When he landed, Izuku immediately found himself in a hidden grotto, with Sussurian ruins surrounding him. Virginia's voice filled the void as his mind wandered over every detail, every structure. "Virginia King, May 19th, 1943. The Sussurians, like other Indigenous peoples, seem to hold strong cultural value in legendary creatures; the most notable one being the one depicted on the doorways. It resembles the mythical 'Wendigo', a fierce creature with an insatiable desire to consume flesh." Looks like I'm not the only one who made that connection. "The creature is most often linked with greed and famine, acting as a balance of nature. Why would this creature hold such significance to them?" I'll be sure to try to answer your question, Virginia. Seeing a firefly tree, Izuku immediately resuscitated it. Watching as they went to the door above him, he noticed there was a second slot, which meant another tree. Seeing the stairs to get up there, he went up, and found the other tree hidden on top of the door. It opened, revealing another, which opened a door out of the grotto. Jumping down, Izuku found that the ground gently sloped down, until rising slightly before a stream of water. Light filtered through, indicating the surface. There was a swarm, but he could outpace that easily. Starting his run, he felt the pushrod pistons accelerate him faster and faster until he got to the ramp. His inertia kept him going. He closed his eyes as it pushed him through the water easily, and when he opened his eyes, Izuku found that he was flying through the treetops. It was exhilarating... until he noticed the green wendigo close to where he would land. Aiming the god-hand, he fired three shots in quick succession, one after another. When he landed, it was overloading, purified. Calming down, he was then able to realize that he'd arrived at the fabled pyramid. It was a mesoamerican step pyramid. Far older than the Mayans, or Aztecs, it was marvelously kept intact. Virginia elaborated: "The pyramid built by the Sussurians served as a ceremonial structure exalting the colossi. Alongside with the Titan Tree and daemons, they intertwine to form a mythology. From what I gathered, the colossi were once humans who feasted upon the forbidden fruit, corrupting them into giant monstrosities, cannibalizing their fellow man and devouring all life in the valley. Is this a tale of caution? Are the Sussurians warning us against the power of the Lifeseed?" Virginia... you were definitely foreshadowing your fate there... However, as he stepped up the stairs, there was a large medallion-looking carving on the door, made from gold. It had three imprints. Putting three of them into position, it opened, and allowed him inside. Amazing... But, it turned out he wasn't the first to enter this place, as a metal crate rested upon the slightly raised altar. Opening it, he found a power converter. It had a note: "This power feed is an upgrade for the Viper coil. Supposed to eliminate all amrita cost. Test it out, Valkaries!" Something to eliminate power consumption? That's amazing! Carefully opening the side panel, he turned off the coil, took out the power converter, slightly rusted, and put in the shiny new power converter. Securing it, he turned it back on, and shut the case. There was a deadeye attached to the ceiling for testing, and it was actually true. Incredible... There was another door just beyond the altar, with four slots. All 7 medallions were found... all of them have returned... and he put them into the slots. It opened, leading down, deeper... to a hidden sanctum. There were unique treasures, lost to time... and also a metal crate. Opening it, he found that there were two power converters: "These power feeds are for the Icarus boost. Same as the VC upgrade, your squad has been tasked with testing it. Go ahead!" It produced similar results. Incredible... After exiting the temple, he was able to retrieve the amulets, preserving their power. He put them back, and moved on. The next path was clear, for the moment. As he started down the pyramid, the wendigos, hidden in plain sight, shimmered to visibility. They roared as Izuku ran past, noting the next pulse from Astra. He was right outside, yet there was no entrance he could discern. How to get in there? He looked up, seeing that the window was weakened and cracked. Noting how there was a set of pipes which acted as a ramp. There was no way to access it now, so he continued along. Perhaps the solution would present itself. So far, they had. Crossing the gap filled with water, a wendigo met him. Quickly dispatching it, he noted another two just up the ramp. He purified them both, walking up steadily. There was a platform across the water, accessible only through jumping from platform to platform. Doing so, he was almost knocked off of a ledge by an amrita swarm. Pacifying it, Izuku then jumped to the platform. Dropping down from the platform into a small crevice in the rocks, there was a small campsite with another metal crate. All I see ahead is water... let's see if there's anything here... When he opened the crate, Izuku found new attachments. They slotted onto the clawed feet of the LEAF suit. And, as if on cue yet again, Andrew Fisher was there to let him know what he just found: "I have tasked the Valkyrie Pathfinder squad with testing out the Lake Skipper upgrade for the LEAF suit. The lake near Astra facility should prove ideal for the assessment. I expect a full report on my desk as soon as testing is complete." Lake skipper... like skipping a pebble on a pond? Maybe if I run at a low angle... but... that's impossible... Well, time to see if the LEAF suit does the impossible yet again... Gearing up, he primed the pushrod pistons to be at full blast as he ran towards the water... and miraculously stayed on top. Running at full speed allowed him to clear it easily, and keep going. There was even an audio tick that allowed him to tell when to make landfall to avoid going under. It was another marvel of engineering. He ran, island hopping as he did, making one giant circut around the lake, heading back to the Astra facility. There were many landmarks to come back and check, a ruins area, an old pathfinder campsite... and many islands he wouldn't visit now. It was a rush as Izuku kept running, his hair whipping back. It gave a sense of exhilaration and freedom he hasn't had since... well, since before his quirklessness was diagnosed. This area... this valley... is paradise... Two thirds of the way through, he was dragged, unceremoniously back to reality as Astra absorbed even more life. Dead trees made up 80 percent of those that he saw, and it was getting really bad. I have to protect this place! And the world! It was then that he saw the facility dead ahead. The pipes provided the perfect ramp, and as he launched from it, he braced himself, as he crashed through the glass, and broke into Astra.