Chapter 119: Chapter 118
Around two hours into the intercontinental flight, Melissa's voice came over the intercom, stating, "Principal Nezu, our escort has arrived. Would you like to address them?"
"Certainly," replied Nezu, pulling out an earpiece fitted for his distinctly angular ears while Izuku looked out the window to find what looked like a squadron of B-2 Stealth Bombers. More surprisingly, an inordinately tall, muscular, and blonde-haired woman was standing atop one, waving her hand and seemingly glowing against the backdrop of the early morning sky.
Recognizing the woman as America's #1 Hero, Stars and Stripes, Izuku couldn't help wondering what kind of products she used to maintain her hairstyle while standing on the back of a jet. More importantly, as they were only separated by a pane of nearly indestructible glass, he was able to get a look at her stats...
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Name: [Cathleen Bate]
Title: Faith's Champion(Vitality+500)
Quirk: New Order
Bond Level: 83
Current Level: 193
Effective Level: 3,596
[Attributes]
Strength: 12,339
Agility: 5,004
Vitality: 13,811
Intelligence: 85
Dexterity: 4,177
Luck: 553
Free Attributes: 745
[Perks]
[Avatar of Faith], [Spirit of the Indomitable], [Authority(False)]
[Skills]
[Righteous Fury], [Bash], [Haste], [Mighty Guard], [Sacrifice], [Pain Splitting]
[Avatar of Faith]: Chosen of the Seven Virtues. Able to wield Divine Energy to shield allies and smite foes.
[Spirit of the Indomitable]: Immune to psychological attacks and debuffs.
[Authority(False)]: Blessed by Telania. Able to influence the world around you and resist the power of foreign Authorities within an enemy Demesne.
[Righteous Fury]: Deals purifying damage based on the damage you have sustained from a particular target.
[Bash]: Stuns or disorients a target with a mighty blow.
[Mighty Guard]: Reduces physical, magical, and spiritual damage taken by half.
[Sacrifice]: Take attacks on behalf of a specified target.
[Pain Splitting]: Transfer injuries to a willing target.
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("Holy shit...") thought Izuku, his eyes darting between Cathleen's Title, Perks, and Skills. He had expected her to be powerful, but it was apparent she had been 'farming' breaches. A base Level of 193 wasn't impossible to attain, but Cathleen hadn't become a Hero until she joined the Air Force at eighteen. She needed authorization from her chain of command to act or engage a threat, so there was no way she could attain a triple-digit Level when most other active Heroes were between the Levels of 30 and 60.
Interrupting Izuku's train of thought, Nezu said, "Our friends from the United States Air Force will be escorting us to a private airfield near Westpoint Academy. Even with our reduced airspeed, we should reach it within the hour."
"You'd think with a country the size of the US, their #1 Hero would have better things to do than play escort..." remarked Izuku, making sure to face away from the window so Cathleen wouldn't be able to read his lips.
Adopting an amused smile, Nezu remarked, "As popular as All Might is in the States, his power is comparable to that of a super weapon. In other words, we aren't being escorted for our protection but to ensure we don't deviate from our flight plan."
"Sounds about right..." muttered Izuku, shaking his head before adding, "Still, it's a little over the top. Ignoring the atmospheric chill and wind pressure, standing on the back of a stealth fighter seems like a good way to eat a swarm of insects..."
"Have you experienced something similar?" asked Nezu, perking up out of curiosity.
Shaking his head, Izuku replied, "Not yet, but since I have Float among my unawakened Quirks, I've put a fair amount of thought into the banes and boons of aerial mobility..."
"How prudent," mused Nezu, following it up by remarking, "I've seen the prototype for Melissa's 'Sky Regalia.' It's quite the marvel of technology. As expected from David Shield's daughter."
Exhaling a tired smile, Izuku appended, "It's too bad I can't make use of them. When I move around at high speeds, an invisible membrane forms around my limbs, decreasing my friction coefficient and reducing the effects of wind pressure. The Sky Reglia's core requires that pressure to function properly, so the technology used is better suited to increasing the range of aircraft than enabling individuals to glide freely through the sky..."
"I'm sure the two of you will figure something out," mused Nezu, adding, "Who knows, perhaps the materials you harvest within the breaches will provide a solution? Researchers at I-Island have been studying a power source dubbed Mana, Prana, Aether, or Ki, depending on the origin of the breach. When infused into an object, it drastically increases its durability and sometimes grants it borderline mystical properties. Several pieces of fantasy-like equipment have been recovered from the breaches, some of which possess abilities rivaling those of Quirks."
Before Izuku could ask, Nezu revealed, "The catalyst for the Egyptian Hero, Salaam, becoming the Apostle of Amon was the discovery of a scepter within a sarcophagus-like chest. He said that a window, similar to the one displaying his status, showed up after he had slain the Griffin-like Boss monster. It purportedly directed him to the location of a breach with no enemies. Instead, he discovered a pyramid-like temple guarded by the kinds of statues you'd find in an Egyptian-themed museum. After solving a few riddles, he was rewarded with the 'Scepter of Amon,' affording him his Title and the ability to manifest a miniature Sun."
Furrowing his brows, Izuku remarked, "Sounds like he was guided there by Amon himself..."
"So he claims," replied Nezu, adopting a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes as he added, "And he's not the only one. Several people bearing the Title of Champion or Apostle have appeared, each claiming to have been in contact with entities known as Star Gods or Constellations. To that end, there is something I've been meaning to ask you for quite some time..."
Narrowing his eyes slightly, Nezu asked, "Have you been in contact with one of these Constellations? Your Title, Telania's Champion, suggests this to be the case. However, as Ms. Chisaki bears a similar Title, without any knowledge of the Meta World Transversal phenomenon, I have doubts..."
As it was a good opportunity to alleviate some of the pressure on him, Izuku replied, "I've yet to meet or hear from this Telania, but I've been in contact with an entity who referred to itself as a Goddess, specifically on the sixteenth of June. It was around the same time that I began dreaming of Eri..."
Adopting a slight frown, Nezu asked, "Is there a reason you kept such an important piece of information from us?"
"You mean, other than it sounding completely ludicrous?" asked Izuku. "This was before I knew about the MWT phenomenon, and I had a lot of other things going on. It's not like I was trying to be disingenuous. I just wanted to understand the situation better before I started blabbing about Gods and Goddesses out of the blue..."
Exhaling a tired sigh, Nezu softly remarked, "It appears I'm not the only one with trust issues...". Then, before Izuku could comment, he raised his gaze, staring directly at him as he said, "Tell me everything."
Shaking his head, Izuku asserted, "If I knew everything, I wouldn't have kept it a secret. I know that Telania is the Spirit or Goddess representing our planet and that I'm one of the people that has been chosen to protect the world from three great threats or trials. What those trials are, I have no idea. I'm assuming the Meta World Transversal phenomenon is one of them, but what we see now could be a byproduct of Telania attempting to prepare us for what's to come..."
"An invasion..." muttered Nezu, recalling Toshinori's account of what All-for-One had said to him during the I-Island Incident.
Nodding his head, Izuku stated, "That's another reason I kept silent. We have no way of knowing the true intentions of these Constellations. What we do know is they can bestow great power unto their chosen. During my very brief encounter with a Goddess, I gained nearly twenty Levels and a Title that ensures my Party members and I are able to gain Experience at a much faster rate than normal..."
Directing his gaze to the window, Izuku added, "Stars and Stripes out there has the Title 'Faith's Champion,' affording her 500 additional Vitality and some pretty ridiculous Perks. The description of her [Avatar of Faith] says she's been blessed by Telania, so it's fair to say she's an ally..."
"Assuming that Telania truly is the will of our planet..." remarked Nezu. "If the breaches we've observed so far are an extension of her power, meant to prepare us for what's to come, it's clear she cares more about her own survival than the survival of humanity...not that I can blame her. Humanity hasn't exactly been kind to the planet over the years..."
"Regardless, there's a decent possibility that some, if not most, of the Constellations making contact with people are representatives of the forces intending to invade our world," said Izuku, furrowing his brows as he added, "For all we know, this is just a game to them..."
"I can see why you would think that," remarked Nezu. "First, there was the origin of Quirks, superpowers that people had yearned to acquire for hundreds of years. Now, just as things are beginning to calm down, things have taken on a game-like format, complete with Levels and attributes. If this is all the result of some higher power's influence, it's easy to imagine we're pawns in someone else's game..."
Adopting a smile, Nezu added, "However, even if that's the case, I have no intention of simply giving up or yielding this world to outsiders. I may not be human, but this is the only world I've ever known. If nothing else, I will protect Japan to my dying breath."
Returning a smile of his own, Izuku mused, "Then you can leave the rest of the world to me. That is, assuming I live long enough to awaken the true power of One-for-All. I tried awakening the power of Float when I went skydiving with Mina, but it appears I can only tap into the power of the previous users during a time of genuine need or when my drive to win exceeds a certain threshold."
"Hmmm...if that's the case, you should have taken part in the Provisional Licensing Exam. You're much stronger than other students, but you never know what can happen during a competition," remarked Nezu.
Shrugging his shoulders, Izuku argued, "I needed a break after my time on Ōkunoshima. I may not have trained or exerted myself as much as the girls, but there is such a thing as mental exhaustion..."
"Suffering from success, are we?" asked Nezu, adopting a teasing smile as he added, "I'm honestly surprised Usagiyama-san didn't come with us. I know she has 'extenuating circumstances,' but a brief stint in the States should have been manageable."
Recalling the words Rumi had said to him the previous night, Izuku's smile gained an affection undertone as he revealed, "She has her pet rabbits to look after and said she plans to whip the rest of my classmates into shape before my return. I almost feel bad for them..."
"I'm sure she won't be too harsh on them," remarked Nezu. "I wasn't planning to have her instruct any classes, so unless she sponsors a club, most of the students at UA won't even know she's a teacher. The same can be said for many of our new hires. Given the circumstances, I don't plan on publicizing our actual numbers unless there is a media probe or something similar."
"Makes sense..." replied Izuku, hesitating for a moment before asking, "Speaking of which, whatever happened to Aoyama? I know that Mineta got dropped into the General Department, but Aoyama was absent during the student assembly."
Adopting a somewhat scary smile, Nezu asserted, "You're probably better off not knowing. It's only a matter of time before you become entangled in politics, but the longer you can remain oblivious to what goes on behind the scenes, the happier you'll be."
Feeling the atmosphere within the cabin change, Izuku swallowed the knot that had formed in his throat and simply nodded. He wasn't 'that' curious to know what had happened to Aoyama, so, at least for the time being, he wouldn't press the matter. The Gods knew he already had more than enough on his plate...
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(A/N: RIP Aoyama...)
Weekly Power Status
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