ABDUCTION

Nezu liked his bathrobe. It had a soft, downy texture that even Aizawa's scarf couldn't match and whisked the moisture out of his damp fur without curling or fraying it. That the bathrobe was pitch-black, shadowed his face, and gave the overall vibe of a Sith Lord only made lounging in his office in it that much more appealing.

"How goes the preparations?" Nezu asked.

Power Loader, smartly dressed in a gray imperial officer's suit, saluted and said, "The final assembly of the station is complete, and your shuttle awaits immediate departure."

"Excellent. It occurs to me that I plan to spend the rest of my life on board that station, and I have no idea if it's up to the job. We should stress-test the station."

"Do you have something in mind?"

"I was planning on having the students fight the teachers for the final exam, but that sounds so pedestrian. Let's bring them on board the station and see what happens instead."

Power Loader grinned. "I had Hatsume inventing on board. It'll hold."

The next day, the students of 1-A nervously awaited their final exam. Aizawa strolled in with his scarf wrapped around his mouth.

"No doubt you've all heard that the final exam is normally another robot fight. In light of the increased villain activity, the HPSC has pushed for a more hands-on approach to ensure you're ready for the real world. So, today, you'll be facing against the faculty in assigned pairs. First up, we have…"

Aizawa's voice tapered off. In the front row, Kaminari and Koda slumped over. Yaoyorozu, noticing the gas, tried to make masks, but she fell asleep with half a mask protruding from her chest. One by one, the rest of the class slumped over their desks.

Izuku, still sitting upright, looked around at his unconscious classmates and asked, "Is it currently naptime? I was not aware that naptime was a part of the high-school curriculum."

"Ah, you're still awake." Nezu, still in his black bathrobe, appeared on a projector screen. "I thought you might be immune to Midnight's Quirk."

"Oh. Is this part of the exam?"

"As a matter of fact, it is, and it so happens that I have a very special role for you to play."

When Yaoyorozu finally woke up, she found her wrists bound to a cold metal wall.

"Hey you," Bakugo said, "You're finally awake."

"What happened? Where are we?"

"The machines got us. Hurry up and make a lockpick so I can bust us out of here."

Yaoyorozu made a lockpick, only for it to clatter to the floor.

"Do these cuffs even have a keyhole?" Yaoyorozu asked.

"Then make a keyhole! Jeez, you're supposed to be the smart one."

"My Quirk doesn't work like that. I burn fat to… I have an idea."

Five-hundred matryoshka dolls later, Yaoyorozu, shrunken to skin and bones, slid out of her restraints. With her lockpick, she opened Katsuki's cuffs.

"Turns out they have keyholes after all."

498