Kevin wakes up to Isaiah shaking him.
Isaiah:
Kev! Kev! Wake up! Demetri’s gone!
Kevin sits up and is very groggy.
Kevin:
What? That’s it? You felt the need to wake me up for that?
Isaiah:
He took the orbs!
Kevin:
What!
Kevin gets up and rushes over to their supply bag. He lifts it up to reveal a freshly dug-up hole.
Kevin:
Fuck!
Kevin throws down the bag in frustration.
Isaiah:
Wh- wh- what do we do?
Kevin powers up to 30%.
Kevin:
Find him!
Kevin bursts off towards the city.
Isaiah:
*getting quieter* Kev! Wait for me!
Kevin storms through the plains.
Kevin:
(I shouldn’t have been so careless!)
Silver is skeptical of Justus’ proposition.
Silver:
You really think the five of us can take down a pro?
Angel:
Yeah, I have my doubts about this as well, Justus.
Justus:
We’ve done it before.
Silver:
What, do you mean when we beat Mr. Houston? I don’t know if I need to remind you, but five out of seven of us didn’t see the end of that fight.
Jace:
I still have bruises from that…
Angel:
And even though my team beat Mr. Spectre, he took down Aaron, Alexis, and Saige. That’s a formidable lineup.
Jace and Ash look at each other with worried expressions.
Silver:
Sure, maybe we could beat a pro, but what’s the point if our whole team gets wiped out in the process?
Justus:
Tell me, do you really have a better option?
Silver points at the orb Jace is holding.
Silver:
There’s one right there.
Justus:
How about you hear me out first? You know I wouldn’t propose an idea like this without a plan waiting in the wings.
Silver stares at Justus for a moment, then turns to Angel.
Angel:
It can’t hurt.
Silver:
Alright, we’re all ears.
Aaron and Lilith reach the center building.
Aaron:
*sigh of relief* Finally…
Lilith:
We made it! It took four days, but we’re finally here!
Aaron walks toward the entrance.
Aaron:
It’s time for us to finish this stupid exam.
They enter the building and look around.
Aaron:
Huh… So this is it? Just a bunch of elevators?
Lilith:
I thought it would be a little grander than this.
Alec:
*from afar* You seriously only beat me here by a minute? You guys really are pathetic.
Aaron:
Not this guy again…
Aaron and Lilith look back and see Alec walking into the building.
Aaron:
Are you here to accept failure?
Alec:
Pfft, I’m here to pass this test.
Alec reaches in his pocket and pulls out his green orbs.
Aaron:
I assume you hid your original orb before our battle yesterday?
Alec:
I wouldn’t say “hid,” I disposed of it, but it came in handy to backtrack for.
Lilith:
You were able to get another green orb already, though?
Aaron:
Yeah, how did you do it that fast?
Alec:
While you slept, I hunted. I had to take down some of my classmates… Well, I guess I should say soon-to-be former classmates, but all is fair in love and war.
Lilith:
You fought and defeated an entire team single-handedly?
Alec laughs.
Alec:
It wasn’t the first time I’ve won a one v three in this exam.
Lilith is shocked. Aaron is unphased.
Aaron:
I assume you’re referring to our classmates? That’s where the second blue orb came from, right?
Alec:
They put up a decent fight. Hell, they even made me resort to a trick to win. It doesn’t matter, though. They don’t stand a chance of passing this exam after the injuries I inflicted upon them.
Aaron:
I assume you’re still not going to tell us who it was?
Alec:
You’ll find out when they never show up. I bet they’re not even in the city yet.
A portal opens, and Walker steps out.
Walker:
Welcome to the end of the Final Exam. Now that you have stepped foot in this building, you’ve officially locked in your orbs. Present them to me.
Aaron takes out their two blue orbs, and Alec holds up his orbs. Walker takes them and verifies their authenticity.
Walker:
Congratulations, you all have passed the practical portion of the final exam.
Lilith is elated, and Aaron is relieved.
Lilith:
Yay! Gus will be so happy!
Aaron:
(Alright, now that this is done, I can focus on what really matters: my strength.)
Alec steps forward.
Alec:
Is Tobias done crying yet? He owes me one for finishing this exam for him.
Lilith:
Yeah, and we’d also like to see Gus.
Walker:
The eliminated students are being treated on a separate floor of this building because you’ve passed the exam. You can visit them if you’d like. You can now take the elevator in the middle, it’ll take you to the lounge, you’ll stay there until the exam finishes, there’s catering, showers, fresh pairs of clothes and your own private rooms, again congratulations.
Walker steps through his portal and leaves.
Alec:
Well, I’m done here.
Alec steps past Lilith and Aaron.
Alec:
Out of my way, losers.
Aaron:
Coming from the guy that’s lost to me twice…
Alec:
SHUT THE HELL UP!
Justus has finished explaining his plan to his and Silver’s team.
Justus:
Well, what do you think?
Silver contemplates the idea.
Silver:
It could work. Between us five, we have a very versatile set of skills, and if we succeed, we’ll all pass the exam… but there’s one big problem.
Justus:
And what’s that?
Silver:
How can we trust each other? A quick double-cross is all that separates one of us from success and the others from expulsion.
Angel:
Yeah, there’s no way we can do this without being able to trust each other.
Jace and Ash look at each other again.
Ash:
Justus, they bring up a good point. How can we trust them?
Jace:
This orb was theirs after all…
Angel:
Speaking of which, you
really
should hold that with your shirt or something…
Justus stares at Silver.
Justus:
You’re a man of honor, right, Silver?
Silver hesitates.
Silver:
Yes, I am.
Justus looks over his shoulder at Jace.
Justus:
We’ll give you the orb.
Everyone is shocked.
Jace:
No way! We can’t just give it to them!
Ash:
Yeah, I don’t know about this, Justus!
Justus looks back at both of his teammates.
Justus:
Trust me… please.
Ash is hesitant but can tell Justus is sure of himself.
Ash:
Okay.
Jace:
*groans* Whatever…
Justus turns back around and stares Silver straight in the eye.
Justus:
We’re willing to give you the orb to prove how serious we are about working with you.
Alden leaps up in excitement.
Alden:
Sweet! That means we can pass the exam easily! Thanks, Justus! You are an idiot! HAHAHAHAHA!
Everyone is distraught to see Alden talking again.
Angel:
I thought you were being silent because you pooped your pants again…
Alden rushes to Angel and tries to cover his mouth, but Angel holds him at bay.
Alden:
/Please don’t say anything! My lo- I mean Ash is here!/
Angel:
Jesus, man, calm down! I won’t.
Alden stops trying to attack Angel and turns to Silver.
Alden:
Take the orb, Silver! He’s going to just hand it to us!
Silver is in deep thought.
Alden:
Wh- what are you actually thinking about working with them to take down a pro!
Silver motions to Alden to shut up so that he can think.
Alden:
Don’t be stupid, Silver! Just take the orb and let’s go pass the-
Suddenly Jace springs his fist at Alden and punches him square in the face.
Jace:
Jacking Jackknife!
Alden goes flying off the roof of the building.
Alden:
AHHHHHH!
Alden smashes into the pavement below, breaking his neck and getting knocked unconscious.
Jace:
Okay, does anyone have a problem with me doing that? Anyone?
Nobody says anything.
Jace:
Good.
A portal opens next to Alden, and Walker steps out.
Walker:
…
Walker spits on Alden and walks back through the portal. A few seconds pass, and Houston steps out.
Houston:
Alright, you little idiot, let’s go.
Houston picks up Alden and walks back through the portal. It closes behind him.
Justus:
Well, what do you say, Silver?
Silver looks up at Justus.
Silver:
Keep your orb.
Ash and Jace are surprised. Angel and Justus are not.
Silver:
We’re in, but I’m in charge, got it?
Justus smiles.
Justus:
That’s fine.
Alexis, Zach, and Karma hide in an alleyway near another white orb machine.
Alexis:
(Any minute now…)
Madame Mummy rushes past the alleyway. A few seconds pass.
Alexis:
Now.
Karma places her hand on Zach’s shoulder and uses her quirk to quickly get the two of them to the machine.
Karma:
Ready, Zach?
Zach:
Yup!
Zach places his hands on the orb, and Karma places her hands on the machine.
Karma:
Now!
Zach takes the orb out of the machine, but just as the alarm sounds, Karma reverses the time of the machine disengaging it.
Zach:
Phew…
Karma places her hand on Zach’s shoulder again and accelerates them back to the alleyway.
Alexis:
Good work, guys. You’re getting better each time.
This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.
Zach:
It never gets any less stressful…
Karma:
There is always room for improvement. We can’t mess this up even once.
Zach:
At least we have number four in the bag now.
Zach places the orb in their supply bag.
Zach:
We’re getting this done fast.
Alexis:
Finding machines will get harder and harder as we cross more off. We’re going to hit a lull period pretty soon.
Karma:
Which means we can’t take our foot off the gas pedal, or else we’ll never finish.
Zach:
Right!
Madame Mummy and Fatal come across each other while patrolling the city.
Fatal:
Hey, have you seen any of the teams yet?
Madame Mummy:
If I had, I’d be fighting, not running.
Fatal stares at Madame Mummy.
Fatal:
Right… Well, have you been investigating the alarms?
Madame Mummy:
Yes.
Fatal:
… Do you know who else is on shift with us right now?
Madame Mummy:
I believe it is Boom, although he is checking the city's south side right now.
Fatal:
Cool, cool… I’m gonna go now.
Madame Mummy:
Okay.
Fatal and Madame Mummy continue on their way.
Fatal:
(I can never get a read on her…)
Fatal continues running.
Fatal:
(So Boom is patrolling the south by himself, huh? I hope he doesn’t run into trouble since Mummy and I are over here.)
Boom is walking through the streets nonchalant and whistling.
Boom:
Mannnnn, this is boring! Not a single one of these kids wants to fight me! They’re all just sneaking around, grabbing orbs, and running away before I can get there!
An alarm goes off.
Boom:
Speak of the devil…
Boom casually starts walking in the direction of the alarm.
Boom:
I’m not even gonna rush anymore. They always just scurry off.
Boom turns down the street and sees the beeping white orb machine with nobody around.
Boom:
*groans* I guess I’ll turn it off.
Boom walks over to the machine. It scans him and turns off the alarm.
Boom:
Well, there we-
Ash takes over Boom’s body in her astral form.
Boom:
AHH!
Boom falls to his knees, holding his head.
Silver:
Now!
Angel and Jace jump down from the roof of a neighboring building. First, Angel grabs Boom’s arms and flies him up in the air, then Jace uses his spring arms to wrap around Boom’s legs, suspending him in the air.
Justus:
We got you now!
Silver:
Let’s do this!
SIlver and Justus leap off of separate rooftops with their fists cocked back. Silver coats his fist in a silver gauntlet.
Silver:
Take This!
Justus:
Hammer of Justice!
Silver and Justus punch Boom in the chest simultaneously as Jace, Ash, and Angel release him.
Boom:
AHHH!
Boom smashes into the pavement with monstrous speed, creating a crater.
Angel and Jace:
Yes!
Justus and Silver both land on the ground, skidding to a halt.
Silver:
Nice work.
Justus:
You too.
Jace runs over to Silver and Justus.
Jace:
Do you think that did it?
Justus:
I don’t know, but it was our best chance.
Silver:
My silver gauntlet and Justus’ punch… Only a slim number of people could tank that and walk away.
Suddenly they hear someone clapping.
Jace:
What the?
Justus:
What’s that?
Silver:
Who is doing that?
Suddenly the crater reverts to normal, and Boom disappears.
Justus and Silver:
What!
Jace:
Huh!
Boom steps out from an alleyway, clapping.
Boom:
That was a pretty impressive plan, guys. You would have had me if it weren’t for one little mistake you made.
Jace looks at Silver and Justus and then back at Boom.
Jace:
Alright, I’ll bite.
Boom:
I’m The Sound Hero: Boom! I can detect sound waves and vibrations from a mile away. I could tell that five people were positioning themselves around a white orb machine which makes no sense. Go get it if you want the orb; why take so much time? I realized that there was a good chance it was a trap, so I used my quirk to feel the waters.
Silver:
What do you mean by “feel the waters?”
Boom snaps his fingers. Suddenly, a loud, high-pitched frequency pierces all of their ears. All four wince in pain, with Angel being forced to land due to the pain.
Silver:
What is that!
Jace:
My ears are ringing so bad!
Justus:
What exactly is his quirk!
Angel:
Guys, look!
The four of them are surrounded by a circle of Booms.
Jace:
Woah!
Silver:
(This isn’t good!)
Booms:
I can manipulate soundwaves in any way I like. I can hit you with mecha sonic bursts or do what I’m doing now, make you hallucinate!
They look confused.
Angel:
Which one is the real one!
Jace:
I don’t know, dude! I’m too dizzy to tell what’s going on!
Justus and Silver look at each other.
Silver:
What do we do?
Justus:
Didn’t you say you wanted to be in charge?
Silver:
*frustrated grunt* You’re right, I am!
Silver forms a massive silver wrist blade on his other arm.
Justus:
Do you know which one is the real one?
Silver:
I will.
Silver lunges towards a Boom.
Boom:
Woah!
Boom propels himself into the air using a soundwave from his palm, dodging Silver’s strike.
Boom:
(How did he figure it out! Was it luck?)
Boom lands on the ground and creates four images of himself.
Booms:
Let’s see if you can keep track of this!
The Booms begin shuffling their positions to confuse Silver, but Silver keeps his eyes on the real Boom the entire time.
Boom:
(What’s this kid doing to see through my tricks?)
Boom stops running around and stares at Silver.
Boom:
(I need to test a theory…)
Boom reaches into his pocket and pulls out a dog whistle.
Jace:
Is that a…
Angel:
Dog whistle?
Boom blows into the whistle. Angel, Jace, and Justus fall to the ground writhing in pain, trying to hold their ears shut. Silver is unaffected. Boom stops whistling.
Boom:
I see…
Angel, Jace, and Justus are freed from their pain.
Angel:
Jesus…
Jace:
What was that?
Justus:
My theory is he can also make frequencies that can only be heard by animals be heard by humans.
Jace:
Remind me to never use that on my dog…
Angel:
But wait, why wasn’t Silver affected?
Justus stares at Silver for a few moments before realizing.
Justus:
For the same reason he could see through Mr. Boom’s hallucination attack, his ear canals are blocked completely.
Jace:
What? But he’s not covering his ears!
Angel:
Jace… we’ve been trying that, and it didn’t work… the sound slipped past.
Jace:
Right…
Justus:
Silver’s using a much more viable tactic… he secreted liquidized silver into his ear canal and hardened it, completely blocking his eardrums.
Jace:
Woah!
Angel:
That sounds effective!
Justus:
That’s because it is, but there’s a big catch.
Jace:
And what’s that?
Justus:
Hearing is crucial to battlefield communication and reacting to sneak attacks, he’s safe from Mr. Boom’s eardrum assault, but he’s exposed himself on a new front.
Boom stares down Silver.
Boom:
(So he’s blocked his eardrums, huh? That’s fine, I can work around that.)
Boom looks at Justus, Angel, and Jace.
Boom:
(I should be able to keep the other three in check unless they can also protect their ears. It looks as though these two teams are working together… It's bright. It gives them their best odds at defeating someone like me, although their chances are still slim. But… I still have to worry about the other one… wherever she is…)
Ash is hiding on the bottom floor of a nearby building.
Ash:
(I feel bad that they’re getting whipped around while I’m just sitting here… but I have to stick to the plan. The others are counting on me.)
Boom starts rolling up his left sleeve.
Boom:
I know you can’t hear me, but I must give you this warning.
Boom reveals a metal apparatus wrapped around his arm.
Boom:
Let’s just say you don’t want to let me hit you with this.
Boom charges at Silver.
Silver:
(What’s that thing on his arm? Whatever, I won’t let him get close to me!)
Silver dodges Boom’s initial attack, but he quickly course corrects and chases after Silver.
Jace:
Guys, we need to get in on this!
Angel:
Yeah, Silver needs our help!
Justus holds up his arm.
Jace:
Huh?
Angel:
What is it, Justus?
Justus:
We need to strategize. We can’t rush in there.
Jace:
What! We need to help Silver!
Angel:
Yeah, I’m with Jace on this one, Justus.
Justus:
Silver will be fine for a little while. Keep in mind that he isn’t instrumental to our plan B. We can’t beat Mr. Boom head-on. We have to work together and stay true to our plans; that’s the only way we’ll make it out of this, alright!
Angel:
Yeah… Yeah! You’re right, Justus!
Jace is visibly frustrated.
Jace:
Whatever…
Justus notices Jace’s demeanor.
Justus:
Alright, let’s huddle up and figure this out.
Silver continues dodging Boom’s attacks.
Silver:
(He’s striking, but he’s not leaving me any room for an opening, his guard is up nearly 100% of the time! Even with those weights, he’s still far beyond my level… he’s a pro, alright…)
Boom stops and Silver follows suit.
Boom:
I can see you’re having a tough time counter-attacking. You’re not used to fighting without your dust supply, huh?
Boom realizes.
Boom:
Oh… right… I guess goading you isn’t gonna work… so I’ll just have to use force!
Boom raises his arms over his head and then drops them, creating a crescent-shaped wave that careens towards Silver.
Boom:
Serrated Sound Wave!
Silver leaps into the air, dodging both waves.
Silver:
(Does he really think a simple attack like that is going to work? I may just be a student, but I’m no-)
Boom appears behind Silver in the air, surprising him.
Boom:
Keep in mind that I can leap higher and faster than you can!
Silver:
(He tricked me!)
Boom places his left hand on the back of Silver’s head.
Boom:
Take this!
Boom flicks the metal apparatus on his arm. Vibrations start to resonate through Silver’s whole body.
Boom:
Vibro Assault!
Boom lands on the ground safely while Silver skids against the floor.
Silver:
What’s going on… I can’t move… everything is dizzy.
Silver’s vision is completely blurred and swirling around. He can’t balance at all, effectively suppressing his motor functions. Finally, silver releases his blockades on his ears.
Silver:
What is this attack!
Boom laughs.
Boom:
Boy! You guys really are amateurs! You don’t know that great and famous heroes keep secret attacks.
Silver:
It wouldn’t be a secret if I knew about it…
Boom:
… Well, at least I’m great and famous.
Silver:
Right…
Boom:
HEY, RESPECT YOUR TEACHER!
Silver:
… You were going to explain the attack… right?
Boom:
Oh um… You see, the human body is 70% water! Vibro Assault attacks that 70% sending a resonating vibration throughout your body that inhibits your inner ear, blurs and distorts your vision, and toys with your nervous system. It’s my strongest attack, I usually wouldn’t pull it out in a setting like this, but I thought I’d make this quick with these heavyweights holding me down.
Silver:
*frustrated grunt*
Boom:
It’s alright; the effects will wear off in a few hours! But you’ll be done by then.
Jace:
I’ll make you done!
Jace springs himself at Boom. Boom grabs Jace by the face and slams him to the ground.
Jace:
*muffled* WHY DOES THIS HAPPEN EVERY TIME!
Boom:
You really went with “I’ll make you done?”
Jace:
*muffled* Shut up…
Justus charges at Boom.
Boom:
I guess I’ll crush you guys one at a time! Not an ideal strategy for you, but I love it!
Boom stands up to face Justus.
Boom:
I’ll just use my hallucination attack aga-
Suddenly Jace wraps his springs around Boom’s legs.
Boom:
Huh?
Jace:
I’m tired of being useless! You’re not going anywhere!
Boom:
That’s fine! I don’t have to!
Boom snaps his fingers, triggering his illusion of multiple copies of himself. In this case, there are over 100. Justus stops his attack as he is seemingly surrounded.
Justus:
(He was even able to copy Jace’s likeness into his illusion!)
Jace looks around, each copy of himself mimicking his movements.
Jace x100:
This is so trippy!
All of the Booms laugh.
Boom x100:
You guys really shouldn’t have tried this crazy scheme! A pro is just too powerful for you at this stage in your hero educa-
A feather slices past Boom’s face, cutting him and drawing blood on its tip.
Boom:
(Wh- what?)
Boom looks up in the air and sees Angel flying directly above him.
Boom x100:
How did he see through the illusion!
Jace x100:
Why do you think I grabbed your legs?
Boom x100:
Huh!
Jace x100:
It was so that we knew you wouldn’t move from this spot! So, all we needed was a marker to keep track of where you were.
Boom realizes.
Booms:
You had him circle above me before I began the hallucination!
Justus:
Precisely.
Boom looks over and sees Justus picking the feather up off the ground. Boom ends the hallucination.
Boom:
You did all of that for a single cut? What are you guys thinking!
Justus:
Ash!
Ash comes running out of the building towards Justus.
Boom:
(Wait a second…)
Boom flashes back to Ash’s battle against Gus.
Boom:
(This girl can make people pass out if she gets a hold of their blood! They’re probably planning on beating me up once I’m unconscious! I can’t let that happen!)
Boom launches two slicing sound waves at Ash.
Ash:
Oh no!
Justus leaps in the way of the attack, and his chest gets cut up badly.
Ash:
Justus!
Ash runs to Justus’ aid.
Ash:
Are you okay!
Justus:
It doesn’t matter! Get Mr. Boom’s blood! Now!
Ash:
R- right!
Ash reaches for the feather.
Boom:
Not so fast!
Boom snaps his fingers, making Ash hallucinate hundreds of feathers.
Ash:
Woah!
Ash is perplexed.
Ash:
Wh- which one is it!
Boom breathes a sigh of relief.
Boom:
(That should stop her for the moment!)
Angel watches from above.
Angel:
(I wish I could help… but with Silver down, I can’t risk getting incapacitated… otherwise, we’ll fail the exam!)
Justus and Silver both struggle on the ground.
Boom:
Don’t even try it. You’ve both been hit by my signature attacks! It should be an honor for you kids to flunk out of U.A. like this!
Justus:
We’re not flunking out! We’ll defeat you!
Silver:
You may have thwarted our first two plans, but we’re not done yet!
Boom:
From where I’m standing, it looks like you are.
Silver and Justus are both frustrated but are unable to get up.
Boom:
Well, I might as well finish this off!
Boom looks down at Jace.
Jace:
Have… mercy?
Boom:
Let go of me, and I might.
Jace:
But… I can’t… I was told to-
Boom:
Getting ordered around all of the time isn’t going to get you anywhere in the hero business, kid. You’ve gotta be assertive!
Jace:
I don’t like getting bossed around! But nobody thinks I’m strong enough to give orders!
Boom:
Well, duh, your quirk is just springs!
Boom laughs at Jace.
Jace:
Quit laughing! I could beat you!
Boom laughs even harder.
Boom:
Kid, you couldn’t beat me if I had no arms or legs!
Jace:
Shut up! I’ll… I’ll…
Boom:
You’ll what?
Jace:
Hit you hard!
Boom bursts out laughing again.
Boom:
Kid, you don’t scare me!
Jace:
Why not!
Boom:
Because the only thing that scares me is heights!
Boom stops laughing.
Boom:
…
Jace:
…
Boom:
Have… mercy?
