Chapter Text
It felt like falling. Not free-falling, but the sensation you feel sometimes when you’re starting to fall asleep. That drop right before you jolt awake; that’s what this felt like.
I sat up with a sharp inhale, a hand already flying to my chest as if the pressure would calm my racing heart. It somewhat helped as I caught my breath, hunched over in the dark.
When I finally calmed enough to look around I felt my blood run cold and my breath catch in my throat once more.
“What in the–” I muttered, horror evident in my voice. But talking out loud didn’t make things better. On the contrary, it made things worse. The voice that spoke back to me was deeper, masculine, and not one I recognised.
The familiar white walls of my room were replaced with the night sky and a distant treeline. The dim glow of street lights illuminated pavements and roads running along the edges of my vision. Over my head was an arching bridge, and beneath me I could feel the freezing cold of concrete seeping through the cloth cloak I had been sleeping on. I was outside.
It was impossible to believe. So far-fetched and ludicrous; how had I ended up sleeping under a bridge when I remembered falling asleep in the scorching heat of my own room?
Between the occasional rumbling of cars in the distance and the busy night creatures, I could hear the gentle lapse of water on the concrete beside me.
I leaned over to peer into what I could assume to be a river or a canal of some kind, only to nearly reel back in shock at what stared back. My body physically jolted in response to seeing an unfamiliar face. The dark tan skin, the blue dreadlocks, deep brown eyes… I didn’t recognise this face in the slightest.
I raised a hand to my face hesitantly, gloved fingers gliding across my cheeks. The reflection copied the movement.
As soon as I came to the haunting realisation that this was in fact my reflection, I felt a sharp pain in my head which was quickly followed by a sudden influx of information.
Memories and experiences that had been hidden before came to the forefront of my mind, all of them completely foreign to me. Foreign yet simultaneously familiar.
I clutched my head and gritted my teeth, waiting for the pain to pass and the flashes of familiar places to stop.
I had a better understanding of what was going on now. It was truly obvious, so very clear to me.
I was having a particularly wild dream.
The thought was somewhat amusing, as I remembered joking with my younger brother one time about how my dreams were always nightmarish, and his were always the wild nonsensical ones. But it seems this was an exception.
After backing away from the edge of the concrete platform I was on, I tried breaking down all this new information.
- Name : Wade Nado (Snipe)
- Occupation : Pro Hero, Third Year Heroics Teacher
- Address : Homeless, but not really
- Need to go to UA and organise class for the day
I felt an eerie calmness with my situation, an acceptance I hadn’t felt before. My circumstances were bizarre, but it was a dream and nothing more.
After mulling over my thoughts for a bit I snapped out of it, remembering that I had a job to do. Today was a school day, I needed to hurry up and get to UA before class began.
I had an important job to do, according to the mandatory backstory filler provided to me anyway.
With that I quickly got to my feet and dusted myself off, along with shaking out the heavy red cloak that I’d previously been sleeping on. I slung it over my shoulders, doing up the buttons with a practiced ease I didn’t think I had, then instinctively turned to a makeshift shelf on the support pillar of the bridge.
Despite having never put on an old-style gas mask, I knew exactly how to fasten the straps, quickly covering my face with it. To finish it off I slapped on a cowboy hat. You’re never fully dressed without one, y’know?
With my outfit already complete, I checked my reflection in the water once more to confirm I looked sufficiently ‘dusty’ as I called it. Not literally dusty, but more… rugged, and Western I suppose.
Satisfied with my appearance, I looked around for a way to leave the underside of the bridge. There wasn’t an immediate answer to my query, but when I approached the edge of the concrete platform to peek out and up at the railing lining the edge of the bridge, I had the instinct to reach up and grab the edge of the structure. So of course that’s what I did.
Upon grabbing the lip of the bridge with two hands I pulled my body up. I couldn’t get much further than that, though, and I nearly fell back to the platform beneath me, until I reflexively caught a foothold on a slightly dislodged brick. Using the foothold I managed to distribute my weight better, allowing me to grab the railing and pull myself up and over.
“How the fuck does anyone expect to do that daily? I’m just kinda screwed if I get injured I guess…” I huffed in annoyance, honestly having expected to need to catch my breath after that. But I didn’t. Seems my body was more used to that kind of thing than I gave it credit for.
That didn’t stop me from glaring daggers at the railing before I started walking in the direction of UA.
Along the way to the school I heard a quiet ding, followed by a brief vibration from a pocket I almost didn’t realise I had. ‘Suppose it must have materialised for the dream’s plot purposes.’ I told myself.
I reached into the pocket and pulled out a phone, one I recognised to be Snipe’s. Or mine I suppose?
A notification blinked at me from the lockscreen, alerting me to the presence of a new email, so I unlocked the phone to check what it was about.
[Snipe,
A faculty meeting will be taking place in the conference room before classes today.
The lesson plan for today has been altered; you will be taking Mirio Togata, Nejire Hado, and Tamaki Amajiki, to gym Gamma at the beginning of the school day. You will be training first year students, and keeping them under strict supervision.
More details will be disclosed at the meeting.
Kind Regards]
I tried to pinch the bridge of my nose as I finished reading the email, only to be blocked by my mask. So instead I just sighed and put my phone away back in the pocket it came from, not to be touched again until it was needed for another plot point, I’m sure.
Something about the email wasn’t sitting right with me. Or perhaps not the email itself as much as the contents.
“Throwing off my schedule like that, changing things last minute… Why did they have to go and do that?” I muttered irritably, “can’t even imagine how the students are gonna cope with that. Grr, that’s gonna be real fun.”
I continued my walk towards the school, now with a thought-consuming frustration distracting me.
“Good morning!” A voice breaks my train of thought, and I startle at the sudden interruption.
I whip my head around to face the source, recognising one of the third year students; Tamaki Amajiki.
“Good morning, Amajiki!” The internal struggle was real as I opted to respond politely, hoping I didn’t say anything stupid. Japanese etiquette had been a small fixation of mine once, but not enough to hold a conversation. So I was relying heavily on the forged memories of this dream to carry me.
Tamaki gives me a friendly look, his tone somewhat cheerful, “Sorry if I startled you, teacher. How are you this morning?”
I debate the answer to that for a moment, finding myself fiddling with the buttons of my cloak nervously. What am I supposed to say? The truth? ‘I woke up under a bridge in a place I don’t recognise, in a body that is not my own’?
“Oh y’know. Doin’ alright. How about you?” I cringe internally at how stiff my response sounded, just hoping the boy didn’t pick up on it.
“Well enough, as always. Oh, I also looked up what you mentioned yesterday, about the first heroes.”
The shift in topic gave me a feeling of relief. I wasn’t sure why exactly, but talking about the class that I evidently taught was somehow easier than small talk and greetings.
My demeanor changed to something more akin to casual, hands dropping down to rest on my hips, “How did that go? You find much of interest on the subject?”
A thoughtful expression adorns Tamaki’s face for a moment, “Some . . . Most of the ones who weren’t selected had pretty unhappy lives afterwards. Some became villains, some stayed vigilantes, some stopped fighting, only to later be killed by villains who still wanted revenge. You don’t hear about that kind of thing happening often nowadays.”
I found myself nodding solemnly, somewhat on autopilot as I responded, “It was a different time back then. Nowadays the structure and laws keep things running more smoothly, and keep a lot of heroes safer. Bit harder for villains to get away with things now.”
“I suppose.” There’s a pause in the conversation, common from people with social anxiety. Finally Tamaki speaks up again, “Circling back to class, if it’s not a secret, what have you planned for today?”
I think about the email from earlier for a moment, debating whether or not I should tell the student about the change. My mind is made up when I consider telling him would give him time to prepare beforehand.
“Suppose it’s not a secret by any means. I believe your little group, the ‘Big Three’ as it were, will be heading to gym Gamma with me and some of the first year classes for a special training session. Teaching the first years some super moves and general training.”
I saw his expression fall blank pretty quickly, “It would have been nice to be informed of that. Will this be before lunch, or after? Because I don’t know how many first year-friendly techniques I have in me right now.”
I rub the back of my neck sheepishly, it being one of the only spots my skin is exposed, “I would have liked to give y’all a bit more warning believe me. This was a bit of an… abrupt change. Unfortunately it is first thing in the morning. For the most part I’ll try and handle techniques at first until you get into the rhythm of things.“ I tried my best to sound reassuring. The last thing I want is one of the children in my care to be stressing about things out of their control. That was for me to worry about.
His expression remained blank despite my attempts, “Not even homeroom? That’s quite unusual. If it’s not a secret, what caused this abrupt change?”
I struggle internally again, squirming uncomfortably in my mind. I despise keeping secrets, I wanted to tell him. Part of me just enjoyed gossiping, I couldn’t help it. But I also knew it was better not to say, for Tamaki’s sake.
“Not sure I can talk about why, honestly. That one might be secret. If it becomes important enough to tell you then I will, but for now I think it’s best you not worry yourself with ‘why’.”
Tamaki stays quiet for a second, likely mulling over his thoughts, “Might this secret have anything to do with the supposed future, about which a certain first year has been talking about? I couldn’t help but overhear some interesting things.”
‘Shiiiit. The email didn’t say it, buuut…’
I remain silent for a moment myself while I consider what I know.
There is a high likelihood that he’s referring to Kirishima and/or Iida, the first years who’d talked about the USJ. A future event. But what had he heard exactly?
This dream was starting to get too complex and in-depth for my liking…
I exhale softly, “That depends entirely on what you’ve heard.”
“Supposedly, today 1-A were planned to go to the Simulation Joint. From the same source, it was foretold that they’d be attacked there by a nascent villain organization.” Tamaki’s gaze almost felt piercing, it was somewhat intimidating actually. He was likely looking for any kind of reaction, some slip up to give him more information.
“To me it seems like somebody who was just trying to get attention; faking a precognitive quirk in high school is juvenile, but not unheard of.”
I quirked an eyebrow in interest at this. Now I’m no psychologist, but I’ve watched a lot of true crime. Maybe too much actually… Something detectives do in interrogations is offer a more likely or convenient story to the perpetrator, usually to try and get them to admit more details that align with this new narrative, or to get annoyed and flat out deny it.
‘Am I being interrogated right now? This kid is smart, I need to keep an eye on him.’
I hummed in acknowledgement, “Does sound like a wild story. Well, first year students are known for trying to gain popularity from time to time, aren’t they? I’m sure if there’s any truth to their claims we’ll find out eventually.” My attempt to keep it vague but true didn’t pan out the way I wanted it to, which Tamaki reflected.
“Will we? We’re going to Gym Gamma, not the Simulation Joint. It seems like either the principal, or one of the Homeroom teachers, took this prediction to heart.”
There wasn’t much I could do to argue with that, instead crossing my arms and conceding, “You’re a smart kid.” I felt my posture slump slightly as I let some of that ‘serious teacher doing serious things’ facade slip.
“It’s just a precaution, nothing more. Only time will show the truth. For now, let us worry about it. You just focus on your studies and enjoying your youth.” My tone grew more light-hearted by the end of my sentence.
‘Just let me protect them this time. Let it be me that faces hardship in their stead, don’t drag them into this.’
I felt that all-familiar pit deep in my chest. I couldn’t help hearing the echoes of his crying that night.
‘Kids shouldn’t be fighting demons, just let them be kids for a little while longer. ‘
“I will, I will. On that note, have you read anything interesting lately, teacher?” Tamaki asked, seeming genuinely curious about my literature intake. ‘But why?’
“Read anything interesting? That’s a bit vague. The only thing I’ve been reading is class schedules and lesson plans.” I let out a sigh of exasperation, my shoulders heaving dramatically.
The memories I had of before today told me that it hadn’t actually been that bad, but I felt it might lighten the mood a little to feign dismay.
“I meant books, teacher, fiction specifically, but on second thought you’re right; between teaching and being a Pro outside of that, I imagine you don’t have much free time.”
“Fiction, huh?” The very idea made me nostalgic, “Well. Not recently, no, but in my youth I used to read a series called 'The Dragon Eye'. Haven’t been able to read much nowadays for reasons mentioned.” After I said it I had the brief thought of ‘what if those books don’t exist here? Did I give up that I don’t belong?’ before I reminded myself that this is a dream and not reality. But I still felt a lingering anxiety, like some small part of me wasn’t entirely convinced.
“Yes, I imagine handling 3-B is no easy task.”
“Ah, it’s not too bad. I’ve had to wrangle villains for years, handling a class of students pales in comparison.” I joked, an attempt to ease my own tension more than anything.
“They’re not your first class, if I remember right. What were your previous ones like?” He asked, seeming genuinely curious. I only wish I could feed that curiosity.
I dug through my memories for something of substance; I couldn’t recall the students off the top of my head. All I could really remember was that they were good kids, and the feeling of guilt Snipe had felt as they went out into the world after graduating.
“They were a bit of a mixed bag. All good kids though.” I settled on, keeping it unspecific.
“Since lately I’ve been thinking of trying to gather some experience in another country after graduation, and I was interested if any of your previous students did the same, what were their experiences like?” Tamaki was pressing me for more information, information that I did not have.
I found myself shrugging in response, “I’m not sure really. My previous students don’t often write to me or visit, so I don’t have a clue what most of them are up to nowadays. If any of them went abroad then I haven’t heard.”
The joys of being Australian is that we’re all compulsive liars. Spinning bullshit is a talent we’re born with. Though this lie was more to buy time for me to answer him later as opposed to my usual habit of spinning wild tales to entertain.
“If it’s not too much trouble, could you maybe ask some of them? It’s nothing urgent, just, if you ever have the time.” He looked at me with a small, hesitant smile. It’s so innocent and pleading, how can I deny such a request? It’s appealing to those maternal instincts of mine, damnit.
Without a moment of hesitation my shoulders relax and I exhale, “Of course I can. I’ll see what I can find out for you when I next get the chance.” My voice carries a gentle sincerity that I used to use often with my younger siblings, or with the various people I took under my wing. I’m an eldest sibling, I can’t help acting like a parent sometimes.
“Thank you very much, teacher.” Tamaki’s tone is unusually sincere as well. The tone brought a smile to my face, which luckily was hidden behind a very convenient mask.
“Any time.” I responded immediately. I won’t say it aloud, but I’ve gotten attached to the kid.
‘I’m too sentimental for this, I’m already willing to throw down for this child. What the hell is wrong with me…’
With that, the conversation once again fell into silence as we traversed the last stretch before arriving at UA.
As we gradually got closer and closer, I couldn't help having a feeling I couldn’t quite place. The closest comparison I could draw was maybe anger, though I couldn’t say why.
As we came to a stop at the entrance to school grounds, I tipped my hat slightly to Tamaki, “Unfortunately I’ve got a meeting to get to before class starts, but after that I’ll come and grab y’all for the training. Might be best to take the time to ponder techniques to teach the first years.”
“Alright, teacher, see you then.” On that note, I left Tamaki in the empty court.
I began my walk into the school, mind racing as I navigated the unfamiliar hallways. Despite never seeing any of these places before, I recognised them. Even having never walked these paths, I felt like I’d walked them longer than the people around me had. I both belonged here and was out of place.
This surreal experience clearly added to my theory of dreaming. Reality didn’t feel like this.
My mind couldn’t help wandering as I still felt that feeling from earlier; the simmering anger fueled by a feeling of injustice.
‘They’re just kids, why are they being dragged into this? It should just be me. They have studying to do, why are they being taken from class… What is Nedzu up to?’
I found myself sitting at a large table alongside other members of UA faculty. We’d all been gathered in the big conference room it seemed, which I hadn’t exactly expected.
‘What is this actually about then? They wouldn’t gather everyone just for one lesson alteration.’
I spotted a few other members I recognised, some from memories of my own and some from the forged memories. There was Present Mic, Vlad King, All Might, and…
‘Wait, what? Aizawa looks… different.’
I had to do a double take before my brain caught up. I had a memory of a previous meeting, one where it was explained… Right, something to do with being a different person.
“Thank you all for coming in on such short notice. Now, as you have no doubt heard, according to Mr. Kirishima and Mr. Iida, the Unforeseen Simulation Joint is to come under siege later today by a group of villains calling themselves The League of Villains in an attempt to kill All Might.” In the pause that followed the statement I was able to think.
‘So this is about the USJ, Tamaki was right about that. Though that begs the question; why is it changing? What is this deviation?’
“This is, as you are no doubt aware, unacceptable. Villains attacking the UA campus, endangering my students? We will not stand for this. To that end,” Nedzu tapped a packet on the table in front of him, “I have devised battle plans to subdue these villains promptly and with all due haste. The exact strategies are contained within, but in brief, I have contracted with many of the pro hero agencies in the area to begin a large joint ambush to surprise the villains when they teleport in.” He punctuates his sentence by nodding to the teachers around the table in turn.
His attention stops on my corner of the table as he continues, “Snipe, Aizawa, Vlad King- you three will be working with Class 1-A and Class 1-B in Gym Gamma today along with the Big Three. Keep them calm and dissuade any of the SI students from doing anything reckless.” We each nodded in response to the instructions.
I felt a sense of dread settle in me as I thought about the situation we were going into. I could only hope that I could manage to hold everything together.
“Present Mic, Midnight- you will be with the first year general education students.” Nedzu continued to go through the list of teachers and classes, announcing each in descending order.
When he eventually reached the bottom of said list he continued, “All of you, remember: these are our students and we are charged with their protection. Please, protect them with everything you have; as teachers, they are our charges and our responsibility.”
The principal finished the meeting with a nod, “Good luck today, everyone. Dismissed!”
I rose from my seat pretty quickly, stretching briefly before I exited the conference room to find my way to the Homeroom of 3-B.
After collecting Mirio from class 3-B, I took long strides towards 3-A.
I desperately wanted this to be over quickly, walking into other people’s classes was so uncomfortable. It brought back a lot of suppressed memories from my primary school days, of times I had interrupted a class or ended up at the wrong one.
I shivered uncomfortably, posture tense as I found myself standing before the door to the aforementioned classroom. I hesitated for a moment before I finally opened the door and stepped inside.
It was hard to tell if it was just my imagination, but it seemed like the whole class tensed as I entered, and I couldn’t help a feeling of panic. The chorus of customary good mornings did little to ease that.
‘They tensed up, shit. Did I do something wrong? This is the right class, right? It has to be my imagination, surely…’
Forcing myself to speak past my anxieties I returned the greeting quickly, then called for the students I was sent to collect.
“Amajiki, Hado, would you two mind coming with me please?”
The two looked to their homeroom teacher, Cementoss, for permission.
I internally cringed when I remembered that typically teachers addressed each other when collecting students from their classes, and not the students themselves. It had certainly been too long since I’d been in a school, and I worried it showed.
“Amajiki, Hado, you may go,” he informed them warmly.
Tamaki and Nejire stand up and leave the classroom quietly, joining myself and Mirio.
Nejire is smiling, which I take as a good sign, but Tamaki looks considerably less pleased. Not that he seemed upset as much as he seemed like he’d rather be anywhere else.
I led the three along at a brisk pace, not wanting to waste time, or to be late. Neither of those things would do.
“Sorry to be taking you three out of class without a prior warning, there’s been a small change of plans. We’re heading to Gym Gamma to teach the first years some special exercises, train with them a bit.” I can only hope I convey my apologetic tone properly, as I tilt my head to look back at the students trailing me.
Mirio responds with unabashed cheer, “I’m looking forward to it! This year’s batch seems like an especially interesting bunch, from what I’ve seen.”
“But why did this change so suddenly?” Nejire asked bluntly. I wish they’d stop asking me that, I didn’t know how to answer. I hated lying and dodging the questions, I wanted to tell them everything. But I couldn’t help feeling like it was better that I didn’t.
“Just some stuff going on behind the scenes, nothing to worry about. Think they just want to train the first years a little harder this year.” Keeping my answer once again vague and curt, trying not to lie but not revealing too much. I don’t want to worry the kids, they shouldn’t have to worry about this.
‘Please don’t ask me for more, I can’t keep dodging this line of questioning forever.’
“They even brought in All Might for them!” Mirio chimed in with his ever-present optimism. This attitude of his was both relieving and tiring.
It took me a moment to debate the best way to acknowledge that, social anxiety kicking my ass the whole time.
‘They brought in All Might because these first years are normal first years with nothing interesting or different about them or the future of UA at all. Normal students. Goddamnit, why can’t they just live normal lives…?’
I finally settled on “Yeah, that they did.” A weak response, but I couldn’t come up with anything better on the spot.
“Will he be there as well?” Tamaki spoke up hopefully, reminding me there are in fact three children here and not two.
“He might show up for the later half, he’s running a little late to class this mornin’. He’s always off doing something.” I sighed softly in exasperation, rolling my eyes slightly behind the mask. This was technically true, but still a lie of omission. I was getting really accustomed to telling those today.
“Then it’ll be just us and the first years?” Was that a hint of worry in his voice, or my imagination?
“Yeah, pretty much.” I responded casually. That was probably the most truthful thing I’d said all day, which was a depressing thought.
With that, we arrived at the gym’s changing rooms. I gestured towards them to signal the three to head inside, “Alrighty, we’re here. Once you’ve gotten changed you can head into the gymnasium. We’ll wait for the first years there.”
After the three had filed into the change rooms, I continued on to the gymnasium to wait for them.
‘Y’know, this is a pretty stressful dream. Why do I care so much? I’m not obligated to maintain the structural integrity of the timeline.’
I resigned myself to standing awkwardly in the empty gym, accompanied only by the drumming of my fingers on my arm. My feet kept shifting like I was going to start pacing before I paused and continued standing still. Pacing probably wouldn’t be a good look.
After some time, Mirio, Tamaki, and Nejire entered the gym, one after the other.
Mirio was smiling eagerly, Tamaki looked determined, and Nejire had a small smile on her face. The array of emotions are somehow reassuring.
Nodding at their entrance, I gestured to the space by my side, “Come and line up beside me, we’ve gotta give the first years a good impression, game faces and all. Y’all ready? Or, as ready as you can be, given the circumstances?”
“Ready for anything!” Mirio responded boisterously, as Nejire gave an enthusiastic nod.
Tamaki mumbled something I don’t quite catch, causing my eyebrows to furrow and my head to tilt slightly in his direction.
‘I’ll keep an eye on him. He might need some extra support. Can’t blame him, sudden change is the worst.’
It didn’t take that long for them to arrive, and I felt myself let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding.
“Vlad, Aizawa, glad you guys made it here,” I greeted, uncrossing my arms and opening them welcomingly as I more or less gestured to the room around us.
“Class, this is Snipe, the third year heroics teacher. He’s joined here today by three of our strongest students, who are collectively known as the Big Three.” Vlad King introduced his class to me and my students, and I felt a small shot of anxiety course through me at how many eyes were on me for just a brief moment there.
Luckily their attention turned elsewhere as each of the Big Three introduced themselves in turn.
“I’m Mirio Togata! Nice to meet everyone!” His bright smile and sunny disposition exhausted me a little, but that’s just how Mirio was. All sunshine and rainbows.
“And I’m Nejire Hado! Super cool to meet you guys!” Positive, but in a friendly way.
“I’m Tamaki Amajiki.” He gave a small wave in his introduction, though it seemed more like an attempt to ward off attention than to gain it.
I couldn’t help the small feeling of pride in my chest as I watched the interaction. I knew that none of the memories of having taught these students were ‘real’ per se, but I still felt an attachment to them, sentimental as I am.
Vlad King seemed content with the introductions, moving right along into today’s reason for gathering, “Now, with introductions out of the way, let’s get started. All Might should be arriving to help us later, but right now-”
“Oh shit!” Bakugo shouted, cutting Vlad King off. I almost spoke up to scold him before others started to chime in.
“What the-” Shinso exclaimed, followed by Kaminari echoing Bakugo’s sentiment of “Shit.”
Tokoyami, or as I’d heard they were now called Fallia, started speaking in a tongue I didn’t recognise, “Putanginang putangmadreng iyan.”
And of course someone had to yell “Fuck!”, which in this case was Sato.
With all the distress coursing through the class, I quickly turned to see what they were looking at, being met with the sight of a misty portal appearing on the wall around 300 ft away from those gathered in the gym.
I recognised the danger, quickly pulling one of my pistols from its holster and aiming it at the portal, flicking off the safety. Aizawa and Vlad King also prepared for conflict, their stances changing almost immediately to something more combative.
Our reactions were warranted, my blood running cold as Shigaraki emerged from the warp gate.
“All Might’s not here? That’s a shame. I’d hate to think we’d come all this way for nothing.” His raspy voice rang out in the silence, and the sound of it spurred me into action.
I stepped forward confidently as I fired multiple shots in the villain’s direction.
‘Please let me protect them this time.’
Much to my dismay Kurogiri opened another portal to soak up the spray of bullets, rendering them useless.
“Don’t bother. Kurogiri got an upgrade from sensei.” Shigaraki informed me before he started scratching at his neck, “Hey, do you know what I hate even more than All Might?”
His scratching became incessant, “It’s cheaters. So when a guide NPC came to me and told me that so many of UA’s students were cheaters, peeking at my battle maps before they were ready, I wasn’t sure what to do.” A malicious grin split his face as he spoke.
‘Cheaters? Peaking at battle maps? Is he referring to the future-sight students? How could he possibly have known about that?’ I tightened my grip on my pistol, standing my ground even as I felt quite frankly powerless in this situation.
“But then I figured it out: why not skip the tutorial mission? Why should you guys get an XP grinder when you’ve already got a walkthrough?” Shigaraki’s eyes lit up maniacally.
“Good luck, heroes,” he sneered, “You’re going to need it.”
Before I could even attempt to react in any capacity, a portal opened beneath everyone and we all fell through into a temporary darkness.
I’ve become well acquainted with the feeling of falling. Unlike this morning though, this sensation ended with me impacting the ground and having the wind knocked out of me.
A pained groan was about all I could muster, gasping to force air back into my lungs as I lay there in the dirt for a while.
When I inevitably caught my breath, I slowly rose to my feet, taking in my surroundings.
I was surrounded on all sides by trees, and the ground beneath me was primarily dirt with rocks scattered here and there.
Sighing deeply, I began to walk in a random direction, surveying my surroundings as I wandered.
Without any prior warning I heard a gun fire from nearby, followed quickly by the excruciating pain of having a bullet tear through my left arm.
The impact threw my balance off, a guttural scream escaping my throat as I clutched the wound with my good hand. Blood had already begun seeping through the sleeve covering my forearm, coating my hand quickly.
‘This hurts, this hurts so fucking much. Why does it feel so real? Is this not a dream? Dreams don’t usually feel like this!’
“You FUCKER! AUGH, that HURT!” I yelled, the pain bringing up a lot of my festering rage from earlier. Gritting my teeth and narrowing my eyes, I draw my pistol from its holster.
‘Whoever shot me is gonna learn that I repay injustice a thousand times over. That motherfucker is gonna rue the day they were born when I’m done with them!’
I began firing into the trees blindly, unable to see my opponent to activate my homing quirk. I growled lowly in frustration, irritated by the lack of results. I knew I wasn’t going to hit anything, but it was worth a shot in the dark.
‘This is getting me nowhere…’
Following my outburst, I fell back behind some nearby trees for cover.
Footsteps began to approach me, slowly and deliberately. They were light, and hard to pick up on.
“I didn’t know pro heroes hid from danger. Kinda sad; this is what passes as a hero, huh?” A young male voice taunted me, and I was a little taken aback.
‘Did they bring a kid to this?! Whoever that is doesn’t sound older than 18, tops. I can’t hurt a child, goddamnit.’
I took a peek around the tree and fired another few shots at my opponent. However, he raised his hand to the bullets, causing them to slow to a stop before they could hit.
In this brief moment of stillness I assessed that my opponent was an adolescent male, skinny and tall, with short dyed hair. Loosely fitting sleeveless hoodie, denim jeans, and those might be Timbs. Who the hell is this kid, and why does he look so edgy?
The moment of peace was cut short by the bullets turning back around and shooting back towards me. My eyes widened and I ducked behind the tree again, scowling as I considered my options.
‘Telekinesis practically nullifies my quirk! I could not have possibly encountered a worse first enemy…’
I scanned the area around me as I ran through my limited options, bullets impacting the tree behind me.
“Homing has nothing on Ferrokinesis I’m afraid. I’d call myself lucky; running into you first. One less hero to worry about.” The boy certainly sounded confident, but he didn’t realise he had just ruined himself with one word.
That caused me to perk up, and a grin slowly formed on my face.
“Ferrokinesis? Oh, that’s actually so much better than I thought. If it was telekinesis I might have actually been in trouble.”
I scooped up a few large rocks off the forest floor beneath me, before rising and waiting to hear a break in the shooting.
When I heard the boy start to reload, I stepped out from behind the tree with one of the rocks in hand, and a massive grin behind my mask.
I threw the rock at the boy, using homing to make sure it would hit. After all, my quirk works on any projectile, not just bullets.
"Deploying flashbang!" I yelled; a blatant lie, but one meant to be distracting enough to throw him off.
He covers his eyes instinctively, before lowering his arm slightly and confusedly asking, "Wait, wasn't that a ro--?” Unfortunately being cut off by the rock hitting him in the head. This caused him to crumple, falling unconscious.
I found myself breathing heavily, the stress from that entire encounter starting to take a toll on me. I walked over to the boy’s unconscious form on the ground, feeling something akin to pity.
“I wish my brothers were around to see that, that was funny as hell,” I found myself muttering, breathing a sigh of relief.
My relief was short lived though, as the adrenaline began to wear off and my arm began to scream at me once more. I examined the wound on my arm, biting my tongue to avoid any extravagant reactions again.
The blood was dripping from the hole that’s now located in my forearm, running down the length of it and soaking my glove. That can’t be good…
I slid the wristband from my glove up my arm, positioning it to cover the puncture. Then I removed my cloak and wrapped it around it for good measure. I was going to need a doctor though.
“I hate visiting underground doctors…” I quoted to myself breathlessly, hoping I could laugh even a little bit about my current situation.
With that out of the way, I began to walk aimlessly through the forest again, hoping to run into someone that could help me find my way out.
As I walked, I began to feel a little woozy, and I noticed that the makeshift bandage and the wristband weren’t doing very much to stop the bleeding from my wound.
After only walking for a few minutes I collapsed to the ground, leaning against the trunk of a tree, breathing heavily as I felt myself starting to lose consciousness.
The last thing I saw was what looked like a tall, buff, blonde man appearing in front of me in a gust of wind.
"Snipe? Snipe!" The man's booming voice is the last thing I heard before passing out.