"These are the things you faced in the practical exam?" Jack settled to the ground next to Yuga, a hint of fear in his voice. The sheer size of the behemoths was mind-numbing. It was like being menaced by skyscrapers – kaiju come to the real world.
"The small ones, yes," Yuga replied, his voice quaking as well. "We were supposed to run from the big ones."
They watched in awe as Endeavor's son covered one of the massive machines in ice, causing it to collapse under the weight. The smaller numbered robots took advantage of the students' distraction and started attacking them. Two scorpion looking automatons stabbed at the brothers with their massive stingers.
The teens reacted simultaneously, like they had been training together. Blue lasers shot from Jack's eyes swept to slice both tails off before they could reach the boys. Yuga was more direct, leaping to the side and sending a naval laser shot that pierced both robots, shredding their armor and reducing them to so much scrap.
"Every man for himself, Jacque." Yuga waived jauntily as he launched himself towards one of the mid-sized robots marked with a #3. "Have fun!"
"Right," the golden teen muttered. He saw a boy using explosive jets from his hands launch himself to the top of one of the behemoths, easily dodging its ponderous attack. He and two other students quickly maneuvered over and past the seemingly impassible obstacles.
That looked like the safest way to go, just fly over them. But Yuga had just told him to have fun. Jack decided to take Hinata's advice and 'Show his stuff'. He launched himself toward the middle behemoth, aiming for its chest. The first thing Jack had been taught about his quirk, when he was only a baby, was to convert only select matter to energy and absorb the power created so it would not create an uncontrolled explosion. In the Moon Lab, he was forced to master converting the primordial energy to select types – electricity for the most part. After years of this practice, he had very fine control of converted energy. He planned to use that to destroy this mechanical monster.
He assumed the traditional flyer's posture, fists thrust forward together. He blasted red force beams from his eyes to shatter the giant robot's exterior armor, opening a hole. His fists opened so he was holding his two hands together, wrists touching and palms flat facing his target. Moving more of his energy body into his hands, he caused them to expand to the maximum size the increased ductility of his suit would allow. Suddenly it was like he was pushing a coffee table in front of him.
His hands were surrounded with a coruscating nimbus. Their first contact with the inner material of the robot caused a flash and the matter disappeared. Jack struggled for a moment to absorb the influx of energy. He was used to converting smaller chunks of matter. The Moon Men had usually feed him small bricks of compressed lunar regolith – not more than a few hundred grams at a time. His enlarged hands were scooping out dozens of kilos at a time for conversion. He absorbed most of the energy within himself, shedding the excess as light which caused the entire massive robot to glow with an incandescence that blinded most of the competitors and could easily be seen by half of Musutafu City.
As his hands breached the back armor of the robot, Jack released a fraction of the absorbed energy as kinetic force. He did not want to blow up the machine, as the debris would be a hazard to the other students and possibly the audience in the stadium. Instead, he reversed the vector of the force from outward to inward, causing the robot to implode. He sped forward, utilizing a tiny part of the kinetic force as propulsion. His containment suit prevented him from using more on himself.
His increased momentum took him over the second obstacle – The Falls – with ease. The minefield was no more danger to him. They really didn't take the flyers into account, Jack thought.
Below him, he saw the leading students being seriously slowed by the hidden danger. Realizing he didn't have to be first in this round to qualify for the next, he decided to take a little time helping the other competitors. He used his force beams at their widest to detonate the mines, plowing a path across the field for the others to follow. It was not wide enough for them to cross as a group, but it was some help.
As he crossed the field, he noticed a small boy with purple hair balls jumping onto the back of a tall girl. The boy somehow stuck to her jacket, slowing her down. But her jacket was unzipped, and she quickly divested herself of both it and her barnacle. As the purple boy fell to the ground, the tall girl punted him off the cleared path and back into the minefield. Jack was amazed at the boy's bad luck when a series of three mines bounced the kid out of the field, over the wall, and into the trees – taking him out of the competition completely as a disqualification.
The crowd cheered when Jack entered the stadium. He couldn't understand why, there were at least a dozen students there ahead of him. He heard Aizawa-sensei saying "… he didn't try out." Which explained nothing. Jack shrugged and waited for Yuga. People continued to pour in, and with no sign of his brother, Jack became concerned. While the blond boy was no athlete, he had been doing well when last Jack saw him. Finally, Yuga staggered into the arena at number forty-two, the last qualifier for the next round.
Jack rushed to catch the smaller boy who was clutching his stomach and lurching in pain.
"You know, if I did not have such a delicate constitution, I would have beaten you," the French boy whispered as they hugged.
"No doubt," Jack agreed, pleased his chosen brother had made it. "Your jet-propelled backstroke is much faster than my pokey float. But you cannot just sit and wait when you're unable to use it."
"Alas, it is just like that de Maupassant classic, the Tortoise and the Hare – the inevitable victory of the banal over the exquisite." Yuga pulled himself into an overly dramatic pose.
"I think you mean Aesop?" offered the jacketless girl. "And that was not the moral of that fable."
"I think they teach things differently in France," Jack offered. Then he bowed and made introductions. "I am Kagayaku Jack, and this is my brother Aoyama Yuga. Pleased to meet you."
"Oh, I am Yaoyorozu Momo. Pleased to meet you." She returned his bow. "Is your brother alright?" Yuga had collapsed to the ground and was lightly moaning as he massaged his belly.
"He just needs a little time. He claims chocolate also helps, but only the best Swiss brands," the golden teen said with a smile then changed the subject to preserve Yuga's dignity. "I liked how you disposed of your unwanted passenger,"
"I had not meant to get him disqualified, but I couldn't have him leeching off my effort and sapping my strength. I might not have even finished with such a burden. As is, I was so flustered that I forgot my plan to create motor scooter for the last stretch. I would have finished much sooner if I'd done that." Jack couldn't tell if she was more upset at herself or the purple boy.
"You did well enough, even with those problems."
"I suppose," she replied. "I thought I'd do better."
"I had no expectations coming in," Jack offered. "I mean Business students don't often make it to the second round."
"You're the first in seven years," Takaki, Jack's classmate with the purple hair, interjected. Her ears were twitching noticeably between Jack, Yuga, and the Hero girl. The rest of the students had finally entered the stadium and were moving into predominantly Class-based groups to talk about the event. Class 1-J was coalescing around him.
"You have been holding out on us, Jack Harukovitch," Motin, back in his mostly human form, accused. Several others muttered agreement, largely without the underlying hostility.
Before they could continue, Midnight ordered the classes to gather for announcements. After a public display of "randomization", the Cavalry Battle was revealed. As Jack was the only person from his class involved, the others all wished him well and moved into the stands.
Once the rules were explained and the competitors released to form teams, Jack looked for Yuga, the only other person on the field he really knew. He found the blond was talking to a boy with dark bule hair and odd-looking eyes.
"Are you forming a team?" Jack asked as he approached.
"We're considering it," the unfamiliar boy responded. "This bright fellow has already agreed to join."
"Great," the golden teen replied.
8-? 8-? 8-? 8-? 8-?
"In third place, Tetsute – Huh?" Present Mic wailed in confusion. "What! It's Team Shinso?!"
Jack found himself standing in front of the announcer's platform next to Yuga who was clutching his stomach once again. A girl with large green eyes and dark green hair was standing behind them with a befuddled look on her face. The dark-haired boy Jack had been speaking to was standing in front of the brothers with two white bands around his neck.
"When did you come from behind?" the vocal hero demanded over the PA.
"Thanks for your hard work," the boy – Jack assumed his name was Shinso – threw over his shoulder as he walked away.
Lunch was announced, to be followed by recreational activities before the final event. Most people started filing out of the stadium. Students were allowed to eat either in the cafeteria or from the food stands. Jack knew a lot of the business students were hoping to show their skills and make some money selling snacks and other items over the break.
Jack, Yuga, and the green-haired girl were still standing in the front of the field where the other boy had left them.
"What happened?" Yuga moaned.
"I can't remember much after the Cavalry battle was announced," the girl added.
"No idea, but it looks like we won, or at least placed." Jack was rubbing his brother's back gently.
"That Shinso must have some sort of mental quirk," the girl said. "I think he mind controlled us or wiped our memories, maybe both."
"That sounds about right," Jack agreed after thinking for a few seconds. "I wonder if that's within the rules."
"We have to report it!" She squared her shoulders and started marching towards the corner of the field where Midnight and Cementoss were talking.
"I'm just going to rest here for a bit. I'll find you later," Yuga groaned and lowered himself to the ground. Jack was not happy with his brother's condition. He must have overused his quirk significantly during the second event. This, on top of his overuse during the race, had Jack concerned.
"Maybe we should get you to the nurse?" the golden teen suggested.
"Don' wanna. Just let me lie here and hug the cool, green grass." Yuga rolled on to his stomach and seemed to cuddle into the ground.
"I'm afraid we can't let you stay here." The voice was deep, filled with crushed gravel, but kind. Cementoss-sensei knelt and lifted Yuga into his arms. "We need to prepare the field for the next event. If you're this worn out from the last rounds, you should see Recovery Girl." He turned to Jack. "She has an aid station set up in the lower level. Can you take him there before you go to lunch?"
"Yes, sir," Jack affirmed. The larger teacher carefully passed the blond boy over. When Jack turned, he saw the green-haired girl was still in a serious discussion with Midnight. He was sure he would hear the outcome later if it impacted him.
Yuga was asleep by the time Jack found the aid station. Recovery Girl took a quick look and said, "He's overextended his quirk, foolishly so. He needs rest. Is he supposed to compete in the third round?"
"Yes, ma'am."
She pursed her lips and shook her head. "He'll be ready. You get on to lunch, unless there's anything you need from me, not that you likely would. I've seen your file from Saiko-chan." She looked at him with a gimlet eye, as if she would relish getting him in her lab for a while.
"No, Ma'am. I'll just be going," Jack bowed and hurried out of the room. Thinking about what sort of experiments the old medic might have in mind for him meant he wasn't paying attention to where he was going. When he realized he was lost, he stopped and looked around. He heard voices and what they were saying made him freeze in place.
"He what!" The voice was animalistic, barely human, yet the fury was obvious.
"You know Hizashi brought over those American cheerleaders for the recreational activities performance?" This voice was obviously male, but sounded oddly muffled, almost electronic.
"Uh-hur?"
"Well, the little pervert not only snuck in and hid himself inside their dressing room, he actually brought a camera and was recoding the women while they were showering and getting into their uniforms."
There was an odd silence that lasted several seconds. Jack increased the audio gain on his suit and heard a rhythmic grinding sound.
"Arrrooooo'lll kill him!" roared the animalistic voice, almost deafening Jack. He quickly lower the volume as the thundering continued. "I'll rip out his guts and braid his intestines into a rope. Then I'll hang him with it and let Nemuri use his empty skull for suikawari. Then I'll turn him over to Nezu's gentle care."
"Ha!" the other voice barked. "I'd like to see that. As unassuming as our principal usually seems, I think your right that he's the deadliest of us all."
"So, what will happen to ratbag?"
"He's gone. No opportunity for remorse or leniency. Not only was it a sex crime, it has the potential to grow into a full-blown international incident. The Foreign Ministry is getting involved, along with the Hero Public Safety Commission. The only thing keeping this idiot out of Tartarus is that he's a minor."
"No. Really?"
"Well, everything but the Tartarus part. The kid might still end up in juvie for a few years because he let his dick do his thinking. It's a certainty that we're going to have give enhanced sexual harassment and misconduct training, for both the students and staff."
"Hrrr… I'll get started on that tomorrow."
"Better you than me. Unfortunately, it's going to be you and me and everyone else that will be paying for this for a long while. Stupid kids. Stupid fucking kids."
The voices receded deeper into the labyrinthine structure. Jack quickly moved in the opposite direction, trying hard not to think about what he had heard. At the same time, he could not help wondering who had done such an idiotic thing.
Eventually he found the light at the end of a tunnel and spent the rest of the lunch break sampling the yakisoba stands. He knew he shouldn't say anything about what he'd heard, but he did not know if he could resist if he was surrounded by his classmates. He thought it better to avoid the temptation. Besides, one of the stands might be good.
When they announced the final event was a one-on-one fighting tournament Jack was both excited by the prospect of seeing how he stacked up against the mostly Hero students and anxious that he might not be able to overcome some of the powerful quirks he had seen demonstrated in the first event. Endeavor's son and the rocky redhead were particular concerns.
When the bracket was revealed. Jack found himself facing off against Kaminari Denki. Other than the kid was short and had golden hair with a lightning bolt dyed into it, he knew nothing about him. He thought about asking Yuga, who was back on his feet and looking fit, but decided not to. It was unlikely that this Kaminari knew anything about Jack, so it was only fair that they entered the field equally ignorant.
Jack decided to watch all the other fights as he might face any of the competitors, should he get that far in the tournament. If he won his match, he would face either Iida Tenya, from the famous Iida Family of speedsters, or Hatsume Mei, Jack's grandmother who had tried to rescue him from the Moon Men.
He knew Mei was a UA student in his year. He had gone out of his way to avoid her. He retained only the vaguest memories of hearing the Moon Men talking about Mei and Hinata as the Radiant Visionaries, both super-inventors with eye-related quirks. He thought she might have been his grandfather's second wife, though he could not recall the name of the first wife who'd given birth to Jack's father. Mostly he remembered Mei's big smile from when he was a baby, and her look of horror and regret when the final explosion claimed his body and the space-time fabric tore and swallowed him. Intellectually Jack knew this girl was not that woman. This Mei bore some resemblance to his grandmother, but she might never grow into the woman he remembered.
Jack hoped he wouldn't have to fight her. He found he couldn't think beyond that possibility.
The first two rounds were exciting. Or rather, Jack thought, one was exciting, and one was overwhelming.
Midoriya versus Shinso confirmed the general education student's brainwashing power. While not inherently villainous, Jack wondered what ethical framework the boy used to ensure his behavior with the quirk never crossed that dark line. Forcing schoolmates to do his bidding without their consent certainly came very close. Only the mutually agreed upon adversarial nature of the contest made it acceptable. The same behavior outside of the tournament would be actionable. Jack had spent a lot of time with ethics tutors over the last five year to build his own ethical framework for using his own potentially monstrous power.
Todoroki's decisive and almost instantaneous victory showed the entire audience just how much skill and power the winner of this event would have to overcome. Jack had no illusions that with his current suit he had any chance against that kind of force. If his hands were open, he might be able to convert the ice, but the cold would degrade the effectiveness of his suit's systems to the point where he might not be able to absorb the energy created with such a conversion. It would be better to forfeit than run the risk of setting off an accidental nuclear reaction. If he had his combat suit, the contest would be much more even, he thought.
Before long it was time for him to face the unknown Kaminari.
"Now that the stage is melted and dried, we're ready for the next match. This should be another exciting face-off. We have the mystery man from Class 1-J, the Golden Idol Kagayaku Jack! Versus – Sparking Killing Boy! From Class 1-A, Kaminari Denki." Jack winced at Present Mic's mangled English pronunciation.
"Starto!"
"It's pretty good for a Business student to make it this far in the tournament," the 1-A student said patronizingly. "You should be proud. But don't get used to it, because this match will be over in a second!"
Electricity coruscated over Kaminari's whole body, lifting his hair into a halo. He yelled out his attack "Indiscriminate Shock 1.3 Million Volts!" then thrust his hands towards the ground.
Electricity arced everywhere, covering the stage, and almost reaching the audience in the stands. Jack smirked as he felt the energy washing over his metallic shell. It would have easily rendered most humans senseless. But he was no longer human. He soaked it in like soil absorbed rain after a drought.
Jack prepared to blast the other boy with his kinetic eyebeams, to knock him off the stage. Then he realized something bad had happened. Kaminari was wandering the stage, shuffling his feet, and moving his hands like he was a toddler playing choo-choo, drool dripping from his lips. Apparently, he was not proof against his own attack. The boy had rendered himself senseless, gambling that his all-out blast would take his opponent down and leave what was left of him in charge of the battlefield.
Rather than humiliating the other boy further, or causing him real harm, Jack walked over and gently led him off the stage.
Midnight quickly declared Jack the winner.
Jack enjoyed watching his erstwhile grandmother turn her battle into an extended product demonstration, with Iida as her unwitting and unwilling demonstration dummy. The golden teen was relieved when his grandmother's younger self stepped out at the end of the match, forcing the win onto the speedster. He had no desire to face her in the next round.
Watching Yuga lose against a faster, more agile foe set Jack to thinking about how his upcoming bout against Iida could go just as badly. Hopefully without the included loss of dignity the French boy suffered from having his tighty-whities exposed to the world.
Jack spent more of next hour considering strategy that watching the remaining bouts. Though even he could not ignore the spectacle that was the battle between Midoriya and Todoroki. He had never seen anything like it in terms of sheer power and destruction, except the final conflict on the Moon.
Once again, the stage had to be rebuilt. Finally, it was time for Jack to face Iida.
"Now it's time for the second quarter-final match. We're just going to keep rolling along. Rush headlong towards the top!" Present Mic wailed. The crowd ate it up.
"It's like he's the epitome of the middle of the pack!" he continued. "From Class 1-A, it's Iida Tenya! Versus the battling Business student who came out of nowhere. From Class 1-J, it's Kagayaku Jack!"
"STARTO!"
Jack knew he had only one advantage over the speedster, his flight. He launched himself into the air as Iida yelled "Recipro Burst!".
The bespectacled boy jetted forward. As Jack slowly rose, he blasted a line into the cement, hoping at least to impair the oncoming opponent. But Iida had already passed the point where Jack was targeting.
A hand clamped on the golden teen's ankle, halting his rise. He attenuated his leg, causing the suit to stretch and go limp like a deflated balloon. The extended metallic sheath started to slip from the speedster's grip. At the same time Jack leaned down and cupped his hand in front of Iida's face. He converted a few molecules of air into light, trying to temporarily blind and disorient the racer.
It worked, but not with the effect Jack had hoped. Iida stopped, but used his momentum to rock forward on one leg, bringing the arm still gripping Jack' stretched out foot to whip Jack's body forward and down. The golden teen hit the cement hard, stunning him, then bounced off the stage and into the grass.
"Kagayaku, out of bounds!" Midnight yelled. "Iida wins!"
Jack rolled to his back in time to see Iida offer a polite bow as the crowd cheered. The golden teen raised a hand in acknowledgement then lay back and moaned.
He hoped that was good enough for his family.