A/N: Morning, everybody! Well, this is it! We're in the endgame of Earthrise now, and I've gotta say, after writing this chapter, I feel locked in. Of course, given the fact that I've now got two big narratives in both of my stories right now, I'd better be locked in, because lemme tell ya, the coming months are gonna be seeing LOTS of big things happening over the course of Earthrise AND Ultimate Omniverse. I'm really excited to get to work on both of 'em, that's for sure, so let's kick this thing off, shall we? This is…

Chapter 90: Divergent Encounters

…..

~Ding-dong-ding-dong… Ding-dong-ding-dong~

As the first morning bell rang throughout U.A. High, Class 1-A continued to… not say a word at all. It was Saturday. The moment of truth. The day that they'd find out if they had all passed or failed their Final Exams. Granted, many of them were actually quite confident in their performances, but it was the nervous few whose silence spoke volumes. Denki, Mina, Eijiro and Sero were completely quiet, the four of them wracked with nerves as they sat in their seats, hands placed together against their lips in trembling anticipation as they awaited their homeroom teacher to arrive.

…And that's what offput Izuku the most; the fact that the four most talkative students in class were being quiet. And because of that, it was starting to weird him out. "…Guys, can you at least say SOMETHING?" he urged, gazing upon them in concern.

"Yeah, dude, the fact that YOU'RE being quiet is seriously freaky." Kyoka said to Kaminari, despite her better judgement.

"Well can ya BLAME us?!" Denki hollered back, allowing himself to finally air out his anxiety. "Sure, we did well on the practical, but we still have NO clue how we did on the written test!"

Sero was in a similar disposition, though for the opposite reason. "And the fact that I flunked the practical MUST mean that my grade's gonna get a huge swathe cut out of it! Ugh, I didn't do much of anything to help either!"

"Hey, c'mon, don't say that." Kaida encouraged. "You got ME away before I could get a whiff of Midnight's mist, so there's that!"

Meanwhile, Mina was near hyperventilating as she expressed her worry as well. "Okay, but what if we still did badly on the written part? What if we still don't get to go?" she muttered, the thought making her tear up a bit.

From across the room, Momo tried to encourage them as best as she could. "N-Now don't jump to conclusions like that! Mina, you did especially well in your studies at my house. You shouldn't let your doubts weigh down your confidence."

Surprisingly enough, Bakugo was also doing his best to pump Kirishima up… in his own way. "And you'd better not be second-guessing yourself after our study sessions, Kirishima! Otherwise, what the hell was the point of it all?!"

"Hah, fair point." Eijiro concurred. "Ya really did drill those lessons into my head."

"Damn straight. So pull yourself together and quit worryin'. Besides, I've got a feelin' this'll end the same way for all of us…"

Eijiro raised a brow to the ashen blonde, as did many others. "Huh? Whaddya mean by—"

Just then, the door to the classroom opened, and Aizawa came in holding a large stack of papers under his arm. Immediately, everyone stopped talking as their homeroom teacher took his place at his desk. "Hm, good. Glad that everyone's in their seat for once. …And rather quiet, too. Suppose that makes sense, though, since I'm sure you're all dying to know what your grades are. Well, I've got good news and bad news…" He saw a visible wave of concern go over a majority of the students at that. "Let's start with the good news." He offered them a rare, if small smile of approval. "Congratulations, you all passed."

At first, there was still more silence, but eventually, the news managed to click with the entire class. "…Y-You're serious?" Ochako uttered. "We ALL passed?!"

"No way!" Toru exclaimed, whipping her head around toward Denki, Mina, Eijiro and Sero. "Guys, did you hear that?! We—uh… you okay?"

The expressions of the quartet could only be described as "emotional elation". They were so overcome that the boys were on the verge of tears, while Mina wasn't afraid to let them flow. "AAAAHH! No freaking WAY!" she cried out in joy.

"Hallelujah!" Sero threw his arms up while Denki and Eijiro shared a high-five.

"Hm, I'm glad that you all seem to understand how momentous this occasion is." Aizawa acknowledged. "I haven't seen an entire class of first-year students pass their final exams in a long time."

"So, does that mean…" Izuku said hopefully.

Aizawa gave a single nod. "Yes. When it comes to the camping trip in the woods…" His features broke out into a wide, toothy grin. "Everyone is going!" All at once, the entire class broke out into celebratory cheers… though Aizawa was quick to bring that down. "HOWEVER." Just like that, the ruckus stopped, and all eyes were on him. "There WERE some of you who scored lower than most, and as a result, there will be some extra-curricular courses that you'll have to do during camp. Sero, you ended up scoring lowest on the practical, so you'll be part of this. As will Ashido and Kaminari, as you two scored the lowest on the written exam."

The news predictably made the three students sigh, though they were still weren't entirely disappointed with the outcome. "Hah, ah well. At least we still passed!" Denki gave two thumbs up. "Didn't leave anything blank on that test!"

"Yeah… still, this whole thing was SUPER tense." Mina sighed. "I'm just glad that we found SOME way to win in the practical, otherwise we might've been cooked."

"True, though in a way, there was never anything to worry about when it comes to that." Aizawa said, leading to many perplexed stares. "Let me explain; for the practical battles, the teachers made sure to leave at least one way for you students to win. Otherwise, you never would've stood a chance. We were interested to see how you would each work together and approach the task at hand."

Ojiro raised his hand. "But didn't you promise the teachers wouldn't be holding back?"

"That was just to get you on edge." Aizawa answered. "Besides, the training camp will focus on building your strength." His sights shifted toward the three who scored the lowest. "Those who underperformed need these lessons the most. We were never going to separate you." His wide smile came back as he concluded his speech; "That was just a logical deception we used to get you to do your best on the test."

It was the reasoning that they had all heard from Aizawa twice before, but even still, many couldn't believe it. "A LOGICAL DECEPTION?!" the entire class echoed while Mina, Denki and Sero celebrated, all while Tenya clenched a fist in ire. "They tricked us all! I should've expected this…" He sprung out of his seat and thrust his arm into the air. "Mr. Aizawa, this is the THIRD time you've lied to us! Aren't you worried we'll lose faith in you?!"

Behind him, Ochako wore an awkward smile as she tilted her head at him. "Uh… a little blunt there, Tenya."

"That's a good point." Aizawa recognized. "I'll consider it. But I wasn't lying to you about everything." Once more, his sharp gaze directed itself back to the celebrating trio, who shrunk back into their seats. "Frankly, the lessons we've prepared for the three of you are much tougher than what you'd face at summer school, so I suggest you mentally prepare yourself. …But on that note, I have one other surprise left for the lot of you."

*knock-knock-knock*

As if on cue, a rapping came at the door, and the entire class turned their heads as it opened up. And, stepping in from the other side… was someone that no one expected to see. "My apologies if I'm interrupting." said Orion Pax as he strolled into the classroom with a knowing smile. "But I believe I heard someone mention a "surprise"?"

Aizawa grinned and moved away from his desk. "Of course, sir. If you'd please."

"I would be happy to." Orion accepted, stepping behind the desk before addressing the students. "Good morning, class. I am happy to see you all in such high spirits."

Needless to say, the entire class had NO idea what was going on. Even those in the know about the Autobots hadn't expected this. "Mr. Pax…" Tsuyu spoke up, just as bewildered as the others. "What're you doing here?"

"Well, given my involvement in the exams, your teacher wanted me present for this occasion." Orion answered, his eyes shifting from Bakugo, to Shoto, and finally down to Izuku directly in front of him. "Congratulations, by the way. You have all made it, and just from my observations alone, you all performed admirably… and yes, I am including you in that, Young Sero."

While Sero appreciated the vote of confidence, it still served to remind him that he could've done better. "Thanks… though I dunno if I'm worthy of such praise."

If anything, that only served to further Orion's speech. "Well, if you don't feel worthy now, then I can guarantee you by the end of the summer, you will be." He scanned his gaze across the room, making sure that all eyes were on him. "Now, as all of you are likely aware, we aided in training a select number of you from this course, around about half of your class." Prime saw Toru raise her hand and he pointed to her. "Yes, Young Hagakure?"

"Uh, yeah, I'm still kinda confused about that." Toru expressed. "Why give only a handful of us that kinda training and not ALL of us?"

"A very good question." Orion nodded. "I'm certain that many of you still remember the U.S.J incident, correct?" The answer was unanimous as the teens gave a resounding; "Yes.", to which Prime continued; "Well, after that event, my team and I saw that this generation of young heroes would likely continue to be targets for this new breed of villainy. We decided that we wanted to help, but we didn't want to overwhelm all of you at once. So, we carefully selected a handful of you to begin with."

That revelation gave Ojiro pause. "Oh… I get it. You guys wanted to see how those guys would do to start off with. See if they could handle the pressure."

"Precisely. Though we also wished to see how the rest of you would progress throughout the semester without the special training." Orion stated. "Just to see a clearer comparison. The Sports Festival would serve as your proving ground, and these finals are effectively the deciding factor. And that brings me to why I am here…" Pax SLAMMED his hands on the table with an eager smile. "Beginning with this summer training camp, you will ALL be training under the watch of myself and my team."

"Woo! That sounds amazing!" Sato pumped a fist into the air. "Can't wait!"

However, Tokoyami couldn't help but point something out. "Wait… considering that Class 1-B will be attending the same training camp, does that mean that they'll be taking lessons from you as well?"

The question gave everyone pause, with Aoyama speaking up. "Indeed. And if I'm not mistaken, I am fairly certain that I saw a few 1-B students already accompanying you, non?"

Orion pointed to the bird-headed student. "An excellent observation. Indeed, 1-B will also be receiving this training. And in many ways, their training will be slightly more challenging to catch them up with the rest of you. But don't think that shows favoritism." He narrowed his eyes at the group of teens. "Trust me, by the end of this summer… you will likely be wishing for more vacation days." The declaration made the class collectively gulp, and with that assurance instilled in them, the bell for next period rang, signaling the end of Orion's time there. "And with that, I believe my time is up. I look forward to seeing you all at Summer Camp! Mr. Aizawa, you may have the floor again…"

"Thank you for your time, Mr. Pax." Aizawa bowed before resuming his spot. "Now, onto the next topic; the semester's closing ceremonies…"

As their teacher spoke, though, Izuku and the others in the know all followed Prime with their eyes as he left… and it was clear that he noticed. In return, he sent them a look that said; "We'll speak of this later." before departing, leaving them uncertain about what would happen next.

…..

Several hours later, as the day began to wrap up, the whole class remained in the room to discuss the upcoming trip. "This is gonna be great!" Ojiro said with anticipation. "I'm so glad we'll be going all together."

"As am I." Tenya stated, holding open a guide book for the camp that Aizawa had passed out to all of them. "Hm… and it seems we'll be at the training camp for a full week!"

"Woah, I'd better find a bigger suitcase then…" Izuku concluded.

Denki was also surprised at the length of their state. "Yeah, and I don't even have a bathing suit. Guess I'll need to buy some stuff."

Kyoka was more skeptical, though. "Would they even LET us go swimming? This is a training camp, Jamming Yay."

"W-Well, ya never know!"

Just then, Toru piped up. "Hey guys, since we're off tomorrow and we've finally finished exams, I've got the BEST idea!" Even though no one could see it, she was grinning from ear to ear. "Why doesn't Class 1-A go shopping together?!" she suggested excitedly.

Immediately, many of her classmates were all for the idea. "Hey, yeah! We've never ALL hung out together as a class before." Sato concurred.

"It'd be good experience." Shoji agreed as well, while Koda nodded quietly next to him. "After all, now that we'll ALL be under Orion Pax's training regimen, it'd be a good idea to truly get used to one another."

Eijiro craned his head toward Katsuki, who was just about to leave. "Yo, Bakugo, see ya there, right?"

"Tch…" the ashen blonde scoffed initially, though as he thought about it more, he realized that he DID need to do some preemptive shopping. "…Gah, you're lucky that I've got nothing better to do tomorrow."

"Ya know what? I'll take it!" Kirishima gave him a thumbs up. "See ya there!"

Izuku approached Shoto as he was about to depart as well. "What about you, Todoroki? Will we see you there, too?"

The white and red-haired boy shook his head, replying; "Sorry, but I usually visit my mom on days off. Hope you guys have fun, though."

"Gah, ya big party pooper!" Kaida bemoaned, giving her best friend a hearty pat on the shoulder. "…Say hi to your mom for me, though, 'kay?"

"Hm, okay." Shoto offered her a small smile. At that moment, though, a thought crossed his mind. "Uh… hey, Kaida." The Sauro Parts user tilted her head, urging him to go on. "Um… my mom, she… she wanted to know when would be a good time for you and her to finally meet up properly."

"O-Oh…" Kaida blushed at the implication. She had only met Endeavor once, and it wasn't a pleasant experience. But now Shoto's mom wanted to meet her… and immediately, she could sense that the vibe was quite different thanks to her friend's tone. Still, she was determined to give an answer. "Well, uh… I guess any point before training camp is good, unless something comes up, anyway."

Shoto cleared his throat and nodded to her. "Ahem, good… maybe sometime next week?"

Kaida approved right away. "Y-Yeah! Sounds great. Catch ya later, Shoto." With that, she watched her best friend walk out the door… and immediately, Kaida felt seven pairs of eyes boring into her from behind. She didn't need to turn around to know that it was her fellow female classmates, all of them wearing knowing smirks. "…I swear to god, this isn't what it looks like." she mumbled.

"We didn't say it looked like anything!" Mina smirked cheekily. "…But you two ARE insanely adorable when you get all awkward like that." Kaida mumbled something sheepish under her breath, twiddling her thumbs as Mina announced to the classroom; "Alright, so it's a plan! Let's all meet at the Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall tomorrow afternoon!" The class gave a unanimous "RIGHT!" before departing, all of them excited for the next day.

…..

Cybertron. A planet that was once the epicenter of a vast, galactic empire with several colonies to its name. It was a planet whose people were once heralded as brave revolutionaries, but now, it stood as a beacon of oppression. A dying planet that was governed by a malevolent dictator; the mighty Megatron. However, at this moment, the Decepticon leader was not in the best of moods. He rarely was these days, granted, but he had just been delivered news that disappointed him greatly. One of his top generals had recently made one of the WORST blunders he had ever heard in his career as a military leader, and as such, it behooved him to give him the proper reprimands. …Which would be a first for Unicronus, who was usually a competent commander.

"So… allow me to review what you've just told me." Megatron uttered, his voice in a low grumble as he glared at Unicronus through the holoscreen. The general was visibly downcast as the rest of the Darksyde crew stood behind him, though they gave him a wide berth considering the situation. "You, Unicronus, one of my TOP generals, decided that it would be a good idea to send a BATTALION of Vehicons to intercept an Autobot convoy… near a populated area."

"L-Lord Megatron, I—"

"Ah-ah, I wasn't finished." Megatron warned, wagging two fingers at the general to silence him. Once he was sure that Unicronus was properly silenced, he continued. "…Not only did your actions result in an explosion that nearly cost us our secrecy on Earth… but the mission wasn't even a success. And now the Autobots have yet ANOTHER addition to their ranks. …What do you have to say for yourself?"

With his head still hanging, Unicronus solemnly shook it. "I… I have no excuses, Lord Megatron. I was so eager to impress you after Starscream's accomplishments that… I allowed my frustration to cloud my judgement." He kneeled before his master. "I can only allow you my utmost apologies, and my assurances that it will NOT happen again."

After a long pause, Megatron gave a single nod. "…You are correct. It will not." He rose from his seat and glowered at Unicornus. "Because as punishment for this near disaster, you are temporarily relieved of your commanding duties aboard the Darksyde." The news made Unicronus snap his head up, his jaw slack in disbelief. "I am disappointed, Unicronus. I purposefully had you reconstructed into what was to be the perfect soldier. I did not think you capable of making such an extreme blunder. So until you can impress me, your position will be filled by someone of MY choosing. …And I believe you know exactly who that is."

"I… I understand, Lord Megatron." Unicronus grimaced, begrudgingly taking the punishment. "B-But please, tell me what I can do to earn your good graces! I'll do anything you ask!"

The plea made Megatron smirk sinisterly. "Hmhm… I believe you already know what that is, general. …Bring Optimus Prime back to Cybertron in chains. Beat him within an inch of his life if you have to… but do NOT kill him." He leaned in, narrowing his optics to get the point across. "I don't believe I have to tell you that honor is for myself alone. Is that clear?"

"Y-Yes, Lord Megatron! I will do as you say."

"Good. Now, Starscream." Upon his behest, Megatron saw his second-in-command reenter the frame, keeping his head low with his optics up. "I trust that the meeting with M.E.C.H. went well… correct?"

Despite the threatening tone in the Decepticon leader's voice, Starscream wore a confident smirk as he bowed illustriously. "In fact, it did, Lord Megatron. Much to my surprise, these humans were quite compliant in the exchange we had. We even got the chance to speak with their benefactor, who was very eager to align with us." He extended a hand as he continued; "In addition, they wished to speak with you as well. They want to know exactly who the great Megatron is truly like."

The suggestion made Megatron purse his lips, leaning in with a scowl. "…Did they now? And what exactly did you TELL them?"

"A-Ahem… that if they desired to speak with you, then they'd have to do so at a time when you are available." the Seeker commander clarified. "After all, you ARE a busy bot."

"That I am… however, at the same time, I am aware of how beneficial it would be to meet with the leaders of this faction." Rubbing his chin, Megatron gave it some extra thought before coming to his conclusion. "Very well. Starscream, upon the away team's arrival in two days time, I would like for you to schedule a meeting with M.E.C.H. Tell them that I will be there for it."

Bowing once more, Starscream complied. "Of course, my lord, I will—w-w-wait, hold on. Back up a bit, please, w-what did you say?"

"I SAID that the away team will be there in three days." Megatron repeated, much to his annoyance.

"Two DAYS?!" Sky Byte exclaimed from the back before shuffling into view. "L-Lord Megatron, we thought they wouldn't be here for two WEEKS!"

The sight of his subordinates squirming brought a slight smile to Megatron's features. "Ah, yes, I nearly forgot… I received a call from them just a few mega cycles ago. They're farther ahead of schedule than I had realized, so I would suggest preparing for their imminent arrival." He raised an eyeridge down to his Decepticons. "Though I would HOPE that all of you are already prepared…"

The Darksyde crew were hesitant to respond, but thankfully, Starscream came in to cover for them at the last minute. "O-Of course we're in the middle of preparing, Lord Megatron! Considering recent events, I wouldn't DARE have this place NOT be in ship-shape when they get here! Hehehe… heh…"

Though his optics were still skeptical, Megatron decided to let Starscream off the hook… at least for now. "…Very well. We shall speak again soon, then." Before he hung up, though, he made sure to add; "And Starscream? …Do not disappoint me again." With that, he ended the call, settling back into his throne. '…They're probably panicking right now.' he concluded. '…Good. Let's see how they perform under stress.'

…..

"We're scrapped, we're scrapped, we're scrapped, we are SO FRAGGING SCRAPPED!"

Just as the Decepticon leader predicted, the entire bridge of the Darksyde had been thrown into chaos the moment he hung up. Bots were scrambling left and right in utter dread, believing the words that Nightra had just spewed. They had been fully expecting Megatron's away team to arrive in two WEEKS, not two DAYS, and nothing was ready. They needed more energon, they had to organize the Vehicon ranks, they needed to make sure their ship was in top shape, and there was NOT enough time to get all that done.

"What the pit are we gonna do?!" Swift shouted, her hands flying up to her helm as her processor flew a mile a minute. "We can't possibly get everything ready for that walking stereo in TWO DAYS!"

"OOOHH THIS IS BAD!" Blastwave hollered, swinging his arms into the air. "Mixtape Maker is sure to be disappointed!"

Swindle had huddled himself into a corner, balled up into a fetal position. "I'm dead. D-E-A-D, DEAD! They're gonna bring my head back on a spike for Onslaught to display in his office!"

"Welp, it was nice knowin' all of ya." Barricade said, resigning to his fate as he knelt down to his Mini-Con. "Frenzy, I bequeath every possession I own to you. Because I know that audio nightmare is gonna spare you."

However, in a rare moment of calmness, Frenzy himself insisted to the contrary. "H-Hey, c'mon, Barricade! He wouldn't do that to ya! He's the one who LET ya take me, remember?"

But the crooked cop wasn't so sure. "Maybe, but considerin' what's on the line here, I wouldn't put him past doin' a hostile takeover."

As things became unglued, the only other ones who kept any measure of composure were Unicronus, Flatline, Sky Byte, Skullcruncher and Shadow Striker… but even then, their concern was still palpable. "When he sees the state of this ship, that sentient tape deck is surely going to want to overthrow the old guard and establish his own." the Sharkticon lamented, all while Dragonus and Sandstink growled worriedly.

"Indeed." Shadow Striker concurred. "We are limited on time and resources. And what's worse…" Her optics shifted toward Skullcruncher. "Zis "Mr. Black" has his meeting scheduled in two weeks' time, correct?"

"Hmph, yup." Skullcruncher replied, taking a huff of his cy-gar. "An' Primus knows if we can convince him to move it up sooner." His optics shifted down toward Unicronus, whose head was still hung in defeat. "Whadday think, general? Any ideas?"

Unicronus' tone was one of defeat as he answered; "…Nothing. I have nothing. Surely this must be Megatron's punishment for me. Having to deal with answering to that brown-nosing, voice-synthesized, privacy invading, bearing-busting, BIG BLUE AFT—"

*BAM*

All of a sudden, everything was brought to a halt after a single punch, delivered by Starscream straight to Unicronus' face. The general was knocked straight to the ground, reeling after the unexpected strike. "W-What?! What is your—"

"ENOUGH!" Starscream shouted, his voice echoing throughout the bridge and bringing everyone's attention to him and his brothers. "Will all of you just calm the FRAG down for TWO nanoclicks so I can speak?!" Once he knew everyone was calm—if only for the moment—he took a deep breath and nodded. "Alright… I have a plan. But we NEED to work together in order to pull it off before they get here. Swindle!"

With a startled yelp, the con man stood up, standing at attention. "Y-Yes, Starscream!"

"I need you to contact M.E.C.H. immediately and inform them of the situation. Hopefully Silas could perhaps convince Mr. Black to move his schedule ahead." With that, Starscream turned to the other Decepticons. "Now, the game plan will be to separate into clearcut groups in order to get this place into a presentable state. Thundercracker, Flatline, I leave any and all repairs and maintenance in your hands."

"Understood." the blue Seeker affirmed.

"It shall be done." Flatline saluted.

Starscream's optics then shifted toward his dark-painted brother. "As for you, Skywarp, I shall leave you in charge of organizing the troops. I need all weapons, energon and other utilities and materials organized as well."

Skywarp nodded without hesitation. "Sounds simple enough. What about you?"

"Swift and I will be going on a scouting mission to find a new energon vein." The Seeker commander's gaze found his loyal right-hand bot, who was staring at him in confusion. "After all, we will need more if we're to be accompanying our new arrivals. Swift, with me."

"Uh, sure…" the green helicopter femme complied, if a bit hesitantly.

The duo stepped toward the door, with Starscream nodding to them all. "We will be back by tomorrow. I leave you all in Thundercracker and Skywarp's capable hands." He turned to leave… but paused to glance back over his shoulder. "Oh, and Unicronus… try not to screw everything up." With that, he led Swift out of the room… and took great satisfaction when he heard something clatter against the door after it shut. "Ah, it feels SO good to lord that over him."

Swift offered a brief smirk to him. "As much as I agree, Screamer…" Her features then settled back into being serious. "I still don't get what your plan of attack is here. Makin' the place presentable I get, but what's your REAL game here? We've got plenty of energon from the mine we're usin' already."

As they walked, Starscream gave a short sigh, and he explained; "Swift… we stand on the precipice of a decisive battle. I can feel it." He peered down to her, balling his hand into a tightly-clenched fist. "And while I have faith that our alliance with M.E.C.H. will pay in dividends… I also don't want to risk the losses we'll suffer if things somehow go south during this battle. Our new human allies are clever, yes… but in terms of raw strength, they are lacking. Which is why I wish to explore the other side of the coin."

"You mean… humans who HAVE Quirks." Swift concluded. "Other villains?"

"Correct, and I know JUST who to scout." Starscream's smirk returned. "Make certain that your signal dampeners are on. It's time to take a little excursion… back to Japan."

"Oh… great." Swift grimaced, trudging along behind him. "Here's hoping it goes better than my LAST visit."

…..

Meanwhile, back in Japan, Sunday had arrived and Class 1-A were converging on Kiyashi Ward's famous shopping mall, where they were excited to spend their day with one another. Those allied with the Autobots had even promised to come and pick the others up as well, so the rest of the class were excited about being chauffeured around the city. But, as they approached their destination, Ochako, Tsuyu and Momo couldn't help but dwell on what the Autobots had told them last night. "So… you really wanna tell EVERYBODY after camp, huh?"

The announcement had been a surprised to all of them, for sure. Indeed, Optimus had made his intentions clear; they were going to aid in training the both Class A and Class B over the course of their stay at camp… and them reveal themselves at the very end. Needless to say, it was an exciting prospect, though as expected, some of the teens still had reservations about it. "I know, I know, it's very sudden." Arcee said as she pulled into the mall parking lot.

"That's putting it mildly." Tsu said bluntly.

"BUT we have faith that the rest of your class can be trusted to know this secret." the Autobot intelligence officer assured. "It's like Prime said; the Sports Festival and the Final Exams were the determining factor in this decision, and he's positive that, at this point, your peers are trustworthy. Plus, we'll be doing it out in the middle of a forest where no one else can see us, so there's even less risk of others finding out."

Momo placed a hand upon her chin in thought. "I suppose that makes sense… still, why wait until after the training camp? Why not just tell them right out the gate?"

As she parked herself, Arcee went on; "Well… it's because we won't be the only ones who'll be helping you train. I can't say who else is gonna be there, but from what I've heard, they're pretty serious pros."

Ochako couldn't help but scrunch her face in confusion. "Okay… but you already have a bunch of pros who know your secret. Why not reveal it to them as well?"

"There's a chance we will, actually. Optimus just wants to make certain that they're on the up and up, too. With Selkie and Sirius, we already knew they could be trusted thanks to them taking in Seaspray. But from what I've heard of these heroes, they're… a bit eccentric." Shaking her head, "Sadie" turned back toward the group of girls and nudged her head toward the mall. "But we can talk about all of this once camp rolls around. Right now, you ladies should head out. They're waiting for you."

"You're right, ribbit." Tsu concurred, opening her door which led to the others doing the same. "Thanks for the ride, Arcee."

Ochako sent her guardian a departing wave. "Yeah, we'll see you later on!" As the three of them left, it didn't take long for them to spot the other Autobots; Bulkhead, Bumblebee, Strongarm and Sideswipe… namely because they were directly next to them.

"You gals had better get movin'!" Bulkhead urged.

"They're already at the front gate waiting for you." Strongarm added as well.

True to form, the three girls saw their classmates waving them down from the front of the mall. And… to their surprise, Bakugo was true to his word; he was there as well. Though he was pretty standoffish with the rest of the group, standing mainly with Kirishima. "Huh… well, it seems the angry volcano chose to join us." Momo observed.

"Yeah, talk about a surprise." Ochako shrugged. "Well, c'mon! Let's go!" After a quick jog, the girls met up with them and they went in. Needless to say, the open-air mall was GARGANTUAN, with stores that specialized in several different products. From electronics, to entertainment, to clothing, there was something for everyone. There were even specialty stores for people who had certain types of Quirks. And it was all under one roof.

"I LOVE this place!" Mina exclaimed. "They've got a TON of different stores to shop at and they're all super cool!"

Craning his head around, Sato couldn't even make heads or tails of the place. "Man, Ashido, I'm glad you've been here before. I don't even know where to start…" Next to him, Koda was also feeling intimidated by his surroundings, especially given how many people there were.

Sero was very much in the same boat as them. "Yeah, there's so much stuff goin' on here… and a lot of people, too."

"Indeed…" Tokoyami concurred. "Be on your guard, everyone, lest we—"

"HEY! Aren't those U.A. Students?!"

Too late. It already happened. "…Get recognized." the bird-headed teen grimaced.

And just like that, others began to call out enthusiastically to them as well. "Hey, yeah, it's Class 1-A!" "I saw 'em on TV!" "The Sports Festival was so good!"

Even though they were being praised, Ochako still shrunk back in surprise. "Haha… I can't believe they still remember that." she chuckled nervously. "That feels like a lifetime ago."

"Well, let's try to be as cordial as possible with them." Momo resolved. "We may be here to shop for ourselves today, but if we're rude to them, that'll reflect poorly us as future heroes." The group collectively agreed to her point before she went over to the Gravity using brunette. "Now, Uraraka, is there anything you need here today?"

"Mostly just bug spray, really." Ochako shrugged. "Gotta keep those pests away, right?"

The Creation user pondered on that. "Is that so?" She lowered her voice to a whisper. "…Well, what would you say if everything we was my treat today?" Reaching into her purse, Momo flashed her credit card, which made Ochako's eyes widen.

"…Seriously?" Ochako received a single nod, which made her smile and tap her fingertips together. "Well… there IS this cute duffel bag that I've had my eye on for a while…"

"Excellent! I'll make it happen!"

Kaida, meanwhile, was looking at a nearby map of the mall to try and figure out where she needed to go. "Alright, gotta find a place that's got night vision goggles…"

Her saying that left many confused. "Huh? Kaida, why do YOU need night vision goggles?" Toru inquired. "You could probably just transform into a dinosaur that can see well at night, can't you?"

"Well, yeah, but I think they'd be handy for OTHERS to have."

Behind his mask, Shoji smiled at her generosity. "Such selflessness. Very commendable, Kiryu."

Kirishima craned his head toward his ashen blonde friend, who still mainly stood away from the rest of the class. "So, whaddya need, man?"

"Hmph, mostly just some clothes and junk." Bakugo replied. "Don't have much for outdoor stuff."

"Yeah, me either." Denki related. "I need some new shoes… or maybe even boots?"

All of a sudden, Tenya piped up, making both blondes jump in surprise. "The guide says your shoes should already be broken in, though!" He chided the duo before suddenly realizing something. "But wait… perhaps it's a mistake not to factor utility into the equation."

Katsuki growled and ran a hand through his hair. "Ugh, remind me why I chose to come here with you people…"

"Ah, relax, man. Hey, I got an idea!" Kirishima spoke out to his classmates to relay said idea; "Why don't we split up and look around? We can meet back up again when we're done!"

"Sounds like a plan!" Mina supported, followed by several others.

"Perfect, so let's say we're all back here around three?" Once the class agreed to Kirishima's set time, they all wandered off to do their own things… leaving only a certain duo behind.

Izuku and Kyoka stood in the middle of the mall, the mood between them being quiet aside from the people walking by. But that didn't last long, with only taking a moment for Izuku to break the silence. "…I'm starting to notice a pattern."

Kyoka tilted her head up to him, raising a brow. "Ya mean the fact that people like to leave us to ourselves a lot?"

"Yeah, that's pretty much it." Izuku scratched his cheek sheepishly. "S-So, um… what're you gonna be searching for today?"

"Ugh, a lot." Kyoka wrapped one of her jacks around her finger, her features puckering in irritation. "If ya hadn't noticed, I'm not exactly the most outdoorsy type."

"Heh, same here." Izuku admitted. "I mean, I used to be when I was a kid, but… well…"

"Yeah…" Once more, the awkward silence befell the two, but Kyoka was determined to keep the conversation going. "W-Well, maybe we could help each other out with this!" She balled her fists and nudged her head toward the nearby map. "C'mon, let's see if we can find a store specifically for outdoor supplies."

Just as they were about to do so, however… someone spoke up from behind. "Ah, well if it isn't the Rider Otaku 1-A Students." The voice was very familiar to both of them, their eyes widening at how casual the greeting was. That and the "Rider Otaku" remark quickly led them to one conclusion as to who it was, and sure enough, when they turned around, they saw him; the young, handsome man with the long, white and red scarf they had met at the convention hall from weeks before. He flicked his head, moving his neatly combed hair away from his eyes in a fairly cool manner. "What a coincidence, running into you here of all places."

Needless to say, Izuku and Kyoka were flabbergasted. "IT'S YOU!?" they shouted.

…..

As the duo were having their reunion, though, a certain OTHER person was making their way through the mall at that very moment. Someone who ALL of 1-A would be very familiar with if they had seen him with his usual hand mask on. But, at the moment, Tomura Shigaraki was without said accessory, freely showing his ghoulish, scarred face out in public. He kept his head low and his hood up as he walked through the mall, and absolutely no one paid him any mind. It was both a relief AND served to piss him off.

Up to the current point, Shigaraki had been having a… less than pleasing day. An informant for the League had come by to drop off some new potential recruits; some ditzy blonde who seemed to wanna suck his blood and a guy whose plastic surgeon had NOT been paid enough. But the thing was… neither of them were there for HIS vision. They came because they had been inspired by the Hero Killer, which pissed Shigaraki off even more. Ever since the Hosu incident, no one was talking about ANYTHING aside from Stain's proclamations, the Nomu attacks having gone largely ignored by the general public. But even so, because of the intersection, the media now associated Stain with the League, and Tomura DIDN'T like that.

Even now, he could hear Stain's words echoing in his head; "What meaning is there to kill of you don't have any REAL convictions?"

'Hrmph… just you wait, Hero Killer.' Shigaraki vowed in his head, his blood red eyes scanning across the mall, observing the happy-go-lucky citizens around him. 'These people think they're safe, like nothing can harm them. I dunno if they're naïve or just ignorant. People are getting killed somewhere at this very moment, but these idiots keep smiling. They don't have a care in the world…'

"Woah! Hero Killer gear!" the sudden exclamation made Tomura stop, craning his head toward a nearby store to see two young men observing replicas of the Hero Killer's costume. "Are they seriously selling this?!" said the eager boy as he reached up to grab a mask.

The more hesitant of the two was warning him not to, though. "Dude, you're gonna get in SO much trouble if you buy that!"

"Sure, but how does it look?" the eager boy turned to his friend, binding the mask around his head.

"…Yeah, pretty cool." His friend concurred before snapping a pic of it.

Shigaraki was not impressed… but even then, he couldn't deny that the Hero Killer had a profound effect on society after the incident. '…On the other hand, you've got sympathizers who couldn't care less about your ideals. And yet they still follow you. What's up with that? Aren't we doing the same thing?' This was the question that boggled his mind as he kept walking. 'In the end, you destroy things you hate just like I do. So what gives? What's the difference—'

*bump*

"Ugh! Hey, watch where you're…" Just as he was about to snap at whoever bumped into him, Tomura stopped, his voice dying in his throat as he gazed upon the very tall man he had bumped into. He had to be at least six-foot-five, had a slender yet muscular build, and his sharp, chiseled features were incredibly threatening, even to him. His slick, black hair was combed back, and he had dark sideburns that led down into a sharp goatee at his chin. Like Tomura, he also had red eyes… though his had an unnatural red glow to them.

That said, the clothes he wore were weird… though somehow, he made the ensemble work. He was donned in a white suit, its sleeves rolled up to his elbows. His gloves and shoes were blue, which stood out along with his bright red vest. Couple all of that with an orange tie and it made for a strange color combination that managed to mix together strangely well.

Standing next to him was a young woman who was a full foot shorter than him, and she was also in a business suit, though hers was all green. She wore a black undershirt with matching gloves and shoes, and like him, she also wore an orange tie which matched her eyes. Her hair was jet black, long and wavy, reaching down to her rear. Though most notably of all… her skin was a pale green. And Shigaraki was sure that she wasn't sick or anything, because she was immediately boring a hole into him for his comment.

"Hey, you're the one who bumped into HIM, bucko. Show some respect—"

"Now, now, Sheela, let's not be hasty." The man waved his hand, peering down closer to Tomura for a moment. "…I believe that HE is the one that we've been sent to find."

At that point, Shigaraki was VERY confused. "W-Wha… me?"

"Yeah, him?" the one called "Sheela" echoed.

The tall man nodded. "Indeed." He lowered his voice to a whisper and asked; "…Your name wouldn't happen to be Tomura Shigaraki, would it?"

The blue-haired villain narrowed his eyes. "…Who wants to know?"

"Someone who would like to pursue a business venture." the sharp-featured man smirked. "Though perhaps we should take this to where we won't be disturbed, hm?"

Ultimately, Shigaraki agreed, resolving that they wouldn't use his name if they didn't have a good reason to. So, the three of them headed outside of the mall… without even paying any mind to the green and purple-haired students that were not but twenty feet away from their position. Once they were out of the mall and huddled under a nearby tree, Shigaraki leaned up against it and asked; "Alright, I'll bite. Who d'ya work for?"

"Ah, we are representatives from an international villain organization." the tall man answered. "One who is interested in partnering with the League of Villains here in Japan. We were planning on seeking you out after doing a bit of perusing of the local establishments, but we certainly didn't expect you to fall right into our laps like this."

"Hmph, lucky you. Lemme guess, you're from America, right?"

The guess made the man's eyebrows raise. "Er, actually, we're from Canada."

If anything, that got Shigaraki to snicker. "Snrk, haha, okay, that's honestly rich. You're operating out of one of the most peaceful countries on the planet, ya know that, right?"

"Believe me, I wish the circumstances were different." the man grimaced before shaking his head. "B-But that's not the point! The point is that we're here to discuss business with you on behalf of our leader."

"That so?" Shigaraki pointed at them. "Well you're gonna have to do some pretty good convincing if you want me to hear you out. I mean, what kinda villains "peruse" through a shopping mall?"

Sheela folded her arms across her chest, raising a brow to the hooded villain. "Well, at least WE'VE got the common decency to go out in our Sunday best. Meanwhile, you're goin' around dressed like you're just asking for trouble."

Shigaraki simply scoffed her way. "Psh, whatever, lady. So lemme guess; you heard about the League because of the Hero Killer, right?"

"In part, yes, but he is no the main reason why we're here." the tall man revealed, which actually made Tomura perk his head up. "We've had our eye on your operations since the USJ Incident, believe it or not."

"We did?" Sheela muttered, only for the man to nudge her with his elbow. "Er, I mean, yeah! Totally did! Impressive stuff, kid."

While Shigaraki was somewhat glad that the duo weren't making this meeting all about Stain, he still couldn't help but be a bit pessimistic about it. "Hmph, well, you two would be the first. Compared to the OTHER two I met this morning who wanna join, they made it all about "Stain, Stain, STAIN"." he grumbled.

Slipping his hands into his pockets, the tall man pursed his lips in thought. "Hm, sounds to me like you and he didn't exactly see eye to eye."

"That's putting it mildly." Tomura leaned his back against the tree, keeping his head low as he began airing his grievances. "When it comes down to it, I basically hate everything. But it's the Hero Killer who's pissing me off the most right now. The media made him out to be one of our guys when he never technically was. And even now, everyone's obsessed with him. The Attack on U.A., the Nomus I released on Hosu, he upstaged ALL of it. No one's giving me a second thought."

Sheela clicked her tongue at that. "Tsk, tough break, kid." she empathized, nudging her head toward her boss. "My friend here can relate."

"Indeed, I have been… upstaged several times by my peers in attempts to impress our leader in the pass." the man related. "It's only recently that I've gone back on the upswing…"

The young villain took a moment to consider that, and before long, he felt compelled to ask; "Then maybe YOU know… why is this happening? Despite what he claims to believe, all he really did was try to get rid of things he didn't like. So what's the difference? Why's HE getting all the fame while I rot in the background?"

The man pondered on the question presented to him for a moment before eventually coming to an answer. "Hm… if you ask me, the difference comes down to one simple thing; inspiration." He saw Tomura's confusion and elaborated further. "If you recall, the Hero Killer was inspired by All Might, was he not? In the most twisted sense possible, yes, but still inspired. He was a maniac, but he didn't destroy things just because it sounds fun. He did it in the name of "building a stronger society". …A futile effort if you want my opinion, but still." He extended a hand toward Shigaraki. "Meanwhile, your operations ended because you pulled out before you could finish the job. He held true to his beliefs… while you run at the first sign of trouble. That is the difference."

Once more, there was a lengthy silence that permeated through the air, with Shigaraki not moving a single inch after the man spoke his piece. At first, the pair were concerned that he might lash out, so they kept their guard up… but eventually, he let out a hefty sigh. "Hah… that's like a weight off my chest." he said as his lips curled into a crooked grin. "I see it now, all the dots connected."

"Is that so?" the man asked.

"Yes, it's clear as day. Why the Hero Killer makes me angry… and why that little green brat irritates me so much, too." That last comment earned him some inquisitive looks before his smile widened. "Hehe… it's him! The problem is All Might. It's the most rational explanation!" He spun around, facing the mall once again. "I didn't see it even though it was right in front of me the whole time! HE'S the reason why all these morons are able to smile so thoughtlessly! They feel so safe because that garbage pro is smiling thoughtlessly too! As if there's no one in the world he can't save!"

Sheela knit her brows together as he went on his tirade, leaning toward her cohort in concern. "Er, is that REALLY the lesson here? You mentioned All Might only once and now he's—"

But the man raised a finger, giving her a knowing smile. "Ah-ah, let's not be hasty, he actually IS getting it here."

"I'm very glad we had this chat." Shigaraki expressed his gratitude, his features etched with determination. "I feel so much better, you have no idea. The Hero Killer's going to sincerely regret letting me live…" His hand balled into a fist. "Because now, convictions will become a stepping stone for myself. Thank you… wait. I just realized, I never got your name!"

"…Ah, yes. My name…"

Sheela's eyes widened at that, glancing up to her boss nervously. She had come to her organic name fairly quickly, but just from the brief flash of nervousness, she could see that the sky commander hadn't given his own much thought. However, that only lasted a brief second as he put on his own confident grin and declared;

"My name is… Ulchtar!"

…And again, the palpable awkward silence returned. Sheela wanted to facepalm so badly after hearing that, but before she could, Shigaraki broke the tension for her. "…Wow, no wonder you're a villain. Your parents must've HATED you."

"Y-Yes, yes they did." The man now known as "Ulchtar" quickly saved face, all while Sheela resisted the urge to burst out laughing. Even so, he cleared his throat to move on from the subject. "Ahem, in any case, in exchange for my aid in helping you find this new conviction of yours, perhaps we could potentially work out an alliance between our two groups? As I've said, my leader is quite interested in aiding your cause."

"Oh, you know it." Shigaraki accepted without hesitation, reaching into one of his pockets to pull out a card. Ulchtar gingerly took the slip of paper, seeing nothing but a phone number on it. "This is the easiest way you can get in touch with my and the League. Whenever your leader's feeling it, gimme a call and we'll talk business."

Ulchtar grinned and slipped the card into his own pocket. "We will. Best of luck to you, young Shigaraki. I'm certain that the League you put together will make history." However, he raised a single finger. "Ah, but one last thing… let's keep this meeting confidentially between the three of us for the time being, shall we?"

Tomura raised a brow at that. "Psh, what? Worried I might tell the wrong people you were here?"

"Not exactly. Rather, our leader has certain plans that are already underway, so it may be a while before he can get back to you." Ulchtar gave the villain a departing nod. "For now, simply keep doing what you're doing, and we'll hopefully be in touch with you soon."

Sheela sent the young man a two-fingered salute. "Ciao, kid. And remember; we were never here."

"Hmph, gotcha. Well, ya know how to reach me. Later." And with that, the three villains went their separate ways, with Shigaraki thinking up ALL the ways he'd be screwing the heroes over from that point forward.

Meanwhile, Swift was giving Starscream a hard time. "Snrk, Ulchtar? Seriously?" she snorted back a laugh.

"…We shall never speak of this again." the Seeker's holoform grimaced. "Am I clear?"

"Oh, we won't… but I'll remember it until the day I go offline."

Starscream facepalmed before both of their human disguises turned down a dark alleyway and faded away into thin air. "Ugh, I brought this upon myself, didn't I?"

…..

Back in the mall, Izuku and Kyoka were busy chatting it up with the familiar face they had come across, both of them pleasantly surprised by his presence. "Wow, what're the chances we'd run into you here?" Izuku said before giving the young man a bow. "It's good to see you again."

"Nice to see you, too." the man bowed, adding; "Fellow Rider connoisseur."

Izuku nearly fell over at that, with Kyoka rolling her eyes and shaking her head. "Psh, gosh, it's been a while since we saw ya at that Rider convention. About a month, I wanna say?"

"I think so, yes." the young man affirmed, only to then ponder on something. "Hm, though by now, you kids must be going through your final exams for the semester, right?"

"Actually, we just finished those a couple days ago." Izuku gave a thumbs up. "And we passed!"

"Ah, well then congratulations! I'm sure that U.A. Exams must be quite difficult, even for first-years like yourselves. Glad you made it through."

Kyoka gave a short sigh, her shoulders sagging a bit. "Hah, yeah. Trust me, it was FAR from an easy time…" Just then, though, she remembered something important. "Hey, wait a second… I don't think we ever got your name back then, did we?"

The man's eyebrows rose up in realization. "Oh! Hah, no, actually. I never DID give my name out to you, did I?" Just then, his eyes shifted from side to side, almost as if he was on the lookout for something, only to then turn back to the teens. "Come on, let's sit down. I'll tell you my name, but I don't want to risk too many people listening in." Needless to say, the teens were perplexed, but they did as he requested, the three finding a secluded bench where very few people were walking by.

As they sat, Izuku tilted his head to the man. "I-Is there something wrong? You're not… on the run or anything, are you?"

"Hehe, no, no, nothing like that." the young man assured, gesturing toward his features. "Believe me, if I was an escaped felon, I wouldn't have ANYWHERE to hide with a face like this."

"…Ya know, that's fair." Kyoka admitted. "So what IS the big deal, anyway?"

Once more, the man's eyes shifted around, making certain the coast was clear before telling them; "The big deal is… that I'm a bit of a secret agent." Just from their expressions alone, he could tell that the teens were skeptical. So he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, black leather holder, opening it to reveal a gold-plated badge. "I'm with the International Police. Codename; "Ace"."

And just like that, the teens were left slack jawed. "Y-You're with Interpol?" Izuku exclaimed in a harsh whisper.

"Holy crap." Kyoka said breathlessly. "…Though you don't exactly look the part. You seem pretty young, honestly."

Giving them a charming smile, Ace snapped his fingers, pointing to them with a wink. "That's what makes me the best to handle jobs like the one I'm on now. An unassuming appearance can get you anywhere. It also helps that I'm what you might call… a "prodigy" in my field."

The teens had to admit, that was a valid point. "Well, guess I can't argue that." Izuku accepted. "So what're you doing in Musutafu?"

Slipping his badge back into his pocket, Ace continued on. "I'm here to investigate the goings on of the League of Villains, along with certain strange, unexplainable phenomena that's been occurring for the past several months." His brow furrowed as he gave examples; "Strange road incidents, unexplainable damage to the surrounding area, that sort of thing."

"Road incidents…" Izuku murmured.

"And… area damage?" Kyoka asked, all while her mind went a million miles a minute; 'Oh crap, oh crap, OH CRAP!'

Ace nodded to the both of them before taking out his phone… which was oddly rather big and clunky in design, even with the flat screen. "Yes, and I think I'm on the trail of something BIG here. Do you kids remember this incident from the beginning of April?"

Once he showed them what was on his phone, Izuku and Kyoka felt their jaws fall open even further. There, playing on the screen, was video footage of the "Meteor Shower" event. Which, in reality, was the Autobots' arrival to earth. …But of course, they couldn't let him know that. "Y-Yeah, the meteor shower." Izuku replied. "That was pretty scary."

"No kidding." Kyoka concurred. "One of our classmates actually had one of those land in her backyard pool."

"Really?" Ace's eyes lit up with intrigue, making Kyoka immensely regret what she'd just said. "Would she happen to be here? I saw you gathered with a bunch of other kids earlier, so I can only assume they're your classmates."

Thinking fast, Kyoka made up an excuse; "W-Well, yeah, but she doesn't really like talking about it. We've tried getting her to open up about it, but it never goes well." She hated to lie about what her friend was like, but they needed to get this Interpol agent off the trail. 'Sorry, Kaida.'

With a short sigh, Ace nodded. "I see… well, if she ever wants to air her grievances to someone who'll investigate the cause, let me know."

"Um… what do you mean by "the cause", exactly?" Izuku inquired.

"I mean that I don't believe that the meteor shower was something "natural" that Musutafu just so happened to be in the way of." Ace explained with a serious gaze. "Because right around this time, the incidents began to happen much more frequently. And if you ask me…" Once more, he took a quick glance around, making sure that no one overheard him. "…I theorize that this may be the first credible evidence of alien life that we've had in centuries."

And that served to make the duo even MORE nervous. "A-Aliens? Really?" Kyoka stammered, trying to sound as disbelieving as possible. "H-Ha, that's a good one."

The young agent was left perplexed by her response. "What? You're saying that in a world full of Quirks, aliens are out of the question?"

"Well, I wouldn't say that." the punk rocker clarified. "It's just that it honestly sounds too much like something out of a sci-fi movie to be real. I mean, alien life arriving to Earth on meteors? How cliché can you get, right?"

"Hm, well, it may sound cliché, but I'm still confident that I'm onto something here." Slipping his phone back into his pocket, Ace shook his head to change the subject. "Ah, but I probably shouldn't be getting you kids involved with this anyways. You've got summer vacation coming up after all, so it's best not to worry you with this serious stuff."

Izuku sighed, partly in relief and also anxiousness. "Yeah, we've got a BIG summer ahead of us, that's for sure. The Hero Course students are actually all gonna be going to a training camp out in the woods, so it's gonna be a pretty big deal."

Once again, Ace was fascinated by what the boy said. "That so? Hah, guess even during the summer, the lessons never truly end. Hope you kids do well there." But that's when he realized something else. "Wait… is that why your whole class was here? Because you're all prepping for the training camp?"

The greenette nodded back to him. "Uh-huh. We're just gearing up on some essentials… oh, right!" Izuku craned his head down to Kyoka. "We were searching for a sporting goods store of some kind, right?"

"Gah, you're right…" Her eyes shifting toward the large, central clock, Kyoka took note of the time. "And it's already 1:30! We've only got another hour and a half to look around before we meet up with the others…"

"Well, what're you two waiting for?" Ace encouraged, urging them to go on. "No need to stick around on my account. Besides, I've got some friends that I need to meet up with soon anyways." He stood up from the bench, smiling as he said confidently; "I'm sure we'll run into each other again at some point, though. For now, you two should get going."

Standing up as well, the teens gave Ace a departing bow. "Right. It was nice seeing you again, Mr. Ace." Izuku expressed.

"Heh, please, kid. Just "Ace" is fine." The handsome young man lifted his hand, giving them his signature gesture with his pointer and pinkie fingers raised while pressing his middle and ring fingers against his thumb. "See you." he said in English.

"See you later!" Kyoka reciprocated before tugging on Izuku's arm. "C'mon, let's get back to that map!" And just like that, the two were off, leaving Ace by his lonesome…

…But not for long. "Oi, Ace!" Perking up, Ace did an about-face and saw two of his aforementioned friends approaching. Both were young men, though in terms of appearance, they were like night and day. The one on the left was wearing a dark leather jacket over a purple undershirt, with black jeans and combat boots to match. Around his neck were a set of dog tags, and brown hair went down past his shoulders, with part of it done up in a small bun at the back. "You done chatting or what?" he said in a low voice, almost as if he were disinterested in what was going on.

Ace simply chuckled and shrugged it off. "Yes, I am…" But then, he noticed that someone was missing. "Wait… where's Neon?"

The young man on the right placed his hand to his neck sheepishly. He had straggly brown hair that almost fell over his eyes, and he wore a green-striped, button-up shirt over a white t-shirt, along with khaki pants and white sneakers. "Ah… about that… she kinda got distracted by all the shops and we lost her in the crowd." he explained. "We've been trying to find her, but—"

"Keiwa! Michi!" The two boys snapped their heads around, seeing a young woman approach them from behind with her arms FULL of shopping bags. She had shoulder-length brown hair and wore a bright yellow blouse with a long, black skirt that had floral patterns across it. She also wore pink slip-on shoes, and her bright smile was enough to light up a whole room. "There you guys are! Where'd you go?"

"Where'd we go?" asked the leather-clad man. "We should be asking you that. And where in the heck did you get all of THAT?!"

The young woman, presumably Neon, set her bags down on the bench where Ace once sat. "Where do you think? Ace was kind enough to let us tag along, so I figured I should take advantage of the opportunity. When's the next time we'll be able to shop in a totally different world, right? Thankfully, I brought plenty of cold, hard cash with me…"

With a roll his eyes, the leather-clad man shook his head, only for the green-clothed man to reassure him. "Hah, relax, Michinaga. You're being so serious about this."

"Only because this is a serious assignment, Keiwa." Michinaga countered, his eyes shifting back toward Ace. "…So, was that green-haired kid the one you were talking about?"

"He is… and it seems Tsukasa-kun has taken a great interest in him." Ace confirmed. "He says the boy will play a key role in the future… of both this world and of worlds beyond."

Neon seemed excited to hear this. "Ooh, that's great! So, what's our next step?"

"For now, we continue to observe. But, should they need our help…" Raising his hand, Ace snapped his fingers. "That's when we'll make our move." He reached into his pocket and pulled out the Interpol badge… which suddenly shined with a bright blue light and transformed into something completely different. Now in his hands, he held a small, cylindrical object that had two wedge-shaped protrusions at the top. It was mostly transparent white, but in the center was a circular red mark that had a symbol in its center… one that somewhat resembled a kitsune mask with rather large eyes.

Clutching the object in his hand, Ace came to his conclusion; "After all… this universe deserves a good highlight."

…..

However, little did the quartet know… that they were being watched. From behind a nearby pillar, Katsuki Bakugo had been listening in on the conversation for a while, having seen Deku and Jiro go to talk to the officer. …And then he heard them talking about the "other worlds" and the "aliens", and that's when his suspicion began to pique. He wasn't sure WHAT all of this was about, but he did know one thing; Deku was at the center of it all. 'Damn nerd… what the HELL is going on here?!'

…..

A/N: And with that, the stage has been set for the final arc. We have most of our players set, all we need now is for the remaining ones to arrive. And that will be happening in the next chapter, so I hope ya'll are ready.

So… yeah, for those of you who've been guessing right on who this guy is, you've been vindicated! Plus, he's even brought his friends with him, so you KNOW things are about to go down. And for the ones who AREN'T aware of who this guy and his friends are… well, you're gonna be in for a surprise later in the arc, trust me.

But, more importantly, it seems that Starscream was able to encounter Shigaraki before he could even spot Izuku in this version of events. But all the same, Tomura's managed to come to the same conclusion; All Might is the source of ALL his problems and he's gonna use the Hero Killer's convictions to rally his troops. And we're gonna see those convictions take form at the beginning of the next chapter… as well as him informing his master of his encounter with these mysterious people. …Also, if any of you understand the "Ulchtar" reference, then I KNOW that ya'll are hardcore Transformers fans.

Also, seems that some of the Autobots are planning on going with the students to the training camp in disguise… before then revealing themselves at the end of it all. I mean, it's gonna happen sooner or later, so why not just rip the band-aid off there and then? …Though given what's happened between Starscream and Shigaraki here, we might wanna keep an eye out for how things go with the training camp when the third arc rolls around.

Aside from all that, though… not much changes regarding the shopping mall trip… aside from Bakugo actually tagging along this time. …And of course, he feels compelled to listen in on stuff that he probably shouldn't be. Will this factor into the final arc, though? …Maybe. You'll just have to wait and see to find out. But with all that being said…

And now, the Preview! While Shigaraki's busy hiring new members for the League, the Autobots have successfully constructed a new device using salvaged parts from Seaspray's stasis pod; a signal pinger. With any luck, they'll be able to use this to maybe locate the Ark, if not the remaining stasis pods. …However, something unexpected happens. They get a call from Agent Fowler, saying that there's an Autobot and three Decepticons doing battle… in broad daylight near a small town. What in the world is going on?! Next Time; Terrorizing the Road. Let the final arc BEGIN! Thanks for reading, everybody, and I'll catch you all next time! Stay safe out there, and remember;

GO BEYOND! PLUS ULTRA!