Chapter Text
Midoriya Izuku doodled a picture of Manual, the most recent quirk analysis entry in his notebook, as the homeroom teacher droned on. At the mention of UA, he shrunk in on himself, hunched over his notebook as though to protect it.
“Tch!” Kacchan scoffed, almost on cue while everyone else jeered at him for his lofty goals.
The teacher continued in a bored tone, “For everyone interested in joining a hero course, The Sharing has partnered with Aldera to offer exam preparation at no cost on Saturdays on campus.”
Izuku stared hard at the pages of his notebook, waiting for his childhood friend to interrupt and violently insult the green-haired teen. It was only when he didn’t that Izuku dared to look up in concern.
About two months ago, Kacchan had become more withdrawn than usual and prone to more violent outbursts, as though he was bottling it up until it would finally explode out. It was so un-Katsuki it was a little surprising no one else had commented on it.
Izuku left school, unmolested which had become more or less the norm, not that he was complaining. Not exactly. But… maybe he should mention it to Mom. Maybe she could ask Mitsuki and get to the bottom of it.
As he walked, he absently scrolled through news on his phone. The screen brightened when an overpass above blocked out the sun and he stopped to read a Breaking News article. Whistleblower affiliated with the Endeavor Agency provides evidence of child abuse the headline read. He quickly skimmed the article’s contents, eyes wide. The story was still developing so the bulk of the text had little to add, though the words ‘Hero Commission to perform an internal review’ were a relief to read. Confident that evil would be defeated and good would prevail once more, Izuku slowly continued his walk home, skimming an article on Mt. Lady’s debut he had somehow missed.
As he passed under the last bridge along his route home, the man hole cover to his right began to rattle. The last thing he heard was “Sorry, kid” before he was engulfed in disgusting sewer sludge that immediately began forcing its way down his throat.
He clawed at the slime, choking and legs kicking just as effective as his hands in aiding his escape.
“It hurts less if you don’t struggle.”
Tears welled in his eyes, only to be absorbed by the villain. Heart racing, diaphragm spasming in an attempt to breathe, blackness encroaching his vision, and nothing.
>°))))彡
Izuku returned to consciousness on his hands and knees, vomiting up excessive amounts of slime. His hearing returned in time to catch the villain’s voice saying something about the stuff but when he finally opened his eyes, his attacker was gone.
It was dark and he was surrounded by trees and a rocky outcrop to his left which told him nothing about where he was. His phone was water logged, as were his shoes and pants, and he turned off the phone in a vain hope it could dry out and be recovered before slipping the now-useless thing into his backpack, which had managed to stay on his back for the entire kidnapping. Now to figure out how to get home.
If he was a villain running from a hero, as he presumed the slime villain had been, he likely would have entered the forest and kept going in a relatively straight line…
Shivering slightly, Izuku turned in a circle, maintaining his orientation based on the mess from when the villain left his body. He gagged slightly at the memory but started walking in the direction he had chosen, hoping it would eventually bring him back to civilization. Immediately his damp clothes started to chafe uncomfortably. It was going to be a long night.
After only a hundred feet, the tree line opened into a small open space with wild grass and a dead tree slightly to his right that looked split down the middle like it had been struck by lightning at some point. Crossing the space, he re-entered the trees and continued his trek.
He had to have been walking for nearly an hour before a whining sounded somewhere overhead. The sound got louder as it drew closer, before a tremendous crash dropped something massive somewhere to his left. The ground beneath his feet shook from the impact.
Without thinking, Izuku abandoned his journey home and veered off in that direction. If something crashed, he reasoned only after the fact, he was the only one who could get there fast enough to make a difference!
Izuku skidded to a halt when the trees suddenly stopped. Not from a clearing, but a quarter mile scar the thing had carved into the forest canopy. A quick look to either side told him which way it had come from and which way he should go to lend his aid. With any luck the Wild Wild Pussy Cats would already be on their way. Who knew how many casualties he should expect when he got there.
The downed trees and broken branches made travel difficult. He passed several spots where small fires had started and after a brief pause, he dismissed them in favor of prioritizing the rescue.
Finally, he arrived at the final crash site, the strange-looking plane much smaller than he was expecting, with an egg-shaped cockpit, short wings, and a tail that curved up and over into a needle-like point that gave off strong ‘weapon’ vibes. Izuku rushed to the only immediate survivor who had stumbled from the wreckage.
“Can you hear me? Let me help you!” he said, inspecting them for an injury.
The individual had an obvious mutation quirk. Everything about him was unique, from his four, deer- like legs to his two additional eye stocks that Izuku presumed allowed him to see in 360 degrees and would be amazing for patrols. He had no mouth, calling into question how he communicated. Did he use sign language or could he produce a mouth elsewhere? His arms were quite thin and the scythe at the end of his long tail looked perfect for fighting as a hero.
The strange plane he had been riding in still had power, shining light all around and making the survivor’s pale blue fur unmistakable and their injury obvious.
Izuku gulped. Unless paramedics could teleport or the survivor’s quirk had a secondary regeneration that had a delayed activation, he was unlikely to survive.
He forced a smile. “I’m Midoriya Izuku. I’m here to help. Is there any first aid kit on board?”
<I am dying,> they said, projecting a pained male voice directly into Izuku’s mind.
Ah, secondary telepathy. Mind reading would be helpful as a hero-
<No, you’re speaking out loud.>
He bit back an ‘eep!’
“I’m sorry-”
<Never mind. Please go inside and fetch the blue box.>
Izuku jumped up and rushed into the ship. As he moved, the voice continued, <My name is Elfangor-Sirinial-Shamtul. I am an Andalite. Not of this planet.>
The teen faltered. Alien?
<Yes.> Apparently Andalites had good hearing if he picked up his muttering from inside the ship.
Izuku began picking through the debris in search of a blue first aid box.
<Your planet is being invaded by the Yeerks, a vile, slug-like parasite that feeds on Kandrona rays. They enter hosts through the ear canal and take over the body, controlling their host completely. Yeerks have spread from planet to planet and now have their sights on Earth. My people have been fighting against them from the beginning but....> They were losing. <If Earth falls to the Yeerks, they will be unstoppable, both from numbers, and from the sheer power humans wield.>
There, back against the wall and under a control panel of some sort just out of reach. A blue box small enough to fit in his palm. Izuku was able to carefully take a piece of scrap to knock it close enough for him to grab hold of. There didn’t seem to be an obvious latch but maybe alien medical technology made actual bandages obsolete.
Returning to Elfangor’s side, he crouched down. The blue alien held out a shaking, seven-fingered hand and Izuku handed him the box.
<This is a morphing cube. If you put your hand against it now, I will pass the technology to you. With it, you will be able to morph into any creature you acquire.>
“Wait,” Izuku said, mind reeling. “You’re giving me a quirk?”
<Yes. You are the only free human who knows about the invasion. If you are going to fight the yeerks, you need to hide your identity. If they discover who you are, they will infest you and your entire family.>
This had to be a dream. It just didn’t seem real. He was going to wake up in his bed, unsure if this was a dream or a nightmare. With a press of his hand, he could have a quirk, but at the cost of an alien race trying to take over humanity. He couldn’t-
<The yeerks are here regardless of whether you accept,> Elfangor reminded him. <Make your decision. They will be here soon and you need to get as much distance as you can from here before they do.>
It wasn’t much of a decision. He pressed his sweaty hand against the side of the cube, pushing the metaphorical button. A zing of pleasant energy radiated through him from his palm.
“Was that it?”
<That was it.>
Izuku pulled his hand away but Elfangor gestured with the cube.
<Keep it safe.>
Izuku took it from him, unsure what to do with it before remembering he still had his backpack on from school, however long ago that had been.
“How does it work?”
<Touch my arm,> Elfangor instructed. When Izuku obeyed, he continued. <Concentrate, think about the texture, picture my form. You know it’s working when I go into….>
His voice trailed off, distracting Izuku from his focus. Did he die?! No, he was still breathing, albeit considerably more labored than before.
<It’s alright, Izuku. I was expecting that. Acquiring a creature’s DNA puts them into a trance for a bit. No harm done.>
One of Elfangor’s eye stalks turned upward. All four eyes widened several seconds before the whine of engines getting closer over the trees reached Izuku’s ears.
Help had arrived!
“Please let me-”
<No. You must go.>
“But-”
<Bug Fighters are approaching. They are here to disintegrate all evidence of me and my ship.>
The whining of engines drew closer until red lights could be seen above the tree line, following the path Elfangor’s ship dug into the trees. Another light joined the others, moonlight reflecting off the top of a massive ship.
<Visser Three.> Hatred radiated through the telepathic message. <Run, Izuku!>
“Who-?”
Elfangor closed his eyes, concentrating. The image of another Andalite, this one radiating a level of malice Izuku had never felt before. <Visser Three is the only Yeerk with a morph-capable host and your greatest enemy. Now go!>
The note of desperation in the last order was what finally convinced Izuku to stand. It took every ounce of his will to turn his back on the dying Andalite and move for cover. Just as he hit the tree line, a flood light bathed the entire area with enough lumens to make it feel like it was high noon. Izuku immediately dove behind a tree, heart pounding. Did those ships have windows like human craft did? Had someone seen him?
Peering through the leaves of a bush, Izuku fought to keep his breathing under control as dozens of people, all seven feet tall with the same mutation quirk flooded out onto the crash site. Each had a bird-like beak and covered in large blades along their limbs, including the end of a tail and their foreheads. Had someone hired an entire family as their security?
<Those are Hork-Bajir Controllers. The yeerks have infested the entire species. They have terrible night vision but excellent hearing. If they hear you fleeing, they will send Taxxon to hunt you down.>
Elfangor spoke as though Izuku should know who Taxxon was. If they showed themselves, hopefully the Andalite would point them out. Thinking quickly, Izuku took advantage of all the noise the Hork-Bajir were making as they spread out and retreated deeper into the trees.
A half dozen Hork-Bajir formed a half-circle around Elfangor, weapons drawn, while the rest faced out toward the forest to guard the site.
From Izuku’s new spot, he could just barely see more aliens coming from the ship. At first, he couldn’t tell what he was looking at, but three giant, grotesque centipede creatures entered the crash site. Bright yellow bodies with rust-red, pointed legs holding themselves off the ground. Red, jelly-like eyes surrounded its mouth which was a ring of rows upon rows of teeth.
Izuku startled when Elfangor continued speaking. <Taxxon are willing Controllers. They have an insatiable appetite, overpowering instincts, and an excellent sense of smell for tracking pray.>
Time to go. Shaking, Izuku carefully moved deeper into the forest, ducking his head and blinking to get used to the gloom after staring in the direction of the flood lights for so long. How good were the Hork-Bajir’s hearing? Did the Yeerks have any humans with them with sensory quirks who could pick up Izuku’s trail? How fast did he dare move before the noise he made drew too much attention?
Based on the image Elfangor had sent him, Visser Three was an Andalite-Controller. How did Andalite telepathy work? Was it the alien equivalent of a quirk? In humans, it typically required a prior introduction or knowledge of an individual’s location-
Terror shot through him as another telepathic voice joined Elfangor’s, booming through the forest, uncaring who heard. The voice so loud it startled birds and nocturnal mammals in the surrounding area who were awake to hear it. Their panic covered the sound of Izuku jumping nearly a foot in the air.
<Well, well,> a voice that could only be Visser Three’s said. <Prince Elfangor, if I am not mistaken.>
<He doesn’t know you’re here,> Elfangor assured the teen. <He’s projecting to everyone within range.>
The banter that followed between the two was painful for Izuku to listen to. Visser Three had won and everyone knew it. From the way they spoke to each other, Elfangor was not trying to fight back, resigned to his fate yet determined to keep the attention on him long enough for Izuku to escape. To the teen, the Visser sounded like a villain monologuing over a fallen hero and as the thought speech started to sound further away, he held onto the hope that rescue heroes would come and save the fallen prince.
<Remember, Izuku,> Elfangor said, voice sounding like he was shouting from a distance, <you must not exceed two Earth hours in morph or you will be trapped in that form.> A sudden wave of jumbled information had Izuku reeling, his shoulder driving into a tree trunk as he stumbled. A loud SNAP! as a branch broke underfoot.
Elfangor sent him a mental image of two Taxxon followed by three Hork-Bajir and a human, quirk unknown, entering the forest. <They must have heard you! RUN!>
Izuku bolted, strategizing as he ran. His clothes were finally mostly dry, but he had likely gotten wet in the first place when the villain had him cross a river. If he was lucky, he could throw the Taxxon off his scent by finding that river again.
With enhanced hearing and sense of smell covered, he scrambled to guess the human’s quirk. More than likely they weren’t a team specifically for tracking anything through the forest so he couldn’t assume it was a rescue-based quirk. Assuming the Yeerks fell for the same quirk-bias their hosts likely did, the quirk in question was likely offensive in some way, considering they had not yet used it to try to subdue him. Sound-based was unlikely as they would have already sent out an attack if they could.
Izuku screeched to a halt as a faint trail caught his eye. A deer path. Higher chance of ticks, but it would allow for a more quiet journey along the somewhat cleared trail. And it was heading in the same direction he guesstimated the river to be. Now that he had stopped moving, he could hear the hunting party slicing tree branches and undergrowth as they went. That was all the justification he needed to begin following the path. It wandered a bit providing cover from his pursuers, unlike a human path which would have given him the most direct route and the controllers a perfect line-of-sight.
Elfangor’s dying scream pierced his thoughts and panic set in. The Hork-Bajir were probably using their blades to slice their way through. Once they joined him on the trail, they were going to be able to catch up quick. He had no way of knowing how close the river was. Running was no longer an option, but neither was hiding.
He stumbled to a stop as the trail hit another open space. Gazing around in the low light, his stomach lurched when he realized it looked familiar. Crashing behind him sent a zing of panic through his body. They were too fast and he had run in the wrong direction to find the river. Simply hiding wouldn’t do any good as they could still track him. He would have to go for the next best thing- with that he sprinted toward the dead tree he had passed on the way out, aiming for just to the left where he had first exited the trees.
Backtracking would only serve to confuse them for a second, but if he was lucky, they would follow his original path and make a giant loop. If not…
Izuku skidded to a halt where he had first regained consciousness. Refusing to think further of what he was doing, he quickly scooped up the sludge he had vacated from himself earlier and smeared it first over his backpack then over himself, gagging several times as he worked to cover up his scent.
More slashing sounded as the controllers entered the trees, making him bolt along the nearby rocky outcrop in search of a cave or a crevasse- anywhere to squeeze into!
After several moments of progressively more desperate searching, he found a small den. Too small to be a bear’s unless a cub had been abandoned. It was early April, so most hibernating animals would still be asleep, with any luck.
Well, he reasoned, throwing in his backpack first before scrambling on his stomach to wiggle inside himself, it was better being mauled by a bear than forever possessed by another slime villain.
Fully inside, he found it fairly tight and though he could curl up a bit, there wasn’t enough room to turn around. Going by feel, the back of the cave opened a bit, and he froze when his hand hit fur.
Izuku threw his other hand over his mouth to hold in the scream. After several seconds where the creature didn’t move, he willed his heart to slow. It was much too dark to see with most of his body blocking what little moonlight would have naturally entered, but whatever it was, it was still in hibernation.
Perhaps in these circumstances, it didn’t matter how accurate his guess was if he could simply focus on the texture of its fur. Concentrating on what a bear looks like, and what the fur felt like, he waited for several moments before realizing without the thing awake, he wouldn’t be able to tell if it went into the same trance Elfangor had. He could try morphing and see if it worked…
Concentrating on the feel of the fur, the smell he could barely make out under the stench of the sewer from his clothes, he waited for something to happen. Wiggle toes, wiggle fingers, touch face, nothing.
Happy to distract himself by analyzing his own quirk for the first time, Izuku started over by imagining different animals with no success, until finally-
The hand over his mouth tingled, fingers shrinking. Bones cracking. Fur sprouted all over his body, eye sight became nocturnal which allowed him to somewhat see his shifting perspective as his body shrank until it became Tanuki-sized, tangled up in his own clothing. This far into the den, he could only pray the Hork-Bajir hadn’t heard him morph for the first time.
Not far from his hiding spot, his pursuers stopped.
“Are you sure they went this way?” the human asked in a nasally whine. After a pause the voice continued, responding to one of their companions standing further away from Izuku’s hiding spot. “You are welcome to tell the Visser it may have been a deer. I’m sure that’ll go over well.” The conversation continued though it grew fainter as the group moved further away.
Izuku’s heart raced as he wiggled out of his slimy uniform. He couldn’t wait around to see if they found him he had to run and hope his Tanuki form could navigate the underbrush better than the controllers could.
Free of his clothes, he sniffed at them. While his shirt smelled faintly of sweat, his backpack smelled like soil from the den. Satisfied it was sufficiently filthy, he grabbed it in his mouth, barely able to lift it off the ground due to its size, and backed out of the cave as quietly as he could. When no one and nothing shouted in surprise, he pulled fully out of the space and slunk off into the trees, aiming for the thickest brambles to slow down anything that decided to follow.
>°))))彡
It took Izuku’s eyes a moment to focus on his alarm clock. The dream had been so real, it was disorienting to wake up in his bed. After a few minutes of rotting, he finally pushed himself up and stretched.
He had had plenty of dreams of discovering he had a quirk, but this was the first one he felt like it was for the best that it wasn’t real. If he could get a quirk only by sacrificing the human race to slavery, he’d rather be quirkless.
The moment Izuku’s eyes fell on the pile of filth that was yesterday’s school uniform, he froze in dawning horror. Mind reeling a mile a minute, he tried to justify why his panic was unreasonable. If the entire experience had been a dream, it did not explain how he had gotten so dirty the night before. No, more likely he had been taken hostage by the slime villain to use as an escape vessel and the alien invasion had been a dream derived from his exhausted mind after finally making his way home the night before. Fortunately, it was easy enough to prove to himself that the last bit had been a dream.
Determined to get this foolishness out of the way, he aggressively unzipped his once-yellow backpack and looked inside. There, tucked next to his phone, was the palm-sized blue morphing cube. Fuck.