BEN 10 DOES NOT BELONG TO ME. MY HERO ACADEMIA DOES NOT BELONG TO ME. ALIEN OR QUIRK? OOH! HOW ABOUT AN ALIEN WITH A QUIRK?
All good things must come to an end, but why do they have to end so soon for Midoriya?
Also, having messenger app conversations seems to be common in many MHA stories, so I figured I'd try my hand at it.
My Alien Academia
Chapter 5
Texts and Trouble
Midoriya was still getting used to the idea of having friends, much less actually having them, so he was rather surprised at himself when he created a group chat on his messenger app and invited all of the friends who were in his contacts list. On a whim, he named it 'UA's Rising Stars', and settled down to wait and see if any of his friends joined.
Of course, as soon as he did, he immediately began to panic. Most of them only joined my contacts list a few hours ago. Is it too soon to talk to them? Too late? Oh, this was a huge mistake!
Before he could spiral too far, his phone buzzed several times; to his honest shock, everyone had joined in at the same time.
"Wow," he whispered, and opened up the app. He quickly selected his avatar—All Might's face—and began to type.
All Might: Hi, everyone!
There, that sounded good, right?
A moment later, several avatars appeared—a pair of glasses, a comet, a tape dispenser, a book, and a pink crayon.
Glasses: Greetings, Midoriya-san! I assume that is you, since I cannot think of anyone else who is such a big fan of All Might. Those ears on your costume are a bit of a giveaway.
"They're not ears," Midoriya grumbled, then returned his attention to his phone, ignoring Ben's laughter.
All Might: Yeah, it's me. Hi, Iida-san.
Tape: Hi, guys! I didn't know we all used this app! Oh, and this is Sero, but that's kinda obvious.
Book: It is very you, Sero-san. I couldn't find any avatars that really represented me, except for this one. I should mention that this is Momo… it's easier to type out my first name.
Comet: Hi, Yaomomo! Hi, guys! How's every1 recovering from 2day's lessons?
Crayon: Hey, gurl! Is all gud heer, but r u ok? U wer bleeding pretty bad
Comet: I'm fine now, Ashido-san. Hey, Deku-kun, can I invite Tsuyu-chan? I got her number before I went home.
All Might: Sure. And I'm glad you're doing better. You scared me when I saw you.
Glasses: I believe I speak for us all that we were worried about you, Uraraka-san. There was… a great deal of blood.
Crayon: ok, enuf! Yall need to stop!
All Might: ?
Glasses: ?
Book: ?
Tape: ?
Comet: ?
Crayon: U r all talking so formally, and this is a freakin chat room! Drop the stoopid honorifics alredy, or were all gonna get arthritis!
There was a long pause, and Midoriya realized that Ashido was right; this was far from a formal conversation.
All Might: Okay, you're right, Ashido.
Crayon: Mina or GTFO
Comet: But didn't Deku make this chat?
Crayon: MINA OR GTFO
At that point, a new avatar icon appeared—a frog. It didn't take a genius to figure out who that was.
Frog: Hi, everyone, ribbit.
All Might: …
Book: …
Glasses: …
Comet: …
Tape: Did you really just add 'ribbit' to a text?
Frog: It's a habit.
Crayon: Its adorable! Tsuyu, Im stealing u 4ever
Comet: No, she's mine, Mina! :P
Tape: Should we be worried?
Book: So long as no one tries to actually kidnap Tsuyu, I believe we can let it slide.
Midoriya raised an eyebrow; Yaoyorozu had paused for a significant amount of time before typing out Asui's first name. Addressing everyone that way would take some time to get used to.
All Might: Um, back on track…
Tape: We had a track at all?
All Might: I'm trying to build the track, but Mina seems to be conducting corporate sabotage.
Did I really just type that? Midoriya wondered, and then panicked, thinking that he had upset Ashido.
Crayon: Pfft! lol, gud one, Deku! Hey, wate, can I call u Deku, like Ochako does? Plz?
All Might: I guess so? You're not using it as an insult, so it's fine.
Glasses: I noticed that Bakugo kept calling you that, but Ochako also says it, and you have no problem. May I ask why?
Comet: Bakugo is a big jerk and calls him useless, but I thought it sounded like 'you can do it'. It's nicer than Bakugo's meaning.
Glasses: My word! How can Bakugo be so cruel?
Tape: Yeah, what the hell?
Crayon: ^
Frog: ^ ribbit.
Book: It is obvious that Bakugo has been less than pleasant to Izuku. However, it is good to see that you can take a positive spin on an insult. Good for you, Izuku.
All Might: … Thanks, everyone, but can we please drop it? I don't really want to talk about Bakugo, but if you all want to call me Deku, it's fine. None of you seem the type to use it to hurt me.
Crayon: on second thout, imma just call u Midori. Much more fun. Ochako can call u Deku, its cute wen she says it
Tape: Agreed. On the Ochako and Deku thing, I mean. I'm fine with Izuku here, if that's cool.
Glasses: I also agree wholeheartedly.
Book: ^
Frog: ^ ribbit.
Tape: OK, now you're just doing that on purpose!
Frog: I admit nothing…
Tape: Don't you dare!
Frog: Ribbit.
Tape: alrjopafhaehah
All Might: Is he okay?
Comet: I think Tsu just broke him.
Book: Well, when Hanta returns from… wherever his brain has gone, he can rejoin us. Izuku, aside from getting us all together, was there something you wanted to discuss?
All Might: I guess I just wanted to make sure we could all connect like this, maybe help each other out with homework, stuff like that?
Glasses: That is a wonderful idea! Maintaining a support network like this is also good practice for when we become Pros!
The conversation went on like that late into the night, but eventually, everyone said their goodbyes and left the chat. Midoriya was the last, and he fell asleep with a smile on his face.
…
The next morning, Midoriya met up with Iida and Uraraka outside the school, only to be nearly crushed by a mob of reporters that were laying siege to the gates.
"Are you three Hero students?" one reporter asked, shoving her microphone into Midoriya's face. "Have you had classes with All Might? What is he like?"
"ENOUGH!"
Reporters and students alike covered their ears as Present Mic used a fraction of his Quirk to get their attention.
"You all know the rules," the Hero said when the ringing stopped; his voice was now much friendlier. "The press isn't allowed to harass the students, or your networks are gonna get it from our legal team. Now go on, get outta here." The reporters grumbled, but retreated to a respectful distance. "Don't worry, Listeners, we figured the mob would show up sooner or later; come on inside and get to class."
"Thanks, Mic-sensei!" Uraraka bowed, and the boys followed suit.
Present Mic just grinned and patted Uraraka's head. "Don't mention it. Now, you three had better hurry, or Aizawa is gonna get annoyed."
Rather than risk their homeroom teacher's wrath, the three moved at just short of a run to make it to class. When they opened the 1-A door, they found the rest of 'UA's Rising Stars' sitting together, along with Jiro, who was on the other side of Yaoyorozu.
"Hey, guys," Sero greeted. "When you weren't here earlier, I thought the paparazzi had gotten you."
"They almost did," Uraraka said as she sat down. "Luckily, Present Mic was there to make them back off. It was kinda scary how they wouldn't leave us alone."
Midoriya nodded shakily; he wasn't used to friends being that close to him, let alone total strangers. "The press is usually more respectful of Heroes' personal space, but I guess All Might being here got them all riled up."
"The news must be slow or something," Sero said. "I mean, I know All Might is popular and all, but isn't him teaching kind of a boring topic?"
"Actually, they once spent three days talking about how his hair was two degrees lower than normal," Midoriya said. "When it comes to All Might, they'll take anything and make a huge deal of it."
The doors slid open at that moment, and Aizawa stalked inside. "That's something you all may risk if you become Pro Heroes. Thankfully, I'm an underground Hero, so I don't have to deal with any of that." He glanced at several of the students who weren't sitting down. "You'd all better be seated by the time I blink, or it's detention for all of you."
No one was willing to see if he was bluffing, so there was a rush of air as everyone jumped into their seats.
"Better. Now, All Might gave me a report of everything that happened during his class. For the most part, you all did well, or at least received valuable feedback. I expect to see marked improvements in the coming weeks, but if you don't take honest criticism to heart…" he paused and looked at Mineta, and then Bakugo. "I won't hesitate to expel you."
Mineta gulped and tried not to make eye contact with the man. Bakugo, who had refused to even look at Midoriya when he came in, scowled and said nothing.
"Since that's out of the way, there's one more thing you all need to take care of." Aizawa sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "You need to decide on who's going to be Class President and Vice President."
The class immediately broke out in loud conversation, but then Iida stood up and raised his hand. "Everyone! Please calm down! Choosing our class' leaders should be a respectful and rational affair!" He waited until everyone stopped talking. "Now then, I believe we should pick our Class President and Vice President with a vote."
"Ribbit, isn't that going to be difficult?" Asui asked. "I mean, we've known each other for less than three days, so we don't really know who's qualified."
"Yes, but as first impressions are key to almost every interaction, I believe that anyone who has made a good impression will make for fine candidates." He turned to Aizawa. "Aizawa-sensei, is this acceptable?"
"Fine, so long as you leave me out of it." Aizawa pulled his sleeping bag out from under his desk and crawled inside. "I'm taking a nap."
With Iida leading things, everyone wrote down a name on a piece of paper and put them into a hat—created by Yaoyorozu—and Iida counted the names. Many people ended up voting for themselves, but two stood out with more than one vote—Yaoyorozu had four, and Midoriya had three.
"There we have it," Iida declared. "By the number of votes, Yaoyorozu-san is our Class President, and Midoriya-san is our Vice President!"
Most of the class gave polite applause—except for Bakugo, who just looked infuriated as usual—and the newly elected class leaders walked to the front of the room.
"This is certainly a surprise," Yaoyorozu said, her face colored by an embarrassed blush. "I wasn't expecting to be elected Class President, but I promise that I will give my all to lead Class 1-A to the best of my ability!"
"A-and I'll do my b-best to t-take some of the b-burden off of Yaoyorozu-san," Midoriya stammered.
Yaoyorozu smiled at him. "I'll be counting on you, Midoriya."
Midoriya only turned red-faced and nodded furiously.
"Well, that's surprising," Aizawa said from his spot on the floor. "I expected you all to take longer. I guess you can make the rest of the class a study period; just keep the noise down."
The students split off into smaller groups, though Midoriya's friends made up the largest.
"Congratulations, Yaomomo," Jiro said, and waved one of her jacks at Midoriya. "You too, Vice Prez."
Uraraka patted Midoriya on the back. "Yeah, congrats, Deku-kun! You and Yaomomo are gonna be awesome!"
Midoriya shrugged. "I'm not really sure what I'm even supposed to do…"
"It's like you said, Midoriya," Iida said, "your task will be to help Yaoyorozu bear the weight of her responsibility. If she is doing something on behalf of the class, you will assist her."
"Um, okay." Midoriya gave his usual wobbly smile to the tall girl. "Y-you can count on me… Yaomomo."
Yaoyorozu giggled. "I appreciate it."
"No offense, Yaomomo, but I kinda thought that you and Midoriya would switch spots," Sero admitted. "Everyone was super impressed by him yesterday."
"It was probably the stuttering," Midoriya muttered, mostly to himself. "Nobody wants someone nervous to be in charge. And Yaomomo is really cool…"
Yaoyorozu shook her head. "While I appreciate the compliment, you're being too hard on yourself. Just stop worrying about what other people think; take it from me, your harshest critic will always be yourself."
"Th-thanks."
Uraraka smiled at both of them, but on the inside, she was worried about Deku. She was no therapist, but she wasn't stupid; he had said that he'd thought he was Quirkless for most of his life, and she was aware of how Quirkless people were often treated. She had to wonder if UA was the first school he'd gone to where people didn't hate him for existing.
That won't happen here, she swore to herself. You have friends, Deku-kun! You don't have to be so down on yourself!
So, for his sake, she kept up her smile.
…
Nezu normally enjoyed his lunch; it was a time for quiet relaxation when he was alone, or easy conversation when he had company. What he did not enjoy was having that lunch interrupted, especially by an actual emergency.
He stared at the security feeds, his lunch forgotten; his gaze was focused on the gaping hole in the wall. The wall of his school.
Sitting around the table were the senior teachers, as well as All Might. Like Nezu, they were concerned and angry about what had happened—someone had turned a section of the outer wall to dust, and set off the level three alarms across the school.
"There were no reports of unauthorized personnel," Hound Dog said through his growls and yips. "Either the alarm scared them off…"
"Or they got what they wanted," Nezu finished. "Until we discover otherwise, we must assume the latter. Assure the students that everything is fine, but I want additional security for all classes. Eraserhead, can I ask you to bring in a few of your underground associates? If they can keep an eye on things from outside, I would appreciate it."
Aizawa looked as tired as ever, but his eyes were focused. "I have a few people I can call. They'll stay in civilian clothes; if the intruder is still around, they won't want to spook them."
"Thank you; in addition, I would like you and a few others to accompany Class 1-A to the USJ tomorrow, just in case."
Aizawa glanced at All Might, and then raised an eyebrow. "I'll ask the Big Three to help out; if there is a problem, we'll have plenty of muscle, but if there isn't, it can be a learning experience for my students."
"I see no problem with that," Nezu said affably. "It might be overkill, but better to be safe than sorry. If there are no other matters, you should all return to your classes; Aizawa, Thirteen, you have preparations to make."
The teachers stood and filed out of the room, but Nezu remained in his seat, staring intently at the image of his damaged wall.
"You've made a mistake," he said; his smile never left his face, but his tone was grim. "I can forgive many things, but I do not tolerate an attack on my school."
…
Aside from the panic at lunch, the day went by fairly normally for Class 1-A. Midoriya almost found his regular classes boring, though Ben spiced it up by providing a running commentary the entire time. After school, Midoriya had done his homework, and then spent some time messaging his friends in 'UA's Rising Stars'.
The next day was even less exciting, since there was no alarm. Everyone had become a little more enthusiastic when they were told to get into their costumes for their Heroics class.
"You know, the real Ben would have hated it here," Ben said they headed for the lockers to change into their costumes—the students weren't told why, which only increased the apprehension.
There were people around, so Midoriya couldn't verbally address Ben's comment; he settled for a raised eyebrow as he got changed.
"I mean, first of all, these classes are way harder than anything he had when he was your age," Ben went on. "And he barely passed those classes; heck, he probably would have failed the written part of the entrance exam. And he wouldn't have liked all the rules that come with being a Pro Hero; he probably would have become a Vigilante on principle." Ben shrugged. "I guess I'm just saying that you've got a better handle on life than he did."
Midoriya tried not to grin at the compliment, and instead pretended to look busy by cycling through his aliens.
"Hey, Midoriya!" Sero clapped him on the shoulder as he walked past. "Think you'll show us some transformations we haven't seen already?"
"Um, maybe?" Midoriya shrugged helplessly. "It's like Yaomomo said during the battle training—I need to use the forms that best suit the situation."
"Yeah, I hear you." Sero tucked his helmet under one arm. "I'm kinda jealous, dude; your Quirk lets you do so much, but I'm stuck with my tape."
"Your Quirk is awesome, Sero!" Midoriya quickly defended. "You can use it for mobility, trapping Villains, rescuing people, and even first aid! Plus, you've had years to figure out how to use your Quirk best, and I've had less than one year to learn the basics. And my watch is still sorting out my DNA, so I have to learn even more later!"
"God, just propose if you love his Quirk that much, loser," Bakugo grunted as he stalked past.
Sero just shook his head when the blonde boy left. "Man, I can't believe anyone can be friends with that jerk. Kirishima must be either really brave, or dumb."
"Wait, Kirishima-san is hanging out with Kac—I mean, Bakugo?" Midoriya blinked. "When did this happen?"
"I saw them at lunch, and they were talking." Sero paused and thought about it. "Actually, Kirishima was talking, Bakugo just looked grumpy."
Midoriya sighed; for a moment, he had thought that Bakugo had tried to be social. Apparently, Kirishima was reaching out to him; Midoriya wished him luck, but he didn't see Bakugo turning into a social butterfly anytime soon.
"Anyway, do you have any idea what we're doing today?" Sero asked.
"I'm not sure," Midoriya said as they walked out of the locker room. "We did combat training; maybe they want us to improve on what we know and do it again?"
"That'll keep a lot of the class happy," Sero said. "I just hope we don't face the same teams again. Todoroki is way too strong."
"What's what about Todoroki-san?" Uraraka asked as she and the other girls met up with the boys.
"He's OP," Sero said, but sent a grin Todoroki's way to show he was just teasing, though he got no response.
Uraraka nodded, then looked down at herself and pouted. "I feel so weird right now."
Midoriya could understand why. Uraraka's bodysuit had been torn and her helmet had been almost destroyed; the former had been replaced by her gym uniform, and she was going without the latter. She still had her boots, wrist guards and armored collar, but the bright pink clashed horribly with the gym clothes, and she was stuck with that until the rest of her costume was repaired.
Iida bowed low. "My apologies once again for yesterday. I didn't mean to cause such harm, nor damage your costume."
Uraraka waved him off. "No big deal, Iida! I just expected you to only kick, so I wasn't watching out for punches. Now I know better."
Ashido patted Uraraka on the back. "See? Lesson learned. Now come on, or Aizawa-sensei will be mad at us again!"
To the class' surprise, they were directed to a bus outside, where Aizawa was waiting impatiently.
"We don't have all day, so get on the bus," he ordered. "Today, we're focusing on Rescue Training, and that means we're going on a field trip to a special part of UA."
While not met with as much enthusiasm as combat training, many of the students got excited. For some, like Midoriya, Uraraka, Sero and Asui, this was why they wanted to become Heroes—to save people.
For the rest, it was a chance to do something new, so everyone quickly got onto the bus. Iida tried to get everyone to sit in neat rows, until he saw that there was only one way everyone could sit. Asui patted his back consolingly as he sat down next to her.
"Ooh, I'm so excited!" Uraraka bounced in her seat next to Midoriya, who smiled back at her.
"I know, right? This is why I wanted to be a Hero in the first place!"
Bakugo scoffed. "All this rescue crap is for Heroes who just can't hack it fighting Villains."
Asui turned her blank gaze towards him. "But you lost during combat training, so what does that say about you, ribbit?"
"You shut your mouth, Frog," Bakugo snarled. "No one asked for your opinion!"
"Eh, I know I wouldn't want someone like Bakugo rescuing me," Kaminari said flippantly. "No one wants a rescuer with the personality of day-old dog crap."
"You wanna go, Sparky!?" Bakugo stood up, his glove popping with tiny explosions.
"Sit down," Aizawa said, his eyes glowing as he stared at the class. "Don't antagonize your classmates—consider that a warning. And Bakugo, I'm sure you haven't forgotten what I said on the first day of class, right?"
Bakugo threw himself back in his seat, while the rest of the class sat in more subdued silence. Still, after a few minutes, Uraraka nudged Midoriya and gave him another excited smile, which he returned.
"Keep up that smile," Ben said from inside the Ultimatrix. "Stay positive; today is going to be a good day."
…
The building the bus took them to was massive, almost as big as the rest of the campus, and if Uraraka hadn't tugged him along, Midoriya would have spent a while just staring in awe. Of course, as soon as they walked inside and saw who was waiting for them, it was Uraraka who had to be urged forward.
"Greetings," said the person in the poofy space suit. "Welcome to the Unforeseen Simulation Joint, or USJ, for short! Here, you'll find simulations of every disaster scenario imaginable, including floods, ruins, fires, and more! I am Thirteen, and I'll be teaching you the basics of dealing with disasters—and today is extra special, because I have some assistants!" Thirteen gestured to the three older teenagers. "Please, introduce yourselves."
The first to step forward was a tall, muscular boy with short blonde hair. He wore a white costume that was accented by reds, blues, and greens; he had a long red cape, and the number one million on his chest in gold.
"Hey, there, freshmen!" The boy gave them a friendly smile that radiated confidence. "I'm Togata Mirio, but call me Mirio; everyone else does. Oh, but I'm in my costume, so you should call me by my Hero name: Lemillion!"
"Ooh, hey, everyone!" If Midoriya was being objective, the blue-haired girl that jumped forward was even prettier than Yaoyorozu. She wore a teal bodysuit with mint-green markings and yellow gloves; turquoise spirals ran up her legs, while thicker spirals that looked almost like gauntlets covered her wrists. Part of her hair was done up in spiral-like horns, though that didn't stop the rest from falling down to her knees.
"I'm Hado Nejire, and my Hero name is Nejire-chan!" She darted from one 1-A student to another, her words coming out in a rush. "Ohmygosh, you have a bird head! Does that mean you can fly like a bird? Hey, your hair has two colors, that's so awesome! Ooh, I love that ponytail, but I can't get my hair to do that, it's not fair! Aw, those ears on your hoodie are like my hair! I love it!"
Togata gently grabbed Hado's hand and pulled her back. "Sorry, she gets excited like that. I promise, she's harmless—unless you're a Villain, and then you're going to have one heck of a hospital bill!" He looked over his shoulder. "Come on over here and introduce yourself, Amajiki!"
The third student slouched as he walked over. He wore a black bodysuit that was covered in a white tunic, and a vest covered in purple pouches; he also wore a long white cloak with a hood that concealed his dark hair. His eyes were protected by a purple visor; Midoriya also noticed that he was barefoot.
"I'm Amajiki Tamaki," the boy mumbled, barely loud enough to be heard at all. "You can call me Suneater, I guess."
Aizawa nodded at the three older students. "These three are the top students at UA; it's not very creative, but it's why they're called the Big Three. Each of them will be graduating this year, and I wouldn't be surprised if they all had their own Hero Agencies within their first six months after graduation." He gave his class a stern look. "That's what you should all be aiming for—the very top." He glanced around, and then sighed. "All Might was supposed to join us, but since he's running late, we'll start without him."
The class groaned in disappointment, but Midoriya suspected why All Might wasn't there. During that fateful meeting on the rooftop, when he had discovered All Might's skinny form, the Hero had told him that he could only use his powers for up to about three hours every day. From the way Thirteen briefly held up three fingers, and Aizawa's annoyed grimace, All Might must have pushed himself too far today.
"Regardless, you all have much to learn," Thirteen said. "First of all, do any of you know who I am and what I do?"
For once, someone else beat Midoriya to the punch when it came to Hero trivia.
"Oh, I know!" Uraraka raised her hand and jumped in place. "You're the Space Hero: Thirteen! You use your Black Hole Quirk to rescue people trapped by disasters!"
Thirteen nodded. "That's true, I have used my Quirk to save many lives. However, my Quirk is still extremely dangerous; used incorrectly, I could kill the people I try to save." Thirteen's expression was concealed by the helmet, but Midoriya assumed they were all getting a somber look. "Never forget that many Quirks have the potential to hurt or even kill someone. When it comes to rescuing civilians, your self-control must be greater than ever. That's why you're all here—to learn to use your powers to help people. Thank you all for listening."
Aizawa nodded in approval; even the Big Three had listened to Thirteen with rapt attention. He was about to throw in his own piece of advice, but then something caught his eye at the bottom of the stairs behind Thirteen—a dark, swirling mass, out of which stepped dozens of people he didn't recognize. His instincts kicked in immediately, and he lowered his gold goggles over his eyes.
"Thirteen, get the students back! We're under attack by Villains!"
A vaguely humanoid shape, made of the same black mist, but with yellow eyes, stepped forward and looked up at the Heroes.
"Eraserhead and Thirteen, hmm? According to the schedule I received, All Might was supposed to be present; instead, there are three extra students."
Eraserhead scowled. "It looks like they were responsible for yesterday. They planned this."
Midoriya, and many other students, were starting to panic; today was only the fourth day of school, and Villains were attacking them!
"Easy," Ben said in Midoriya's ear. "Deep breaths. Stay calm. See if anyone can call for help."
Midoriya was often told to take a breath whenever he was about to be overwhelmed. As usual, the breathing techniques helped.
"There are a lot of them down there," he said, just loud enough to be heard. "Can anyone contact the rest of the school?"
"An excellent suggestion, Midoriya-san," Thirteen said, and pressed a button on their helmet. "Unfortunately, all I'm getting is static; they must be jamming communications. Since no alarms are going off, they must also have disabled those."
Midoriya took another breath. "Then someone needs to get outside and find help." Of course, as soon as he said that, the massive doors behind them suddenly closed. "First, we need to get the door open."
"None of you are going anywhere," said a new voice. It belonged to a young man with unhealthy skin. He wore black, almost casual clothing, though his arms and face were covered with what looked like severed hands; he also had two more clasped around his neck. Behind him was a hulking brute, with dark skin intersected with red scars, a bird-like head with lidless eyes and an exposed brain.
"No one leaves until I see All Might," the man said. "The League of Villains came all this way to kill the Symbol of Peace… maybe some dead kids will draw him out, huh? Some bosses only spawn once the mobs are killed." He nodded to himself, and then turned to the mist-Villain. "Kurogiri, let's start the game."
Eraserhead loosened his capture tool and ran down the stairs. "Lemillion, you're with me! Nejire-chan, Suneater, stay with Thirteen and protect the students!"
Without a word, the Big Three readied themselves—Nejire-chan gathered spiraling energy around her hands, while more spirals on her feet pushed her into the air. Suneater opened two of his pouches and tossed something into his mouth. A moment later, his hands became enormous tentacles, while his feet transformed into talons.
But it was Lemillion who surprised Midoriya the most; after a moment of concentration, the older boy was suddenly covered in crackling golden energy, and his veins glowed red. He pushed off from the ground, directly at the Villains, and practically vanished.
He's so fast! Midoriya blinked, and then Lemillion was ahead of Eraserhead, driving a fist into the first Villain he came across. And he's strong—it's almost like looking at a less-powerful All Might!
"You think you can defeat us?" The mist-Villain, Kurogiri, chuckled as he appeared in their midst from out of another portal. "Perhaps in a large group, but it will be far easier to pick you off if you're spread out. Unfortunately for you, we've already sent out teams of our own to welcome you to your deaths."
"Not if I stop you first!" Nejire-chan pointed her arms at the Villain and fired off two spirals of energy.
"How boring." Kurogiri barely glanced at the girl before opening two more portals; the first swallowed her attack, while the second, positioned over the class, sent it straight down.
"Look out!" Midoriya slammed down the Ultimatrix dial without thinking and jumped in the way of the blast. "HUMUNGOUSAUR!"
Now twelve feet tall, the brown-skinned dinosaur-like creature was one of Midoriya's favorites. He had gone through a costume change since the first time turning into him; he now wore black shorts, including a hole for his long tail, and a green bandolier that held the Ultimatrix dial.
He quickly brought up one arm to block the blast before it could hit Ashido and Shoji. Humungousaur winced in pain, but shook it off; he'd had worse from Bakugo. Besides, he now turned an angry gaze at Kurogiri.
"You are in so much trouble," he growled in a voice so deep that it shook bones.
"Only if you can touch me," Kurogiri countered. "For now… begone!"
Humungousaur's eyes widened, and he swept his arms out as gently as he could to push the other students away. "Get back!"
Unfortunately, he wasn't fast enough; many of his classmates were snatched up by the portals, including himself. The last thing he heard before the darkness claimed him was a familiar, panicked voice.
"DEKU-KUN!"
…
Uraraka glared at Kurogiri; she didn't normally get angry, but this Villain had just sent many of her friends to who-knew-where.
"Where did you send them!?" she demanded.
"I already told you, there are many of my associates who are waiting to get their hands on would-be Heroes." Kurogiri shrugged. "I would have preferred to get all of you, but such is life."
"Too bad for you," Thirteen said, stepping between the younger students and the Villain. "Class 1-A, as one of your instructors, I am giving you the following order: you must get the door open, so that Iida-san can get help. Your seniors and I will hold off this one."
Uraraka glanced at who was left; only she, Ashido, Iida, Shoji and Sero had avoided capture.
Deku-kun probably kept us safe, she thought. I can't let what he did be for nothing!
"Mina," she said quietly, "can you melt the door? Or at least make a hole big enough for Iida?"
Ashido looked at the door in question. "Yeah, but it'll take a minute, even with my most corrosive acid." She grimaced. "And doing that can hurt even me if I'm not careful."
"Then we'll make sure you don't lose your concentration," Uraraka said. "Iida, watch her back; the rest of us will keep you two covered. As soon as you get an opening, you run and you don't stop until you find help, okay?"
Iida hesitated, likely because he didn't want to leave his classmates, but ultimately, he nodded. "I will; I promise."
"As if I'd let you," Kurogiri said, only to be blocked by Thirteen and two-thirds of the Big Three. "Please, you already know that I can send back anything you throw at me."
"I guess we'll just have to try harder," Nejire-chan said with a playful smile, and her hands glowed with charging power.
"I'll just send it right back," Kurogiri said, and created another portal in front of him. Of course, with his vision blocked, he didn't see the giant tentacle until it crashed into his side—specifically, it hit the metal brace around his neck. "Gah! What!?"
"Ha! Made you look!" Nejire-chan smiled at her friend. "Nice work, Suneater!"
Despite his success, Suneater looked like he was about to panic. "That move won't work twice; we need to get rid of those portals!"
"I'm on it," Thirteen said, and raised a pointer finger at the Villain; the cap at the end of the glove popped off, and the world's most powerful vacuum switched on. The black mist was sucked up, and the air seemed to get a bit less stifling. "We've got you covered, students! Go!"
Ashido nodded grimly, and then placed her palms on the door; acid gathered around her hands, and immediately ate away at the material. However, Ashido's hands began to burn and blister after only about a minute of her maximum corrosion.
"Yeah, this kinda sucks," she said through gritted teeth, "but I think it'll only take a few more minutes."
Shoji had turned one of his hands into an eye to watch her, and that eye narrowed in concern. "Ashido-san, are you sure you can do this?"
"Uh-huh," she spat out. "I've got some immunity to my acid; if I didn't, I wouldn't have hands anymore. I'll have some bad burns when this is over, but I've given myself worse by accident."
True enough, though her pink skin turned red and raw, there was a hole leading to the outside after only a few minutes. It would be a tight fit, but Iida was ready.
"I'll be back soon!" he shouted over the roar of his engines. "Engine Boost!"
"No!" Kurogiri tried to stop him, but a wave of tape and tentacles blocked his path. "Curses!"
Uraraka pumped a fist in triumph. Go, Iida! I believe in you! She glanced worriedly at the rest of the USJ. I just have to believe in everyone else, too.
…
The first thing Humungousaur saw when he emerged from the portal was water; at first, he thought Kurogiri had sent him to the ocean, but the he saw the inside of the USJ dome, and realized that he hadn't been sent very far.
Then he hit the water, sending a huge geyser upwards. The impact didn't do much to his thick hide, but Humungousaur had sunk pretty far under the water, and he wasn't suited for this kind of terrain. More importantly, he saw a familiar purple figure in the water with him, surrounded by several Villains with water-based Quirks.
He slapped the dial once more; when the green light faded, he was now a tall fish-creature with webbed claws, huge jaws and teeth, and a lure that curled over his head. The Ultimatrix dial was set on a piece of armor on his shoulder, the only clothes he had. His legs sealed together to form a fish's tail, and he glared at the underwater Villains.
"RIPJAWS!" He swam at incredible speeds, and drove his fist into the face of a Villain before he could get his hands on Mineta. That arm still hurt from when he'd blocked Nejire-chan's Quirk, but it wasn't anything he couldn't handle.
The small boy panicked when Ripjaws turned to face him, but then he noticed the familiar dial and smiled. Unfortunately, he accidentally let in some water, and he began to drown. Ripjaws reached out to grab him, but another Villain tackled him from the side; for a moment, Ripjaws panicked, unsure of how to get past the Villain before Mineta drowned.
Thankfully, he didn't have to think long; a familiar tongue wrapped around Mineta, and the tongue's owner gave Ripjaws a thumbs-up as she swam to the boat that floated at the surface.
Thanks, Tsuyu, Ripjaws thought, and then slashed his attacker across the chest to drive him back. He then quickly swam after his classmates, who were already on the boat.
"What is happening right now!?" Mineta screamed, once he'd finished coughing. "Villains are attacking us! Villains! This is only our fourth day of school, I didn't think we'd have to deal with this so soon! We're gonna die! I'm gonna die, and I'll never see Yaoyorozu naked!"
Asui grimaced. "I can't believe I touched you with my tongue."
"You did what Heroes do, Asu—I mean, Tsuyu," Ripjaws said in his deep, raspy voice as he pulled himself aboard, and his tail split back into legs. "Great work."
"Thanks." Asui scooted back to put Ripjaws between herself and Mineta. "I still want mouthwash, ribbit."
High on adrenaline, Ripjaws almost made a joke at Mineta's expense; instead, he started gasping.
Asui was immediately at his side. "Midoriya, are you okay?"
Instead of immediately answering, Ripjaws slapped the Ultimatrix dial and turned into Swampfire, and then took a long breath of air. "S-sorry… I can't breathe out of water when I'm Ripjaws."
"Oh, okay." Asui looked out over the water, where the Villains circled like hungry sharks. "What do we do now, ribbit?"
Swampfire rubbed his arm as it healed. "I'm working on that."
…
"What did you say!?" Jiro shouted over the sound of fighting.
"I said that I'm working on a plan!" Yaoyorozu yelled back as she ducked under a Villain's outstretched hand. That hand was soon broken after a few well-placed blows, and its owner reeled back in pain.
Kaminari tackled another Villain to the ground and delivered a jolt of electricity to his head. "Damn, Yaomomo, where did you learn to do that?"
"It's a long story!"
Actually, it was rather simple—Yaoyorozu was a rich, pretty girl, and as such, she knew that she would have to defend herself, especially if she wanted to be a Hero. Thankfully, her parents were very understanding, and had hired some of the best self-defense instructors available to teach her. That had been three years ago, and she was more than capable of handling thugs like these.
Skilled as she was, she still couldn't see in every direction, so she was taken by surprise when another Villain slammed her into a boulder. One hand was wrapped around her throat, while the other transformed into a serrated hook.
"You ain't gonna look so pretty after I'm done," the Villain said with a leer, made all the more unpleasant by an abnormally long tongue. That tongue reached out for her ear, only for it to be pierced by a long needle that emerged from Yaoyorozu's cheek.
The Villain's scream was particularly loud, but it was cut off when Yaoyorozu created a metal fist on a spring-loaded mechanism that burst from her stomach and into his diaphragm. He let go and fell to the ground with a wheeze. Just for good measure, she created a metal staff from her arm and drove it between the Villain's eyes.
"There's too many of them!" Jiro shouted. "We need a way to take out all these losers!"
"I can do that!" Kaminari replied. "But I'll zap you two if I do!"
Yaoyorozu took stock of the situation—she, Jiro and Kaminari were unharmed, barring a few scrapes and bruises, while over a dozen Villains were unconscious on the ground. Unfortunately, for every one they took down, two more took their place.
Jiro seems fine, as does Kaminari, Yaoyorozu thought. My stores of lipids are a little low. My costume is a bit torn at the center; I really should ask the Support Department if they can make something better—focus, Momo! How can Kaminari use his Quirk without hurting Jiro and I? Oh, I know!
"Jiro-chan, get over here!" Yaoyorozu fell to her hands and knees, focusing her Quirk on her back. A moment later, a thick blanket burst out, shredding her costume and draining her lipids, but it was worth it as she dragged Jiro underneath the blanket with her. "This is a sheet of insulation, Kaminari! We'll be fine, hit them with everything you've got!"
Kaminari grinned at the Villains, while thick bolts of electricity sparked wildly around him. "Badass. Okay, you bastards, take this! INDISCRIMINATE SHOCK: ONE-POINT-THREE MILLION VOLTS!"
There was a bright flash of light and the smell of ozone, but when Yaoyorozu's vision cleared, all of the Villains were down. "Excellently done!"
"Uh, Yaomomo?" Jiro blushed as she pointed at her—more specifically, at the scraps of cloth that did nothing to preserve Yaoyorozu's dignity.
Yaoyorozu sighed. "Do you think you can check on Kaminari-san while I make some new clothes?"
"Yeah, okay." Jiro crawled out from under the blanket. "Hey, stupid! Did you fry your brain, or—hey! Don't you dare look over there!"
Yaoyorozu chuckled as she shed the remains of her old costume and created a new one. As useful as he would have been, I'm glad that Midoriya isn't here right now. He can barely look me in the eye—seeing me like this probably would have killed him.
Thinking about her friend quickly sobered her mood. I hope he's okay. I hope everyone is okay.
…
"Okay, I have a plan," Swampfire said. "It shouldn't take too long to pull off, either."
"That's good," Asui said, then glanced over her shoulder. "Does it involve him, ribbit?"
Swampfire looked sympathetically back at Mineta; the boy was pressed into a corner as far as he could go, trembling and muttering denials. He was on the verge of complete panic, if he hadn't crossed that threshold already.
"No, but we do need to get him out of there." Swampfire shrugged apologetically. "You're going to have to pick him up, though."
Asui's only sign of reluctance was a small sigh. "Okay, but you owe me mouthwash."
"Deal." Despite the danger they were in, Swampfire shared a smile with the girl. "Anyway, the plan is simple—on my signal, you're going to take Mineta and jump for the shallow end of the Shipwreck Zone. You'll need to stay in the air as long as possible, just in case, so you'll need to make a pretty high jump."
"No problem, ribbit." Asui started to trace an arc, starting from the deck of the ship. "I've got the proportional strength of any frog, and that includes the best jumpers. I could probably stay in the air for about eight seconds at my best."
Swampfire glanced at Ben, who had been silently observing; the hologram flickered as he ran some calculations, and then nodded to confirm his idea.
"That should be more than enough time," he said. "Just give me a second to change."
Asui raised an eyebrow. "Should I turn around?"
"Wha—seriously?"
"Sorry, smart comments help me stay calm, ribbit."
Swampfire couldn't help but chuckle. How does she say stuff like that with a straight face? I hope she never plays poker or something.
"All right, grab Mineta and get ready to go. As soon as the Villains see the light, they'll know something is up." Swampfire slapped the dial on his chest and vanished in a flash of green.
"SHOCKSQUATCH!"
This new alien was tall and muscular, and mostly covered in yellow hair, though the hair around his head, wrists and feet was black. He had what looked like metal studs coming out of his wrists, and three horns on his brow that looked like lightning bolts. He wore a pair of green pants, with the Ultimatrix dial acting as the buckle for his belt.
"Good luck, Midoriya!" Asui called, and then wrapped her tongue around Mineta. "Come on, you."
With an impressive jump, Asui carried the screaming boy high into the air. As soon as her feet left the deck, Shocksquatch grabbed the nearest railing—a metal railing—and waved at the Villains.
"You guys are in for a shock, eh?" Shocksquatch grinned as his hair crackled with electricity, and then sent all that power through the boat. A moment later, everything in the water was fried by obscene amounts of electricity. The Villains floated to the surface, their bodies blackened by electrical burns.
"Hey, you used a pun!" Ben grinned at him. "I mean, it wasn't anything original, but it was a classic. The real Ben probably would have approved."
"Thanks," Shocksquatch grunted. "Hey, you said this one could jump far, right?"
"Not as far as Asui, but yeah." Ben raised an eyebrow. "I wouldn't do that, though; Shocksquatch gets shorted out in water."
"Oh. Good to know, eh?" Shocksquatch leaped off the ship as far as his powerful legs could carry him, and then tapped the dial on his belt, just before he hit the water.
"DIAMONDHEAD!"
…
"I hope Midoriya is okay," Asui commented as she and Mineta swam for shore.
"Are you kidding!? He went up against real Villains by himself! He's dead, and all he did was buy us a few minutes!" It was hard to tell if the water in Mineta's eyes was tears, or just from splashes.
Asui glanced back. "I think you should turn around and find out for yourself, ribbit."
"No way!" Mineta shouted, flailing his fists wildly. "If I turn around, I'll be a sitting duck for those Villains, I just know it!"
"Do I really look like a Villain to you?" This new voice was a fine bass, but since Mineta had never heard it before, he opened his mouth to scream. Thankfully for Asui's ears, a light-green crystalline hand covered the boy's mouth. "Please, don't do that, we're trying to be sneaky."
Trembling, Mineta turned and saw the large humanoid figure holding him. He was a good deal taller than Asui, so he was able to stand in the shallower water, while his head and shoulders were still clear. Most of his body was covered by a dark-blue bodysuit, but his large arms were exposed, as was his craggy head; if his arms and head were any indication, his entire body seemed to be made of living diamond. He also had two large spikes of the same material poking out from his shoulder blades, and on his chest was the same hourglass dial.
"Midoriya?" Mineta asked, his voice muffled until the hand was removed from his face. "You're alive? How!? And what does this one do?"
"In order—yes, I electrocuted the Villains with Shocksquatch, and I call this one Diamondhead; I'm really tough, and can do some cool stuff with crystals."
"… Oh."
Asui tapped a forefinger against her chin. "You know, we could have gotten the same effect with Kaminari; all we'd have to do is push him into the water."
Diamondhead nodded. "We should probably tell him that, and he can turn into an expert against water-based Villains."
"How. Are you two. So. Calm?" Mineta demanded. "We're students, for crying out loud! We shouldn't have to deal with this crap in our first week of school! Why aren't you freaking out!?"
Asui and Diamondhead shared a look, and then the former spoke. "I guess I just know there's no point in panicking."
Diamondhead shrugged. "I'm pretty sure if I start panicking, I won't be able to stop." He sighed. "I'll freak out when we're not in danger."
Mineta shook his head. "You two are freaks. Let's just get out of here and—hmmph!"
Diamondhead shut him up with a hand over his mouth again. "Shh! Do you hear that?"
Asui cupped a hand around her ear. "Sounds like fighting, ribbit."
"Yeah. Come on, let's go check it out." When Mineta started thrashing in his arms, Diamondhead gave him a stern look. "We're not going to fight if we don't have to, but if it's some of our class, we need to help them. If we don't need to get involved, we'll just sneak around and head back to the entrance."
After a moment, Mineta reluctantly nodded. The three crept up to the rocky perimeter of the Shipwreck Zone, and beheld a pile of defeated Villains. Most of them were moaning in pain, while others were obviously knocked out—a few, though, were unnaturally still.
Asui pointed at those particular bodies; though her expression remained unchanged, she'd gone a few shades paler.
"There's…" Diamondhead took a deep breath. "There's a reason underground Heroes don't get much media attention. They're the ones more likely to be in a situation where they might have to kill someone."
"Does that mean that Eraserhead is nearby?" Asui asked; she didn't voice the possibility that one of their classmates had taken lives.
There was a loud grunt, and then a familiar figure hurtled past. He was battered and broken, but there was no mistaking Eraserhead as he fell to a crumpled heap.
"Not bad, Eraserhead," the Villain with the hands said as he stepped over the bodies of his henchmen. "It took me longer than I'd like to figure out your combos; the devs must have put some extra work into your speed, because it was hard to track. Then again, you do work better with a party, and I had to divide my pawns to handle that blonde kid—both of you are definitely miniboss material, but unfortunately for you, you're up against two specced-out players."
He paused as he walked over to Eraserhead, and slowly turned to face the three students. "You know, I love using aggro-moves on enemies with only a few HP left. It adds a bit of drama to the system. So, how would you like to watch your precious students crumble away to dust?"
Crumble to dust? Diamondhead's eyes went wide. Was he the one who destroyed part of the wall yesterday?
With a quick jump, the Villain was upon them, and his hand reached out… for Asui's face.
"No!" Diamondhead put his arm out, and the Villain's hand grabbed him instead of Asui. "Get away from her!"
"Taking damage for a weaker party member isn't a bad strategy for a tank," the Villain said. "Too bad my Quirk bypasses all defenses!"
To Diamondhead's horror, the outer edge of his arm began to crumble away; he didn't feel the pain, but he also didn't want to find out how much damage he could take. Thinking quickly, he aimed his other arm at the Villain; his hand shifted into what looked like an oversized meat tenderizer, and then fired a burst of crystal shards at him.
The Villain's reaction time was incredible; only a few shards struck him in the arm before he pulled back. As soon as he let go of Diamondhead's arm, the decay halted.
"You're not getting away," Diamondhead growled, even as his damaged arm began to reform. "Asui, Mineta—get Eraserhead out of here! I'll cover you!"
Rather than argue, Asui jumped past and grabbed Eraserhead with her tongue; Mineta was right behind her, and did his best to hold up his teacher's legs so that he wasn't dragged.
"Well, that's annoying," the Villain said. "I only took a little damage to my temporary HP from Eraserhead, but you actually hurt me. I guess you can help Nomu build up some combo points for his fight with All Might." He tilted his head up and raised his voice. "Nomu! Ignore the blonde brat and get over here!"
There was a roar from behind Diamondhead; he turned, and saw the brute from before—Nomu, he assumed—charging straight at him. Running behind the monster was Lemillion; the third-year looked unharmed, but even his incredible speed was no match for Nomu's.
"Freshman, get out of here!" Lemillion cried. "He's too strong!"
With nowhere to run, Diamondhead just braced himself.
So much for today being a good day.
Hey, I finally have a chapter that ends on a cliffhanger! I know that I could have included more of the fighting, but I didn't want this chapter to be too long. If I didn't give focus to certain characters, it's because they didn't do anything different from canon. Same thing with the alert that happened in the cafeteria; I'm just assuming that everything went the same in canon, and I didn't feel like repeating it. You'll notice, however, that each member of 'UA's Rising Stars' got to do something. I guess it shouldn't surprise you to know that this is now Midoriya's core group of friends. He may get one or two more, but these seven are my favorites.
I do have a couple of points to address, though:
First, I actually don't know if Ashido is completely immune to her own acid—she has to have some immunity, or she'd be dead. However, I'm going to just say that she can crank up the power of her acid, it just isn't fun. Still, even her regular acid is powerful enough to melt metal and rock pretty quick, though the USJ doors are pretty freaking big. Don't worry, she's not going to be like canon Midoriya and destroy herself to pull off a really big move.
Second, I can't remember if Yaomomo (so much easier to type than her full name) can make things from her face or not. She seems able to make things from anywhere else, so why not? Also, the idea that she already knows how to fight well just makes sense, considering her background. Another thing that bothered me (and I changed) was how long it took her to make that insulated sheet. It takes her about ten seconds to make a fully functional cannon, including ammunition. A reverse electric blanket should take no time at all. Another point I want to make is that, yes, I plan on giving her an outfit that doesn't require so much fanservice. She strikes me as the type who only deals with her costume because her Quirk demands it, but would jump at the chance for something better. Maybe a certain pink-haired inventor could help? Now that I'm thinking about it, maybe said inventor could help poor Hagakure, too.
Now, I have no idea if Aizawa has ever actually killed someone, but in my headcanon, Heroes are like police officers; they don't kill unless they have no other choice. And combat can be hard to manage at the best of times, so a mistimed blow might snap a neck instead of knock someone out. Now, Heroes have some leeway in this world, since they work for the government—unlike in, say, DC, where the Justice League really shouldn't take that kind of justice into its own hands, since they're all vigilantes. Again, in my headcanon, underground Heroes are those who have to dirty their hands a bit, and since the government doesn't want to showcase the darker side of being a Hero in the MHA world, Heroes like Eraserhead have to stay out of the spotlight. Also, Snipe uses guns; don't tell me he hasn't shot someone in the head.
Also, I know I was mean to Mineta in this chapter, but I'll be honest, I hate him as much as Bakugo, just for different reasons. In canon, he was the only student who acted cowardly in this arc—even pacifist Koda didn't freak out so much. More than that, he's about two steps away from being a sexual predator. If someone like Bakugo isn't going to be let off the hook in this story—and he's at least kept himself under control so far—Mineta is toast.
Before anyone gets mad that Shigaraki's Quirk worked on Diamondhead, his powers are specifically stated to be able to destroy any matter, organic or otherwise. It wouldn't work against anything energy-based, but anything solid is SOL.
Anyway, yeah, this chapter was an end-of-the-year present for you all. I don't plan on writing anything else until next year, but if you want something with more meat to it to read, please consider buying my book, Alpha Sanction, by Josh Gottlieb. You can find it on Amazon, or my website (link in my profile).
I would also be super appreciative if you considered donating to my P-atreon page (also a link in my profile). Doing so would not only keep me from living on the street (a very real concern right now), but it would also let me write more fan fiction. I've only been pumping out chapters because it's the holiday season, but that's going to end very soon.
And now, I'd like to thank the following Muffins:
Serious Muffins: CrazySith87, jafr86, SpaceEmperorSpar, Nimrod009, Anders Lyngbye, Krisjanis Jansons, Matthias Matanovic, ChaosSpartan575, Alexis Troy, John Collins, Calleo, Casey Pak, Red Bard, Ultimatrix10
Incredible Muffins: RaptorusMaximus, michaelb958, Crazyman844, Jaeger456, killroy225, Brian McGloughlin
Ultra Muffins: Adam Costello, Jeffrey Perigo, Matthew Bunting, RangersRoll
Next Chapter: Midoriya faces a true monster, but what does he have in his arsenal that can fight Nomu?
Happy Holidays!
It's Muffin Time!
