Ring~Ring
At 12:00 on the dot, the school bell rang out across the intercoms. The sound echoed through the empty halls.
Two men in suits and sunglasses stood silent in front of the auditorium doors. Their arms folded behind their back. Hearing the bell, one of them checked their watch. Noting the time, they looked across at each other and nodded.
Grabbing a handle, they started to close the door.
"Shit shit shit shit!"
Turning a corner, a boy with long white hair cursed as he ran shoulder-first into the wall. Frantically tugging at his zipper, he didn't even have time to pull off the toilet paper stuck to his shoe.
Huffing, he looked up. Down the hall, he could see that the doors were already halfway shut and showing no signs of slowing down.
"Hold on! Wait! I'm coming!" He screamed.
This couldn't be happening. Not to him, not today. He had trained so hard; his parents had saved up so much just to be here. His childhood best friend was waiting back home to hear how he got into their dream school.
He was gonna prove everyone who had ever doubted him wrong. Show them that he could be a hero.
Why were they closing the doors? He wasn't late; he was right here; he could still make it.
He just had to take a quick bathroom break after lunch; that's all. His stomach hadn't been feeling right. And he hesitated to blame Lunch Rush; it must have been something that he ate, or maybe it was nerves. But whatever it was, he just had to quickly head to the restroom.
That's not a reason to disqualify him. Right?
He had just heard the bell when he was picking up his pants. Remembering the administrator's warning about the time he had rushed out, hoping that he could still make it. He didn't even have time to wash his hands before rushing over here.
"Please, I'm right here!"
But the two men in suits didn't slow down.
With a heavy thud, the doors closed, locking in place. Anyone not inside was disqualified.
"NNNOOOooooo!"
Ideally munching on a drumstick, Alex's ears made out a muffled scream from behind the auditorium doors. Chuckling, Alex ripped off a piece of meat.
"Jehehe, sucks to suck, man."
That's what you get for not following the rules. They told them in plain Japanese, get to the auditorium before twelve, or else.
No take-backs. No exceptions.
U.A's got a reputation to protect, after all. They can't be making exceptions.
U.A. is super strict for a reason, my guy. It's all about the branding. The Havens do it all the time.
U.A has put themselves on a pedestal. Proclaiming themselves the Premier Hero school of Japan. Advertising state-of-the-art equipment, top-of-the-line facilities. City-spanning training grounds, actual Pro Heroes as teachers
And with alumni such as All Might, Endeavor, and Best Jeanist willing to endorse them, they have carved themselves a spot among the top Hero schools in the world.
Their boast about having the strictest, most rigorous Entrance Exam isn't just a joke. It's a standard that they have to keep. Sure, their standards aren't as high as other countries', as Alex has just figured out, but Japan is a small island nation; they can't afford to be too super picky. Not like America can.
But that also doesn't mean that they can just accept anyone.
If U.A is not strict with their acceptance policy, then their prestige as a premier school will get challenged. That means fewer people willing to donate, which could lead to cutbacks on their top-of-the-line facilities, which could end up leading to fewer applications next year.
What that means is that today was not the day to mess up. Doesn't matter if you're bleeding or shitting your pants. You get here before they close the doors. If you can't follow that, then they got no use for you.
Even Alex made sure to get here a few minutes before twelve. That's why he had to bring his lunch with him.
Some people might say that was being reckless, or that he was focusing on unimportant things. But fuck those guys. A boy's gotta eat, and boy, did he eat good.
It would have been a crime to let food that good go to waste.
Lunch Rush really can make anything. Even American food. Complete with all that yummy grease and fat.
Fried Chicken, cornbread, loaded potatoes, ribs, tomahawk steak, chicken-fried steak, chicken-fried chicken, and more.
Thinking back, he was kind of surprised that more people didn't take advantage of the opportunity and really eat their fill. Most of them only grabbing one plate, and a few of them just ordered a salad.
Come on, people, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I mean, when else are you gonna get the chance to eat a five-star meal completely free? None, that's when.
Whatever their loss.
Though maybe he did overdo it with the ten plates. Plus the sides… and dessert. He had planned on just grabbing the eight. But what can he say? He's a growing boy. And you can't have a full American meal without apple pie.
His only complaint, though, was that Lunch Rush refused to make him a Whiskey Apple Pie.
Something about underage drinking or something; he wasn't listening. Ah well, he'll just have to steal- uh, he meant borrow- the one that he saw hidden in the cabinets. Yeah, borrow, that's what he meant.
What was he thinking about again?
Alex distantly heard what sounded like someone crying, their fists banging on doors, begging to be let in. Alex shrugged; must not have been important.
Oh, look at that, the lights are dimming. Alex chewed on the bone in his hand. Seemed like they were ready to get started.
At the front, stage lights lit up as black curtains pulled back. In the middle, a black podium stood alone. Speakers along the walls all came to life as music played, echoing throughout the auditorium.
From the sides, smoke washed over the stage. Underneath, a platform started rising.
Out from below, a blonde man with a speaker on his neck rose up. Striking a pose, he covered his face with one hand while raising the other in the sky. Moving his hips side to side to the beat, he started swinging his arm in a circle.
Lights moved, the music got louder, and more smoke rolled in.
Then the music reached the climax, and the platform stopped.
Boom
Smoke exploded behind him in the form of a star as pyrotechnics showed him from above.
"YEEEAAAHHH!" The man on the stage screamed.
Raising his head, the man on the stage flashed everyone the biggest, brightest smile ever. Blinding everyone with their glow.
"GOOD DAY, LISTENERS!! ARE YOU READY TO ROCK!"
Silence. Crickets. No one said anything.
Some of it might have been nerves; others, it might have been the stick up their ass.
But everyone else. They were too shocked to do anything after seeing the famous Present Mic.
One of the most popular and well-known voices on the radio and a top-fifty Ranking Hero, here to give them their opening introduction to the practical exam. Everyone knew that he worked as a teacher at U.A. Hell, practically the whole teaching staff were top Ranking Heroes.
No one thought they'd actually be meeting them. And it wasn't even the first day to day.
Well, not Alex; he was experiencing a very different issue.
'Gagh! My ears!' Plate left forgotten on the chair next to him, Alex bent over in pain. Pulling his ears over his head, Alex desperately tried to block the noise from entering them.
Present Mic's loud voice, enhanced by his quirk, was too much.
It was like someone was stabbing a knife directly into his brain. He's never been really good with loud sounds before, but this was ridiculous. He was even louder than a jet engine.
"YEEEAAHH! TOUGH CROWD!" Present Mic waved off the awkward silence with practiced ease.
Pulling out a remote, Present Mic lifted it above his head and pressed the big red button. Behind him, a large machine whirled as a giant screen descended in front of the curtains.
Clicking the remote again, the screen blipped for a second before showing an animated map of the school.
"Let's get the show started, listeners."
Wincing, Alex massaged his skull. Thankfully, Present Mic stopped yelling; otherwise, Alex didn't know what he was going to do.
Angrily, Alex grabbed another drumstick off his plate and started munching on it.
On the screen, multiple arrows in different colors split off from the auditorium and spread out towards the various lettered testing grounds around school. "Now for all you young listeners. In just a little while, we will be transporting you to your designated Battle Centers. Please follow the zone listed on your cards; if you miss it, you will be disqualified. Once you get there, you will have 10 minutes to destroy as many of the 'villains' as you can."
Card? What card?
Biting down on the drumstick, Alex stared, patting at his pockets. Standing up, he ignored the annoyed whispers around him as he checked his back pockets.
Ah, here it is. Alex had forgotten about this. The lady at the front handed it out when he signed in, but he wasn't paying attention. Anyway, it seems like he'll be in Battle Center E.
Gnawing on the bone now, Alex hummed as he plopped back down into his seat. Doesn't matter which Center he's in anyway. As long as he has somewhere to work off all of this food, then he's fine.
The screen changed again, now showing three silhouettes meant to represent the villains they would encounter, along with their point totals.
"You will see on your handouts that we have given each hostile a score of 1-3 points. Scores scaling to the difficulty. Get as many points as you can until the buzzer sounds. To be clear: if any one is still fighting after the buzzer sounds, or if you fight amongst yourselves, you will be - say it with me - DISQUALIFIED!!"
"Gaghh!" Alex shouted. His hand flew up to his temple. The bastard did it again!
What the hell was with this guy? Doesn't this loud dumbass think of others? How many years has he been a teacher here? He should know that most Heteromorph Quirks come with some kind of increase in senses, most of the time in the ears.
And yet he still decided to scream using his Quirk. That does it.
Alex ripped off another piece of meat with his teeth. Glaring up at the stage, Alex placed Present Mic on his mental list of people that he was gonna punch in the face.
Not to confuse it with the list of people that he was gonna get back at. These were two very different lists of people in his head that he was keeping track of.
The first was a list of people that made him mad and that he wanted to punch if he ever got the chance. Like that blonde kid from this morning, or that old dead president with the dumbass hair.
The second list was for people that got him, but he wasn't really mad about it. For some, it was just the principle of the matter, like that punk-rock chic from lunch. He wasn't mad at her for stabbing him with her ear-jacks; he was the one making a lot of noise, and he was being pretty rude when she was just trying to be nice.
But that didn't mean that he was the kind of person to let that kind of thing go. So he'll probably find some way to get her back next time he sees her. Maybe he'll put hot sauce in her food next time, or maybe he'll jump-scare her or something. He'll think about it later.
For others on the list, it was just people that he wanted to mess with. Like his cousin Mikyel, who still owed him eight dollars from when they were five.
"Excuse me."
Someone from the middle row, wearing a posh white uniform, stood up. Present Mic, happy to finally have some audience interaction, pointed him out with the spotlight.
"Yes, dear listener, spit it out. What's the word on the street?"
The guy in the posh uniform straightened up. Pushing himself to stand taller, he adjusted his square glasses and held up a piece of paper.
"You mentioned three of the opponents that we will be facing, yet on your handouts there appear to be four. This type of mistake is shameful on official U.A material. We are exemplary students, and we expect more from one of Japan's exemplary schools. And you two, with the unkempt hair, and you with the food-"
Turning around, he pointed at someone in the crowd behind him.
"-You have been making nothing but noise during this entire presentation. You with your muttering and you-" His frown deepened, looking at the bone sticking out of Alex's mouth. "-Dressed out of uniform and bringing food into this prestigious place is nothing short of disrespectful to everyone that has ever passed through these doors. If you two aren't here to be serious, then I kindly ask you to leave. You are a distraction to everyone else here."
The auditorium erupted in laughter.
"Look at these two."
"I bet they won't even get ten points."
"They got no hope of passing."
"Losers."
Alex's temple started to throb again. He could already start to feel that headache coming back.
"Hmm." Alex narrowed his eyes, staring down Mr. Posh-Uniform.
What's this? Someone else volunteering for the Punch me list? Well ok, if he insists.
But you know what? Cause Alex is so nice, he won't aim for the face. No, this guy's getting a good ol'donkey punch to the back of the noggin. Or, as they call it in his family, a Rabbit punch.
"Ok, ok. Settle down, listeners." Present Mic waves his hands to quiet everyone.
"Now, to answer your question, the reason for that is because your fourth faux villain is less of an opponent for you to defeat but more of an obstacle for you to avoid."
The screen shifts to show a large silhouette.
"These enemies are zero points, so there's no reward for taking them down. If you see one, run."
"I see. Thank you for this explanation. I apologize for any disruption." Bowing, he sat down.
"Ok, I think that covers everything. Just follow the instructions and everything will be Golden! Buses will leave in twenty minutes. Locker rooms for anyone wanting to change are down the hall. Best of luck, and remember always be-"
Present Mic thrust his arm in the air, fist closed like he was holding a microphone.
"-PLUS ULTRA!!"
Alex stayed seated while everyone else scrambled to get to the locker rooms. Unlike them, who came in their middle school uniforms, he was already dressed for the exam. With a T-shirt and Wrangler jeans, he was ready for anything.
Kicking up his feet on the chair in front of him, Alex went over what Present Mic said in his head.
From what he understood, the gist of it was: head to your assigned Battle Centers, defeat these unknown 'villians' stationed within, keep it within the time limit.
Oh, and also something about some kind of hazard, but Alex wasn't concerned about that.
Alex smirked as he bit through the bone.
"Jehehehe, finally some fun."