Chapter 2: Decisions and Experiments

Within a few days The Radiance had received her new 'ID' from Grimm. She didn't know how he managed to enter her into Japan's database, and if she was being honest with herself she didn't really want to know either. Grimm had a way of getting things done very efficiently as long as there weren't any questions asked. She didn't know how he managed to get his Troupe to Hallownest, she didn't know how he managed to bring her to another plane of existence, she didn't know how he created her new body, and she didn't know how he managed to get her an ID. Regardless, she went about familiarizing herself with the important parts.

Myla Grimm,

Sex; Female,

Birthdate; 1st of December,

Age; 15,

Quirk: Essence

'Myla is able to create a substance called "Essence" by combining a substance that she naturally produces with particles of light in her general vicinity. This Essence can be used for a wide array of offensive abilities and to a limited extent; object creation.'

'Examples would be her ability to form and dispel this essence in a way akin to variable intensity laser beams. Said intensity can be adjusted by strengthening or weakening a containment field made of light particles. Likewise she can condense this Essence into an unstable critical mass that will explode violently when its containment field is broken. The sole example of her object creation, as of yet, is her ability to create spikes of varying sizes, though these are not permanent and will disappear after a certain amount of time.'

'Because of her ability to create Essence, and the unique substance she can make, her genetic makeup is different from the average human. Interestingly, a byproduct of this are characteristics you would sometimes find in a moth. Extended quirk usage can be dangerous to her health, as the substance she uses to create Essence is not compatible with her bodily functions and must be expelled if too much is created without being turned into the final product. Failure to do so can induce fever-like symptoms.'

Honestly it was a lot more than she was expecting. He had come up with genuine reasons to explain her abilities and genuine reasons to explain what would happen if she overloaded this body's capabilities to handle her power. He did leave out her ability to teleport, and the fact that she could touch, interact with, and control the minds of others. He also left out her mastery of the Dream, and her ability to sense the true desires that every sentient being held. All of this was for good reason, obviously, but it did mean that she would have to be wary of what she did and didn't do. And if she did use one of her unlisted abilities she would need a concrete reason as to how she could do it.

Besides that she had been familiarizing herself with as much of the guide as she could. Every waking moment she had that wasn't spent wandering or exploring was spent pouring over the wealth of information Grimm had left her. She was fluent in the written and spoken language, even if it was vastly different than what she was used to. She was learning the laws and regulations around Quirk Usage, though they confounded her to no end. But the single most amazing thing she had discovered was the technology Humanity possessed.

Humanity could be considered gods as a species if it weren't for their lifespans and weak nature. Their technology was so far beyond what Hallownest had, and what was even more impressive was how far it went beyond even her own understanding. Humans had mastered science to a degree that if they met the Pale Light's society they would probably be hailed as gods. An example of this would be her "phone." A device that could contact other similar devices from across the planet nearly instantaneously. Hers was a small box that was entirely a pane of glass on one side that she could interact with. She could read what all of the little symbols did, but that didn't mean she understanded their meaning. The last time she had interacted with one of the symbols her phone had emitted a bright flash of light, making the goddess think that it was about to explode. She hadn't interacted with the damnable thing since.

There was much about this world that she didn't understand. There was much about this world that she was curious about, and there was one thing in particular that peaked her interest as of late.

A couple of months ago, around the time of her phone incident, the Radiance had noticed a Dream unlike any she had felt before. The determination was so profound, the light so blazingly bright, that she had almost thought she was in the presence of a Higher Being. She had rushed to her balcony overlooking a sidewalk and searched for the source, but all there was was a boy with messy dark green hair. It took her an embarrassing amount of time to realize that he had been the source of that Dream.

Her ability to sense the dreams and desires of others didn't tell her exactly what they wanted. Usually there was something else, another cue that told her what their exact dream was. Without that all she got was generalizations. Hope, Want, Revenge, Desire; but for what wasn't clear to her. This boy radiated Desire, and his Dream was full of Determination. But just looking at him in his black uniform with his yellow backpack didn't tell her a thing. When he saw her staring he gave her a friendly, albeit slightly nervous wave. She raised a hand in return before tearing her eyes off of him and walking back into her apartment. It was a passing curiosity, nothing worth nothing.

Except it wasn't…

She began seeing him again, and again. Sometimes he was in that uniform going one way, sometimes he was going the other way, usually at two specific intervals during the day. On weekends she saw him jogging, and she had even seen him near that beach that was completely filled with garbage. No matter how many times she convinced herself that it was just a coincidence, he kept appearing. Fate must have been trying to tell her something, or Grimm was playing a prank on her. And after watching him closely one afternoon she finally found out why she kept seeing him. She'd discover the grand reason as to why she kept seeing this curiosity!

He just… lived in the complex nextdoor to hers…

Stupid, Stupid Moth!

She had gotten so worked up, because she had forgotten one key aspect. They weren't in Hallownest anymore. Nothing in that godforsaken place was mundane; everything had an important reason for happening. Every reason was tied to a dozen others that all played a role in a grand scheme. This world? There weren't any all powerful gods. Things, despite the superhuman society, were just… normal.

She was still curious, but now that she knew shy she kept seeing the body, and because of her embarrassment, she dedicated much less time to his mystery. But even here, Fate had its way.

She had been walking home one day after exploring more of that beach. Somehow, day by day, the garbage was all being gathered into one large pile. At first she couldn't handle the stench, but now she was free to explore something new, and her pockets were lined with seashells or colorful things that had caught her eye. She had even enjoyed a few moments watching a crab. She had never seen one before, but she had heard of them when Hallownest was still in its prime. Seeing one now though… It was so small! Or were humans just that big? Its mind was a simple thing, and it took no effort on her part to influence it into climbing into her hand for closer inspection.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard a slight crumple, and felt something shift slightly under her foot. She lifted her foot, and upon her looking down she found a battered notebook. When she picked it up it felt like it had been burned or soaked in water, flipping it over she read the front of it.

'Hero Analysis for the Future: No. 13'

She flipped through a few pages. Inside were drawings of heroes with notes scribbled down detailing fighting styles, quirks, and other small things. Some of it was faded from water damage, but not bad enough that it was unreadable. Near the back were some new heroes that had seen some news about. "Kamui Woods" and "Mt. Lady."

What an odd thing to find lying about…

"Hey!" She looked up and froze. The boy that confounded her came to a stop in front of her, panting from what must have been a long run. "That's, hah, that's mine…" His Dream was becoming clearer to her.

"So it is." She flipped through a few more pages, glancing briefly over the drawings and notes. She didn't notice the way the boy started flushing red, or the way he started sweating slightly.

"Can I, um, can I have it back?" She finally looked up again, tilting her head slightly.

"Of course," she said, handing it over. "It's very detailed. Do you mind if I ask why?"

"Oh! It's just, um, I've always really liked heroes since I was little, and I've always wanted to be one! I also really think quirks are fascinating so I started writing down all the heroes I come across so that one day when I become a hero I'll have a lot to draw upon and—"

The goddess' antennae twitched as his mumbling turned into background noise. After shaking her head slightly to clear it she snapped her fingers twice in front of his face. He stopped with a small jolt before flushing red again.

"Sorry! Sometimes I, uh, get carried away when talking about quirks, and heroes, and um, I almost started doing it again haha." He was sweating even more now. Was he trying to hide something? Or was it something more mundane like before?

"Are you ok? You're really red." That wasn't normal for humans right?

"Y-Yeah totally! Um…" He gathered himself a bit before looking at her more closely. "We've, um, have we met before? You look kinda familiar."

"You live in the apartment complex next to me."

"Oh! That explains it then, hah." She blinked, peering slightly into his mind. His dream was becoming clearer, and he had said himself that he wanted to be a hero, but…

"Well, it was nice talking to you, uh, thanks for finding my—"

"If you don't mind me asking, why do you want to be a hero?"

That seemed to catch the boy off guard, and he stammered for a few seconds before speaking clearly again. "Well, I've always wanted to be like All Might! He saves everybody with a smile, no matter what happens. I want to be that kind of here; the one that saves everybody and does it with a smile on their face. I wanna be someone that people can look up to, somebody that people can believe in, that can bring them hope!"

Ah, there it is.

She smiled softly, "I see, thank you for telling me. What's your name, by the way?"

"Oh! I'm Izuku Midoriya."

"Myla Grimm." It still didn't sound right.

"Well, nice to meet you, Grimm—" No…

"Myla…"

"I'm… sorry?" He started flushing again.

"Call me Myla, I don't like it when people call me Grimm."

"Oh! Um, t-then it was nice meeting you, M-Myla! Maybe we'll s-see each other again?" Again with the redness?

"Maybe, and likewise." With that she turned and started heading back to her apartment.

I've made my decision, thank you Izuku Midoriya.

Meanwhile, Izuku was mentally freaking out.

Holy crap!

I just talked to a really pretty girl, she lives nearby, and she told me to call her by her FIRST NAME!

Midoriya nearly fainted on the spot before he pulled himself together and resumed his original path.

The next day, the Radiance went to the U.A. Hero Academy and applied to take the entrance exam in February to enter the Hero Course.

The building, she had discovered, was the same building she had observed months ago when exploring Musutafu for the first time. The human who had helped her out, Midnight, was one of the teachers and had her fill out a small form. It was simple; and just included basic information to put in their system. When, when, she got in she would receive a more elaborate form to fill out. Midnight was nice as far as humans went, though she looked at the disguised goddess in a way that set off her new instincts in a bad way. The woman exuded no physical signs of danger for the duration of her time at UA, but she was still wary of the heroine until she left the premises.

When she got home— I'm really starting to call this hovel my home?— She found a package in front of her door. It was a brown box made of a coarse material, and after examining it for a few moments she brought the strange thing into her apartment and opened it up. Inside was a note, and her enjoyable and productive day immediately soured.

To my dear sister~

I've seen you've decided to enroll in the prestigious U.A Hero Academy. Good for you! I can't say I entirely understand your reasoning, but it is something to do whilst we are in this amazing new world~

Now I expect that you expect this entrance exam to be an utter breeze, but I wouldn't get too ahead of yourself. Inside this package is all the information you will be tested on. School in this world is composed of multiple subjects with the goal of turning a hopeful student into a more well-rounded individual. You will not be accepted based on your combat skills alone.

Study it well!

Also I am assuming that you've looked over the ID I made for you. In regards to your quirk, the ID is much more accurate than you'll initially believe. Essence is not native to this world. I have in fact given you a Quirk. If, gods forbid, you return to your True Form while in this world you will have access to the full scope of your abilities as you know them. While in human form however, I would recommend that you take these months to familiarize yourself with your Quirk and its limitations.

For your physical form itself I have obviously spared no expense in its creation, so you are currently in peak physical shape. That will not last forever though. I know that since your little tantrum you've spent almost no time in a physical form such as this, so allow me to remind you that your body needs upkeep. Eat good food! Push your physical limits! I've included another small booklet with exercises I recommend that you try.

All of this is up to you, but it wouldn't be flattering if the Radiance Herself failed an entrance exam meant for human adolescents. Exceptional adolescents, but you get the jist!

Good luck in your endeavors, Grimm~

She incinerated the note, as she did with every note the leech sent her, but she left the rest of the package alone for the moment. She hated him. She hated everything that he did. She hated the fact that he somehow already knew so much about this world, while she was left scrambling to catch up. She hated that he somehow knew everything that she did as or before she was doing it. She hated that he had shackled her like a common beast! But most of all she hated the fact that she was genuinely taking his advice to heart and was already setting the booklets aside for use later.

The two gods were complete opposites. She, The Radiance, was a being of pure Light. She represented and commanded order, uniformity, and peace. Grimm, and The Nightmare Heart, was a being of pure Darkness. He represented chaos, diversity, and discord. They were like the Sun and the Moon, she was the antithesis of him as he was to her. They both wanted different things, and almost always those things conflicted with each other, leading to a game of cat and mouse where the Light chased the Dark. She hated him, and she was amusing to him. But despite all of that…

She did care about him, on some minor level buried deep in her core. They were siblings, even if they were direct opposites. So she did take his advice, albeit reluctantly. That evening she expanded her mind out as far as she could, miles and miles away. Thousands upon thousands bounced off of hers, but she didn't touch any of them. She wasn't planning on it either. She found Grimm and his Troupe, but didn't try to contact him. No, she wasn't even looking for a mind at all, quite the opposite in fact.

There

Some miles away, there was a void in the sea of minds and dreams. Gathering her focus she focused intently on her current position, placing a Dream Gate in her living room and watching as the interwoven pattern settled into the floor before disappearing from the naked eye. It was still there, but it wouldn't be visible unless she wanted it to be. Usually one would need the Dream Nail to interact with her realm, but she was the one who invented it. The Dream Nail and its abilities had been a gift from her to the Moth Tribe, one that led to her downfall. Now it would serve to propel her to even greater heights.

When that was finished and she verified that it was a stable gate, she found that void again and gathered her focus. She disappeared in a flash of light and glyphs, and a sound akin to bells tolling echoed in her wake. She envisioned that spot, and drew herself back to the material realm, exploding into view in a similar manner to her disappearance. Immediately she grabbed her head as it throbbed in a sudden jolt of pain. Though she didn't see it, golden lines ran down her arms like cracks in her skin and glyphs shot out of her closed eyes like they were tears. She didn't fall to her knees, though it was close, and after a few moments she was able to gather herself.

She envisioned one of the Soul Statues that the madman had created. The Soul Master had been a genius of the Pale City, and one of the few that could have stopped the tidal wave that was her Light, but he was greedy for power. In his search for godhood he fell right into her hand and his experiments failed. None of the history was important to her, but one of his experiments came to mind. He had created statues that could contain a set amount of Soul. When it took in too much, it exploded in a spectacular fashion. She imagined her body the same way, except in her case she could control how much of her power she put into the 'statue.'

If she put in too much, well, she might not explode but it wouldn't be pretty. A teleport like the one she had just done, miles away, had her power beating against her current capacity and almost overflowing. If it weren't for Grimm's shackle she may very well have gone over. She imagined the statue, an idol in her True Form, and willed her power to an acceptable level. Then she finally opened her eyes.

She was in a park similar to the one Grimm had taken her to months ago when she had first arrived, but it appeared to be much larger. There was nobody around here, nobody to witness her, nobody that could potentially get caught in the crossfire. Good. The goddess welled her power and focused it into being, creating one of her swords and holding it by the 'hilt.' The sharp metal gleamed in the moonlight, slightly transparent but no less physical. She gave it a small swing, watching as a flurry of golden glyphs followed in its wake before fizzling out.

The Radiance was not a swordswoman, not by any stretch of the imagination. However, she had resided in the mind of a trained Vessel for a significant period of time, and she remembered its memories. The issue was that the memories of the training did not turn into muscle-memory, so she would need to practice if she wanted to use her swords effectively and not just as one of her normal attacks. She tossed the blade up into the air, watching as it twirled before gravity brought it back down to the earth… and stopped horizontally in front of her.

So she could control her blades with her mind alone as long as her focus wasn't interrupted, but she didn't know how many she would be able to use at once. She gave a small hum before dissipating the sword in a flurry of Essence. Turning to her left, she raised her left hand and summoned five smaller swords, sending them away from her like darts and watching as they buried themselves into the thick trunks of nearby trees. Her sword burst took little effort, and with a mental flick they disappeared. Next she crouched and rested her hand on the grassy soil, summoning about a hundred small spikes. They shot out of the ground and moved away from her for about forty feet before she began feeling the strain of using her power. Those disappeared and she stood again.

Ok, time for something… new.

One of her abilities had been a sword wall, where she would call a flurry of swords to block her opponent from reaching her. This would be similar.

Gathering Essence in her hands she sent about a dozen small orbs into the night sky, watching as they expanded into large versions of her usual golden glyphs. With a mental command and a downward motion of her hands they exploded into light, raining down dozens of swords. All of them exploded with bursts of Essence when they hit the ground, creating waves of force. The vegetation around her was destroyed and even the trees had branches knocked loose. Because of the swords' self-destructive nature there wasn't a constant increase of her power, but the initial 'cast' was substantial. If she changed their nature and they retained their form this would be much more difficult to maintain.

Over the course of a few hours she went through all of her abilities, sending out beams, bursts of beams, explosive orbs, and she even casted a wall of light. That last ability was probably the most consuming of all, and she discovered that with more focus she could warp the shape. She had managed to create a bubble around herself before it was too much, but she also discovered that she could create a disc that took much less focus to maintain. It was all very informative, and it helped her to understand her current capabilities. However, there was one downside…

When she was done she used her Dream Gate to teleport back to her apartment— using much less energy than before because of it— and almost immediately felt a wave of nausea wash over her. The Radiance retched and almost doubled over, feeling something well up in her throat. It was then when something came to mind, something she had read the day prior.

"Extended quirk usage can be dangerous to her health, as the substance she uses to create Essence is not compatible with her bodily functions and must be expelled if too much is created without being turned into the final product."

Was this what that meant? If she used her ability too much did she really get sick like this?

She barely made it to the bathroom before undertaking one of the most unpleasant experiences of her life. She recognized the substance immediately, as it sat glowing an eerie orange in her toilet. This was the telltale sign of her Infection. If she used her Quirk too much, she would have to expel this from her body… Wonderful…

She went to bed, and was forced to lay in her bed for nearly the entire day, making frequent trips to her bathroom as her body went through the process of expelling the godsforsaken orange substance that accumulated the previous night. She was so infinitely glad that she used her Dream Gate instead of teleporting naturally or this would have been so much worse. Unfortunately, though she was done expelling waste, the fever did not abate, and continued through the night until she fell asleep.

She awoke to the sensation of something cold and damp on her forehead and the smell of something being cooked in her kitchen. Who—

The door to her bedroom opened and a young woman walked into her room. The Radiance narrowed her eyes. She had never met this human before, but she had met this bug before.

"Syrra…" She said neutrally.

The young woman, Syrra, stood a few inches shorter than the goddess's human form and was dressed in a black dress shirt, pants, and a red vest. She had a mop of combed hair reached just below her ears that framed a soft face with wine-red eyes. Two red lines flowed from the corners of her eyes like tears, coming down in streams over her cheeks and down her neck, disappearing into her suit below. Syrra was one of the two Grimmsteed's that Grimm used to move his caravan around. She and her sister Syrro were twins, and she had only met the two on occasion. Syrra was also holding a tray of some kind of soup.

"Auntie," Syrra said flatly, if politely.

She sighed. "I'm not your aunt. We have no relation to each other.

The steed tilted her head before approaching her. "You're Master's sister, which means you're family to the Troupe." She helped her into a more upright position before placing the tray in her lap. "This soup should help with your fever, humans all around the world eat this when they get sick." The Radiance blinked before testing a spoonful. It wasn't bad.

"Did Grimm send you?" She asked.

"Yes. He noticed what you did in the park, and when you didn't leave your apartment for an entire day he sent me to take care of you until you get better."

"Mn. Sorry to inconvenience you, I'm sure you have your own duties to attend to." She took another spoonful.

"Not at all. Helping family is never an inconvenience."

"I'm not— tsk." She bit back a growl and just focused on eating her soup. Syrra watched her the entire time. "You don't have to watch me eat, you know."

"I was told to keep an eye on you while you got better, why wouldn't I watch you eat?" She was so serious when she said that too, that it was hard to tell if she was joking or not. Her dream didn't reveal anything either, and it was a bit too… red, for The Radiance to linger for too long.

This is going to be a nightmare…

She was bedridden for another day before she finally recovered. On the day that she was back to 100%, Syrra had disappeared like she was never there in the first place.

For the next few weeks "Myla Grimm" worked on improving her control with her Quirk and knowing the exact limits she could push before reaching a critical point. She found out what abilities she could reliably combine, and refined those until she could do two things at once without focusing too hard. She also worked on the time it would take to switch between abilities. She didn't come down with a fever like she had that one night, but she did sometimes get migraines, and she did have to expel a bit of orange waste one night. Luckily she didn't need to be cared for again; that was humiliating enough the first time.

She also worked on improving her physical form; going for runs and doing workouts that were described in the booklet Grimm had given her. It wasn't something she entirely enjoyed, but she couldn't deny the results, and each time she did the exercises they got easier the next time she did them. Her body had changed as well, becoming slightly firmer as muscle mass built beneath her skin.

When she wasn't working on improving her body and her Quirk she was working on improving her mind. Much of the material Grimm had given her was entirely ridiculous, but she reluctantly committed as much of it to memory as possible. Math was utterly ridiculous. Why was there a need for her to study and remember these equations? How would this help her to become a better hero? There were also more stupid laws and regulations, and a language called "English" that utilized a completely different set of characters and syntax than Japanese. This she was good at, as it would help her if she ever went overseas— she wouldn't even get started on how she reacted upon learning about the ocean— and the concepts were much easier to understand than math was.

Science was… Like math, but more interesting. She didn't really have much else to say about it. The remaining subjects were Heroics, Quirk History, and other minor things that weren't of much note.

This process went on for months, into the Fall and Winter, until eventually February came. And now here she was, standing outside a set of gates with the golden letters UA on the top of them. Beyond were the four massive towers that would hold her future. She wouldn't fail here, she wouldn't allow it. All around her, hopeful kids entered the gates to take the same entrance exam that she would in a mass of colorful clothing and bright faces.

There was one resounding dream that everybody shared, but one burned the brightest of all of them. His.

About a dozen feet in front of her was Izuku Midoriya, but something was different. His dream was the same, but somehow it burned nearly as bright as herself, taking her off guard. What had happened? And why did it feel like there were… more of him? He was a curiosity that she would keep an eye on. He had better get into the school, after sharing that dream with her. There was no way somebody with a dream this bright was allowed to fail…

Banishing the curiosities from her mind she took a step forwards.

It might not be worship like before, but this world will know my Light!

This was a lot faster than I expected! I managed to write this in only a few days! I'm glad you guys enjoy this so much, because at the time of writing this, the first and singular chapter has received 32 favorites and 47 follows.

Just… Wow!

Whether you're new here or you've come because you knew who I was already, thanks so much for the support!

There is one thing that I have to address though, and that The Radiance is, obviously, becoming a student. There was a line in the previous chapter where I hinted at her age based on her own observation. I thought I was clearer than I was, but apparently I wasn't. No, The Radiance is not 20, no she will not be a professor (Though that might be a fun Omake so thanks for the idea!). She is 15. That's on me, I should've made that more clear. I've made a small change so I don't hint that she's 20.

I enjoyed writing that scene with Midoriya, and honestly I was juggling the idea of her meeting him and All Might, but I figured that that might be a bit too much too fast. This was good enough for now. Also, I obviously know her motivation for becoming a hero right now, but I'm curious if any of you can piece it together~ Telling you would be too boring, heh.

With that though, that's the second chapter for Absolute Radiance done!

Next Story in the Rotation: The Rider's Sentinel

Thanks again for reading, and I'll see you all soon!~