Author's Note - This is just a little idea I've wanted to write for awhile. Heavily inspired by Kuroko no Basket, Accel World, the MCU, and a bunch of other anime that you may recognize. I'm not expecting everyone to love it or even like it but I just thought it was a fun idea. Hope you guys like :)
1It amazed Gotanda Ran just how fast news had spread of the Generation of Miracles. They had popped up out of nowhere, seven prodigies that were recognized for their overwhelming ability to pilot an I.S, and dominated every I.S competition they attended. All attending the same school, their reputation spread like wildfire within this past year. And since they were the talk of the world, it made her enrollment and first day at the I.S Academy a rather bland one.
It was everything she had ever dreamed of, the I.S Academy. A beautiful and prestigious academic institution dedicated to training future I.S pilots. Her classroom resided on the first floor, class 1-1 to be specific. A spacious classroom with marbled floors and individual desks for the students, each one had monitors built into the table for easier use for studying. The entire left wall was made of glass which made it easier to get a view of the school.
The students were already in their seats, with a single desk in front of her left empty. Everyone wore matching uniforms, an elaborate white and red uniform with a black tie and matching boots. As exciting as normal classes were in high school, she was more excited to get in an I.S She wondered what it felt like…flying through the air and feeling the breeze against her skin.
The gossiping and talking came to an abrupt stop when the door to the classroom opened and the teacher. She looked rather young to be a teacher, with bright green hair and matching eyes, wearing a yellow sundress and carrying a clipboard.
"Alright everyone," said the teacher. "My name is Yamada Maya, I'll be your first year homeroom teacher. I'd like to formally welcome all of you to the I.S Academy, one of the world's most prestigious academic facilities dedicated to raising the brightest of the world's pilots."
Ran held up her hand. "Um, Miss Yamada? One of the students isn't here yet."
Miss Yamada looked at her clipboard. "That's strange. Everyone was assigned their classroom seating chart weren't they? Which means…" Miss Yamada's eyes lit up. "What? No way!"
The door slid open once again, and in came the last student. It was…a boy. A tall boy with long black hair and piercing golden eyes walked through, dressed in the I.S Academy uniform. Dangling from his right ear were two spear shaped earrings.
"Oh, Mr. Kusanagi, welcome," said Miss Yamada. "Did you get lost?"
The boy laughed awkwardly and scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, the school's a lot bigger than I thought it'd be. I couldn't make it to orientation so I ended up getting lost the second I got here."
Miss Yamada giggled. "That's perfectly understandable. Perhaps I can get Mr. Orimura to show you around. He's the other boy attending this school."
Kusanagi smiled. "That'd be really helpful, thank you. I'll take my seat." c
"It's a boy…"
"I didn't know there was another boy who could operate an I.S…"
"He's kind of cute, isn't he?"
Ran watched the boy as he walked to the desk in front of her. He stopped to face her, noticing that she was staring.
"I'm Kusanagi Koutaro, it's a pleasure to meet you," said the boy before taking his seat.
"I'm Gotanda Ran," she replied hesitantly.
It didn't sink in for her just yet when he introduced himself, but it hit her right in the middle of Miss Yamada's history lesson on the I.S. Kusanagi Koutaro, that's why his name sounded so familiar. That's the name of one of the prodigies, one of the Generation of Miracles. One of the prodigies that skyrocketed throughout middle school I.S tournaments, and the most recent winner of the Junior Mondo Grosso. Kusanagi Koutaro…one of the prodigies was right in front of her…
…
Class wasn't as informative as Koutaro hoped it would be. Because they were all first years, Miss Yamada went over the history of the I.S to get everyone up to speed.
The I.S, Infinite Stratos, was the creation of one Shinonono Tabane, and spearheaded the advancements of weaponry and military power. It's biggest feature being that only women can pilot an I.S. However since the Alaska Treaty was signed, I.S units are forbidden to be used by the military, so now they're only used for competitions and as a sport.
She failed, however, to go over the brief fact that despite being mechs only usable by women, there are currently only 2 males in all of the world who were able to pilot an I.S. It was one of the only reasons why Koutaro decided to attend the I.S Academy, he didn't want to be outcasted anymore than he already was. But seeing as he was late to his first day, and that he and the others won the Junior Mondo Grosso, it was practically impossible to be a normal student now.
All class long, he was getting weird looks from all of the girls. Most were curious, some were admiring him, but one stood out from the others.
"Psst," Koutaro behind him.
"Hmm?" Ran poked her head up. "Is class over already?"
"You were sleeping?" asked Koutaro, surprised if nothing else.
"S-Sorry," Ran blushed. "I didn't get much sleep last night…first day and all. What is it?"
"I was wondering if you knew anything about Miss Orimura Chifuyu." said Koutaro.
"Miss Orimura?" asked Ran. "She's supposed to the teacher of one of the second year classes. We're actually going to be doing practical training class with them in a bit. Why?"
Koutaro smiled. "Nothing, I was just curious. Thanks."
Orimura Chifuyu, possibly the greatest I.S pilot outside of the seven of them. She's the other reason he came to the I.S Academy.
Academic classes ended, which meant it was time for practical training. Class 1-1 was supposed to be meeting with Class 2-1 at one of the arena's to begin basic training. The second year class had six people who possessed their own personal units, which made it easier to get students accustom to the I.S.
To his surprise, the school provided him with his changing quarters, tucked away at the back of the locker room. There were two lockers, one for him and one for Orimura Ichika. Koutaro quickly got changed into his flight suit and lined up with all of his classmates, continuing to get stares from his classmates and the second year students. But through the crowd, he spotted Ichika, the only other male who could pilot an I.S.
"Alright everybody listen up!" a woman with dark hair at the front of the class shouted. "We will now begin the first joint practical training class of the semester! Would everyone with a personal I.S unit please step come to the front!"
Slowly, the six students from the second year class walked to the front. A girl with long black hair tied into a ponytail with a ribbon, a girl with brown hair tied into twin tails, a blonde girl that looked all too sophisticated and reminded Koutaro of a certain someone, another blonde girl with a cute face, a girl with long white hair and eyepatch, and Ichika. So they were the six students of the second year class who possessed an I.S…
"Kusanagi!" shouted the teacher. "I said, everyone with a personal unit."
"Oh, right," said Koutaro. "Sorry ma'am!"
Koutaro quickly ran to the front of the class and joined his upperclassmen. The teacher walked in front of him and smiled.
"Good to see you again kid," said Chifuyu.
"Miss Orimura," Koutaro smiled and bowed his head.
"Alright," said Chifuyu. "I'm sure everyone's noticed the elephant in the room by now, but this is Kusanagi Koutaro. He's one of the winners of this year's Junior Mondo Grosso."
"M-Miss Orimura?" asked Koutaro. "What are you-"
Chifuyu gave a sly smirk. "To set a standard for what everyone here should strive to achieve, we're going to have a mock duel between the six upperclassmen with their own units and Kusanagi. Six against one."
"W-Wait a minute Chifuyu!" cried Ichika. "There's no way that's fair!"
"I agree," said the blonde girl with a british accent. "Six on one, hardly seems like a duel to me."
"Don't worry," said Chifuyu. "I'll be sure to set a handicap to make this more interesting."
"How is handicapping us gonna make this a fair fight?" asked the black haired girl. "It's still six against one."
"I never said the handicap was on you," said Chifuyu. "Kusanagi will not be able to go on the offensive. Sound good to you?"
Koutaro sighed. "Not like I have much of a choice here do I? Fine by me, but are you sure about this?"
"I'm more than sure," said Chifuyu. "Plus I think the six of them have been a bit cocky as of late."
…
Ichika didn't know what the hell was going through Chifuyu's head. There wasn't a single I.S pilot in the world who didn't know about Kusanagi Koutaro, or the other four members of the Generation of Miracles. But even so, a six on one match seemed unfair no matter how you cut it.
The students and teachers moved to the viewing gallery, leaving the seven of them on the arena by themselves.
"Does she seriously expect us to fight a child?" asked Laura, crossing her arms. "No matter how large his reputation may be, this still feels-"
"You guys are seriously underestimating him," said Charlotte. "Did any of you even watch the Junior Mondo Grosso?"
"N-No," said Ichika. "What happened?"
"None of them attended middle school, instead they formed their own team and fought against every major middle school that competed in the tournament," Charlotte explained. "Each match, instead of fighting a fair three on three…only one member of the Generation of Miracles fought at a time. Which means he has more than enough experience taking on multiple opponents."
"They formed their own team?" asked Houki. "Outside of school?"
Charlotte nodded. "The Seven Kings of Pure Color…SKPC."
A holovideo of Chifuyu popped up on the side of the arena. "Are you guys just gonna stand around the entire time? You've got a class to teach here!"
"I guess we'd better take this seriously," said Ichika. "Same formations. Cecilia, Charlotte, you've got our backs. Houki. Lin, Laura and I will take the vanguard. Let's end this quickly."
Everyone nodded and manifested their I.S units. The six of them faced Koutaro, who had already activated his unit. It was the strangest unit he had ever seen. Rather than a full mechanical suit, it was just an exoskeleton suit equipped with boots, arm guards, a chest plate, head piece, and backpack with two antenna sticking out. The blue glow radiated like Cecilia's Blue Tears, with the center of his chest plate glowing with a pulsing ripple.
"That's your I.S unit?" asked Ichika.
"More or less," said Koutaro. "Since this is just an exhibition match, I didn't see the point in fighting with my 1st shift."
"You're going to fight us with your unit's default setting?" asked Houki.
"You're underestimating us," said Laura with a maniacal smile.
"Now, now," said Koutaro. "Let's just make this a show, shall we?"
Laura immediately activated her cannon, taking aim at Koutaro, and launching a barrage of beams at the boy in the blink of an eye. A large dust cloud covered Koutaro as Ichika and the others stood there in awe.
"L-Laura!" cried Ichika. "You can't just throw everything at him! What if his shield energy-"
"Too slow."
Somehow, Koutaro had broken through their battle formation and flanked Laura. He wielded a small scythe with the blade of hardened light and slashed at Laura's back. If it weren't for Houki and Akatsubaki's speed, Laura would have been done for.
Houki braced the attack with her own blade. "H-How did you get here so fast?"
There was a look in Koutaro's eyes…a calm yet intimidating coolness.
Koutaro held out his other hand as his backpack shifted, the antenna shooting out and catching it in his hand. The antenna broke apart and the light hardened into a curved scythe blade. Rather than hitting Houki, he threw the blade at Charlotte and somehow teleported over to her.
Before Charlotte could even respond, Koutaro struck her down and launched her to the ground.
"Charlotte!" cried Laura.
"You don't have the time to be worrying about others right now," said Koutaro.
He did it again, he teleported right back to Houki. He crossed his two blades against the blade of Houki's and threw them into the air, leaving Houki defenseless. What was he doing? He was completely unarmed now…
Ichika could only watch as Koutaro slammed both of his palms into Houki's stomach, and unleashed a powerful beam attack from his hands and launched Houki into the wall of the arena.
"Your battle formation is incredibly flawed," said Koutaro as he caught the scythes again. He was holding them in an irregular form, with the blades on the bottom rather than the top. "Leaving your long ranged fighters completely defenseless is a big no no, but the fact that none of you reacted in time, that speaks wonders about your teamwork."
"He…He took out Charlotte and Houki in the blink of an eye," said Cecilia.
A small holovideo of Chifuyu appeared on all of their units.
"Kusanagi, I hope you don't mind but I think these guys need a bit of help," said Chifuyu.
"I don't mind."
Chifuyu smiled. "Kusanagi's unit is called Tranquil Rain, however it has been dubbed the Blue Hunter for obvious reasons. It is a 5th Generation unit that utilizes the special Cardinal Flame System. Beam and laser attacks have absolutely no use against it because his unit cannibalizes light and harnesses it to strengthen his own attacks. However, it doesn't mean you can just beat him in a straight up close ranged fight either. Your underclassman here happens to be proficient in close quarters combat, either with a weapon or unarmed."
Ichika scratched his head. "Yeah like that's going to help. So you're saying there's no way to beat him?"
"Idiot," said Houki, climbing out of the rubble. "She's saying we have to work together. Everyone go in on him with everything you've got. He can't defend against a full frontal assault from all of us."
Koutaro smiled. "Now you're getting it. You have the advantage of manpower, and yet you haven't used it. Poking at me from the distance until I'm vulnerable won't work, it'd only leave your long ranged fighters vulnerable when everyone else collapses on me."
Ceclia frowned. "I will not be lectured by an underclassman, I am a representative contender I'll have you know!"
"And what good will reputation and status do when your combat abilities don't match your hubris?" asked Koutaro as he twirled his scythe around his finger. "You may be upperclassmen, but none of that matters on the field of battle. What matters is how well you can defend against an attack, and how well you can counter-attack. Strategy, is key to a fight. How well you know your enemy, how little your enemy knows about you, and far you can push your enemy to the very edge. If you continue to boast about how unfair the circumstances are, then you will lose before you even have a chance." Koutaro smiled. "Come at me like you want to kill me, that's the only you're gonna have a chance of winning."
Ichika closed the holovideo of Chifuyu. "Alright, anybody who can still fight focus fire on Koutaro. Whatever you do, don't stop. Don't give him a chance to breath!"
Koutaro eye's grew with excitement. "Yes, yes! That's more like it! Come and get me!"
Houki launched herself at Koutaro with both of her blades out. The two clashed their blades for a second, until Ichika and Laura prepared to attack.
How was this even happening…he was perfectly guarding and attacking against three different people with ease. And all in the meantime, he was evading shots from Cecilia like they were nothing.
"Move!" Lin tossed her twin blades at Koutaro.
The boy immediately shifted into a different gear, jumping up and landing on the blade, using it as leverage to launch himself at Lin cutting straight through her barrier, reducing her shield energy to 0.
Koutaro tossed up his weapons, grabbed hold of Lin and threw her back at Ichika. Her shield energy was at 0, if she were to fall she'd take some serious damage.
"Lin!" Ichika caught her, however Koutaro had predicted that. He dropped straight down and landed on top of both of them.
"Predictable."
The boy's blades glowed a florescent blue as he threw them at Cecilia and Laura, shattering their shield energy. He did that from a single throw? He must have charged up that attack from Laura's attack at the beginning…and didn't use it until now.
"Alright that's enough!" cried Chifuyu. "I think that's enough for now. Kusanagi's proved what he could do. Everybody line up!"
Ichika felt powerless. It was a six on one match, and they were completely overpowered. He took out four of them with ease…and probably could have taken them all out if Chifuyu hadn't stopped him. The skill gap was beyond overwhelming…so this is the power of one of the Generation of Miracles. And what's even more…he did all of that in his unit's default setting.
…
Koutaro knew Chifuyu was up to something, but he never expected her to pit him against six upperclassmen right off the bat. Considering that Chifuyu and Tabane were the ones who personally trained the seven of them for a time, it didn't make much sense. She knew that they didn't stand a chance…
"I hope you all realize by now that simply having numbers doesn't guarantee victory in a match," said Chifuyu. "What's important is battle strategy. I hope everyone here understands that. Let Kusanagi be an example for all you first years for what you should strive to be, and let him be an example for all you second years for who you should strive to defeat in battle."
"I think that's enough for now, don't you Miss Orimura?" asked Miss Yamada.
"Indeed," said Chifuyu. "The seven of you who participated in the match will have the rest of class off, go clean up. As for the rest of you, Miss Yamada will bring the test units out for all of you to get adjusted."
Koutaro walked behind the upperclassmen, mainly because he didn't know how they would react after that whole match. Every time he talked to his opponents after a match, things hardly ever ended well.
"Koutaro!" cried Ichika. "What are you doing back there? Come on."
"Y-Yeah," Koutaro quickly caught up to the others. "Sorry."
"Those were some seriously good moves out there," said Ichika.
"You must tell us about your I.S unit," said Cecilia Alcott. "I've never seen anything like it."
"And here I thought Houki's unit was the top of the line," said Lin.
"Miss Orimura said it was a 5th generation type?" asked Charlotte. "Most countries out there are just beginning to research 4th generations like Houki's."
"It's a long story," said Koutaro. "But speaking of which, do you guys think you could drop by the first garage after school? Your units might have taken more damage than I had hoped. If you'd like I can take a look at them and see what I can do."
"You're an engineer?" asked Houki. "That's amazing!"
Koutaro blushed. "One of the conditions of me attending the academy was that I was provided with my own workspace. I'm sure it's the same with the others."
They arrived at the locker rooms as everyone dispersed. Ichika and Koutaro went to the back of the locker room were their lockers were and began to change.
"If you don't mind me asking," said Ichika. "What are they like? The other…Miracles."
"Well for one thing, we actually hate that name," said Koutaro. "Everyone's personalities would clash at times, but during those times during combat…it was like we were all one. No fear, no worries…just the thrill of the sport."
"Were you guys all like that?" asked Ichika.
"Well most of us," said Koutaro. "Some of us thought of each other as family. Now I'm sure everyone's gone their own ways."
"I'm sure you'll run into them again," said Ichika.
"Yeah…maybe."
"Come on," said Ichika. "I'll show you around the school, heard you got lost."