Ayane looked at the entrance to the underground bar where they'd been told Darwin was currently hiding out. It seemed like a innocuous enough place, at least so far as slum bars went. She was dressed in her hero outfit now, a high tech white exosuit the same color as her hair and eyes, containing all of the support technology her company could cram into it. The helmet of the suit had been stylized with cat ears as a unfortunate consequence of the development process, as the original model of it had been designed for a mutant type hero with that specification, and later on redesigning the placement of some of the sensors and technology included inside the ears would've been too much of a hassle.

"So now's probably not the best time to mention this, but didn't Mota say exosuits were impossible to power with current technology?" Onaka commented as she looked at Ayane's suit. Her own outfit was significantly less high-tech, consisting of a dark brown jumpsuit and war paint on her face, along with special gloves that would stabilize and sharpen the edges of quills produced from her wrists to use as makeshift blades attached to her hands. The suit itself was also designed of a special regenerative fabric that could be punctured by quills fired from anywhere on her body and quickly reseal itself. The front of the suit had special armor plating stylized after an animal shell, as the front of Onaka's torso couldn't produce any quills to defend itself from attack, and needed additional protection.

"It took my company the better part of a year to figure that one out, we worked around it with an experimental power cell that only works effectively for me at the moment" Ayane explained "the cells are too unstable for widespread use, but with my quirk I'm able to manage any fluctuations in the power output and adjust the settings of the suit in real time via a neural link. Even so the suit does have a battery life of only a few hours at a time without changing out the cells. I keep a spare in a special compartment to swap them out in the field."

"Leave it to Ayane to come up with some crazy invention that puts our resident technomancer to shame I guess" Freya sighed. Her own outfit was an odd choice for her, with a skintight latex suit showing off her body, and a harness that covered up her private bits and held several support tools such as a medical kit, a collapsible staff, and a variety of tranquilizer and medical syringes paired with a syringe gun. The design of the suit itself was stylized after the dresses of her namesake, the Norse goddess Freya. Her hair was hanging loose and adorned with a floral arrangement to add to the look, going for the theme of a merciful goddess dispensing aid and support on the battlefield. Unfortunately, the choice of a skintight suit didn't fully mesh with the image, giving off far too much of a fanservice vibe for it to work. The suit was designed with a regenerative material however, so that no matter how much damage Freya took in battle, her outfit would recover right along with her body and not leave her exposed in the field.

"I'm more curious about your costume Freya… I would've thought you were too self-conscious about your… um… assets… to design something like that." Ayane asked, happy the suit's helmet hid her blush as she struggled to keep her eyes away from Freya's bust.

Freya blushed, then scowled at Onaka "well I had INTENDED for a different design, but SOMEONE snuck into my room and changed out the part where my outfit was supposed to be a flowing robe that fit the theme and made it into this humiliating thing as a prank. And my request to have it altered hasn't been fully processed yet."

Onaka chuckled "I thought it'd help you get over your shyness about your body… and give me a few very enjoyable memories of seeing you in it."

Ayane looked between the two girls, then sighed "I see, well I'm sure the new outfit ought to be done soon, the school's department probably was busy in the first few months getting the costumes ready and fine tuning them after getting feedback from the students. Your request to develop a whole new garment with regenerative material tech probably got booted to the end of the priority list because of it."

Freya nodded "yeah, I know" she said dejectedly "and now I gotta go into battle wearing this…"

"Fortunately, this will be an under the radar mission" Law said, interrupting the girls as he walked appeared behind them, a contract in his hand disintegrating as its terms expired. He had been doing reconnaissance utilizing a contract that made him invisible and silent up until then. His hero outfit was astoundingly like his daily attire, consisting of a suit and tie and dress pants. They were made of special materials to make them able to endure various effects from his contracts, resist bullet and knife attacks, and provide freedom of movement. He also had a variety of hidden pockets in the outfit containing various tools, ranging from pens to sign his contracts with, to brass knuckles and other weaponry to fight with. "Since we'll be keeping the details of this out of the public eye for the most part, your costume won't be shown publicly." He explained "if it was, it would be difficult to change it as you'd have already attracted fame and attention with your current attire. I'll see about getting your attire request sped up so you can have your proper outfit during your internship."

"Aw, guess my plan is foiled" Onaka pouted, but she didn't seem too upset by it, she hadn't even expected her prank to work regardless, getting to see Freya in her prank costume was enough to satisfy her.

"Alright, enough goofing off everyone, Professor Law, what's the status inside?" Ayane asked "you used the devices I gave you right?"

Law nodded and placed a small recording device on the ground, which then projected a holographic map of the interior with red circles indicating predicted fields of movement for enemies he'd spotted. "Their hideout here is far less fortified than the one the police raided recently, and their numbers have been reduced significantly, both of those work in our favor. Darwin himself is in the main room here on floor B3." He said, pointing to one of the larger rooms in one of the lower floors "most of his lackeys are currently loitering around floor B1, where any would-be intruder needs to pass through in order to access the rest of the facility. A few others are patrolling the other floors, but they're few in number and mostly appear to be non-combatant types. Most likely his best guards were lost in the initial raid, and he's relying on these remnants to simply alert him that there's an intruder, not to fight off said intruders."

"Did he have anyone with him in the main room?" Ayane asked "as their leader it seems unlikely he'd be unguarded"

"I wasn't able to enter the room to see, it was locked tight, but I overheard him speaking with someone inside, their voice was being distorted by a voice modulator, probably multiple modulators to prevent anyone from recording it and finding a way to make out the real voice." Law said "he appears to be in a meeting with that person now, and has barred anyone from entering while it goes on. With luck, when you reach him the meeting will not have been in person, and he'll be alone to deal with."

"But if not then there's probably some other villain present, someone whose identity and quirk we don't know" Freya said nervously "someone skilled enough to conceal their identity even from pro-heroes and villains alike."

"Even so, it means all his guards will be in that main room on B1 for Law to deal with" Onaka said, scratching her chin thoughtfully "it's a gamble, but this would be the best time to attack. Worst case scenario, me and Freya can keep the other villain busy while Ayane uses her quirk and equipment to subdue Darwin, she's the core component to this strategy anyway so while it'd be far from ideal for her to fight alone, it could be done."

"I've taught you three well it seems" Law said "that analysis was spot on, and I concur completely. We will attack now, and while I occupy their main force you three will make a beeline for Darwin's location and engage him in battle, in a worst case scenario, Ayane will fight him alone while you two hold off the other villain. If you are unable to defeat Darwin, you three will stall for time until I have dealt with his lackeys and can come to assist you."

Ayane nodded, then passed out communicators "these will link you with my suit's tactical network system, or tacnet for short. Giving you access to the map here and a secure communication line, as well as certain vital monitors so we know each other's status when we're separated." She explained as the others all put them on the backs of their necks, the devices linking to their spinal cords after a quick and mildly painful zap of electricity.

"Your technology never ceases to impress" Law commented as he experimented with the mental imaging of the tacnet, allowing him to see the information Ayane had described as if he were wearing a helmet with a heads-up-display system. "Remind me to talk to Shin about establishing a business relationship between the school and your company, having such talent trapped by the confines of limited funding and resources is simply criminal" he said as he dismissed the image and stood up to move towards the door.

"Just don't think we're going to give you favorable deals just because I attend here" Ayane said "we'll be treating you like we would if I'd never even applied… granted we'd still be overjoyed to work with UA, but you know what I mean."

Law chuckled a bit "duly noted Ms. Yosuku. Now. Let's begin."

- Darwin's HQ, floor B1 -

The lackeys of Darwin's crew were loitering around in the room they'd converted into a makeshift living area for themselves. They needed to lay low for a while after the police raid messed their real HQ up, so they were simply killing time by gambling, sparring, and drinking. None of them were particularly alert for intruders, not expecting that anyone might be able to track them to this hideout so soon after the last police raid. Even the lackeys who'd been captured attacking Leona were under the impression they'd relocated to a different hideout, and wouldn't be able to rat them out under interrogation.

"Hey anyone seen Chad and Steve? They wandered off drunk earlier and didn't come back" one man asked

"Oh those idiots? Damnit they were under probation for causing a ruckus at a bar the other day, who let them get more booze?" a young woman spat

"Damn, nobody told me they were banned, my bad guys" a third thug said

"You dumbass, they probably went off to some bar again now, we're supposed to be layin low and hiding, what if they spill our location?" the first man asked

"Ah relax, sure they're drunk and might cause a fuss, but what're the odds they'll be found, beaten, and successfully interrogated?" the third thug laughed "it's just a harmless bar run, nothing will go…"

Then the door to the room exploded inwards, flying off its hinges and hitting the third thug square in the face, knocking him out as a man in a suit walked into the room, a series of papers floating in the air around him as he wrote his name on each one with a pen. "I am the hero known as 'The Law', surrender now and you will not be harmed" he announced "to those who wish to fight...? Court is now in session."

"Shit! A pro-hero! Get him!" The woman shouted, rallying the room of lackeys together and charging at Law.

Law signed one last contract, then put away the pen as the papers around him transformed into green energy and surged into him. His muscles bulged as his body suddenly grew a foot taller and hundreds of pounds of muscle heavier. His eyes glowed green as he smiled at the incoming thugs. The first thug transformed their arms into large gorilla arms and threw a punch at him, but he stopped it with one hand as effortlessly as one might stop a child.

"Tsk tsk, that won't do" Law said as he threw the man into two of his buddies with enough force to knock them all over, still only using the one hand. "I'll have to charge you for contempt of court for that." Law began his attack next, moving at blinding speeds as he dashed into the mob of thugs, throwing punches and kicks that sent them reeling with ease. His speed and power were leagues beyond theirs, and his massive, muscle-bound form glowed with green energy that made it all more intimidating.

Freya looked back as she and the others finished sneaking across the room using an invisibility effect from Law's contracts, looking for the first time at Law in his battle form. "So that's what you guys had to deal with during combat training." She said, shuddering a bit

"Oh no, the transformation he underwent during that was at least ten times as frightening" Ayane said "he only signed what… 15 or so contracts back there? Against us he signed around 100, and their effects stack. I don't know what he offers as 'payment' for his power boosts, but whatever the terms are, it makes him quite terrifying."

Onaka shuddered as well "I still remember his eyes… those glowing… demonic green eyes… they'll haunt my nightmares forever" she said, her face pale.

Freya gulped loudly, glancing back at Law one last time as he picked up two thugs and smashed them together, then threw them like projectiles at some long-range combatants trying to hit him from afar. The battle was looking pretty one-sided so far, but there were a lot of enemies. If he could increase his strength as much as Ayane said though, he'd surely be fine.

The trio made their way through the remainder of floor B1 and snuck their way through B2 without incident. Ayane managed to easily disable any patrols they came across with a quick strike from a shock baton, and soon they found themselves at the door to Darwin's room. Based on the map projections, they knew it was a large room, but not the exact layout since Law hadn't been able to enter and record it personally.

Ayane held up her hand and signaled for the others to wait as she leaned closer to the door and activated audio sensors in her helmet's cat ears to listen through it.

"I told you a thousand times already, I have no idea how they found us. Look I'm sorry I got one of your favorite playthings captured but how was I supposed to know they'd discovered the hideout that you yourself told me was impossible to find?" Darwin said, his voice was frustrated, but also showing a hint of fear.

"Your excuses are insufficient" a heavily distorted voice replied "I gave you all you needed to succeed. I gave you resources, personnel, intel, and funding, on the condition that your organization would fight for me when called. What has my investment produced Darwin? Explain to me why I should continue wasting my time supporting you when you have failed so utterly at every turn? I caught wind of your little pleasure trip attacking that private investigator too, and you even failed to murder one solitary young woman despite going in with multiple lackeys and having every opportunity in the world to kill her."

Ayane leaned closer, listening and running the audio feed through programs in her suit to try and unscramble the voice, but as Law expected, there were too many layers of distortion to accomplish anything.

"Please, Succubus, give me another chance! Sure, we were set back recently, but we're hidden again, we'll take our time and recruit more members, we can still salvage this!" Darwin pleaded

Succubus? Ayane was sure she knew that name, wasn't that the urban legend about a mastermind villain behind more organized crime in the nation? Most people believed she was a myth, or at the very least a very exaggerated version of the truth. But Darwin was talking to someone he clearly believed was the real deal. If the real Succubus was in that room, they were in way over their heads here. She cycled through visual sensors in her helmet, searching for heat signatures in the room, then sighed with relief when she confirmed there was only one. Another sensor picked up on electronic activity in the area, tracing wires and the like through the walls, and so she was then able to confirm Darwin was standing near some sort of communication device. With his solitude confirmed, Ayane nodded to Onaka and Freya and placed a breach charge on the door, then had them back away as she started the detonation sequence.

"I also caught wind that some of your members were involved in a nasty bar brawl just earlier today, one was discovered in a back room, broken and bloody and incoherent. You still mean to tell me you're properly hidden?" the voice said

"What! Nobody told me that happened! I forbade anyone from leaving the HQ without express permission!" Darwin shouted

"It seems you are not even competent enough to manage your own lackeys properly" the voice said, disdain coming through even despite the distortion "you are hopelessly incompetent, your ideology was ridiculous from the outset, and you have wasted a great deal of my time and resources already. I gave you a chance because your ridiculous beliefs seemed to be garnering some modicum of a following, I thought that with a push in the right direction, you might prove to be a valuable asset to me. I see now I was sorely mistaken."

The breach charge went off, blasting a hole in the wall as the door was destroyed completely, with Ayane and the others entering the room shortly afterwards as the debris began to settle.

A holographic blurry figure being projected in the room turned to look at the new arrivals to the meeting, then back to Darwin. "It appears your location has been compromised after all, it seems we have nothing more to discuss. Goodbye Darwin, it is time to cut you off, we shall not speak again."

"No wait!" Darwin exclaimed, but the projector turned off, and a moment later it self-destructed, leaving nothing left but a small pile of burning electronics. Darwin turned to face Ayane and her friends, his face pulled back into a snarl. It was the first time Ayane had gotten a good look at him, his face was rugged and covered in scars, with deeply tanned skin and beady black eyes. He was a tall and muscular man, with short white hair and a goatee. He was wearing a plain black t-shirt and brown shorts, now, obviously not caring much about his appearance when alone.

"Damn heroes, you chose the worst possible time to show up…" Darwin growled, clenching his fists "I'm gonna kill all of you!"