Endeavor raced through the city on a column of fire, his earpiece abuzz with conversation. He tried to ignore it as best as he could, focusing on his colossal task at hand. He glanced down, eyes on his partner in life and heroics, Blizzard, racing through the streets on sheets of ice, close on his tail.
"Endeavor, confirm status," a voice over the comm said in his ear.
"En route! How much time left?" he called out, putting more heat into the exhaust under his feet in anticipation of the coming news.
"Satellites are tracking, showing heavy progression. Expect the tsunami to hit within thirty minutes," the voice announced.
"Goddamnit," he growled, putting more heat on, rocketing towards the beach on the outskirts of Mustafu.
"Don't worry! We have plenty of time! The city is already partially evacuated!" Blizzard's smooth voice came through the comms.
Endeavor didn't respond, keeping his focus on flying, barely registering the damage to the city below him. The earthquake had taken its toll earlier that day. Thousands of homes damaged, high-rises toppled, huge cracks in the asphalt of roads and concrete of parking structures. The heroes had responded in record time, many of them coming from all over to aid rescue efforts. Even UA's faculty and students had leapt to the challenge, helping out as they could.
But even the Number One hero can't stop a tsunami, where Mother Nature's unbridled energy is put to terrible use and effect. So, in a desperate bid to save the city and many others, a drastic plan was created. The orders had gone out. After ensuring their children and friends were safely away from the city, Endeavor and Blizzard split up from All Might to fight back against a true disaster.
Endeavor landed on the beach, his ripping hot boots melting the sand into black glass, watching as the water slowly began to pull back. They had mere minutes. He glared and spun around, looking for the other heroes that were supposed to be helping him. Movement out of the corner of his eye made him turn as his wife approached, closely followed by Pixie-Bob of the Wild, Wild Pussycats.
"You ready, Number Two?" Pixie-Bob said, smiling broadly as she bounced on her feet, glancing out over the beach and the waves
"Yes. Let's get to work. We have a lot to do," he said shortly, turning back to the water and jogging out, steam billowing off of the ground as he moved over the water-logged sand.
"I'll be right behind you!" Blizzard called out, priming her quirk, fog rolling off of her arms.
"Pixie-Bob, start making the wave break! I'll start sealing it as soon as the shape is right!" Endeavor called out, gesturing for her to start.
"Right!" she responded, pulling up the sand underneath her feet to move her rapidly along the beach. She pulled up with her large gloved hands, gesturing towards the beach sand, and pictured the diagram from the briefing. A wall curved outward, like a wave facing the ocean, but fifteen meters high and five meters thick. The curve would reflect the wall of water back, preventing it from hitting the city. Or so they hoped.
She pulled on the sand, pushing her quirk hard, gritting her teeth as the stubborn wet sand moved sluggishly. Higher and higher the wall of sand rose, cresting over as its master forced it into the proper shape, a huge wave of sand rising off the beach.
Endeavor watched, arms folded, as Pixie-Bob worked up the sand, calming himself to prepare for the task at hand. Fire hot enough to melt sand into glass for five kilometers was a very tall order, and he had to be careful to not overheat. He took a long, deep breath as the first section of the beach was ready and channeled his heat and power, stepping forward and unleashing a huge blast of white hot fire, scorching the sand at the base, steadily working the stream of plasma up as the sand solidified and compressed, forming a dark glass wave. Blizzard followed up with icy blasts, sealing and tempering the glass by rapidly cooling it.
The tag-team moved down the beach steadily, combining their quirks to create the largest glass wave-break wall they could. They only stopped when the low whine, rapidly increasing in pitch, of the sirens from the city sounded out over the wall. Endeavor turned to look over his shoulder, an instinctual fear running through him as the wall of water in the distance rushed towards them.
"We're done here. Let's move!" he called out, launching off the ground with a burst of fire. "Time for phase two!" he ordered, nodding to Blizzard as she lifted herself up on a column of ice, his gaze lingering on her blue eyes for a second. She smiled and nodded back, spinning in place and sprinting around the top of the huge glass wall.
"Ready, Pixie-Bob?" Endeavor called out, glancing over at his temporary teammate.
"Ready! Let's crush this!" she responded, her smile confident and self-assured. She pushed out with her quirk, sweat forming on her brow as she concentrated on the beach below her, slowly pushing it down, caving in huge sections of the beach as the sand was forced back, elevating the beach into a sharper slope.
Endeavor surveyed their work as the water rushed in, silently praying that the design would work as intended. Off to his right, his wife waited to unleash on the water if it broke through the glass wall. Pixie-Bob did her job, panting on the side, ready to redirect the water if needed, while he was on station to flash evaporate it.
"Brace yourselves!" he shouted as the wall of water approached, slamming over the raised beachhead, throwing the sand like a kid in a sandbox. It slowed the water, but the real test was the wall.
Two forces, one unmoving, the other with too much momentum, collided.
The next day, All Might looked over the city below him, his spot on the balcony of the government office giving him an excellent view of the destruction, the towers of UA off to the left of the view, their perch on the hill showing the strong building in all of its glory. His thoughts turned inward as he looked on.
He considered himself lucky. UA's construction department was among the best in the world, able to withstand anything up to a nuclear strike, god forbid anything like that happen. The staff had made it out with a couple of bruises and scrapes, while the rest of the city had been thoroughly ravaged. He was grateful Izuku had been home with Inko when it hit. Their living room was in shambles: a mess of broken glass.
"All Might?" a voice behind him asked.
He broke out of his thoughts and turned to look at the young secretary. "They're ready for you now," she said, bowing and gesturing towards the large oak door. He nodded and strode over to the door, pushing it open and entering quickly. Inside the conference room was a large table, with around twenty men and women sitting, listening to one of the others yelling at the foot of the table.
"...and that's not even the worst thing right now! Not only do we have this disaster, but the local governor is saying that we can't finish the evacuation because one of the direct evac roads collapsed! He says it will take two days to clear."
All Might looked at the middle aged man in a wrinkled suit who was standing and yelling, shaking his fist in anger as he gestured at a map on the wall.
"Even if we could find a way to contain it, these people can't be within fifty kilos of here! It's too dangerous!"
The man at the head of the table, who All Might recognized as the head of the Hero Association and liaison for the government raised his hand, and the yelling man fell silent.
"I understand your concerns, Mateo. But right now, we must focus on containment. All Might," he said, looking to the hero, "let's get you up to speed. We need your help or at least a suggestion." He nodded to one of the other men around the large table, who nodded back. He stood up and looked at All Might.
"You already know that the earthquake, a 9.6, caused significant damage to surrounding areas. However, there has been a development. The nuclear power station located outside of the city that was scheduled for decommission has suffered from structural damage. We estimate that within a day or two, the reactor wall could breach," he glanced down at his notes before continuing, "Estimates from the engineers say that this could be as bad or worse than the Chernobyl accident of the mid-1900s, and completely eclipses the Fukushima Daiichi accident of 2011."
All Might could only stare. What did they expect from him with something like this?
"Why wasn't the reactor already offline?" he asked, hoping to buy some time while he thought.
"The reactor is an ancient design, hence its scheduled decommissioning, but budget cuts and logistics prevented it from happening quickly. This was an oversight of the Nuclear Committee, who are already taking the blame for this. Now we just need to solve the issue of the damaged reactor," the director said, taking over for his subordinate. He gestured to another subordinate who pulled up a piece of paper and handed it to All Might.
He glanced over the page and studied the design of the reactor as well as specifications.
"What do you have already?" he asked, a couple of ideas popping up.
"We know that this particular reactor is designed to be removed for servicing, so we might be able to just pull it out, like a battery, essentially. The problem with that idea is that the main doors to the reactor room are sealed, mostly like by the earthquake. We can't get into the room physically," the subordinate stated. "The doors are a meter thick, made of reinforced concrete and steel."
"Would you be able to deal with something like that?" the director asked, glancing over All Might's form.
'Maybe in my younger years, but there is no way now!' his inner voice screamed at him.
"Possibly. I'd have to get eyes on to know for sure," All Might said, eyes not daring to look up from the page. "Anything else?"
"We have to be careful for aftershocks from the earthquake. They could happen at any time, and any one of them could change the environment inside the plant," the director said, a couple of other men nodding in agreement.
"Not to mention, we still need to check for survivors inside the plant," another subordinate interjected, "there are entire sections of the plant that we can't get to. Who knows where they are all at."
The director nodded, "So, as you can see, All Might, this is… complicated. We called you because we thought you were the one with enough power to be able to handle it."
'Enough power? Hah, no. Not anymore. That title goes to- Wait…'
"Director, I might have a solution. But we need to discuss it in private," All Might said, a smile on his face again, his eyes staring into the director's.
Izuku's leg bounced against the metal floor rapidly, small dents appearing as his boot made impact. His position in the chair against the wall of the large cargo plane they were in gave him a great view out the window. In the distance, he could see the cracked and crumbling cooling towers of the reactor. They would be diving right into the area in minutes.
"Izuku, my boy, relax," All Might said calmly, placing a hand on Izuku's knee to still his son.
"Sorry, Dad. Just nervous and excited," he said through the standard issue helmet's mask, turning to look at his father.
"Haha!" All Might chuckled, "I'd be worried if you weren't, but I need you focused. This is serious and one small mistake could be very dangerous." His signature smile faltered for a second as the plane shook with a bit of turbulence.
"Remember, we need to be discrete. You are a secret agent on this mission, only helping because the government is giving you special permission to help. You have to follow my orders perfectly, is that understood?"
Izuku nodded, "Yes sir. I won't let you down."
"I know you won't," All Might said, pride in his voice.
There was a bang as the door to the cockpit opened and a uniformed airman clambered down the ladder and walked over to them quickly.
"Okay! We are almost over the drop zone. Get ready!" he called out, gesturing for them to join him at the back of the plane. He walked over to the wall, and pulled down on the ramp drop lever.
"Do you remember the plan?" All Might called out as the noise in the plane skyrocketed as the ramp dropped down, showing them a gorgeous view of the city below them.
"Get in, get to the reactor, attempt to shut it down, find survivors, and get the hell out!" Izuku responded, nodding.
All Might nodded and gave a thumbs up to the airman.
"GO FOR JUMP!" he shouted, giving them a thumbs up.
"HERE WE GO!" All Might shouted, taking a couple of steps before leaping out of the plane, 10000 feet up.
Izuku's grin exploded on his face and he leapt after his father, diving into the sky as the wind ripped past him.
"Stage 1: Insertion! Go!" All Might's voice came through the earpiece in Izuku's helmet.
"Understood!" Izuku responded. He adjusted his body in the air, bringing his arms and legs together to streamline his fall, aiming down for the roof of the plant, right over where the main reactor would be. Once he lined up, he glanced over to see his father in his hero suit and parachute alongside him. He gave a thumbs up, and clicked a button on his watch. It would take nine seconds to reach the reactor. He started the clock and pushed out with his quirk, creating a ring of energy under his feet, and igniting it.
No longer falling, instead rocketing towards the ground, he pushed past his terminal velocity, a shock cone forming around him as he passed through the speed of sound almost instantly. He needed as much speed as possible to break through the reinforced concrete surrounding the reactor, turning himself into a human bunker buster.
Izuku held his fist out in front of him and pushed out power, encasing his fist in green and black energy. He braced, the concrete rapidly approaching, until he collided with the hardened material, impacting like a meteor, punching through multiple layers of steel and concrete, only stopping once he hit the ground floor, leaving a small crater in the tile. He pulled his fist out of the tile and dusted off the suit, looking around, before looking up at the hole he made, chuckling as All Might landed next to him, albeit much softer, having followed him down.
"Good work, Izuku," he said, clapping him on the shoulder, chuckling as Izuku continued dusting himself off.
"Piece of cake!" Izuku cheered, "Time for Phase Two!" he said, turning to look at the massive concrete and steel nuclear 'bottle' in front of them. He could feel the radiation pouring out of the machine and knew that they were on a short clock.
"That was almost too close," All Might said, as he walked around the reactor core, ducking under pipes as he inspected the machine.
"I had to get us close. I don't know how much time we have," Izuku stated as he moved over to a control panel with several buttons. He looked over it, searching for the button they needed for the emergency shutdown. It would force all of the control rods into the closed position, completely killing any nuclear reaction.
But when Izuku finally found the large button under a protective cover, fear began to creep up his spine. It was already pressed in. Someone had already shut down the reactor. So why was it still leaking radiation?
"All Might!" Izuku called out, "We don't have much time at all! The reactor's already shut down!"
When All Might didn't respond immediately, Izuku looked up, more fear creeping in. All Might was strong, but not radiation proof. He'd have to be careful, just like anyone else. Izuku tore away from the machine, sprinting around the reactor, dodging under pipes and struts, searching for All Might. He let out his breath when he found him on the far side, standing still and staring at something in front of him.
"All Might?" Izuku asked, walking behind him, then following his gaze.
A huge crack, a foot wide, running up from the floor, up the wall of the reactor, an ominous blue glow emitting from the hole, Cherenkov radiation flooding out of the container.
"No time at all, son," All Might said softly, "The reactor is breached."
"Dad," Izuku said, trying to keep his voice calm, "you need to get out of here. Now."
All Might nodded and spun, sprinting away. Izuku stared at the glow for a split second longer, before following his father.
"Let's start finding survivors, and quickly!" All Might ordered, punching through the steel door to the reactor room with ease.
"Right behind you!" Izuku called out, tearing after his father as they sprinted down the hallway.
"Right, that's the last one!" All Might called out as he placed the last of the nuclear workers on the ground gently, the man bowing and thanking All Might before turning to the medical team, clothed in radiation suits. All Might had managed to get all fourteen of the missing workers out to the medical station outside of the plant, making sure that Izuku was hidden inside the plant. No one could know that he helped, even if he was covered in black clothes and looked like a normal soldier. The questions and inquiry into All Might's and Izuku's lives would be brutal.
"Thanks All Might!" One of the medical workers called out.
All Might gave a thumbs up and turned back to the plant, a faint feeling creeping up. There was a brief moment of stillness and then another aftershock hit, the third that day, the small tremor shaking everything strongly. All Might held onto one of med workers who had started falling, watching in awe as the damaged cooling towers collapsed finally, dust and stone getting kicked up in a huge cloud. There was an explosion beside the towers, and the fireball rose, casting light all over the area.
"That last one did it! The reactor's core is exposed!" one of the engineers shouted, furiously taking down notes from his Geiger counter. "Radiation levels are skyrocketing!"
All Might turned back to look at the entrance to the plant, where Izuku was hiding, hoping that he knew.
"I'm on it!" came his voice a second later, making All Might sigh softly with relief.
"Be careful, son," he whispered into the ear piece.
Izuku tore through the complex, racing to the reactor, pulling on the radiation as it was escaping, drawing it into himself as he sprinted from room to room. When he finally reached the reactor core room, he was swimming in pure gamma radiation, the flow of energy from the reactor was like a sweet ambrosia, drawing him in.
His body had turned into a whirlpool, sucking in as much as it could take, the dark matter within his cells feasting on the electrons with glee. He moved towards the crack in the reactor and looked it over, noting that the last aftershock had opened the reactor, the core material oozing out, melting the concrete and steel in a blue and white fire. His suit began to smolder as he got closer, until the cotton fibers ignited and burned away, leaving him naked, standing next to the nuclear pile.
"Plutonium-239. Half-life of 24,110 years. Let's see what we can do about that," Izuku thought aloud, reaching into the core material, plunging his hand into the super heavy mix of metals and radioactive elements, and willed the energy into himself.
There was a loud groan and cracking noise above Izuku, and he looked up just in time to see the concrete ceiling collapse. He pulled his hand out of the fuel and spun, ready to brace against the incoming concrete. It slammed into him, forcing him down, slamming his back right into the semi-liquid nuclear fuel.
Bright green arcs of power reached across his body and his eyes burst open, green light pouring out of his irises.
All Might watched in horror as the roof of the complex collapsed, the walls falling soon after. He didn't dare react in case someone was watching, but a shout behind him made him jump.
"What on earth?! Levels are falling drastically! There's no way the building collapse did that!" the engineer from early called out, practically dancing with excitement.
'Izuku must have succeeded, then. I just hope-'There was a rumbling and a high pitched whine in the air, and as All Might turned back to look at the plant, he was nearly blinded. A huge beam of green and black light burst through the rubble, chunks of concrete flying away from the beam as it reached into the sky.
Everyone around All Might stood in awe at the sight, the beam casting light all around, throwing sharp relief with the shadows across of the witnesses.
Then, just as suddenly as it had appeared, the beam petered out.
"What the hell was that?" the engineer asked. But All Might was already halfway to the collapsed building.
Izuku didn't wake up until the early afternoon the next day, sleeping longer than he ever had. He was groggy and disoriented, the confusion of being in his room throwing him for a loop.
'Must have used more power than I thought.' He made a mental note to work on his power meter idea.
The door to his room opened and Toshinori walked in, carrying a tray of rice, pork katsudon, and veggies, which he set on the end of Izuku's bed.
"Oh good, you're up," Toshinori said, looking over Izuku as he sat up, his stomach growling.
"Thanks for the food!" Izuku said, before tucking in, almost inhaling the rice and veggies, but slowed down and savored the pieces of fried pork cutlets. He swallowed and moaned in contentment, before looking at his father with a smile.
"This hits the spot. I'm exhausted and starving," he said in between mouthfuls.
"Good. Be sure to thank your mother," Toshinori said, a knowing smile on his face.
"So, how did we do yesterday?" Izuku asked as he took another bite.
"We did perfect. The core was totally inert, and everyone was saved. I'm proud of you," Toshinori said, smiling brightly.
Izuku looked at him curiously, "Then why am I sensing a 'but' somewhere in there?"
Toshinori chuckled and nodded.
"The 'but' is that someone got a picture of you. The media is aware that I wasn't alone, though they have no idea who you are," Toshinori said, pulling out his phone and playing a video showing the beam of light and then a blurry shot of All Might pulling Izuku up out of the rubble.
"You were unconscious, but the beam of light and then the molten ground around you were enough evidence that a formal inquiry is being launched. Since the public has the right to know about all Hero matters that don't involve state security, they will probably get the answer they want," he continued.
"But I doubt we'll have to worry about that just yet. People are still picking up the pieces from the earthquake and not really focusing on much else."
Izuku watched the video again, the beam of light mesmerizing him. How had he done that? He'd have to try it out again later.
"Anyway, I'm glad to see you up. Had me worried a bit. Take the rest of the day off, you earned it," Toshinori said, patting Izuku's shoulder before leaving the room.
Izuku smiled to himself and laid back down, picking up his phone, to see a text from Ochako, making his heart race and a smile cross his face.
She was asking how he slept and why he wasn't at training the other day.
He sent her a message letting her know he just woke up and that he was training with his father and that he was worn out. He stared regretfully at the screen, wishing that he didn't have to lie to her, but he made a promise that no one could know he was involved last night.
He decided to get up, took a nice long shower, and then grabbed a small snack before sitting down at his computer.
He started research into circuitry for his quirk, needing some way to watch how much power he was using, and to see his overall power level. He looked up piezoelectric circuits and magnetic resonance switches, both promising for other designs he had. He went down a rabbit hole on superconducting metals, advancements in metallurgy, and graphene polymers.
Ochako sent him a couple more messages, most of them talking about the homework they needed to do for their classes.
After a couple of hours of gathering ideas and researching designs for the power meter, he looked for local listings for someone that might be able to make the device he had in mind.
'Any type of prototyper or electronics guru should be able to make it,' he pondered, 'Wonder if Dad knows anyone.'
Izuku stepped out of his room, and found his parents watching TV together.
"Hey Dad?" Izuku asked, "do you know of anyone that can help me with something to monitor my power usage?"
Toshinori looked up at him, smiling and curious, "Good to see that you are thinking about that. I have a place that might be able to help. I'll text it to you. Just be sure to tell them that All Might sent you."
"Thanks," Izuku said, heading back to his room, as his phone jingled, the message from his father showing a place a couple of cities north.
"Looks like I'll have to take the train. Shouldn't take very long though," he thought. He got ready to leave, getting dressed and bid his parents goodbye, and then headed out towards the train station. He sent a message to Katsuki, Ochako, and the twins letting them know where he was going. They each sent a message of affirmation that it was a good idea, with Shoko and Ochako reminding him to make sure to get it in a good color.
Izuku chuckled and tucked his phone into his pocket, and then boarded the train a couple of minutes later. Two stops later, he got off, and following the map on his phone, found the little shop tucked into an alleyway.
A small hand painted sign that said Hatsume Hero Support and Mechanics was over the garage door. It was… quaint. Simple and clean, but Izuku knew that the pearls were often found in unsuspecting places.
He was just about to cross the threshold of the shop door, when there was a shout, a large bang and a huge cloud of smoke came billowing out in front of him. He walked through the door, a soft chime in the back went off, and then he heard an older scruffy voice.
"Gotdangit, Mei! How many times have I told you not to use the acetylene torch when you have combustibles on the table!?"
"But Grandpa, I'm so close to being done with my newest baby!"
"NO Mei! Go clean up the front. I heard the doorbell."
Izuku heard an exasperated sigh, and then saw a young woman with bright pink hair, a black tank top, and goggles on her head walk out of the back room with a broom. She looked up at him and stared for a second. Izuku smiled brightly at her.
"Hi there. I'm wondering if you can help me?"
Mei broke out of her stupor, and then rushed over to him.
"Oooh, so tall and muscley. You'd be perfect for a new baby I'm designing!"
"Uh, sorry, did you say baby?" Izuku looked over his shoulder as she poked and prodded his torso.
"Oh! You're interested! That's good! What's your blood type? Is it-"
"MEI! GET OVER HERE!" the scruffy voice called from behind the counter. Attached to the voice was an older man with a large salt and pepper mustache, overalls, and a baseball cap. He was glaring at Mei. She cowered behind Izuku for a second, then resigned herself to walk behind the counter.
"My apologies for my granddaughter, sir," the man bowed, "she has a very curious and inventive nature. My name is Hatsume."
"No apologies needed! Sounds like she is very enthusiastic." Izuku chuckled, as he smiled at Mei, who squirmed a little.
"You don't know the half of it. So, what can I do for you? Perhaps some work on hero gear?" the older man asked politely.
"Actually, I need some help with something custom. I have a very unique quirk that allows me to store and release energy in many forms."
The older man tilted his head in thought. Mei's face burst into a huge smile. She almost started vibrating with excitement.
"I need a device that will allow me to monitor my power storage and usage. I realize that it is a difficult challenge, but you were recommended to me. He seemed to think you'd be up for it." Izuku smiled as he watched Mei start fidgeting and could make out a small squeal coming from her.
"Who is this 'he' that recommended us? We don't usually get special requests." The old man looked skeptically at Izuku.
"All Might sent me," Izuku said simply.
With that, Mei positively exploded.
"GRANDPA! LET ME DO IT! HAVING SOMEONE THAT ALL MIGHT RECOMMENDED WOULD BE GREAT, just think about all the press I could get if he used my babies. PLEASE GRANDPA, LET ME DO IT!" She started bouncing on the spot.
"Easy, Mei! Down! STOP IT!" He glared at his granddaughter as she stopped bouncing. Then he turned to Izuku and started chuckling, "Well, it seems I have no choice in the matter now. Come with us, sonny. Let's see what we can do."
Izuku followed them around the counter and into the workshop. It was vastly different than the exterior portrayed. A whole wall covered in almost every tool imaginable, custom fabrication machines, 3-D Printers, and based on what Izuku had seen on the internet earlier, what looked like a 3-D metal extrusion table.
Izuku let out a low whistle as he looked around. "You have quite the setup here," he said as he marveled at the workspace.
Both Hatsumes were grinning with pride, Mei bouncing on the balls of her feet.
"We do what we can to help those who help others," the elder Hatsume said sagely, "Now, let's do some tests to see what we are dealing with."
Mei pulled a bunch of measurement devices, some that scared Izuku a little.
"Uh, what kind of...tests...are we talking about here?" Izuku asked apprehensively.
"Oh, nothing too dangerous," Mei said as she walked over, "Just need to get lots of measurements, and figure out how you store power, how much you have, etc."
"This won't take long," the elder Hatsume said, "Just don't get carried away, Mei. Focus on the customer's needs."
"Yea, yea." Mei nodded. She started muttering to herself as she measured Izuku's body, stuck probes to his skin, and various other tests.
After about an hour, she finally turned away from Izuku, wrote a bunch of notes down on a notepad, and then walked over to her grandfather. They talked in a low whisper for a couple of minutes, then both Hatsume's walked over to where Izuku was sitting.
He stood up and looked at their grinning faces, not sure how to feel about their looks of glee and mania.
"So, doctors, what's the prognosis?" he asked, chuckling nervously.
Elder Hatsume chuckled, "We have a good idea of how to make a device that will read your internal energy store and power output, but it's going to require a neural link. From what we can tell, your power is controlled by your nervous system, so we'll need a way to read it," he explained.
Izuku cocked an eyebrow up at the mention of his nervous system. They figured it out fast. It took him a couple of days to figure out how his quirk handled the energy.
"So, you really have two options," the elder Hatsume continued, "you can have a neural lace installed that will interface directly with your nervous system."
Izuku had read about neural laces, but the cost was extreme, the surgery dangerous, and there was a chance of it not working. Involving weaving superconducting fibers into his spinal column, into his brain, and down to his extremities, it wasn't something to be considered lightly.
"Or, you can just use a neural net scanner. No pain, no surgery, but you'd have to have the interface around your neck and back of your head in order to get an accurate reading. Also, it's nowhere near as accurate as the lace. Expect a 10 to 15% margin of error."
"Ok, well, obviously, we'll go with the neural net scanner. If the technology gets better or the surgery gets cheaper, then I'll consider it," Izuku said quickly, wanting to put the idea of surgery out of his mind.
"Great! I'll get working on it right away. Come back tomorrow! I'll have it ready for you!" Mei said enthusiastically, "Oooh, I already know exactly how i'm going to get this to work."
"Oh, okay!" Izuku said with surprise, "I wasn't expecting it to be done so soon. What about payment? How much is this going to cost?"
Mei wheeled around and sped off to one of the fabricators, leaving Izuku and elder Hatsume.
"Don't worry about payment, sonny. You said you are with All Might, and he's already squared it up with us," Hatsume said, grinning broadly.
"Oh! Wow! Thank you!" Izuku said exuberantly, bowing deeply in thanks.
"My pleasure. Like Mei said, come back tomorrow. We'll have something nice for you," Hatsume said.
"Sounds good!" Izuku said, turning to leave, waving goodbye.
He sent a couple texts to Ochako and Shoko, and a thank you to his father.
His journey home was quick, and when he got home, dinner was waiting. He talked to his parents about the Hatsumes and their shop, and all of the ideas he had now that he knew that a lot of it was possible. Toshinori grinned the whole time, the conversation reminding him about his time with his master, and his own enthusiasm.
After dinner and clean up, Izuku worked on his hero costume ideas. He had changed the greaves around a little, and the video Toshinori showed him had sprung new inspiration for a modification to the cuirass.
After an hour of drawing his ideas, he decided sleep was a good idea, and crawled into bed.
Sleep came easily.