Back at the warehouse, the soon-to-be Sky Pirates were lounging around on a large couch, with a T.V. playing.
Kaza was fast asleep on the couch.
Suru was leaning on a nearby wall, stoically.
Tsubu, Yoku, and Karaki were relaxing on the couch with a bottle of wine each and a couple of dozen empty bottles around them, while Rorou sat a little bit away, no alcohol to be found.
And Pai was off to the side, painting.
"Ugh, nothing good's on," Karaki grunted, before turning the T.V. off. "Alright, guess we should get to know each other if we're going to be skyfaring swashbucklers together."
"Eh, don't have much of a story." Tsubu shrugged. "Worked as a security guard for a while, some asshole came along and replaced me, all because he had a better quirk! We weren't even allowed to use our fucking quirks but somehow that still trumped all my years of experience! Fucking elitists! Then when I rightfully try to complain, the fucker blacklists me!"
"My condolences," Suru said. "If you'd like, you can tell me their names, and make sure they never walk again."
"Probably best if you don't. We have to lay low remember." Yoku pointed out as she took another swig of wine.
"Alright, then lady what's your origin story?" Tsubu asked. "What lead such a pretty girl down the path of a life of crime."
Yoku scoffed. "Nothing too serious. I hate assholes, and I like stealing from assholes. The rest was history."
"Fair enough, I'll drink to that!" Karaki said, before taking another drink, which Tsubu joined in on.
"What about you Ms. Money?" Yoku asked, looking at Pai. "The boss said something about art, and how you like blowing things up, What's that about."
Pai sighed. "You would not understand it. The beauty, of destruction. Explosions making debris fly, blood painting the streets, people showing their true colors, and trampling over each other as they run for their lives. That is beauty. Bombs, guns, blades, cannons, to me those are not weapons, but tools of art, the same as a paintbrush. A villain attack is just art in motion. I tried to show people this, but they couldn't understand my vision. They locked away both me and my wondrous art, to never see the light of day. But now, I am free. Free to show the world my art. Free to destroy. Free to create. Free to burn my art into the minds and souls of the people."
There was a small silence after that until Yoku spoke up. "Okay, you're a psychopath, got it."
"Hmph, call me what you will," Pai said.
"I mean I kinda get it," Karaki admitted casually. "I mean, I think throwing my Yo-Yo into an asshole's balls is art, so I totally relate."
Pai paused, and considered that. "Would you mind discussing that more with me? I would very much like to paint that."
"Alright, Mr engineer what brought you here?" Yoku asked, wanting to shift the topic away from this topic.
"I was just bored, and this interested me." Rorou shrugged. "That's it."
"You just decided to become a fucking sky pirate for kicks?" Yoku asked.
"Didn't you say nearly the same damn thing?" Karaki asked.
Yoku shrugged. "Yeah, I guess. Just didn't think anyone would have the same reason. Anyway, what about you tiny? What made you wanna become a vigilante."
"I just wanted to whoop some villain ass." Karaki grimaced. "But nooooooo. Apparently, I was "too violent" and it was "inappropriate to hit villains in the balls" which is bullshit! So naturally hit them in the balls, peaced out, and decided to just do my own thing."
"Fair, fair. Why do you like hitting people in the balls so much?" Yoku asked.
"Because it's fucking funny," Karaki answered simply. "And it's the best way to activate my quirk."
"What if you're fighting a woman?" Tsubu asked.
"Then I hit them in the tits.." Karaki shrugged, before taking another swig. "Hey, you think we should wake up the dragon and ask what her fucking deal is? She seemed pretty pissed off back when the boss talked to us."
"Leave her alone, she's tired," Suru said.
"It's three in the evening what do you mean she's tired?" Yoku asked rudely.
"She's been running around almost non-stop. It's not exactly easy to find a place to sit down and hide when a nine-foot-tall purple-wanted woman covered in spikes." Suru explained. "She likely hasn't slept in days.:
"Fair point." Yoku agreed.
"Besides, it's not hard to figure out what her so-called, deal, is. Just look at her, do you think those dirty quirkist would ever let her just live her life." Suru growled. "No, they have to attack her, just because she doesn't fit their standards of what a person should be. What a fucking joke."
"Alright so what's your story, clearly you've got quite the chip on your shoulder." Karaki pointed out.
"Hmph, well if you insist on knowing." Suru began his long explanation. "My parents were quirk rights activists. They fought for those with quirks that were looked down on by this damnable society. Not because they had to, not because they had such quirks, but because it was the right, the noble thing to do. They never stopped fighting…until they were killed. They said it was a car accident, but I don't know how the fuck you consider a bullet flying through the driver's window causing the car to spin out of control a damn accident. I knew the police were in on it. Filthy fucking quirkist. From that day on I swore I would spend the rest of my life, making. Them. Pay. If a quirkist had wings, I'd cut them off. If they could shoot spikes from their arms, I'd cut them off. I'd never kill them, because I wanted them to live without their precious powers, regretting their choices until the end of their days, until the end of their pathetic lives."
There was a brief moment of silence after that until Karaki eventually spoke. "Hey, here's the thing I don't get about the whole, avenging dead loved one's thing. Wouldn't they want you to be, I don't know…happy?"
"...Come again?" Suru asked, looking at her with disbelief.
"Listen, I didn't know your parents, and I'm not gonna tell you how to run your life. But your parents sounded like pretty nice folk, and they probably cared about you, so wouldn't they not want you to be so fucking miserable all the damn time?" Karaki asked him. "I'm not saying you shouldn't find the people who killed them and stick a sword up their assess, but like, lighten up a little dude, when was the last time you had a conversation with someone that wasn't about maiming people?"
"That's…" Suru went silent, as she tried to find an answer to that question.
"While violence is a beautiful thing, it is best not to get lost in it," Pai spoke up. "One must take time to enjoy the finer things in life. Good food, music, the likes."
"You have been brooding in the corner like you think your fucking Batman for a while now." Yoku pointed out. "Sit down for fucks sake, 're in a safe place, for now, have a drink, and talk about something you don't hate for five seconds."
"I…I need some time to think." Suru said as he was about to walk off, only for the T.V. to suddenly turn on, showing Izuku's cowled form.
Immediately, Kaza woke up, and became alert, looking at the T.V. like she was never asleep in the first place.
"All of you. It's almost time." Izuku told them. "Tomorrow at exactly 2:30. You're to enter at the agreed upon point and take the agreed upon route. Which one of you memorized it fully?"
"I did," Kaza said.
"Good, you will be the leader then." Izuku appointed. "Prepare yourself, and be sober. Failure, will not be tolerated."
With that, the T.V. turned off once more.
"Alright, everyone finish all the drinks you can!" Karaki shouted. "Tomorrow, we have work to do!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Class 1A was standing outside of Midoriya Foundation gates, looking at it nervously.
"So…you think this is a meant-to-fail kinda thing like it was with 1B?" Kaminari asked.
"Could be. On the one hand, we actually know what we're getting into. But on the other, that only makes it so much easier." Shinso analyzed.
"You think we're gonna face the Grimm and the bodyguards?" Sero asked.
"Knowing Nezu, almost definitely," Sato said, giving a nervous laugh.
"We can do this," Ochaco assured them, getting everyone's attention. "So long as we stick together, and think things through, I know we can do this."
"Uraraka is right!" Iida shouted while adjusting his glasses. "We have been fighting in a far too unorganized fashion! Should we use our knowledge of the Grimm and our strengths, we are bound to succeed."
"Yeahhh!" Most of the class cheered.
Meanwhile, Bakugo was staring at the gates silently. So this is where Deku's been held up…
"Alright, that's enough. Everyone get ready." Aizawa told them.
"Welcome everyone," Sai said over the loudspeakers. "Today you will be assisting us in testing our security system, against a major threat. Mr. Midoriya is unfortunately not present today, as he had other business to tend to. Regardless, the test will begin, the moment you step through the gates."
The gates opened up wide, ready for the challengers to step through.
"You may begin when you are ready," Sai told them.
"So…what are the odds that she meant that literally, and something will attack us, as soon as we walk through those gates?" Shinso asked.
"Probably high," Jiro said, as she plugged her earphones into the ground. "Yup, there's something under there."
"Todoroki, I think it'd be best if you handled this," Momo said.
Todoroki nodded and started walking towards the gate.
The moment he crossed, a pair of underground turrets popped up, about to shoot him, but Todoroki made two massive spikes of ice, that immediately impaled both turrets, destroying them.
"Kirishima guards our front, Jiro, Shoji keeps an ear out for anything coming at us," Iida ordered. "Alright, let's go!"
And with that, the rest of 1A ran through the gates.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Sai looked down at 1A as they fought through the wave 1 Grimm, through the security room cameras. "Good, I was worried they would have fallen for our trick, but it seems like things are progressing smoothly.
"Aw come on give them a bit more credit than that," Sori said while doing her stretches. "They're newbies, not idiots."
"Yes, it'd be extremely disappointing if the new generation of heroes was so lacking," Tokoshi added.
"Well, either way, I expect you two to be ready if we have to fight," Sai told them, before shaking her head. "What I am saying, of course, you two will be ready for a fight."
"Speaking ready, where on earth is Giza?" Tokoshi asked.
"He's guarding Mr. Midorya while he's out on his business," Sai explained. "Apparently he's negotiating deals."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
ReDestro liked to think he had an iron will. After all, you would need a lot of willpower, to lead a group of revolutionaries.
However, it was taking every single ounce of that tremendous willpower, to not, for lack of a better phrase, "Completely lose his shit."
Because in his office, right in front of him, sat none other, than his sworn enemy, Izuku Midoriya.
The two were in Rikiya's office, at the top of the Detnerat tower, sitting on two separate couches parallel to each other.
"Mr. Midoriya, what a pleasure it is to have you here," Rikiya said, keeping up his well-trained smiley facade. All the while he clenched his fist so hard he started drawing blood.
Oh, how I want to just reach across the table and kill you with my own two hands. No, just one would be enough for a quirkless little upstart like yourself. He thought to himself. But as usual, things can't ever be that simple.
"It's a pleasure to meet you as well Mr. Yotsubashi," Izuku said with his own smile. "I'm afraid I'm quite pressed for time, so excuse me for getting to the point."
"Of course." ReDestro choked out, almost choking on his sheer rage. "What brings you here today?"
"I have a business proposition," Izuku explained. "Recently, my labs have come up with some rather interesting products. For example."
Izuku pulled out a small twig, about the size of a hand, put it under the table, and started lifting, and much to ReDestro's shock, it started rising into the air.
"Remarkable," ReDestro said, as he went into information-gathering mode. "How exactly does a small branch, do that?"
"The simple answer is Chaos Energy," Izuku explained, as he set the table down. "Recently, a new energy was discovered. Energy similar to what quirks give off. A seemingly omnipotent energy that can do nearly anything, if you can control it. We've been experimenting with it for months, and we've managed to get to the point where we can start giving quirks to plant life, and unlike humans, a plants quirk is based on what kind of plant it is, and the same kinds of plants, will have the same quirk. Meaning we can reliably farm them without issue. This branch is just the tip of the iceberg. There's so much more that's still being discovered, and soon we'll make it purchasable by the public."
ReDestro's eyes widened. No! That bastard! If he does this then his power and influence will only rise! Damn it! What do I do!?
"And this isn't even what I came here to talk to you about," Izuku said, putting the branch back in his sleeve, before taking out a small vial. "This is what I wanted to talk about."
"I…I see…and this…is?" ReDestro couldn't imagine what it was. If it was better than what he mentioned before, then whatever it was, was frightening.
"You see, another thing that we've discovered, something even greater, we can now replicate certain quirks," Izuku said, which caused ReDestro's eyes to almost bludge off of his head. "And with that technology, we've made this. A cure-all drug. It's capable of rewinding a person's body back to a healthier state, literally whipping diseases out of existence. It's still in its developing stage, but once we complete it, well, I don't think I need to spell out what kind of impact this will have."
He didn't, ReDestro could barely hide the horror on his face. He knew if Midoriya ever finished this, then he'd be the most powerful man in the world! The most powerful man! A quirkless boy! It sounded like a bad joke but it was close to becoming reality.
His hand started getting covered in the blackness of his quirk. I have to kill him! Right here, right now! Before he can finish the drug!
He was close, so close to just throwing the table aside, and choking the life out of Midoriya right there and then.
But he'd never get away with it. He'd almost certainly gain the attention of the heroes, if not get exposed outright.
For the sake of the M.L.A., he had to control himself.
After taking a breath, ReDestro managed to get his nerves under control. "How…wonderful! Truly a marvel of technology."
"Correct, and I'd like to give you the opportunity to attach your name to it!" Izuku offered. "I'd like you to help fund the research of this drug. I'd get to save some money, and you'd get a TON of good P.R. What do you say? Interested?"
"Oh yes, I am VERY interested," ReDestro said, saying the most truthful thing he said during this whole conversation. "I think we can make some…arrangements."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Later, Izuku was riding in his car, to his next destination…at least that's what it looked like.
"Giza, what did you find out?" Izuku asked, the illusion dissipating revealing that Izuku had never been there, and it was in fact a Seer orb and Mind Weaver combo.
Giza appeared next to the Seer, having used a Mind Weaver to cloak himself as well. He was also holding Fractal. Specifically, a Fractal continuing Yonda's power.
They had been going around all day, talking to influential figures, under the guise of getting them to fund his project, while Giza used the Fractal of secretly reading their minds. Of course, since the Fractal could only be used for 10 minutes a day, Giza could only use it in a burst of a few seconds at a time. However, he always chose the most optimal times to use it, reading facial expressions to get a signal of when he should use the Fractal's power.
"He's definitely working with the M.L.A.." Giza told him. "As were many of the members of the company. Almost all of them were quirkist."
"I see," Izuku added them to the list. "Well then, I say we go do two more before we bring this to a close today. Our enemies may be able to hide from the law, but not from us."
1A's trip through the forest won't be as detailed as 1B, as they are not really the focus here. So I'm only gonna show some highlights with them.
Anyway, please review and have a nice day.