A glimmer emerged.

illuminating the obscurity like a beacon of optimism. Izuku could hardly fathom what lay before his eyes. Enveloped in an abyss of pitch blackness for an extended duration, Izuku had become convinced that either his vision had forsaken him or he had never possessed the gift of sight to begin with.

Yet, there it stood, a solitary point of radiance in the distance. To his further astonishment, additional specks of light materialized one by one, flickering into existence without a whisper until he found himself entirely encircled by these minuscule particles on every side. What perplexed him was that these luminous entities failed to alleviate the engulfing darkness that surrounded him.

They simply materialized, presenting nothing but their luminosity. After enduring a prolonged absence of visual stimuli, their resplendent glow proved sufficient for him. The luminous entities did not cease their presence there, though. In due course, they commenced a gradual transition, meandering in various directions with a deliberate, almost mesmerizing motion.

Even as he observed, their movements accelerated, transforming into naught but streaks of white within my field of vision. Overwhelmed by the spectacle, Izuku promptly shut his eyes and averted his gaze. Yet, regardless of his vantage point, he found no respite. He had beheld that initial glimmer with a sense of awe and inquisitiveness radiating from his eyes. He continued to shut his eyes against the maddening spiral of bright lights, but one question eventually won out in the end.

What happened? Did he… win?

His thoughts screeched to a halt as an ear-piercing wail rang out from seemingly everywhere at once. Somehow I knew that the sound wasn't a natural thing and it shook me to my core. The sound seemed to reverberate through every fiber of my being, and I found it impossible to shut out.

Then it stopped.

In an instant, all was restored to a state of tranquil serenity. Gently opening his eyes, Izuku found himself situated within a somber void, suspended above a desolate expanse of gray. This was a realm he had traversed previously, a realm that existed solely within the depths of his being.

He possessed an intimate awareness of this realm, just as he recognized the presence of the figures that stood before him. Eight figures, symbolizing his eight predecessors; the eight valiant heroes who had previously wielded the formidable power of One for All. These eight heroes, through their selfless acts, had safeguarded both his physical vessel and his very essence from the clutches of All for One's malevolence.

Of those eight, all but one was dead. And of the eighth, he did not know.

"Is that it?" He asked, looking from one to the other. "Am I dead?"

Izuku looked down at his hands. He knew facing both All for One and Shigaraki Tomura may come at the cost of his life but he had hoped it was only him that fell. But if he is dead, at least he was able to save everyone from All For One's tyranny.

"No," said Kudou, the Second User. "You are not."

"Then… what happened?"

"You were warped," said Shigaraki Yoichi, the First User. "A trap, left by a villain's quirk."

Izuku was shocked by what he just heard.

"But if it was a warp, where did I go?"

"We don't know," said En, the Sixth User.

"We honestly can't tell." Daigoro, the Fifth User, added.

"Not even my brother doesn't know," added Yoichi, mournfully. "Nor did he care to know."

"Does that mean..?"

"You won," said Shimura Nana, the Seventh User. "All for One is destroyed, and his stolen quirks along with him. You saved Tenko from his inner darkness. You have done what none of us could do." She gave a small yet sad smile. "You have saved the world."

Izuku sighed in relief. On one hand, he was glad he successfully defeated All for One and was able to save Tenko just as he promised. But on the other hand, he didn't want to extend his life, not like this. He would only be deluding himself if he ever held any semblance of hope of ever going back home.

Izuku's eyes grew large, as a sudden realization dawned on him.

"Kacha—"

"Bakugou is okay," Shimura Nana said, smiling warmly at Izuku. "When you were being sucked into the warp, he tried to reach you."

Yoichi glanced at the ground with a frown. "But he wasn't fast enough."

"Then… what am I still doing here?" He asked, his voice hoarse. "If it's over, shouldn't I be… dead?"

Izuku hung his head as tears trickled down his cheeks. He was being sent to another place, a place even these Vestiges, who had outlived death, did not know. Even if he survived, he might never return home.

He might never see them again. His mother, All Might, Aizawa-sensei, his friends, Eri.

Uraraka…

A hand rested on his shoulder. A warm hand akin to a father; one he had barely known, and had found again in Yagi Toshinori. He looked All Might in the eyes. The shade was smiling gently.

"You have carried our burden, Midoriya Izuku. Now that All For One has been defeated, your burden is laid down." Said Yoichi, offering a saddened smile. "It is too soon for you to die. You have your own life to live."

Nana chimed in. "And your own legend to make."

"But how?" He sniffed. "I can't even go home."

Izuku blinked. He felt himself slipping away. The dark world around him was slowly fading, as were the Vestiges. Only Nana remained as she walked towards Izuku and pulled him into a hug.

"Never forget Izuku," Nana said with a smile. "You are a hero; you have more claim to that title than anyone, us included. Wherever you go, wherever you end up, you will still be a hero. The only person who can take that away from you is yourself."

Nana gently pulls away from him. Izuku tried to reach out towards her, as the Vestiges stood side by side. Izuku's whole world shifted abruptly as if it had taken on weight. His feet left the ground, and he began to fall backward.

And in an instant, his whole world was engulfed in blackness.

Izuku blinked in bewilderment as he was greeted by a low, gentle light streaming in from one side. His eyes fluttered open. He was staring at the ceiling. He drew in a breath. The cogs in his brain were returning in full circle, but he felt a stinging sensation against his eyes.

He rubbed them with his hands. His head felt groggy as he slowly sat up. He blinked a couple of times to re-adjust his eyes to the dimly lit room and looked around. The room was full of an arrangement of "Get Well Soon" balloons, and flowers.

His mouth felt dry. He turned to see a red button on the side of the hospital bed. Above it, the instructions read: "Press for assistance." Izuku figured being thirsty required assistance so he pressed the button twice.

Suddenly, he heard footsteps down the hallway. The door opened and slammed into the wall as a team of nurses gathered around Izuku's bed. Izuku's face instantly flushed red from how close they were.

"Um, hello?" He managed to croak out as the nurses seemed to be inspecting every part of him.

"He's good." One of the nurses chimed. "You can come in now."

As the nurses left, a young girl squeezed her way into the room. Izuku blinked in bewilderment as his eyes met hers. The young girl wore a black long-sleeved blouse with a high collar and red trim on the sleeves, over which is a black waist cincher with red lacing up the front, and a matching skirt with red lining. She also wears a pair of thick black stockings and black combat boots with red laces, red trims around the top, and red soles.

Her outfit is topped by a red hooded cloak fastened to her throat and a large silver cross is pinned to her belt. Said belt was slung around her hips on an angle with a square gray-shaped pocket attached to the cross's side. She was fair-skinned, with a slight blush on her cheeks, and her hair was highlighted with red tips. Two silver eyes shone brightly as she stared back at Izuku.

Izuku blinked. She was carrying a bowl of cookies and had a glass of milk.

"Oh, you're awake!"

Her eyes sparkled, and her smile lit up her face.

"Thank goodness! I've just bought these from a nearby cafe!"

She walked over to the bed, almost bouncing with excitement. Izuku watched as she laid down the bowl of cookies near his lap. She seemed so happy, energetic, and enthusiastic.

It reminded him of Uraraka.

He looked down, and his heart clenched at the bandages wrapped around both of his arms. Before he passed out through his battle with Shigaraki, he vaguely remembered them being red. But they appeared to be healed.

At least they're almost fully healed.

But that only brought up one question.

How long was I out? Izuku thought.

"Who... are you?" Izuku asked with a croak.

His voice was working, at least. It just sounded bad, that was all. Probably from not being used for so long.

"Oh, I'm Ruby. Ruby Rose," the girl named Ruby replied, beaming. "But you can just call me Ruby."

Izuku shifted his gaze towards his hero clothing that was carefully folded and arranged on a chair in the room's corner. He glanced out the window. He could see silhouettes of buildings and towers from far away. Ones that he was unfamiliar with.

"How long was I out..?" Asked Izuku, his eyes darted to a nearby airship that flew over the city.

"Three weeks," Ruby replied. "You were in really bad shape when I found you in the woods. I'm glad I did though. If I had come a lot later then..."

Izuku turned his gaze towards Ruby when she trailed off with her words. She shook her head and waved her hands. Smiling all the while.

"But hey, you're okay now. And that's all that matters!"

Izuku redirected his gaze to the bowl of cookies. He extended his hand and picked up one cookie. Looking at it now, he couldn't remember the last time he had such a snack.

"Go ahead, it's really good!" Ruby encouraged him gently. Izuku took a small bite out of the cookie.

Izuku's eyes shot wide.

The cookie tasted sweet and rich.

It was like pure sugar; smooth yet crispy and moist. It was so good in fact that he didn't even notice he had grabbed another cookie and was munching on that one before he realized it.

And another. And another.

Izuku ate three cookies before looking up. He swallowed the food in his mouth before chuckling. Washing his embarrassment away by rubbing the back of his nape.

"Heh, heh, they're really good," Izuku commented.

Ruby grinned as she nodded. "I'm glad you liked them, Izuku."

Izuku blinked his eyes in surprise. Taken aback that she knows his name. Ruby emitted an eep whilst clasping a hand over her mouth. Heat rose from her nape to her cheeks.

"How do you know my name?" Izuku asked, his tone etched with suspicion. Ruby glanced at the ground.

She reached for her pocket and handed Izuku a card. Izuku inspected the card, immediately recognizing his hero license. He glanced back up at Ruby as she was twiddling her thumbs.

"It fell out of your pocket when I tried to carry you. That's how I knew your name," Ruby replied, looking back at him. "I was curious so I picked it up and that's how I learned about your name."

Izuku nodded in understanding. "Oh. Well, that makes sense."

Silence descended in the room between the two teens.

"So, do you happen to live in Vale?" Ruby asked, looking at Izuku curiously.

"Oh, uh, no." Izuku was taken aback. "I live in Japan."

"Oh, that's nice." Ruby slurped her milk. "But I've never heard of a place like Japan. Are you sure you weren't traveling from another kingdom? Oh! I know, you must be from Atlas, right?"

"Uh…" Now Izuku was even more confused. "I…I don't know what that is."

That brought Ruby up short.

"You don't?" She looked as awkward and confused as he felt. "Then how do you explain the injuries you had when I found you? Are you a huntsman?"

Ruby frowned when Izuku looked at her more bewildered than before.

"A huntsman?" Izuku repeated with a raised brow. Ruby blinked in puzzlement.

"You know, Huntsman; the ones who fight Grimm and protect people in all four kingdoms?" Ruby explained. Izuku shook his head.

"No," he replied.

The room went quiet once again.

"I'm sorry, Ruby. I don't know what either of those are." Izuku said, glancing at his covers. Ruby shook her head.

"Oh no no, you don't need to apologize," she said, her smile returning. "I figured you might be from Vale because of the getup you were wearing. I guess you must've traveled pretty far away from your home. So If not Vale then maybe from one of the other kingdoms? Like Vauco or Mistral?"

"Uh, not really, no. Everyone knows where Japan is. It's not like a lost island or anything."

Then he trailed off, as he saw the look on Ruby's face, and he realized what he had just said.

Izuku turned away from her and cupped his chin in thought. She had never heard of Japan. And she had rattled off a list of names and places he had never heard of. That could mean only one of two things. Either Vale was some kind of lost city where nobody knew anything about the world.

Or he was in another world.

Izuku's eyes widened as a terrible realization dawned on him. He remembered what the Vestiges had said. They didn't know where the villain's warp quirk was sending him. And warp quirks were so rare that hardly any had ever been studied, let alone figured out.

So was he in another world? A world that just happened to have similar snacks to Japan? And buildings that looked almost futuristic?

And if he was in another world...

"I'm sorry," Ruby said, looking worried. "I didn't mean to make you sad."

"Oh, no, it's okay!" insisted Izuku, waving his hands. He had been moping again. "It's just that, well, I'm not sure how to explain this."

"Explain what?"

Izuku cleared his throat. There was, now that he thought about it, little point in holding back.

"I think I might be in another world."

A/N: And that was chapter 2, young readers! Izuku is almost healed from his wounds so he'll have to spend one more day in the hospital. In the meantime, he'll get to know Ruby and learn from her about the new world he's in. Unfortunately for our little broccoli boy, there's no Recovery Girl that'll be there to heal him from his wounds. So he'll have to be careful with his powers.

With all of that said, I'll be taking my leave. See you young readers in the next chapter!