Izuku Midoriya, former Quirkless, was lying on his bed, trying to make himself comfortable.
By a twist of luck, he had been promised to be given a Quirk from his Idol - the Number One Hero, All Might. However, to make his body a suitable vessel for such a powerful Quirk, Izuku had to undergo All Might's brutal training regime.
Everyday, without fail, he had to be present at Dagobah Municipal Beach Park, and started to clean up all the trash there. When he said 'trash', it didn't mean something like an empty soda can, or thrown away bottles. It was stuff like broken TV, refrigerator, or worse, broken, rusty bodies of cars or other heavy machinery.
As a result, Izuku returns home everyday with an aching and exhausted body. He was hurt in places that he didn't even think was possible to be hurt.
"But it is getting better. I'm hurt less than I was a week ago…"
Izuku consoled himself. This was nothing compared to the pain of being a Quirkless, of being bullied by his peers that he had been experiencing up until now.
"Still, some pain relieving pads would be nice…"
He mumbled under his breath, too tired to move, but decided that something to soothe the pain would make it easier to rest. His mother is working overtime today, so she isn't home. He only had himself to rely on now.
"Ouch…ouch…ouch…"
He groaned with each step toward the living room, where their medicine box was stored. However, before Izuku could get to it, the doorbell rang.
"Delivery for Izuku Midoriya!"
It was the voice of an unfamiliar man. Just to be careful, Izuku approached the entrance and peeked out through the hole in the door.
No one was there, though he could hear faint footsteps getting further away.
"Weird… Don't they need my signature? And I don't remember ordering anything…Maybe mum did?"
After making extra sure that there was no one outside the door, Izuku opened it and looked down at the box on the ground. He couldn't make out its content based on the packaging. It's a brown package that was taped carefully, just a little bigger than his head. On one side of it was his name and address.
Slowly, mostly because of the pain, Izuku picked up the box and brought it back into his room, pads forgotten. Once he was back on his bed, he started tearing into the package.
The tape and brown paper layers are soon stripped away, revealing a plain white cardboard box. No picture or writing, or even a name.
"Hmm…"
Since he had come this far, no reason to stop now. Izuku continued to open the box. Inside it was a quite fancy full face helmet, almost like the stuff that some Pro Heroes used as their face mask. On top of it was a card.
Izuku took out the card and read its content.
"Congratulations, Izuku Midoriya. You have been chosen to participate in the Alpha Test of our latest, full-dive VR game, Echoes Of The Fall. Together with this letter is the device that will allow you to connect to our game server when it goes live on April 20th.
Just turn the power on, put it on your head like any other helmet, then choose a comfortable position to lie down, and you will connect after 10 seconds.
Hope you enjoy the game, and we're looking forward to your precious feedback.
Regards,
Echo Of The Fall team."
Izuku blinked at the name of the game.
"Oh…I did sign up for this some months ago…"
It wasn't like he expected anything to come of it though. A full-dive VR? Sounds like a marketing stunt. VR games existed, and some of them were quite good, but a full-dive was just fiction.
Most of the tech development was focused on creating gadgets to better assist Pro Heroes, and while the entertainment industry also got something out of it, to have achieved full-dive before the Heroes even heard a peep of it was impossible.
On the other hand, he didn't lose anything if he signed up, so he did. Who knew? Just in case…
"I can't believe it actually came…I still don't know if it's real or not, but just the fact that they really sent the device…"
Izuku put down the card and lifted the helmet out of the box. He then gave it a once-over.
"Wow…This is heavy. So this is why they recommended that I lie down…Still, can they really fit a full-dive worthy device inside something so small?"
He stared at the helmet. All sorts of questions without answers kept popping up in his head.
"April 20th, so three days from now…But what will happen if I wear this now?"
Excitement and anticipation gradually got the better of him. Izuku put the helmet on his head after a moment of hesitation. His vision went dark as an unfamiliar weight settled on his head. He fumbled around for awhile, before finding a way to lower himself down to the bed.
Then, he switched the helmet on from a button on its side. For a second, nothing happened, and Izuku could almost feel the disappointment.
However, something like a message box that usually appeared in video games flashed in front of his eyes.
[SERVER OPENS IN 2D - 21H - 27M - 45S…]
The number indicating second kept on counting down as Izuku stared at it. He tried to close his eyes, but he could still see the message box. Other than that though, nothing else seemed to happen.
After a few minutes, Izuku sat up with great effort, before taking off the helmet. It was a bit disappointing, but it only served to make his curiosity grow even stronger.
Three days seemed so short before, now suddenly appeared so long…
In an apartment somewhere in the city…
A young man leaned back against the chair he'd been sitting on for the last few hours and took a look around.
"Finally, all the chosen 'players' have received their device."
The room he was in, except for the chair, the small desk, and a laptop on top of it, every inch of wall was covered with a complex setup of wires and server units. An A/C is blasting at full power above him, while blinking lights could be seen no matter where he looked.
He was Ichigo Shuichi, the owner of the Quirk 'Admin'.
It was a super complex Support Quirk, that it took Ichigo years just to figure out its basic function.
Simply put, he had, and had the potential to refine a 'game system', then give it to a number of chosen 'players'. These players can then enter a 'game world' through special helmets created by 'Admin' itself. There, they can play the game, level up and increase their stats, then, the change that happens to their avatars will partially be transferred to their real world bodies.
A part of their gained EXP will be transferred to Ichigo. So in theory, as long as he kept the 'game' running, he could get stronger without lifting a finger.
Unfortunately, running a game wasn't that simple, especially when Ichigo had no influence on the 'game world' despite being an 'Admin'. He suspected that it was a parallel world or something, and that it definitely wasn't fake. Any impact on said world had to be done through the players or his own avatar inside the 'game'.
Another limitation is that the number of players that Ichigo could recruit depends on two things: His WIS stat, and the number of real world server units. The second one was easy, as Ichigo's family wasn't poor, but he could only increase the first one through the effort of the players.
For now, the limit is five players, and with each additional point in WIS, he got five more.
"Alas…If only the point distribution isn't random everytime we level up…"
Ichigo shook his head. In the system that manifested with his Quirk, there were four stats:
STR: Strength, affecting one's physical strength. Higher strength meant a player could hit harder, lift stronger, move faster, etc…
PER: Perception, affecting one's ability to percept the world around them, as well as increasing one's accuracy with ranged attacks. Higher perception meant a player could hear better, see better, have better aim, etc…
CON: Constitution, affecting one's resilience and resistance to various harmful substances and effects. Higher constitution meant a player could heal faster, take more damage, and have harmful effects like burn, electrocution, or poison on them reduced.
WIS: Wisdom, affecting one's compatibility with mind-based gadgets, as well as giving one a boost in resistance against mental attacks. A high enough wisdom could potentially give the player the ability to control a small army of robots through a gadget that connects with their mind, or completely shrug off mind control Quirks.
Sadly, despite requiring WIS, it seems like Ichigo's main stats are PER and CON. Which meant that his stat points would be more likely to be allocated to those two.
A ranged tank? The heck was that?
Though that doesn't mean he couldn't get WIS, it just didn't happen every time he leveled up.
"Oh well, as the number of players goes up, I'll level up much faster. Stats won't be of any concern then. I just have to start small."
Whispering to himself, Ichigo decided that he'd worked enough for the day, and that he should go to bed.
Only three more days to go…
That was the longest three days in Izuku's short life.
The anticipation and curiosity was burning within him with no way for him to quench it. That didn't mean he slacked off during his training though. When Izuku was on that beach, he gave it one hundred percent.
After he got home, it was a different story. Izuku couldn't help but stare at the helmet on his desk every chance he got, then at least once a day, put it on to see the countdown, hoping that by staring at it, it would go faster.
His biggest dream was to become a Hero like All Might, but Izuku was also a mostly normal boy. He also liked to play video games. Now the chance to experience what possibly was the greatest game ever made was here, if the full-dive thing was true, how could he not get excited?
Finally, that day arrived, and his wait was over.
Right after dinner, Izuku told his mother Inko that he needed to sleep early, before hastily brushing his teeth and rushing back to his room. His hands were slightly trembling, not from pain, as he picked up the helmet and put it on his head and lied down.
SERVER OPENS IN 0D - 0H - 0M - 5S…
4…
3…
2…
1…
0…
Then, everything was engulfed by darkness.
[Welcome, Izuku Midoriya, to Echoes Of The Fall.
Please choose a nickname…]
A message box popped up in the void.
"Erm…Mighty Boy…wait! No!"
Izuku almost facepalmed himself. That was the Hero alias that he'd chosen for himself when he was still a kid, or at least more of a kid than he was now.
It was kinda cringy, if he were to be honest, and he just blurted it out unconsciously since it had been sticking with him for so long.
"No, I need a different name, even though this isn't an alias…Let's see…Something that has some connection to All Might, and now that he has given me his Quirk…"
He kept mumbling to himself, but the message box didn't seem to be rushing him at all. It just sat there silently in the dark, waiting for him to make his decision.
"How about Legacy…Yes, I choose 'Legacy'."
[Very well. You haven't chosen 'Legacy'. Do you confirm?]
"Yes."
[Then, Legacy, have fun.]
The message box then disappeared, and Izuku felt his consciousness start slipping away.
When he came back to the land of the conscious, Izuku slowly opened his eyes and looked around.
He was lying inside some kind of futuristic looking pod, like the kind that was often seen in sci-fi movies that was used for cryosleep. Above him was a clear lid that covered the whole thing, that could be opened easily as he reached out and pushed it up.
"The graphic is amazing!" Izuku said out loud. His voice filled with wonder. "And this sensation on my hand as I touch the lid… This…This is true full-dive! I can't believe it!"
He sat up, and was even more amazed by the fact that he had gotten dizzy by doing so too quickly. That didn't stop him for long though. Izuku was too excited to pay attention to any of those trivial things. He climbed out of his sleeping pod, and felt the weight of his own body as his feet touched the ground. It felt just like his real body.
"This must mean that my avatar is modeled after my real body…" He thought out loud while reaching up with one hand to touch his hair to see if there was any difference. "Makes sense, I didn't see any character creation, which is a bit of a bummer, but not a dealbreaker."
Izuku then looked down at his body. His height was roughly the same, as well as his general body shape. He was wearing a blue bodysuit that clung to him like what you would normally see on many Pro Heroes, complete with blue boots to match.
"..." He hesitated for a moment as a blush crept up his face. Izuku then tried to take off the suit, only for another pop up message to appear in front of him.
[Indecent exposure will get you banned.]
"Does that mean 'decent' exposure is okay?" Izuku asked, but the system decided to ignore him. With a sigh, he also gave up on testing the boundary of what was considered 'decent'.
Izuku was just curious about just how 'detailed' the devs were willing to go. He had no desire whatsoever to be naked in front of other people, even in a game. And so, he turned his attention to other things in the room, which…was nothing. The only thing in there was his pod.
"Even so…" Izuku mumbled as he ran his hand over the slightly rough fabric of his suit, then to the cold, white metal surface of the wall. If he put his nose close to it, he could even smell a faint metallic tang. "...This is way too realistic…This must be supported by a Quirk. There's no way a server that can withstand all this exists…"
After awhile, Izuku finally satisfied with his exploration of the empty room, and decided to head outside. The metallic door automatically slid open as he approached, revealing a cave with rough stone walls and dirt floor. Here and there, Izuku could see some bits and pieces of plants, mostly vines and grasses.
In the center of the cave was a blue crystal that was as big as his head, floating above a metal pedestal. The gentle light it emitted was what helped Izuku to see so clearly. Next to it stood two other people.
The first one was a girl around his age, and probably was one of the most beautiful girls that Izuku had ever seen. She's tall, and the bodysuit only served to compliment her impressive figure. Her long black hair was tied up into a spiky ponytail, and her piercing gaze was now studying the crystal with interest.
The second one was also a girl. She has pink hair that was tied into short locks and a very unique, bright yellow eyes with crosshair-like pupils. She was also staring at the crystal, but turned to see Izuku as he opened his door and stepped out.
"Oh, hi! You're a player too!"
That took the other girl's attention as well, and now both of them were looking at Izuku with interest, making him sweat while being amazed that the game even emulated sweating.
"Hi…Yes, I'm a player…" He stammered while walking toward them with awkward steps. "My name is Iz…I mean…Legacy. Nice to meet you!"
"Likewise, Legacy. I'm Creati, and this is Mei," the tall girl with black hair gave him a polite smile. "Do you have any idea about this game? It feels so real. If I hadn't tried to log out, I would have thought that we were really transported to another world."
"I don't know what Quirk is used to support this kind of server…but if I can get him to use it on my babies…hehehe…" Mei smiled sinisterly.
"Your…babies?" Izuku was puzzled and he felt his face burn up. Mei looked like she was around his age, but she already had…not a baby, but babies?
"Forgive her. She meant her inventions," Creati sighed. "She loves to design and create support gears."
"Oh, right, that makes more sense," Izuku also sighed, but more out of relief. "And no, I also was just picked to participate after I signed up for this some months ago. I don't know anything more than you guys."
"Oh well…I guess we'll just have to figure it out…"
Whatever Creati was going to say was cut off by the opening of two other doors behind Izuku. From one of them emerged a boy(?) with a bird-like head with black beak and feathers. His sharp red eyes were scanning the cave with wonder, before stopping on Izuku and the two girls.
Izuku didn't recognize him.
The one that came out from the room next to his, however, was someone Izuku recognized.
"K…Kamui Woods?" He stuttered as his eyes widened at the sight of a Pro Hero so close to him.
It had to be Kamui Woods. Even though the man was wearing the same blue bodysuit as the rest of them, the wooden mask on his face couldn't be mistaken for anyone else's.
"Wait, if he has the mask…" Creati looked like a light bulb just lit up somewhere next to her head. She held out a hand, then from it, a bo staff gradually grew out, until it finally detached itself from her body and fell into her grip.
"We can use our Quirks!" Creati half-cheered, half-screamed in astonishment. "The game can even replicate our Quirks!"
"That's right, laddie," some sort of shadow creature grew out of the other boy's shadow and spoke. "I don't know who made this game, but this is bloody brilliant."
"Forgive my partner's speech," the boy shook his head and sigh, appearing resigned. "I'm Tsukuyomi, and this here is my Quirk, and my partner, Dark Shadow."
"And I'm Kamui Woods, as you've already known," said the only Pro in the cave. "Well…to be caught playing video games is a bit embarrassing…"
"There's nothing embarrassing about it. The Pros need to relax too," Tsukuyomi said while his shadow partner nodded sagely. "I'm also aiming for U.A next year, so that I can become a Pro myself."
"So am I," Creati agreed.
"I'm also going to U.A, but I'm applying for the Support Course," Mei grinned. "With U.A's resources, so many of my blueprints will come to life…"
"I…I'm going to U.A too…" Izuku took a glance around the room, before raising his shaky hand.
"Is that so? Then I hope you all the best. U.A's entrance exam won't be too difficult if you have a good grasp of your own Quirks…and a decent grade in other subjects." Kamui gave all the inspiring students a light smile, which could only be seen through his eyes. "Now…about this game…"
Once again, their conversation was cut off by the arrival of another person. This person was different though. He didn't emerge from a room like the rest of them, but instead came in from one of the cave's long tunnels that led into the crystal chamber.
He was also wearing a blue suit, but the pattern on his was different from Izuku's group, and on his face was a silver mask with a small slit, covered by blue glass at where the eyes should be.
"Ah, you all have woken up," the man spoke. His voice was altered to sound slightly synthetic, but it couldn't hide the fact that he was young. "My name is Shuichi. I am the supervisor of this facility."
"He's not a player?" Mei whispered but no one answered her.
"You must be confused, waking up in an unfamiliar place. Let me give you some explanation," Shuichi continued as if there wasn't any interruption. "This planet is called Celleron. It was once a center of civilization, but not anymore. Due to various reasons, including wars, natural and manmade disasters, as well as the invasion of mutated species, the planet now lies in ruin…"
He then sighed and glanced over his shoulder. Even though Izuku couldn't see his face, he could still feel the man's sadness.
"Then…why are we here?" Kamui Woods asked.
"We're tasked with reclaiming the land and rebuilding," Shuichi said. "Not all life is gone from this planet. Even though its surface is swarmed by mutants and monsters, there are still some groups of humans living here and there, but that's a task for later…"
He then turned back and walked toward the crystal. Izuku's group parted, allowing him to pass through.
"Now, as vanguard, we should start by repairing and shore up the defense of this area, so more of our people can be sent here. About that, this crystal here is the heart of the facility. It provides power for all equipment, including your sleeping pods. If it's destroyed, then everything is over."
"Now, this is a dangerous task, but fear not, as an employee of our company, you can't die. If you happen to be killed by any reason, your mind will be transferred back here, and your pod will create you a new body. However, this doesn't mean that you can be reckless. The process of making a new vessel will take twenty four hours, as well as various resources. Is that clear?"
"Yes, sir!" The group answered at once. Now they could be certain that this Shuichi was an NPC, so there's no harm to answer according to his role in the game.
"Still…twenty four hours to respawn…" Izuku gulped.
"That's way too harsh," next to him, Tsukuyomi sighed.
"Good," Shuichi appeared to be satisfied with their answer. "There's also some more ground rules. One, don't harm your fellow employee. Everybody must be united for our goal."
"That's fair," said Creati and Kamui at the same time.
"Two, even though your bodies are artificial, they can still get tired. Unless the circumstance doesn't allow it, you should let your body rest after eight hours. If the exhaustion reaches its peak, you will be forced into a coma, and becoming so in the middle of nowhere can lead to your death. So take note of the time you've been spending awake, and return to your chamber and rest."
"This must be a mechanic to keep us from staying online for days on end," Mei speculated. "Shame, but I guess that makes sense. Our real bodies can't handle the stress of lying still for days."
Once again, Shuichi acted as if he didn't hear Mei at all, or, from Izuku's observation, her mention of their 'real body'. That had to be the case, since he clearly answered Kamui Woods when the Pro asked him what they were doing here.
"Third, and last rule for now, as long as you work for the company, my word and my interpretation of the rules are final. If you violate them, I can confine you to your pod for a period of time, or fire you, permanently."
All five players quickly nodded their heads. An NPC with the ability to ban their accounts wasn't something to be messed with.
"Good," Shuichi turned around. "Come on, let me bring you outside so you can look at this world with your own eyes."