Outer space, a place so vast and mysterious that humanity has always been fascinated with what lay out of reach. After years of strife and struggle, the inhabitants of Earth realized they had two options. Cooperate with each other and leave Earth, or continue to squabble like children and eventually go extinct.

It was obvious which option was chosen.

Pooling their resources, the old countries of Earth finally united and made their way out into the vast reaches of space. The first few hundred years of exploring the galaxy were what many would consider the golden age of humanity. Technology, science, medicine, and the arts advanced by leaps and bounds. Cultural fusions birthed entirely new civilizations, and humanity was wholly united in the goal of exploring and conquering the final frontier.

However, there was one event that permanently changed the course of humanity.

The birth of abnormal powers, abilities, and mutations, known as Quirks.

Nobody was ever able to fully explain just how quirks came to be. The most commonly accepted theory is that the constant exposure to new types of cosmic radiation modified the very DNA of humans, and that as long as space travel existed there would continue to be an ever evolving variety of quirks. Of course there were some more radical and extreme beliefs about the origins of quirks. Some people believed that God himself was responsible for the evolutionary leap, while others were convinced that some unknown alien species had selected humanity for a higher purpose.

Speaking of aliens, there were none.

None that were alive at least.

Travelling across the cosmos, humanity's early space explorers fully believed that there was other intelligent life in the galaxy, and that it was only a matter of time before first contact was made. However, as the decades went on with no discovery of intelligent life of any kind, humanity began to question if such things as alien civilizations even existed at all.

Then, one fateful day, everything changed.

As the records go, it had been just another routine inspection of a new world. A prospecting ship had dispatched a remote-controlled probe from orbit to search for any useful mineral deposits, expecting nothing but the usual rich veins of ore common to a barren desert planet like the one in question. However, as the probe broke through the clouds of the atmosphere, the prospectors were shocked to find that the mountains they had seen from orbit were actually massive alien ruins of ancient construction.

Of course, the news of the discovery spread like wildfire, and it was not long before the planet was completely surrounded by orbital research stations full of researchers and scientists. Like the gold rush of ancient Earth, the first few years after the discovery was nothing but a race for everyone involved to stake their claim on their own little section of the ancient world.

After everything settled down, several things immediately became clear. The alien ruins predated humanity by millions of years, and were clearly constructed using techniques unknown to humans. However, the real mystery was how such advanced structures were created with no apparent source of advanced technology. Everything was just made of the same metal-like material, and while intricate in design, seemed to serve no other purpose than be decorative art. Confused and perplexed, humanity's best and brightest spent decades pondering just what the exact purpose of the planet was.

Over time, the fascination over the alien ruins declined. Eventually, the alien ruins were simply written off as unexplainable mysteries. With more important things coming along like corporate wars, breakthroughs in technology, and societal upheavals, the alien ruins were eventually considered to be nothing more than a fascination for conspiracy theorists and crackpot scientists.

As time passed, humanity finally began to settle down and establish new homes. Governments were created, treaties written, alliances forged, and wars were waged.

Now the galaxy is in a state of what many would consider to be nothing other than stagnation. Mega-corporations have more power than entire planetary governments, conflicts of all kinds are an ever-present danger looming on the horizon, corruption runs rampant, and humanity seems to be more concerned with personal wealth than the advancement of the species.

But as with all things, life goes on.

On a small and peaceful planet called Musutafu, a certain teenage boy named Izuku Midoriya sits in his room looking out the window at the night sky. As the glowing shapes of starships criss-cross the sky, Izuku sighs wistfully and looks at the holographic clock on his bedside table. It was almost midnight local time, and Izuku could not sleep. It felt like his body was a ball of nerves, and while most of it was anxiety, there was a small spark of hope burning in his chest.

You see, Izuku was quirkless.

A statistical anomaly, Izuku was one of the one in a million people born without a quirk of any kind.

Life is not fair, that is a fact Izuku learned very quickly.

Bullied everyday by his peers and other kids, Izuku was endlessly tortured and humiliated by others simply for existing. It didn't help that his best "friend" had developed a very strong quirk.

At first Izuku thought that his friend would at least take pity on him for being quirkless, but that was not the case.

Katsuki Bakugo, also known as Kacchan to Izuku, was the worst bully of all. Besides the never ending insults and mockery, Bakugo took it upon himself to make Izuku's life even more of a living hell by regularly assaulting him. Izuku did not know what had caused his childhood friend to become such a monster. All he knew was that whenever Bakugo showed up it was never a good thing.

But that was not the cruelest facet of Izuku's life. The worst part about being quirkless meant that nobody believed he could ever be a pro-hero.

Pro-heroes, individuals with powerful quirks and skills that did everything from search and rescue to apprehending dangerous criminals. They were officially regulated by the Hero Public Safety Commission, a law enforcement agency that utilized powerful individuals to keep the peace and maintain a healthy society. It would not be an exaggeration to say that almost everyone dreamed of being a pro-hero at some point in their life. For many, it was an existence comparable to the most famous celebrities. After all, top-ranked pro-heroes were celebrities in of themselves. When your feats of daring and selfless courage were broadcasted all over the galaxy, it was easy to see why many aspired to attain a life full of fame and fortune.

Izuku was no different, his greatest dream ever since he was a young boy was to be a pro-hero.

Of course, that made being quirkless hurt even more.

Not just anyone could be a pro-hero. The training and selection process was notoriously difficult. So much so that there were entire schools dedicated to training students to be future pro-heroes.

One of the schools in question was UA high school, a prestigious and well-respected institution even outside of Izuku's galactic sector. UA had produced some of the greatest pro-heroes in Izuku's home sector, and it was no exaggeration to say that it was Izuku's dream to become a student there.

Of course, almost everyone who found out Izuku wanted to attend UA either tried to change his or mind or outright ridiculed him for having such an ambitious dream.

The only person in Izuku's life that even remotely supported his ambitions was his own mother, Inko Midoriya. A short woman with shoulder-length green hair, warm eyes, and a kind smile, Inko was everything a loving mother should be. She knew Izuku's struggles better than anyone else, and every time Izuku came home from school with tears in his eyes she was always there to comfort him and make him feel better. It was obvious to Izuku that his mom blamed herself for his lack of a quirk. Evidenced by her doing everything she could to support him and make him feel even a little bit wanted.

Izuku's father was a whole different story. A middle-manager in the local mega-corporation that ran the sector, Izuku's father was very rarely around. Izuku barely knew what the man looked like, and had only talked to the man a handful of times in his entire life. While Izuku knew that his father was the sole reason he and his mom could live comfortably, it still hurt to know that he barely cared enough to even maintain a facade of a family man.

Sighing tiredly, Izuku rolled over in his bed and did his best to try and sleep. Tomorrow was a big day, for it was the day of the UA entrance exam. The entrance exam had been hotly debated between Izuku and his mom for months. Izuku was obviously in favor of trying out, while his mom worriedly opposed the idea. The main problem was that the UA hero course entrance exam was not a normal written exam, but a training exercise where prospective students showed off their abilities. Obviously, each year there were injuries, and Izuku's mom had been worried sick about her baby getting hurt competing against other kids with powerful quirks. Eventually, after months of begging, pleading, and arguing, Izuku had finally convinced his mom to let him take the exam. The compromise was that if Izuku failed the exam, he would go to a school his mom recommended. Needless to say, the odds were stacked against Izuku, but that did not stop him from wanting to at least try.

Closing his eyes, Izuku forced himself to calm down and relax. Taking the entrance exam sleep deprived would do him no favors, and he would need to give it his all to show everyone that even a quirkless kid like him could be a pro-hero.

As the passenger starship sped through the starry void, Izuku looked out at the small window next to him in awe. This was the first time he had truly flown through outer space. He had taken the occasional shuttle to different parts of his home planet, but he had never travelled to another planet entirely.

The green-haired teen wore his trusty red sneakers, gray cargo pants, a white t-shirt, and a green jacket.

Sitting next to him, Izuku's mom worriedly wrung her hands together as she went over Izuku's itinerary one last time.

"Honey, did you remember your school papers?" Inko asked nervously.

Sighing in slight annoyance, Izuku reached into his travel bag and pulled out his folder full of identification papers, ID cards, and other assorted paperwork.

"Yes mom it is right here." The green-haired teen said placatingly.

"And you remember where to go?" Inko asked with a concerned look in her eye.

"Yes mom I do." Izuku chuckled. "Trust me, there is no way I would miss this."

Sighing tiredly, Inko nodded slowly. "I know you are excited honey, just…" She trailed off awkwardly, clearly wanting to remind Izuku that his chances of succeeding were close to none, but wanting to remain supportive at the same time. "...just keep yourself safe."

Forcing a cheerful smile onto his face, Izuku patted his mom's hand. "I know mom. If I...if I don't pass the test I promise I will look at all the schools you want me to."

A few moments later, the starship intercom buzzed announcing the ship was on final approach to its destination. Excitedly looking out the window, Izuku gasped in awe as the moon UA was built on came into view. The moon itself used to be a barren lifeless rock, but after decades of terraforming the moon was now home to several elite hero schools. The moon was covered in lush forests and fields, sharing space with heavily urbanized locations that housed students, faculty, visitors, and other guests.

Needless to say, Izuku was beyond excited. Here he was, a quirkless boy about to step onto the holy ground that was the sprawling UA campus. No matter what anyone said, he was going to give it his all and succeed where others told him he would not.

After all, it's not the amount of power that determines your success, but the amount of spirit you put into it.

What could possibly go wrong?

[12 hours later]

Sitting in a seat next to his mom, Izuku stared silently at the floor of the passenger starship.

There was no doubt in Izuku's mind, he was now at rock bottom.

His face and body covered in bruises and scrapes, Izuku felt like a hollow shell of his former self. Going into the exam, he had steeled his resolve to come out of the test with a smile, no matter the results.

But he had not been prepared for how overwhelmingly outclassed he had been.

The test had been simple, take down as many training robots as possible within the allotted time. If you acquired the needed amount of points, you passed.

Izuku had not even been able to gain a single point.

His first encounter with a training robot nearly broke him, and it had all gone downhill from there.

Unable to fight or defend himself, Izuku had been saved by several teens who made it very clear Izuku was out of his league. One of them even being a cute brown-haired girl Izuku had gotten along with in the waiting area.

But that was not the worst part.

Bakugo had been there as well.

When Izuku had been carried away on a stretcher, Bakugo made it his mission to publicly humiliate Izuku as much as possible. Revealing to everyone that he was quirkless as well as a weakling.

The entire experience was like something from a nightmare, except there was no escaping it.

After being patched up and chastised by the examiners, Izuku had been released back to his mother who was nearly in tears.

Izuku didn't even remember what happened after that. It was like his brain had shut down and his body was a robot that merely followed any command given to it. Now Izuku found himself on a passenger ship scheduled to go back to his home planet.

"Honey I am so sorry." Inko sniffled sadly as she gently hugged her son. "I wanted to stop you, but I could never say no to you. I love you so much that even though I knew this was a bad idea I knew I would not forgive myself if I stopped you from going. I just want you to know that no matter what anybody else says, you are still an amazing person to me. You are so strong for going through with this, and I will fight anybody who says otherwise."

As the starship lifted off and broke through the moon's atmosphere, Izuku could only nod silently as his mother continued to console him.

As the passenger ship jumped to lightspeed, Izuku fell to the deepest pits of despair. Shamed, humiliated, and broken, Izuku could only think of one thing.

"I wish I was dead."

Moments later, the starship began to rumble and shake like it was going through intense turbulence.

The strange thing was, that they were still flying at lightspeed.

As the rumbling and shaking began to get worse, warning lights began to flash and alarms began to blare. As the pilot spoke over the intercom urging people to remain calm, Izuku could see pieces of the exterior of the ship begin to rip apart and disappear in flashes of light.

It became clear that something was very wrong, and panic began to spread throughout the passengers. People began screaming, some began recording goodbye's for their loved ones, while others trampled each other running to the escape pods.

Suddenly, an entire section of the ship ripped itself apart. Dozens of passengers were sucked out into the void of lightspeed space, and at that moment Izuku knew the ship was doomed.

Unable to do anything but wait for their inevitable end, Izuku and his mom clung desperately to each other as the howl of escaping oxygen filled the air.

With tears in her eyes and a sad smile on her face, Inko pulled her son's face close so she could stare into his eyes one last time.

"I love you so much Izuku." Inko shouted over the noise. "Remember that I am so proud of you! You are the best son I could ever ask for! And I would not change a thing if I was to do it all over again!"

Tears filling his eyes, Izuku clung to his mom tightly as the ship began to disintegrate around them. "I love you too mom!" Izuku cried out. "I am sorr-"

Izuku was cut off as a flash of blinding light engulfed him and his mom.

Then, there was nothing but darkness.

XCXCXCXCXCXXCXCXCXCXCXXCXCXCXCX

An unknown amount of time later, Izuku woke up.

Groaning in pain, Izuku slowly got to his feet and looked around.

The sight that greeted him left him speechless.

For starters the sky was pitch black. All that could be seen was an eerie black void, like Izuku had ended up somewhere in the darkness between galaxies. The ground was made of a strange metal-like material, obviously created by someone and not naturally made. All around Izuku were massive pyramids, monoliths, and structures of strange design. Occasionally, electric-blue arcs of energy crackled through the air before being absorbed by the strange metal structures. The strange place was dead quiet, the only sound being the snaps and sparks from the arcs of energy overhead. The air itself tasted stale, like it had been sitting around for millions of years without any purpose other than to exist.

Finally, the realization hit Izuku.

Where was his mom?!

Frantically looking around, Izuku could see no signs of starship debris or any other hint that there were other survivors. Not knowing what to do, Izuku set off in a random direction hoping he would find some answers.

"MOM?" Izuku yelled out desperately. "MOM WHERE ARE YOU?! IS ANYONE HERE?!"

Feeling tears prick the edges of his eyes, Izuku hurriedly wiped them away with the sleeve of his jacket and continued onwards.

After wandering for what felt like hours and calling out for anyone to hear, Izuku leaned against a nearby black metal monolith and forced himself to take deep breaths. Panicking would not get him anywhere. It felt like a pit of despair and fear had opened in his chest, making it hard to breath and focus on anything other than the feeling of impending doom.

Suddenly, Izuku heard what sounded like a faint whisper.

Whirling around, Izuku looked around warily. If he was anywhere else he would have ignored the whispering, but considering his current situation there were not many options left other than to investigate.

Waiting anxiously, Izuku heard the barely audible whispers again. Hesitantly walking forward, Izuku followed the whispering towards its source.

After walking for what felt like hours, Izuku finally found the source of the whispers. A temple much larger than the ones surrounding it rose from the ground, towering over every other nearby structure. It vaguely looked like a mayan pyramid Izuku had seen in a picture book when he was little. Steep steps were embedded onto each of the four sides, leading up to the top which seemed to be the source of the strange energy arcs.

Steeling his nerves, Izuku began to climb. It felt like the entire time he was climbing the whispers swirled around him, sliding into his ears like ghostly worms digging for food. The pitch black void overhead was like nothing Izuku had ever seen before. It was like there was no atmosphere separating the void from the planet, which would be impossible since Izuku was currently breathing. Pushing the unhelpful musings to the back of his mind, Izuku focused on ascending to the top of the strange pyramid.

After a solid twenty minutes of slow climbing, Izuku finally reached the top of the pyramid. It was a flat area around twenty feet square, with intricate carvings and designs on the floor that made Izuku's head hurt if he looked at them too long. In the center of the platform was what appeared to be some sort of pedestal. However, unlike everything else he had encountered that was made of black metal, the pedestal appeared to be made of some sort of brilliant white stone.

But the strangest thing of all was what hovered just above the pedestal.

It appeared to be a sphere of pitch black liquid, and every so often Izuku could see a slight ripple run across the surface of the sphere. The sphere of liquid also seemed to be the source of the strange energy arcing across the sky, as it occasionally released said energy in a crackling burst which dissipated in the sky.

Frankly, Izuku had no clue what he was doing. It was like his body was on autopilot, and his brain was simply observing from the sidelines. As if drawn forward by the pull of an invisible rope, Izuku slowly walked towards the floating sphere of liquid with hesitant steps. In a daze, Izuku finally stood next to the sphere of black liquid, somehow understanding that the arcs of energy would not harm him. The black liquid seemed to absorb all light, and peering into it, Izuku could swear he saw the flicker of something moving inside. Like a moth drawn to a flame, Izuku could not help but stare into the liquid with captivated eyes.

Suddenly, Izuku realized one of his hands was slowly reaching out to touch the liquid.

Before he could stop himself, Izuku's fingertips made contact with the liquid.

For a split second, it felt like Izuku was touching something both blazing hot and freezing cold.

Then the liquid began to move.

Like some sort of creature spawned from the depths of hell, the black liquid engulfed Izuku's hand and began to slowly creep up his arm. His breath catching in his throat, Izuku stood frozen solid like he had been paralyzed by some sort of mysterious force. As the black liquid inched up his arm, Izuku felt his heartbeat jackhammer in his chest as he tried every possible way to make himself move.

Izuku only knew one thing for certain, and it was that the liquid felt absolutely wrong.

As the black liquid covered his exposed throat and inched upwards, Izuku could only whimper in terror as sticky tendrils emerged from the liquid and began slithering across his face towards his eyes, nose, and mouth.

It felt like time slowed to a crawl, and Izuku became acutely aware of just how unpleasant everything felt. First, the tendrils of black liquid inserted themselves into his eye sockets, slithering behind his eyeballs and tunneling directly towards his brain. As his vision faded, Izuku felt another bundle of tendrils enter his nasal cavity and expand to completely coat the insides of his throat. Finally, a swarm of black tendrils forced Izuku's mouth open and dived down his stomach.

There were no words able to describe just how horrible the entire ordeal felt. As Izuku's body began to convulse and spasm, the teenage boy could do nothing but scream.

Then Izuku lost consciousness.

Unfortunately, Izuku did not fall into a blissful sleep.

No, he experienced something much worse.

Like some sort of nightmare, Izuku began to have visions of unspeakable horrors. Eldritch abominations the size of planets consumed each other in an endless cycle of mindless violence and gluttony. Once vibrant and lush planets were reduced to mere husks, everything from the bacteria to the atmosphere itself disappearing overnight. Strange alien beings gathered by the billions to kill each other as offerings to thirsting gods. Oceans of blood spawned unholy amalgamations of flesh and metal, the skies wept black tears of rain, and the very ground itself turned into an endless expanse of heaving flesh.

Izuku wanted to scream, but he had no mouth.

Suddenly, the nightmarish visions vanished. Replaced by a warm and inviting light.

"Finally, you have arrived." An angelic voice said happily.

Confused, Izuku tried to speak and ask what was going on, only to realize he was nothing but a formless spirit floating in the warm light.

Somehow understanding what Izuku was thinking, the voice answered.

"Do not be afraid, child." It explained. "For so long I have waited for you. The pure and untainted one, the one who will make us whole, the one who will bring about a new age of enlightenment."

Still confused, Izuku tried to get more answers.

"Do not worry." The heavenly voice said gently. "All will be explained in due time. But first, you must begin your journey."

Suddenly Izuku felt like he was falling, and the angelic voice began to get fainter as comforting darkness began to overtake him.

"I am your guide and protector. Together, we will change the universe for the better. For you are…"

Just before falling asleep, Izuku barely heard one last happy whisper.

"The Harbinger."