Iota is walking down a hallway inside the U.A. main building. He passes by a screen displaying the tournament bracket: Ash and Gus’ match is in progress.
Iota:
(The tournament is moving along nicely. Too bad the fools who run this school always get so carried away with their little Sports Festival that their security becomes laughable for a few days.)
A security guard turns the corner and spots Iota.
Security Guard:
Hey! What are you doing here?
Iota:
(Speak of the devil…)
Security Guard:
This area is off-limits during the Festival!
He starts walking toward Iota.
Iota:
I’m sorry I got lost on my way to the bathroom.
Security Guard:
Yeah, like I’m stupid enough to believe that-
Iota touches the Security Guard’s forehead with his ring; it glows for a second as the guard’s eyes become clouded.
Iota:
Why don’t you show me where the school keeps its information on its students nowadays?
Security Guard:
With pleasure.
The guard turns around and starts walking; Iota follows behind him. They eventually reach a room that requires a keycard to open.
Iota:
Would you be a lamb?
The security guard swipes his card, and the door opens.
Iota:
Thank you, now stand guard and make sure nobody sees me in here.
Security Guard:
Yessir.
Iota enters the room. It’s filled with various file cabinets and a few computers. He sits down at a computer and is prompted for a password to log in.
Iota:
(First a keycard and now a password? There must be some juicy information on here.) Oh, guard? You wouldn’t happen to know the password to this, would you?
Security Guard:
Try “password?”
Iota scoffs and types on the computer.
Iota:
Why would it be-
Computer:
Access Granted.
Iota stares at the computer.
Iota:
That isn’t even funny.
Iota continues typing on the computer and finds a file marked 1-A Schedule. He clicks on it and examines it.
Iota:
Hm… it looks like I’ll have my window to strike soon enough, and they’ll never see it coming.
Iota uses a flash drive to download Class 1-A’s Schedule. He then begins reviewing 1-A’s roster.
Iota:
(This will be helpful to have for later.)
Something on the computer catches Iota’s eye.
Iota:
(What? “Adam Hayze, Quirk: Elementalist. Originally believed to have a healing quirk, it was discovered that his quirk had “evolved” back in June of 2017.)
Iota’s eyes widen.
Iota:
(Could it be?)
Iota downloads the Class 1-A roster and leaves the room with his flash drive.
Iota:
Alright, you stay right here, and in three minutes I’ll cease my control over you. You’ll remember nothing that has happened for the last 10 minutes.
Security Guard:
Yessir.
Iota walks past the TV with the bracket on it again; Hayze and Sydney’s match has begun.
Iota:
(I must see him… I have to determine if he’s worthy of adding…)
Hayze returns to the competitor’s section, Kevin, Ash, and Aaron are all sitting together.
Aaron:
Nice work, Hayze! You kicked that bitch’s ass good!
Hayze:
Heh… thanks, Aaron.
Kevin:
It’s getting down to the wire now. Only seven of us are left.
Ash:
It’s pretty cool that our group from the entrance exam makes up nearly half of the people left, right, Aaron and Hayze?
Aaron:
Hey, I didn’t even think about that.
Ash:
It feels like that was forever ago, but it really wasn’t.
Hayze:
Yeah, it’s crazy how intense the hero course is. It makes you feel like time is going by so fast.
Aaron:
Speaking of fast, I wonder if Justus is gonna continue that trend.
Hayze looks at Angel and Justus as they reach the center of the arena.
Hayze:
Any bets on this one?
Kevin:
I’d say Justus is the safe bet. Angel’s tough, but Justus is tougher.
Aaron:
That’s true, but Angel’s ability to fly could be a big issue for him.
Hayze:
Yeah, and he’s going to be able to trick Angel like he did Karma. Angel’s way too levelheaded to fall for something like that.
Aaron:
Exactly, If Angel just keeps his distance and plays the long game, Justus is gonna have to be the aggressor. Not that he isn’t used to that, but I think we’ve all seen that his “aggression” can get out of hand pretty quickly.
The crowd cheers as the competitors face off.
Angel:
Hey, good luck, Justus. May the best man win!
Justus:
Good luck to you as well, Angel.
Angel nods at Justus with respect.
Madame Mummy:
Begin.
Angel takes to the sky.
Angel:
(If I stay in the air, he’s going to have trouble landing hits on me.)
Justus:
(That’s not surprising, this is his edge.)
Justus doesn’t move at all in response to Angel.
Angel:
(He’s not moving… I think he wants me to attack him first so he can counter.)
Justus and Angel simply continue staring at one another.
Ash:
Why aren’t they doing anything?
Aaron:
They want to force the other one to make the first move.
Kevin:
They know each other’s fighting styles; Angel is more defensive while Justus likes attacking. Justus knows if he strikes first, Angel will block it, but Angel knows that he’ll leave himself open if he shoots first.
Aaron:
They’re basically in a stalemate.
Ash:
So, what? Are they just gonna stare at each other until the crowd starts booing?
Hayze:
No, one of them will cave any second now.
Ash:
And who will that be?
Hayze:
Easy, whoever gets scared that this will be their only chance to land a decisive blow.
Angel looks at his wings.
Angel:
(A quill cascade couldn’t hurt, could it?)
Justus:
(He’s starting to question himself.)
Angel shakes his head.
Angel:
(No, Angel, that’s exactly what he wants you to do! I have to stick to my guns, I can’t fall into the same trap that Karma did!)
The crowd starts booing and throwing trash onto the battlefield.
Ash:
What a bunch of jerks!
Kevin yawns.
Aaron:
I mean… I gotta admit, I am getting pretty bored of this.
Justus crouches down.
Justus:
(He’s not biting, I guess I need to prod him.)
Justus starts running toward the forest.
Angel:
(If he enters the forest, I’ll lose sight of him! That could be bad! Dammit, he’s forcing my hand!)
Angel readies his wings. Justus notices this by glancing over his shoulder.
Angel:
Quill Cascade!
Angel covers himself in his wings and begins firing feathers at Justus. Justus stops, turns around, and braces for impact, catching the spectators off guard.
Ash:
What’s he doing!
Hayze:
(Making a statement.)
Justus withstands the barrage of nearly 1000 feathers; his body becomes extremely scratched up in the process.
Angel:
(Why didn’t he dodge! What’s the reason?)
Justus brushes his shoulder.
Justus:
Is that all you got?
Angel is taken back.
Angel:
(Why does he want me to hit him? It doesn’t make any sense! It might seem dumb to barrage him again if he wants me to, but I must carefully weigh my odds of beating Justus. Passing up free opportunities to attack him could come back to haunt me. He clearly has an ulterior motive, but as far as I can tell, he can’t hit me. Screw it, I have to just attack!)
Angel readies his wings again. Justus gets a smile on his face.
Angel:
Double Quill Cascade!
Justus withstands a blast of nearly 2,000 feathers, cutting him as they slice past him. At the end of the attack, Justus falls to his knees.
Angel:
(My feathers don’t seem like they do much, but the end of my quills are as sharp as knives, taking my attacks head-on like that is foolish even if it’s a part of his master plan.)
Justus slowly gets to his feet.
Justus:
Thank you, sir. May I have another?
Everyone is shocked.
Angel:
Are you insane!
Justus:
No… just determined.
Angel clenches his fists.
Angel:
(It’s the same logic as last time! It doesn’t make sense not to continue attacking him! I just have to hope his plan won’t work!)
Angel readies his wings again.
Angel:
Triple Quill Cascade!
Angel fires a batch of 3,000 feathers, further cutting Justus and even causing him to fall over. After the attack ends, Justus gingerly sits up and gets to one knee.
Justus:
Alright, I’m at my limit…
Angel:
(This has to be a trick…)
Justus stands up and runs into the forest.
Angel:
(Now he’s running? What is your endgame here, Justus?)
Angel flies to the center of the arena and hovers there.
Angel:
(If I stand right here, no matter where he is in the forest, I’m the maximum possible distance away from him. I’ll see any attack coming and counter it using my wings.)
Angel hears a loud sound come from the forest.
Angel:
(Uh… what was that?)
Suddenly, Justus jumps out of the forest with an entire tree in his grip.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Angel:
(WHAT!)
Justus:
Take this, Angel!
Justus chucks the tree at Angel as hard as he can. Angel dodges the tree by flying under it, which brings him closer to Justus.
Justus:
(Perfect!)
Justus the base of a tree as a springboard and leaps at Angel with his fist cocked back.
Angel:
(Huh! He’s coming right at me?)
Angel covers himself with his wings.
Angel:
(He’s defenseless; it’s time for the final blow!)
Angel starts gyrating rapidly.
Angel:
Steradian Defense: Ultimate Quill Cascade!
No feathers start firing off of Angel.
Angel:
(What!)
The whole crowd gasps.
Hayze:
(So, that was his plan…)
“
Angel:
My supply of feathers is infinite as they make up the mass of my wings. There are, of course, drawbacks to using so many feathers at once, but I have other matches to fight in this tournament, so I shouldn’t reveal those now. “
— Chapter 18
Angel:
(He wanted me to attack him in quick succession, so I couldn’t use Ultimate Quill Cascade!)
Justus grabs hold of Angel and rips him out of his ball form.
Justus:
Sorry, Angel, but this is the part where you hit the ground!
Angel:
(Crap!)
Justus throws Angel into the ground as hard as he can, injuring the avian, but not to the point of victory.
Angel:
(That wasn’t so bad… Maybe I can still win-)
Justus lands on top of Angel and then punches him directly in the stomach.
Angel:
*pained grunt*
Angel passes out. Justus falls over, breathing heavily from exhaustion.
Justus:
(Angel’s attacks are no joke. It might not have been the most productive plan I could have come up with, but it worked. Unfortunately, I’ll deal with the consequences in the next match.
Madame Mummy:
The winner is Justus Grey.
The crowd cheers.
Aaron:
Thanks for wrapping that up, Justus! It’s finally my turn again!
Aaron gets up and walks to the exit. He locks eyes with Alec as they glare at each other.
Aaron and Alec:
(He has no clue what he’s in for!)
They both enter the hall and head their separate ways.
Ash:
Wow, that was clever by Justus to shut down Angel’s best attack!
Kevin:
Yeah, Angel was so worried about hitting Justus while he had the chance that he ignored his own defenses.
Hayze:
Justus is pretty damn smart…
Ash:
So, it looks like it’s you versus Justus in the semi-finals, Hayze!
Hayze:
Yeah, I’m looking forward to it. (Not to be rude to Angel, but this is exactly how I wanted it. Justus is another big obstacle that I have to overcome!)
Angel is taken away by stretcher as Justus walks off from the arena. Aaron and Alec stroll towards the center.
Aaron:
(Boy, is this douche lucky, we’re at the Final 6, and he hasn’t even fought yet! I can’t wait to tear him apart.)
Up in the teacher’s section…
Fatal:
Here we are, your last student, Houston.
Houston:
Yes, and unfortunately for you, Walker, Alec has this tournament in the bag. The fact that this is his first match is more a sign of bad luck for your students than it is good luck for him.
Fatal:
That doesn’t make sense…
Walker:
The name Alec Vyxon rings a bell… if I recall correctly, there was something special about him.
Houston:
You mean to say “extraordinary.”
Fatal:
Really? How so?
Houston:
Dear Rachel… just watch.
Alec and Aaron square off at the center of the arena.
Aaron:
Ready to lose, loser?
Alec:
You seem like the type that bleeds a lot.
Aaron stares at Alec.
Aaron:
What’s… what’s that supposed to mean?
Alec:
The brash and rambunctious types get themselves hurt more often, so they bleed more. I like people who exude a lot of delicious blood.
Aaron continues blankly staring at Alec.
Aaron:
Alright… cool… (This guy gives me the creeps.)
Alec:
You should be terrified.
Alec reaches in his pocket.
Alec:
You have yet to see my abilities in action.
Aaron:
(Wait, plural?)
Alec pulls out a stick similar in style to what Hayze’s weapons are condensed into. Alec unholsters the weapon, revealing a massive scythe.
Aaron:
Cute. A giant stick.
Alec:
Mock me all you like, soon your blood will cover this battlefield, while my laughter fills your ears and stains the sound in your brain for all eternity.
Aaron:
First bone boy and now you, this is just a strange day for me….
Madame Mummy raises her hand in the air.
Madame Mummy:
Begin.
Aaron backs up a few yards. Alec starts laughing.
Alec:
Running won’t save you! Just one cut is all I need to win this battle!
Aaron:
Thanks for giving away your strategy, not that I believe it!
Alec:
It’s not a strategy; it’s a fact!
Aaron:
Fuck this, I’m wasting your ass!
Aaron transforms one of his arms into an RPG and fires it at Alec.
Aaron:
Eat that!
Alec:
With pleasure!
Aaron:
Huh?
Alec makes no attempt to dodge as the explosion hits him head-on. A cloud of dust engulfs Alec as Aaron reverts his arm to normal.
Aaron:
Yeah! Fuck you!
Alec:
Nice try…
Aaron:
What!
The dust clears to reveal Alec has taken 0 damage from the blast. However, his clothes are tattered and torn, and he’s about 30 yards further away from Aaron.
Alec:
So… have you accepted your fate yet?
Aaron has a shocked look on his face.
Aaron:
(He doesn’t have a scratch on him!)
Walker rubs his chin.
Walker:
Hm…
Colossus:
Well, that’s something.
Fatal:
What is this guy? Immortal?
Houston chuckles.
Houston:
Rachel, Alec isn’t immortal; his quirk enables him to absorb all damage and reduces it to 0.
Fatal:
What? That’s insanely powerful! How have I never heard of this kid?
Walker:
Oh… now he rings a bell. You were very insistent on having him in your class, Houston.
Fatal:
That’s all you have to say? This kid’s quirk is so powerful? Absorbing all damage? That’s unstoppable.
Walker:
Maybe.
Fatal:
You’re doing that thing where you know something that I don’t and won’t tell me for fun, aren't you?
Walker:
Nope.
Fatal:
Whatever.
Aaron grinds his teeth.
Aaron:
(Okay… I’m not sure how he did that… he must have dodged last second or something. There’s no way he could have survived that attack unscathed.) (
Aaron takes a deep breath.
Aaron:
(The important thing is that I learned a lesson, AND THAT LESSON WAS THAT I NEED TO SHOOT HIM MORE!)
Aaron transforms both of his arms into M249 machine guns and continuously fires a barrage of bullets at Alec.
Aaron:
Let’s see how you like this!
Again a pile of dust kicks up and covers Alec as Aaron continues firing. Finally, after nearly 30 seconds of shooting, Aaron stops the attack and looks down at his arms to see them slightly red.
Aaron:
(Ah, what the hell am I doing! I need to be careful. There are only two matches between this fight and my next one!)
Alec:
Just a head’s up, that one didn’t work either.
Aaron:
What!
Aaron looks up to see Alec’s scythe come out of the dust, he reacts in time to dodge, but the blade graces his cheek.
Aaron:
*frustrated grunt*
The dust clears, revealing Alec is unharmed again.
Aaron:
(How durable is he!)
Alec charges at Aaron. Aaron raises his guns to fire at Alec, but the maniac leaps into the air and jumps right over Aaron’s head.
Aaron:
(Huh? What was that about?)
Alec retrieves his scythe; the edge has a dab of Aaron’s blood at the end of it.
Aaron:
What even is your quirk?
Alec:
Plural, my friend, plural.
Aaron:
What-
Alec licks the blood on the end of the scythe. Aaron feels a strange feeling that resonates through his whole body.
Aaron:
(What the fuck was that?)
Alec:
Now the fun can begin!
Alec pulls out a knife from his pocket and stabs it into his own thigh.
Aaron:
Huh!
The whole crowd gasps.
Ash:
Why did he do that!
Hayze:
I think you already have your answer!
Suddenly Aaron grabs his own thigh and falls to the ground, with blood spewing from a wound that seemingly appeared out of nowhere.
Aaron:
*pained grunt* What the hell?
Alec laughs maniacally.
Alec:
How does that feel?
Aaron:
What did you do!
Aaron looks back at Alec and sees that his thigh wound is gone.
Aaron:
Alright, enough games, tell me what the fuck you are! Your quirk makes no sense!
Alec:
*nasal grunt* You’re confused about my quirk for a good reason. I am abnormal; an unexplainable genetic anomaly happened that gave me to develop an additional quirk to the one I already had.
The crowd is shocked to hear this.
Eve:
Is he serious?
Silver:
I’ve heard about this before… people like him existing, but I’ve never met someone like that in person.
Alec smiles.
Alec:
Less than 0.3% of the population has this mutation, and there is no explanation for it; it just happens. My quirks are very simple but deadly in combination: Firstly, Damage Absorption: I can absorb any damage I’ve taken and reduce it to 0, it’s like healing, but it’s as if the attack never happened. Secondly: Soul Link: Once I ingest the blood of someone, we become linked together, and any damage we take is reflected back on each other and-
Aaron transforms his arm into a pistol and shoots his own foot; the damage is reflected on Alec as they both fall to the ground.
Alec and Aaron:
AH!
Alec laughs.
Alec:
Now that was funny!
Aaron:
Just testing…
The bullet wound on Alec disappears; he gets back on his feet and dusts himself off.
Alec:
Now then, I’ll give you this one opportunity to forfeit. If you pass it up… well… things are going to get… messy.
Aaron:
Fuck. You!
Alec:
THAT’S WHAT I LIKE TO HEAR!
Alec stabs his other thigh, reflecting the damage onto Aaron. The wound then disappears from himself.
Aaron:
AHH!
Aaron writhes in pain on the ground.
Aaron:
(Dammit! I walked right into this! I wasn’t careful, and now I’m under his spell! He’s fucked up my legs to keep me still, I can’t let him keep poking himself to injure me… I have to stop him!)
Alec proceeds to try and stab himself in the arm, but Aaron transforms his arm into a grappling hook and wraps it around Alec’s arm, holding it back.
Alec:
Damn you! Resisting isn’t fun!
Aaron:
Like I’m just gonna let you keep indirectly stabbing me!
Alec:
Aw! Why not?
Aaron:
Do I really need to explain that to you!
Aaron feels the resonating feeling stop.
Aaron:
(What does that mean? Whatever, I was going to do this anyway!)
Aaron starts spinning, causing Alec to fly parallel to him while attached via the grappling hook.
Alec:
Whatever you’re going to do, it won’t work!
Aaron:
We’ll see about that!
Aaron transforms his other arm into a shotgun and begins firing it. The recoil increases Aaron’s spin
rate and causes Alec to fly around him at a high velocity.
Aaron:
It’s time to send you packing!
Aaron unhooks the grappling hook, and Alec goes flying into a tree. Aaron doesn’t feel any damage while Alec recovers quickly, thanks to his damage absorption.
Alec:
So, it wore off, huh? That’s fine. I’ll just get more of your blood after all those wounds on your legs are ripe with the stuff.
Aaron:
(He didn’t know that the connection was split, it gave me my only opportunity to hurt him… that gives me an idea.)
Alec chucks his scythe at Aaron again, Aaron tries to avoid it, but it gashes his arm.
Aaron:
*frustrated grunt*
Alec:
Time for Round 2!
Alec retrieves his scythe and ingests the blood, and the same resonating feeling courses through Aaron again.
Aaron:
(Alright, current objective… survive.)
Alec stabs his own arm.
Alec:
Boy, you’re not as much fun as I was expecting! I was hoping you’d be a bit livelier.
Aaron keels over in pain.
Alec:
See? You’ve only been stabbed like 4 times; man up!
Aaron:
God, I can’t wait to crack your skull against the ground, douchebag!
Alec:
That’s Mr. Douchebag to you!
Aaron’s eyes narrow.
Aaron:
So, I have a few questions for you.
Alec:
Shoot, your demise is soon anyway!
Aaron:
Why’d your quirk wear off so quickly? That seems like a pretty bad flaw.
Alec:
One of the fundamentals of quirks is that they all have a weakness and/or drawbacks. It’s like the circle of life; my quirk lasts a random amount of time, anywhere between two to 10 minutes. You got lucky and only had it last a few minutes the first time, but you won’t get that lucky again!
Aaron feels the resonating feeling stop.
Aaron:
Yeah… that’s true.
Alec:
Anyway, time to lose-
Aaron:
Yeah, you’re right!
Aaron wraps Alec up with a grappling hook and then uses his other arm to shotgun blast himself into the air with Alec; he continues to fire shots, getting them higher and higher into the air.
Alec:
Oh, this seems fun!
Aaron:
Yeah… if I can’t take you down myself, I’ll take us both down!
Alec:
Not gonna happen; I’ll just absorb the damage!
Aaron continues to take them both higher into the air.
Aaron:
(The only way to beat him is to knock him out cold, which isn’t an easy task because he can absorb all the damage. Therefore, my only way of defeating him is to take him out in one shot! And I think I know how to do that!)
Aaron transforms both of his arms to normal, and the two start falling to the ground headfirst.
Alec:
(Clearly, the soul link ended; that’s okay, though. He’s going to hit the ground first, so he’ll get knocked out before I do.)
The two continue to fall, both looking confident in themselves as the ground comes closer and closer.
Aaron:
(This is it!)
Everything starts to slow down as the ground is near inches away from their heads. However, just before they collide, Aaron puts his hands above his head; he slams into the ground, but his metallic arms absorb a lot of the shock, protecting.
Alec:
(WHAT!)
Alec collides headfirst with the ground. A dust cloud appears over both of them; The whole crowd looks curious.
Zach:
What just happened!
Gus:
Did someone win?
Jace:
I don’t know, it all happened so fast!
The dust clears to reveal Aaron on his back, breathing heavily from exhaustion and pain, and Alec is unconscious.
Aaron:
That was therapeutic…
Madame Mummy:
The winner is Aaron Zamora.
