Chapter One Hundred and Twelve
"… Well, fuck."
"Sparky?" Mina questioned, concerned, peering over my shoulder as I sat at the main console for the gate-room.
Looking back to her, I tried to figure out how to explain the problem, my thoughts sluggish, just as they'd been since, since The Fight, and forced myself to push through. "Our World Tier increased, from Four to Five, which means wherever we're going, it's going to be more dangerous."
"World Tier?" she echoed.
"Remember how I said I was looking at Star Wars? Well, Star Wars without something terrible going on was Tier Four, same as our world was," I explained. "Except… All Might retired, which is going to cause all sorts of problems, and, while they haven't hit yet, it doesn't matter, our World Tier increased because of it. That means we can only go to other Tier Five worlds, which Star Wars is still one of, but it will be during the, well, the Star Wars."
Frowning, the horned girl asked, "And that'd be bad?"
"It is if we show up on Alderaan right before the Death Star shows up," I shrugged, "or, if we appear in the contested zone during the Galactic Civil War, it'd be deadly. Sci-Fi Wars are no joke, with death tolls in the Quadrillions, easily. Though we'd more likely show up on Tatooine, before the Empire shows up. Or pre-invasion Naboo. Or… either way, it'd likely be very, very bad and this throws my plans out the window, so now I need to go over the entire list to find one that'd work better for-"
"&You've got mail!&"
I paused, and turned to look at the computer I was sitting at.
"Uh, I might be trippin', but did your computer just chirp?" Mina asked.
"What? No, it said I had mail," I absently replied.
"… Sparky, it just chirped, and, maybe growled? Like this," my lover disagreed, making an odd sort of noise.
"Huh, no, it said, '&You've got mail&'," I disagreed.
Rolling her black and gold eyes, the girl replied, "Okay, you made the noise better, but, still, it chirp-growled?"
"What are you talking about? It said I had mail, it didn't chirp, or growl or anything else," I reiterated.
Blinking, Mina now looked concerned. "S-Sparky. Tell me what it said. Exactly."
Not sure where she was going with this, I repeated, "'&You've got mail.&'"
"Sparky, do that again, but, like, actually…" she directed, taking out her phone. "Do it again." I did, and she played it back, which was just me saying 'You've got mail'. Or…
"Again," I requested, and she did, as I concentrated, listening closely, hearing something… off.
"Again."
That was my voice, and I understood what I was saying but…
"This is Japanese," I stated, using Denki's knowledge to speak it fluently, even though, to my own mind, it auto-translated to English. "This is English, right?" I questioned, flipping a mental switch, and, looking to Mina, who slowly nodded.
"&But this, this is an entirely different language, isn't it?&" I checked, reaching for the same feeling I'd had listening to the message.
"Ya sound like a squirrel cussin' out a sparrow, Honey," Mina informed me.
I sighed, "Okay, I know another language. A language my computer uses. Okay then." Seeing the envelope symbol, with a red number one, I clicked it, and a message opened, one that seemed like it was in English, but, now that I was looking for it, was instead made up of a long serious of interconnected, organically swirling symbols, though, looking at them, I understood exactly what they meant.
"Which this is the written version of, apparently," I observed, not sure what to do about this.
While I struggled with how to proceed, Mina, meanwhile, just plopped down in my lap and asked, "What does it say?"
Refocusing on the message, looking past the swirls and letting my mind translate, I frowned, as I began to read.
Congratulations, Agent Dencifer, on the completion of your first world!
As such, you have done better than 74% of Agents in your Class!
Expectations were high, given your history, but I'm glad to see you have not disappointed!
As such, a special opportunity has been extended to you!
Newly Discovered Multiversal Branch, 'Avatar, The Last Airbender – Alternate Universe – E' has been certified as free of Multiversal Threats, but further scouting is required!
Your task will be to cause Multiversal Divergence sufficient to pull ATLA-AU-E-2 away from the mainline from which it was forked to a sufficient degree that more serious scanning can be pursued without compromising the mainline AU-E or attracting the attention of Multiversal Watchers (Such scanning will be undetectable to the residents of ATLA-AU-E-2+ and will have no harmful effects upon its residents)!
If you pursue this opportunity, 5 AP (Elemental Bending AU-E) packages have been authorized for you to claim upon acceptance of this mission, to be applied at will to yourself or select Companions, and held in reserve for a period no longer than five-hundred years!
Do you wish to accept this mission?
Yes No
And, below it, was a note, seemingly handwritten, but still in that odd flowing script.
Your conflict with All-for-One, while unexpected, was certainly praiseworthy, and the kind of initiative that will see you go far in this department!
Both You and your Companion will be able to pass as Spirit-Touched with minimal difficulty, though Ms. Ashido may have a tougher time of it.
Enjoy this vacation, Agent, you've earned it.
-Your Manager,
C.
"… You have a Manager?" Mina questioned.
I merely shrugged, as it was news to me too.
"And what's an 'AP'?" she pressed.
"No idea, but 'Elemental Bending' is the magic system of Avatar," I replied. "There's normal people, Quirkless, essentially, but then there's Benders, who bend one of the four cardinal European elements of fire, water, earth, and air, except for the titular Avatar, who is bound to the Spirit of the World, or is it incarnated, or something, and he, or she, it's a reincarnation line, whoever it is at the time can bend all four, but they're also supposed to keep the world in balance. It was actually one of my World Tier Four options, but, well, it's pre-industrial, and I'd need Soul Talent to copy its magic system, because it is a Magic system, and I can only copy Psychic abilities, which Quirks, and The Force, would both count as. This looks like I'd get the system. And… and so would you," I told her.
That took the girl aback. "But, you said the thing you do only lets you learn stuff."
"I'm gonna be honest, I'm not sure how any of this works," I admitted, waving towards the computer. "If this lets me help you though, I say let's do it."
Mina frowned, "Okay, and, you, like, know this place?"
"I know the original, but this is an Alternate Universe," I warned, tapping the screen for emphasis, before realizing she couldn't read the text. At her confused look, I elucidated, "It means it's roughly the same, but… imagine if All Might was the Symbol of War, instead of Peace, seeking to lead a new Japanese Empire to conquer the world, and All-for-One was the leader of the resistance movement fighting against expansionistic Quirk Supremacist Eugenicists. Or a place where Quirks are actually magic coming from the spirit of humanity, having gained enough power to start feeding it back into people to give them powers. Or if everything was the same, except everyone's genders were flipped, so I'd be Hikari Kaminari, and you'd be Minato Ashido, and so on."
I shrugged, "It would still be our world, as opposed to, say, the world of Burning Sword of Dawn, but it could be literally anything as long as it kept in the general broad strokes, except we know it's going to be more dangerous than the original to be in the same range of danger as our world is currently settling into now, as opposed to where it was when we took UA's entrance exam. That said… I think we should do it."
"But what about your plans?" she questioned. "Couldn't you find somewhere better?"
"Possibly, but I'm looking for a place where we could both gain power, a place that isn't too dangerous, and…" I trailed off, looking at her.
"A place where I'd fit in," the Heteromorphic girl finished for me. "Because most places don't have people like me."
Nodding, I told her seriously, "Yes, though, anyplace I can't have you with me isn't a place I want to go."
My lover gave me a flat look, then shook her head, commenting, "God, Sparky, you're so sappy, you know that?"
"Would… would you like me to stop?" I questioned, a little unsure, having thought that-
"What? No!" the woman quickly backpedaled, leaning forward to give me a quick hug. "It's a good thing, it's just, right, duh, Mina, your boyfriend still feels shit," she recriminated herself. "Sparky, I love that about you, it just, you being, like, totes romantic just comes out of nowhere sometimes."
"O…kay?" I replied, confused. "I wasn't being romantic, though, I was telling the truth."
"I know that's what you think," she reassured me, "And, like, how you think, but… Right. So. You think we should do this?"
Glad to be back on topic, I nodded. "Yes. The note wasn't wrong, people might not react the best to you, but more of a 'take your money but charge you extra and keep their distance' kind of thing rather than the 'burn the demon' we'd get in a lot of places with freely available power gains, like Konosuba or Danmachi. And, no matter where we go, there's the possibility that you couldn't get the powers available because they only work for natives, but, with this," I tapped the display, "it looks like we'd both get them right away. That's… not a small thing, Mina."
"And then there's this 'C' Dude," my girlfriend nodded. "Did you know…?"
"First I've heard from him, but he's watching, apparently," I noted, frowning.
The pink-skinned girl blinked. "Wait, even when we… yaknow?" she whispered.
I shrugged.
"Like, Ew!"
"I'm not exactly working for the nicest of people," I reminded her. "Not that I have a choice."
"Right, right, just… do you think they're watching now?" she questioned, whispering, glancing about.
I just had to shrug again. "Maybe? Does it make a difference, really? Besides, you liked reading about how Niri got hot and heavy with Kaneshiro; is there a really a difference?"
"Yeah!" the superhero shot back. "We're real!"
I looked at her for a moment, but she didn't get it, so I plugged in the setting name, and, yes, there it was, at Tier Six, the coordinates for the Burning Sword of Dawn. "You sure she isn't?" I questioned, pointing to the image on-screen.
Mina stared at it for a long moment, "Ugh, now I feel, like, like Mineta!"
"Mineta's been getting better," I reminded her.
"Like, I know, and go him, but… fine, whatever, I guess I'm a perv and stuff!" she sighed, throwing her hands up in frustrated defeat.
The urge was faint, but I leant into it, reaching up, taking hold of her, and bringing her down for a long kiss, feeling the tension I didn't realize she was feeling draining out of her. It lasted a good bit, the feeling comforting, as she relaxed into me, and, when she finally pulled back, both of us were a little out of breath. "So am I, and I rather like the fact that you are," I reminded her, the girl snorting with laughter.
"Yeah, okay," she agreed, smiling, but trepidatious. "So… we're doing this?"
"Unless you've got a reason not to?" I asked in turn, and she shook her head.
Feeling a bit of trepidation, I clicked Yes, and… nothing happened.
Well, a moment later, the message changed, to read, again in that odd language:
Thank you for accepting this assignment!
Happy Hunting, Agent!
Before it vanished, leaving the same screen as before, only, now, on the desktop, in addition to a symbol that read MHA was another, reading AVTLA-AU-E, a large bar at the top reading 'Jump Charge' quickly draining to hollowness, reading 0% right after.
And, a moment later, my phone beeped.
And then… nothing.
Checking my phone, I navigated the menus, to see AP (Elemental Bending AU-E) was now present, and, clicking on it, a sub-menu let me 'apply' it to my 'Retinue', with a picture of myself, labeled Agent Dencifer at the top, and, below me, framed in gold, was Mina Ashido. Applying it to both, I hit yes, a prompt appearing suggesting that all recipients be outside before completing the 'Modification Request'.
Showing it to my lover, she leapt off her position in my lap, and, with a slightly nervous smile, told me, "Well, let's do what the magic phone says!"
That got a little bit of a chuckle out of me, as I followed her up and out of the complex that served as our new home, just… very, very glad that she'd decided to come with me.
Soon enough, we were in our 'yard', though she'd stopped to empty her pockets on the dining room table, a move I copied. Mina turned around, and gave me a big thumbs up. "Ready when you are!"
With a nod, I hit the 'Apply' setting.
And promptly caught Fire.
The feeling was overwhelming, as every bit of me seemed to light up at once, a howling inferno that caused me to scream, not in pain, not just in pain, as I fell to my knees, my vision nearly completely consumed with flames, searing me, reaching deep, trying to sink burning hooks into my soul, only to run headfirst into my Defenses, which they scratched uselessly at. I turned to look to Mina, seeing her on all fours, her Quirk going nuts, as the girl vomited gouts of crystal-clear water, more than her stomach could hold, even more fluid streaming in rivers from her nose, her eyes, as, turning, she looked to me, eyes wide, reaching out, her entire body slowly being covered with more and more fluid.
Crawling to her, I reached out as well, my burning hand taking control of her icy-cold one, steam billowing from where we held onto each other, and everything went blessedly dark.
MHA
I slowly came to, feeling… oddly good?
Blinking, I stared up at the sun, its light warm on my skin, comforting, and I could feel it, distantly, in a way beyond the physical, that was just… weird.
"Ugh..." I heard, beside me, my brain restarting from the 'lizard sunning itself' fugue I was in, to-
"Mina!" I yelped, scrabbling to my feet, seeing my girl laying there beside me, and hurried over to her, to make sure she was okay.
The grass around her was soaked, bits of ice on the grass on her other side, and, getting to her, I checked her for injuries, but, other than being almost hypothermia levels of cold, she seemed fine, though, feeling my hand on her forehead, she groaned, "Sparky!" and reached towards me, making grabby-hands.
Without another word, I picked her up, and the drenched girl latched onto me, murmuring, "Mmmm, warm," still a bit out of it. Reaching under her, I lifted her completely, holding her to my chest, turned, and paused.
Because while the area around her was half-frozen, and looked like a torrential downpour had been targeted solely on her, and her alone, where I was the grass was dried out, whatever the fire-version of a snow-angel scorched into it.
"Well, guess that explains what kind of bending we got," I remarked to myself, still a bit out of it, carrying the dripping girl inside, who'd latched onto me like a particularly cute koala. Running through my first-aid training, not sure if it applied to magically created conditions, I took us into the master bathroom, turning on the shower after a moment of annoyed confusion on how to work the levers, and started a warm stream, stepping into it, still carrying my lover.
It took the girl a little bit to fully wake up, blinking tiredly, frowning, asking, "Sparky… What the hell was that? And… why can I feel the shower? Like, feel it feel it?"
"That was us getting Bending, but, whatever it tried to do, our Defenses stopped it," I informed her. "And now…" Holding up my right hand, I focused, feeling an odd sort of energy in my chest, ebbing and flowing with every breath, and, with a force of will, I pulled on it. With a short jab, I shot it, a plume of flame rising up from my fist and hitting the shower ceiling, dissipating in a moment.
"… You could do that before," Mina pointed out.
"No, that was this hand," I countered, lifting my left, and, while the Quirk was still… raw, I could, gently, pull enough to spark a small flame in my left palm, though I had to let it go almost instantly. Taking a deep breath, I repeated the jab with my left hand, pulling from that internal reserve instead, creating another small bloom. "See, different powers entirely."
My lover blinked her golden eyes, "Oh, uh, cool? Wait, what one did I get?" she asked, perking up, starting to get excited.
Without a word, I pointed at the showerhead, still wetting us both down.
After a moment of confusion, the girl held her hand up to the spray, moving her fingers forward, the spray bending backwards and moving with her for a moment, more water coming out of the spout to form a growing mass, before going back to normal as soon as she stopped, falling to the bottom of the shower. Cocking her head, she pulled her hand backwards, the water started to flow against gravity to gather in her palm, dropping as soon as she stopped once more.
Frowning, she held a hand up and twisted, causing us both to yelp as, for a single moment, the water was ice fucking cold, the warm water afterward feeling almost searingly hot in comparison.
"SPARKY!" Mina squeed, turning to look at me with a giant grin on her face. "I can control water! Do you know how COOL THIS IS!"
"I think we both just felt how cool it was," I teased, my girlfriend laughing while lightly hitting me in the chest. "And this is why I wanted to take this, well, mission."
That got me an odd look, the Heroine declaring, "You… you look better, Denki. Like you got your spark back. Heh, Spark-y," she smiled, a tension I hadn't realized she was carrying easing away.
Taking a moment to take stock of myself, I… did actually feel better. Still not great, but, but it was a bit like my, my emotions were still muted, but I was filled with an odd sort of… Determination. And that, that helped push me forward, instead of feeling that familiar depression of every action taking effort, of every thought requiring me pushing it out. And, with that forward momentum, it was easier for my emotions to catch a ride on the way out, even though a not-insignificant part of me wanted to just curl up in bed and lie there for eternity.
"I guess it is," I told Mina, as she was still watching me. "Another reason to pick the world we did. But… let's dry off, change, and then go take a look at it, okay?"
Because, while I was feeling better, I was also worried, as while going into MHA, I knew what to expect, but an AU was, well, an AU.
Part of me wanted to call it off, to train with our new abilities, to get stronger with them before starting out, but the longer I put off taking that plunge, the more I'd want to continue putting it off, and… and I needed to keep moving.
I wasn't sure how much of my thought process was on my face, but some of it had to be, as Mina smiled sadly, gave me a quick hug, leaned up to give me a kiss, and told me, "Let's do that."
Stripping out of our soaked clothes, Mina took the opportunity to slap my ass, and, when I sent a flat look her way, she winked salaciously, causing me to chuckle. Getting to the Master bedroom, she moved to unpack her luggage a little, opening a drawer, and stopping, staring at what was inside.
"Sparky… Does this place make clothes?" she questioned, voice a little queer.
"Yeah, it also has self-replenishing workshops," I shrugged, having looked over the details of my new purchase in the last couple days, trying not to worry that Mina would decide she'd thought better of it and wasn't going to be coming with me through the portal.
My pink-haired girl froze, and turned to look in my direction. "Sparky, you can't tell Mei you've got that. She'd bind herself, like, instantly."
"I… what?" I questioned, and, thinking of my lab partner, realizing I was leaving her behind, that… hurt. "You, you don't need to worry about that, Mina. I… I don't think I'm going to be seeing her for… for a while."
Blinking black and gold eyes, her expression softened, and she moved over to give me a hug. "Do… do you want to ask her to come with us? She probably would, knowing her."
"… No," I stated, after a long moment. "No, she, she's needed back there. And to uproot her, going god knows where…" I shook my head, "no, no she's better off without me there to call AfO's attention down on her."
From her expression, Mina didn't agree, but still nodded, moving back to the drawers, and pulling out clothes, hemming and hawing until she picked out a pair of teal and purple booty-shorts.
"Uh, while I'm sure you'd rock that, and I'd like to see you in it," I warned, "but we're going somewhere that's about as culturally advanced as the Edo period. And, depending on where we show up, possibly very cold."
Thinking about it, she nodded, and still slipped on the shorts, but also grabbed a longer skirt, still going for loud colors, but that was just Mina, donning her Hero boots and a long-sleeved leopard-print shirt to complete the outfit, grabbing a white coat from the closet, throwing it on, and asking, "How 'bout this?"
(Image)
"Perfect," I smiled, shrugging on a golden-yellow leather jacket myself, with stylized black and white lightning-bolts, giving my lover a questioning look, the girl shooting me a thumbs up. Together, we made it down to the Gate room and I selected our new destination, causing the ground to Shake, in a way I hadn't expected.
It was only for a moment, but it was enough to worry me, as the various rings surrounding the central, empty circle started spinning back and forth, pausing to pulse with energy, until, starting with the outer one, they settled.
Finally, with another Shake, the central circle filled with prismatic energies, expanding outwards explosively, and I only now noticed the warning markings on the floor, before it stopped and retracted back into the central opening, settling into two vertical 'pools', a larger rainbow one bracketing the smaller swirling blue and white one, the part of the portal that we'd pass through.
"Oh yeah, they're absolutely ripping off Stargate," I couldn't help but quip, shaking my head, "Let's go!"
"Yeah… Let's!" she agreed, a bit nervously, but full of excitement as she followed me down and into the main chamber, until we stood in front of the swirling energy.
Looking to her, Mina reached out a hand, which I took, and, together, we entered a new world.
Music
began to read - Remnant 2 - The World of Losomn: Fae
Yeah… Let's! - Intro - Avatar: The Last Airbender Soundtrack
AN: And we're back! Sorry for the delay, everything is settled, and it's time to get this how on the road! If you wish to see how this goes, the next four chapters are up on and Subscribestar!