts up officially tomorrow."
"In that case, I'll-" All Might, getting ready to move, was suddenly stopped by having his ear pulled by Aizawa.
"You're coming with me. We need to have a talk about your heath." Aizawa said, slowly dragging All Might away as he protested against it. Shortly after, either in desire to explore Academy City or head to their Hotel, the group scattered, leaving behind Izuku, Tenya, and Ochako.
"Well… this will be our one free day before the competition… I kind of want to explore, but I have no idea where to start…" Izuka spoke.
"I figured as much." Tenya said, pushing up his glasses. "That why I have prepared this!" Quickly he produced a map from his pocket and unfolded it. Not only did it cover the entire city, but on the back were detailed information about the various locations open to tourists. "I also have a more detailed version on my phone, should we need it!"
"That's amazing, Iida!" Ochako commented.
"Yeah! Hey, do you guys want to travel around together? Exploring just what makes this city kick sounds like a fun idea!" Izuku asked in excitement.
"I was going to ask." Tenya replied. "As much fun as it is to explore new surroundings, it's always better to do so with friends, right?"
"Of Course! Uraraka, Iida, let's go!" Izuku shouted as he burst forward.
"W-Wait for me Deku!" Ochako replied, running after him.
"H-Hey! I'm the one with the map, shouldn't we be following me!?" Tenya shouted as he joined the case. A chase that would lead them all around the commercial areas of Academy City.
-Several hours later, 7:23 PM-
Just as their adventure in the city of science had started with a race, so it shall end. A race against time.
"I told you we spent too much time at that arcade!" Tenya shouted as the group of three ran.
"S-sorry! Places like that arcade are super-rare! And they had so much stuff, I got addicted!"
"Same here! I got really into that dancing game!" Ochako added. After a short time they paused to catch their breath.
"Too bad Iida can't just carry us… his Engine could get us back in a snap…" Izuku breathed out with a huff as his lungs struggled to catch back up.
"If I was better at using Zero Gravity for longer periods of time, that could of worked…" Ochako replied as she slid down a wall she was leaning against, slumping into a sitting position. "We had such a good dinner, I'd hate to get sick and throw it all up…"
"We… we should be fine, if we can take some of the alleyways, we should have enough time…" Tenya replied, checking the map. "We're close to one we can take to make it back fast."
The group walked forwards a ways, locating the alleyway they needed with ease. The moment they stepped inside however, a very dark area of foreboding air blanketed the group. The alleyway seemed normal otherwise; lots of interconnecting and shifting paths, but the way they needed to take was a straight shot.
"Deku… I'm scared…" Ochako muttered, moving closer to Izuku, whose response was to blush.
"This air… it's radically different from before… something bad happened here…" Tenya said.
"Y-yeah… I'm starting to have second thoughts but… if we don't take this way we'll be late… right?" Izuku shook off his blush from before.
"Unless you want to give hoping from building to building a try… but the local authorities would frown upon that…" Tenya replied. Before they could continue their discussion, another figure burst from one of the interconnecting pathways.
He was tall and lanky. He wore a long black and red robe covered in feathers, and carried a golden staff with wing-like designs from top to bottom, the tip shaped like a bird's head. He appeared to be in his mid-30's, with long dark brown hair, and bright red eyes. He looks behind him for a time then turned toward the group, only stopping when he looked forward at them, his face shifting to disgruntled anger.
"Shit…! More of them!?" The man spoke, leaning on his staff.
"A… Villain?" Izuku questioned.
"No… not now… now when I'm close to escaping…!" The man backed up a bit, and presented his left hand. "Flame-born mother, hear my plea. Burn these wretches with your infinite Millennial Wings!" It sounded like a chant of some kind.
"H-Hey! Wait!" Izuku tried in vain to stop what happened next.
"Go forth! Millennial Gusto!" The man threw his left hand forward, unleashing a massive blast of bright golden fire forward. It was large enough to fill the alleyway and was racing toward them.
"It's moving too fast…!" Izuku shouted. Tenya's engine would let him be able to escape, but even with One for All, he wouldn't be able to save himself and Ochako without breaking his legs by using 100%.
Before any of the three could react, however, a teenager with spikey black hair moved in front of them from one of the intersections. The male threw his right hand outward and the flames slammed into it. However, instead of engulfing the teenager, the flames scattered in several different directions, and then the sound of shattering glass was heard; and the flames shattered and vanished; it was like the fire was never there to begin with.
"No… not you again…!" The man down the alleyway shouted.
"Who… who are you…?" Izuku stuttered out slowly. The male slowly turned around.
"Hey… are you alright?" He asked the group. It was him; the last one from the slideshow of their opponents for the competition.
In a list of strongest to weakest, he was dead last.
Kamijou Touma.