I think splitting up chapters is KINDA working, I dunno. What do you guys think?
Anyways, here's your chapter. Here's the Discord: /cgFmXz3qJ5
"So, this is your new pet." Iida said, holding Ship at his eye level.
"Yep. His name is Ship, he eats batteries and he loves turning into a toaster." Ochako nodded.
Iida stared at him for a few moments in silence.
"Ship?" Ship cocked his head.
"This is the most adorable thing I've ever held in my hands." Iida said, with a small smile.
"Ship!" the little guy called out, worried for a second that Iida wasn't a Mechamorph fan.
"And he's just like Upgrade?" Izuku asked.
"Yep. Just smaller!" Ochako beamed.
"While I'm not shocked Mr. Tennyson has trusted you with all this responsibility, owning a pet is another situation." Iida said, handing Ship off to Izuku. "There's food, physical care, vaccinations, budgets and what not-"
Ship wriggled in Izuku's grasp. "Plus...the biology of this guy isn't like a dog or a cat."
"Well, I've been told this isn't common but it does happen. Penny, another of Ben's friends, even managed to get me some articles on it." Ochako explained.
"Are they like I'm thinking?" Iida asked.
"I mean...a little tabloid sounding, but I read through them! Even tried out one of the methods to get Ship to listen and it worked!"
"Let me see them," Iida said. "I feel like there may be some 'falsehoods' in something that sounds like a tabloid...especially if it's from space."
Ochako brought out her phone and texted some of them over to Iida. The speedster's own phone buzzed and he checked the articles sent over and...surprisingly there were a lot more truths in here than he thought. At least, it looked like they were true. Many of the articles said the same thing on certain subjects, but others had drastically different methods. For instance, food was something all the articles agreed on, but training a Mechamorph pet to not merge with a piece of technology had at least six different suggestions.
Iida took a deep breath. "...I grossly misjudged how 'alien' this would be so I can't say I'm an expert on this."
"The merging with tech part is kinda hard. It took him forever to get him out of my TV last night." Ochako sighed.
"Shiiiip," the little Mechamorph chimed in, like he was apologizing.
"Aw, don't worry. She's not mad or anything." Izuku said, setting the Mechamorph down. "Maybe you should get him some 'toys' or whatever."
"Well, that's why I used Ben's card to buy...this!" Ochako reached into a bag and pulled out an electric toy car.
"Ship?" The little Mechamorph saw the toy car and began jumping around happily.
"Ship, sit," Ochako commanded and almost immediately, the little alien sat down, his tail still wagging like crazy.
"Are you sure this is safe, Ochako? Mechamorphs have a tendency to...overdo it with tech. I think Ben once turned a lamp post into a cannon." Izuku said. "Who's to say he won't turn this car into a monster truck?"
"...how would that even work?" Iida asked, turning to Izuku, "That just sounds nonsensical!"
"The lamp to the cannon? Believe me, I would explain it if I knew," Izuku said.
"I don't think Ship's really reached that 'upgrade' part yet. He just sort of melds with tech and takes it over." Ochako said. Ochako put batteries in the toy, and set it down. "Okay, Ship. You know what to do!"
Ship's neck elongated as he looked at the toy. He sniffed it a few times, and looked around it. Ship's tail wagged as he suddenly jumped into the toy, and began driving around with it.
"And I have enough batteries to last a while," Ochako smirked, holding up another pack of batteries for the car.
"Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiip!" the Mechamorph car called out as he drove around, just excited with the speed.
"He's eager." Izuku noted, lifting his foot up as Ship zoomed around.
"Reminds me of a cat I used to own. It would zoom around at random times at night." Iida recalled.
"Well, he hasn't done that thankfully," Ochako said. Considering how close finals were now, that would be a nightmare to go through.
"Besides just being reluctant to get out of the TV, he's been pretty good. I take him out for a fly before I go on patrol, and he doesn't really need to..." Ochako made a few vague gestures. "So, I never need to worry about cleaning up."
"Considering his treats are batteries, I will call that a stroke of luck," Iida said.
"It kinda helps to have him at home. After a LONG day of studying, I feel exhausted. It helps to know he's in here, just...ready to love me." Ochako said.
Ship then bonked into a wall.
"...but he is kinda dumb sometimes."
Ship shook his "head" from the impact, growling at the wall like it was to blame before driving off. He quickly forgot about its transgression and continued to race around. It was adorable to watch him enjoy himself honestly.
"He is adorable." Iida nodded. Suddenly, Ochako's phone began to ring. She picked it up off the counter, and saw who was calling her.
"Unknown caller..." Ochako frowned. "That's weird. I never get these."
"Could just be a scam call," Izuku suggested.
"Maybe. Or it could be a confused caller. It's worth a shot in answering." Ochako said, as she pressed the talk button.
"Hello? Is this..." the voice on the other end paused, like he was looking over at a note, "Ochako Uraraka?"
"Um...y-yes? Why?" Ochako asked.
"I was told to call this number and I wanted to check in first. But, now that I know it's you...I suggest steeling yourself for this. I've been told our method of traversal is always rough on the first trip!"
"Traversal?" Ochako repeated. "What do you mean?!"
"Is this some sort of prank caller?" Iida asked, noting Ochako's confusion. The voice on the phone took note of the other voices.
"You have others with you? Good- we'll need all hands on deck for this."
"How is that good?!" Ochako yelled, but the voice on the other end didn't hear her. It sounded like he turned away and was talking to someone else.
"Three to board, Synaptak!"
A light suddenly surrounded the three of them, and they were instantly swallowed up in it. One second, they were in Ochako's apartment.
The next, they were...not there.
"Shiiiiiip!" the Mechamorph called out as he raced back to where the three had been...only to see them gone.
"Ship? Shiiiiiip?"
Ochako and the others landed on the ground with a hard thud. Ochako groaned, as she looked around. "Where...are we?"
The place the trio found themselves was a shining silver futuristic room, like an auditorium in how open it was. There was a massive table in the middle of the room, a projection of the planet hovering slightly above it.
"Perfect! And none of you are doubling over from the trip, I see! As expected of the successor to the Omnitrix!" the voice from over the phone called out. Ochako turned to see its owner and she thought she met the alien version of All Might. Said alien was muscular and tall, standing as tall as Four Arms' shoulders from Izuku's best guess, with dark blue skin, a bald head with an oval-shaped mark on the forehead, and pure light blue eyes with a domino mask worn around them. He was clad in a simple yellow one-piece jumpsuit with a stylized 'U' on the chest and a white cape with golden buckles.
"Synaptak, no need for the nausea pills! They seem to be perfectly fine!"
"...are you sure? Delayed reactions can be quite common with the teleporter!" another voice called out, this one with a slight reverberation to it.
Izuku looked over, and scanned the alien up and down. "You're...Ultimo!"
"You know of this man?" Iida said, grabbing his glasses off the ground.
"Yeah- he's only been on Earth once or twice, but he's an ally of Ben Tennyson." Izuku said. "I dunno much about him outside of that."
"Well that's...definitely a change of pace," Ultimo admitted. Usually he got to announce himself and his team.
"Hm, I suppose it is better to have three here than one. Wrong impressions and all," the second voice said as the owner hovered into view. Unlike Ultimo, who wasn't that alien aside from certain details, this guy would stand out in a crowd, even among Quirk users. His body was like that of an octopus, covered in a similar yellow suit like Ultimo's. His head was...well...less of a head and more a brain in a jar with a holographic face projected in front of it.
"It's...nice to meet you, then." Ochako said, shaking Ultimo's hand. "Any friend of Ben Tennyson is a friend of mine."
"Quite the remarkable man. Always knows how to pick his allies." Ultimo smiled.
"And may I ask why you decided to just...teleport us without prior warning?" Iida asked.
"Well, that would take away the fun of the surprise."
"I've never been teleported. And probably never want to do it again." Izuku said.
"You'll get used to it." A gruff, female voice said as she walked in. She was a Tetramand, and a big one too. Bigger than Ochako's own sample. She wore golden armor on her upper body comprised of a chestplate and shoulder pads, along with golden bracelets and anklets. She had a golden circlet that has spikes off the sides, as well as a white skirt held up by a golden belt with a blue emblem on it. Her eyes were red-orange.
"And...this is?" Ochako asked.
"Ah, of course! Forgot to introduce them! These are my teammates, Synaptak and Tini," Ultimo chimed in.
"...Tini..." Iida repeated. He wasn't going to say anything else because one wrong word might get him crushed.
"Together, we are known as the galaxy's greatest crime fighting team- the Galactic Enforcers!" Ultimo said, as the other two posed. The trio shared a strange look.
"That's nice and all, but I'd more like to know what you've roped me and my friends into." Ochako said kindly. "And...where are we?"
"You're in our headquarters, currently positioned above the Earth." Synaptak explained. "Have you not noticed that?"
"...to be fair, we thought the hologram was...something you used to alert you to a crisis," Iida said.
"It is. It changes depending on the planet we're orbiting."
"We're actually in space?" Izuku asked. Ultimo nodded, and motioned to a window.
"I'd recommend the view. It's quite nice." Ultimo said.
The trio moved over to check and, sure enough, far below them was Earth, just floating in space with the only other things they could see from up here being the stars and the moon.
Iida cleaned his glasses with a cloth from his pocket. "Woah."
"This is really trippy..." Izuku said. The feeling of being off planet really messed with his head.
"Woah..." was all Ochako managed to say, too stunned to really say much else.
Izuku blinked. "Hey, Uraraka…isn't that the ball you threw from the practical exam on our first day?" He asked, squinting at something. Ochako looked in the distance to see something fly by the ship.
"Oh my God, it's still going?" Ochako said.
"Always breathtaking the first time you see it, isn't it?" Ultimo chimed in.
"Spectacular view." Iida nodded. "But, I take it you didn't bring us in for this."
"This one has a sharp mind- good." Synaptak nodded. "Come. We have much to discuss."
The Galactic Enforcers led the trio of heroes-in-training to a meeting room, this one with a more formal-looking table that you'd find in a business office. Lining the walls, there were a few mementos taken from various crises that the Enforcers had ended, ranging from destroyed weapons to photos on alien worlds with species that only the Enforcers really recognized.
"Welcome to our Chamber of Virtue." Tini said, as she sat down. "This is where we talk about who's skull we need to bash and take in."
"A very gross but not incorrect statement." Synaptak said, as he began to press a few things on the table.
"Ben said you could fill in for him- said this mission would be a 'fun' experience for a hero in training." Ultimo said.
"Why couldn't Ben make it?" Izuku asked.
"Something about a visit to a medical center with his wife." Ultimo said. Ochako immediately knew what that meant.
"Now then, enough conversation." Synaptak slid his tentacle up, and projected an image for everyone to see. The picture shown was...grotesques. It was some sort of small purple creature, with a singular eye containing a red pupil, a small black slit iris and green sclera. It had six tentacles, a visible brain and a black line that runs down the center, around their eye and mouth. "Are any of you familiar with this?"
"Um...no," Ochako admitted, looking to Izuku. Maybe it was something Ben dealt with in the past that he knew about and, hopefully, Izuku knew about it. Not that far a stretch, honestly.
"This is a Xenocyte. Alien parasites artificially manufactured by the Atasians, also known as the Highbreed." Ultimo said. "About a decade and a half ago, the Atasians wanted to maintain their blood purity at all costs, and created these things to take over people and help with their nefarious schemes."
"Albedo of the Galvan then resolved the dispute. He was able to assist the Atasians in obtaining the resources they required to rescue their species from extinction. It put an end to the possible war." Synaptak contnued.
"The boring way." Tini scoffed.
"The sensible way." Synaptak said.
"However, while the conflict was over, the Xenocytes still existed. While many of them were destroyed, the black market found use for them." Ultimo said.
"Weapons?" Iida guessed.
"Of a sort. The Highbreed strategy was one focused on proxies with individual Atasians only serving as commanding officers. The proxies were perhaps the most disturbing part of said strategy," Synaptak said, changing the hologram to what seemed to be a humanoid version of squid-like Xenocyte, "DNAliens, as they've been dubbed."
"So, these things bond with a host with their Xenocyte genes and forcibly turning their host into DNAliens." Izuku put his hand to his chin. "Like a parasite working in overdrive."
"There's been multiple cases of these Xenocytes getting loose on other planets." Tini said. "The Aracnichimps, the Pyronites and Vulpimancers were taken over by them as some point."
"DNAliens have multiple powers- enhanced strength, durability and speed. They also have tendrils and...most disgusting, slime spit." Synaptak explained.
"Revolting." Iida shivered.
"Their powers override the usual powers one might have...but, more recently, they've evolved." Synaptak said.
"A horrifying thought." Iida grimaced.
"As if things couldn't get worse." Izuku frowned.
"Without a doubt." Ultimo said, as an image of a Pyronite-DNAlien hybrid appeared. "A few years ago, a DNAlien would have suppressed those flames. They were designed for conformity."
"I'm going to guess one of these Xenocytes is on Earth." Ochako said nervously.
"Sadly, you are correct." Ultimo said, closing his eyes. "A species like a Pyronite or a Vulpimancer can be brought down easily, because of their exploitable weakness. However...humans are a different case."
"Because of our quirks." Izuku said.
"Correct- because of the human race and their unique quirks, it makes them an interesting target to take over." Ultimo said. "This uniqueness means we can't truly place down a weakness all humans might share. Another one could have a quirk to counteract it."
"It makes us the perfect hosts for these things...similar enough to be familiar to a hive-mind, but unique enough to where we don't have a single weakness to exploit," Ochako chimed in.
"It could carry out the will it was bred should the human race be subjugated by these menaces." Ultimo frowned. "And I fear the invasion may start...here."
A globe showed up, and the a red dot appeared on the state of Alaska, near Dillingham.
"Where is that?" Iida asked.
"That's Clark's Point. A small town of Terrans." Synaptak explained.
Terrans? Yeesh. Just say humans. Makes you sound...what's that word Momo used? Ochako thought. I should know this, it's vocab for the exam.
"The word you're looking for is 'Pompous', Omnitrix Successor." Synaptak said. Ochako jumped when he said that.
"Apologies- Synaptak here has the power of telepathy. He can pry into minds when he shouldn't." Ultimo said. "Please excuse him."
"Don't do that again." Ochako frowned. "That's scary."
Synaptak rolled his eyes. "Anyways...Clark's Point is quite small. A more recent census showed the population was around 50."
"The worrying part is that it's close to Dillingham. One of the larger cities in Alaska." Tini said. "You've seen how a cold can spread, correct? Imagine that, but with an active parasite."
"That far north...are they adapted for that kind of cold?" Izuku asked.
"They thrive on it," Ultimo answered, "During the war, the Atasians created several weather alteration towers to lower the temperature, making snow on desert worlds for instance."
"Using any cyrokinetic aliens is out of the picture, then. It'll be useless against them." Izuku remarked.
"Aw, and I just learned how to create snow as Big Chill." Ochako sighed.
"We must go to Clark's Point and eliminate the queen." Tini remarked. "After that, figure out how this Xenocyte ended out on Earth in the first place."
"And is it right to assume the queen is..." Iida began.
"Larger than a normal specimen? A definite possibility. They may also use a human host as a puppet, not like the others, but speaking with the voice of its host, retaining something of a normal form," Synaptak explained.
"We better get going then," Izuku said. "I can't imagine how dangerous one of those DNAliens would be if they got their hands on a pro like Endeavor or Stars and Stripes."
"Before we go off, we must ask you to comply with one thing." Ultimo said. "You see, we operate under a certain code of standards."
"The galactic code of conduct." Tini said. "It's our bible."
Iida nodded. "Of course! What do you need us to adhere to?"
"We extend onto you a temporary commission, acting as 'two super-powered Beings' and one 'hero'." Ultimo said.
"Why does one have a different ranking than the other?" Izuku asked.
"The Omnitrix wielder is in a higher spot BECAUSE of holding the Omnitrix." Synaptak explained. "We also ask that you follow OUR commands."
"That we can do." Iida said.
"Now, let's get the three of you suited up." Tini said, before punching her palm. "I can't WAIT to get into the fray."
The Enforcers used some sort of alien machine to recreate their normal hero costumes, but gave them a 'cosmic' Enforcers spin. The results were varying.
Ochako looked in the mirror- her Galactic Enforcer's uniform looked a lot like her Spanner costume, just with its pink-white-black color scheme replaced with a yellow-gold-white color scheme. Their Galactic crest laid was on a golden belt around her waist.
"I'll admit. This outfit does look kind of nice." Ochako said, looking at her gold bracelets.
"Mine's a little weird. I don't think yellow goes with my hair..." Izuku walked in, wearing a yellow and white version of his Deku costume. The greens were replaced with yellow, and the blacks were replaced with white. Ochako agreed- it looked awkward. Ochako also noticed something different about his outfit- there were white leg braces around his ankles, and the gloves were longer.
"What's with those?" Ochako asked, tilting her head.
"Oh, this was a part of something I was testing out." Izuku said. "These supporters reduce the stress on my arms and legs."
"That's neat."
Izuku made a face. "Weird thing is I made these modifications yesterday. I'm guessing that Synaptak read my mind and had the costume making machine create this."
"I feel obscene wearing this." Iida walked in, wearing a pure golden version of his hero outfit. Ochako and Izuku could see their gawked expressions reflected at them.
"That just feels like something Captain Nemesis would wear." Izuku said.
"I actually know who that is and that just makes this even worse," Iida deadpanned, as Ultimo and the others came in.
"Looks like the machine did a good job of replicating your costumes." Tini grinned.
To a better degree than others, Iida thought.
"Heard that," Synaptak said.
"I keep forgetting! Apologies!"
"Let us not dilly dally any further!" Ultimo said. "There's a galaxy to be saved."
"Agreed." Ochako said, clenching her fist. "Let's go!"
"Coordinates are already locked in. When we arrive, we'll be on the outskirts of town, so as not to draw attention. Beaming down in three..." Synaptak said. He didn't finish the countdown before the group instantly teleported, moving from the futuristic interior of the Enforcers' ship to the freezing cold wilderness of Alaska.
Ochako immediately felt her suit warm up- it was like she wasn't even cold at all. Ochako hummed. "Alien tech is handy."
"The suits are made up of unstable molecules and various tech to help us adapt, and to not rip our costumes." Ultimo explained.
"Very helpful for those of us who have an even more extreme aversion to inhospitable climates. Speaking of, will never understand how you humans willingly choose to settle out here," Synaptak said.
"Annnnd deserts are perfectly fine for you?" Tini asked.
"You should know that. We have visited Khoros more than once."
Izuku looked at the town in the distance. "Looks pretty quiet right now. Don't like that."
"Hopefully they haven't spread out already." Iida said.
"Good to hope...but Xenocites are surprisingly fast," Ultimo said, beginning to move towards the town.
"I wish I had a good tracking alien." Ochako said, looking at the Omnitrix. "Ben didn't give me one of those."
"He did give you some remarkable scouting options, however." Synaptak said. "Does your Crystalsapien form know how to refract light around itself?"
Ochako blinked.
"He's asking if you know how to turn Chromastone invisible. Like Tooru." Iida said.
"Oh! Uh...sorry, I don't."
"Something to work on perhaps. Or you could attempt some on-the-job training as it were," Synaptak said.
"Worry not." Ultimo said, putting up his hand. "My vision is quite sharp. Allow me."
Ultimo squinted as he looked at the village. He hummed. "Odd- there seems to be a large gathering in what looks to be the town hall."
"They're gathering to discuss plans of world domination." Tini guessed.
"Unless the citizens are free of xenocite influence for now. Are they?" Synaptak asked. This would decide how they proceed next: an extermination mission aimed at the Xenocites or a rescue mission to free the innocents.
"Is there any way to determine if they're normal or not?" Izuku asked.
"I could use my incredible sense of smell-" Ultimo said, before something hit his face. Ultimo stumbled back, and wiped some gross green gunk off his face.
"Great. The enforcers are here..." A voice hissed. Slowly, they faded into view. It was like a forcefield was being lifted. The DNAliens were right in front of our heroes. Some of them were big, some of them were tall. The leader of the assault stood out- he had a black and white suit.
"Cloaking? From a piece of tech or a Quirk?" Izuku wondered aloud.
"Not just the Enforcers either. Three whelps. New recruits, perhaps?" the leader asked, his single eye narrowing at the three.
"I'd love to chat, but...Galactic Enforcers, engage!" Ultimo said, pointing at the group of DNAliens. Tini and Synaptak jumped into action.
"Formation: Pallas Meteor Toss!" Synaptak levitated Tini, who curled her body into a ball. She was hurled at the DNAliens- the group scattered, but some unlucky souls were smashed into by Tini.
"Even the alien heroes have special moves. Something to take note of!" Iida said, before speeding off. Some of the DNAliens began to fire globs of green slime at Iida, trying to slow him down, catch him, but none landed. Instead, the speedster veered towards them and slammed into two of the normal sized creatures, knocking them on their backs.
Iida activated his engines and rushed forward at high speeds to tackle a few more DNAliens. He lunged forward and does a powerful kick to another DNAlien's face, knocking them back into the snow.
One for All...Full Cowling! Izuku thought. His body lit up, and his eyes narrowed. Izuku punched the ground, sending snow across the field and blinding his opponents. Izuku rushed through the icy cover, and unleashed a powerful haymaker at one of the bigger DNAliens. The haymaker sent the DNAlien flying through the air, and he landed a few yards away. Izuku avoided tendrils and spits of gunk, before Ultimo assisted him.
Ultimo flew up and exhaled heavily, unleashing a short-ranged blast of air that pushed his foe back and repelled the gross projectiles. Ultimo flew at the few DNAliens, fists outstretched, and punched them away.
Ochako blasted a few aliens with her wrist gauntlets (which she hadn't used in a hot minute). She taped herself with three of her fingers, and jumped up. She wanted to try out this new combo she'd been theory crafting. Ochako activated her Omnitrix, and transformed into Heatblast. Ochako rocketed herself back to the ground, and blasted away the DNAliens that had gathered around her.
The fire slammed into the aliens, making them screech out in pain. It didn't hurt as much as it probably should've but it was still on fire.
Ochako's flames became hotter, and some of the DNAliens began to show off their other skills. One of the DNAliens, dressed in blue and white, stretched out his arms and enveloped Ochako in his arms. The DNAlien was trying to smother Ochako's flames out. He snarled at Ochako, as his head thrust forward.
Ochako's head lit up once more, and the heat was almost hot enough to melt the Xenocyte off of the victim's face. Iida jumped in to help Ochako- he kicked the back of the DNAlien's head, knocking him out.
Another DNAlien created a portal in front of Iida. Iida fell through the portal, and fell out of another one, face first on the ground. The DNAliens surrounded him, and binded his arms and legs with their gunk spit. Iida grit his teeth behind his helmet.
"RECIPRIO...BURST!" The hero yelled- Iida overclocked the engines in his legs, and blasted himself off the ground.
Izuku dodged a barrage of wooden pillars erupting from the ground, courtesy of another DNAlien. He smashed through the last pillar and slammed into the DNAlien, holding as much power back as he could to avoid hurting the host. Of course, being launched into a tree from the force of the strike still left a mark.
Ochako incinerated globs of plastic that were being thrown at her- the smell was awful, but it kept her from getting hit. Synaptak began to telekinetically throw DNAliens around, while Tini began picking up DNAliens and knock them unconcious.
"Should we be fighting this rough?" Izuku asked.
"Don't worry! DNAliens are notably durable. Their hosts don't feel a thing." Ultimo said, as his laser eyes blasted the ground.
"That's...lucky," Izuku admitted, looking back to the DNAlien that slammed into a tree...along with the four others that had joined him.
The black and white suited DNAlien finally started to engage. He held up his hands, and suddenly, Tini was hit backwards. Whatever hit her, it was like getting smashed into by a sheet of glass. Tini stumbled as she stood up.
"His quirk. He can make barriers that can't be seen." Synaptak said, after reading his mind.
"A bit cheap, isn't it?" Tini growled, slamming her fists together.
"Some would say the same of mind reading, but both have their uses."
Ochako and Ultimo sent flames and laser vision at the DNAlien, but he blocked it with his quirk.
"Energy attacks don't seem to real do anything against him." Izuku noted. "Maybe..." Izuku picked up a rock. Izuku tossed the rock as hard as he could at the barrier. The barrier suddenly shattered, and the energy attacks hit his body.
"Observant, aren't you? Tini, I believe the lead is yours now," Synaptak said, signaling for Tini to charge in and shatter every barrier the DNAlien threw up to stop them.
Izuku rushed in as well, helping Tini smash through every barrier in their way.
"Hm." The suited DNAlien surrounded himself in a shield, and disappeared from their sights. Izuku and Tini looked around. Izuku knew that the suspect was either preparing a sneak attack, and trying to get away.
"Trying to hide, are we?" Synaptak smirked, reaching out to try and find the DNAlien by this thoughts.
"Tini, on your left!" the octopus-like alien called out. Without a second thought, the Tetramand lashed out and grabbed the DNAlien by the face before slamming him into the ground.
Ochako, Ultimo and Iida finished off the other DNAliens, as Tini wrapped a special tape around the DNAlien's mouth.
"I'm guessing that's some sort of special tape that prevents them from launching out that gunk." Izuku surmised.
"And prevents them from using their tentacles. This stuff is stronger than it looks." Tini said. "Check your pockets. You should have some in your pockets."
"Going off how easy that was...am I correct in assuming that wasn't the queen?" Iida asked.
"Nope. Just a high ranking commander." Synaptak said, floating on down. "You can tell by their pupils. This one's eye is much more humanoid, as opposed to the others."
"He's right." Ochako said, picking up a random DNAlien for Izuku to tape up. His eye was a simple black and green, and the commander's eye looked like it could be a normal human eye.
"So what does the queen's eye look like?" Izuku asked as he taped up the alien Ochako held.
"It looks like multiple eyes merged into one. A culmination of everything the queen has taken over." Ultimo shuddered. "It feels like multiple people are staring at you."
"That's not disturbing at all," Iida said as he taped up another DNAlien.
"Indeed." Ultimo said, as Ochako reverted back to human. "Now, here's what we needed you for."
"Huh?" Ochako asked.
"Tennyson may have not told you- but, the Omnitrix has a DNA repair mode." Synaptak said.
"Huh...it makes sense. Given how it's meant to hold DNA..." Ochako looked over the Omnitrix, "But...I'm hoping one of you knows how to activate it."
"It requires no activation whatsoever." Ultimo laughed. "Just put your hand on the DNAlien's face, and it will expunge any foreign DNA traces that's been spliced into the base DNA."
"A DNA purification, done within seconds. Incredible." Iida said, amazed.
Ochako decided to test it out. She hesitantly put her hand to the face of the DNAlien she had just finished taping up. A bright flash of pink light shone from her hand, the Omnitrix glowing as well. In a flash, the DNAlien suddenly took on the appearance of being charred. Ochako jumped back in fear, before the charred appearance literally flaked away and let the human, now free of the Xenocyte, fall face first into the snow.
"There we go." Ultimo said. His eyes lit up, and he suddenly disintegrated the Xenocyte. Ochako jumped back in shock.
"The original process to get those things off was a LOT more painful." Tini said. "Glad we have a safer way."
"Y-yeah, me too." Ochako said.
"Do...I even wish to know what the old way was?" Iida asked.
"No. You don't. Trust me," Synaptak said.
With that, Ochako went around and cured each of the captive DNAliens. Soon enough, the civilians were all accounted for. Izuku and Iida did their rounds to make sure none of them had been hurt.
"You were right- none of them even look hurt." Izuku was very curious on how that worked.
"They like to keep their victims in good health, just in case." Tini frowned.
"Doesn't make sense for them to hurt their hosts..." Izuku said.
"They are completely reliant on them for survival. A parasite cannot survive, develop, or replicate without a host. As a result, parasites rarely kill their hosts, but they can spread diseases, some of which are deadly." Iida said. "We should do medical scans on them after we take care of the queen."
"Good plan." Synaptak nodded.
"...actually," Ultimo looked back to the town hall, trying to see if the congregation was still there, just in case.
"The congregation has broken up and scattered throughout the town." Ultimo observed. "They may be preparing an attack."
"Not a good sign. We don't know what quirks they might have," Ochako said. "And one of them could detect us."
"You could try XLR8. Speed through town and thin the numbers. And Iida could help, knock out any you can't reach," Izuku suggested.
"Speed blitzing isn't something I'm really that good at yet, but...I'm willing to try." Ochako said. "You guys can flank behind us."
"As sound a strategy as that is, there may be one flaw with it..." Synaptak pointed out, "With any plan we take actually."
"And that would be?" Iida asked.
"Doing a cursory telepathic scan...there's one person that didn't take well to the Xenocyte..."
"Meaning they didn't bond well or something?" Ochako asked.
"Something like that." Synaptak frowned.
"That's...ominous," Ochako admitted.
"We'll worry about that one person later. We should focus on everyone else first." Iida said.
"Agreed...but it's more...don't let anyone open a certain door," Synaptak specified.
"You're not helping."
Ochako turned on her Omnitrix and slid towards the icon of XLR8. She slapped down the faceplate, and closed her eyes. Her skin turned blue as energy rushed through her veins. Her physique changed to resemble that of a raptor, and her feet were provided with two small orbs.
Ochako grabbed the tape. "Alright, Iida- you knock them down, and I'll tie them up."
"Understood," Iida said, getting ready. Mentally counting down, the two then dashed off into town. Ochako led the charge, striking at any DNAlien she managed to find, striking them once or twice with enough momentum behind each hit enough to knock them on their backs. Iida then followed up and bound the townsfolk with the specialized tape.
She'd cure them all later. For now, it was easy for them to just catch them off guard and strike!
Hit after hit, the DNAliens fell and were bound, though Ochako couldn't help but feel this was too easy. Not to mention, no matter how many DNAliens were taken down, none of them were the queen.
Some were also struggling, trying to pry the tape off their mouths. They were more resilient than they looked.
Thank god for the other enforcers flanking them. Izuku lunged at a larger DNAlien that was close to tearing the tape off. He delivered a powerful haymaker, knocking the DNAlien into the side of a house. Tini jumped up into the air, and shook the Earth as she landed. DNAliens scattered, as Tini was on a warpath to take them down.
"COWARDS!" She yelled.
Synaptak used his telekinesis and ripped a street sign out of the ground and launched it at some of the fleeing DNAliens. The sign wrapped around two of the fleeing aliens and the psychic alien slammed the two into the ground.
Ultimo flew through the town at such a tremendous speed that he broke the sound barrier. He slammed into the DNAliens and knocked them out.
More and more DNAliens were detained, either through the speed blitz efforts of Ochako and Iida or the flanking attacks from the rest of the team. All in all, it was working. However, one of the DNAliens was special. They received a direct order from the hidden queen, so simple that there was no way for it to be misinterpreted.
Open it.