Chapter 3
Scarlett grimaced as she swallowed some pills with a gulp of water. She then handed the bottle of pills to Emma, who nodded gratefully.
"I can't believe you managed to live this long like this," Emma groaned as she swallowed the pills. "These headaches from all the voices and noises are insufferable!"
"You get used to them," Scarlett replied with a sigh. "Although it's definitely harder to endure in this world. There's so much more noise. The raindrop method Sung-Joo suggested back then only does so much."
Emma made a noise of agreement. "It's too bad that you can't turn off these senses."
"Well what can you do about it?" Scarlett murmured. "There's only so much a human can do, powers or not."
Emma looked down, a frown present on her face. She knew that the job of a hero is one that has a lot of burden. But a part of her was still so afraid of the day when her abilities aren't enough to save someone. Although she tries, she cannot save everyone. Mike, those kids from Goldy Pond, all the demons in the capital (although most were reverted back, some were already eaten or sustained too many lethal injuries), and Peter Ratri were prime examples.
The two of them walked out of the gym, done with training for the day. The entrance exam was just in a few days and Scarlett was starting to feel doubts. But she pushed them back with all her might. This isn't the time to stress. Both of them will do fine. She has to believe that, or it won't happen. That was what she tried to convince herself with.
"Ray," she greeted her boyfriend, who was waiting for them at the end of the hall.
"How was training?" Ray asked as he held her hand.
"Same old," Scarlett shrugged, trying to seem nonchalant.
"But we're as ready as we can be!" Emma added, feeling a bit like a 3rd wheel.
"That's good," Ray said. "I know you guys will ace it."
"Thanks," Emma replied, grinning from ear to… her left side. "I have to go meet up with Norman for a date. I'll see you guys at dinner!"
As she ran away, Ray then turned to Scarlett and demanded, "Ok, what's up with you?"
"What do you mean?" She questioned, a bit startled by the change.
"Scarlett. I know how you act and feel. We've been together our whole lives. I know when there's something troubling you."
She sighed. "I figured you'd notice." The two of them sat on a couch in one of the drawing rooms. "I'm just nervous about the exam. What if I fail? What if I underestimate the other contestants? If I do fail… do I have to find another aspiration again?" Her teeth clenched at that last sentence. Fear filled her with the possibility of that.
"You won't," Ray reassured her confidently.
"But what if I do?" Scarlett questioned harshly. "Don't give me any of that 'believe in yourself' or 'do your best' bullshit!" She leaned back on the couch and put a hand over her eyes in exhaustion.
"You're right. That won't help you," he conceded. "So I'll be honest with you. There's always a chance of failure. Nothing will change that. But I've seen what you can do. You were the best at hand to hand combat, you defeated dozens of demons at once, you even killed the queen of the demons herself! Compared to what you've done, this is nothing. All there is to it is that people are now evaluating you. Just do what you've always done, and everything will be ok."
"But what if they're not looking for what I have?" Scarlett whispered softly. "What if they think I'm a threat to them?"
"Then they're idiots," Ray declared. "Because I believe you can be one of the greatest heroes to walk this planet. To some of us, you already are." He made her look up to see his exasperated but reassuring look.
"I'm so scared," Scarlett admitted, removing her hand from her eyes and looking at the other person. "I'm scared that I'll have to give up another dream."
"That's not going to happen," Ray denied. "Scarlett… You are amazing, in so many ways. You fight for who you love, no matter how beat up you are, and you make your own judgement. Your mentality has always been a weak point of yours. But believe me when I say that you are the strongest person I have ever met."
A blush bloomed on her cheeks from all the complements. "Ray…"
"So when I say you will ace the exam, you will," Ray finished.
Scarlett suddenly engulfed him into a hug, which he gladly accepted. "Ray, you're amazing too. You've always done the best for our family. You were always a bit jaded, although I can't deny I am too. But that's what made you rational and have the most level headed thinking. But what I like the best about you, is that you're not afraid to speak up or say what's on your mind. ...I love you."
Both of them turned red. That was the first time either of them had made an outright confession like that, despite being a couple for a few years now. They were not your usual couple, and were rather awkward when it came to this kind of stuff.
"...I love you… too," Ray muttered awkwardly.
The two of them leaned in towards each other for a kiss. Both were now far better kissers than they were before. It almost made Scarlett cringe at how bad their first kiss was. But it was also the one that she remembered the most.
They released from each other when both had run out of air. Scarlett rested her head on his chest. "I guess we'll find out the outcome in a few days' time."
Ray wrapped his arms around her. "Yeah."
~0~0~0~0~0~
Today was the day. The day of evaluation to enter UA High School, the top school for heroes in Japan as well as one of the best in the whole world. The morning was jammed packed with preparation. Gilda had helped them select their clothes to wear for the exam as well as to give them something.
"Reveal your necks to me," Gilda ordered.
A bit confused, Emma and Scarlett did so, their tattooed numbers on full display.
Emma giggled a bit from the light brushing of a brush on her neck. "W-what are you doing, Gilda?"
"The Ratri clan created this recently," she explained as she continued to apply the skin-colored substance over the numbers. "After you guys revealed to them about going to UA, they decided to create something that would disguise your tattoos better than just clothing or makeup. It'd be really bad if they were somehow exposed. Clothing can be easily removed and makeup can just be wiped off, waterproof or not. This substance is not only waterproof, but apparently it can only be wiped off with this solution." Gilda gestured over to a bottle with a purple-colored substance.
Emma sighed in relief. "That was one of my major concerns. Now that's out of the way."
Scarlett murmured agreement as Gilda smeared the substance on her neck as well. "I'm surprised they went this far for us though, even if it was protecting the secret." Animosity was etched into her voice.
Gilda frowned at her tone. "Well, they had been planning to do this for a while now. It's just your situation that got them to move this higher up on their list."
The ravenette scowled. "I wonder what else is on their list."
Out of all of them, Scarlett was likely the one who held the most hate for the Ratri clan. Perhaps only the Lambda people, including Norman, could have rivaled it. No one blamed her though. After all, she was one of the most affected. Being a guinea pig in experiments as a newborn, surrounded by other newborns that were not so lucky, obtaining her powers against her will (although she doesn't have as much of a grudge on that anymore), and the Ratri clan basically being the cause of Mike's death. She had plenty of reason to resent them.
Emma bit her lip. "Um… we'd better get going! We don't want to be late, right?"
All of them gathered at the front to send off Scarlett and Emma.
"You guys got this!" Lannion cheered for them.
"We'll be waiting here to celebrate once we get back!" Don added.
Scarlett raised an eyebrow. "But we won't know until they send us word about our placement."
"Pshh!" Don smirked. "We all know you guys will make it! We know how hard you guys have been training for all these months. If you don't make it, I'll eat my football!"
"Wanna bet on that?" Nat quipped.
Yuugo looked at them nervously. "Make sure you two support each other the best you can. And try not to get too hurt… don't do anything stupid while you're there, and try your best to-"
"I think they get it," Lucas interjected, smiling in amusement. "They don't need you to say that to them. They're growing up fast. And they understand what they need to do."
"That's what I don't like," Yuugo muttered quietly enough that only Lucas could hear. "They're just… kids. And they were even younger when we were a resistance group against the demons and farms. They shouldn't have had to go through what we did. Prodigies or not, it doesn't change their age. Kids in this day and age are incredibly naive. But that's how they should have been. It's a sign of innocence and purity. They don't have that anymore. Not even Emma. Scarlett too. Both of them had some of the best skills out of all of us. And sometimes… I forget that they were only 10 and 12 then."
"That's just reality," Lucas muttered back. "And well, in some twisted way, it gives them an advantage. They understand just how important life is. That's what makes them special and strong."
Norman was hugging Emma tightly. "Good luck. I know you two will do great."
"Thanks!" Emma said happily, giving him a peck on the cheek. "I also know you'll be the best in the business course once we start school!"
Norman laughed. "Well, we'll see about that. And when we all graduate, I'll be your manager and advisor. How does that sound?"
"Strangely… fantastic," Emma replied with a smile.
"We can start designing your costumes when you get back," Ray suggested.
"And I'll help with that!" Gilda added.
Scarlett raised an eyebrow. "I think you guys are getting a bit too ahead of yourselves."
"Maybe you're not going far ahead enough!" Gilda countered.
Phil ran towards them and hugged Scarlett and Emma tightly. "Don't worry! We have complete faith in you! We'll support you all the way!"
"Thanks Phil!" Emma laughed, a cute grin on her face.
"Yeah… thanks," Scarlett echoed, hugging him back. She was getting better and better at hugs. It sounds like something to not be proud of, but for someone like her, it is.
"I'm glad you're cheering us on, little monkey man!" Emma teased the boy.
"Hey!" Phil pouted. "I'm growing up! Soon, you can't say that I have a monkey face anymore! You'll see!"
"You'll always be our resident monkey prodigy," Norman responded in amusement.
"The car is waiting out front," one of the bodyguards announced, completely destroying the mood.
"Oh… well, we'll see you guys later!" Emma said as the two of them walked out the door and to the car.
"Make sure you wipe the floor with the other participants!" Thoma and Lannion yelled.
"And don't do anything stupid, alright Emma?" Anna reprimanded.
"...I'm just going to assume that was for both of us," the ginger muttered mutinously.
The car was a sleek black and clearly was very expensive. It also had tinted windows so that no one could see who's inside. The inside had matching black leather seats complete with cupholders, outlets for charging devices, and even a control module for air conditioning and heating.
"I don't get why we can't just use a taxi like when we usually go out," Scarlett muttered.
"Well, today's a special day, right?" Emma pointed out.
"And all this would do is attract more attention," Scarlett scoffed.
They got into the back seats and put on their seatbelts. When they were fully seated, the driver drove out of their property and towards UA High School.
"You got everything you need?" Scarlett asked.
Emma nodded. "Well, it's not like we can bring a lot anyways…"
The ginger was wearing a forest green sweatshirt with blue sweatpants and red sneakers while the ravenette wore a purple jacket with black sweatpants and white sneakers. Her hair was in a tall ponytail and tied with a different ribbon since her old one was too worn out. And since she was in public, her hair was once again covering her eye instead of an eyepatch. Everyone else would wear similar things during the practical exam but they would likely wear their school uniforms during the written exam. They were exceptions though, so this is what they would be wearing the entire day.
"I'm so nervous!" Emma blurted out, shocking the driver momentarily. Luckily they were still speaking english. Although that didn't make things a lot better. "What if the opponents are just as hard to fight as you?"
"Don't worry," Scarlett responded. "You've gotten a whole lot better. You even bested me the last time we sparred."
"Yeah, but still!" Emma complained, shaking the other girl aggressively. "That was only because you had to handicap yourself! Even then, I only won cause you only used your left hand, which is your non-dominant one!"
"Oi, you're scaring the driver."
The ride was mostly quiet for the rest of the time. Both of them were too deep in their thoughts to talk to each other. Emma kept on flicking her antenna while Scarlett absently twirled her rose ring on her finger.
"We're here," the driver announced.
The two of them thanked the driver and stepped out to see quite the sight.
"Um… this… is a high school?!" Emma squeaked out.
"Holy crap," Scarlett breathed out. "Forget high school, this is enough to fit every single person from the farms and more!"
"This… how can they afford this?!" Emma exclaimed, her neck starting to hurt from looking up.
"Emma, let's go. People would look at us," Scarlett said after snapping out of her stupor. She started walking.
"R-right!"
They walked through the courtyard with the many other participants. While some looked normal, others didn't seem to be even from this planet. Was that a bird head? And a mosquito?!
"So many people…" Emma murmured.
"Don't be intimidated," Scarlett replied.
"I'm not!" The ginger insisted.
As they continued to walk towards the building, Scarlett noticed with her peripheral vision of a green haired boy that had just tripped. She quickly reached out a hand to use her powers but someone already beat her to the chase. A brunette girl with pink cheeks used her quirk to prevent the boy from falling. The ravenette lowered her own hand and looked forward again.
'That boy… wasn't he the one from that day with the sludge villain? He's applied here as well? It's a small world, isn't it? From the little I've seen from him… he's naive, that's for sure. But he has a good heart as well. And he definitely… gives off the vibe of a fumbler. Well, we'll see if he makes it in or not. Is his hot headed friend also here? Can I even call him his friend?'
Emma noticed how she tried to help the boy before someone already did. "That girl has an interesting quirk. She can make things float, right? I wonder if it's more than that?"
"Well, there wasn't that much to go off of," Scarlett responded. "Looks like her quirk activates when she touches someone though."
Without any more interruptions, they made it into the school and into the exam orientation room. It housed all the participants easily. The entire room was dark for the most part as they took the written exam, only stationed desk lamps lit up to see the questions. Many cameras as well as staff members patrolled the room, making sure that no one was cheating by using their quirk or not.
There really wasn't much to say for the written exam. As expected, Scarlett and Emma completely aced the test. Much of the stuff was things they learned at Grace Field. The few things that their Mom hadn't taught them were learned when they came to the human world. However, the written exam wasn't what they were truly worried about. Especially since the written exam wasn't judged very critically compared to the practical.
It took a few hours for everyone to finish their exams. As soon as one person finished, their test would be taken away to prevent their answers from being stolen or from them sharing them with friends or classmates. A few foolish people had attempted to use some crafty ways to cheat, but were instantly found out. They were kindly escorted out of the room, being disqualified for trying out and utterly humiliated. UA clearly did not tolerate anything that was considered scummy or bad.
When everyone had finished, they started talking with their classmates next to them. Scarlett turned to Emma to do the same.
"How'd you do?"
"I feel pretty confident!" Emma replied. "To be honest, a part of me was a little bit worried about the written exam. But…" She lowered her voice to a whisper. "I didn't expect for it to be as easy as this."
"Well we know Grace Field had high standards," Scarlett whispered back. "It only makes sense it feels like this. Although I bet everyone else would have a harder time."
"Yeah. But now the real exam starts," Emma said. "It's the practical exam that's important. The written one isn't nearly as focused on."
"It's expected for a school to train future heroes," Scarlett agreed.
A bunch of small slips of paper were handed out to all of them. Scarlett looked down at hers to see her own stoic picture as well as the words exam ticket on it. There was also one more thing that caught her eye. The test locations. Hers was at Battle Center C.
"Hey, what does yours say?" Emma asked, leaning over. "Aw… I'm at Battle Center A."
"That's to be expected," Scarlett responded. "We're both transfer students that know each other well, so it would be unfair if we worked together. I bet they separated students who go to the same schools as well."
"That makes sense…" Emma conceded. "But still! I was hoping at least I could see one familiar face…"
Suddenly, a bunch of spotlights started to turn on as well as the giant screen in front of all of them. The UA symbol was on it. And at the center of it all, was the pro hero, Present Mic, who was also one of the teachers.
"HELLO EVERYONE! WELCOME TO MY SHOW TODAY!" Present Mic yelled.
'He's already loud enough without his quirk,' Emma sweatdropped.
His arms were spread out as he shouted out, "EVERYBODY SAY 'HEY'!"
No one said a peep, which led to quite the awkward silence.
Scarlett sighed.
Then Emma shouted back in reply, "HEY!"
Present Mic grinned, glad that at least someone responded. "THAT'S THE SPIRIT!"
Scarlett stopped herself from smacking her face as she glared at Emma, who laughed sheepishly in response.
"What a refined response!" Present Mic said. "Now, I'll present to all of you the rundown on the practical exam!"
Everyone started exchanging excited and nervous glances with each other.
"Now… ARE YOU READY?! YEAHHHHH!"
Once again, only Emma yelled out in reply. Scarlett was starting to get some serious secondhand embarrassment just from sitting next to her. It didn't help that some of the students started to laugh.
"Oh my god… i-it's the Voice Hero… Present Mic… Wow…!" A nearby voice started muttering.
Scarlett pinpointed it to the green haired boy once again. Geez, what was with her and noticing everything he does? She also saw the angry kid next to him. Well, it'll be interesting to see how they'll do.
"I listen to him every week on the radio…" The green haired kid continued mumbling.
"All the teachers at UA are pro heroes…!"
'He's a fanboy…' Scarlett sighed once again.
"Shut up," the angry kid next to him muttered.
"For your practical exam," Present Mic continued, "you listeners will be conducting ten-minute mock urban battles!"
The screen changed from the logo to a diagram with letters from A to G on them.
"You can change into better outfits before you go to your designated area!" Present Mic explained to them. "Once again, we will give you all one last warning! No items that will boost your score in any way! You can only rely on yourself and your quirk! Or even team up with others! If you are caught cheating, you are disqualified! After you are ready, please go to your area. It should be on the cards handed out to you! Oh! And we're also handing out documents with more details on your exam!"
As he said that, papers were passed out to all of them. Everyone began reading them immediately.
'4 types of robots…' Emma thought. 'Each worth a different amount of points. Except the last one… it looks huge and the hardest one. But there's nothing that says how many points it's worth. Was it a printing mistake?'
'Robots. It depends on how hard they really are, but I'm feeling good about this,' Scarlett said in her mind.
The screen changed once again to a small cluster of buildings.
"Three types of faux villains are stationed in each area!" Said villains were shown on the screen along with the amount of points they are worth. "You earn points for them based on their difficulty. Your goal, dear listeners, is to use your quirks to earn points by immobilizing the faux villains!"
Present Mic pointed a finger at all of them. "Of course, attacking other examinees as well as other unheroic acts are also strictly prohibited!" Despite his loud but friendly tone, everyone could hear the warning in his voice.
Out of nowhere, a brand new person stood up within the crowd. He had a perfectly straight spine and wore a rather crisp and fancy school uniform. The male had short, dark blue hair and wore glasses with rectangular frames.
His arm was straight as a pole as he raised it. "May I ask a question?" Even his tone was very stiff and proper.
"Okay!" Present Mic agreed, speaking in English.
The spotlight landed on the student, who was holding his packet that was handed to all of them. He pointed to the page with all the villains.
"On the printout, there are four types of villains!" The male said. "If that is a mistake, then UA, the most prominent school in Japan, should be ashamed of that foolish mistake!"
Emma felt a bead of sweat fall off her face. "He sure doesn't hold back his punches."
"Way too strict for my liking," Scarlett muttered in reply.
"We examinees are here in this place because we wish to be molded into exemplary heroes!" The strict boy continued. He suddenly whipped around and pointed to the green haired boy behind him. "In addition, you there with the curly hair-"
Said boy pointed to himself nervously. "M-me?"
The other male glared at him. "You've been muttering this whole time. It's distracting! If you're here on a pleasure trip, you should leave immediately!"
The green haired kid lowered his head in embarrassment. "I'm sorry…"
A few people laughed.
Scarlett made a 'tch' sound, having just about enough of this. She stood up, much to Emma's surprise.
"Scarlett?!"
"Oi, you," Scarlett uttered in a dangerous tone.
"What's this? A new challenger approaches!" Present Mic announced, seemingly enjoying this. Immediately, he cowered at her stare though.
A spotlight also shone on her, much to her annoyance. Everyone turned their gazes to her. "What makes you think that you have the right and the authority to say whether people should be here or not?"
The male's spine grew even stiffer, if it was even possible. "T-that was not what I was trying to portray! I was merely pointing out that he should get his priorities straight!"
"Really? What an interesting way to do so." Her glare was even more prominent. Many people averted their gaze, scared of her. Even the strict boy wavered slightly.
"People express things in different ways." Scarlett crossed her arms as she pushed hair out of the right side of her face. "That boy was clearly very nervous and expressed it by his mumbling. Yes, it's annoying. But you didn't have to embarrass him in front of all these people. And said people shouldn't have the audacity to laugh at some person's misfortune. What kind of heroes are you trying to be?" Her visible eye narrowed.
No one had the gall to laugh now.
Emma let out a sigh of exasperation and amusement. 'When Scarlett gets fired up about something, nothing can stop her. Although I'm the exact same.'
The green haired kid looked at her in shock and a bit of embarrassment. 'Oh my god! Another girl! She's… sticking up for me? But why? I'm not complaining though! So many girls I've met today! Although… she's a bit too scary for me.' He found himself liking more cute girls like that brunette from earlier. No offence to that other person, of course!
The angry kid next to him scoffed. 'What's with these extras, trying to defend Deku? Well, it doesn't matter anyways! There's no way he'll pass, no matter how well he did on the written exam! It doesn't mean crap compared to the practical, which I'll get 1st in! I'll crush anyone who gets in my way!'
"You're right. We're applying to be heroes," Scarlett conceded. "Then act like one. That's all from me." She sat back down again and glared at the spotlight on her. It disappeared from sight, as if it too was scared of her.
'Was that a bit too much?' She mused. 'I hope not. I just hate how conceited and rude people can be. The boy didn't do anything wrong. Society… just likes to trample on those who are weak. God I have a killer headache.'
The other boy from earlier too sat down, looking much more uncomfortable and perhaps a bit ashamed of his behavior. The spotlight around him disappeared too.
Present Mic cleared his throat awkwardly. "Okay, okay, examinee #6452 and #7111. Thank you for the great messages! To answer the question though, there is indeed a 4th type of faux villain! And it is worth zero points! Z-E-R-O!"
The zero point robot appeared on the screen with the others.
Present Mic pointed to it. "That guy is more of an obstacle, so to speak. There's one in each battle center- an obstacle that will go crazy in narrow areas. It's not impossible to defeat, but there's no point in trying to either! I recommend you listeners try your best to avoid it!"
"I see," a nearby participant said to their friend. "It's like an obstacle in video games, huh?"
"This whole thing is like a video game," the friend whispered back.
Present Mic spread his arms out. "That's all from me! Finally, I'll give you listeners a final message. The motto of our school! The hero Napoleon Bonaparte once said: 'A true hero is someone who overcomes life's misfortunes.'" Winking, he then yelled out, "Go beyond! PLUS ULTRAAAAA!"
Excited whispers started to sound throughout the hall.
"Now, everyone, good luck suffering!"
"What a nice message," Scarlett said sarcastically. "Let's get ready."
Emma nodded. "Yeah. Although I have to ask, why did you help that kid?"
"Do I need permission to do that?"
"Of course not!" Emma denied as the two of them walked through the halls. "It's just… you're not the type to help someone you just met. Not that you haven't!" She quickly added. "But I've never seen you be that willing to do that. You're always suspicious of people. So you don't help them as readily as you would with one of the others."
Scarlett looked straight ahead. "Yeah… who knows why…"
They heard someone running towards them with their enhanced hearing, and turned around to see the green haired kid running towards them.
"Oh, you're that mumbling kid, right?" Emma asked cheerfully.
'A-another girl!' He looked as though he was going to faint. 'And she's so cute! No, focus, Izuku! That's not why you're here!'
The green haired male forced himself to stare straight at the scary female next to the ginger. "T-thank you for earlier. I r-really appreciate it!"
"It's no big deal," Scarlett responded monotonously. "But some advice for you? Stand up for yourself. A hero in training can't be walked over so easily."
"R-right!" He instinctively bowed, to which the ravenette snorted slightly at.
"Maybe we'll see each other later!" Emma offered, waving goodbye.
The two of them continued walking away.
The green haired kid had a look of success. 'I talked with two more girls today! Man, UA is full of surprises! Although… Why does that black haired girl seem familiar? But I don't think we've met each other before…'
~0~0~0~0~0~
Scarlett watched as everyone in her group was gaping at the giant gate into their mock city. Where the exam will take place. All of them were out of their school uniforms and into track suits or anything comfortable to move around in.
'How much money does this school have?' She thought incredulously. 'And they can just go ahead and build another fake city again with no problems?'
"This city is huge!" An alien looking person gushed.
"Not only that, but they made more than one of them!" Another participant exclaimed.
Scarlett sighed, stretching out her long legs. She wished that Emma was here, but there's nothing that can be done about that. All that can be done is to do their best so that the other one doesn't have to worry.
'I wish I had my katana though. Or at least some kunais.'
The ravenette looked at all the people in her group analyzing them. For some of them, she had at least a guess at what their quirk was. But appearances don't exactly match up with their quirk all the time. There was the bird head person again, so maybe something aerial? There was also a girl that had the features of a frog, which is explanatory enough. However, the somewhat broody-looking guy with purple hair was a mystery as well as many others.
All of them were her opponents. They might not be fighting each other, but they will be fighting over the same thing. There's only a certain amount of robots, so you have to destroy as many as you can before the others do. Present Mic had given them the suggestion to team up, but considering that they split up students who go to the same school, it wasn't likely that many would do so. Not only that, but even those who try will likely be looking out for themselves only. They hardly know each other, so they won't be able to give each other the trust and help they need.
'I should only rely on myself,' Scarlett thought.
"OKAY, START!" Present Mic's voice sounded out from the tall tower he was on.
Everyone in her group and probably the other groups too had turned towards his voice. Well, almost everyone. When she was given the go, Scarlett immediately ran into the mock city. He said start right? What's the point in waiting?
"WHAT'S WRONG?" The voice hero questioned. "THERE'S NO COUNTDOWN IN REAL FIGHTS! LOOKS LIKE SOMEONE IN BATTLE CENTER C ALREADY GOT THE GIST OF IT! IF YOU WANT TO GET IN, START MOVING!"
Immediately, everyone started running, therefore starting their exam.
As Scarlett ran through the city, a building ahead of her suddenly broke and a one pointer robot came out of the hole.
"Target acquired," the robot's voice said, turning towards her and charging.
"Well what do you know, I also acquired my target!" Scarlett glowed red as she used her telekinesis to crush the robot.
One point.
With her hearing, Scarlett heard the footsteps of the others. They weren't far behind, so she needed to get as many points as possible.
'Let's just go all out!' She levitated herself and flew at an astonishing speed through the fake city.
A two pointer that was hanging on the side of a building launched itself at her with a giant metal claw.
Instantly, with a sharp red slash, the robot was cut into half. As the two halves fell to the ground, Scarlett grabbed them with telekinesis and used them as weapons against the other robots that had found her. One after one, they were crushed by the pieces as she moved them around.
The other people finally caught up to her to see quite the sight. From their point of view, she looked… terrifyingly powerful, for lack of a better word. Her glowing red skin and hair made her look more intimidating, and the scraps of metal that were the robots all around her only added to the effect.
'15 points,' Scarlett counted.
"Woah, that girl is insane!" The alien girl from earlier exclaimed.
"There's no time to ogle," the avian person muttered to himself. "I must catch up! Dark Shadow!"
A dark avian-looking creature came out of him and started to attack a 2 pointer robot rather viciously.
"Yeah! Woo hoo!" The alien girl cheered. A clear looking goop came out of her hands and melted another robot nearby. She splattered the goop all over the ground and slid through the city.
'So these guys' quirks really don't have anything to do with their appearances,' Scarlett thought absently. 'No matter! Focus on yourself!'
Seeing as this place was becoming more populated with other participants, Scarlett flew to a different area.
"Target spotted. Must destroy," a three pointed intoned from the top of the roof.
She didn't attack it right away, even when it started to launch freaking missiles at her. Should that be allowed?! At least they weren't heat-seeking ones, so they were easy to dodge for the most part. …Had she really gotten to the point where she was thankful for missiles that didn't trace her?
'I have to time it just right…'
Two of the two pointer robots as well as a one pointer were right below it.
'Come on, start moving! I don't have all day!'
Suddenly, the three pointer ran towards her, but then she suddenly sliced it up with sharp red discs, making sure it wasn't completely diced, and the pieces fell to the ground where the other robots were. It effectively earned her eight points that would have used up more of her powers if she had destroyed them individually.
There was almost nothing but her powers that were effective against these guys. No amount of hand-to-hand combat experience and practice would do anything but give you broken bones and bruises against these robots. Maybe a few one pointers. She'll have to improvise. It'll probably be best to not use her energy manipulation part of her powers too much since it uses more energy than her telekinesis.
Robot after robot was destroyed, either by being crushed with telekinesis, being thrown into another robot, or making the robots destroy each other. That last method counts as points, right?
Scarlett dodged another missile and used her telekinesis to aim it at a different group of robots nearby. She also levitated a large chunk from a ruined building and threw it at the three pointer that aimed the missile at her in the first place.
Everyone nearby gaped at her as she effortlessly destroyed the robots.
"Oh come on!"
"How am I supposed to get more points if someone like that is around?!"
"This is so unfair! Leave some for the rest of us!"
She contemplated stopping right there and leaving the leftover robots for the rest of them. But in the end, she decided against it. They were using her as an excuse for why they can't get points. Sure, she gets the robots before they can most likely, but there were also tons of robots around for everyone. Scarlett didn't destroy every single robot in sight. She had to save her energy as well. It'd be inefficient and foolish to try to destroy every single robot she comes across. You need to go for the ones worth more points. Not only that, but those who were complaining had gotten to some robots but they could barely take down a one pointer.
'I hate it when people blame others for something they cannot do. Sure, I might have strong powers. Maybe yours aren't that strong or a bad matchup here. But that still doesn't give you the right to think that I got it easy. For me, it took years of training and conditioning to get to where I am now! Years of finding effective ways to train and passing out from overexerting my powers. Emma and Anna are developing their powers faster because one, they got them when their bodies were more mature, and two, I was able to help them out with my experience. When I had to train, I didn't have anyone to really ask about my powers.'
Scarlett sighed as she landed on a rooftop. "I'm not that nice. Not nearly as nice as Emma or Anna."
'I wonder how Emma's doing…'
~0~0~0~0~0~
"Woah!" Emma yelped, jumping back as a two pointer attempted to crush her into the ground. A small crater was made.
"I have to wonder if anyone died from these exams," Emma murmured worriedly. Blue lightning crackled around her as she avoided another swipe. She accelerated her speed so that now she was next to the robot. After touching it, the robot was nothing but a chunk of rusty metal.
As a three pointer attempted to grab her from behind, the ginger jumped up and landed on its metal arm. With a single touch and thought, she made the robot go in slow motion. As it tried to shake her off very slowly, with a single kick, she destroyed the device that controlled the robot. It powered down and fell with a thud.
'Got to find more of them!' She made herself go faster and sped down through the streets, blue lightning crackling in her wake.
"AHH!" A girl's voice sounded nearby.
Emma paused as she was about to go after a three pointer. What should she do? There was clearly a person in trouble that could probably use their help. But then it was also a loss of time to get more points. She hadn't kept track of them, so she didn't know if getting more points is the top priority right now. What to do?
Well, that was obvious. Anyone who knows her would immediately guess what she would do in a heartbeat.
"Did someone call for help?!" Emma called out as she ran towards the direction where the voice came from.
The three pointer stayed where it was. Until it was destroyed moments later by a large explosion from a just as explosive blonde.
"CAN SOMEONE HELP?!" The same voice yelled with a grunt.
Emma finally found the person in need. It was another orange haired girl who had her hair tied in a side ponytail. Her fists were enlarged as she tried to bash the robot that had her in its grasp. This robot seemed to have some sort of sensor however as it easily dodged every single one of her attacks.
"Here!" Emma was running at it in a flash and gave it a good kick. It was pushed back only a little bit, as expected. But it was enough time for Emma to make it erode away with her powers.
"Ah… that hurt," Emma winced, hopping on one foot. "Ow… ow… ow!"
"Well," the other ginger panted as she recovered, "what did you expect? It's made of metal. But thanks!"
"No problem!" She grinned, sweatdropping at her comment about the metal. 'My leg would probably be a crooked mess if I didn't have the resistance the cursed blood had given me.'
"My name is Itsuka Kendo," the new girl greeted.
"Nice to meet you Itsu- oh wait," Emma realized. "Sorry, I meant Kendo. I forgot that Japanese people call each other by their last names unless they're close acquaintances."
"You're a foreigner?" Kendo's eyes widened at that. "Wow! I suppose you don't really look Japanese, but with all the crazy mutation quirks around, you can't really tell one's ethnicity, huh? Your Japanese is really good though!"
Emma laughed, a hint of a bashful blush on her cheeks. "Thanks! My name is Emma Willliams," she introduced, giving her alias last name.
"Nice to meet you, Williams," Kendo said with a smile.
"Er…" It felt awkward to be called by a fake name. "Just call me Emma! We're used to being called by first names anyway in America!"
Kendo hesitated, but gave in. "Emma it is then." She then noticed something on the side of the other ginger's head. "Your ear…"
Emma tucked some hair out of embarrassment. "Ah, sorry. As you've noticed, I don't have a left ear."
Kendo wanted to ask why badly but the rational side of her knew that prying wouldn't make a good impression on the other girl.
Emma then remembered what they were supposed to be doing. "Oh! We'd better continue getting points!"
"You're right!" Kendo exclaimed, flustered. "Um… do you want to work together?"
Emma looked at her in surprise, but also scrutinized her. Kendo looked as though she genuinely wanted to do so, but they had just met after all. Still, it wouldn't hurt to have help, right? And if she does go back on her word, Emma can take care of her.
Flicking her electric blue hair streak, Emma agreed. "Why not?"
As a tag team, the two of them defeated robot after robot. Their teamwork was far from perfect, but they still supported each other to the best of their ability, such as having each other at their backs.
"This is great!" Emma laughed as they ran through the streets.
"Right? I don't regret teaming up with you," Kendo responded. "We're a great team!"
Their happy mood was dimmed however, as a brand new obstacle appeared before them. A robot that was far bigger than any of the other robots they were fighting.
"What… is that?"
~0~0~0~0~0~
Minutes Earlier
Cameras had been placed in every battle center so that all the judges, aka the teachers, could properly evaluate each and every participant. All Might too was in the room, but as he was a brand new teacher, number one or not, he wasn't a judge.
Principal Nezu was smiling as he looked at all the footage of the contestants. Specifically the more promising ones. "In this practical exam, none of them were told of the number of villains nor their locations. There's only a limited amount of them in each area, so it's first come, first serve. I am impressed with how they lure out each villain however. Whether it's to get information before the others," he looked at the monitor that showed Mezo Shoji surveying on a rooftop, "mobility that can be used in many different circumstances," his gaze turned to Tenya Iida after he kicked a robot to bits, "discernment to be able to stay calm in any situation," his attention then went to Yuga Aoyama, who was shooting a beam out of his belly button while also strangely looking at the camera…
Well, let's just ignore that.
"Pure combat ability," Nezu continued, looking at Katsuki Bakugo who looked at the robot he exploded in glee.
"Teamwork," the chimera said, now looking at Itsuka Kendo and one of the American students, Emma Williams, and their unexpected tag team. It needed a lot of refining for sure, but considering they just met each other, it was very impressive.
"And finally… strategy," he finished, his gaze at last landing on one of the other American students, Scarlett Evans, who had strategically destroyed five robots simultaneously by using them to weaken each other before going for the final blow herself. She was a shoe in for sure.
"Ahh!" Midnight squealed, hugging her torso tightly. "What a promising bunch this year!"
"Not only that, but we have six transfer students from America!" Cementoss added. "I don't remember the last time we had that many. And two who are opting for the hero course seem very impressive. The other girl, Pony Tsunotori, was it? She's not bad either. All of them have an excellent skill set."
Aizawa looked at the monitors with a tired stare. He just wanted to go to sleep. The stakeout last night took longer than expected. "We'll see about that."
"Oh Shota," Midnight sighed playfully. "Here comes your usual antics. I feel terrible for whoever is going to be in your class! Will you expel an entire class again?"
"That class was a bunch of arrogant and cocky children," Aizawa retorted. "I had nothing I could teach them."
"But even though you expelled them, they still managed to get to the next year! Although that will be on their records permanently…"
"Now, now," All Might interjected. "This isn't the time to bicker! This is the time to find out who will be the next generation of heroes!" However, his gaze was on a certain green haired boy, running through the streets with not a single point in his pocket.
"Precisely so!" Nezu agreed. A sadistic smile appeared on his face all of a sudden, sending shivers into everyone's spines. "Ectoplasm, would you be so kind as to… start the final exam?"
"Of course," Ectoplasm replied. He reached over to a red button as its glass covering was removed. "The real test begins now."
~0~0~0~0~0~
"So that's… the zero pointer," Scarlett breathed out as she saw it moving towards her. 'They weren't kidding when it was a lot harder than any of these robots! And since it's worth zero points, there's no point in trying to attack it at all. But… is it really only here just to be a final obstacle? There has to be more, right? But right now… it'd definitely be in my best interest to just leave. I'm sure Legravalima was more of a challenge by far, but It's best not to push my luck.'
And with that, the ravenette took off, running as fast as she could in the opposite direction where the robot came from. Several other participants were doing the same thing, although in a much louder sense, screaming and cursing at the top of their lungs.
"WHAT THE HELL?! ARE THEY INSANE?!"
"IS THIS LEGAL?!"
"I KNEW I SHOULDN'T HAVE TRIED OUT HERE! UA IS FULL OF CRAZY MANIACS!"
Scarlett scoffed as she easily leapt over a robot, landing in a summersault and continued running. 'Cocky idiots. When an actual threat comes, they go running in the opposite direction. Then again, I'm doing the same thing. You do have to pick your battles, after all. There's no benefit in going after that thing… nothing at all…'
"AHHHHH! NO, SOMEONE HELP!"
'... You have got to be shitting me.' Scarlett looked around to see a person stuck under a piece of rock that the zero pointer threw. But… all that she saw was some floating clothes. Was it an invisibility quirk?
'Dammit! What do I do?' She was conflicted as she gritted her teeth. On one hand, safety wasn't too far away. But on the other hand… someone needed help. And although the zero pointer was slow, it was still moving towards them.
"Tch! Damn you Emma for influencing me like this!" Scarlett turned around and ran for the invisible girl. "Oi! Where did the rock land on you?"
"Oh!" The invisible girl gasped, not expecting actual help. "Um… It's just my legs! Although one might be broken… I would probably need help walking."
"...It could be worse," Scarlett finally said, sighing. She used her powers to lift up the rock and throw it at the zero pointer, which as expected, hardly did anything.
She then kneeled down to the girl's level. "Um… I can't see your arms, so can you put your arms around my waist?"
"Y-yeah." The invisible girl wrapped her arms around her middle securely.
"Better brace yourself." Scarlett activated her powers again.
"What do you- AHHHHHHH!"
Scarlett suddenly took off into the air just as the zero pointer was about to crush the area they were just at. The two of them sped off towards the exit, avoiding all the bits of building and rock the zero pointer was throwing.
Suddenly, the zero pointer revealed a bunch of missiles and shot them at the two girls. Scarlet quickly swerved out of their way but found out much to their shock that they were heat-seeking missiles, turning around and going after them again. Scarlett continued to dodge but they were unrelenting.
Quickly using telekinesis on a few of the missiles, Scarlett aimed them at the zero pointer, causing a large explosion. It seemed to do more damage, but it was still moving towards them slowly.
It appears that the invisible girl did not do well with arial traversal. Especially at such an erratic pace right now. The girl ended up getting knocked out. The ravenette could feel her head slumping onto her shoulder.
"Great," Scarlett muttered as she looked behind them.
After hearing a whistle sound, she whipped her head forward and saw three missiles coming right at them. Three powerful slices was what it took for them to explode right in the air, causing the two of them to cough slightly at the smoke. It appears that the girl on her back regained consciousness. Unfortunately, it also seemed that she was awake for long enough to be aware of the missiles that were just aimed towards them.
"Are you ok? How's your legs?" Scarlett asked the girl on her back monotonously.
A bit unnerved at how nonchalant she sounded despite nearly being hit by missiles, the invisible girl whispered, "...A bit shocked. But I'm fine."
"Right. Let's move out. That hunk of metal is still after us."
Avoiding more obstacles, the two of them managed to escape the mock city. And with that, their practical exam was over.
~0~0~0~0~0~
"Scarlett!" Emma called out, waving from the front of the school.
The ravenette quickly walked over to her. "Hey. How did you do?"
The ginger had a giant grin on her face as she said, "I feel pretty good! I got a lot of points during the exam. Although I'm not sure how many I got since I stopped counting somewhere in the fifties. What about you?"
Scarlett shrugged. "I didn't bother counting either after a while. But I got a lot of points as well. That zero pointer though…"
Emma nodded vigorously, still shivering in shock at the crazy thing. "Right? Kendo and I barely managed to get out of its way!"
Scarlett quirked an eyebrow. "Kendo?"
"Oh!" She grinned happily. "There's this girl I saved named Itsuka Kendo! We were working together in the last minutes of the exam. She's really nice! What about you? Did you make any friends?"
"No… I was busy getting points. I hardly had time to talk with any others." Scarlett's mind drifted off though as she said that. 'There was that girl I saved towards the end. She seemed… nice I guess. Pretty interesting quirk. I left her right in front of Recovery Gir;l and headed off instantly though. Didn't bother catching her name. Oh well. Maybe we'll see each other in the hallways every now and then.' She couldn't see how someone with a quirk like that would pass the exam. Maybe the girl will be in General Education?
"Looks like our ride is here," Emma's voice sounded out, snapping her out of her thoughts instantly.
The two of them walked over to the black car and sat in the back. As it drove off, no one noticed the invisible girl looked at the back of it as it went further and further away.
'I never got to know your name. Or even say thank you…'
When they arrived home, they were immediately hounded by the others for answers. The questions were expected. How did you do? Do you think you got in? What place did you think you got? What was everyone like? How was the school? What was the exam?
The adrenaline and energy had long since ran out. The both of them were pretty tired and wanted to rest, so they gave short answers for the majority of the questions.
"We did pretty good."
"Top ten? Maybe five?"
"Everyone seemed focused and determined."
"The school is impossibly huge."
"We fought robots in a faux city."
At last, after the stream of answers seemed to stop, they slowly began to walk towards the elevator, too tired to even take the stairs. However, they were stopped when they felt hands rest on their shoulders.
Turning around nervously, they saw Gilda and Ray looking at them with excited expressions. But to them, they had smiles of the devil.
"Don't you remember what we said this morning?" Gilda reminded them eerily.
Ray's smile grew wider as he said, "We're staying up all night for these costumes."
Emma gave Norman a shaky smile. "Hey… Norman… help us please?"
Norman merely sweatdropped as he slowly went behind Yuugo. "Good luck guys…"
"Traitor!" Emma accused. "What kind of boyfriend are you?!"
And with that, their fate was sealed.
~0~0~0~0~0~
"It's here, it's here!" Thoma and Lannion announced to all of them loudly a few days after the exam took place.
The two of them were each holding a letter with the UA symbol sealed on it.
Anna looked nervously at the letters. "I'm so nervous, even though it's not for me!"
"Open them!" Don demanded excitedly, sweating a lot from exercising. As a result of the smell, there was a clear five foot radius from him and everyone else.
"Calm down," Norman chuckled. "We should let them see their results on their own. Then they can reveal it to us."
"Sounds good," Lucas agreed. "Alright everyone, let them go to their rooms! It'll only take a little bit."
With some groans and complaining whines, the others reluctantly left to do their own thing while Scarlett and Emma went to their rooms.
Emma paced around her room nervously, scared to open the letter while Scarlett sat still at her desk, just as uncertain. But both of them knew that stalling wouldn't do anything. Eventually, both of them sucked it up and opened their letters.
'Huh?' Scarlett was surprised when an ordinary paper letter did not come out. Instead, it was some sort of metal disc. When she placed the disc on her desk, a projection suddenly came out of the disc, showing a pre-recorded message.
"Hello participant! Whether you know or not, I am Nezu, the very principal of UA High School! Pleased to make your acquaintance!"
Her eyes narrowed. 'If the principal himself is giving my results, that's good, right?'
"I'm sure you've been very anxious to find out about your results!" The principal continued. "There's no point in making you wait any longer, so here they are! Scarlett Evans, we were very impressed with your abilities as well as your other fellow transfer students. With that said, we have watched all the footage and counted a total of 82 villain points! You're wondering if that is good, aren't you?"
"Quit beating the bush already," Scarlett muttered, unconsciously tinkering with her ring.
"And you would be right in thinking that it is!" Confetti exploded in the room that he was in. "Congratulations, Miss Evans! You have passed both the written exam, which you got full marks in, and the practical exam! Welcome to UA High School! And not only that, but you have placed 1st overall, which is an even more impressive feat!"
Her eyes widened slightly at that. "I got… first?" 'I know that was what I was aiming for at the very beginning, but it's surreal that I actually did it!'
"It's quite impressive, your score! The villain points you got broke plenty of records here in the school! Although All Might's score when he came here was much bigger, it was still an impressive feat! I expect big things from you in the future!"
"All Might's score…" Scarlett apparently didn't beat his by a long shot. But then again, All Might was someone extraordinary. The feats he accomplished were supposedly impossible, and yet he did them.
"But wait!" Nezu interjected. "There's even more! We have not told a single participant this, but there was another way to obtain points. Rescue points! As you might be able to tell, you obtained these points by saving and helping out other participants during the exam!"
'Ah… I suppose that isn't surprising," she mused. 'After all, being a hero isn't just defeating villains, but also making sure that the civilians' safety is top priority. That must be why they were called villain points rather than just points.'
'In case you didn't remember, you saved a fellow contestant from the dreaded zero pointer robot! Because of that brave and selfless deed, we hereby give you another 30 rescue points! This will give you a total of 112 points, cementing your placement as 1st in the practical exam and your place at UA! Thank you for choosing our school, and we hope to see you rise as a hero! Go Beyond! Plus Ultra!"
And with that, the hologram message disappeared, leaving the room in silence. Scarlett stayed still for a few minutes, processing what just happened.
'The others are probably waiting outside impatiently,' she realized. 'I'd better tell them the good news.'
Scarlett slowly stood up and walked out of her bedroom. The others weren't in the main room anymore, but it would be about dinner time. So when she entered the dining room, all of them were sitting there with anxious and excited looks. There was no food on the table yet. None of them would probably eat due to nerves anyways. Emma was already at the table, but judging the atmosphere, she was likely waiting for Scarlett to come before she said her results.
Everyone stared at her as she sat at her seat. Scarlett shuffled awkwardly from the stares they gave her.
"Well?" Violet demanded, breaking the silence. "We've been waiting! Did you get in?"
Emma and Scarlett looked at each other with set expressions.
"Let's say it on three," the ginger suggested. "One...two… three!"
"YES!" The two of them shouted at the same time. They looked at each other with wide eyes after that.
Silence.
"WOOO YEAHHH!" Don cheered loudly. "I KNEW YOU GUYS COULD DO IT!"
"They did it!" Phil said excitedly. "They actually made it in!"
Ray looked at Scarlett with a smirk. "What did I tell you?"
In response, Scarlett elbowed him roughly. "Shut up…"
Norman smiled as he hugged Emma. "I'm so glad… I knew your chances were pretty good, but… I know by now that statistics aren't always right."
Emma grinned as she hugged back. "You better!"
"What place did you get?" Scarlett asked Emma.
"I got 3rd!" Emma replied. "Pretty good, right? What about you?"
Scarlett looked to the side in embarrassment and mumbled something incoherent.
"What?" Nat made an ear-cleaning gesture. "Can you repeat that?"
"...I said I got first," Scarlett muttered out, a faint blush on her cheeks.
"...Why are you embarrassed about that?" Ray questioned as the others rejoiced again.
"Because I am!" Scarlett said indignantly.
"Congrats, you two!" Jemima exclaimed. "You two did so well!"
"I wonder who got 2nd though," Norman wondered.
"Bring in the feast!" Yuugo called out.
Instantly, a bunch of butlers and maids brought out dishes and dishes of food. None of them had seen so much food all at once before.
"You guys…" Emma breathed out, tears in her eyes.
"Tonight, we feast!" Thoma and Lannion announced.
.
.
.
"Ugh… I need the bathroom…" Mark moaned, clutching his stomach.
"You guys should really be more careful!" Gilda scolded. "Don't eat more than your stomach can take!"
"But it was so gooooodddd," Don whined.
"And you!" Gilda said sharply at him. "You need to set an example for your siblings!"
Anna giggled. "Let them have their fun. They don't need coddling tonight."
"Let's watch a movie!" Alicia suggested. "We're gonna stay up all night!"
As Gilda was about to say no, she caught Lucas's amused shake of his head. Sighing in defeat, Gilda allowed it.
"Emma, Scarlett! You two can pick the movie!" Yvette suggested.
Scarlett sighed. "Emma can pick it. I don't care what we watch. I'm going to take a shower though. Be back in a bit."
"Don't be too long," Norman called out after her as she walked to the stairs.
Scarlett went for a mainly quirk rinse, just to get all the sweat and grime off of her and deal with her hair. The biggest struggle of having long hair? The tangles. And her hair was by no means an exception. It took her months to find an efficient conditioner and shampoo for her hair.
Stepping out of the shower, she realized that getting clothes out of her closet slipped out of her mind. Oh well. Her bedroom door was locked anyway and her bathrobe was here. Scarlett slipped on her white bathrobe and brushed her wet hair.
"Tch," Scarlett scowled as her brush got caught on a tangled bit. "The struggles of life…"
As her hand with the brush went back up to do another stroke, it paused.
Because there were footsteps in her room.
Was she hearing things? No. Her hearing was never wrong. And it definitely sounded like footsteps. Her bedroom door was locked so they would have come in from the balcony. Or perhaps they were already here before she went into the room? There was the possibility that Thoma or Lannion were trying to prank her, but they would have done a better job hiding their footsteps, giving her enhanced hearing. An intruder? But who would have been skilled enough to get through all of that security? Unless… It was a quirk that allowed them to bypass all of that.
'Who is it?' Scarlett took off her white bathroom slippers for easier maneuvering. She quietly walked over to a cabinet and took out a kunai she stashed in there for emergencies. If anyone else knew that Scarlett did this, they would question her. But perhaps she was a bit too paranoid. Can you blame her though? And besides, it appears that it was a smart move on her part.
Slowly, she stalked over to the door. The footsteps stopped a few moments ago. But judging from where she heard them, the person should be to the left of her bed.
Scarlett put on her eyepatch and waited a few more seconds to hear any more sounds. When there were none, she suddenly slammed the door open and ran out towards her bed. To her surprise, there was nothing there. Everything also looked normal. Nothing was ransacked and there were no footprints or signs of a person either.
Was she just imagining it? Did the intruder leave? Or… are they still here, hiding?
She smelled something strange though. Smoke. There was no fire to be seen and she's far away from the kitchen. So where did the smell come from?
All of a sudden, a smoky arm attempted to grab her around the neck. They would have succeeded, if Scarlett hadn't managed to duck at the last second. She swiftly turned around and pointed her kunai out.
"Alright, who the hell are you?"
In front of her was what looked like a silhouette made out of dark gray smoke. They hardly had any features at all, so it was impossible to tell their gender.
"Well?" Scarlett demanded. "Talk, why don't you?"
They opened their mouth, but as it looked like they were about to speak, a creepy grin appeared on their face and charged towards her.
Instinctively, she immediately went and slashed with her kunai, but the sharp metal easily went through the smoke, not doing a single bit of damage to them.
'You have got to be kidding me!' Scarlett cursed internally as she avoided a grab by the smoke person.
Scarlett then tried to use her telekinesis to control them, but it didn't work either. The smoke glowed red for a moment, but since smoke was such a vague form, she couldn't keep her control over it.
The smoke person dissipated suddenly and wrapped itself around her tightly.
"Guh!" Scarlett grunted out, falling onto the ground, not expecting it to do that. The smoke started to force itself into her nostrils and mouth, making her choke. Slowly, she found it harder and harder to breathe, the smoke entering her lungs. Her kunai fell to the ground with a clatter.
"Dammit… get the hell…OFF OF ME!" Scarlett glowed red and created a burst of energy, causing the smoke to let her loose.
As the smoke tried to get towards her again, she created a red dome around herself. As she hoped, the smoke couldn't bypass the barrier. It was smothering the barrier, as though agitated by the change of events.
Breathing heavily, Scarlett got a proper amount of air again. "I'll ask you one more time. Who are you?"
The smoke still refused to say anything.
"Why are you here?" She continued to question. "What do you want? If you don't answer truthfully…" Her gaze turned into a more dangerous one. "I'll forcefully pry it out of you. And I think neither of us would like that."
"Hiss…" The smoke sounded, clearly irritated.
Scarlett made a tsking sound. "Fine then. We'll do this the hard way."
She created a pair of large fan blades and spun it rapidly.
"KSSSAAAAAA!" The smoke let out. It was starting to disappear.
"What?" Scarlett raised an eyebrow when the smoke made an angered face at her. "Don't underestimate me. Smoke might be almost completely invincible to physical attacks, but wind will always overpower it. Sayonara," she said in Japanese.
As the smoke continued to try and hack away at her barrier, she only increased the speed of the turbine. Paper and pencils and other things fell off and onto the floor. By the time this was finished, her room would likely be a mess. But that hardly mattered.
Scarlett glared at the smoke. "This is your last chance. Surrender now, or face the consequences. I've killed much harder opponents than you. A little smoke won't get to me now. Talk."
But alas, the smoke was very stubborn and tight lipped. It was clearly willing to take its secrets to the grave if it came to it.
"So be it."
As she was about to try and ensnare the slowly fading smog, the smoke attempted to go for another attack. However, as it was about to do so, it paused all of a sudden. As if it was listening to something. It made a strange warbling sound.
'What?' "Have you decided to pick the smart choice?"
In response, the smoke hissed out, "It appears we will have to continue this another day. We got what we needed. We don't need to come here again."
"Hold on, wait-!" Scarlett shouted out.
The smoke had bursted out of the balcony door and into the dark night. A few more vases and books fell onto the ground.
Scarlett gradually let down her shield and made the windmill device disappear. She slowly sank down to her knees in exhaustion.
"What the hell… was that?"
There was a sudden knock on her door, making her jump.
"Scarlett?" It was Ray's voice. "You're taking a while. Are you ok?"
She slowly unlocked the door and peeked out. It was not just Ray who was out there. In fact, everyone seemed to be outside of her door, pushing each other to see her.
Ray suppressed a blush when he saw that she was just wearing a bathrobe. But immediately, he then grew worried due to her heavy breathing and grim expression.
Blinking slowly, Scarlett uttered out, "Something strange just happened…"
.
.
.
Norman narrowed his eyes as he examined her room. "What a mess… you said that it only took the form of smoke, right?"
Scarlett gave a single terse nod, now properly clothed in a black sweatshirt and dark blue shorts.
"So it's safe to say that we likely won't be able to trace them or find out about their true identity," Norman concluded. "And this was clearly planned out. Not only is their quirk perfect for infiltration, even with security like ours, but smoke blends in perfectly with the night. The cameras wouldn't be able to pick it up."
"Did the security cameras catch someone turning into smoke?" Yuugo asked Lucas.
Lucas shook his head. "No. They must have turned into smoke somewhere else."
Emma tapped a finger on her lips. "'We got what we needed...' What do they mean by that? What did they take or obtain?"
"We don't know," Ray replied. "The others are looking for anything that might be misplaced. But so far, everything seems to still be in their exact area. Although… they said 'we'. There's at least another person in affiliation with them. And it's likely more than just two."
Norman grimaced. "The Ratri clan won't be pleased about this. Since there's not too much they can do right now to stop the smoke person entering our property… other than setting a few more smoke detectors."
"Didn't they also say that they didn't need to come here again?" Emma recalled. "I know that we still shouldn't let down our guard, but it's something."
"We can't take their word for it," Scarlett responded. "But we'll be more prepared."
Ray groaned. "This is just great. A whole new problem to deal with. We have the worst luck in the world."
"Nothing we can do about that, right?" Scarlett started picking up books on the ground. "Anyways, I have to clean up this place. What a chore…"
"We can help," Lucas offered.
"That'll be nice." She then went over and placed the books back on her desk while picking up other things around it. She stilled however when her mind realized something strange. "Huh?"
"What is it?" Norman queried, walking over to her.
"The metal disc… the one that had my acceptance message," Scarlett muttered. "I can't find it… it's gone."
Author's Note:
Hello! This is just a little announcement. I'm currently remaking Crimson Roses as of right now. Chapters 1-10 should be redone on AO3. If you would like to see it, you should head on over there!
Also, I actually managed to post this on time? Haha. Well, I'll see you guys next week. Hopefully I can keep up this streak!
So all of you guys have just seen a little bit of what's to come in the future! The mysterious smoke person and their allies? What do they want with the ex resistance? And why take the acceptance message? It'll all come to fruit eventually, so stay tuned.
Also, as you also just read, Hagakure has made an appearance. After the latest MHA chapter where (spoilers) Hagakure might be the traitor, I was kinda disappointed. Not going to lie. I know it might be intentional for her to be such an unimportant character that it's shocking, but it was very anticlimactic. I'm not one to judge though, so we'll see how that plays out. In my fic, Hagakure will be playing a much bigger role from the get go as well as have an actual personality haha.
Kendo will also be featured more along with class 1-B. Although I'm still a bit unsure where I want them to fit into the plot. I'll figure it out.
Anyways, thanks for reading and stay safe!