Fairy Heroes Academia 15
Run Away or Fight? The Cavalry Battle
"Forty-two of you qualified to move on to the next round." Midnight announced to the students, "Gird your loins and prepare for your next test. A Cavalry Battle! Those of you at the top will suffer the most. Of course, that's something you'll hear over and over again at UA."
"Show us what "Plus Ultra" means!" Midnight cracked her whip in the air, Levy McGarden placed first in the qualifier. She'll be worth ten million!"
The students all looked at Levy, their gazes turning sharp as they realized just how much the girl was worth now. Levy blushed slightly at the newfound attention, not expecting this sort of reception to happen.
"First-years! These are the rules that you'll abide by: The game itself will last 15 minutes." The holographic screen showcased All Might being carried by Snipe, Thirteen, and Present Mic. All of them had points designated to them,
"Individual point values will be added together to reach your team total. Everyone will know how much you're worth thanks to your headbands." All Might's dazzling smile was displayed on the screen accompanied by a headband with 50 points tied around his forehead.
"Swipe as many headbands as you can to raise your team's score." The headband was displayed, revealing it wasn't meant to be tied around an individual's head but held together with velcro and made to be taken off easily.
All Might's face was displayed once more with the headband placed around his head, but this image also included one around his neck, "Stolen headband must be worn from the neck up. So the more you steal the harder it'll be to manage them. And another thing–"
"Even if your headband gets stolen or your team falls down, you can keep playing until the time is up." She pointed with her Whips of Love.
"So really anyone can win." Lucy deduced.
Levy nodded, "Not to mention there'll be a number of different teams on the field considering 42 people qualified for this round."
"Sounds hard…" Aoyama blanched from nearby.
"So if you lose your headband at the beginning, you have more time to make up a plan." Mina commented.
Tsu chimed up next to her, "I don't know, Mina. Maybe we should wait and see how the teams turn out before we start strategizing."
"This is going to be rough. You may use your Quirks as much as you like." Midnight informed, taking back everyone's attention, "But there are still rules! Make a team fall on purpose and I'll slap you with a red card. You'll be disqualified!"
The screen changed from All Might's face and neck covered in headbands excluding two eyeholes, and was now a timer for 15 minutes, allowing the students a chance to make their teams and form their strategies.
"Now, you've got 15 minutes to build your teams. I recommend you get started." And with that students began to turn to each other and engage in conversation.
"We're obviously teaming together, right?" Lucy elbowed her short bluenette friend.
"Wouldn't want it any other way!" Levy laughed, "Now we just need two more people." The two girls gazed around wondering who they should recruit to their team.
Students crowded Bakugo trying to chat him up to get on his team, "You gotta choose me!" Sero grinned happily at the teen.
"No, you definitely want me by your side." Mina begged Bakugo alongside some of her other peers, the class knowing that Bakugo scored highly and he was plenty capable.
"I don't wanna beg, but please." Aoyama clutched his stomach nervously.
"Wait, remind me what your Quirks are again." Bakugo said, "And your names." He added, much to their annoyance.
"You're kidding! We're your classmates!" Mina shook her head.
All Might surveyed the class from the stands, seeing which teams would form, "He's a hothead, but he came in top 5 and has 190 points. And considering how versatile his Quirk is, I'm not surprised people are trying to join up with him. I'm a bit more surprised that they're not lining up to join their class rep, but I guess not many people want to paint a target on their back."
Kirishima waved, "Bakugo! I was gonna try Todoroki but he already picked a group. So, hey! We should team up." He suggested happily, his pointy teeth prominently displayed in his smile.
"Hey, Shitty Hair." Bakugo bluntly responded.
"My name is Kirishima!" The redhead argued, "And my hair's not that different from yours." He grinned daringly as he looked at the explosive teen, "Come on. You wanna be the rider, right? So you're gonna need a strong front horse who won't be hurt by your blasts." He closed his hand into a fist as he hardened his arm, "That'd be me."
"Hm…" Bakugo considered it, "I need someone with guts."
"My Quirk was made for this! I got you covered, man!" He pointed to himself confidently with his thumb, "Let's go charging into battle together."
"Ten Million." Kirishima leaned toward Bakugo, "Bring it."
Bakugo growled as a wide confident smile formed across his face, finding someone who was actually speaking his language.
Shoji watched the exchange with curiosity until, "Shoji! Shoji!" A familiar voice cried out to him, "None of the girls wanna team up with me!" Mineta cried, tears dripping down his face, "Please be my partner!"
He jumped up and down as he tried to convince the rather large teen, "I'm super tiny, so I can't be a horse, but for some reason no one wants me to climb on them so I can be a rider!"
Shoji began to walk away disinterested in the other teen's words at the moment, "With your huge body and those tentacles, you could cover me completely so no one'll take my headband!" Shoji's eyes widened at the smaller boy's words as he whipped around, "Right? Please?"
Extending one of his tentacles in front of Mineta, it formed a mouth for Shoji to speak through, "Good idea. Let's go."
Around the area more students could be seen talking to each other such as Momo explaining her Quirk to Todoroki. Mina showed Bakugo and Kirishima what her Quirk could do. More and more students began grouping together, the options becoming slimmer by the minute.
"H-hey guys, need a teammate?" Izuku nervously rubbed the back of his head as Levy and Lucy turned around.
"Izuku! That would be great!" Lucy smiled, "I'm surprised you would want to join our team, to be honest."
"Well, it is a better strategy to steal other headbands and gather as many points as you can at the end…" Izuku thought about it to himself, knowing there would be a clear target, "But you've both always try to help me, so I'd like to help you!"
The girls smiled brightly at the boy's answer, "He'd be a great fit for Fairy Tail, right Lu?" Levy whispered to her friend.
Lucy nodded her head as Izuku tilted his head slightly, "What's Fairy Tail?"
The two girls eyes widened, "Our… gang?" Levy supplied unsure.
Izuku's eyes widened, as Lucy waved her arms, "She means team! Haha, our Japanese sure is clumsy sometimes!"
"Hey, Deku!" Uraraka waved as she walked up to the team, "Hey, girls! Let's team up!"
Luckily, her interruption shifted the conversation as they realized this was more important at the moment. "Uraraka! Are you sure?" Izuku asked, "Everyone will be after us and our points!"
"I mean, if we run away the whole time, then we'll win, right?" Uraraka happily suggested, "Anyway, it's better to team up with people you like!" She beamed happily as Levy and Lucy stood at her side.
"Welcome to the team!" Levy flashed a smile.
"Glad to have you join us!" Lucy leaned in, "I completely agree by the way."
Izuku felt his heart squeeze as he blushed, his eyes closed shut and his lips pressed together as he tried to contain himself, he felt deeply moved by the girl's words.
"Is something wrong?" Uraraka asked innocently, "You look so gross."
Izuku covered his face hoping to hide his blush, "No, I just thought my chest was gonna explode for a second. Actually, I thought it would be nice to team up with you, too…"
"Besides, for a game that requires teamwork, it's better to find people who you can easily communicate with." Levy declared, "I think your Quirk will come in handy with mobility." Levy nodded to the round-faced girl.
"It looks like we have our team." Lucy said crossing her arms as the four gathered together. "We should talk strategy."
Levy nodded, "Here's my idea. I'll act as the rider because I'm the smallest here, giving me a clear advantage to avoid any thieving classmates."
Izuku nodded, "That makes sense, your Quirk would also allow you to create a protective barrier at a moment's notice if anyone gets too close." He added as the girl nodded, "Right." She said.
"You three will act as the horses." Levy informed, "Izuku you'll act as the front, you'll have to be the base, considering your Quirk amplifies your speed and strength you'll be able to support me from the front."
She turned to the brunette, "Uraraka, you'll be using your Quirk on Lucy and Izuku to make them lighter so they can maneuver around easier. With all our Quirks working together they shouldn't be able to catch us."
"Wow, Levy! That's a great idea!" Uraraka clapped her hands together.
"Thank you!" Levy smiled before turning to her guildmate, "Lucy, with your Quirk you'll be able to act as support and deter a lot of Quirks that come our way, if things get too rough we can create a barrier to protect our headband."
Lucy nodded confidently, "You really thought of it all, haven't you Levy?"
"It's a good strategy, Levy!" Izuku complimented, "Everyone will be after us so that it won't be easy as said, but I know we can get through it." The four exchanged a look as they further discussed the aspects of their Quirks and how they could come in handy.
Meanwhile, nearby a blond boy from Class 1B spoke, "Almost everyone in the audience is foaming at the mouth for Class 1A. Why is that?" He sneered, "They're so full of themselves."
"Just like Tetsutetsu said earlier. Why are they stars?" The blond said, "The only difference between us and them is that they fought a couple of villains. Just because we're class 1B doesn't mean we're second rate or can't win this whole thing."
This boy was Neito Monoma, "So, let's step it up and show those jerks what we can do. Are ya with me?" He declared to his class, his dull blue eyes appeared bold as he smiled.
TIMES UP!
The alarm blared as the 15 minutes were up, and everyone had selected their teams. "Oh, goody. It's time to get this party started." Midnight stretched, eager to get this show on the road.
From their booth, Present Mic shook Eraser Head's shoulder, "Hey, hey, look alive! After 15 minutes to pick teammates and talk strategy, 12 cavalry teams are preparing to go head to head."
Aizawa leaned forward examining the area, "I see some unexpected student combinations."
"Come on, everyone get your hands in the air!" Present Mic shouted, "It's time for an area-thumping UA battle royale! Let me hear ya scream!"
Levy adjusted the headband she received, a whole '10,000,535' displayed in big bold numbers. All students were now information, Levy felt a little weird being carried by her friends like this, but she was determined to win.
"You ready?" Izuku asked from the front of their formation.
"Yeah!" Uraraka cheered.
"Levy?" Izuku asked.
"I won't let you all down!" She declared.
"Lucy?"
"As ready as I can be." She responded from her spot.
"We won't lose." Izuku promised, activating his Quirk.
. . .
Todoroki stood beyond his selected teammates. "I chose the three of you because I believe we'll make for the most stable formation possible."
He looked over to the blond teen, "Kaminari's our left wing. He can use his Quirk to keep enemies at bay."
Turning to the ponytailed teen, "Yaoyorozu, you'll take the right wing. Focus on insulation and defense."
He finally faced the last teen, "Tokoyami, you'll take the front. We'll rely on you for mobility and physical defense."
Tokoyami nodded, "Your plan is a good one Todoroki, also to be suspected. Although, there is a slight flaw. Dark Shadow becomes weaker with light, being in close proximity with Kaminari's lightning or your fire could be a deterrent."
"Hm, I see." Todoroki said, "We can work around that by making sure you two don't activate your Quirks at the same time. As for the fire…"
Todoroki's head tilted toward the stands where a lone muscular man stood with his arms crossed, "When I'm in battle…" He clenched his fist as he saw the fire that graced his father's uniform, "I never use my left side." He glared at the man as they all got into formation with Todoroki sitting on top with his '580' headband.
On Your Marks
Ready?
The crowd went wild as they read the holographic screen, wondering how the kids would use their Quirks to come out on top, this being a different kind of competition than racing.
The students were all spaced out around the square arena made for the event. Their teams were displayed on the board as well as their combined scores.
"Okay, all you first years! I hope you're happy with your chosen teams!" Present Mic hollered.
Team Rin
Rin 50
Shishida 65
115 pts
Team Tsunotori
Tsunotori 25
Kamakiri 35
60 pts
Team Kodai
Kodai 55
Fukidashi 15
Bondo 85
155 pts
Team Mineta
Mineta 120
Asui 140
Shoji 135
395 pts
Team Shinso
Shinso 75
Ojiro 150
Shoda 45
Tenys 175
445 pts
Team Monoma
Monoma 30
Tsubaraba 95
Kaibara 100
Kuroiro 60
285 pts
Team Kendo
Kendo 70
Tokage 20
Komori 40
Yanagi 80
210 pts
Team Jiro
Jiro 105
Koda 110
Aoyama 5
Hatsume 10
230 pts
Team Tetsutetsu
Tetsutetsu 155
Honenuki 180
Awase 145
Shiozaki 185
665 pts
"Hey, Tetsutetsu." Monoma called over from where he sat upon his classmates.
"Huh?" The silver-haired boy responded.
"No hard feelings, okay?" The blonde smiled friendly to his classmate.
"Right!"
"Let's get this party started!" Present Mic exclaimed, "One final countdown before the game starts!"
"Three!"
Team Bakugo
Bakugo 190
Ashido 115
Kirishima 165
Sero 160
630 pts
Bakugo cracked his knuckles, "Get 'er."
"Two!"
Team Todoroki
Todoroki 195
Yaoyorozu 125
Kaminari 90
Tokoyami 170
580 pts
"She's ours." Todoroki told his team.
"One!"
Team McGarden
Mcarden 10,000,000
Heartfilia 200
Midoriya 205
Uraraka 130
10,000,535
Levy grinned at her teammates, giving each of them a reassuring nod as they felt the stares directed toward them.
"Begin!" Midnight announced and the students took off.
"It's basically one big battle for ten million points!" Tetsutetsu shouted as his team rushed over to Team Levy.
Jiro's ears extended as she aimed for Levy's headband, "Sorry Levy, but we gotta try to take it at least!" Her earphone jacks darted forward, but Levy swatted them away.
"Nice try, but I don't think so!" Levy said.
"Should we try to take their headbands?" Uraraka suggested, "We don't need to, but it wouldn't hurt either."
"No." Levy shook her head, "Grab any if you can but for now… let's just run!" She announced, "Izuku, Lucy, get us out of here!"
"Don't think so!" Tetsutetsu called out.
"Yeah!" Honenuki acted as their front horse, he activated his Quirk as he ran making the floor's texture change.
His Quirk is called 'Softening' allowing him to soften any non-living thing he touches. For example, he can soften the ground to make it similar to quicksand, hindering movements and mobility. He can also reverse these effects if he makes direct contact.
The floor around Team Levy softened and the three's feet began to sink in. "What's happening?" Uraraka gasped.
"We're sinking!" Izuku responded, "It must be that guy's Quirk!" He nodded his head to the approaching team.
Lucy's body was illuminated, "Leave it to me, Star Dress: Scorpio!" Lucy manipulated the sand-like material around their feet, "Sand Buster!"
Using her Spirit's spell, the sand around them rushed toward Team Tetsutetsu. "She can do that?" Tetsutetsu growled. They braced themselves as Honenuki made contact with it again, using his Quirk to harden the ground once more making the attack useless.
"Nice one Lucy! Now Uraraka and Izuku!" Levy called to her teammates with the two three nodding.
"Right!" The two responded. Uraraka used her Quirk to make the team lighter, while Izuku activated his Quirk and could feel the strength in his muscles.
'I've been practicing for a few weeks now, I could increase my output to 3% and move us around a lot easier!' Izuku thought to himself feeling more power throughout his body.
"Let's go!" Izuku jumped through the air the other girls holding on tightly to him, but his mind was too focused on trying to win to properly notice.
"Affter them!" Tetsutetsu commanded.
"Koda, now!" Jiro called, Koda whispered to the birds perched on his shoulders, luckily the stadium was open and the animals had no problem hanging around. The birds darted for the teens, more specifically Levy.
'I don't want to hit birds!' Levy thought to herself as the birds neared her. "Solid Script: Air!"
The word simulatanoeulsy hit the birds and propelled team Levy away, Uraraka's Quirk combined with Izuku's and Levy's, meant they sailed through the air.
"Our Quirks work pretty well together, wouldn't you say?" Uraraka giggled as they landed, holding onto Izuku as he used his speed to evade other teams.
"We could still get them!" Jiro pointed until Aoyama noticed something.
"Mademoiselle! Your headband is gone!" He cried as Jiro's hand flew to her head.
"What the- How?" She looked around for the culprit, somehow not noticing how her headband was stolen, their team having 0 points.
Monoma smiled as he twirled the headband with 230 points, successfully swiping it from Jiro, "Well, that was easy."
"Wow! Barely two minutes have passed since we started, and it's already a total free-for-all!" Present Mic announced pumped as he watched more teams rush at each other, "Yeah! Watch those headbands! You can even ignore the ten million points and go after the other chart toppers!"
Mineta's cackle could be heard as Shoji ran forward, "This is too easy. It's not a fight. It's more like a massacre!" Shoji's tentacles and superior stature and strength were meant for this game as he carried his team on his back, fully obscuring them from view.
Shoji dashed toward Team Levy who looked on curiously as only he appeared to be in view. "It's Shoji! Is he by himself?" Izuku asked, "Where's his team?"
"They're rushing us from multiple angles, we need to get out of here!" Lucy called only to find her foot stuck to the ground. "Huh?" She tried to lift it only to find one of Mineta's purple balls. "I'm stuck!" She cried.
"It's Mineta's ball." Izuku deduced, "But where did it come from?"
"From right over here. Hi, Midoriya." Mineta sang as he waved from behind Shoji's arms, a little gap allowing him to be visible.
"Smart. But is that even allowed?" Levy asked.
"Judges say yes!" Midnight confirmed.
Mineta slinked back into the darkness and no sooner did a tongue stretch out, aiming for Levy's head, but the girl dodged it, the assault continued past her trying to grab Tetsutetsu's headband as well, but missed.
The tongue retracted and Tsu leaned forward into the light, "Impressive moves as usual."
"Oh, man. You've got Asui in there, too?" Izuku said.
"I told you to call me Tsu."
Her tongue whipped out again as Mineta threw a barrage of balls toward the team. "Team Mineta's coming in like a tank, making clever use of how compact their members are!" Present Mic briefed the crowd as the two riders continued their onslaught on Levy as the girl dodged.
"We have to get out of here!" Lucy said, "Hurry, jump!"
"What about your foot?" Izuku asked worriedly.
"Don't worry about it!" She said, "Just get us out of here!"
Izuku's body flashed as he took his team high in the air once again. Now floating in the air, Izuku chanced a look at Lucy's leg hoping it was okay… only to find her barefoot. "You took off your shoe?!"
"It was that or my leg." Lucy joked, relieved it worked. Her body was overtaken with light as her outfit changed once more, now wearing her Aries Star Dress, if one looked closely they could see her shoe disappear from the ground in a flash of light.
They heard an explosion beneath them, they all tilted their heads down to see Bakugo soaring through the air with his Quirk. "Kacchan!" Izuku cried.
"Bakugo?" Levy tilted her head back watching the boy fly toward them.
"Don't think for a second you're safe." Bakugo's hand reached forward, inches away from Levy's headband. Uraraka yelped as his hand extended forward.
"Lucy!" Levy called, shielding her headband.
"Wool bomb!"
A pink wool cloud formed between the pair, Bakugo blasted it burning half of it away, making the crowd go crazy watching the exchange. "Whoa!" Present Mic cheered.
"What the hell is this?" Bakugo blasted the wool off him, realizing that maybe he should've paid more attention to her Quirk.
"Bakugo has been separated from his horses!" Present Mic continued, as Sero shot his tape at Bakugo, "Whoa, nice catch." Kirishima complimented as Sero reeled the explosive teen in.
"Is that even allowed?" Present Mic asked.
"He never touched the ground, so technically it's okay." Midnight responded their voices carrying over the stadium.
Team Levy landed on the ground once more, "He didn't touch the ground so it's technically okay. You heard her Levy!" Lucy called.
"Dark Ecriture: Wings!" She took off into the air, separating from her team. Their main goal was to preserve their headband, and if they had to split up to do it right now, so be it.
"She's not out of the water just yet." Izuku said, "There are people who can still attack at a range!"
"As expected, everyone's after the first-place team giving them no time to catch their breath!" Present Mic informed. "And now McGarden has her team points up in the air with her signature wings she showcased in the first round! What a show this is!"
Nearby in the audience, cameras flashed as they took multiple shots of the students' displays of power. "With all those flashy Quirks I can't decide who I should be watching!"
"Looks like the experience fighting villains made that class level up super fast." Another man responded from his spot in the crowd.
"You better get back here!" Bakugo growled, "Flat face, use your tape!" He ordered.
"My name is Sero!" Sero responded, not hesitating to listen, his tape connecting to Levy's foot.
The girl was pulled back with surprising force, catching her off guard. "Whoa, that's stronger than I expected!"
Sero grinned pridefully at that observation, "I'm glad I got some recognition here."
"I chose ya, didn't I?" Bakugo rolled his eyes.
Team Levy leaped up, Midoriya grabbed the tape and used his enhanced strength to pull Team Bakugo in towards them, "Wool Shield!" Lucy called out creating a pink cloud to cushion the collision.
While the team felt the softness of the clouds easing their senses Uraraka reached out for their headband, Bakugo reeled his head back, creating blasts to free them from the wooly cloud.
"I don't think so, round face!" Creating a bigger explosion in front of himself he separated his team from the trio of horses. Levy had used solid script 'SWORD' to free herself from the sticky situation. She hovered near her team in case they needed to catch her.
"You almost got their headband!" Levy called as the teams stared each other down. "I have to admit that Bakugo's an attentive person."
"You can say that again, I could still feel the heat from that explosion." Uraraka commented.
"Levy look out!" Lucy called over to her bluenette friend as a familiar figure moved in.
"Tokoyami's Quirk?!" She said crossing her arms in front of her face. Dark Shadow had swiped at the girl sending her rolling through the air.
"Levy!" Her team called out as they rushed in and caught her, Izuku and Lucy stabilized the girl as they looked at their attackers.
"Flying could be a bit risky if I don't pay attention." She sweatdropped with a nervous laugh.
She straightened up, her wings pulsating with purple energy. Todoroki looked her in her brown eyes, his intent clear as day and night, "I'll be taking that, now."
Close by, Mineta and Tsu sat in Shoji's arms, enveloped in darkness as Mineta whimpered. He had felt his head and there was nothing there! Somehow someone had stolen his headband without him noticing, it had felt like a vine had touched his head…
"Normally, I wouldn't have teamed up with you, but this was a good plan." Tsu commented as a little light peaked through Shoji's tentacles. "So, I'm not sure how you lost your headband."
"WHERE THE HECK DID IT GO?!" Mineta cried in agony as Shoji listened in, "This just means there's nothing left to lose! Shoji! Full on attack mode!"
Shoji's tentacles spread out, no longer covering Tsu and Mineta, but instead expanding to reveal the six arms he had created for this challenge. Mineta pointed toward Team McGarden and Team Todoroki ready to get to the top by any means necessary. "We'll use all our powers to steal the points from those two teams!"
"Considering he declared war on the three of us it's not surprising that he's gunning for us this early on." Lucy stared at the scarred teen who returned her look evenly, not even looking worried in the slightest.
"We're halfway through though, we can't afford to slip up now…" Levy shook her head.
"Tokoyami, forward!" Todoroki commanded as Dark Shadow Emerged.
Dark Shadow rushed forward, his claws expanding and dragging the team forward. Momo had created roller skates for the horses so Dark Shadows could move them around. Their speed increased as Dark Shadow concentrated on moving, "Yaoyorozu, be ready to protect us,"
"On it." Momo responded as her body glowed, readying her creation Quirk.
"Kaminari!" Todoroki called about to relay his order.
"Oh, I know what I gotta do." Kaminari grinned, knowing his role all too well at this point.
"Dark Shadow, come back!" Dark Shadow hid within Tokoyami, but their speed remained consistent thanks to their skates.
"Watch your surroundings! It's not just Todoroki." Izuku called, "Everyone's after us!" He warned, watching teams Kendo, Jiro, Todoroki, Mineta, and Rin all rush toward them.
"I hope you made something strong, Yaomomo!" Kaminari called as his body sparked with electricity. Todoroki pulled the newly created insulation blanket over himself and the other members of his team sans Kaminari.
"Indiscriminate Shock 1.3 million volts!" Kaminari's attack expanded through the area. The electricity caused all of the other teams to yell out, "Kaminari….!" Jiro groaned recognizing the boy's Quirk by now.
Levy gasped as the lightning rapidly approached her team.
"Give it a rest, Laxus! Leave him alone!" Jet called out as Laxus beat Gajeel down first with his lightning and then kicked him while he was down.
"I'm not taking orders from you!" Laxus whipped around shooting a blast of lighting toward Levy, Jet, and Droy. It went straight toward Levy as she stood helplessly trying to brace herself for the attack.
It collided with a crackle, but not with Levy… The bluenette slowly opened her eyes gasping softly as a beaten Gajeel stood before her, his arm transformed into a metal rod. "Gajeel!"
Levy opened her eyes, "Solid Script: Iron!" The word 'IRON' appeared with a heart in the 'o', which conducted the electricity away from the team.
"Less than six minutes left." Todoroki said heading straight for them, "It's time to make a move!" He said while freezing one of Momo's creations that allowed him access to freeze the floor despite his slightly elevated height.
He left all the other teams frozen to the floor, some already having lost their headbands some time ago and now left stuck. "Sorry, but there's no other way." Todoroki called behind him to his fellow first-years.
"Will you look at that!" Present Mic hollered, "He's stopped all those teams cold in their tracks!"
Aizawa spoke up once more, "But only after Kaminari had immobilized the students using his electricity. In the obstacle course, he was surprised by how many people avoided his attack. He's adapting his strategy. That being said, McGarden has been showing a similar strategy using her Quirk to her advantage as she wards off attacks."
"Nice commentary!" Present Mic gave his partner a thumbs-up.
"I might as well take these!" Todoroki had nabbed a couple of headbands from the frozen contestants, his team's score rising.
Kendo, the class representative from class 1B growled in frustration, "COME BACK!" But it was all for naught as Todoroki created a wall of ice around the trapped teens leaving them all behind with a lack of points.
"Get them!" Tokoyami ordered and Dark Shadow appeared once more, lunging for Levy as the team tried to get away.
"I can't say I was expecting this combination, but he put together a good team of Quirks!" Lucy cried as they tried to outrun the shadow.
"They do have amazing Quirks, but haven't you noticed their disadvantage?" Izuku said in a hushed tone.
"Tokoyami and Kaminari haven't been using their Quirks at the same time." Lucy nodded, "Could it be that since Dark Shadow is a shadow, light makes it weaker?"
"Wow, you noticed all that while we were running?" Uraraka gasped.
"Yep, and that means I have the perfect outfit to counter them, Star Dress: Leo!" Lucy's body shined causing Dark Shadow to whimper slightly.
"Dark Shadow, return to us!" Tokoyami commanded.
"It seems they've figured out your weakness." Todoroki commented, covering Tokoyami's back with the insulated blanket, creating more shade for Dark Shadow, and protecting it from the light.
"Violence solves nothing…" Dark Shadow cawed, peeking out from the blanket.
"It looks like team McGarden has turned the tables! Lucy Heartfilia uses her Quirk "Star Dress" to keep Tokoyami's Dark Shadow at bay! But can they last the whole time?!" Present Mic asked the audience as they roared with enthusiasm.
The two teams stared each other down, unwilling to back down from each other, "All we have to do is outlast them." Levy said, "I could still fly away with the points, but who knows who'll try to attack me."
"And you would be alone." Lucy added, weighing their options, "Chances are they would chase after you."
"We could hold them back though!" Uraraka tried, "If Dark Shadow chases after her, Lucy could use her Quirk to scare him back!"
"That's true, but we would still be vulnerable to Kaminari." Izuku chimed.
"But if he does get us only Levy would have the points and as long as she outruns them by flying and uses her Quirk to make light, she could keep her points right?" Uraraka reasoned with the three looking at her in surprise.
"Alright, let's give it a try!" Lucy said as the three rushed forward with Levy standing up, "Be careful out there!" She called to her friend as Izuku tossed her upwards, the girl's wings doing the rest.
"Not so fast!" Todoroki called, creating ice walls to hinder her path. The girl twirled maneuvering out of the way to avoid crashing. "After her!"
Dark Shadow extended forward, covered by the blanket still, rushing the team toward Levy. "Yaoyorozu is there anything you could create to catch her?"
Momo nodded and created a net, Dark Shadow grabbed it and rushed at Levy ready to stop her, the girl looked back, seeing the shadow getting closer.
"Solid Script: Shine!" Levy cried, her spell illuminating the area brilliantly as Izuku's and Uraraka's combined Quirks allowed them to help intercept the shadow and destroy the net.
Dark Shadow screeched in displeasure, hiding under the blanket and returning to Tokoyami. Team Todoroki covered their eyes, the light shining brightly against their eyes.
"Kaminari!" Todoroki called as they all once again covered themselves with the blankets once more. The boy nodded, although he was slightly nervous, "Indiscriminate Shock 1.3 million volts!"
Lightning surged between the two teams as Kaminari fought to hold his attack for longer than he usually would. Izuku, Uraraka, and Lucy felt their muscles tensing, unable to move the way they could before. "He… got us, we're stunned." Lucy grunted.
"Yeah, but look." Izuku said to the girls.
Kaminari had a dopey look on his face as he held up Todoroki the skates pulling him along. "Dark Shadow is still recovering from Levy's attack." Tokoyami informed Todoroki in a hushed tone, "And Lucy doesn't need to move to use her Quirk." Tokoyami sighed.
"Levy's gone anyways, she escaped in the cover of the light. We should pursue other teams to secure victory." Todorki frowned, the girl was prepared once again just like during the mock battle but this time, she had won…
"But to make it a little harder for them." Todoroki looked over the paralyzed team surrounding them with ice. "They're strong enough to escape it, but Levy won't be able to reach them easily with how thick I've made the layer."
"We could escape if we could move!" Izuku growled as vapor escaped from their mouths.
"I've been to colder places than this, but not being able to move doesn't help." Lucy shivered.
"It will probably take us a couple of minutes to recover." Izuku responded, "Taking Kaminari's Quirk that closely really did us in."
"We'll have to trust Levy to hold her own to stay in the game. There's only a few minutes left anyway." Lucy said as the team tried to relax their bodies, hoping it would help them recover quicker.
. . .
"Miss McGarden makes a clean getaway but her team is left trapped in Todoroki's ice! As long as she could remain in the air for the remaining time, she and her team will move on to the next round!" Present Mic whooped as the crowd clapped and cheered, watching as more teams lost their headbands and others started climbing up the leaderboard.
Levy sighed seeing the dome of ice trapping her team, she could probably melt the ice away, but it would leave her vulnerable. She saw Todoroki, Momo, and Tokoyami raking up points, despite having to drag around Kaminari and Dark Shadow's meek form from their attacks.
Levy had been so preoccupied with her own thoughts that she hadn't noticed the air solidify in front of her. Crashing into it, she clung onto the solid air not wanting to fall to the ground, "Huh?"
"You Class 1A students should really pay attention to your surroundings, or are you all just pompous enough to assume you'll achieve victory?" Monoma smirked twirling a familiar headband with 630 points catching Levy's attention.
"Bakugo's headband." Levy said, flying forward and reaching out for it.
"That's not the only thing I took." Monoma raised his hand forming an explosion, blasting the girl away.
"That guy has your Quirk!" Kirishima cried to Bakugo from nearby.
"Damn it!" Bakugo growled as he sent a larger explosion toward Monoma, causing a cloud of smoke to form obscuring Team Monoma's view.
"You both have impressive powers." Monoma's voice confidently said as the smoke cleared revealing his hard and ragged form, eerily similar to Kirishima's skin from hardening. "But I think you'll agree mine's better."
"Huh? What? Mine, too?" Kirishima gaped.
"Bastard." Bakugo glared at the teen. "His Quirk, he can copy people's powers."
Levy looked on with wide eyes, 'If he hadn't blown me away with an explosion would he be able to copy my magic?' Her thoughts were racing, 'If he couldn't… would I be exposed? In front of a huge crowd?'
She worriedly looked around the large crowd and Monoma, 'He hasn't said anything so either he didn't try to copy my magic or he didn't meet the condition to copy it.'
"Very good." Monoma smirked at Bakugo's observation.
"Neito Monoma. His Quirk: Copy. He can use the Quirks of whomever he touches, but only for five minutes. Plus he can only borrow one at a time." Present Mic told the audience, Levy heard the man's voice over the speakers and realized just how careful she had to be.
"So even an idiot could figure it out." Monoma sneered happily at the explosive teen.
Yui, Fukidashi, and Bondo used Bondo's Quirk, "Cemendine" to spray glue at team Bakugo and Levy. Both team Bakugo and Levy backed up to avoid the material from hitting them. Mina took the opportunity to spray acid to counter it, reaching past the material and grabbing Yui's headband for 100 points.
"Nice one. Thanks for the backup, Bondo. Sorry about the points." Monoma said in a friendly manner.
"Monoma." Kaibara called, "If we keep those headbands, we're good. As long as no one gets near us, we'll make our class proud."
"Get them!" Bakugo commanded, angrily putting on the new headband.
"It's too sticky, I can't move!" Kirishima's right leg was encased in a glue-like material.
"No prob!" Mina called using her foot to secrete acid through her feet.
"Well hurry! We're sitting at zero points now!" Sero said as team Monoma ran away.
"Oh, no hard feelings, right?" Monoma let a spark explode from his hand using Bakugo's Quirk, "After all, you provoked us."
"Weren't you and the other blonde the ones who said to come at you with everything, but it didn't matter cause you would win?" Monoma mocked Bakugo, receiving a heated glare from the seething teen.
"Only one minute left!" Present Mic declared, "Most of Team McGarden is trapped! Leaving McGarden alone with the 10 million points! Although she escaped team Todoroki's wrath, she was thrust into another scuffle!"
"Sorry, Levy! I want to move on to the next round!" Yui called from atop Bondo and Fukidashi as Bondo spat more and more glue at her.
"So this is the girl I've been hearin' so much about!" Fukidashi said, "Whoosh!" Kanji formed in the air as he spoke sending Levy staggering in her flight.
"Solid Script: WATER!" Levy sent her spell at the group the water diluting Bondo's Quirk.
"Boom! Boom! BOOM!" Fukidashi sent his attack to Levy as the girl did her best to avoid the kanji. 'It's like the Oriental of Solid Script.' Levy thought to herself as she dodged them. She was feeling pretty worn out from trying to protect her headband.
She dodged the last 'BOOM' and crashed directly into solidified air, "Urk!"
Monoma's laugh made its way to her ears, "You fell for it twice, I don't know how someone like you ever got a top score at UA!" He cockily wagged his finger, "We thought about leaving you alone but figured your team did that to you already…"
Team Kodai fell through the ground, their upper halves still being free, except for Yui who sat atop them still immobile cause of the pothole. "Think again!" Popping up from a hole along with Izuku and Uraraka, Lucy dressed in her Virgo Star Dress uppercut Monoma.
A headband flew from his head and Sero shot out some tape catching it and handing it to Bakugo, "He still has our headband." Bakugo growled as he held up the 230 points they stole from team Monoma.
"Guys!" Levy smiled rejoining her team.
"Sorry for the wait!" Izuku called.
"You're not a moment too late." Levy breathed in relief.
"Team McGarden reunited their team! With time almost up, let's take a look at the students' current standing!"
The top scores were as follows:
1st
Team McGarden: 10,000,535
10,000,535
2nd
Team Tetsutetsu: 1,060
665
395
3rd
Team Todoroki: 965
580
210
115
60
4th
Team Monoma: 915
285
630
5th
Team Shinso: 445
445
6th
Team Bakugo: 330
230
100
Everyone else either had zero points or deficient scores compared to the top of the leaderboard.
"We should've just let the clock run out!" Tsubaraba told Monoma, "They managed to take some points."
"We still have enough to make it to the next round, and I don't think anyone else has any more headbands left to spare. Time is almost up so we'll be in the clear." Monoma offhandedly said.
"LOSERS! Get back here!" Bakugo called.
"Ugh… Doesn't he ever give up?" Monoma sighed. "Knowing you've been bested is an important part of being a hero."
Bakugo launched himself from his team, heading straight for Team Monoma. "Hey, don't just fly off on your own!" Kirishima shouted after him.
"Tsuburaba! Stop him!" Monoma ordered.
Tsubaraba inhaled deeply before blowing out and solidifying the air in front of the team stopping Bakugo in his tracks. "A'right! Three for three, I'm on a roll today!"
"Kosei Tsubaraba. His Quirk: Solid Air. He can harden the air to form walls or steps." Present Mic's voice boomed.
"Couldn't have mentioned it earlier?" Levy threw her arms up in the air.
"The bigger the breath, the stronger the shield!"
Bakugo punched the solid air, it floated in the air like a piece of glass, completely translucent with Bakugo hitting the surface harder and harder.
"You look pretty stupid fighting with air." Tsubaraba mocked as the team turned to leave.
With one last ferocious grunt, Bakugo shattered through the solid air grabbing one of Monoma's headbands. "Crap, he snatched one of 'em!" Monoma shouted as Sero caught Bakugo with his tape and returned him to them.
"Team Bakugo nabbed a headband, will it be enough to secure them a spot in the next event?" Present Mic asked as their scores changed.
4th
Team Monoma: 630
630
5th
Team Bakugo: 615
285
230
100
"Ooh! So close and yet, so far!" Present Mic shook his head. "The final moments of the game have been full of shakeups! Oh, to be young again!"
Team Monoma used Tsubaraba's Quirk as their main defense as they ran away. Monoma copied it and they used it in tandem to stop an incoming attack from Tsunotori and Kamakiri.
"Damn it!" Monoma grunted in worry.
"We're still in fourth, it's fine." Tsubaraba called as he continued running with Kaibara and Kuroiro. "Kendo's been frozen and hasn't been a real player."
"Yeah!" Monoma responded as he pulled the headband closer, "If we defend this one to the death, we'll move forward."
"I told you to warn us before you jumped!" Sero told Bakugo.
"We're gonna make sure they LOSE and we're the indisputable WINNERS!" Bakugo's hands ignited as he readied his explosions.
"Now look at this." Aizawa cooly commented, "Class 1B's strategy was a reasonable one, but there's one thing they forgot to consider…"
"I couldn't brace myself earlier when I jumped." Bakugo told his team, "Get closer!" He clenched his fist in anger, "We'll get our points back from this idiot, then we can focus on the big one!"
"Heh." Kirishima and Mina grinned as Mina softly gasped at their captain's resolve.
"Do it!" Sero cheered.
"Elbow guy. Tape 'im!" Bakugo lifted his leg allowing Sero better access, "My name's Sero!" He shot his tape and it flew straight past team Monoma.
"You missed!" Tsubaraba called as they continued to carry Monoma away.
Levy watched the teams curiously as Bakugo ordered his around. 'After fighting alongside him and Kirishima at USJ, I have no doubt they have what it takes to move onto the next round, they're so close…"
"Raccoon eyes! Lay down some acid in the direction we're going." Baukgo shifted his position once more giving Mina more space to work with, "It's Mina Ashido!" Thrusting her hand forward she laid some acid out on the floor before them.
'Young Bakugo. You understand something crucial, a truth no one had to teach you.' All Might watched as Bakugo used his classmates' Quirks to his advantage, the group skiing on the surface of Mina's acid as Sero's tape increased their speed reeling them in, 'That there's a difference between those who aim for the top, and those who will settle.'
Bakugo's explosions combined with the slippery surface and tape boosted their speed ten-fold, 'And that difference matters.'
"Class 1B didn't take into account Bakugo's overwhelming tenacity." Aizawa commentated.
Monoma tried to shield himself with some solid air, but Bakugo let out a triumphant roar that the whole stadium heard as he blasted through the shield and yanked his points back from Monoma.
"Bakugo is a merciless force!" Present Mic said as the leaderboard changed and the crowd went wild, even team Levy looked on in amazement. "What a point hog! That was a shield break heard 'round the arena, and I can't wait to watch the replay!"
"Kacchan…" Izuku muttered in admiration.
"Dang Baukgo…"Lucy commented.
The top scores changed in an instant.
1st
Team McGarden: 1,000,535
2nd
Team Bakugo: 1,245
3rd
Team Tetsutetsu: 1,060
4th
Team Todoroki: 965
"Now, we'll go after the bookworm, and after that Todoroki!" Bakugo ordered as they veered to the side, his eyes directly making eye contact with Levy.
"The game is almost over! Time for a countdown!" Present Mic excitedly called out. A timer appeared on the screen and began to count down from 10.
Bakugo grunted, jumping from his team and heading straight for Levy, his hand extending forward. Team Levy looked on in shock as Bakugo darted toward them with his explosions, having witnessed him breaking down the shield, they knew it would be difficult to block him completely.
Bakugo's fingers wrapped around the headband-
"Time's up!" Present Mic declared, stopping Bakugo in his tracks as Team McGarden breathed a sigh of relief and Bakugo fell backward in defeat. "And with that, the second round is officially over!"
"Bakugo are you okay, man?" Sero asked as he, Kirishima, and Mina rushed over to the frustrated boy.
"That was too close." Lucy said as they set Levy down.
"Now, let's take a look at who our top four teams are!" Present Mic said as the students all got settled, "In first place, Team McGarden!"
"We actually won!" Izuku's eyes burst with tears having played highly in both events so far.
"It was really scary there a couple of times!" Uraraka breathed out a deep sigh, "But we did it!" She smiled.
"You did great Levy!" Lucy complimented.
"Thanks, Lu! I couldn't have done it alone, you guys were there when I needed you!"
"In second place, Team Bakugo!"
"Ugh. We were so close to first place." Mina groaned in dissatisfaction.
"Meh, sure. But we're movin' on, so it's all good." Sero shrugged it off.
"I don't think our leader would agree with you." Kirishima commented, "Like at all."
Bakugo screamed in anger and frustration at the results, literally having victory in the palm of his hands.
"In third place is Team Tetsute– wait, what?"
Shinso stood proudly with the headbands team Tetsutetsu previously had before. Iida, Ojiro, and Shoda all looked around the arena confused considering the game had just started not too long ago.
"It's team Shinso? When did they come back from the dead?" Present Mic asked incredulously having missed when they gained so many points.
"Thanks for all your help." Shinso walked away from his team with a smile, content with having made it to the next round.
"And cleaning up the rest of the points in fourth place is Team Todoroki!"
Todoroki crossed his arms at the results having barely made it as Kaminari gave a thumbs up still not recovered from using his Quirk fully.
Momo and Tokoyami both sighed in disappointment, "Maybe if I had created more items, we would've gotten the 10,000,000 points…" Momo shook her head.
"You created many helpful items that allowed us to grab other headbands to succeed, and we wouldn't have been able to use our Quirks properly together if it weren't for you." Tokoyami argued softly.
Momo blushed slightly in appreciation at her classmate's words.
Todoroki silently turned his head over to look at his father in the stands, knowing that the man wouldn't be pleased with the results, he wasn't even pleased with the results, but he would never let that man know that…
"These four valiant teams will advance on to the final round!"
Todoroki glanced at Levy's team who was wrapped in a group hug, 'They completely overwhelmed us, and forced us to resort to other points.' He glanced at his left hand 'If I had used my left side would it have made a difference?'
He shook his head in anger, 'How could I even consider breaking my promise?'
Todoroki clenched his hand into a fist, "At this rate, he'll win and I'll end up exactly who he wants me to be..." He whispered to himself.
Endeavor walked away, his face expressionless as he watched his son barely scrape through, he thought that Shoto would've put up a better fight against all these other students, but there was still one more event and he better not disappoint…
"Now, let's take an hour lunch break before we start the afternoon festivities! See ya soon! Hey, Eraser Head. Let's grab some food."
"I'm taking a nap."
It's 2AM and I just finished typing this. I have work tomorrow and I am so tired. I'll probably wait to post this sometime in the morning….
This chapter was so difficult to write considering the limitations the teams have while working together. I hope I combined a lot of their Quirks in a memorable way that makes sense.
It probably would've been so much easier for me to write Levy up in the air the entire time, but then there would be no story cause she could just evade everything and I gotta make it interesting.
A lot of focus is definitely on Levy right now considering just how useful her magic is in this situation, but the individual fights are coming up next and I have some big plans for Lucy tbh.
I couldn't even fit all the interactions I wanted in this chapter so I guess I'll have to save them for future chapters, which will still work, but I was just excited for some of it…
I originally had different teams, like Lucy, Levy, Yui, and Reiko were gonna be a team. The only reason it was scratched was because of the fights next round, which requires 16 participants and I already cut Hatsume and Aoyama out because I don't think their fights would be useful in this situation. Although, I will admit I do really enjoy Hatsume's character and design.
As for the Tokoyami and Iida switch, let me explain. Iida isn't mad at Izuku for being more heroic than him in this continuation, and he has no reason to be mad at the other student council members for anything at the moment. Shinso also just happened to approach him first. And I had to throw in Tokoyami so they could figure out his weakness for the future.
I swear everything will come together eventually, I already have all the fights I want lined up. I know all the winners and losers and honestly, I'm really excited for who faces off against who. I had to switch out a lot of fights to make it make sense, but there are still some canon fights. I wanna know who you think will fight against each other in the next event!
Also, I had to do a lot of math for this chapter and it was insane. I'm glad it was just easy math, but wow calculating points in a way that makes sense is hard, like I didn't completely realize that Team Bakugo would end in second place or that Team Todoroki would end in last until I finished completely.
Hopefully, you're all enjoying this and continue to leave reviews on your thoughts and speculations on what'll happen, I honestly reread your guy's comments and consider it when I'm planning so I always enjoy the input.
I'll see you in the next chapter gang!