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CHAPTER START---
---Somewhere Above Kansas, USA…
Soaring through the sky at a relatively slow speed, a large muscular figure wearing a bulky jet-black suit carries a large metal box of the same color in their arms.
The person stops and looks around, at all the hundreds of miles of evacuated land below them, then recognizes a few gentle hills and descends toward them.
After a few moments, they land gently on the grassy field, looking up at the midday sun for a moment before carefully observing their surroundings.
Then sets down the metal box and opens it with a tap.
"Get away from me!" an older blonde Dutch woman shrieks as she tumbles out of the box, holding her bedroom slipped in one hand as she frantically looks around for her kidnappers.
Her large kidnapper takes careful steps away, raising their hands to show they mean no harm, then removes the mask covering their entire face.Long blonde hair flows down from Star and Stripe's head as she can finally breathe properly without the mask.
"Star and Stripe?" the woman asks in disbelief as she stumbles back, holding her robe and pajamas as she takes in her environment. "Why did you bring me to America?"
"I'm sorry for the way we had to meet Dr. Flynn," Star' says. "But I promise there is a good reason for this."
"Good reason?!" Dr. Flynn screams. "I was making dinner for my family, in Norway! And the next instant I'm waking up in a metal box flying through the air, what could possibly justify taking me from my grandkids as the world is ending?!"
"Saving the world," Star' says, flatly. "Your name was put on the list, which will make a lot more sense in a few moments."
"List?" Dr. Flynn asks as the ground beneath them begins to move and lower into the surrounding area. "What's going on?"
Star' doesn't respond, forcing them to stand in silence for almost two minutes before they are sufficiently underground, allowing the elevator to close above them.
"No can you tell me what's going on?" Dr. Flynn asks. "What was the box, and your new suit?"
"The box and the suit were designed to absorb radar and electromagnetic interference. Advanced stealth tech ripped from one of our next-gen jets to avoid detection by anything Tech has."
"Right, and you need me because?"
Before Star' can answer, a doorward opens within the metal elevator shaft to reveal a massive room, hundreds of meters long and wide, with over a hundred people working in groups.
"What is this place?"
"The 'Think Tank', that's what they're calling it," Star' says as she begins walking along the railing on the upper levels, overseeing the entire facility.
Dr. Flynn follows closely behind her, carefully observing technology that she didn't think existed being used all across the facility. "You're putting together a team to stop Tech, to fight someone who controls all the technology in the world, that's…a serious task." ṟ�
"Yes, but I'm not putting together anything," Star' says as they arrive in the middle of the room, where Horizon is hovering in the air with tens of thousands of computer components hovering in front of him, slowly, methodically being assembled. "I just get the brainiacs anything they need."
"Is Horizon planning all of this?" Dr. Flynn asks, staring at the young Hero in wonder.
"No, he said this is out of his expertise. He's just handling security in case a nuke gets sent this way, along with helping us quietly get anything and anyone Nezu or David Shield decide we need, they're taking the lead on this entire operation."
"David Shield, Principal Nezu, Horizon," Dr. Flynn looks around. "And I see top minds from all over the world, if this structure collapsed humanity's progress would be stalled for, maybe another century or two. But, what could you possibly want with me?"
"I'll show you," Star' says as she gestures for the woman to follow her into a connected chamber with only one computer terminal inside.
The entire room was unpainted, with exposed concrete and steel reinforcement showing the utilitarian nature of this entire operation.
"This is where you'll be working," Star' says as she walks to the middle of the room and activates the terminal.
The room is immediately darkened as a massive hologram of connected nodes and curved lines are pulsing and blinking between them.
"What do you see?" Star' asks, looking back at Dr. Flynn, only to see the woman in her mind as she walks around, a broad smile on her face as she stares at the most beautiful thing she's ever seen.
"A composite like no other," Dr. Flynn says in amazement. "I guess I shouldn't be too surprised between Nezu and David Shield but…how did they manage this. This density of neurons and synapses, the speed of the signals, and the complexity of the structure. They fused hundreds, no, thousands of minds into one Engram."
"Not at all," Star' says. "This is Horizon's brain."
Dr. Flynn looks like the news punched her in the face. "This is a real living thing?"
"You're the only Neuru Tech expert on the planet who could do something like this, who could construct a working model of what Tech's brain must be like, but we figured using Horizon would give you a head start, since we don't have any time to waste."
"More like overkill," Dr. Flynn says. "Clearly Horizon isn't human, but Tech is, even accounting for the billions of calculations and impulses Tech's Quirk performs each second, this is on a whole other level."
"So it'll work."
"Impossible to say, but it gives us a solid start. What do they need me to do with it?"
"David Shield is handling the hardware and narrowing down the search area for Tech, Power Loader and Genesis are in the fabrication lab, and Nezu is dealing with the programming," Star' says. "Ideally we'd find a way to disconnect or hinder Tech from talking to the nukes so either we disarm them or I fly into orbit and throw them into deep space."
"But since we're using programming to fight a Technopath, he'll adapt faster than any of us can, so I need to map an adaptation matrix that can assist us in blocking him," Dr. Flynn says.
"And you're the only person in the world who can do it," Star' says.
Dr. Flynn takes a deep breath as the weight of this task sinks in, "I'll need some people, and—"
"Take your time and make a list, anything and anyone on it, you'll have within a day. We'll ask for forgiveness after we save the world."
"Right, that's how I got here after all," Dr. Flynn says. "I'll get to work…"
---Minutes Later On The Upper Levels…
Leaning back against the railing Star and Stripe read the list in her hands, slightly bewildered.
"What am I even seeing here?" Star' asks as she reads the list David Shield just handed her. "How would I even find it? I'd have to search the entire upper atmosphere."
"I'm sorry but that's what it'll take," David says as he looks over the railing at the people working below.
Star' sighs, "How long until it's ready?"
"Horizon is assembling the final parts, then we upload the codes," David says as he looks down to see Genesis step out of a connected room, the fabrication lab. "Looks like all the parts have been made, for now."
Star' follows his gaze to see Genesis, looking unhealthily thin and eating a few of Horizon's meal bars. "She's making this possible on our timeline, but—"
"Ms. Yaoyorozu won't stop, no matter how much anyone asks her to," David says. "She's a real Hero."
"I'd expect nothing less from one of All Might's students," Star' says with a dazzling smile on her face. "Say, since you're friends with him, can you introduce me sometime?"
"Huh, I assumed you already met him," he gives her a confused look. "Sure, but his doctor doesn't want him to travel considering his health, so, you'll probably have to go to Japan."
"Well, that'll be difficult," Star' says. "But I'll try to make it happen."
"Alright, now I need to get back to work," David says. "You'd be amazed at how difficult it is to fit a supercomputer on a jet."
"The biggest brains in the world are here, you'll figure it out."
After David Shield goes back to his work, Star and Stripe continues reading the new task assigned to her, a task that only she could accomplish, and eventually finds herself walking into the mess hall.
The entire room was filled with tables, chairs, and a large kitchen area serving food, and more importantly, coffee, 24/7.
She looks up for a moment to see Genesis sitting quietly by herself, reading some papers and having what must be her 50th meal of the day.
And yet, the girl appeared impossibly thin and frail compared to when she arrived less than one day ago.
But without her, their production would have slowed dramatically, so she endures.
"May I?" Star' asks, snapping Genesis out of her daze and causing the girl to look up at her, allowing her to finally see her mask up close.
"Oh, Star and Stripe!" Genesis tries to get up but Star' places a hand on her shoulder to keep her seated. "Oh—"
"No need to get up, can I join you?"
"Uh, of course, it's an honor to meet you," Genesis says as the woman moves to sit across from her.
"That mask of yours, it looks familiar," Star' says.
"Oh, yes. The same person who helped design Horizon's new visor created this, so it has a slight resemblance."
"Cellophane's mask does as well, you all look like a group of cyborgs."
Genesis chuckles bitterly, "Yeah, it scares the villains sometimes, but to kids, we look like action figures, so they like it."
"Then your Hero Costume is perfect," Star' says. "How have you been holding up, with the stress of all this?"
"It's," Genesis pushes some of her food around the tray. "Difficult. Not the things I have to do, but, trying not to think about all the people depending on me, on us."
"Well, I wish I could say it gets easier, but this is the first time something of this scale has happened. A Villain capable of holding the entire world hostage, thankfully, isn't a common occurrence. But just remember, the entire world is working together on this, so you're not alone."
Hearing this Genesis looks up at Star' and smiles, her masking leaving only her mouth exposed for the pro hero to see and return the gesture.
"Are you alright?"
"Yes, I was just thinking, it's pretty cool that the most powerful Pro Hero is a woman."
Star' laughs and pats the girl on the shoulder, "Thanks, I'll cherish the last few weeks I have with that title!"
That immediately dulls Genesis's mood, which Star' notices.
"Is something wrong?" she asks. "Sorry, I assumed that you were friends."
"OH! We, uh, it's a bit complicated," Genesis says. "A lot of students at UA aren't exactly comfortable with Horizon after his court case revealed so much…but we can't deny that he saves many people, so, yeah."
"Yeah, I assumed as much. But you know, the higher you climb the more you realize that, the world isn't simply black and white," Star' says. "I'm not making excuses for him, because I certainly have seen his more…creative, side. But, sometimes we have to set aside what our heart feels and do what the people need."
"That sounds exactly like you're making excuses for him."
"Perhaps, but let me ask you, how do you think this will end for Tech?" Star' asks. "Will we arrest him, and risk him taking control of the technology around him and escaping before his trial, which would end with him being put down, or do we simply kill him and remove that risk?"
"That, that's different."
"Perhaps, and people like you are important, you're the kind of person I look up to, now, and when I was a little girl," Star' says as she gets up. Then she gently leans forward and places and hand on Genesis's shoulder. "But when ten billion lives are at stake, sometimes we have to do things we will always hate ourselves for."
"I—I guess I never really asked him, how he feels about it all," Genesis says.
"You care so much about how the Villains feel, but not how the Heroes feel?" Star' asks. "If you're going to care, don't be selective about it, but regardless, you should come to America after you graduate. You'll get to use real guns."
Star' walks away, leaving Genesis to ponder what she just said, while Star and Stripe prepare for to find and deliver some of David Shield's tech to the international space station.
END CHAPTER---