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It was like a living hell. At first, rifts appeared in the sky, then the ground cracked at the seams, splintering, creating long, deep cracks all around. Keigo had been a hero for only two months, and none of the instruction manuals had ever written about such a thing. He'd just flirted with a guy who was incredibly hot in every way, enjoying his long-awaited freedom: the commission didn't allow him to go outside their territory, and they only went outside for morning and evening running. Dabi looked equally shocked. This would scare even the bravest of the brave. There's simply nowhere to evacuate to.
Congratulations you have been selected as a player!
Rank: A-
Class: Unknown.
The system is loading...
Keigo recoils in fright as these strange messages appear right in front of his eyes. What the hell is this?!
"Hey bird, you're seeing this fucking thing too, aren't you? What's going on?" Dabi turns to him with a worried look, not knowing how to get that incomprehensible projection off his face.
Congratulations you have been selected as a player!
Rank: S
Class: Magician
The system is loading...
If only they knew what this would lead to, they would have run as far away as possible a long time ago.
Loading complete.
Welcome to the Ghost Tower!
Complete the floor trials to level up and survive. The first challenge will begin in 00:59:59.
"That's too powerful for a quirk," Keigo reasons aloud, studying the main menu thoughtfully. "What does the rank even mean? Oh, you can enter a name here."
"Sounds like a cheap rpg game. Don't tell me you don't know what computer games are."
"My owne... mentors said it's bad for the brain and mind," Keigo admits, forcing out a chuckle.
"And films?"
"Only documentaries," Keigo shrugs.
"You shouldn't be called into bed, you should be playing console games," Dabi laughs, patting him on the shoulder. "We've got an hour. Should be enough time to prepare and fill in the gaps in your worldview in... eighteen, right?" Hawks nods. "Now, there's been a lot of interesting stuff in eighteen years. Let's finish this shit and go learn about the film industry."
It's probably silly to worry about money when the heavens are breaking, but people are willing to lie in a coffin, if it's covered in coins and notes. While Dabi sorts out the necessities, Keigo runs to withdraw the remaining cash from his card: ATMs will definitely not be able to work in the apocalypse.
The challenge is in 00:30:00. You can see the location of the rifts on the map.
Keigo hurries back to Dabi, not stopping to look around. Does he need to rescue people? Where are they going to be rescued?
"Hawks! This way, now!" Dabi pulls him by the sleeve, dragging him into the alley. "I got bandages, medicine, anything else you might need. We should move half of it into your inventory."
"You have any weapon?"
"There's a good underground armoury twenty minutes away, but we won't make it in time. Fuck," Dabi cursed, biting his lip nervously. It's dangerous to rely on a quirk all the time. "Hey, what the hell! Let me go, you stupid bird!"
"I'll be there in five. Show me the way."
The streets are indeed chaotic. Keigo spots a couple of familiar heroes trying to calm the crowd. A futile activity indeed. Dabi hooks his fingers into his jacket, hesitant to open his eyes. It's cold up there and, judging by the merciless wind, they're travelling at breakneck speed. Keigo settles down in four minutes. Dabi spends another minute telling him what he thinks of him.
"What can you use?" Dabi blows the door down with a powerful stream of flame, stepping inside.
"Anything. But knives or katanas are best. Guns are too loud for my quirk."
"I got it. Take anything you might need."
The challenge will begin in 00:03:00. Passing conditions will appear as the challenge begins.
It's cold on the roof because of the wind, but as Dabi said, it'll be easier to see the whole picture. Keigo nervously twirls some bling in his hands as he watches the timer countdown.
The zero floor challenge has begun! Collect enough points to pass the level.
Click info for details.
"One hundred points per E-rank. Fifty thousand for SSS," Dabi sighs, grabbing Hawks' wrist. "Freeze. This fucking thing is more dangerous than some villains. You mess with the wrong guy, you're dead and you won't save anyone. Leave it to the top ten. You see the rank on this thing?"
"I think it's A. It's red, I can't make out a damn thing. I'm A, too!"
"Red means too strong for your level. He's orange to me! Let's start with the B and C ranks."
Player Dabi suggests to team up.
Note: when teaming up, the points collected are distributed evenly. If one of the players dies, the points collected by that player are burned.
Accept?
Keigo presses "yes", looking out over the city. The creatures did look intimidating. Huge snakes with scarlet red names, a bunch of strange red creatures very remotely resembling humans. Dabi handed him an earpiece, putting one on himself.
"Just in case. But you've got my location on the map now, so we won't get lost."
"The creatures have white names down there. May I?"
"D-rank? Well, I hope your owners trained you properly. Don't let them surround you. Five won't do anything, though."
Hawks swoops down like a real bird, making Dabi scared for a second. When he gets low enough, the five seemingly harmless creatures turn into at least a hundred: they come out of every crevice, snapping their sharp jaws. Stupid kid. Stupid and disgustingly unlucky. Touya watches him from the fifteenth floor, biting his lip: he won't be able to get down in time, and jumping down is suicidal. The red wings merge with the red creatures and Dabi doesn't even see what's happening to the kid. He turns away, settling down on the cold roof, clutching his black hair. Live such an unmemorable life and die being torn apart by incomprehensible creatures. Dabi doesn't even want to look at the notifications that pop up: surely this cruel system will describe in great detail how the sharp teeth tear the kid apart like a stray dog tears apart a pigeon.
Level up!
Level up!
Level up!
Achievement: Hellbender I. Extra points gained.
Special materials received. Check your inventory.
"Bird!" Dabi leaps to his feet, turning around, watching Hawks take off for the roof in a couple of powerful wing flaps. "Holy shit, you're covered in blood. I'll cauterise the wound. Come here."
"H-hey!" Keigo jumps away from him, waving his arms. "I don't have any scratch on me, I swear! Put the fire out!"
Despite Hawks' indignation, Dabi only calms down when he's convinced that the kid really isn't covered head to toe in his own blood. Well, he has skill. If he's got twenty-seven thousand points, that means Hawks really killed at least a hundred.
"I got a class!" Hawks announces cheerfully. "Assassin! And acceleration and stealth. And I think I got better at controlling the quirk in just one fight."
"It's because your level's up. It's not a very fair system. You were the only one working, but I leveled up too. But I guess skills are more important than free levels. Let's just take it one step at a time and... fuck."
Introduction period has ended.
Complete the floor challenge in 36 hours. Points required to pass: 100,000. Once time is up, excess points will be awarded as exp. Team MVPs will be awarded additional bonuses based on contribution.
"A lot," Hawks sighs, sitting down on the edge of the roof. "Gotta get down there. Oh, by the way, MVP is...?"
"The most valuable player. The one who's done the most. I don't think we should split up. We'll take turns, we can't work as a team."
"Why not? I think we're a great team."
"You said you're afraid of fire. I could burn you by accident."
Hawks nods understandingly, not trying to argue. Dabi is undoubtedly right: their quirks don't match at all. And since the brunet has S rank, his fire is correspondingly high. Endeavour's is probably no lower than S, maybe even the highest: SSS+.
His flames are really incredible: bright blue, terribly hot even from afar. It burns groups of B-ranked creatures, leaving only ash. Keigo stands behind him, sometimes using his katana to kill those who get too close.
"I'm done. You take it from here," Dabi sighed tiredly, feeling his body ache from the use of fire. "Otherwise I'll fry faster than those critters. Eh, I wish they'd given us some kind of healing potion."
"Then rely on me! Your guidance helps a lot. I don't mind keeping up the pace. We need to find some A-rangs. I have a feeling it's going to be worse tomorrow. We're at eighty thousand points each, just a little more left."
Dabi nods, continuing to walk beside the chirping Hawks, looking at the system window. Cremation skill level two and all sorts of rubbish from killed critters. That's pretty good. For every five levels, they offer ten points that can be invested in stats of their choice. Dabi emphasises intelligence and health, while Hawks invests almost equally.
The sun sets over the horizon as they collect a hundred thousand points. Keigo looks at him with a tired expression, nodding when Dabi suggests they search for a place to sleep for the night.
Twilight has descended upon the land. The attack of all enemies increases by 30%. Killing special types gives double rewards.
This isn't even unexpected. Hell with it, they might as well not worry about it anymore. Keigo is hungry as hell, and the constant use of the quirk is making him dizzy. He needs dinner and a good night's sleep. Just need to find a safe place to stay. They could go higher, but then Hawks would freeze to death. So a little law-breaking is in order.
Hawks doesn't like the idea of sneaking into one of the offices on the thirtieth floor, but there's no alternative. He's very sleepy and hungry. Will definitely have to apologise to the owners when this is all over.
They barricade themselves in one of the offices with windows and a water cooler. Keigo watches mesmerised as Dabi boils water for ramen with his own hands: the power grid collapsed just a couple of hours after the monsters appeared.
"So, lemme guess, your owners didn't give you ramen in cups either, because it's supposedly not healthy?" Keigo nods awkwardly. "Well, that's what I thought. Go see if there's any way to replace the blankets, at least. If you can find pillows, it'll be great."
The ramen is so hot and delicious that Keigo eats his portion as if it were a dish from a three-star Michelin restaurant. Such a delight! Dabi splits one sweet bun in half: food should be saved just in case, but gives most of it to Hawks. Jesus, has the kid ever had a bun with cheap strawberry jam on it?
They decide to take turns sleeping: there seem to be monsters walking the floors. Dabi looks at Keigo sceptically, pinching his cheek.
"Have you ever rested from using a quirk in all this time?" Hawks remains silent, trying not to make eye contact. "Sensory quirks are a huge strain on the brain. Come on bird, I'll guard your sleep, relax and get some sleep."
Hawks sleeps poorly, tossing and turning a lot in his sleep, eventually laying on his side, pressing his knees to his chest and almost fully covering himself with his huge wing. The boy is only eighteen and has not seen the world at all. Dabi had heard that the Commission trained heroes and knew Lady Nagant's story, but this young hero was really being treated like some kind of thing. Heck, he even misspeaks it all the time by referring to his "mentors" as owners. Better not to be a hero at all than to become one at such a cost. No, he's undeniably admirably trained, but the experience is woefully lacking.
Dabi spends his free time learning all sorts of details about this system. Turns out a shop opens on the first floor, and a summoning on the fifth one, where he might find a good relic that increases stats or gives buffs. They'd both need something with fire resistance. And Hawks should be told to pump up his intelligence a bit next time. Surely that would help the quirk. Dabi lets the boy sleep for six hours, wakes him up by gently touching the surprisingly soft plumage near his shoulder blades. Hawks wakes up, slowly folding his wings behind his back, listens to the main tasks for the time Dabi will be asleep: study the system window properly, find out what possibilities it provides, eat breakfast, and do not use the quirk unless absolutely necessary.
Name: Hawks
Rank A-
Level 23/50 (before level up: 7583 points).
Class: Assassin
Available Skills: Acceleration level 2. Stealth level 1.
Unbreakable Wings level 5 (special skill).
Keigo spends an hour on his morning warm-up, stretching, doing push-ups, standing in a plank, from time to time going completely silent and listening to the sounds around him. Apart from Dabi's hoarse sniffling, the office is silent, no street sounds can be heard from the thirtieth floor.
"I said not to use a quirk so you decided to physically exhaust yourself?" Dabi mumbles sleepily, turning on his side.
"Oh, I woke you up, sorry. I'm almost done."
"Good, don't overdo it."
Dabi closes his eyes, falling back asleep almost immediately. Weird kiddo.
Weird kiddo turns out to have weirdly good instincts. Dabi looks at the packs of B-ranked creatures, pursing his lips in frustration: not a single C-ranked one. Though the A-rank is no longer highlighted in the "dangerous" colour. Must give it their best shot.
By evening, all hell breaks loose. They're both on edge, but as luck would have it, the monsters are only climbing on them. Or the rest of the neighbourhood is just dead. It's the S-ranks that are the hardest. For Hawks they're still lit in red.
Twilight has descended upon the land. The attack of all enemies increases by 30%. Killing special types gives double rewards.
Time remaining: 03:59:59.
Having to attack as a team. Keigo gets burned a couple of times not having time to dodge the flames, but keeps moving forward ignoring both his fatigue and his bleeding leg with the arrow inside. If he stops now, they will die. If only he dies, then he has saved at least one person in his short heroic career.
"Get over here now," he shouts, feeling his hands shake. "Let's retreat!"
"I-"
"Quick!"
As Hawks runs up behind him, Dabi unleashes a burst of flame so powerful it melts even the tarmac. That hurts.
Time remaining 00:00:00.
Congratulations on passing floor zero! Head towards the rifts marked on the map.
Condition check is in progress…
Keigo falls to the tarmac not caring about his scraped palms. His leg hurts terribly. He grits his teeth, ripping the arrow out with a chunk of flesh. Dabi holds out a packet of bandages to him, telling him to clench it harder in his teeth. Cauterising the wounds hurts. Dabi pulls his trousers down to his knees, holding back from making a dumb joke. It would probably be awkward if someone saw them now. Hawks whimpers, breathing noisily, but stays where he is, not twitching. Dabi bandages him up and puts his trousers back on, sitting down tiredly beside him.
"To be honest, I'd rather take your trousers off for a completely different reason," he grins, gently wiping a single tear from his cheek. "We survived. Well done, little sparrow."
"I don't wanna die. I've been like in hell my whole life, why is this happening now," Hawks laughs nervously, starting to scratch his burned hand.
Dabi reaches his arms out to him and pulls him in a tight embrace. No surprise that the kiddo is on the verge of a nervous breakdown after what happened.
"You can cry a bit, let your body release some of the stress. It's normal."
"You need medical attention too," Hawks sobs softly, hugging him back.
"It's not an emergency. Let your emotions out and we'll head for the rift. Can you fly a little more today?"
"Yeah. Give me five, uh, ten minutes."
"Sure."
The number of points collected: 778 000.
A new record has been established. Additional points are awarded.
Unlocked rare achievement: Perfect Balance. Additional points are awarded.
Team MVP: Hawks (778,000 points), Dabi (778,000 points).
Additional awards available. Expiry date is unlimited.
Challenge rating table available.
Open?
Dabi grins, looking at the kid. They seem to have overdone it a little too much. Hawks wipes away the tears with a short motion, calming down a little. He's hungry. It takes about three minutes to get to the nearest rift. Dabi clings to him with a stranglehold, not opening his eyes for the entire flight. Hawks flies slower but probably just as high.
The rift doesn't look secure. Dabi looks at the terrified people without much sympathy for them. They almost died, too. Of course, the E-rankers didn't stand a chance. Hawks goes in first, not giving himself a second to think. Dabi watches them for a while, walking in next.
Welcome to the first floor of the Ghost Tower!
You are in a safe zone.
Extra points will be awarded within the hour! Apologies for the inconvenience.
"Two more!"
A loud voice causes Dabi to jerk sharply. Hawks rustles the package quietly, takes a bite of an empty sugar bun, looking at the Allmight. Of course he's here. Dabi is talking to the hero about something, and Keigo certainly doesn't expect to be lifted up in his arms like a bloody princess. He covers his eyes for just a moment, immediately falling into a deep and anxious sleep.
When he opens his eyes everything around him is disgustingly white. White ceiling, white furniture, white walls, white windows with a view of the white sky. Dabi looks like a black spot against the background of this room.
"Finally awake," he sighs, sitting down on the edge of the bed. "How are you?"
"My head hurts. But I'm okay. Why so much white?"
"I dunno. I think the system designers decided not to bother. The new suits are nice, though!"
"How much has passed? What happened to the ones that didn't make it?"
"I dunno," Dabi shakes his head, lying down next to him. "Allmight wanted to score enough points to save at least a hundred but people just killed each other to get more points per person. He ended up only saving a few of his close friends and one of his students. Endeavour also took on a large team with the agency, but failed," Touya tries to hide the tremor in his voice, hugging Keigo with one arm. "Tomura Shigaraki walked alone. His quirk, decay, helped defeat a few A and S ranked creatures. It also turned out he wasn't Shigaraki but Shimura. And Allmight had Nana Shimura, Shigaraki's grandmother, as a mentor."
Keigo listens to him very carefully, looking into his turquoise eyes. Dabi tells him that the safe zone can only be entered by going up to the next floor but once out, there's no going back in. There's no time limit but it's just impossible to be among the white walls for long.
They were awarded several hundred experience points each as having passed the test with an incredible result. And if Dabi's rank was only half-filled, Hawks had enough to jump from the end of A- to the middle of A+ rank. Weaker ranks really do level up faster. But what an increase in stats and skills! It's even a bit unfair to the others. (Though they're a long way from Tomura's S+ and Allmight's SSS+.)
Hawks lies on the soft bed enjoying the silence and the lack of nearby creatures wanting to kill him. Dabi snoozes nearby, warming him with his quirk.
It really is impossible to stay in this place for long. Keigo changes into the offered suit, surprised to note that despite the fact that it seems uncomfortable, it's actually pretty damn good.
The first floor challenge has begun!
Complete three quests of any difficulty to pass the level.
Hint: you can get rare items for special quests.
After a heck of a time trial, this seems like a blessing. They choose a difficulty no higher than medium, though they're still dragging around looking for items they need or getting rid of bandits. The magical mediaeval setting is charming. Hawks gets a lot of stares, though. It's probably all because of the gorgeous wings. There's no way in hell Dabi would share that wealth with anyone.
Hawks snuggles only in his arms and only lets him stroke his huge wings. Dabi is not sure if it is love or affection. They kiss, sleep in the same bed, and have each other's backs in battle.
Congratulations on passing floor one!
Congratulations on passing floor two!
Congratulations on passing floor three!
Congratulations on passing floor four!
The floors up to the fifth floor are not very difficult. They kill monsters, collect stuff, and rest a lot. Hawks reacts to everything with incredible enthusiasm again. He seems to have finally gotten over everything that happened on floor zero.
On the fifth floor, everything happens again. They're surrounded by thousands of monsters and their only challenge is to make it through the night.
Stay alive until sunrise.
Time remaining: ??:??:??