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CHAPTER START---
"You said you needed to see me, what's wrong?" David Shield asks as he approaches Power Loader.
Power Loader was working on some simulations toward the middle of the lab where Horizon was hovering above, still assembling tens of thousands of components with absolute precision.
"Yeah," Power Loader takes a sip of his coffee. "I just got done designing the power conduits, and we ran into some issues with the power source itself."
"What kind of issue? We already knew Genesis wouldn't be able to make something containing much energy, so just add it to the list and we'll get it."
"That's the problem," Power Loader taps a few buttons to bring up the numbers he estimated their device to need.
"Heh, you're kidding, right?" David Shield asks, feeling his hope wax and wane. "900 Terawatt Hours, that's enough to power all of New York City for just over a decade."
"See the problem now?" Power Loader asks as he gestures to the empty seat beside him."Ok, well, I have some ideas," David Shield says as he takes a seat, and they both begin working to solve the problem. "The most obvious is nuclear power, but—"
"We can't fit a nuclear reactor on the jet," Power Loader says. "Then we need a battery."
"The size would still be the issue," David Shield mulls it over briefly, then facepalms. "We were so focused on solving the problem by using technology, that we failed to remember that a Quirk is the basis of this entire problem, so a Quirk can solve it."
"Ahhh, you're right," Power Loader says as they look at Horizon. "Hey, Horizon, we need you for a moment!"
Horizon looks down at them, keeping all the components moving like a controlled storm around him as he hovers down to them.
"What's wrong?" he asks.
"900 Terawatt Hours to stay operational," David Shield says.
"Shit, that's exhausting," Horizon says. "But I can power it, the problem is the power fluctuations, since I am a living being, as much as people doubt it, if my power output changes it could fry some of these components," he gestures to the parts moving behind him.
"Then we'll work extra hard on the capacitors," Power Loader says. "But…are you sure this is doable for you?"
"I should be able to keep it going for about…3 hours. But any more than that and I'll be in trouble."
"That fact that you have that much energy is already crazy enough," David Shield says. "And I thought All Might was absurd, but you Mystery Class people are on a whole other level."
"Not us," A voice says from behind them. "Just him, I'm still human."
David Shield and Power Loader turn around to see Star and Stripe in her black ops outfit.
"Star', how was it?" Horizon asks.
"Cold," she hands David Shield a small device. "I attached the other end to the international space station, and relays the satellites you requested."
"Incredible," David Shield says. "I was worried Tech would detect us asking NASA to launch rockets to get this done, but you did it so easily."
"I wouldn't call it easy," Star' says. "Now, Horizon, we need to go to the Whitehouse."
"Ah, it's that time," Horizon says as he lands on the floor. Give me a minute to set these down safely, and I'll meet you upstairs."
"What's going on?" Power Loader asks.
"Nothing to worry about, we just have some planning to do for the implementation of the device," Star' lies. "We'll be back soon."
"Ah, alright, we'll keep working and hopefully have an input station that's compatible with the absurd energy requirement by the time you're back," Power Loader says. 𝙧
---10 Minutes Later…
SHAMBLES!
Horizon and Star and Stripe appear in her bedroom within Lone Star Base, where they last entered before warping to the Think Tank.
"Great, now Tech thinks we're fucking," Star' grumbles as she begins undressing while walking into the bathroom.
"Hey you're the genius who wanted to get there as quickly as possible, I said we should have just warped from The Pentagon."
"We didn't have time for that!" Star' yells as she gets into the shower, while Horizon sits on her bed and checks his updates from his team.
"Well rest assured, nobody would believe it," Horizon says. "Logistics aside, I'm not interested in fucking what's basically 'All Might with tits'."
"HEY!"
"Phenomenal tits!" Horizon corrects himself.
"That's not the point!"
"Hey you're the one who chose that form, what does regular you even look like?" Horizon asks as she steps out of the bathroom wrapped in a tower, dripping wet.
"If I showed you, I'd have to kill you," she says, seriously.
Horizon looks her up and down, blatantly, then chuckles, "As if you could."
"Whatever, now get out I need to get—"
SHAMBLES!
Star and Stripe warps a few inches to the side, now completely dry and wearing her Hero Costume.
"---Change," She looks down at herself, annoyed. "I told you not to do that, it's creepy."
"It's efficient, besides, I'm a doctor, not a pervert."
"Are you like this with the girls in your class?" Star' asks. "I spoke to Genesis, she has…mixed feelings about you."
"Good for her," Horizon says as he puts his phone away, satisfied with the update he got from his team. "But I have more important things to worry about than the feelings of some teenage girl, like…anything else."
SHAMBLES!
"You know she'd probably go out with you, if you weren't such a dick," Star' says as they appear in a part at the eastern edge of Texas.
"Then I guess it's impossible," Horizon shrugs.
SHAMBLES!
They appear farther east, now in the middle of a highway, with people evacuating toward more rural areas.
"She's gorgeous, I saw her without her mask once, you should ask her out," Star' says.
SHAMBLES!
"I don't have time for romance, there are too many people in the world that need me."
"But don't you want a family sometime?"
SHAMBLES!
"Eventually, but, I have a lot of lifetimes to figure that out, so no need to rush," Horizon says. "Besides, I can't start a family in a world this chaotic, right?"
"What about that other girl, Uravity?"
SHAMBLES!
"What about her?"
"Didn't she call you last week, or was it two weeks ago? Maybe she likes you."
SHAMBLES!
"She was asking me for advice about her boyfriend's birthday gift," Horizon says. "Not sure why she asked me, I don't know what losers like."
"That's kind of mean, don't you think?"
SHAMBLES!
"I've said much worse things to his face, so it's fine. And why are you so interested in my dating life all of a sudden?"
Star' shrugs. "I've just been thinking a lot about…if we fail, no. If, we weren't us, if we were normal people, we'd probably have families to hold as the bombs drop, right?"
SHAMBLES!
"I'd hope so," Horizon says as they begin walking through the corridors of The Pentagon. "But what are you getting at?"
"I don't even know, I guess I'm just a little jealous," Star' admits, softly. "If we weren't us, the world would end, but because we are who we are, we've given up that chance at all the things the helpless people experience."
"It's the most efficient way, it lets us save more people," Horizon says, only for Star' to rest a hand on his shoulder. "What?"
Star' looks at his visor, seeing her own sad and lonely reflection, then lets go. "Sorry, I got distracted, we can talk when this crisis is over," she says as they continue walking toward the meeting.
"Yeah, save your love confession for after, we can celebrate then," Horizon says jokingly, and Star' jabs him in the shoulder, numbing it. "Ah!"
"Save it for your fangirls," she chuckles. "I've actually met you, so I know better."
They make it to the end of the hallway and enter a room with all the highest-ranking military generals and advisors the United States has to offer, sitting around a massive table with President Skyline and the United Nations Secretary-General.
"A thousand years of military experience in one room," Horizon says as he and Star' stand above, leaning on the railing and looking at the meeting taking place below.
"Yeah, and yet, without us, they're helpless," Star' says. "So, whenever you're ready."
"You sure you can handle this?" Horizon asks.
Star' gives him a strange look, "Why? What do you plan to do?"
"Something that is very, very, not heroic," Horizon says.
CLAP!
Horizon gets everyone's attention as he hovers over the railing and down to the massive round table, with a map of the world in the middle.
"Sorry I'm late everyone, but I was needed elsewhere?" Horizon says as he stands in the middle of the table.
"Working on something you can't tell us about, right?" one of the generals asks. "It's one thing if we don't know, but keeping the President in the dark is too much."
"Yes well, President Skyline has more people around him and is an extremely high-value target for Tech to monitor, so yes, he is being kept in the dark, just like all of you."
"This doesn't feel like a partnership," one of the other generals says.
"That's because it's not," Horizon says as he walks over to look down at the woman. "You are the greatest military minds on the planet, but, we don't need you to fight a war. The war is over, we lost before we could throw a single punch.
This, is the resistance, and like it or not, not all of us will live to see freedom."
Star' narrows her eyes at him.
"Which is why you're all here early, because you're going to surrender."
There is an immediate uproar from the generals while President Skyline and the UN Secretary-General sit silently.
"We don't surrender to terrorists!" One of them yells, silencing all the others. "We don't even negotiate with those animals!"
"Well, Tech has nukes over your heads, and I'm here holding a sword to your throat, it's a lose-lose, unless you listen to me," Horizon says.
They all glance over to President Skyline, and he subtly nods, signaling them to be quiet and listen.
"The plan is very simple, Tech has to organize the entire world into whatever systems he wants us to use. That process will take a few days, which we need for the project we're working on to be ready.
Local and global communications have been cut, so just like you can't call your families, governments can't talk to each other. Now, in one hour Tech will bring select communications back online so he can talk to all the world leaders.
Because nobody's been able to talk to each other, share information, or strategize, America, China, Russia, Japan, and other big nations will be looked at as leaders. America is easily first in the group, so what you say sets the tone for the entire meeting.
Now, the part all of you play is that you bend the knee, and all the other nations will follow."
"No, they won't," One of the generals says, an older woman in full military combat gear.
"Exactly what I'm counting on," Horizon says as he walks atop the table to look down at her. "You all know war can't be won without sacrifice, just like some rebels always die for the movement."
"Fucking animal," the UN Secretary-General mutters under her breath.
Horizon immediately looks at her and walks over, crouching in front of her so he can get close enough.
"Remember what I told you, stick to the script," Horizon says. "You don't talk unless my hand is up your ass moving your lips like a puppet…"
The woman looks up at Horizon for a moment, before she averts her gaze and stares down into her lap.
"This is the part where you nod," Horizon says, and she obeys.
"Great," Horizon claps his hands together as he gets back up, walking to the middle of the table. "Now, as I was saying. We can count Moscow, Beijing, London, and the capital of anywhere else that doesn't get the hint and actually tries to resist the villain with every nuke on the planet over our heads."
"You're talking about millions!" Star yells from above.
"Tens of millions," Horizon corrects her, not looking away. "But compared to ten billion, worthless."
Star and Stripe narrows her eyes at him.
"I told you, you should wait outside…"
Star' takes a deep breath, then leans against the railing, "No, show me what you really are…"
END CHAPTER---